Page 32 of Offering Herself to Darkness

“Thank you so much!” Nora said, smiling. “I only wish I could take a picture of myself in it to show my little girl when I get home.”

“Ah, so you have young ones?” Twilla asked. “We do as well, but they live in the children’s village not far from here.”

“Really? Do they live by themselves with no adults?” Nora was surprised, but Twilla shook her head.

“No, we take it in turns to watch them. There is always one male and one female caretaker for the young ones. Who is watching your young one while you are here?” she asked.

“My mother and also a doctor—a healer,” Nora explained. “You see, my little girl—Anna—is very sick. That’s why I’m here, to try and get the Flower of Healing for her. Otherwise she’s going to…to die.”

She could barely get the words out but she made herself say them anyway. She wanted her new friend to know what was on the line here and why she’d come all the way to Primus Nine.

“Ah, how terrible to lose a young one!” Twilla’s jewel-like eyes were sympathetic. “I will pray that your sacrifice tonight is acceptable and that the Bloom shines for you so that you can pluck it. But I can tell already that the flavor of your feelings will be nourishing to all.”

“Er…the flavor of my feelings? Are you saying you can taste emotions?” Nora asked.

Twilla nodded.

“Oh, certainly! We feed each other as we may, but it is always a treat when visitors from other worlds come to share their feelings with us and feed us on their emotions.”

Suddenly the need to give an emotional sacrifice became clear to Nora. If these people actually could taste and feed on the feelings of others, it made sense that whoever came seeking the Flower of Healing would have to offer them something in the form of emotions in exchange.

“What do my emotions taste like?” she asked curiously.

“Hmm…” Twilla seemed to think about how to describe it. “Salty, like tears…and sweet with hopefulness. I also taste the strong flavor of determination—you will not fail your young one if you can help it,” she said at last.

“And what about Xarex—my husband? Can you taste his emotions too?” Nora asked.

“Oh yes—I tasted his at once for they are even stronger than yours,” Twilla told her.

“Really?” Nora was surprised. She would have thought that the Dark Kindred’s feelings would be more muted, but maybe without the emotion damper’s influence they were more intense than she would have expected.

“Oh yes—he gives off the strong, dark, slightly bitter flavor of protectiveness and possessiveness,” Twilla said, nodding. “His feelings for you are deep and intense. He also gives the fiery, hot flavor of lust when he looks at you. It nearly burned my mouth when I was near him!”

“It did?” Nora raised her eyebrows in surprise.

“Oh yes—such a fierce emotion!” Twilla nodded again, vigorously. “He wants you badly—which is well, since the two of you are mated,” she added.

“Oh, um. That makes sense, I guess.” Nora could feel her cheeks getting hot with a blush.

“You must not have been mated for long,” Twilla remarked. “The intensity of longing and desire that comes from him when he looks at you means his fire for you has not yet dimmed.”

“We just got married—er, mated—yesterday,” Nora explained.

“Ah, then it makes sense that you have no baby in your belly yet,” the other woman said. “I was surprised at first not to smell one in you, especially given the intensity of your male’s love and devotion for you.”

“Wait—you can smell if someone is pregnant?” Nora asked, raising her eyebrows again.

“From the very moment of conception. Why, are your people unable to smell pregnancy?” Twilla asked, looking as surprised as Nora felt.

“No, we have to wait for a while and take a pregnancy test. We, uh, pee on a stick and see if it comes out positive or negative,” Nora explained awkwardly.

“You urinate on a stick? What kind of stick? Does it grow in the jungles and forests of your world?” Twilla asked, looking interested.

“Not exactly.” But just as Nora was going to try and explain further, Jammu could be heard from the other side of the grass door.

“Are you two females ready for the feast?”

“Yes, love—we’re ready,” Twilla called back.

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