Dog Got Your Tongue

by Brian Clark

  This hadn’t gone un-noticed by the senior staff and especially by Aqua and Daisy. They were the two senior Liraque aboard and they were very impressed with what Ray was doing. Ray didn’t realize they were paying such close attention to his actions. Aqua and Daisy had made a point of informing certain people about it. The important point they had made was to not tell either Ray or Flitter.

  Though he didn’t realize it Ray was acting as a contract Liraque. A contract Liraque unlike a regular Liraque didn’t have a specific client. They were hired by companies, hospitals, and parts of the government. They would do pretty much what he did minus the expectation of sleeping with the staff.

  They comforted, laughed with, checked the mental and emotional feel of a location, and reported their findings to their employers. This was done to help ensure the staff was happy and content which increased productivity and reduced friction.

  Aqua had made an appointment with the Captain via Daisy for a lunch with her. When she showed up the door opened even before she dinged. She gave Daisy a wry glance and got one back. It was very hard to catch a Liraque off guard and that was especially true aboard a ship with the lovely nanotech incorporated in it. “Please come in Still Waters. The Captain is waiting for you. I told her we would inform her of what the meeting was once you had arrived.”

  From inside the Captains suite Vyra called out. “Yes and said Captain is starving so get your tail in here and plant said tail in a chair so I can eat. My darn Liraque won’t let me eat till you are seated and ready.” There was definite amusement in her voice when she said that.

  Still Waters walked in and over to Vyra and gave her a hug and a peck on the end of her muzzle. “Poor put on little pup.” She turned to Spring Flower and grinned. “You have some gruel for her right? We don’t want her to starve to death.”

  Vyra narrowed her eyes and barked at her. “Sit or else you evil woman, gruel my ass and I am thinking I need to talk to the Doctor about putting you on a special low protein diet.” As she was talking Spring Flower was setting the servings out before sitting down. “Thank you Spring Flower and it smells good as usual. So what do you want?” It was rare that both senior Liraque would request a meeting with her at the same time.

  Spring Flower looked at Still Waters as an indication for her to speak. “It isn’t a problem Captain and is actually the opposite. Have you noticed that the crew moral is extremely high, higher than normal for the mating season?” Yes with the massive overload of hormones emotions did tend to run high but there was also a great deal of satisfaction with having mated.

  Vyra slowly nodded her head since she wasn’t really sure where this was going. Yes she was keeping a close eye on Ray but mostly via reports from Medical and his Liraque. “I have noticed that even with the various women going into heat there have been fewer reports of friction and higher satisfaction ratings.”

  Spring Flower had to smile slightly. “Do you have any idea why this is the case? Have you seen a cruise that is this relaxed?” As they were talking they were eating and she was enjoying the food and excellent company.

  The Captain had to resist the urge to roll her eyes and tell both Liraque to stop the games and just tell her. That was an exercise in futility though so she resisted the urge. “Honestly I don’t have any idea but I am getting the feeling you do and you are taking your time. I am sure this is due to the deep seated Liraque urge to make their masters try and use their brain.” That was said with a slight bit of an acerbic bite in her voice.

  All that got was a slight smile from the other two. “Well it is something you should really contemplate and consider. Since your attention is so taken up by your command responsibilities I won’t make you think too much.” Still waters told her with a calm voice.

  Vyra rolled her eyes. “How the hell does Dancing Wind put up with you? All the little snarky comments and needling of yours should drive her nuts.” When the two Liraque shared a look Vyra simply smiled. “So what am I missing and yes I am rather occupied right now since we are coming up on a new planet to survey.”

  Spring Flower laughed quietly and leaned against Vyra for a moment. “When was the last time you saw a male Liraque?” She knew that was going to get her attention.

  Vyra was in the middle of bringing a fork full of salad to her mouth when what Spring Flower had said hit. Her mouth opened in shock and she actually dropped the fork and simply stared at the two of them. Her brain was trying to reset and it wasn’t working very well since she had never heard of one.

  Still Waters couldn’t help but take a bite of the salad. “Hmm, the Captain seems to be having some motor skills issues. I think I might need to schedule an appointment with the doctor to have her checked out. She might need an adjustment to the vitamins and special diet she is getting.”

  Vyra snapped her mouth shut and glared at Still Waters for a moment. “Well excuse me for being startled. That would be like asking when you started liking males.” Everyone knew that Still Waters had never mated with a male since she simply didn’t have any interest in them. “Are you trying to tell me that the human male is a Liraque?”

  Spring Flower had to cover her mouth for a moment and then cleared her throat. “Not necessarily a Liraque but acting as one. He is treating the crew as if he was a contract Liraque and I know for a fact that he doesn’t know that. I also know that Flitter doesn’t know it either.” Their goddess had informed her in no uncertain terms to leave the two of them alone.

  Vyra’s hands dropped to her lap and she could only stare at the two. “Oh lady… What…” She closed her mouth and eyes and shook her head trying to get her brain to start again. It had been a very long time since she had been blindsided like this. “Okay. If you say it is so then I have to believe you. Why are you bringing this to me and what do you want me to do about it?” Now her voice carried a note of command in it.

  Still Waters bowed her head slightly in acceptance of the command. “We don’t want you to do or say anything. Let the two of them continue as they are doing but when you send him back do not remove the implant or bracelets. Simply deactivate them and nothing else.”

  Vyra leaned back in the chair and studied the two women. Both looked completely serious and all traces of joking or amusement were gone from their faces. That usually meant that they had gotten a communication from the temple or the goddess. She gave them a slow nod. “I will have to send a message to the Space Headquarters to verify this but pending different orders I will do as requested. I assume you are going to contact the temple as well if this isn’t from them. Inform me of what their position on this is. If this is the case then this is going to have some very major impacts on our society.”

  Both women nodded at her instructions. “We will do that Captain and thank you for seeing us. It was brought to our attention several days ago and we have been paying close attention to the two of them. What we have seen does indicate that Ray does have a strong leaning towards the functions of a Liraque. This is something unique to all of us in recent recorded history. We will give you updates as needed to keep you abreast of what is going on.”

  It didn’t take long for them to finish eating lunch since it was a silent lunch for the balance as all three women considered what had been said. Eventually all three left to go their own ways.

  Chapter 7

  It was about two weeks after they had been with Birdy when her girlfriend came into heat. Ray had promised that he would invite her to his room when that happened. One thing he hadn’t told either woman was he had decided to get the knot modification. He wasn’t really sure what his thoughts on that were since he had just gotten it and hadn’t had a chance to test it. When they walked into the main lounge he traded a slight smile with Flitter.

  When they walked in Birdy bounced over and jumped into his arms and gave him a good hug. “Ray! It is good to see you.” Her eyes were sparking when she said that since she had seen the two of them yesterday. Once she had tried to squeeze his guts out she turned to Flit
ter and gave her a good hug as well. “Guess what?”

  “I don’t know Birdy? You are tired today since you didn’t take me out?” Ray and Flitter snickered when he said that.

  Her girlfriend had walked up behind her and was grinning at Birdy’s antics. Once Birdy had hugged Ray and moved to Flitter Breezy gave Ray a good hug but nothing like the squeeze Birdy had given him. “Hey Ray how’s it going, looking good.” She stepped back and smiled at him since he really did look better than when he had first came aboard.

  Ray returned the hug and stood there with an arm around Breezy while Flitter was returning the hug Birdy had given her. Breezy was a bit taller than he was and looked to have come from a Collie. She had tri-color hair and small perky ears. Her tail had the fringe like a collie’s as well.

  Breezy snickered at him and leaned against him as he was teasing Birdy. She rolled her eyes when Birdy made a grumpy face at him. Just for good measure she leaned over and nuzzled his neck and nipped his ear. “Not that silly boy. Should I show you?”

  Ray laughed and then twitched. “Sheesh what is it with you Inu’s? Those are my ears darn it. Ask before you nip them. At this rate I am going to end up with doggy pierced ears.” Just for revenge he leaned over and nipped one of her ears as well. When she melted into him he raised an eyebrow. “Oh, that is the news huh? Give me a moment.” He checked his calendar and grinned. “We will meet you in the dining room and yes that is both of you since Birdy is at the end of her heat.”

  Flitter rolled her eyes at him. “Hedonist, after watching some of those anime things uploaded for you I think you are trying to start a harem…” Right before they had left Earth they had asked him what he might like uploaded and he had very wide ranging tastes. “At least you don’t force me to watch those Sci-Fi movies.” She had to shudder.

  Birdy squealed at what he said and gave him another good hug. “So are you going to start with me since I am at the end and finish with Breezy since she is starting?” She gave him a winsome look when she asked that. Breezy reached around Ray and lightly bopped her.

  “Scat girls since I know you have work to do.” He gave both a good hug and whispered in Birdy’s ear. “I have a surprise just for you and I am not going to tell you what it is.”

  She gave him a look and narrowed her eyes at him since she had no clue that he had talked to Spike. “Hmm… I will have to seduce the answer out of you.” The two women were giggling as they left the two.

  Ray flopped on one of the couches and shook his head. “Why do I already feel tired and worn out?” When Flitter settled on his lap and grinned he pulled her close and urged her to rest her head on his shoulder.

  He looked down at her and leaned over and lightly brushed his lips across hers. One hand twined his fingers with hers and then lifted it to his lips and pressed a kiss against it. “Have I told you how lovely you are today my Liraque? You are as beautiful and fascinating as the lights of hyperspace. Always showing new aspects I have never seen before. You keep drawing me back to your arms and sometimes your lap.”

  Flitter returned the feather light kiss and was pleased. Ray had come so far since that angry outburst the first morning. There was still a great deal of healing needed but he was doing so much better. When he called her lovely she lowered her ears and nuzzled his neck and sighed in contentment. “And you are a lovely man as well.” She relaxed against him and they sat there looking out the view window and ignore the looks they seemed to be getting.

  Two of the other Liraque aboard the ship were sitting across the room sipping on some shakala which was a mild alcoholic drink. One had to smile at the two before looking at her friend. “I have a feeling that we might be losing a Liraque in the not too distant future. They definitely look more than comfortable with each other sitting there.”

  The other had to smile at the scene as well. “If I wasn’t a Liraque I would be seriously jealous. They do look good together don’t they? Good for her and I hope the Goddess spreads her blessings on them.” Both traded looks again and settled for simply watching them enjoy themselves.

  Several of the nearer crew simply couldn’t help but let out a slight ‘awe’ at the interaction. It was obvious the two of them were very in touch with each other. Most of the crew didn’t deal with the Liraque a great deal unless they were having problems. Just looking at the two it was obvious that they had a very deep connection and it had been growing since Ray had come aboard.

  In one corner of the room a tall muscular Inu was looking at them and almost went over to talk to them. She forced herself not to since they looked very peaceful and she didn’t want to disturb them. That and Dark Song felt so embarrassed wanting some attention from them for such a silly issue. With a sigh she stood up and after checking her clock started towards engineering.

  ~~~

  That evening they were in the dining room nibbling on the food. Tonight it was finger foods which were understandable. After they had revealed themselves to him he had noticed that they had claws at the end of their fingers. They started wide at the base and narrowed down towards the tips and tended to be dark. He had also noticed the skin of their palms and fingers were a bit rougher as well. As they were nibbling Birdy and Breezy came over and plopped down.

  Ray shook his head. “Breezy how do you deal with her, all she does is bounce around and or flop on things.” He winked at her. “Not to mention trying to take out a pack father…” He was grinning when he said that even though it sounded really odd to him.

  Everyone nearby laughed at that and they settled down to eating and talking. Birdy was tickled pink since she had gotten a message from home that her mother had delivered a little boy. Her entire family was stoked since when that happened they would get a nice bonus at the end of the year. She even had some pictures and of course they ended up with a group of crewmembers surrounding them. Everyone was telling her how cute he was and how lucky they were.

  The Captain came over as well and congratulated Birdy as well. “I think this calls for a celebration for the two of you. You are off duty till tomorrow morning and I am going to send a nice bottle of wine to Ray’s room.” There was a moment of silence at that and then everyone cheered.

  Birdy actually quieted down for a moment when the Captain said that. Her ears lowered as well and she gave Vyra a shy thank you. She really hadn’t expected the Captain to show up and most definitely hadn’t expected the gift either. Once Vyra had patted her shoulder and left Birdy watched Ray stand up and looked a bit confused.

  “Well you heard her there is a bottle of wine arriving in my quarters and I am not going to let it go to waste.” He reached over and pulled her out of the chair and into his arms. “I am going to show you the best evening possible my friend. Once I am done with you then I am going to deal with your girlfriend as well and smile as both of you lay there recovering.” That got a really good laugh from most of the women nearby.

  Flitter snickered and pulled Breezy up and wrapped her arm around her and gave her a light kiss. “I will make sure you don’t feel abandoned while Ray is congratulating Birdy on her little brother.” So far she hadn’t played any with anyone that had come into the room but that didn’t mean she wouldn’t. She highly doubted Ray would object. “Now I have a burning urge to go to the room, get a glass of wine, and a nice warm bath.”

  By the time they arrived at their room the bottle was in there in an ice bucket and several glasses. He had to smile since there was a tray of snacks as well. Some cheese, bits of meat, crackers, and some candied fruit. “Man I do appreciate Vyra and we are going to have to do something special for her.”

  Ray carefully opened the bottle and poured a bit of the wine into a glass and handed it to Birdy. “Since it is your evening you get the first sample. What do you think?” As she was doing the whole sniff and sample he was pouring some wine into each glass. Flitter was in the bathroom running the bath. He had to pause for a moment and wonder just who decided they needed such a massive tub. It could easily hold
the four of them.

  “Oh my, this is an excellent bottle and has to be from her personal collection.” She held the glass out for Ray to fill before taking another sip. “So we are going to soak in that obscenely large tub huh? I can definitely get into that.” As she was talking she withdrew her suit and swished her way towards the bathroom. She glanced back over her should. “So are you two coming?”

  They traded looks and withdrew their suits as they headed towards the room. Ray eyeballed Breezy and grinned. “How interesting I had to wonder if all your fur was tri-color. .” He lightly spanked her bottom and got a giggle from her. One thing he had noticed was even the plain looking ladies was attractive in their own ways. It was an interesting observation though some of it was they were all in excellent shape. Even the ones that might be considered fat weren’t.

  When they settled in the tub Ray had to grin at Breezy since she was curled up next to Flitter and they were definitely having fun. “I might have to be jealous now. If you steal my Liraque I am going to grump at you and not share Birdy’s surprise with you.” Just for good measure he eyeballed the two women at the other end.

  Flitter gave him a lofty look. “You have been having all the fun since you arrived. Maybe I want to have a bit of fun as well.” She gave Breezy a good kiss and rested her hand on her lower abdomen.

  Breezy preened with the attention and shyly returned the kiss. “I have never been with a Liraque but I have heard stories. I feel really special right now.” To have the attention of a Liraque and especially one that had a Liraqua was extremely rare.

  Ray smiled at Breezy and reached over and lightly touched her knee. “Flitter is free to share her attention with anyone she wishes. At the moment our relationship doesn’t include sex and even if it did I wouldn’t begrudge her paying attention to our closest friends.” The touching scene only lasted for a moment before Birdy dunked him.