He was back to the corner he was huddled in and Sophie had finally manage to move her sore muscles and grab a t-shirt and panties.
"I am not true Mironian. Only half therefore my mating is different. I always assumed I had lost the right to a mate due to my being a mix between worlds."
Sophie narrows her eyes at him, "So- what are you exactly?"
"Think of one of the most powerful creatures on you planet. Multiply that by ten and you have an ancient race called the Salm. They have died out now but my father was the last. Evil fucking beings."
Sophie slips off the bed and walks towards him, "Why would any female willingly mate with an evil being?"
He turned away, "I never said my mother was willing, Sophie."
Her mouth drops open, "I-m I'm sorry...Raph I didn't-"
"Sh." He hushes her and pulls her on-top of his lap.
"I knew my mating would be different...difficult. And it was. You died."
"I died." She nods numbly hating reminder of the cold emptiness that follows death.
"I... preformed an old ritual unsure of what it would do but I thought you to already be dead. I hoped it would just somehow bring you back but it did something else entirely." He trailed off.
"The ritual fed you half my soul. You are half of me. Half of my strength, half of my being, half of my heart. Wherever you go, you'll feel me."
Raphael wouldn't look at her. Too afraid of what he'd see on her face. Shock certainly, anger? Definitely, but she was also grateful. She now had an entire lifetime with her friends even if it meant being bound to him.
"Isn't that the same as the claim?" She whispers, her now sharpened claws scrape against herself as a new reminder that she will never be the same.
He shifts looking unsure about how to proceed. "It's... deeper. More catastrophic in some ways. We will feel each other always. You will feel my presence with you even if I'm not there physically; even if I die."
Sophie sucks in a deep breath, "and that is why it's catastrophic.."
He nods keeping his hard stare on her face, "Love drives beings crazy Sophie. Especially when you feel them there but always just out of your reach, I've seen it kill many. This bond must be nurtured always, both halves have to be near one another."
"So these ancient beings... like your father; they'd mate with whoever knowing it would likely kill them without his constant attention, and then he'd disappear?" Her voice didn't hide the disgust she was feeling.
"He stayed until they birthed him a child and then he'd leave. Most of them were born too weak due to his despicable treatment of the mothers while they were with child. In the end only two of us survived past childhood but my brother died as soon as he reached adulthood."
Sophie's mouth was dry. She didn't know what to think of it all; the fact that all he'd have to do to kill her, is disappear, is terrifying. But that goes both ways.
"What will happen to you after I die? Mortality is a frail thing."
"Your mortality died with you. I told you we are now one; you will live as long as I do." His hands grip her waist.
"How long will you live?"
"It's uncertain. The Mironians live well into the thousands in your human years. The Salm can live triple that."
Sophie turned away thinking of what this meant, "We will outlive our friends."
He nods watching her carefully.
"You hate me."
She shakes her head, "I am... confused." She sighs. "I've never even had a boyfriend and I've basically just married a stranger. The prospect of spending forever with one another is frightening. Especially when we don't know if we are compatible."
"Do you believe the universe to be so cruel as to pair us together if we weren't compatible?"
"I hope not. But I don't have much faith in the universe. Do you?" She looks back at this male who sits strong and tall.
Not proud but... confident. His eyes watch her with such fierceness it's hard to imagine being with a regular human man after being in Raphael's company.
He smirks, "No, but I have faith in you and myself. That's all I need to believe in for now."
She lays her head on his chest and they sit there watching the sunrise through her balcony doors. The coldness of the floor numbing their limbs but the warmth of their bodies warming their hearts.
"We have forever according to you so I only ask that you don't rush me. Many things will be my first and I want them to matter. To be special and memorable." She mumbles against his hard chest.
His arms squeeze her closer and brings her peace. After lying in the coldness of death for four days, his warmth is heaven in comparison.
"Don't break me Raphael." She whispers as her eyes close with the promise of peaceful sleep.
"I won't, I swear my life upon it. You will be treasured for the rest of your life. I will spend my years showing you the happiness you deserve little female." He whispers in her hair, pulling her closer.
He meant every word. Every promise to her, he will keep. Sophie is his light, the promise of a future after he's endured the darkness for so long.
——————————————————————————
A few days later—
"Can aliens fall in love?" Sophie pops a piece of fruit in her mouth; it tastes like a mixture of banana and orange but a little sour.
Raphael scowled at the fruit as if it was offending him in some way. Carnivores, she thought as she rolled her eyes.
"It's a new concept; just introduced within the past hundred of your human years. Although I think it's been here the whole time." He stands in the corner watching her as if she'll attack him any second after what had occurred this morning.
Which under normal circumstances she would; but being dead makes you really hungry and tired.
He had snuck up on her whilst she was asleep. He startled her and she punched him in the face; a normal reaction if you ask her. Now he was standing in his corner sulking. For a big bad warrior he really is a teddy bear, she thought to herself.
"I already said I am sorry." She rolled her eyes, "now you're just being dramatic."
He narrows his eyes at her playfully. "Your tiny fists have a mind of their own."
She snorts, "Don't you forget it either." She point a piece of fruit at him.
"For As long as the universe has been here there have been mates, partners, couples, symbiotic relations of some sort. Some stayed together forever; if this is not a form of love then what is?"
Sophie looked Raphael over, for a big scary guy he is really wise, strong, tall, handsome, fuckab- okay. She looks away with a deep blush. Warmth pools in her abdomen as she avoids his sharp eyes.
Her hearts beating so fast, she's confused, uncertain- the warmth and the urge that's taken over her is making her uncomfortable in her own skin.
Raphael looks at her quizzically before sniffing the air around her. It hits him like a bus and he chokes, tripping backwards. He knocks into a glass table that shatters instantly on the marble floors. His back smacks into the wall and his crimson eyes stare widely and hungrily at her.
"Sophie-" he warned as she slipped from her stool and started rubbing her thighs together.
"Why do I ache? I thought you said this was over?" She felt cold, so cold that the tips of her fingers felt frozen solid. What lies between her thighs aches increasingly as the moments pass.
She throbs and moans with pain against the counter staring at Raphael.
He has his claws embedded into her walls and was breathing raggedly, "you have to calm down. I promised I'd go slow- but this will move exponentially faster than you want if you keep staring at me like that." He hisses a warning.
He knew mating was apart of the claim but he thought they would have time- that it wouldn't have to happen immediately. He could smell she was untouched, he'd only end up hurting her if he were to fuck her right now.
She crumbles in on herself in a sharp cry and he rushes to her. She's paler than normal and her hunger has already started. She needs to feed off of his pheromones which will be difficult considering she's inexperienced.
He gently lifts her and takes her to her bedroom and slowly starts removing his clothes. She whimpers and watches him through wide nervous eyes.
"I will not mate with you. But you must feed from my pheromones. I assume your friend told you most of the basic information; the preferred way is through sex but there are other ways to ebb the hunger for now. Until you're ready." He whispers to her as his large rough palms slowly start to undo her button up blouse.
With her breasts on full display he ducks down and suckles on one perky nipple before showing equal attention to the other. Her cheeks are bright read as she watches his every move. Her body felt like she was being filled up with electricity- a strong force pushing her to pleasure him as well but he knocked her hands away as she reached for him.
"I will feed off of your pleasure." He smirks above her and slowly pulls off her bottoms.
Her chest feels like it's about to explode. The nervousness of inexperience clawing the back of her mind.
"I won't hurt you." He whispers this promise with small praises as he leaves a path of soft kisses down her breasts to her core.
She flinches when his warm lips descend upon her. He spreads her wide with his thick fingers and his long tongue runs down her slit. He groans and the euphoric feeling has her twisting in her sheets.
"Raph-" she moans when he enters her warmth with a thick finger while running his tongue over her clit over and over.
Raphael groans as her sweet pussy squeezes around his finger. She's too tight; he was correct in assuming he'd hurt her if he had chosen to take her.
He enters another and lifts his head up to watch her as she starts to ride his fingers. His mouth parts open in shock at how beautiful she looks while her face twists with pleasure. The way her body shakes with the unfamiliar pleasure he's giving her.
Pride swells with him; he's proud he can illicit such a sweet sound from her soft lips. Proud that he can pleasure his female. He could spend the rest of his life eating her wet pussy if it meant she'd keep making those sweet sounds.
He slows his fingers slightly and her eyes shoot open, "P-please don't stop." She groans as sweat trickles down her forehead.
He smirks and lowers his mouth back down to her wet heat. He resumes his ministrations on her clit and speeds up the pace of his fingers; managing to hit that sweet spot deep inside of her pretty cunt.
He watches her every move as she comes undone for him. She screams; her claws coming out to grip his head to her as she rides his face. He can feel the tug of her soul starting to feed off of the pleasure he's given her.
He stands and licks his lips, fully satisfied from the meal she had gifted him.
Sophie lays there staring up at the large alien with wide eyes. She didn't know what she was expecting but- it was definitely not that. The euphoria and pleasure made her whole body tingle and the satisfaction that follows is strange.
She's never been fully satisfied when it came to anything. But she wanted more. Even though she's fully satisfied as if she had feasted- she wants more.
She grabs his horns and brings him down on top of her. He stares into her eyes unsure of what she's planning to do with him.
"Give me more." She whispers staring back at him.