Staring at Ariana taking in the information that she had just been given, Briana wondered if she had heard her friend right; she almost hoped that this was some sort of horrible joke that she wasn't getting.
"Please tell me you're joking?" Briana whispered trying to wrap her head around what she had just heard, she wondered why no one had mentioned this to her before now.
It made her wonder if they were concerned she would have fled back to earth if they had told her about this when Lionel had told her that she was his mate.
Ariana sighed shaking her head, she knew this was a bit of a shock for Briana and she hadn't known that the brunette had no idea about the physical difference between their species.
If she had known, then Ariana would have sat Briana down and had this talk with her a lot sooner; it scared her how close they had come to her not knowing what would happen on her wedding night.
"I wish I was," Ariana said sipping on her drink, she could imagine how strange this was for Briana; she was sure that there were more things that made their species different.
Sitting silently, Briana tried to wrap her head around what Ariana was telling her and she was glad that she was having this talk with her instead of Lionel.
He would try and ease her mind instead of giving her the information that Briana needed, she wasn't entirely sure what to make of what she was being told.
"Won't that hurt?" Briana mumbled squeezing her legs together and wondering how on earth this was going to work, she was human and she doubted that her body would be prepared for Aulean's mating rituals.
Ariana didn't speak, she could see that Briana was slowly starting to come around and she would have to make sure that Briana knew everything she needed to know.
Sitting silently, Briana nodded her head knowing that there was little use in her freaking out right now when Ariana was just trying to help her; there was so much that she really didn't know.
"And you don't have a tail?" Briana asked softly, it was all so strange and she couldn't work out how she had gotten herself into this mess; she couldn't work out why Lionel would want someone like her as his mate.
Her life had changed within a short space of time and Briana couldn't help but feel a little lost about what was going on around her.
"No it's mainly a male thing," Ariana reassured her, she smiled reassuringly at Briana seeing how lost her friend looked about all of this; she was sure that in time it would all come naturally to her.
Ariana couldn't imagine how confusing this was for Briana, she was sure that if the shoe was on the other foot that she would feel the same if she went to live on Earth and found a mate there.
"Okay explain the whole mating thing to be again," Briana said knowing that she needed to know what was going to have when her and Lionel finally took the next step.
It was scary enough hearing what happens with his private parts and Briana wasn't sure what else to expect during sex with Lionel.
Ariana set down her drink, she wasn't entirely looking forward to this talk but it did give her practice for when her own daughters were older and coming of age.
"It's not much different from how you do things... except Lionel will bite you," Ariana explained trying to keep it calm, she wasn't good at this but she was probably doing better than Lionel would have.
It wouldn't have ended well if Lionel had tried to explain this to Briana especially since he was worried about freaking Briana out with some of the facts.
"Just for the first few times... it'll help with getting you ready for him," Ariana continued trying to ease her mind, she couldn't imagine how strange this was to hear and she didn't blame Briana for being freaked out.
Trying to ease her own mind, Briana nibbled on her lip wanting nothing more than to learn what she could; she made a mental note to search for more information when Ariana had left.
"He'll also knot you at the end," Ariana mumbled awkwardly, she was dreading having this talk with her own daughters if this was how awkward it was going to be.
Briana didn't say a word, her mind trying to work out how the hell this was going to work and she knew that this was going to be something that would plague her mind until she actually slept with Lionel for the first time.
"He'd never intentionally hurt you Bri," Ariana reassured gently, she was here if Briana needed someone to talk to about all of this, she wasn't alone and she didn't have to handle this alone.
Briana was going to be family and Lionel wanted her to be happy, they were just going to have to work this out between them; they would be just fine and Ariana was sure about that.
Nodding her head, Briana didn't say a word as she sat back in her chair thinking about everything that she had learnt in the last couple of hours with Ariana; she had a feeling that this entire thing was going to be a learning experience.
This was all so new to her and Briana just wanted to feel something familiar since she was so far away from home, she wished her mother was around so that she could talk to her and ask her for advice.
Addison had been everything to Briana and now that she was gone, Briana felt so alone and she wanted nothing more than to have some sort of connection with her mother again.
***
Brushing some hair out of her face, Briana nibbled on her lip as she padded into the living room where Lionel was; she had made a decision and she hoped that Lionel would agree to what she wanted.
After her talk with Ariana, Briana felt a little better about things but she knew that there was something she hadn't done in a while and it was something that she felt like she needed to do.
"I was wondering if it would be okay if I went to church?" Briana asked pausing a little away from him, she couldn't remember the last time that she had been and she was sure that she would feel a little better if she went.
Her mother had always taken her to church and it was something that Christina had put a stop to when Briana had come to live with her father; she was just glad that she didn't have to deal with that woman anymore.
Lionel blinked looking at Briana, he was a little relieved at how calm she seemed after her talk with Ariana; he was thankful that it had been his cousin to help her through all of this.
He had also stocked up on books about his people and he was sure that Briana would find them interesting, they would help her a lot more than talking with him would.
"You don't have to ask," Lionel mumbled smiling at her, she had a body guard and it would be good for her to go out; he hated the thought that she was stuck in the apartment alone all the time.
Briana was still adjusting to all of this and apart from a couple of royal appearances, there really hadn't been much for her to do.
Opening and closing her mouth, Briana nodded her head knowing that he was right but it didn't hurt to check in case there was some sort of problem that she wasn't aware of.
"I want you to be happy Ana," Lionel said getting to his feet, he would do literally anything for her and he knew that even a small comfort of going to a church might ease any home-sickness that she was feeling.