Books in the Folician Chronicles series

Dog Got Your Tongue – Folician Chronicles 1

Homecoming – Folician Chronicles 2

The Temple – Folician Chronicles 3

We have to keep moving forward – Folician Chronicles 4

The Goddess and the Pack Lord – Folician Chronicles 5

The Past is the Future – Folician Chronicles 6

Dawn of Hope – Folician Chronicles 7

A Folician Christmas

The Terran Enclave – Klithian Chronicles 1

A New Balance – Life and Death – Klithian Chronicles 2 (in progress)

~~~ Gloria finds she pregnant

Gloria was staring at the EPT in her hand and was shocked it was positive. She hadn't really paid attention when her period hadn't come since she was on BC and tended to do it to her body. All she could do was stand there staring at the innocent little stick with the Plus showing positive. What the hell was she going to do now?

She sighed as she repeated the second test a week later and it was still saying she was pregnant. To be honest she wasn't sure how she wanted to feel now. Most females dreamed of having babies at some point or another, but it wasn't something she had been planning currently. She had other things she wanted to accomplish before contemplating babies and who she might want to be the father.

The next morning as she went to work, she went in a few minutes early and waited for her boss. When Simon came in, he gave her an odd look, "I'm thinking you need to talk about something correct? Since you already made the coffee let me get a cup and we can talk for a few minutes." Once he had his coffee he walked to the office and settled down. Once he was seated, he waved her towards one of the other seats, "What do you need to talk about?"

After closing the door and sitting down she blushed and looked at the floor, "I am pregnant Simon and I need to talk to Ray. He is the father since he is the only man I've been with in the last few years. The problem is I don't know where he is right now. I'm hoping you know where he might be, so I can at the very least get a letter to him."

He didn't even bother blinking and simply gave her a warm smile, "I'm not sure why, but I had a feeling about this. I don't know where he is, but I can get a message forwarded to him. Write out a note or letter, seal it and let me have it and I'll take care of it."

She looked up at him and gave him a good nod, "Thank you Simon and I hope you are able to get..." She turned pale and scooted out of the room and headed towards the bathroom.

~~~ Simon and Gloria go to the ship

Simon was sitting in his office when the implant he had been given chimed and he twitched. He was getting used to it since the tiny group of Folicians were using him as a source of information. Normally though they would send to him in the evenings as they had questions on some aspect of items Ray was starting to import to Folicia. There was also a tiny very specialty market for some items from Folicia which was mostly artwork.

This though was not a normal contact request, *Yes, this is Simon speaking.* Since he had no idea who it was he figured it was the best way.

*Greetings Vet Father Simon. This is Captain Fury of the FSS Solar Wind. When would be a good time to bring you aboard for your final medical check and to discuss if you still wish to spend the next two months aboard?* Since she hadn't the same experience with humans, now, Senior Capt. Vyra had she was being formal. It was to do her best not to chance offending the recommended human.

Simon checked his schedule, *Give me a moment and then I can come up.* He smiled to himself and called the front desk, "Send Gloria to my office please. Both of us are off the schedule for the rest of the day. We have a few things to do which deal with Ray. Thank you." *I need to bring one additional person aboard and I'll explain why it's needed when we come aboard.*

Gloria walked into Simon's office with a somewhat confused look on her face, "You called for me?" The only reason she could think of was in relation to the question she had asked about Ray a week ago, "Did you get any information back from Ray yet? A message or anything, he really does need to know."

Simon stood up and took his vet jacket off and tossed it on the coat rack on his wall, "I did and why don't you take your jacket off and toss it up there as well. I am going to say the same thing to you which Ray said to me, prepare to have your mind blown." *Bring myself and the human female next to me up. Please be aware she is pregnant.*

Moments later the two of them were in medical and her jaw dropped as she gazed around, "What? By my ancestors I need to sit down." As she was starting towards a chair a female, dog maybe, came over and said something she didn't understand, "I am sorry, but I don't understand."

Simon spoke to the being as he came over and gently grasped her elbow, "You don't have a translator currently, so you won't understand their language. Someone is bringing you a temporary one." He urged her to a chair to sit in, "Someone is bringing you something to drink as well. They have some very good teas from what Ray and Flitter have said. Just take a deep breath and relax." He settled down in a chair next to her.

Moments later another female came in and smiled at her and twitched an ear in her direction. She held a tiny crystal to Simon and spoke to him for a moment.

Once Simon was sure he had the instructions down, he turned to Gloria, "This is an external translation device and goes behind your left ear. You will feel a tiny prick but it's all and then moments later you will begin to understand what is being said." She was looking fairly scared and he paused and took both of her hands, "Gloria I know you are scared and believe me I understand. Even when Ray proved to me Flitter was an alien it really didn't hit until my first visit to a star ship. I have talked to Flitter and several others and the Folicians I have met have been very nice people. Trust in Ray, would he lead you into anything which would hurt you? Or your baby if he knew about it? He hasn't gotten the message yet due to the time it takes to transport the message there."

Gloria listened very carefully to him and she slowly nodded. She had seen many times just how much he cared for the pets and their owners. She had also seen how he had doted on Flitter and it was real, she could tell just how much he cared for her... "That's what he said, one small prick and... Wait, Ray said Flitter's baby was his. How the heck can it be?" She dropped her face to her hands and her long black hair fell forward over her hands and face, "Just do it Simon. Get it over with or I'll lose my nerve." She felt a gentle touch behind one ear and the slight pain and then nothing.

Simon snickered at her comment and reaction, "As Budda said, one quick screw leads to many!" It was a horrible joke he'd heard many years ago. He placed the external translator chip behind one ear and felt it almost merge with her skin. Based on what one of the medical tech's had said it would send out nanites to connect to her auditory nerves.

All she could do was groan at his joke, "Simon, some days I really do hate you and Ray's questionable sense of humor if it can be called that." There had been the occasional time she'd considered finding a new job with people of lest questionable humor.

While she was getting the external translator, the captain had entered medical, "Good after noon Vet Father Simon and will you introduce us please?" She wasn't very happy with having a female human on board. Nothing against human females but they could distract the Folician males from their needs. Right now, they were focused on human males getting Folician females pregnant. They hadn't contemplated possibly needing human females getting pregnant by Folician males.

Gloria sat up startled when she understood what the alien was saying. She stood and nodded at the alien since she had no idea who the female was, "I am Gloria and I work for Simon and used to work with Ray. I need to see Ray since I am carrying his baby." She drew a ragged breath as she looked around and slumped, "It wasn't expected, and I need to contact him to let him know. I don't expect him to raise our baby, but I do want the baby to know who the father is."

As they were talking another female walked in and she was wearing purple instead of the red or cream and gold. After one glance around she walked over to Gloria and wrapped her arms around her, "Hello Gloria, I am pleased to meet you. My Temple Mother told me to come and greet you. If you so choose while you are here, I'll be your Liraque and, as needed Simon's." She was stroking Gloria's hair and back while radiating contentment.

Gloria was more than startled when the woman approached and gently pulled her into a hug. When she did a comfort flowed from the woman into Gloria and she started relaxing almost immediately. Her arms came up around the female and almost clung to her for several minutes as the woman stroked her hair and back. She remained in the hug and sighed, "Thank you for the hug and I feel much better now."

She moved back and gave the other a smile and couldn't help but grin. She had the coloring of a blue heeler which was a dog she really liked, "Again thank you ma'am. What's a Liraque?" She turned to the other woman in the cream and gold uniform.

Storm gave her one last squeeze before letting Gloria go, "I'll explain later. For now, talk to the captain." She kept one arm around Gloria to keep comforting her.

The woman was striking both in her carriage and her coloring. Her coloring was a reddish color like a red lab. She stood tall and proud which her carriage showed clearly, "Afternoon Liraque Storm Waters and I wish I had known. Please keep me updated in the future if you can." She turned back to Gloria and gave her a polite smile. She still wasn't pleased having her onboard, "I am Captain Fury and you are aboard the FSS Solar Wind and welcome aboard. Before we do anything else why don't we have medical do a quick scan to ensure you won't catch anything from us or us from you. It will also check on the pregnancy for you Gloria. It's totally non-invasive."

The doctor traded looks with Storm and rolled her eyes. Storm looked at the two, "Pack Father Rayfuso asked to have Simon informed they have a special test for you. I don't quite understand the meaning, but he said something about intrusive cranial-rectal scanning." She frowned a bit more and then shrugged.

Simon stared at her for a few moments even as Gloria covered her eyes with a hand, "Oh god, Ray's joke was so bad I almost feel the need to vomit." It was most definitely a groan of agony, "I was hoping I could get away from those horrible movie references." Just for good measure she turned to Storm and pretended to sob on her shoulder.

Simon tried so very hard not to laugh but between Gloria's reaction and the confused look of the Folician's, he lost it. He ended up falling in a chair he was laughing so hard. Eventually he managed to catch his breath, "It's a joke between the two of us. It's based on some really bad science fiction movies and from when Ray vanished. I'll have a discussion with him about such things."

Simon finally stood up and shook his head, "Sorry captain for his joke. Ray should know better and if you don't mind, I'll record a message for him when you are done with the scanning."

The captain was forced to roll her eyes as she remembered Captain Vyra's report on the humans she had brought back and their childish sense of humor, "I'm sure we will live, and it'd be appreciated though I'm not sure why I am getting a chill down my back. Go get scanned Simon and I'll talk to Gloria for a moment."

The doctor led him off and behind a curtain. From behind it, Simon could be heard to exclaim 'Oh Mai!'. He didn't say anything else and the doctor could be heard to sigh, "Tree of Agony can you bring the restraints? I am sure this is going to be very painful..."

Tree snorted, "That's Tree of fun darn it, not agony! I'll bite you later doctor." There was amusement in her voice when she said it. Her actual name was Tree's Height.

Gloria groaned again and remained in the other woman's arms but looked at the captain, "So what do you want to talk about?" When the captain waved her over to a large chair Storm led her over and after settling down urged Gloria into her lap.

"Relax Gloria this is just part of our normal society and culture. Being we seem to resemble the canine species from your planet we do mirror some of their aspects. We aren't sure how or why this is so, but it is. Our species, is female heavy and everyone knows females like to cuddle right? It also allows me to get a feel for who you are and what you might need. It's what makes me a Liraque."

Gloria sighed in confusion, "I think I understand but I feel so confused now. Looking back, I should have noticed there was something different to Flitter other than just her hair color." She shifted slightly and relaxed, "Anyways, Captain what do you want?"

Fury tilted her head at her and contemplated the two women for a moment, "Well once we confirm Ray is the father of your pup it will change a number of things for both you and us. Assuming he is, this puts us in an odd position since one of our most basic tenants is pack comes first. If you are with his child and you so decided, you could request to be returned to him and his pack as a member. You could also choose to remain on earth and work for us. Ray has started a small trading concern which is exporting luxury items from your world and importing them to ours. We could use a human to help explain your culture to us. You would receive support from his pack for both you and your pup."

Gloria couldn't help but grin, "Oh, I know it's his. See I normally only have sex with or make love to women. He is the only man who has breached my defenses and my panties in years. I can understand your need to check but chances are a solid bet I would choose either of you over a male any day. Especially ones with horrible senses of humor." She blushed deeply, "All I'll really say is OMG I woke up with one eye still unfocused the next morning." Now Ray she wouldn't mind going back to bed with at some point.

The captain raised an eyeridge and gave a good cheerful laugh, "Oh my, I might have to ask Vyra what her reaction was. If most human males cause the sort of reaction our males will probably start pouting." She laughed again, "The majority of us tend towards relationships with women simply because there are so few males. Very few females really get a chance to get into a long-term relationship with a male." She looked pensive after saying it, "It's why we are trying something different. We can and do breed with humans but before Pack Father Rayfuso we would bring a human male aboard during our heats and then block their memories and sent them back. Granted they were well compensated for the time they lost but Ray changed our thinking on it."

Gloria glanced at Storm and moved off her lap and walked over to the Captain and settled down in her lap, "I am making a huge assumption here, but gentle cuddling helps, right?" She leaned into the captain, "I also have a feeling since I am pregnant, and it means so much to you, it should help also."

The Captain wrapped her arms around Gloria and leaned into her and had to smile, "You think right, it does help, and I can smell the pregnancy and the scent is comforting. With Ray, last we heard they had formed a new pack for him. It's called Pack Johnson and all the females who were pregnant by him are members. We know for a fact the females are all having a male pup and if twins the other is a girl pup. This is unheard of in the last several hundred years. In him and his pack we are finally seeing hope for the future of our race." She rested her head on Gloria's shoulder, "Simon is also going to be a test. Depending on what his bracelets have to say and the number of male to female births of any females he gets pregnant will get us even closer to the answer we need."

Gloria was listening to what the Captain had to say and sighed, "I wish I could help but I can't get anyone pregnant. I'll need some time to consider the options though I do want to see Ray and tell him face to face. This isn't the sort of thing to send a video mail about. If I do decide to at least go and visit him what sort of time frame are we looking at?"

The Captain smiled at her and nuzzled her neck for a moment, "Why don't you see about the scan first and then we will talk. If you would like, Storm will show you around the ship, or parts of it. Ray seemed to have loved the view port in the forward lounge."

Once of the medical staff came over and gave Gloria a shy smile, "If you will follow me, I'll help you onto the scan bed." She winked at Gloria, "Ignore the screams from the other bed. Simon is mumbling evil things to say when he records the message to the Pack Father." She had to wrinkle her muzzle at her when she said it.

Gloria covered her eyes again, "Thanks for the warning. If Simon had started screaming after the scan bed thing started doing its job, I probably would have ended up squeezing the fetus out. I don't know about you, but I like the idea of having a baby even if it was totally unintended." She let the other female led her to a bed and pulled a curtain around it.

"I need you to strip down to your skin and then climb onto the bed. It will auto-adjust to your size and comfort." She waited, and Gloria tried to figure out why she was and then it occurred to her, "Oh, right, let me guess little to no body modesty since you are almost all females, just a moment." She quickly stripped down and with the help of the tech settled down on the bed and groaned, "Oh god, this is good. You might not get me to leave due to the mattress alone." She watched the scan shield come down.

"You will be scanned as soon as I move out of the curtain. You will hear a humming sound and possibly a tingle but that's it. There will be a light glowing which will show you where the scan is at during the process. It's safe to look at the light and won't cause any physical damage at all." Before she stepped out, she stroked Gloria's hair, "Relax and just close your eyes if you want. This takes about fifteen minutes."

Once the other woman stepped out the light started, and Gloria close her eyes and simply let it run. In the next bed over she could hear Simon asking if they were ready to record. A slight smile crossed her face. When Simon started to pretend to scream and carry on Gloria had to join in, "Damn it Ray why did you tell them to do it to him? Good god, Simon, Simon can you hear me? What happened to you Simon?" She wailed as well just for good measure.

Simon had started the joke with, "Good god what is that? Why is it... Arrrggghhhh, no, not there." He started sobbing, "Why did you tell them to probe me Ray? Why... Eeeeeekkkkkk.... Oh, not there either, don't probe me..." He screamed again and when Gloria joined in, he started sobbing, "Gloria the darkness, the darkness... It approaches, why Ray why?" As he was talking his voice faded off.

For a moment medical was silent before several people groaned, "Captain can I gag them? I have a couple of those round black ball things with straps. I really don't know why Ray sent them with but..." The voice was sounding totally confused.

~~~ Storm and Gloria

Gloria had ended up getting the neural implant as well as a ship suit. Simon had warned her about it being a snug fit since Ray hadn't warned him. She still grunted and as all of them seemed to do had wiggled her bottom for a few moments. Once she had gotten used to it, she didn't seem to mind at all.

Storm waited for her and Simon to pull their suits on. Their clothing was placed in a storage bin for the moment since the suits were required while aboard. She tucked one of Gloria's arms around hers and walked out of medical. Simon was following, and he was grinning like a little boy. Gloria had to shake her head, "Don't let him near the weapons console or he will start making shooting noises and giggling insanely. I really don't understand why you voluntarily picked him after Ray. As you have seen, both their sense of humor is so wrong on so many levels." She had to roll her eyes as Simon simply smiled at her.

Storm had to grin at Gloria, "As we say on Folicia boy pups will be boy pups. I'm sure you have similar sayings, right? The captain asked me to show you around before bringing you to her quarters for dinner. You rather threw her for a loop and Fury has some questions she needs answered. I'll answer as many as possible also."

Simon was grinning excitedly as they were walking around. He was getting several speculative looks from some of the females which he returned, *Actually, I do have a few questions myself. I am talking to both of you this way to keep them private. I have no wish to insult anyone with them. I spent a great deal of time talking to Flitter and have a general understanding of what a Liraque is. My first and honestly most important question is when it comes to selecting females to join me how will it be done? After talking to Ray I rather like the way he went about it. Granted I am not looking for a mate in anyway but I don't want to sleep with a woman I'm not comfortable with.*

Gloria had to give him a confused and questioning look, *What do you mean by that?* Using the implant was weird since she'd been told to just think at it. She was still trying to figure out what was going on. Storm mentioned something earlier but there was so much going on it was taking her time.

Storm smiled slightly, *Relax Gloria, as I mentioned, the short version is the Folician race is slowly dying. Our birth rates are heavily skewed to female births compared to male births. For normal Folicians it runs about 17 females born to every male. When we breed with normal humans it lowers to about ten females to one male. Of the babies born since we encountered your race the ones old enough to have babies are keeping close to the same ratio. It's helping but as of now it's a drop in the bucket. With Ray of the seventeen Folician's he made pregnant all had boys and if they had twins the other was female.*

Gloria froze in the middle of the hall and looked at her in shock, "Excuse me how many mates does he have?" She had known Flitter was pregnant by him but nothing more. She hadn't known she was alien or any of the other stuff.

Storm couldn't help but give her a slight grin, *Ray has only one mate, but monogamy has never been something we worked with. There have always been more females than males and it would be utterly silly to keep with the one male one female thing. Added to it, since we are fertile only twice a year during heat, for the rest of the year we can do as we wish. As of now Ray was granted a pack since he is a Pack Father and the seventeen females comprise the core group. He can bring in more Folician's, but I have a feeling he is going to be extremely picky. If Simon wishes, once he has spent his two months here, he can go back with the females pregnant by him and be added to Ray's pack.*

Gloria groaned, *I am starting to get a headache now. Can we just go to a lounge and get something to drink and talk there?* For some reason using the implant wasn't a problem right now. She almost felt like she had been knocked off her feet and every time she tried to get up, they were knocked out from under her again.

"I rather like the idea myself. I really do want to see the earth from space with my own eyes." He had the little boy look now. He was almost vibrating to see the earth, "When Ray told me about seeing the earth from space, I was so jealous I wanted to throttle him."

Storm smiled at them and took a different hallway, "Actually that's a good idea. Personally, I'm sure you have more questions than urge to look around the parts of the ship you are allowed in." She chewed on her lower lip for a moment and looked slightly concerned, "Please do me a personal favor; don't judge our culture too harshly until you have spent more time with us. Some of the things we have done or forced to do was to ensure our survival until we can figure out how to bring balance back."

Gloria stopped in the hallway and turned so she was facing Storm and stroked her cheek, "I do understand since some aspects of my parent culture gets frowned on by other cultures. Culture is neither right nor wrong since it was developed to protect the survival of the species. It also sets the ground rules on how we treat each other for much the same reason." She stroked her cheek a moment or two longer, "I do have a more important question for you."

Simon narrowed his eyes at her and started to open his mouth only to get shushed by Gloria. He snapped his mouth shut and frowned at her.

Storm had to grin at the interaction, "I see you have him trained well... So, what is this burning question you have?" She could tell the feeling of mischief Gloria was feeling.

"Okay, with the vast difference between male and female births is there any problem with ladies entertaining each other?" There was a twinkle in her eyes when she said it and she glanced at Simon as he heaved a very put-upon sigh.

Storm had to blink and then snickered before finally laughing, "Oh goodness you are such a tease. Not at all and if you had to wait three or four months to get an itch scratched... Well we would all be bitches then." The comment had been in one of the reports as well.

Simon simply stared at her and his jaw dropped, and ended up groaning, "And you complain about my jokes? That was just horrible!" He glared at Storm for what she'd said.

Gloria simply snickered, "In this case I might just have to consider taking up your offer of going to Folicia, I believe it's called? God only knows sometimes finding a way to, how did you put it, get your itch scratched can be a pain back home." She eyeballed Storm for good measure, "I bet I could make you howl like a dog as well..."

Simon groaned and lightly smacked her on the head, "Gloria that's a horrible joke and I'll ensure Ray finds out. Then again it sounds like he made you bark like a dog and according to you, guys are only good for carrying heavy things and reaching top shelves."

The banter continued as they headed towards the lounge. When they reached it, much like most humans Gloria and Simon paused before they moved towards the large window.

Gloria paused before even considering she lifted a hand and touching it, "She's so beautiful. I've heard the saying 'a big blue marble in space' but that's such a weak description. Thank you, Simon." When Storm wrapped her arms around her, she leaned back against her chest.

Simon did lift a hand and pressed it against the view port, "She is, isn't she? I might kiss Ray when I see him. Thanks Storm." It was such a wonderful view. Eventually they headed towards dinner.

~~~ Gloria and Storm talk

The next morning Gloria was standing in the shower with Storm and was trying to wrap her brain around everything. Last night they'd ended up simply cuddling and talking. The talk with the captain had answered a number of questions but she still had more for Storm. The first question Gloria had was just what was a Liraque. Simon had a general idea but since this was totally new to Gloria, she was starting at the ground floor.

Once the concept of a Liraque was explained she had to try and fit it into her cultural beliefs. Once she had managed it her questions became far more focused. Unlike Ray or Simon, if she chose to stay for even a short time with the aliens, she wasn't going to be knocking anyone up. She wasn't going to be distracted by constantly meeting women and deciding who to knock up next.

In the shower, she couldn't help but relax as Storm was working on her back, "Goodness I might just see if I can keep you around for your hands alone." Gloria teased her, "Well and you are one sexy lady." She looked over her shoulder at Storm and grinned when she said it, "For this alone I'm tempted to go back with you. If all of you wash backs this well..." She made a pleased sound and relaxed further into the touch.

Storm snickered at her when she started teasing her, "Silly human, maybe I am the one who might keep you around." She took a moment to wrap her arms around Gloria and stroked the tiny baby bump. It was small still, but it was becoming barely noticeable, "Oh, the doctor wanted me to let you know you are having twins, one boy, one girl. They are Ray's and neither have any indication of his heart condition. You are very healthy and shouldn't have any problems carrying or delivering the babies."

Gloria leaned back against her and settled her arms over Storm's and was very pleased, "I am still curious as to how he managed to knock me up. It was one night only and..." She had to snicker, "I'll say this much-god my eyes were still not working the next morning. He is the only male I think I would ever consider going to bed with again." Just the thought of the night with Ray almost made her horny.

Storm snickered as she let Gloria go and finished her back, "Would you mind doing my back?" Eventually they had finished getting clean and Storm showed Gloria how to call the ship suit forward, "Until such time as you decide to go back the suit's yours. The bracelets are tuned to your DNA and biorhythms so nobody else can use them." They couldn't come off anyways, "Now for breakfast and we will be meeting Simon in the dining area."

~~~ Gloria and Storm head to Folicia

Simon and Gloria had gone back to Earth for several days to take care of some legal issues. There wasn't much to do other than give a power of attorney to the Folican presence on the planet. There were some things to pack up and two days later they were brought back aboard the ship. Gloria had decided to go to Folica for long enough to inform Ray of the pregnancy. Once it was done, she would decide what she was going to do next.

When they came back aboard the ship, Storm was there and drew Gloria into a good hug and kiss, "I'm going to be going back with you to Folicia. On the trip, I'll be giving you basic information on our culture and history. I'll also be giving you a general overview of how we react to each other and proper greetings and relationships." As she wrapped an arm around Gloria's another Liraque came in and did much the same with Simon.

"Hello Simon, I'm Fast Mover but go by Speedy. I'm going to be the Liraque assigned to you. I'll show you to your room and make sure you have everything you need. With Gloria and Storm, the transport is going to be leaving in a few hours." She looked at Gloria, "All of your belongings have been transferred to the transport. Storm will get you settled in and show you around. I hope you enjoy your trip to Folicia."

Simon almost choked on her usename since he remembered that silly cartoon. He gave her a sly look, "Can I call you Speedy Gonzales?" That was so wrong, and he knew it.

"Oh, by the ancestors you are horrible. Speedy I'd suggest washing your hands of him and his humor before you want to cry." Gloria made a slight face at him.

Speedy gave the two an odd look and finally decided not to ask. She'd been well brief on what Simon and Ray's humor was like. She had to wonder who this Gonzales was. The answer might bother her. She did flash a grin at Gloria.

Gloria was quite startled at the speed she was being taken care of and almost panicked until Storm wrapped her arms around her, "Relax Gloria and you will be fine. It's just happenstance the transport was available. Otherwise you would have waited for about a week for the next one. Remember I'll be with you at all times."

Gloria leaned against her and sighed, "I know it just startled me. I have to admit I am a little nervous, but I am looking forward to seeing Ray and Flitter again." They still didn't know Flitter had passed away since it had been requested, they not be told, "I'm looking forward to seeing the babies as well."

Simon gave Gloria a good hug, "I hope you have a good trip and enjoy your visit. Give Ray and his family a good hello for me."

Gloria returned the hug, "Though my mind is still debating if this is real, thank you for helping Simon. I really do need to talk to Ray and let him know. Once I get to Folicia and talk to him I'll drop you a message about what I'm going to do."

After one last squeeze they walked out of the transport room and they split up and headed their own ways, she followed Storm towards the transport

When they entered the transport, Gloria looked around and had to grin, "Not sure why but this doesn't quite match my idea of what a starship should look like, especially one built by Inu's." She snickered at Storm, "I don't know why but I kept seeing images of dog beds and dog toys scattered around."

Storm growled at her and then barked for good measure, "I got my dog toy walking with me. As far as the dog bed, a regular bed is far more comfortable don't you think?" She had to bump her with her hip as well and gave her a knowing look, "So you want a quick shower before we leave or a longer one after?"

Gloria pouted at her, "I am not a toy darn you woman. I might just have to find somewhere else to sleep just for that..." She had to bump her back and curled an arm around Storm's waist, "I think I would prefer a bath later if possible. If not a good shower since I am feeling tense. I can't wait to see Ray, but this is such a shock and..." She sighed, "I am nervous about telling Ray I'm pregnant."

Storm wrapped her arm around Gloria as well and gave her a light squeeze, "I could feel it but couldn't say or help until you mentioned it. I am here for you to talk to, a shoulder to cry on, a source of information and sleep next to. I can give you a good back massage later and there is a tub which we can use. I have set up a reservation for it already." They made it to their cabin which had one of the double beds. Since there weren't many going back, they had the cabin to themselves, "We can go to dinner after the bath."

Gloria relaxed against Storm and sighed, "I think I would like to talk later as we relax, and you really don't need to do that stuff. The bath should be enough to help me relax. I think maybe a nap before anything." She hadn't quite gotten what a Liraque was and though she hadn't accepted Storm, she was acting as a contract Liraque for Gloria.

"Nonsense Gloria, I am currently your Liraque under contract and because of it, you are my responsibility. I'll take care of all of the things a Personal Assistant on your planet would and a few more." She turned to Gloria and gave her a warm smile, "This is not just my job, but my calling and I enjoy what I do. Now why don't we lie down, and we can take a nap or just relax until the ship has departed and we are underway."

Gloria didn't bother blinking or staring at her since it didn't make sense and she didn't need more information, "Both sound good. You are very comfortable even if taller than most of my other lovers." She was guessing Storm was about six feet tall. She crawled in the bed and felt Storm settle behind her and wrap an arm around her.

~~~ Simon starting the cruise

Simon was relaxing in his bed with Fury curled up next to him, "I was wondering about what's going to happen with the females I get pregnant. I want to know what my options are going to be." So far, Simon was enjoying the time aboard the ship even though he'd just started the two months. The females had, for the most part, been friendly and outgoing with him.

Fury moved closer to him and relaxed against his body. As she was listening one hand was stroking his side and hip, "Well before we talk about the ladies let's talk about what you want. Ray is the Pack Father of Pack Johnson as you know. All the females who were pregnant by him were given the choice to become part of his pack which they did. Since you are not a Pack Father, based on your bracelets, if you chose to go to Folicia you would end up as a member of his pack. You would be in charge of the females who would look to you and you would be considered a cadet branch. Since Ray is a Pack Father then you would look to him as the senior male in the pack. If you chose not to go to Folicia or visit and chose not to stay, then the females will be given the choice of joining his pack or going back to their original pack."

When she moved closer to him, he returned the favor and was stroking her back and bottom. It still felt a bit odd to feel a tail, but he was getting used to it, "Just what is the difference between a Pack Father and a regular male? I haven't really gotten a good answer for it." Behind him Speed shifted slightly and curled up a bit closer to him. It was somewhat on the odd side though he knew why she was in the bed with them.

Fury contemplated the question before answering, "It's hard to explain to humans other than the basics. It simply isn't part of what humans are. A Pack Father has some additional abilities which are directly related to managing a pack. Some things they can do, are to calm the pack down, provide comfort, and attention. The scent of a Pack Father will help a worked-up female relax. As an example, if someone had a bad day and was stressed, they would hunt down a pack father and by inhaling their scent will relax. All males have this ability but it's far stronger in a Pack Father. A normal male can gather a group of females to them, but the bond is less than it's with a pack father. It's why if you chose to come back you would end up as a cadet branch." She had to sigh, "It isn't a very good answer, but it should help."

Simon gave her a nod since it actually did make sense to him, "It's in a way how wolf packs are made up, so it does make some sense to me. In a wolf pack though it's based on dominance of the wolf. It sounds like your pack fathers are born to be the dominant one and normal males aren't." He leaned over and gave her a good kiss before urging her lips apart and slid his tongue inside. As he was doing it, he urged her on her back again.

*Now for the more important question... So do you want a baby?* He smiled slightly when he sent to her. His free hand was tracing the edge of her pubic hair from her hip to navel. Eventually his hand moved up her body and cupped a breast before starting to play with the nipple.

*Why do you think I am in bed with you, silly human? It'sn't just to get all sexed up by a horny male.* There was a mental snicker in her voice when she said it. As his hand was stroking her body her back arched in enjoyment, *It's very nice to have attention from a male as well. I think you talked to Ray before you came up, didn't you? I have a feeling he told you to get to know the females and be picky. There are a few females who have complained about not being chosen after me.* There was definite amusement in her mental tone.

Simon had to blink and then grinned down at her, "I am going to sound bad, but if I am going to be fathering babies on a number of women, I want to know them. I want to be able to look at her, and say I think she will be a good mother. Or to say she would be an asset to the pack. I am not going to go 'she is sexy who cares she's a skank'. Some males don't care as long as they are getting pussy, but I do, and I know from talking to Ray and Flitter, they did."

He had to stop for a moment and became serious for a moment, "I don't want to sound disparaging, but I think this approach you, Folicians, are taking now is the right way. Pick your males carefully and slowly incorporate them into your society. Even if they don't want to move to Folicia picking a good male instead of random males should provide happier heats." He turned back to what he had been doing, "We can talk more about this later."

Fury couldn't help but smile at him, "Oh yes we have a number of weeks to discuss this. Now put your lips to good use darn it." She urged him to lower his head to her breasts which he did. The rest of the night went by in a blur of passion and enjoyment.

~~~ News Announcement

"Good afternoon, this is Wind River. This is a short report. A new human has been selected and he's a friend of Pack Father Johnson. Simon also worked with what the humans call 'pets'. He was the boss of Pack Father Johnson on Earth. He just started his two months and we're hoping for results similar to the Pack Fathers." She gave the camera a broad smile.

"As of now it isn't known if he might come to Folicia, but we can hope. If he does, he'll become a cadet pack father under Pack Father Ray. I personally hope he does come to Folicia. It would be nice to have another human male. It would give us even more hope. Pray to the Pack Lord and Goddess in hopes he does choose to come here." She glanced at a different camera, "Wind River signing off."