"Maybe one tied to heart rate?"
"Yes, that's possible. Seems like we should keep you calm for a while."
He purrs and I focus on the thrum for a while as he continues to run his hands through my long hair, working through tangles as he goes.
"Do you like when I touch your mane?"
"Oh, yes," I breathe out. "Do you like it when I do?"
"Most certainly," he says with emphasis.
I smile at him, then stroke his soft fur.
We stay like that for a few minutes, then I start lightly scratching at the transition between fur and black scales. He responds like any cat I've ever known by tipping his head back, pursing his lips, and extending his whiskers out.
It's even more comical and rewarding when he does it and I smile.
"I didn't think an alien would look so similar to a cat," I say aloud, then feel my face heating.
"I'm guessing that's an Earth creature?"
"Yes. Your fur, ears, whiskers, purr . . ." I trail off, feeling weird now.
"It's common for us to make connections to what we already know," he comments. "Plus, from what you describe, it's likely that creature originated from manticorids visiting your planet. We have several creatures with similar features to my own. As I mentioned before, we were once empire-seeking so I'm surewe surveyed your planet and we were too full of pride to hide ourselves."
"Huh," I say, my mind blown. "You do seem like something from our mythology."
He nods. "It's been thousands of standard cycles since we dismantled our empire, but the myth was probably based on an encounter with us."
I shake my head and mentally berate myself.
I'm letting my mind think of soothing distractions instead of doing what needs to be done.
"What about Silver? I think she needs more medical attention."
He scratches his chest with a scaled hand while he thinks. "I could go move her, but I don't like the idea of leaving you."
"I'm concerned she'll be recaptured if we wait. I'll be fine."
He growls, but doesn't argue with me. "I can move in haste and put her somewhere safe, then we can figure out how to get medical supplies for both of you. I'll need to stalk some hunters for those."
I gulp, my hand wanting to rise to brush against my wound at the reminder, but I know he's right. "I can stay here this time because I don't want to slow you down, but I want to help."
He hums again. "I would rather you remain in the trees, but we can talk about that soon. I'll run back to the ship and move her. First, let's get you to a tree that isn't covered in your blood."
I look down and see what he means, then nod.
It doesn't take him long to move me, but when he starts to leave I remember his own injury.
"What about your wound?"
"It was minor."
"A gunshot is minor?"
"That one was."
I'll need more time to get my mind around that one.
