No matter how many times he teleported himself to The Rift, Captain Serpentine could not think of it as a comfortable place. He did not avoid it. He came, as needed, to attend meetings, had come to handle matters such as hunting for his youma and to begin his report against Bischofite. He did not fear it, despite the various creatures that swam, slunk, and flitted through the darkness, the legitimate threat that a higher level youma could provide, despite the heavy feeling of oppression that lingered through the halls.

Still, for all its faults, the Rift held at least one treasure. Her name was Stheno. No sooner had he entered the realm where the monsters lived than his youma approached him. “Stheno,” he greeted warmly, a small smile on his face. “Missed me?”

“Yes,” the serpentine creature hissed, sliding beside him to brush against his arm. “Busy?”

“I have been given a new charge.” The green-and-gold clad captain explained. She was going to need to find out about their new companion sooner or later, so he might as well tell her now. “Bischofite. We will be spending time with him. Do you understand?”

For a moment, the youma seemed confused. Then, the monochrome Naga drew herself to her full height and shot forward with a speed that caught Serpentine off guard. She wrapped herself around him, her small arms pressing him to her small, cold breasts as she hissed possessively, “No! MINE!”

The captain did not panic, and he did not try to fight his way out of her hold. The muscles in her body were stronger than his, but they were not attempting to crush him to death. She had always been possessive, staying close whenever Buddingtonite and Gra were near, but she had never indicated this level of need. No, instead of panicking, he merely spoke as though he were talking to Baldwin or Richard’s new Great Dane puppy, “Release me. Now.”

His command lingered momentarily in their shared space. Slowly, Stheno unwrapped herself from around the captain. He smoothed down his rumbled uniform, purposefully giving her time to slide away and collect herself. His youma was… a puzzle. At times she could be strangely human, and some of her facial expressions, emotions, and hand motions would seem to mark her as such. Yet, she was a monster like all other youma, and if today had proven anything, he did not always understand how she would react to what he said and did. Perhaps it would behoove him to go and do research on snakes to better interact with her… and a ping of guilt, an emotion he did not often feel, tinged his heart. She was his, as he was hers. He needed to do more.

“You will meet him soon.” Serpentine rested his hand against the cool scales of his youma’s hood to show that his rebuke was over. Idly, he traced the pattern of white and black that swirled around in a shape reminiscent of an eye. The gentle touches caused her to relax further, so he followed up with a small pat. “Do not bite him or blind him. No more foolishness.”

Her forked tongue flicked over her lipless mouth, allowing her human partner a glimpse of her fangs. She folded her thin arms over her chest, but she did not force him to remove his hand. Her anger appeared to cool, as she nodded tautly, but she was still grumpy as she hissed a single word, "Hunt?"

Serpentine could not help but chuckle lightly at the change in topic. “Yes. Tonight, we hunt.” The Captain gave the Naga one last pat before withdrawing his touch. It had been far too long since he let her out of the Rift, judging from the excited wringing of her small, weak hands. He would have to summon her more. She needed the exercise, and she needed the experience around other Negaverse officers. Her possessiveness would have to be more closely controlled. Exposure therapy would be the easiest method.

Besides, her presence would make time spent with Bischofite more tolerable.

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