Unknown Secrets

@ Aikofox
Vella
"Fuck." Vella tensed, eyes closing, "You know... this whole not hitting you thing? Really hard to follow right now." She opened her eyes and met his gaze, "Are you done yet? Can I just die in peace right now?"

Logan
Logan didn't want to let her go... but he did. He watched as she put distance between them, then frowned at her words, "Leah... I wasn't upset with you. I thought you were upset with me." He shook his head, "I just... what Richard's doing with you is horrible and wrong. And it ends. Now."

@ Jaguar's Heart

Oberon
"I'm trying to be quick, I promise." He finished his examination as quickly as he could, then handed her the gel-pac. "You're lucky, nothing's broken. Just bruised. It'll hurt like hell, but you'll be fine." He frowned. "I don't know how well humans heal, though, so I don't know how long it'll take. Do you think you can still do the shows?"

---

Leah
Leah blinked, confused. "You...weren't? But...you wouldn't even look at me, and you were growling and glaring, and I'm so confused. Why would I be upset with you?" She tilted her head, frowning. "You didn't do anything wrong. You were just worried about me."

@ Aikofox
Vella
Vella's eyes closed as the cold seeped int the bruise. It was uncomfortable and she wanted to remove it, but she knew that she shouldn't. Still, she hated being cold, hated feeling the chills go through her. She'd rather be out in the hot sun than laying here with the ice packs to her side. So she tried to imagine it, tried to imagine a hot beach, warm sand under her bear feet... but then her body began to shake and she cursed, opening her eyes to look up at him, "Do I have to have the ice pack?"

Logan
Logan sighed, brushing the hair from her face, "I was growling and angry at everyone else. Leah, what Richard did... what he allowed to happen? That's wrong. He should have never put you through that. It will not happen again, that I promise you."

@ Jaguar's Heart

Oberon
"Yes, now stop whining. We only have an hour until the next show and you need to rest as much as you can until then." Still, Oberon felt bad for her, so he crawled into bed with her. For once, he wished he could purr like the smaller cats, as he knew purring could stimulate healing, but he did the best he could. He rumbled deep in his chest, wrapping his arms around her as he snuggled close and closed his eyes.

---

Leah
Leah looked down to hide the shame burning on her face. Wrong? Was it really wrong? A lot of women did this, she wasn't the only one. First Oberon, now Logan, they wanted her to defy Richard. But she couldn't. Richard was her boss, the first and only authority figure she had. He was...he was like her god. In a small voice only someone with a shifter's hearing could catch, she whispered, "But there's nothing to be done."

@ Aikofox
Vella
Vella found herself curling into Oberon, her eyes closing as she finally relaxed. She allowed herself to let go a little, to accept the comfort he was giving. She lay there for a few more minutes before finally speaking, "We should bandage my chest." She said softly, still half asleep with her eyes closed, "Do you have any ace bandages?"

Logan
Logan felt his frustration rise and he stood, beginning to pace, "Leah... that's always something that can be done. I can't change the past but I sure as hell can change the present and future." His hands opened and closed into fists, "It's not right. He shouldn't have taken the choice away from you. Sex is... it's something that you should choose, not something chosen for you."

@ Jaguar's Heart

Oberon
"Sure," Oberon said, though he lay with her a minute more before sitting up. He gently pulled her along with him. "One sec," Grabbing the bandages from the med kit he kept in the bathroom, he returned and asked her to lift her shirt. He wrapped her tight enough to be secure, but not enough to cut off circulation. "That better?"

---

Leah
Sure, he could say that. He was male. Women didn't get to choose. Men had the fun, women had the kittens. That's the way it went, after all. "Can we just, not talk about this?" She asked, trying to keep the whine out of her voice. "I know I'm being weird and un-shifter, but I don't like talking about this, okay? Please?"

@ Aikofox
Vella
Vella took a deep breath before nodding, "Yeah. It's still uncomfortable and painful, but better." She looked down at the wrapping, "At least I won't have to wear a bra..." She said as she lightly traced the bandage over her collarbone, "Have any pain meds? I'm pretty sure those will help too."

Logan
Logan glanced at Leah, then sighed, "Yeah, we can stop." He shook his head and sat on the bed beside her, hands between his legs as his weight rested on his elbows and knees. There was so much he wanted to tell her, so much she didn't know... and all she had to go on was what Richard told her.

@ Jaguar's Heart

Oberon
"That, unfortunately, I don't have. Fast metabolism and all." He shrugged a shoulder then moved to sit beside her. "You just lie down and rest. Sleep if you can. And keep those ice packs on your bruises. I'll watch out for you." He frowned at the door, thinking about what had just happened. He felt an obligation towards Leah, but hopefully Logan was handling it. And besides, Leah just had some hurt feelings. Vella was injured. She needed him more.

---

Leah
Leah heaved a sigh of relief. "Thank you." She shifted, moving to curl up in her bed once more, but paused at the sight of the broken computer lying among the dishes. She winced. The dishes were plastic and utilitarian, so they were fine, but the computer..."I have to fix that." But where would she get the money? And how? It wasn't as if she had real wages and could leave the circus whenever she wanted to. She wasn't a human!

@ Aikofox
Vella
Vella sighed, not wanting the ice packs any longer. She really hated being cold. She knew, logically, that they were helping - or supposed to - but she still didn't want them. With a pout on her face she looked up at Oberon with large puppy dog eyes, "I'm cold... can't I remove them now? I'm sure they've helped enough."

Logan
Logan followed her gaze to the computer, then shook his head, "Don't worry about it." He said, "I'll figure it out." He sand a little bit saved away, money not even Oberon knew about. It was his "Just in case I have to run" money. It wasn't enough to get the same make, but he figured he could at least replace it with a lap top that was a bit cheaper. Still, it was probably more than Leah or anyone else had. Logan just didn't spend his money... there wasn't really a need. Sure, he could start actually buying salmon, but saving sounded better... and came in handy now.

@ Jaguar's Heart

Oberon
"Are you that big of a wimp with the cold?" Oberon asked, trying not to laugh. "You wouldn't last ten minutes back where I'm from. Just keep it on a little while longer. It really will help, I promise. Try to sleep if you can, I'll wake you so you have enough time to get ready for the next show." He stroked her hair sympathetically, wishing there was something he could do to help her.

---

Leah
"But Logan..." She said softly, not quite a whine. She really didn't want to cause any more trouble. She sank down into her bed with an unhappy sigh, suddenly exhausted. Could this day be over yet? But no, it was only just begun and they still had two more shows to do. She sighed once more. Maybe she could get a nap in?

@ Aikofox
Vella
Vella groaned, attempting to curl away from the packs and more into his warmth, "I hate the cold. I don't know if I can sleep." She sighed, "Back home I barely even leave the apartment during the winter. It snows there, you know? And gets way too cold for me. I'd much rather live on a nice warm beach." She shifted just a little bit closer to him, trying to hold back another painful groan.

Logan
Logan looked back over at Leah as she sighed again, a light frown on his face, "What?" He asked, completely missing the problem, "Leah, are you okay?" was she also sick on top of all of this? He reached over and pressed the back of his hand to her forehead. She didn't feel warm...