More Bonding

Scooping her up in your arms you pull Button away from Elsie and turn her so that your body blocked her view to your sister. The effect this has is for Button to shift her woozy, venerating gaze up to meet your eyes instead. Looking at you in wonderment she reaches and lays her soft, warm hand over your cheek. You try to set her down but she tucks up and clings to you. Before you could even get a word of warning out of your mouth you once again see those pink hearts glow in the center of her eyes. There was no doubting it this time as the light is even brighter and glows for longer. Shit! By stepping in mid-imprint you might have just switched its focus to you!

Prying her off you put her down and step back. Button wobbles and staggers a couple of steps to the side as she holds the side of her head. Elsie is on her feet and rushing to catch Button but you hold an arm out to keep El behind you. “Hold on El.”

Button stops and lets out a huff. She bends forward, hands on her knees, as she takes a few long breaths to recover.

“Jesse.” El whispers. “Why do you look like that? What’s happening?”

“This is bad El. This is real bad. You don’t understanding what imprinting means for Button.”

After one final long exhale Button stands straight again and slowly look up at you and Elsie. There it was. Just the way she looked at you…you knew it had happened. The imprinting had happened.

“Button!” You say. “What happened?”

“I don’t know.” She says. “I…I don’t understand.”

“You bonded, didn’t you?”

She nods. “Yeah.”

“But how? Elsie’s a woman.”

“I…I don’t know Jesse.” She sighs. “I’ve touched many women. But Elsie was different. I just don’t understand.”

“So, who did you bond with?” You ask. “Me or Elsie?”

She looks between you and Elsie’s face, her eyes narrowed in concentration. “Um…I think…both of you?”

“Both? You said it was a one-time thing. A lifelong one-time thing.”

“Lifelong?” Elsie whispers. “Oh no.”

“I’m sorry Jesse.” Button says. “I’m sorry. I don’t have any answers.” Her eyes search back and forth as she attend to the feelings inside of her. “Definitely both. I feel the bond…stronger with Jesse but…definitely both.” She glances back and forth between you and your little sister. “I love you!”

Hand on your head you are struck with the gravity of what had just happened. “Oh my God.”

At this reaction her bottom lip begins to tremble. Tears swell in her big caramel peepers. “I’m sorry Jesse. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to. I’m sorry!”

“Oh Button.” Elsie slips past you to hurry to the remorseful pup. Pulling her into a hug she cradles her head to her shoulder. “It’s okay Button.”

“I didn’t mean to ruin your life Elsie. I’m sorry!”

“You didn’t ruin anything Button! It’s not your fault sweetie. We’ll fix this. We’ll figure it out.”

“There’s no fixing this Elsie.” Button says softly, Elsie’s hug already calming her greatly. “It’s done. I can feel it. I can feeeeel it. All the way down. It is complete.”

“Feel it?”

“Mmm.” She nods. “I feel…I feel…” With tears still glimmering in the corners of her eyes her shoulders relax and a calm washes over her. Then she smiles. Such a pretty smile. “I feel happy. Happy like I’ve never felt. More than happy…content. At peace. Whole. For twenty cycles everything in my life has been building to this moment.” She lets out a contented sigh and melts into Elsie’s body. “It’s everything they said it would be. I thought I knew what love was. I was wrong. It is so much better.”

You join the pair and wrap your arms around them. While Button was happy your heart is filled with fear. You would only turn twenty next month, and Elsie nineteen*, neither of you were ready to take responsibility for another living, intelligent being. This was a disaster! You look to Elsie who was still grappling with what it all meant.

“Button is ours now Elsie.” You say. “She is our pup. For as long as she lives. And if we leave her…she’ll die of loneliness.”

“No.” El whispers. “No!” She turns her attention back to the happy pup. Taking her head in her hands she looks into Button’s eyes. “We won’t let that happen, okay? I promise you that we’ll figure this out. We’ll make you free…somehow. Aunt Peg is very smart and…um…”

“It was women like Aunt Peg that created her race.” You say. “Button’s race was created right from the start to bond. I’m not sure Peggy can help us El.”

With big sparkling eyes beaming with joy Button looks from El to you and says. “You could just keep me.”

Elsie shakes her head. “No! No Button. You are not ours. You are not anybody’s. You are your own woman.” Your sister looks up to you. “What are we going to do Jesse?”

You sigh and gently pet Button’s furry head, a softer fur you had never felt in your life. “I don’t know El. I just don’t know.”

***

* : I am stealing the idea from the RotL rewrite that I started on my short-lived Subscribestar that Jesse and Elsie were born exactly one year apart and have the same birthday. At least for this thread.