Present day
Corthos was a highly ranked male of the yautja court, and an elite hunter. His house and his ship sported an abundance of trophies, and even held yautja skulls. He'd killed one of every alien species that was worth killing, and had grown bored. Badbloods had turned into an ultimate prey for him. His life was dedicated to hunting them down, as well as serving his clan anyway he could.

That was, until the day he met Megan.

The hulking yautja strode through the hallways with his most recent trophy slung over his back. Other males scurried out of his path when they saw him approaching, and females stopped dead in their tracks to admire him. The alien skull was from a swamp beast with a deadly, poisonous bite. It was a revered trophy, but taking it had been merly a warm-up for him. He didn't want to leave his mate for an extended period, and easy hunts were better than nothing.

Corthos sent a quick transmission to Megan, conveying that he had returned, and requested to know her location. He promptly received her answer: she was in his sleeping quarters, waiting for him. His body bristled with anticipation. The little ooman couldn't stand his absence and was always eager to join with body when he returned. He hurried into the first trophy room on his way there, but hesitated before setting down the skull.

Though Megan had declared her love to him many times over, he didn't want to loose her affection. Yautja females needed to be constantly impressed. There was no more room in his bedroom for skulls, but he wished to show off the new trophy first, before placing it in one of the other rooms. He slung the pelt and the skull back over his shoulder and headed for the bedroom. His mate was impatient, and sent another transmission.

He raised his wrist gauntlet up to read the glowing red letters. It said, "I'm in your bed." That one sentence had his heart pumping and throat feeling thick when he swallowed. He charged through the hallways, snarling at youngbloods that didn't get out of his way fast enough. Another transmission made his wrist gauntlet light up.

He glanced down, and his mandibles behind his mask twitched with delight. Her new message said, "And I'm naked." Before Corthos could look up from his wrist controls, his shoulder clipped a wall as he turned the corner. He stumbled, and let out a low growl of embarrassment. No one was around to see his blunder though, and so he quickly proceeded to his sleeping quarters.

Megan hadn't been lying. She was in his bed, and she was naked. The very sight of her had his blood boiling and skin radiating a welcoming heat. She was a petite thing, even to other oomans. Honestly, he was surprised that he hadn't crushed her during their first mating.

She wasn't an inch over 5ft tall, and had a very delicate, feminine build. Her skin was a creamy light-tan, and he admired her big hazel eyes and black hair. Even though she was already inviting him to have sex, he felt like he still had to work for it, had to earn it. He set the skull down on the bed at her feet. Her lips bloomed into a wide smile at seeing it, but her attention quickly switched back to him.

"I missed you." She cooed.

"I was not absent for very long." He started to remove his mask and armor, as leaving it on during mating had harmed her before.

"I still missed you anyway." She opened her arms out to him.

He'd learned that the gesture was clear concent to touch her before, so he did not hesitate. Corthos crawled into bed, and her arms hugged tightly around him, her fingers barely able to lock around his back. A steady thrum vibrated through the air as he began to purr. There was no reason to sedate her like an onery yautja female, but he knew she liked the sound. He kept his weight off her, but molded his naked body to hers.

He could understand how she had missed him, as his body craved her. A week apart was too long. He nuzzled her neck with his tusks, taking in her scent. They had copulated like over-eager youngbloods before he had left, going again and again even though she was sore. They'd known that when he returned from his hunt that she'd be on her bleeding cycle.

Corthos jerked back suddenly, "You're not on your period?"

Megan gave a shy smile, "No."

He sat upright, "Have you been to the medic to comfirm it?"

"Not yet."

Corthos climbed off the bed and pulled Megan to the edge. In the year that they had been together, not once had Megan become pregnant. Tests revealed that both of them were reproductively sound. They were mating at every opportunity. She was given vitamin and hormone injections regularly, but it didn't seem to help.

He placed the stiff metal mask over his face and focused it on her middle. He switched through the vison modes and zoomed in on the area. Corthos had learned from one of the medics what he was supposed to be looking for. This early in a pregnancy, there wouldn't be much to see. After a moment, he glanced up.

His voice swelled with pride, "You'll bear a strong suckling."

"I'm pregnant?" He had never heard her voice get so high-pitched.

"Yes."

Megan shrieked and threw her arms around his neck, "I can't believe it!"

With a suckling finally on the way, Corthos planned to dedicate his time to his mate, and not hunting down badbloods. Yautja females were perfect single mothers, but Megan was a different matter. They'd already discussed preparations for a pup, and he had agreed that the pup stay with Megan until its chiva. Until then, a live-in trainer would help raise the pup in the ways of the yautja.

He hugged his arms around her back tightly, "With my blood and yours, our offspring will be champion hunters. Nothing will stand in their way. Nothing will defeat them."

That wouldn't prove to be true however.