The Lost Ones

::You're pregnant.::

Miranda, stretched out on a table in the medical clinic, jumped at the doctor's voice in her head, for a split second not registering what it was the woman was telling her. After several months living on dry land among humans, the Aquians' telepathic form of communication still startled her on occasion, especially when she was deep in thought on something else. Then the actually words the woman had spoken sunk in, and she gaped. ::What?:: She stared at the doctor as if she'd grown a second tail fin.

She'd come in to the doctor's office for the standard pre-pregnancy checkup early, since she'd been feeling a little off for a week now. She had placed the blame for her queasiness on nerves and upset; she was a week away from her scheduled impregnation, but all she'd been able to think about was Hunter. As she'd told him, she was resigned to her duty, but that didn't stop her from feeling a great deal of trepidation. ::You heard me perfectly clear the first time.::

::But that's not possible, Doctor!::

The older woman crossed her arms over her chest. ::Really? I would swear that I'm the only one in this room with medical training, Miranda, dear. If I say you're pregnant, you're pregnant.:: The doctor picked up Miranda's chart. ::Now, this is quite a surprising development, but hopefully not a bad one. I will need information on the baby's father.::

::But you don't understand!:: Miranda all but wailed. When the doctor quirked an eyebrow at her, she felt herself blush. ::I...that is...the only man I've been with is Hunter!::

The doctor jotted the name down on the chart. ::I'm not familiar with that name. Which clan does this Hunter belong to?::

Miranda shook her head. ::He doesn't! That's why I say it's impossible!:: She had the doctor's attention now. ::Hunter is a human!::

::That's not possible.:: The doctor looked thunderstruck. When infertility in the male population was discovered, the first thing that the doctors considered was the possibility of mating with human males in hopes of producing fertile offspring. Several years worth of experimentation, both in medical labs and under more...traditional situations, had failed to produce even a single child. It was determined that Humans and Aquians were just not genetically compatible.

The doctor stared at her for a long moment. ::You can go ahead and get dressed now, Miranda.:: The doctor said finally, with a weird look on her face. Feeling suddenly uneasy, Miranda did as she'd been told.

The next couple days did nothing to relieve Miranda's unease. Word of her unexpected pregnancy had somehow gotten out, and everyone in her clan community, as well as several from outside her clan, felt the need to stop her to talk; some offered hopeful congratulations. Others wanted to know what it was like to "do it" with a human. Miranda herself was totally baffled by what was happening. By the time she received a summons to appear before her clan leaders and a board of medical personnel to discuss the "situation," as they called it, she was about at wits end.

Sitting in a cold room, surrounded by authority figures, and fighting off nasty bouts of queasiness only made the situation worse. Contemplating the feasibility of escaping back to Hunter and the dry land world, Miranda didn't realize that she'd been spoken to until she felt a hand on her arm. She jerked her attention back to the here-and-now. ::Excuse me?:: she asked faintly.

::We were saying, Miranda,:: the stern voice of her clan leader, Rochelle, echoed in her mind, ::that we have decided that you must go back above to dry land, back to this Hunter of yours, and find a way to bring him down to us.::

Miranda was shocked. Aquian culture was almost fanatical in it's separatist beliefs. Men and women going above to dry land was discourage, as was most contact with humans. And it was totally against the rules to bring one below. Why was this major taboo being broken? ::Why?:: she asked.

::We need to examine this Human,:: one of the doctors Miranda didn't recognize explained. ::We need to find out what it is about him that has enabled him to father this child of yours. Maybe there are other Humans like him.:: A peculiar gleam came into the woman's eyes. ::If not, we could use him to father children on other women. He could be the savior of our entire race...:: Miranda's head started to buzz. Use him, they were saying, like he was some sort of laboratory animal. A surge of jealousy washed through him as she thought of him lying with other Aquian women, loving them, giving them his seed, his children.

::What if he doesn't want to do this?:: Miranda asked.

The doctor looked at her as if she were simple. ::He doesn't have a choice, my dear. Our continuing existence depends upon the how and why of this baby's conception. If this human is capable of fathering your child, he could sire others.::

::I don't want to use him like that,:: Miranda protested again. ::He deserves better than to be turned into a breeding stud by us.::

::He's a human, child.:: Rochelle looked at her from beneath brows lowered in agitation. Miranda knew that some Aquians believed that humans were a lesser species, but she'd never been confronted by someone who actually thought that way. A sudden thought came to her.

::What if he's not?::

Conversation stopped. ::What do you mean, Miranda?::

::What if he's not human? What if he's Aquian, like us? I went above looking for the Lost Ones...::

::That's a fanciful child's story, Miranda, a myth.:: Rochelle was looking more and more vexed. ::There are no Lost Ones. No clan of Aquians ever decided to live on dry land. Now, you will do as your told, and fetch this human, bring him to us.::

Feeling a quivering in her stomach that had nothing to do with her pregnancy, Miranda stood and left the room. They were going to do it. They were going to lock her beautiful Hunter up in a cage and experiment on him. They were going to force him, for she had no doubt that it would be forced, to father children on other women.

Over her dead body.

Erecting careful barriers in her mind to prevent any inkling of what she had planned from becoming known to the telepathic Aquians she passed, Miranda broke into a run. She could only hope that Hunter would believe her when she told him of the danger he was in.

* * *

Hunter never would have believed he could miss someone he'd known only for a couple short days three months earlier so much. In those few hours they'd spent in each others arms, Miranda had become a part of him in a way he couldn't explain. So when he opened the door to his apartment in the pre-dawn hours of what had probably been another long lonely day in the making and found her standing on his doorstep, pale and dripping sea water on the brown hallway carpeting, he'd been shocked to silence. "Hunter..." she'd murmured, reaching a trembling hand out to him. He'd gripped her cold, shaking fingers in his a moment before her lovely eyes rolled back into her head and she'd pitched forward into his arms.

Now he sat in an armchair pulled up along side his bed, watching the day grow older as Miranda slept in his bed. She was restless, tossing and turning in her sleep, murmuring softly in a language he couldn't understand. What the hell had happened to her in the last three months?

It was nearly four o'clock in the afternoon when she awoke. One moment she'd been thrashing from side to side, clutching the light blanket he'd thrown over her in a death grip, and the next she was still, eyes open, staring up at the ceiling with a confused look on her face. Then she'd turned her head to look a him, and the confusion vanished, replaced by a mix of joy and fear that he didn't understand. "I thought I'd dreamed finding you..." she whispered, reaching out to clutch his hand.

"I'm here, Miranda. You're not dreaming anymore."

In a flash she lunged across the bed and into his arms. "Thank God! Thank God!" she repeated over and over as he held her in his arms. They stay like that for a long while, just holding one another, absorbing each other's presence.

Finally, Hunter eased her away from him and brushed a tangled lock of golden hair off her forehead. "What happened to you, Miranda?" he asked.

Just like that the joy that had lit her eyes was snuffed beneath a wave of fear. "We have to leave, now, Hunter!" she cried, clambering out of the bed and trying to pull him across the room toward the door. "I'm sure I was followed. They somehow found out what I was planning."

Hunter planted his feet and pulled Miranda's mad rush to a halt. "Woah! I think you'd better explain to me exactly what's going on."

"We don't have time, Hunter! I'll explain on the way, but he have to go now!"

Something of her desperation must have finally reached him through his confusion. Giving her a long look, he came to a quick decision. "Where are we going?"

"Someplace safe. You must know of some place we can go where no one will find us."

He thought for a long moment, then nodded. "I can't wait to hear the explanation for this one. Give me a second to throw some clothes in a bag, and we'll head out." He left her standing beside the door, nervously shifting from foot to foot. She really looked a wreck. She'd dried out while she slept. Crystallized sea salt dusted her skin, hair and clothing. Those clothes hung on a body that had lost a great deal of weight in the last three months. Worry gnawed at him as he stuffed a couple changes of clothes of his own, and an extra shirt for Miranda into a bag. In less than five minutes he was ready, and in less than ten from the moment she'd awakened in his bed, they were in his car and driving down a winding back road into the country.

Two hours later they were pulled over in a side of the road rest area, sharing a roast beef sub and bag of chips he'd picked up at the last gas station they'd visited. Miranda picked at her half of the sub, her eyes darting every few moments to the rearview mirrors. Suddenly not particularly hungry himself, Hunter rewrapped the deli paper around the sandwich and stuffed it and the bag of chips back in the brown paper sack. Finally, he turned to Miranda. "Okay, babe. What's going on?"

Gnawing on her lower lip, Miranda gazed out the passenger side window at the setting sun for a long moment. Finally, she took a deep breath and turned to Hunter. "I'm pregnant."

Hunter gritted his teeth at the idea of her carrying another man's child. "That's good, I guess," he said, trying not to snarl. Miranda's surprised, hurt look confused him. "Isn't that what you went home to do? Get pregnant...perpetuate your species and all that shit?" He was definitely sounding surly.

A look of comprehension came over Miranda's face. She reached out and took his hand. "No, Hunter, you don't understand. I never went through with the impregnation. I was already pregnant when I got home."

He gaped at her, stunned. "Already...are you saying..? Mine?" She nodded, and he gulped as what she was saying came home. "Wait a minute! You said you and I couldn't have children together. We aren't the same species."

"I know. It shouldn't have been possible, but it happened. When the leader of my clan and the doctors found out you were human, they demanded that I come up and get you, bring you down so you can be tested to find out how this was possible."

"But, Miranda, I'd be willing to let them test me. I'd love to help your people."

Tears filled her eyes. "No, Hunter! You still don't understand! If you go down there, they'll never let you go! Some of my people, the leader of my clan included, don't consider humans to be a species equal to ours. You're just a human to them. You'd have no rights at all. You've already proven that you can father children," her hand drifted down to cover her belly, where their child grew, "and that's what they'll make you do! Over and over again. You'll not have any choice. I couldn't let that happen to you." As her tears spilled over, she flung herself into his arms.

Hunter held her close, suddenly understanding her fear. The idea of being locked up in some sort of stable, used as a stud to father a new generation of mermaids held no appeal to him. He'd never been particularly promiscuous. Before Miranda there had been maybe a half dozen women in his thirty three years of life. He had no desire to know any further members of Miranda's species on that level. He pulled back slightly and looked her in the eyes. "Thank you, Miranda."

She shook her head, denying his gratitude. "I brought this down on you."

"No, you didn't. I don't blame you." He looked around the darkening parking area and the grassy shoulder that sloped gently down to the edge of a fast moving stream. "Come on, let's walk a bit before we hit the road again."

"Do you think it's safe?"

"Yea. I doubt anyone knows where we are right now. If we'd been followed, someone would have grabbed us by now. Come on."

Hunter climbed out of his car and walked around to help Miranda out. Her legs were stiff from hours of sitting and stress. Hunter wrapped a comforting arm around her shoulders and held her close to his side as they slowly crossed the lush green grass toward the water. They strolled along the edge of the stream for a bit. Miranda watched as a mosquito dropped onto the surface of the water, and found herself smiling slightly as a large rainbow trout darted out of it's hiding place and gulped down the unsuspecting bug.

Stepping away from Hunter, she stretched her arms over her head, trying to work out hours of kinks. Reassured that they were, in fact, alone, Miranda felt the unrelenting panic begin to recede. In it's place came the realization that she was filthy. When Hunter rested his hands on her shoulders, she gave him a wan smile. "I'm a total mess."

He grinned. "You do look like you've been running on empty for a while."

"Well, I'm going to clean myself up a bit." With that, she shed her salt encrusted clothing and, before he could blink, slipped into the cool stream. He sat down and watched as she swam a bit, and then sat down in the shallow water along the bank and scrubbed at her long golden hair, working the salt knotted strands loose. With a soft sigh she leaned back and let the fresh water flow over her.

Was she intentionally being provocative? Hunter didn't think so, but his body did. As she reclined in the twilight darkened water, head thrown back, breasts thrusting upward, he felt himself getting hard. God, she was a beautiful woman. She didn't look pregnant to him--she'd lost a good deal of weight, giving her a fragile look that he found as appealing as he had the lush curves of a few months earlier. Face it, he told himself. You'd find her attractive no matter how she looked.

How she looked as she stepped out of the water was relaxed, refreshed, and so delicious he could just gobble her up. He leaned forward as she approached, attempting to hid the rampant erection bulging the front of his jeans. But something of his frustration must have shown on his face, because Miranda gave him a sweet smile and pulled his hands away from himself. Without speaking a word, she knelt before him, and leaned forward to press her lips to his. Fire flashed through Hunter as she pressed her cool, damp body to his. "Oh, baby," he groaned, "are you sure?"

"Yes."

He cupped her cheeks in his hands. "I've dreamed of this for three long months," he admitted.

"Me too, Hunter. I've missed you so much!"

He gathered her close, pulled her across his lap, just holding her against his heart for a long while. It felt so good to have her back in his arms again. She cuddled close, as if trying to climb inside his skin.

He smiled as he felt her lips begin to trail over the side of his neck. This was going to be so incredibly sweet. Gently, he rolled her down to the soft green grass. He leaned over her and pressed his lips to her, falling eagerly into the softness of her mouth. God, yes, he thought as she responded with all the eagerness he remembered of her. He arched against her hands as she ran her cool fingers up under his shirt, caressing his back and shoulders. With a grin he broke the kiss and sat up to shuck off his own clothing. Miranda lay in the grass and stretched her arms up over her head as she watched him strip. He could see the light of arousal in her eyes as she ran her eyes over his revealed nakedness, and his erection grew harder than he'd ever felt it. This was going to be over really quick.

This didn't seem to bother Miranda at all. As he leaned back down over her, she squirmed around until he was resting between her thighs, his throbbing erection nestled in her golden curls. "Now, Hunter. Now!" she breathed, and he silently agreed. As gently as he could manage, mindful of her invisible pregnancy, he slipped inside her hot body, and all he could think was I've come home.

But Miranda obviously didn't want gentle. Before he could even catch his breath, she was writhing under him, thrusting her hips up against his, moaning as she sunk her fingernails into his buttocks. "Tell me if I hurt you," he groaned as he picked up on her rhythm, thrusting heavily into the haven of her body.

Miranda thrashed her head back and forth on the grass, holding his as tightly as she could, as ecstasy began to creep up on her. Hunter leaned down and locked his lips to her, taking her eager cries into his mouth as his pounding drove her to climax. A moment later he stiffened in her arms, grinding against her as hard as he could as his seed rushed in great waves into her.

They lay in the grass, basking in the bliss of post-orgasmic lethargy, watching the stars appear in the night sky. How long they lay there, neither could say, but as the moon began to creep up over the horizon, Hunter knew that it was time to leave. He pulled his jeans back on and walked over to the car to pull the extra shirt he'd brought for Miranda from his bag as she took her own clothing down to the stream to wash the salt from them. She was wringing them out as Hunter crouched beside her. "I should have done this while I was swimming. They'd be dry by now," she said with a smile.

"I had other things besides laundry duty on my mind," Hunter said, running a hand over her exposed buttocks. With a laugh, Miranda brushed his hand away and, handing him her wet cloths, and slipping into his shirt.

They sat beside the stream for a moment, watching the moon. Finally, she sighed and turned to look at him. "Where are we going to go, Hunter?" she asked softly.

"There's only one place I can think of where we'll be totally safe." He took her hand and pulled her to her feet. "I'm taking you home."

To Be Continued...