A Different Prison: A Hollin Arensen Story by BrigantineW < Submission

Keywords male 1189628, wolf 192636, canine 189156, feline 149975, male/male 123616, sfw 28444, romance 8993, space 7821, adventure 5788, doberman 5718, sci-fi 4734, jaguar 3178, spaceship 1196

"RAMONA!"

Hollin screamed into wakefulness, bolting upright in his bed. Panting, he noticed that sweat had matted his fur and soaked his bedding. Bright lights glared down on him, the cold, pure white glow like a divine judgement. Ramona, Pastora, Albert. Ramona, Pastora, Albert. He repeated their names like a mantra in his head. I'm so sorry. Your family is gone, and it's all my fault. I'll never forget you... I'll never be able to earn your forgiveness. Squeezing his eyes against the light, he concentrated.

"Desen? Are you there?"

"Yes, I am. It's not like I have anywhere to go. Their A.I. has me barred from anything interesting now. Can you get me closer to one of their computers? I could  - "

"Not now!" Hollin cut the caracal off. "What can we access from here?"

Desen processed for a moment. "Every security camera in this hallway and the ones beyond. Oh, also, your guard seems to be missing."

Hollin's eyes snapped open, and he jumped out of bed. Glancing through the sparking curtain of light, the jaguar saw the doberman was indeed missing. "Can you tell me when he left, exactly?"

"I don't know how they keep time, but it wasn't too long ago." Desen replied.

"Keep an eye out for him. Let me know if he's coming back."

Hollin habitually spread the covers up on the bed, unable to stop himself from being neat and proper, even in an alien prison. Blinking, a thought occurred to him. Wait. I fell asleep on top of the blankets, but I was under them when I woke up. Did I crawl under them in my sleep? Weird. He shook his head, walking up to the glowing curtain of light separating him from freedom.

Jagged sparks of amber light traveled up and down along the glowing barrier. This is so strange, Hollin thought. I wonder... He reached a finger towards the light and blinked in surprise as the sparks clustered around where his finger was about to touch. Well, now.

"Desen? Can you access this thing and shut it off?"

"I wouldn't know what commands I'm looking for. If I try random ones, I might trip an alarm. And there's almost certainly an alarm." Suddenly, an image of a caracal stood before him, just on the other side of the barrier. Desen looked up at him. "Ah. That's much easier."

"Desen?!" Hollin jumped back, and the caracal walked to stand next to him. "You... How are you here? You're in my head!"

"Yes, and I still am." Desen was grinning smugly. "I'm outputting my visual and audio data to the parts of your brain that're latticed to your sensory systems. Now you can see and hear me! Nobody else can, though, so I wouldn't keep talking out loud. Your crazy is showing."

"Ass." The jaguar glared at his A.I. companion as he walked back to the barrier. "Help me analyze this thing, would you? I don't know when I'll have the chance again."

Desen walked up to it. "Well, it's clearly a hard-light construct. Guy Hadwin had theorized about these a few decades ago, but corporate skewered his research budget after he couldn't deliver on it and the entire project got canceled."

"Really? I didn't know that."

"You don't read your newsletters." The A.I. paced along the hard-light wall. "Interfacing with the barrier from this side is impossible, though that's not really a surprise. If I had more tactile data, it would be easy to analyze.

"Tactile data? You can't mean  - "

"Oh, just touch it." The caracal pushed an intangible finger through the barrier. "I share your senses, but I have a greatly improved processing speed. Do it! Do it for science!" Desen balled up his paws and jumped up and down excitedly.

"Oh, it's so obvious that you're my  - " Hollin mumbled under his breath, stopping short. He shook his head, inhaling deeply. "Well. For science!" Hollin pushed his finger slowly toward the screen of light and  -

BOOM

Hollin flew across the cell, slamming into the back wall. The engineer's momentum carried him across the cell, slamming him into the back wall and knocking the wind out of him. Sliding to the floor, he gasped for breath as he looked up. He saw the barrier disappear as a blurry shape dashed in, setting something down on the floor before walking up to him.

"Idiot! What the fuck was he thinking?! I'm going to have to report this to Geanna, shit, shit... wait." The shape leaned close, and as Hollin's vision cleared, he realized it was his guard, Cavan. "Huh. That's odd You're still here?" The Doberman stood up and backed up a few steps as Hollin groaned and blinked. "And you're alive?! What... what the hell are you?"

"I'm a cat. A stupid, curious cat. They say curiosity killed the cat, but the satisfaction brought it back. And I think I'm pretty satisfied. Don't worry, I won't do that a second time. Geez, that stings..." The jaguar tried to stand, but his knees buckled and he slid down the wall again. "Huh. Guess I have to live here. Do me a favor and don't leave me here to die, would you?"

"If you're not dead now, I doubt there's much that could actually kill you. That barrier is set to vaporize anything it touches, going in or out." Cavan crouched down and inspected the cat, his usual stony expression on his face. Only his mossy hazel eyes betrayed a hint of worry. "You're... you're really okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. I don't understand why I'm surviving all this supposedly deadly stuff. I guess we're just built differently? There's plenty of shit that can kill me back home." Hollin thought for a moment. "Not that I've ever had to test that theory, I suppose."

"Well. That's interesting. Come on, get up. I brought you breakfast." Cavan blinked. "I uh... Can you eat grains?"

Hollin shrugged. "We prefer meat and a high-protein diet, but we can eat just about anything. Honestly, it doesn't matter what I eat; I just prefer the taste and texture of meat." The cat struggled to stand and failed again, sliding down the wall. He sighed and rubbed his thighs, trying to regain some sensation in his numb legs.

"Well, I don't know what you eat, so I picked something easy to digest. It'll be really boring, but  - " Cavan stopped, watching Hollin struggle. "Fuck. I guess you're more messed up than I thought. It's nice that you're not completely indestructible..." He stood, and extended a paw to Hollin. "Here. I'll help."

"Oh, thanks." Hollin reached out and clasped his paw, and  -

A pressure built in the jaguar's chest, causing his heart to speed up. His senses tingled, and time seemed to slow as Cavan's thickly muscled arm flexed, effortlessly pulling him to his feet. Their eyes met, paw still in paw, and for the first time, Hollin looked up and saw the Doberman's face go slack and relaxed. The cat blinked as Cavan's lips twitched, a smile just playing about the corners of his mouth. Then  -

Cavan jerked his paw away, breaking their connection. He almost tripped over himself, backing away. What expression is that on his face? Disgust? Fear? Panic? Hollin wondered. Whatever it was, the Doberman turned and swiftly exited the room, bringing the wall back up. When he reached the far end of the hall, he placed a paw on his sidearm and his frigid expression had returned. "Eat... eat your breakfast, prisoner."

Hollin sighed. "Back to prisoner, are we?" Shaking the still-tingling paw that had touched Cavan's, he picked up a tray from the floor. A gently steaming bowl of what looked like porridge sat on top of it, along with a relatively normal looking spoon. Too big, perhaps, but the canids were much bigger than him, so that part made sense. Still, he thought it was a little odd eating with what he would've considered a smallish serving spoon.

The porridge was bland indeed, but from the first bite, Hollin found how hungry he was, devouring the meal swiftly. He licked his paws, rubbing them against his face to clean himself. Looking up, he found Cavan staring at him, his guard's expression blank. "What?" Hollin asked.

The doberman continued to stare for a moment, finally blinking. "Cat. Big cat. I mean... Oh! Uh, nothing. That, um... that spoon was too big, wasn't it?"

The engineer looked down at his dishes. "Ah. Well, yeah, a little, but it works. Where do you want me to put the tray?"

"By the light wall. DON'T touch it again, though. If you do, I'm just gonna leave your ass on the floor." Cavan glared at him.

Hollin walked towards the wall slowly and set the tray down a few inches away. "Is that close enough?"

"Yeah. Go sit on the bed." He complied as the doberman touched the outer wall to the right of the cell, and the barrier vanished.

Hollin noticed that although whatever Cavan had touched was on the his right, he still used his left hand to touch it. "Oh! Hey, are you left-pawed?"

Cavan's ears flicked back as he stooped to pick up the tray. Standing, he touched the wall again, holding the tray in his right paw. "Sure. I'm taking this back to mess. Behave, idiot." Without another word, he stalked off down the hallway.

Hollin sighed. He chatted with Desen, waiting for Cavan to return. He used the language of the Canids, practicing forming the unfamiliar words with his mouth, and it gradually became more natural. Every now and again, Hollin caught his eyes darting to the spot where his captor usually stood. Am I that desperate for company? This is definitely what the apes call "Stockholm Syndrome."

When Cavan returned, he brought with him a metal folding chair. He opened it, sat, and pulled a vaporizer similar to Kerne's out of his jacket pocket, puffing on it a few times.

"Thought that stuff was bad for you." Hollin quipped.

His guard frowned at him, and his ears folded back. "It's just ghuivaer. It's mostly harmless."

"If it's harmless, why do you want your brother to stop using it?"

"I don't care about the ghuivaer, it's all the other shit he uses. Why are you talking to me?" The Doberman took another couple of puffs and placed the tube back in his pocket.

"I..." Hollin's mind went blank. Why am I talking to him? "You're... nice to talk to?"

He snorted. "No, I am not."

The feline smirked toothily. Success! "Well, it's entertaining, at least. Even if you are a little rude."

"I am a perfect gentleman." Cavan said dryly. The jaguar huffed as his guard stretched, tugging at his dark blue jacket. Hollin couldn't determine the fabric of the jacket, but he assumed it was warm. "Damn it," the doberman grumbled. "I'm fucking boiling down here. It wasn't this hot a few moments ago." He shrugged out of the garment, draping it over the back of the chair and stretching.

Oh. Oh, wow. Hollin had seen that the canines were clearly much stronger than he was, but now that Cavan's jacket was off, he could see the skintight black t-shirt underneath it. As the dog stretched, Hollin marveled at his chiseled muscles, something he could only dream of obtaining. His guard's biceps were massive, bulging and easily half as big as his head, and the short fur did little to hide the thick veins running across them. Cavan's left arm had thin, curling strips of fur missing, showing tattoos of what looked like vines of thorny roses. He had a thick chest that bulged against his shirt, and his abdomen displayed a similar definition. Damn. That dog could snap me like a twig.

"Bet you'd like that, wouldn't you?" Hollin jumped as Desen appeared beside the Doberman. The caracal put on a mocking expression and flipped his wrist. "Oh no, he's hot!"

"Shut up! I'm in prison and I'm pretty sure he hates me! And I do not have a crush on my warden!"

"He's staring at you."

"Oh! Wait, he is?"  Desen chuckled as Hollin tore his eyes away from Cavan's body to see that he had frozen in mid-stretch, one eye cracked open and eyeing the cat. Ears flushing red, the jaguar hurriedly looked away. "S-Sorry!" he said.

"Hmph." The dog relaxed his stretch but kept his eyes on Hollin. The cat turned his head to peek at Cavan a few times, but when he caught the Doberman's stare, he quickly looked away every time. When Hollin finally got the nerve to meet his intense stare, Cavan's expression was... confusing.

Is he pleased? He's smiling! Kinda... Hollin noted the ever-so-slight quirk of the corner of Cavan's lips. "Uh, sorry. Didn't mean to stare like that. You're, uh, impressive. I thought you looked dangerous."

"I should hope so." Cavan flexed his arms again, and it took Hollin a surprising amount of willpower not to stare again, focusing intently on the dog's hazel eyes. Cavan lowered his arms and grunted. "Hmph. Guess I can't blame you for staring, little cat. Are all of you this small?"

Hollin shook his head. "Actually, I'm small even compared to other members of my sub-species. The big cats like tigers, lions, and snow leopards are usually closer to you Canids in size. I'm,well..." How much do I tell him? "I didn't grow as much."

"Hrmph." Cavan gave Hollin a piercing stare that seemed to bore right through him, but he didn't press for more information. Instead, he pulled out his vaporizer again from the jacket behind him and puffed on it, clouds of vapor rising into the air. He looked away, and a troubled expression grew across his muzzle. "So, uh, about earlier. Did you notice... anything, when we  - "

"Good morning, everyone!" A familiar voice said in a singsong tone. Kerne rounded the corner and stepped up to Cavan. He snatched the vaporizer from Cavan's paw and puffed on it. A look of relief crossed Kerne's face. "Ahh! Oh, that's as disgusting as I thought it'd be! Do you ever brush your teeth, Cavan?"

The bigger Doberman grabbed the metal tube back from Kerne. "Ker, you know I do. Every night. And why the fuck are you using mine anyway?"

"Forgot it." Kerne shrugged, then turned to face Hollin. "So! Kitty cat! You want out of this cell?"

"Yes! Please!" Hollin dashed to the front of the cell, but stopped a healthy distance from the angry wall of sparks.

"Then go sit on the bed. I need to take some samples to make sure you aren't harboring any pathogens that could harm us. Not that some people haven't broken quarantine already..." Kerne looked a little guilty, but still spared a glare for his brother. "Still, we probably won't, uh, die instantly, at least. Ah... do you mind if I come in?" Suddenly shy, Kerne twiddled his thumbs together.

"Sure, I'm literally at your mercy here." Hollin sat on the bed and folded his paws in his lap.

"Good! Good. One moment, then..." Kerne raised his wrist to a whisker below eye level, and a console made of light popped into existence above his wrist. With the tap of a few buttons, the light wall came down, and he stepped inside. "Very good. Now, if you don't mind, this might sting a little."

Kerne had Hollin strip down and put on an oversized hospital gown, clearly made for a larger person. As the fabric draped over the cat, Kerne shrugged apologetically and said, "Well, I guess I should've brought something sized for adolescents. Still, this will make it easier."

He pulled out several glass vials. Hollin flinched as he plucked strands of his fur from all over his body, depositing each one in its own vial. Next, the doctor collected samples of saliva, tears, and for some reason the jaguar could not fathom, ear wax. Finally, he withdrew a long, wicked-looking syringe gun attached to a large glass bottle. "All right, now I'll get some of your blood, and I'll be out of your fur!"

Hollin looked at the device apprehensively. "Uh, h-how much are you going to take?"

"Oh, don't be such a baby. I do these all the time. Here, give me your arm." Kerne grabbed the jaguar roughly.

Panic set in as Hollin writhed in the smaller Doberman's firm grip. "No! I don't like this! Let me go!" He twisted his arm in an attempt to free himself, scratching himself on the dog's sharp claws. Tears sprang to his eyes. "Ow! Please, please don't!" Hollin watched helplessly as the needle inched closer to him.

Out of nowhere, Kerne was lifted in the air and brought face to face with a snarling Cavan. "What the FUCK are you doing to Hollin?!" he roared. Through his terror, a strange surge of warmth crept up into his belly. He said my name. He said my name!

"Uh, I uh... I just need some blood! I don't know why he's resisting!"

Cavan brought the doctor's muzzle close to his own, rage filling the larger Doberman's eyes. "No. No more. You're done scaring him; Leave him the hell alone."

"B-But I can't clear him without a blood analysis! Come on, I only need  - "

Cavan slowly lowered Kerne to the floor, then snatched the syringe from him and growled. "How. Much."

"J-Just a quarter should be plenty. I can do it, you'll mess it up!"

Cavan shook his head and turned, crouching down to meet the frightened Hollin at eye level. "Little cat? I'm sorry. I know you're scared. But we only need a little, and then I can get you out of here. See this vial?" The guard pointed at the large bottle on the syringe gun, and Hollin nodded slowly. "I only need this much." He tapped on the bottle at a spot about a quarter of the way up. "Is that all right? Or is that too much?"

The jaguar swallowed. "N-No, that's fine. If that's all he needs, that's fine. But nothing else. I'm done."

"That's fair. This is going to pinch a little. Can you extend your arm and make a fist?" Hollin did as Cavan asked, and the Doberman brought his left arm up to brush against Hollin's glossy fur. He rubbed his thumb up and down the inside of Hollin's elbow, sending tingles along his arm as the dog brushed the fur up and down. His face contorted, like the guard was completely lost in concentration.

"Um. Cavan?" Hollin said. "Are you... are you good?"

"Soft... I mean!" The trance broke, and Cavan blinked, reflexively squeezing Hollin's arm and causing the cat to flinch. "Ah! Shit..." Cavan gave Hollin's arm a second, gentler squeeze, trying to soothe the jaguar. The dog cleared his throat and said, "Sorry. I, uh, was looking for a vein. Yeah. Found it." With his right paw, he sank the needle into Hollin's skin and withdrew the sample he needed. He pulled a square of gauze out of a pouch on his hip, pressing it onto Hollin's arm as he pulled out the needle. The larger doberman tossed the syringe at Kerne, who scrambled to catch it.

"Careful, you dolt! I  - "

"Leave, Kerne. It is my duty to protect the prisoner, and I will not tolerate you harassing him. Your behavior was absolutely inexcusable."

"S-Sorry. I'll, um..." Kerne scurried out of the cell.

"That was... something. Let me see if the bleeding has stopped  - " Cavan pulled the gauze away. "Huh? There's no blood?"

"Well, you had pressure on it for a while, I'm not surprised I stopped bleeding already." Hollin said. Though I wouldn't mind you touching my arm again... What? What the hell is with these thoughts?

"No," Cavan said, shaking his head and turning the square of gauze around to show Hollin. "There's no blood. Like, at all. Show me your arm." Hollin slowly raised his arm, and Cavan seized it and ran his fingers along it. "Oh... oh my God." Dropping it, he backed away, horrified, and swore. "What the fuck are you?!"

"Cavan, I don't understand, I  - " Finally looking down at his arm, he saw what had so frightened the dog. Hollin saw a large gash through his fur, and though it should have been bleeding profusely, instead he was... healing? "What the fuck?" The engineer said slowly. He watched as the skin knit itself back together and fur grew over the injury, without even leaving a scar. His eyes shot up to meet Cavan's, and the Doberman started at the look of pure terror in Hollin's eyes. "What is happening to me?!"

"Wait, is... is this not normal for you?" he asked tentatively.

"No! No, it definitely fucking isn't! What the fuck, what the fuck, what the fuck..." Hollin's voice trailed off, and he rocked back and forth as he clutched at his arm. The cat's eyes squeezed shut, and he let out a high-pitched whine as a pair of tears dripped from his eyes.

A paw came to rest on Hollin's shoulder, and he jumped, then looked up. Cavan had moved close, a serious expression on his face. His voice rumbled as he spoke, and Hollin finally noticed how deep and smooth his voice sounded. "Breathe. Hey, little cat. Breathe for me. You're having a panic attack. You need to breathe."

Hollin nodded shakily and closed his eyes. He breathed in deeply, held it, then slowly blew the air out of his nose. After a few minutes of deep breathing, his emotions slowly came back under control. He slowly turned his gaze upward, and jumped a little. Cavan was now so close he could feel the dog's breath on his cheek, and the dog seemed to be sniffing him gently. "Uh... thanks. I think I'm good now."

"You sure?" The Doberman said, unmoving.

"Yeah..." Hollin closed his eyes. It was like electricity sparking between them, and his face grew warm and tingly. What the hell? Is this a side effect of something? Did they give me some weird alien medicine?

"It's truuue looove!" Desen cried out, causing Hollin to flinch and Cavan to jump away.

"Sorry! Sorry..." Cavan said, paws raised.

Hollin shook his head. "No, it's my fault. I didn't mean to flinch, you're fine. Really. It's... fine." Hollin shook his head to clear some of the fogginess from his brain. "Thank you. I mean it. You really helped calm me down."

"I did it a lot after my squad got... Ah, nevermind." Cavan shook his head, expression going stoic, then began exiting the room. "It's time for lunch. I'll be back. DON'T touch the light wall, prisoner."

Hollin grumbled as he crossed his arms, irritation sinking in. "Come on! Call me Hollin! We were doing so well!" the cat called after Cavan.

"No talking back, prisoner!" Hollin glared, but jerked his head back, dazed, when Cavan looked over his shoulder and... Did he wink at me?!

The jaguar didn't have to wait long before he heard footsteps outside his cell again. "That was fast, we must be close to the  - "

Captain Grimm stood outside Hollin's cell. He was swaying on his feet a little, his headfur looked disheveled, and his uniform was wrinkly and stained. "Cat." He said, slurring a little.

Is he drunk? "C-Captain Grimm, what a surprise! To what do I owe the unfortunate pleasure?"

"S-Shut up, prisoner!" he bellowed, causing Hollin to nearly swallow his tongue. The tall, imposing canid raised his wrist and tapped a few buttons on the screen that popped up, and the light wall came down. He slowly stumbled into the cell. Hollin backed against the wall.

"Desen! Can you sound an alarm in my cell?"

Desen mirrored Hollin's dread. "Maybe? I can't tell which command is which through these algorithms!"

"Doesn't matter! Hit them all!" Hollin thought before Grimm shoved him roughly against the wall.

"Gonna lose my position because of you." Grimm snarled, rows of razor-sharp teeth mere inches from the cat's face. "Killed all the rest of them... might as well kill you too, now."

"Wait  - " Hollin's voice choked off as Grimm's thick paw wrapped around his throat, cutting off his air. His muscled arm bulged as he slid the cat up into the air, Hollin's legs flailing.

Gasping, Hollin unsheathed his razor-sharp claws and scratched at Grimm's arm, muzzle, eyes, anyplace he could reach. He tried to kick off his shoes so he could rake at him with his powerful back legs, but Hollin found his work boots laced too tightly. He settled for a hard knee to the wolf's gut, but Grimm didn't even flinch when Hollin hit him. Hollin's sparkles danced in his vision as his mouth foamed and a trail of drool spilled out. Ramona, Pastora, Albert... Is this justice? Do I truly have nothing left to live for?

Is there anything?

Anyone?

Hollin twitched as his vision started to fade. Through the iron grip on his throat, Hollin choked out a single name.

"C-C-Cavan..."

He vaguely heard shouting, and then  -

ZAP! Hollin felt the wolf's grip tense, then relax, releasing him as Grimm crumpled to the ground. The cat sucked down air in gasping gulps, coughing as he rubbed his throat. He looked up to see...

"C-Cavan!" Hollin croaked.

His guard briskly strode over as the wolf stirred. He booted the wolf in the head repeatedly as he snarled, "The fuck. Do you think. You are doing. TO HOLLIN?!"

Grimm groaned and his body went slack. Cavan brought his left wrist to his muzzle and started speaking into it quietly, as Hollin crawled onto his bed and brought the covers up over his head. Shivering in the now-darkness, he heard the clatter of footsteps, some strained grunting, and the sound of something heavy being dragged. Eventually, he heard a light, lilting, feminine voice, but she sounded far away and he couldn't make out what she was saying.

"Now probably isn't a good time. No, he's, uh, hiding under some blankets. Yes. Yes. Understood, ma'am. I'm sorry. It will never happen again." Cavan said fervently. The feminine voice spoke again, more gently, and he replied, "No. It was my responsibility, and I failed. I'll do better. I have to, he's... he deserves better."

The voices went quiet, and the footsteps faded away. Hollin sensed a pressure near his footpaws as someone sat down on the bed. Even though he couldn't see him, he somehow knew that it was Cavan. A tremendous sigh escaped the dog's muzzle, and a gentle touch grazed the jaguar's knee. "Little cat? It's safe now, it's just you and me. Will you come out? Um... please?"

Reluctantly, Hollin lowered the blankets, peeking just his ears and eyes out from underneath.

"God, you're still shaking..." Cavan growled, glancing at where Grimm had been laying, before fixing his eyes back on Hollin. The jaguar had never been the best at reading facial expressions, but the way the dog's ears were laying back flat, his head bowed, and eyes wide, he could tell that Cavan was worried about him. "I'm so sorry, I never expected him to do something like that. I should've been better prepared, he almost... God, he almost killed you..." The doberman's eyes grew misty as he trailed off, choked up.

A pang of some unfamiliar emotion blossomed in his chest, and Hollin flung the covers off. "Hey, hey, it's okay! I don't blame you, not even a little. I didn't expect that either. It's... it's been one hell of day."

Cavan chuckled wetly and dried his eyes. "Yeah, yeah it has." He began standing to leave.

"Wait!" Hollin's paw shot out and grabbed Cavan's left wrist.

It burned. It burned. Fire shot through his arm, winding a path straight to his heart. Hollin's body flushed, and his heart quickened.

Cavan didn't jerk away this time. Instead, he froze, body trembling, breath coming in shallow, rapid bursts. He stood frozen for not quite ten seconds before closing his eyes. Taking a deep breath, he gently extricated his wrist from Hollin's paw. "Get yourself cleaned up, prisoner. I'm going to change the lock on your cell to my personal biocode, then I'm going to get you something to eat. You... you need to eat. Janitorial will be by to clean up soon."

The doberman quickly marched off, tapped something on the wall, then pressed his left hand against it and the wall of light sprang back into existence.

Hollin ran to the edge of his cell, straining to watch Cavan leave. What the hell? What the hell was that... feeling? He looked down and saw a bowl upturned on the floor, a viscous brown liquid splattered around it. Guess that was lunch.

Wait. There are chunks, too. What is that? Hollin raised his keen nose to the air and sniffed, a rich scent barely reaching him. Did he actually bring me meat?

...

This time, the time passed uneventfully before Cavan returned. "Uh, this was all that was left when I got there," the dog said, placing a bowl of greens inside the cell.

Hollin walked up to collect them before plunking himself back onto the bed. "You know, a chair and a desk wouldn't go amiss. You really should update your prison cells."

"Prison?" Now Cavan tilted his head, looking confused. "This isn't a prison."

Hollin talked around a mouthful of salad. "So you have doors that disintegrate people on contact, and this isn't a prison? The fuck is this place?"

"It's only a holding cell. It's not meant for long-term residency." The canine fished around in his jacket for the vaporizer before sitting in his chair again. He let out a cloud before scratching his chin thoughtfully. "I suppose, if you're going to be here a while, I could put in a request for  - "

"Hollin! What the hell is wrong with you?!" Kerne came screeching around the corner, panting and out of breath, like he'd been running for a while.

"That really, really depends on who you ask," the engineer said wryly. "Care to be any more specific?"

Gasping, the smaller Doberman braced his paws on his knees before catching his breath and tapping the right-hand wall. Confused, he looked at Cavan. "Why can't I open the light wall?"

Cavan explained what had happened with Grimm, and asked, "So, what is it exactly you need? He's just now finishing lunch and already we've traumatized him twice."

Kerne showed a screen to his brother and spoke in a hushed whisper. Cavan's eyes widened and flicked between Hollin and Kerne rapidly. Cavan quickly pressed his hand against the wall and brought down the glowing barrier. Kerne dashed in, shoving the screen in front of the cat's face. "Explain this, now!"

Hollin stretched up to review the image on the screen. It looked like an MRI of his chest, but in incredible detail. He might not have been able to tell whose image it was, but there was one outstanding feature that told Hollin it had to be his.

"Oh, that? My heart's too small, and it's got a hole in it." The cat shrugged nonchalantly, stuffing the last of his greens in his mouth. "S'why I'm so short."

"And you're alive?! How?" Kerne looked flustered, while Cavan gave Hollin an expressionless stare.

"Um... I can't tell you that. Company policy?"

Kerne looked unsatisfied. "Hmph. Well, even if you're lying, Cavan won't let me torture you, so  -  oh, quit it! It was a joke!"

Cavan was emitting a low, angry growl. "Joke about something else." He glared at his brother, stalking out of the cell.

"Well." Kerne shrugged and turned back to Hollin. "Your test results are back, and I don't think you pose any harm to the crew, so Geanna wants you released. However!" He pointed a finger at the cat. "You and your ship are too anomalous to let go, so you'll be staying here for the foreseeable future." The doctor smirked, like he'd won some kind of grand prize. "And in this city, everyone works. You said you were a researcher? Let me see what you can do. And if you do good work, we'll get you a new heart."

Hollin blinked. "What? You want me to help you research? And what do you mean, a new heart? There aren't prosthetics advanced enough to replace  - "

Kerne leaned in, a wicked smile on his face. "I guarantee you, I can make you a heart that'll last as long as you do, and it'll be an upgrade on even the healthiest of your kind. No prosthetics advanced enough? Pah!" He waved a paw dismissively. "This is trivial. We replace these all the time. I'll admit that I to being surprised you lived this long in your condition. But for me, fixing this is trivial. All I ask is that you show me something I haven't seen before. And given your... frankly confusing ship, I don't doubt that you'll impress."

Hollin sighed. I wanted to be a researcher again, but... this isn't what I had in mind. Still, maybe I can learn from them, too! And this time, nobody will steal my inventions from me! I'll make damn sure of that.

"You know what? Take me on a tour of the labs." Hollin said. "I'd like to see exactly what I'm getting into here."

"Absolutely! Let's ask grumpy here if I can borrow you for  - "

Cavan called into the room. "I'm coming with you two. He may be ready for release, but he's still a god-damned alien. He's going to cause a commotion."

"Fine, fine." Kerne said, giving another wave of his paw as he stretched. "Come on, let's get moving!"

...

"And here's the lab you'd be working in!" Kerne beamed as he opened the door to a pristine, brightly lit white room. There were tables, racks of tools, and a blue glowing interface projected into the air above a desk.

Hollin let out a low whistle. "Wow. This is honestly impressive. I really don't think I'll need this much space."

There was a twinkle in Kerne's eyes as he leaned over to whisper in Hollin's ear, resting a paw on the cat's shoulder. "You'll be grateful for the space when I assign you your lab assistants..."

Cavan plucked his brother's hand from Hollin's shoulder, grasping at the smaller dog's wrist. "You're getting awfully familiar with the prisoner."

"Hey! I told him he's free to go! Unhand me, brute!" Kerne twisted himself free of his brother's grasp, letting out a small whine as he rubbed his wrist.

"I talked to Geanna. He's still to be under constant surveillance. You neglected to mention that earlier." Kerne winced as Cavan continued. "It's not like he's allowed to leave the city. So, he's still a prisoner."

"Glass half-empty pessimistic asshole." Kerne stuck out his tongue and flicked his wrist at the wall, turning off the light. Closing the door, he turned to the jaguar. "So! What did you think?"

"Lab assistants... My own assistants... What?" Hollin was practically drooling when he snapped back to reality. "Oh. I mean, it's all right, I guess."

"Excellent! We're closing down for a few days for a break, and it's the end of the workday, so now I suppose the last thing to do is to get you settled in! I've got a wonderful house, plenty of extra space, so I'll take custody of you and we can go shopping in the morning for  - "

"No." Cavan growled.

"Excuse me? I outrank you. And your house is, well, pathetic. You never did learn how to spend your money. And shouldn't our newest researcher be in the lap of luxury?"

The brothers bickered for several minutes before Hollin cleared his throat. "Um, I just have to be watched by one of you, correct? It can be either of you?"

"Yes, that's right," Kerne said, turning slowly towards the engineer. "Why?"

Hollin's eyes flicked to Cavan before turning back to Kerne. "I think... I think I'd like to stay with Cavan, if that's all right." Hollin saw a strange emotion flicker across Cavan's deep hazel eyes. What is that? Relief? No, it couldn't be. But what if it was? What would that mean?

Kerne backed up, defeated. "Fine, fine. But remember, the offer is open. Don't blame me if you get claustrophobic staying at his place. I take it you remember the way out, Cav?"

"Yes, I do," Cavan said coldly. He watched as Kerne sauntered away. Turning to Hollin again, he asked, "You ready to go?"

"Oh! Yeah, sure." Hollin followed Cavan down a maze of hallways, down some stairs, and outside to what the jaguar could swear was a parking lot.

It turned out it was, after a fashion. Cavan pressed his left paw onto the side of a large, white, oval metal shape, and a hatch popped open to reveal a brightly lit cabin with four chairs. After ushering the cat inside, he followed, pressing the same paw onto a glowing orange panel. The hatch shut, and a beep sounded in the cabin. "Cavan Windeman, Home," he said.

Hollin started as the lights dimmed, and his head spun briefly as they lifted off the ground. The jaguar scrambled to buckle himself into a seat. Cavan took the one on his right and plopped down with a sigh of relief. "Damn, that was a long day."

"You're telling me!" Hollin let out a manic laugh. "I nearly died! I don't think I've ever been so scared..."

A serious expression came over Cavan's face. "Hey, cat. I'm... sorry. None of your interactions with us have been positive so far, really, and you're the first alien species we've ever encountered. I really hope I can show you a better side of the Canids." He bowed his head, and Hollin had to resist a sudden and overwhelming urge to pet him.

"Ah, don't worry about it! It was scary, but I was fine. Somehow..." Hollin rolled his arm over where he'd received his scratch earlier, picking at the site pensively. A dim glow caught his eye, and he looked over at Cavan. His mouth dropped open when he saw the glow was coming from the vines and roses tattooed on his arm. They rippled over the corded muscle, and when the doberman flexed he could swear they were moving, somehow. "Oh, wow! Your tattoo is really pretty!" He said, his eyes sparkling.

"My tattoo?" Cavan followed Hollin's gaze to his arm, then locked eyes with the jaguar, staring intensely. "You... you don't even know what this is, do you? What it means?"

"Uh, no, sorry. Is it bad?" Hollin winced, but met the doberman's gaze.

He sighed, pulling on his jacket. "Yes, it's bad. For me, anyway."

A heavy silence stretched between them. The engineer thought about pressing for more information, but Cavan's signature stony expression had returned, and the seriousness of his face caused Hollin to fall silent for the rest of the trip.

They landed in another concrete lot and stepped out of the ship. As they walked together down neat rows of small, similar-looking buildings, Hollin asked about the ship. "So, was that, uh, common? The flying about?"

"Yes, it is."

Silence. Oh, come on, you stubborn ass! "Okay, so, where are we going? Your residence, right? Are these all residences?"

"You ask a lot of questions, prisoner." Cavan looked back as they continued forward, glaring.

"Oh, come on! I'm thinking I should've stayed with your brother after all..." Hollin pouted and glanced away.

"No!" Cavan barked, the sharp staccato of his voice echoing off the nearby houses. A few windows flickered with new light and curtains rustled. The doberman's chin dipped down, and he pulled at his collar. "Er, ah  -  sorry," Cavan rumbled, looking surprisingly contrite for once. "Come on, we're almost there.

The pair walked up to a gray, rectangular concrete building. It was only one story, and true to Kerne's insinuation, it was quite small, even compared to the other residences in the vicinity. Cavan swiped his left paw over a sleek black pad on the outer wall, and the door beeped, whooshing open. He motioned for Hollin to follow him inside, and as they entered, the lights in the house flicked on.

Hollin glanced around, taking in the sights. Not that there was much to see; the main room housed a small table with two chairs, a large couch, and a picture of a distinguished gray-muzzled doberman hanging from the wall. There was carpet on the floor, stained and flattened from muddy boots plodding over it. The walls were barren aside from the picture and were the same light gray as the outside walls. A half-wall led into what had to be a kitchen, as there were dirty plates and pots in a basin by a tap. Hollin couldn't see a stove, but there was a large box made of black glass that he assumed would do the job.

"Sorry. For the mess." Cavan said haltingly. He scuffed a booted toe across the dingy carpet, and Hollin idly wondered who Cavan thought he had to impress.

"It's fine. If you can show me how your sink works, I'll help you clean up some."

"No!" There it was again, that emphatic denial. This time, it came with a snarl and a curl of his lip, too.

"Okay..." Hollin raised his paws and backed away slowly, bumping into the door that had shut itself behind him. "Desen, can you get this door open in case I need to run?"

"Uh, actually? No. This is strange. It's like it's an entirely different encryption. I'm analyzing it now, but it could be a while. This one's tricky. Delicious! His network tastes like oranges!"

"It... tastes?" Cavan took a sudden step towards Hollin, still growling. The jaguar let out a squeak and swiftly curled up into a ball, paws positioned to shield his head and neck from impact. His body trembled as his shoulders shook, and he hiccuped as tears streamed down his cheeks.

The growling trailed off, and Cavan gasped. "Oh! Oh no, shit, shit!" Paws thudded against the floor as the dog dashed toward Hollin. "Shit, I did it again! Damn it, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you. That just, um, happens sometimes. Though it's been a long time since it happened to me..." Cavan muttered that last part, and Hollin carefully peeked out from behind his knees. He saw the doberman crouching down on the floor, a grimace on his face, shoulders tense, chewing on his lower lip. Cavan's paws were hugging his shoulders, and they trembled slightly.

Sniffling, Hollin wiped his tears on his coveralls and glanced at Cavan, who was still a good foot taller than he was even when they were both sitting. "W-Why did you growl at me? I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you, I really didn't. I don't understand what I did wrong." Hollin let out a shuddery sigh, then continued. "I don't know why I keep upsetting you, but I promise I'm trying really hard to avoid it. I just... everything I do seems to piss you off, and I don't know why! What am I doing wrong? How do I make you happy? I want to make you happy." And I don't for the life of me understand why I want that so badly...

Cavan shifted to his feet and stood up. He ran his paws through his light brown headfur, huffing as he looked down at the jaguar. "You're not doing anything wrong. This is me. I'm the one who should be sorry, not you." His stony facade fell off him gradually, and Hollin thought it was like the sun coming out from behind the clouds. His guard's features were strong, but the sharp edges softened. He almost looked nervous. His square, tense jaw relaxed, and he sighed. "Look, are you... are you hungry?"

Hollin's stomach burbled, lunch having long since passed. "Um. I guess I could eat?"

With a grunt, Cavan pointed roughly at the couch. "Sit." Hollin slowly took a seat, and Cavan gave him a wicked smile. "Good boy."

Hollin's stomach flipped and his heart raced. What's with me? I must be hungrier than I thought. He stuck out his tongue at his tormentor, teasing, trying to forget that he'd been having a panic attack mere moments before. Cavan startled him by letting out a bark of his own laughter. He wandered into the kitchen and opened a drawer. He pulled something glistening out of it, and it made a wet thwap as he plopped it on top of the black box. Hollin heard a snkt! sound as Cavan twirled his left paw, moving his arm up and down. He pulled a tray down from a nearby cupboard, and the jaguar heard the unmistakable plopping sound of meat falling into the dish. Cavan produced a few more small canisters and bottles from various cupboards and drawers. The doberman's arms were moving fluidly and hypnotically, with a grace that almost made Hollin forget that Cavan was possibly the most dangerous man he knew. Finally, with a wave of his left paw, the front panel of the black box popped open, and he slid the tray inside.

Within minutes, a savory, sweet aroma filled the room, and Cavan was washing his paws. The dishes were next, and by the time he finished with them, Hollin's stomach was growling incessantly. One particularly loud gurgle made its way to Cavan's sharp ears, and he looked sideways at Hollin with a lopsided grin on his face.

"What?" Hollin asked, smiling back. Cavan smiling was... new, and the jaguar found it absolutely infectious.

"Nothing. What would you say if I told you dinner would be another couple hours, though?"

Hollin groaned and rolled his eyes before he caught Cavan snickering at him. The doberman opened what had to be an oven of some sort, and with his left paw, withdrew a steaming dish of meat.

"Aah! That has to be hot!" Hollin cried. "How are you doing that?"

"Oh, uh..." Grabbing a floppy square of silicone, he set it on the small table before setting the dish on top of it. "Come eat. Please? I really don't want to talk about it, but  -  Are you okay? Your heart rate's spiking again."

"Am I okay?! What about you? Show me your paw!" Panic filled Hollin's voice as he jumped to his feet. "I swear by the Gods, if you've gotten hurt for my sake, I'd never forgive myself."

"You'll never forgive... yourself?" Cavan tilted his head, cocking an eyebrow.

Hollin's mind blanked. "I mean you! I'll never forgive you." But... no. That's not what I meant at all. I think I meant what I said. Why? That's confusing as hell.

"You love him!" Desen appeared as a cluster of identical heads set in little hearts that swirled around Cavan's head.

"I do not!" Sitting at the table, Hollin motioned for Cavan to sit down. "I don't know what's going on, but I  - "

Cavan leaned in and interrupted the cat, saying, "Uh, you okay? Who are you talking to?"

"Uh..." Hollin swallowed as a cold sweat broke out on his forehead and neck. "Uh... it must be a glitch in the translation software? It overrides my speech centers, I must be tired." Hollin let out a weak chuckle as he shifted uneasily in his chair.

"Hrm." Cavan studied his face intently. Hollin focused on meeting the dog's gaze, and at last, he seemed to buy it. "Sure. Makes sense. Here." Cavan handed Hollin a too-big fork. "You'll have to make do. I don't have any smaller cutlery."

Whew! Hollin skewered a cube of meat and sniffed it, tentatively popping it into his mouth. Succulent juices filled his mouth along with a sweet and smoky flavor he'd normally associate with grilling over coals. "This is incredible! What is this, pork? It tastes like pork. Shit!" He quickly speared another cube of meat. Swallowing, he looked at Cavan, eyes wide. "And it barely took any time at all! How'd you do this?"

"Hey, trade secrets!" Cavan laughed. He grabbed a bite and closed his eyes, chewing. "Damn. Can't get this at the canteen."

They gorged themselves on meat, eventually slowing down to savor it more thoroughly. The lights in the house dimmed, and Cavan motioned to a door just off the kitchen. "There's a shower in there. I have some old clothes you can wear while I clean yours. We'll take you shopping for some new stuff tomorrow."

Cavan led Hollin into a small room where a large mattress lay, with a small glass shower cubicle in the corner. The dog opened a panel set into the wall, and pulled out an oversized t-shirt and a pair of loose shorts, handing them to the cat as he did so. With a grunt, he gestured at the shower, saying, "Go on. I can smell you, it's... potent."

"Okay, well, I was literally in prison the last couple of days. Not my fault." Hollin glared at him, walking over to the cubicle. Turning, he saw Cavan staring at him, and his face grew hot. "Can you, uh, turn around?"

"You shy, prisoner?" The dog arched an eyebrow, smirking.

The jaguar smiled, a devilish glint in his eye. "Oh, so you're looking to peep at the alien? I mean, I'll put on a show if you want..." Hollin slowly started unzipping the coveralls he was wearing, staring down the doberman.

Cavan made a choking sound, and Hollin swore he saw his ears turning pink as he whipped around. "Just take your damn shower!" Cavan said, his voice strained.

Hollin chuckled, pleased with himself. The jaguar undressed and stepped into the shower, the chilly night air against his bare body causing his fur to prickle. He shivered, hopping from foot to foot as he scanned the shower. He turned and called out to Cavan, "Uh, s-sorry. How d-do I turn this thing on?"

"Oh, right, you  - " The dog turned and froze when his eyes locked on Hollin's body. "Uh, you... uh..." His upper lip curled into a snarl, and the cat could barely make out a growl issuing from Cavan's throat.

Hollin shrank back, curling his tail around his knees as he tried to make himself as small as possible while still standing. "C-Cavan? D-Did I do something wrong?"

Hollin's reaction snapped Cavan out of his reverie, and he wordlessly padded over to the shower. "Here. You need an implant to activate our tech." He swiped his left paw over a slightly raised bump, and instantly, steaming water sprayed onto Hollin. "Sorry, I sorta... forgot about that."

Hollin was too busy relishing the steaming water to care. "Where's your shampoo?"

"It's... Ugh, fine. I'll have to help you." Waving his paw over the bump again, a warm foam sprayed out.

It smelled strongly floral, though Hollin couldn't quite place the scent right away. Perhaps violets? He started scrubbing the foam into his fur, surprised at just how grimy he was. I guess I got pretty dirty when they blew the airlock... "Okay, water again."

The foam turned off, replaced by the steaming jets of water. The foam rinsed out, and he let the water course over the top of his head for a moment before turning to Cavan. "Okay, I think I'm done... What's up?"

Cavan was staring at Hollin. "You... turned off the soap. How did you do that?"

"What? No, I asked you to turn it off."

"No, you didn't. You never said anything after asking for shampoo, but it switched back to water anyway." Shooting a glare at Hollin, the doberman turned off the water as he leaned over to look the jaguar in the eye. "You have an implant, don't you? I thought you said your kind didn't have advanced prosthetics. Were you lying to me, prisoner?"

"W-We don't! I  - " Hollin pressed himself back into the shower. "Desen! What the hell is going on?"

"Well, you asked me to turn the water back on. So I did!"

"Idiot! How do I explain this to him?"

"That's your problem, meatbag! My creator  - "

"I AM your creator!" Hollin roared. Cavan actually jumped back, his jaw dropping, shoulders tensing, eyes going wide.

"You're... what?" Cavan said quietly.

"You're... what?" Desen said at the same time.

Hollin blinked. "Fuck!" he said, smacking his paws over his face. Sighing, he knew there was no avoiding this discussion. He'd been caught, anyway; Maybe Cavan would go easy on him?

"Look," Hollin said, "I don't know how to explain this to you. No, I'm not your creator, Cavan. I'll tell you everything, but... please, promise you won't tell anyone. This is something that could be deadly for me if people knew about it."

"Uh... okay. D'you wanna get dressed first?" Cavan's face was stony again. Hollin felt nausea building in the pit of his stomach, desperate to know what was going through the stoic doberman's head.

The jaguar nodded jerkily, and Cavan waved a paw, turning on jets of warm air that quickly dried his short, silky fur. Hollin pulled on the t-shirt Cavan had lent him, forgoing the shorts as the baggy shirt came down to just above his knees, and plodded over to sit on the edge of the bed. Waving Cavan over, he gestured at the back of his neck.

"Take a look at this..."

...

To be continued...

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A Different Prison: A Hollin Arensen Story

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