Serix went back to his work, although he kept an eye on Hunter as he dug in the fields. He was still kicking himself for letting the human get to him so easily. He had promised Cassie that he would try harder to stay out of trouble just one night ago, and now here he was almost getting involved in yet another fight. His promise hadn’t even lasted a day. He exhaled. He really needed to do a better job of keeping his temper under control around Hunter.

[b]“I’ll go get some water to water the crops with,”[/b] Cassie said. Serix nodded and continued working on the last row of seeds. He finished it quickly and set down his spaded tool, reaching his arms over his head in a luxurious stretch. The repetitive motion of digging holes had made his shoulders a bit sore.

Suddenly, Serix heard a shout from behind him. He spun around to see Cassie getting up from the ground with an empty bucket. Hunter was soaking wet. Serix took a step forward, initially thinking that Cassie had tripped, but stopped when he saw the mischievous look in her eye. He grinned. The water spill was no accident.

[b]“Oh, I’m soooooo sorry,”[/b] Cassie said, airily twirling a stand of hair around her finger. [b]“I’m terribly clumsy. Must be that Lunairan side of me. Well, at least maybe the water cooled that temper of yours off.”[/b]

Hunter angrily snatched the bucket away from her, and then went to grab her arm. Serix tensed. How dare the human lay a hand on his mate like that? He didn’t need to move, however, because Cassie immediately punched him in the face with her free hand. She followed up by knocking Hunter to the ground and twisting his arm behind his back in a similar fashion to how Serix had caught her when they first met. He crossed his arms, beaming proudly at his mate. She was turning into quite the talented fighter.

[b]“Cassie, do I even want to know what’s going on?”[/b] Serix turned to see Ryan approaching the group. With him were Jacob and Conner.

[b]“Probably not,”[/b] Cassie admitted, letting Hunter up. [b]“But if you’re asking, this idiot threatened Serix and tried to start another fight with him.”[/b] She walked over to stand by Serix as she spoke. [b]“You didn’t do anything about it last time, so I assumed you wouldn’t this time either. I saw no other choice but to take things into my own hands.”[/b]

Ryan looked from her to Hunter, who was getting painfully up from the ground. With the injuries he had received from Serix and Cassie combined, he was going to be sore for a good long while. The thought brought a smile to Serix’s lips. Ryan didn’t share his joy, but then again, when did he ever look happy about anything? Serix was beginning to think that the frown on his face was a permanent feature.

“Cassie, you didn’t have to do that,” Ryan sounded uncertain. Serix could almost imagine what was going through the human’s mind. He didn’t want Cassie to get hurt, but he also didn’t want to punish Hunter for harassing a Lunairan. After a moment, he turned to Hunter, seeming to come to a decision. “Don’t waste time fighting with the alien. We need your energy for more important things.”

“That’s it?” Serix laughed mirthlessly. “When I get caught up in a fight, I get threatened to be locked up in the hold, but when he does the same thing, it’s ‘don’t do it again’? I’m sorry, but I fail to see how this is just.”

“Simple,” Hunter growled, rubbing his cheek where Cassie struck him. “You’re an alien. In the grand hierarchy, you stand below me. Get used to it.”

“That’s enough,” Ryan said with a discreet glance at Cassie. “Hunter, you can go take a break.” He waited until the dark-haired male left the area, and then walked over to Cassie. “You can’t just attack people like that, Cass. We do have rules around here. If he causes you trouble, you come get me first, okay?”

Serix rolled his eyes. If Cassie had gone to Ryan, he wouldn’t have done anything. It was much more efficient for her to pummel him, herself. Serix would have done the same thing if he wasn’t sitting under the threat of getting locked up for causing trouble. He held Cassie’s hand as she stood next to him, “I think she did just fine. She was more helpful than you’ve been since we got here.”

“It was still out of protocol,” Ryan shot him a glare and turned back to Cassie. “Just be more careful, okay? I can’t keep showing you favoritism when you break the rules, Cass.”