[@PaulHaynek]
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[h2] Nick's House [/h2]

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[quote=Nick]
“Oh, alright. Dolly it is then.”
[/quote]
A smile with red cheeks appeared on her face. She covered the redness with her hands. 


[quote=Nick] 
"Oh, I have an extra bedroom in this house. I actually prepared it since I knew you were coming." 
[/quote]

Her smile made way for a surprised face. Oh, no. He doesn’t like me. He wants me to live with someone else.     

[quote=Nick]
"I wasn't sure what extraspecies I was getting though so I fashioned it like a human's. I'll try to adjust it better if you don't like it."
[/quote]
Wait. Was that a glimmer of hope? There’s still hope!   

[quote=Nick]
"So... so you're some kind of soldier?"

[/quote]
Dolly happily nodded. 
“Hmhm. ”

[quote=Nick]
"But, if you're a soldier... what are you doing here as part of the Cultural Exchange Program?"
[/quote]

Oh no.. not this again. He was going to think she was a freak... That soldiers should be out on the battlefield and that she was weak for not being in service of a queen. She responded with a minor PTSD. Shaking her head, slightly. Looking at her hands, she could feel the adrenaline. The crooked files, the needless needles, the crenelated knives. Thee stings, the scraping, the slow emptiness of her veins. She twitched slightly on the rhythm of the horrors. Being dragged back down to the tower where she was held for many years, she came to a full stop when she hear Nick speak again after these few seconds.   

[quote=Nick]
"W-well, that is... if you're okay with discussing that type of thing. If you don't want to talk about it, I will understand and will not pry."
[/quote]

She realized she’d just been grabbing her head and shaking it. 

“I.. eh.. yeah. Our society doesn’t entirely work like yours.. We have a queen, guards and workers. Unless you do something heroic beyond compare.. like.. overthrow a queen of another hive or save your queen and with it the hive from destruction, ”

She bend over forward a bit and bowed her head. I must not be wanted here. But why would I? I’m no queen..

“I’m here because the queen isn’t. We would send worker-slaves, but the hive has to remain. The country has to be run. But they don’t mind. They can hardly think for themselves.”

She looked at the weird wooden thing with lots of stuff on it.

“So now, because the queen is protected by law, we, the royal guards, get officially ‘dismissed’. Or disowned or executed or worse for defensive crimes in name of the queen. It doesn’t really help to never be allowed to have a relationship, friend in the constant threat of being degraded to a worker-slave. Not that I didn’t want this job, though! I was always curious about the many other races, their habits, culture and powers.” 

Her eyes exposed her exhaustion. Her heavy breathing hinted faintly at the harsh times she endured to get where she was.

“ Ugh, I’m.. in need of sleep. ” Though she tried to get up, she could barely bring herself to