Culture Shook

[Joey Rabeak]

"Nah, it's actually nice and warm. It's a Cizerack thing," Joey replied. "And they've got these soaking pools kind of like hot tubs, too. It's usually a little on the pricey side, but I got us covered."

Knowing he'd be undressed didn't even faze the male Nehantite, as he usually wound up that way at the end of the night on a night out. The fact that he was wearing more than just his underwear in a club, at the moment, was something of a record for him, lately. Though this wasn't the typical club he went to.

[Gradoona Pod-Floewander]

Gradoona was about to give Ndonsa a chummy conspiratorial elbow jab, but thought better of it. The lady Nehantite valued her personal space hoola hoop.

"It's grrreeat foor people waatchin', haa! Youu'll see!"

* * *

"Ahh..."

Gradoona sighed in relief at the comforting humidity that embraced them the moment they entered the tea house. A male Cizeri greeted them at the atrium.

"Ja irra korra'nai Rrou Grradoona and Arr Rrabeak. Ah, and a new guesst?"

The Herglic squee-whistled, gesturing to the Kufu visitor.

"Ooh this heere's uh, Rrou Nuhdaansa."

The handsome felinoid bowed deeply to the Jedi.

"Welcome to Madame Maillanaarro's Tea Housse, Rrou Nudanssa. Mjy name jiss.."

"Kiirraano, I remember!" Gradoona interjected. "Youu did thaat thing with the haat lootion and the...uh...whadja caall it?

As demure as Gradoona was brassy, Kiirraano answered "Na'aura herrii, rrou'a."

The Herglic gasped, "Thaat's it! Oooh, thaat waas amaaaziiing!"

Kiirraano bowed again, this time to a lesser degree.

"Thank jyou, rrou'a. Can jI make prreparratjionss forr jyourr rrefrresshment whjile jyou and jyourr frrjiendss change?"

"Youu betcha!" Gradoona clacked, deferring to the Nehantites.

"Youu guyss goo aan ahead. I'm gaanna goo and get ouut aaf this monkey suit tootey sweetey!"

[Ndonsa]

Ndonsa followed her companions into the tea house, and looked around curiously as the Gradoona and the Cizeri spoke. She was not unfamiliar with the Cizerack and their ways, but she was not sure what to expect. The warmth of the room reminded her of Kuf.

"What do we change to?" she asked Joey quietly, her brow furrowed as the Gradoona click-clacked about monkeys.

[Joey Rabeak]

Joey could already smell the jeeta in the air. Warm, lush, intoxicating; it wouldn't be long before its effects began to kick in, and that's when his inebriated brain began to realize this might be a bad idea.

Unfortunately, that portion his mind couldn't find the correct alarm bell to rung, and he just gave a sheepish smile. "Well, here..." he said, leading the way into the changing room, half-full of naked bodies. "We change into nothing."

His tail flicked, a combination of swagger and insecurity, as the pilot approached a locker stall. "See, it's a Cizerack cultural thing," Joey began to explain as he unbuttoned his shirt. It came off to reveal a perfectly sculpted upper body which would have been at home on either a cover of a fitness magazine, or in an underwear advertisement. "You can soak in the pools, get a massage, enjoy the steam room," he carried on, "and even play with someone, if you want. And if they want, too." Down went his pants, leaving him in a pair of skimpy, painfully fashionable, and likely overpriced designer underwear. There he stopped, waiting for Ndonsa's approval to proceed any further.

And then came the alarm bell. Jeeta affected Nehantites more than most, a natural aphrodisiac with highly potent effects. Well, at least on males, swimming in the alcohol in his brain, his better judgment started to wonder if it would affect females the same way.

[Ndonsa]

“No...’standard of decorum,’” she said slowly, sounding out the words. It seemed a long time ago that Knight Loki had met her on Ossus and demanded she cover her fur.

She had followed Joey to a wall of cupboards and benches, and realized that he had paused his undressing. Ndonsa looked at the length of him, and shrugged. “In my tribe there was never shame in being unclothed. Or clothes, at all.”

Ndonsa could almost hear Knight Loki’s voice in her head, telling her to resist the urge to prove how little she knew of the greater universe, but she ignored it. She took off the restricting top and pants, but hesitated to part with her many necklaces.

She stood still for a moment, her hand on the beads and bones, lost in thought.

[Joey Rabeak]

"Heh, no, no 'standard of decorum' around here," Joey chuckled. "I mean, other than ask before jumping someone's bones, that is."

Hooking his thumbs into his waistband, he shucked off his underwear, then glanced over at Ndonsa. She'd taken to undressing with far less complaint than he'd imagined,and her explanation had made sense. A brief daydream of being able to grow up where everybody was naked filtered through his brain, colored in far naughtier shades than how things really happened in such tribes, before his eyes were taken back to Ndonsa and her necklaces.

"You probably do want to take those off for this," he said. "There's herbs and leaves and stuff in the water, as well as oils for your skin and fur, and fragrances and stuff. Probably don't want those getting permeated into your collection, there."

Not to mention Garfife-knows-how-much jizz is in that water! His mind chuckled.

"I usually get a nice soak for a bit, then get a massage," Joey attempted to keep things on track.

[Gradoona Pod-Floewander]

"Alriiight, tiime foor a dip!"

Gradoona padded into the pool room, looking around momentarily for her accomplices. Where'd they go?

"Didja guys get laast?" she called back to the changing area. Shrugging she helped herself to a few fish being offered by one of the serving boys making their rounds.

[Ndonsa]

"Thank you." Ndonsa removed the necklaces after Joey's suggestion, hanging them on a hook in the cupboard.

She stretched slowly, her tail straightening as she flexed. Her fur was creased from the clothing, and she scratched her rib cage, fluffing it back up again. As Joey led the way out of the changing room, she had a thought.

"What does it mean to jump bones?"

[Joey Rabeak]

The smile which crossed Joey's smile was juvenile in the extreme, and all he had to do was nod at a couple firmly displaying the meaning of the phrase at the near edge of the grand pool.

A few smaller pools could be seen, along with alcoves for the small massage parlors tucked neatly behind beaded curtains, each with an array of shimmering stones woven along each strand to give the effect of entering through a portal made of magic and wonder.

There was gold trimming nearly everywhere, with an array of greenery all throughout. Etchings in polished wood, inlays of glittering gems, and even marble statuary could be seen beside deep-toned kingwood colonnades. The ceiling was a work of pure art as well, with beautiful carvings of Sanjarra and Nomaani, as well as the rest of the Cizerack pantheon so lovingly depicted. (Description lifted from here. Credit to Christin for it!)

[Ndonsa]

Ndonsa's eyes traveled across the shiny room, trying to make sense of what she was seeing. In the water a pair of Cizerack were mating vigorously, and other pairs were scattered throughout the large space. But there were groups simply talking, and others on their own enjoying a soak in the water.

Her initial sweep of the room was interrupted by the huge bulk of Gradoona tossing fish into her mouth. The spell of the tea room was broken, and Ndonsa blinked as she took in the grey alien's expanse of uninterrupted skin.

[Gradoona Pod-Floewander]

"Ya waan't some?"

Gradoona reigned in her momentary selfishness, holding up a handful of three fish.

"The drinks n massaages n stuff aren't cheap, but the food's free? Guess becaause it's saalty, yaknoo, soo ya get thirsty and becaause aall the other stuff can leave ya kiiinda..."

Her rambling was cut short by a brief but vocal release from the coupling at the far end of the pool. The Herglic clacked in what sounded like a giggle.

"...peckish."

She shrugged, jerking her thumb towards one of the back alcoves covered by a curtain.

"Me? I'm abouut to go foor the massaage. Naat suure how much you guys appreciate that soort aaf thing, but ooh, a gal can get used to a life aaf lootion and oil, yaknoo?"

[Ndonsa]

Ndonsa nodded, and walked to the edge of the pool. There were pieces of plants floating on the milky white water, and the smell of the room was...

She closed her eyes for a moment, smoothing down the fur on her hips, inhaling the spicy scent. "What is that?" she wondered out loud.

[Gradoona Pod-Floewander]

"Well, I knoow the big thing they put in there is called jeeta, but dunnoo if thaats what youur'e smellin oor naat."

Gradoona pointed to her beak and its decided lack of a nose.

"Yaknoo, aan accouunt of naat haavin' a sniffer, eh. It's suppoosed to have aall soorts of effects aan the Ciz though."

She shrugged. "Whaatever gets yaa in the mood, huh?"

[Joey Rabeak]

"Yeah, it's jeeta, mostly. Among other things," Joey grinned. He led the way into the pool, wading down in along the steps, before ticking his head for the others to come join him along an empty section of wall.

Once there, he let the waist-high water just soak into his fur for a bit, before sinking down to a seat upon the marble bench which ran around most of the pool's perimeter, his toned arms spread along the back wall, showing off his gymrat physique without intending to. Or perhaps it was intentional, given the male's penchant for flair and tendency to showboat. "Stuff will... get you in the mood all right. Or at least it does for us Nehantites," he chuckled.

Little did he know that Gradoona had already taken another male Nehantite to the tea house - his dad.

[Ndonsa]

"In the mood," repeated Ndonsa, as she joined Joey in the warm water. "Ah. I understand."

Hal had used those words before, prior to mating. It was strange to have so many memories of him that he would never remember... and could never. He would have loved this house of tea.

A stab of grief caught her unexpectedly, and she sank down into the water near Joey's outstretched arms. A few deep breaths of heavily scented air, however, and the moment subsided. Other feelings began to stir deep inside her body, and she turned her head to look at her companions. Gradoona had not entered the pool, and Joey was looking off toward--

--toward where a pair of male Cizeracks were rubbing oil on each other. Her eyes widened slightly in partial understanding, but the surge of desire that was growing inside her body was not listening.

Ndonsa shifted on the underwater bench, turning to face Joey and placing a hand on his arm. "This place is...not like Ossus. I ..." she trailed off, at a loss for words. He was the only other Nehantite there, surely he knew this had seemed like an invitation.