The Scents of Proxima Ch. 01

Hello all! For those who have read my other work, this is something completely different. This story is a sci-fi romance with heavy character & world-building for the first few chapters, so come back in a few chapters if you're just looking for them to get hot and heavy. I will be doing my best to release a chapter every 3-4 weeks. All comments are read and highly appreciated! Enjoy!

Thanks to all my Beta readers for their help in shaping this story!

Chapter 1 - Ghosts of school days past

Beth did a double take. She knew that haircut. Her second look confirmed her fears. It was him. He'd gotten taller, and filled out in the decade since she had seen him last but it was definitely him: Halidan Jakobi.

Beth leaned against the wall of the building she had ducked behind while Hal strode off toward the mechanical department. He hadn't seen her. Good. That gave her time to figure out how she wanted to handle seeing her old tormenter again. She'd always known there was a decent chance of running into him; as much as the colonies had expanded, there were still only two universities. She'd spent hours agonizing over what she would do if she ever saw him again. Now, with him here, their meeting face-to-face was almost an inevitability.

Would it be like Mids all over again? From their first meeting, Hal had seemed to find her revulsive. Beth flashed back to the early days of their acquaintance.

Eleven and a half years ago -

Beth had been attending Mids for a week and so far things had been okay. As one of a handful of non-shifter colonists, she'd stood out. To most, she had been a curiosity, one of the few new settlers that had come on the last ship five years ago. They had asked about what it was like to be in space, if she remembered anything of Earth. She hadn't been able to tell them much. Beth had been born on the 8-year voyage out to the Centauri system and all she could remember of space was an unending blackness.

Today she found herself alone on the climbing structure with a boy whose curly brown hair lay in unruly ruffles just above his ears. His locks seemed to reflect with silver highlights as he turned to look at her.

"Hi, I'm Beth."

"Yeah, um, hi." The boy swung his feet, not quite meeting her eye. Beth didn't understand why he was looking at her so strangely, but she pushed on. While she had always been shy around new people, she found herself immediately wanting to be friends with the boy in front of her. Other pre-teens ran around the area, but she kept her attention on the boy with the 20th-century surfer haircut.

"What kind of shifter are you?"

The boy looked affronted. "I'm a leopard seal, duh!"

"Oh, that's cool. Do you get to swim in the ocean?"

"Of course I get to swim in the ocean! What kind of pampered earth dweller do you think I am?"

"I wasn't trying to be rude, I just haven't met a seal shifter before!" Beth held out her hands in an apologetic gesture.

"Oh... really? Where are you from that you haven't met a seal before?"

"My parents work at the Lochien research institute. We've lived there since we came to Proxima One five years ago."

"Ah, so you're the non-mod."

"Um, yeah, I guess." Beth technically did have genetic modifications, all humans did these days, but Proxima One had been exclusively populated by shifters until Beth and her family arrived with a handful of others from Earth. While shifters were human in origin, their extensive genetic modifications allowed them to shift to another, specialized, mammalian form.

"That explains why you smell weird."

Beth frowned. "I smell weird?"

"I mean, you just don't smell like anyone I've ever met. It's probably 'cause you're not a shifter."

"Oh, yeah. I guess that makes sense... " Beth climbed a little closer to where the boy sat. "What's the ocean like?"

Before he could answer, another boy stalked over. "Who do you think you are, non-mod? Can't you tell Hal doesn't want to talk to you?"

Beth was taken aback. Why was this new boy so mad at her?

"I was just trying to be friendly!" Beth didn't think she had done anything wrong. It seemed to her that she and Hal had been having an okay conversation.

"Hal and I are descendants from the original settlers on Proxima One. We have nine generations of shifter blood. You're a worthless human who wouldn't survive two steps outside the barriers. We don't want you to be friendly! We don't want you to be here! We want you to go back where you came from!"

It only went downhill from there.

Sometimes, she wondered that if Elijah hadn't been there, then maybe she and Hal could have gotten along. Elijah was outright antagonistic, whereas Hal only teased at first. Teased her about her clothes, her hair, the food she ate. She dished it back, hoping if she proved she wasn't a pushover that he would come to respect her. It almost turned into a game of how quickly and slyly she could turn his taunts back at him. But as the year progressed, Hal's mocking comments turned to barbed insults. It seemed as though every time she did something to try and bridge the gap, to be friends, Hal's behavior got worse.

And yet, she couldn't help herself but try. She rationalized to herself that everyone wanted to be Hal's friend. He was a Jakobi, descended from one of the original four leopard seal families that colonized the planet nearly 300 years ago. Even the kids who didn't care about lineage were fascinated by the stories he could tell from the original settling days.

Then one day, while the guiders were giving a demonstration on how to center themselves by holding one's breath, Beth heard one of the guiders mention that this technique was particularly helpful if you were being overwhelmed by a mate pairing. After the demonstration was over, Beth went over to the guider who had made the comment.

"What's a mate pairing?"

"Oh, you're Beth, right? I guess you wouldn't have grown up hearing about pairing dynamics from your family. I guess the simplest way of putting it would be that shifter modifications allow people to use scent to determine mate compatibility. The stronger the compatibility, the stronger the attraction between the two. If you're unprepared when you meet someone who is particularly well paired with you, the draw towards them can be overwhelming. That's part of why we teach all these meditation and centering techniques."

"So, will I have a mate pairing?"

"I don't know, honey. You don't have any shifter modifications. Even if you do have a mate pairing, your experience would probably be very different from a shifter's. Probably much more subtle."

Beth thought for a moment. "But the shifter would know. Right?"

"I would think so. Shifters have been highly adapted to smell ideal mate pairings to prevent inbreeding."

Beth's brow creased as she mulled over this new information.

"Thank you, guider, for the explanation" she murmured distractedly as she wandered away. Was it possible she had a mate pairing with Hal? But then why was he working so hard to distance himself from her? Didn't the guider just say mate pairs were drawn together? Beth needed more data. She headed to the library.

According to the primer she found, mate pairings were based on immunological compatibility, and came in a variety of strengths. The stronger the pairing, the stronger the draw between the two people. The pheromones given off predisposed partners to like each other and desire physical closeness.

"Why do you need to know about mate pairings?" Beth jumped. Elijah must have snuck up behind her and been reading over her shoulder.

"No one is ever going to want to mate with you, you stupid non-mod!" Elijah sneered down at her.

Beth swiveled in her seat to glare at him. "I'm just doing some research! I hadn't even heard about mate pairings before today!" She retorted defensively. "Besides, you don't know that no one will ever want to mate with me!"

Just then, Beth saw Hal over Elijah's shoulder. Her thought that she might be reacting to a mating pair with him made her blush.

Elijah's eyes darted between them and he laughed. "Oh! You think Hal here could be your mate pair! That's rich! Why don't you tell her, Hal? Why don't you tell her exactly how she smells to you?"

Hal glanced uneasily at Beth, but his eyes became hard as Elijah made a noise in the back of his throat, pressuring him to get on with it. Hal crossed his arms and scowled at her. "I've said it from the first day, Beth. You smell weird. You don't smell good like a mate pairing should. You don't even smell like a shifter. You just smell like a cross between bunji fruit and belch beetles."

Beth's blush worsened from embarrassment. "Well, at least I don't smell like rotting kelp and fish breath. Besides, I never said I thought I felt anything like a mate pairing. I don't know who would want to mate pair with you two dandruff-headed idiots anyway. Despite your illustrious lineage, you're both all brawn and no brains."

There was no more teasing after that, only biting insults and vengeful pranks. Elijah could be downright vicious when the guiders weren't around, but nothing he did ever hurt as much as even the smallest insults she received from Hal. Try as she might to harden her heart against him, there was just something about him that drew her. He was interesting, he was attractive and he was kind. To everyone but her at least.

Every time she saw him, her heart would start pounding, and her stomach would clench. She figured that it must be an adrenaline response kicking in. After all, every time Hal got close they ended up in some sort of verbal altercation. Her body was just gearing up for a fight.

**********

Beth's thoughts turned back to the present. God, she was still reacting as badly as she had back in Mids. Hell, barely seeing a glimpse of him was sending her into a spin. Thankfully Hal had disappeared into one of the workshops. Beth centered herself the way Fallon had taught her, subtly contracting individual muscle groups and using her senses to identify the conditions around her until she felt grounded.

It had been so long ago now. Surely Hal had matured? And Elijah wouldn't be here either. Beth knew for a fact he was at the Lochien research station with his father. It was part of why she had decided to come to SUni rather than go with her parents when they'd returned. She'd hoped that Hal would stay in the north to be close to his family as well. Elijah had been the instigator behind the cruelest jokes and pranks. Maybe Hal wouldn't feel the need to continue tormenting her without a posse to goad him on?

Days passed and Beth still hadn't decided what she was going to do. She'd become confident in herself during her time training with Fallon at the Kenov institute, learning to fight off smaller predators and interpret subtle body language cues to overcome her diminished sense of smell compared to the shifters around her. Fallon's son Cole had shown her around SUni when she'd arrived a few months ago and she even had a small group of friends.

Beth assured herself she didn't need Hal's friendship or anything else from him for that matter. No, she didn't need it but a treasonous part of her still wanted. It whispered, "Maybe he's changed. Maybe he's grown up and will finally see what he's been missing. He'll see that you really were his mate pair this whole time... " She did her best to ignore those yearnings, they were modlin, romantic delusions at best.

**********

The days turned to weeks and a new class cycle began. Beth munched on an apple while she read over the syllabus for the latest addition to her schedule. With fresh classes starting every few weeks, there was always something new to explore. This class was Science and Literature. It was supposed to help students think about the intersections between science, literature, and society at large. She'd figured it would be an interesting class since she wanted to be a scientist like her parents and loved to read. Scrolling through her tablet, she found a seat in the front and waited for class to start, other students filing in behind her.

The class seemed to rely heavily on group assignments. Beth supposed the purpose was to encourage students to discuss the literature rather than just read it, deepen their understanding, and such. She mused that it also took the proofreading workload off the professor and distributed it among her peers. Well, might as well start making some new contacts to group up with. Beth glanced up to see if she could strike up a conversation with anyone around her. Her blood froze. Hal Jakobi stood in the doorway, glancing around for an empty seat.

She quickly turned, shielding her face with her hair. FUCK! He was in this class!?! Running into him was the least of her worries now! What if they were assigned to work on a project together? FUCK, she wasn't ready for this!

Thoughts in a tangle, she tried to focus on the young woman who had just sat down beside her. Clearly a shifter of a smaller feline variety, she was younger, likely new to the university. Beth focused her attention on being sociable and welcoming, shoving down her unease to prevent anyone from smelling her fear; trying to distract herself from the prickling feeling on her neck of having her tormentor behind her.

"Hi, I'm Beth! How long have you been at SUni?" Smooth as butter, they were off, talking and swapping stories of the classes they had both been taking this year. Beth learned that Anjali had been at SUni for just under two months, was born in the outer regions of Chandel province, and was fascinated by botany.

Beth wasn't sure if she had really gotten better at making friends over the years, or if all her peers finally matured enough for her to understand how to interact with them. Growing up primarily around adults at the research stations, she had often been at a loss during interactions with other children. Then puberty made social interactions a battlefield.

When class finally started, Beth struggled to listen to the professor. She sat stiff in her seat, fighting the urge to glance over her shoulder. She wasn't ready! She hadn't decided what she wanted to do! Deck him and yell at him for being a dick? No, that was way too aggressive, besides, that was guaranteed to put the two of them on rocky footing in addition to any SUni sanctions or discipline. He must have changed; eleven years was a long time. She could give him a second chance, treat him like she would anyone else that she was meeting for the first time. But should she make the first move? Re-introduce herself? Would that seem too forward?

In the end, she took the coward's way out. She pretended not to notice someone approaching her at the end of class, someone with a distinctly familiar haircut. Instead, Beth linked arms with her new friend as they both stood up to exit the lecture hall and asked if she wanted to be partners for the first project. As they pulled out their tablets to exchange contact information, Beth saw, out of the corner of her eye, Hal turn and exit the classroom through the north door. She breathed a sigh of relief.

"Long day?" Anjali asked.

"Yeah," Beth said, "Today's just been one of those days that's gotten to me"

"Well, I hope you can go home and get some rest! See you later!"

Beth waved as she and Anjali parted ways. She made sure to leave through the opposite door that Hal had gone through.

No more faffing about. She had to be ready the next time she saw him. Beth Harmin wasn't going to let some hopped-up seal jerk have any more influence on her life. She was going to show him once and for all that whatever he dished out, he wasn't better than her just because he could claim nine generations of shifter blood.

Her resolution didn't mean she was going to encourage the meeting, however. For the next few classes, she had Anjali save her the seat closest to the door, made sure to be one of the last ones to class, and always left right as the professor dismissed them. She was sure Anjali must think she was neurotic, but her new friend didn't ask for any justification. She did, however, invite Beth to hang out. Twice! Once to work on their class assignment, once to check out the dance hall.

Slowly, over the week, Beth started to relax when Hal didn't try to approach her again. Maybe he had realized that she just wanted him to leave her alone, to just get on with her life? She could still feel that prickle on the back of her neck, was always acutely aware of him being behind her where she couldn't see him, but she hoped that would also fade in time. Maybe by the end of the month, she would be able to walk by him without so much as a whisper of nerves. Maybe by the end of the class rotation, she would be ready to start a conversation.

Hal, apparently, had other plans. He approached her at the end of class on Friday. Anjali was talking to a classmate on her other side and there was nowhere to go unless she wanted to vault over the desk. Beth took a deep breath and straightened her spine, remembering her resolution. He was not going to walk all over her, but she was going to give him a second chance with the hope that he had matured.

"Hi, Beth, long time no see."

"Yeah, it's been a while, Hal. You look good" She blanched internally. Good god, what tripe was she spouting! She was trying to be cordial, not a suck-up! OF COURSE he looked good! He had always looked good and he knew it!

Now he just looked better than ever. Maturity had turned stringy strength into a fully muscled man with shoulders half again as broad as hers. She supposed she should be glad that he was only a couple of inches taller than her so she didn't have to crane her neck. And he smelled amazing. Despite herself, she was drawn in. Beth felt those old desires: wanting to be close to him, wanting to make him like her. She was surprised by the impulse to reach out and clasp his forearm in greeting. Beth wound her hands into the straps of her bag.

"Thanks, you too. I almost didn't recognize you in a dress" Hal's voice was rough.

Really?! Right out the gate he was starting to get the jabs in. Poking fun at her preference for wearing research institute jumpsuits had been one of the first and favorite jabs of Hal and his friends. She reeled, immediately defensive, trying to think of an appropriate response.

"Hmm" She made a repressive noise in the back of her throat. "Well, it has been a decade, maybe your memory is failing?"

"Oh, no, I'm pretty sure I would have remembered seeing you in a dress. You hardly ever looked feminine in Mids."

Beth took a deep breath and fixed her smile in place, gripping the strap of her bag to keep herself from slapping him.

"You always had a way of standing out," Hal said it with the same half smile he had always used in Mids when delivering similar, backhanded compliments.

Nope, he hadn't changed at all; still a colossal jerk. Beth had gotten out of the habit of having barbs ready to spit back. How was she even supposed to respond to this bull? Not feminine in Mids. No shit she hadn't looked feminine in middle school, she'd barely been hitting puberty! Her breasts hadn't been more than an A-cup by the time she left for the Kenov institute with her parents all those years ago.

There was no winning here. If she argued that she had looked feminine, he would know that his comment had hurt. If she made a comment along the lines of 'so what' he would tease her for trying to be feminine now...

"Hmm, well people do change... Some of us at least" There, finally a barb she could stick to him! She held herself a little taller, doing her best to look down her nose at him. She was done being nice. She was done being civil! She'd given him a second chance and he'd thrown it back in her face. She was going to show him that he wasn't going to be allowed to take anything else from her. Not her time, not her attention, and certainly not any tender feelings.