We Must Offer

Although the tribe had lost more in the fight against the space-dwellers than they had gained in their humans, Laresi felt more alive than it had in some time. The ten human females had given the hundreds of unmated males hope for the first time in a long time. Of course, there was the occasional male La'mya, like him, that took in a handful of unmated males and created a family unit, but the five females they had had long since exhausted their desire for more mates. The old Enda'ka had nearly twenty males in her harem before they had died, accepting any more would be stretching the La'mya so thin. How she found the time for twenty when Inak barely had enough for his three... well, she had been the Enda'ka for a reason, he supposed.
Inak loped along the bridges that had been quickly erected to assist the humans. Some of the tribe refused to use them, preferring to continue as they always had, leaping, swinging, or scuttling through the trees. But Inak rather liked the new addition. He felt no need to stubbornly refuse comfort when it was offered to him. Of course, the few other waheya he encountered along the way he often couldn't converse with anyway. Many of the unmated males had also taken to travelling the bridges, in the hope that it would put them in contact with the humans. Inak couldn't speak with the unmated males without Nobas around, and the humans were in a similar predicament. If they did, any one of them would be indicating interest in absorbing the male into their harem. Inak had no wish to add to his harem... particularly so now that he was going to ask something of his mates that would hurt all of them.
A communal firepit had emerged on a large platform on the boundary of the S'dare and T'vesa areas of the villages. Conveniently, Inak thought, because the main walkway that led from the unmated human's nests popped out right near here. Alina was here, with the loud Julieta and the flirty Isabel, the latter two enjoying the silent attentions of the males that were stationed around the firepit. Alina's face brightened when he stepped into the area, but he waved at her and continued going. He felt bad, having to ignore her for now. Alina had become a good friend to him. She had been so quiet when she'd first arrived here and he was determined to be a friend to her. Then, of course, he'd found out how intelligent and determined she was, but her fear was getting in her way. Inak wasn't sure she'd ever be able to start a harem when nearly every interested waheyan male terrified her. But he'd come up with a solution. A solution that twisted his insides into knots, but it was the right thing to do. But he had to ask his harem first.
Rynek found him first, as he wandered into the large workshop area that many T'vesa worked in. His T'vesa was often in their own nest, cooking, repairing their clothes, tidying up after them, but at Inak's request, he was helping the unmated males in their efforts to create for the new human women. Most of them knew that Inak, as Rynek's La'mya, had a good relationship with the human women. They would have questions. And his S'dare Omhat certainly wasn't a good male to ask for that kind of assistance. So he'd requested that Rynek and Nobas make themselves useful to the others. To help give them a chance with their alien women.
Rynek dropped what he was doing immediately, leaving the conversation he was having with a handful of other T'vesa to close the distance between them quickly, immediately pulling Inak against him, lower hands around his waist, upper hands cradling his face and tilting it upwards to accept his kiss. Inak thanked the stars every day for Kat being open with her affection for her mates and demonstrating in front of his harem that kissing was a thing. Rynek was particularly fond of the act. Their teeth clashed a little, too many in too few mouths, but Inak didn't care.
Smiling down at him indulgently, Rynek asked. "To what do I owe this pleasure my La'mya?" Over his shoulder, the unmated males were gazing at them with unabashed envy in their eyes.
Inak squeezed Rynek's side affectionately, ignoring their observers. "I need to speak with you all. Do you know where the others are? Is Omhat in the village?" His S'dare was always the most difficult to pin down during the waking hours, out on hunts to provide sustenance for their harem.
Rynek nodded, pressing a quick kiss to Inak's forehead and stepping away. Already eager to carry out his La'mya's wishes. "He is. Meet us in our nest?" Inak nodded, and Rynek sped off. He smiled as he watched his T'vesa go, swinging himself up into the branches above the platform and disappearing into the purple foliage.
Despite Rynek's hurry, it would likely take some time for him to round up the other two, so Inak made his way back to their nest in a more leisurely manner. He took a little-used bridge, because it currently didn't go anywhere that the humans needed to traverse, just stopping in empty air. Inak was fairly sure the intention was for another nest to be built for the human's here, but he didn't know who had come up with that plan... Someone dropped down into his path as soon as he had left the immediate view of the communal platform, making Inak jump in surprise.
"Gah! Zechi! You freak, what are you doing?" Technically, he shouldn't speak with the S'dare even to scold him, but they were both very aware of their mutual disinterest, so there was no room for confusion, even if it went against custom.
"How is Alina today?" Zechi asked, straight to the point.
"Why don't you go ask her yourself?" Inak sneered, pushing past Zechi to continue his way back to his nest. Zechi followed along behind him.
"I tried," Zechi answered. "She hurried away and Nezon yelled at me."
Inak rolled his eyes. "As he should. Let Alina make the first move, like you're supposed to." He swung up into the trees, upper arms carrying him from branch to branch, his back legs occasionally propelling him forward when they hit something strong enough to add some extra speed. Of course, Zechi joined him.
"Alina will not make the first move."
Well, he had a point. Alina was too scared to make the first move and Zechi's blatant interest was making it worse. Inak stopped letting himself hang by three arms, the rest of his body hanging freely in the treetops. Zechi, far stronger than he as a S'dare did the same with only one arm. Show off. "You scare her, Zechi. Everything here scares her. If you want her to like you. Back. Off." Inak didn't really know why he was bothering, if his plan went ahead, Alina wouldn't have to worry about choosing a harem for long.
"But how can she know to choose me if she does not know me?" Zechi asked quietly, his tone genuinely confused, a little distressed.
Inak grimaced. It was certainly a flaw in their mating system. It was difficult to get to know someone when you weren't allowed to speak with them. At least in his case, Inak had grown up in this village. He had known his mates from a distance before he'd even begun to allow them to court him. The human women didn't have that same luxury of growing up alongside the males. He sighed. "I don't know what to tell you, Zechi. But get going. We're nearly at my nest." Although Inak's harem was fairly indulgent of Inak's wishes to converse with others, skirting their customs, because they knew he wasn't interested in adding more to their number, it could only stretch so far, particularly if others saw.
Still looking troubled, Zechi loped away. With the delay, Inak heard the voices of his harem before he dropped down into their nest. Nobas stepped forward to greet him by swinging him up into his arms, pressing a kiss to the hollow between jaw and neck, and inhaling his scent. Omhat, as always, was more reserved. He waited until Nobas had released Inak, before letting Inak come to him. Just because he enjoyed teasing his S'dare, Inak plastered himself to Omhat's front, wrapping arms and legs around him and pulling him into a deep kiss. Amused rumbles from Nobas and Rynek behind them finally made Inak break away. Omhat's red eyes were heavy-lidded and dark when Inak pulled back.
"What did you need us for, La'mya?" Omhat asked, his voice rough.
Disentangling his limbs from Omhat, Inak gestured to the floor of their nest. "Sit. This likely won't be a pleasant conversation."
Immediately, his harem looked troubled, although they did as he asked, folding their back limbs underneath them, sitting so that their abdomens were horizontal to the ground, their torsos upright. As was most comfortable for their body arrangement. Inak had already tried to sit as the humans did, but he just couldn't bend that way. Moving over to the side of their nest, Inak busied himself with preparing drinks. Usually, Rynek would do this, but Inak needed something to do with his hands. 
He obviously took too long. "Inak," Omhat said warningly. Looking over his shoulder at them, he saw worried, concerned, confused expressions across each of their faces. Omhat gestured for him to sit across from them. In some, if not most harem groups, the Et'war took control of ensuring a harem carried out a La'mya's will. In Inak's, Omhat was undoubtedly the dominant one.
"Tell us what is wrong, La'mya," Nobas said, holding out his lower hands for Inak to hold onto, when he crossed to sit with them. Rynek took the clay drinking pot from his hands and helped himself. Omhat was quiet.
Inak took a breath... and let it out again. His harem was quiet, almost patient, although Nobas' hands were tense in his as they rubbed small circles on Inak's palm with his thumb, Rynek's shoulders were stiff, although he was attempting to be deceptively relaxed as he took another drink, and Omhat was as stony as ever. 
"I wish to offer us as harem to Alina."
His harem froze. Rynek with the pot halfway to his mouth, Nobas' thumbs, and Omhat's breathing.
"It is not right for us to exist as we do while there are females without a harem. She is my friend. She could be yours. It is what is best for the tribe." Male La'mya were not the same as female. They did not help with the expansion of the tribe. There was no future with their group. But when Inak had begun to show signs, there had been no available females desiring mates. He was not taking them from a viable, fertile female. He was now.
"The Enda'ka will ask it of us soon enough," Inak guessed. There were a handful of all-male harems in the tribe. They all knew what the tribe thought. It was expected that the female La'mya come first.
"I did not wish to offer to her without asking first. If you do not wish to, we can choose to accept what comes."
Rynek unfroze first. "If it is your will, La'mya, you may offer to her. I... I just do not wish to be separated." He admitted quietly. They may not have a choice.
"I can ask Alina, if she would consider us all," Inak said. Of course, she may choose to only take some of them. "She is afraid of the other males. She knows us. I think it would be the best solution all around. If she has a full harem, she will not be bothered by the others, the Enda'ka." Rynek nodded, but his purple skin had taken on a slightly ashy tone.
Nobas was next, of course Omhat would wait until last. "Alina is a fine female. If it is as you will, you may offer to transfer our service to her. You will come with us? What will you choose?" A practical question from his practical Et'war.
"I will be T'vesa for her," Inak said, darting a look at Rynek. "I'm sure Rynek will be more than enough to make up for my lack," he snickered. There was a reason why Inak was La'mya, because it suited him to his very bones. He would be pretending to be otherwise. But the need to reproduce would be a far greater wish for the tribe than their dislike of those who refused to accept their true place in society. Inak was sure there would be some who would prefer him to give up his harem for a female and then be alone. But Inak couldn't do that. He'd rather die than leave his harem forever. 
"You are not attracted to her, Inak," Omhat said eventually. It was not question, but Inak answered it anyway.
"No, I'm not." None of them were. They had discussed such a long time ago, when their harem had first formed. No female had ever drawn them in a desire to mate or be mated. That didn't matter, of course. The tribe needed to survive, to perservere. 
"Your will, La'mya," Omhat said formally, shifting to his knees and bowing his head. Inak swallowed around the lump in his throat.  Beside him, Nobas and Rynek did the same. Kneeling and bowing. If Alina accepted, it may be the last time they would call him such. Inak would no longer be La'mya, to them or anyone. But it was for the good for the tribe. For Alina.
"We will do our duty."