Chapter 5: brought to you by hot dogs, both processed and figurative

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Still no sexy times for the desperate boys and women give birth to cats. Neara attempts to find native friends, but instead Shay finds an emotionally invested 1 and 2 thingaling. And more cats.

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Neara's head cleared as she walked to the village. She'd convinced the men to stand guard over Shay while she slept and they had strict orders not to wake her up. She should be back before the sunset and she'd memorized the fairly straightforward path to the hut. The grass was soft underfoot and she watched for unexpected branches or rocks. Once in the village, she spotted one of the women who had been kind to her earlier, although she couldn't remember her name.

"Hi!" she called out and waved.

"Ah, Neara! How pleasant to see you!" The female turned, her arms full of tiny leopard cubs.

"I'm so sorry, but I forgot your name."

"It's Eve. We're taking a walk near the commons." She gestured to her basket and a fat cub poked its head out.

"They're so cute!" Neara grinned at them. "Are they yours?"

"Yes, these are my cubs. I meant to congratulate Shay on having her estrous cycle, but men are impatient during those times. It won't be soon before she has cubs of her own."

Neara quickly put two and two together. "Oh! You mean... that's great!"

Eve knelt to release her cubs into the short grass and saw her confused face. "Will she reproduce with Parker?"

"I... don't think so." Neara hugged herself and watched the cubs play.

Eve's eyes opened and her eyebrows raised almost to her hairline. "Why? Does she dislike him?" She patted the grass next to her.

Neara arranged herself on the grass and kept her arms tightly around her waist. "No... we're grateful they saved us but everything is moving too fast. We're not used to having se... reproducing the same day we meet someone."

A cub came and batted at Eve. She held out her fingers for it to play with. "Having children is a woman's duty. Moreover, there aren't a lot of Beastmen. We're the only ones keeping us alive. If she doesn't hate him, she should reproduce with him soon." She smiled and pulled one of her cubs onto her lap. "The more, the merrier!"

"I... I don't want to reproduce with Calvin until I have feelings for him. And I know Shay feels the same way."

Eve looked at her other cubs, who ran to her and tumbled over her legs. "You should tell them then."

"We have... but Parker won't listen." Neara's hand moved to her shoulder.

"Hm." Eve closed her eyes in thought and circled a finger underneath her chin. "Then you should threaten him. Say you'll cancel your spousal relationship after you reproduce. He'll have to take you more seriously."

"Cancel your relationship?"

"If we don't love a man, we can break off from them. However the men who are abandoned will never be able to have partners ever again. Not even if they rejoin with you."

"Oh. How can..." Neara noticed Eve's knowing smile. "...never mind. It was nice talking with you, but I should go check on Shay." She stood and fought the urge to brush the dry grass from her knees.

"Be safe, Neara, and use the information I gave you wisely." She winked.

Neara waved and started the walk home. The light tickled the trunks of the trees and threw an orange luster over the tender plants underneath. The warmth faded from her skin and she shuffled faster through the small dirt path. Shouts permeated the air around her as she approached the hut and she could make out Shay's fury before everything else.

"I'm not having sex with you! And you can't kick Neara and Calvin out just because you want to harass me in the middle of the night!"

"Harass is not what a couple does! A Beastman has a right to reproduce with his female!" Parker growled back.

"And a female has the right to refuse! I stand by my rights and you can't take them from me."

Neara opened the door to see Shay's body stretched to its limit, hands on her hips as she glared at the sweaty, tan form of Parker. His eyes glared down at hers and his ears were quivering. Calvin lounged near the back of the hut and looked up when she came in.

"Neara. I'm glad you made it safe." His voice sighed over the words.

Shay and Parker stopped attempting to cook the other with their respective gazes and focused on Neara.

"Shay, you don't have to reproduce with him." Neara stuttered, disliking the angry eyes.

"Of course she is! I claimed her, and it's not like she has other males! Who else is she going to reproduce with?"

She opened her mouth to protest, but Neara interjected, "Nobody, but if you two keep trying to reproduce with us, we'll cancel our spousal relationship afterwards!"

Shay closed her mouth and looked confused.

Parker bellowed, "You wouldn't dare!"

Calvin stood in front of Neara, ears flat against his head and body crouched to attack. "Why wouldn't they? You do not exercise common courtesy to your female or mine. You threaten them the way a feral does. They will treat you like one if you continue this behavior." His eyes narrowed as Parker stiffened.

A tense moment rolled through the room and crashed against Parker's flushed face. He put one arm nervously behind his head and scratched at his hair. "If you're going to be this cruel, I need more energy. I'll do twice as much hunting tomorrow."

Calvin relaxed and smiled at Neara. "I can't believe I've fallen in love with such a crafty woman," he purred.

Neara blushed as his lips gently pecked her cheek. His hand stroked her arm and he walked over to the fire pit to start another fire.

"Spousal relationship?" Shay asked as she walked over to her friend.

She shrugged. "I don't know. I talked to one of the fe... women down at the village and she said to threaten them if they tried to take advantage of us."

"Huh. That's nice of her. It wasn't Eudora, was it?"

"No, it was that nice one we talked to earlier."

"Eve! Yeah, I liked her." Shay looked at Parker and Calvin stoking a fire and back to Neara. "Hey, I'm starving for something other than steak. I'm going to look for some fresh veggies or something. Read about how some wild edibles look in a book not too long back, but could never try it because we live in a freaking desert. We can always pass it by these dudes to see if it's edible. Want to come?"

"What about your ankle?"

"That ginger massage worked a charm. And it's not like I haven't had practice hobbling on stupid ankles before."

"...That's probably why they're weak, you know."

"Yeah, yeah, you coming or not?"

"Well now I have to. The gimp might fall. Not to mention I... don't want to be alone with angry males." She looked at Calvin. "We're going to get some vegetables. You two go hunting for dinner."

Calvin nodded and the friends walked out of the hut and followed a path that led to a meadow. The light still managed to stroke the tops of the grass and highlighted sprouts and fungus hidden under the tall plants. Shay rubbed the leaves between her fingers and smelled. She kept walking through the grass and pointed at various growths. "I think that one's mint, or at least some kind of mint. That one by the log is probably bean sprouts, so we should definitely get those. That one's branch just bled at me, just like milk weed, so it's probably poisonous. I don't see any... AAAH!!!!"

Neara looked up from plucking the sprouts, thinking her 'limping skills' had just given out, and realized her friend disappeared. "Shay? Shay?!"

"I'm here! I fell down this stupid hole."

She walked around and saw the small gape in the ground. The hole wasn't very deep, just over Shay's head, and looked like the entrance to a tunnel. "I think I can pull you out... I don't have any rope though."

"We don't need rope. There's a big rock down here I can jump on. Also some weird fabric that has, like, a fish scale pattern, it's kinda pretty." Shay's head popped above the ground and she handed a large bundle of red cloth to Neara. "It's so soft! Feel it!"

"I'll feel it once you're out of there. Come on." Hands grasped, she braced her good foot against the edge of the hole and leaned backwards.

Shay climbed out and grabbed the bundle. "Whoa, it gets all shiny in the sun. Super pretty. I didn't know Beastmen could weave like this." She spread it out for Neara to see. "The red is almost like... I don' t know, wine or something."

"Maybe Leopard men are just really bad at sewing. We should show the guys. Maybe we could make something more... modest with it." Neara stood up and banged her knees together.

"Why do you do that?" Shay stood and brushed the crumbs of earth from her legs.

"I'm not bending over in a miniskirt." Neara held the sprouts close.

"Ah. Yes. Though there's only a pine tree behind you to see the goods. Naughty, naughty pine tree."

Neara smiled, but put her hands over her rear nonetheless. "Maybe that pine tree can transform as well. Plus, remember the bath? Who knows if they're hiding somewhere near..."

"At least it would smell better. Oh well, at least we found those sprouts. And we know this meadow is a good place for veggies now. Let's go back and..." she sighed. "... eat more meat."

The walk back was uneventful although both girls felt that someone was watching them. Shay chalked it up to an overprotective Parker, still smarting from their rejection, or a lowly, less powerful, male from the village checking them out. She couldn't see anything, but she definitely didn't feel like they were alone.

The open door beckoned them inside with smells of smoky campfire. The meat overpowered Shay and she gagged, her hand pressed against her mouth.

"I'm so glad both of you made it back safe..." Parker trailed off, then stood with alarming speed. He knocked the fabric out of Shay's hands and yowled, "Where did you get that?"

Shay, too shocked to do anything but reply, said, "Down at the meadow by the lake... why?"

"How... how could it be?" He scratched his chin. "Calvin, we need help."

"Jeeze, if you want me to put it back..." Shay said with not a small amount of snark.

"There's a feral beast in the village!" Calvin's lips pulled over his teeth in a grimace and he kicked the fabric out the door.

"A feral... but you said they didn't come near villages. What's the cloth got to do with it?"

"Shay... that's not cloth. That's an adult snake-man's shedded skin. They use their skin to appease their spouses. This one seems to be quite good at that. It's a shame though." he shook his head and flexed his claws. "It's in my hands now. I'm going to burn it for trying to attract my woman!"

He lurched towards the door and Shay squealed, holding her hands in front of her face. "No! If you burn it, won't he smell it and get pissed--I mean, angry?"

Parker stopped and looked down, his eyes curious but hard. "I will gather Beastmen to hunt him down. I will burn his skin and claw his heart out! Calvin, watch the females. I'm going to the village!" He stepped around Shay and ran down the pathway.

Neara jumped away from the door and ran towards the fire. Her legs collapsed beneath her and she sank to the wooden floor. Her body vibrated and she tried to control her breathing. "Snakes... massive snakes... giant snakes..." she whispered under her breath. Tears raced down her face and sprinkled her legs. "Snakes, giant snakes, giant snake men..."

"Neara." Calvin's voice was low in her ear. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her against his warm chest. His breath was hot on her neck and his hair tickled her ears. "I have you."

"Calvin..." she wriggled a little, then stopped. "I..."

"You are safe here." He picked her up and compressed her against him, his muscles tight but reassuring. "No one will take you from me." He walked to the straw mattress and sat down in the corner, arms still tight around her body. His tail wrapped around her foot and she flinched against its softness.

Heat colored her cheeks and a deep red spilled down her neck and across her chest. His arms were iron bars hot against her skin, yet comforting in their pressure. A frown pulled the corners of her mouth against the involuntary slow smile that seemed to start at her toes. He was attractive, after all.

Shay just gave a mischievous smile and stepped out. She wasn't too worried by Calvin at this point, seeing as he had been the one to put the leash on Parker so far. She wasn't going to keep her friend from a respectable rebound, especially after what she'd gone through with her ex.

As she shuffled around the hut, she spotted the no longer neatly folded snake skin spilled across the ground, still gleaming like stain in the sun.

Seeing it, she sighed. "Might as well not give him a reason to even come here." She leaned over to gather it up in something of the nice fold it had been in before. "All we need now is to get stuck in a fight."

And it wasn't like the hole had been that far. She shouldn't be gone long enough to give Calvin a chance, should he prove her judgement wrong.

Besides, maybe the feral wasn't all rape and plunder since he was trying to 'appease' a wife using this rather than just, you know, slinging the woman over his shoulder and slithering away . Why bother appeasing females if you're just going to force yourself on them anyway? Exactly. Arguing with herself was great because she always won. The grass was slick underfoot, already coating itself with dew in preparation for the night. The sun still gave off enough rays that she could pick her way down the path with the bundle tight against her stomach.

Shay smiled to herself as she thought about all the crap she was going to put Neara through once she got back, all snuggled up to the pretty man chest like that, hee.

She meant to drop the skin in the hole and just leave it, but a very attractive and very naked man stood in front of her. Very naked? How could someone be very naked? You either were or you weren't. She argued more with herself for failing to describe him practically, then got distracted by the jagged red lines on his throat. Four marks disappeared into the mane of red hair cascading down his back and... holy frick, this guy has two penises! Shay blushed almost as dark as his hair. She did not have the mental strength to be seeing as many naked guys as he she had this past week. Dingalings were not attractive.

Hot dogs. They weren't penises, they were hot dogs.  Mutated hot dogs. Just think of it like that. No, that made it weirder. Crap!

"Shay! Get away from him!" Calvin sprinted towards her, Neara clinging to his back.

She felt herself pressed against the feral man's naked body, his arms wrapping around her waist and legs. One of his hands cupped her face and he stared into it.

"Get away from her, you feral monster!" Calvin melted into a leopard and leapt towards the snake. Neara clung to the fur on his back.

The man grinned and seemed to flash from man to weresnake. His tail thrashed Calvin and Neara away. They sprawled onto the grass.

"Neara!" Shay squirmed in the snake man's grasp and tried to wriggle free. He smiled at her again.

Calvin shakily rose to his paws, all four legs trembling. He roared like a wolf would howl, throat open to the sky. Shadows darkened the meadow as the sun had tipped towards the horizon. Neara lay without moving, her glasses vanished into the tangling grasses. Calvin limped towards her before falling, his chest rising and falling as he tried to catch his breath.

The jungle filled with answering yowls and shook the trees. Birds flew away while screeching their disapproval and fear. A dozen leopard men filled the meadow, all of them focused on the snake man clutching Shay.

"It's a feral!"

"A snake! And he has Parker's female!"

"Calvin's been injured!"

"Where's his female?"

Parker snarled and crouched low. He flexed his claws. "Release her!"

"Wait! Parker!" One of the men grabbed his arm. "He's a tetra-marked beast! Even in the City of Beasts, there are only five with his power! Even if all of us charged together, we wouldn't be powerful enough to stop him. Calvin has double marks, and he's badly injured."

"She's my female!" His leopard form raced towards Shay.

The snake man looked from Shay's face and arched an eyebrow. His tail slammed into Parker, sending him into the jungle. Parker emerged and shook debris from his coat. His eyes blazed with hatred. Claws sank into the earth as he launched himself towards his foe again. Without changing expression, the snake man's tail cracked against Parker's legs and wrapped around his body. Parker coughed in fright. His legs scratched helplessly against the solid muscle encasing him.

Shay's eyes narrowed and she hammered her fists against the snake man's chest. "Don't kill him! Please! I'll go with you, please just don't kill him!" When he didn't react, she opened her mouth and bit his shoulder as hard as she could.

The tail continued to encase Parker, his last breaths wheezing past his fuzzy lips. The leopard village looked on in terror, caught between desire to help and a desire to live.

"Fine." The voice was smooth and so low, Shay almost missed it. "I'll let him go for your sake." His hand gently, but firmly, pushed her head away from his shoulder. A little blood marked where her teeth sank into his skin. A snakelike tongue reached out and tasted himself on her lips. "Your fire warms my heart." His tail unraveled from Parker, who lay on the ground, chest heaving. "Don't come after me if you want to live." He slithered into the jungle as the sun set.

"Shay..." Parker murmured before falling unconscious.


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