by Maya Carnage
My face heats at having been caught, but I wave back, striding over to her. When I stand next to her, my shadow falls across the freshly weeded plot of dirt. She tilts her head up, gazing at me. "So what did you want to show me?" She smiles warmly.
I offer my hand to her. When she grasps it, I pull her to her feet. When I look down, I see dirt on the leggings that cling to the voluptuous curve of her backside. My hand moves of its own accord, I gently caress her rump wiping away the dirt as my hand glides over her ass. Before I can think about it, I squeeze the cheek of her ass in my hand firmly.
"Hey!" She swats at my pawing, scowling at me. "You have to ask first before you get to sample the goods, Lorth."
"Huh?" I stare at her not understanding half of what she has just said. "I don't know what you mean. What 'goods'?"
She rolls her eyes. "Why did you touch my butt?"
Smiling rakishly at her, "You had dirt covering your backside, I thought that you would have liked it gone, Tracy. I was only helping you."
Looking at me as if she does not believe my actions were pure, she huffs out an annoyed breath. "Yeah, I'll believe that the day pigs fly." She rolls her eyes, then tucks the wayward strands that have escaped her tied back hair behind her ears. "So, where are we going? And what did you want to show me?" She places her hands on her hips facing me.
Clearing my throat and trying to calm my raging arousal, it takes me a moment to remember why I had come out here. "Ah, yes! I have something to show you." I grab her hand, leading her away from the garden, toward the woods behind our village.
The woods behind the village are rarely visited by my other tribesmen. There is not much out here except for wild creatures, most of which are the exasperating fvisiks. They are abhorrent creatures; I do not know why the human woman Sheila has one nor why my niece does as well. Besides the pests, the foliage in these woods is thicker than the ones we go through to get to Graviel's ship. It takes much more stamina to make your way through these and it is tiring for most of the tribe except for the hunters, but they do not see any reason to hunt in these parts because the game is too small to feed our tribe.
Tracy and I walk for some time in silence she does not sound out of breath as I had expected her to be at this point. Which is disappointing because I had hoped to carry her, most of the way to our destination. I had Tracy walk in front of me so that I can keep an eye on her, most of the way I have watched our feet, looking for the lizards that hide in the thick grass to strike those walking by unawares. I glance up to check on her, and I see a light dotting, of perspiration on her forehead.
"Are you getting tired? It is not that much further ahead," I asked.
Glancing at me from over her shoulder, "I'm fine. I just sweat easily I can keep going for a while, I use to hike all the time when I stayed with my gran."
"Do you miss your home?" I asked after hearing the sad note in her voice.
Turning to look back ahead, she lets out a sigh. "Yeah, I do, but mostly, I miss my family, it is weird not having them around or not being able to call them."
I reach my arm out grabbing Tracy's hand. I caress the top of it with my thumb. "I am sorry for your loss, my mate. I don't know how to make you feel better about the loss of your family." I do not know how I would feel if I had woken up one morning and found out that my family, those that I loved most were gone from me forever. My heart would be broken I do not know how Tracy keeps going she must be stronger than I had thought.
An idea pops into my head. I cannot return Tracy to her family, but I can do the next best thing.
Smiling at her I say, "I cannot bring your family to you, my mate, but I can still give you a family. My family can be yours, they would be anyhow, once we are mated, but there is no harm in claiming them as yours now. We will go to them when we are done here so that you can meet them."
Tracy smiles sheepishly. "That's sweet of you, Lorth, really, it is." She squeezes my hand tightly in her grip.
I return her smile, I look down at my feet, as we begin walking again so that I will not stumble. Falling flat on my face would not impress my mate, later when she has grown close to me than it would probably be fine. But not now.
As we walk through the thick canopy of the forest, Tracy speaks to me, curious about my family.
Our family.
"You haven't said much about them I was beginning to think that they didn't exist." She said with a light chuckle.
"They do, actually we are very close my family and me." Pausing, I sigh. "Sometimes they do not understand that I would like to have alone time, where they do not bother me. They chatter too much, especially my brother Exxil."
"How many siblings do you have? Is Exxil older or younger than you?"
The order of my and my brothers' births have always mattered very little to us we were raised close together, and there were never any rules when it came to how we could or could not behave with each other. Even though Exxil is four years older than me and six years older than Havrick we were all allowed to play roughly with each other.
"I have two brothers, Exxil who is four years older than me and Havrick who is two years younger. Havrick and I still live with our father, Exxil lives by himself with his three children. My brother's mate passed away giving birth to the youngest." Pausing, I look forlornly down at the ground, thinking about Meema. Meema and Exxil were best friends since they were little, our mothers were close.
"It is hard not having her around, even though it has been nearly four years since she passed. It hasn't gotten any easier. Especially for Exxil, he does not speak much about his feelings, but I know he misses her greatly that is why we try so hard to help him with the children." Clearing my throat, I change the subject, not wanting to make my Tracy sad. "Exxil loves to talk, though mostly about his children or what is going on in the tribe, I think he will get along great with the curvy woman Ophelia."
"She loves some good gossip, that's for sure," Tracy said wryly.
"Havrick and I still live with Pops, though he works with him. I use to, but I could not find any enjoyment there. Not like I do out in the fresh air working in the garden. Havrick is the youngest and was never made to be responsible, so he does not take things seriously. It is an annoyance for our father, but I believe that Pops would not want him to change," I said.
"You mentioned Exxil having three kids. What are they like?"
"Let's see." I pause, thinking about how to describe the three rascals to her.
Hexxil is the oldest. Exxil and Meema had her not that long after they became mated, her birth was a happy occasion for our family even though it was sad, to not have our mother there. Hexxil is a lot like her mother, quiet and morose. "Hexxil is the oldest almost thirteen. Exxil has a hard time with her she does not like to listen to him much these days."
"Back on Earth that is normal behavior for a preteen, is it the same here? Or is Hexxil's mood strange?" Tracy looks back at me, stumbling over a protruding root.
I clasp her arm, righting her back on her feet. "Yes, it is but Exxil worries about her. Hex misses her mother," I said after Tracy regains her balance.
Staring off into the distance, Tracy says, "Yeah, it has to be hard for a girl not to have her mother," with a dejected tone. Sighing, she marches ahead. "And what about the other two?"
I jog slightly to catch up with her. When I am next to her, I answer. "Ferle and Rexxil are younger than their sister, Rex being the babe. Ferle is ten and wants to be a hunter when he becomes grown. He spends most of his afternoons following Ra'kax or Harvin around, asking them question after question." I laugh at my young nephew's enthusiasm when it comes to hunting. "Even though he is young, he is remarkably good with a bow."
I took Tracy's hand in mine, squeezing it firmly. She looks over at me, smiling.
Clearing my throat, I continued talking. "Rexxil is three and is quite shy. Not like his sister. He gets uncomfortable around those he does not know all that well, but once you get him to open up, he talks nonsto
p."
"They sound great I can't wait to meet them."
I bring her hand to my lips, pressing a kiss to her soft skin. Earning a slight coloring of her cheeks, I chuckle. "They will love you, and you'll get to spend plenty of time with Hexxil. I am bringing her with me to help out in the garden tomorrow morning."
I watch Tracy trek through the dense foliage, sweat running down her face. "This is not new to you, is it, walking through the forest?" I asked, curious about her past.
I remember her saying that she was born in the mountains and that her grandmother lived in the woods. She must have spent a lot of time outside in nature.
"Yeah, I would hike through the woods whenever I stayed with my gran. It is where I got most of my exercise. I couldn't stand being cooped up in a gym." She gives an over exaggerated shudder.
"What is a gym?"
"Oh, ahh... it is this building where people go to workout, get in shape and lose weight. It is a popular thing back on Earth," she said. "So what are we doing out in the middle of the woods? And how much farther do we have to go?"
I sprint ahead of her, coming to a stop at a thick bush a few feet from where she now stands. "We're here," I said, pulling back some of the branches so that she can go through to the meadow. After she drops to her knees, crawling through the makeshift entrance, I follow suit.
"Wow, it is beautiful," she said, coming to her feet. Bracing her hands on her waist, she tilts her head back taking a deep lungful of the fresh air heavily laced with the sweet aroma of the purple flowers growing just in front of us.
The bright sun shines down on my mate's face when she turns her head, smiling at me. "It is one of my favorite places. Even though it takes some time to reach it," I said, smiling back at her.
The meadow is not all the spacious. It sits in the middle of this part of the forest and is about twenty feet wide and long. The purple fallas is abundant here, but it is the only place you can find it without having to take a day-long journey.
The flower is usually found near the River tribe's land because the ground is more moist and fertile there. Some of the tribesmen who are fond of plants have tried to take care of the flower, but the fallas never lasted longer than a few days. The rare plant is a strenuous task in keeping it alive after you uprooted it from the ground where it grew.
Tracy takes a tentative step further into the lush green meadow being careful not to step on one of the flowers. "Even though it is gorgeous here, I am assuming that there was another reason for you bringing me here." Turning to face me, Tracy crouches down, dipping her face near the purple flowers scenting their perfume. Looking back up at me, she lifts an eyebrow waiting for my answer.
I look up staring across the lush green meadow. Trying to think of how to put my thoughts into words. I brought Tracy here, today for the first task in the mating trials. I was very excited when she agreed to go through them with me. It is a long-held tradition for the mates in my family to participate in the courting ritual before they can begin matehood. My father went through them with my mother, and Exxil did the same with Meema. Now I will do the same with my mate Tracy.
There is no specific order when it comes to completing the task; they have to be completed, before the matehood ceremony. There are three tasks. One is to nurture a living creature.
For this one, a living creature is used to resemble taking care of a babe, but I thought that it would be better for Tracy and me to use a plant instead.
That is what brings us to the meadow. I have decided to test my and Tracy's parenting abilities. We will have to successfully, take care of a replanted fallas.
It will not be an easy task if the previous attempts are to show that.
"The first trial begins, my mate," I said, smiling widely.
Chapter Two
Tracy
Panting out of breath, I look at Lorth not quite understanding what has just come out of his mouth. "Huh?" I said, staring at him before looking down at the pretty flowers called fallases. It is just a flower, I think, wondering what it has to do with the trials.
"This is the first task; we will have to take care of the fallas, making sure it thrives after we replant it. It is the task of nurturing, proving we can take care of our future babes," he replied. Kneeling down next to one of the plants, Lorth motions for me to join him. I plop, ungracefully, down on my ass next to him.
"How long does this task last?" I asked.
"Only until the moon is high and full again in the sky. Then we will take a rest before we begin the next task."
I lean my head on his shoulder, "And what would the next one be?" I asked smiling.
Chuckling, Lorth looks down at my face. "That I can't tell you, my mate."
Huffing, I straighten back up. Placing my hands down on the top of my thighs, I ask him when do we start with the replanting.
"It would be best if we did it tonight. The flower closes after the sun goes down and the roots are loose, I will bring a bucket with water to rest the plant in until we can take it back with us to the tribe."
Nodding, I move to stand up but before I get the chance to Lorth tugs me into his side. When I am snug up against him, he reclines back to lie down. I place one of my hands on his chest above one of his hearts. Resting my head on his shoulder, "Where will we replant it?" I murmured.
His chest rises when he takes a deep inhale. "I figured we would plant it at your and Karen's and Kate's place. Exxil's children might disturb it if we were to plant it at my father's."
"Yeah, we wouldn't want that, now would we?" Nuzzling closer into his warmth, I feel the thrumming of his heart beneath my cheek. "Now does this bring us bad luck if something does by chance happen to the plant? Like will our future kids be doomed?" I have never been one who believed a whole lot in superstitions, but here at the Haanask tribe, I don't know what their position is on those types of things. For all I know they might ostracize Lorth and my future babies because we ended up failing at taking care of some plant. I know the other women wouldn't mind, but it probably wouldn't be good for any of us if I messed up in doing this. So for the sake of myself and the others, I need to keep this damned plant alive.
"No, it would reflect more on our skills as caretakers at first until we can prove otherwise," He said with humor.
"Ah, so just a test trial. They probably won't trust us with a real kid if we manage to screw this up, huh?" I said wryly.
"Don't worry about it, my mate. It will be easy for us. We can care for an entire garden, how hard can it be to take care of one little plant?" He said, trying to ease my anxiety.
"I thought you said it isn't an easy plant to keep alive after transplanting?"
"Perhaps for others, it has been an exacting task, but for us and our great gardening skills it will be easy," He said voice filled with pride.
I hope he is right.
∞∞∞
We stayed out under the sun, cuddling in the meadow for another hour. But then reality called, and we had to get back to our chores. Lorth went to the garden while I went back to the house to help Kate finish cleaning the place up. Karen was supposed to be helping, but Gher has started showing up at our front door as soon as the sun rises, so she has been sneaking out while it is still dark outside trying to avoid him since her bitchy attitude did not deter him. I don't know what she is doing, but Kate has a guess.
She thinks Karen is training with a hunter that way she can start going out on the week-long trips they take to gather food. Karen doesn't seem like the type who would enjoy hunting, but maybe I am wrong. If it makes her feel more at home here and that she belongs than good for her! I know it isn't easy to adjust living here, especially since we didn't get a say in coming here, but we got to do what is best for us moving forward. I am trying, and so are the others. Each day that passes this place begins to feel a little bit more like home.
That doesn't mean that I don't miss my family back on Earth because I do, a lot, but I am not letting my grief weigh me down. I am doing my b
est with what I've got.
I walk with Lorth back to the garden. "So I guess we will be coming back out tonight, then?" I pondered aloud.
Nodding, he comes to a stop at the end of the tree line where they cleared a space for the garden. "I will come to your home after dinner. Is that all right?"
"Yeah! That's fine." Coming to the balls of my feet, I place my lips against his cheek. Before I can pull away, Lorth turns his face. His lips meet mine, turning the innocent peck into something less decent.
Smoothing his lips across my closed ones his tongue swipes at the seam. I open, letting his tongue meet mine. I wrap one of my arms around his neck, the other looping around to cling to his muscular back.
Groaning, Lorth takes my face in his hands. Angling my face, he deepens the kiss.
I press my body tighter against him. Our tongues dance with each other, pulling back I take his bottom lip between my teeth, nibbling at it gently.
Before the kiss can escalate, Lorth untangles himself from my arms. I can see how much effort it took for him to pull away written across his face. "I will see you tonight," he said abruptly, walking away toward the garden.
I laugh softly, shaking my head, watching his back as he makes his way into the garden. I see Lucia off to the side, with her hands sifting through the dirt. When she tosses her hair out of her face, she notices me standing at the entrance. Smiling, I wave. Waving back, she holds her hand up gesturing for me to wait. Standing, she swipes at the dirt on her knees and legs. When she is sure every speck is gone, she jogs over to me.
"Hey," she said, slightly out of breath. "I was hoping to catch you when I got here, but you and Lorth were gone." Lucia's face breaks out into a grin as she says the last part.
She obviously thought something went on between us.
Not wanting to ruin her enjoyment, I refrain from correcting her assumptions. "What did you need?" I asked, getting back to the original topic.
"I wanted to let you know the hunters are going on a week-long outing toward the Desert tribes. Some of us are sending letters to Fiona and the others I know you wanted to write to her and Michelle."