Chương 49: Awkward

The large cats followed them downstream for hours. It was almost dark when the last one turned back. Whatever they were, the things had a drive to hunt that was intense.

"Let's float for a bit more just to make sure they are gone" Paris said with a bored tone. After explaining the best way to attempt a solid layer the trip had been exceedingly long. The river seemed to be slowing and even widening a bit as they floated downstream. The two humans explained that they had no knowledge of this area so everyone was going to be lost for a while. They hid their fear well but neither of them had looked at blick like an enemy since the discovery of those cats.

Just a while later they made landfall on the far bank from the cats. They walked a bit into the woods before building a fire. While Blick climbed a tree and set up his hanging bed the two humans stripped their clothing off and hung it across some branches to dry by the fire.

"Is that a fucking hammock?" Paris yelled up into the tree while looking up at Blick who was fastening it to a branch. Dax looked up and laughed.

"Yes it seems to be. Man that would be nice." Then he gave Paris a small punch on the shoulder before nodding up at Blick. She got the message after a bit of awkward eye contact.

"Hey Blick… could you show us how to make one of those?" She called up. Hours later he climbed back up into his hammock while practicing saying the new word. He had left the two to work on their hammock with all the ivy he felt like braiding and weaving together. They could finish the project with the instructions he left. As he lay there staring into the stars he heard them decide to set the hammock up closer to the ground as they didn't feel comfortable climbing a tree.

Blick woke up to an odd rhythmic sound of breathing. Confused at what was making it he leaned his head over and looked down at the humans several feet away. He raised an eyebrow as he saw in the dim moonlight Paris and Dax sharing a hammock but they weren't sleeping. Ever curious he watched as she straddled Dax with her long tan legs and moved her hips forward and backward with a steady rhythm. Dax's hands explored her naked body while she leaned down and kissed him.

They had started breathing together in a rhythm that slowly sped up. Blick had no idea what was and wasn't socially acceptable. He had never seen anything like this. Things started to click for him and he had questions. Without realizing how bad the situation was from an outsiders perspective he simply asked as he normally would.

"Are you two trying to make a litter?" If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it's taken without the author's consent. Report it. Paris was not a fan of this question at all. If you gauged it based on her yelling at him about being a pervert and that he shouldn't be watching then you could safely assume she was what they call "pissed off". After her yelling settled down Dax tried explaining to Blick to social stigma around sex.

"Why would you do it where I can see if I was not supposed to see?" Blick asked about halfway through with a confused expression. That made Paris smack her face and exclaim, "Dax he's like a child." To that Dax turned and asked Blick.

"Actually we never even questioned it, how old are you Blick?" That question derailed the whole situation as Blick did not know. He didn't know how years were calculated before he went to the city. So he didn't know how long he had lived. He did know that his father and several of the other Groks he had met were larger and taller than him.

"I am not sure on years, but I am probably not fully grown. My father and mother are both a head taller."

"Great we just gave a teenager a peek at us fucking!" Paris said while sounding distinctly more annoyed than before. Dax just laughed and patted Blicks shoulder as he lead the young furry man away from his disgruntled partner. Blick learned a lot about humans that night. No wonder they wore clothing so often. Blick had just assumed it was the lack of fur to keep them warm and dry.

"Did your folks not explain this? I don't know how your kind do it exactly but I'd bet it's similar." To that Blick had to explain his being lost and only spending a couple of days with his family before venturing off again. He was ever curious about the world but had t even considered asking how they made a new litter.

"Well don't let it bother you too much. One day you'll find a woman. Not sure if she'll be one of you Groks or maybe a human. Not even sure I want to know if that's even possible. But don't rush it. Life finds a way." And with that they all went their separate ways. Dax had to calm Paris down a bit and she smacked his arm several times as he tried to convince her it wasn't that big of an issue.

The next morning was very awkward for Blick as he knew he hadn't been meant to see but he didn't have to context for why it should even be a secret activity. Every human did it right? Shame was not part of his culture. Privacy was not part of his culture. These were distinctly human. That made him consider. Would it hold true for all humans or just these people and their kingdom? A question to remember if he ran into other nations or kinds of humans.

Shrugging the worry off he brought back a raccoon from the forest and prepared a meal for the group. Paris and Dax climbed out of their shared hammock while he was cleaning and prepping the fire. Dax acted no different and Blick appreciated it. Paris was weird but he could tell she was trying not to bring it up. They made a plan for travel during their meal. It would be quite a journey.