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Kinnley fumbled with the doorknob as he kissed Britany. Her back was against the door and her arms were around his neck.
He smiled against her mouth. He couldn't wait to get that white dress off her. But first he had to get in their room.
It had been a couple weeks and he was out of the cast, and they'd gotten married just a few hours ago. He'd wished his mother could've been there, but she was still on bedrest, and Pierce was still looking for Anahi.
His new wife could tell his mind was starting to wander, so she pulled him back by softly biting on his lip.
He got the door open and they both stumbled to the bed. Her dress came off in a white flurry of fabric.
She sighed happily as he placed kisses along her neck and chest. As his hands wandered, she placed her palms on his chest. "No baby yet," she whispered, the reminder of what they'd discussed.
He nodded, and she let him continue.
Pierce sighed as he finally reached where the map had shown. It had taken longer than he thought, and he hoped he wasn't out on a wild goose chase. Although goose sounded pretty good about now. He licked his lips at the thought.
His rations were a little low, especially since he'd gotten turned around at the midway point. Hopefully he could find some more food here.
He carefully approached the very small village. It was at the edge of the desert, surrounded by a wood fence, a poorly built one at that. He didn't see any sentries standing watch, and he didn't want to just waltz in. "Hello," he called.
He looked back towards the sands of the desert, then back at the village in the grassy plains. It was eerily quiet. But he'd come too far to turn back now.
Despite his better judgment, he stepped into the village, past the small fence.
He surveyed the small huts around him as he looked for the healers home. You could usually tell by the herbs drying outside by the door.
Soon he saw the hut. He went to the door and knocked lightly. No answer. He looked around for somebody. But no one was out in the streets.
A breeze blew past him and he caught the smell of cooking meat in the air. His stomach growled. He stepped off the healers porch and made his way to the smell.
A small fire was burning behind someone's hut. A goose was roasting over it. Pierce grinned at the irony.
A female, with her back to him, was mixing some sort of dough in a wooden bowl. She hummed lightly while shaping it into a loaf. Then she turned to set it on a stone resting over the fire.
She gasped when she saw Pierce standing at the entrance to her backyard.
He gave her a small smile. "Hello."
She looked afraid, "who are you? What do you want?"
"I am looking for Anahi," he said carefully.
"Why?" Suspicion was evident in her tone.
"My cousin is in need of a healer."
"Do you not have one of your own?"
"No. We no longer live in our village."
"So you are a rogue."
"I was not exiled. Have you not heard of the war that destroyed most of the world?"
"I see. So your village was destroyed."
He decided not to go into details, so as not to make things confusing. "Where is everyone else?" He asked looking around the village.
She sighed, "inside. It's not safe out during the day."
"But you are out."
A smile, "gotta eat sometime."
Silence fell until his stomach rumbled. She laughed, "you must be hungry after such a long journey." She turned and stuck a fork in the bird, checking to see if it was done. "Won't you have some?"
"I do not have much time, I need to speak with Anahi."
Her ear twitched as she sensed the urgency in his voice. "All right," she set the fork down, "I will take you to her." She removed the bird from the flame, and set the bread on the stone to bake.
"What makes it dangerous here?" Pierce asked as they walked to Anahi's hut.
"There are no longer any males to protect us." Her face grew sad. Some kind of illness spread through the village years ago, and it only affected them." Her gaze met his, "they went crazy. Fought each other to the death. And only us females lived through it. Not even all of us did. Some of us were the reason for such fights, they fought over mates, and some were caught in the middle, or worse, killed by the winner." She sniffed, "I know it wasn't their fault, they were ill. But it wasn't any easier."
He nodded, "I am sorry."
She didn't answer. Just wiped her face on her skirt, then knocked on the healer's door. "Anahi," she called. "It's me, Zayla."
The door opened, and Anahi smiled at her, "come in." She stopped shortly at the sight of Pierce. "Who is this?" A small smile was on her face.
Before an answer was given, she ushered them inside. She closed the door, then turned to her kettle to check the tea that was brewing. "You must be tired after your journey here." She poured three cups of the warm drink, and handed him one. Then she gave one to Zayla and sat in her chair. She motioned for them to sit as well.
He thanked her, then took a sip of the tea.
Zayla noticed a familiar glint in Anahi's eyes. "Are you here to help us repopulate our village?" She asked while he was mid swallow.
He coughed on the drink and Zayla patted him on the back. But she shared the amusement Anahi held.
"Um, well I..."
Anahi interrupted, "there are only fifteen of us women, and several are past pup bearing age. I believe there are only nine eligible candidates now." She stood and went to him, inspecting his face and looking at his teeth. "You will do nicely. Of course I would like to do a full examination, but I'm afraid we can't afford to be picky at this point." She clasped her hands in excitement, "you're the first male we've seen in years. The girls will be eager to meet you. I see you've already met Zayla, which is good. She has the best figure for bearing pups. The other girls are good too." She waved her hand, "I know it's a bit unconventional, and somewhat taboo, but we simply must preserve the pack."
"I'm afraid that's not why he's here Anahi," Zayla interjected before the healer could get too far with her plans.
"Oh?" She sounded very disappointed. But she sat back down, focused on the new matter. She was always ready to get to the matter at hand, which was part of what made her such a good healer.
Pierce felt a twinge of guilt. This village needed help, and they were willing to break tradition to save it. It was unspoken jackal law that only one mate was taken at a time. But he was here for help as well. Keelie needed it. "I am here because my cousin needs a healer," he started. "She is expecting a pup, and we believe her body is rejecting it."
Anahi lowered her cup from her mouth, "utter nonsense. Jackals are made for bearing pups."
He bit his lip, "but the father is a wolf."
Zayla gasped and Anahi's eyes grew hard. "She should have thought of that before mating with him." Her voice grew stern. "She will not survive this."
"She is Nia's daughter."
Anahi's gaze grew soft, "Nia. How is she?"
"She has died." He said softly.
Her face filled with sadness, but she said nothing for a long time. "So you are Taja's boy?"
He dipped his head in affirmation. "I am Pierce."
A sigh. Then Anahi set the drink on a side table.
"Mother said you used to be the healer for Nia's village. How did you end up here?"
"When it was taken over by that rogue jackal, I couldn't stand it there. But I stayed, mostly for Keelie. If that stupid male would've even let me help her, which I doubt," she spat. "Anyway, after Keelie managed to escape I left. There was no point in staying. Then I found this pack. Sadly it was too late to save any of the males here. They were too far gone."
Pierce stayed silent, processing this information.
"Well," she finally said, "if I'm going with you to help Keelie I'd better start packing."
Zayla looked out the window, "it's almost dark, it would probably be better to wait for morning to leave."
Anahi smiled, "it would take me that long to gather my things anyway." She stood up, "the girls should be moving about soon. Why don't you have Pierce join you all for dinner?" She smirked.
Zayla stood and reached out to take his hand. Then she linked her arm through his and, with an endearing smile, she led him back to her yard.
When they arrived, eight other females were sitting around the smoldering fire.
"Hello ladies," Zayla smiled as the two entered.
"There you are Zayla," a particularly tall one said. She was preoccupied with setting out 'plates' for them. They were really just slabs of rock. "Where'd you run off to?"
"You might want to set an extra place," Zayla grinned.
All of them looked up to see Pierce on her arm. In seconds, they surrounded him.
Pierce didn't know how to react to the women who were gushing over him. He was drug over to the fire and pushed down to sit on the soft grass. A plate was shoved into his hand, and all the women started preparing a plate for him.
The tall one sliced a piece of the bread that Zayla had been cooking earlier. Another, short jackal put some kind of stewed berries next to it, and a slice of the goose was set on the bread.
"Here," a soft voice said while bringing over tomato and cucumber slices. The tallest one took a few and set them on the meat.
Pierce just watched as they worked with utmost care. It was obvious they wanted the meal to be perfect.
By the time they were done, the plate was overflowing with food. He looked at the plate in his lap while they all prepared their own meals. All of the girls sat in a circle around the campfire and looked at him, waiting. They were waiting for him to start eating to signify the start of the meal. So he did.
Zayla sat at his right side, while the tallest female sat at his left. "Do you like it?" She asked.
He nodded with a smile.
She placed her hands around his arm, feeling the muscle there. A soft giggle escaped her as she rubbed his arm.
The shortest one moved closer, "don't hog him Asia." Her voice was a whine.
Asia scooted over so the other girl could feel his arm too. She rubbed his arm with a soft smile.
Pierce looked over the fire with a content expression. "I missed the village life," he said wistfully.
"You mean being surrounded by beautiful women?" Zayla grinned and the girls tittered.
"I can not say I have ever had the pleasure before," he smiled.
More giggling, and they scooted in closer.
"I miss the simplicity of it all."
Zayla leaned against his side, "then stay."
His gold eyes took in the other jackals around the fire. Some were eating, and some were conversing quietly, but all of them kept their eyes on him with a sort of reverence and hope. Hope that he would help them preserve the pack.
He felt bad at the thought of leaving them. They needed a male to preserve the bloodline, to give them pups. Every village's future was in the pups they bear. How much longer could they wait?
Finally, he returned his eyes to hers. Her expression was soft, pleading. He looked away, "I cannot."
She looked hurt. "Why? Don't you like us?"
He nodded, "I do. But I can not abandon my cousin, or her pup."
"But isn't the death of one, or even two, insignificant compared to the fact that you will save countless if you stay?" Asia interjected.
He swallowed as the females looked at him expectantly. They would not understand. They couldn't. "I am sorry," he finally said.
"Even though you must leave," Zayla said after a moments hesitation, "could you not help us before you go? Even if it's just one or two of us?"
"Would that be wise?" Asked the shortest woman. "With no alpha male, who would protect the pups?"
"And besides," added another, "if Anahi is going with him for a time, will she be back to assist those of us who will birth pups? I don't know about you but I do not want to do that without help."
Concerned murmurs rippled around them as they thought of the idea.
Before too much panic could rise, Anahi and the other elders arrived for the meal.
Everyone bowed in respect, Pierce following their example.
"Calm yourselves ladies," Anahi said as she sat. "There is no need for upset. We will be fine." She turned to jackal who had raised concern over birthing without a healer, "you are right Nona, it would not be ideal for anyone to be expecting pups while I'm gone. I'm afraid we will just have to carry on as before." She gave Pierce a pointed glance, then turned to eat.
"Are you ready to depart?" Pierce asked Anahi as she lifted her bag over her shoulder.
She nodded with a sigh. The sun was just coming up. Pink hues streaked the morning sky.
He touched her arm, "I am sorry."
"I know you are dear boy, please do not take my attitude yesterday affect you. I'm just concerned for the welfare of the pack." She met his eyes, "I know you are bound to a sense of duty to your family, which is very admirable, but you have other duties as well."
"To your pack?" He raised a brow.
"No. To yours." She gestured to his bag. The females had showered him with gifts of food, tools, and various trinkets. "They have chosen you."
Before he could respond, Zayla came running up. She was out of breath, and she held her skirt up so she could move faster. She stumbled a bit, but stopped in front of him. "I was afraid I missed you," she panted.
He couldn't stop the smiled spreading on his face. "We are just about to leave."
"Are you sure you can't stay?"
He nodded.
"We'll miss you," she said softly.
"Come with me," he said taking her hands.
She smiled. "My place is here." Her hands moved to his chest. "If you ever want to come back, know there is a place for you here. As our alpha." She stood on her tiptoes and gently kissed the corner of his mouth.
He couldn't say anything because of the lump in his throat.
"Safe travels," she said softly. Then she turned and disappeared into the village.
Britany slowly blinked her green eyes open. The sun filtered in through the window, beams of light dancing across Kinnley's face.
He was breathing deeply with his hand resting on his stomach while he slept.
She smiled and turned on her side, feeling the cool sheets beneath her bare fur. The chipmunk nuzzled against his side, humming happily. She loved her new husband so much. And she knew he loved her. The soreness in her body told her so.
She lay there for quite some time, until she needed to use the bathroom. Pushing back the blankets, she slipped out of their bed and made her way to the bathroom.
Her dress was still where it had been discarded last night in a white heap on the floor. Along with the packaging to their prevention.
Stepping over the mess, she went into the bathroom. She didn't bother closing the door. It didn't matter to her. He'd already seen her, so who cared if he saw her again.
Britany decided to take a quick shower. Quickly, she grabbed a towel and her soap, shampoo, conditioner, and lotion. She stepped into the tub and closed the curtain.
When she turned the water off and opened the curtain, Kinnley was standing at the sink. She jumped, slipping on the floor. Kinnley caught her before she could fall and she smiled at him. "Thanks."
He smiled back and pulled her into his arms, kissing her on the head.
She giggled, "I haven't even dried off yet."
"I don't mind."
She playfully swatted his arm, "I do." She was smiling as she said it though.
He pulled back and watched her dry off, get dressed, and brush her short hair. He missed the length she'd had before. But, her short hair exposed the back of her neck, and he likes seeing the hibiscus flower there. Gently, he placed a soft kiss on the ink, and she smiled at him. He was happy with her, and she with him.
