Transition Plan Chapter 46: Special Delivery Part 2

Author's Notes: This week's chapter is early! The action has been pretty steamy between them the past two chapters, and have shelved plans for another like those indefinitely, and so we're going to lighten things up for the long term.

…

One of the oddest of human maternity behaviors are cravings by the female, and Jane was no less affected by that being in the jungle than being like any expectant mother in London. It was often highly entertaining as well as slightly repulsing. For Terk, it was always entertaining to see a very pregnant Jane order her husband around.

Terk snickered every time she would hear the words: "Tarzan would you be a dear, and bring me…"

But Terk was even more amused when she'd outright order him: "Tarzan! Bring me this right now!"

Both females would watch him scamper off into the jungle to collect, assemble and present her with whatever it was she craved at the time. Often times, whatever she asked for had to come from opposite sides of the jungle and even the mighty Tarzan would be completely out of breath.

Terk groomed her napping Kirok with a smile, watching Jana play with the other children, and wondered that when she was pregnant again, if she could get her mate to bring her some cravings, and began to think about the most unlikely combinations of foods possible.

The initial requests for him were fairly normal, "Tarzan I'm hungry."

"You do seem to be hungry more often, Jane," Tarzan noted.

"Well with this balloon growing in me, there isn't as much room in my stomach as before, and I am eating for two," she admitted.

"Quite true, Jane. What would you like?"

"Oh, how about some papaya and yams, please."

"Sure Jane," and off he went into the jungle to bring them back to her, and cut them up and served them on leaves.

"You're sweet, thank you," and pecked him on the lips.

But 'normal' combinations often gave way to more complicated requests.

Just a couple of days later, Jane asked, "Tarzan, I'm sorry but I am really hungry today. Could you get me some wild watermelon and termites?"

He cocked an eyebrow, "Wild watermelon and termites?"

"Yes dear. Is there a problem with that?" she asked innocently.

"No. Jane. Coming right up," Tarzan promised, but questioned in his own mind the combination of flavors. Either separately was tasty, but together, that was another matter.

Another day it was for wild strawberries and trout roe. Terk saw him really roll his eyes at that one.

Another day, Jane asked, "Tarzan it would be wonderful if you could get me some nice warm hippo milk with cassava ground up in it."

"Hippo milk?" he asked.

"It's among the richest of all mother's milks in the jungle, dear. Full of minerals to make our baby's bones stronger."

Tarzan was really reluctant to fulfill this request, "You know how irritable hippos are. Especially if I ask for that. Wouldn't some other animal's milk do? Something a bit… smaller?"

"But Tarzan, I need this, honey. This is the best milk for me," she batted her eyes at him. And his heart melted.

He came back with a couple of hollowed out gourd rinds full of the milk and ground cassava. It was a kind of jungle smoothie. Terk noticed the interplay between them, but then was shocked when she saw Tarzan. Jane didn't notice his appearance as she greedily took the gourds from his hands and sipped the savory drink – at least to her – and got a frothy mustache, which was cute, but as she relaxed, she noticed that Tarzan was scratched and bruised and had a reddish bump over his forehead.

Alarmed, she asked, "Dearest, what happened to you?"

"I… uh… well… I had an accident."

"You poor dear, let me soothe you," said Jane, comforting his hurting head on her bosom and stroked and groomed him.

"What happened to you? I'm so sorry I made you go do this."

Tarzan explained, "Well, it took me awhile to get the hippos to agree, until I explained it was for you."

"But what then? How did you get all the bumps and bruises?"

Tarzan got a little tense talking about it, "Well you know how hard it is to tell a girl hippo from a boy. Especially when they are wading."

"That's true, yes," Jane wondered where this was leading.

"Well… umm… I accidentally tried to milk a boy hippo," he said with downcast eyes.

Terk and Jane completely lost it, and even a sore Tarzan realized the humor in it.

Jane wore Tarzan out with her requests, at a dizzying pace the more pregnant she got, but she didn't ask for more difficult requests. Some of her requests were in the middle of the night, when she was having trouble sleeping from the baby's activity, but she nearly always rewarded him with intimacy, so there was ample incentive for him to comply. Even though he didn't really need any encouragement to care for Jane.

One day he was just simply exhausted, so he just needed to ask for an explanation, "Jane, I sort of understand what you told me about cravings, but why do you ask for such odd combinations? Some do not seem… uh… edible together. And you know we eat just about anything here."

She did apologize, "I'm sorry Tarzan. Pregnant human females get cravings. The Doctors say our bodies know what's lacking or what we need more of to nourish the baby or ourselves."

"No need to be sorry, dear. I just wanted to understand better."

"I know I am running you ragged. You've been so good to me."

"It's all right."

"And my temper is short," she admitted.

"True."

"Hey! Watch that ape man…And I'm moody, too."

While thinking of all the unexplained and sudden bouts of teariness and worry, he said, "I understand dear. I'm not the one carrying the equivalent of a huge coconut in me every day for almost a year."

Jane managed a giggle and caressed his face. She got a look of concentration on her face, and smacked her lips like a gorilla female. Her total emulation of Mangani mannerisms, which he knew were second nature to her now, truly were adorable to Tarzan. He knew what was coming next, and grinned.

"Now go be a dear, and get me some coconut milk and crayfish. Please?"

"Of course Jane," Tarzan said despite the fact that did not sound like a taste treat to him.

They kissed and off he went, knowing full well that the coconut grove was five miles one way and the nearest creek was seven miles the opposite direction.

She admired his trim body as he swung off into the woods to get her the next concoction of requests, and leaned back and took a nap. Her body was very hard at work making their child.