Chapter 20. Fidget


Shikha was outside gathering pieces of fruit from the trees with Favul bounded around her shoulder with a strong sheet. It was early morning when Shikha decided to bring her daughter up above to the light. Her daughter could only handle the sun during the early morning and the sunset. During the brightest time of the day she would squint and cry from discomfort.

Little Favul looked like both her parents. Her skin was very fair with a slight greenish tone. She had her father's silvery hair that trailed lightly down her arms and down her legs. She had more of her mother's facial features but had her father's teeth. Strangely she sported an average number of four toes and fingers except on one hand where she had only three. The most striking feature she had was her glowing, blue, large eyes. To us she would be a bizarre looking child but to Shikha she was the most beautiful thing in her life.

"Oh sweetie we will go down now okay?" Her daughter started to squirm in her arms as the sun started to reach the middle of the sky. Favul shoved her face into her mother's breast.

Down below they went to visit her father. Mog gathered his precious gift in his arms and nuzzled her tiny face.

"How's my little girl? Just as lovely as your mother." It was a relief from work to be able to see his family. "Is she learning how to walk? She sure moves those legs."

"She is trying to but is still too weak." Shikha smiled. "She's going to be bigger then me I am sure."

"Going to be tall like daddy eh?" Mog licked his daughter's cheek as she grabbed his face with her teeny fingers.

"Fere is going to baby-sit her tonight." Shikha grinned. "I figured we could be alone tonight."

Mog blushed and transferred his daughter back to his mate. "I hope she won't bug the crap out of that old dirt bag Fown."

"Nah he loves kids." Shikha tickled her child. "He goes all soft whenever Fere is holding a child. He's always wanted one of his own."

"Yeah till she screams later on in the middle of the day." Mog yawned and stretched out his arms. "I say we it's time for a nap, then afterwards of course."

"Well I will go drop her off then. Fere is expecting her." Shikha left with her sleepy daughter to Fere's new home with Fown.

"Oh well look who's here. The little Bimbleberry baby." Fere cooed at her small charge as Shikha handed her over.

"I hope she doesn't drive you two crazy." Shikha smiled sheepishly as she headed back out.

"Nah she's a good child." Fere cradled the little Favul like she used to with her own children so many years ago. Fown only grumbled but a gentle sparkle shown in his eyes. The baby reached over and grabbed some of his arm hair and ripped it out.

"Oh she really likes me I can see." Fown huffed, feeling at the bald spot on his arm. "She's got a tough grip though, yanked a whole bunch out."

"No don't put that in your mouth sweetie." Fere pulled the dirty hair from her mouth and wiped her clean. "That shouldn't taste too well does it? Well yes look at your face scrunching up. Nasty, nasty."

"I guess I should take a bath for once." Fown smelled his underarms and winced. "Oi that's about five months of buildup right there."

Fere rolled her eyes and gave him a disgusted face before retiring to the back of the cave to nap with Favul for a few hours.

Shadow's colony…

Most of the young bachelors now gave Shadow a respected personal bubble whenever they crossed his path. Shadow didn't even have to strut out his dominant stature to show it, they all knew who he was. The thoughts of what he did to the female's mate and her crying still tortured him inside. To another Morlock that wouldn't matter but because of his softer upbringing it was a different story. Today he felt he should approach the female and apologize for his ugly actions though he knew that would not change anything.

He slowly climbed down the entrance to her cave and sniffed loudly to see if her body scent was fresh inside. Her eyes glowered brightly at him and she drew a coarse snort of fear.

"So it's you again! You want my cave as well? To toss me and my child out? Oh well that's life for you!" She squealed.

"Child?" The thought never came to him if the male ever had a family already or not.

"Oh yes child! My mate's only son. It will not matter of course because now since I'm an open female he is bait for the males." She glanced back at her toddler, giving a protective border between him and this ferocious male.

"Bait for whom? I don't understand." Shadow shook his head in confusion and sat down at the entrance.

"Don't play such a sick joke with me you know damn well what I am talking about. All males know it! It's in their cruel blood!" She clawed the air in front of him.

"I really don't know. I did want to apologize what happened for yesterday. I know these words are very meaningless and won't bring your mate back." Shadow bowed his head.

"What?" Now the female herself was confused. No male ever came forth about this sort of matter. It had never happened nor had she had seen it. There was only a long stare before them, figuring out what to say next.

"I feel since it is my responsibility for your mate's death I want to take care of you and your child." He spoke up again.

The female shifted backwards and fanned out the wispy hair on her shoulders. This had to be some damned trick! Such a clever male! Why doesn't he just offer himself to mate with her and slaughter the child that isn't his? Why make this moment even worse?

"Just kill him already and don't make me see it if you are offering me to be your mate." She answered grimly, turning her eyes away from the both of them.

"I don't want to kill your baby. Why would I want to do that? What's the gain?" He snorted, taking a few steps forward.

"Why he's not your child. No male wastes time raising a child that doesn't carry his bloodlines unless it's related. This baby is no relation to you I am sure. Please just stop the joking and end it now. Put him out of his misery fast for goodness sake he's an innocent."

Shadow could only gawk at her. "How could you just offer your child up like that? Don't you defend him at all?"

"Of course if I had my mate with me? Don't you understand the role around here at all?" She snarled back.

"No I don't know how it goes on around here. My colony was much different." His eyes dropped to the little infant in the background that blinked at him, oblivious to what was going on.

"Well I am not much of one to explain." She grunted. "Around here a lone mother is nothing but a death sentence for her offspring. I have seen it many times. A father dies or gets killed and nobody else is willing to take care of a mother. Yes the female is of course excepted but not a child. Not unless it ends up being the father's own brother or whatever but that's hardly common." She bit her lip. "Need I explain more of this horrendous lifestyle?"

"I simply want a female to love. Yes children is something I want someday but it's not the main goal for me."

"What? It's the main goal for any male! To pass himself off of course! It's instinct! That's like saying you don't want to breath!" The female gasped. "You are surely strange!"

"I will serve as a replacement father if you will accept." Shadow nodded and came forward to her.

The female felt her breath shorten as he came closer to her child. Here was the end! He would swoop up her baby and smash his little head against the rocks outside. Or worse he would bite his head clean off right in here if he was less considerate for her feelings.

Shadow hovered over the infant and sniffed at him. The female wanted to scream but nothing came out. She wanted to look away. Instead her eyes froze on the last moments of her baby. The rogue male picked up her child and sat him down on his lap. Her baby gripped an armful of his hair and held on, feeling content with the new attention.

"Why you look like you just seen death cross your path." He commented on the female's completely bewildered and bug-eyed expression.

"I thought you would kill him. Are you just waiting to later?" She whimpered, reaching a hand out to her baby.

"No I think he's cute. I don't have any desire to kill him." He reassured her.

"This can't be right. This-" She uttered before Shadow cut her off and stared straight into her eyes.

"I have no desire to kill him." He said point-blank.

Such a strange male! She had learned much about him from the other Morlocks who talked of his bloodthirsty behavior towards his fellow bachelors. The skull-crushing, back-breaking male who almost seemed to enjoy tasting the taint blood of his own kind just didn't fit the bill with this one now. Perhaps it was another one? She leaned forward and asked his name.

"I had never told you my name did I? It's Shadow of course." His smile faltered. "I am betting you have already heard of me."

"I just can't believe this same male is coddling a child that isn't his." She wiped the sweat from her neck and stood close to them. She shifted her legs around over and over again. Her body still tense as she still wouldn't fully believe him. This was totally different from what her inbred instincts have warned her about. Every female that was born here came equipped with that one image of the strange male killing children that had no tie to him. Not every Morlock in the entire world had this of course. Being that her colony had been here for tens of thousands of years it had slowly engrained itself overtime as it became the custom. Life here was too harsh to worry about other folk's children. For the males in her colony it was the same. Kill the baby of your mate that doesn't belong to you.

For Shadow he had no such instinct. From whatever colony he originated from the families probably adopted orphan babies if they had none of their own or baby-sat like Fere's colony has.

The female's colony had a type of baby-sitting going on too but it was only between very close family members such as a daughter to a mother. It was also only for a short period of time.

"Do you ever sit still?" Shadow noticed her intense behavior. "By the way you never shared your name."

"It's Fidget." She lowered her eyes from his, worried that she would anger him.

"Oh well that fits." He smiled. "Come closer if you want. I am actually quite cuddly."

The female raised her eyes and glared at him again. Not really in anger but all this was just sudden and she was still trying to get over it. Now this killer wanted to cuddle!

"Well that will have to wait." She snorted and turned away. "If you are wanting to keep this cave you will have to do the duty."

"Only when you want me to. It's no rush. No male will take this cave as long as my scent lingers to it." He nodded to her.

Fidget picked up her baby and snuggled against the wall with him hidden behind her hairy arms. He pulled at her shirt, wanting something to drink.

"It's soon to wean you." She quietly scolded him and offered him her breast. "Your teeth are pinchy."

Shadow turned bright red and looked away. "Uh so what is your son's name?"

"I call him Nerok. His father was called Nero so I wanted something similar." She licked her child's head as he nursed.

"That's a nice name." He smiled, still looking off at the side. Fidget didn't know the reason why and questioned him. His answer didn't make any sense. There wasn't anything strange about seeing a female breastfeed but whatever suited him.

"Do you ever sing him any songs?" He asked again, trying to keep his eyes on her.

"I don't even know what that is."

"You don't know what singing is?"

"No I don't."

"Well it's like this." He cleared his throat and did his beast in the Morlock tongue. He sounded something like a dying cow and a whale. For Fidget it was freaking weird but the delightful tones were pleasant.

"I don't get what it is for but it sounds nice." She commented after he finished.

"Well where I come from we sing. We all love to sing songs." He smiled. "You should try sometime." "With lots and lots of practice if I even know how to." She rocked Nerok in her arms till he fell asleep. "I only know the howl of the feast."

"Oh I have heard that one. I enjoy joining in the call. It gives the Eloi goosebumps." He chuckled. "I noticed the females rarely do the howl."

"We just don't have as strong as a calling since you fellows do most of the blood work." She told him. "It's cute when my son does it. He's so tiny and so is his howl."

"He will be a grand little boy." He watched him snore all bundled in a ball.

"I hope he will. I want to see him be very successful growing up." She smiled, the last thing she wanted to do was think of her child's future. That will be a worry in a later time.