The next chapter is posted! Enjoy :)

The walk through town was quite interesting to say the least.

Even if Natalie felt like she hardly saw all that much. They all walked together as a group. And she for the most part was sandwiched between the larger bodies.

Yeyinde especially stayed close to her. While Sakana walked on the other side of her and Luar-ke walked in front of her with Kaail beside her. Setg-in and his son Bakuub walked behind her.

Natalie can't figure out if it was intentional or just how the group was formed as they walked through the wide-open streets ad\midst a sea of yautja.

From what she could see, there were many out and about. Both male and females and Natalie swore she saw some very small ones that could've been yautja children.

And everything was quite built up as far as technology goes.

"Where exactly we headed again?" Natalie asks Yeyinde next to her.

"My place." He told her.

Setg-in's gaze snapped to Yeyinde.

"I thought we agreed that she would go to Sakana's for the time being." His father pointed out.

Even Sakana was a little surprised. She was asked by their father initially if she could house the female temporarily while mating season was going on. This was to ensure her safety.

And she wouldn't have to be confined to the home either. As long as Natalie had a female escort or two, no one would bother her.

Because being out in the open right now with just a male as your escort, would've been dangerous for her. Females would assume the ooman female was looking to court one of their males. It wouldn't take much for one to come up and challenge her for the right s to mate with the male.

But if Natalie were to walk about with another female, she was safer, and it would give others the impression she wasn't looking to mate with one of the males.

"Yeyinde, think about it. If you bring her to your home, she could be confined to it. You cannot exactly leave the home with her. Females will see you two and automatically assume she is trying to court you. If they're interested in you, they will try and challenge her for you." Sakana cautioned.

Even Luar-ke and Kaail heard them and looked over their shoulders briefly at them.

Pretty much everyone was looking at Yeyinde now like he was nuts. Surely, if he cared at all for the ooman female, he wouldn't endanger her by bringer her to his home.

The translators were off for the moment. So, Natalie didn't understand a word of what anyone was saying.

"Not to mention, when you bring a female home to mate, it's not going to look right if you already have the ooman female there in your dwellings." Bakuub added.

Kaail wanted to say something. But kept his mouth shut.

He wasn't blind nor stupid. Neither were the other hunters aboard the ship. Every one of them could see that Yeyinde clearly cared for Natalie.

At this point, Kaail could almost believe there was a possibility that Yeyinde may turn down the other females if they approached him with the intention to mate.

A male or a female could decline the invitation if they wanted to. Just because one was asked, didn't mean they had to.

But pending on the temperament of the yautja, you never know how they may react. Most even-tempered ones may grunt and walk away. Others that had a bit more of a short fuse may yell and make a fuss.

Some of the rejected females have been known to get quite volatile at times and lash out at the male that rejects them. Especially, if it's a male they had their eye on.

Then there was the case where one or more female had their sights on the same male. Luckily, it didn't happen too often because their clan was exceptionally large and had a large number of individuals.

But in the few cases it does happen, the females would challenge each other to a fight. A fight that could get quite brutal and rough, with almost always someone ending up in the med room.

Then the winning female was the one to go on and mate with the male.

Kaail and the others knew Bakuub could see his brother's growing affections for Natalie as well. But it looks like he's in denial about it and is still hoping that Yeyinde will go mate and breed with a yautja female.

At this point, Kaail felt bad for Yeyinde and Natalie. Because if they do go through with it, he knows it won't be easy for them. No one can say whether or not the ooman female would ever be seen as a fully accepted member to the clan.

Yeyinde does recall that his father had contacted him on the ship a few hours before landing that Natalie could go live with Sakana while the mating season was in full swing.

And even then, the young hunter was on the fence about it.

As much he always said he wanted to participate this mating season and has looked forward to it, Yeyinde didn't feel right saddling Natalie with his sister just so he can go have his pick of females and get laid.

His mind was warring on whether or not if he even wanted to.

But he knew if he insisted Natalie came home with him, Yeyinde would have everyone debating his decision and continue to argue with him that it was a bad idea.

And his sister had a point when she said Natalie could end up being confined to his house for her own safety.

Yeyinde knew enough that that arrangement may affect Natalie. She just spent around four months a prisoner stuck in a cell. And being confined to his home, may not seem so different.

"Alright, she can stay at Sakana's for a while. But I still need to run it by her first. Because when we all got caught up talking back at the port, we forgot to mention to her that she may be going with Sakana." He told them.

"Then tell her, brother." Bakuub quipped.

Yeyinde grunted, then turned his attention back to Natalie.

"Sorry, I just remembered that you may actually be staying with Sakana for a while." He said.

Natalie gave him a slightly confused look.

"Oh? Why is that?" She asked.

Not that she minded seeing his sister's place. But she didn't understand why she would have to stay with her and not Yeyinde.

"Because Natalie, with mating season starting, other females may be looking to mate with Yeyinde. And surely you don't want to be around at his place to watch that.

Not to mention, they may see you as a threat and try to challenge you for their right to mate with him." Luar-ke explained.

Yeyinde watched as a spark of sadness and hurt entered Natalie's eyes.

"Oh, ok. That does make a lot more sense once you explained it. I can't say I'd want to see that. Most definitely would be awkward." She said.

Natalie seemed to go quiet after that and averted her gaze from Yeyinde.

He could always tell when she was upset. Even when she tries to hide it or be discreet about it. And it was something that always bothered him.

Yeyinde never liked seeing her upset. That is why he was always there to give her comfort when she needed it.

Sakana noted the sudden change in the young ooman female as well. And she felt sorry for her. Because sure, Natalie had a new life here. But there was no guarantee that a male yautja would ever show that level of interest in her.

But the more she observed her younger brother with the ooman, it was seemingly clearer that he just may harbor strong feelings for Natalie.

She knew though, that their father would most likely not agree to such a pairing. And would want him to mate a female yautja.

Their pairing was not illegal or forbidden in any way that she knew of. Only that it may be frowned upon to take a mate from another race. Especially, one that may be seen or deemed inferior to them.

It was a sad and ridiculous notion. Because Natalie seemed like a very sweet girl who just happened to get caught up in a huge mess that turned her life upside down.

But she could see that she was polite, sweet, outgoing, and the fact that she endured being imprisoned and dosed with their kinds' blood shows how strong and resilient she truly is.

All these reasons are why Sakana wouldn't have a problem if Yeyinde were to decide to mate with her.

She was never a biased or prejudice yautja. The fact that Natalie was ooman is irrelevant. We were all sentient, intelligent beings with a right to thrive and live our lives to the fullest, regardless of any differences.

Sakana's mindset was like their mother's in that sense. From what she remembered of her mother, was that she never had any issues with oomans either and didn't judge them for being seemingly different and physically weaker than us.

"It's not always about physical strength. Every being possesses an inner strength that no one can ever overpower. It's a strength within us that will never wane or weaken with age. But grows stronger as we grow in age and wisdom." Her mother once told her and her siblings.

And she was right. Not everything was about physical prowess. But the strength of one's will to fight and survive.

Little by little everyone parted to go their separate ways. Luar-ke and Kaail were the first pair to branch off. They were headed back to Luar-ke's to mate.

Luckily, her younger sister volunteered to watch her pups so she can have alone time with Kaail.

Bakuub was next to leave. He took off down another path to go to see his mate Thwei-de and their two pups.

Then they finally reached Sakana's home and she let herself and Natalie in. Yeyinde stood at the entrance a little longer with his father.

"I'll...I'll try not to be long. And I promise to come by and see you in the morning." Yeyinde said.

Though as he's saying this to Natalie, he feels like utter shit. It didn't help that she looked like she was trying to not show how much this bothered her and struggling to do so.

She plastered on a fake, tight-lipped smile.

"Well, at least you know where to find me afterwards. And...good luck." She barely got out.

Yeyinde nodded, then stepped back, allowing the door to slide closed, and Natalie disappeared from sight behind it.

Setg-in could tell neither of them seemed happy. But he was glad that his son was being the bigger man about it and not letting selfish notions get in the way and making responsible choices.

The older yautja continued to walk with him ack to his dwellings.

"I know this seems very hard for you. But you're making the right choice." Setg-in said.

Yeyinde just looked at him.

"What do you mean?" He inquired.

The older yautja snorted, "Yeyinde, I'm not blind. I see the way you both act around each other. It's very clear there are strong emotions brewing between you two.

But I'm sorry to say...it'll never work. She's an ooman and you're a yautja. You hail from a proud race of warriors. And while oomans are capable, strong, and intelligent fighters in their own right, they are still prey.

Even if you were to mate her, it will be frowned upon, and you will both be ostracized for it. I'm not saying that all here will meet you both with hostility. But a good portion will.

And I only tell you this because I care. I don't want to see you get hurt if something were to happen to her. Even after all these years, your mother's death still affects me.

I don't want to see you endure the same pain I have."

Yeyinde continued to look straight ahead as they walked. But a frown marred his features, and he unconsciously clenches his fists at his sides.

His father's words stung. But he knew the older yautja was just trying to look out for him and just told him the cold hard truth about it all.

"I understand your concerns, father. But what I feel...it's not just something you can turn off or tune out." The younger hunter said.

Setg-in saw someone straight ahead walking towards them. And a smile lit up his features upon realizing who it was.

"You don't know that for sure. Especially when there is a fine female headed this way right now." He told Yeyinde.

Yeyinde looked through the crowd and saw what his father was talking about.

A tall beautiful reddish orange female with bright yellow eyes and wide smile was headed towards them.

It was Inu. One of Elder M'icli-de's daughters. She happened to be one of two females around his age that expressed interest in mating with him this season.

Apparently, she always had a thing for him. But he was so wrapped up in becoming a great hunter that he hardly had time to notice, because he spent majority of his time training.

They were around the same age and somewhat grew up together.

But he can't say they really played together as pups. Yeyinde mainly stuck to playing with his own circle of friends when he was young. And that circle consisted of Guan, Kv'var-de, Kaail, Dachande, and Guan.

They also had another friend that was a part of their close-knit circle named Oc'djy. But he died during his Kainde Amedha Chiva.

But he really didn't play with too many females growing up. Other than Luar-ke and another female named Nakande, who's Guan's sister. Yeyinde did hear from Luar-ke, Nakande, and even his own sister Minikui, that Inu was quite a brat. And because of this, none of them really liked playing with her as children.

Still, she was considered very beautiful. And she knew it. Many other males were eyeing her with appreciation as she walked past them. But Inu didn't even give any of them a second glance.

Her gaze was solely fixed on Yeyinde.

The young hunter than felt his father clap his shoulder.

"You won't have to think any more about it, son. I'm sure Inu will take good care of you. Happy mating." Setg-in said, before walking off to leave Yeyinde with the fine female approaching him.

Yeyinde came to a stop when Inu was in close range. And she came to a stop about five feet away. The tall female only had on a rather skimpy loincloth. Her chest was completely bare, something that was common among his females here. They didn't always wear tops. Some preferred to walk around topless.

And she was quite busty, her nipples erect and pointy.

In the past, seeing a beautiful female eye him like this with majority of her body on display would've probably had Yeyinde pumping out his dia-shui and would be having a hard time keeping his erection down.

But right now, he didn't really feel anything. No pumping out musk and he was still completely flaccid behind his cod piece and loincloth.

"Hello, Yeyinde. I'm glad you made it back. I was worried you were having too much fun hunting those pesky little oomans, that you wouldn't make it back in time for mating season. But here you are." She purred as she eyed him up and down.

She always had a crush on him. He was not immature and somewhat childish, like most the males their age. Yeyinde was very bright, patient, strong, and handsome.

He was someone she wanted to have many pups with. And even had hopes of being his life mate one day.

She eagerly awaited mating season to have him. Of course, she had to get rid of her other competition first. Another female around their age named Ar'Wen fancied him too and had hopes of mating him.

When Inu heard of this, she challenged the other female. And Ar'Wen was strung up in the med room with a broken arm, a concussion, and dislocated shoulder afterwards.

Inu herself suffered quite a few abrasions, a couple cracked bones, and a small fracture to her wrist. But in the end, she still came out on top.

This challenge happened around three weeks ago. And it gave her plenty of time to heal up enough to be ready for mating.

And while Ar'Wen was mostly healed up, she still wasn't thinking about pursuing Yeyinde again in hopes of mating with him. Not after painfully losing that challenge.

"Yes, I just arrived back about an hour ago. It's nice to see you, Inu." He said.

Though it really wasn't. As beautiful as she was, he can't help but feel something was off about this female. And it left him a little on edge. But he didn't want to be rude to her either.

Inu's grin never left her face as she closed the gap between them, swaying her hips in the process.

She then held out her hand.

"Will you accompany me back to my dwellings?" Inu asked.

'No!' His mind screamed.

"Of course." He ended up saying.

Then he slid her arm through his and they started walking through the crowd back to her place.

Meanwhile at Sakana's...

Several pairs of eyes filled with curiosity were currently eyeing Natalie.

"Umm, mother? Who is this? Better yet what is it?" One of Sakana's oldest asked.

"This is Natalie. She is part of a race called oomans. She is a guest a here and a good friend of your Uncle Yeyinde. And she's to be treated with respect during her stay here." Sakana said, with motherly authority.

The seven yautja children looked between their mother and the odd being. Obviously, they have never seen an ooman before. And most of them were still too young to learn about them in their studies.

"Where did her mandibles go, mommy? Did she lose them? Does she need help finding them?" One of her younger daughters' asked.

Sakana couldn't help but chuckle at the cute yet funny questions.

"No, Rakshasa. Her kind doesn't have mandibles like us. This is just how she looks." She explained.

"I think she's kind of pretty." Her son, Skemte said.

His six siblings turned and looked at him funny. And he just gave them a 'what?' look.

Sakana turned her attention back to Natalie.

"Natalie, these are my pups. The two oldest to the right are my son Mar'cte and daughter Kantra. Then the four next oldest ones next to them are my daughters Rakshasa and Yaquita. My sons Nat'ka'pu and Skemte. And my littlest there who's only a year old, is my son R'ka-Thwei." Sakana introduced them.

Each of the little ones bowed their heads in greeting.

Natalie couldn't help but smile and do the same. They all looked so very cute. And all varied in age. The two oldest looked like maybe preteens or very early teens. While the other four in between looked like they varied between four-nine years of age. And then of course, there was the one-year-old baby that the oldest daughter was currently holding.

"They're very beautiful, Sakana. And I can imagine they keep you busy." Natalie said.

"That's putting it lightly. But at least I can count on Mar'cte and Kantra to help me with the little ones. I had them watch their younger siblings so I can go meet you all upon landing." Sakana explained.

"That's nice. And I can't thank you enough for allowing me to stay, especially on such short notice." She replied.

The translator was still going on their mother's wrist gauntlet. So, the kids could make out what the ooman female was saying as she communicated with their mother.

"Excuse me, but where are you from?" Yaquita asked.

Her question was translated for Natalie through the translator.

"I'm from a planer called, Earth." Natalie said.

They listened as her question was translated to yautja speech for them.

"Where's that at?" Skemte asked.

"Pretty far from here. Took several days by ship to get here from there." She replied.

"It's in a neighboring solar system not too far from here." Sakana told them.

The one known as Nat'ka'pu raised his hand and waved it, as if trying to get her attention on him.

"Are all oomans as short as you?" He asked.

Sakana opened her mouth to reprimand her son for the rude question. But stopped when she heard Natalie tried to muffle her laughter at the cute yet funny question.

"No, I'm just an exception. Most adult humans are much taller than me." She said, with some laughter in her voice.

Another pup waved their hand gaining her attention.

"Yes." Natalie asks.

What's the thing between your eyes and mouth, sticking out from your face?" Rakshasa asked.

Natalie bit her lip to keep herself from laughing.

"It's called a nose. It's used for breathing and smelling things." She replied.

It must've been around ten minutes, before the questions started dying down. But they were the most amusing set of questions anyone ever asked her.

And she didn't mind answering each and every one of them. They were kids, they were curious, and they never saw a being like her before. So, it would only be natural that they'd throw out random questions wanting to know more about her.

They especially seemed to be enamored with her soft hair and skin. Once one of them asked to touch her hair, the rest of them joined in. And she had at least two at a time with their hands in her hair.

Then Sakana's one year old held out his chubby little arms towards her. Kantra looked to her mother, who nodded in approval. Then the young girl handed her baby brother off to the strange looking female.

A warm smile came to Natalie's face as she carefully held the tot in her arms. He was quite solid and heavy too.

He looked at her with big medium green colored eyes. They rove over her face, studying her. He poked at her nose and trilled as she wiggled it.

While Natalie was enjoying the interaction, a sad notion of the thought that this will never be her holding her own child hit her.

But she tried to force the negative emotions down and enjoyed her time here. And after a few minutes she handed to child off to his mother.

He started to get a little squirmy and started to fuss.

"Excuse me, but I need to put him down. It's time for him to sleep." Sakana politely excused herself.

The other kids started to go off and do their own thing.

But Rakshasa decided to take a seat beside her on the large couch and continued to talk to her.

Thankfully, Sakana had found her extra translator while Natalie was preoccupied with the youngest. And she lent it to Natalie so she could continue to talk with the kids.

"Mother said, you came here with Uncle Yeyinde. Does that mean you're his mate?" She innocently asks.

Natalie gave her a small, sad smile.

"No, I think he only sees me as a good friend. Nothing more." She replied.

Though saying those words felt like a knife in her heart. Especially, knowing he was probably out there right now, looking to mate with another female of his kind.

Rakshasa tilted her head a little, "But do you like him?"

"Yes, but as I said, he doesn't feel that way back." Natalie said.

"Have you asked him though?" The little one asked.

The young woman shook her head, "No."

"Then how do you know he doesn't like you? If you haven't even asked him?" She inquired.

Natalie didn't answer right away. She was trying to think of a good way to answer this question.

"Rakshasa, why don't you go play with your sisters. I wish to talk with her about something." Sakana interrupted.

The little girl nodded and said bye to Natalie.

Sakana went and sat down next to the young woman.

"Sorry, I guess I should've mentioned Rakshasa has always been my most inquisitive and nosy one." The large female said.

Natalie shook her head, "No, it's ok. Just wasn't sure how to answer those last couple questions."

"I can answer them for you. Though I don't really have to ask my brother. I could read him well enough. There are some strong emotions between you two. I can see it." Sakana stated.

The young woman slowly averted her eyes to her lap.

"But it could never work." She said, barely above a whisper.

And that thought hurt most of all.

At the same time, Natalie hadn't a clue that Yeyinde was still struggling with his own emotions as he made it to the front of Inu's dwellings.

Until Next Time ;)