Parker was surprised when Qianhuang came back with an entire wolf already skinned and another smaller animal that had also already been skinned. He added these to the two wild boar Parker himself had caught that day. Parker wanted to so badly talk to Bai Qingqing about how they could be mates and have cubs as soon as she stopped bleeding, but he was too subdued to bring up the subject. Instead he listened to Bai Qingqing talk to Chiaki with much more enthusiasm than she had ever spoken to him. He roasted the two whole boars and the wolf was set to stew. The other animal was red meat and had a stronger smell than most, he wasn't sure the best way to cook it. "What is this?" He asked Qianhuang.

"My people call it 'stink bear', try grilling it over a smoky fire."

Parker grilled it over a smoky fire. And it wasn't bad, the meat tasted okay and the wood smoke covered a good amount of the smell. He kept offering Bai Qingqing more of the roast boar, large leg haunches that would help keep her healthy during her heat cycle. He would glance at the other female, Chiaki, from time to time. She seemed to ignore him for the most part.

"So the healer uses lots of plants as medicine." Bai Qingqing was saying. "Parker flavors meat with wood only." Parker perked up at his name. "And dips it in salt."

"Wait, you use salt here? I mean, you know about salt?" Chiaki butted in. Parker pouted, he wanted to hear Bai Qingqing talk about him more. He didn't understand that Bai Qingqings comments to Chiaki were more complaints than complements.

"Of course we do!" Parker barked. "The City of Beasts alone trades for one hundred containers of salt each year from the Merfolk Tribe."

Qianhuang looked worried. "Why hadn't the importance of salt traveled to the Winged Clans?"

"But, salt has been traded for for years." Parker said. "How could Tribes still not know?"

Qianhuang was silent. Something was going on and he didn't have all the clues.

Chiaki and Bai Qingqing ate until they were stuffed, then insisted that the males eat everything that was left even if it had been cooked for the females. Parker was not certain of eating the wolf at first, the Leopard Tribe tended not to bother with the several warring packs that came down from the mountains during certain times of the year. Qianhuang though was eating the best parts of the wolf before Parker tried it. Talking became less stilted as they ate, and Chiaki became less hostile as Parker proved he could behave himself towards Bai Qingqing.

"Qianhuang has shown me how to tan hides. If you want to try?" Chiaki invited Bai Qingqing. The girl was young, too young. And hopelessly lost in this new world. She'd made an enemy in Eudora, but might have found a little friendship in the other females of the village if she learned how to interact with them. The first thing would be getting Bai Qingqing to stop telling what she considered 'little white lies'... Bai Qingqing might think they were harmless, but things like that tended to snowball, and fast.

"I would like that!" Bai Qingqing said.

o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o

Bai Qingqing arrived at the house of Qianhuang and Chiaki when the sun began to warm the sky the next day. She was surprised to see a dozen drying racks lined up facing the morning sun, each holding an animal hide in different stages of being tanned. Then there was the hide stitch up in a balloon shape held upside down over a smoky fire. "That one is being made water resistant to store rations in." Chiaki had told her. Then there were several low smoky fires with thin strips of meat drying over them. Wolf meat being preserved. A small clay jar sat open, showing the salt inside.

Chiaki herself was covering a pile of clay dug up from the nearby river with a tanned hide. "You're early." She said seeing Bai Qingqing studying everything around the house.

"How did you do all this?!"

Chiaki looked around, this was much less than they had had back at the Winged Lion Clan village. However, as things continued to be added the home had started to gather more looks from those passing by. Was Winter sooner or later here? Maybe the Leopard Clan hadn't started stockpiling yet because they still had more time? Chiaki would have to ask Eve the next time she saw the other female, or maybe one of her still hopeful leopard suitors? Even Qianhuang and her own combined efforts had not dissuaded a few males. She briefly wondered if there were non-beast-men leopards and if hanging ones pelt outside would get the point across.

"We brought some of it with us, like the salt and some of the big pelts inside the house, but most of this has came from Qianhuang, Key, running himself thin hunting locally." Chiaki pointed to the drying racks. "The racks are easy to build and if we need space to dry more they can be made after dark while inside. Key has been teaching me how to tan hides for a several months now and I can do it on my own, so I can take you through the basic steps today, but from start to finish a hide can take a couple weeks before it's ready to use."

Qianhuang returned at midday with several fat rabbits, one of which became lunch for the two females. "Isn't her going to eat with us?" Bai Qingqing questioned.

"Key often hunts and eats while outside the village. Most of what he's bringing back is going to be preserved for Winter." She paused. "How did things go with Parker after we left last night?"

"He... he still talked about us... reproducing... and about feral beast men... and told me about how low the birthrate in this world was... and-" Bai Qingqing let out a shaky breath as tears threatened to start falling down her cheeks.

"So, still trying to frighten you into being his mate... but not threatening you with harm?"Chiaki summarized. Bai Qingqing nodded.

"I think if- if he stays like this and doesn't change by the time my period ends, I will tell him I am a Human."

"Chiaki! Bai Qingqing!" Came a voice from behind the two talking females, they turned to see Eve walking up carrying a wiggling basket. When Eve saw Bai Qingqings face she gasped. "The dots all over your face are gone."

Chiaki groaned. "Parker thought it would make Bai Qingqing 'too ugly' for other males to be interested in her."

Eve peered at Bai Qingqings face. "You do look better without them, they looked so odd on your pale face. You are pale and thin as is, it's obvious that you're just becoming an adult and haven't even filled out yet." A small head poked above the edge of the basket and made a chirp like noise at the females.

"Oh! You have cats?!" Bai Qingqing asked. Chiaki face-palmed.

"These aren't cats, they're my cubs."

"I've never seen leopard cubs before, sorry." Bai Qingqing blushed, rubbing the back of her head.

"I met a few Winged Lion Cubs and they could talk like the adult males in their beast form."

"Mine are too young to talk yet." Eve said with a smile. "Can I join you?"

"Sure." They both said, while Chiaki added. "I was showing Bai Qingqing how Key taught me to tan hides."

Eve looked confused. "Why wouldn't your mate tan the hides?" Still she sat with them and let her cubs tumble out of the basket, there were three of them.

Chiaki shook her head. "It's just me and Key, so he'd have to hunt, cook, tan hides, make clay pottery, and preserve food for Winter all by himself! It's too much work."

Eve looked thoughtful. "I had at least two mates before the cold season when I first became an adult. Speaking of mates, Bai Qingqing, soon you can have cubs with Parker!"

"But, I don't want to!"

Chiaki added quickly. "Parker has been really pushy towards Bai Qingqing to be his mate and isn't taking 'no' for an answer."

Eve huffed. "You should threaten him then!"

"Oh, don't worry. I DID." Chiaki replied. "And if he tries to push Bai Qingqing into anything she doesn't want, I think I'll ask Qianhuang to remove Parkers reproductive parts."

Bai Qingqings eyes widened at the threat and Eve started laughing. "You are as protective as a male Chiaki!"

Chiaki shook her head. "Parker has no manners, I had lots of males offering to be my mate in the Winged Lion Clan and none of then ever became violently angry when I kept turning them down. He's like a spoiled child- er- cub!" Then she pointed out at a few males watching them from a distance. "Even the males here have calmed down after a day or so." She could see all of the males ears perk up from her pointing in their direction, happy at being noticed. They were unmated males and would be too nervous to try approaching the group of three females.

Eve shook her head, she knew several of the males watching them. They were okay males, though none of them had even gained a single beast stripe yet. "What is all of this? I understand the tanning hides, but..." She trailed off as she motioned around at some of the other things.

"I guess preparations for Winter, I mean, the cold season haven't started yet."

Eve looked at the drying food and the clay pile. "We do store dry meat, but I haven't seen some of this done before. Is it from the Winged Lion Tribe?"

Chiaki nodded. "Yes, they store food in sealed clay jars to keep pests out of it. Some of the things we are doing though, was just being taught at the Winged Lion Clan village. Pickling vegetables is one, but it needs more salt than we have here." Chiaki glanced at the goldfish-bowl sized clay pot filled with salt.

"Vegetables?"

"Plants." Chiaki clarified.

"Oh, I eat fruit during the warm-hot season, but it rots too easy to keep for the cold season."

Chiaki agreed, but if she could find potatoes in the area those would keep for a few months without much preparations. She already knew though from her time in the Winged Lion Clan village that underground plants like potatoes, carrots, onions... any of it, had not been seen as a source of food by the predominantly meat eating population.