22. Moving

2.7K 176 11
                                    

4/5 updates for August 16, 2022.



 It took about a month for the leopards to get their village back. Jenny only saw Eve once during one of her walks. They had a pleasant chat and Jenny almost convinced herself to move back with Eve. That village survived the devastation that would occur in the city.

There were several issues with that, however. First, it was close to the city. Too close if the ape king became serious about targeting her. Second, it was far from the ocean. Even if Jenny and the rest were fine with living there, they would have to get salt sometime.

Humming aloud, Jenny thought about it some more. It wasn't like she had to move permanently. It could be a temporary home for her. She could move on after the catastrophe. But then, they may have to do double the work for no great gain. While Jenny was thinking about it, Winston gave her a nice surprise.

"Jenny," Winston said gently. "I do not know if it'll be to your liking, but I had a den built in Camel Hump Valley." Jenny jumped up dramatically, or she would've if she still had jumping capabilities.

"Really!? When did you? How?" Jenny was both confused and excited. He just took a huge worry off her shoulders.

"Sometimes when I'd go to hunt, I'd stop by and work on it," said Winston sheepishly. He was glad that she was excited about the surprise. He still had to give the credit where it was due. Winston planned to build a den, but it was Mestor's idea to keep it a secret until it was complete. He wasn't thrilled with the idea, but Mestor convinced him, saying that Jenny would worry about them overworking. "Mestor helped."

Jenny was so relived that she gave them both awkward hugs. It was impossible to bear hug when you stick out so much in the gut. Jenny carried high and small, but the bump made certain actions more difficult. Hugging was one of them. Both males were thrilled too receive the gratitude and happiness from their mate. Winston was glad he took the younger male's suggestion.

Simon wagged his tail and Sieg huffed. They were responsible for guarding Jenny more often while the other two were off completing their project. Feeling much better and still quite excited, Jenny gave both Sieg and Simon a kiss on the cheek for their roles.

Simon bounced around with a huge, goofy grin on his face. Sieg was originally leaning against a cushion, but was now on the floor where he had fallen. Jenny laughed a hearty laugh at their reactions. Simon practically skipped away to do chores. Sieg picked himself up off the floor slowly, trying to pretend like nothing happened.

Jenny did not want to move away from Harvey at first. Partially due to the fact that he was her friend and partly because he was a doctor. It wasn't like he would be too far away to reach when she needed him, but it unsettled her.

Harvey was visiting Jenny more frequently as she neared her due date. It wasn't necessary since she wasn't having any complications, but he could tell his presence soothed her. When the topic of moving came about, Jenny cleared the room and spoke to him directly. "Harvey, there's something you need to know," she started.

Jenny told him what she knew and he refrained from questioning her. The gravity of the situation weighed on him. If what she said was true... Harvey's thoughts spun as he sat dazed. Jenny gave him enough time to absorb what she had said.

Jenny planned to tell her family what she knew once she was safely away from the city. She didn't want them to panic with her. If she was right about timing, they would still have a couple of months before the disaster happened. They had yet to experience drought, but Jenny knew it was coming. She had a well here and managed to convince Bai to dig one for herself.

Jenny and the BeastsWhere stories live. Discover now