Beastly Love

Chapter 5: Learning Curve

When I awake, Adam is gone. I am at least relieved to find myself in the same spot I fell asleep in. I'm reassured that I am here to stay in this world. My stomach growls and I am further reassured that I am in fact still alive, and suffering greatly for it.

After some stretching, I head to the trees at the mouth of the cave to gather some sticks. Whatever dry grass I can find I tear apart and make a pile with some peeled bark. I find enough wood scraps that I sit down to start the flame. With a decently sharp rock, I cut a notch and start spinning a branch as fast as I can between the palms of my hands. After a while, my hands and wrists are burning, but I know I can't stop now. With a burst of frustration, I twist until I see smoke, which only makes me work harder until finally there are sparks. Eventually, the sparks catch kindling and I have my tiny flame. I feed the flame until it becomes a cozy fire. Hopefully Adam returns soon.

Not too long after, I hear the crunching of forest floor and there is a giant lion heading my way with a deer hanging from its neck. From the way it's golden eyes meet mine and soften, I know that it's Adam, but fear creeps up in the back of my mind still. The lion approaches and drops the deer. Adam changes back into a human, and I turn my head away until he's put on his skirt.

"The fire, it's contained," he poses in an observational manner, but I know he means it as a question.

"Yeah, I told you a fire would be nice. Now we can cook some breakfast!" Adam looks at me oddly.

"Well, how else do you expect to eat the deer you brought back?"

"Let me show you," he says, and he gets to work tearing apart the deer. He explains that in his village, he would have tools to preserve the pelt and other parts, but without them he can only use it for food. I'm simply impressed by his inhuman strength as he carefully breaks down the deer as if it were paper mache. I have to look away at some points, but the process isn't too much to bare.

He hands me a was of meat wrapped in a large leaf.

"Do you eat this just as is?"

He nods.

I bite into the meat and try to tear a piece. I pull at the raw and bloody steak, but it won't break down. After some grotesque tearing, I finally manage to bite off a piece to swallow. I'll admit that it wasn't the worst, but without utensils, this would be nearly impossible and I'm not about to ask Adam to cut it all into bite-sized pieces as if I'm a child.

I take the rest of the meat and skewer it, then turning it over the fire while Adam tears away at the deer carcass. I imagine that with the body of a lion, he might have the stomach of a lion and I'm not sure if that deer alone would really be enough.

He sniffs the air and his eyes light up.

"It smells good," he says. I tell him that of course it does.

Soon enough, there's a nice char on the meat and I take it out of the flame. Blowing on it, I take a bite and am extremely satisfied with the result. I hold out the skewered meat to Adam.

"Here. Try it."

He takes a small first bite, but he quickly takes another two before looking my way.

"It's so good," he says. I nod.

"Go ahead, have the rest of that. I'll make more."

We finish eating and clean up after ourselves. Adam explains that the quickest way would be for him to carry me on his back and I agree without question. He shifts into a giant lion and out of curiosity, I reach out and touch his mane. It's corse and thick, and I make a mental note to find a brush if I can so that I can smooth out the mass of fur. I run my hands through the due around his neck and he lets out a sort of "purr". I never considered myself a cat person, but people can change.

He lowers himself and I scramble atop his back, gripping onto his mane. It feels exhilarating riding atop a giant lion. I have to remind myself that this lion is Adam however, and when I do, I can't help but blush at the thought.

When we reach Adam'a village, he slows down. There are other strong and rugged beast men, many of them very handsome. I still think Adam's the most handsome of them all, but it's clear just how high this world's standards are. That is, until I get a good look at the women.

The women are large and frumpy, many of them are plump and have oddly misshapen features compared to the men who are like greek gods. Some of the women are normal looking, but there is a noticeable scarcity of women in comparison to men.

Nevertheless, it's obvious that all eyes are on us as we enter. Adam walks strong and confidently while I try to smother myself in the fur atop his back. I feel grossly out of place and unsure of how to react.

"Adam! Who is this female?" A few voices call out, wondering what's going on. He remains unfazed and saunters on, past the gawking and staring of an obvious few, though it's clear we're quite the spectacle.

It's not long before we reach a crude one-room hut. It's fairly roomy, but obvious that no direction was taken regarding amenities. There are pelts stacked assumably for a bed, various tools and pots along the walls, and primitive curiosities that I can't quite make out but I know must have come from raw resources crafted into various items.

Adam changes back into his human form and beams.

"So, this is your home?"

He nods and looks at me a bit tensely, as if waiting for something.

I walk towards the various oddities and examine them, realizing that I really have much to learn but am ok with rising to the challenge.

"Are you satisfied?"

"What?" I don't quite understand why he would ask me such a question.

"Is my home to your liking?"

"Of course! I'm the guest here, why wouldn't it be?"

He smirks, walking towards me until he is close enough that I have to look up at his face towering above me. I feel heat rise to my face and I turn away, fiddling with some objects. Before Adam or I can say anything, a figure bursts into the room.

"Adam! I heard you brought back a woman. Is it true?"

Adam turns to face the stranger who barged in, clearly disgruntled by the disruption. As he turns, however, I'm able to see that it's a man from the tribe much like Adam, except more lithe and with bright blue eyes. He has a smaller frame and though he has a serious expression on his face, it's clear he is more curious than anything.

"Oh!" The man exclaims. His expression changes immediately and a rose flush rises in his cheeks.

"I guess it's true then. So you have a woman now?"

Before I can react, Adam reaches a hand around my waist and pulls me close enough to his chest to feel the warmth of his skin. I look up at his face only to be taken aback by his stormy expression—how quickly his eyes turned from warm sunshine to a blazing fire! Instinctively, I squeeze his arm right which turns his attention back towards me.

"Adam," I start. I don't know what else to really say as I'm not even sure entirely what's going on, but it feels as if there is a thick tension between these two men and somehow I'm the cause.

Adam's gaze turns back to the stranger's who clearly is on the defensive now, judging by his reaction. It's as if instincts have taken over and there are quite literally two animals staring each other down, and I know that it's not Adam who is in danger.