Reborn as a Side Character in the Beastworld

Chapter One Hundred and Eight

*Sorry for the long wait. COVID is not conducive to writing. I'm still recovering.

A month passed with no sign of Curtis breaking from the amber. Qingqing sat in front of her mate every day as her cubs slowly grew inside her womb. Parker did everything he could to keep her comfortable without leaving her side for too long. Neither of them went down to the expanding village but the villagers often came up to them. They had made farm land from the scorched earth and provided her with food and furs in exchange for helpful tips on how to irrigate and prepare the soil. She would watch them toil from the entrance of her little cave and marveled at how quickly they cleared the area of debris and stone.

They accomplished so much with just their hands, that they didn't remotely resemble humans in her mind. They were other. And yet she had fallen in love with two of them; two alien males that had pushed their affection on to her to a point where she could no longer see them as something to be wary of. She had nearly fallen in love with a third one but he had proved to be a conniving, selfish creature and she no longer wanted anything to do with him.

She did know Muir was staying in the village. She had seen him a couple times in the fields with his arm in a sling. He hadn't actively sought her ought despite knowing where she was and every time he caught her eyes, his expression of hope would crumble to despair as she would turn away in anger. Luckily for Qingqing, the eagle finally seemed to understand that her heart would never be open to him again and left her alone for the most part. Despite her need to remain in the cave, she did not feel isolated. Parker reveled in the opportunity to monopolize her time.

He often pulled her into his lap and hand fed her whatever the villagers had provided just as he was doing now. As wild raspberries provided by the young wolf healer were slipped between her lips Parker smiled at her in satisfaction.

"The wolf said raspberries are good for pregnant females. It seems like he'll be as capable a healer as Harvey someday." He said as he knocked upon her pink lips with another berry. "Though I don't think he'll be able to find a mate with that leg of his."

She hadn't seen hide nor hair of Harvey or Bailey since choosing to stay in this cave, but the kind healer often sent his apprentice with medicinal tonics. The wolf was close to her own age and had a boyishly disheveled appearance except for his striking eyes. She couldn't fathom why anyone would refuse such an attractive male. Qingqing swallowed the berry before responding, "Why not?"

"If he can't hunt or fight, no female will want him." Then he looked at the pitiful face his mate made and clicked his tongue, "Don't even think about it. My Qingqing is so kind you might try and take a mate out of pity, but I won't allow it." He tensed his arms around her possessively.

Bai pouted her stained lips and said in irritation, "I wouldn't do that." Sometimes she thought that her mates didn't understand her at all. Parker would call her stupid all of the time but she was the one who came up with all the ideas to make their lives easier. It didn't seem fair. Just because she couldn't understand their culture didn't mean she was a complete fool.

He patted her head in a 'good girl' fashion and fed her another berry. "Good. I am...er, we are the only mates you need." He puffed out his chest arrogantly.

Qingqing moved her gaze to her red-haired sleeping beauty. She didn't disagree with him. Though it went against what Bailey had advised, it was true that both Parker and Curtis were stronger than most other beasts and Parker was still young and bound to get stronger. This world felt incredibly dangerous but she didn't doubt in her mates' strength. If only Curtis would wake up. Despite her protests of having multiple mates, she yearned for his arms and the feel of his silky hair sliding against her skin. Her throat tightened painfully and her eyes stung with unshed tears. Though Harvey had said Curtis was fine, she couldn't help but feel like she was looking upon his perfectly preserved corpse. What if he was trapped in there forever? Would she really have to find another mate? Bailey told her it was how females survived but Qingqing still hoped to find a way home someday. Would her mates even be able to go to the real world with her? If not, would her existence here be forgotten? If she adapted to this world, would the possibility of returning home and seeing her family again be gone forever?

She drooped her head with the weight of her heavy thoughts. Parker, noticing the change poked at her round cheeks. "What is my puppy so upset about now? Does the idea of having only two mates bother you? Even if Curtis doesn't break out of there, I'm still enough to care for you! You can rely on me Qingqing. I am the only one you need!"

"How can you say that!? Curtis will break out. He has to." Angry with the leopard for saying such selfish things, she stood up and walked away from him. She moved closer to the amber that seemed to have soaked up the red color of Curtis's scales and placed a hand to it. "I don't want any other mates. Wake up Curtis. Please." She pleaded, placing her forehead against the cold stone.

Parker sat back and watched in satisfaction. Despite her sour mood, he was happy to have her all to himself. In a low whisper, lower than Qingqing could hear, he whispered, "Don't you dare wake up."

They stayed like that, both lost in their own thoughts for a time. Qingqing played out her various fears of the future without Curtis and without a way home. Parker indulged in fantasizing about a future with only him and Qingqing and their cubs. His handsome face crinkled with a silly grin.

Then, just as Parker was about to get up and start preparing their dinner, a loud crack, louder than lighting echoed through the cavern. Both he and Qingqing stared at the amber as web-like cracks slowly expanded through the stone, fracturing the early evening light.