B+Bs: To Stand In A Beast's World

109. Antics

The silence that remained was a little oppressive. Surprisingly, Castor was the first to break it.

"You went beyond four?" he asked Curtis.

Sieg sat down on the floor next to Sheila's cot and Harvey handed him a fur to cover his lower bits. The crocodile male took the fur and closed his eyes. Harvey gave Castor one as well.

Curtis frowned, not understanding the unmated crocodile's actions. He seemed so careless to Curtis. Ignoring the strange one, Curtis answered the question. "Yes."

I wasn't so invested in the conversation that I missed Sieg's complete lack of giving a crap. It was impressive really. Then again, I didn't know much about how the crocodile beastmen lived. Maybe this was normal behavior for them?

...That was a stretch. But it could be true. Maybe if this incident turns out to be a bridge between us, I'll be able to ask one day.

Castor went quiet, but his expression remained unchanged. He suspected as much when he saw the snake male's speed. It would spell trouble if they engaged in combat, but the snake's mate was being friendly. Maybe it won't come to that.

Winston returned with the other male only to accompany Castor to find the fruit. As much as I wanted to stay, I needed to make sure our den was still standing. But I couldn't leave Harvey alone with the strangers.

"Arthur?" I called. While I half expected him to have left, he remained.

Arthur pushed off the tree he was leaning on. "Yes?"

Cooper bounded around the corner just then. Good timing. "Perfect. Can you two make sure everything stays peaceful here?" I ran my hand through Cooper's smooth fur.

"You okay?" I asked the heavily breathing Cooper.

He cried out and stuck his nose into my ribs. I'll take that as a yes. I looked up at Arthur as Curtis's tail protectively curled around my ankle.

"Yes."

"I will too!" A tiger male popped up from the bushes.

And a wolf male. "I'm more reliable."

Two scorpions that looked identical scoffed. "Ferals should deal with other ferals, don't you think."

I felt my lip twitch. This was better than disinterest at least. "I'm sure you all can, right?"

"Yes!"

More than the four voices joined and I sighed in mock exasperation. "Remember. We want peace between us. No blood unless they ask for it. Got it?" I flared my energy up to make sure my words reached. Even if my strength pales in comparison to half the beasts here, it should still make a statement.

Pulsing energy met mine with loud cheers and assurances. "Don't worry. If they want blood, they'll get blood. But it'll be theirs." One of the scorpion males insisted as he shifted his hand to a pincer, clicking it for dramatic effect.

I didn't tell him that he wasn't as smooth of an operator as he seemed to think. Although it was rough, the males were compliant. After I got Arthur's assurance that he'd keep things under control, I sent Cooper to Harvey's side. As reliable as Arthur was shaping up to be, I couldn't trust him explicitly.

Cooper was insurance. Not to win the battle, but to help Harvey out of one if it came to that.

I glanced up at the circling eagles and nodded before returning home with Curtis.

...The house still stood, hurrah.

"Grace!" Shuu called as he crawled quickly away from Hope who was in hot pursuit.