Not Alone

Chapter 6: Exploring, but for losers.

AN: Lots of time skips in this one, sorry not sorry, I hate writing transition scenes. 

Even with Asper slowing us down a little, especially in the beginning, we managed to reach the coast in good time.

And what a sight it was! When we arrived, I really thought it was going to be like, sandy beaches surrounded by tropical rainforest. That's what the merchant said right? Coast surrounded by rainforest? And that's what was seen in the original Beauty and the Beast.

Nope. The rainforest he talked about must be further south down the coastline. But personally, I think this is kinda cooler.

A massive redwood forest borders the coastline, the trees towering over us with gargantuan size only gained through centuries of unimpeded growth. The width of the smallest tree would take at least 5 men with their arms spread wide in order to encircle it entirely. The ground is mainly loose topsoil, littered with soft, yellowed needles, lush ferns, and green mosses covering the red burnished ground like a blanket.

The sandy beaches I remember from the original? Must also be down south with the rainforest, because the coastline here consists entirely of massive black rock cliffs.

Dias is having the time of his life though, swooping along the cliffside while Asper and I walk along the ridgeline, occasionally looking down at the waves crashing against the black rock.

"So, what is it you and Dias are looking for? Maybe I could help?" Asper asks, looking at me curiously.

Glancing back down to see Dias skimming the surface of the water, I respond "No idea. Anything that pops out as a good place really. Something that we could hide pretty well, definitely something secure enough to last a long time"

Asper thinks for a moment as he slithers beside me, I risk glancing over at him, god that hip sway? immaculate. I quickly look away as he starts to speak again "The forest here is rich with good hunting. And the trees are tall and strong. When I visited the Ape territories, they had their dens high in the branches, perhaps you could do something similar?"

I tilt my head "Maybe, trees like this typically have pretty shallow roots though, so we would have to build very carefully"

Dias bursts up from the edge of the cliff beside us, black fur damp from salty spray. He drops down and shifts, taking his pants from my hand when I offer them and slipping them on "Two things! Firstly, I need to get something more efficient than my pants. This is becoming a hassle. Secondly, you won't believe this, but these cliffs are practically infested with caves! Most of them are pretty shallow, but I spotted one that looked like it went pretty deep"

My eyes widen "How hard would it be to get in there? How far down is it?"

Dias shakes his hair, little droplets of seawater go flying "it's around the midpoint of the cliff, closer to the top than the bottom. I only took a quick peek, but it looked pretty dry from what I could see. But the cliff around it is pretty sheer, it would be difficult for you to get in and out of"

Asper pipes in, eager to contribute to the conversation"If you're considering moving into the cave, I could dig a tunnel that leads to the surface, if that is the issue"

I think about it for a few moments while Dias fishes some stray seaweed out of his hair with a faintly disgusted look "I think we should at least check it out. It sounds promising"

*************

The cave? Almost perfect.

Getting to it was a slight issue, since Dias had to fly me in, and Asper had to use his sharp nails to dig into the rock in order to lower himself down, but it should be a solvable problem. Or at least a minimal one.