Page 12 of Hadley's Heroes
I refused to be treated badly anymore. I was now an outcast from my own lands because I chose the human female. They wouldn’t accept me, Jaim, and Adee back after we left in search of Brooklyn. And knowing we had been with the M’Mori would only seal the deal of being rejected males. Jaim and Adee were already rejected mates because Brooklyn touched them, chose them. But now, Adee explained that it wasn’t what she meant. She was hugging. She only wanted to thank us, and she had done it to many males that were part of Clan Wolf.
“Aalee, wait up. What did Hadley say? Did she say she will choose us soon? She asks for you, brother. She won’t choose you if you won’t come and speak with her.” I moved faster, back to the fall of water where I had seen her body and the way the males did things to her. At first, I thought she was hurting them, they were hurting her. But then I realized they were mating her. When Jaka looked at me, I watched his cock enter from below her. I wasn’t close enough to see, but I knew Jaim got a good look. He walked close to the water’s edge.
“She asked if I wanted water and held the cup she had drunk from out to me.” My brother stopped suddenly and I took that as a sign to walk faster from him. I wanted to be away from him and his insistent questioning. I turned back to see what he was doing and, in turn, my foot hit a rock and I stumbled slightly.
I grumbled to myself as I watched Adee chase after me.
“What did you do? Did you take it from her? Do you think it was a test? Like, if you drink the water she will choose you?” I could see him now, beside me, looking back to where she was in the hut. I didn’t know. I didn’t understand females, I didn’t even understand what mating was until today. How should I know?
“You should go. It might mean what you want. I don’t want to be part of it.” I jumped up the nearest klaven tree and made my way to the top. I loved to sit up here, watch the others from above.
“I heard she likes all different things to eat, and she is always hungry because she grows kits within her belly. Did you see her belly? It was beautiful, if not small. She might need to eat more but she only has two mates. We are being considered, so I think we should offer her food. I will collect pixxe up in the ridge. Now I have no tracker, I can go further looking for food.”
I waved my hand to tell him to leave, I didn’t want to be a part of it. Why would I want to? If she wanted fruit to choose me, then I would sit up here and never return to my hut. Sleeping had been hard, but I now made a platform so I could rest more. The nightmares still scared me too much to fall too deeply into sleep.
Two days had passed. I had spent some time with a Zalli most of yesterday. He let me share his hut last night. I found myself hitting branches in the dark of night as I tumbled from my platform. It wasn’t safe. I had kept myself awake too much that I was so exhausted I fell into the deepest sleep. I only woke up once I started hitting branches on my way down. I caught myself with my tails and decided it was best to find somewhere else to sleep… and hide from Hadley. If she couldn’t find me, she wouldn’t choose me. She would take Jaim and Adee as her mates and I would be happy for them, if not lonely.
“Did you know Jaim had been looking for you?” Jeralk asked as he entered his hut at lunch with some pixxe in hand for me. I took one and shook my head.
“No, is he looking to tell me he is now mates with Hadley?” Jeralk gave me a strange look. For a Zalli warrior, he was different to the rest. He was the only one that was pink. I hadn’t really seen many colors until I met the Zalli. My color looked so boring compared to his vibrant hue, but it made it hard for him to hide in the trees. He was not safe anywhere on Aarzyn.
“No, he has been looking for your brother, Adee. He hasn’t returned since you left the hut the other day. He told me about the water. Why didn’t you take the water? Hadley is a very nice female. I spoke to her earlier. I don’t understand why you’re running and hiding from her. Any male, Aashi or Zalli, would be happy to be in your position. I have heard them all talking about it. Trust me, if you don’t make a move, another group will.”
I shrugged. “She already has two mates and she will take Jaim and Adee. She doesn’t need me.” And it was the truth, she wouldn’t want me. I woke screaming most nights. I couldn’t trust her, trust any females or M’Mori for that matter.
Jeralk shook his head. “No, you don’t understand. She is looking for a bonded group. She won’t choose them if you’re not part of it. She was heard talking to her mate about other groups of males and I had seen some groups form in the last day, trying to catch her attention.”
What? Why would she not choose the others because of me? They would make the best mates. Adee dreamed of the day he could be a father to kits. I grew up with listening to him talk about it almost every night. This had been the longest I had spent away from my litter bother. I was missing him badly.
“Where is Adee?” Now thinking back to what he had said.
“I don’t know, that’s why he was looking for you. You left after the water thing and Adee followed you. That is the last time Jaim has seen him.”
My heart stopped. He said he was going to get her heaps of food up on the ridge… He went to the top of the cliff to get her pixxe and now he hadn’t been seen since. That was not like Adee. He was very excited to bring it back to her.
“I will go to Jaim. Adee was going to gather food for Hadley up on the ridge. This isn’t good.”
I rushed over to the hut looking for Jaim, but instead I found Hadley. She was alone.
I stumbled to stand as she turned to me. She must have been sleeping because at first she smiled at me, and then I watched as her face changed, realizing I was not my litter brother. She was not excited to see me as she would have been with him. He was everything you could ask for in an Aashi male. I was not.
“Aalee.” Her voice broke a little as she moved to sitting. I watched as she winced. I moved forward onto my knees and I looked to the hut door. Where were her mates? Why was she unprotected?
“Where have you been?” I was taken aback at her words. They weren’t harsh and unkind like an Aashi female would have been, but they were that of concern. I didn’t know what to say to her, so I said the best thing I could.
“You must choose Jaim and Adee as your mates. They would make you the happiest.” I watched her eyebrows and the corner of her lip rise. She shook her head slightly and I was angry. Why not? They have proven they can take care of her, why was she denying them? She was using them, letting them believe they had a chance just so she would laugh and choose other males. Maybe she was just like an Aashi female. Only smaller in size.
“And you couldn’t make me happy?” she asked. This time her lips were now in a wide smile. I was stunned. I couldn’t make her happy. Maybe in the past, but now I wasn’t the same. I had changed and the others knew this too. Females only caused pain.
“Look, I get it. I understand that you don’t like me. And I would be happy to choose Jaim and Adee. I care for them. But I also care for you. I don’t want to cause you to fight or no longer be friends.
“I had wanted to speak to you after you ran away the other day. I have a hut, it’s almost finished. That is where Jaka and Vetok are now. There is a single male hut that is now complete. It is beside my hut and I don’t know if you know the male Apak? He has no tails.” I noded. I knew of the male, his survival this long as an outcast male has been spoken a lot among the males here.
“Well, I asked him if he had room for one more and he said that he did. That he built the hut to house ten Aashi males. And I want to make a deal with you, because I think it will be important for you and me.”
I looked to the hut door. It opened and I expected to see Adee walk through with the grin he always wore on his face. But it was more females. I turned my gaze away from them. I didn’t know what Hadley wanted and I didn’t want to make deals. I needed to find Adee.
“Oh, sorry, Hadley. We didn’t know you had company,” the one with wild hair spoke.
