Free Web NovelChapter 12: Episode 012: Moving out of the Swamps.
"Did I do something wrong?" Rue asked.
She picked at a loose thread on her white dress. She was unusually fidgety. Her fingers could not stay still.
Perhaps I wasn’t doing my part well, and he decides to kick me out? But I am pregnant with his child. He cannot do that. Right?
Caius heard the panic building in her head. He stopped it before it could spiral any further. He slithered across the cave floor and stopped right in front of her. He reached out and placed a large, warm hand over her fidgeting fingers, stilling them instantly.
"You did nothing wrong," Caius said softly. "It is for you and the baby. The swamp is not conducive to a pregnant female. It is damp. It is cold. You need proper sunlight."
Rue tilted her head. She looked around at the green candles flickering against the wet stone walls. "What about you?"
"What about me?" he asked.
"You have lived all your life in this cave," Rue pointed out. "You built this place. You covered it in your scent. Even other snakes cannot come in here. It is your safe space."
Caius shook his head dismissively, finding her question quite cute. "That has little to no importance to me now."
Rue stared at him. She did not understand how someone could just give up their home like it was nothing.
"We can form a home together," Caius continued. His voice was steady and full of quiet promise. "Anywhere you want. And before we settle down, I need to take you to the rabbit tribe. Your parents should see that their child is well enough in my care."
A memory flashed in Rue’s mind.
It was a sharp, jagged piece of her past. It was dark, and it hurt. Rue reacted instantly. She slammed a mental door shut. She locked it down tight. She buried the memory so fast and so deep that Caius only felt a sudden, freezing void where her thoughts usually buzzed.
Caius frowned. He tried to read her, but there was nothing there. Just a blank wall.
Rue went completely quiet. Her pink eyes drooped for a fraction of a second. She took a slow, measured breath. Then she narrowed her eyes and shut the emotion down entirely.
"There would be no need for that," Rue replied. Her voice was flat and hollow.
She looked directly into his golden eyes.
"I belong to you now," she stated.
Caius shuddered. The actual words should have made any male beastman roar with pride. But the way she said it made his stomach drop. He searched her face. There was no softness in her eyes. ]
There was no affection. It was a cold statement of fact. She was spitting the words out inside. She was treating herself like a piece of traded property.
Something hot and heavy boiled inside him. Was it anger? Was it hurt?
He did not know. freёwebnoѵel.com
What exactly was he doing wrong? He had fed her. He had protected her. He had offered to build her a new home. Why was this female not swooning over him as any other female would?
He took a breath. He decided he was going to be patient with her. She was a frightened rabbit. He was an ambush predator. He knew how to wait.
Caius slithered closer. He raised his hand and gently tipped her chin up with a single finger. He forced her to look at him.
"No, Rue," Caius’s voice dropped to a low, delicious rumble. "I belong to you. Not the other way around."
The way his golden eyes glazed over with raw want and heavy need sent a shockwave straight through her. It was too much focus. Her insides instantly felt like mush. Her heart pounded a frantic rhythm against her ribs. Her cheeks flamed hot.
You don’t get to do that!!!!! All of a sudden.
She quickly looked away. The stone wall suddenly looked extremely interesting.
This body is ridiculous!
Packing the cave did not take long at all.
Rue thought there was a lot to pack. Moving usually meant chaos and hours of heavy lifting. But to her expectation, there was barely anything to take. He only gathered the kitchen pots, the ingredients she bought from the system, and a few of his personal books. He shoved them all into a large leather sack.
"Is that it?" Rue asked. She watched him tie the sack off.
"We will get more items when we get to the Convergence," Caius stated as he slung the heavy sack over his shoulder like it weighed absolutely nothing.
Rue did not argue. She just nodded. She trusted him fully to get them to a house. She did not need to understand why. That was a problem for another day.
"We need to travel," Caius said. "Shift. It will be easier for you."
Rue popped into her rabbit form.
Caius picked her up gently. He placed her in the back of a small wooden wagon he had pulled from the back of the cave. He took a thick, black fur coat and wrapped it tightly around her tiny body. Only her pink nose and long white ears poked out of the bundle.
The travel through the deep swamp was quiet. The wheels of the wagon bumped softly over thick moss and tree roots. Caius slithered ahead, pulling the wagon effortlessly. Rue stayed tucked inside the fur. She listened to the sounds of the deep woods. The damp smell of pine and wet earth filled her nose. It was peaceful.
Then the environment changed to another. The smell of earth was replaced by the smell of roasted meat, sweat, and spices. They reached the Convergence.
Rue was in awe almost immediately. She thought she would enjoy her stay here.
The beast market was a chaotic mess of noise and bodies. Stalls lined the dirt roads. Beastmen of every shape yelled over each other. The wagon rolled right down the main street.
It took exactly two minutes for the trouble to start. Ruining Rue’s perfect day.
"Look at the bunny!" a badger female shrieked.
"Oh my gods, it is so small," a bear beastman yelled, pointing a massive claw at the wagon.
A crowd started to form. Everyone wanted to touch the little rabbit wrapped in the black fur. A random hand reached into the wagon to pet her head. Rue snapped her teeth at the fingers. The hand quickly pulled back.
The fuck?!
Rue did not like the attention. She hated crowds. She hated being perceived as a cute pet.
Tell them to back off, Rue complained in her mind. I am not a petting zoo. Make them stop staring.
[Host is drawing unnecessary attention.]
I am literally just sitting here, Rue shot back. These people are the problem. Do something about it!
[Unfortunately.]
Caius heard her loud and clear. He stopped the wagon. He turned his head and glared at the gathered crowd. His golden eyes flashed a dark, bloody red. A low hiss escaped his teeth.
There was a tired look on his face; he didn’t know walking down the road with her would cause this reaction.
The crowd backed up a single step. They were scared of the general. But they did not leave. They just stared from a safer distance.
Useless, Rue thought.
Caius choked in the air, and his face flushed pink from embarrassment.
She decided she was going to handle this herself. She wiggled out of the heavy fur coat. With a soft pop, she shifted.
The tiny bunny vanished. Rue sat up in the back of the wagon in her human form. Her silver hair tumbled down her back in a shining wave. Her white silk dress stood out brightly against the dirty market road. She crossed her arms and glared at the crowd.
It did not fix the problem. It just made things much, much worse.
The cooing over a cute animal stopped. Complete silence fell over the street. Then the whispering started. The eyes of every male beastman in a fifty-foot radius locked onto her.
They did not see a pet anymore. They saw a stunning, unclaimed female.
A group of male beastmen stepped closer to the wagon. They completely ignored the giant, angry snake pulling it. They did not believe that the snake was her mate. Predators did not just mate with any prey. It was not that common.
Especially a rabbit and a snake.
"Are you lost, beautiful?" a large wolf beastman asked. He leaned against the side of the wagon and flashed a charming smile.
"She is not lost," Caius said. His voice was cold. He dropped the wagon handles and moved to stand between the wolf and Rue.
The wolf sneered. He looked Caius up and down. "A snake with a rabbit? As a mate? That is a joke. You are just holding her hostage to eat her later."
A vein pulsed on Caius’s forehead.
"I can treat you much better than a cold-blooded snake," a tiger beastman yelled from the back of the crowd. He shoved his way to the front. "Come to my tribe. You will never go hungry."
Rue watched the scene unfold with mild annoyance.
Were they always like this?
[In front of a beautiful female, you can’t blame them.]
They lacked basic logic. They wanted to fight over a female they did not even know.
Caius bared his fangs. The muscles in his upper arms bunched tight. His tail coiled, ready to launch. He was going to kill them. He was going to snap the wolf’s neck right here in the middle of the street.
Rue did not want blood. She also did not want to sit in a wagon all day while men postured at each other. She stood up. The wagon rocked slightly under her feet.
She reached out and grabbed the collar of Caius’s dark shirt. She pulled him backwards. Caius stumbled, entirely caught off guard by the pull. He bent down slightly.
Rue grabbed his face and slammed her soft, pale pink lips against his.
She kissed him hard, right on the mouth, in front of the entire market. Caius froze in absolute shock. His eyes went wide. The angry wolf beastman dropped his jaw. The crowd gasped in unison.
Rue pulled back. She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. She turned to glare at the men surrounding the wagon.
"See?" Rue announced to no one in particular. "I am with my mate! Can’t a cute little creature catch a break here?"
