Chapter 27: Chapter 14 – Babies and Food

Mating season was over. I don't think I've ever been so relieved in my entire life, be it this one or the previous one.

I was also thankful beyond belief that I was still a tad bit too young to, er, 'participate'. Because, honestly, I was still quite uncomfortable with the whole thing, even if my body very much disagreed with that sentiment.

Still, time passed, as it tended to do regardless of my thoughts. It had been over three months since the season started, and things had gotten back on track.

Amazingly, it seemed as though our tribe would soon have a new member, something that we only discovered recently, when Arias, one of the other women of the tribe, found herself with a small bump in her belly.

It was, as far as I knew, a borderline miracle. Two pregnancies in two seasons was a rate practically unheard of, considering our atrocious fertility.

I gently poked at the said baby bump, torn between fascination and hesitation.

Then, I looked up into the owner of said bump's eyes. "Did I really look like this?" I asked, my voice awkward as all hell. Arias laughed, patting my cheek with uncharacteristic gentleness.

"Yes. Yiera showed you off a lot, you know. She was so proud of you." She told me, voice wistful. Her tails were waving happily behind her, easily broadcasting her mood for everyone to see. "She was so happy to have you..." She murmured, looking down at her bump with a loving expression.

I flattened my lips, unsure of what to say to that. In the end, I settled for letting out a small 'Oh' And then wandering off to do other things.

I entered my tent, having long since gotten my own, separate from my mother's one. I'd actually made it myself, although with a lot of assistance and teaching from the rest of the tribe. It was... nice, I suppose.

With a sigh, I fell onto the rough fur mattress that I used as a bed, stretching out slightly. After a few satisfying pops, I huddled around myself like a cat, covering myself with my tails.

I wasn't really sleepy so much as I just wanted some time to relax. Reaching out to the small hole dug into the bed's side, I grabbed the shiny marble that Leiran had gifted me.

It was a fascinating little toy, even if it paled to things like computers, phones, or even just basic calculators. Still, for a savage like myself and the rest of the tribe, this thing was practically the peak of technology.

Which, to be completely honest, I don't think I particularly mind. Sure, sometimes I missed the internet, but by now, I was more than used to living the life of a tribal monster-girl.

On, off, on, off, went the little marble. I had it make random patterns for at least twenty minutes, faintly amusing myself while losing myself to my thoughts.

However, today was not to be the day for relaxation, as my keen ears easily picked up a shout. "Gather! Hurry!"

I shot to my feet. That was mother's unmistakable voice, and more than that, it was said in a tone I was more than familiar with.

Excitement.

I shot out of my tent, my ears and tails twitching as I made my way to where mother had shouted from. Around me, I could see the rest of the tribe doing the same as me, shooting out of their tents and hurrying over to the gathering tent.

Within only a few minutes, the entirety of the tribe present today had arrived. We were only missing two people today, Koran and Wiss, who'd gone hunting together earlier in the morning.

However, that didn't seem to bother mother, who seemed to be practically beside herself with glee. She was leaning forward onto the feasting table, nails scratching at the cold wood, even as her tails twitched violently behind her.

She scanned the tribe with her eyes for a few moments before nodding. Then, she spoke. "I have... good news." She grinned, showcasing two full rows of inhumanly sharp teeth.

I unconsciously perked up, just as the rest of the tribe did. Good news was rare news, here. And for all of mother's admittedly numerous faults, over-exaggeration wasn't one of them.

Still, nobody interrupted, and mother went on. "I was tracking a deer, one of the big ones, when I stumbled upon its carcass." She grinned even wider. "The long-ears killed it, and they were still there."

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The atmosphere of the room changed, going from somewhat anxious excitement to murderous hunger in an instant. "How many, mother?" I asked, causing her to look at me.

"Three. I believe they were youngsters, looking to carve out their own territory." She explained. I couldn't help but gulp, trying to hide my desperate want to salivate.

In my entire life, I had only ever eaten two elves. The first one had been that gift from mother, oh so long ago. The one that had led to my early second tail.

However, the second elf I ate had been when me and mother had stumbled upon a lonely outcast, likely banished from his tribe for whatever reason the pointy-ears dreamed up.

We'd brought his body back, and while I'd only been able to grab a leg of his during the feast, it'd been the most mind-blowingly delicious thing I'd ever eaten, especially since it didn't lead to me borderline dying.

And now, to hear that there were not one, not two, but three whole elves ripe for the slaughter? It was the kind of news that could and would drive the entire tribe crazy.

And even better, they were youngsters. From what I understood of Snow-Elven society, which admittedly was very little, elves behaved a lot differently from us.

For one, while they still had a horrible birth rate compared to humans and the likes, it was still leagues better than ours. Thus, they had a lot more people running around, meaning bigger tribes, and bigger tribes require more food, especially with the insane dietary requirements most northern species needed to survive.

Thus, it wasn't rare for younger groups of elves to try and leave their birth tribe to establish their own. Of course, the reasons for leaving weren't always due to overpopulation. Sometimes, younger elves simply wanted to forge their own tribe simply because they wanted to be at the top of the pecking order of a new tribe.

I personally theorized that this was because the Snow-Elves were much less communal than we were, and there was a genuine danger of being completely oppressed by the more powerful members of your tribe for them.

"We will hunt them, yes?" Leiran spoke up, eyes shining with hunger. Mother nodded easily at his question.

"Of course. They entered our territory, thus they must die." She agreed. "Their flesh will be delicious. Arias," She glanced at the fox-woman in question, who perked up. "You will stay behind. We will bring you your share, but you must not risk the baby." She ordered firmly.

Arias grimaced. "Alright." She acquiesced, obviously not happy about missing the opportunity. Still, I couldn't fault mother's decision. Even though she was still in the early stages, and the baby likely wouldn't really hinder her hunting, it was still best to be cautious.

Nodding, mother then turned to the rest of us. "We will depart soon. Prepare."

And with that clear dismissal, the tribe separated, going off to do as mother told us to do: Prepare.

As I left the tent, I was approached by Liao. "Hey, Kira?" He spoke up. I turned around to face him, tilting my head slightly.

He grinned. "You ever eat a pointy ear's heart?" He asked. I thought over it for a moment before waddling my hand in a so-so gesture.

"Once, technically. Remember when I got my second tail?" I asked. When he nodded, I continued. "That was 'cause I ate an elf. Too much magic in the damn thing. Couldn't really savor it."

Liao's eyes widened. "Damn." He whistled. "I forgot that incident. Yiera went crazy when that happened, you know."

I rolled my eyes. "I know." I poked him in the chest, grinning at him. "Come on now, tell me how it actually tastes though. I wanna know."

He grinned back and promptly started explaining. "Well, it's like you mixed..."

By the end of it, I was practically drooling with anticipation. Liao wasn't much different, to be honest. Food was the one thing that all Northen-Tailed Foxes unanimously agreed was the best thing ever, and delicious food could drive our entire tribe to insane lengths.

It was just a shame that, to us, good food usually came fresh, bloody, and sometimes still screaming.

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