That could be it.I did feel really happy.
A slow warmth spreads through me again at the memory, and I can’t tell how much of it is leftover krolt venom, how much is the afterglow of what we did, and how much is just him being so calm and so close. The jungle hums around us, but nothing feels threatening while he’s sitting there, massive and watchful, grease dripping from his fingers in the firelight.
I take a bite of the meat and savor the rich, smoky flavor, letting it anchor me.
“Well,” I murmur, trying to sound casual, “maybe I got just enough.”
His eyes flick to mine, steady and unreadable, and something warm curls low in my stomach. I look away quickly, pretending to study the shadows at the tree line. I’m not falling for him. Absolutely not. I’m just letting myself rest here for a minute, wrapped in heat and safety and the fading echo of danger, pretending that the world outside this fire doesn’t exist. A girl is allowed to enjoy her life sometimes, even on Xren.
- - -
Right after breakfast the next day, Otis comes trotting in as if nothing’s happened. He curls his tail around my waist and squeezes, casually looking the other way.
“Where have youbeen?” I demand. “I thought something had happened to you!”
He looks up at me with those slitted, tennis-ball eyes and squeezes harder. I swear he’s grown six inches in height since last time. I’m sure it’s him—he has a white spot right at the back of one ear.
I sense Kenz’ox’s eyes on us from the saucer, where he and Aker’iz are practicing their spoon-feeding. He shifts his position to be ready if Otis were to pounce on her.
“Fine,” I growl, secretly relieved. “I’ll get some meat for you.” I find some less tender pieces of skarn and toss them to him. He snaps them out of the air and attacks them on the spot, growling and chomping.
Aker’iz laughs heartily at the spectacle and Otis glances over. He lets go of me, turns his head toward her, and attacks the food with even more noise and gusto, twisting his tail into impossible spiral shapes.
The baby shrieks with glee and laughs with the happiest, little bubbly sound I’ve ever heard.
Even Kenz’ox has to give a tight smile. “I think they’re becoming friends.”
“Otis is friendly,” I agree. I’d been worried that I’d domesticated him and made him unable to live on his own, but he’s been gone for days and he’s definitely grown in that time, so he seems perfectly able to feed himself.
I finish my own breakfast and look around for the materials I’ll need to make a playpen for Aker’iz. It’s not a fancy structure, and I’ll use the same principles as for the now sadly ruined hut for drying meat. That also has to be repaired.
Otis finishes his meal and lifts his head, staring at Aker’iz. He suddenly jumps back as if startled, legs wobbling wildly while he hangs in the air.
Aker’iz howls with laughter, making her whole frontpack shake.
Otis repeats the game, sneaking closer and then suddenly jumping back. He’s obviously playing—one young creature with another. Although it seems more like entertainment, in the same way an adult dog might play with a human toddler.
Finally, he stalks off toward the beach, still loudly gnawing on a bone.
Aker’iz’s sounds turn to frustrated whimpers when her entertainment is over.
“She has no patience,” Kenz’ox says and throws her into the air, making her squeal with joy again. “She wants us to play with her at all times.”
“Let me try something,” I suggest, walking over. “I’ll take her into the ship.”
“Hopefully it won’t bore her as much as I do.” Kenz’ox gently hands the baby over.
She has a compact weight to her, and she’s obviously growing fast. But I can still carry her easily.
I step into the saucer. Immediately the light goes from pale blue to a warmer yellow, and there’s definitely a hum that starts.
“It senses you,” I tell Aker’iz. “But it doesn’t sense me or anyone else.”
I sit down by an open console. The first console I opened is the only one that has no light inside it. The other ones have an inner glow, so I don’t need a smelly lamp to work in them.
“Now look at this,” I coo in English and turn Aker’iz so she can see inside the console. “Can you make sense of it?”
The dim lights inside and the weird shapes always have a hypnotic effect on me, but Aker’iz is unimpressed. She reaches in with one chubby hand and touches some of the glass parts, but it doesn’t change much, and she soon starts to squirm and kick her little legs in instant boredom.
