“We’ve never touched in your shifted form before. You’ll tell me if I’m hurting you, right?”
I suspected that her soft body against my hard exoskeleton would not cause me any pain, so I nodded my head. “I promise.”
That seemed to be the assurance Ashley needed because shortly thereafter, she reached out and ran her fingers over the top of my spider abdomen. Her touch was nice. The hum of her skin on mine was pleasant and warm, similar to when she touched me when I wasn’t shifted.
“How’s this?” she asked, her voice quiet, as if she were anticipating my pain.
“It’s nice, not overwhelming, I promise.” I gave her a teasing smile, which she returned with one of her own.
“Alright, let’s do this then.” She swung her leg over the top of me and shifted her weight until she was fully seated on my large spider abdomen. Again, she felt very warm and very pleasant, and not at all heavy. There was a pleasant sturdiness to her, like wearing a heavy blanket in winter, and I loved it.
“Comfy?” I asked.
“Comfy? You’re asking if I’m comfy?”
“Yeah, why wouldn’t I concern myself with the comfort of my mate?” I loved saying that word.Mate. I didn’t think I’d ever get used to it.
“I’m fine, Axon. I was always going to be fine riding him. Areyoucomfortable?” She put extra emphasis on the ‘you’.
“Yes, for Christ's sake,” I used her phrase even though I did not know who Christ was.
“You’re as light as a feather and as soft as a baby chick with downy feathers.”
I could feel Ashley shaking with laughter atop me, which brought a smile to my face.
“I’m going to start walking now,” I announced before taking my first step. “Hold on!”
Ashley let out a yelp as I took off through the forest in a sprint. I wanted to show her that it was comfortable for me to have her on my back and what better way to do that than to run through the forest with her riding me?
Her yelp turned into peels of laughter as I darted between the trees. Her hands held on tight to my shoulders, and it was a pleasant grip against my tight muscles.
“Almost there!” I yelled out and then picked up speed once more.
“Is this as fast as you can go?” She taunted me.
“You wanna see fast? I’ll show you fast!”
I forced my legs to move as quickly as they possibly could as the trail opened up into a small clearing. Ashley let out a hoot of joy as she held onto me even tighter.
Once I saw the cave come into view, I slowed my speed until I came to a complete stop outside the cave entrance.
“Here!” I panted with a smile on my face. I lowered my body so Ashley could get safely to the ground, then shifted back into my sirret form.
“That was fun.” Her face was flushed, and she was smiling at me as much as I was smiling at her.
“Yes, it was.”
It wasn’t raining anymore, but there was still a chill in the air that made Ashley shiver.
“Come on, let's get inside.”
All the joy I’d been feeling left me the moment I entered Rhaz’s cave. It was truly awful, the state in which he allowed himself to live. The ceiling leaked, there was only one basket of supplies, only two furs rolled up against the wall for sleeping, and the space itself was quite small. Only a male who hated himself would choose a hunting cave this pitiful to stay in.
As if she could read my thoughts, Ashley squeezed my hand. “It’s just one night.”
“Right,” I sighed. “Just one night.”
I laid out our furs and started a fire in the fire pit.
