Chapter 30
Tuvo
Tuvo did not speak Portuguese and only understood very basic English. Some of the males spoke English to varying degrees of proficiency with accents that made them difficult to understand at times. But still, they communicated just fine.
Tuvo knew the basic human body language indicators – nodding and head shaking and the finger to the lips for silence and so on – and the rest they could figure out together. It made for some odd, stilted conversation, but they did manage to communicate.
By the time he returned to the village with the males, fresh kill over his shoulders – a four-legged beast he didn’t know the name of – they had managed to cobble together a rudimentary, highly bastardized language and he was very quickly adding Portuguese words and phrases to his lexicon.
He passed his bounty, along with the others, to the females in the kitchen. Hattie gave him a bright smile, her hair tied back and fuzzy from the humidity, but didn’t stop her work. Tuvo watched her for a moment before following Inacio towards the outskirts of the village. A frown on his face.
One that Tuvo mimicked as he spotted what was undoubtedly men from the village patrolling around the edge. Stern scowls on their faces. Searching the trees as though expecting an attack to come rushing towards them at any minute.
“Inacio,” Tuvo looked to him and pointed at the males, asking in English, “Why?”
Inacio shook his head and said simply, “Tres Argolas.”
Tuvo growled. Inacio nodded solemnly.
“Tres Argolas, Brilhar?” He asked if they were coming here.
Inacio made an uncertain gesture with his shoulders. Maybe. He couldn’t say they wouldn’t.
Tuvo grunted, patting his chest, asking if it was because of him. Or, less specifically, because of him and Hattie. They were their original targets after all.
Inacio didn’t give him an answer. Which was telling in and of itself.
Tuvo frowned. Some of those that had taken Hattie had escaped. He hadn’t been focused on eliminating his targets, just finding his female. And even if he had, there was only so much he could have done alone against many.
He didn’t know there was a village so close to their crash, or he would have tried to walk here immediately after. He hadn’t considered how attacking the Three Rings might affect anyone nearby. He didn’t know how attacking the compound would make them retaliate.
But he was considering it now, and it left a bad taste in his mouth. Even now, Inacio was having a couple of males preparing to take him and Hattie to the nearest town. A place where they could make a call to get rescued.
However, if they left and the Three Rings came after them, would the people of Brilhar be the ones to pay the price?
“Tres Argolas…” He searched for a word that would describe what he meant, but couldn’t think of one that he knew. Instead, he settled with growling, baring his teeth and claws, like a beast pouncing on their prey.
Would they attack?
Inacio understood and nodded.
“Brilhar…” He repeated the attacking motion.
Inacio shook his head and said, “Small.”
The village was too small, too weak, to fight back against them.
Tuvo crossed his arms over his chest. Thinking. Not because he didn’t know what to do, but because he didn’t know how Hattie would react.
But he could picture in his head what she would do if she found out any of these people that had been so kind had been hurt because of her. Even tangentially.
“Tuvo, Brilhar,” he said, pointing first to himself then to the village. Then, he faced out into the forest and repeated the growling motion again.
He would stay and protect Brilhar.
Inacio looked surprised, then shook his head.
Tuvo nodded more fervently. Decisively. They would stay.
A look of unmistakable relief and gratitude crossed Inacio’s face. He gestured into the village and named two of the males Tuvo had come to know during his hunt. He then pointed towards the town that they were supposed to be going to soon.
Tuvo and Hattie would stay, but Inacio would still send the others. Maybe try to find a way to contact the authorities for them.
Tuvo nodded once, and said, in English, “Thank you.”
“Thank you,” Inacio returned.
The two of them turned and walked back into the village together.
Hattie’s laughter was the first thing he heard. She was carrying a serving tray of sauteed vegetables and mushrooms. She beamed at him as he took it from her and carried it instead. Keith chose that moment to walk by and mutter that word, “Simp,” under his breath.
Tuvo growled, ready to turn on him.
Hattie grabbed his tail and pulled. Leading him towards the rug where they would eat. Belmira was already there, drinking with her mother. She smiled at him, waving like an old friend, as he set the food down and Hattie took a seat.
Tuvo sat beside her and immediately picked her up to put her in his lap, back to chest, her legs hanging over his, his arms around her middle. She snuggled against him, getting comfortable.
“We’re staying,” he said.
“Staying here? Why?” She didn’t look unhappy, merely curious.
“The Three Rings. Inacio is worried that they’ll attack. Searching for us. Trying to get retribution. And it’s a fair concern.”
She frowned, face pinching. “I didn’t think of that.”
“Inacio will still send a couple males ahead to the nearest town. They’ll contact the authorities for us and bring them back here. For now, we’ll stay here. Help them if we can. Defend them if we must. Is that all right?”
“What? Of course, it is! We can’t leave everyone to deal with them alone.”
Tuvo smiled, kissing the top of her head. That was his female. Brave and good.
“Did you enjoy yourself today?” He asked, genuinely curious about how she had spent her time.
She nodded and eagerly launched into an explanation of everything she had done. Cooking and repair work around the village, talking with the women, helping with the goats. There was no end of chores to be completed here and she was excited to do it all.
She had made friends with everyone already.
As they passed, she called out to them, waving, getting smiles and calls in return.
She would lean over his arms and speak to Belmira.
She practiced her Portuguese – and even not speaking it himself, he could tell her accent was atrocious.
The others laughed, but it wasn’t malicious, and they corrected her patiently.
Keith had seated himself nearby. The female whose attention he had gained last night clearly moved on because there was someone else in her place.
Was Keith attractive by human terms? His face was symmetrical, and his body was well cared for. It was hard for Tuvo to tell since human males seemed slightly feminine to his gaze, but he wouldn’t be surprised if, physically, Keith was attractive.
But his personality was so unpleasant, he didn’t know how anyone could get close to him. Maybe they were just using him for sexual release. That would make sense.
Though, now that he was thinking about it-
“Is Keith going to go or stay?” He asked Hattie, curious.
“Er, I don’t know. We should probably ask what he prefers.”
She made to stand, like she was going to ask him now, but he tightened his grip, locking her back down to his lap. She giggled, rubbing his arm.
“I suppose I can ask him tomorrow.”
“Yeah. Tomorrow seems soon enough.” He put his nose in her hair, taking a deep breath of her sweet scent.
Going out to hunt for her was such an immensely satisfying feeling. Especially now that he knew she had a proper den to nest in.
He should bring her there. Put her in her nest. Breed her in her nest.
She was already back to laughing and chatting with others though, and he didn’t want to rip her away when she was having a good time.
Inacio stood at one point and made a big announcement.
He pointed at Tuvo while he spoke, so he didn’t really need a translation to understand that he was telling everyone he was going to stay and help guard against potential attack.
An assumption that was confirmed when Tuvo heard that name, Tres Argolas.
Belmira was looking down now, hands clutched so tight on her cup that her knuckles blanched white. A few people in the village hissed or bared their teeth at the very mention. The sight made Tuvo rather proud.
Look how eager they were to protect their homes.
He could work with that.
Inacio finished his speech and people cheered. Tuvo felt their approving stares as Hattie smiled up at him, proud.
Dinner wasn’t as big or long as the feast yesterday.
The night was still young when Hattie led Tuvo – again, by the tail, though he wasn’t carrying anything this time – back to their home.
She pulled him up into the house and, the moment the net closed over the entrance, she was throwing herself at him.
He grinned as he picked her up.
He wasn’t going to put his cock in her again. Not yet. Not tonight. She still walked funny, and he knew she was still sore.
But he was eager to taste her.