World World: Max vs Pride

Wild World: Fighting Pride

I sigh as I rush towards home, the hill with a burnt tree on top that I share with two wonderful people. Every time I go out, I make it a point to keep my eyes out for Annette's tribe but every time I've come back home without even the smallest trace of them gone. Even returning to their old village yielded nothing, not that the hyenas left it in much of a good state between all the looting and trampling they had done. Still, I keep holding out hope that I'll be able to reunite her with her family before too long and at the very least, I've come back with some nuts and fruits that I'm sure Siren will love packed away in my duffel bag.

Home quickly comes into view and I notice that Siren is standing right at the entrance, her back turned to me as she seems to be watching for something inside. I start walking up the hill as soon as I land at the base of it, making sure I'm making a lot of noise so that I don't accidently sneak up and surprise Siren yet again. She always hates it when I do that.

"(What?)" she says out loud as she hears me approaching. She turns around quickly, her body on edge until she sees that it's just me. "(Oh, Max! Thank goodness you're here.)"

"(What's the matter,Siren?)" I ask her in Yoto, wishing I could speak to her in English at home but knowing I can't exactly rush her learning an entirely new language.

"(It's Annette. She's been acting strangely ever since you left this morning. She's been...skittish, and hasn't even looked at any of your)... books." Siren replies after having to think about the one English word she used. Worry is etched both in her voice and on her features, far more than I've seen on her face since that first day she woke up here nearly two weeks ago. "(I am scared. I think...I fear she might have gone savage.)"

"(Savage?!)" I shout, dread filling my heart and soul. If she's gone savage, well...it's almost worse than losing her to death. Everything in her that makes her Annette would just be...gone. Her curiosity, her dry sense of humor, her endless drive to learn...all replaced by animal instinct, never to be her true self again. "(No, no that can't be! We've had plenty of food and...)"

"(Max.)" Siren interrupts softly, placing her wing-hand on my shoulder. The look in her eyes helps calm the panic gripping me and I manage to take a few deep breaths. "(I may be wrong, I just can't help but fear the worst. I'll stay here so she doesn't leave and become lost. Please, go find her.)"

I nod in agreement, rushing into the cave while Siren stayed behind and kept an eye out. For the first time since I had begun last week, I was starting to hate the construction work on the cave that I had started. At least the holes that I had literally punched in the ceiling were allowing some light in, making it a lot easier to see and quickly navigate as I went deeper in. The cave was actually had a small system of tunnels that I had discovered as I was knocking walls down and once I had enough room, my first thought was making rooms for all three of us.

Of course, Siren hadn't really understood why I wanted to do so but Annette had been completely on board. None of the rooms were finished yet, but I had made a second bed and put it in my room. Annette's room was just a few bookshelves and a chair, while Siren's room remains empty for the time being. I plan on surprising her with a large opening that she can easily take wing from without having to always walk all the way back to the front entrance but for now there was nothing there.

I squint a bit as I get to the rooms, the light here much dimmer since I haven't had time to figure out where I can safely put more holes without risking flooding the rooms when it rains. Thankfully, we keep a few torches ready against the wall when we decide to work on this area so I grab one and light it up with a bit of flint that I keep on me just in case. The fire from the torch bathes the entire area in a yellow-orange light and I start by looking in on Annette's room.

Unfortunately, she's not there so I peek into my own room next. I don't really see her anywhere at all, so I try calling out her name in the hope that she's close enough to hear me. Nobody answers, but I manage to see the twitching of tiny shadows from behind the bed. I gently walk in, placing the torch high on one of the tiny holes I had carefully dug into the wall to hold them when we needed both light and free hands while we were working back here.

"Annette?" I call out in English, unable to focus on using Yoto as I stalk softly towards where I saw the shadows. As I come around the corner of the bed, I see Annette curled up into the smallest ball she could possibly be in right against the wall next to the bed. Her eyes are wider than I've ever seen them as she stares at me unblinkingly, locking me in place. "Annette, are you okay?"

I reach out to her slowly, hoping that she's just reeling from a bad dream or something but she continues not to move or say anything to me. I try coming just a little closer and I watch as she shrinks away from me. My heart starts to pound in my chest as the fear that she really has gone savage courses through me, and tears start stinging my eyes as I come closer and closer to her.

"Please Annette. Say something. Anything." I plead quietly as my hand reaches her face, gently cupping it. She stops shrinking away from me as soon as I touch her and hope fills me as she seems to take in the sight of me. I wait for her to say anything as I gently rub her face, but she just stares at me with those same wide eyes. "Oh fuck...no. Please no..."

I break as I realize that Siren's fear has come true. Annette has gone savage. That brilliant mind...lost. Why though? I'm wracking my brain, but I just can't think of the reason. Despite her getting lost in books so often, she never forgets to eat or drink or sleep. She's been taking care of all the animal needs that are supposed to prevent going savage and yet...yet here I am, breaking down fully into tears in front of the first person to ever befriend me in this world.

I sob openly, feeling Annette's fur slip away from my fingers as she moves away. I expect her to start running away from me, to get away from the strange creature she no longer recognizes. It catches me completely off guard when I feel her head nuzzle my chin. I look down at her and her expression's changed. There's no more fear or surprise in her eyes, just a sense of calm. My tears keep flowing down and Annette surprises me again, gently licking the tears off of my face. It tickles a bit and I laugh gently, reaching out slowly and hugging her.

She places her hands gently on my shirt as I hug her and I feel her explore my body with her hands. I'm not sure what to make of it at first, until she rests her face in the crook of my neck and start deeply breathing in. It sets a familiar tingle all through my body that turns into a soft heat as I feel her soft, furred hands slip under my shirt and touch my bare skin. My body reacts to her touch and I feel need rise in me... and it finally hits me.

It is a need for me now, it has been ever since I first laid with Annette. She told me herself that sex was a primal need that needed to be fulfilled just like eating and drinking. Yet, now that it's right here in front of me...I can't remember the last time I actually had sex with Annette. I'd been fooling around plenty with Siren, especially when she'd ambush me alone somewhere while I was out but it had been forever since I've been with Annette.

I'd been putting it off, pushing it away. Laying with Siren was just...easier for me. There wasn't the sense of guilt with her that I felt with Annette. I didn't take Siren when I was out of my mind with hunger, she'd offered herself to me. I didn't take Siren from her home, her people were lost well before she ever met me. In fear of my constant guilt over what I'd done to Annette, I ended up neglecting her. Now, this is the result. Annette...my Annette, may be lost to me forever.

I pull back from her, looking softly into her eyes that seem to have warmth in them as well until she pushes forward and nuzzles her face against mine again. I nuzzle her back and she allows me to pick her up. I place her on the bed and quickly take off my shirt. I see her breath grow shallow as she watches me and I see her spread her legs, the smell of her arousal thick in the air and all-too-obvious now that I've managed to get my head out of my ass.

I shuffle my pants off and start crawling up in the bed after her, watching as her eyes roam over my whole body before settling on my quickly-growing erection. I'm standing over her in no time, my eyes locked onto hers even as she grabs me and guides my erection towards her waiting warmth. I know what she wants, what she needs, and the only thing stopping me from plunging right in is the small wait left until I'm fully erect for her.

Annette whimpers underneath me, looking soft and needy as she tries to pull me into her. Her insistent tugging quickly gets me all the way ready to go and I move her hand away. She tries to move the hand back onto my erection but I hold it away, pinning her hands to the bed as I give her cheek a kiss and plunge into her.

She cries out and for a moment, I'm afraid that I've hurt her but my fear is quickly dispelled when she wraps her legs tightly around me. I let go over her hands and start rocking my hips, moving in and out of her steadily as she wraps her arms around me as well. She clearly doesn't want me going anywhere and I'm all too happy to oblige her. I can't really call what we're doing making love but despite how primal it is, this is certainly far more tender than just fulfilling our primal needs.

Annette's gentle moans push me on as her grip on me gets tighter, forcing me to thrust deeper inside of her to satisfy her craving. I start to slowly pepper kisses on her face and neck, losing myself in the soft feeling of her fur against me, and I feel her body respond by gripping tightly on my shaft as I rock in and out of her. Her body wants me to cum, and she's keeping me pressed too tightly against her to cum anywhere but inside of her. I feel myself growing even hotter at the thought of letting loose inside of her and my hips begin thrusting faster, almost on their own.

I feel her grip on me even tighter as I speed up, the sounds of our sex getting louder with every thrust as she gets wetter. Her nipples poke into my chest and I grip the poorly-maintained sheets I brought with me from my own world, stretching them out just to get myself even a little more leverage to pump into her. Her moans get louder and I feel her pussy squeezing me like a vice, driving me over the edge.

"Please Annette, come back to me." I whisper as I spill inside her, pressing all my weight onto her. My thrusts grow slow and deep, combining with her tightness to milk me of every drop I have inside of me until the ache of my balls tells me that there simply isn't anything left to give her right now. I bury myself into her and give her lips a slightly awkward kiss as the two of us just lay there like that for a moment.

Annette lets out a contented sigh beneath me and I follow her subtle guidance until we're both laying on our side together on the bed. I try to slide out of her, but her hands move to keep me right where I am. I give her an amused chuckle and wrap my own arm around her waist, drawing her body closer to mine as the warm afterglow of our loving rut fades into a pleasant memory. Her eyes drift slowly closed as we hold one another in bed, our bodies locked together as intimately as they can be.

"(Stay with me, Max.)" she mutters sleepily. My eyes go wide at her words and I'm frozen in place against her. "(Love you. 'M sorry I dun say it more.)"

"I..I love you too, Annette." I reply softly as tears come to my eyes, so incredibly happy to have her back. "And I'm sorry too. (I've been a bad mate.)"

I watch as she just shakes her head against me, though I can't tell if she's saying no or simply nuzzling against me some more. Her breathing grows steady and she's out like a light in no time. I try to untangle myself, wanting to go out and tell Siren that it's okay now but Annette's grip has me locked tight against her, even as my erection softens to the point of slipping out of her. I sigh softly and kiss Annette's forehead, hoping that Siren won't be too upset if she ends up having to wait hours to stop guarding the entrance of our home.

I wake up, being violently shaken by Siren as my eyes jolt awake in panic. It takes me a second to realize I'm not in danger and stop trying to tense up for super strength. I place my hands on Siren's wings, ready to apologize for not going to get her earlier and explain what had happened but the look on her face throws me off. Where I was expecting anger, there's only this terribly grim look on her face that reminds me all too much of when she had heard that the rest of her people had been killed by the lizards.

"(Siren, what's wrong?)" I ask in Yoto, trying to keep grogginess out of my voice as the adrenaline from my rude awakening quickly leaves me. "(If this is about Annette, we don't have to worry anymore. She spoke before she fell asleep. I think she was close to going savage, but we managed to bring her back in time.)"

"(That is good.)" she says to me, some obvious relief in her voice though her face still holds that grim look. "(But that is not what's troubling me. At least, not anymore. When I checked in on you both earlier, it was quite obvious we wouldn't have worry about losing her.)"

"(So what is it then?)" I ask, tearing away from Annette as she starts to wake up slowly next to me. "(Are we in trouble? The hyenas come around again?)"

"(No, no. It's...)" she pauses as Annette stretches herself and looks at the both of us with a puzzled expression, before looking in surprise at our surroundings.

"(What?! Why am I here?)" Annette asks us in a panic, "(I remember trying to pick something to read and then...well, I just remember feeling hot and wondering where Max was. Then...nothing.)"

"(You nearly went savage because you've been too busy reading and I've been letting my guilt rule me too much.)" I tell her, sighing a bit. "(We haven't been intimate in too long and I nearly lost you because of it.)"

"(Oh...)" Annette said far too casually, "(I guess it has been a while since we've had sex. Must have slipped my mind.)"

"(Excuse me.)" Siren chimes in, clearly irritated. Both Annette and I turn to her, her tone reminding me that she had come in to say something very important. Once she has our attention, I watch her expression quickly return from irritation to distress. "(Sorry, I just...)"

"(Siren, what is it?)" I ask, wondering why she stopped talking again so quickly after demanding our attention. I watch her face as she seems to wrestle with something, before she turns to Annette with sorrow in her eyes.

"(I'm so sorry.)" Siren says to her, confusing both of us.

"(What for? It's not your fault I nearly lost myself. You're not responsible for me. I am.)" Annette said, her voice calm and compassionate.

"(No, it's not that.)" Siren explained, taking a seat on the bed and obviously steeling herself for what she's about to say. "(When I saw that you and Max were sleeping here, I felt like stretching my wings. So I decided to go for a flight, go out a bit farther than I usually do. I thought maybe I would come across a lake to fish in, or some place that would have good forage for us. Instead, well...I'm pretty sure that I found your tribe, Annette.)"

I feel my eyes nearly burst out of my skull as she says that, turning to Annette to see a similarly amazed expression on her own face before turning back to Siren. This should be wonderful news, but the expression Siren has after dropping that bombshell on us makes me fear the worst. I've been holding out hope that since there weren't any signs of real bloodshed when I had checked in on Annette's old village, that her tribe had simply moved away to avoid future attacks.

"(Please Siren, tell me.)" I hear Annette say, her face even but her hands trembling as she tries to keep her emotions in check. "(Even if they're dead, it's better to know and begin to grieve than it is to hold onto false hope.)"

"(No, I am sure they are still alive.)" Siren says quickly, reaching over and putting her fingers on Annette's hands. "(But...if the antelope that I saw were your tribe, then....the lions have them)"

I feel the silence that fills the room, pressing down on us as Annette freezes up at Siren's news. The look on Siren's face is one of complete sympathy, while I'm left completely confused. It's easy enough to assume that lions are bad news, just like hyenas have proven to be, but lions have never come up before in any of the conversations about this world that I've had with either of them. I can only hope that whatever I learn about them isn't too terrible.

"(I...I've lost them.)" Annette says shakily, her body still limp with her shock."(I've lost them all over again.)" I watch as tears start to slowly form in her eyes, Siren's eyes quickly following suit until the both of them are quietly crying together.

"Girls." I say in English, trying not to let their pain destroy me as well as I switch back to using Yoto, "(I don't know anything about lions. We've never talked about them. Why have you lost your tribe if they're still alive? Why couldn't we go get them back?)" I see Siren about to answer me when Annette holds up a hand to silence her, wiping tears from her eyes and taking a deep breath.

"(Lions are among the strongest people in our world, Max. Their strength allows them to basically take over any area they come across, without having to worry about losing fights for food or being raided by hyenas.)" Annette explains to me, using her teacher voice. I'm sure she's using the opportunity to teach me to keep her mind off of her seemingly lost family, but I just let her keep speaking instead of possibly interrupting her by trying to comfort her.

"(Their tribes are very large. Some say there are even lion tribes with over 200 members.)" Siren adds, "(They grow to the point where they not only remain uncontested, they actually take other tribes and use them as labor. Forcing them as slaves to build things and bring back food, so they can continue to grow stronger. Nobody can stand up to them.)"

I think over what they've told me, remembering how I found the village that the hyenas were raiding. No bodies, no real supplies, nothing. I had assumed that they had just left but if they'd been captured by an army of lions, they wouldn't have fought back if their lives would be spared in the process. Everything fit too well and I agree that the antelopes that Siren saw in lion territory would likely be Annette's tribe, given the distance that would need to be travelled. If they are, then I can finally reunite Annette with her family. I can finally begin to repay her.

"Max." I say to the both of them, flashing a cocky grin.

"(What?)" they both ask, almost in unison as they look at me in confusion.

"(My name is Max, not Nobody. You should know this by now.)" I tease them, standing up off the bed and searching around for the clothes I had discarded earlier. They both look at me confused for another couple of moments while I look for my clothes, but Annette's the one who seems to get it first.