Juno finally had to admit something to herself that she had been trying very hard not to acknowledge for the last twenty minutes.
She was not suited for bushwhacking.
It was not that she was weak or out of shape. Quite the opposite, actually. She worked out regularly, hiked often, and generally considered herself a pretty fit person. The problem was more practical than anything else. She was short, and she did not have any natural tools for forcing her way through dense undergrowth.
Meanwhile the forest around them seemed determined to prove that point as thoroughly as possible.
Branches snagged at her clothes, low bushes blocked the easiest paths forward, and every time she managed to push through one patch of vegetation there seemed to be another waiting immediately afterward. Niv, of course, moved through it all with almost embarrassing ease, slipping between the trees and stepping over obstacles like someone who had grown up doing exactly this every day of her life.
Juno, on the other hand, was steadily losing momentum.
She preferred a nice, well maintained trail where she could settle into a steady rhythm and keep a constant pace for hours if she wanted to. On a good trail she could hike all day, headphones in, music playing, just enjoying the scenery and the quiet of nature.
This was not that.
“Wait… wait…” Juno finally puffed out between breaths.
She stopped walking and bent forward slightly, hands braced on her knees while she tried to catch her breath.
Niv immediately turned around and looked at her with mild concern.
“Juno is tired?” she asked.
Juno nodded, reaching for the side pocket of her backpack. She pulled out her water bottle and took several large gulps, the cool liquid helping a little as she swallowed it down.
“My legs are just too short to keep up with you,” she admitted once she could breathe properly again.
Niv stared at her for a moment as if considering the problem.
Then, without giving even the slightest warning, she stepped forward and scooped Juno up off the ground in a bridal carry.
It happened so suddenly that Juno barely had time to yelp.
“I carry Juno to den!” Niv declared proudly, holding her with effortless strength.
“W-w-wait, wait!” Juno stammered, her face instantly going bright red as her brain struggled to process what was happening. “I c-can walk, I just needed a break—”
“No!” Niv interrupted firmly.
She adjusted her grip slightly, making herself more comfortable while holding the smaller woman as if she weighed almost nothing at all.
“Juno is tired. Niv is not. I carry Juno to den,” she repeated with complete certainty.
“Okay,” Juno said quietly.
Her voice came out softer than she expected, and she could feel her heart beating much faster in her chest than it had been when she was struggling through the forest earlier. This time it had nothing to do with exhaustion.
Niv seemed pleased by the agreement.
“I am going to go fast now,” she said matter-of-factly. “Hold on.”
Juno blinked.
“Wha—”
She did not get the chance to finish the question.
Without any further warning, Niv suddenly broke into a sprint.
Juno let out a startled yelp as the world around them lurched into motion. The forest blurred past almost immediately, trees and foliage rushing by on either side as Niv moved with incredible speed and confidence through the terrain. Somehow she avoided every obstacle without slowing down even slightly, weaving through the natural paths of the forest like she had memorized every root and rock.
It felt less like running through the woods and more like the woods were simply parting to let her through.
Juno was held firmly against Niv’s bare chest while it was happening, and for a moment she had no idea what she was supposed to do with her arms. Eventually she awkwardly grabbed onto Niv’s shoulder and part of one strong arm just to keep herself steady.
That was when she became very aware of the contact between them.
One of Niv’s breasts was pressed against her shoulder while the cryptid woman ran, and the warmth of her skin made Juno’s face heat up all over again. Her brain briefly tried to process several thoughts at once, none of which were particularly helpful.
Before she could dwell on it too long, the rushing forest suddenly opened up.
They burst out into the familiar clearing in front of Juno’s cabin.
Niv slowed to a stop and stood there proudly, still holding her.
“We are at Juno’s den!” she declared triumphantly.
Juno stared around in disbelief.
“What?” she said, completely stunned. “Already?”
Niv looked down at Juno and broke into a wide, triumphant grin, clearly very pleased with herself.
“Humans are very slow,” she announced proudly. “I am not.”
“R-right,” Juno replied, still sounding a little dazed from the experience.
For a moment neither of them moved. Niv simply stood there in the clearing holding her like it was the most natural thing in the world, while Juno tried to get her thoughts back into some kind of order. Being carried through the forest at that speed had been startling enough, but the fact that she was still in Niv’s arms afterwards was doing absolutely nothing to calm her racing heart.
After several seconds of awkward silence, Juno finally spoke again.
“Y-you can put me down now,” she said, trying to sound casual about it.
Niv tilted her head slightly.
“But I do not want to,” she said very plainly.
The answer caught Juno off guard.
Earlier that morning Niv had been shy and hesitant about getting close to her, always careful and a little uncertain about what was acceptable. Now, though, she seemed far more confident about simply doing what she wanted. The sudden shift was surprising, but Juno quickly realized that she did not actually mind it.
In fact, she kind of liked this side of Niv.
“Well,” Juno said after a moment, trying to keep her voice steady, “I still need to use the bathroom and put my stuff away.”
Niv let out a small, disappointed huff.
“Fine.”
Even so, she did not immediately let go. She held onto Juno for just a few seconds longer, almost like she was reluctant to end the moment, before finally lowering her carefully back down onto her feet.
Rather than saying several extremely undignified things that were currently bouncing around inside her head, Juno chose the safer option and hurried toward her house as quickly as she could manage.
She practically jogged across the clearing and up onto the porch, fumbling slightly with the key as she tried to unlock the door. Her fingers felt a little clumsy from nerves, and it took her a couple of tries before the key finally slid into place and the lock turned with a small click.
Once the door opened she slipped inside and headed straight for the bathroom at a brisk pace.
That part, at least, had not been a lie.
After a moment she emerged again, having dropped her backpack near the entrance and quickly checked that everything was still where it was supposed to be. She brushed her hands over her clothes out of habit, then paused when she realized something.
It was quiet.
Niv had not followed her in. Visit g.com for the full chapter.
Juno walked back toward the door and leaned out slightly, poking her head through the opening to look outside.
“You can come in,” she called out. “You don’t have to stand out there.”
Niv immediately broke into a grin the moment she heard that and bounded across the clearing toward the house with an eager sort of energy. A second later she stepped through the doorway, looking around with open curiosity before making her way toward the living room.
Before long she had settled herself comfortably on the couch again, taking up her previous spot like she had already decided it belonged to her now.
Juno leaned against the wall for a moment while thinking about what to do next.
“I’m going to take a shower,” she said eventually. “And then… I don’t know. Did you want to watch a movie with me? Maybe I could head into town afterward and grab some food for us to eat.”
Niv tilted her head.
“You said movie before,” she said slowly. “What is that?”
Juno rubbed the back of her neck while thinking about how to explain it.
“Umm… it might honestly be easier if I just show you,” she admitted. “It’s basically entertainment. Like a story that people act out, and it gets recorded so other people can watch it later. Since you seem to have a really good grasp of English already, I’m pretty sure you’ll understand what’s going on.”
Niv straightened up immediately.
“I want to like what Juno likes!” she declared enthusiastically.
Juno could not help smiling at that.
“Good,” she said. “I’ll get cleaned up and then I’ll head out to town for a bit. I can think of a few snacks you might like.”
Niv’s ears drooped slightly.
“Don’t want you to go,” she said with a small frown.
“I won’t be long,” Juno reassured her quickly. “I promise. I’ll even pick up some sausages for the barbie so we can cook them outside. You seemed to really like that earlier.”
Niv’s ears perked up immediately.
“Hot meat?” she asked with sudden interest.
Juno nodded with a grin. “Hot meat.”
“Okay, I’ll be right back.” Said Juno.
Niv sat on the couch for a while after Juno disappeared deeper into the den, her long legs stretched out in front of her while she tried very hard to be patient.
Juno had said she was going to go out for a little while, probably in the big loud thing that humans used to travel quickly across the land. Niv did not particularly like the idea of waiting around while the human went away again. She had only just gotten Juno back after four whole days apart, and every moment away from her had felt slow and uncomfortable, like something important was missing.
Now she was here again, and Niv wanted to spend as much time with her as possible.
Unfortunately, Juno was currently “getting ready,” which apparently took quite a long time.
Niv shifted slightly on the couch and glanced toward the hallway where the human had gone. She could still hear movement from somewhere deeper inside the den.
How long was she supposed to wait?
She huffed quietly to herself before straightening up and giving her head a small shake.
No.
She had to be patient.
She had already proven that she could be patient. She had waited four whole days while Juno thought about whether she wanted to do the dating thing. Those four days had been awful and slow and uncomfortable, but she had endured them anyway because it mattered.
Compared to that, this was nothing.
And Juno had promised snacks.
That thought helped a little.
While she was sitting there trying to behave herself, Niv noticed another sound drifting through the den from somewhere down the hallway. It sounded a little bit like rain falling, except it was steady and enclosed, like water striking stone inside a cave.
Her ears twitched.
Curiosity slowly began to win the battle against patience.
Eventually she stood up from the couch and wandered toward the sound, moving quietly down the hallway while looking around at the strange interior of the human den. There were many of these “door” things built into the walls, which still did not make much sense to her.
The one at the entrance made sense, because it kept the cold out during winter and the heat out during summer, but she could not understand why humans needed so many of them inside the same den.
She opened one and peeked inside.
That room contained what looked like a very large soft sitting square that took up most of the space. It was covered in blankets and pillows, and it looked extremely comfortable.
Niv tilted her head thoughtfully before closing that door again and moving on.
She opened another door and discovered a room with two large metal boxes sitting side by side against the wall. Each one had a round clear wall on the front like a little window into the hollow space inside. The interiors were empty and still, and she crouched down slightly to peer through the clear circle, trying to understand what sort of device it might be. After a few seconds she decided she had absolutely no idea what the purpose of these strange metal containers was, which was not surprising because most of the things in Juno’s den were still complete mysteries to her.
Another door led to a room with even more unfamiliar objects. Shelves lined the walls, and all sorts of little items were arranged neatly across them. Some were made of metal, others of glass or ceramic, and a few seemed to have glowing lights on them.
Juno’s den was filled with things Niv had never seen before.
Eventually she reached the door where the rain sound was coming from. The steady pattering noise was much louder here, and she could hear water splashing inside.
Curiosity fully took over.
Niv pushed the door open.
Inside the room, Juno was standing beneath a shiny metal fixture attached to the wall. Water was pouring down from it in a steady stream, filling the room with warm steam. The human was not wearing any of the decorative skins she usually covered herself with.
Juno turned around when the door opened.
The moment she saw Niv standing there, she let out a startled yelp and quickly covered her breasts and her nethers with both hands.
“N-Niv!” she stammered. “What are you doing in here?”
Niv blinked at her, confused by the sudden reaction.
“Sorry,” she said slowly. “Am not allowed in this den room?”
“Um, yes, but also not right now?” Juno said, clearly flustered while she tried to keep herself covered with both hands. The water from the shower was still running behind her, and steam filled the room while she struggled to explain. “Humans usually like their privacy when they aren’t clothed.”
Niv tilted her head slightly at that explanation, her ears flicking in mild confusion.
“Why?” she asked in complete sincerity.
Juno opened her mouth to answer, then closed it again for a moment as if she was trying to organize her thoughts while standing there dripping wet and very exposed.
“Well,” she began awkwardly, “many of us get embarrassed about our bodies, and we usually prefer that other people don’t see us like this unless we are very close to them or expecting it. It’s just… sort of a social thing.”
Juno sighed softly.
“Could we maybe talk about this after I’m done here?” she asked hopefully.
Niv nodded right away.
“Okay!” she said cheerfully, as if the entire situation had made perfect sense.
She turned around and left the room just as casually as she had entered it, closing the door behind her before wandering back into the living room. Once there, she climbed onto the couch again and resumed waiting patiently for Juno to finish whatever humans did in that strange rain room.
Some time later Juno emerged again, now fully dressed and much less flustered than before. When Niv curiously asked about the strange water device she had seen, Juno explained that it was called a shower and that people used it to clean themselves.
To Niv’s surprise, Juno even said that she was welcome to try it herself if she wanted.
The human led her back into the bathroom and patiently showed her how everything worked. She pointed out the different knobs and handles, explaining which ones controlled the water and how turning them made the water hotter or colder. She also gestured toward several bottles sitting on a small shelf near the wall.
“Those have cleaning liquids in them,” Juno explained. “Soap and shampoo. You can use them if you want.”
Niv listened carefully, nodding along as she tried to remember everything.
After that, Juno gathered her things and left to go into town so she could pick up the promised hot meats for dinner.
That left Niv standing alone in the bathroom a little while later, staring thoughtfully at the strange shower device while she prepared to try it out herself.
She reached out and pulled the handle the way Juno had shown her.
Water immediately began pouring from the metal head above the tub, splashing loudly against the bottom. Niv leaned closer and examined it with great interest. Juno had said that twisting the control would change the temperature, making the water either hot or cold depending on which way it turned.
Niv had experienced hot baths before in the natural hot pools that existed in the Mother’s territory. Those had always been very pleasant, especially during colder weather.
So naturally she decided to make the water hot.
She stepped carefully into the tub and leaned forward, sticking her face directly into the stream while adjusting the knob the way Juno had demonstrated. The water grew warmer and warmer as she twisted it further.
Juno had said it could be hotter.
Niv turned the knob all the way until it would not move anymore.
The moment the steaming water hit her face properly, she yelped and jerked backward out of the stream.
“Too hot!” she barked, shaking her head quickly while droplets flew everywhere.
Niv quickly reached forward and twisted the control back the other way until the water settled at something that felt merely very hot instead of painfully so. She leaned in again, a little more cautiously this time, and slowly let the stream run over the top of her head and down across her shoulders.
This time she did not flinch away.The heat spread across her skin in a pleasant way, and after a few seconds she relaxed enough to step fully beneath the falling water. The steady stream poured down over her hair and antlers, ran along the curve of her back, and splashed loudly against the bottom of the tub. Warm steam slowly filled the room, fogging the mirror on the wall and making the air feel soft and heavy.
Niv closed her eyes for a moment and simply stood there.
This was nice.
She could understand why humans would want something like this inside their dens. The hot pools back in the Mother’s territory were wonderful when she visited them, but those required traveling quite a distance and sharing the space with others. This, on the other hand, was private and always ready whenever someone wanted it.
After soaking beneath the water for a while, she remembered the other part of Juno’s instructions, the soap thing.
She stepped slightly out of the main stream and looked toward the containers that Juno had pointed out earlier. Several bottles sat lined up on a small shelf. Each one had a little nozzle on top.
Niv picked one up and examined it closely.
Juno had pressed the top of it when she demonstrated.
Niv tried doing the same thing. When she pushed down on the top of the container, a thick blob of liquid suddenly squirted out of the nozzle and dropped straight into the tub with a soft plop.
She tilted her head. That did not seem very useful, so she tried again, this time holding one of her clawed hands beneath the nozzle before pressing the top.
A ribbon of the thick liquid dropped neatly into her palm.
That worked much better.
Niv studied the substance for a moment before rubbing her hands together the way she had seen Juno do earlier. Almost immediately the slick liquid began to change. As her hands moved against each other, it started turning into a strange light foam that spread across her fingers.
She paused and stared at it in fascination.
Apparently this foam was one of the things humans used to clean themselves.
She sniffed it experimentally.
The scent was extremely strong, something floral and artificial that filled her sensitive nose with far more smell than she was used to dealing with. It was not a scent she particularly liked, but she reminded herself that this was part of the human grooming experience.
Juno used it, which meant it must be important.
So Niv sighed quietly to herself and began spreading the foamy soap across her arms and shoulders, rubbing it into her fur and doing her best to follow the strange human ritual as faithfully as she could.
It actually felt surprisingly nice once she started using it properly. The foam was soft and slippery between her fingers, and as she rubbed it across her skin it made everything feel smooth in a way that plain water never quite managed. After a moment she decided that if a little of the foamy liquid worked well, then more of it would probably work even better.
So she pressed the top of the container again and collected another portion in her palm.
Then another.
And then another after that.
Soon she was rubbing the soap all across her arms, her shoulders, and down along the length of her torso. The foam spread easily, building into thick white patches wherever her hands passed. She worked it carefully through her fur as well, massaging it in while the hot water continued to fall around her. Her long hair quickly became heavy with suds, and she even reached up to scrub gently around the base of her antlers just to make sure she was doing a thorough job of it.
Niv paused for a moment to sniff her arm again. The smell was still far stronger than she preferred, but a thought occurred to her that made her continue anyway. Maybe Juno would like the scent.
If the human used this stuff all the time, then it probably smelled normal and pleasant to her. Even if Niv did not enjoy the fragrance very much herself, it might still be worth it if it made Juno think she smelled nice. That seemed like a good reason to keep going.
By the time she finished spreading the foam across the rest of her body, she had completely emptied the container without realizing it. When she tried pressing the top again, nothing came out. Niv looked at the bottle curiously before setting it back down on the shelf.
She was now covered from head to toe in thick soap foam.
With that accomplished, she stepped fully back under the stream of hot water. The steady flow quickly began washing the foam away from her skin and fur, carrying it down into the drain along with everything else it had loosened.
Niv watched with fascination as the water running across the tub floor turned slightly cloudy. Apparently quite a lot of dirt had been hiding in her fur.
She turned slowly beneath the stream so the water could rinse every part of her properly. The soap disappeared bit by bit until her skin and fur were clean again, the last traces swirling away into the drain.
After standing there for a little while longer simply enjoying the warmth, she finally reached over and shut the water off.
The sudden silence felt strange after the constant rushing sound.
Niv shook herself vigorously, sending droplets of water flying in every direction as she tried to get as much of it out of her fur as possible. Once that was done, she spotted the towel skin thing Juno had shown her earlier hanging nearby.
She grabbed it and began patting herself dry the way the human had demonstrated.
When she finished, she paused for a moment and took a deep breath.
She felt cleaner than she had ever felt in her entire life.
And that was saying something, considering she already bathed and groomed herself every single day.
After drying herself off as much as possible, she clumsily put the towel skin back and went back into the lounge, then waited patiently for Juno to come home.