PREDATORS
by Chimera Bloom
Part 10
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They disembarked the transport with scant time to spare. As they approached the entrance to the Lodge Elila could practically feel its emptiness. Together, they burst through the front doors entering a room that only last night had been brimming with people. But now it was vacant, and the heron realized just how painfully late they were.
"So, this is the Lodge…" Zeranna idled taking in the unfamiliar surrounding of the rival tribe.
"It's not what I was expecting…" She mused taking in the wooden fixtures and faded carpet.
To her, the jungle cats had always exuded wealth and luxury. She had been expecting that their accommodations would be nothing short of extravagant. But instead, the Lodge was large but quite modest.
"Well, it's certainly not like the Fluid. But it has its moments." Elila answered guiding the shark towards the staircase.
Briefly, she wondered if it was proper to allow the shark such intimate access to her tribe's accommodations. But their people were no longer at war with each other, so she could see no official reason to ask Zeranna to wait outside. Besides, she had just spent the night at the Fluid. Elila supposed that although it may seem strange or improper, there was no good reason why she couldn't give the shark a quick tour.
"It's right in here." Elila said after guiding Zeranna up three flights of stairs.
She quickly pushed open the door and ushered the shark into the room that she had shared with Kellis. She took one look around and felt her face flush a deep crimson. It was no secret what had gone in this room since her absence. The raw odor of sex still lingered in the air.
One look through the bedroom door told her all she needed to know. There were crumpled sheets lying in every different direction. There were visible stains that Elila truly cared not to identify. And the young heron felt herself buckle with anger at all that had gone on in her very own room.
Oh, she had known that Kellis had apparently purchased the concubine's services for the evening. That fact alone had literally sent her out screaming into the night. But she had never dreamed that the warrior would take the whore to her bed. After all, it was only a night ago that Elila had lain beside her wrapped in the strong circle of her arms. And for some reason the heron felt dirty, almost like she had somehow been violated in a sexually phantom manner.
"Oh my…" Zeranna whispered taking in the room's surroundings with an acute clarity that Elila just didn't even begin to realize. The heron knew that shark hybrids had an infallible and potent sense of smell. She just didn't realize how very discerning Zeranna's olfactory sense was.
The shark stood there in the center of the room inhaling the rich nuance of odors. At first she thought that Elila must have entered the wrong room. But she could smell the heron's lingering presence. The salty aroma of swamp flesh radiated from the plush sofa, the clothing in the closet, and even the sheets covering the stained mattress.
Zeranna could still detect all the sour odors of sex pouring from the bedroom. She couldn't even begin to imagine what had taken place in this room to cause such a pungent odor. But she could only smell the familiar heated aroma of jungle cat pheromones.
And there, somewhere lying in small droplets she could smell blood. It wasn't fresh. And it wasn't much. But it washed over her senses like a euphoric aphrodisiac. And as she scanned the distant room with her eyes she saw the scattered red smearing on the otherwise white sheets of the bed.
"What…?" She turned to Elila asking for some sort of explanation. She couldn't imagine that someone had violated the heron's private quarters in this way. And she really didn't understand what could possibly have gone on in the bedroom to create such a mess.
"I don't know… I was sharing my rooms. The Lodge isn't big enough to accommodate the entire tribe. But I have no idea what went on in here last night." Elila snapped storming over to the closet.
The shark watched as she pulled clothing out in a rapid furry. And just as quickly the heron locked herself away in the bathroom. Zeranna stared at the silent closed door for several long moments. She hadn't meant to upset the girl.
But Zeranna supposed that she really wasn't the cause of Elila's distress. Glancing around the shambles of the room the shark could only sympathize with the heron's anger. She too would be quite upset if someone had done this sort of thing in her private rooms.
After several more minutes and several sounds of splashing water, Elila emerged from the bathroom. She looked calmer and cleaner as she stood before her shark companion. She was wearing beautiful black shoes that gave her height at least another inch. They laced high above her ankles traveling nearly to her knees. Her blue dress was long and silky, covered with printed purple lilacs. It traveled low on her body revealing a rounded firm cleavage. But even though the dress was quite long it had an equally long slit up the middle revealing a wide expanse of creamy bare inner thighs. And much to the shark's disappointment, the heron had covered her soft neck with a thick expanse of blue lace.
Zeranna took in her carefully made-up features and could only think of a near litany of questions. Elila had left her dark hair loose and free and it swept around her body in a rolling black wave. Her green eyes were misty and a bit dazed. The shark mused that it could be due to anger or even lack of sleep. But Zeranna found the effect charming nonetheless.
But the shark couldn't help staring. She didn't see a single shred of physical evidence to prove that Elila belonged to the Fasara at all. She was beginning to think that someone had made a horrible mistake.
"So, how do I look?" Elila asked twirling a bit for so the shark could see all sides.
"Like I should have taken you back to the swamp." Zeranna answered quite truthfully. The heron only laughed, wholeheartedly agreeing with her companion's statement.
"Well, other then that?" Elila asked wanting an honest opinion. After all, it wasn't everyday that she attended her tribe's Gallion award ceremony.
"Other then that? You look great. Although I did like your outfit last night better." Zeranna answered as they finally left Elila's shared rooms.
Elila flushed a bit as she remembered what she had chosen to adorn herself in for her ill-fated night out. She couldn't help but think that she had played some part in attracting the snake to her. If she hadn't gone off all alone that whole horrid incident with Licara could have been avoided.
But as Zeranna gently took her hand to escort her from the Lodge, Elila realized that she never would have met the kind shark walking by her side. Not only that, but she never would have been to the Fluid. And she certainly would never have spoken to Carielle or Pedryn.
Yet, for some reason she couldn't help but feel that there was some important reason for these events to have happened. The heron suddenly had the strange feeling that she was living out her cosmic destiny in some sort of strangely warped fashion. And as Zeranna helped her back onto the waiting transport, Elila found herself suddenly wondering where all of this could possibly lead.
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They walked into the ceremony both a bit unsettled and unsure, but for totally separate reasons. Zeranna knew that she would certainly be unwelcome at what should be a private ceremony for the Fasara tribe. And Elila knew that she was awfully late. More then that, she knew her tardiness would be seen as a grave form of disrespect.
As they walked across the marble floor of the black and gold hall, Elila winced with every click their combined shoes made. At this rate, the entire tribe would be staring at them by the time they rounded the corner. The worst was that they were only greeted by silence.
Though they hadn't truly gotten close enough to hear much of anything, Elila could tell that the ceremony was well underway. She could just picture one of the tribe's warriors standing proudly behind the giant black podium. That would be the only reason for the permeating silence of what must be a rather large crowd.
Once the warrior was done speaking of battles won at the Gallion, she would then be presented with a medallion. Elila wasn't entirely sure who presented the individual awards but she assumed that it was most likely Kellis. And once the shiny gold trophy had been firmly secured around the warrior's neck the entire tribe would erupt in cheers and applause.
Unfortunately for Elila and Zeranna, it would appear that someone was in the midst of their speech. The heron froze in the long hall stopping the motions of the shark. If they walked any closer she knew they would inadvertently disrupt the entire ceremony with the sheer sound of their walking. They would have to wait, at least for the next round of applause.
The shark looked at her with a strange expression wondering why they had suddenly stopped. Elila simply motioned for them to wait. And Zeranna silently slid to the floor getting comfortable for their shared silence.
The heron looked down and smiled brightly at the shark. Even though she had told Zeranna that she didn't need an escort all the way into the tribal ceremony room, the shark had absolutely insisted. And even though Elila doubted that the cobra was still somewhere lurking about, she appreciated the gesture nonetheless. Besides, Zeranna had confessed that she was under strict orders from Pedryn to make sure that Elila was returned safely to her tribe.
Suddenly, Elila heard the loud claps and shouting cheers that she had been waiting for. Roughly grabbing Zeranna's hand they ran at a quick pace down to the tribal room. Even though the noise of her fellow tribe mates completely covered their entrance, it took only a matter of seconds for most eyes to drift in their direction.
They rounded the black marbled corner and fled into a long hollow room. Instantly, Elila noticed how perfect the acoustic were in such a hall. Even without electric amplification one voice coming from the stage could be heard clearly above everything else.
But the heron couldn't help but be caught up in the rather enchanting surroundings of the ceremonial hall. Right away, she noticed the beautiful jungle flowers arranged in exquisite bouquets of red, gold, and orange. And Elila couldn't help but briefly stare at the flickering light of the floating candles as they languidly danced through the large blue tiled fountain.
She almost felt overwhelmed by the rich and sweet aroma of the air all around her. Looking over the flowers the heron noticed how beautiful even the stage appeared with its orange and black marbled tile. There were even beautiful ribbons falling down the sides of the stage displaying the colors of the Fasara tribe.
Her eyes drifted back through the hall and that's when she noticed the wide rows of large plush black leather seats spread out as far as the eye could see. In the very front of the hall she could see the back of Yamina's familiar form. And looking at the people seated around her, Elila realized that the members of the tribal council were all expected there.
A bit displeased, Elila realized there was no seat vacant to quietly slip into. Not knowing what else to do she silently moved to the back corner of the hall and slumped against the cool wall stretched out behind her. Zeranna followed ready to say her good-byes and make her way back to her own tribe.
But much to the shark's displeasure, Zeranna quickly found that she would be spending more time amongst the jungle cats. Before she could even whisper a few parting words to the heron, the hall grew suddenly quiet. The previously exuberant jungle cats all returned to their seats growing instantly silent.
Not wanting to cause a scene or further disrupt the ceremony, the shark leaned next to the heron trying to remain as inconspicuous as possible. But despite her best efforts, Zeranna couldn't manage to make her 7-foot stature disappear. And before the shark knew what had happened, the eyes of the audience were suddenly fixated on the very back of the room.
Elila had seen it happen first. A few people in the very back of the hall had glanced her over. She knew what they were thinking. First she had been late to the Gallion. Now she was late to the awards ceremony. And being the Alpha's daughter, she really had no excuse for her behavior.
But right away the heron saw the people weren't looking at her with the usual latent scorn or contempt. They were alarmed and surprised by the presence of the towering shark standing by her side. They all looked her right in the eyes as if to silently ask for an explanation. She even saw a few people try to mouth questions in her direction. But Elila didn't read lips. And even if she did she certainly didn't care what any of them had to say.
Zeranna wanted nothing more then to turn and walk away. But she knew that would only cause more gawking stares and whispered questions. Besides, she wasn't doing anything wrong. She glanced over at Elila hoping that her tribe's silent rush of gossip wasn't upsetting her. But much to her relief, the heron seemed rather unaffected by the pointing and stares.
But somewhere in the very front of the long ceremonial hall, there was one person rather unsettled by Elila's return. And she had to resist her every temptation to run screaming from the hall. Because even though Yamina was very relieved to see the heron, she was petrified of the shark looming by her side.
At first, she couldn't believe what she was seeing. But it appeared that there was in fact a Midali warrior standing right by her friend. And the strangest thing was that Elila seemed indifferent about it. Almost like she wasn't frightened at all.
But Yamina had such a hard time believing that. She couldn't begin to understand what in the world the shark hybrid was doing there with her friend. And she desperately wanted to know where Elila had been for the entire length of a rather long night. Yet, she knew she would have to save her questions for later. Kellis had once again returned to the podium and the ceremony was still far from being completed.
And yet, Yamina found that she couldn't concentrate on a single word that came from the golden warrior's mouth. Her eyes kept stealing glances towards the back of the now darkened hall. But it didn't matter that the lights had dimmed. She could still clearly see the large towering outline of the shark off in the distance. Even the silver material of the shark's clothing glimmered brightly in the air.
But as Yamina made the conscious effort to turn back around her seat, that's when she realized what had happened. Everyone had turned in their chairs trying to catch a silent glance at the heron and her shark. And eventually, Yamina noticed that even Kellis had stopped speaking.
Looking up at the tribe's premier warrior, Yamina couldn't quite figure out what was happening. But then she clearly saw it; Kellis was boiling with rage and potent fury. And as she looked at the white-hot anger dancing across the golden warrior's features, she couldn't even begin to imagine what would happen next.
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Elila looked up as she realized that the room had suddenly grown quiet. Kellis stood behind the podium looking rather perfect in her formal leathers. But the golden jungle cat seemed to be interested in the heron and her companion. And Elila glanced at the shark nervously wondering why Kellis had stopped speaking.
But Zeranna seemed unconcerned as the entire Fasara warriors slowly trained their gaze on her. In fact, the shark seemed outright bored. And as the minutes ticked by, Elila realized that there was some sort of silent communication occurring between the shark and the jungle cat.
Their eyes were trained only on each other. And all the other warriors seemed to be waiting for some kind of queue from Kellis. But whatever they were waiting for never came.
Instead, Elila watched as Kellis focused on her with a cold hard stare. And then before the heron could even guess what had happened, Kellis returned to her duties as master of ceremony. The warrior loudly cleared her throat pulling everyone's attention back to her.
And then she dived right back into the swing of things, like nothing had ever happened. Elila looked at the shark hoping for some sort of explanation but Zeranna only shrugged her shoulders equally confused by the jungle cat's actions.
"Well, now the next award is something very dear to me. As I'm sure most of you know. Before I became the team alpha I used to fill this role in defense for out tribe…" Elila only partially listened to the voice of the golden warrior. She was too uncomfortable and tired to truly care what Kellis was saying.
Instead, she scanned the audience with her eyes looking for anything else to catch her attention. It wasn't long before her gaze tripped across the blatant stare of Narlene. Elila had no idea why Narlene would be so intrigued by her arrival but apparently the pristine jungle cat simply couldn't look away.
"Elila?" The heron turned her body firmly against the shark's as Zeranna tried to whisper something in ear.
"There's a woman in the next to the last row on the left side of the hall. She keeps staring at us. And I don't think she's supposed to be here." Zeranna whispered certain that no one else could have heard her near-silent communication.
Elila pulled away scanning the audience. And that's when she saw the unmistakable leer of Kellis' favorite concubine. She had no idea why Zelsi would find her so interesting. But the heron really couldn't be sure that the concubine was really even staring at her. After all, it could be the rather large attractive shark standing at her side that was the cause of such fuss.
"That's Zelsi." Elila muttered not wishing to discuss the concubine with anyone.
"But…she's a…" Zeranna frantically whispered into the heron's ear.
Zeranna stopped her sentence mid-thought not certain that she should really continue. As a warrior for her tribe she had traveled a lot. And one didn't travel far in the kingdom without running into women in the profession of flesh. It was a nasty business and one that Zeranna stayed as far from as possible.
But the shark had easily learned to read the signs and indicators of prostitution. The women always had something dead about them. It was almost like they were simply bodies devoid of souls. Sometimes, she found it almost painful to look at them. They were normally all so hurt and wounded, at least on the inside.
"Yeah, she's a concubine…" Elila replied easily finishing Zeranna's thought.
The shark pulled away from her in abject shock. She couldn't believe that the heron had known all along that there was a woman of ill-repute sitting there amongst the rest of the tribe. And from the looks of things, the woman was surrounded by some of the wealthiest members of the entire tribe. As Zeranna watched them whisper to the concubine, she realized all too clearly just what was going on.
"Everyone knows?" Zeranna whispered trying to make sense of this rather strange occurrence. Elila quickly nodded and the shark felt overwhelmed by sheer confusion.
Of course, these women existed in her own native Midali tribe. But they weren't taken out to important awards ceremonies. And they certainly weren't allowed to mingle with the rest of the tribe. The sale of sex was seen as deeply shameful to the Midali. And Zeranna couldn't believe that the jungle cats appeared so very unaffected by the whole thing.
"Look over there…" Elila whispered.
And from there, the heron pointed out all the familiar concubines to her tribe. Elila had to stop herself from laughing aloud as she watched the look of shock and horror cross the shark's face. It was quite apparent that concubines weren't allowed such privileges in the Midali tribe.
"This is unbelievable." Zeranna whispered unable to even comprehend such improper behavior.
But just as she was about to ask Elila for more clarification, the audience erupted in more cheering. Zeranna knew that if she was going to make a quiet exit that now was the time. Quickly, she turned back to the heron who was already prepared to say good-bye.
"Thanks for everything." Elila said, smiling warmly at her newest friend.
"You're quite welcome. You're going to be okay?" Zeranna asked not sure that she should really leave Elila. Even though it was clear that the heron was out of mortal danger something still felt off. The shark really didn't know what it was but there was something bothering her about the whole ordeal.
"I'll be fine." Elila said reassuring the shark so that she could leave.
It surprised her, but Elila found that she didn't really want Zeranna to go. In the short time Elila had known her, she had come to enjoy the shark's company. And with Yamina so physically far away she wasn't excited about having stand all alone in the back of the hall. But Elila knew it would be best for Zeranna to go.
"Wait!" Elila called out catching Zeranna before she moved too far away.
"Where is the Midali hall?" Elila asked.
She wasn't sure why she really wanted to know. She had absolutely no reason to go looking for the sharks ever again. But for some unknown reason Elila still felt compelled to ask.
"It's over in the aquatic building. It's on the basement floor, third room on your left." Zeranna answered not thinking much of the heron's question. With one more smile and wave, the shark finally disappeared down the hall leaving Elila to fend for herself.
The heron wandered back to her place resting against the large white wall. She noticed that despite the noise and activities cascading all around them, Kellis seemed quite interested in her again. It was quite unnerving the way Kellis was studying her body with her eyes. And in all honesty, Elila had no idea what was going through her friend's mind…
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She was barely unable to get through the rest of the ceremony. All she wanted to do was leap off the stage and go charging after the shark. Kellis couldn't believe that anyone would have the nerve to stand there and partake in what was obviously a very private event for her tribe.
What was truly bothering her was that Elila had just stood there. The heron had lingered in the back of the room like some sort of outsider only casually listening in on the awards ceremony that she should really be at the heart of. She was the alpha's daughter. One day her mate would rule the tribe.
But Elila never seemed to care about such trivial matters. She constantly acted like attending a formal tribal ceremony was nothing more then a bother. Kellis had witnessed first hand on countless occasions how truly disinterested Elila could be when it came to the jungle cats.
And the golden warrior had reached her limit. Elila had barely contributed to the festivities surrounding the Gallion. Kellis couldn't remember one single occasion that the heron had volunteered to participate in. She only ever went when her tribal duties demanded it.
For some reason Kellis couldn't help but stare at Narlene, if only briefly. Narlene was the perfect epitome of spirit and enthusiasm. Kellis stared down at her own necklace that Narlene had mostly likely worked on for months. Narlene was at every single event, every single tribal function, and was normally the last one to leave every party.
Briefly, Kellis let her mind consider a union with the girl. But she knew such a coupling would be terribly ill fated. While she definitely respected and admired Narlene's dedication to the tribe, she knew that most of the time Narlene only annoyed her. Unlike Elila, she had no deeper feelings for the blonde cat.
But as Kellis thought more about her relationship with the heron she realized that something must be done. One day, she firmly intended to marry Elila. And it would be completely unacceptable for her wife to behave in the way that Elila did today. She couldn't imagine what could have possessed the heron to bring a shark hybrid to the ceremony. But Kellis had no intention of letting such an action go by unnoticed.
In fact, as soon as the ceremony was over she intended to sit down and have a very long talk with the heron about appropriate behavior. For the longest time she had let Elila's social faux pas go by uncommented on. Kellis knew that if she intervened that girl would expect more of a commitment from her. And even though she was far from ready to take that last step towards marriage, Kellis felt that it was time to become a bit more involved in Elila's life.
Finally, she heard the sounds of their tribal song coming from the speakers all around her. The ceremony had officially finished. And Kellis couldn't be more grateful. She was quite tired of putting on a fake show of cheerfulness.
The hall exploded in a rampant chorus of cheers, song and dance while Kellis tried to make her way off the stage. The music was loud and quite painful to her as she searched the thronging crowd for signs of the heron. But as she made her way onto the audience floor Kellis found her passage blocked by several well-meaning tribe mates. As the premier warrior, simply every single person in attendance wanted to congratulate her.
And as much as she wanted to stalk off after Elila, she regretfully realized that she couldn't. She would have to remain right were she was. As a warrior she was honor bound to listen to the comments and praise of every single one of her tribe mates. But she knew this round of congratulations wouldn't go on forever. Sometime when all this was over, she would finally express her extreme disappointment to the heron. And hopefully, Elila would learn to treasure the value of tribal loyalty.
But Yamina had no such problems cutting her way through the crowd. There was no warrior expecting to receive a warm embrace and a few kind words from her. She was quite free to exit the hall at an absurdly rapid pace.
She easily spotted Elila waiting for her. With the entire tribe crowding around the stage they had the entire rest of the hall virtually to themselves. Yamina stood there staring at her friend for a few long moments. She was so terribly relieved to see that the heron was all right and unharmed.
"Hey…" Elila called out watching the play of emotions dance across her friend's face.
She couldn't help but notice how tired Yamina looked. And Elila realized with a rather pronounced sense of guilt that she was most likely the cause of it. But aside from her tired blue eyes and slightly swollen golden skin, Yamina looked amazing. The heron couldn't help but notice that her floor length silky black dress must have been tailored especially for this ceremony.
And Yamina had her long blonde hair swept up high upon her head in a rather intricate and complicated looking braid. Elila had to simply stare it for several lengthy minutes just trying to figure out how her friend had even accomplished it. As she looked at her friend, Elila just couldn't fathom how her friend had remained single.
Even though Elila knew that Narlene was universally considered the perfect expression of jungle cat beauty, the heron couldn't help but disagree. Yamina was so regal with her tall height, elegant grace, and rounded frame. Elila couldn't help but marvel at her friend's rather unnoticed beauty.
"Where have you been?" Yamina asked as she embraced her friend.
"Oh, you would not even begin to believe the night that I had." Elila answered returning her friend's affectionate embrace.
"I was so worried… What happened?" Yamina asked pulling away to study the heron's appearance more closely.
Right away she could tell that something was wrong. Elila was more then tired. She seemed hurt and wounded. Even her skin felt heated and feverish.
"Are you all right?" Yamina asked truly worried for her friend.
"No, I'm not. I'm sick." Elila answered peering around her friend's form to see that the crowd was beginning to make their way to the exit.
"What is it? What's happened?" Yamina asked knowing that something was very wrong with her friend.
"Let's walk, okay?" Elila answered not wanting anyone else to overhear the details of her evening.
Yamina readily agreed wanting nothing more then to be free of the ceremonial hall. They quickly escaped down the long marbled floor that eventually led them to the gardens. Both girls immediately winced in pain when the bright noon sun suddenly filled the air all around them.
"Gods that's bright." Elila mumbled wishing that she had remembered to bring something for her eyes.
"So, don't keep me in suspense." Yamina gently chastised. The heron glanced around realizing that there was considerable distance between them and the rest of the tribe. Since it would be at least another hour before the banquet began, Elila knew that it was time to tell her friend all that had happened.
She gently guided Yamina over to a blossoming rollen bush. They sat next to it, neither caring that their nice clothes were resting upon the moist grass. They had other things to be concerned with besides fashion.
But as Elila looked at her friend she just wasn't sure where to start. So much had happened in one night. And she knew that much of it would terribly upset Yamina. Elila couldn't help but wonder if she should even tell her friend that she had met Carielle.
Glancing at the garden quietly blossoming all around them, Elila only hoped that an hour would be long enough. She knew that her friend would have many questions. The only problem was that Elila didn't have any answers to give, especially where the sharks were concerned.
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She was silent as everything that the heron told her slowly drifted into her mind. Several times she had wanted to interrupt. She wanted an explanation or a question answered. But she never moved her lips. Yamina just couldn't bring herself to stop Elila's words.
And truthfully, it was because she couldn't bare the truth. If she asked for clarification or even more information, then Elila just might give it to her. The heron might actually tell her what the sound of Carielle's voice was like. The heron might even tell her if Carielle had mentioned that night in the water.
But more then anything, she simply wanted Elila to finish her tale. She wanted the heron to hurry up and get it over with. Because Yamina knew that she could go a lifetime without ever again having to hear her rapist called by name.
"I have to get out of here…" Yamina mumbled.
Somewhere in the midst of Elila's rather long story she had forgotten everything that she wanted to tell the heron. She had forgotten about all those little nuggets that she had been holding onto for the better part of the evening. She had even forgotten about Zelsi and her wrenching run-in with Narlene. All she cared about was escape and finding someway to put all thoughts of Carielle far from her mind.
"Yamina wait! I'm sorry. I thought I should tell you everything. I didn't want to keep things from you." Elila answered.
The heron had only done what she thought was best. She felt that Yamina deserved to hear the whole story, even despite her desire to protect her friend. And truthfully, Elila didn't have much to tell her. Her actual contact with Carielle had been short and limited.
But Elila knew that it was everything that she hadn't said to Carielle that was intrinsically important. She hadn't told Yamina what she had read between the lines and curves of the shark's rather expression-filled face. And Elila was beginning to wonder if that was a mistake.
Perhaps, Yamina deserved to know that the heron was very surprised by Carielle's calm and cautious appearance. Maybe it would somehow sooth Yamina to know that the shark had seemed contrite and almost nervous by her presence. Yet, the heron never opened her mouth to say anything about the emotions that were crackling between them. It wouldn't do her friend any good to hear her guesses at the shark's real motives. Yamina only deserved honesty, not Elila's own brand of intuition.
"I know, it's okay." Yamina hastily said pulling herself up from the wet grass.
She knew that Elila needed her. She knew that Elila had been through a very traumatic and painful event. After all, Elila had spent the night in the company of Pedryn.
But there was nothing that Yamina could do to comfort her friend. She was too emotionally wrecked just hearing about it. And despite her best wishes to sit back down and talk to her about it, Yamina just couldn't. She simply couldn't bare to hear anymore.
And she couldn't even tolerate the knowledge. She had the sudden desire to wash every single one of Elila's words right out of her mind. But there was no way for her to truly forget. She would always know that her friend had been amongst the Midali, even if only for a short while.
"I'm sorry…I have to go." Yamina said apologizing for her weakness.
Not only did Elila need her, but she also knew that there was a banquet where her presence was expected. But Yamina would have to miss it. She could feel the tears of unspeakable terror and excruciating pain threatening to break free. Hearing about Carielle and the rest of the sharks, just brought it all crashing back. And now she desperately needed the quiet darkness of solitude.
Briefly, Yamina realized that she was about to fail in one of her most important tribal duties. But she knew in her mind and heart that it couldn't be helped. And besides, her parents were very understanding when it came to her emotions, especially since the incident. Once she told them what happened they would be glad that she had taken some time for herself. They were always so worried about her.
"Elila, I'm so sorry… for everything…" Yamina answered wishing once more that could be more supportive for her friend. After all, she had simply heard of all that the heron had been through. Elila actually had to live it.
"It's all right. I'm fine. You should go back to the Lodge rest." Elila said sounding far calmer then she actually felt.
Yamina didn't argue with her. She couldn't. She wanted to go and the heron was allowing her to do so without the added weight of guilt. She meekly nodded trying to give her friend one last tired smile before leaving. Elila really did seem to have everything under control. And just once, Yamina wished that she too could be as strong as the heron.
Elila watched her friend go suddenly wishing that she were leaving as well. On top of the venom making its way through her system, she was exhausted. She had been hunted for most of the evening. And the rest had been spent in the company of her former enemies. All Elila wanted to do was rest. But she just didn't see how that would be possible anytime in the near future.
Today's banquet was very important, at least socially. Elila knew that her parents would never forgive her if she didn't attend, even if she told them all her valid reasons for not wanting to go. She let her mind drift over the rather terrifying images of the snake coiling around her. And she knew that it would probably be best to never mention any part of her rather long night to her parents. They would just blame her, for everything. And she could certainly do without the hassle.
She saw most of her tribe off in the distance. They were all filing across the garden making their way to the banquet hall. Unfortunately, the banquet was yet another private tribal function. And for Elila, that meant a great deal of discomfort. Now that Yamina was gone, she would be quite alone in the very midst of a crowd. And it was a paradox that the heron was growing rather tired of.
Deciding that it would be in her best interest to find a seat, Elila made her way into the banquet room. It was a large room filled with four massively expansive tables. The tables were so long that if seated at one end, it was nearly impossible to see all the way to the other side.
She looked around the room noticing that the tables were laid out to very clearly indicate social status within the tribe. The table in the middle was the most important of all the others. She knew that as team alpha, Kellis would have the most prized seat at the very head of the table. And as the alpha's daughter, Elila knew that her rightful place was there next to Kellis.
But Elila would never dare to presume anything about her birthright. Despite her genetics, the heron knew that only the swamp would openly claim her parentage. Even though her parents were lawfully married and conceived her many years after their nuptials, she was treated no better then a bastard child. And as such, Elila knew that she really had no place amongst the people of the jungle cat tribe.
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CONTINUED...