Raw

My father entered the hut, waking my mother and me. His gaze locked firmly on her as he knelt on the end of the bed. "Go on the hunt, Zora." Jumping off the bed from beside my mother, he took my place, his hand running over her body. Then I smelled it; her heat. The sweet musk that drew my father to each of his females. It smelled new, so barely started. As I exited the hut, I glanced back and saw him pull her skin apron off her shoulders to reveal her breasts. I hurried out. Making my way across our family encampment, my younger brother met me, grinning. "Zora, I'm hungry." "There's meat in the storage, go eat some," I answered, seeing my sisters gathering for a hunt and heading for them. "Get me some gazelle out there." "I'll get what we find." "Just not an ostrich again, please." I glanced down at him. At sixteen, Father would cast him out soon, like my three older brothers, to go build his own family unit... if he survived the neighboring males. So far each of my brothers had, and Hektos was stronger than any of them. "I'll find something special for you," I said. "You're the best." "Don't forget that... ever." He grinned. "Hey, you smell odd today." I rolled my eyes. I'd probably picked up some of our mother's musk. "I'll bathe while I'm out." "Watch for crocs." "Of course." He scampered away as I joined our half-sisters. My father had seven females, making him one of the dominate males in the region. My mother was his alpha, and I her only daughter. As I joined my sisters, they turned to me for direction. "Report," I ordered. "There's a herd of Zebra to the south and buffalo to the east. The wind has stayed a consistent North East all morning." "The Zebra are our best bet," I said. "What is the condition of the herd?" "Many foals, but not many elderly or lame. Three males guard the group." "Three?" I let out a long breath. One or two was normal. Three meant diligent and smart brothers. "What about the buffalo?" "The hyenas have picked off the weakest." "Hmm." I tapped my chin. "Sounds like we have a challenge today. I think the zebras are still our best bet. We need to distract the males and separate a couple of foals." We made our plan and headed out. Spreading out, we circled around downwind of the zebras. Keeping low to the ground, I spotted and marked each of the males, then pinpointed our targets; an old female, and a foal who wandered too far from the herd. I motioned for five sisters to move around upwind. They moved slowly, disappearing among the grass and shrub. The three males lifted their heads one by one, smelling the air. One looked at another. "Do you smell it?" "Is it a lion?" "Gather!" the first called. The females pulled in closer together with their young. "Zora," my sister beside me whispered. "Steady..." Our five sisters flickered into view and disappeared again. "Over there!" one of the males called. "This way!" the other two turned the herd toward us. I clung to my dagger as the herd danced toward us, watching our sisters. One of the males headed right for me. Oh, he'd be a great feast for the family. I prepared to pounce on him, knowing my sisters would follow. "Wait!" The male paused, glancing around, sniffing the air. "I smell..." "Zora, you smell like musk! He smells you," my sister whispered. He looked right at us. "They've surrounded us!" "Attack!" My sisters charged at the herd and chaos broke out. The zebra scattered, not sure where to go as we appeared from all directions. I clamped hold of the elderly female, pulling her to the ground as I slashed her throat. Two of my sisters joined me to hold her down, and not far away several others separated a foal, chasing it down. "Gather here!" One of the males called. The herd gathered atop a small hill and watched as we dragged our kills away. We headed back to our encampment, celebrating our success by singing. As we passed the waterhole, I pulled away. "I must wash. I can't walk around smelling as if I'm on heat." "You will have your own heats soon!" one of my sisters teased. "Woo the day!" I grinned as I slipped away to the waterhole. Glancing around, I removed my skin dress and leggings. I kept my leather shoes on, knowing anything could be at the bottom of the murky water. Carefully, I scanned for crocs and hippos, but seeing none, I entered. Dipping my golden hair in the water, I completely submerged, scrubbing with the smooth mud to remove my mother's scent. I stood, rinsing the mud from my skin, when movement caught my attention. I swung to my right and saw a young male standing in the bushes, his gold hair and skin shining in the sunlight as he wore only leggings. "You must be a daughter of Krosh," he said, squatting down. "Such a healthy female you are." I backed away, but a rustling behind me made me start. Another male, almost identical in appearance, bent over and dipped his fingers in the water. "Do you know who we are?" "The Barg twins." He smiled. "Yes, we have several of your sisters in our family." "I am not ready to mate." They both sniffed the air. "You smell like you are." The one behind me entered the water. I swung around, sinking lower into the water. "You smell my mother's musk on me. I'm not ready." They both inhaled deeply. "Your mother is Flit?" "Yes." They both stopped their advance. They exchanged looks and the first said, "The only daughter of the alpha female." "She'd make a great addition to our family, and I just lost my alpha," the other responded. "She'd make a strong alpha." "Even over her sisters." "Flit is the greatest alpha in the region." I backed away, heading toward a rock outcropping. Then, another male appeared directly ahead of me. Unlike the twins, he covered his golden torso with skins, and wore short leggings. In his hand, he held a spear. His dark brown hair shone in the sunlight. He stared at me, sniffing quickly. "Who are you?" the second twin asked, their attention turning to him. "Mhor, son of Cal." Cal? He came from miles away. Many family territories lay between Cal's and my father's. This Mhor looked young, only about twenty, maybe recently cast out. The twins turned their focus on him completely. "Looking to start your own family?" "Yes." He looked at me again. The twins rushed at him. I took advantage of the distraction and hurried for my clothes. I slipped my dress over my head on the run, but soon heard their footsteps rushing after me. I needed to reach the encampment. My father wouldn't take kindly to them chasing me. The twins appeared either side of me and one pushed me into the other. I stumbled, and they knocked me to the ground. "Father!" I screamed. "How close are we?" the standing brother asked, glancing around. "I don't care. She is on heat and I want her." "I'm not!" I screamed again. "Father!" "Silence her!" The twin holding me down covered my mouth. "Shh, daughter of Flit. I will make you alpha. All you need to do is mate with me." I shook my head. "Get off her!" My father's voice boomed. The twins scurried away, standing back several feet. Father stood over me, his fists clenched as I scrambled to my feet. "She isn't..." He sniffed and looked at me, raising an eyebrow. "Zora?" "Yes?" "Go to your mother." "Yes, Father." I dashed away, with him right behind me. We reached the edge of the encampment and he pulled me up. "Zora, no wonder the scent of your mother's heat seemed to fade. It's you, not her." "Me?" I tilted my head, gazing up at him. "But I don't..." "No." He touched my face. "Neither do I. It's no secret you've always been my favorite. The only daughter of Flit, my alpha, made it obvious." He sighed, then glanced around. "The twins will want you, they've wanted all your sisters before you." "I'm not ready to leave," I said, grasping his sash. "I'm not ready either." He wrapped his arm around my waist and guided me between two huts. "I can do one thing." "What's that?" "You must mate now, that is certain, but I can keep you until you bear offspring. I cannot raise another male's child, but I can protect you while you carry it." "Will you give me to the twins?" He pursed his lips. "We'll see what offers arise." He led me to my mother's hut and she met me at the door. She smiled sadly, touching my cheek. "Come, we will prepare you." My brother dashed toward us. "Zora! What is—?" Father snarled at him and he skidded to a halt. "You may no longer approach your sister." Father blocked me off, pushing me into the hut and closing the door behind Mother and me. Mother removed my clothes. "Your scent is strong," she said, pulling out a bowl to wash me. "You will draw males in from many miles." "I don't want..." My lip trembled. "What will Father do?" "He will select your mate," she said, wiping my face and neck. "And I think, since you are his favorite, he will allow you to contribute to his choice." "What if I don't want to mate?" She looked into my eyes as she washed my breasts. "Your heat will continue until you mate. Why do you think your father mates with us so quickly?" I sighed. "What would happen if I don't mate?" "Males will harass our camp, drawn to your scent, lusting after it. It will harm us as they will prevent hunting and gathering, and threaten your siblings lives." She motioned for me to lie on the ground. She shaved my armpits, legs and pubic hair. She then handed me a woven dress. "No skins while you are on heat. They make the scent stronger." I slipped on the dress and we stepped out of the tent.