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Chapter 3

When she woke up, everything felt a lot warmer. Skan stood right next to her, his warm belly pressed against her side.

"Sleepy kitty finally makes eyes."

"Skan..."

"No no no," the male placed a soft paw on her head. "I know what you're thinking, but now is not the time to talk about concerns. Everything's fine. I forgive you."

Skanita pressed her tail against her vent -a habit she developed ever since the affliction took hold of her- then rolled onto her belly. "How long was I asleep?"

"About two hours give or take. Father has yet to return from his hunt. My guess is he found another wolf to chase into the neighboring lands. No canine can keep his tail safe with him around."

"Do you like them?"

"Who, wolves?"

Skanita dipped her tired head and purred when Skan bumped her nose, then watched her brother roll onto his back with a smile.

"I find them interesting. Wish we had the chance to actually meet a member of their species instead of assuming the worst about them." Skan grabbed his tail between his forepaws to nip, swish, and play with the tip as he liked. "The wolves we know only come from mother's tales. Blunt claws, bushy tails, I know a thing or two about how they look, but not about how they are."

The male released his tail and looked over to his sister. "Aren't you envious she lived a much more exciting life than us? I mean, think of all the cougars she met! The whole world was at her feet and out of all possible mates, she picked the craziest one."

"Skan..."

"I know, he's our father and we have to respect him even if I don't agree with his ridiculous self imposed restrictions. Don't go there, don't do that. He is taking himself far too seriously."

"He's our provider."

"And that means we have to bow down to his rule and lick his paws every time he brings us a kill?" Skan rolled back on his feet. "Come on Nita. You know I am more than capable of doing the same. In fact...I can spoil you beyond your wildest dreams...you but have to open yourself to the new, exciting possibilities. To...me."

Open...herself...to him? Her heart quickened at the hundreds of implications that sentence had, for there was a single outcome that burned in her mind: the image of her wet, hot, needy folds speared by his crimson lance. A thought so exciting that it made Skanita moisten herself in an instant.

And at the same time, a dream far removed from the boundaries of reality, for no matter how hard she yearned to make that fantasy whole, Skanita knew the family rules just as good as her parents. All forms of inter familiar coupling were explicitly forbidden. Failure to comply meant exile, or perhaps something even worse.

"Nita?"

The female shuddered back to awareness. "I already love you Skan...as only a sister can."

The male's cheerful expression lessened somewhat. "I love you too, my dear half. More than you can think of actually."

"What do you mean?"

"Why don't we ask those cute ears of yours?"

The scuffle that followed got Skanita's energy levels high enough to mobilize her out of their chamber. The two cougars walked side by side through the short tunnel that tied the sleeping quarters to the main chamber together. They greeted Maka in turns by rubbing heads together and nuzzling her along the cheeks. Like Skanita, she was a tad smaller than her mate, with clear sapphire eyes that resembled the sky on a sunny day. And kind...so kind that the sun's warmth seemed a pale shadow in comparison. Maka was a people's pleaser at heart, always sacrificing herself for her family's happiness.

With the morning ritual done, the cougars settled for a long dialogue about the history of their little world until Han returned with the two promised fawns. Her brother Skan offered to help with one of the kills, only to be savagely turned down by his father.

"It's my kill. My meal! I decide who carries it, who splits it, who eats what!"

Han's stern nature came as no news for the other cougars, but on the wrong day, the head of the family could very easily be your enemy. Han split the two fawns according to his own calculations. He got most of the premium organs like the heart and the liver, while his mate Maka received whatever slab of meat she desired. Today, she felt like eating flank.

Skanita came next. Since she had no particular preference, Han gave her all the remaining good things, while Skan received the leftovers.

"Stop doing that," he hissed silently at his sister. The two siblings ate back enough inside the cave to talk freely, and with the sounds of chewing and broken bones a few well timed whispers avoided the patron's attention.

"Take this meat at least. It's chest or something like that." Skanita pushed over the piece to her brother, who snatched it quickly with his sharp claws.

"I hate when you put yourself at risk. It's obvious father wants me to hunt for myself. Why else would he treat me like trash?"

"Surely it has nothing to do with your kind offer to help him out?"

"No," Skan munched silently. After he gulped down his piece, he continued. "Our father gets weird at times, but he raised us this far. You only tell me that every time I criticize his methods."

Skanita laughed on the inside. The same cougar that bragged about spoiling her was now defending the competition!

"How can you spoil me if you live under his rule?"

"It's...that's more complicated than that. You know it." Skan said.

Yes. She knew it well enough to savor the rest of her meal in silence. After they ate, it was customary for a family to clean together, and the four cougars were no exception. It mattered not whose paw you got, or what muzzle licked at your own face. Mutual grooming was a time for unity, a way to strengthen family bonds. A time to grow affection by lessening the lingering enmity that lurked inside every living creature. Han might've carried a bit more than others, but he did not show it, licking the blood from his son's neck in the same way he cleaned everybody else, with patience and affection.

Once clean, the four cougars went out in the sun for a brief time of relaxation before they had to commence their daily duties. They split in pairs. Han with his mate, Skanita with her brother.

"Look at them," Skan pointed his head at his playful parents. "Behaving like they did before we were even born. You think they still love each other as much?"

Skanita didn't give an immediate answer. In a way, she enjoyed seeing her mother spoiled by her mate. Han was treating her hind paws, and by the looks of it, he knew what he was doing. Long strokes of tongue carried his tongue from the dusty pads down to the muscled thighs. Then, he traveled just outside the reach of her pussy to her other leg, where he resumed the treatment all over again.

"Nita? You don't think they're just putting on a show for us?"

"What if they do?" Skanita pawed at her brother's head. "I rarely get my paws licked like that."

"Maybe next time you'll think of asking."

Skanita nuzzled under his neck. Meanwhile, her tail snuck under the male's butt to rub his deliciously sensitive spheres. Skan's eyes bulged with panic, expecting another dirty trick from her, but Skanita knew he wasn't stupid enough to muster any form of complaint or retaliation when his father relaxed a relatively short distance away from them.

"Since you offered your services in such a kind way...what would you think about cleaning me down there?"

The male remained completely stupefied.

"Come on. It's not like I asked you..." Skanita licked his neck all the way up to the ear, where she whispered seductively, "to put it inside me."

Skan didn't just shudder. He jerked up, stumbling into Skanita and toppling them both on their sides.

"Clumsy paws!"

"Clumsy what?! Did you just hear yourself back then? Because our father could have!"

Skanita grabbed onto the male to pull him against her chest. "He knows how to treat his mate unlike some other males."

"I'm not even considering-"

"How about I lick you there instead?"

Skan just shot her an incredulous look before he pushed the ground with all his paws. Unfortunately for him, Skanita was just as big as him, and almost just as strong. Certainly strong enough to hold her brother's head pinned down between her forelegs.

"I will smother your little stick under my tongue like you've never felt before. Then I will taste you. Slowly. Before I take you whole member inside my mouth," Skanita pressed her muzzle against her brother's. "And I promise to hold you captive no matter how hard you thrash or throb. Even when you unleash your final roar, I'll still cling on to you so that I can taste every goodness you hide in those big beautiful spheres you proudly carry beneath your gorgeous tail."

Skanita didn't even wait for his reply. She kissed him outright, her playful tongue brushing against his frozen one like an eel out of the water. Skan never did anything. Even when she pulled back, he was still staring at her as if he just escaped a tight encounter with death.

"Oh, don't tell me you're turning into your father." She slapped him playfully with her tail. "Han never said anything about an innocent little kiss. Come on. Snap out of it before I snap you for real."

Skan slowly crawled to his own space where he curled around himself as tightly as he could. Skanita moved over to berate him for such a silly response, then froze when her brother's fresh musk seeped into her nostrils.

"Skan...did you..."

He placed his head on the ground then covered his eyes with a paw.

"Oh...you silly little thing," Skanita dropped next to him. "It would've been weird if you didn't feel anything with such a striking female next to you. Ask mother. She will agree!"

"But our father...what if he saw us?"

Skanita spared a quick glance to see Han cuddling with his mate in a very similar way she did with Skan.

"Mother's keeping his attention focused in a single place. Her. Why do you have to worry so much about little gestures like this? They only ever told us not to mate, and that's because I can birth monsters. Me. Not you. So don't worry about having a cub with two heads, five legs, and three serpentine tails coming out your butt because if anything ever happens -and I'm not saying it will- it's my body who will get heavy with your little bastards!"

Skan covered his face with his second paw. "Gods be good, my dear little sister...she's even crazier than father."

"I'm not that little," Skanita calmed him down with licks but she couldn't help herself from making one last remark. "Certainly not as small as your you know what."

Her moment of fun came to an abrupt end when Han called them over to talk about this new threat that invaded their territory. "I want your ears sharp on this one. Nod if you understand."

The three cougars nodded one by one. They were all grouped up, eyes fixed on Han. The male rested on his haunches in front of them, a stern look about his face.

"There is a new threat that has been prodding at the boundaries of our territory. The scent marks indicate a cougar, on top of all the wolves I had to deal with these past few weeks." Han bared his fangs in irritation. "For that reason, I want you to keep your activities close to our home. I don't care whether it's hunting, playing, marking or otherwise. You stay where I can find you."

"What about you, father?" Skanita inquired. "Are you sure he's a cougar and not another wolf?"

"That a serious question?" Han snarled. "I don't care who or what he is. I shall deal with this misguided opportunist right after we finish our briefing. Now, unless there are more obvious questions to ask, I have a stranger to greet."

Han got up on his fours, almost leaving before Skanita opened her mouth again.

"Greet? Or hurt him?"

"Whatever he chooses, my daughter. It baffles my mind why you care so much about a lowly wanderer that goes around peeing on the territories of his betters. He will get what he deserves. Nothing less, nothing more."

"But what if he's one of us, father? You can't just harm a cougar based on-"

"Watch me!" the male's heavy growl put his whole family on edge. When he realized that, Han softened his voice. "Why can't you understand? This intruder is a threat to our stability. I don't expect you to know what it takes to defend a territory, but in time, you will learn. One day, you will have your own land, cubs, family to worry about. Responsibilities that bring great joy, along with difficult decisions. I made mine. This intruder is a threat that must be cut down before it takes root, least we find our soil crumbled beneath the weight of his growth!"

Skanita's claws poked out of their sheaths. Stay idle, while her father extinguished the only hope for a potential mate? That was something she could not do. With courage and fear pounding within her chest, Skanita walked towards her father. "I think you're wrong."

"Excuse me?"

Skanita kept advancing. "You've become overzealous! Seeing enemies where there are none! Why can't you give this cougar a chance? Speak with him a little before you unsheathe claws against him?"

Skanita's courage shriveled when she found herself with the head of the family inches away from her nose. Han's moist breath fell over her face, his bared fangs dripping with gooey saliva. "I won't have my judgment questioned by a female even if she happens to be my own daughter, You will obey everything I say!"

Han shoved Skanita away, then took a few steps back, addressing everybody. "You are my blood. All of you reside here, in the heart of my land, enjoying the prey and the safety that I offer because I wish it to! Be humble. Be grateful. Because everything I do, all the sacrifices that I make, are for the good of my family!"

Silence reigned after Han's speech. The male licked his lips, turned around, then ran away in complete silence.

"He really means business with that trespasser," Skan got up. "So I guess we'll spend the whole day outside our beautiful cave. How lovely."

"That would be a wise course of action," Maka said. "His methods might sound harsh when spoken, but Han cares about our family."

The female got up on her fours to look over her cubs with sincerity burning in her eyes. "When did we ever go hungry? Have we ever felt threatened when his keen eyes kept us protected? I, for one, think neither of us has the right to question Han's judgment."

"Gods, mother! Will you ever stop defending him?" It was Skanita's turn to stand up now. "Every time he lashes back at us, there is a perfectly viable excuse latched onto your tongue. In spite of everything Han provides us with, he finds himself completely unable to populate this area with more cougars. It's his fault the only possible mate I have is my own brother!"

Maka completely froze, and Skan was no better off, looking at Skanita as if she just lost her mind. Maybe she did, but from the moment Han mentioned the possibility of another cougar, Skanita knew she had to find him before her father did, with or without the help of her brother.

"Nita! Skanita, wait!"

Skanita let the words fly on deaf ears. Her brother's pitiful pleas paled in comparison to the fire burning within her belly, a primal thing as old as the world that pushed her to satisfy the utmost goal of any species: continue their bloodline long after the earth claimed their dusty bones.

Mating had been at the forefront of her mind for days. Hard, aching days with nothing but dreams and promises to quench her ravenous heat. When she had that intimate moment with Skan on the river's shore, Skanita believed she shared something special with him. Mate. That's what he had suggested. A word that was supposed to bear significance when parted from her lips.

But right now, she felt anything but that. Her games with Skan were just that. Games. Meaningless ways to pass the time in the absence of a real partner.

The urge to see her burning pussy drenched by the fertile seed of a proper male kept her body fueled with unnatural energy as she ran. dulling aches and balming her seething throat until her body completely succumbed to exhaustion. Skanita crawled towards the roots of a nearby tree, then collapsed, watching the tiny speck in the distance slowly regain the semblance of her brother.

"You are...a stubborn cat to catch..." Skan panted heftily. He swiped off the froth that gathered around his muzzle then dropped onto his belly. "So you want to find the intruder before father, huh?"

"You won't understand my reasoning, so why bother wasting your breath on words?"

"Try me."

Skanita would've bared fangs if she had the energy. "I love you, brother...but before my brother, you are a male."

With a sigh, she relaxed against the tree's messy roots. "How could you possibly know the pains that keep me awake at night? The hot sting that burns beneath my tail? Everything we've done...everything I tried so far has been for naught." Skanita growled. "I feel...exhausted trying to find alternate ways. Like an annoying tick, this problem persists until I find a way to rid myself of it...permanently."

"And you think that leaping on a stranger's cock will make all these problems go away? This isn't you, Nita. You're smart, charming, beautiful...but you are not thinking straight right now. What can this stranger give you that I can't?"

That question posed a few problems. For one, she rarely thought about what would happen beyond the act itself, but she couldn't admit that to her brother. He had been ensnared in her ploy, she couldn't let on that his new cougar could be a potential suitor, lest he abandoned her prematurely. No. She needed him by her side in case her new plan went awry.

After they caught their breath in silence, Skanita crawled over to her brother, nuzzling into his chest. "You have provided a great deal of comfort, brother. I had you by my side when no other ally would aid me. Mother, father...they speak as if I'm still a cub, refusing to part with any knowledge about my condition. I know there's something wrong with me. You know it too!"

"I wouldn't necessarily say that, but-"

Skanita bumped her muzzle against his. "You've smelled my scent."

"Which is more or less the same, apart from...a slight change owed to your condition." He continued when he saw himself face to face with an irritated female.

"Glad you have the sense to still speak the truth. Has father told you anything about this intruder? Location where he was last seen, his plans, anything of note?"

"Me? Why would he confide in his unworthy son?" It was Skan's turn to get irritated. "You've seen how he burst when I tried to help, always feeding me scraps and calling them a feast. I prefer to have nothing to do with my beloved father apart from the barest of family necessities."

"Living in his territory and eating his kills is anything but." Skanita corrected. "We need him. For the time being, at least."

"For the time being," Skan agreed. "Should you find yourself a mate, I will see myself equally removed from the embrace of our father, as well as the troubles he brings."

The two cougars rested in silence, tails flicking lazily every now and again. The smell of a male -even that of her brother- calmed Skanita somewhat, fueling her thoughts with hope instead of bitter regret.

"We should go. Should we split? We'll cover more ground that way."

Skan dipped his head in agreement. "My paws tremble at the thought of running into father, but if my sister asks this of me, I shall see it done. When do you wish to move?"

Skanita showed her gratitude to the male through a few loving licks. "Now. I wish we had a better plan."

"We use what we can. Come to think of it, father has a loose mouth where victory is concerned. Do you remember the one about Sungmanito's pack?"

"The monster who almost killed us in our den?" Skanita chuckled. "Yeah I remember that one. Father single handedly opposed eight wolves while our mother contested with but a single one. Sungmanito."

"A black beast of voracious thirst when it comes to cunt."

"That's not how the tale goes!"

Skan rolled away from her slapping paw. "Yet more believable than father's flawless victory. What have wolves truly done to him? The way he talks about them makes my fur stand up. Do you believe them to be the same beasts from father's tales?"

"I don't know what to believe," Skanita said. "For all our years we've yet to meet a predator of equal footing."

"Weasels don't count?"

Skanita pounced him, scuffling with him briefly before they found common ground. They would search for the intruder together, and decide his fate just the same. Like they agreed, the two cougars split up. Skanita took to the western parts of Han's vast territory, while her brother ventured in the opposite direction. To avoid exhausting herself too soon, the female kept a steady pace, her ears and nose alert for any sign of her kin. It must've been about two hours when her nose picked up a bizarre smell. Skanita followed it, lured by the whines that grew increasingly louder.