Into The Mountains(COMPLETED)

Chapter Eight

As Jennie took her place I set myself at a slow jog until she was settled, and then I broke into a full run, pushing everything I had into covering the miles. The terrain was rough, and the added weight didn't make it easy, but I promised myself that I wouldn't stop running until we'd found her brother. Four hours into the run my breathing was ragged, my chest heaving as I strode forward. The distance would have been rough by myself at a full run, but I was exhausting quickly.  I ignored the burning of my muscles and pushed myself onward. I'd made better time than I'd thought. "Just . . . another . . . hour." I gasped the words between breaths. Jennie and I hadn't spoken at all on the journey.  "Lisa, don't hurt yourself." Jen said, her voice a whisper because of the breeze and the fact she was behind me as I ran. Her hands were holding me quite tightly, with good reason, but she nudged her nose into my back gently. "Please don't hurt yourself, we have time."  I allowed myself to slow, and then to stop as I slumped to the ground, gasping for air. "Alright, a quick break. I'll be ready to go again soon." I said, the words coming out in growling gasps.

Yes

My lungs felt like they were full of acid.  Jen came around to my front and took my head in her hands. She scratched behind my ears and pressed the side of her face against mine, which left my snout resting alongside her neck. "It's ok." She nuzzled her head against mine, voice soothing. "What is this? Are you trying to make it up to me?" She didn't wait for an answer, and I was busy breathing anyway. "Yes, I'm hurt Lisa. I didn't want ... I want ..." She sighed. "I understand you had to do it." She pushed further in against me, wrapping her arms around my back and pressing her face into the fur at my neck.  "I know it won't ever go away, Jen. I feel guilty. It was a terrible experience in many different ways, one that I want to forget, but one that will haunt me for a long time. It's the first time I've ever mated against my will, and I didn't like it, but I suppose with our first time together I have nothing to say on the matter." I let out a quiet whine.

The guilt was eating away at me.  Jennie let out a big sigh and got up to pull my head down against her chest. She rested her chin on my head. It was a bit of a submissive posture for me, but it put my head against her soft, warm, comforting breasts. She ran one hand over my neck and upper back, the other along the back of my head. "You can still feel hurt by something even if it's similar to something you did to someone else, and you've said yourself that you weren't in your right mind at the time, with me. In the years to come, it won't go away, but it'll become just a little, dirty piece of the story we don't like to talk about. One event, among tons of others. I'm hurt right now, and maybe we'll talk about all my feelings on the matter, maybe we wont. You're hurt right now, and I can't exactly fix it all for you. You have to learn to live with it in your own head somehow. But we can get past it and be happy together I think." She kissed the top of my head.  I sighed and pushed my head against her.

"Alright. I love you, Jennie." I told her, my breath slowly coming back to me. "I don't know how to feel about any of this, but that will never change."  Jen leaned back to smile shakily at me, her eyes a bit sad for me. "You're so ... tender, really." She pet my head as she spoke, and I realized at least some of her sadness was for me and my guilt over the whole thing. "I love you too, Lisa." She leaned in and pressed her nose lightly against mine. It was an expression she didn't use often, but it felt very loving. Thankfully I didn't smell or taste of the Seer anymore, as far as I could tell  "We should get going again. I don't want you brother to come to any harm." I said, getting up again with a grunt. My body was still tired, but there was further to go yet. I could relax on the way home.  Jen frowned as she stood and kissed the side of my snout again. "Ok." She said and went around me to climb back up onto my back.  The man we came upon was like Jen in that he had her dark brown hair, though his was curly to her luscious waves. Jennie was just a little taller than most human women I'd met, but her brother was nearly as tall as one of the kin. He wasn't slender exactly, but his height made him seem a bit thinner of frame despite the obvious strength in his muscles. He was shirtless, washing down his sweat coated brow and chest. I spotted him before Imava did, and before he noticed us.