Beastmen Love-Chapter 24: Found

In the morning, Zin flicks his tongue sensing beastmen coming near. Feather beastmen and one land beastmen. Some are strong.

"There are beastmen coming our direction. Feather beastmen and one in land." Zin tells Astri.

"It’s Wayde and Lee. I sensed them coming to your direction just now." Claud says.

"It’s my mate."

"Are you sure? I don’t feel they’re monsters, but they’re strong beastmen. I can’t fight all of them."

"Yes. I’m sure. Wayde has seven marks and Lee has eight. Lee’s tribesmen are also strong. It sounds like them." She nods.

"All right... Just to be sure. I’ll be out and see if it’s really them. How they look like?"

"Wayde is a white tiger. Lee is a red eagle. Lee dresses in silk clothes and has long red hair and honey colored eyes. Wayde in human form has white hair, long until a little under his shoulders, and he has silver eyes." She tells.

He nods and then shifts completely to his snake form. He leaves the cave and then he goes to a strategic spot to be capable to see them.

He can hide his presence like no one, he follows the tiger until he stops because it started raining again.

The feather beastmen land near the tiger, and the tiger shifts into his human form.

"She’s near. I can feel it." Wayde speaks.

"I think we need to look after caves. She must be hiding inside one." Lee says.

"I’m sure of it. The smoke you saw too. It must be her."

Zin is sure that they were talking about Astri, and they look like what she told him.

Zin slithers out from his cover, shocking everyone when they see such a huge snake appearing from nowhere.

"Few can go unnoticed by me... This snake is strong." Lee and Wayde think the same.

Zin half shift to be able to talk to them.

"Follow me." Zin speaks.

"Why?" Wayde asks.

"You’re looking after Astri."

They widened their eyes when they heard her name. They follow Zin to the cave, Wayde and Lee run to her when they finally see her.

Astri cries when she finally sees Wayde and could hug him again.

"It’s all right.. I’m here now." Wayde says, hugging her.

Lee sees she’s still using his feather and that made him happy, but he’s sad to see his female wounded. She’s not hugging Wayde with both arms, only with her right one.

"What happened to you? Did he do something to you?!" Lee asks and looks serious to Zin.

"No! He saved my life. It was the monster leopard who scratched my arm. When I fell from Dieg I broke my arm. Zin saved me and is helping me." She says.

Lee relaxes.

"Let’s go home. You need to go to the doctor." Wayde speaks.

"What about the rain?" She asks.

"I can use my wings to protect you." Lee speaks.

"You.. come here." She says to Lee.

He lowers down his head and then she pulls his ear strongly.

"What are you doing?"

"This is for tricking me! You knew I didn’t know about the meaning of the feather!" She says. He smiles and shrugs his shoulders.

"You’re still using it." freёnovelkiss.com

"Because it looks good on me. But you have a lot to do if you want me to trust you now."

He laughs. He loves this female.

"All right."

Lee carries her princess style and then spreads his wings to create a cover so the rain doesn’t hit her.

"Use my skin to cover her. It will keep her warm and will prevent any drop to fall on her." Zin speaks.

Lee and Wayde are pondering if they should accept. They’re already in debt with Zin.

"How much do you want for the skin?" Lee asks.

"Nothing. It’s hers already. I gave it to her to cover her during these days."

The skin is long so Astri looked like a cocoon in Lee’s arm. When they start leaving, they notice Zin following them.

"She accepted me to be her protector. I’ll follow her everywhere now." Zin affirms.

"How many marks do you have?" Lee asks.

Zin turns around and pulls his long hair to the side, showing the mark of a snake in the middle of his back.

They count eight marks. He’s as strong as Lee, and he’s not scared to show his back to them.

"All right. You can come. You’re our benefactor, otherwise. However, she can only be touched if she allows you." Wayde speaks to Zin.

"Of course." Zin says.

Finally they leave.

They walk for a day and a half to finally arrive at the village. They go directly to the doctor and he examines her, saying that her left arm was well treated already.

"Who made this bandage with herbs?" The doctor asks Astri.

"Zin did." Astri answers.

"Oh.. He knew a little about medicine. Good for you. I’ll remove this bandage, check the arm and redress it with new herbs." The doctor says.

When he’s not looking, Astri looks at Zin and he is looking at her with questioning eyes. She smiles and makes a quick silence signal for him. He smiles softly.

Lee has sharp eyes and he saw this exchange of glances and smiles, making him wonder what was that.

Wayde also saw that but he knows Astri asked him to pretend that he was the one who knew medicine.

The doctor listens to Astri’s breathing and he looks serious.

"Did you drown?" He asks her.

"Yes." She nods.

"Your chest still has a bit of water. You need to stay very warm and drink hot water until this is better." The doctor says. He looks at Wayde. "This is serious and very dangerous for a female. Don’t miss any of the medicines I’ll tell you and keep her warm. She needs to rest for at least ten days. I already saw females in a condition less grave than hers get worse quickly and die. This rainy season will not help you, and the snowing season will be worse if she’s not better until then."

Wayde, Lee and Zin got very worried hearing that. Astri doesn’t feel that bad, but she needs to listen to the doctor.

She felt Wayde’s grip on her hand get stronger, she can see that he’s very worried, Lee and Zin too.

When they’re finally back to the cabin, Astri wants to bathe. But they didn’t let her.

"I haven’t bathed for 4 days!" She protests.

"You heard the doctor. We can’t risk your health. And females normally bathe once in twenty days." Wayde says.

"And they die young! Remember what I told you about dirt? If I bathe in hot water it will help with my condition too." She speaks.

"What do you mean by that?" Lee asks.

She explains about the diseases people can get because of the dirt.

Lee remembers what she said about roasted meat, and now he’s learning that she was the one who told Shung about the sandboxes to keep everywhere clean and don’t pass diseases through their feet.

Then he remembers her asking Zin to be quiet, so she was the one who dressed her arm with herbs.

"You know medicine." Lee softly says.

"Just a bit. And you already knew I know a little of medicine."

"This is not a bit. Astri, you know farming, medicine. What else can you do? Salt?" Lee says, throwing things in the air.

She didn’t answer, biting her lips with a guilty face. He gets shocked.

"You know how to make salt!" He screams but whispering.

Even Zin got shocked too after hearing all that.

"Keep quiet, you idiot." Wayde says.

"Do you know what this means?" Lee asks her.

"That we can have salt for free?" She says.

"Don’t joke about that!"

"I know! It’s dangerous."

"Who else knows about this?"

"No one."

"And we need to keep that way. Wayde, we need to discuss her safety."

Astri sighs and stands up. She starts walking out of the cabin.

"Where are you going?" Wayde and Lee jump in front of her.

"Prepare my hot bath." She answers.

"But we need to.." Lee tries to speak and she raises her good hand, and he stops talking.

"We can discuss anything you want later. But we need to stay calm. Just let me have my hot bath and rest a bit, ok? Please?"

Wayde and Zin were quiet but they were as anxious as Lee. They know she’s right, losing their calm won’t help.

"I’m sorry. You’re right." Lee says.

Wayde brings the bath tub inside, then he gives Zin two buckets and he takes two more to go to the river to take fresh water.

The bathtub was dirty so Wayde had to throw the water in it.

"Can you help them making the fire?" She asks Lee.

She teaches Lee how to make fire. Wayde have made a corner without wood and it’s where they can make fire inside, and the smoke passes through a little gap covered by some leaves.

Wayde fills the pot with water to boil and he and Zin keep bringing water to fill the bathtub.

Astri kicks everyone out so she can have a peaceful bath.

She didn’t imagine things would get so complicated, but she knows she needs to learn how to stay safe there. She never again wants to lose someone she loves.

It was the worst pain she ever felt when Dieg died.

After feeling clean and relaxed. Astri puts on clean clothes and before closing the closet she sees her notebooks.

She pulls the notebook she uses to put more detailed drawings and the last one she made was Dieg.

Her eyes filled with tears, then she smiled at him, passing her fingers on the drawing like she was passing her fingers on his face or head.

"Thank you for saving me... I will never forget you and I will always love you too." She whispers.

Wayde peeks inside to check if she’s dressed, then he sees her looking at the drawing. Lee and Zin come back inside.

Wayde walks to her, sensing she’s sad, even if she’s smiling. He looks at what she’s looking at and sees Dieg’s drawing.

He smiles sadly at her, then hugs her trying to console her.

Lee and Zin were curious about what she was looking at and they saw the drawing.

Dieg was a weak beastman compared to the three of them, but Astri liked him and they should respect her feelings.

Zin and Wayde carried the full bathtub outside and covered it up. Astri takes her medicines and she’s put to sleep, they will take a long time to prepare dinner, so she just asks to be called when dinner is done.