The Ugly Duckling Of The Tiger Tribe-Chapter 252: Tonight is going to be peaceful

I stood in the center of the cave, dragging the back of my hand across my damp forehead.

"Phew..."

The sound echoed through the now-hollow space. Finally. The furs were rolled and lashed tight, the pots were scrubbed and bundled, and the ’ash-chemist’ and her siblings were finally tucked in their baskets.

It had taken the better part of the day to erase the evidence of the cubs’ riot and pack our entire lives into manageable loads in the troller.

I looked toward the entrance. The vibrant, neon green of the afternoon had deepened into a rich, bruised purple. The sun was dipping below the horizon, painting the sky in streaks of burnt orange and soft rose.

Night was here, and the forest was shifting into its nocturnal chorus. The bird chirping s had died down, and now I could hear crickets and soon, I’d probably hear howls.

"We missed our cue," I sighed, dropping onto a lone roll of bedding. "There’s no way we’re walking with three cubs in the dark."

"Tomorrow at first light, then," Noah said, stepping up beside me. He looked significantly ’normal’ now that he wasn’t wielding a wooden bowl as a weapon.

He dropped a heavy pack on the troller and stretched, his joints popping.

"The air is holding the warmth. It’ll be a clear morning."

What does that even mean?

Fenric walked over, looking exhausted but satisfied. He had spent the last two hours double-checking the straps on the gear. He sat on the floor next to me, leaning his head back against the stone wall.

"At least we get one last night in a place that doesn’t move and won’t leave us cold at night."

Yeah, he’s right. The nights from now on are going to be cold even with the tent and furs.

"My back isn’t ready for the trail yet anyway."

"Whose fault is that?" I teased, nudging him with my foot. "Maybe if you hadn’t let Raiden use you as a mountain goat, you’d be in better shape."

"He has a very firm grip, Arinya," Fenric grumbled, though he was smiling.

Damar was near the fire, putting in more wood so the fire wouldn’t go out.

His pale skin found a way to catch the glow of the fire. Then, he looked up at me, his emerald eyes reflecting the calm of the evening.

"The fish was good, Ari," he said softly. "A good last meal for this place."

I looked around the cave one last time. It looked so different now—empty, like no one had stayed there for months.

I could almost see myself sitting by the fire, crying over the bowl of meat and salt soup, or the terrifying moment the cubs were born, or the long, silent months of watching Damar sleep.

It was strange how quickly a place of survival becomes a home, and how easily you can leave it when the sun finally comes out.

"Tonight is going to be peaceful," I declared, crawling toward the furs. "No ruts, no tactical pincer movements from the babies, and definitely no ’distractions.’ Just sleep. Because tomorrow..." I paused, looking at my three husbands. "Tomorrow, the real journey begins."

I pulled the cubs close to me, the three of them smelling like milk and the faint, lingering scent of the spring breeze. Raiden was already snoring, his tiny paws twitching in his sleep. Phina and Lyra were curled into each other, their breathing perfectly in sync.

As my husbands settled in around me, creating a wall of heat and muscle, I closed my eyes. The cave was quiet, the mountain was still, and my heart was a pounding mess because it suddenly got too hot.

"Okay, break it off. I can’t breathe." I said.

It was no longer winter, so that level of cuddling was just dead out suffocating.

They laughed and I slumped back.

I stared at the ceiling, catching the reflection of the fire, and then closed my eyes. Someone caught my hand and I opened my eyes to see it was Damar’s hand.

He interlocked our fingers and I smiled.

He was so cute.

I closed my eyes again and finally fell asleep.

By the morning, we were stretching and getting ready to hit the road.

I was dressed warmly and so were my husbands.

Though I couldn’t make Damar’s skirt yet, he still had his tunic. He just needed to wrap that cloth around his waist for now.

He also didn’t have a pair of boots but that wasn’t a problem. Fenric gave up his, saying he felt better stepping on the ground with his bare feet.

There was no snow so he didn’t need to worry about burying his foot in snow.

"You should use it, Damar," I said to him. "Your legs are still new, so you need to protect them. Wearing boots will help." 𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

He nodded and blushed as I helped him wear the boots.

"There."

He still looked so handsome fully dressed.

"Then," I picked up the basket with my cubs, who were excited to move around. I don’t know if they could feel it, but they definitely were more excited than on a normal day when I decided to go on a walk with them. "Shall we get going?"

I tucked a small blanket over them to keep them warm but they all tucked their heads out.

I had to be cautious, if not, they might jump out of the basket and get into trouble, these mischievous little ones.

"We’ll move the troller from the front," Fenric said and got to the front with Noah.

Noah glanced back at me and said,

"Be careful." I nodded and beside me, Damar placed his arm around my waist.

"I’ll carry you."

"Wait, no..." He didn’t listen and lifted me in his arms.

Since he was so adamant about carrying me, I decided to take another spot instead of his front.

"Instead of this, let me ride your back," I said and he tilted his head. The others looked as well, wondering why I was saying ’ride’ so early in the morning.

I blushed but cleared my throat.

"Can you get on one knee for me?"

He placed me down and got on one knee.

I climbed his back and said,

"Okay, you can stand now."

He lifted his body fluidly, as if I weighed nothing at all.

I held the cubs in front of him and said,

"You can hold the cubs as well. This way, we’re all comfortable."

He hadn’t tried this style before, but having me behind him, sharing my warmth, made his heart flutter, and his ear blushed.

"Alright, Ari."

Gosh, he was so cute.

"Now, let’s move out!"