Pak seems to be adapting well, though. He's been shadowing Rukhar, Harlow and Rukh's sturdy, quiet little son, all day long. He's dressed in a fur poncho with the hood up and his bare bottom sticking out, and it's adorable to see the delight on his face as he follows behind Rukhar like an adoring puppy.
His dad, however, is tense. I think Ashtar is doing his best to befriend Juth, and I couldn't help but notice that Juth was wearing one of Ashtar's short leather kilts instead of wandering around totally naked. The others aren't quite as friendly as I'd hoped. I don't know if people are trying to give Juth space or if everyone's just moping because they're staying behind. I look around the group and realize that all of the island clans are going, with the exception of N'dek. Strong Arm has gone with the group. Shadow Cat has, too, and Tall Horn as well. I was hoping a few of them would stay behind so they could get to know Juth and realize he's a great guy, but I can't push my wants on the others.
The sa-khui will of course accept him, and the others—Gren, Ashtar and Vordis—won't know the complexities behind the clan lines that forced Juth to be an outcast. So it's not ideal…but then again, neither is the beach being invaded by monsters. I can only hope that by the time the others return, Juth is so entrenched in the tribe that it becomes a nonissue.
In the distance somewhere, Devi makes another squeal of delight, and that causes a ripple of laughter through those of us seated by the fire.
"I'm glad someone's having a wonderful time," Gail says with a little smile. Z'hren is in her lap, chewing on a long, pale root. Every now and then, he holds it up to Gail as if to show her, then goes back to chewing on it. He's teething, she's told me, and he loves to bite everything. She turns and looks to Liz and Raahosh. "So what's the plan?"
Raahosh glances at his mate. He opens his mouth to speak, and then the baby cries.
Liz tilts her head, then taps her mate's leg. "That cry is a dirty diaper cry."
He grunts. "On it." He gets to his feet and scoops up the baby, nestled on the furs near the entrance of the cave, where Angie sits with her baby, watching over the infants.
I watch Liz, waiting, but her expression is just thoughtful. "Obviously we can't do a lot right now until our new friends leave the area. Devi says that it won't be forever. It's some sort of migration, which means whenever they're done doing what they're doing, they'll get out of here. I don't know if that's going to be a week, or a month, or a year, though. So until we have a better idea, we make temporary plans. We keep sleeping in the caves—"
Sessah makes a frustrated sound. "Would it not be wiser to start on the huts again?" He crosses his arms over his chest, his hands tucked into his armpits, and as he stretches, he looks…really big. He's filled out in the last few months, lost the last of his gangliness. I've always thought of him as an older teenager about to break through into adulthood, but I'm wrong. He's definitely a man. And right now, he's a surly-looking man, too.
Liz makes a face at him and gestures at our group. "Who's going to work on huts, huh? Which member of our dream team here do you want to put on huts?" She points at Angie. "Pregnant and has a young baby." Points at Elly. "Pregnant and injured." Points at Willa. “Pregnant.” Points at me. "Injured." Points down the row at Veronica and Harlow and then at herself. "Young baby. Young baby." She then points at Sessah again. "The men are going to need to hunt because we need furs, leather, and food. So you want Devi and Sam to make all the huts? I'll be sure and let them know you volunteered them to rebuild the whole fuckin' village. I'm sure they'll be thrilled."
Sessah just scowls. "I will hunt." He lifts his chin at Juth. "He will hunt. Ashtar will hunt—"
"And so will I," Liz snaps. "But that doesn't mean we should waste our time building huts again when these Godzilla-movie-things might show up again and knock ’em all down once more."
"Kaiju," Sam says quietly.
"What?" Liz turns to her.
Sam gives the intimidating woman a tiny smile. "They're called kaiju. The huge monsters in the Godzilla movies."
"Thank you for that useless bit of information," Liz says, clearly teasing.
"You're the one that goes on and on about Star Wars," Sam retorts.
"Yeah, ’cause that shit is important!" Liz looks offended.
Sam just gives her a patient look. "I'm allowed to go off about monster movies. That's all I'm saying."