6 Ch 4 Ferals Aren’t so bad, right?

Mwezi had been with Paka for a couple of weeks and he was growing on her, which she was worried about. She still hadn't heard or seen any trace of Irdum and has come up completely empty handed on how to get home. She managed to come clean to Paka about who she was and where she was from and he was okay with it surprisingly. According to him the women here don't shift often unless they want to or have to, so fitting in wouldn't be too hard. Today Paka wanted to take a trip to their capitol. Apparently the leopard king was hosting a major event where all the kingdoms could get together. It was a yearly thing that helped women to find a mate.

"Okay so here's an outfit I got for you." he said putting down a two piece skirt and blouse outfit. The skirt had two revealing slits up the front of her legs but somehow still managed to keep her covered. The top was a halter piece that went down, around her neck, cupped her breast and then went behind her back, the extra fabric tucking into the loop of fabric that went around her neck so it didn't pull too much. There was a string that tied under her breast so the cups weren't pulled too far apart. The entire outfit was blue with a gold trim. "Paka...this is beautiful I can't accept this!" Mwezi squealed. "Nonsense, only the best for my mate." He said with a toothy grin that showed off his fangs. Mwezi rolled her eyes and grabbed the outfit, slipping into the back room to bathe and change.

Surprisingly the outfit fit her thick frame well and cupped her large breast without putting any strain on her neck. She walked back out front to a waiting Paka who changed into a matching blue and gold trimmed toga like outfit. He stared at her like she hung the moon and stars and he admired her beauty. "You're perfect.." he muttered, causing Mwezi to blush even though it was unseen. "You're not too bad yourself, handsome." she replied, causing him to smile wide. He held out his hand to her and she took it without hesitation, letting him lead her outside and to the festivities.

"Okay so once we get there, because you're not marked, understand anyone will try to take you and become your mate so stay close to me. There are a lot of woods surrounding the leopard kingdom and that's where ferals roam." he warned her. "What are ferals?" she asked because she figured it wasn't as simple as a dog with rabies and she wanted to be prepared just in case. "Certain species of Kuhamans are considered ferals because of what they are. For example snakes, hyenas, vulchers are all considered feral." Mwezi made a face, "Just becuase of what they are, thats fucking rude." she replied. As a black woman she'd know. "Okay so anyone not feral I should be wary of?" she asked. "Unless you see a five mark saber tooth Kuhaman, no." he said with a joking laugh. "Who is that and why?" she asked genuinely intrigued. "Um I don't know him personally or his name but he is the only recorded Kuhaman to be born with one mark and level up to five. They say it made him mad with all the stuff he put himself through just to get there. He's not a feral technically but he's close mentally. That paired with the fact that he's scared apparently doesn't help his case." Paka informed her with a shrug. No matter how long Mwezi would be here she'd never understand the shallowness of the people here.

Paka led her to a center area that had a raised platform that looked like an arena. A man with short yellow hair and cat ears on his head stepped out. He had sharp yellow eyes above his angular nose and thin lips. He had four marks, two on each side of his neck. "The leopard king" Paka whispered to her and she nodded in thanks.

"Welcome everyone to our annual mating festival! For our opening festivities we will have our battle royal where the unmated males can battle to the top to prove their worth to any willing woman who would mate with him. Participation is not mandatory but recommended. Afterwards we will have the kingdom bonfires where everyone is welcome to eat and mingle. Of course before we begin, I present to you our royal families!" The leopard king announced. Men seemed to get excited for any princesses they would mate with and the women were pining for a prince or two. There was a family with three sons but it seemed like the oldest had a scar coming down from above his eyebrow down to his chin. His eye was untouched but his full lips looked a bit scarred. He had three white marks on his face in stark contrast to his dark chocolate skin. Two under his left eye and one under his right. She nearly got sucked into his brown eyes that were so dark they looked black. Mwezi realized two things in that moment, one: he looked like a famous football player from back in her world and two: she had been staring for too long because he was now looking right at her, his wide nose shifting as if he was sniffing for a scent.

If her blushes could be seen, she'd be tomato red right now. Mwezi covered her mouth with her hand and looked down at the ground embarrassed. After a few minutes she risked a glance and saw him still looking at her now with a hurt expression. 'Dammit I didn't mean...fuck."' she groaned internally. Trying to be nice, she threw him a soft smile and a wave. He clearly didn't expect it based on the book of shock on his face and it made her giggle. Seeing her reaction to him made him smile and nod to her. Mwezi nodded back and turned to Paka as he pulled her off to find a better vantage point for the battles to come.

"Father." the man said, turning to the older gentleman next to him. "Yes Kai?" the bear king replied as he gave a final wave to the crowd. "I think I may have found a mate." he informed his father hopeful. The bear king looked at his son wide eyed and shocked. It had been many years since his son had bothered looking for a mate, so for him to think he found one now, he knew it was serious. "Go get her, my son." the king replied in support. Kai rolled his broad shoulders and nodded to his father before he walked off and disappeared into the crowd.

"Oh what's this?" Mwezi asked as Paka placed a meat spread down on her lap. "Well it has pork, steaks, chicken and fish annnddd here's some rice." he said, placing a larger than normal bowl of rice on the tray as well. "And afterwards I figured we could go into the market and get some sweets." he offered. Something was up. "Paka, not that I don't love the attention but what are you up to?" she asked. He blushed and looked away before looking back at her. "I know it's only been a couple of weeks, and I've been trying really hard to be patient, but I really do like you a lot, Mwezi and I really want to be your mate. I know the idea of having more than one mate bothers you so I wont press the issue but I think if you maybe gave it a chance you'd get to see how much love you are worthy of. But if you'd allow me the honor I'd like to be your first. Please" he said cupping the side of her face. Mwezi couldn't look him in the eyes. She wanted to really give in but she had such high hopes of getting home. But maybe this was a new start for her? She had no family or loved ones at home. It would save her from the Melvin issue. She did owe it to Irdum to find him though. Even if she gave in and stayed with Paka.

She took a deep breath and looked up to Paka. "I will take your words into consideration. Maybe give me a week? I am still trying to find my friend, you know." she said, hoping he'd understand. Paka had a huge grin, "It's not a yes but it's definitely not a no! I'll take it!" he replied. She giggled and shook her head. "I'm gonna go relieve myself, I'll be back." she said getting up. "I should come with you, it's not safe to go alone." he retorted, grabbing her hand gently. "I'll be fine, Paka. Promise." she said, leaning down and kissing his forehead. She used his moment of shock to take off before he could retort.

Feeling better, Mwezi headed back to the bonfires only to realize she was slightly lost. 'Fuck a duck…' she thought to herself. She heard a hiss and some rustling behind her so she took off in the opposite direction to the sounds of partying people. "Just face it Kai, no one will want you looking like that. Just take the offer my father has put forth. It will be a great alliance for the tiger and bear kingdoms and you will finally have a mate after all these years." a woman said. She had pure white hair with black highlights so if Mwezi understood anything she was probably a white tiger. "Oh really, and just how many pups would you give me?" he asked with folded arms and a pissed face. "Why the hell would I give you pups? It's just a political marriage." she retorted. Kai looked hurt but masked it quickly. "I've had enough of this. I already have a mte in mind and it for damn sure ain't you. Heartless bitch." Kai said walking away down the path that led towards Mwezi.

Quick on her feet Mwezi popped out onto the path and made it look like she had been walking in his direction the entire time. The woman chased after Kai but he didn't care or notice because his face lit up as soon as he saw Mwezi. "Kai stop be so fucking dramatic! What woman in her right mind-" Mwezi had enough of the bitch and didn't care for how she was treating Kai even if they hadn't formally met. So she cut the woman off ignoring her existence. "Kai!" Mwezi said with a wave and briskly walked over to him and wrapped her arms around his. "I've been looking all over for you. I even got lost." she said with a fake pout. "I'm sorry dear, I had to handle some family business." he replied, cupping her face and looking at her with a level of adoration her heart wasn't prepared for. "It's okay, I get it. Being a prince is a lot. But it's party time so no more prince stuff. Come relax with me n' Paka." Mwezi said with a smile pulling him down the path. Kai chuckled softly and picked Mwezi up like she weighed nothing and put her on one of his shoulders like she was a child. Mwezi squealed, "Dammit Kai I hate when you do that!" she giggled and he shook his head with a chuckle. They walked off leaving the tiger girl baffled and angry.

Finally making it back to their spot, Kai set Mwezi down and she took a seat next to Paka. "Paka, Prince Kai. Prince Kai, Paka." Mwezi said, introducing them. "Thank you for that rescue back there. She was rather annoying." Kai said, frustrated. "Uh Mwezi, how do you know Bear Prince Kai?" Paka asked, looking between the two. "We just met," she whispered into Paka's ear with a giggle. "I had actually been looking for you, Mwezi." Kai said and they both looked at him. "What's up Prince Kai?" she asked hoping it's not what she thought it was. "I can see now that you're not mated yet but I was wondering...if you would consider me a potential candidate?" he asked with a wince, worried he'd get rejected again.

Part of Mwezi wanted to scream no. The southern Baptist girl in her hollard about how wrong it was. However over the weeks it had become a very small part. "Well I have a stipulation before I would agree to accept a mate. I know how bad it can be for a male who's been rejected after a mating so I ask for a courting period. Basically, some time to get to know one another and if we actually fit well. I judge a person based on their character and heart, not just looks." she informed him cupping his cheek and rubbing it with her thumb. He leaned into her touch and she panicked as she realized how intimate the moment seemed. She went to pull her hand away but Kai had placed his hand over hers and sighed with a content look on his face. "Okay. If that's all it takes to hold a place in your heart I can manage that." he said with a smile. Mwezi returned the look and he took her hand from his cheek to kiss it. Mwezi blushed and looked down at her tray and began to eat.

"You would be first mate, yes Paka?" Kai asked with a genuine smile. Paka nodded and puffed his chest a bit, "Indeed I would be. I would be honored to have you as a brother should Mwezi choose us both." he replied with a nod. Mwezi almost choked on her food as she didn't expect anything that serious to come out of Paka's mouth ever. Much to Mwezi's surprise, Paka and Kai got along very well. Paka seemed overly infatuated with Mwezi for no reason at first but he seemed to actually fall for her. Kai, although fully invested a bit too early for Mwezi's comfort, seemed to be as genuine with his feelings as Paka even though they had only been hanging out for a few hours.

"Okay I have to pee, Paka you can come this time, I heard some weird shit last time and I am not the main character in a horror movie." Mwezi said. They looked at her confused but shrugged it off as Paka got up and walked with her. Mwezi made Paka wait not too far off while she finished her business. She sighed to herself, missing simple things like toilet paper and running plumbing. "Stupid first world problems." she muttered to herself. Before she could react a massively large snake tail wrapped around her waist and hoisted her off her feet. "PAKA! KAI!" she screamed as she was lifted into the canopy.