Chapter 6: The Little Fox

The beast were once again surprised. They had never heard of humans before. "What happened to your ears? Look, we all have ears, but you don't," one of the beast pointed at her own ears.

She wasn't a feline, so she couldn't have those kinds of ears. Clara shook her head.

"Do you have a tail?"

Clara shook her head again. She didn't have one while everyone else did.

For a moment, she felt like the odd one out. The beast discussed among themselves, mentioning that she might still be a juvenile or from a different species.

Gloria comforted her, "Don't be upset. Maybe they'll grow in the future. You're still very young now."

Young? She was twenty, but it felt like coming here had reversed her age a bit, making her a few years younger. She couldn't say for sure, but she just had a feeling. Clara looked at Gloria with gratitude in her eyes, feeling quite small compared to the tall and robust beast.

The male beast would go hunting during the day, while the females would gather fruits and search for edible seeds in the forest. Clara watched in amazement as the female beast moved agilely through the forest, climbing up and down trees. Gloria had also gathered many fruits and shared a lot with her. Since Clara couldn't climb trees, she had to squat on the ground and search for seeds. It was now early spring, and there were many plant seeds. If she really couldn't go back, she would have to survive. If she ended up living like the wild people here, she wouldn't be able to handle it.

Otherwise, she could pick some edible plants to take back and grow in her garden. Clara couldn't help but feel a little excited at the thought. The fast pace of city life had always kept her busy, but now she had plenty of time to do what she wanted. It might not be a bad thing. However, there was nothing here, and she was still a lion's mate. If she wanted to live here, it would be quite troublesome with the lions.

Clara found a lot of edible ingredients and discovered many young plant seedlings. She hadn't decided whether to stay here and plant them. She opted to pick some ready-to-eat ones for now.

There were many fruits and vegetables, and Clara looked at the piles on the ground, like small mountains. She realized she had nothing to carry them in.

Gloria took off a piece of beast skin from herself and used it to bundle the fruits, tying it up. She looked at Clara and asked, "Did you forget to bring beast skin with you? You can wait here while I take these things back and bring you a piece of beast skin."

Clara nodded appreciatively. At this point, she had no other option. She could have woven a small basket if she had her own tools, but she had lost touch with her skills after moving to the city.

Why not try now? She found several flexible vines in the forest, selecting the most comfortable ones for her to hold. Then she hesitated for a moment and began to weave.

As she wove, the world around her seemed to fade away. She had woven many things in the past, and it was a skill she had developed from a young age. She had a knack for it, and her hands seemed to remember what to do. She had touched countless vines, and the wood seemed to have stored that knowledge. Clara wove tirelessly, and her hands moved with ease. She was in her element.

She found more vines and started weaving. These were the ancient wisdom of her ancestors. No need for nails or thread; you could weave a container to hold things with just vines. She quickly finished weaving the base, and despite the time that had passed, she felt as if she hadn't lost her touch at all. There were fewer vines on the ground, and the basket was only half done.

Suddenly, a vine was thrown in front of her. Clara was startled and looked around, but there was no one in sight. She hesitated for a moment, then picked up the vine and continued weaving. Another vine was thrown, and this time she saw the direction it came from. A fluffy white tail stuck out from behind a tree trunk, the rest of the body hidden.

Clara remained calm and continued weaving. Before long, the person behind the tree cautiously extended their head, holding another vine. They were about to throw it but stopped when they saw that Clara had already noticed them. When she met their gaze, they quickly pulled their head back, but their tail remained visible.

Clara couldn't help but smile and said, "I see you. Come out."

The person behind the tree crawled out slowly, hugging the tree and looking at Clara cautiously. She asked, "How did you see me?"

"Your tail was sticking out, so I noticed you," Clara explained. She recognized this person as the fox-like beast she had seen earlier. She looked very cute and seemed quite young. Her shyness as she clung to the tree made her even more endearing. Clara couldn't resist the urge to get closer. "You're a fox, right?"

"I'm Dani, not a fox!" The little fox held her tail, slightly annoyed, and asked, "What are you doing?"

Clara showed her the half-finished basket and said, "I'm making a basket to hold fruits."

Clara noticed that Dani had tried to help earlier by throwing vines to her, and she thought Dani might want to assist her. "Dani, my name is Clara. Can you help me find more vines? Later, I'll make another one for you as a gift."

Dani was delighted to be asked for help and eagerly agreed. Clara instructed her to find more vines. With Dani's help, Clara's progress quickened. By the time Gloria returned, she saw Clara weaving and Dani watching with curiosity. "Dani, what are you doing?" Gloria asked in surprise.

 "It will be done soon. This is a basket, and it can hold things," Clara finally finished weaving a basket, and it looked solid.

"This is a basket, and you can put things in it." Clara handed the finished basket to them, and both Dani and Gloria were excited to see it. Dani eagerly took it and examined it closely, while Gloria also wanted to take a look. They soon started chasing each other around.

Clara watched the two of them with a bit of disbelief but felt a sense of accomplishment.

She had promised to give one to Dani and continued to weave another. This time, she made a smaller, oval-shaped basket that looked very cute and suited Dani's round face.

Dani accepted the basket with excitement and licked Clara's face, then proudly showed it to Gloria. Gloria felt a mix of envy and jealousy and raised her own foot, saying, "Clara gave me shoes, you don't have them."

"I have a basket," Dani retorted proudly, holding the basket. Clara continued to fill it with things, enjoying the bickering between the two of them. She didn't think much of it. However, suddenly, the two people next to her started fighting, hugging and biting each other, just like girls in the modern world having a physical altercation. But their explosive power was something she hadn't seen in contemporary girls.