Chapter 15 – Blood Moon

	The cave was a flurry of activity that night.  Mostly, a lot of talking.  Kissima, Uki and Odina were overlapping their knowledge and going back and forth on plans for the coming day.  Finnegan would add a kernel of opinion here or there about what these mens’ capabilities were likely to be and what to expect in firepower.
	My father and I were, for the most part, severely out of our element.  Even Sawyer had more to add than we did.  Apparently the young man had been doing sweeps up and down the edge of the basin each morning, looking for vantage points and gaps in the trees we might be able to exploit from above.  I wouldn’t have even considered something like that.
	We ate, talked and prepared, the latter role primarily being taken up by Finnegan, who was checking over, taking apart and carefully cleaning our firearms.  He’d mentioned wanting to modify them somehow, but apparently there wasn’t time or the right supplies for that.
	“This weather is miserable for flintlocks,” he said distractedly as he looked over Odina’s rifle.  “And your powder could be better, Kissima.  I don’t know where you’re buying your supply, but they might be substituting something.  Or they’re not storing it properly.”
	“We’ve had some issues in the past with the rifles not igniting,” Kissima said, nodding.  “I had wondered.”
	“Percussion caps load faster, ignite hotter and they’re better in weather like this,” Finnegan said with a sigh.  “It’s a simple enough modification, but I can’t do it here.  I’d need to change the cock out for a hammer, and I don’t have the tools, regardless.  But you should consider it in the future.”
	“I had my own modified some years ago,” Odina said, looking to Sawyer.  “But it was expensive.  We never modified his.  I did not see the point, since he loads so slowly anyway.”
	Sawyer began to object, before Finn laid a hand on his shoulder.  “No worries there.  Sawyer’s going to stick with me and load for me, army-style.  His idea.”
	Odina’s brows lifted at her son, looking subtly impressed.  “Yeah, Ma,” the young mountain lion smiled.  “I ain’t gonna be all self-important when stakes’re this high.  Ambrose’s got the eagle eyes and all, I want to be as much use as I can.  Make every shot count, right?  I know you’re gonna be perched somewhere on yer own, so. . . .”
	“I’m still deciding between a few places,” she nodded.   
	“Uki and I have moved some of the traps,” Kissima said, “but we didn’t have much time.  That scout was clearly able to bypass those we set, so we should not think we can rely on them.”
	“He followed me,” my father said a bit guiltily, “along the paths I knew were safe.  I’m sorry, I should have been more observant.”
	“He’s dead, in any case,” Finnegan cut in, voice curt.  “So he can’t report back on the route he found.  And he mentioned that one of their men, he indicated a leader of some sort in fact, fell afoul of one of your traps in the wood.  So they may have already done some damage.”
	“What about me?”  I finally spoke up, looking to Uki and Kissima.  “I mean. . . I essentially know how to fire a rifle, but we only have four and like Sawyer said, we should let those who can make their shots count,” I looked to Finnegan and Odina at that, “have those.  As it is, it’s a dozen men with guns versus only four of our people who are any good at a range.”
	“They cannot simply fire on us from the cover of the trees,” Uki said.  “We could remain in the caves and wait them out as long as we need to, we’ve far more supplies than a few men on horseback are likely to.  They will have to take the village.  They may have us outmanned and outgunned, but this village was established here because it is so defensible.”
	“We’re going to do our best to keep them from reaching the caves and our gunmen first and foremost,” Kissima said.  “Even the shores of the village, if we can help it.  We have the advantage of knowing which direction they’ll come from, but it’s a large area.  We can perch high in the caves and have a vantage point overlooking the forest and the lake, but the trees will provide them with ample cover.  We’ll only be able to take shots when they reveal themselves, which won’t be often.  But that means they’ll need to move slowly down there, rushing between cover.  And if they want to have any chance at reaching us unseen, they’ll not be able to move in large groups, either.  That is where Uki, Tulimak and I will have our chance.”
	“You’re not going to be in the caves?”  I asked, uncertainly.
	“Those who stay in the caves will have no path to the forest without exposing themselves to gunfire,” Kissima explained.  “And as I said, it is key that we prevent them from reaching the caves.  Some of them will surely slip past Finnegan and Odina, there are too many.  As they draw close, someone must meet them in the woods.  Fire on them, ambush them, or force them into the open so that our gunmen can pick them off.”
	“You two are seasoned hunters,” Finnegan said, eyes narrowing, “but I don’t know how I feel about Tulimak being in the kill zone.  Especially without a rifle.”
	“Tomorrow, I will instruct Tulimak on axe throwing,” Uki piped up.  “I had hoped we’d have more time, but things being as they are. . . .”
	“Hopefully we won’t be under attack by then,” my father murmured.
	“I doubt they will come in the morning,” Kissima reasoned.  “The sun rises over the bluffs.  It would blind their approach.  They will come closer to evening.”
	“One of your caves up top is full of fishing spears,” my father said.  “Do you mind?  I’m a miserable shot with a bow, but. . . .”
	“Take as many as you wish,” Kissima said, nodding.  “We carved an abundance last year during the winter, when the snow kept us sealed in for a time.  We’ve hardly gone through half of them so far this year.”
	“Otterfa, you’re going to fight?”  I asked, surprised.
	He looked to me, his grey-peppered brow lowering.  “You thought I wouldn’t?”
	“All of us will fight,” Uki said with a toothy, intimidating smile.  “I do not care what these men want with your wolf, Tulimak.  Their kind will take nothing more from this tribe.  Ever again.”

	
	“There’s a part of me that really feels I should just turn myself in,” Finn bemoaned quietly as we walked back to our cave.  “I don’t want to watch any of these people die for me.  Not even your father.”
	“Odina is fighting for a future for her children,” I reminded him, “and this is a task she chose.  For better or for worse.  You might be able to help my tribe’s future as well, Finn.  Besides,” I ground my teeth, uncomfortably, “even as ‘unworldly’ as I am, and I have to tell you I’m getting very tired of being reminded of that-“
	“Sorry,” he said.
	“My father was the one to say it this time, not you,” I sighed.  “Anyway, my point is, if even I realize these men are not likely to just take you and go, the reality of that must be setting in for you by now.”
	“It’s probably worse than you realize,” Finnegan admitted, sadly.  “Outfits like this?  They’re part of a larger group of thugs, so it’s never just the men you’re dealing with that you have to worry about.  In Amuresca they’re called ‘gangs’, ‘raiders’, ‘syndicates’.  They don’t forget and they don’t forgive.  If any of these men make it back to their organization and they think for a moment that Uki and Kissima were harboring me, protecting me. . . .  Hell, they could come after your otter tribe, too.  For the same reason.  Even if they win here and capture me.  Just getting the coin is not going to be enough.”
	I looked to him, worried.  “You think they’d go after my otter tribe after this, even if they got what they wanted?”
	“I can’t say for sure, obviously,” he reasoned, “but I lived in the Risers long enough to know how armed gangs work.  It's about sending a message.  I’m sure that story about what they did to the miners was spread around by their own group, as well as the survivors.  Even if what they did there technically broke the law, an organization like that wants to be feared more than they want a clean reputation.  They don’t want anyone harboring future marks they’re set on hunting down.  So they’ll do things to put the fear of God into people, make it clear what happens when you work against their interests.”
	“All it took was the mention of the Jackwalds to frighten both Odina and my father,” I agreed.    
	We both stopped in front of the opening to our cave, staring at something that hadn’t been there before.  Someone had hung a caribou fur over the entranceway.  There’d been these little divots dug into the rock along the edges of the ‘doorway’ that I’d noted were on most of the others around the caves as well.  I hadn’t realized until now what they were intended for.  The caribou fur had holes cut into it that were spaced the right distance apart to be hung on them.  The other doors had probably all had them a long time ago as well, back when the caves were more occupied.
	“Uki’s work, no doubt,” I said as I slowly pushed aside the flap, stepping inside.  The tunnel here gave us some privacy, being that it bent more than once, but this was certainly better.  
	“Where was this the other night?”  Finn asked aloud, grumbling.
	“I think this was likely an improvement made in response to that,” I said pointedly.  “But I’m not arguing.”
	“Mnnh.”  Finn seemed less pleased than I was.
	I shed my cloak once we were inside and kneeled beside the dim coals in our firepit, gathering kindling from the small bundle nearby and slowly coaxing it back to life.  “What’s with the grumbling?”  I asked him.  I didn’t turn, but I heard him unbuttoning his coat and going about the process of removing his leather spats, gun belt and holster.
	“It’s nothing,” he assured me.  “Just interesting that they weren’t so insistent on anyone else having a cover for their doorway.”
	“Uki was very accepting when I spoke to her about. . . us,” I said, blowing gently on the ashes to re-kindle the fire.  “I’m absolutely certain it’s meant as a kindness, and nothing else.  I mean, it’s a practical consideration.  We are the only mated pair here.”
	“ ‘Mated Pair’,” Finnegan whistled, chuckling from behind me.  
	“I don’t know what else to call us,” I admitted, finally turning to regard him.  He’d stripped down to his undershirt and britches and was shrugging out of his vest by the time I looked over.  My body tensed in a few places, just at the sight of him undressing.  It was frankly humiliating how easily he could affect me without even being aware of it.
	“I like it,” the wolfdog smirked, tail flicking about.
	I stood slowly and crossed the space between us.  He was still fussing with his vest, so by the time I reached him, he seemed surprised I was so close.
	“Tuli-“ he began questioningly, but by then I’d wrapped an arm around his lean middle and another behind his knees, scooping him up.  He gave a whuff of surprise and looked briefly alarmed, until I’d crossed the two strides necessary to deposit him in our combined mound of furs that had made up our sleeping space last night.  
	The surprise on his features hadn’t entirely gone, but he began to chuckle as I climbed over him.  “Well, good evening to you too, sir,” he snickered, glancing down between us.  Specifically where I was tenting my breech cloth.  “How may I be of service?”
	“You’re so strange sometimes,” I muttered, nosing at where his shirt gaped.
	“Says the bear who has bodily lifted me like a fainting damsel on more than one occasion now,” he pointed out, stroking a palm up and over my shoulder, his claws tracing the line of one of my marks.  “You could just ask me to get into bed, you know.”
	“You seem to like it.”
	“I do like it,” he admitted, still smirking.
	“You joked last time we were alone together about using my arm strength for. . .” I paused at that.  “Actually I’m not certain,” I said, resting my jaw as lightly as I could on his chest.  “You want me to hold you up and. . . I. . . guess rub against one another?  That sounds more like how I scratch myself on trees. . . .”
	“Oh, you sweet darling,” he said between snorting laughter.  “You really have no idea, do you?”
	“I want. . .” I trailed off, then rubbed the side of my cheek against his chest, huffing lowly.  “I don’t know, Finn.  I want you,” I said, frustrated.  “I’ve really liked what we’ve already done with one another.  Is there more?”
	He smiled slowly, nodding.
	“There’s one thing I’ve wanted to do since Tawnahowac,” I growled softly, nuzzling at his belly.  I wanted my nose in his fur, so I got up on my elbows and balled my fingers in the cotton of his undershirt, tugging it up from where it was tucked into his britches.  He saw what I wanted and easily assisted me, pulling the loose shirt up over his head and discarding it.  While he did so, I got back to my knees and undid my breech cloth, freeing myself of its restraint.
	“Fuck,” Finn let out in an utterance, his paw wandering down his body to grip himself between his legs, despite the fact that he was still clothed there.  
	“You like that word,” I said, moving back over him.  “Especially when we’re, well. . . .”
	“When I fancy my pants off,” he said, fussing with the tie on his britches, “the chap from the Risers comes out in me, so you’ll have to endure the gutter talk, I’m afraid.”
	“I like hearing you,” I admitted.  “I’ve always liked your voice.”
	“Well one hide isn’t going to prevent sound from carrying down here,” he said, glancing at the caribou fur just barely covering our doorway.  “So unless you want tomorrow to be real awkward in addition to real dangerous, we ought to try and keep it down- damn.  Tuli, that is still fucking intimidating,” he said, changing gears rather abruptly mid-thought, his gaze still pinned between our bodies.  
	I followed his eyes, realizing eventually that he was indicating where I hung stiffly between my legs.  “Oh,” I said, blanching.  “I-I’m sorry.  I’m big. . . everywhere. . . .”
	“Let it never be said Finnegan Ambrose was one to back down from a challenge,” he said with a grin that revealed his canines.  He peeled himself out of his britches, kicking them aside.  His own cock, a lighter shade of pink than mine and half the size, was also fully out of its sheath by now, rising up from the dusting of white fur between his legs.  I’d never wanted anything so badly.
	The urge to push my oversized muzzle down between his legs came on even stronger than it had last time.  I decided this time that there was no use in fighting it.  I dropped my nose back down into his fur and snuffled my way down his belly, dragging his scent through my nostrils.  He smelled more like himself, the scent I knew to be his, than he had the last time we’d been together like this, right after we’d bathed.  In a way I preferred it.  It brought back a lot of memories of time we’d spent together on our journey thus far, a general feeling of ‘us’, of this strange, life-changing connection we’d built.
	I wanted him so desperately.  I wanted to wake up to his scent, every morning.
	“Ah-Tuli. . . ahh. . . .”  his palms moved around my head to stroke at my ears, fingers moving through the thick rolls of fur around my neck.  I could feel his cock beneath my clavicle, knew the moment he realized what I intended for him by the way he splayed his legs for me.  “Are you sure?”  I heard him ask in a husky, sinfully low voice when my muzzle made it to the scruff of fur above his sheath.
	“Mmmhh-hmmhh,” I nodded, letting out a warm breath on his cock.  His entire body shook.
	I swiped my tongue out first, tasting him.  My tongue was easily able to cup half of him, lathing it root to tip.  He tasted like he smelled, mild and musky and utterly unlike myself.  I curled my tongue along his tip as I finished one long, first swipe, then went in for another.
	Finn’s hips stuttered, lifting off the furs as he bit down on a whine, then released a long, shuddering breath.  I loved watching his reaction, so I lifted my gaze to him as I took another slow lick of his manhood.  
	“God. . . fuck. . . is your tongue blue?”  He asked around a puff of breath.
	I couldn’t help but smile slightly at the odd question.  I suppose before now, he’d never really had a reason to examine it closely.  “It’s spotted,” I said, amused.  I cupped it around his cock again, closing my eyes for a moment as I focused on the feel of him, encased in my tongue.
	One of his paws was still cupping my cheek and toying at one of my ears.  “Fuck, you’re so damned cute- ahhh. . . ahhh. . .” he lifted his hips somewhat into my ministrations, squeezing his eyes shut.  “I’m gonna cum way too soon, watching you. . . .”
	I was growing more and more needful myself, watching how strong a reaction I could pull out of him with my tongue.  It was surprising and empowering, like I’d stumbled upon a great secret to cracking the wolfdog’s often cool demeanor.  So far, each time we’d spent a night together like this, I’d felt relatively at his mercy.  His experience and knowledge exceeded mine, and he was far more confident besides.
	But for the first time, the tables had turned and I found there was a part of me that deeply enjoyed it.  I’d enjoyed following his lead in the past as well, it had been a real relief to have someone who knew the way when I was in uncharted waters.  But this. . . this was good, too.
	I thought back on what he’d done that night in my pit home.  It seemed, honestly, somewhat dangerous?  I had very large fangs.  But all I had to do was be careful.  He’d been careful and it had been fine.
	It was worth the risk sheerly for the groan that emanated from deep in his chest when, at last, I closed my muzzle around him.  I tested it slowly, but soon found it was no challenge whatsoever to take the whole of him in my mouth.  He’d only been able to take half of me, and I realized of course that I had an unfair advantage, but still.  It was satisfying.
	“Fucking suck me,” he growled gutturally, loping one of his legs lazily up over my shoulder, his paw curling around one of my ears, like he wanted to hold me there.  
	I’m honestly glad he said that aloud, because for a moment, even though I’d taken him into my mouth, I wasn’t sure what to do with him.  But then I remembered how he’d done it and began to try, myself.  I could still employ my tongue thankfully, although not as dexterously, so even though I’m certain I was bad at figuring the process out, he seemed to be enjoying it nonetheless.
	He leaked down my tongue, salty and warm.  I hollowed my cheeks as well as I could, glad for once for my oversized muzzle.  My own cock throbbed between my legs, something about this. . . the noises of the act itself, the noises it was pulling from him. . . just. . . driving my want even further.  I wasn’t even sure what I wanted, I just wanted.
	My gaze moved up along his body as I bobbed my muzzle between his legs.  He’d thrown an arm over his face at some point, muffling his moans into it.  His chest rose and fell in panting breaths, and his tail was swiping about erratically beneath him in the furs.
	I felt a deep, rumbling growl build in my throat, which I hadn’t intended.  I worried for a moment that it might frighten him, but instead I felt his hips stiffen, his body going taut.  He tried to push at my skull, to warn me, I suppose.
	I’d decided when I’d begun this that I didn’t want to make a mess of our bed.  Maybe that was just an excuse, I don’t know.  But either way, I only took him deeper, wanting all of him, his knot included.  He buckled against me, paw gripping the back of my head, hips locking me in tight, with the one leg he’d thrown up over my shoulder clamping around me.  If he was at all concerned at that point for my comfort, instinct had won out.
	With my muzzle pressed to the base of his knot, he did actually come rather close to gagging me, and I had to struggle to swallow him all, but at least I didn’t taste most of it.  I let him slip from my mouth finally, after sucking at his knot gently through the last of it.
	To say the wolfdog looked flustered would be an understatement.  He was devastated, absolutely in shambles.  Honestly, I felt rather proud of myself.
	“I can’t be all that good at that,” I teased him, licking my muzzle as I looked down on him.
	“I haven’t had my cock sucked in over a year and it’s just about my favorite fuckin’ thing in the world,” Finn uttered between heavy pants.  “Don’t get a big head.”  He paused.  “R’actually.  Your head can stay exactly the size it is now, it’s perfect for my purposes.”
	I snorted.  “Yeah, I think this is a bit easier for me than it is you.”
	“Natural advantage,” he agreed, nodding blissfully.  “But life’s about overcoming adversity, and I’m a scholar in that.”  He slowly and dizzily got to his knees, gesturing at me.  “C’mon and stand, for me.  Let me show you how it’s really done.”
	“Stand?”  I repeated, uncertainly doing as I was told.
	“It’s how I prefer it,” he smirked, palms spread flat over my thighs, nose trailing down the scruff on my belly.  “Everything’s right there, laid before me.”  His green eyes lifted up to mine, pinning me there on the spot.  The sight of him like that. . . well, there were a lot of things about tonight I’d remember for quite some time, I was certain.  I hoped to make many more memories like this, with the wolfdog.
	Unless tomorrow was the last day I’d ever have with him.