John and Argent by cmsix

Chapter 32

I needed some time to myself for planning. Not days but I thought I should take an hour or two at least.

"Georgo would you be offended if I used you meditation chamber for a while?" I asked him.

"Of course not John. I wouldn't have a meditation chamber if not for you." He replied.

"I didn't make it."

"I know that you didn't but if you hadn't offered me a permanent home I'm sure that it would have never come about. Feel free to use the chamber. I will make sure that you are not disturbed." He assured me.

"Thank you."

I hadn't been in the chamber since the first look we'd taken at it after it appeared. It was much the same as then when I entered. There were some furs on the floor now and some sort of shrine on one wall. I hadn't come to meditate or contact the spirits though; I had come to think.

My first realization was that the horses, while they would be worth any effort, were now not merely a big job. Cutting and storing enough hay for them would be a Herculean task. I estimated that they would need probably a ton of hay per day during the winter, maybe more.

If we did it by hand we would need to work on it regularly from now until the weather made us stop. Many of us would have to work on it. For some reason I hated the thought of getting machinery from Argent to do it. I knew that I would need to though.

The freighting of my new member's possessions was going to be a big project for the next few days also. We had to get Caato's camp, Colonto's camp and Raalto's camp moved here. Moving Raalto's camp would relieve the necessity of sending Racaato to kill the bison for Baahaya's payment but that was overshadowed by the task of moving the largest camp, by far, to join us.

Racaato still needed to go to Barbo's camp to start paying for Dalia, Shelalliea, Shallea and Shaala. Barbo had voiced no interest in moving his camp to join us. If they decided to later it would be better on me at least. Even though I knew that Jara intended to make it happen I doubted that Barbo could be convinced.

After the winter I would have to introduce the camp to the delights of agriculture. As plentiful as food was near us it would still be picked over and depleted within a year or two. With the horses to help we could range farther to find food but I knew that growing it ourselves would be much more efficient if not absolutely necessary.

I still thought that the sawmill idea was a good one but there just wasn't time to get that started up this year. I would try to get it going next summer after we had plants in the ground. We would have to close the cave's entrances with bison skins this winter and wait until next year to discover walls and doors made of lumber.

I was back to fretting over the hay when I felt a familiar tingling and slipped into a nap.

"John." Argent called me into a dream.

"Yes."

"When you went into the shaman's meditation chamber I wondered what you were up to. You seem distressed and since we do not pry into your thoughts I felt the need to call you for a visit." Argent explained.

"I am trying to get a handle on the things I need to get done. After thinking about it a while I now know that everything will pretty much work itself out except for the horses. It's great to have them but I know that we have more than we can feed this winter. I'll probably have to turn many of them out to fend for themselves." I told him.

"I don't think that will be necessary. We can easily provide you with some horse drawn machinery to help with harvesting the hay." He said.

"I just don't want to do that this year. These people have seen enough miracles for a while. We need to give them some time to adjust."

"I see. Then we can do it with smoke and mirrors as some on your former planet were fond of saying." Argent said.

"What do you mean? How do you use sleight of hand on hay?"

"It can be fairly simple, extremely simple in fact. All you need do is teach a few men to harvest the hay by hand and they can teach a few others. When you have a respectable crew working on it let them continue until they have enough hay." He said.

"I understand that Argent. I'm sure that we won't be able to get enough hay for all our horses in the time we have left."

"It will be enough. As they are harvesting we will add to it. We can cut and bundle the hay from here and the bundles will look the same as those that your men make. As they gather it the wagon will just seem to get full faster than they would have thought. When they stack it in one of the caves we can add to it while they are gone to harvest more. We will be careful to monitor them and make sure that they don't notice. When winter comes, if needed we can replace hay as it is fed. It will not be a problem." Argent assured me.

"That will solve my biggest problem without noticeable magic. It is a relief."

"I will let you go back to your thoughts now." Argent said as the dream disappeared.

After waking I was so relieved to have the hay problem work out nicely that I couldn't get my mind on any more planning. I went back to my cave and returned to sit beside Georgo. He probably hadn't left his seat while I'd been gone.

"Your meditation didn't take long." He mentioned.

"I wasn't really meditating, I was worrying. With the large increase in our horse herd I've been wondering how we were going to feed them over the winter. I did receive a sign from the spirits though; they assured me that everything would be fine and so I will do what I can and count on them to help."

"That is always the best course John." Georgo said sagely.

I sat and talked with Georgo until lunch began appearing. Racaato and Raalto were still practicing so Erieta sent Failiela to fetch them. Jareena came to me with a plate and more coffee and I couldn't resist sneaking a little feel of her ass while she was bent over pouring my coffee.

She didn't move away when she finished and actually looked into my eyes smiling while I took the time to squeeze both her delightful cheeks. After I let go she winked at me when she left. Figuring I was pressing my luck I decided to try and eat without getting into any more trouble.

Raalto was still amazed and excited when he and Racaato got to the table. He was nearly raving about the rifle and was anxious to know what the Glock was and how it could possibly be more powerful than the rifle. I put him off but promised that we would go directly to the practice cave when lunch was over.

We did and even Georgo came with us. Racaato was interested too now; he hadn't seen the Glock either. He had seen it of course but probably didn't give it any thought because he hadn't seen it used. I put a human silhouette target on a trolley and ran it out to fifty feet. Even to them it was obvious what it signified.

They were stunned when I pulled the Glock and put five holes in the targets heart area in seconds. Their jaws were still hanging open as I brought the target back.

"How could that happen?" Raalto asked.

I gave them a little explanation covering the fact that the Glock worked much the same as the rifle. I explained that it would not be easy to shoot accurately over long ranges. I told them that it was for killing quickly when something was close.

"Is this how you were able to kill the men who tried to kill you?" Racaato asked.

"Yes. I have not told it before but Gigo and Dergo were not there to help me when Gembo, Jenbo and Jabo came to kill me. I killed them all while they were wanting to argue about how they would kill me. I tried to get them to leave but they wouldn't. Even after I killed Gembo, Jenbo and Jabo still wanted to kill me."

"I don't think that I would have given them any options. If it had been me I'm afraid that I would have killed them as quickly as I could and worried about what they had to say later." Raalto said.

"I have come to that conclusion myself. I do not bother with arguing anymore when a man says he is going to kill me."

I stalled further discussion by producing a web belt, holster and Glock for Racaato, Raalto and Georgo. Georgo protested at first but all of us convinced him that he would be better off with the Glock than without it.

"After all you do not have to kill anyone just because you can and if someone does attack you the Glock will help keep you safe." Racaato told him.

"It is merely a tool Georgo. It is there if you need to use it and is not so hard to carry when you don't need to use it. There are other things than men about that can do you harm too." I said.

He relented then and most of the rest of the afternoon was spent with instruction and practice. We even managed to talk Georgo into trying a rifle. He caught on faster than I would have thought and he seemed a little pleased when I told him that the.25 rifle that he had been using was his and then I showed him his own image on it for proof.

I was tired of gunfire by the time Failiela came to get us for supper. When we got to the table I saw that supper was going to be a meeting also. All the residents from this side of the canyon were present along with Barbo, Jara and Kateata. I decided to make a little announcement.

"I am glad you are all here. I want to be the first to tell you all that Raalto has decided to merge his camp with ours. When the wagons leave here to take everyone home, they will be taking Raalto's people home to pack. They will also be taking Colonto's people and Caato's people home to pack." I told them.

There was a lot of excited chatter around the table after that as I expected. I made sure to keep my eyes on Barbo without seeming to. He was not amused and not involved in the conversations going on around him. I didn't really care. If he later decided to join us he and his camp would be welcome. If he didn't we would muddle through without him. I had a feeling that he would be hearing even more about the benefits of our camp after he got home though.

Soon that topic died down and Raalto asked me about feeding the horses during the winter. I explained what hay was and how it was acquired. He found this little tidbit to be intriguing for some reason and wondered if he could be allowed to participate in the process. I was glad to tell him that I would show him how it was done and leave it up to him if he would take the job. He seemed delighted and I wondered to myself about his sanity.

Cutting and hauling hay is no fun, even with modern equipment; I've often said that I wouldn't do it if I could eat the hay myself. Raalto had spoken though and I was glad he'd taken an interest. I was betting that he wouldn't be so eager to volunteer for the job next year though.

Everyone seemed to be headed somewhere else after supper and I wasn't sorry. I enjoyed having company but hoped that my cave and my dining table didn't end up a regular meeting place. I was a little disappointed when Kateata headed back toward her official sleeping quarters and when Shelalliea and Dalia left to oversee the second of Danlo, Shaala and Shallea's mating nights. My home seemed a little vacant. Oh well, I could probably make it two more nights with only ten women to sleep with.

We went to bed early and spent an hour or two playing with each other. I had been asleep for probably about two hours when some shifting and shuffling around in the bed roused me. It was Dalia and Shelalliea back from Danlo's quarters. I guessed they didn't want to wait until morning for some attention and they didn't waste any time before making me glad that they had dropped by. Afterwards we settled back down and I slept until nearly sunrise.

I must have been over my pouting about so much company because I was glad to see Raalto when he came in for coffee and it wasn't just because he brought Reeana and Jareena with him. They fell in with the cooking, watching mostly and Raalto sat with me to drink coffee and talk. Georgo and Ladeliea entered a few minutes later; she joining the kitchen crew and Georgo sitting with us. Dalia brought him a mug of coffee and the three of us talked while breakfast was being cooked.

"I think it is time I tried riding a horse John." Raalto said.

"You're right. You will need to be able to do it when you go back for your things. When were you planning on leaving for them?"

"I have heard that Danlo, Jonoco and Nadlo are some of you main men for working with the horses. If that is so I should probably wait until their mating nights are over." He said.

"You are right and tonight is the last of their mating nights. When they wander in and are fed I will send them to begin making preparations for the trips. You should probably learn about the travois today too. Even with the two wagons and the buckboard you will still need travois horses to move so many goods. I hope that it can be done in one trip."

"I have seen Danlo putting a travois on one of the biggest horses, for practice I think. Is it difficult to work with?" He asked.

"No. Once the horse knows what is to come they are usually more than willing to behave. I'm sure that the large horses will hardly notice the travois behind them. It will be a good day for you to learn about the horses."

Our food came then and while we were eating Nadlo, Jonoco, Danlo and their mates came in. The men couldn't help smiling as they took seats and the girls were whispering among the women when they joined them.

Raalto, Georgo and I finished and went outside. I told Danlo, Jonoco and Nadlo to join us at the horse cave when they had eaten.

I caught Red when we reached the pens and then caught the Quarter Horse stallion, Bob, for Raalto. I took my time saddling Red and explained everything that I was doing and why I was doing it. When I'd finished with Red the newly mated men were with us. I told them to catch and halter all the Clydesdales, the Morgans and the three Quarter Horse mares while I watched and helped Raalto saddle Bob.

When Bob was saddled I mounted him to make sure that he was indeed safe for Raalto to ride. Bob was alert but cooperative so I got down and showed Raalto how to mount. When he was aboard I gave him a few rudimentary instructions, mounted Red and led us off up canyon.

When we reached my cave I stopped and we dismounted. There was nothing to tie the horses to so I asked Raalto to go inside and ask Maia or Merita to come out for a few minutes. He returned with both of them. I gave them each a kiss and asked them to hold our mounts while we went inside for a few minutes.

I intended to take my M1 with me and I was going to have Raalto bring his also. Bigglieo, Caato, Barago, and all their mates were eating when we went through. I told the men that the trip was planned for tomorrow and I asked Bigglieo to spend most of the day getting things ready and helping the others learn about the horses, wagons and travois. They all agreed.

Raalto and I went to the practice cave, got our rifles and then went back outside. I told Maia and Merita where we were going.

"Are you going to hunt?" Maia asked.

"Not especially, if we see game that is easy to get we might take it." I said.

"Now probably isn't a good time but soon Maia and I want to learn to ride so we can go with you. I think that the wolves would like to be hunting some even though they have plenty to eat. The three oldest are always sniffing around and stalking things. Do you think that they could learn to help a person who is hunting?" Merita asked.

"I'm sure they could and I'm glad you reminded me. I will start teaching you to ride while the others are gone for their things." I promised them.

Raalto and I started upriver then. I watched and it seemed to take almost no time for Raalto to change from a tentative anxious perch on the horse to a relaxed confident seat. When we reached the place where I'd found the new horses we explored it a little. After a while I decided to head even farther upriver.

About a mile farther up the valley widened appreciatively. There were spots of woods scattered around but it was mostly grassland.

"Raalto I think that we have found our hay. This will be a good place to start cutting it anyway. It isn't too far from our camp and there is plenty. I'm surprised that there aren't more animals grazing here." I told him.

"I'm not. Look." He said pointing.

We had been trending generally north during our ride. Raalto was pointing off toward the northwest. I hadn't brought the glasses with me but I could see what he was pointing out. About seven hundred yards from us there was a pride of cave lions lounging near the canyon's wall. Raalto and I decided that we had explored enough in this direction.

The cave lions would have to be dealt with before we could cut hay here. We headed back down river.

"The cave lions will make it difficult to cut hay in that area." Raalto said after we'd headed back.

"I will have to kill them or make them leave."

"They are very dangerous John. They are best avoided if possible." He stated the obvious.

"I know, but that is too good a spot for gathering hay to just leave. I will be able to take care of the cave lions. We will do it this afternoon if they are still there when we get back."

"I am going to enjoy seeing it. I don't doubt you but I do want to see it myself."

When we got back to my cave we met Jonoco and Nadlo coming toward it. I had them take Red and Bob back to the pens. I told them to tie them to the fence and just loosen the saddle girths. Raalto and I went into the cave and I was happy to see that food was on the way.

Many of the others were already seated and waiting. Something nagged at me and then I realized that I hadn't seen Daaggo, Raalto's best man, since I'd met him when they arrived.

"Where has your second been hiding Raalto? I haven't seen him since you arrived." I asked.

"Maybe we should talk privately about Daaggo." He said.

My interest was up now and I led Raalto through the entrance to Georgo's cave and into the meditation chamber.

"What do we need to discuss about Daaggo?" I asked Raalto.

"I should have spoken to you about it before but I am accustomed to it now and didn't think to. Daaggo is not like other men. I hope that you are not bothered by him. He is very loyal and his difference doesn't bother me." Raalto told me without telling me anything.

"If he is a good man I don't see what would bother me about him. In what way is he different from other men." I asked.

"Daaggo doesn't have a mate John." He said.

"Many young men do not have mates."

"Daaggo doesn't want a mate. At least he doesn't want a woman." Raalto said and I could see that it was hard for him to tell me.

I had to bite my tongue to keep from smiling. Daaggo was homosexual. I wondered how it had been for him to be that way in this time. I was sure that it couldn't have been easy. He must be amazingly competent to be Raalto's second man under these conditions.

"That is wonderful Raalto." I said.

"Wonderful?" He asked, surprised.

"Yes. I'm sure that Daaggo must be hard working and very helpful. It is only a bonus that he is not interested in women, leaving them alone for those of us that do like them. Has he been able to find another man that is so inclined to share his furs?" I asked.

Raalto clearly hadn't expected this. He was speechless for a moment.

"No, he hasn't. I do not know of one and to tell you the truth I haven't asked anyone else if they did. Now that you say it I haven't even asked Daaggo if he wanted a man to share his furs. I feel that he would but I have never asked. We haven't mentioned anything about this to each other since he told me of his feelings." Raalto said.

"I must talk to him then or you must. It would not be wise to pry into his business if he doesn't want us to. If he would like some help in the matter though I'm sure that Georgo can give it. I know that there are other men who have similar inclinations. Of course that would not be enough, just finding another man who was willing. It would have to be someone that Daaggo felt he could come to care for. We will have to find other men that are similar as a starting place though." I said.

"I will speak to him of it then if you think I should." Raalto said but I could hear the reluctance in his voice.

"Why not let me speak to him. I am his leader now and it is my responsibility to help him with any problem that he has. I know that he must be a remarkable helper for you since he is your second. That automatically makes him a very valuable member of our camp. I would like the chance to talk to him and offer to help him if he will accept the help."

"I will tell him that then." He said.

"Why don't you just tell him that I would like to talk to him and let me tell him?"

"I will do that." Raalto agreed, relieved.

We returned to the table and the meal was already being eaten. We had barely parked our asses before food appeared in front of us. I could smell that the bread had been freshly baked this morning and when I did I looked for Roweea. She smiled when I saw her and nodded toward the bread. I was glad that she had found something that she was proud to cook.

After the meal I told Danlo to get my wagon hitched and ready to go. I asked and he said that the loading tower was still on it. I asked Galto to have a few men ready to do some skinning in a couple of hours.

"Are you going hunting?" He wanted to know.

"Raalto and I have found a good place to cut our hay for the horses. Unfortunately, there is a pride of cave lions nearby. We are going back this afternoon to kill them so they will not be a danger when the hay is being cut and gathered." I said.

"You will end up dead yourself. A man is a fool to hunt cave lions on purpose." Barbo said, stopping all talk.

"A man is a rude fool to call another a fool while he sits at that man's table eating his food. You are my guest here so I will overlook your poor manners. I will thank you to keep your thoughts of me and my ways to yourself for the rest of your visit though." I told him and then I went to the practice cave.

I intended to use the.50 on the cave lions. The power of the cartridge was not a particular advantage for killing cave lions. The range was. I would feel much safer dealing with the lions from eight hundred yards than I would from four hundred.

I put the.50 in its hard case along with forty rounds of ammunition. When I got outside I saw Danlo approaching with the wagon. It looked a little strange to see the giant horses pulling it instead of Sally and Jane.

Bigglieo, Galto, Dargo, Danlo, Nadlo, Jonoco and Racaato all wanted to go with Raalto and I. I told the newly mated to stay and continue working with the horses and teams. I also sent Nadlo back to get Bob and Red to tie to the back of the wagon while Racaato went to get his M1. I wanted to be mounted and watching while the men were dealing with the dead lions and another rifle would just add to our safety.

We headed out and it was like a normal ride to no place in particular. When we arrived at the new open area of the canyon I looked around and saw a good rise to shoot from that would leave me about six hundred and fifty yards from the lions.

I got the.50 out and loaded it. No one asked me anything about it but I knew that they were amazed by its much larger size and different look. I put its bipod down and settled into the prone position, looking through the scope and finding the targets. Taking up my binoculars I scanned the area around the lions more closely. I found seven adult lions, one very large male and six females. There were also four cubs.

When I started firing I noticed another benefit of the large suppressor. It disguised the direction the blast was coming from. Combined with the echoes off canyon walls the big cats were completely baffled. They didn't seem to pay particular attention when the lead male dropped from the first shot. They all perked up when the sound reached them though and they seemed to look away from me as if the sound had come from the other direction. They looked toward the canyon wall when the first echo reached them.

They were all nervous and pacing now but they didn't really scatter. I picked them off as if it were target practice. When it came to the young ones I felt bad about it. There wasn't an option though. I snuffed the four cubs, probably about four to five months old, just as I had the others. When they were all down we waited where we were. I wanted to be sure that I hadn't overlooked one. No others appeared.

I packed up the.50 and then mounted Red, taking the M1 from its saddle scabbard. Raalto mounted Bob and Bigglieo took over the wagon while Racaato rode standing, M1 in hand, in the back. We advanced on the lions slowly but reached them without incident. The others made short work of loading the seven adult lions and four cubs while Raalto and I watched.

I sent Bigglieo and the others back and Raalto and I made a sweep over the new hay meadow. It was probably eight to nine hundred acres not counting the small patches of woods or the wooded areas near the river's banks. There would be more than enough hay here.

We headed back about an hour behind Bigglieo and the others. Danlo and Jonoco were by the entrance to my cave when we got back and they took Red and Bob for a rubdown and to turn them loose.

All the lions had been skinned already, even the cubs. Most of my mates were working on the hides but I noticed that Dieta, Maia and Geera were busily removing every tooth and claw from the lion's remains. Barbo was nowhere to be seen but Jara was standing around and when she saw me her eyes went wide and brightened.

"I know now that you are the greatest hunter ever." She said.

"Maybe I'm the best killer but Raalto found the lions." I said.

"It is a lot easier to find cave lions than it is to kill them." Raalto said.

"I guess that my fool of a mate will know now that he is the fool indeed." Jara said.

"I don't think that he is a fool, he is just rude. I'm sure that most who heard for the first time that I was setting out to kill the lions thought what he did. He just couldn't control his mouth." I said.

"I hope you are right but I'm afraid he is a fool. After you and Raalto left he told me to make ready to leave and said we were going today. I told him that if he left today, intending to travel at night, he would be leaving without me. I was not about to leave walking in the middle of the day, knowing that the sun would set long before we got home, especially since I need only wait until tomorrow to ride home." Jara said, making perfect sense to me.

"He is probably just angry. Maybe he will settle down soon." I said.

"He will settle down or he will be angry by himself. I am mated to Barbo but nothing says that I must stay mated to him forever. He may even beat me for it but he cannot keep me against my will always." Jara said.

"I do not allow the beating of women in my camp. If you do not want to leave with him all you need do is walk into my cave and stay. No one will remove you from it by force." I told her.

"I am probably just angry myself. It is good to know of your rules but Barbo and I will be more calm after a while." Jara said; she did walk back into my cave though.

Raalto and I went inside also and continued to the practice cave where I stored the.50 in my locker.

"Is that a rifle too?" Raalto asked.

"Yes. It is made to use against larger animals and also to use at greater distance. I did not want to get any closer to the lions than I had to. Barbo was right in a way and if he had known about the rifles he might have saved himself some embarrassment. If he had held his tongue for a moment longer I was going to invite him and all the men that were at the table to come with us. I am actually glad that he spoke up. It would have been a mistake to let him see the rifles."

"I think it would have been a mistake also. I have known Barbo longer than you have and I would not consider telling him anything that was very important." Raalto said.

"Why is that?"

"I don't know exactly why I feel that way. I just do not trust Barbo. Until my trip here I had always felt that it was because of Jara. Now I see that it is probably Barbo that has caused us to keep our distance." He said.

"Anyway, I am now well on my way to having furnished a lion skin for each of my mates. I will still need to get at least three more but there is no rush."

Raalto asked me about that and I explained what had come about after my first hunt. He told me that for anyone else killing ten lions would be the work of a lifetime.

"Soon you will not worry if you confront a cave lion. It is best to always be careful, especially with big cats, but with a rifle you will have confidence that you can protect yourself."

We returned to my cave and saw Dalia and Shelalliea starting on the cooking. It was a sight that always warmed my heart. Somehow it reminded me of the talk I needed to have with Daaggo.

"Do you think that I could talk to Daaggo now?" I asked Raalto.

"I will find him and ask him to come to you." He said and left.

I got a mug of coffee and sat at the table. Daaggo came in probably twenty minutes later. I asked him to sit with me and offered him some coffee. He accepted and I was going to get up for it when I saw Shelalliea pick up a mug and pour coffee in it. She brought it to Daaggo and I noticed that unlike me, Daaggo concentrated on looking at Shelalliea's face as she approached. He thanked her for the coffee and she went back to cooking.

"Raalto has told me some things about you Daaggo and I thought that I should let you know that I understand your feelings and approve of them." I told him.

He was clearly surprised. I'd made sure that he wasn't drinking when I said it because I didn't want him choking on the hot coffee. It was probably a good thing. He did seem to sit there and just gulp for a second.

"I do not know what to say. Do you mean that my strangeness doesn't offend you?" Daaggo asked.

"I mean that I do not consider it a strangeness. I see nothing wrong with it. I'm sure that you did not choose to have those feelings, they are no doubt natural to you." I said.

"I didn't choose it. I have tried hard to desire women but I just don't. I have resigned myself to the fact that I will never be mated and will always live alone." Daaggo said.

"Do you know of no other men that have the same feelings?"

"There are no others in our camp. I know of two others who live together in a distant camp. Those two are the only ones I know of." He said.

"Would you be offended if I asked Georgo whether he knew of other men with the same feelings?"

"I would not be offended but why would you want to?" He asked.

"I am not trying to force another on you Daaggo, but if there are others perhaps you would like to meet them at least. I don't demand that you take one for a mate but if you do find someone you could care for wouldn't it be better for you?"

"Of course I would like to have someone to share my life with. I am just surprised that you would think of helping me. I have always felt that there was something wrong with me for these feelings and now you are offering to help me with them." He said.

"There is nothing wrong with you Daaggo. You are different in some ways from other men but all men are different in some ways. I would not like for you to tell it but I will tell you that some of the spirits have the same feelings you do. I know it for a fact." I said, thinking of the comment that Argent had made about the dress designer.

This shocked Daaggo. He was speechless for minutes.

"That is a revelation to me. If you think that Georgo may know of others like me please do ask him. I would like to meet them if I can. Thank you for being so understanding and for telling me about the spirits. I didn't know that you could also speak to the spirits." Daaggo said finally.

"I do not really speak to the spirits Daaggo but sometimes they do speak to me."

"I see. I think that I should go and think about these new things for awhile if I might." He told me.

"Of course you can. Please come back to eat with us if you are able though." I said.

"I think I would like that." He said and then took his leave.

That had gone easier than I'd thought. I was glad to have it over with. Just in time too as Georgo and Ladeliea came in from their cave. Georgo came to sit with me and Ladeliea brought him some coffee and refilled my mug.

"I have something to talk with you about Georgo. It is about Daaggo." I said.

"So they have told you? I wondered if they would say something before you noticed it yourself. How do you feel about it?" Georgo asked me.

"I feel sorry that Daaggo has not found another man that feels as he does. Do you know of any with that inclination? Perhaps we could let Daaggo meet him if you know of someone."

"You surprise me again John. I was afraid, as I'm sure Raalto and Daaggo were, that you would not tolerate Daaggo's feelings." Georgo admitted.

"As I just told Daaggo, even some of the spirits are so inclined."

Georgo was shocked now. He was as nearly speechless as Daaggo had been.

"They have never revealed that to me. They have never revealed anything contrary to that either though." Georgo said finally.

"They did not exactly reveal it to me either but I got the feeling that it was so in a vision once and I'm sure that they would not mislead me on purpose."

"No, I don't think that they would do that either." Georgo agreed.

"But do you know of others like Daaggo?"

"Yes. I know of six others that I am sure are like Daaggo and two who are not men yet that seem like him also. In fact, one boy who should be a man soon, in Barbo's camp seems that way to me." Georgo said.

"That would be too much to hope for. Would you speak privately to Daaggo after we eat and tell him of these men and boys?"

"I will do it. You constantly amaze me John. Life has certainly been more interesting since you came here." Georgo said.

"I hope that isn't too much of a strain." I said and laughed.

Others started drifting in from outside then. Those of my mates that had been skinning and working with the remains of the cats were covered with blood and decided to shower before eating. I was tempted to go and help them but I didn't. Maia and Merita did come over and tell me that they had saved most of the meat to feed the wolves and that they were going to render what fat there was on the cats to use in lamps and such. I was glad that the cats would not be wasted.

Geera and Dieta came in lugging a pretty big basket full of teeth and claws.

"We have more cat's teeth and claws than I have ever seen." Dieta said.

"There will be plenty of necklaces made this winter." Geera added.

"Are you sure that you don't need more? I can get them for you if you'd like."

"We will make sure to use them wisely if you get more but we don't think that you should search for cats to kill. It would be nice to have the long teeth from a dirk tooth to make a necklace for you though." Dieta said.

"I have only seen the one and I will not kill him if he always minds his manners as well as he did the day of the hunt." I said, and laughed.

"Yes, you must leave it be if you can. They are ferocious. That is the only one I have ever seen and it was closer to us than I wanted it to be. You did the right thing by killing the bison for it. I think that I like for it to be well fed and far away." Geera said.

They went to put away their treasure and then join the others in the shower. The others hadn't tarried though. Jaada, Roweea, Waaya and Winna were now coming to the kitchen with clean Wilma dresses on and wet hair.

Others started arriving in anticipation of supper then. The men came to the table to talk and the women helped in the kitchen. The kitchen filled with women faster than the table filled with men and soon some of the women had to join us at the table since there wasn't room for all of them to cook.

I was a little surprised to see Barbo come in with Jara. I wasn't mad at him anymore and was actually glad that he wasn't mad enough to stay away. Thankfully he didn't apologize for what he'd said. It made it easier for me since it meant that I needn't apologize for what I'd said. It was an unfortunate thing but at least it had stopped me from revealing the rifles to him.

Barbo's presence did seem to keep conversation to a minimum during the meal. No hard feelings were displayed; things were just subdued. I didn't mind a quiet meal for a change. After it was over Barbo didn't linger. He did thank my mates for the food and compliment their cooking before he left.

Daaggo had come with Raalto, Reeana and Jareena to eat with us. Georgo led him away soon after we ate and I assumed they were going to have a talk.

Nadlo, Jonoco and Danlo didn't linger after they'd finished eating. Melieta, Jaiya, Shaala and Shallea weren't far behind them. This caused Dalia and Shelalliea to leave quickly too. Tonight was the last of the three mating nights and I was happy they would be over. It didn't really make sense to me that with all the mates I had I could miss the two who weren't with me, especially since I'd had so many guests to "honor". I did miss Shelalliea and Dalia while they were away though.

When I was alone with my mates and time for bed arrived I decided to see if I could play a little trick on them. Dicky didn't help a damned bit but though he was hard and standing tall, and though my mates were ready for a little slap and tickle, I put on my own little sham of resistance. It nearly backfired on me. They seemed to take me at my word until Roweea spoke up.

"It doesn't matter if you're tired. You are out mate and you will give us what we want. Help me Dieta. We will hold him down for a change and take what is ours." She announced.

Of course Dieta was all for this. Maia and Jaada were quick to help too. I found myself pinned to the mattress with one of my horny mates at each of my arms and legs holding me down. I made sure not to actually break free as I struggled.

Gema took the initiative in actually teasing me with her hands, lips and tongue. Licking everything that she found interesting. Geera took a seat on my face to keep me quiet. Soon Gema took a seat on dicky and as she pumped her tight wet pussy up and down on me I could occasionally get a glimpse up between Geera's legs to see the mother and daughter kissing each other hotly and saw each giving the other's titties and nipples a thorough fondling, pinching and twisting.

My mates were careful to keep me restrained as one would finish and another take her place. When my face was unoccupied I begged and pleaded to be released but they wouldn't even consider it. I silently thanked Argent for my increased stamina and I'm sure if they'd known of it my mates would have thanked him also. They kept at me for hours and had their wicked way with me until they'd all had enough. Later I drifted off into a very satisfied sleep.