Spears of Uu'kata

Chapter 13 - A Bit of a Mess

Charlotte awoke to the rustling sounds of someone entering the tent. She rubbed her eyes and yawned. The gravity of this world was wearing her out and she'd only been here a few days. Would she ever get used to it?

She heard the sounds of feminine voices and when she pushed the fur off her head, and sat up to gaze blurrily at who'd entered the tent she was met with the eyes of five females who were removing shawls.

Timeout leapt up from his pallet and barked something at them and Shodara stepped forward with her shoulders straight, head high and said something that may have been telling him off.

He looked at her incredulously for a moment as the gears in his head turned. His eyes narrowed and he scoffed, shaking his head and turning around to scrub a hand over his face.

Charlotte didn't know what was happening but if Timeout was pissed about it then it was probably something good for her so she rubbed her eyes and pushed herself to her feet.

The females from the bath tent earlier were there and they smiled warmly as they came forward and sat in a semicircle around Charlotte, motioning for her to sit too.

She did and to her surprise, one of them pulled a small, folding lap desk from a satchel on her shoulder, along with a sheaf of paper. Another female pulled out a thick book and yet another produced a quill and inkpot.

The little desk was set before her. It was similar to the little one she unfolded to eat at sometimes back on base. It was meant to be used in a bed, she believed. This one was far more sturdy, and made from wood. The paper, inkpot and quill were all put in order atop it and as soon as Charlotte sat at the little desk, the large book was opened and the female pointed at a row of characters. Tapping her finger on the first one, she said, "Ah."

Charlotte frowned at her, then at the character in the book. Ah?

It struck her suddenly and she gasped when she realized what was going on.

They're teaching me their language! This is their alphabet!

Glancing toward the table where the Uu'k'asht took their meals, she saw Gondrolll sitting there smiling approvingly. He nodded to her and she swallowed before looking at the female sitting before her holding the book.

Picking up the quill, she dipped it into the ink, and set it to the paper, glancing up at the character in the book a few times as she copied it. When she was finished, she wrote A beneath it and said, "Ah!"

The females smiled approvingly and moved on to the next character. Timeout harrumphed like a grumpy old man and went to sit at the table with Gondroll.

***

That night Charlotte struggled to sleep over sex noises as Ahnekk, Shodara, Echnar and Gondroll got it on not three feet from her. She was so turned on she rolled over and faced away from them as though that would help, only to see Timeout's iridescent eyes locked on her in the dark. Glaring at him, rolled onto her belly and pulled the fur over her head. She didn't like putting herself in a position of vulnerability like that, but she believed Ahnekk and his—family?—wouldn't let Timeout do anything to her. She laid there, trying to drown out the sounds by going over what she'd learned through the day with the females in her head. It wasn't a great distraction at all. 

Finally, she he stuck her fingers in her ears after briefly considering sticking them elsewhere.

The following day was spent learning Uu'k'asht characters with the females. This time they brought a young girl who, surprisingly, had eyes a lot like Charlotte's. Her irises were still metallic but her sclera was white. She still had baby fat in her cheeks and didn't look a day over eight years old.