July 17th, 2022

Unfortunately, Jenny woke up on the same straw bed that she fell asleep on. Before her brain could drum up all kinds of ideas with the following anxiety, the other two awoke with the girl screaming.

Jenny covered her ears wincing. She hated loud noises and screaming counted. After a back and forth between the two, Jenny decided to not think much at the moment and glanced outside. Nature, raw and untamed, greeted her sight. The vegetation was healthy and abundant and small birds could be seen flitting about.

Instead of feeling anxious at the view, Jenny felt a little calmer. Nature could do that to her. She always felt better surrounded by it and would often meditate by the creek that ran through her parents property. She did her best to channel those calm emotions, but was interrupted by Parker.

"We will go to the village today. You can both meet the other females while I hunt. And you," he turned towards Jenny, "can find a male."

Jenny blinked, but didn't freak out. Bai Qingqing seemed more nervous than she did. A moment later, Jenny felt a little twinge of fear try to rise up and she squashed it. She shut down the feeling with a force of will. She had her practice before and succeeded this time.

Jenny didn't say anything, but found herself on a leopard's back. Apparently, Jenny had stared at the greenery long enough for Parker to make new clothes for the girl. The same curtesy did not extend to her and she was fine with that.

Parker dropped them off and they mingled with the females. Bai Qingqing did most of the talking. Jenny did at least introduce herself politely. Eve was nice and chatted with the two of them. Eudora called Jenny ugly and snubbed Bai Qingqing before walking away. Jenny didn't take it to heart. She really could care less about what strangers said to her, their opinions did not matter. Their weak insults could never compare to the things she has already called herself.

Jenny shook her head and brushed it aside. She already felt so much better about herself, now that the painful, volcanic belt that used to be her skin has now become flat and inactive, if a little dry. Some of the older scars had even lightened up considerably. No strangers or characters in a shallow novel could bring her barely-there self confidence back down to nothing. Not when she was still tearing up in relief every time she looked in a mirror or laid down in bed without the pain of several popping pimples.

"What are you going to do Jenny?" Bai Qingqing asked the women.

"Ah, that... I don't know," Jenny answered honestly.

"About what?" Questioned a curious Eve.

Bai Qingqing answered her while Jenny thought about it. 'Treat it like a game,' she reminded herself.

"We can gather the males and see if there are any you fancy," Eve offered before Jenny could think up a plan.

"Thank you, but no for right now. Can I get a moment to think first?" Jenny asked Eve.

"Of course you can," Eve said in a friendly tone.

Jenny sat down and looked around. There were less trees in the area and more exposed dirt and stone. The paths were worn thanks to the coming and going of beasts. Jenny decided to think in the terms that were used in the story. She didn't want to mess up somewhere and have to explain herself. It wasn't as hard as she thought since she had been hearing both Eve and Parker using those terms.

From her understanding, Jenny figured she would have to find a male to take care of her. It wasn't negotiable. She was no superwomen and hadn't been granted any powers that she had discovered anyway. She might be able to hunt if she had a bow. She had been shooting since she was eleven and had some confidence in that ability. Still, she had only hunted once and decided that it was too much to gut and clean an animal. If she had to, she might be able to, but defending herself against the males or rootless beasts here would be too much to expect.

Parker wasn't an option and Jenny was kind of glad for that. She hated his pushy and arrogant personality. Harvey would be ideal, but it might be too late for him. Jenny could still try and she would.

If Harvey didn't work, the next know option was Curtis. Jenny immediately blocked him out. No matter what this situation was, she couldn't chance getting raped. Bai Qingqing can get over it because the author wrote her that way, but Jenny couldn't even entertain the thought.

Since Curtis wasn't an option, Muir was next, but Jenny didn't think she would be able to catch his attention without being kidnapped by Curtis. The next ones were Shuu the wolf and Tony the bear. Jenny didn't know if they would respect her enough to hold off on mating, but they were still possible choices.

After them was Winston. Jenny squirmed slightly. Winston was the reason she stuck around to read the story. If she had a crush in this story, it would be him. He was one of the few respectful males to show up in this story if not the only one. He should understand her if she explains her situation to him.

Jenny figured he was her best choice by far. But there were several problems with him being the only viable option. How would she get to the city of beasts when she had no other male vying for her attention? And there was the second issue. She wasn't considered attractive, if Parker and Eudora's name calling was anything to go by.

Although she hoped Winston wouldn't mind that, she couldn't count on any of the other beasts approaching her. There were others who show up later, but she had to get that far in order to worry about them. She decided to focus on her immediate goals: Checking if Harvey is available, getting to the city, catching Winston's attention, and surviving in between.

Jenny excused herself to the sandbox and winced. She really didn't like the idea of being exposed while doing her business, but that wasn't a priority and she couldn't address that yet. She went back out to find the scene of Eudora accusing Bai Qingqing of being infertile.

Jenny was too far away to get a good look, but she could hear well enough. She also heard Harvey confessing his love and felt down. She didn't have high expectations, but it still bugged her. He seemed like a decent character that got overshadowed by a bunch of jerks. Except Winston, he was a good guy.

Bai Qingqing started bleeding and Parker carried her away. Jenny stood there, lost. Was she really on her own now? What was she supposed to do? Randomly choose from the crowd? She hesitated, her expression must have been terrible since a male approached her.

"Female, are you alright?" Jenny looked at the beautiful man in front of her. Parker wasn't friendly so it was easier to ignore his looks, but not with this man. He seemed depressed and his ears drooped. His bright blue eyes were staring at Jenny's blue ones and she had a feeling about his identity.

"I..." She wasn't okay. She's always said she was fine even if she didn't mean it. Conversations ended much quicker if she did and she only told her family or friends about how she actually felt. But here, she needed help and she might not get it if she didn't ask for it. She had no volunteer like Parker was for Bai Qingqing. "Need help."

Jenny winced as she said it and wished she hadn't. If this was who she thought it was, then he got rejected today. He had his own struggles and here she was imposing.

"Are you ill or injured? I can treat you if you are," offered the man. "My name is Harvey and I'm the doctor of this village."

Jenny withheld a sigh. She had guessed correctly. Now she had to figure out how to ask for the help she needed.

"My name is Jenny, I... was brought here by Parker with Bai Qingqing," Jenny said.

Harvey's eyes lit up at the mention of Bai Qingqing and Jenny noticed. She wasn't sure how to feel about it. She felt it was really strange that Harvey, who had only met the girl twice, was already smitten. She remembered that most of the men here fell in love fast and furiously.

"Jenny, you can come to my hut. I keep my herbs there," Harvey stated as he started walking. His pace was slow and Jenny wondered if he was being considerate of her.

Jenny explained on their way that she was not injured, but experiencing a dilemma. It took her some time to force the words she wanted to say out. Her voice box wanted to quit several times and she was suddenly grateful that the man in front of her liked someone else. It made him easier to talk to, but it was still hard for her. He was the most beautiful man she had ever spoken to, she figured her struggle was justified.

Instead of making a plea for Harvey's assistance, Jenny asked for his advice. She told him a little of her circumstances. She left out the other wold part for now, but spoke of some of the great differences in her 'clan.' Namely, how taking mates worked.

Harvey listened intently, he was very curious about this mystery clan that Jenny spoke of. He had never heard of such a clan, but he didn't assume that Jenny was lying. Based on her concerns, he realized that the female was going through a difficult time. He offered to let her stay with him until she took a mate and she looked visibly relieved.

Harvey noticed how Jenny's face twisted in guilt shortly after and wondered why she had such an expression. It was natural for males to help females and he told her as much. Her reaction was not what he expected.

"I'd... be freeloading without giving you anything back," Jenny said and Harvey blinked in shock. He was not familiar with the term freeloading, but he understood the context of the statement. To him, it was natural that a female would take without giving back. That was how females worked. Jenny's humble attitude increased his interest in her clan. He wondered what kind of place could have raised such a hesitant female.

"You do not have to give anything back," stated Harvey.

Jenny didn't want to argue the point. Maybe she could show him different ways to cook and prepare food. She recalled Parker enjoying meat cooke with spices, maybe Harvey would be the same. Jenny posed the question with some hesitation, "Can I help prepare meals, at least?" When she didn't get an immediate response, she insisted, "Please."

Harvey was immediately conflicted. Females weren't supposed to work, but this one was nearly begging him for it. He could hear the stress in her voice and agreed. If that was what the female wanted, he would support her.

Harvey asked about what food she could eat and set out to hunt and forage. Even if this female wasn't the one he really wanted to support, any male would feel pride being able to care for one. Harvey tracked down several hares and harvested some wild fruits that he found on the way. He managed to find some of the greens that apes ate and would bring that back as well.

Jenny paced around the hut and decided to walk out once she memorized everything inside. She didn't think it was the wisest move, but moping around would not help her situation. Harvey bought her time, but she could sit on her rear forever. She continued to play her mantra over and over again in her head. She intended to treat this like a game until she could figure out her situation.

Jenny felt her shoulders relax only slightly as she took a look around the hut. This one was built slightly better than the ones she had seen along the way, including Parker's. She saw flashes of fur sometimes, but no one bothered her. A modern day women like her getting dropped into a world of attractive and female starved men should've made her feel special, but she was mostly ignored instead.

Other than Parker and Eudora, no one treated Jenny badly, but none competed for her attention either. She thought it was ironic. Stifling a giggle Jenny figured it might be okay after all. If men fell all over her like idiots, she would've felt very uncomfortable too. Then again, she would have found that funny in a way, but still uncomfortable.

Jenny decided to do some stretches for lack of anything to do. She had zero sense of direction and wouldn't wander far from the hut. She was always pretty active and taking long walks was one of her favorite ways to relax. Her and her parents didn't live around too many other people so she wasn't concerned with being kidnapped or assaulted as much as she would be if they lived in a city.

She stretched and did some squats, lunges, and jumping jacks. Her athleticism kept her from being eaten by wolves, so she was more than happy to keep it up. Jenny was all too aware that she was not the main character here. At best, she was a mob character. Bai Qingqing was still the MC as far as Jenny could tell.

The story would not center around her. Jenny wondered if she could put any hopes on Winston. She wasn't sure if she could change the plot of not. Being a mob character gave her some freedom, but that freedom may not apply to changing anything substantial. She could try though.

If she had Winston behind her, she could take things a little easier. Then again, he came with his own set of troubles. If she took Winston, would the ape king see her as an enemy too? What about Rosa? If she only had Winston, she could be in real trouble.

Instead of panicking, Jenny increased the intensity of her work out. She never liked standard exercises and preferred to run through the woods while jumping over any obstacles. She tried to save that exercise for colder temperatures so she wouldn't accidentally step on any snakes. She wouldn't dare try that here. There was no telling what kind of animals were native to this area and she definitely didn't want to step on any of them.

She stopped to catch her breath. Her muscles flexed with the exertion and she worked up a sweat. She didn't have abs, but she was heavily toned. She did however, have decent leg and arm muscles. It helped that she was in charge of various chores and yard work that kept her moving. Slinging top soil for their garden and taking care of the horses, among other things, gave her a good workout. She could lift and carry the smaller hay bails easily enough, but had to roll the larger ones. She didn't have to use standard work out routines, her chores were more than enough to keep her fit.

The sweat dripped into her eyes and her stray baby hairs glued themselves to her forehead and neck. She blinked away the sting and determined a bath would be in order soon. Her long hair escaped knotting thanks to the tight single braid she kept it in.

Her thin, medium brown hair would not do well if it wasn't bound at all times. She had thought about cutting it, but she was too insecure to try shorter hair. Jenny intended to try it now that her acne was gone, but her appointment wasn't until next week. Something she currently couldn't worry about. She figured she might be missing that appointment.

Jenny sighed and move bathing up in priority. She might cut her hair here since it would be difficult to care for in this environment. Thoughts of bathing made her feel a little better. She also needed a drink pretty badly and went inside. Harvey had shown her where the water and sand pit were. Jenny picked up the roughly made cup and got herself some water.

She wondered if it was boiled properly, but didn't dare ask at this point. Considering how much a complete stranger was doing for her, nitpicking him would be very rude. She tried to see if there was anything she could do, but didn't come up with anything. She would ask Harvey when he returned, but didn't think he would tell her much.