Flesh and Blood

Same old, same old... fandom still not mine, still no copywright to me. But I'm glad people seem to be enjoying the story all the same.

13
The following morning, Three Finger went scrounging through the car the father and son had been traveling in. Throwing aside some more hunting equipment, he eventually came across some food they had packed: vegetables and fruits in plastic containers (he ignored these), cookies and chips (odd flavor), and sandwiches in bags, which included deli meat. Finally he came across something else, and he took a taste of it out of curiosity. It looked like meat, but it had a strange smell to it, which translated into an even stranger taste when he put it in his mouth. Tearing a piece away with his malformed jaws, he chewed hesitantly and concentrated on the taste of the food. Something tingled on his tongue as he chewed, almost akin to burning, and the sensation soon gave way to a flavor that he liked. Enjoying the taste, Three Finger ate the rest of the meat, stripping the sticky essence off the bones and delighting in the fiery red juice which dripped from it. Unfortunately he cleaned the storage of the meat in no time, and he was slightly disappointed in the fact that he had none left to enjoy for future feasts. The pup sadly seemed to enjoy it as well, and wriggled slightly in similar discontent when it realized its parent was done eating.
Another moon later, Three Finger felt as though he were going mad. He could barely move now, and he did not think he could withstand anymore moments of sitting down or staying still. But his body was so heavy now that he could not move about too often or else he would either exhaust or hurt himself. He felt as though he had cabin fever even when he was outside.
The air was getting warmer thankfully, and flowers were beginning to bloom in the now greener grass. Once again Three Finger felt the seasons changing in time with him.
He was beginning to tire of his sickness now, and the once amazing aspects of carrying a pup were boring. His situation had become more of a discomfort instead of a miracle. Not only did he feel more restless than ever, but his body just felt uncomfortable, no matter what he did! No longer could he sleep on his back, because the weight of his belly against his lungs hindered his breathing, and he instead slept sitting up; this left him with a complaining spine every morning. His legs hurt too, something he had never imagined would happen. Even his chest hurt. In fact, looking at himself one morning he discovered with a fleeting moment of amusement that he was growing soft bits like the lesser half. The fleshy areas were not very big – certainly not as big as those of the whores he and his family had felled in the past – but he knew what they were for, and what they could do. The discovery overjoyed Three Finger for the briefest moment, and then he was back to grieving the way he looked and felt. At least his bullet wounds had healed over time…
His restlessness increased with every passing day and sometimes he found himself wandering the perimeters of the cabin. Of course wandering was hardly the word anymore, and his gait more suggested waddling, but he could not help feeling that something was going to happen. The man could sense the pup’s time was near, and he was grateful for it. He longed to hold the little girl or boy, or possibly even whatever he was, in his arms at last.
The deformed hunter awoke one afternoon from a moment of exhaustion and groggily looked at his stomach. How much bigger could he get! Three Finger laid his thin hands over the massive swell, felt how eager the pup moved around inside him. His skin was thinner on his belly, as it had stretched to make room for the life growing inside him. Never before had his hide felt so delicate. He wondered if he would burst should the pup decide to grow any bigger. Just as he thought this, the little one kicked. So much activity had been going on from the pup lately that he wondered if he was really bearing a litter. Such movements were painful anymore but it was reassuring. Snapping the shoulder strap of his now snug, straining overalls, he shifted on the mattress and tried to stand.
Three Finger winced in pain, for his back seemed to finally have had enough. This new ache in his spine radiated out to his hips and ribs, which he figured would be the next to go anyway. Even his teats were beginning to ache now. He ignored it as hard as he could, because he was starving, and needed to find something to eat. Hunger was the very reason he had awoken, loathe as he was to accept it. Lately he had been too tired to do anything but sleep, piss, shit, and eat. Fraught to find some sustenance, he pushed aside the screaming of his back and hobbled to the shelves to find a mason jar.
Reaching up to grab the preserved meat had been a bad idea. As soon as he found the jar and lifted it, his entire body was assaulted by agony. He paid no attention to the glass shattering, leaving pickled flanks and juices fanning out on the floor. Staggering, Three Finger felt the pain ripple from his back and into his belly and he clamped his hands over the hard flesh, feeling the skin tingle with the fading cramp.
This was it. He knew it! The pup was ready!
Three Finger would have been excited if the pain had not been so strong. Clamping a hand over the nearby table’s edge, he stumbled along, trying to get back to his bed, where at least he could be a little comfortable. If he concentrated enough and went slowly, perhaps he could make it to the bed without collapsing.
Something wet released between his thighs, running down his legs. At first Three Finger was ready to panic, remembering what flowed out of his gash so many summers ago. But he managed to reach the bed and he removed his overalls and shirt, prepared now to face whatever may happen next. He could not fail his father and brother now, not ever. Finding some small bit of peace in the moment that a cramp had not seized him, he hunched over on hands and knees, waiting. He had waited nine moons already; he could manage another few hours. He only wondered if the pup could manage that amount of time too.