"Their scent is odd"

"Do we know who they are?"

"We're observing two of them..."

"When do you think they're going to attack"

A short huff is heard, "don't know but they'll come to know why the other tribes won't attack us so eagerly... "

Snap.

Both beastmens quickly search with their glowing eyes for who made the noise.

"Chris?" asks Lucy.

Chris laughs, "Sorry Lucy, I'm accompaning Suki to her potty."

Near his feet is a yawning Suki, "what are you and papa bear whispering about so late?"

Lucy sighs, "did you drink too much water?"

The cub nods her head and start crossing her legs.

Sniffing the air, Lucy comments, "hurry my little cub, let me take you to your usual place."

The mother and cub disappear further into the forest while the bear, leopard, and tiger beast follow silently behind.

------

"Mama, let's add this to our cloths" says Suki as she holds up a minty smelling plant.

The fox beast female tilts her head at her funny cub, "what we use to clean our teeth with?"

Suki happily nods her head, "yes mama, it just smells so good."

Mama nods her head in consent and adds the plant to the lavender. Now, both mother and cub are washing their cloths in that particular smell.

Seeing her cub smiling innocently and gleefully, Lucy looks tenderly at her cub. Yet from her head males warning last night, she keeps her ears alert for other sounds. Slightly glancing around, most of their tribe females were present at the river. And though some were giggling, most couldn't help but to stiffen their body or show in their tails a slight irritation.

"Mama are we washing our coths now too" asks her cub as she fiddles with her slightly dirty skirt.

Lucy shakes her head in no, "not this time, we're keeping them on for now." Then adds, "hmmmm, I know, why won't we try to wash them while we bathe" laughs Lucy.

Suki slightly bites her lower lips, that's not how we usually clean our cloths mama... she's being weird today.

"Okay mama" I smile as I geedily head to the fresh river. Ahh this feels wonderful. The weather is getting warmer, which means the sun is starting to heat the top of my head just a little too much. Ye'p, no wonder we bear beasts love the water.

As her cub happily splashes around, Lucy attempts to clean her cub with the herbs while fighting to keep a bright smile on her lips. Though, in the inside she has a strong desire to immediately grab her cub and head to her den.

"Lucy, did you finish bathing?" asks a familiar voice.

Slightly startled from her thoughts, Lucy looks at who called her.

Mallory is seen standing with some of the other females. In her group she sees the welcoming smiles of the other two female cubs toward her own little cub. Besides them stand their stiff mothers, and next to them is a surprisingly stern looking Jules.

Lucy nods her head. Though she wasn't able to fully bathe herself, she understood the need to get out quickly with the others.

As she swims back to them with her own cub, another voice is heard.

"Why are you females so quick in bathing today?" purrs the cat beast female as she walks confidently to the group. "I mean, it's been so hot!" she exclaims as she fans her face with her hand.

Jules gives a quick glance toward Lucy that only fox female beasts would recognize.

Mallory laughs and sticks her tung out as she scratches the back of her neck, "sorry, what's your name again?"

The cat beast narrows her eyes yet keeps her smile, "Clarise, please remember that" sniffs "half-female."

Mallory lips twitches yet she nods her head happily, "of course!"

However, Natasha's mother who's a whole-female beast, growls, "we don't discriminate in the Clear Lake Tribe."

"Oh Jazz, I'm sorry. I tend to forget that your daughter is a half-female," giggles Clarise as she is now standing close to the group in a relax manner. Jazz slightly widens her eyes and slowly places her body in front of her now alert daughter.

Lucy having seen Jules glance and hearing their conversation attempts to keep her beast at bay as she finally feels the ground. Trying to look relax, she grabs Suki to her chest and walks closer to the group of females while giving a wide space to the cat beast.

Clarise gleefully laughs, "yes, in this tribe that particular rule applies." Pauses and tilts her head, "but not in mine" she says as she shows her sharp teeth.

Mallory's ears are now laying flat as she positions her body to a defense. And the other females who were listening nearby, quickly start to walk over to their group.

Lucy clears her throat, "let's go, our males are waiting."

Jazz and Lori (Elena's mother) slint their eyes at Clarise as they nod once and turn to head out while keeping an ear and a eye still on the cat beast.

Clarise sways toward a close branch, "Oh Lucy, did you forget your cloths?" Gasping, she adds, "how naughty of you to forget, if you've forgotten another beast could've easily picked up your cubs scent" she ends with a sneer.

Lucy's whose nails were coming out was suddenly softly shove. As Jules passes by she whispers, "let's go, now." Suki blinks her eyes and stares at her mama, what's going on?

Ignoring Clarise, the large group of females went back to walking away.

"This isn't fun" evily smiles Clarise as she easily shreds the wet cloths. "Come out" she then commands.

Suddenly unknown males start to appear by their river and behind Clarise. Watching the arrival of these males, the whole-females of the group quickly morph their ears and claws. Natasha and her mother rapidly lift their heads and howl the wolf clan's alert call.

Shortly howls from the wolf clan were heard, but they sounded far.

"Stop them!" screeches Clarise as she points at the wolf beasts.

The males with excitement in their eyes, sneer and quickly morph into their beasts. A group of coyote males beasts pounce at the females. While a group of lizard beasts runs toward the wolf beast females. Suki, feeling her mother's anxiously fast heart beat couldn't help but give out a cry, "papa!!!".

Soon a few growls of familiar male beasts were heard nearby.

"Try not to fight but run!" commands Jules as she pushes mama's back and morphs into her own fox beast and sprints toward the growls of their tribe males.

"Stick together Jules!" hollers mama as she runs behind her.

Suki glancing behind mama stares in horror at the gruesome males that were running behind all of them. She then shrieks when she see's a heavy claw swiping at Natasha's feet. Natasha sensing the attack, quickly jumps in the air and morphs into her wolf beast. Her mother who was running beside her does the same and pushes her daughter with her snout to run faster.

Unfortunately, since Lucy couldn't morph because she was carrying her cub, she was soon left running behind their group.

Jules glancing back hollers in her fox beast form, "pick it up Lucy!"

Lucy feeling her eyes trying to blur in tears screams, "Dash!"