Blacklake-Book4-1 Three Cousins

Chapter 3
~

That was such a long drive. I stretched my back out a bit after I slid out of my truck. Never have driven under the speed limit before. The council is pretty conservative when it comes to speed limits—deer are for huntin’ not decoratin’ yar hood, is the common expression. I left the fool human leanin’ against my right-rear quarter panel suckin’ air. Pretty sure his struggle for oxygen was only partially because of the Valley’s elevation. For a human, he showed a bunch of perseverance the last three hours. Only asked me to pull over one other time to upchuck.

I caught Ezra in flight, and we swung around together for an hour or so, before I got her safely to the ground onto two settled, bare ogre feet—think she cracked a couple of my vertebrae, jammed a tusk completely through my skull. But she was still holdin’ me tight, with a tusk still pressed into my head just above my ear. Maybe she likes me. Be convenient to be as tall as her. Pish. As tall as most other ogre bulls.

Kriz and the rest of his folk trudged toward us. Kriz may have been checkin’ out the birds in the trees, not showin’ interest. But I think he’s prolly good with me bein’ home too.

A lot of ogre growlin’ and hugs past, I finally got a chance to give Kriz a sharp chuck to the chest. He didn’t appear irritated, so he was indeed happy to have me home. I counted cousins. Yep. The good ones were all here. All of em prolly more ecstatic the one cousin who can somewhat control Kriz is home.

I caught Aunt Karzy’s glare directin’ behind me, and turned. Thomas stood mostly erect now, though maybe a bit shakily, and studied us with a bit of, I’ll call it horror, on his face. Maybe all our ogre growlin’ takes a human off their stride. Definitely remember David freakin’ out a bunch his first visit.

I gave him a wave. “Come meet my aunt, uncle, cousins.”

He stood frozen several long seconds. “They’re family? Sounded like they were getting ready to kill you.”

Everyone, except for Thomas and Kriz, laughed up half an organ at that one. Which maybe scared him more. Our laughs aren’t that much like the human variety. Thomas has so much to learn. Odd, livin’ on the Plain and bein’ so ignernt of giant ways.

Ezra, of course Ezra, took the initiative to stride toward the idjit human with her hand out. We can shake hands. Not a historically ogre thing, but we can meet a human half-way. We mostly just growl our hellos.

Terrifically enjoyed watchin’ Thomas’ head tilt back to maintain eye contact as my favorite cousin neared. He likes to brag that at six-three, he’s a tall human.

“Welcome to the Hamlet,” she told him.

I listened to see if she cracked any of his metacarpals, or broke his wrist—dislocated his shoulder. A lot of us tend to forget humans are really fragile. But he didn’t even grimace as Ezra pumped his hand, and introduced herself.

Was that a bit of dribble runnin’ over his lip as she draped an arm around him and pulled him toward the rest of us?

“Come meet my favorite aunt,” she was tellin’ him—which I’m pretty sure was for Karzy’s account. I’m certain my mama is her favorite aunt.

If his knees were shakin’ from nausea before, they were swervin’ about good now.

~ Ezra ~

Elation. My head may explode. Havin’ Kriz and Ike home. No better word for the gushin’ emotion floodin’ my chest. Almost painful. In the opposite way it felt when the two bulls originally left the Valley.

Was cruel, lettin’ the fourteen-year-old Kriz leave for college, only to lose Ike the next year. Kriz was ready to leave at thirteen, but hung around to take classes locally, only because I put my foot down. Pretty sure Razi and Karzy were ready for him to leave two years earlier than that. They love him, I think, but never figgered out how to deal with him. There is no dealin’ with him. Ya just have to stand back and let Kriz be Kriz. Don’t think they’ll ever get it.

As I introduced the little human child to the cousins, standin’ back and takin’ the human in, a strange thought struck, despite it being a tiny, spindly thing with no tusks—he was cute, in a soft, cuddly way.

The gang got quiet as Kriz chose not to shake the human’s hand. His mama quickly explained her youngest doesn’t like to be touched. Which is true. But there was something else. Kriz is quick about makin’ judgments. Usually accurate, in my experience. But I think without a single conversation, the bull had decided there was something off about the human. Stink. Let the human utter a couple words first, cousin.

As we straggled into Razi and Karzy’s domain, I fought my irritation, of Kriz’ unfair assessment. For one, I would do my best to make the human feel at home. It was the right thing to do. It had been so much easier with David. His constant grin and sarcasm made ya wanta hug him for no reason—we ogres love sarcasm, in the fashion trout love a clear mountain stream, bears like to mark a tree.

I hated bein’ angry at Kriz. Haven’t had enough time with him the last four years to absorb the goodness in him, certainly didn’t want to be smacked in the face with his human prejudice.

As we settled around the twenty-foot-long dining table and Karzy began layin’ out a snack to hold the gang till dinner, I watched the human closely. Seemed he was strugglin’ in an envelope of fear and turmoil. I’d forgotten how humans prefer quiet, calm. Been since high school, visitin’ the homes of the few Hamlet humans in my tiny circle, but remember how I had to work not to—overwhelm em.

And I’m a quiet ogre. Reserved. Ask anyone.

~