Chapter 22 - Unripened

Noah's hastened rushing through the forest and back to the farmstead had proven to be quite simple and less active than he had been fearing. Finding thankfully that nothing had opted to lunge out of the shrubbery to push him down and drain him even more than he currently felt.

And as it turned out that wolf-woman's guidance had proven accurate with him arriving at the sweet-smelling ocean of golden wheat of the fields surrounding Liora's home.

"Oh, thank god," he muttered breaking through the last of the treeline and into the field, practically hurling himself onto the bedding of gold to let his body detense now that he was in familiar surroundings and didn't feel so lost.

"I really need to start thinking things through…"

His rest didn't last long as he pushed himself onto his knees and forced himself up to his feet. Taking a quick look around to see where in the field he was, finding he had ended up with Serris' tree between him and the house.

When he noticed her tree, his nostrils flared breathing in a faint underlying tone of cherries circulating through the blowing winds which stroked the wheat into waves. 'Suppose I could give her a quick hello,' he thought, he was out here anyways so he may as well before he got back to the house to collapse and fall unconscious.

Striding through the field he soon came to a pause. Blinking furiously as he stared up at the branches of pink blossoms above. Noting that everywhere he looked were dozens upon hundreds of small green balls of soon-to-be cherries.

"She's actually fruiting," his words coming out strained as the realization that what he'd done was basically 'fertilize' her in the female use of the word and now she was about to 'lay' her seeds to grow more trees. "I really need to stop overthinking things…" didn't help that he'd probably become the literal father to a bunch of trees.

Approaching the grey bark of the cherry tree, he cast his eyes up into its canopy. "Serris? You there?" he didn't imagine she could go very far but who was he to say she couldn't go out on walks.

Everything was still as he stood still awaiting some form of response. Simply listening to the rustling of the blossoms rubbing together up above. When what felt like a minute passed, he finally saw something shift as the grey bark before him twisted and began to form into light swirls that pushed out into a spike.

The vines forming it churning as they thickened and began to form into the shape of a woman's upper body. Her bosom more ample than he remembered, her face livelier than he recalled. Even her hair which had been like leaves and vines had turned and were currently turning, into a thinner, hairlike consistency. Of course, with a few of her usual pink blossoms and now a few of the small unripe cherries. Also, he noted, there were several 'sprouts' pushing through the hair of her scalp forming a circular crown of raising twigs. Though still faint in appearance.

~Hello, Noah,~ her words still came out like an echo at the back of his mind, but now her face actually seemed to contort, forming her luscious grey hued lips into a slight, stiff smile. ~It is nice to see you again. Did you enjoy you're time in the forest?~

Noah chuckled, awkwardly raising a hand to scratch at the back of his scalp. "Oh, uh, yeah. I guess I did." Though the fun part was getting pushed down out of nowhere by a horny wolfgirl.

~I see, that is good.~ her lips only curled further, creating horrible cracking noises as the wood of her cheeks contorted to fit her expression.

Taking a once over of her, he eyed the several changes to her form, "you're looking different."

Her head tilted cutely, lips taking a confused frown as she lifted her arms up to inspect them. Taking what he assumed to be a few blinks if she had any eyelids as she began to pat around her upper body. Incapable of checking her lower half due to it still being buried ithin the tree.

Then what he assumed to be a sparkling excitement took over her as she began to bounce upon feeling the shoots coming out of her scalp. ~I really am changing! ~ for the first time since meeting her, her voice rose becoming almost childish in excitement.

"You didn't know?" he questioned.

~I didn't. Ever since you offered me your seed, I have been resting to allow my fruits to properly grow and make use of the abundant seed you filled me with. ~

Noah recoiled, a flush taking to his cheeks unaccustomed to hearing a woman say with such a pleased voice that he had 'filled her with an abundant amount of seed.'

"So, this is you becoming a hamadryad then?" he recalled the chat they had before his—for a lack of a better word—seeding of her where they spoke of the sort of cast system dryads had in place.

Serris shook her head, ~no, I am becoming a treemother. ~

His brow quirked as in that very same conversation she had told him how treemothers were just another word for hamadryad. "I thought you said treemothers were hamadryads?"

~They are. A treemother is a hamadryad but a treemother. ~

That was likely to be the most confusing sentence he had heard in a while.

Seeming to realize his confusion, she continued explaining. ~A treemother is simply the leader of her grove and the only one of the hamadryads to be able to seed new dryads. ~

'So, something like only the leaders of the pack mate?' his cheek twitched, his own reference to packs of wolves not going unnoticed. The reasoning for it being more obvious than he wished. At least to himself.

"So basically… you're going to be a mother?" the thought was slightly terrifying considering his previous fears of fathering a bunch of trees was just proving to be a reality.

~I can, ~ she nodded, ~and I would very much enjoy making a new grove of sisters. But… ~ her gaze lingered on him, ~I do not have to if you would rather I do not. ~

She was asking him whether he wanted her to basically give birth or not. 'Today is a weird ass day,' he groaned out in silence. "It's really not my position to say," he scratched at the back of his neck, "this is Liora's land and I don't think I can really stop you if you want start yourself a grove."

~You can if you want. I will listen to whatever you say. ~

His mind paused, curious as to why she seemed to be pushing his opinion so heavily for this. "Why does it matter what I think? If you want to make a grove then go for it. I can't stop you."

~But you can, ~ her cheeks quirked into a soft smile but quickly contorted to a nervous frown as she began to fidget her indexes against eachother, ~if you… if you become my fruiter that is… ~

Her actions sent a nervous spike down Noah's spine. That word of fruiter sounding ominously like something of a marriage proposal asking him to become her husband. "I'm sorry, fruiter?"

~Mhm. I would leave myself to exclusively accepting your seed for my yearly fruiting. In return I will offer you anything you may want of me be it my body or the fruits I grow. ~

Aka, become her 'husband' knock her up every year, and she becomes his exclusively. It was a strange, yet appealing offer.

"That's uh," one he wasn't quite sure how to respond to.

~You do not have to answer me just yet. I have yet to bare my first fruits. When I do, please return to me then and answer me then if possible. ~ her head lulled, her expression softening while her luminous pink eyes narrowed halfway. ~The first of my berries should ripen by the weeks end. So if you wish to become my fruiter, please return then…~ her entire body trembled, shivering with a rustle of her hair as her wood creaked.

~I am sorry, but I am feeling quite… tired… so if it is alright with you. I will return to resting. ~

"Oh, right, yeah, that's okay with me." He quickly answered, "good night… evening? Good evening?" he glanced to the sun which was just passing the midday point.

~Yes, ~ a giggling noise rose within Noah's mind as Serris' body shrunk and retracted into the tree. ~good evening Noah. It was a pleasure speaking with you again. ~

Like that, Noah was left stock still staring at the bark of Serris' tree. Blinking every few secnds as he processed the question, she had asked of him. Should he accept it, he would gain himself a treebased wife, one some might call a 'waifu' though the usage of hearing himself actually think that made him cringe away. It was a cute word, but not one he could ever use if he wanted to ever take himself serious again.

If he didn't accept, he simply wouldn't have a tree-based wife.

To be absolutely honest with himself he was more than inclined to accept. Just the idea was enough for him but with everything going on with the farm and the arguable nature of Liora keeping it and his likely temporary residence here. He wouldn't be able to see her all that often.

"Haah…" he sighed, giving Serris's tree one last look before turning on point to stride across the small circle of emerald gras and into the plains to make his way to the home. His confliction about Serris's offer and the exhaustion of his intercourse with the wolf taking a back seat as his spine tingled with a sharp but dangerous fear that caused a tide of nervous sweat to raise and drench his garb.

Mechanically he lifted his head, his eyes soon coming to land on the entrance into the house where Liora was stood cross armed. One hand rapidly rapping against the forearm of the other. The pose at which she stood accentuating her bosom as she sent him a cold, glare-like look. One that told him if he tried to run away, he wouldn't get very far.

"I think I'm going to need Caina after this…" he mumbled, mournfully passing by the fence gate to approach Liora with his head hung low.

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My plan is to write at least 4 chapters a week, and I've also decided instead to release 3 chaps a week if I have them. So, sunday, monday and wednesday will be a 'maybe' day.