The kiss had ignited something for Rick, and the grope had changed something for Monica. This much was clear.

The human wasn’t able to help but stare at the feline as she kept guiding his way through the forest. Dim lights from stray rays of sunlight lit the forest floor in curtains of brilliance that split the gloom. It made for sharp contrasts, their presence small corridors of illumination through which he and she would pass. The Amazonian woman would sway slowly, always ahead, but never entirely out of sight. Her hips would swing with the rhythm of her steps, her tail falling in an arch, accelerating, moving faster and then turning upwards on the other side, adding a flick whenever she turned over her shoulder to study him with a lingering grin.

Rick’s narrowed eyes would flicker and meet her own before she’d continue on her way. Sometimes her ear would twitch at a sound only she could hear and she would rush out, vanishing between the trees. Sometimes she came back just as quickly, and other times Rick was almost sure he could feel her gaze on him as he kept walking. She did not sneak up on him this time, though, always landing on the forest floor somewhere within his line of sight. She was light on her feet. No matter what height she fell from, she seemed to touch the ground as if weighing no more than a feather.

When their eyes met, hers would linger, and she would frown before her gaze would pull away.

The human’s feelings were tumultuous. His thoughts danced to how incredibly dangerous this whole thing ought to be. His hand caressed the scratch she’d left in his chest mere minutes ago. It still stung at the rhythm of his accelerating heartbeat. She had pierced through the cloth like it’d not even been there. Could he dare to guess at what she was thinking? There was little doubt that if his assumptions were incorrect, he would die. That tiny room for uncertainty and severe consequence gnawed at him.

No. Rick shook his head. No, he told himself, this was wrong. He was trying to survive in an alien place with strange creatures. The last thing he should be speculating about should be this, of all things. And yet his gaze would linger on the curves of her body as she moved, the sway of hips, the curve of her toned ass, and the back and forth of the tail. Her skin was a honeyed, a sticky trap that had ensnared his thoughts.

Monica, if that was the name she’d agree to call herself, was something entirely different from everything Rick had ever encountered. Alluring and deadly all within the same breath.

Something pierced through the silence of the forest. It had taken a moment for Rick to pull his attention away from Monica’s body to catch onto it, but it soon became apparent what it was. Running water. The feline hadn’t reacted to this noise, no doubt having heard it long before he had, but once Rick’s steps sped up, her ear flickered and she turned to glance at him.

Instantly, she sped up, matching his pace rather than waiting. A yowl escaped her lips.

For a heartbeat, she allowed him to almost catch up. And no sooner was he within a handful of meters than she bolted forward, letting out a mewling sound and looking over her shoulder. The smile faltered as she saw he’d not changed his pace.

Monica slowed down again, this time staring at him more intently, almost a frown. She waited until he nearly caught up, until he was just a meter away, just a little leap away. Then she bolted, an explosive burst of air following her as she covered ten meters in less than a second. She let out a happy yowl as she twisted to look at him again. The smile died the moment after the human felt slightly startled at the expression that showed… she was pouting?

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She turned around to face him in full. Hands on her hips, she waited for him to catch up. Since she’d placed herself in his way, Rick could only stop and look up at her frown. “What?”

With a loud snort, she leaned forward, grasped his hand, pulled at it, and placed it on her hip. The breath caught in his throat at the feel of the smooth skin under his palm, and the next moment she took off, having moved in another burst of speed to run away from him. His palm was left grasping open air, and it left the human looking down at his palm with a slight sense of awe. He did not move a single step as he watched her halt and look at him with a deeper pout than before. His hand was warm. Her skin had been so soft… the sense of trepidation grew.

Now that there was little doubt of the intent, his mind raced.

Gritting his teeth, he took a deep breath and stepped forth, the next a little faster. This time he jogged towards her. It made her ears perk as she turned away from him, and as Rick sped up, he heard her purring, watching her tense as he did. Her tail whipped in anticipation. He sprinted, the distance narrowing fast. And as he’d almost caught her, she leaped forward with at least twice his speed.

A yowl escaped her as she wriggled her hips at him. He accelerated as best he could through the roots and uneven ground. Sometimes he faltered, and others he’d nearly trip, but he was moving towards as close as he could into a full sprint.

Monica was teasing him. She would slow down for him to almost catch up, yet she kept speeding up before he could. She was too fast for him to really reach her. A few times she exploded forward as if she had invisible wings, covering at least ten meters in a single bound; others she moved just barely fast enough for him to think he almost had a chance. Rick’s blood rushed through him, thick with adrenaline, the beat of a drum that hammered against his lungs. Twice he had nearly reached her, just close enough his hand tingled with the warmth of her skin.

She laughed, a sound close to a yowl that carried a deep rumble with it, looking at him with wide eyes and a loose smile.

And just as he’d been about to reach her yet again, she stopped dead in her tracks. Rick gasped. She stepped aside, and he could not react fast enough. Her foot got in the way just enough to trip him up.

Rather than hit the ground, he fell head first into a shallow stream. The jolt was hard and wet. Chilly water splashed all over. The human had blunted the impact with his forearms as best he could, but the chill would not be denied. A startled yelp left him, not from the pain against his wrists, but from the water. It was freezing cold, and it had drenched him from head to toe, running all around him. Rick needed a second to catch his bearings enough for him to sit up and realize he had found the water.

It was barely a little more than half a meter deep. The ache in his forearms was manageable, but the blow to his ego had been devastating. He looked upon the feline that was rolling on the ground in a fit of giggles and laughter.

“So that’s how it’s going to be, eh?” He raised an eyebrow at her. Cupping his hands together, he threw the water her way.

Monica shrieked and jumped away as the water hit all over her face and chest. Her eyes were full of betrayal and narrowed eyebrows as she almost glared at him. Rick opted to remain comfortably seated at the center of the small stream, being the one laughing instead, splashing some more in her direction and chuckling as she hissed at him once.

“Maybe I should get a spray bottle or something,” he spoke with a laugh.

A laugh that ended the moment she’d pounced straight into the stream, right towards him.

Slippery rocks kept him from being able to move in time. She soared across the air and landed on top. Her claws did not press down on him but rather splashed against the water all around him, the water almost drowning him.

As he gulped in a lungful of air, she kissed him in full.