The Ugly Duckling Of The Tiger Tribe-Chapter 144: I like that stuff on your face

I sat by the water’s edge, my fingers trailing through the cool surface. I watched the ripples distort my reflection, breaking the image of my tired face into a thousand shimmering pieces.

For a long time, that was all I did—swaying the water back and forth, watching the world blur.

"I’ve found it, Ari."

The sound of Damar’s voice made me lift my head. Fenric, who had been standing guard nearby, turned his gaze toward him as well.

Damar held a small cluster of herbs I’d never seen before. Not that I was any good with plants—to me, everything was either ’grass’ or ’probably poisonous’—but this looked different. It had a strange, silvery sheen to the leaves.

Without a word, Damar knelt beside me. He placed the leaves in his palm and began to grind them with his thumb, pressing with a steady, practiced rhythm until the plant broke down into a smooth, thick green paste. It smelled of crushed earth and something sharp, like mint.

He reached out, his touch incredibly light as he began to apply the green thickness to the scratches on my face. He moved down to my arms, his fingers tracing the lines of the scratches.

"Does it hurt?" He asked and I shook my head. "Does it sting?"

"Not at all. It actually feels cool and refreshing." I said. "Thank you."

He nodded.

"It’ll have to stay on for a while," he said, his eyes focused entirely on his work. "That’s the only way it will heal you completely, without leaving a mark."

I looked down at my arms, then caught my reflection in the lake again. With the green streaks smeared across my cheeks and forehead, I looked ridiculous—like some kind of swamp creature. I couldn’t help but let out a small, huffed laugh. I probably looked completely unpleasant to the eye, a far cry from the ’celebrity’ I’d joked about being earlier.

But whoever said only pretty people were celebrities?

Even an ugly duckling gets to shine in the spotlight once in a while if they have talent.

Then I looked up at them, wondering what they thought of the new look.

They didn’t flinch. They didn’t look at me with pity or disgust.

They had seen me at my absolute worst, covered in blood and shaking in a dark cave; a bit of green paste wasn’t going to change how they saw me.

To them, it was just something new but in the end, I was just Arinya. Their mate.

No amount of face mask could change that fact.

I’ll just assume it’s a high-end face serum, I thought with a faint, inward smile. Very exclusive.

I turned my gaze back to the lake, letting the silence settle between us. This water held so much.

I remembered the first time I came here—the shock, the way my heart hammered against my ribs when their skin accidentally brushed mine. The mating... Ahem.

This was where we had learned to trust each other. This was where the ’beasts’ had become mine, and where I had started to belong to them.

Every intimate moment, every secret shared by the shore, seemed to bubble up to the surface. It was a place of happiness, a sanctuary that had kept us both dirty and clean, haha, if you get what I’m saying.

I reached out and caught Damar’s hand as he finished, then leaned back against Fenric’s sturdy legs. I wasn’t just saying goodbye to a lake. I was saying goodbye to the version of me that had to hide here.

"Thank you, Damar," I whispered, feeling the cooling sting of the herbs. "For everything."

Would you like to continue with them finally stepping away from the lake for good, or should Fenric have a funny reaction to my new ’green’ look?

I looked up at Fenric as he shifted his weight, his ruby eyes scanning my ’serum-covered’ face. He pointed a finger at his own broad chest, his lips twitching into a smirk.

"What about me?" he asked, his voice light and teasing.

I laughed, the sound echoing softly over the water, and reached up to stroke his jaw. Even with my hands stained a faint green, the warmth of his skin felt like home.

"You too," I said, my voice softening. "Thank you. A lot. For everything."

Fenric snickered, leaning into my touch for a brief second before he pulled back to inspect Damar’s handiwork again.

"I like that stuff on your face," he said.

I tilted my head, wondering if he’d finally lost his mind or just had a very weird taste in aesthetics. "Really? I look like I fell face-first into a marsh."

"No, it’s perfect," he added, a devious glint appearing in his eyes. "This way, any other males we run into will turn tail and run the moment they see you. Muhahaha!" He let out a mock-villainous laugh, sounding far too pleased with himself.

I groaned, palming my face—and immediately regretting it as I felt the sticky herbs smear further. "Oh, for heaven’s sake."

Fenric didn’t stop there. He nudged Damar with his elbow, looking incredibly proud of himself. "Right, Damar? Good idea, right?"

Damar let out a dry, short laugh. He tried to keep his face stoic, but the corner of his mouth gave him away.

"I have no idea what you’re talking about," he said smoothly. But the way he glanced at my green-streaked cheeks told a different story. He clearly loved the idea of me being ’unapproachable’ to the rest of the world.

I glanced between the two of them, my lips twisting and my brows drawing together in deep suspicion. They were standing there like two conspirators who had just successfully guarded their treasure.

They’re definitely plotting against me, I thought. This must be their rebellious phase.

But I wasn’t disturbed. Honestly, seeing them joke around like this—after the blood, the cave, and the tears—was the best medicine I could have asked for. I chuckled, shaking my head at their territorial nonsense.

"Are you two done?" I asked, standing up and dusting off my knees. "Shall we get going now?"

I turned back to the lake one last time. I watched the water settle, the ripples finally fading into a perfect, still mirror. I said my silent goodbyes to the memories hidden in the depths, then turned my back on the water and the life I used to know.

"Let’s go," I said, and with my two ’rebellious’ protectors flanking me, I walked forward into the trees.

The sun was beginning to dip, casting long, amber shadows across the forest floor as we kept up a steady pace.

We had only stopped once, a brief but much-needed break where I managed to get a small fire going with the rock matches. I’d made meat skewers, sprinkling a bit of salt on them, the savory scent making all our stomachs growl in unison.

I guess I wasn’t the only one hungry.

Once we got back on the road, I found some wild berries and tart, apple-like fruits to keep us going. Since Damar was the one carrying our heavy pack—looking stoic and unbothered as usual—I found myself walking alongside him, popping pieces of fruit into his mouth so he wouldn’t have to stop.

He took them with a quiet nod, his eyes lingering on mine with a soft gratitude that made my heart flutter.

Of course, Fenric was watching every second of it.

I could practically see the gears turning in his head, his tail twitching with every "snack" I gave Damar. Finally, he couldn’t take it anymore. He bounded forward and shouldered his way between us, his golden eyes wide and demanding.

"I think you’ve carried the load long enough," he grumbled, casting a pointed look at the carrier on Damar’s back. "Give it here."

I saw right through him. He didn’t want the work; he wanted the attention. I laughed, unable to hide my amusement at his transparent jealousy.

"Well," I said, leaning back as I held a berry just out of his reach. "If you insist on being the pack mule, who am I to stop you?"

Fenric huffed and practically snatched the bag from Damar, slinging it over his shoulder with a triumphant smirk. He looked at me expectantly, mouth slightly open, waiting for his reward.

Unfortunately for him, the terrain started to change. The ground became rocky and the incline sharpened.

"Keep moving, Fenric," I teased, patting his arm. "We’ve got a schedule to keep."

The look of betrayal on his face was priceless, especially since we didn’t stop for rest again. He trudged along, carrying the heavy load while I occasionally rewarded his ’hard work’ with a grape, though he looked like he wanted much more than that.

By the time the air turned damp and the smell of ancient silt filled our noses, we finally reached the boundary.

Before us lay the Great Crossing—the massive, fog-shrouded lake that marked the very edge of our world. On the other side of that water lay the unknown, but more importantly, it was the exit. Once we crossed this, we would be out of the Stormhole’s territory for good.

I looked at the dark, vast expanse of water and felt a shiver that had nothing to do with the cold.

"This is it, gang," I whispered, the weight of the moment finally hitting me. "Once we cross this, there’s no going back."