Chapter 9: Settling In
Days passed uneventfully.
Caleb held his Tulipwood flute up to his lips and lightly blew into the mouth hole at the top. His fingers danced on the finger holes. A soft and clear tone pierced the Monotone Woods. The notes carried in the wind.
A peaceful and cheery melody sounded from the burgundy flute. The branches swayed and leaves shook. The Rabbits perked up their ears. The Squirrels gazed down, their cheeks full of nuts. A flock of Brown Boobies flying out to the sea stopped and roosted on the Dove Tree to listen. Even the Common Quail popped its head up and appreciated the music.
Caleb ended his playing and the animals anxiously awaited. When they learned he wouldn't play anymore, they eventually left. Caleb delicately cared for his flute that smelled of flaxseed oil. Behind him, a two-story house made of logs stood upright.
He built it with Amanda by clearing the ground and layering a large pile of Red Pine logs to flatten and level off the dirt. With a stable foundation, they shored up the walls with logs and moss. Then, they leaned logs on a wall as an incline to finish building the second floor and top off the roof.
The result wasn't perfect, but it was structurally sound enough to stand up on its own. This new loghouse resembled their old home. The first floor had a kitchen, storage room, and living room. The second floor had three bedrooms and three closets.
It helped that neither of them needed as much rest as before and felt stronger. Daily meditation opened up them to more possibilities.
Their Tao depended on personal experiences. More harmony with their Tao grew from their effortless actions, as they freely built and lived unburdened by human needs. The naturalness and simplicity of building, meditating, talking, and sleeping deepened their relationship. Some spontaneity on Caleb's part prodded Amanda to slowly let him get more and more handsy.
She did not Yin his Yang yet, but it wasn't too long before she consented to Caleb's advances.
Amanda watched Caleb loosely dangle his legs off of the Dove Tree branch. She slightly tilted her head side to side, humming the same tune she heard.
She appreciated whenever he played his flute, but she also felt restless. Losing the need to go to the bathroom, drink, or eat left Amanda with much less to do. Eating was mostly for enjoyment, so they had a meal every day.
In the days that passed, Amanda built several chairs, tables, and beds from the leftover Red Pine. The walls were finished and even the wooden railing to the stairs. Now, she didn't have much to busy her hands with.
'I should really clean myself up,' she thought. 'I forgot about it with all the new things that happened.'
Amanda knew a river ran through the Monotone Woods a few minutes of walking away. She grabbed buckets of water from it before to boil and cook stews. A grin sprouted on her face.
Amanda stuffed some clothes in a bag and hung it on a walking stick. She quietly tiptoed down the stairs and opened the door.
"Yo! What're you doing now?"
Amanda clamped a hand over her mouth to stifle her scream. She jumped at the sight of Caleb standing in front of her. The walking stick nearly dropped from her grip.
"D-don't do that! Aren't you supposed to knock?" she scolded him.
"Yeah," he replied. "But you didn't let me since you opened the door first."
A smirk filled his face.
"You're looking a bit dusty," he said, patting off shavings from her clothes.
"Yeah, well, you look more dirty than I do!"
Caleb looked at his own clothes that had mud plastered on itself.
"You're not wrong," he affirmed, but then his eyes lingered on the bag on the walking stick.
"Should I join you?" he said, gesturing a hand to the obvious evidence.
Amanda's face reddened, but she surprisingly nodded.
"You need to clean up better after yourself!"
Caleb laughed and then pulled out his own bag.
"I was waiting for you to say that. C'mon. Let's go."
Amanda stammered, "H-how—?"
Caleb pulled her along and said, "You worry too much. Try to be more self-aware, okay? Your face says everything."
She tried covering her face with her hands, but smacked her face with the walking stick.
"Hahahah! See what I mean? Too easy!"
"Youuuuu!"
They walked over to the river with Amanda still pouting. They walked over the pebbles and set down their bags on the riverbank. The current was weak, but it led down a cascading waterfall.
Willow Trees lined the sides of the river. Vines dangled from their branches like nets. A few frogs ribbitted upstream.
"Nice! It's free for us to use!" Caleb exclaimed, as he stripped and started scrubbing them in the water.
Amanda crouched down and hid her burning face behind her hands.
"Hey! Why're you so nonchalant about this! You're naked!"
Caleb faced her and said, "Huh? Does it matter that much to you? We're alone out here, so there's nothing wrong if we show a little skin to each other."
"Yes, there's something wrong! I'm a girl and you're a boy!"
Caleb wrung out his clothes and tossed them beside his bag. He strolled up to Amanda.
"Hey! W-wait! I'm not ready!" she yelled while peeking through her hands. "My heart's not ready!"
Caleb grabbed one of her hands and pulled it away.
"Eeeeek!"
Caleb kissed the back of her hand. He gauged her earthy eyes with his sapphire eyes.
"You already said I was a man. How are you not a woman yet? You're older than me."
Amanda shook her head.
"That's not how it works!"
Caleb shrugged.
"That doesn't make any sense. All we're doing is cleaning up. What's wrong with being nude or being alone with me?"
"B-because! It is!"
Caleb shook his head, but he left her crouched down.
"Suit yourself."
He went back to the river and started scrubbing himself clean. The dirt caking his body fell away. The reveal showcased his smooth and white skin. A slight muscle definition shaped along from his calves to his thighs to his abs to his biceps.
Amanda watched in anticipation. She reflexively gulped to stop herself from drooling.
Caleb scraped through his hair and removed old leaves stuck in his long, dark locks. He shook his head and cupped another handful to splash in his face.
Amanda licked her lips and bobbed her head up and down as her eyes followed Caleb.
Should she really be so prudish? There wasn't any reason to distance herself from Caleb. After all, she liked watching Caleb.
When Caleb worked… when Caleb carved… when Caleb played his flute… when Caleb changed clothes… when Caleb took a bath… when Caleb was in his room, softly crooning out her name to himself… when Caleb's hand moved up and down…
Amanda moved behind the bags and stripped. She sat on her clothes and brushed her hips. She stroked her waist, tracing up from her hips to shoulder. One of her hands teased her lips and she inadvertently licked them. She moved the hair out of her face and rubbed her neck.
In her mind, she saw Caleb yawning and then stretch. She feasted on the image of him nibbling on the tip of her ear and hotly whispering, "Who's my dirty girl?"
Lost in her delusion, her hands moved on their own, experienced in exciting her further and further. Her blood pumped and she felt a heat rise from her lower body. It was a familiar itch that longed to be scratched. She traced her hand up her thigh and stopped near her waist.
"Ahnnn!" she mutely cried out.
Her body shivered in pleasure.
"Ahem?"
"Eh?"
Caleb stood in front of her, showing off his goods. Amanda's hands were stuck at the entrance of her secret garden. She flushed completely red to the tips of her ears.
"...What are you looking at?" she asked.
"Why do I even bother?" Caleb sighed.
He pulled Amanda up.
"Hey! What are you doing!'
He dragged her to the river and helped splash some water on her.
"Blubbwaah! Why'd you do that!"
Amanda wiped the soaking wet hair from her face and pulled it behind her head.
"It was to clean off that."
Caleb pointed to her lower half.
"Ah? D-don't judge me!"
He shook his head.
"I'm not judging you. Actually, I'm flattered. It's just that I'm not going to be used as your material without me seeing anything."
He let go of her hand and lifted her chin.
"It's better when we both get in the river, don't you see?"
He smiled brightly, catching Amanda's ecstatic thinking off guard.
"Yeah, I guess so…"
Amanda twirled a long wet strand of her hair into a curl. Caleb let go and patted her head.
"So, um…"
She outreached a hand and felt his chest.
"Are we?"
She breathed quickly, sending tingles down Caleb's spine.
"Are we?" Caleb asked her back.
Amanda tilted her head to the side and gave a small nod.
"You don't know how long I waited, Amanda."
Caleb rubbed his cheek against her face.
"I waited too, Caleb," she gasped.
Their lips met. Their tongues gently explored new territory, tasting each others' essence. Amanda pulled Caleb deeper into her embrace.
They spent the time in the water fusing their Yin and Yang in various poses. An unspoken barrier disappeared from Amanda's mind and the two fully resonated. Their thoughts connected as they joined each other.
The vitality in their bodies became interchangeable. Their bonds to Humanity, Wildlife, The Earth, The Sky, and Nature itself finally fused and became a true World stage. With each thrust, their relationship deepened, as did their ties to their power.
When they finished, a feeling of fulfillment overcame their senses. Now as fully contracted partners, the Inheritance settled in. Properties of their capabilities flooded in their bodies unlocked. It was only a matter of time before complete mastery came.
Godhood did not entail perfection, intelligence, or even cunning. Obscene amounts of vitality and a stable foundation were the only requirements. With both of their final needs taken care of, they reached the bare minimum.
CREATORS' THOUGHTS 
PettyOfficer
PettyOfficer Ok. I added like 600 words to the previous chapter. Then, I messed around and ended up using like 3 hours arguing politics on YouTube in the comments. I know, I’m scum.
THEN I got ready to check out my bro’s place tomorrow. It’s also my sister’s birthday too apparently and I’m being scum since I got nothing.
Finally, I finished up the s**tfest that is this chapter. It’s shorter than 2k words, but consider this the end of a long intro volume. I feel dead. Wbnvl keeps screwing up.
Weekly Power Status
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Ranking 
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