Project Genesis

"I'm sorry," Mary whispered, and Jenny could feel her trembling. "I'm so sorry he did that to you, Jenny. It's my fault, I thought I knew him but... All this time he's been a monster in hiding. It's all my fault, I'm so sorry." She tensed up suddenly, and had to as gently but quickly as possible get Jenny out of her lap so that she could throw open the door and vomit all over the ground.

Mary rubbed her mouth as she sat back up and held Jenny to her. "Y-yeah. But I'm still sorry," she said, looking at Jenny. "I'll always be sorry, even if you don't think it's my fault... W-what a waste of Chinese food, though right?" she decided changing the subject might be best for them both now. "Hey, I have an idea. Why don't we go camping for the first time?" They had packed a tent, they were in the middle of a dark forest, this seemed a great time for them to camp and have a little fireside fun to help Jenny forget all of this.

"No," said Mary, getting out of the car. "We'll have smores instead, they're even better! Come on." They got the little tent out of the back, and set it up so that it hung over the side of the car, giving them the option to sleep in the comfort of the car while still feeling like they were in the tent. "Okay, why don't you set up the sleeping bags and stuff. I'm going to get firewood," said Mary. "And don't worry, I'll stay where you can see me," she added. She turned the headlights of the car on and searched for wood only where the light fell, so Jenny could see her at all times.

"I-if you don't mind, princess," said Mary reluctantly, her back cracking again as she stood up with some sticks and logs. They got a small pile, and then Mary taught Jenny how to make a fire. Light the tinder first and blow gently on it, put the little sticks on top in a triangle shape and let them catch fire first before putting bigger logs on. Soon their fire was burning nicely, and Mary got out a big bag of marshmallows. "The trick is to get them burnt all nice and even," she was telling Jenny as she turned the skewer around slowly, roasting them evenly. "Now here, eat it slowly or you'll burn yourself."

"Big?" Mary asked through a mouthful of smore. "Hmm. You might never be the same size as me, but I'm quite tall for a woman," she Mary. At 180cm, she was nearly 6 foot tall and easily towered over most women. "I think you're just perfect the way you are."

Mary looked sadly at Jenny. "I should be the one protecting you," she murmured, stroking a strand of hair behind Jenny's ear. "Ugh, ahem, uhh, besides! You don't need to be big to be strong! Just look at your beautiful tail." She pointed to it, how it curved all around them both. "I bet you could protect yourself with that... Tell you what, when we get to our new home, how about we learn about self defence?"

Mary knew that smile - it was the smile Jenny put on when she knew she had to eat vegetables, or when she'd stubbed her long toes and was being brave. So Mary put on her own brave smile and wrapped her arm around Jenny more tightly. She told her some non-scary stories and they ate more smores, and then the pair of them went to sleep on the airbed in one big sleeping bag. Mary didn't sleep very much, and neither did Jenny really, so they just cuddled all night and eventually drifted off in the small hours of the night. When they awoke, Mary gave Jenny the rest of the marshmallows to have as a crappy breakfast and they continued on towards their new home. It was a rundown but cute little cottage in the middle of a big field, about a mile from a tiny quaint town. It was perfect.

The cottage was also pretty dilapidated and rundown, but it had a lot of potential. They were going to go paint and DIY shopping in the big city an hour's drive away tomorrow, but for today they had to leave their boxes in the car while they tidied up enough to make one room liveable. Thank god this place was hooked up to gas, electricity, and water. But this was fun! Even though Mary's body hurt everywhere, she was having a great time dusting and tidying with Jenny. She didn't let her daughter out of her sight for even one moment.

"You're going to be fine," Mary reassured her, slumping down on the sofa in the main room. "Just... Remember how I said you're not a monster, just different? Well some people... Are lame and don't like people who are different to them. So... We'll have to hide your tail." She looked apologetically at her.

It actually made Jenny look pregnant, which at any other time Mary would've joked about. But not after last night... Suddenly Mary felt overwhelmed and her eyes welled up. "I love you," she whimpered, dragging Jenny into her lap and kissing her cheeks. "I love you so much, Jenny. You're so precious and perfect." She was tired and in pain, and overwhelmed with guilt and love for Jenny.

Mary snivelled some more and buried her face in Jenny's hair. She still had that lovely fresh baby smell even though she was like a teen now. "Oh, dear, we haven't had dinner yet," she realised as her stomach rumbled. "W-what would you like?"