"Impressive when a man has enough to give gifts freely," Rue, smiled as the hunter departed, "used to you had to marry a man for him to bring this much food to the table."

"Couldn’t let you do that," Razors smirked, "You said you didn't like human men."

"These sort are different," Rue remarked with dismissive flip of her tail.

"Oh, so you like that one do you," Razors teased putting her arm round the werewolve's shoulder, "you feel like making an exception to have meat on the table? You thinking with your stomach or other parts of your body too?"

"Heh, he is a damn good hunter, knows herbcraft as well as a witch to boot. If he keeps me fed all winter, I'd give him pups in the spring," Rue grinned.

"Not, if I'm at his table, afore you get there!" Razors cackled.

Sheeth, grinned as he left their camp. It was odd to hear females joking so corsely. The settlers were struggling and probably dependent on his hospitality. They were doing a fair job of fortification on their settlement. It could stand up to bears, and hogs. Still if a troll were to come in the winter it might not be enough.

They were tough though and he liked that. He could hear everything they said about him as he went back to his underground keep. He wondered if he were meant to hear their remarks. He hoped so.

____________________________

It is interesting to note that the integration into the local human population was usually female to male. The orcs and other cast of peoples had lost much of their male population to war with the elves, men, and farie folk. This demographic gap grew when the predators of Laxaria decimated overconfident hunting parties of orcs and goblins. The egalitarian attitudes of Laxarian males who treated females as mutual partners rather than property also resulted in many hunters, trappers, and rangers who lived in the remote countryside, taking goblins, werewolves, and orcs as mates.