"I don't know much about what happened way back when," King told Annie. "I don't think anyone does."

Annie had no reason not to believe him; she was an intelligent, fast-learning girl, but she lacked an understanding of the world that had once been, so there was little to no way for her to question what might have come before.

Soon, they were again on the water on the way to rescue the girl from King's boat. Annie had smiled with delight when her father told King to ride with her, and now out on the gentle waves, she was doing as he was, dividing her attention between the other boat and her boatmate.

"So ... can you tell me more about this ... breeding custom of yours...?" King asked.

The question surprised Annie, then caused her to blush as she recalled flashing herself to him the night before. Oh sure, each of the three men had had the chance to see her, but Annie had done it for King's benefit. (Bran and Paul had each seen Annie in her underclothes over the years while she swam with others in the surf down from the village; and once, she and several of the girls had been skinny dipping in a hot spring while on an overnight hunting trip and had been caught by some of the men, including Paul.)

King continued, "I mean ... I've seen my share of customs when it comes to marriage, raising families, and the like. But this is the first time I've heard of a match maker arranging breeding ... as opposed to marriages."

This didn't surprise Annie. Her village and several others across Southern Greenland worked together in what King had described as a breeding custom, ensuring that their populations created genetic diversity. But there were other villages, most of them farther to the north or on the islands to the west of Greenland's extreme north.

"Can you tell me more about it...?" King continued. "...and ... if it's not private ... personal ... can you tell me about you and Paul? I mean ... how do you feel about that?"

Annie turned her face away at the mention of Paul, fearing King would see her grimace. When she looked back, she told him bluntly, "Paul wasn't my choice. Tyka chose him. She chose him, and my father approved. But ... I'd rather..."

She hesitated, drawing and releasing a deep breath as she considered whether she should say what was on her mind. Feeling bold, she confessed, "I'd rather it was you."

King saw the surprise in Annie's face when he asked her to better describe her community's breeding custom.

Rather than explain it to him, she spoke of how it was currently affecting her. "Paul wasn't my choice. Tyka chose him. She chose him, and my father approved. But ... I'd rather..."

King was expecting her to say that she had a different man in mind, and -- deep down -- he would have loved to hear her identify him as that man. He was a stranger, though, a castaway in a sense, who neither Annie, Bran, or anyone else from her community knew well enough to even consider him for participating in the breeding of the next generation in their village.

And yet, to King's surprise, Annie confessed, "I'd rather it was you."

He stared at her in silence for a long, long moment, uncertain as to whether what he'd heard had come from her mouth or from his imagination. King looked off toward the other boat, as if fearing that her father had heard Annie's words and was now sailing this direction to retrieve her, beat King, or possibly both.

Looking back to Annie, he smiled and chuckled lightly. He was unsure of how to respond, despite knowing that he, too, wanted a sexual relationship with the young beauty. Eventually, he said, "I'm honored, Annie. I really am. I, um..."

King looked to the other boat again, this time finding the girl's father looking this way. His heart leapt in his chest as he realized that the other boat was in fact turning this direction; he just knew that his time with these people -- with Annie -- was about to come to an end, possibly with Bran tossing him into the sea, pointing to the east, and telling him Iceland's that way, swim hard..

But a signal from Annie's father indicated that Bran wanted the second boat to change course, and -- to his great relief -- King realized that the alteration in direction had nothing to do with his conversation with the man's teenage daughter. King and Annie tacked the boat to the northwest, after which the former looked back to the latter to finish his response to her stunning proposition.

"You're a beautiful young woman, Annie," he began, choosing his words carefully as he was certain her father would object to the entirety of the conversation. "And ... like I said ... I'd be honored to, um ... how do I put this...? Honored to be with you."

King knew he was seriously screwing this up. The issue at hand, of course, was that Annie was speaking of breeding for the purpose of procreation, and he was thinking about fucking for the purpose of sexual gratification. Of course, Annie might have been thinking of the latter, too, but ... how did King verify that without asking her if she was horny for him?

He chuckled, embarrassed that at his age he was befuddled by a conversation with a teenage girl on the subject of sex. King glanced toward the other boat again, finding her father no longer paying him attention -- due or undue -- then looked back to Annie and said, "I don't think your father would be very happy with me screwing up the plans he and your match maker have for you."

King paused a moment, again considering his words carefully, then finished, "That being said ... I would love to be your lover."

Annie's heart was pounding after telling King that she preferred to have him deflower her, opposed to Paul having the privilege. She was sure he would laugh at her; she was a girl, innocent and naive about so many things, particularly the ways of sex and love.

Instead, King said, "I'm honored, Annie. I really am. I, um ... You're a beautiful young woman, Annie. And ... like I said ... I'd be honored to, um ... how do I put this...? Honored to be with you."

Be with you. Annie had never heard it put that way before. Of course, she'd only ever talked about her upcoming coming of age and the associated, impending loss of her virginity with her father and Tyka, the Clan's match maker.

Well, no, that wasn't true, she remembered suddenly. Annie had had an intimate conversation, followed by a very intimate physical exchange, with one of the young women in Black Rock some time back. Annie and her father had been in the village to the northeast for, of all things, Bran's breeding with one of Black Rock's fertile women. The two teens had shared the other girl's bed, shared a giggling conversation about what her father was doing, then shared the pleasures of soft lips and probing fingers.

It had been a wondrous moment for Annie, one she'd wanted to repeat again on a subsequent visit to Black Rock. Knowing that she and the three men on this mission were heading for the village had caused her to think about the other girl several times. Ironically, every time she recalled that incredible time, Annie looked to King and imagined him causing her such pleasures in both similar and very different ways.

King chuckled, seemingly embarrassed about the ongoing conversation, telling her, "I don't think your father would be very happy with me screwing up the plans he and your match maker have for you."

Annie considered responding with You might be surprised. Bran was all too aware of his daughter's dislike for Paul and, obviously, her preference that he never lay between her thighs, filling her with his seed. Annie had never actually told Bran this outright, of course; she would never disappoint him by bucking the Clan's customs. But still, he knew.

At the same time, Annie's actions regarding King had made it clear that she liked him, and again, while she hadn't said it out loud, the man had to know of Annie's attraction to the man. How could a father miss that?

"That being said," King continued, "I would love to be your lover."

Annie's lips spread in a wide smile of delight as a chill ran up her spine and gooseflesh erupted over her arms and legs. She responded with a simple but blunt, "Me, too."

Motion attracted her attention, and looking toward the other boat, Annie found her father gesturing northward to a point of land much as she had the day before toward the threatening storm.

"Black Rock," she said, nodding her head toward the point to draw King's attention to it. "It's just on the other side of that point. That point is Black Rock, actually ... the source of the name. It's called obsidian. We make arrowheads out of it."

She carefully tossed one of her arrows to King, continuing, "Humans have been making arrow and spear points and knives and other sharp edged tools from obsidian for thousands of years. That's what I'm told, anyway. It's one of Black Rock's most important products, 'cause there's not a lot of known obsidian beds. Here and another spot to the north, plus one on the other side of the island, beyond the Great Lake."

Seeing Bran and Paul tacking to the northwest, Annie instructed King to begin the same thing. Once they were on course again, she turned her attention back to King. Knowing she was being forward but not caring, she informed the man of her lustful dreams, "I come of age in three moons. There will be a ceremony ... and ... after that..."

Annie didn't think she had to actually finish that sentence; King surely knew where she was going with it. Still being blunt, she told the man with firmness, "By then, I will have convinced my father that -- as I do now -- he should be excited about you being min første ... my first."

She glanced toward the other boat, this time toward the man who, for at least three years, had imagined that it would be he who made a woman of Annie. Knowing how this would affect him and yet not caring, Annie said, "Paul will have to wait for his turn."

She wasn't really thinking about what King might think about her meaning when she said he'd have to wait his turn. Even though Annie wanted her first breeding to be with King, she would still be obligated to birth a child with Paul one day soon, perhaps two or three years from now. King didn't know the particulars of her Clan's genetic diversity culture, so he couldn't know that most of the females of the Clan would have at least one child with at least three different unrelated males.

Often, a female would have a male or female child with a male, then have a second child in an attempt to produce a child of the other gender. This didn't happen all the time, obviously; there were many couplings that had resulted in two or three children of the same gender. These genetically similar children of the same gender weren't really needed in a single village, of course, so there was a second custom in which some children were adopted to families of other villages. This wasn't a mandatory thing, of course; many women were unwilling to give away a child, and in such cases, no demands were made. Honestly, Annie only knew of two women who'd ever chosen to do this, and -- because of the honor bestowed upon them for their sacrifice -- neither of them had suffered deeply emotional distress for what they did.

(OOC: It is wonderful to be writing with you again, Annie. Thanks for contacting me. I just spent a couple of hours excitedly refreshing myself with the story.)

King told Annie, "I would love to be your lover."

A smile widened her lips, and goosebumps visibly covered her arms and legs before she blurted out, "Me, too."

King joined the smile, nodding softly as he responded, "Good. That's very good."

"Black Rock," she told King after she'd caught her father's gesture toward an outcrop north of them. She explained the source of the name, saying, "It's called obsidian."

She talked about how they made arrowheads out of the shiny black stone. King knew all about the Indian craft, of course; it was another bit of history of which he was aware that he wouldn't share with the girl per her father's instructions.

Annie switched to a much more interesting topic, her coming of age in just three months. Moons, King reminded himself, doing the math. Not 91 or 92 days, but just 74.

She told him, "By then, I will have convinced my father that -- as I do now -- he should be excited about you being min første ... my first."

Again, King smiled wide. She'd finally verified without a doubt that she welcomed him in between her thighs. It had been a long, long time since King had deflowered a beautiful woman. Actually, she hadn't been beautiful at all but had been somewhere between average and below such. But she'd been hot for him, and King didn't often turn down sex. His father had taught him Just close your eyes, and they're all beautiful as you're fucking them.

It hadn't been a very nice thing to say about any woman, particularly a girl wanting to finally become a woman. The irony was that as she and King had continued their relationship, they'd actually come to like each other very much. They probably would have still been together today if King's wandering nature hadn't taken him away from The Carolines.

Then Annie said something that returned King to the reality of her culture, "Paul will have to wait for his turn."

King's smile faded as he contemplated her words. He looked off toward the man in question a moment, then back to Annie. "So ... after you and I produce a baby... presuming your father allows it...?"

He couldn't bring himself to finish the question. King couldn't imagine having to share Annie at all, let alone with that ass, Paul.

(OOC: Ditto!)

"So ... after you and I produce a baby," King asked hesitantly, "...presuming your father allows it...?"

"He will," Annie told him confidently, clarifying confidently, "Allow it. I'll see to it."

A sharp gust of wind in the sails that suddenly tilted the boat significantly drew Annie's attention, and only after they got total control of it again did she look back to King with a solemn expression. "A year, possibly two, after I bear your child, I will have to breed with Paul and produce a child with him. That's ... that's just our custom."

She studied King a moment, then asked, "Do you still want to be with me, King...? Still want to make a baby with me?"

Oops. I posted it of turn about landing. Sorry. I'll save it.

Oops. I posted it of turn about landing. Sorry. I'll save it.

No worries.

"Do you still want to be with me, King...?" Annie asked after explaining that she would still have to do the same with another man, in this case Paul. "Still want to make a baby with me?"

"Yes," King said without hesitation. He confessed, "I don't like it, sharing you, particularly with that asshole, but ... I will ... for the honor of being your ... what was that word?"

He meant her first, of course. But he needed Annie to know that this wasn't about deflowering her and quickly added, "I want you for your first time, Annie ... and I want you for many, many times after that."

"... what was that word?" King asked. He meant her first, of course.

"min første," she answered. He explained that he wanted her again and again, not just her first time. Annie blushed again. "Me you, too."

A sudden and frightening scraping sound was followed by a spray of water across the boat's interior; the boat had struck an unseen rock just under the surface, ripping a foot long tear in the hull. Annie could see immediately that the damage was too great to be plugged, particularly with them in deep, cold water.

"Flag my father!" she said as she quickly went to work altering the boat's course directly toward shore. "Get his attention!"

As soon as the tack was completed and the sails were again right and filled with wind, Annie looked to her father. She flashed hand signals at him, telling him they'd suffered damage and were heading for shore.

Bran and Paul immediately set about changing their course to follow, but just a couple of minutes later they suddenly veered away and lost their wind. Bran signaled that they'd almost hit rocks, and as she watched, Annie saw the waves break on the shoal.

"Keep watching for rocks," Annie told King as she continued signaling her father. She explained to him, "They're going to go to Black Rock. We'll beach and walk there, if we beach I mean. You bail water, and I'll get us to shore."

Annie joined in the bailing of water as much as she could while also guiding the boat. But they couldn't keep up with the influx of water. One inch of water turned into several which turned into a foot.

They got caught in a swell that sent the boat onto its side and Annie overboard. She was an excellent swimmer and came right back up to the surface, but as she did, another swell brought the boat's hull against her skull, knocking her unconscious.

King had thought he saw the ocean's surface breaking over something and rose to look over the bow. Just then, the boat hit the shoal, sending him tumbling to the front of the boat. He scrambled back upright to see the water spraying into the hull.

"Flag my father!" Annie called to him. "Get his attention!"

King wanted to help with stemming the leak, but his boatmate insisted he communicate with her father. He stood and grasped the mast with one hand and the other waved back and forth frantically for attention from the other boat. Annie suddenly turned the boat hard, almost sending King into the ocean. He dropped down to avoid the swinging boom, then stood and began waving again.

It was nearly a minute before either one of the men looked their way. King found that tragically ironic seeing how Paul hadn't been able to stop leering at him ever since he'd started the second leg of the trip in Annie's boat. Then, finally, Bran looked his way and noticed the waving.

"They're looking this way!" he told Annie. "What now?"

"Keep watching for rocks," Annie told King as she gestured him to take the tiller. She started signaling her father in a sign language that King didn't know. After a minute, she explained to him, "They're going to go to Black Rock. We'll beach and walk there, if we beach I mean. You bail water, and I'll get us to shore."

She moved back to the tiller, simultaneously operating it and the sails to get as much speed toward shore as she could. King grabbed a bucket that they'd used for gathering fresh water and began bailing. He began to tire after what felt like hours but was actually only ten or twelve minutes. He finally spoke up, saying, "This isn't working! It's just coming in too--"

He went silent as he looked seaward and saw a massive swell coming their way. "Hold on!"

But it was too late, and as the wave hit, King was thrown against the mast and dumped into the flooded hull of the sinking boat. He struggled to get control of himself, asking, "Are you okay...? Annie...?"

But a quick search of the boat beyond the boom and sail revealed that his boatmate was no longer a boatmate; she was a castaway. King hurried toward the stern, searching the water, only to find Annie in the water several yards away just as another big swell once again threw him about.

The boat was now on its side, the mast and it loose sails in the water. King crawled onto the boom and searched for Annie in all directions, calling out for her at the top of his lungs. Finally, he found her, floating face down just a couple of yards away.

He dove into the water and swam hard and fast for her. Reaching her, he turned her over, pulled her to his chest, and immediately began kicking for the shore. Another big swell brought the boat up high above them, threatening to bring it down onto them. Luckily, though, the water caught and carried them toward shore as well, saving them from being struck.

King, too, was a good swimmer, kicking with both feet and paddling with one arm while the second arm clutched the unconscious girl to him. His swimming efforts kept them aiming in the right direction, but it was the incoming swells that did the most in moving them toward shore.

Peeking over his shoulder several times, King kept them heading correctly. Eventually they reached the surf, and he felt sand beneath his feet. He struggled to his feet with Annie again over one shoulder, falling several times before and even after he'd reached high enough on shore to finally stop.

King rolled Annie to her back and checked for a heartbeat and breathing, both of which he found. He looked up and down the beach for signs of other human life, of which he found none. He looked back to the sea again, and only after a long minute or two of searching did he just barely see the top of the other boat's sails. They were just disappearing beyond Black Rock. King wondered whether or not they'd seen his and Annie's boat sink.

Looking up to the sky, King estimated the time at somewhere midday. Looking inland, he found the edge of what might be a forest. Struggling against exhaustion, he again tossed Annie over a shoulder and headed up the slope. He had to stop four times in just over 60 yards to rest, but eventually he reached his destination.

The forest he'd hoped would provide them with shelter and fire fuel turned out to be a tiny grove of maybe a dozen trees and twice as many small shrubs. Again, he laid Annie out as comfortably as possible, then went to work gathering the driest burnable debris and limbs that he could locate.

He'd never been very good at primitive fire starting, and it seemed to take him forever to get smoke, then flames. Eventually, though, King had a healthy fire burning near the still unconscious Annie. He used green limbs broken off tree trunks to build a teepee over the fire, stripped off all his clothes except his underwear, and hung them to dry. Then, in nothing more than his underwear and boots, he went out again to collect firewood, dried moss, brown litter, and anything else that might burn.

He also looked for anything that came in a sheet shape, namely flat rocks and chunks of bark from large fallen trees. He didn't have much to choose from, but it was enough to build a bit of a reflector to kick some of the radiating fire heat back. It would have been better with sheets of steel or aluminum manufactured many, many years prior or at least with more flat rocks, but it was all he could fashion with what he could find.

One last trip out into the woods resulted in a couple of armfuls of dried most and pine needles. King laid them out to create a barrier from the cold of the ground and gently moved Annie to it. She was now between the fire and the reflector.

Annie had been shivering ever since King had taken her out of the sea, and her wet clothes weren't helping. He stripped her from her own clothes and put her in his, which had dried somewhat and, at the least, held a bit of warmth from the fire. He put her clothes where his had been, then laid with Annie and pulled her tight to him. After a few minutes, his body heat and the fire's direct and indirect heat were enough to stop her shivering.

Hours passed, and the sun was about to fall behind the tall hills to their west. King had intended to put Annie back in her own clothes, but exhaustion got to him. He fell asleep, shivering against Annie as she originally had been doing against him.

When Annie finally roused, she realized that it was nighttime, that she was on land, that a fire was blazing very near to her keeping her warm ... and that she was lying in the arms of King, who was nearly naked and trembling from the cold. As she rolled to face him, he awoke, too, looking into her eyes as she asked, "What the hell?"

It didn't take a genius to understand generally what had happened: her head told her that she'd been injured after entering the water; her presence here in King's arms said that he'd saved her from drowning; and ever the gentleman, he'd traded his dried clothes for her and risked freezing to death if she hadn't awoken in time to tend to him.

Annie checked her own clothes as they hung over the fire, finding them dry enough to don again. She stripped out of King's clothes until she was standing before him naked, silhouetted by the dancing flames of the fire. She slipped into her clothes, then helped King back into his own, chastising, "You could have died, you silly goose."

She tossed some more of the flammable items stacked nearby onto the fire, then returned to King's embrace. This time, of course, she was able to wrap her own arms around him to help pull them close together. She asked, "Did you see my father...? Did they continue onward around Black Rock...? Is our boat sunk?"

She couldn't know about her father, but she was pretty sure that the boat had been lost. As she listened to King's responses, Annie smiled, delighted to be in the man's arms, even if it did take nearly dying to lead here.