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domesticandlovingmonsters · 1 year

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Camping Trip

Theme: Family Camping Trip. Minotaur Family x Human!Reader x Drider Sister Notes: This Commission was super sweet to write and I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

As always, the Commissioner was given this story first, then Patreon and now here. The main POV was changed to Reader Insert under the Commissioners request.

Enjoy!

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Your excitement for the trip was slowly diminishing the deeper the van drove into the forest. It would have been a very relaxing drive, watching the dark clouds roll in over the towering pine trees. The earth turned into a deep brown while the smell of wet moss filled your nose whenever someone rolled down the window. And then, the soft taps of rain started to fall on the van’s roof. You felt your family immediately shiver at the thought of hiking in such weather. But it was your father’s big holiday, and this is what he wanted to do.

“Hun, maybe we should set up camp first.” Your mother, a beautiful brown and white Minotaur, softly suggested. Though she was thick coated and was just as excited for the trip as her husband, her concerned glance strayed on you and your brother. You were the only human in the foster family. Their biological son shared his mother’s mix-matched coat, but had the shagginess of his father. However, he had just gotten shaven after a messy fall into some mud. And he had been too impatient to wash it all out. So, he got it cut. He was rugged up tightly in his jacket and jeans but you could see he was eyeing the rain clouds with disdain.

In the very back of the van was your sister, Amara. A drider with a black widow's abdomen and dark toned skin hidden beneath many layers of clothing. She was curled up as much as her thin legs allowed, looking out the window with a curl to her lips.

She was the newest member to the family. And this was her first trip with the rest of you outside the country town that she now called home.

Your father, a black coated bull, glanced at the rest of you. He snorted a chuckle. “The view will be spectacular on the mountain with this little rain. Imagine the fresh waterfalls and misty valleys. We’ll be alright. The forecast didn’t say it would rain till later tonight.”

Your brother, Axel, and you shared an uncertain look. But neither of you argued. Your father had been planning this trip all month. And he was so excited about it that he packed the car three days early. You didn’t want to be the one to squish his excitement over a bit of rain.

Deeper into the forest you went until you came upon a small car park. A quaint little building sat at the entrance to the forest trails and it surprised you that the car park was empty. Save for the ranger truck nearby. This was a pretty popular spot for locals and tourists. Was the rain really that much of a scare for other hikers? Axel and your father started to unload the van while you and your mother went into the information building. Amara stood somewhat to the side of the van. You stopped by the door of the building and called out to her.

“Come meet, Zela! And get yourself warmed up before we head out.” You said. And after a small shuffle of her feet, she hesitantly followed.

You remembered your first trip with your new parents. Axel had been young but knew what to do when they were packing to hike. You had stood awkwardly to the side, waiting to be passed things and watched them go through their items until the walk started. You had felt weird just staring at them while they chatted and laughed together. You knew what Amara was going through right now.

She smiled sweetly as you held the door open for her. Just as your mother embraced a much larger drider. She could easily take up the majority of the building if she wasn’t suspended from the high, tilted ceiling. She rested her front two legs on the floor so she could bend down and give the Minotaur a big squeeze around the shoulders.

She was just as fluffy as your mother. But unlike Amara, her facial features were more arachnid. With pincers on the corners of her mouth and eight, dark eyes dotted her face. She was strangely pretty, you always thought.

“Oh Emily, you really are hiking out in this weather?” The Ranger Drider cooed as she pulled away from your mother. “Don’t tell me Don is actually serious about this.”

Your mother sighed and nodded. “Yep, he’s serious. The trails aren’t that bad are they?”

“We haven’t gotten much rain…yet. But it may get pretty hairy out there over the next few days. I’ll keep the truck ready in case you need a rescue.” The Drider, Zela, laughed. And then her eyes fell on Amara. Who was staring up at her with shy curiosity. “Oh, this is Amara? You are beautiful, dear. Are you settling in well with Emily and Don?”

Amara nodded. Her hands twisting the front of her shirt awkwardly. “They’re very nice.”

“Oh, they are.” Zela said sweetly. “Nice enough to take this trouble maker, that is.” Zela moved so quickly you had no chance in defending herself against her attack. Her long fingers plucked your hood from behind your head and pulled it over your face. You tried to push her away but she kept you blinded. Laughing until you managed to wriggle out of her grasp and throw back the hood.

“What have I done that caused any sort of trouble?” You asked defensively. And Zela scoffed.

“What haven’t you done?” She said, “I was chasing you all over these woods when you first came here with your family. This little idiot got separated from Emily, and then kept running from me.” Zela explained to Amara, despite her harsh tone, her eyes glinted with warmth.

You rolled your eyes and shrugged. “Look at you! You’re huge! I thought you were a monster coming to eat me.” You turned to Amara, “She will never explain that she found me in a cave at night. Didn’t introduce herself. No, “hey, I’m a park ranger”, nothing! She just grabbed me and tried to drag me out of the cave. I thought I was going to be eaten!”

Amara’s smile grew more genuine and her laugh, though quiet, was the first real laugh you’ve heard from her in a while. “And then she chases me like some sort of-of thing from a horror movie! Climbing through the trees and swinging off her webs. I twisted my ankle in the end. That’s how she finally caught me.”

“I could have caught you a lot earlier.” Zela mused with a smile.

“Ah, so you were just playing with your food.” You jibed back. The conversation fell away with laughter as Don and Axel shuffled their way inside. Your father was smiling broadly with his massive backpack already strapped tightly to his shoulders. He took up the door frame with very little room to squeeze past.

“Ready to go?” He asked everyone. And Zela clicked her pincers worriedly.

“Don, I really have to warn you not to go too deep into the trails.” She said, “At least until this rain passes. Promise me you’re not going to drag this poor girl up the mountain. She’ll be washed downhill by a trickle of water.” Zela gestured to Amara. Giving the young drider a wink to show she was just playing around. But the concern was very forefront.

Don waved his hand, dismissing the ranger’s words with a smile. “We’ll be alright. We’re not going far up the mountain. It’s Amara’s first time. I’m not going to push her.”

You nudged Amara playfully. “They had me climb the entire mountain on my first trip. He’s doing you a favor, trust me. I couldn’t feel my legs for days afterwards.”

Amara nodded. Fidgeting nervously again while the attention was back on her. But you all bid farewell to Zela before returning to the van and gathering up your packs. Emily helped Amara with her pack, since it was fitted for a Drider’s abdomen rather than sit on their human backs. It reminded you of a collection of saddlebags for a horse. But you didn’t dare say that outloud. Amara was already shy about her physique and how different she was to the rest of the family. Once or twice you heard Emily consoling Amara late in the night. Soothing her worries about being an arachnid in a bipedal family.

“At least (y/n) is closer to your shape than I ever could be.” You had heard her whimper one night. You never thought that someone would be worried about themselves that way. But you had once been in her shoes. Crying into Emily’s chest about not having fur, being different and seeing the side eye everyone on the streets gave your new family. All because you were human in a monster family.

You looked up as Emily stepped away from Amara. Admiring the Drider as she took some experimental steps with the new weight.

“It looks good!” You said. “Is it comfortable?”

Amara smiled a small smile in return, and fidgeted with the straps that wrapped around her waist. “It’s ok.” She said, then looked up at Emily. “Thank you for helping me.”

“Of course! Just let me know if it starts to rub or pinch.” Emily said. And Don slapped Axel on the shoulder.

“Axel will carry anything that gets too heavy, alright?”

“I will?” Axel said, but his words dripped with that usual sarcastic tone of his. And then Don started leading the way out of the car park with Axel behind him. You let Amara fall behind your brother and Emily brought up the rear.

Your boots crunched the fallen pine needles deeper into the dirt trail. Logs and rocks built up the majority of the hike, keeping the path from eroding too much, without the need for concrete or other resources. Amara seemed to glide over the uneven terrain. And you envied her graceful movement over some of the fallen logs or cluster of boulders you had to climb. Axel heaved you up a particularly steep climb because your boots kept slipping in the moist earth.

“I’ll do your laundry for a few days if you carry me the rest of the way.” You offered Axel after he set you down.

He scoffed.

“Totally not worth it. Two weeks?” He asked and you scoffed right back.

Don trekked along merrily. Holding aside some large fern so the rest of you didn’t get touched by the wet leaves. But let it fall on his wife with a wet slap and a shrill squeak from Emily. He ran ahead with a wide, cheeky smile as Emily tried to slap his arm. Cursing his name as she huffed after him, hooves sliding in the damp earth. The chill in the air dipped even further the higher you all climbed. It didn’t help that the thick blanket of clouds brought a shower of misty droplets. It wasn’t enough to get you wet right away. But over the next hour, your hair was beginning to soak and anytime you touched your jacket, it had a sheen of cold to it. You just reached the first camping site when the mist started to turn to droplets. And you noticed Amara shiver as Don looked up at the sky.

“Hey, Dad, can we please stop here?” You asked. “It's getting cold.”

Emily backed you up. “We’ll continue after we get the camp ready. We may not get a good chance later to pitch our tents.”

Don nodded. You could see how crestfallen he was about it, but your father wasn’t an idiot. Thankfully.

Axel and you started to pitch up the large tent the two of you shared. While Amara helped Emily and Don with theirs. It had been a silent understanding between you and Axel that your new sister would be more comfortable with your parents on her first night out. She was still very shy around Axel and Emily had explained to you that Amara had some bad experiences with Humans. Neither you, nor Axel, took Amara’s distance to heart. She would warm up to you. And you didn’t want to push her.

You were just unrolling your sleeping bag when a thunderous crash raced across the sky. Axel swore loudly and you heard Amara scream. Emily patted her chest and chuckled uneasily. “I think I need new pants.”

Don was exaggerating the noise by rubbing his round ears. “We should wait a bit before hiking again. I don’t want to be target practice for Zeus.”

“Or Thor.” Axel said, looking up at the sky. “You hear that your Godliness! We would really appreciate not being struck out here.”

A flash of lightning streaked across the sky and Axel dove into the tent as the crack of thunder rumbled through the clouds. You chuckled, turning your face to the falling droplets dramatically. “You can take him, but leave us alone.”

“A sacrifice to the Gods!” Don called out, beating his chest. But ducked as another crash echoed through the forest. “Alright! I’m sorry! I won’t make fun of you anymore!”

Amara looked very confused as you and Don laughed. And Emily placed a hand on her thin shoulder. “Don’t worry. They’re just being silly. We don’t worship any of the old Gods.”

“But we do admire them!” Don said with a small chuckle. “So, they don’t smite us.”

As much as you wanted a fire, the rain wouldn’t allow it. The droplets started to fall more and more and any wood you found around the area was too wet to use as kindling. You and Axel huddled by the entrance of your tent, watching as your parents unpacked their sleeping bags and set up Amara’s area of the tent. You had wrapped your sleeping bag around yourself and had changed out of the damp jacket. It was much warmer, but you kicked yourself for not bringing gloves. Even thin ones would have been nice. Just to keep the little bit of chill from your hands. But thankfully, Emily was ready for such an occasion. She pulled a small gas canister from her pack and a little camp burner to hook it up too . A kettle was brought out from the depths of her bags and she filled it with water from the many bottles of water.

“Do you also have a sous chef in there?” Don asked, dramatically peering into his wife’s packs. “Maybe a lobster dinner?”

You and Axel laughed while Emily smiled. Setting the round kettle on the small gas fed flame.

“No, dear. But aren’t you glad I packed these?” She wiggled her eyebrows at him with a knowing smile. “And you wanted me to leave these at the house. Shame on you for not believing in my intuition.”

“Yes, yes. Your powerful motherly instincts were right again. I should never question you and you are the most beautiful person I’ve ever seen.” Don drawled on. Like he was rehearsing lines for a show he didn’t want to be in. But he leaned over and kissed his wife’s cheek.

Camping mugs were passed between the family and Emily brewed some tea for everyone. Then you all settled in the comfort of your tents. Your parents had a bit more space since their massive tent came with a canopy that encased the entrance and then some in front of it. They didn’t bring chairs this time, but your mother had a spare blanket that she laid over the damp ground.

“Isn’t this the life?” Don said dreamily, looking up at the darkening sky. “Nature. In all its beauty and power.” Another crash of thunder made you wince. It sounded like it was right on top of you.

“I’ll like it more when it stops trying to make me deaf.” Axel replied without looking up from a book he was reading. He liked to bring something with him in case he was stuck in situations like this. You didn’t think to bring some type of entertainment. You had hoped the trip would be mostly hiking.

You glanced at the sky as the rain started coming down in sheets of water. You gave a quick wave to your parents before zipping up the door to stop the water from getting inside. Axel blew a long raspberry between his lips.

“Think Dad will call quits on the hike?” He asked.

You wiggled over to your side of the tent and laid your head on the pillow. Looking up at the blue canopy of the tent ceiling. “Doubt it. He’s been talking about bringing Amara out here for ages. I think he wants to turn it into a family tradition or something.”

Axel rolled onto his back. Holding the book above his head to continue reading. “Mum says it's good family bonding. A way for all of us to get to know her better. Though, I kinda wish we did something she wanted to do. I’d be terrified coming out into the woods with a family of strangers. I can only imagine what she’s thinking.”

You hummed your agreement. “I was nervous the first time too. I didn’t think I’d be murdered or anything. But I was so scared you’d all leave me in the woods.”

Axel scoffed softly. But you could hear the gentleness in his next jibe. “I thought about it. But who would share the chores with me over the weekends?”

The storm continued well into the night. Don had brought his family to the park in the late morning. And you had all set up camp around lunch. By the time the thunder rumbled far off into the distance and the rain started to soften, it was dark. Your watch said it was around 7pm when a light flared to life just outside your tent and Don’s voice called out to you and Axel.

“You guys hungry? Mum’s gonna cook some soup.”

“No lobster?” Axel asked and you heard Emily chuckle.

“It’s canned ravioli and beans.” You heard your mother reply. And Axel groaned dramatically, but rolled off his back and unzipped the tent to join his father outside. You squirmed out of your sleeping bag and ducked outside. Amara was sitting on the blanket under the canopy of the tent while Don and Axel gathered around a small circle of stones. A blindingly bright lantern was switched on by Don’s knees and you could see well into the empty clearing that surrounded you. The forest was awfully beautiful after the ran. The light twinkled off falling drops that trickled off the trees. The wind made everything stir softly, like the plants were waving at you as you peered off into the gloom.

“Are there bears out here?” Amara asked curiously, her own gaze peered into the dark.

“There are.” Emily replied. “But don’t worry. They won’t come into camp.”

“There’s a Were-Bear that lives out here.” Axel then said. “He works at the summer camp when it's open.”

“A Were-Bear?” Amara asked.

“Yeah, Satanta, he’s an indigenous fella. Lived here all his life.” Don said as he tried to strike a flame with his flint and steel tool. Axel was ready to blow whatever spark came to life in the very wet looking pieces of bark and sticks. His hands cupping the small bundle of kindling to save any spark from the wind. “He looked after Axel and (y/n) when they went to summer camp for the holidays. Came back true campers.”

You and Axel both groaned at the memory. You met Amara’s curious look. “Look, it wasn’t too bad.” You admitted. “But he woke us up before the sun even came up and had us hiking all over these mountains. Had us swimming in the freezing rivers and climbing very questionable rope courses. But…yeah, he was nice. And funny. He used to help us pull pranks on the other camp counselors.”

“He helped me and Jack gather a bunch of frogs and put them in this annoying counselor's bathroom.” Axel chuckled. He raised his hands defensively when Emily looked over at him disapprovingly. “Hey! Everyone hated her. Not just me and Jack. She used to put kids in time outs for no reason and nit-pick everything the other counselors were doing. Blame Sat, he’s the one who came up with the idea.”

“I’ve never met a were-person.” Amara said thoughtfully. “Are they nice?”

“The ones we met are.” Emily said, stirring the many cans of beans in the pot that sat over her little flame. “But like anybody, you’ll get a mixture of people. Satanta leaves for the winter because his beast gets rowdy that time of year. And he avoids the parks during hunting season so he doesn’t accidentally get shot. Even though it's illegal, you’ll still get hunters through these parts.” Emily’s voice hardened. But she sighed and carried on with a softer tone. “If you like, we can introduce you to Satanta. Outside the summer camps, he also teaches orienteering. You know, finding your way around with a compass and a map. And even tracking if you’re interested.”

Amara did indeed look interested. And she asked some more questions about the orienteering and even some about the summer camp. You piped in occasionally. Telling Amara about what you learnt at the camp and how you met a few good friends there. She listened intently and you soon realized the conversation was purely between the two of you. And this was the longest you had gone actually conversing with Amara.

Little steps. You remembered Emily telling you.

Dinner was served in metal bowls with steam coming off the hot soupy ravioli. Don had given up on getting the fire started when the sparks wouldn’t catch to any of the damp kindling. And the family settled to eat by the bright white lantern. That was quickly attracting a lot of bugs to its brilliance. You weren’t sure how many times you slapped your ankle to try and stop the mosquitoes from biting. And Axel laughed when you had to slap your own neck after something buzzed near your ear.

“The poor no-fur is getting eaten alive.” Axel jibed. And you glared at him as you scratched an itchy spot on your ankle again.

“They just want me because I’m delicious.” You joked back.

Emily went to her pack and pulled out a bottle of body insect repellent. Handing it to you just as you managed to squish one of the nasty pests on your knee. They seemed to be biting through your warm clothes.

You thanked her and started to apply it to the exposed areas of your skin. You glanced over at Amara as she finished off her own bowl of food. You hadn’t seen her slap away any bugs. But she still had a human torso, so did that mean she got bitten? She didn’t have the thick fur of the Minotaurs to keep the pests off her.

“D-Do you need any, Amara?” You asked. Gesturing to the bottle in your hand.

Amara seemed flustered with the sudden attention on her. But she shook her head. “N-No, thank you. Bugs don’t bite Driders. But thank you.” She stumbled a little over her words. But you smiled and nodded. Getting up to return the spray back to your mother’s pack.

You caught Don’s gaze and he winked up at you. You gave him a smile in return before going back to your seat.

After dinner, the family talked some more. Dragging through the usual topics of school and work. Making jokes and reminiscing about their old trips. Don liked to tell his stories about their family hikes to anyone that would listen. And Amara seemed enthralled by the tales of their beach trips and the vacations to the big city.

You had the sense she was both being polite and amazed by how much this family traveled.

“We have to plan for our next trip.” Don then said. Smiling broadly at his newest daughter. “Where would you like to go? Anywhere in the country, you pick and we’ll plan it.”

The question seemed to catch Amara by surprise. Her eyes widened and her hands balled up into fists at the seams of her hoodie. She looked at the ground, thinking hard as she stammered an answer. But Emily placed a hand on one of her spiny knees and chuckled softly.

“You don’t need to answer right away, dear. You can think about it.”

Your mother’s words seemed to sooth Amara. And she nodded. Thanking them both again before falling silent and letting the conversation pass over to Axel. As he told the story of their trip to the zoo a few years ago.

You retreated to your tent not long after dinner. You knew the climb tomorrow would be hard, the rain would make the trails slippery. So you preferred to get some rest. And the rest of the family soon did the same. It wasn’t long till you heard Don’s very loud and obnoxious snoring from your parents tent. Even from your spot, it was like the rattle of an old car starting up.

Axel was fast asleep almost immediately. Though he didn’t snore as loudly as his father, you did have to slap him with your pillow once or twice to get him to roll onto his side.

Just as you started to slip into sleep, you heard a soft voice calling out to you. You rolled onto your stomach and crawled over to the tent’s zipper. Rolling it up so you could see Amara crouching just outside your tent. She clutched her sleeping bag and pillow in her arms. Looking sheepish, but very tired.

“Can I sleep in here? Don’s…Dad’s snoring is really loud.”

You chuckled quietly and nodded. Opening the zipper more so Amara could duck in. “Axel, move over. Amara needs space.” You hissed at the young Minotaur. Giving him a hefty shove when he only grunted. He grumbled but wriggled until he was basically squished up against the tent’s side. And you moved your bags so Amara had plenty of room in the center of the tent.

“Thank you.” She whispered. Throwing down her sleeping bag and crawling into it. “Sorry to wake you.”

“It's alright. I wasn’t asleep yet.” You assured her. You both settled in for the night, and again, as you felt sleep beginning to pull you under, Amara’s voice brought you to awareness.

“Thank you for being so nice to me.” She whispered. “I know, we’re family now. But…I don’t know. It’s just nice not having to worry about being…a spider…around you.”

It almost broke your heart to hear her say that. You rolled over so you were facing Amara. “Like you said, we’re family now. You don’t need to worry about me being…freaked out by you. Axel is the disgusting one. Promise.”

You heard Amara laugh.

“That fart he ripped in the car almost made me gag.” She whispered and it was your turn to laugh.

“Is that why you rolled down the window? I couldn’t smell anything, I thought you threw something out of the car.” Amara and you chuckled. And you heard your sister sigh.

“Were they like this with you?” She asked. “Our parents. I know they’re trying really hard to make me feel included. But I don’t know how to react a lot of the time.”

“They were.” You said. “And I was the same. I was much younger than you though, when I was adopted. But they try to make you feel as comfortable and included as possible. But sometimes it feels like they’re overwhelming you, right?” You heard Amara hum her agreement.

“I don’t want them to feel bad. But I get so…embarrassed. And then I start to panic…”

“I know. Dad used to make me cry sometimes with the amount of questions he used to ask.” You said with a laugh. “But they don’t mean too. And if you feel overwhelmed, let them know. They’ll understand. And they prefer it when we talk to them about our feelings. Keeps us all on the same page, you know? They don’t want to make you feel uncomfortable.”

Amara was quiet for a moment. And then her soft voice sounded stiff, like she was holding back tears. “I’ve never had anyone care like that before. It’s…It’s…”

“Nice, right?” You finished for her. “You’ll get a lot of that with them. Sometimes I think they care too much. You’ll be smothered silly living with them.”

Amara was quiet again. For much longer this time. And you started to think she had fallen asleep, when her voice whispered one last sentence.

“I’m glad to have you as my sibling.”

#monster family #family themes #adopted family #adopted monster family #camping #camping trip #monster #minotaur #drider #sfw #cute

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