His Feline

Two

When the announcement from the council ordering me to take on a female tiger who was about to go extinct, I was damn curious. But when a phone call came from her current leader in the middle of the night telling me that things had changed and she’d be there two days sooner, I was double curious to see what all the fuss was about. She must be some important kitty to have people run around trying to get her to “safety”. After hearing the news of her early arrival, I finally opened the large envelope where her information was all packed in. To my surprise, she had a pretty thin folder for someone who is in trouble.

There wasn’t any photo which surprised me, making me think she’s probably some ugly little thing who whines and moans all day about petty s**t. My brows raised, her parents were both dead due to the Siberian tiger hunt about twenty years ago and my brows rose further at the type of species I was getting into my pack. Siberian tiger. The name sprang out brighter than all the rest of the words typed out on the page; they weren’t talking s**t when they said she was special. Siberian tigers were only known to inhabit extremely cold climates and were on the verge of disappearing into thin air.

I closed the file and sat back while still in my pyjama pants and long shirt. It was going to be the first time my pack had a female member and I was going to have to talk to the men about staying away. Last thing we need it little miss pretty whiskers complaining to the council about how my pack is a bunch of perverted assholes. Yes, they were assholes, but I know for sure that they aren’t perverts. No harm in setting some ground rules anyways.

When the sun started peeking through the thick trees and over the snowy mountains, I got dressed and helped myself to some coffee. I wore some jeans and a tee shirt due to the sun kissing the pack lands today. I shoved my boots on and placed my shades on my nose, stepping out of the cabin and drove down to the airstrip. The airstrip was in the middle of the pack lands where all the houses and shops were. Men walked around shirtless or in animal form. I got out of the truck and leaned against the door as my beta came up beside me. My second in command, Jason, a bear shifter was dark skinned and slightly bigger than me.

“Here she comes.” He said in his thick, Jamaican accent, his shirt was off as well. The plane landed and I straightened as the door opened. First thing I saw were long, muscular legs. Not as toned as other shifter females, but just as good looking, followed by thighs held snug in some denim shorts. My eyes scanned up her stomach and over her breasts that were packed neatly in a black tank top. Her hair caught my eye next. It was just below shoulder length, straight, black hair with what looked like white or silver highlights.

Her face was soft with slightly flushed cheeks and full lips, the wolf inside me growled lustfully. I felt the tips of my hands tingle, my wolf howling ‘mate’ and I swallowed carefully. No, she had heartbreaker written all over her and this was not going to happen. Not again. My wolf didn’t want to hear it and pushed me to go talk to her, to hear her voice. I pushed my sunglasses up the bridge of my nose and cleared my throat, walking towards the woman in front of me; her back was towards me when I approached her.

“Where is your leader?” She was yelling at the poor pilot who looked like he was scared shitless. “He is here.” I said, shoving my hands in the front pockets of my jeans lazily. She whipped her head to face me, her body was tense as if she was about to pounce at any moment. “Good, now there are a few things I would like to clear with you before anything takes place.” Alpha aura surrounded her figure and I felt vibrations throughout my body. “And that would be?” she folded her arms, tan skin covering her flesh. “Well, for starters, I am not prepared to bunk down with any of your ego-filed males and because I am a woman doesn’t mean you must go all soft on me. I like a challenge and this is exactly that.”

She was damn right. She was a full on woman through and through with her full breasts and mature hips, making my wolf drool. “We are not bunking you with any males and I never said we were going to go easy on you. We are the strongest shifter pack in the entire paranormal world and we cannot be having any weak links.” That made her tiger fight back, her eyes shifting to its yellow eyes of her inner feline. “And can your men put on some shirts?” I looked away from her revealing legs to the disgusted look on her face and gave her a cocky smirk.

“We are an all males pack and unfortunately we give no special treatment to anyone so no, if males without clothes bother you, best look the other way or get used to it kitty.” She didn’t like that one bit but swallowed down what looked like a full on shift and for that, I admired her. “I will show you around the pack grounds while we get your things to your new quarters, follow me.”

She fell into stride with me and was able to keep up the pace with no signs of tiredness.  “In this pack, you will be tested for skill, agility and stealth. We train every day to maintain our name and it is expected that you uphold the name now that you are one of us. I and the pack will gather later today to examine the tiger within you, if she doesn’t mind. It is a procedure that is taken for every new addition to the pack. We look at the structure, the height, the weight and the muscle mass. She will then go through three stages of which she will fight my weakest fighter, average fighter and the strongest fighter which is me.”

That helps me determine where in the pack you belong and what training you will need to do to make you stronger. Same thing applies to you; you will undergo the same tests as your tiger. Do you have any questions?” Her face was blank as she looked straight ahead, eyes darting from all the buildings to all the training grounds. “I trained against the strongest cats in my pride and i don’t think you and your boys are ready for what we have to offer.”  I shrugged at that as we approached a dirt road leading to my cabin and a little further away, hers.

“Right up this road is your new home. I live nearby so if you hear some strange sounds, it is probably my wolf.” She scoffed and took a look around at the tall trees covering my pack lands. “You know, my wolf has taken a keen liking to you.” I stood behind her, my mouth inches away from her ear. I couldn’t help it, lustful desires were a wolf thing and my wolf was doing his thing, right now.

I watched as a chill ran over her skin as I ran the tips of my fingers up her arms. She pulled away, hands wrapping around her upper arms but she managed to keep her composure, but her acting only went so far. “And Brianna has taken a liking to you.” She said with the best amount of confidence she could muster. “Brianna?” I asked with a raised brow and she nodded. “I named her that, it means protector she likes it but prefers to be called feline. Makes her feel like she is giving something back to her ancestors who also fought to stay alive with all these killers.”

I nodded. Her inner feline seemed to be more vulnerable now that she was feeling the mate connection but Ash; I would need to take some time before finally getting through to her. She was fighting major internal battles with Brianna as it is concerning the mating bond. “Let us get you settled so you can freshen up for later.” I said, clearing my throat and taking the lead in walking back to the truck so I could drive her to her new home. Her things would already be waiting for her when she got there and I looked back to watch her walking slightly behind me now, her eyes kept to the floor as her hands balled at her sides.

Once we reached the truck, I swung my door open and got in, followed by Ash not more than a minute after me. The ride was silent and I was glad for it because I was fighting my own battles with my wolf who was nagging me to mark her right there in the truck. She smelt like blueberries, a new smell so different from the usual earthy smells of the pack lands.

I pulled up at the little cottage and let my wolf ears roam around to check for any threats. When the coast was clear I noticed she was already reaching for the door handle and disappearing behind the oak door. She closed it and I swore a lock slid into place and forced down a growl. I didn’t want my mate to be afraid of me but I hadn’t felt this mate pull in six years and it was never this strong. I banged my head against the steering wheel of the truck and put it into gear before driving down to my own home.

When the late afternoon sun hit I knocked on the oak door. It was time for Ash to start the process and I was glad for the run and the shower after this morning. I had gone into the pack centre for a burger, the best I had ever tasted and took a dump after so I was feeling much more prepared for the feelings that were about to hit me when she opened the door.

My wolf ears reached into the house and I heard the sound of a shower being turned off, followed by some shuffling before the door opened. Ash stood with a towel wrapped tightly around her frame and her hair hung damp around her face. I swallowed slowly and my wolf growled hungrily in the back of my head.

“It is time for your tests. Have you eaten?” I asked and she nodded. “I will be out in a few.” She closed the door and I went back to the car so she wouldn’t catch sight of the erection straining my jeans. I shifted the shaft to trail it down the inside of my thigh but it didn’t help the erection at hand. A few minutes later Ash came out from the cottage wearing a pair of sport shorts and a tank top. She wore sneakers and her wet hair was in a messy bun at the top of her head.

When she hopped in, the smell of her skin and her animal filled my nose, causing the strain in my jeans to grow and a growl to erupt in my throat. She looked at me, eyes wide and she moved a few inches further away. Her eyes darted to my straining jeans and my hands tightened around the steering wheel.

I started up the engine and drove down the dirt road. “Why don’t you have any females?” she asked and I let out a breath, “The men I have here are all men who have lost mates, been rejected or simply don’t want ones. The men put their pain or anger into the fighting, making them fight to the best of their abilities.” She frowned. “Isn’t that wrong to use their emotions like that?” I thought about it before replying. “Not when they do it purposefully. If I was manipulating them to use their emotions then it would be wrong, but I am not.” With that, we arrived at the field where the whole pack, all five hundred males stood ready for the new arrival.

We got out and the crowd split, making way for us to walk to the centre of the circle. The guys knew she was my mate; I made it very clear to pass the message around so they knew not to mess with her. Once we got to the centre, the men stood quietly around us, waiting for me to begin. “Afternoon Forrest pack! You all know why we have gathered here today. We are here to test the skills of our new pack member. Today, Ash will be tested on her animal’s strengths and her own skills in the battlefield. This will determine where in the pack ranking she will stand. Now, first things first. Ash, you need to ask your feline if you can shift.”

She nodded and closed her eyes. She was probably going to shift in the clothes for a reason and I heard her whisper something inaudible before the muscles on her began to bulge and twitch. She went down on all fours to plant her shifting paws on to the grass. The material tore away as her body expanded and I watched in awe.

With a loud roar from the shifting feline, the big cat thumped down on the ground and shook herself out. The cat stood as tall as me, good height for an animal shifter and I circled the cat as she began grooming herself. “Strong muscles and strong bones.” I said softly, squatting down to take a better look at her hind legs. Her tail swished back and forth as I examined her body structure. I looked at the fur on her and realised her hair resembled the coat of her tiger.

The tiger’s white fur was streaked with thick stripes and I remembered her hair was back with white lines. I went to her head, standing face to face with her striking blue eyes that shifted from different shades of light blue, something I had never seen in any shifter before. Before touching her, I bowed my head in respect. I was her new alpha but I respected her species for surviving this long after so many attacks.

She bowed her head in return and I heard a soft growl from inside her chest. “May I?” I asked with a raised hand. The pack stood quietly, probably remembering the time when I asked them the same question. She gave a short nod and I touched the length of her whiskers before looking at her nose. Her ears were relaxed and I gave it a scratch, earning a velvety purr from within her, the sound made the blood in my veins feel thick and my head felt heavy and sleepy.

She opened the mind link. “Alpha, what you are experiencing now is something I was born with. Every Siberian Tiger has a special trick that they are born with. This makes my victims drawn to me and I can even alter it for them to feel sexually and uncontrollably attracted to me before I can kill them. My skill leaves them vulnerable.” Her voice was so silky and beautiful and I had the strength to not let it affect me too much and I felt the urgent arousal she was talking about and took my hand from her head, the feelings disappearing as soon as they came.

“That is something that I will definitely keep in mind. “ I sent back and I was given another short nod. I closed the mind link and spoke out loud now. ‘Now for the first stage, Robert, step forward.” I said and the scrawny ostrich-shifter stepped out from the crown. He was strong but the weakest fighter in my pack. He was also one of the quickest animals I had. He stepped in front of the cat and shifted, the ostrich stood slightly taller than the feline and the tiger made a noise that sounded like a laugh and stretched before going down into a stalker position.

This would test her speed and her skill, if she put him down in a minute, she would continue to the next stage. The ostrich played with her, going right and left and over again. I stood back, watched the cat’s ass sway before pouncing on the tall bird who squeaked in surprise. No one brought down Robert so quickly and the other members of the back made approving noises and Brianna let the bird go, watching it run away before running after it in long strides and knocking it over.

She passed and she know she did, the second act was a show off which earned a few laughs for Robert from the guys. She walked around, looking at the men in the circle before slowly walking to me, oh yes my wolf liked what he saw and we were never with a feline before so this was bound to be fun. The cat gave me a look and I smirk, kitty wants to play but I squared my shoulders raising my hands to initiate round two.

Round two was with Jason, the bear shifter would test her strength and endurance against pure male muscle and if she passed she would be the first female to ever battle me. I crouched down, watched as Jason shifted into the enormous brown bear that stood taller than the feline and they began circling each other. The bear snarled, bearing his long, sharpened teeth and Brianna growled, her sharp teeth catching the setting sun. Jason sprung first, taking a swing at the tiger and caught her on the shoulder. She wasn’t fast enough but hissed at her competition, the bear staggered back in shock before gathering himself quickly and charging towards Brianna.

He lunged but the cat was faster, moving out of the way and nipping the bear on his hind leg. Jason growled in pain and the smells of blood from both competitors filled the air. Once the grizzly was down, Brianna grabbed him by the back of his neck as if picking up a cup but her grip tightened, causing the airways of the bear to close dangerously. She continued to tighten her hold and the members looked to me to see if I was going to stop it and say it was enough. The grizzly jerked himself around violently, trying to break free from the jaws of the cat but with his airways almost shut, he wasn’t getting anywhere quickly.

I gave him a few more minutes to try break free, saw the killer instincts in the cat’s eyes slowly erupt into orbs of ice and I whistled, catching the attention of the competitors and the feline dropped the massive grizzly. Jason got up, shook his fur that was now tainted dark around the neck where the feline’s teeth had sunk into his skin.

Jason shifted and I saw the blood stain his neck and the bite marks were almost already healed. The Jamaican gave out a shaky laugh and he stood, nodding his head and wiping some blood off his neck. “She is good.” He said and gave the cat a rub on the neck before limping his naked ass out of the circle to find some clothes. Brianna looked at me now, those blue eyes were calm but it caused storms to form in my guts. I had to fight her next, not many had fought me because no one could beat me. Jason was the only man who had ever beaten me in a fight but that was after several hours of fighting.

The feline looked at me knowingly. The pink of the sun painted the sky like a painting and my alpha instincts felt the pack’s distress through the mind link and I sent a wave of calm through the men standing around us as I pulled off the shirt over my head. I pulled my jeans off and stood in front of the cat who sat calmly in front of me. With only my boxers, I went down on my knees and felt the wolf take over, paws and fur replacing the flesh and feet.

With a final c***k of my spine, I felt the wolf come to the surface and he raised his snout to the pink sky and gave a long, deep howl for being let out. He shook his big head and placed his furry behind on the grass, mirroring Brianna’s posture. “It is a pleasure to finally meet you in person.” My wolf, Jay, sent over mind link. Brianna did a shake of her head before stand on all fours, tail swishing. “Indeed it is, although, I don’t think you chose right.” She sent back as he stood and they began circling each other. Confusion sparked in Jay’s mind and I stayed at the back of his mind.

“And why is that?” My wolf’s nose smelt all the desirable scents of his mate, including the faint smell of her arousal. Jay had always had a particular taste in mates. After number one and two, he gave up because if a shifter loses a third mate, the possibilities of dying were too great to risk, but Ash and her feline where different from the rest and set a fire to the wolf’s heart.

 “I and ash have our own missions to accomplish, irrespective of what the council wants from us in regards to producing kin. We have a lifelong dream of finding the bastards who took our family away and every single tiger hunter there is will pay for the things they have done.” The feline’s strides were smooth and calm, she spoke as though she was a dream we had to wake up from and I couldn’t help but notice the way her muscles flexed in her hind legs.

She made an approving sound in the back of her throat and my wolf went down in his fighting stance, waiting for her to make the first move. She too lowered to the floor, like cats watching their prey before going in for the kill. They both watched each other; Jay’s ears were flat on his head, teeth bearing while Brianna’s tail moved violently behind her as if she was out for blood. My wolf gave a sharp bark before giving his jaw a snap and leaped up to charge at Brianna.