Beast Magic

Published by Phaze Books Also by Sapphire Phelan

Phaze in Verse

This is an explicit and erotic novel intended for the enjoyment of adult readers. Please keep out of the hands of children.

www.Phaze.com

Beast Magic a novella of erotic romance by

SAPPHIRE PHELAN

Beast Magic copyright 2007 by Sapphire Phelan All rights reserved under the International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. This is a work of fiction. Names, places, characters and incidents are either the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, organizations, events or locales is entirely coincidental. A Phaze Production

Phaze Books 6470A Glenway Avenue, #109 Cincinnati, OH 45211-5222 Phaze is an imprint of Mundania Press, LLC. To order additional copies of this book, contact: [email protected] www.Phaze.com Cover design © 2007,Debi Lewis Edited by Stephanie Ballestieri eBook ISBN-13: 978-1-59426-786-4 ISBN-10: 1-59426-786-3 First Edition – October, 2007 Printed in the United States of America 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Warning: the unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in prison and a fine of $250,000.

"A dream that a lion had dreamed" Against Unworthy Praise by William Butler Yeats

SAPPHIRE PHELAN

Chapter One The lion stalked through the tall grass. He never let his gaze waver from what he saw

in front of him, keeping focused on the trap. He bared what he thought was a parody of a human smile, showing his glistening fangs as the odor of five hunters wafted to him. They hid behind some heavy brush only fifteen paw lengths away. The stench was repugnant to his nose combined with the hot, humid air. He knew what they thought. That they were being smarter than the dumb beast, when in reality he wanted to be caught. It was his destiny to spring the trap. Then he could be taken across the Great Water to meet his fate in a human female, the one from the dreaming that he would take as his mate. The magic within him wanted to be called forth and show this puny prey what he could really do, to surprise and frighten them. But he forced it down back into himself. Now was not the time to let it free. They were not his real enemies, just pathetic humans who didn't know any better, as his father would say. He could have used his beast magic to whisk himself away to where he wanted to go. But he felt this plan was better. Much better. Ramses, the werelion, stepped forward. Dried grass and large palm leaves crunched noisily under his massive paws. He discovered the edge of the pit the humans had dug, covered with brush to hide it. His superior hearing picked up the echo of a human catching their breath, as he toed some ground by the trap. Stepping onto the leaves, he crashed through and along with the earthly covering fell into the hole. He landed on all four paws. With a low roar rumbling in his chest, he paced the length of the hole. Pausing, he glared up into the excited eyes of the hunters as they surrounded the hole and stared down at him. Listening to them chatter among themselves about how easy it had been to capture the lion, he let them believe it for a brief moment. Then the low rumble in his chest morphed into laughter. The lion watched as uneasiness replace the excitement in their dark eyes, as if they heard and understood his inner thoughts. Soon he would find his mate and claim her. The Dreaming never lied. * *** Shana Tory began dreaming again. It was the same scene, since she was five: she stood alone at the zoo. Her mother had just let go of her hand and vanished into the crowd of people. Suddenly, the crowd dispersed, and she found herself standing in front of the lion exhibit, staring into the golden brown eyes of a large male with a heavy black mane. The big cat lay still like the Sphinx, his gaze intent on her. Though frightened, Shana drew closer as if she couldn't help herself. Her nipples hardened under her blouse and she felt heat pooling between her thighs. Unexpectedly, the lion rose to his feet and padded nearer to the boundary that separated them. He halted, and then roared. She screamed and ran away. Shana awoke, frantic, her limbs tangled in both the sheet and blanket. Her hands fisted the material as sweat dripped down her face, staining it. Damn, that was the fifth time this week she had that nightmare from her childhood. This time, though, the lion had reached the boundary that kept him from her. In the next one,

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she feared he might leap over it and get to her. She hated nights like this, for they gave her an unreasoning fear of lions, especially the male ones. Shana stumbled out of bed and headed to the bathroom. She saw her pale reflection in the mirror above the sink. It bothered her. Dark half-circles under her eyes made her appear bruised and tired. She turned on the faucets and hot and cold water gushed into her hands. Splashing her face, she hoped that its refreshing feeling would take away some of the dream leftovers. Quickly finishing up, she applied moisturizer and powder to her face to cover up the lingering effects. It was getting harder to look good for work these days. Maybe she needed to see a therapist or something so she could start getting some real sleep. Once dressed, Shana breakfasted on oatmeal and drank a cup of coffee. She put the bowl and cup in the sink, then rushed off to work. Parking her car in front of the boutique where she worked, she climbed out and paused to stare at the vast parking lot of the zoo across the road. Empty right now, in a couple hours the parking lot would be jammed-packed with all sorts of vehicles. Families would be entering through the zoo's entrance, to visit the animals and birds that populated the attraction. The same zoo that figured in her dreams. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. That's all it was, she reminded herself, a dream, and nothing more. Okay, maybe she had some issues with lions. But she would fix that problem today, right after she got off work. She would go over to the zoo and pay her admission, enter and make her way to the African lion exhibit. It was the only way to prove to herself that there wasn't a lion in there waiting for her. Wanting her. Shana spent the next eight hours working. Though she tried hard to keep her mind on her work and the customers that came in, she still would stop at the big window. Her gaze would stray across the road to the zoo. When four o'clock rolled around and her relief walked through the door, she grabbed her purse. Muttering a quick good-bye, Shana ran out the door and jumped into her car. Watching for traffic both ways, she pulled out of the parking lot and drove across the road. She pulled into a parking space not far from the entrance, got out and ambled up to one of the booths. An old lady sat inside, munching on an apple and reading a book. Putting both the half-eaten apple and the book down, she looked up with a smile. "A ticket?" the old lady asked. "Yes, just one, please." Digging through her purse, Shana found a ten-dollar bill and handed it over. The lady smiled. "It's only half price, dearie, as we close in a couple hours. That's five dollars. Though if you don't have anything less than that ten I can give you back change." Shana thrust the ten back into her purse and rummaged until she found a five. She slid it toward the lady, who handed her back a ticket. Then she hurried through the turnstile, tossing her ticket to a bored, young man and entered the zoo grounds. She ignored the flamingos flapping their pink wings, streaked pass the bear exhibit, circled around the giraffes, and made her way to the exhibit that held the big cats. A leopard screamed while a black panther paced its cage, its yellow eyes zeroing on her as she passed. Shana found the lion enclosure and stopped at exactly where she always stood in her nightmare. Three lionesses lay on fake rock ledges, one's maw opened wide as it yawned. A male stood not far from them, young, and with not much of a mane. What there was of it was only brown with black ends. Not the unrelenting black of her dreams. She didn't see the dream male among them and breathed a sigh of relief. Her sigh broke in midbreath though, when a shadow exited from the entrance to the quarters where the lions slept at night. The shadow lengthened, reaching toward her with grasping fingers. She backed away from the fence, frightened and knowing with certainty what was approaching.

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A magnificent male emerged from the darkness, his coat a shiny golden color. A mane of midnight covered his head and reached down to his chest between the two front legs. With eyes of golden brown, he stared directly at her, as if he knew she had come only to view him. Hands over her mouth, she watched as he moved like a regal king. The other male backed out of his direct path, a long, keening sound issuing from young one's jaws. He fell to his belly, as if acknowledging his superior. The older lion turned his head, growled, and continued his way to the boundary. He halted, coming to his goal, and his gaze met hers once more. Shana couldn't tear her eyes away as her fear left her. Something sparked between them and it kept growing, an electrical charge with an odor of burning ozone. Erotic, it made a flush of heat fill her. Finally, she broke free of the lion's spell and, with a cry, bolted. Like a frightened gazelle she ran, shoving pass crowds of people massing toward the front entrance. She hurtled along with the others, pushing through the turnstile and out into the parking lot, not stopping until she stumbled into her car. Starting it, she roared out of the parking lot and down the road. She finally quit running when she pulled into her driveway and shut off the engine. Her forehead pressed to the steering wheel, she tried to bring her shaking under control. She called herself a stupid fool for even going to the zoo. The lion was real. Uncanny as it seemed, the dream lion had just been made flesh for her this afternoon. What further creeped her out, was the fact she had sensed that it knew she was there. Like he had called her to come. With the dreams. Waited for her. And like the dreams lately, she had begun to be turned on. What was wrong with her? He was only an animal. Purse in hand, she climbed out of the car and locked it. She went into the house. Tossing her purse onto the coffee table, she slumped into an armchair to the left of the couch and kicked off her high heels. With a headache coming on and her appetite lacking, Shana decided to retire early. Thank goodness, tomorrow was Saturday and she didn't have to go back to work—she had weekends off due to seniority. She took off her clothes and dropped them all in a pile in the middle of the bedroom floor. Crawling into bed stark naked, she drew the covers up to her chin and fell quickly asleep. * *** Ramses paced one end of the cage to the other. He acknowledged the other lions briefly as they watched him with an air of fear and respect. They knew what he really was. Shapeshifter. Changer of forms. One of many that, like him, were behind the myths of werebeasts, except they weren't myths. He stopped and smiled. It was something that a pure lion couldn't do. Sharp fangs glinted in the moonlight. The funny thing about werewolves, werelions, weretigers, and other shapeshifting creatures of magic were that the human stories made claim to a man changing into a beast. Actually, it was the other way around. Among the animal and bird kingdom, a few were born with the magical ability to be able to become a human being. Strangely enough, it seemed only the predators could do this and not those who fed upon vegetation. Ramses could never figure out why this was. But it had always been so. Usually a shapeshifter mated with another shapeshifter. But mostly, the Dreaming would reveal a human as the potential mate. And so, the identity of his mate had come to him. Ever since he was a cub, he had seen his anisa in dreams. One female shapeshifter, Kaket, had tried to gain his interest, to mate with her. He refused, letting her know that he had the Dreaming, and that his true mate waited for him

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across the Great Water in another land called America. Angry, Kaket told him he would be sorry he had denied her. The human woman must have dreamed of him too. For today she had come, drawn to him. Ramses had awoken, sensing her. He had left the sleeping quarters and saw her for the first time outside of his dreams. Tall and long limbed, she had a long red golden mane that gleamed like fire when the sunlight struck it. Her eyes were beautiful green, just like the lush grass of home. That gaze of jade had stared into his eyes, stirring him. Breasts, just the right size for a male's hands, jutted forward and tented the man-made material she wore like a second skin. His cock had hardened against his belly, pointing toward her like it was trying to reach for her woman's sex. Ramses had felt the urge to leap over the boundary that separated them and fuck her in his lion or human form, it didn't matter which. The impulse had overtaken him and he almost lost his control when she had turned tail and ran. Time to take it to the next level. With a thrust of his hind legs, Ramses launched through the air and sailed over both the stone boundary and metal fence. He landed on the other side of the cement ground just outside the lion enclosure. Without a backward glance at the other lions, he bounded away. He had a mate to claim and a destiny to fulfill. * *** Shana rolled over with a moan. Uneasy, she opened her eyes and sat up. The blanket slid down, pooling at her waist. She felt strange, and noticed a film of sweat on her skin. Something was coming. She didn't know how she knew that, but she did. Fear tingled inside her, but she also felt excited, as a sensual awareness raced along her nerves. A burning began to heat up at the entrance to her pussy and she rubbed her thighs together, seeking relief. She lay back down and dipped a hand down to the nest of curls under her stomach, stretching a finger underneath to the moistness there. She masturbated, fucking herself with it. With her thumb, she rubbed her clit. The heat blazed into a fire and she moaned, arching her back. Pushing with her finger faster and faster, she brought herself to the edge and crashed over it. She screamed. The sound echoed in the bedroom. Lying still, her breathing slowed, her body satisfied. But that strange little flame down in her womb still had her aching for something unattainable. She knew that finding just any man to make love to her wouldn't do the trick either. Half drifting into a daydream-like state, she saw a man with golden brown eyes, golden skin, and long raven black hair. His hair was thick enough for a woman to hang onto tightly while he rammed his cock into her. The flame fanned to life again, and she rode another rollercoaster of passion. This time, the volume of her scream that left her throat was several octaves higher than her first one. It boomed like thunder as it filled the room. * *** With the sensitive hearing of the werelion, Ramses heard Shana's scream as he stood outside her bedroom window. The sound vibrated through him, leaving him aching with want. A golden glow shimmered over him and within seconds, he stood in man form, naked. Grasping his cock, he stroked it, skimming down to where his balls hung heavy and slipping back up to thumb-stroke the head. Harder and faster he jacked himself off, imagining her lying naked among a tangle of sheets and blanket, a sensuous, satisfied look on her beautiful face. He closed his eyes as need tautened his face and body. Almost at the edge, he felt ready to topple over it and fall into the depths of ecstasy. When he reached that pinnacle, he shot a load of cum, splashing the side of her house, and roared like a mighty lion. He sagged against the window, finally spent. It had been incredible. It would even be more so when he shot his seed into her pussy.

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* *** "What was that?" whispered Shana, as she sat up and untangled herself from the sheet twisted around her. Did she hear a roar of some large animal, like a big cat? Swinging her legs off the bed, she stood up and crept over to the window. With care, she lifted an edge of the blind that hung at the window. She peered out through the glass and into the night. Instead, a pair of golden brown eyes stared back at hers! With a shriek, Shana dropped the blind and back stepped from the window. She tripped over a pair of tennis shoes in the middle of the bedroom floor. But before she landed on her butt, a flash of light filled the room and she felt a pair of muscular arms sweep her up, saving her. Though it was dark in her bedroom, she could still see well enough and found her gaze locking with a golden brown one. Shana gasped, fascinated with those eyes, which were alight with passionate promise. She broke contact with them when she was placed upon her bed. She reached over to the bedstead next to her bed and switched on the lamp on it. Light flooded the room, bringing into focus the most strikingly handsome man she had ever seen. It was the man she had seen in a vision, as naked as the day he had been born. Now seeing more than his eyes and long, thick raven black hair, she noticed his aristocratic, very feline face with high cheekbones and square jaw. He also had a sensual mouth and a nose that almost seemed cat-like as the nostrils flared, as if he was taking her scent. Shana swept her gaze from his face down a corded neck, traveling down to a pair of massive shoulders. His chest had chiseled pecs, showing a man who surely exercised with weights to be that buffed. Hairless, his golden skin gleamed and showed every luscious detail of his muscles. His chest tapered into a slim waist and a flat belly of iron stomach muscles. Shana kept her gaze moving downward until she found a nest of black pubic hair at the apex of long, muscular legs, where his cock rose, an impressive length that was thick in girth, too. Heavy sacs hung underneath, also impressive in their maleness. This man screamed alpha male, every mouthwatering inch of him. It suddenly came to her that a strange man stood in her bedroom. Now how he had gotten inside with the bedroom door still closed and her house locked up, she didn't know. Even though she should have been scared, a pool of heat began to flame at the entrance to her pussy. Any minute now she would come again, just from the mere sight of him. Now that did frighten her. An unknown, naked–and yet so very impressive–man had somehow gotten into her bedroom, and she lay before him on her bed, naked too, like a feast just for him. Scarier was the fact that he looked like the man in her vision and she had never even met him in her life. Even if they had previously crossed paths in a crowd somewhere, he was not a man one forgot. As she glanced up at him again, she caught his gaze and saw a desperate hunger in it. He pressed one knee onto the mattress, looking like he intended to join her. It jolted her out of her fantasies and back into hard reality. Her hands pressed against his chest. "Whoa there, big boy. I don't think so." Though she doubted that if he wanted her, she could stop him. He smiled. Shana's heart dropped to her stomach, and simultaneously she lowered her hands to the mattress. What a devastating god he was when he smiled. No doubt, no woman would feel safe with her virtue when he did that. Hell, any sane woman would eagerly spread her legs for him. Though the white teeth seemed sharp, almost like fangs, his smile dripped of fuckability. "There's no stopping what I am about to do with you," he said in a dark voice that seemed rusty as if he hadn't used it much. "It's destiny that we mate." Shana raised her hands again and flattened them against his chest.

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Damn, his chest felt good. "No. I don't know you and I sure as hell don't even know how you got in here. Besides, you might have all sorts of diseases. You definitely must be a crazy, right? For those reasons and others I can't think of right now. I don't let just any man crawl between my legs." She saw him frown, seemingly puzzled. "I do not have any diseases—my kind has the ability to not get any during mating, if that is what you meant . Besides, I have never mated with another before now as the dreaming has foretold that you are my mate. I am Ramses, your mate. You know me, have dreamed of me for this past week, and you came to see me earlier today because of the link between us." "I didn't come to see…" Shana broke off, as she remembered going to the zoo and seeing the lion from her nightmares. She remembered his thick black mane, as long and black as Ramses' long hair and most of all, she remembered the big cat's golden brown eyes in its golden face. The same eyes that she could see glittering with lust in this man's face. Oh, God. "The lion," she hissed out, as she tried to escape from Ramses. "Yes, that was me, the lion," Ramses said, climbing onto the mattress quickly and grabbing Shana by her shoulders, stopping her escape. "I am a shapeshifter. I can be the lion, and then I can be the man. I saw you in the Dreaming, at my home in Africa, the land where I come from." She shook her head, fighting the lust that warmed her body at his touch. "You aren't from the zoo?" she asked stupidly. "No, I let humans capture me and bring me across the Great Water so I could come here, to find you. My world is of the tall, lush grass of the savannah, humid, tropical heat, and days of hunting the gazelle and wildebeest. But my time had come, to seek my mate and take her. You are the one promised to me to bear my cubs, to be forever mine." His voice held a note of certainty that sent her heartbeat skittering. His gaze held a resolve that didn't let her believe there could be no other option. "The Dreaming has never failed any of my kind, so have no doubts you are the one who will share my life until the darkness of death takes away the light." She moaned as he pressed his lips to her neck, licking the skin there. Like a cat's, his tongue felt raspy, but the sensation also felt incredibly erotic. She arched her back and her breasts grazed his chest as his mouth left her neck to capture her lips. He drank deeply, his tongue slipping between her lips to find hers and waltzed sensually with it. "See, there are only us and this hot, humid passion that fans the air between us," he panted against her mouth. "Do not deny our destiny." Ramses pushed her down into the bed, caressing the satin curves of her hips. He squeezed, and her breath caught. Then he covered her and she felt his hardness pressed to her softer length. His cock snug against her hip as he took her lips again, giving her a souldrenching kiss that took her breath away. All thoughts that she was making love with something akin to a myth, that only that afternoon he had been a lion, flew out the window as his hands stroked her skin and he continued to kiss her deeply. He sure knows how to use those hands and lips. Ramses smiled as he withdrew his lips from her and looked into her eyes. She saw that the smile shone in his eyes, too. "That is nothing; wait till my cock is inside you. I plan to use that well." Shocked, her eyes widened as she realized he could read her thoughts. His grin grew. "Yes, our connection enables me to do so. Given time, you will, too." Shana reached between their bodies and found his penis. She stroked her thumb over the head. "I bet you will use this well." Ramses purred.

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Shana paused in her stroking. "Did you purr? Like a cat?" He dipped his hand underneath her mound and pushed his thumb against her clit, rubbing it. She arched her back, crying out. He kissed her cheek and slipped two fingers into her moistness, beginning to fuck her with them. "Did you not just purr, my anisa?" he said with a laugh. She moaned. "What does anisa mean?" "My joy, my pleasure. You are that, and much more. You are also my anando. My bliss." Shana grabbed his head and dragged his lips to her. "Just shut up, and fuck me." "Mmmmmmm…out of patience, are we?" Ramses laughed and captured her mouth with his, laying waste to every hope of reserve. His tongue fucked her mouth, his fingers doing the same thing to her lower lips. She strained into him, consumed with need, driven to demand he satisfy her craving. Now. This instant. It didn't matter what he really was. She needed the instant gratification she now realized only he could give to her. Powerless to resist whatever he wanted of her, she felt bereft when his fingers left her. But elation filled her as he parted her thighs to allow him in. With one, powerful thrust he entered her, breaking the hymen that was her badge of virginity, swallowing her cry of pain. He stilled, letting her adjust to his fullness, then unable to stop it, began to thrust slowly in and out. Ramses took his lips away and purred. "I am pleased that you had never given your precious gift to a human male. You are now truly my mate, my anisa, in all the ways that matter." "Oh, anando," he moaned. She felt her muscles tightened around his length. "I love your sweet scent. Anisa, it smells uniquely you, like sandalwood. It's the same odor I smelled from you at the zoo, and I can never get enough of it." Shana shifted, crying softly as she rocked her hips up to his. Suddenly there seemed to be nothing in the world but satisfying his own urgent need, and with a low growl, he lifted the top part of his body from her. Grasping her hips, she watched as he drew back and pumped into her again and again. Like a whirlwind out of control, he fucked her hard and fast, plunging deeper each time. She mewed and panted alternately, reveling in their unstinted passion and the quake of her swiftly coming release. Proving it could be possible, their rhythm quickened like a brush fire out of control. Her panting growing wilder, she almost screamed when Ramses caressed her right breast and took the nipple between his thumb and forefinger. Instead, she moaned and he obliged her, squeezing as he drove into her faster. Her release came in that instant. She gasped, letting the sound flee her mouth, and she jerked in his grasp. Keeping her eyes open, she watched with satisfaction as Ramses closed his eyes, surrendering his will to the overriding sensations. Shana enjoyed the way her pussy clenched him, squeezing tight. Knowing it had drawn him over the edge of exploding oblivion when he threw back his head and roared like the king of the jungle. Jets and jets of his warm cream filled her full. Obviously contented, he sagged onto her, unable to summon the strength or concern to move for a moment. When he came to, he rolled off her onto his side and pulled her back into him, wrapping an arm around her waist. Ramses stuck his nose against the back of her neck and sighed. "I love your sexy, sweaty smell, anisa. I love you." It should have freaked her out that he professed to love her so soon. But then, if he had dreamed of her as long as she had, maybe not. She realized that yes; she felt something for him too. Whether that was love, she wasn't sure, but something jumped at his declaration. Her senses were drowsy with the sweetest satisfaction of a woman fucked just right. She nestled her ass and back against his front and softened penis. A smile graced her lips as he nuzzled her neck. Shana's eyelids drooped over her eyes, and unable to fight the drowsiness, she fell asleep in his arms.

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She slept until dawn, and upon waking, felt a male body pressed against her in a tight fit. Gently, she slipped out from under his arm and rolled over facing him, breathing in his male scent. Asleep, Ramses didn't look like a fierce predator. He looked more like a sweetfaced boy, except for the five o'clock shadow that dusted his cheeks and chin. Just like human men, even werelions in their human shape needed to shave in the mornings. She smiled, as a feeling of overwhelming contentment stole over her. If someone had told her that sex could be so intense, so ... inspiring, she'd done it long ago. But then again, maybe only with Ramses could it have been this mind searing. Perhaps a human male could have never touched her sweet spot. It took a man not even human to give her such spectacular sex. Again though, a little voice inside her reminded, this had been her first time with any man, human or non-human. She knocked that thought back down deep into her conscious. With Ramses, she had cast caution and fear to the wind. She not only surrendered to, but also explored the carnal impulse that crashed over her like a wave upon a beach. No, she didn't regret it either. Never before had she felt this physically sated and contented, even when she masturbated. Her smile vanished as she realized that she could be pregnant. He hadn't used a condom. Being a shapeshifter from the jungle, most likely he didn't know what a condom was. Maybe he was disease free as he had mentioned, but the baby issue had never been broached. Filling her belly with his baby could be what he really wanted. Just another way for the beast to mark his mate. Mixed emotions of how she felt about that confused her, made her nervous. Ramses' eyes opened and she scuttled to the edge of the bed. His arm snaked out and caught her, dragging her back to him. "Where do you think you are going?" he said, a purr like a soft undercurrent echoed in his voice. She shivered, becoming aroused as she felt her breasts pressed against his chest, her mound against his hardness. He sniffed at her neck, breathing in her arousal, and the purr in his voice rumbled like a contented lion from his chest. Her shivering increased and her nipples tightened into little beads as a side effect from the vibrations of that purr. "Oh, God," she cried out. "Your arousal is the most wonderful scent, anisa. I can almost taste its unique flavor— all woman." His tongue flicked out and circled her mouth, the tip tickling like a feather. He drove it past her lips and continued the tickling, this time the roof and walls of her mouth. Shana moaned. He dug his hands underneath her bottom, caressing and squeezing both cheeks and compelling her closer to his thick stiffness. Slowly, he urged her thighs to part and let him in. The head of his cock entered her and with one hard thrust, he buried himself to his balls. Shana could feel those sacs against her entrance, full and heavy. He thrust just once, the head of his organ pushing against the wall of her womb. She moaned into his mouth and Ramses stopped. He took his mouth away and a wicked smile graced his lips. "You will never, ever, be able to deny that my cock doesn't belong inside your sweet, wet pussy. You are the lock, and I am your key, turning on your burning passion." He began to stroke, pushing in and withdrawing, thicker and heavier with each movement. Shana lost all conscious thought. All she cared about was him taking her beyond anywhere she had ever been. No, she felt beyond care, beyond pain, toward a misty distant shore named ecstasy. More than mere touching and tickling and teasing and tonguing, he swept her along by the fervor of his fucking. She saw the rapture in his eyes blazing into molten gold when his gaze locked with hers. She felt the moment coming, and then, together, they clung to each other.

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Shana cried out and her nails dug deep into his muscled back as he stilled and convulsed, spilling the warmth of his release deep into her. She clung to him, discovering that somehow during their frantic, sweaty lovemaking he had wrapped her legs around him. Weeping with shuddering joy, she let him kiss her with tenderness, their mouths locked together and their bodies still cloistered together in intimate union. I do love him. She realized with both wonder and shock, worried that he would read the thought as he had with her earlier one. He did. "I love you, too, anisa. It is destiny." Sweat matted her hair, plastering it to her face and shoulders. With tenderness, he lifted those strands and placed them over her pillow. He caressed her face and leaned over to lick the sweat off, his tongue circling like a cat drinking cream. "You taste and smell of our fucking. Do you know what I see when I look at you? Raw, carnal sex. More beautiful in reality then when I saw you in the Dreaming." He leaned closer with every word, his tongue flicking out to capture the drops of moisture here and there, ending at a trickle on the nipple of her right breast. He drew the nipple inside his mouth and suckled it like a baby breastfeeding. Shana moaned and arched her back, pushing her breast deeper into his mouth. He pulled away and chuckled. "Just like in the dreaming, you are passion incarnate, ready to fuck and be fucked. My mate." A sigh escaped him. "But I must go, before the humans at the zoo discover a lion is missing from the enclosure." His eyes gleamed like molten gold as he stared down into Shana's eyes. "Tonight I will be back and then we will leave for my world, my anisa. I cannot wait—I am of the wild and do not like being caged." His body lifted up over hers and she saw him get on his hands and knees. Slowly, he morphed into his lion form. She watched as he began to fade away, his eyes the last thing she saw. Then they too, vanished. Alone on the bed, she began to shiver as the cool air found her flesh. * *** A woman stood in the zoo's parking lot. She had tolerated as much as she could. Finally she had to leave the savannahs and hot, moist heat for the human-bred world. A world where the disgusting odors of things made from metal and unwashed human bodies assailed her nostrils. She dug her nails into the palms of her hands as she fought to keep from retching. "Hey, good looking, what's cookin'?" Kaket turned and saw a skinny, arrogant human male. His over-sized T-shirt had holes in a couple places and his jeans hung low on his bony hips. Nothing about him seemed worth her time, but then her stomach rumbled. She smiled, baring sharp teeth. The man dropped his grin and suddenly looked a little nervous. Her smile grew wider. Good, he should be frightened. This human would soon know why she had been named for the goddess of darkness. She reached out a hand and stroked his cheek. His skin felt abrasive as it was covered with stubble. She hated the feel, preferring soft fur. But beggars couldn't be choosy when in a land empty of gazelle and other prey. Besides, she remembered the taste of human flesh from previous kills, and it did have a better taste than gazelle flesh. Humans were easier to hunt, too; you didn't need to stalk them. She purred into his ear, the words a husky whisper. "Why don't we go somewhere quiet to be alone with each other? Then you can show me how much of a man you really are?" She slipped her other hand down to his crotch, pressing the palm of her hand against it. She felt his length grow. Hummph. He thinks he can pleasure me with that pathetic worm? She was interested in his cock all right, just not for what he planned for it.

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Stupid, pathetic human male. He slipped an arm around her waist and went with her as she led him away from the parking lot and the zoo. Spying an area full of darkness, she drew him into it, and they passed between shadow-ridden buildings, halting when a six-foot wooden fence loomed before them. The shadows that surrounded them deepened. She slipped from under his arm and gave him a hard shove back against the fence. Pressing herself against him, she began to lick his face with her tongue. He tasted so delicious. The man laughed. "Damn, your tongue feels rough, but still kinda sexy. It's like you trying to get a taste of me, or something. It's a big turn on for me." Kaket paused, and stared into his eyes. "Oh, I am having a taste, but it is not meant to be a turn on for you." She felt herself changing and smiled, knowing that her true self was taking over. Pinning him to the fence, she gripped his head, and as her claws spiked from her fingertips they imbedded deep into his skin. He screamed from the pain. "Now instead of having a taste, I am going to eat you." She said with a half laugh, half snarl. The sound carried in the air, louder than his yelling. "And I never waste anything, either." She captured his mouth with hers, cutting off his scream. Where her mouth had been, a lioness's snout jutted out, sharp fangs replacing the human teeth in the maw. His fear reeked from his skin pores and from wetting his pants. Instead of hating the odor, Kaket reveled in it. She bit into his face and began to feed. * *** Ramses lifted his head. Something was wrong. He couldn't put his finger on it, but his senses had never failed him before. He had been asleep in the lion enclosure den when something disturbed his dream of his mate. As he woke, a familiar scent wafted to him. His stomach churning, he got to his feet and left the enclosure's den. He padded over to the stone barrier. Uneasy, he stared over it from his vantage point. A woman stood on the other side. Long, golden hair fell over her shoulders, and she had golden skin and dark-brown eyes. A strange, secretive smile flitted across her red lips. She wore a pair of baggy jeans, an oversized T-shirt and was barefooted. The clothes seemed stained with something still wet. Ramses sniffed and recoiled when he realized what the wetness was. Human blood! Kaket. By all the darkness of daemons, the bitch was here. Did she still think she could get him to become her mate? Whom had she killed and feasted on? He could smell the blood not only on the stolen clothing and her skin, but also on her breath as she laughed just then. Hello, Ramses. Her thoughts wormed their way into his head, the voice deep and rich like chocolate, but also mocking in tone. You obviously came to this pathetic world of the humans because the Dreaming told you to seek a human female to mate. She drew nearer and gripped the metal fence. He saw that her fingernails had lengthened into sharp claws. Her face blurred, becoming a lioness's face one moment, and then reverting back to the human one. I will rid you of my human competition and then maybe, great king, you will mate with me, as it should be. She spun around and took off, speeding past the throngs of frightened people. They sensed something not right about her and parted like the Red Sea, letting her by. Ramses had to get to Shana before Kaket did. He had to protect his mate. No longer caring if anyone saw, Ramses chanted and a golden light surrounded his entire self, and he dissipated. His eyes the last to go, he saw the humans as they screamed and pointed at the spot where he had been. Clearly, he would be missed. However, that didn't matter now, only the life of his anisa.

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* *** Shana paused, as the sound of breaking glass reached her ears. Realizing that it came from her kitchen, she inched with careful steps to the entranceway and peeked around the corner. A snarling lioness paced inside, stopping occasionally to swing a claw-tipped paw at the pieces of broken china and glass scattered all over the linoleum floor. Her tail lashed the air in anger and agitation. She stilled, and turned toward where Shana stood. Its brown eyes narrowed on her. The big cat snarled. All Shana could think of was how many fangs filled that maw. She began to back away slowly, ready to make a break for it and run, when she noticed something peculiar happening. A familiar golden glow appeared around the lioness and when it vanished, a beautiful nude woman stood there. Both the woman's skin and fall of hair gleamed like antique gold. Dark brown eyes narrowed just like the lioness's had as she stared at Shana, a dangerous glint in them. She lifted her lips barely, revealing sharp fangs instead of pearl-like teeth. Oh, God. She was a shapeshifter, with apparently nothing good for Shana. The back door flung open and slammed back against the wall with a loud bang. "Kaket!" Ramses stood in the doorway, naked, his eyes dark with anger and his nostrils flaring wide. His chest was heaving, as if he had been running for miles and miles nonstop. The woman laughed as she flicked her gaze at him." Protecting your human mate, Ramses?" Her eyes darted back to Shana. "Humans are fit for only one thing, mighty king, and that is food for us and all predators." She stared back at Ramses again. "Though I'm sure you had a different kind of eating in mind when you fucked her." "Bitch." "We would have been good together, Ramses." Kaket's voice held regret. She began to utter under her breath foreign words and the golden glow retuned, caressing every part of her skin. Gulping down deep breaths of fear, Shana's gaze found Ramses' gorgeous, nude body, and she saw that he was encased in the same glow. Both glowing lights broke apart like fog vanishing and a lion and lioness stood there, facing each other. Ramses' beautiful fur shined like newly minted gold, his black mane and the tuff at the end of his tail an unending black. His eyes more golden then brown, he roared a challenge at the werelioness. Kaket snarled and pawed the kitchen rug near her, her claws shredding the material. Her dark brown eyes swirled like choppy, muddy waters as hatred glared from them. A lithe, sleek form that rippled muscle with every move, she crouched low and sprang at Ramses. She flew at him, a ballet of perfect, ferocious symmetry. Shana screamed and fell back against the wall as Kaket slammed into Ramses. Like one body, both werelions merged together, rolling, fur flying and claws slashing the air. Both rolled from the kitchen into the living room, smashing into furniture and knocking things over, a destructive force. Roars filled the room, thunderous. Shana followed them and sunk to the floor, her back to the wall. She knew she should run. Only a stupid idiot wouldn't. But she couldn't, wondering at her lover's outcome against the other shifter. Her heart pounding, Shana sat on the floor, her hands covering her ears and tears leaking from her eyes. It wasn't just fear of what could happen to her or that the two felines battling weren't natural lions, but that Kaket could kill Ramses. She knew then that she loved him, and to lose him now would surely be the most terrible thing that had ever to happen to her. As suddenly and as quickly, as the fight started, it abruptly ended. Kaket slipped away from Ramses and reshaped into a half woman, half lioness form. Standing on two oddly

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misshapen feet, with incredible strength she grabbed a nearby end table and broke it over Ramses' massive head. He dropped unconscious to the floor. Kaket whirled around to stare at Shana, baring a fang-ridden grin that seemed macabre in so hideous a face. Her fear heightened, Shana rose to her feet slowly, her eyes caught in Kaket's glittering gaze. Something passed between them and Shana felt an erotic pulse, flavoring her fear with sexual need. And she turned and fled, letting her feet carry her from the room. Nervous, clumsy even, she managed to get outside the house. Not bothering to look back, she sensed that Kaket followed, hot on her heels. She kept running, until something slammed into her back and knocked her haphazardly to the ground. Dirt and gravel forced its way into her nose, mouth, and eyes, lacerating her skin. One hand had gotten caught beneath her, while the other lay, scraped and sore, flung out along the ground. Pain filled her as she lay on her belly. A body lay on top of her, keeping her from moving. Hot breath steamed her ear as a deep, feminine voice whispered into it. "Such a pretty little thing, so soft," Kaket said with a laugh, "sweet-smelling, and sweettasting, too, even under all that dirt." Shana felt something wet at her neck and shuddered as she realized Kaket licked her. The heaviness unexpectedly abated and strong hands flipped her over onto her back. No longer as the terrifying beast woman, Kaket laid her naked body on Shana's. Her lips captured Shana's and took a taste, then another and another, deepening as her tongue invaded Shana's mouth. Shocked and repulsed, Shana stilled, as Kaket stroked her body, tearing at the clothing to let her fingers dance across forbidden skin. The werelioness lifted her head and stared into Shana's eyes with amusement and lust. "Shocked, repulsed?" she asked. "That I would even want to maybe fuck the human female of Ramses, when I always felt he should be mine?" She laughed, the sound loud and ugly. "But that's me, depraved. Willing to try anything. Though I did this before, with a female of my kind back in Africa." She pressed her face, nose to nose, with Shana's. "Besides, I always play with my food before I eat it." Shana screamed and tried to shake Kaket off her. But the other woman pressed her body harder onto Shana's , and her stroking turned into clawing as her nails became claws. She raked Shana's sides with deep, bloody gouges. Shana's screams became higher-pitched sounds of pain piercing the air. A loud roar vibrated in the air and Kaket leaped off Shana. With an evil smile, she turned to face a large lion.

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Chapter Two Ramses stood there, bloody scratches etched deep into his golden body. To Shana, he never seemed more beautiful than at that moment. She climbed to her feet, ignoring her ripped open T-shirt and her naked breasts spilling out, and the blood and scratches along her sides. Hobbling over to some nearby trees and bushes, she watched and waited. Ramses sprung at Kaket, whose own body melted and reformed in a light, becoming the lioness. Feline screams of rage and deep-throated roars rent the air as they fought each other, fang and claw. Shana couldn't believe that no one heard the sounds, that no one came out to investigate or that even the police hadn't been called. Sweeping her gaze around her she saw only shuttered windows of homes, their doors remaining closed. No one walked or moved around the area. It looked like a deserted neighborhood, with no one home. She felt it then, the strange heat that shimmered in the air. Ramses' voice talked in her head. Do not worry, anisa. No one will come, for I used my magic. No one will know when this bitch is destroyed, no one except you and me. Go home, anisa—I will come to you when Kaket is gone for good. Shaking, Shana bolted for home. * *** Ramses broke free and bounded away, only to turn around. Belly low to the ground, he narrowed his eyes as Kaket stood on shaky legs. Breathing heavily, she lifted one corner of her upper lip and snarled. Defiant. She had always been that way, since the first time she forced her way out of her mother's womb. Ramses had only been six years old at the time, but he remembered it well. Her mother had been a shape shifter, who had mated with some great white hunter, who had been hunting and killing the lions in the area they lived in. He had captured Kaket's mother, Boahinmaa one day and she had changed to her human shape, revealing to the man what she really was. Instead of fearing her, the hunter had been intrigued. Boahinmaa and he had made love, conceiving Kaket. But his fate had been sealed. When hunting the lions, he had killed and bagged another shape shifter. Ramses' father, Amir, had killed him as retribution for the pride's loss. The werelioness went into the bush to mourn him for a month, and subsequently reappeared one day. She spoke to no one, not until the day of Kaket's birth. Even during the labor, she took the birth pangs stoically. After Kaket was born and cleaned up, she spoke for the first time. Her eyes on Amir, Ramses watched as she snarled, "I am dying, oh mighty king of werelions. I charge my daughter, Kaket, to my sister, Chanecia, to be raised by her. Tom Porter was my soul mate and you took him away from my den. His soul is in his daughter and she will avenge him one day, on your descendents." She expired. Coming back to the present, Ramses called out. "Is all this to do with your human father, Kaket?" She didn't answer at first. Then she laughed. "Oh yes, you would have some notion that this is about my dead mother's proclamation, that my human father be avenged. You think this is all about him? Humans, be damned! They are only fit to be prey, nothing more. If my father had been stupid enough to be caught

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unaware by your father, then he deserved his death. No, this is about me. I say mate with other shape shifters, but humans—never." She paced back and forth, never taking her eyes off him. He rose to all four paws and lifted his chin. "The shape shifters have always listened to the Dreaming and mated with human kind. It will always be so. Surely, there will be someone for you…" She growled, "Fuck the Dreaming! I had mine and I found it to be some pathetic human male. I killed the bastard and ate him. And you know what, he tasted delicious." She slashed the air with a claw-tipped paw. "I'm tired of all this chit chat. You don't want to come back to our land with me, Ramses. You want to be with your little human bitch. So let's get on with it." She leaped at him with a loud roar. Just as she reached Ramses he began to mutter some words under his breath and piece by piece she dissipated. The last thing to go was her head and Ramses laughed as she screamed with anger and frustration. It was temporary, but being the pride leader entitled him to more beast magic, so it should take Kaket some time to escape from where he sent her. Ramses lifted his nose to the air and found Shana's scent. Need filled him and he loped off, making for her house. * *** Shana ran inside her home and slammed the door shut behind her. Whirling around, she bolted all the locks. Then she made sure every window and door was locked tight. She couldn't do anything about the shattered window in her kitchen unfortunately. Searching for something to use as a weapon, Shana found a sharp pair of scissors and entered the kitchen. Her eyes on the shards of glass that littered the floor, Shana righted one chair that hadn't been destroyed and sat down to wait. The shaking began again. Looking down at herself, Shana saw that the bleeding had worsened. Still gripping the scissors, she headed down the hallway to the bathroom. Numb with shock, she placed the scissors nearby on the edge of the bathtub where she could grab them at any time. She dug out a washcloth and climbed into the shower. Turning on the water, she stood beneath its spray and washed off the blood and dirt. After she dried herself, she dug out salve and bandages to dress her wounds. She threw away her shredded T-shirt and wadded up her pants and tossed them into the dirty clothes bin. A search in her bedroom closet found her a pair of shorts and a tank top to put on. Just as she was about to leave, she realized she had forgotten her scissors. She rushed back into the bathroom, still lying where she had left them. Out of the blue, the absurdity of her situation hit and she began to laugh, slowly sinking down to the tile floor. The laughter grew wilder, and morphed into crying. Shana covered her face with her hands. She dreamed of a passionate man, smart and strong, like an animal in bed. Well, she got what she wished for. More than she wished for, in fact. Her dream man really was an animal, in all the ways possible. A king of the jungle, type alpha. Wiping away her tears, she climbed to her feet. "Anisa?" Shana started. Whipping around, a gasp in her throat, she caught Ramses standing in the opened door of her bedroom. His shoulder propped against one side of the doorway, he looked wonderful, even with all the wounds on him. She trembled, standing up to move toward him. "What happened?" He opened his arms and she stepped into them. "I won." "Did you…did you kill her?"

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He rubbed his nose against the tip of hers. No one had ever done that to her before and it felt good. Erotic, actually. "No," he replied. "I just magicked her away. For now." She stepped back out of his arms and held him at arms length. "You did what?" He shrugged. "As you noticed that when we change, we use magic. That is beast magic. Well, we can do more than just shift forms with our beast magic." A frown wrinkled Shana's forehead. "But she can get revenge on you." "No, anisa, she won't. Not for a long while anyway. Where I sent her, it will take her some time to escape." He drew her back into his arms and rubbed his naked, bloody chest against her nipples. They hardened and peaked against the material of her tank top. Unable to help it, she moaned as heat pooled between her thighs. Trying to keep things on track, she pressed her palms against his chest and tried to push him away. "Where. Did. You. Send. Her?" "To werelion hell, you humans might say. I sent her to a zoo in some little town in the middle of nowhere. There's only one other lion in it, a very old one, and he hasn't had a good mating in years. He'll keep her busy." Her jaw dropped open in surprise. He leaned over and captured it, his tongue slipping inside her mouth to play with hers. Withdrawing his lips and tongue, he picked her up and carried her out of the bedroom to her bathroom. Inside, he let her slide down tight against his body. Shana felt his cock thrust against her belly. There was no doubt what he wanted. No doubt at all. He whispered into her ear. "Turn the shower on. Not only do I need to wash off this blood, but I can think of plenty things we can do under the water." She turned on both the hot and cold faucets, then moved until the shower came on. The water streamed down to the tiles. Ramses climbed in, drawing her in with him. He ripped off her shorts and top, flinging the wet things onto the bathroom floor. Grabbing the soap and a clean washrag, she soaped up his entire body, observing that except for the blood, nothing remained evident of the fight he had with Kaket. Every wound had disappeared. He noticed her questioning look. A smile lit up his face. "We heal extremely fast. Any cubs we have will have that ability, too." But his smile faded at finally catching sight of her bandaged sides. "I will have to guard you closely, keep others of my kind, along with animals and bad humans, from doing harm to you. You are so fragile, my anisa." She shivered as he took the soap and cloth from her and put them aside. He pulled her to his body and began to kiss her. Gentle at first, his kissing grew more demanding. He thrust his tongue into her mouth and mimicked what he wanted to do to her pussy. She moaned something into his mouth. He drew away. "What did you say?" "Fuck me," she whispered. "Repeat that. Louder." "Fuck me. Take me hard and fast." "But your sides, anisa—" She found his cock and began to stroke him. He moaned, his eyes closing as he gave into his lust. "Fuck that," Shana said. "I need medicine of another kind. Just shut up and make me feel better." His hands cupped under her ass, lifting her up. She circled her legs around his hips while she clasped her hands around his neck. Pushing her against the tile wall of the shower,

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Ramses slammed his entire length into her as the steaming water cascaded down on them, fogging up the bathroom. In and out, hard and fast, his eyes glowed golden with passion. Suddenly, he closed his eyes and roared, plunged inside her one last time. He stilled, and spent his seed deep inside her womb. She came several minutes later and held onto him tightly as she shuddered with her need. He opened his eyes and stared into hers. A grin brightened his face. "When I set out to cure someone, I really do the job, do I not?" "Ha-ha, Dr. Marcus Welby." A frown burrowed in his forehead. "Dr. Marcus Welby?" "Forget it," she said with a sigh. "I get a man—sort of. One who's great in bed, but is not up on the world per say. Oh, well, we're not all perfect, are we?" Ramses snorted. His organ hardened inside her. He began to move again, doing it ever so slowly. He whispered into her ear. "Am I not perfect, anisa?" Shana shuddered. "Oh God, yes!" His movements grew faster and harder. Once again, he fucked her without breaking a sweat, just stared into her eyes. With another great roar of a lion, he spewed deep into her and she reached her peak with him this time, her own scream just as loud. Ramses kissed her gently as his cock softened and slipped out of her. He pulled away, whispering, "We will go home now." Dazed, she asked, "Home? I am home…" "I meant my home. Back to the savannah of tall grass. Where we will mate and I will put my cubs in you, continue my line, if it has not already happened already." Her eyes widened as she understood. "Oh God, you mean Africa, don't you?" He touched the corner of her mouth with his thumb, stroking softly. "Yes, my anisa. I cannot survive here, in your world. Unfortunately, I am not a man who becomes a lion, but a lion that changes into a man. That is the truth of shape shifters. I need to hunt zebra and gazelle. I need to take my real form most times, freely and without fear, but," his eyes glowed with something, "I need you more than life itself, and if I must stay here with you, then so be it." "Oh no, Ramses. You must go back. If anyone finds out what you really are, they'll capture you and stick you in a cage, do experiments on you." "Come away with me then." He climbed out of the shower. Standing on the floor, he shook himself like a dog. Shana stepped out and grabbed an extra large towel from the towel rack. "Here," she said, as she began to dry him, "this is what humans dry with, not shake ourselves off like an animal." Once dried, he did the same for her, taking special care of her breasts and between her thighs. His gentle touch began to light another fire inside her, but knowing other things needed to be done, Shana stepped away from him and entered her bedroom on shaky legs. "I need time, Ramses." She glanced back over her shoulder at Ramses and saw him standing in the threshold, a frown on his face. "I have to get shots, I think, plus I need a passport, then there's..." He stalked over to her and pressed his fingers over her mouth. "Hush. It will be easy if this is all you have to worry about. There are many shape shifters everywhere. I am not talking about werelions, but other kinds of werebeings. There are those who survive in your world, because this is their world also." "You mean like...werewolves? There really are werewolves, too?" He grinned. "You can believe in me, but not in werewolves, legends your world has more knowledge of?" He guffawed.

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Embarrassed, her cheeks flushed red. "Yeah, I guess that does sound silly. If you exist, then werewolves would, too." She looked back into his eyes. "But I'm not sure about this. I can't just go and live in the bush like some wild animal. I love you, but I have been used to living in a house, sleeping in a soft bed, and eating at a table, all my life. It can't work." She saw his mouth open and she pressed her fingers against it. "Wait, hear me out. I love you, I really do. But will our love survive me learning to camp out on your savannah of tall grasses? When I try to give birth, with only some shape shifter midwife there to assist me, with no hospital, no doctors, or anything modern if something should go wrong? How long will your love for me exist then, Ramses? How long will mine?" He took her fingers away, still holding them, stroking her hand with his thumb. "Now, listen to me. I do not expect my very human mate to sleep on the grass or in the trees. There is a house waiting for you, hidden in a jungle clearing. No, there are not a lot of modern conveniences in it, but enough to make you happy, I think. I am not a primitive. As for when it is time to give birth to my cubs, we have beast magic, plus one of my kind is a learned doctor who left to become one and came back home to open a clinic." He bent his head down and kissed her on the tip of her nose. "Please, come away with me. Be mine." Shana stared up into his eyes for a moment, and with a smile, said yes. He laughed and picked her up, kissing her as he swung her around in a circle.

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Chapter Three It took a little longer than Ramses would've liked, but two months later Shana was packed and ready to go. She managed to sell her car to a small dealership and she picked up her last paycheck from her job. The house hadn't been hers, being just a rental. Of course, there had been the lease, but somehow Ramses had gotten the landlord to let her go. How, she didn't know and didn't want to, either. She just saw the frightened glances the man darted at Ramses when he stopped by to let her know. She stared back at the house as they drove away in a cab, not feeling an ounce of regret. A glance aside at Ramses' profile and she knew that no matter what, she was going on a new adventure, with a man who meant the world to her. Surely, nothing could go wrong. * *** Kaket stared down at the old lion. One try at mating her and the old beast had a heart attack. Now she had to figure a way out of this hellish place. She thought of several spells that might work and tried them. None of them worked, though. Keeping the upset zookeeper from getting the dead lion to amuse herself, Kaket lay down and racked her brain for more spells. She needed the right one to escape this fleabag of a zoo and get her back to Africa. Because she had no doubt that Ramses and his female slut were on their way back home by now. If it took her a long while, so be it, but she would escape and she would get her revenge on him and that bitch he planted his cock in. She began to laugh, and casting a side glance, saw the horrified zookeeper as he realized she was actually laughing like a human. Mmmmm... She wondered how he'd taste. * *** The plane touched down at the airport in Johannesburg, South Africa. Shana walked oblivious of where she was going and stared wide-eyed at the mixture of black and white people and even, Indians that filled the terminal. Ramses grabbed her arm and she stopped. A very tall, dark-skinned African was talking to him. The stranger's hair hung in tightly woven braids, brushing his shoulders. Powerful looking, muscles in every portion of his skin shined as if rubbed with oil. He wore a pair of khaki pants and a lose-fitting white shirt with sandals. It seemed like he was uncomfortable in the clothes he wore. Instead, Shana had the feeling he preferred more a loincloth, with his chest and feet bare. He moved away and Ramses took Shana's hand. "Come," whispered Ramses, "Montsho has a Jeep waiting for us." They collected her two suitcases and hurried past the crowds to outside where a jeep waited by the curb. The tall black man stood by the driver's side. "Montsho?" asked Shana, as Ramses opened the door and gestured for her to climb in. He stowed her luggage, then climbed in next to her before he answered. He looked at her and she noticed with shock how more feline-like his eyes had become. "He is the leader of the leopard people. I did say we shape shifters do stick together, help one another." He waited to carry on until Montsho got behind the wheel and started the jeep, driving away from the airport. "Montsho is a black leopard. In his human form, he blends well among the over seventy percent black population of South Africa. He is one of the few who has contact with humans

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in their cities. Then he goes around teaching his knowledge to the rest of us who live in the Bushveld, making sure we know how to act among mankind when we go forth." Shana stared out at the city as they drove through it. "Are there other humans where we are going? Ones that know about shape shifters, I mean?" He stroked her cheek, as if he couldn't get enough of touching her. "Yes. Most are mated to the shape shifters, though there are others that know of us and protect us from humans who would not understand." "Does Montsho have a mate?" Shana questioned in a low whisper. She saw Montsho stiffen. He had heard her. Ramses' golden brown gaze moved from her to the other shifter. He leaned closer to her until his warm breath fanned her ear. "No, he does not," he answered with a soft whisper. "He has not had the Dreaming and will not even mate with another shifter of his kind. He says he will remain mate-less if he cannot dream of a human female for himself." They drove for a long time in silence. Lull by the ride, Shana started to fall asleep, nodding off against Ramses' arm. Before she did though she felt him take his arm away and circled it around her shoulder, letting her cushion her head upon his chest. His heat and the movement made it easy to completely drift off. "Wake up, sleepyhead." Shana lifted her head, and feeling the crick in her neck, rubbed it and asked, "What?" Ramses laughed with pleasure. "We are here. My world, anisa." He opened the car door on his side and stepped out. Raising his arms, he stretched, showing a feline grace. Then he held out his hand to her and when she placed hers in it, let him draw her out of the Jeep. She had been worried about coming to South Africa, but with one glance, she was happy she allowed herself to go with him. Different grasses, low shrubs and acacia trees covered the rolling, fertile landscape. Weird looking trees decorated here and there. At the questioning frown she had etched on her forehead, Ramses laughed and leaned closer. "Those are Baobab trees, anisa. And if you look in the distance, see that mountain, along with the others? That is the Drakensberg. It is Afrikaan for Dragons Mountain." With a roar, Ramses picked her up and slung her into his arms. "I cannot wait until I show you my home." He looked into her eyes and she saw his lust darkening the gold brown. "Most of all, I cannot wait until I make love to you on the soft grass of the veldt, maybe under my favorite baobab tree." She shivered as he starting moving away from the jeep and a disinterested Montsho, caressing her. The shiver became wildfire and it blazed through her. He knew it too, and grinned. She saw that his teeth had sharpened. Slowly, he slid to the ground, her body pressed against his. Even through their clothing, she felt his hardness against her stomach. Backing away, he took off his clothing and stood there, gloriously naked. His cock rose like an arrow, pointing toward the sky. A single bead of pre-cum glistened at the tip. Golden light glowed around him and his frame shrunk toward the ground. The glow dissipated and Ramses stood there in lion form. Butting his head against her, he forced Shana to keep moving. Ramses finally stopped herding her and she saw that they stood underneath a large baobab tree. In the distance, she could see Montsho take her luggage out of the boot and walked away into a grove of trees. Do not worry, anisa. He takes your belongings to the house I promised you. Minutes later Montsho returned and climbed into the Jeep's driver side. He drove away. They were alone. Seeing in the distance a herd of elephants strolling and a few wildebeest drinking from a water hole, she realized they were not as alone as she thought. But no humans at all. There can be shape shifters, though, she thought to herself. Haven't you learned that not all animals or birds are what they seem?

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Ramses butted her in the stomach and knocked her to the ground. The glow came again and when it vanished, he stood before her as a naked man. "We are alone, except for the animals that live here." He dragged her into his arms. "Take these clothes off so that we might both get, ah, comfortable. Don't you want to get comfortable?" She squeaked, "You want me to get naked out here? For all to see?" He grinned and began to strip off her clothing. "No one's going to see you. Except maybe the monkey that's up in the branches above us." "What?" She looked up and saw the chattering monkey. Maybe not chattering as much as monkey laughter. "Forget the damn monkey," growled Ramses as he unbuttoned her pants and shoved them down to pool over her feet. The monkey chattered louder and Ramses paused, staring straight up at the bothersome creature. He snarled, baring fangs, and the monkey screeched, jumping down from the tree and running away. He finished undressing her. Her clothes lying discarded on the ground nearby, Ramses knelt at her feet and peered up at her. He parted her thighs and stared at her pussy, soaking wet by that time. Taking one hand, he made small circles over her swollen clit and with the other gently rubbed the engorged pussy lips. It felt so good that all Shana could do was moan her encouragement to keep doing what he was doing. The more he rubbed the closer Shana came to orgasm. Not ready for her to do so, Ramses stopped rubbing with his hands and lowered his head. Shana almost came the second his mouth touched her there, but he pulled back and told her to relax. Again, he lowered his mouth and began to slowly lick up the juices. The best feeling she had ever experienced, Shana closed her eyes, wanting it to last forever. Ramses teased her clit with his thumb, which made her wetter as he sank his tongue into her deeper. She felt as if she had died and went to Heaven. It didn't matter if they were out in the open for all to see. Shana leaned back against the baobab tree's trunk and moaned as Ramses tongued her, alternately fucking her with his fingers too. Unexpectedly, he quit and rose to his feet. "Your turn," he growled, pushing her down to her knees. His cock bobbed in front of her lips and she took it into her mouth. She wanted to taste him, needing to feel his hot cum shoot down her throat. Turned on, she sucked, going faster and faster. With one hand at the base of his shaft and the other cupping his tightening balls, she wanted to make him scream. He began a perfect rhythm of fucking her mouth with both hands on her shoulders holding her steady. Shana slipped her hands around him to his ass. His muscles flexed as he thrust his cock in her mouth. Shana took in his long shaft all the way to base. As he fucked her mouth faster and harder with each thrust, Shana could feel his huge balls bumping against her chin. The feeling was so intense she felt another orgasm building within her. The harder he fucked, the louder he got, that soon he was screaming her name, tugging on her hair, and shooting cream down her throat. It tasted great. She grabbed his ass, swallowing his cock all the way down while she rubbed her tongue on the bottom of it. Ramses began to swell again and he shot even more streams of hot cum down her throat. With a mighty roar, he screamed her name. At that sound, Shana shuddered, coming. When he was done, she held his semi-hard cock in her mouth, licking it until it began to harden again. His organ slipped out of her mouth as he lifted her up and met her lips with his. Encircling her in both arms, he pulled her closer to him. He slowly licked her lips with his soft, warm tongue and gently slipped it into her mouth. Not able to hold back her cries, Shana let out a loud moan that made him tighten his hold and kiss her more passionately. His tongue felt like fire in her mouth, dancing with hers, rubbing against her teeth and the roof of

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her mouth. It was so intense that she almost came just by his kiss. She knew she had to hold onto him tightly or she might collapse just from the ecstasy. Running her hands up and down his back, and then skimming them down to his firm ass, she squeezed the cheeks. She could feel his hard cock getting even harder as it rubbed against her belly; it felt so good that she had to touch it. Slowly reaching around, she gripped its length and stroked his swollen cock. No longer kissing her mouth, he licked his way down her neck to her breasts. The feeling of his warm mouth on her skin turned Shana on more that she offered one to him by thrusting the nipple into his mouth. His mouth felt warm and wet, sensuous. He gently nibbled and tugged on the nipple, trying to get her closer to climax. So lost in the intensity that when he forced her to the ground while continuing to gently bite and suck her nipples she didn't argue. He thrust his knee between her thighs and she eagerly parted them. Taking his engorged prick, he rubbed it on her wet pussy, spreading the lips so he could slide in easily. She gasped with pleasure as he did. He started slowly at first, sliding his cock all the way in so she could feel his balls pressing against her ass and sliding out so only his head was in her. He leisurely proceeded for a while and it drove her wild. She wanted him to fuck her hard and fast but he wouldn't budge. "I want it to last, my anisa." He drove deep inside her while she met each thrust. Then as if he sensed she was close to her orgasm, he started to grind into her, building up the speed. The sensation of his cock that deep in her pussy and his balls rubbing against her ass was too much. Shana climaxed, screaming his name and clawing his back. It had to be the most intense orgasm she'd ever had since they met. The whole time he just looked down at her, smiling with satisfaction. Then his eyes darkened to almost black and he pounded rapidly into her, coming not long after. He spewed streams of his seed deep into her. Sagging, he lay upon her. Sweat covered both of them. Slowly, he lifted his head and kissed her. "I love you." "I love you, too." He got off her and climbed to his feet. Bending over, he picked her up, and nestling her into his arms, took off. He moved with a long-legged gait, leaving their clothes back under the tree without a backward glance. "My...our clothes..." "Leave them. They'll be fine. If not, I can buy you more." He stared down at her. "Besides, I like you more this way. Being naked becomes you." "Where are you taking me?" "To our house. Now, hush, and enjoy the ride." It wasn't long before she saw a small white house in the distance. Beneath some trees that gave it shade, she saw it had a dark red roof. There were windows, the shades pulled down to keep in the coolness she suspected. With a kick of Ramses foot, the door swung open and he entered. Once inside, he let her slide down and closed the door. One click of a switch nearby and light flooded the room. Near from where they stood a staircase swept up and up into shadows. Beyond it, Shana saw a living room, with a couch and matching chair, a coffee table, and couple of end tables. A giant bookcase lined one wall, holding both hardback and paperback books that filled it to overflowing. Surprisingly, a large widescreen television stood in one corner, a DVD player and surround sound nestled on a shelf by it. A quick glance caught a laptop computer on a desk in another corner. At her look of surprise at the modern conveniences, Ramses grinned. "Did you think I was completely primitive?"

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He picked up a control on the coffee table and pointing it toward the TV, clicked and it came on. Glancing at her, he clicked it back off. Dropping the control back on the table he said, "Besides, I spend most of my days in my lion form, you cannot." He swept a hand around the room. "The books and the rest are for you. If there are books you want, but are not on the shelves, let me know and we can order more. Same goes for the DVDs." "So I might not see you a lot?" He pulled her into his arms. "Oh no, I never said that. Just there will be times I must change shape, and so with all I have you will not be bored and lonely in the veldt." Ramses nuzzled her, nose to nose, and then kissed her. The kiss deepened as he thrust his tongue into her mouth. With a moan, she pressed herself closer to him, as if trying to melt into his body. Laughing at her antics, he swung her up into his arms and walked with long strides to the staircase. He took the steps two at a time, easily, even with her added weight. "Come see the king-sized bed I have in my bedroom, my anisa. I think you will love it as much as I do. Very, very much so." * *** Kaket stepped off the plane and covered her eyes with sunglasses. Ignoring the humans that surrounded her and most especially their smell, she strutted on high heels through the terminal. Once outside, she spied a cab parked by the curb. She smiled. The gods and goddesses were with her. If they hadn't been, she'd still be stuck in that nasty zoo back in America. To even find a human female who wore her size clothing and with enough money for an airfare ticket to South Africa had been providence. She also provided Kaket with a ready meal, though there wasn't enough flesh covering her bones. Why human females thought to starve themselves, all for the sake of being thin, Kaket would never understand. She walked quickly over to the cab. Just as she grabbed for the door handle, a darkskinned human male in a business suit attempted to grab it first. Staring into his eyes, she morphed her face slightly as she yanked off her sunglasses. Teeth became fangs and features stretched into lion ones. She snarled. With fear in his eyes and the stink from wetting his pants permeating the air, the man ran off. Her face back to its human shape, she opened the door and climbed in. The cabbie, an Indian, asked in a musical voice, "What is your destination, lady?" "Out of town. Toward the Bushveld." He turned his head. "Oh, you have a house out there?" Kaket sat back. "Yes, yes, whatever. Just drive and I will tell you when to stop." "No luggage, lady?" "No, where I am going I won't have need of extra clothing or anything else." The man stared at her with his dark eyes, a frown lining his forehead. She leaned forward, lifting an edge of her lip in a parody of a lion, baring fang. "Do you like what you see, little man?" He gulped and turned back around. "Oh no, lady, I not be staring at you. I drive." The cab roared to life and he raced away. Kaket sat back and closed her eyes. Her stomach rumbled. Though she had a meal on the plane, her stomach wanted something more substantial. She wanted to hunt. She opened one eye and started at the back of the cabby's head. Time enough later at the end of the ride to do just that and make her stomach happy in the bargain. She closed the eye. * ***

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Ramses watched Shana sleep. He smiled. Reaching out a hand, he tucked an errant curl behind her ear. She sighed and rolled over onto her side. The sheet slid down, revealing an enticing amount of bare skin, especially a sweetly puckered nipple. His grin grew wider. Stretching out, he flipped the sheet back and swung his legs off the mattress. He had tired Shana out enough for a while. Glancing down at his aroused state, he acknowledged that maybe a cold shower, and then a good run in his lion form might relieve matters. If not, he might crawl back into bed and give Shana another hard ride. The cold shower didn't do much, so shifting into the lion; Ramses slipped out the back door and began running. As his paws covered mile after mile of ground he felt like he was fleeing his arousal. Something that was almost impossible to do. To take his mind off it he joined a pride of lions and lionesses and helped as they stalked a herd of wildebeests as the shadows of early evening lengthened. The sun was slowly going down, painting the sky with pink and orange colors as the night peeked its face on the savanna. A much cooler time of day, the predators began to come out, searching for prey. Ramses loved these times, loved the hunt and most especially taking down his prey with fang and claw. It was when his beast magic rose fully inside him. Taking down one large buck, he slashed his claws into its back, breaking it. The golden glow enveloping him, he looked toward the sky and roared. The other lions joined him, serenading. * *** "Stop here," said Kaket, opening her eyes. The cabby turned off the engine. Not even looking back or turning around, he asked, "Here, lady? It is the middle of nowhere." She smiled. "I know." Kaket began her metamorphosis, the golden glow blazing like a sun all around her body. Her clothes ripped as her shape changed. Too late, the cabby glanced back over his shoulder and saw the glowing eyes of the beast in the back seat. He tried to get out of his cab, but the lioness raked out a paw and yanked him into the back seat with her. He screamed as she sunk her fangs into his neck. Outside the night had taken over. A full moon rose high in the sky, soaring like a witch on her broomstick. * *** Satisfied, his belly full, Ramses left what was left of the wildebeest for the other lions and padded home. Lifting his nose to the night air, he took in all manners of scents, enjoying them. To his right he found a herd of elephants sharing the watering hole with some giraffe. To his left he not only smelled but heard the herds of zebra, wildebeest, and gazelle that stirred restlessly at his passing. He paused, as the odor of hyenas joined them. They were hunting, hoping for the luck he had earlier. He thought of Shana and he started loping, wanting to get home to her. * *** Shana awoke. Smiling, her eyes still half closed, she reached over to Ramses' side. Her hand felt nothing. She reached over and clicked on the lamp on her side, and sat up. He was gone. Thinking that maybe he was showering, but when she could hear nothing coming from the bathroom, she doubted it. A quick check in there proved to her that he wasn't in there. She threw on a pair of jeans and a T-shirt, and ran barefooted downstairs. He wasn't anywhere in the house. A crash came from outside. "Ramses?" Not taking time to slip on some shoes, she unlocked the back door and stepped out. The door closed gently behind her. It was night time and cooler. She swept her gaze up and saw

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the moon. Its full, fat face shone with unnatural brilliance, its moonbeams silvering the area and the eyes of the lion that stood only a few feet away from her. No, not a lion. It didn't have a mane. Lioness. The moonbeams added a silver luster to the golden fur and a strange glow to the eyes. The animal stood still like a statue, its gaze locked on her. Not one roar, or any sound came from it. Frightened, Shana stepped back, reaching her hand back to grab the doorknob. The door was locked. Shit! She saw the lioness hadn't moved. Hoping that was a good thing, she started again searching for Ramses, as either human or lion. It didn't matter, though maybe the lion would be a better form to be using right now. Until he came home, the best thing might be for her to remain motionless. Less attention to provoke the lioness to attack. Sure, who are you kidding? Glancing back at the lioness, she saw that it was moving toward her. Yeah, the motionless act apparently didn't work. Locked out of her house with a lioness stalking her, equaled a not so good situation. Probably was a good time to run. She bolted to the left. Hearing the grunts of the predator behind her, she ran as fast as she could. Rocks and other sharp things hurt the bottom of her feet but she didn't stop. She swore that the sounds of the stalking animal were gaining. But she didn't dare look back to check. Just run, she thought. Where's Ramses? A loud roar came out of the night. Shana tripped and fell flat on her face. Ignoring the pain, she quickly flipped onto her back. Just in time to watch the lioness move above her, raising a clawed paw. Like a blur, something larger slammed into it, knocking it several feet away. Shana crawled to her knees and saw a lion standing over the downed female. Ramses! Go, my anisa. Let me take care of this lioness. Jumping to her feet, she limped back to the house. Strangely enough, the door was unlocked and she ran inside, slamming it behind her. * *** Ramses snarled. Kaket. I see you escaped. And I would have had your female for dinner, if you hadn't interfered, oh mighty king. The golden glow came over Ramses, and when gone, he stood there, naked. "Change, bitch," he commanded. The same glow misted over her and when it vanished, Kaket lay there, supine and nude. A wicked grin on her lips, she placed one hand on a breast and slipped the other down to dip beneath the brush that hid her feminine goodies. She began to pinch and stroke her nipples while driving a couple fingers inside her pussy. She began to vigorously fuck herself. Sounds issued from her mouth, a cross between moans and growls. Her lust out of control, she no longer seemed to notice if Ramses still watched. Apparently she didn't care, though the show was all for him, at least it began that way. As she pinched her nipples alternately, and used her stand-in digits for a cock pounding in and out, her growls became roars. "Knock it off, Kaket." Ignoring him, in rampant need, she brought herself over the edge and screamed. Recovering, she brought her dripping wet fingers to her mouth to suck on them. She looked up at Ramses, her fingertips inches from her mouth. Offering them, she said, "Want a taste? They're finger licking good." He snorted. "If I did, I can get plenty from my anisa." Her eyes narrowing with hate, she suckled on her fingers.

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"Human pussy. You want to fuck it now, but what happens when you tire of her? Why not have both of us? You know, double the pleasure, double the fun." "Get up." She rose to her feet and dusted the dirt off her back and buttocks. "You're no fun. Most men fantasized about having two women." "You know when one of our kind takes a soul mate there's no other." "You're a lion, head of our pride, and normal lions have more than one female." She pressed her body against his, reaching down to touch him. With a growl, he pulled away. "Enough! I love my anisa." Though it was dark Ramses could see how her eyes darkened, hate clearly their message. "I will tear your anisa's flesh from her bones, swallowing every piece. And then I will kill you, oh mighty king. If you think, it's just me think again. I know of others apart of our pride who wish you dead too. Then we can have free reign to hunt the humans as our ancestors did centuries ago." Realizing what she was about to do, Ramses uttered the words that would magick him into his other form. But Kaket was quicker and she changed, retreating. Her tail held high in the air as an insult, with her beast magic she disappeared. Pacing back and forth, he roared with frustration and anger. Calling on the magic, he shifted and ran for the house. He found Shana hiding in the bedroom, a heavy statue clutched in her hands. When she saw him, she came out from hiding in the closet. Putting down the statue, she ran into his arms. "Ramses," she cried out. "I heard no sounds outside and worried that maybe that meant she'd killed you." He stroked her hair and nuzzled her cheek. "No, Kaket did not harm me." She drew back and stared into his eyes. "I thought you had gotten rid of her." "Remember she too has the beast magic. What I did was only a temporary solution." Walking into the bathroom alone, Ramses turned the faucets on for a shower. He stepped inside and washed himself, not giving her any further answers, not until he was completely clean again. Besides, this gave him time to think, to decide what to do about Kaket. There was no question about what must be done. His mate's life was at stake. Turning off the water, he grabbed a towel and dried off. "Follow me." He entered the bedroom and dug out some clothes from the closet to quickly dress. Finishing, he sat on the edge of the bed. "I am going to call for help from the pride." She frowned. "Help? Are you going to call them on the phone then? I didn't see one around here." He shook his head. "No, I will contact the others by using magick." He added under his breath, "At least those who are with me." Taking into cautious account what Kaket said about others not happy with him being head of the pride. "Now, go downstairs and make sure all doors and windows down there are locked tight. Make enough food, for tonight there'll be others joining us." Mumbling about alpha males and their orders, she left the room and headed downstairs. Ramses closed his eyes and muttered a chant in his head. The chant grew, filling his head like a burning light behind his eyes. Using telepathy, he called to his pride to come to him, no matter what they were doing at that moment or where they were.

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Tupac, Kimoni, Muzi, Kay'n, Ona, Izeghe, Lulu, Zari and Tau, come. Zwanga, Eze, Tutu, Mulalo, come. I need your help—we need to decide about Kaket, for it is time to do something about her. Nothing more could be done until he saw who came at his summoning. He opened his eyes and stood up. His role as leader took over as he left the bedroom and headed downstairs. * *** Kaket stared at the house and smiled. Ramses had called out to the pride. But not all would help him. With a laugh, she turned around and went into the arms of a tall, tanned man with long black hair and black eyes. Naked as she, he captured her lips and kissed her. Another nude man joined them, sandwiching her between him and the first one. He had long, curly golden hair and was shorter, stockier, but was as equally as strong as the taller man. He pushed aside Kaket's hair and licked the back of her neck. Mulalo and Tutu felt good, but Kaket stopped them long enough to hold out a hand to another. A lithe female form withdrew from the shadows and joined the threesome. It was Zari. Her name meant golden and she definitely was, from her long hair to her radiant skin. Amidst laughter, the two males and two females fell upon the grass and each other. It would have to be a quickie for soon the others would be arriving.

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Chapter Four Shana saw that Ramses seemed uneasy. He lifted up the edge of the window shutters and kept peering out into night. Then he dropped it back down. As if sensing the movement even before her hand touched his shoulder, he spun around and gathered her into the circle of his arms. He nuzzled her neck, taking deep breaths. "You smell so sweet. So seductive like an African evening on the veldt." "What's bothering you, Ramses?" He smiled down at her and gave a light laugh. "Bothering? Nothing bothers me. Nothing at all." She stroked the side of his face and shook her head. "We haven't been together all that long but it seems as if I've known you all my life. Something is bothering you." "I cannot hide anything from you, can I? I keep feeling that something is terribly wrong. But when I look out through the window I see nothing. And yet, I know Kaket is out there, knowing I summoned the pride. I can smell her. That worries me." "But she is one of you. And what about the rest of your pride?" "Means nothing. I suspect that some of my people have defected to her views of how the pride should rule. That they too feel as she does, that humans are nothing more than prey to be hunted and killed. To be eaten." He withdrew his hold on her and turned back to the window. Not lifting the shutter to look out, he just stood there. She saw a range of emotions flittered across his face. "I may have to do what my grandfather outlawed. Kill fellow shape shifters." He looked at her and she saw sadness in his eyes. "For centuries, the practice was if one goes against the pride, that one was set upon and torn to pieces. Eaten even. My grandfather, who I was named after, passed a set of laws forcing us to become more civilized. One was to never kill another shape shifter, especially werelions. His solution was instead for the pride to pass punishment, to gather together and hold court against the accused. If it is judged necessary, that member is banished, never to be allowed to return. It was thought that being ostracized worked just as well as being put to death. Being without a pride is terribly lonely for a shifter. Many do not survive after banishment." "But if they mate with a human and have children, or if they become part of another pride, then they wouldn't be alone." He shook his head. "Banishment is known to all once it happens. The convicted shifter cannot find a home, anywhere, among other shifters. And if the shifter has been feeding off humans, do you think they would then demean themselves to mate with one, so not to be alone? No, they would not. Banishment is hell. The longest one lived ten years, finally, he killed himself." "Maybe she'll decide to seek forgiveness..." "No, anisa, she will not. I suspect she has been hunting and eating humans for a while now. I just looked the other way, hoping she would come around. She will not. Today has proven it. I am not sure she is even a little mad already. It does not matter—the pride cannot suffer a man-eater in its midst. And if I am right, she is not alone. That means there are others who must be punished, too." Ramses brushed his long hair back from his face. "There will be a war. The death penalty will be reinstated, something I do not wish for."

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"Oh, God," whispered Shana as she went to the table and sank on a chair. "Maybe I should leave, go back home." He stalked her, and grabbing her by the shoulders, picked her up. Thrusting his face inches from hers, he snarled. "Never! We are mated. Do you think she will let you go and all would be as before? No, she would follow you back over the Great Water and stalk you, kill you. There would be no question of me not killing her then." He captured her lips and drank from them. Pulling back, he murmured, "I will not give you up. You are my heart and soul. You are my anisa." Ramses hugged her. "If you died, I would die. Without you there is nothing. It would be as if I had been banished from my pride." It filled Shana with joy to hear his words, of how much she meant to him. But it frightened her too. He was basically saying she held his life in her hands, and she wasn't sure if she could measure up to such high standards. "You do, anisa. You measure the worth of my love for you." Muffled against his chest, she sighed. "I wish you wouldn't do that." "Do what? Oh, know your thoughts. But we are soul mates. Only those who truly belong to each other can do this. I will always know what you are thinking, anisa. Always." Shana stared up into his eyes. "Oh God, I love you so. I couldn't bear to be parted from you too, but if it would stop what is about to happen, I would do it in a heartbeat. For you." He bent his head lower and just as she thought he was going to kiss her again he halted. Freeing her, he lifted his head and sniffed. "They're here." She gathered her composure. "Your pride." "Yes." He bounded away and she followed in his wake, only much more slowly. She felt many different things. Fear of the pride. Fear of what they really thought about her. They had to blame her for this mess. For the upcoming war. Even though she loved Ramses, she still realized how all alone she really was, even with him behind her. She now knew how an astronaut would feel on an alien world, surrounded by aliens. No matter how human they looked in their human bodies, the werelions still acted like lions in mind and heart. Just like Ramses. Stepping out of the kitchen, she entered the living room and saw ten men and women, all sprawled out on the couch, chair and the floor. Mainly young, there was a couple, a man and woman, who appeared to be about forty at the most. Every one looked healthy and strong. Like Ramses and Kaket. Catching Ramses' eye, she noticed he didn't look happy. He began introducing the others. "This is Tupac, Kimoni, Muzi, Kay'n, Ona, Izeghe, Lulu, Tau, Zwanga, and Eze. Tupac and Ona are the pride's elders, and my uncle and aunt. Eze is their daughter, my cousin." Seeing her about to say something he cut her off. "Yes, my uncle and aunt are shape shifters but soul mates, too. Their Dreaming foretold them to be together. Tupac found Ona in a circus in Romania. He saved her and they mated with each other." "Hello," acknowledged Shana, "I am sorry to be the cause of all this trouble." Ona got off the couch and came over to her. She took Shana by her hands and smiled. "There is no trouble. Ramses did right by following tradition. He listened to the Dreaming. He could not ignore it just as my Tupac could not ignore his when it called to him, told him where I was." She smiled back over her shoulder at her mate. "Ramses is our leader. If it be his fate to mate with a human, so be it. That has always been the way of werekind, for centuries. The Dreaming is all part of the beast magic. To not listen to it is to cut off our arms and legs, rip out our hearts. Welcome to the pride, niece." She kissed Shana on the cheek, and then relinquished her to go sit with her mate again.

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Ramses' voice sounded grim. "Unfortunately, it is just as I thought. Three members of my pride do not agree with me and have joined with Kaket. Mulalo, Tutu, and a young werelioness, Zari, did not answer the call. Lulu said that she overheard them talking, that they were going to be with Kaket." He rubbed his face in weariness. "There will be war." Shana clutched at his arm. "All because of me." Tupac gave a small smile. "It was never just about you. Kaket has been heading toward this for a long time. She's like her mother. I think insanity runs in the bloodline. You ever heard of the human term, 'put down a mad dog'? Well, this looks like the only thing we can do." Shana felt like throwing up. She dropped her hand from Ramses' arm and grabbed herself around the belly. The feeling of being among aliens slammed into her full force. Glancing up, she looked into Ramses' face. Alien or not, she loved him. Anisa, do not do this to yourself. I love you. She felt numb. "Do what you have to do. I'm going to bed." Shana moved away, climbing the stairs and heading for the bedroom. Ignoring his calls, she even tried to blank out his voice in her head. However, she did catch part of what Tupac said, telling him to let her go, that they needed to talk. A few hours later Shana sat up in bed, unsure. Still dressed, except for her shoes, she saw that the sheet and blanket lay rumpled on the floor. The room was dark and a glance at the window showed her it was still night time. Her mouth felt icky and she got up, shuffling to the bathroom. After she rinsed out her mouth, she turned the light on and stared at her reflection in the mirror above the sink. Her face was pale like a ghost and she saw dark circles under her eyes. Obviously, her sleep hadn't done much good. Turning the faucets, she splashed cold water on her face, hoping it would help. It didn't. Shutting off the water, she left the bathroom, switching the light off as she did. She didn't see the large shadow that waited for her, not until it was too late. Her scream was cut off by a man's hand. Cuddled tightly against a muscular frame, a low voice whispered into her ear. "Keep still or I'll tear your throat out," it cautioned. "Do you understand?" She nodded. She understood only too well. The unknown man pressed her to his naked chest and she realized that he was completely nude. He smelled of earth, sweat, sex and another odor she couldn't put her finger on, not until she knew where she had smelled it before. Ramses. It must be an odor particular to the shape shifters. That meant, along with his nudity, her abductor was one too. Suddenly, she was scared, more scared than before. She just hoped that connection between her and Ramses worked. Otherwise, she may not live to see the dawn. Her abductor dragged her over to the window. Opened, a slight breeze filtered in, flapping the curtains like a pair of bird's wings. He slipped a leg over the sill, then the other, lifting her to sit on his lap. She felt his hardened organ, as if he was getting off on taking her from right under Ramses' nose. He sniffed her, then whispered into her ear. "Mmmmmm...you smell so delicious. Maybe Kaket will let me fuck you before we kill you and eat you. I always love to play with my dinner." He laughed at his sick joke. Shana broke her mouth free of his hand. "I hope Ramses rips off your manhood, or lionhood, whatever you want to call it, and swallows it whole." "Ah, a bloodthirsty bitch. I'm not just going to fuck you; I'm going to fuck you in the ass. Then shove my cock down your throat and make you choke on it."

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He slapped his hand back over her mouth and climbed down the side of the house with her tucked under his arm like a package. She squirmed and fought, but couldn't get free of his strong hold. Once on the ground, a golden glow enveloped them both, and when it was gone, she saw a lion with not much of a mane standing over her, his paw holding her down. Grabbing her by her left arm with his jaws, he took off. Her mouth free, she screamed, not only for help, but from the agony of his fangs digging into her flesh as he bodily dragged her along. Not only did his fangs cause her agony, but also the ground, rocks, and other things added to it. She knew she would have scratches and abrasions when they reached their destination. Several roars filled the night air. Ramses. He and the others must be giving chase. The werelion kept loping, not caring how much harm he did to her. Finally, he slowed down and hauled her into a cave. Somehow, they had reached the mountains. With incredible strength, he heaved her against the cave wall and shifted under the golden glow he called up. The glow revealed to her that others surrounded her. One face she recognized. Kaket's. Unable to hold out, she slipped into oblivion. Along with the roar of unconsciousness, she could hear Kaket's wicked laughter. Shana regained consciousness. Her mouth felt like cotton had been stuffed into it, her eyes ached and her entire body burned like fire. Everything hurt. Badly. If someone agreed to put her out of her misery, she'd beg for it. But then, she remembered feeling this much pain meant still being alive. For now, anyway. She helped herself into a sitting position. Leaning back against the cave wall, she saw a fire had been lit nearby. Her left arm hurt and looking down, she saw that it bled. "I see our prisoner is awake." Barely able to move her head from the pain, she managed to turn to the voice. Kaket stood next to her, arrogance evident in her eyes and in the way she stood, a hand on her hip. Naked, too. Three others drifted out of the shadows and Shana noticed that they also were naked. The one woman went to nuzzle Kaket's cheek. Kaket kissed her, pulling the younger woman into her embrace and kneaded her ass cheeks. Still locked in the woman's embrace, she looked down at Shana. "This nubile, young thing is Zari. Your abductor is Tutu and the other is Mulalo." The werelion who had stolen her from Ramses squatted down on his haunches in front of her and grinned. Large, sharp fangs glinted in his mouth. "You smelled delicious before, human; the blood on you makes you smell even more divine." He laughed and leaned over, licking some of the blood from her scratched cheek. "Mmmmm...tasty." "Not yet, Tutu," said Kaket, smacking his head. "When the time is right, I'll give her to you and Mulalo to play with. I want Ramses to see you both taking her, filling her full of your semen before they die together." The other man standing nearby giggled. "Tutu, you get the pussy, I get the mouth or ass." Tutu rose to his feet and stared down at her. "No. I might want her ass first." He turned and glared at Mulalo. "Understood." Shana could hear the threat in his voice, like a lion taking on another for a gazelle. She shivered. If Ramses couldn't save her, or he was killed, she promised herself she would find the means to kill herself. She wouldn't let those two touch her. Already, just from the thought of them touching her, she felt slimy, as if she had rolled in filth. Her stomach roiled, and she fought to keep from throwing up and not only soiling, but embarrassing herself in the bargain. A glance toward the cave's entrance and she saw fingers of dawn stretching across the cave floor. Kaket tensed and looked toward the entrance.

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"The mighty king is here," she mocked. Tutu grinned and slapped Mulalo on the back. Zari followed Kaket as both stepped out into the sunshine. The men stayed, sliding down on each side of Shana to stare hungrily at her. She didn't know if it was hunger for sex or for food. She didn't care for either one.

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Chapter Five Ramses stood at the head of the pride. In lion form, they stood like a small army. He looked magnificent, as the sun's beams lit up his mane and gave a glow to his golden fur. His eyes shone with unnatural brilliance, like topazes. Kaket also noticed that the lions didn't come alone. A black panther snarled and trotted to join side-by-side with Ramses. Montsho. She saw several leopards behind the lions, most in nearby trees. Like real leopards they looked like harmless pussycats. Deceptive, as they could attack all of a sudden and tear out your throat. Other werekind joined them. Hyenas, a couple crocodiles, and four pythons. It looked as if she and her small pride were outnumbered. Like the wereleopards, appearances could be deceiving. With a grin, she gave a roar. The sound echoed in the air. Other lions and lionesses came out of the bush, surrounding the area. Many, many more than what Ramses brought. This war had ended before it even begun. She couldn't wait to tear out Ramses' throat and drink his blood. "It seems, Ramses," she sneered, "that the battle is over before it began. The other werelions are tired of the ways your grandfather inflicted on us." "No, Kaket, we are not here to join you," broke in one large, older lion with a graying mane. "We held council last night with his pride and all voted to destroy you and those who still wish to stand with you. If we had chosen to banish you, you and your pride would still be a thorn in our sides, trying to poison the land. We cannot have that. Your madness will stain our beast magic. And not just us, but other werekind agrees as well, as you can see by those that came in answer to Ramses' call." "Bastards!" She glared at Ramses. "I have your human whore, Ramses. Mulalo and Tutu are raping her as we speak. By the time you get pass me and Zari, they would have torn her throat out and began to feed upon her flesh." * *** Both Zari and she shifted, letting their magic change them. The others waited, but Ramses leaped at both lionesses. Zari was easy to kill, as with one swift swipe of his claws, he dug them into her belly and ripped it apart. Crying out, she fell onto her side as her intestines tumbled out onto the dirt. The light faded in her eyes. Raging with fury, Kaket jumped onto Ramses' back, raking his sides with her claws. Screeching, she sank her fangs into the back of his neck under his thick mane. Bucking like a rodeo bronco, Ramses tried to fling her off. The maddened female maintained her hold and hung on like a bulldog, worrying her fangs deeper into his flesh. He had no doubt that she wanted to kill him, for many things, but now also for killing her lover, Zari. Feeling something wet from the back of his neck, he knew if he didn't get her off, the bitch just might get her wish of his demise. The only reason no one else helped was because he had demanded her death be by his claws and no other. Finally rearing up onto his hind legs, he managed to reach a paw behind and hook the bitch by her snout, yanking her off him. He flung her to the ground, brutally. She landed awkwardly on her back, and he jumped onto her quickly, knocking the breath from her lungs. He swore he heard something break. Lying there, Kaket glared up at him, still defiant. Blood trickled out of her maw.

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"Oh, mighty king," she said with s snicker. "This defeat doesn't matter, for I still win. While you struggled so long to fight me off your back, Mulalo and Tutu enjoyed your human female, in more ways than one." He watched as the light went out in her eyes and her head dropped to one side. Kaket was dead. Frightened, Ramses made for the cave, knowing that even now it might be too late to save his anisa. But he planned to make Mulalo's and Tutu's last hour on Earth a hellish one. Afterward, he would bury his mate. Then making sure a new succession of leadership for the pride was in place, he would leave until the craze of being prideless and without her drove him to kill himself. He snuck into the cave and using his night vision, entered it completely silent. He padded on rocky ground, sniffing the air. He discovered three distinct smells, and with a sigh of relief as he searched her thoughts, knew his mate still lived. Ramses found her backed up against the cave wall, brandishing a heavy stick she had found somewhere. Both werelions stalked her as lions might and not men. He roared. The sound echoed in the cave. Both paused and stared back at him. He saw the fear in their eyes and guffawed. Good. Let them know he brought them death. For betrayal of the pride, and most of all, for daring to lay one paw on his anisa. Seeing all the teeth marks, scratches and abrasion on her skin, he growled. Especially he would make the one who did that to his Shana suffer the longest. Come at me, cubs. Or are you both too chicken to take on the king? They rushed him, roaring. Hurting like hell from his battle with Kaket, he fought them with every last ounce of remaining strength, knowing his mate watched. For her sake, he drew on all his reserves of magic and fought like the mighty king he felt he was right then. He remembered what the Dreaming foretold and it never lied. For in it, he had grown old with her, their sons and daughters and grandchildren surrounding them. No, he couldn't, no, mustn't die. He took out Mulalo's life first. With a hard shove, he sent the lion into the wall, slamming the head against the hard rock. Cracking like an egg, the lion slid to the ground, dead. Then he faced Tutu and from the stink of fear rising off the younger lion, knew this was the one who hurt his mate. Suddenly, Tutu stilled and lay down, baring his belly. Go ahead, Ramses, tear out my stomach. It'll be on your head for the rest of your life that you slew me. Ramses grinned. So be it. I can handle that. He jumped the traitor, and with a swift strike used his claws to disembowel the werelion. Not wasting any more precious time, he padded over to Shana and nudged her with his big head to walk out of the cave. Outside, a massive cheer resounded as one by one the shifters changed to human form. Ramses could care less as he took Shana's lips with his and drank of her sweetness.

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Epilogue Ramses held his wife by her shoulders as she screamed and pushed. Their child was about to be born. He decided they would be satisfied with their first born, and let Shana have no more children, despite the Dreaming. If they all caused her so much pain, he could live with just one. The gender was of no matter, male or female, this was it. A wail reached his ears and the doctor, a werehyena, cleaned the baby and brought it to its mother's arms. He bowed his head to Ramses. "A son." The nurse called to him. "Doctor, another head is peeping out." The doctor rushed back to where Shana's legs were propped up and caught something in his arms. A couple of minutes later, he brought another crying baby, this time putting it in Ramses' arms. "Your daughter." Ramses laughed, upsetting his daughter even more. "Good, no more children. We have a son and a daughter. No more pain for my anisa." Gazing with rapture into her son's big eyes, Shana said, "Oh no, I want four more. Isn't he adorable?" "I really don't think..." Ramses paused as he looked down at his daughter. She had stopped crying and seemed as if she was gazing up at her father with interest. Then she opened her mouth and gave a tiny growl. A golden glow surrounded her for a second, and then dissipated leaving a gurgling, happy baby. Maybe another child wouldn't hurt.

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About the Author Sapphire Phelan lives in Virginia.

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