Mishaps and Wolves (OLD VERSION)

Chapter 28 - Once a Man, Now A Beast

Chapter 28 - Once A Man, Now A Beast

Roman walked along the grassy path that led to the clearing. He could feel his panther purring and if he was being honest, he was really tempted to do the same.

When he'd briefly described the Pack Shift to Marissa, he'd seen the flush that had turned her cheeks a beautiful rosy red and darkened her eyes. He'd also smelt the lust-filled pheromones that she'd released and felt it through the bond. Though she couldn't tell what he was feeling, because he'd already accepted the bond, he could tell what she was feeling. And if thinking of him getting naked got her physically ramped up, then all he had to do was break past the emotional barriers that she'd erected around herself and strengthened with her anger and humour.

The Pack Shift would give him a chance to tempt her to accept her carnal desires, but it would also be an opportunity for him to show off his panther. His mate had to accept all aspects that made him who he was and his panther was the biggest. His instincts were sharp because it was always watching what he wasn't. It's voice also helped to sooth the loneliness of being so far from his parents and his little sister and kept him sane by talking to him when there were problems that needed solving or when he just needed someone to confide in.

In a way, his panther was like his mate. It did all the things that a normal mate would do. However, since meeting Marissa he knew that there was more that a mate could offer and his panther needed someone that he could rely on and unburden all his problems and worries with. A mate was someone that carried the world with as they stood united by your side.  And as Roman looked back at Marissa, he knew that she'd already done that for him.

She's ours and there is nothing that can change that, his panther told him.

I know that but there is still a chance that she wants to return to the outside world. If she wants that then there is a chance that we may have to give her her freedom.

But we can provide her with everything she could ever want, argued the panther.

We must make our mates happy and if leaving makes her happy then there is no other option, he told his panther feeling pricks of pain in his chest where the pain of that statement truly hit him. If Marissa left then he'd go with her. There was nothing that he wouldn't do for his mate, but choosing between his family and his mate was something that he knew he could never do. An argument for another time, he told himself, letting go of that specific problem altogether.

They finally made it to the clearing. Climbing over the last log, then turning around to help Marissa over too, he held his arm out to encompass the entire scene. He looked to Marissa to see her eyes round in absolute shock as a smile of wonder stole over her face.

"Oh my goodness! What is this, a fairy tale?" she whispered in awe.

He could understand her shock. When he'd first found this clearing, he's been speechless for the rest of the night as he'd explored every inch of it to determine whether it was safe for his pack. After his search, he'd just sat there and enjoyed the serenity that the clearing radiated and hypnotized all those that saw it with.

The clearing was large enough to compass more than a hundred shifters in their larger true forms. Grass carpeted the ground with large rocks placed everywhere to provide a place for people to drape their clothing when they shifted. The rocks also provided places for people to sit on or jump off of into the river that ran through the clearing. Tall trees encircled the clearing, providing it with its own pocket to hide within and further hide their settlement. At the top, through the thick canopy of the trees the moon could be seen rising into the sky as night overtook.

"It's..."Marissa trailed off.

Roman looked to her. The moons beam, light as they were, lit up her face and turned her into an ethereal dream. Silver ran through her dark hair and across the soft curves of her face. Her eyes reflected back the white light as she took in the sight before her and gave back the wondrous joy that he could feel filling her within.

"Beautiful," he said.

Marissa turned to him before turning back to the clearing blushing. "I think everyone's waiting for you she said."

He lead her over to one of the rocks that overlooked the clearing and she climbed it before sitting on the top of it. He flashed a quick smile at her before he spun away and undressed.  He stripped off his shirt and jeans, leaving himself in just boxers before turning to the other pack members that had gathered in the clearing. Everyone was in various states of undress.

"We gather here on the night before the full moon to honour the ceremony which gave us these gifts eons ago. This, the first of the three nights is to honour the pact made between the animal and the human that reside within us all and give to us the gifts that we have been given. These nights are to honour that pact and to celebrate thee joy which we all share. They are to give our other halves full reign over what we both share and give them our humanity in return for this sacred trust. Now shift!"

His final words ended on a flash of light and a wave of pain racked over his body pulling at his joints and toppling him to his knees. His bones felt hollow and brittle as they snapped. The agony receded before he felt his skin being pulled, creating more pinpoints of pain rock up all over his body. A warmth flooded his body and he felt all the pain recede to the furthest edges of his mind as he shifted into a panther. He could feel his body stretching but even that feeling faded away as his mind opened up and his human side melded with that of the panther and both became one singular being.

When the change finally finished, the light that surrounded him receded and he found that he was now looking through the eyes of a panther. He stretched his new muscles, making sure his shoulders and neck were loose. His tail was swishing behind him but he had complete control over his other body. He shook off the final pinpricks of pain in his legs and stretched his claws out. He clawed and the ground once, sharpening his claws before looking up at the rest of the pack.

Everyone had shifted into their animals. For each person, the soul knew the creature that it was compatible with and to honour the first shifter, the pack was filled with a range of animals that, if they had met in the wild, would have already killed each other if they'd not been shifters. He looked over briefly to Marissa. She was watching them all, especially him, with a look of pure amazement lighting her eyes and lifting the corners of her lips into a soft smile.

His panther purred happily that she seemed to have accepted his panther form. He spun back to the rest of the pack and let out a roar of triumph. They all called back in their own ways before racing off into the forest to do as animals did and enjoy the world in their own individual ways. He looked back to Marissa, She smiled at him and nodded, letting him know that she was fine with him following after the others.

Yes, he was going to follow after them into the forest. But he was going to do what a panther did best, and hunt his prey. He turned around and sprinted into the forest, hiding before climbing up a tree and making his way back to catch his mate off guard and show her that she was his; that she was caught.