Seeing Spots

by Zenina Masters

  Warren nodded.

  Teebie flashed to the Meditation Centre and got Teal and Tony out of their home. Something big was coming and she had the feeling that it was her aunt.

  It took three minutes before the ground began to shake.

  Through the open doorway, Teebie could see Warren holding Sable in his arms. He wisely remained outside with his newly found companion.

  The floor of the Meditation Centre exploded and a dragon shot skyward hauling a crowd in her wake.

  Teebie ran out of the shattered building and she followed the dragon.

  The emerald green of her European dragon form made her aunt glow like a jewel come to life. She settled on the green space beyond the shattered building, and her entourage gently landed on the ground next to her.

  Mak ran around and organized some of the shaky companions into a loose circle around Dira’s head.

  Energy poured into the dragon, and when she had what she needed, she lifted her head and roared, spreading that energy into the ground under her feet and the sky above her.

  Teebie felt the Crossroads welcoming the power and the familiar horizon expanded.

  Three of the new arrivals rushed toward Sable, and Warren reluctantly gave her up to those who began to care for her immediately.

  Teebie felt the healing energy flowing into Sable and something more. The energy that Dira was pouring into the Crossroads was directing itself into the empty vessel that was Sable.

  Teebie sighed but watched colour returning to Sable’s face. This really was not her week.

  * * * *

  Ice. Fire. It was fighting for supremacy in her body, and she tried to thrash out, but her body was weak. It moved through her and finally found an access point into her soul and what made her what she was.

  The power flowed into her and wrapped around her beast. Her cat grew stronger and the energy she received moved through Sable. It was a filter that started as a trickle until it roared through her.

  She fought the hands on her and got to her feet. Sable swayed but the world around her was brighter and it crackled with energy.

  Warren was near her, and she smiled as she looked at him and saw his beast. She stepped toward him and stroked his cheek. “Hey, tiger.”

  She pulled his head down and kissed him. When she backed away, he blinked in surprise. “What was that for?”

  “You looked worried. I thought I would distract you.”

  He laughed and raised her hand to his lips. “Hello, stranger. I am Warren.”

  “I am Sable. It is good to meet you.”

  He hugged her and pressed a kiss to her head. “I am very glad to finally meet you.”

  The dragon roared again, and Sable went up on her toes, pressing her lips to Warren’s as she shared the power that flooded into her.

  She felt the roar of his beast before he stepped back and his clothing burst apart at the seams. His tiger shook off the remnants of the fabric, and he moved close to her, sniffing her from neck to toes, spending a lot of time learning her scent with his other senses.

  Sable buried her fingers in his fur and pressed her face against him, listening to the rumble of the purr before she realised it was her own.

  Chapter Six

  Sable jumped up and straddled Warren’s back, riding him toward the dragon and those who surrounded her.

  Teebie and another djinn participated in the power contribution. The fey were a bit of a surprise. As far as Sable knew, fey were not part of the general magical community, but here, they were pouring energy into Dira and she was adding it into the Crossroads.

  They stood together for hours, and as the procedure went on, everyone at the Crossroads drew near to watch the procedure.

  Teal and Tony stood next to them and Teal asked her, “Do you know what is going on?”

  “The Crossroads is expanding, fey magic is being woven into the warp and woof of the bubble and a new pathway to the earth has been created.”

  Sable could see it all around her. She could see the energy that now coursed through her veins.

  With the rumble under her, she knew that Warren could now see it, too.

  Teal whispered, “Why are you riding him?”

  “He has been overloaded and I am keeping him calm.”

  “Oh.”

  When Dira ceased her efforts, she dropped to the ground and Mak stroked her nose.

  She jerked her chin toward Teal and Tony.

  Teal blinked. “Oh, I guess she wants us to try the connection. Were you interested in returning home, Sable?”

  Sable smiled. “No. I think I need to give this place a try and I have to wait for Warren to get his arms back. You could send the healers?”

  Teal winked and headed over to the trio and gathered them together. She must have asked them if they wanted to return to normality, because they all nodded.

  Teal waved Tony over, and they stood across from each other with the healers in between. A light swelled and brightened, a moment later, the healers were gone.

  Teal paused and waited. A minute later, a note with a rock on it appeared. Tony read the message and grinned. “It’s good! Anyone who wants to head home is welcome to do so.”

  A few of the workers who had been unsettled by the proceedings took the opportunity to leave but most stayed. The other guests remained as well. It seemed a few romances were budding with the men and the locals, and the women as well. Guests were guests but love was love. This stress had pushed folk together that would normally have passed each other in the street.

  Sable looked around and smiled at the amount of couples who were clinging together and the tiger she was perched on. It seemed that this situation had been good for something after all.

  * * * *

  Teebie stroked her aunt’s side and got the briefing. The fey that were standing next to her had been used for power, but they were not leaving until the first fey candidates were at the Crossroads to prove that they were being compliant.

  Teebie was asked to host them.

  The plan for expansion, additional buildings and recreational walks and sporting fields was implanted in Teebie’s brain.

  “All that, huh?”

  Dira opened one huge eye and then closed it again.

  “Okay. I will take care of briefing the guardians. You and Mak fly off somewhere and get some rest.”

  Lekiadra came up to her and nudged her elbow. “Are you encouraging our aunty to get some nookie?”

  Teebie sighed and gave her a sober look. “Even shifted to his unicorn form, Mak could fall in. He can graze and she can sleep.”

  Lekiadra blinked. “That was very direct.”

  “It comes from being around shifters all the time. They are here for one purpose and that is to find the mate for their inner beast. They don’t pretend it is anything else.”

  Teebie turned to the exhausted fey and humans. “Come with me. You are too tired for anything else today, so I will get you some dinner and give you a comfortable place to sleep.”

  One of the male fey cleared his throat. “Is it safe for us to be here?”

  Teebie looked him over and smiled. “As long as you don’t throw any magic around, you should be fine. This isn’t an opportunity for you to use the Crossroads. We don’t have any available seekers right now.”

  One of the men’s shoulders slumped.

  She chuckled. “With your people screwing with the connection, our numbers here are down. Give us time to assure the shifters that they are no longer in danger and go through your application process. Once that is done, I will be happy to host you once again.”

  “We will have to apply?” He blinked in surprise.

  “Of course. There is a screening process and the transporters will administer it. Everyone here has to be seeking a mate for legitimate purposes. The fey will be bound for life to any mate they take here. It is not something to be entered into lightly. It will be for your lifetime and that of
your partner.”

  The fey were quiet.

  Teebie led the fey and the human mages around the wreckage of the building, and she took them back to the Open Heart, or at least the spot where the charming Victorian had been. The house had been expanded by thirty feet on the right side.

  “That’s different.” Teebie smiled and realised that all the lots were larger and the buildings were slowly expanding, but the Open Heart was already finished.

  Teebie blinked as a tiger bounded past her with Sable on his back. Sable reached down and opened the door, and she held on tight as he bounded up the stairs.

  The fey looked at each other. One said, “Does that happen a lot?”

  Teebie snickered. “No, they usually just walk in naked. Nudity and shifters often go hand in hand. Some it is less, some it is more. You never know until you actually meet one post-shift.”

  While they mounted the steps, she prepared tea and coffee as they walked into her home. It was time to be hostess again.

  * * * *

  Warren’s room adjoined hers, which was surprising since it hadn’t been adjoining when they left. She dismounted and scratched behind his ears while he shivered and resumed his human form.

  His bright green eyes were now flecked with gold and his skin nearly sparkled with energy.

  His erection was unexpectedly enthusiastic.

  Sable had played hunting and stalking games with her family but never while in human form. With the focus in his gaze, catching her was foremost on his mind.

  She tested her theory by shifting to the left then the right and back again.

  He tracked every move she made, so she took a deep breath and gave him something to watch.

  She opened the buttons on the front of her dress, opening it to her waist. She reached back and released the clasp of her bra. With slow motions, she bent and slipped her panties off, kicking out of them.

  On the exterior, she was exposing one narrow inch of skin, but she was a second from nudity.

  A drop of precum formed and dripped from his erection, it arced upward toward his belly with short jerks. She hadn’t touched him, he hadn’t touched her, but they were both exceptionally turned on. The air was thick with the scent of their heat.

  Sable swallowed as she decided on a plan of action. The door between their rooms was open, so she turned and ran.

  She heard the light tread of his feet behind her as she sprinted into her room and crouched on the bed, whirling to face him with her teeth bared.

  He froze on the edge of the bed, one knee on the bedding and his gaze focused on the gaping opening of her dress. Based on the touch of air current, she could almost feel his gaze stroking her from breasts to the soft curls between her thighs.

  She mewled, he growled, and with a surge of energy, she leapt up and over him, landing on her palms and one of her feet before she skidded on her own damned dress. A hand clamped around her ankle like a vise and she was hauled back toward him and up onto his lap.

  Her dress tore as he took handfuls of it and yanked it open. The skirt parted easily. He shucked the bra down her arms and pulled her back against him, kneeling across his lap.

  Sable gasped when he pressed his teeth against her neck. The heat of his breath on her skin made her tremble, and the prick of his sharp teeth woke senses that she hadn’t been aware she had.

  Focusing on her inability to shift, she pulled herself back from the edge of insanity. Her beast was trying to ride her human form. It wanted to mate and it wasn’t in the mood for foreplay.

  Warren ran his hands over her breasts and belly, stroking her inner thighs with his sharp nails before retracting them and pressing three fingers against her mound. He circled round and round with firm pressure.

  He was growling softly against her ear, and she reached behind her to grip his hair and hold his mouth against her neck. She arched and bucked against his hand as she got wetter and wetter. Sable heard her breath coming in low sighs and high whines.

  Warren lifted her to all fours on the bed, and he pressed against her slit, spreading the folds of her sex with his fingers while he positioned his cock in her entrance. She moaned and pressed back as he moved inward. He gripped her hips and thrust into her. She lost the air in her lungs as her body struggled to cope with his girth.

  She flexed her fingers in the bedding and focused on relaxing as he rocked into her with short thrusts. Her efforts must have worked, because tension faded and pleasure eased its way into her body.

  Sable stopped waiting for his thrust into her, and she moved back in time to his hips. They slammed together with ferocity and they both growled as the primal beat took over.

  The heat of friction and her pounding blood took her entire focus as the full contact jarred her. She gritted her teeth and worked to achieve the release that teased her, taunted her and lay just out of reach.

  He moved his hand around her and stroked her clit with the pad of one finger, but she could feel the claw delicately kept from contact with her flesh. He pressed and twisted and it was enough.

  She yowled in release, enjoying the rush. His roar of triumph made her flinch, but with his hands once again on both her hips, she had nowhere to go. Warren held himself inside her as he jetted within.

  Sable’s arms buckled and she unclenched her hands. Her inner cat was purring happily, but the human outside was aching and sticky.

  He leaned forward, pushing deep; to her surprise, he touched her jaw and turned her head until he was kissing her softly. Against her lips, he whispered, “We seem to have done all the right things in the wrong order.”

  She chuckled and had to agree. “Pretty much. Think about the stories we can tell. How many other couples were here at the breaking of the Crossroads?”

  “And who engaged in their courtship when one was more dead than alive? I don’t think that any other couple can boast our peculiar start.”

  She let her arms sag and he bore her to the bed, flattening her with a slight huff. He withdrew from her and turned her to face him. He kissed her softly, and they snuggled together on the covers.

  An odd thought occurred to her, and she grinned. “I hope that the walls are soundproofed or we just shocked some elves.”

  “They had better learn now rather than later. Shifters are real beasts in bed.”

  He nipped at her lips and his eyes glowed with his feline looking out at her. With his satisfied expression completely filling her vision, she kissed him softly and cuddled against him, tight in the arms of her mate.

  Chapter Seven

  The elves sat around and listened to the yowling and roars coming from the upstairs rooms. Teebie smiled at their wide-eyed expressions.

  One of the men asked, “Is it always that noisy?”

  Teebie shrugged. “Only when I forget to put the soundproofing up. They can be very vocal on first mating. Their beasts blend with their human body, and there are roars, screeches, chirps, yowls and some weird gurgles that I still haven’t pinpointed. Those who wish to take a shifter to mate take a beast within the body as well as the outer human.”

  The man on the far left leaned forward. “How can you stand to be here? Doesn’t their touch repulse you?”

  Teebie blinked. “You have never touched a shifter, have you?”

  Chuck and Ivy showed up and Teebie smirked at the opportunity.

  “Chuck, these elves believe that shifters feel like humans. Would you shake their hands?”

  Chuck smiled, flashing his snake fangs as he extended his hand. “Of course. I am always willing to forward education.”

  The first elf hesitated, but he extended his hand. He jumped at the touch of Chuck’s skin against his own.

  The woman didn’t hesitate. She reached out and a shiver ran through her. She licked her lips and continued the contact until Ivy cleared her throat.

  It was Chuck that pried the woman away, and when he shook hands with the third elf, he had to do the same to
the man.

  The elves rubbed the skin Chuck had touched, and they murmured amongst themselves.

  Teebie waved for Chuck and Ivy to join them. “Thanks for that, Chuck. I am pretty sure that Ivy would have kicked them back to earth.”

  Ivy grinned and took the seat that Chuck held out for her. “I am sure of it.”

  The tea party resumed with the elves still rubbing their hands with expressions of amazement on their faces. They had learned something and Teebie was delighted that she had been part of their instruction. Elves were always too smug for her liking.

  Ivy finally noticed that they were still touching the contact points. “Teebie, what do we feel like to the fey?”

  Teebie shrugged. “I can’t speak for them, but to me, you feel like silk and velvet with a static charge.”

  The three agreed and said in unison, “Exactly!”

  Teebie smiled and served another round of tea for her guests. It was nice to have strangers in who had no insight into the shifter world and watch them begin their education. Elves might be socially acceptable to the human world but shifters were not. The two worlds colliding would be a step closer to outing the shifters. It was one step closer to daylight.

  * * * *

  Tangled with Warren, Sable slowly opened her eyes. “I suppose that we have to leave soon, and I still haven’t shown you my nephew’s note.”

  “That is the established pattern. We come, we meet, we mate, we go. I promise to frame the note and hang it on the wall of our home.” He stroked her hair.

  “I feel like I just got here.”

  He stroked a hand down her back, and she moved against his touch. She loved being stroked, whether it was her cat or her human form.

  “You have been here long enough to find a mate, Sable. I am just lucky that I was here when you arrived.”

  She chuckled and rubbed her head against his chest. “I am just lucky you weren’t ugly.”

  “You are very lucky. My brother is hideous. A disgrace. I don’t know why my sister-in-law ever gets near him.”