Shifting Too

by Shifting Too (anth. )(Rob

  Ropur nodded and grinned suddenly. "It tasted better raw."

  Laughing, he turned the meat that he was drying. "If you say so... I find it a bit too strong raw."

  "Things are... more in my other shape."

  "Yes, I imagine they are." He looked off, into the distance. What would it be like, to have Ropur's senses, even for a day?

  "Most of my people remain in their animal form," Ropur told him quietly. "I must learn to accept this form."

  "So how is it that they change then? Why?" His experience with animals taught him that they all did things for a reason. There had to be a reason Ropur's people were able to become human. Something that scared them enough to kick out one of their own when he could not spend all of his time as a cat.

  "There is a story," said Ropur, "about a cat that drew down a curse upon himself from the Great Cat and from that moment on, he and all his kin could not remain as a cat for their entire life."

  "And they thought somehow you did something to make the curse worse, yes?"

  Ropur nodded. "But I did nothing any one of my siblings did not also do. I don't understand why it happened. They will not let me choose a mate. Or sire children. They tried to help me, but in the end, they did not wish to have me remain near."

  "They thought you would hurt them." Yes. He knew that. Knew how it felt. A hunter was a danger to the tribe, even as a child, according to Darien's people.

  Ropur nodded. "I would not hurt them, never. But it was dividing them, my being among them. It was best that I left."

  "For them." Darien sighed, his own bitterness barely held at bay. He unpacked his sack and repacked it so it would be more balanced the next day. His blisters felt better, but there was no sense tempting fate and gaining an infection.

  Ropur nodded. "Yes. For them." Ropur shared a sad smile with him.

  "What do you do during the day?" He was curious to know if the nocturnal nature of the cat was overcome by the human.

  "It depends on whether or not I need to move my territory. I can move faster and for longer at night, but I can not bring my possessions with me. If I am not moving, I explore a little, sleep."

  "Yes." He moved better at night as well, but would easily go during the day if need be. "Well then, we can rest. Sleep. We will move on tonight."

  "You do not mind me traveling with you?" Ropur asked. "You are more accustomed to being alone, I think."

  "I am. But I feel..." How did he explain the highly tuned instincts that often kept him alive? "I feel we move together or not at all."

  Ropur tilted his head in that manner he had that reminded Darien of the cat. "Well I am pleased to have a companion."

  "As am I." And he was. For the moment. He would wait and see what the future would bring.

  ***

  They had been traveling together several days, following whatever it was that drove Darien. Ropur was not an Alpha male, he was happy to let Darien lead. Indeed, he was just happy that Darien allowed him to continue to travel with the man. He truly was tired of his own company and there was something about Darien, something... that felt like home.

  He liked the man, liked the quiet and intensity.

  One thing he still missed from home was sleeping curled together with his siblings, limbs and tails tangled, head resting on someone's haunches, someone else's head on his. Each day when they bedded down, he moved a little closer to Darien, not on purpose, he wasn't trying to make a move, but he craved the touch, the warmth of another.

  Today he was bold enough to curl up against Darien's back after the man had fallen asleep, the warmth of the man seeping through his clothes. Darien went stiff against him for a moment, then relaxed, and the evenness of the man's breathing told him in seconds that Darien slept again, still and peaceful.

  Ropur turned and spooned up behind the man. Oh, yes. Almost a year he'd missed this closeness.

  He was not certain how long it was they slept before Darien turned about and flung an arm over him, lying face to face. The man's breath was sweet, tickling across the skin of his face. He purred, not really even thinking as his tongue slid out to lick Darien's lips.

  Darien froze once more, going still, silent. Then Darien's lips opened, a soft sigh bathing his cheek. His own eyes blinked open and he looked at Darien, watched the man's face as he licked again, this time deliberately.

  Shockingly pink, Darien's tongue came out to meet his, tasting him. He moaned softly, recognizing this was not the simple grooming he'd done with his siblings, it left too many feelings inside him. Big feelings.

  The eyes so close to his were an odd, clear gray, the look in them serious as Darien opened his lips over Ropur's, tongue darting out to taste again.

  Oh. Oh, he had never done this. His people did not mate before the change and after he had changed wrong, he had been shunned in that area. He moaned again, pressed a little closer.

  One of Darien's hands came up to cup his head, Darien's leg covering his, a slow slide. Each movement set off impossible explosions of feelings inside him. His shaft became hard, heat heavy in his belly.

  Darien pressed his lips open and pushed inside his mouth, tongue touching his teeth. He heard Darien moan, too, the sound shockingly loud. He shivered, pressed even closer, hands moving to hold onto Darien.

  Darien's impossibly long braid teased his fingers, sliding along his hand as he touched Darien's back. The kiss, for that was what it was now, became deep, almost hard. It made him gasp and pull back a little, Darien's mouth following, not letting his go. He panicked for half a second and then went with it, opening wider.

  Darien grunted and pushed him to his back, climbing atop him, hands on his shoulders, hips pressing against his. His eyes went wide and he pushed slightly, startled by the sudden weight on him.

  "Do not fear me, Ropur. I will not hurt you." Darien smiled, eyes darker than they had been, hands gentling on him.

  "You surprised me," he admitted, reaching out to touch Darien's cheek.

  "I did not mean to. I... surprised myself." Darien bent, kissed the place where his pulse beat in his throat.

  Ropur tilted his head back instinctively, purring softly at the touch. "It feels good, Darien." Just because he had been startled did not mean he wasn't enjoying it.

  "Yes. I knew it would. Knew you would." Perhaps he had not thought of it, but Darien must have. Darien moved on him, legs sliding on his, large and hard at the center where their hips pressed.

  He was hard there, too, and as Darien moved they rubbed together and it made him cry out, bucking up against Darien.

  "You like that, yes?" One large hand flattened against the small of his back, pushing him closer still, creating such friction!

  He gasped, nodding eagerly. Yes. He liked it very much.

  "So do I," Darien said, stroking his neck, his chest, braid falling forward to tickle his cheek.

  Whimpering softly, he licked his lips, head coming up off the ground. He wanted another kiss. He got it, Darien leaning to press their mouths together again, giving him the flavor he craved. He opened his mouth with a moan, tongue sliding against Darien's.

  Darien rocked against him, slow and steady, rubbing them together through their tunics, the kisses making him dizzy. The scent of them reminded him of mating season among the tribe, strong and musky. It made him ache with wanting, even if he'd never experienced it before. His body knew what it was doing though, moving instinctively, pushing up into Darien's body.

  Darien encouraged him with touches and sounds, petting him, moving against him. He heard words, indistinct and rough, but all of them about how pretty he was, how smooth his skin. Moaning, heels digging into the ground to help push himself up, he slid his hands around Darien's body, grabbing the fine ass and squeezing.

  "Oh. Yes. Just that way, Ropur." He could feel the shiver that took Darien's body when he did that, feel the jump of the hardness pressed against him. Darien kissed him again, bruising him, tongue taking his mouth aggressively.

  He whimper
ed, mouth opening wide, his fingers digging into the hot flesh he held. Then Darien reached between them, one large hand pushing into his leggings and cupping his shaft, squeezing and stroking, pressing down against him as they kissed.

  He cried out into the kiss, the pleasure like nothing he'd ever felt before, heat streaming from him over Darien's hand.

  Darien held him cupped in that big hand, not letting go, and stroked his cheek with the other. "You're beautiful to me, Ropur. I knew you would be."

  He blinked up, confused and full of melted pleasure at the same time. "You knew?"

  "I..." Those odd eyes searched his. "When I saw you as a man. I had a feeling."

  "Is that why you did not kill me?"

  "No." The answer was definite. "I did not kill you because I do not hunt men unless they have committed a terrible crime. And if you were a man as well as a cat, I could not believe you would do the things the villagers said you had."

  "I did not do anything to those villagers." He made a face. "The taste of manflesh is less than appealing. Not to mention it would be... I do not eat my own."

  "Yes." Darien kissed his mouth lightly. "The knowing just made it... more. Easier to stop the bow."

  He moaned at the kiss, mouth trying to follow Darien's as he leaned back. He wanted more of these shivery, wonderful sensations.

  "Wait." Darien pressed him back down, tugging at his tunic. "I wish to see you. May I?"

  He nodded and helped, wriggling out of the material and pushing off his leggings until he lay naked and exposed beneath Darien. The man also pulled away his own clothes, so he was not naked alone.

  Darien stroked his chest, fingers playing his nipples, tracing the spots that dotted his skin. "Yes, beautiful."

  He found himself arching into each touch, writhing and trying to entice Darien to touch him some more.

  With a knowing smile, Darien bent, touching lips to his nipple, hands sliding to stroke his belly and his hips. Thumbs pressing into his hipbones, Darien sucked his nipple between those soft lips, teeth threatening. He cried out, roared almost, and bucked, his hands finding Darien's shoulders. He wasn't sure if he was trying to push Darien away or bring him closer.

  The sting as Darien bit him decided him, and he pulled Darien down. Darien came to him willingly, hands on his thighs, opening him. He whimpered, moving on instinct and wrapping his legs around Darien.

  "Yes. Touch me, Ropur." Darien sounded... desperate. Harsh. The strong body atop his began to buck and rock.

  He slid his hands from Darien's shoulders, down along the muscled chest. His fingers were tickled by the light hair he found there and then caught by the little pieces of flesh that were growing hard beneath his touches.

  A rough moan sounded, Darien rubbing against him even harder, a deep flush staining his skin. "Yes. Please."

  Ropur nodded, a thrill going through him as he took the little bit of flesh between his fingers and pinched, making Darien buck and moan. Oh, he'd done that. Him.

  His shaft was hard again, rubbing with Darien's and the pleasure was building once more inside him, eager and pushing instead of lazy and sated as it had been just moments ago. He could feel Darien's prick against his, the tip damp, sweat beginning to come up on Darien's skin.

  It was the most beautiful and pleasurable thing and he might have cried at having been denied it by his clan, his tribe, if he were not so distracted and pleasured by what was happening between him and Darien.

  Darien smiled at him, kissing him again, making soft noises. "Yes."

  "Oh, don't stop," he murmured, hands sliding on Darien's chest, his stomach.

  "I will not. I promise." No, Darien did not stop, he simply rubbed harder, reaching down once more to enclose both of their pricks in one of his hands, grunting as they found a rhythm together.

  His own hands kept wandering back to the hard little nipples on Darien's chest, loving the way pinching and tugging them made Darien's noises get louder.

  "Soon, Ropur. Oh. I... soon." Darien went stiff, his muscles standing out under his skin, his whole body straining.

  Ropur slid his hand up, touching Darien's lips. "Soon?" he asked, his eyes going wide as the pleasure began to explode again, more heat spilling from him.

  "Now." Darien bucked against him, eyes going so dark, Darien's seed splashing across his belly and his prick.

  "Oh. Oh." He touched Darien's face, so lovely.

  Darien leaned against him, panting, skin hot and sticky. "Oh. Yes."

  He brought their mouths together, liking this, liking the kissing as the pleasure sort of swirled, shared between them. They nuzzled, rubbed gently, almost like grooming with his den brothers and sisters. Darien almost purred.

  He smiled, purring himself. Oh, he liked this almost as much as he liked what they'd just done.

  "We should sleep," Darien said. "Rest up for the night. I fear we need to travel fast."

  "We do? Why?" That sounded ominous.

  "I do not know. I simply feel it. My instinct for hunting tells me also when I am hunted..." Darien shook his head. "We must move."

  "All right." He nodded, trusting Darien. "We will move at nightfall."

  Darien kissed him again, a soft brush of lips, a thank you. "Yes. At nightfall. Until then, we can rest together."

  He smiled. "I like the sound of that. Together." The word purred from his mouth and he nodded, nuzzling against Darien.

  "Yes." Strong arms went about him, holding him close and tight. "Together."

  He purred softly.

  Together.

  ***

  Darien stretched, his muscles burning. They had been running hard all night, he pushing whenever Ropur would have slowed. Not that Ropur could not keep up, but he had a feeling his cat-man did not understand the rush now that they had left the village far behind.

  He watched Ropur sniff about the tiny clearing he had chosen for their camp as he bent to stretch his legs. Darien sighed. He really did not understand it himself. He only knew that with each running step his urgency had grown. It was as if he had gone from being hunter to being hunted.

  He checked the light filtering through the trees. Soon daylight. They would need to rest, eat. A flush stained his cheeks. Frankly he liked traveling by night, because he had Ropur as a man during the day. The cat was fascinating, but the man was... edible.

  Ropur stretched and yawned, gave a soft growl before scenting the air and looking toward the sunrise. The cat usually disappeared into the woods just before the sun came up, coming back as the man. He didn't want to be invasive, but he wanted. Well, he wanted to see. He moved, putting a hand on Ropur's back. The soft fur and strong muscles rippled beneath his touch. Ropur looked at him, vocalizing softly.

  "Yes. I know. If you need to. I mean, can you stay here?"

  Ropur purred and rubbed against his leg. It was the first time he'd interacted physically with the cat and he was surprised by just how soft that fur was.

  Ropur moved toward the fire, stopping near it, head going back to roar. Darien watched, flexing his fingers, still feeling the softness of Ropur, even as he watched. He did not wish to get near, in case he got in the way.

  Ropur roared again, body elongating, back legs stretching out behind him. Darien didn't know if it was his imagination or not, but he thought he could hear bones crunching. His heart raced as he watched. Oh, it sounded painful. It was a thing of terrible beauty to watch.

  Ropur kept stretching until he was lying on the forest floor, twisting, fur seeming to disappear as Darien watched.

  The fur shrank, the markings growing fainter, but not disappearing as Ropur changed. Still it was almost a surprise, as if he blinked and one moment Ropur was a twisted up cat, the next a man, curling around himself with a cry.

  Darien was beside him in an instant, petting, feeling sweat under his hand, slick on Ropur's skin. Ropur shivered, gasped, hand coming out to grab his leg.

  "I'm sorry." He wasn't sure what he apologized for, except that Ropur was hurtin
g and he could do nothing to help.

  Ropur shook his head and sat up, blinking. "It is not your fault. I don't know whose fault it is. My siblings can all change at will and without pain. I am not so lucky."

  He stroked the hair back off Ropur's face, nodding. "Yes. Would you like water?"

  Ropur nodded. "Please." Those fingers slid along his hand. "Thank you."

  "You are welcome, Ropur." It felt good, right, to be doing for Ropur, which was odd and rather frightening. Alone was easier. He got the water, handing over his waterskin.

  Ropur took it eagerly, hands growing steadier as he drank.