“That’s… is that a…” Louis stammered
‘Yep That’s a dragon.’
My mate gasped quietly as the dragon righted itself, flapped its wings a couple of times, and curved gently the other way, soaring closer and closer, growing larger as it did.
“How big exactly…”
‘I don't know,’ I confessed. ‘I've never seen one. Carrick said they’re huge.’
“You've never seen one?!” Louis demanded.
‘Well, there are only two.’
“In the Alpha Parliament?”
‘No, two in the world. Total. So, this is as incredible for me as it is for you. Although I've always known about their existence.’
“Why are the only two?” Louis asked.
The majestic creature leisurely dipped closer to the water, practically skimming over it.
‘That's a long story. We're responsible for hunting them to near extinction. I’m afraid. Shifters, I mean.’
“Why?” Louis asked in surprise.
‘Dragons… well, I should probably hit you with all of it. Dragons are psychic.’
“Psychic,” he said flatly.
‘Yeah, that's why the last two work with the Alpha Parliament. Basically… this one is going to read your mind to see whether or not you'll betray us. And if the answer is no, I'll be permitted to turn you into a shifter.’
“And if I am considered a threat?” His heart was pounding again, but I knew it wasn’t from exertion.
‘Our minds will be erased. Which is why,’ I continued, ‘Shifters hunted them. That and they're kind of obvious. They say we were afraid we'd be discovered more easily by humans if there were dragons flying about so… Rather like your shop, I suppose. By the time we realized we were making a mistake hunting them, it was too late.’
“That’s a shame,” he said softly. “Can’t they just make more dragons? Like turning them or having babies?”
I shook my head. ‘One is a male omega, the other is a female beta.’
“So? They can both get pregnant then.”
‘Not from each other. Omega’s cannot impregnate anyone,’ I reminded him. ‘Nor can female betas.’
“And only alphas can turn someone,” he said. “Are we sure the baby wouldn’t be a dragon if they get pregnant?”
I nodded. ‘A child is whatever the sire is. By turning you, I’m your sire and you’ll be a cat. When we have a child, we’ll always have cats, because you’ll be carrying them, but I’ll still be the sire.’
Louis shifted his weight. “Is that,” he said slowly, “How you ended up in a wolf family? I know you said your mother was a wolf and your father a cat, but there wasn’t a 50/50 chance you’d be either, then? That would make your father your sire, and every child they had would be cats?”
‘Exactly.’
The dragon drew closer and the light glinted off the massive purple scales. I knew who the dragon was now, not that it helped, I still had never met her. Worse, she wasn’t the dragon who met with Rion and Carrick. My ears drooped. I had been hoping to deal with Chandler, both of my cousin’s were surprised by how easy-going he was. Just my luck to end up with a different dragon. I hoped she wouldn’t be more difficult.
‘Elara,’ I said.
“What?”
‘The dragon. Her name is Elara.’
“How can you tell?”
‘Her scales look purple. My cousins said the dragon they met was red.’
Elara circled lower and lower, growing larger with every second. Louis turned, shielding his face as a storm of stinging sand whipped up from her landing. Even though his jacket and my fur protected me, I was touched to see he was making sure to block me as well.
And then, all was still. Louis just stood, gaping.
‘Go on,’ I encouraged. ‘She probably won’t shift back.’
Louis made his way across the snow and sand to the dragon. She was breathtaking, huge, incredible.
‘Good evening,’ said a feminine voice in my head. Louis jumped slightly and I knew she was talking to him too. ‘I am Elara, and I represent the Alpha Parliament.;
“It's nice to meet you,” Louis said. I felt him take a nervous swallow.
I slid out of his jacket and dropped down on the snow and sand. It was more packed down here and I landed neatly on top, and shook himself off, before nodding in greeting.
‘It's an honor to finally meet you. I’m Cambry.’
Elara laughed. ‘And you are the third Silvanus this year, yes? My, your clan is dropping like flies.’ She snorted and I was sure tendrils of smoke come out of her nostrils. ‘And this is Louis?’
‘Yes.’
Louis nodded.
‘Very well.’
Louis stiffened as Elara’s neck extended in his direction. I felt my hair stand up on end. I knew she wouldn’t attack him or anything, and yet I hated feeling to helpless to defend my mate. Elara stopped with her head just inches from his face. She sniffed, the curled her neck back away from him, and turned to me.
‘Have you explained our laws to him?’
‘Yes.’
Elara nodded in satisfaction and turned to my mate. ‘Do you agree to be changed?’
Louis cleared his throat. “Y-yes, I do.”
‘And you swear you will uphold our laws?’
“Yes, I swear.”
‘Very well. Congratulations.’ She dipped her massive head down to me. ‘You have my permission, Cambry. This is your only turn,’ she warned.
‘I understand.’
Elara nodded, then sniffed at me. I felt my fur flatten from the warm, almost hot wind. Her head twisted and she blinked eyes the looked bigger than me. ‘You are not alone.’
There was no specific way to tell if someone was broadcasting or speaking privately, but I knew her words were directed just to me. ‘No. Not anymore.’
She snorted, sending up another wisp of smoke. ‘No, young cousin. You have never been alone.’
With that, she settled back on her haunches, as if she were ready to take flight.
“Would you like some coffee or anything before you leave?” Louis asked, as I processed the exchange he didn’t even know had happened.
‘I appreciate your offer,’ she said. ‘But this was a simple flight for me, and it's nice to get out and stretch my wings.’
She flapped and I turned away, bracing myself against the wind and sand. I cracked my eyes open and turned back just enough to watch as she lifted straight off the ground, the force of her wing beats erased the strange, massive footprints she left behind the snow,
With just a couple of beats, she propelled herself out over the water. She lowered her wing tips to the waves; water sprayed up as she touched them. Then, she flapped again and surged a little higher. In mere moments she was a speck on the horizon. Just before she went out of sight, I could tell she was turning, no doubt following the coast back to the island that housed the Alpha Parliament.
“That was it?!” Louis asked. “I thought it was going to be so much more intense. Not to mention daunting.
I shrugged. ‘I wasn't really sure what to expect,’ I confessed. ‘But I guess she liked whatever she saw in your mind.’ I lashed my tail. Not to mention whatever prompted her advice to me.
“What now?” Louis asked,
‘Well…’ I paused to shake some sand or snow off the bottom of one paw. ‘I guess now we can go back to the coffee shop and whenever you're ready… I can change you.’
“Tonight?” Louis asked in surprise. “We don't have to wait until the full moon or something?
I shook my head. ‘We can do it anytime, as long as I'm in cat form. And…’ I hesitated and took a deep breath. ‘I could also claim you tonight… if you wanted. But I certainly don't have to.’
“Why don't we just go ahead and do that too?” Louis laughed. “I am kind of just jumping into all of this, so I might as well do a thorough job of it.”
I laughed too, feeling relieved. ‘You know,’ I admitted. ‘I was worried that
you were going along with this a little too easily, but it seems that whatever Elara sensed from you, you want this.’
Louis shrugged and opened his jacket back up, nodding for me to rejoin him. “I dunno,” he said. “I guess it just feels right. Fate and all.”
I gathered myself and jumped up into his arms, already purring.
Fate indeed.
Chapter Eight
Louis
“I’m afraid you really do have low quality coffee,” Cambry told me, taking a sip. Don't worry though first thing I'll do is get some better beans for you.”
“I don't have a working grinder anymore,” I said, embarrassed.
Cambry smiled at me and I didn’t feel embarrassed anymore. “I guess I'll just have to get you a nice grinder, then.”
“You really don’t have to,” I protested.
“Nonsense,” said Cambry. “I'm your alpha and your mate. And I promised that I would help save your shop. So, that's what I'm going to do.”
“Thank you.”
Cambry nodded. “Now, first things first. Let me know if you really want to be turned tonight. And we'll go ahead and do it.”
“I think I'm ready,” I said. I shrugged and took the last couple sips of my coffee. I winced at the taste. It seemed that Cambry was not only planning to save my shop, but was determined to make coffee I’d like as well. Before making it, he quizzed me on my various likes and dislikes, not just of coffee but of food and other drinks too, and then done his best to make something I’d like with the ingredients I had on hand. It hadn’t worked very well, but I appreciated the effort. “So, what do I do?” I asked, standing.
Cambry stood as well, and started to take his clothes off. “For now, all you have to do is stand there, my mate.”
Once again, I found myself admiring his naked body. His muscles rippled with an almost feline grace beneath his skin, as he bent to pull his pants off. My dick twitched and started to strain against my pants. I swallowed hard, wondering if he was bending down with his ass in my direction on purpose.
And then, he started shrinking. This time, his fur didn’t appear first. His tail, gross and rat-like, erupted from him. For a few seconds he looked like one of those hairless cats, then his sleek, brown coat sprouted out and covered him. It was the color of creamy coffee and suited him perfectly. I rubbed my hands together, remembering the feel of his sikly fur. He shook off, and then groomed part of his tail, before fixing me with his bright eyes.
‘Last chance to change your mind.’
“Well, according to the dragon. I don't have any doubts,” I said. I still wasn’t completely over the fact that I had just seen and spoken to a dragon, but I supposed it was something I was going to have to get used to. “I'm ready to do this.” I felt confident as I said it. “As long as you are.” Cambry was rushing into this just as fast as I was.
Cambry nodded solemnly. ‘Shifters dream their whole lives of finding their true mates. I've been ready for this for a long, long time’
“What do I do?” I asked.
‘Well, first, I'm uh… I’m going to bite you,’ he said, suddenly sounding uncertain. ‘Sorry, that's the only way it works. And it will probably hurt, but I swear, I'll never hurt you again.’
“I've been bitten by cats before,” I told him.
He nodded. ‘I'm sure you have. I guess I never thought about it much. It was probably a lot more daunting for my cousins’ true mates.’
“You mean they have to let wolves bite them?” I asked. That did sound quite a bit more intimidating than a cat.
He nodded.
“Okay, let’s do it.” I sat down and took a deep breath, preparing myself. I rubbed for a moment at my sore shoulder. “And this will go away too, right?”
Cambry nodded again. ‘It won’t go away after I've changed you, but it will stop hurting after we've marked each other.’
“I guess I'm ready then.”
He jumped up on my lap and sat down on one thigh. Cambry was heavier than most cats, but warm and comfortable. I could have let him sit on my lap for hours.
He locked eyes with me and said, ‘I suppose I'll just bite you on the arm?’
“That seems best,” I said. I offered him the back of my forearm, where it was a little fattier, and rolled up my sleeve.
‘Here goes,’ he said. ‘I’m sorry, my love.’
With that he lunged forward, lightning quick, as only a cat can be, and sank his fangs into my arm. It hurt, but no more than normally being bitten by a cat. I waited, but nothing else happened. Cambry jumped down off my lap, and sat down regarding me.
“Did it work?” I asked, not feeling any different.
‘Yes,’ he said.
“What do I do now?” I asked.
‘Now, you can go ahead and change into a cat.’ I could hear a chuckle in his mental voice. ‘And then if you still want to claim each other, we’ll do it. And if not, you can change back.’
“How do I change into a cat?”
He laughed. ‘Close your eyes, and focus. Remember what it looked like when I was changing into a cat. Imagine that happening to yourself.’
“I'm not going to get stuck as a cat, am I? No offense.”
‘No,’ he said confidently. ‘We'll get you back to human.’
I stood and rolled my shoulders a bit, getting ready to change.
‘You should probably undress. It's frustrating to get tangled up in your clothes.’
“Oh. Right.”
I pulled my shirt off and balled it up, setting it on the chair. Suddenly, I was self-conscious. I had already seen him naked several times, but this was the first time he would see me. We had stayed mostly dressed when we fooled around.
‘What's the matter?’ he asked, noting my hesitation.
I bit my lip nervously. What could I say? You're young and sexy, and I'm old and flabby? It wasn't that far off. His human hair was as brown and healthy as his feline coat, without a speck of gray. Mine was more gray than brown these days. Cambry’s youthful face didn't have a trace of age lines on it. And his body was nothing but smooth, rippling muscles under tight skin. As far as I was concerned, he was perfect. Me, well, I hadn't been eating very great. Not that I could afford to, even if I wanted to eat healthier. I basically lived off of coffee and pastries now, if not ramen.
I supposed I wasn't old. But I certainly was compared to Cambry. I hadn’t even thought to ask his age, but I was confident I had a decade or so on him. For the first time it occurred to me that there was a little bit of an age problem here. Hell, it was too late for that now; I was already a cat. What had I been thinking?! How could I have let myself get into this situation? He'd been talking about how I was going to have our children, and yet, I was almost too old for that by human standards. Did I really want to be a dad at my age? My mother had been near forty when she had me and always lamented that she wished she was younger. I always told myself, I’d start young. And here I was…
“Can I take a second?” I asked him.
He looked concerned. ‘Are you okay?’
“Yeah. I just want to use the bathroom before I change,” I lied.
‘Go ahead.’
He jumped onto the chair I had vacated and started kneading the cushion before settling in to wait, mostly on my discarded shirt.
I went into the bathroom, for the first time full of doubt. I really had just jumped into this without thinking. I mean, I guess the fact I was obviously older than him didn't bother Cambry, or he would have said something. Right?
I flicked on the light and dropped my elbows onto the sink. “What have you done?” I groaned to my reflection. I froze.
The person staring back at me from the mirror was not the face I expected to see.
“What the…” I murmured.
No more salt and pepper hair. It was as dark brown as it had ever been, and fuller and thicker than I had seen in years. I ran a hand through it, brushing it off the side of my face, and noticed that the crow's feet by my eyes
were gone too. I leaned back to take in more of my reflection.
Was I younger?
Was that possible?!
Of course, I reminded myself, I had just been turned into a were-cat and met a dragon. And here I was, asking if it was possible I had gotten younger. I looked at the bite mark on my arm and saw that it was already scarred over. How had it healed so quickly? I stared. Even my arm looked younger. My hands which were normally chapped this time of year, were as smooth as could be. My one finger, perpetually crooked from when I had broken it years ago, was perfectly straight. The knobby knuckle was gone too.
I looked back at myself in the mirror and realized that even my body had changed. I wasn't flabby anymore. Everything had tightened up. My skin was smooth, healthy. Even the scattered white hairs on my chest were black again.
I was younger.
I was younger!
“Cambry?!” I called, hearing an edge of panic in my voice.
‘What's wrong?’ I heard a thud as he jumped off the chair,
I flung open the door and, momentarily forgetting he was a cat, nearly tripped over him.
‘Sorry,’ he cried, darting out of the way. He pivoted neatly and sat back on his haunches. ‘What's the matter?’
“I'm…” I gestured to myself. “Look at me!”
He tilted his head, studying me. ‘You look great.’
“I look twenty!”
‘Oh!’ Cambry flattened his ears. ‘I thought I had mentioned that we return to our peak physical appearance after being changed. Which, usually makes us appear younger.’
“No,” I said, laughing in disbelief. “You hadn't mentioned that.” I looked down at my body. “Peak.”
He sat up and nodded. ‘Yes.’
“No wonder you didn't care that I'm older than you,” I said. “How long do we stay like this?”
His eyes grew impossibly wide, even for a cat, and he rocked back on his feet, tail lashing. ‘Did I not tell you?’ he gasped, sounding stunned. ‘Oh, god. You agreed so quickly. I didn't tell you!’ He bounded in a panicked looking circle.
“Tell me what?” I asked in concern. “Is it good at least?”
‘Oh, it's good,’ he said. ‘At least I hope you think it's good. I can't believe I forgot. Couldn't Elara tell you didn’t know?! Couldn't she have said something?!’
Espresso for His Omega Page 6