She patted him on the shoulder as if to reassure him. “No more stalling or arguing. Let’s just get this over with.”
Chapter Sixteen
She waited, barely daring to breathe until Gregory nodded his head ever so slightly. The small acknowledgement was enough for her, and she hugged him once more. She hated every moment they fought. She’d only urged him on this time because she’d sensed his self-doubt, the deeply rooted vulnerability that was his one great weakness.
The verbal sparring match had succeeded in drawing out his more alpha tendencies, enough that she felt happier with Gregory’s mindset. She couldn’t do much in the grand scheme of things, but if she could lift his mood and make what he had to do just a little bit easier, then she would be happy to fulfill the role.
“Will this spot do? Or should we go deeper into the forest to avoid detection?”
Gregory eyed the area once more and gave a little shrug. “This is not where, when, or how I would have liked to show you the finer points of being a gargoyle, yet this is what we have. It will do. I sense no others near—human or Fae.
“Good. I don’t want an audience the first time. I have a feeling learning to use four legs will be more difficult than two. And, wings, those I don’t even want to contemplate.” She tried humor to lighten the mood, though she wasn’t sure if she did it for Gregory’s benefit or her own. The thought of the actual physical shift scared her more than the end result. How much would it hurt? And what if she fainted? Would she get stuck half way?
Strong arms closed around her and pulled her into his warmth. “Do not fear your other nature, it will come naturally to you,” Gregory said in a soothing voice. “Only your fear, and perhaps mine as well, have halted the change this long. We are now someplace safe from discovery—it is only your uncertainty holding back your gargoyle side.”
After another nervous swallow, she gave him a small nod of acknowledgement.
His hand came up to caress her hair. “Relax, breathe deeply and put everything out of your mind except my voice.”
She found the combination of his voice and the rhythmic stroking of her hair relaxing. Tension she hadn’t even been aware of, slowly eased from between her shoulder blades. She buried her nose against Gregory’s neck and inhaled his scent. He smelled like home.
“Don’t fear the power within you. It is as much a part of you as your dryad side.”
With a snort of humor, Lillian realized she hadn’t really accepted her dryad side, which may be why she also feared the gargoyle half. She just wanted to be plain old Lillian. Nothing more and nothing less.
“You’ll always be ‘more’,” Gregory whispered into her hair. “You are an Avatar, you’ll never be ‘less’.”
“I just want to be me.”
“You will always be you, whether you wear the hide of a dryad or a gargoyle, both are as much a part of you as I am.”
Strangely, the way he worded it made it more palatable to her. She’d always known Gregory was a part of her. She accepted it without thought or complaint. Shouldn’t she be able to accept her gargoyle bloodline just as easily?
Perhaps.
As if her weakening resolve was a signal, magic filled her in a tingling rush, flowing out from her heart, down both arms and legs, to the very tips of her fingers and toes.
She gasped at the pressure of the building power.
“Easy, it is only your hamadryad sharing magic with you to make this first shift easier,” Gregory said in his deep soothing voice. “Once you learn how, you will be able to shift without needing the extra surge of magic to push you over the precipice.”
Her skin became super sensitized, her clothing felt two sizes too small. Heat intensified between her shoulder blades and all along her spine. A great pressure built, not pain, but not pleasure either.
“Slowly,” Gregory crooned. “You’re in too much of a hurry again.”
“Maybe you should go mention that to my hamadryad?”
He chuckled, then his fingers left her hair and started to work the buttons of her blouse. When it was freed, he pushed it off her shoulders and tossed it behind her with little regard. Her belt soon joined the other articles of clothing on the forest floor.
He paused and by his expression, she knew he wanted to say something, but didn’t know how to word it.
“Just spit it out before my hamadryad sends the next wave of magic.”
He flicked an ear in her direction, uncertain. “Once you shift, you may find yourself as attracted to my scent as I am to yours. You needn’t be embarrassed by how you may react.”
“Ah, thanks for the warning.” Lillian toed off her shoes and kicked them in the general direction of her other clothing. He popped the button on her jeans, pushed them down her hips and quickly disrobed her of the rest of her clothing. Naked, the night felt much cooler than it had earlier. She shivered and tucked herself against his side. One wing curled around her, covering her from head to toe in a living cloak.
“Now what?” she asked, but she knew.
“Surrender.”
His hypnotic voice made it sound easy. She acknowledged the command in his tone, but she also wanted to do something useful in her own right. Besides, a gargoyle was far handier in a battle than a dryad.
She breathed in his scent, tasted his ancient magic, and her essence resonated to his silent call. Power flared within her. Gregory placed a hand on her back, between her shoulders and pushed, forcing her to bend at the waist. Instincts flared and she understood what he was telling her. She dropped to all fours as the power crested within. A burning magic flowed just below her skin, rippling and flaring with a mind of its own.
Lillian gasped and bowed her back, her fingers clawing at the loamy earth. A hot, wet sensation made its slow way over her back and down her sides as something heavy burst from her back. She groaned in pain, but was distracted by a new ache radiating from two burning points high on her forehead.
Everywhere, her body shifted and changed. She grew light headed, her arms shook and she would have collapsed onto her side had it not been for Gregory’s strong arm around her waist. Another wave of power crashed over her body. Her vision sparked white at the edges before going grey.
Panting and disoriented, with her muzzle pressed into the leaf mold covering the forest floor, she lay quietly for a moment. It came to her slowly. She must have blacked out. She didn’t remember completing the change, however a glance down her body confirmed there was no denying she was now fully gargoyle.
She fixated on her tail, studying it in equal parts humor and uncertainty. Just lying there, she could feel the weight of it against her legs, rather like a large boa constrictor sleeping coiled against her. She flinched at the mental image and her tail gave a reflexive twitch.
“You’re awake?” Gregory’s voice rumbled in her ear and she realized she was resting against another warm, living body.
She turned her head and found it difficult to lift, as if the balance had changed.
“What?” she started to ask and then wacked her horns against Gregory’s as she turned to look at him. “Oh!”
Gregory laughed and nuzzled her, purposefully rubbing against her so their horns clicked together. It didn’t hurt but she rolled her eyes skyward to try to gage their span. When she thought she knew their impressive size, she was careful to disentangle hers with a muttered ‘Sorry’.
“You have nothing to be sorry for. You did well.” His voice sounded husky, or maybe it was her new ears.
“I fainted.” Her own voice sounded strange, too. “I thought I had more backbone.”
“Hmm….backbone?” Gregory’s arm came around her waist, dragging her a few inches closer. His warm breath wafted against her shoulder and then his muzzle was shifting her hair away from the back of her neck. A gentle lapping made her jerk in his hold, partly in surprise and partly because it felt too good to hold still.
“What are you doing? Shouldn’t I be…” her voice trailed off as he continued
to lap at her sensitive neck. A soft prickle of teeth against her skin froze the breath in her lungs and tensed all her muscles. It felt nice….too nice.
“Gregory?” She twisted in his arms to try to see his expression. “I don’t think this is a good idea.”
“No,” he rumbled with humor, “but it certainly feels good.”
He surprised her again when he suddenly rolled away and came to his feet. Crouching next to her, he looked her over with what could only be called interest. She eased up onto her forearms. Her wings came with her, which shouldn’t have surprised her, they were attached after all.
“Goodness,” she gasped. “How do you move with these massive things dragging after you?”
He glanced over his shoulder. “To be honest, I notice them no more than my arms, legs, or tail. Yours will become natural to you too. Can you stand? Start with all fours. You might find it easier.”
Baby steps. Nice and slow, she told herself as she rolled from her side to her stomach. Almost of their own accord, her wings righted themselves and fell into place along her back. Her tail shifted and she gave it an experimental wave as she gathered her hind legs under her.
Gregory coughed into his bent arm, but she could see the tears rolling down his cheeks. His entire chest shook.
“Are you laughing at me?” Lillian aimed a pointed glare in his direction and he only laughed harder.
“No, yes…sorry.” He cleared his throat and wiped at his eyes.
“Well, it’s not very nice.” Then she realized she was resting on her forearms and the position put her… “Dammit! It’s not funny at all.”
She pushed up and came to all fours, curling her tail around her hips. It did nothing for her nudity, and Gregory still watched her with avid interest.
“I know it wasn’t intended as an invitation,” he cleared his throat, “but….in the future, you perhaps should be aware…”
“It certainly wasn’t an invitation! I’m still trying to walk. I wasn’t thinking of sex.”
She dragged in a deep breath, and Gregory’s scent hit her squarely in the chest. She leaned closer to him. He smelled good enough to eat. “Argh! Stop it!”
“Stop what? I do nothing.” He spread his hands, showing them empty and then gave her a slow, toothy gargoyle grin, and winked at her.
With a show of her newly discovered motor skills, she flipped him the bird.
He laughed and then came over and helped her up. “I did warn you about the likelihood of our attraction. You’ve always smelled good to me. I suppose it only makes sense I would smell equally good to you.”
She wobbled around until she found her new center of gravity. Feeling like she might actually be able to stay upright, she glanced at Gregory and was surprised to see they were eye level. For the first time since she’d met him, she didn’t have to crane her neck.
“Okay, points for being a gargoyle.”
He tilted his head in question but she ignored him in favor of getting a good look at her new body. While she had his height, she was of a slighter build than him, less heavily muscled, less bulky overall. But what she lacked in physical strength, she’d bet she made up for in speed.
“I’m fast, aren’t I?”
“Yes.”
“Why is my coloring so different from yours? Do gargoyles have variations in skin pigment like humans?”
Gregory cocked an ear. “You’re a female gargoyle, there’s nothing normal about any of this. But as for your coloring, no, it’s different than any gargoyle I’ve seen. The Lady of Battles likes black and crimson. I can only assume she designed your gargoyle body with that in mind.”
Lillian flinched. “Kill joy. I didn’t need the reminder about her just now.”
“I detect nothing evil within you. The changes are physical only. The Dark Goddess couldn’t touch your soul, not even with the demon seed’s influence.” Gregory dipped his muzzle to nudge her gently. “Soon we will be free of her taint altogether and can face her in battle unhindered by her manipulations.”
Gregory seemed a little over confident on that score, Lillian mused, but he had faced the dark one in the past, so she would bow to his wisdom.
Dropping to all fours, Gregory bound around her in a half circle. “Come,” he called, slapping her flank with his tail as he dashed by. “Run with me.”
Gregory’s enthusiasm was infectious, and she took a cautious step forward and then another. She remained upright, more trusting of two legs than four. Her wings and tail shifted naturally to aid her balance, requiring almost no thought on her part.
“Lillian, the night grows long.” Gregory darted out around her and she could hear him coming up directly behind.
Not knowing what he planned, she squealed in mock anger and started to run. Her new body responded like she owned it all along, her stride stretching into an easy ground-devouring lope. He came along side and kept pace with her for several strides and then bound over a fallen tree.
“Be patient,” she cast him a dark look, “Haven’t you heard the saying you need to learn how to walk before you run?”
“A human saying.” Gregory countered. “You’re a gargoyle now. React.”
With only the one word as warning, Gregory charged, his wings spread to block escape to either side. She backpedaled, lost her balance, and landed on her butt in an undignified sprawl. Gregory landed on top and gave her a sloppy gargoyle kiss before bounding away again. She growled at his retreating backside, wishing she had a well-weighted rock. Rolling to all fours, she scrubbed his residual kiss off with one foreleg and then stretched, loosening and limbering up muscles.
When he doubled back for her, she was ready and pounced on him. Her strike was more luck than skill, but she landed square on his back and was rewarded by his grunt of surprise as she knocked his hind legs out from under him, using only her tail.
Gregory collapsed and rolled at the same time. Lillian suddenly found herself falling sideways with him somehow on top. They were chest to chest, and when Gregory gave a happy little wiggle, she was reminded she was naked.
“Chauvinistic pervert,” Lillian issued a light hearted challenge. “Why do you get a loincloth and I get nothing?”
With another of his slow, toothy grins Gregory tugged at one of the loincloth’s ties. “I would never wish to make you feel you weren’t my equal.”
“Ha! Nice try, but no getting naked. One buck-ass naked gargoyle running through the woods is enough. And speaking about running. If you want me to run and hunt with you, you better magic up something to bind these with,” she pointed at her breasts, “‘cause running with them loose is not going to be any kind of fun.”
Gregory sighed longingly. “Perhaps not for you…”
“P is for perverted. G is for gargoyle….”
“I like to think P was for patience.”
“That’s for me. You definitely get the former.” Lillian turned from him and started scanning the ground. When she found a particularly nice patch of moss and ferns, she pointed at it with one long clawed finger. “Magic me up some clothing like you did once before. Only this time, something similar to your loincloth and a sports bra instead of a pretty, but functionally useless gown.”
“As my lady commands.” Gregory turned to the area she indicated.
****
Dressed in her strange, but comfortable, mixed plant fiber clothing, Lillian loped along behind Gregory as he stalked his prey through the forest. At a later date, he’d promised to make her magically warded clothing like his loincloth so the items would shape shift with her. Which, Lillian had to admit, would be handy.
As promised, she found it natural to run on all fours, and they covered ground quickly. Following downwind of Gregory had the added benefit of being bathed in a wash of his warm, male scent. It mingled in an altogether pleasant way with the night breeze.
Following him for kilometers at a time was far from a chore. It soothed the wildness she’d experience earlier in the afternoon when she’d fel
t trapped in the house, missing Gregory and needing something so primal she hadn’t known what it was. Now she knew.
She needed this—a wild run through her home forest. Hunting with Gregory at her side. Putting on a burst of speed, she came alongside him. He glanced over at her and she prodded him affectionately with her muzzle, working her way up his side, to his shoulder, and then finally managed to plant a wet kiss along his cheek as they ran.
“I love you,” she sent in a burst of emotion.
“And I you, guardian of my heart and soul.” Gregory’s tail slid along her body, a caress of friendship and reassurance. “But there is still many things I must teach you this night, and you will need nutrition to maintain your strength.”
She was feeling mildly hungry, had been for some time, but she’d seen so many wonderful things she’d put it out of her mind. Though now that he’d mentioned it, hunger planted itself forefront in her thoughts.
“I could use a snack,” she sent.
“Follow me. I know a place.”
Chapter Seventeen
Tethys swam deeper, her powerful tail cutting through the water easily as her eyes scanned the reef below for signs of Surefin. There, near a yawning ravine in the coral, a silver grey shadow darted around an outcropping and sank into a fissure. She followed him, humming and clicking softly. She used no enchantments, wanting him to come to her willingly. Swimming over the crest of coral, she almost collided with the young dolphin. He turned to bolt deeper into the reef.
“Wait. I will not harm you. You are safe with me. Look within my mind and you will see the truth.”
His uncertainty still clear in every flick of his tail and fins, he rose a bit higher.
Taking it as permission, she turned her magic upon herself. Her enchantment allowed the young male a way into her thoughts and emotions if he was brave enough to try.
“Go ahead. No harm will come to you. And you are free to go now or after,” Tethys sent warmth and peace across the mental link. “I have never and will never enslave one of the ocean.”
Surefin cautiously bumped his muzzle against her outstretched hand, then forward a bit more until he positioned himself for a scratch. After a bit of tactile reassurance, his thoughts touched hers. He was more thorough than she would have thought, given his boisterousness and reactive personality. She waited patiently for him to finish. When he slid back and away, she did not hinder his escape. He picked up speed and vanished around another part of the coral reef.
Sorceress Rising (A Gargoyle and Sorceress Tale Book 2) Page 11
