‘Damn,’ he muttered as the whole bucket of mortar flew onto the bricks and the bricks leapt up and spun like a tornado all the way around the building creating another three courses of bricks in a split moment. He trotted back to the building and eyed the messy pile of unused bricks now splattered in mortar. He gestured more carefully and the whole pile rose and flew around the building, growing the walls at blinding speed.
‘We were hoping for the odd doorway and window,’ Drako commented drily from behind him.
Jim growled, his fangs gleaming and the bricks stopped flying. ‘Where do you want them?’ A stick of chalk appeared to order in his paw and he tossed it to Drako. ‘Mark them out and stand clear.’
Drako checked the plans again and hastily drew lines on the brick box Jim had created. He showed the lion the plans as well, so he would also see the design features that had originally been planned and then stood back. Bricks popped out of the wall, others cut themselves in half and yet others replaced themselves with stone lintels. He added the supports for the interior staircase and beams to support the first floor.
‘Can we go and look?’ Drako asked before stepping forward. The flying bricks had been a considerable hazard but the discarded ones were now neatly stacked, the wet cement cleaned from them.
‘Is that how you wanted it?’ Jim asked checking it over against the plans. ‘If you’re sure I’ll cure the mortar. Then it’ll be ready for the roof trusses to go on.’
‘Yes please,’ Drako said simply and got the others to stand back. The whole building seemed to quiver and settle, the bricks nestling into their mortar beds and neatly squaring up with each other. The mortar suddenly lightened to its dry off white colour. Work that had taken days to get to knee height before Jim’s arrival had been completed in a matter of moments. ‘We should have called you over earlier,’ Drako muttered.
‘Jim, don’t you need me to help lift that?’ Amelie asked in concern.
‘I suppose that’d be useful,’ Jim said, although he felt he could shift virtually anything unaided.
Amelie eyed him and merged with him. The power coursing through his body was quite unlike how he normally felt. His sudden power was intoxicating but surprising. She would have expected that while holding an animus shape, his power would be reduced, not amplified.
The roof timbers lay ready and they lifted them crossways across the open house to roof level. The beams still needed positioning, but that would be easy now they were atop the walls. Jim decided the men could take it from here. He felt waves of hunger assaulting him; it was not all his own either. Amelie was suffering now for his delay in getting her back to the house. He licked her face gently, concerned for her and their baby and they turned to trot back to the house.
‘Wonder what’s going on?’ Jim mused, noticing what looked like most of the school watching from the windows. ‘How am I going to explain this?’ he added.
Max the owl flew rather tentatively towards the group of animus predators approaching. He recognised Drako and knew that the wolves were Drako’s warriors, but of most concern to him were the huge lion and lioness leading them. Those he had certainly never seen before. Suddenly he noticed the lioness’ eyes change from gold to blue. ‘Amelie?’
‘Hi Max. What’s the audience about?’ Amelie asked.
‘Vako came rushing out in a panic to announce that he’d detected several massive power spikes, originating from within the grounds. Then we saw you coming. I’m sorry, but who is this?’ Max asked quickly, eyeing the massive lion intently staring at him with predatory eyes. He was having difficulty standing his ground and not fleeing at best speed away from this creature.
‘The power spikes were probably me,’ Jim said calmly.
‘Headmaster?’ Max stammered.
‘You’ve never called me that before, Deputy Max,’ Jim rumbled, amusement in his tone. ‘Could you ask cook to put something together for us to eat quickly?’
‘Of course, right away sir,’ Max said and flew swiftly back to the house.
‘You scared him,’ Drako observed.
‘I don’t know why. I wasn’t trying to be frightening,’ Jim said.
‘You should take a glance in a mirror,’ Drako suggested.
Jim sighed and resumed his walk to the house. At the entrance people scattered before him, none seeming to want to get too close to him. A thought opened the door to the staff room and he went directly to the full-length mirror there and stared. A very wild, powerful and dangerous looking creature stared back at him with intent yellow eyes. ‘That’s me?’
‘Certainly is. Now you see what we mean,’ Drako told him.
Jim curled back his lips and stared at enormous white fangs. He guessed that simply opening his mouth to speak exposed those teeth far too much for most people’s comfort. He would also have to remember that smiling would not translate as intended, either! He turned to look at the rest of his changed body. His pale gold fur was thick and soft; it had certainly kept him warm outside. His mane was a shade darker than his body and covered his neck and ears in an unruly wild display. His lion was lean with powerful, well-defined muscles. He looked as though he could tackle anything. ‘But I’m not a warrior; why this?’
‘A lion isn’t a warrior. He doesn’t seek battles but he’s one hell of a defender,’ Drako answered.
Jim’s fears suddenly cleared. ‘You’re right. I never look for trouble. Does that mean I’m cowardly?’ he abruptly wondered.
Drako snorted. ‘No. I’ve never seen or heard that you’ve backed away from any challenge.’
‘Thank you Drako.’ He noticed they were alone. ‘What form do you feel stronger in, bear or human?’
‘That depends on the situation. As a man I feel more acceptable among people; many can be scared by me too,’ Drako admitted. ‘I can think more clearly as a man. But as a bear I’m physically stronger and feel free and unburdened by life.’ He shrugged. ‘You think me a warrior, but a bear is no warrior either. We prefer a simple life, whereas a human tends to clutter and overcomplicate. It can be an uneasy mix.’ Drako decided the lion was drooping a little. ‘Aren’t you hungry? I wonder if the others have left us anything. We should go.’
Jim nodded and headed directly for the dining hall. Amelie the lioness looked up when he arrived, but all he saw were the males standing in too close a proximity to his mate for his liking. He trotted purposefully over and the smaller wolves stepped back from her side hastily, aware of his sharp gaze.
‘Eat, my love. It may improve your temper,’ Amelie couldn’t resist adding.
He nudged her gently with his shoulder but a plate of food sat untouched beside her and he had the scent of it in his nostrils. She nodded towards it and he knew she had saved it for him. He licked her furry face then turned to the plate. He ate speedily and single-mindedly, his belly demanding.
Not long after they had finished eating and were still lounging in the hall, they noticed the cooks begin setting out the tea urn and mugs. Jim in particular was still recovering from the exhausting afternoon’s events so he moved over to the windows to be well out of the way and lay down again.
‘You’re not changing back?’ Jim asked as Drako the bear joined him and students began to arrive.
‘You haven’t,’ Drako pointed out. ‘I assumed you wanted this to look intentional, or were you seeking the lion’s share of the attention?’
Jim growled at that. ‘No. I just haven’t figured out how to change back and would rather do it without an audience. This is new to me you know.’
Drako laughed and patted him on the back with a huge paw. Lions didn’t tend to do sheepish very well. The lion glanced round and Drako followed his gaze, a pretty girl was approaching, one he’d not met.
‘Hello Cassy,’ Jim said.
‘So it is you, sir. And this must be Drako?’ she asked, turning to look more closely at the huge glossy black bear. The bear nodded and his head tilted to one side rather like a curious dog as he looked at her in retur
n.
‘So you are the legendary Cassy?’ Drako rumbled. ‘Thank you for designing my house. I would have said so earlier but you seem remarkably elusive.’
‘I’ve been busy,’ Cassy said airily, knowing Drako would not have been able to find her since she had been purposefully avoiding him. Nevertheless, she had promised Amelie she would introduce herself to him. Now she had. ‘Amelie designed the outside and it inspired me. I’m glad you like it,’ Then she turned to the lion. ‘Can you tell us what happened?’ Cassy asked, eyeing the big powerful cat. ‘I mean, I see you fit this shape, but how could it happen? You’re a powerful wizard, but a wizard nonetheless.’
‘I’m not entirely sure,’ Jim admitted. ‘I’ve only recently been told I’m a Leach, able to soak up some aspects of other’s abilities when I merge with them. Amelie and I have extensively healed each other and I think we may have unknowingly transferred some of our powers to each other.’
‘And when you share minds, which of course you seem to have to do every few minutes,’ Cassy added with a small smile, ‘you probably add to that transfer. So you are now a warrior wizard too?’
‘I doubt it, but I really don’t know. Drako says a lion isn’t a warrior by nature though, he’s a defender,’ Jim explained, feeling that this difference in approach was important somehow.
‘Of course,’ Cassy exclaimed. ‘It’s the lioness who’s the hunter, the warrior. The male’s role is to defend his pride from other males.’ She glanced at Drako hearing an odd snorting rumble and realised he was laughing.
‘That’s your jealousy pegged perfectly,’ Drako said to Jim and ignored the lion’s growl. ‘There aren’t any other lions here, my friend,’ he added.
‘What does it feel like to be in a furry skin? How does it feel to be physically something other than human?’ Cassy asked looking from one to the other. ‘May I touch your fur?’ she asked Jim very hesitantly, although it was the bear she was actually curious about. He nodded, but his gaze flicked over her shoulder and she didn’t need to look to know Amelie would be there. She lightly touched the mane, feeling its texture, but knew she should not touch him further. She turned to the bear and met his intelligent dark eyes questioningly. He nodded so she touched his shoulder lightly, and found the texture of his long dense fur was unexpectedly soft and inviting.
‘I thought your fur would be coarse but you’re very soft,’ she commented in delighted surprise. She met his eyes again, watching his reaction closely as she buried her hands in the irresistible thick pelt. She moved up his shoulder to scratch along his jaw and he tilted his head invitingly. He seemed to be thoroughly enjoying her touch. The warmth from his skin, permeating the dense fur, pulled at her strangely. She had secretly watched the man beneath this bear, finding him exceedingly attractive and disturbingly sexy. She had stayed away however, certain that such a charismatic leader was out of her reach. His bear however was warm, gentle and cuddly.
Drako couldn’t help half closing his eyes, relishing this woman’s caressing touch. Suddenly words whispered into his head; you’d be lovely to snuggle up to on a cold night. ‘Did you just say something to me?’ Drako asked her. ‘In my head?’
‘I don’t think so,’ Cassy said, hastily letting go of his fur. ‘I wouldn’t know how. Besides, I thought an animus couldn’t read a wizard’s mind,’ she said defensively.
‘I didn’t. I just thought you spoke to me, that’s all,’ he said. ‘It was nice,’ he added softly and rather wistfully.
‘Sir, could I have done that? I mean, I only thought it was possible to connect with another wizard’s mind,’ Cassy said, turning to Jim.
‘You both have magic, remember. His magic is simply structured differently to yours. An animus has to learn to channel his magic to enable him to change, but it is there. I’ve never understood why it’s thought wizards and animus shouldn’t understand each other perfectly,’ Jim mused. He noted that whilst Cassy had turned to face him she had not left Drako’s side and was in fact leaning lightly against him, a hand playing almost furtively with his coat. Whilst she seemed fascinated by the bear, was she serious about Drako as a man? She had been avoiding him after all. Did Drako want this? He had thought Drako had been searching exclusively for an animus woman. Should he be intervening?
‘Can we touch your coat?’ Another girl from the wizard class asked. She had been watching and listening like everyone else. Cassy clearly could not leave the bear alone. ‘We’ve never been able to see any of the animus in their changed forms this closely,’ she added.
‘Ok,’ Drako acceded reluctantly and slightly nervously. Many hands descended on him. He could no longer feel just Cassy. She stayed by his head, appearing just as unhappy with others touching him. She glared at another girl, warning her from approaching his face. Cassy wrapped her arms around his neck pressing her face to his cheek. She seemed rather possessive, Drako suddenly thought.
‘Compare Drako with the others,’ Jim called to them, aware the wolves had come forward hoping for a share of the attention, but the animus wolves were bigger than their natural counterparts, and a little unnerving. ‘Max, you come over too. Your owl is quite different.’ He watched as quite quickly the girls had divided, clearly each having preferences. He chuckled watching an older girl take Max’s wing and stretch it out. She ran her fingers through the feathers completely engrossed in them. Max shivered at the touch and she did it again. Another girl tried to touch Max and the first warned her off. That was most peculiar. Max didn’t seem to mind though.
‘Why is it just the girls who are allowed to do this?’
Jim glanced at the speaker; he was one of the older wizard students. ‘You can see well enough. Do you really want to stroke another man? Or do you think they would be basking as they are now if it were a man touching them?’ Jim asked in amusement. ‘If any of the animus girls choose to change then you can see,’ he added. Janice turned into her deer, while the other girl turned into her fox.
‘How do we read their minds?’ The girl holding Max’s wing asked.
Jim hesitated. ‘That’s not something you should be trying. It is an invasion of privacy more intimate than sharing your body. It requires permission and trust on both sides.’
‘But Cassy sent Drako a private message. It must be possible,’ she added peevishly.
‘Sending someone a message by physically touching them is not the same as delving into their mind. Be sure you understand the difference. It’s the difference between just speaking to someone and having sex with them.’
‘Can an animus speak back?’ Cassy asked.
‘Some may be able to if a link between them and their lover is created by the wizard partner.’ Jim glanced around sensing an undercurrent of something primeval. Every animus man had at least one wizard woman touching him, although most had one exclusive partner only. The wizard men stood alone and mostly disregarded, as did the wizard women left over. ‘What’s the sudden interest in animus men?’
Cassy shook her head, trying to clear it and stepped apart from Drako to consider the seriousness of his question. ‘You’ve become one,’ she told Jim. ‘There are waves of raw power coming off you. You do know that?’
‘Someone said so,’ Jim said unhappily. ‘But, so what?’
‘It has a strong sexual undercurrent,’ Cassy told him, analysing the feeling and suddenly spotting that.
‘It’s not a sexual compulsion is it?’ Jim asked anxiously.
‘No. You’re a powerful male in his prime. But you’re not calling to us.’
‘So knowing he wasn’t single you’ve picked the nearest available substitute?’ Drako asked her, suddenly feeling about as desirable as a mangy dog.
‘No. You are not a substitute for anyone,’ Cassy told him. ‘I didn’t want to touch him, I wanted to touch you. Couldn’t you feel that? You are beautiful; man and bear. I wanted to be close to you, not him. But if you don’t feel the same, tell me now.’
Drako blinked at the import of the sudden s
trong emotions coming from her, accompanying that highly intimate mental message. Had she meant him to hear all that? ‘But what you’re feeling could be this compulsion,’ Drako whispered, his gut twisting in uncertainty. Why should he suddenly care so much? He didn’t even know her. Was he just reacting as a male creature to a female’s desire? Was he so shallow? Was the spark he felt simply due to her interest in him?
‘Amelie, please take Jim and his damn influence away. Get him changed,’ Drako growled desperately.
Amelie nodded, thinking that a very good idea before any actual sexual acts took place. Max looked the most vulnerable. His owl lay on his back on a table, Tanya’s hand on his chest keeping him there. Amelie suspected that if he had been in man form he would already have been ravished, audience or not. His bird body and beak had been thwarting her.
‘Let him up,’ Amelie told Tanya and even growled when she didn’t immediately obey. ‘Are you alright Max?’ she couldn’t help asking anxiously as he righted himself.
‘Yes,’ Max responded and changed to being a feathered man since his clothes were on the far side of the room. Now he couldn’t so easily be held down, unless of course he chose to allow it. And assuming Tanya still wanted him when Jim left and the compulsion lifted. He turned his gaze back to Tanya and she wrapped her arms about him and kissed him. She pressed tightly against him and her hands caressed insistently. It had been far too long since someone had wanted him like this but he was a teacher and she a student; there were rules. Max grabbed her arms tight to her sides and lifted her away from him.
Drako noticed what was happening with Max and that his warriors were in various stages of what could easily be described as foreplay, all initiated by the women. Cassy was stroking his ears and the fine fur around his face, her body warmly pressed against his chest. He wrapped an arm around her, desperately wishing he knew whether she really wanted this intimacy with him. Her hands caught his huge paw and her fingers slid between the big curved talons to the stubby digits beneath. He shivered at the unexpected delicacy of the touch, his breath catching in his throat. He was fighting his desire to change back into a man and kiss her, touch her with hands rather than overly powerful and dangerously sharp claws. He rubbed his cheek on hers then licked her face instead; he couldn’t resist it. She stared at his mouth, his heavy jaw and big teeth. Her fingers stroked his soft muzzle and he suddenly felt a wave of emotion from her: her desire to kiss him, but that his form was stopping her. He groaned, fighting for control, as desire slammed into him. If he changed, he’d be naked in this public place and he was certain kissing her would instantly escalate things more than was wise. His lungs struggled to draw sufficient breath and his heart hammered. He rolled onto his rump more so he could sit upright and wrapped both arms about her holding her close. Not that she seemed to want any space to be between them anyway. He dropped his head to her shoulder breathing in her scent and trying to regain his composure.
Clan Green Bear: Wizards of White Haven Page 5
