MARSHALL POV:
I looked down at the small female in front of me and froze. She only stood about chest height, and had such a small frame that it looked like she would snap like a twig in the wind. Her short red hair was all messy and her face looked adorable when she pouted.
"I think they are a little too big." She said as she struggled to hold the pants up. The tunic was like a dress on her, the back of it reached the back of her knees and the front was crumpled up from her trying to tuck it in the front of the pants. My pants were not only too wide for her small hips but way too long. She was using one hand on the tree to steady herself, and the other was on the pants, holding them up. The V-neck of my tunic drooped dangerously low and part of her breasts were exposed.
I felt my face heat up as the wolf instincts inside me urged me to pounce on her again. I took a deep calming breath and replied, "haha yeah, sorry about that. I just grabbed what I had stashed nearby."
She also blushed as she looked down and saw what I was staring at. She let go of the pants, which then fell to the ground at her scrawny ankles, as she used her hand to adjust the top. "I guess this will do for now, it's practically a dress anyways."
I watched as she tried to take her free hand off the tree but her little legs were already shaking and collapsed under her weight. I ran to help her up, and couldn't help but ask.
"What happened to you, little one? Why are you so weak? And why are you all alone?" I tried to speak gently, as I lifted her up into my arms again.
Feeling her soft body so close, I wanted more, but restrained myself. She didn't seem to feel what I feel. She was definitely meant for me, I can feel the pull. But for some reason, she didn't seem to notice, or feel it as well. Maybe because she is so weak. I will have to ask my uncle when we get back to town.
"First of all, my name is Mika"
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MIKA POV:
"Mika." He said, in a very soothing voice. It was actually quite comfortable to be near him. Maybe it's because I have the image of him as dog in my head, but I don't feel threatened by him at all. In my current state, I wouldn't be able to fight him off if I needed to. Although I doubt that even at my peak I would stand much of a chance. Somehow I still feel confident that he wouldn't do anything to upset me, maybe it's because I've always been good at training dogs.
He looked at me expectantly. He's clearly waiting for me to explain myself. I took a moment to think, as he continued to walk with me in his arms. How do I explain this… I don't want to say anything weird. "I was hurt a long time ago, in an accident. It caused my legs to not work. But now they seem to be working."
"Why aren't your people taking care of you?" He asked.
"I'm alone." I replied. It wasn't a lie either. I am alone. I have always been alone.
"Where is your family?" He pressed, looking at me with strange look on his face.
I decided to stick as close to the truth as possible since it would be easier to keep everything straight if I was asked again. "They were never around, I was left alone much of the time. And when I got hurt, they completely disappeared from my life."
He looked shocked, angry, and incredulous at this revelation. It can't be that uncommon. I didn't want to look suspicious so I just looked away and stayed silent.
He suddenly held me tighter and said, "No matter where you came from, who your people are, or what you have been through, we are together now and I am here to take care of you."
As ridiculous as this sounded, this world was not my own. Maybe this is how they talk here. I'm not entirely sure what he meant by that so I just stayed quiet.
The gentle swaying as he walked through the woods with me in his arms, combined with his warmth and heart beat, made me start to feel sleepy. It was starting to get dark and my legs felt like jello from trying to stand on my own. Before I knew it, I fell asleep.
* * * * * * * * *
"She is definitely of age, but her vitality seems to have regressed to the state of a child. We won't know the truth of what she is until she regains her physical and spiritual strength." There was the sound of glass clinking and a chair being moved.
"What is wrong with her?" Marshall asked
"I can't find any physical evidence but it appears that she has not been using her legs, see how thin they are? And her arms are quite well developed which tells me that she used her arms to compensate." There was a pause and I felt a blanket being placed over my body.
"Do you think her condition is why she can't feel it?" I heard Marshall ask. he must be talking about something that happened while I was asleep.
"Most likely. I will say that I've never seen anything like this before. Even more surprising, for a female to be abandoned in the woods… it's completely unheard of. If her tribe is not dead, they deserve to be." the man's voice said.
I finally felt some strength returning to my body and I opened my eyes.
"ah, you are awake." The man said. He had long salt and pepper hair, and wore a scholarly looking long white tunic which was accented with a red cotton belt, tied around his wait, and dark pants. He approached from across the room where they were sitting.
I jumped when I felt someone grab my hand on the other side of the bed; I looked over and it was Marshall. His eyes looked big and pitiful and his ears were back. "Mira! I'm glad you are awake! I thought you were dead!"
The older man, who appears to be a doctor based on the surroundings, karate chopped Marshall in the head and admonished him, "Stupid boy! You didn't notice she was breathing?" He turned towards me and told me what happened after I fell asleep, "this fool barged in here in the middle of the night and scared me half to death." I looked at Marshall who was rubbing his head and looking like a dog who just got scolded. I struggled to suppress a giggle as I reached for his head, he crouched down to let me stroke his head, like he did when he was wolf dog.
"Sorry to inconvenience you, sir." I said as I finished petting Marshall and sat up with his help. "My name is Mika. I am very grateful for your care." I bowed my head to show my sincerity as I couldn't do much else from my place on the bed.
The old man had a tinge of a blush on his face as he said, "Oh no! No problem at all. You are welcome here any time." As he awkwardly scratched his head.
Wait. I've seen that before. I looked back and forth between the doctor and Marshall. "Are you Marshall's uncle?" I asked.
"Indeed I am!" His tail behind him started wagging uncontrollably.
Just then the sound of a door opening and closing from the other room drew the doctor away, leaving me and Marshall alone in the room. He just kept staring at me, just like my dog used to do. I shook my head to clear my thoughts, he is not a dog!
"Thanks for your help earlier… Sorry to scare you. Hehe, guess I was more tired than I thought." I said, trying to break the silence.
He reached out and embraced me in big hug as he said, "I'm glad you are okay. If you feel well enough we can go home now." He backed up a enough to look into my eyes.
'No, absolutely not! Just because you give me puppy eyes does not mean I forgot what you did in the woods!' …Is what I wanted to say.
"Okay" I said, in almost a whisper.
Damn, I'm an idiot. Yes, he's probably the most attractive guy I've ever seen, and yeah he gives off this innocent puppy vibe… but he's a man. And a man is a man, no matter what. I need to be careful! What am I thinking?!
He picked me up and carried me out of what looked like a long house made of wood and stone. It was still dark out and I couldn't see anything, I have no idea how he knew where he was going without light. Unless he has like… night vision?
"Marshall?" I looked up, even though I couldn't see him if I wanted to.
"Hmm?" He asked, with a slight rumble in his chest as he made the sound. A sound which weirdly enough, sent shivers down my spine.
"Can you see in the dark?" I asked
"Oh yeah, we all can. Except for the little ones, but they aren't allowed out after the suns go down." He said, simply.
"Oh.."
"Don't worry! The doctor said that you will gain your beast back after you regain your health."
"Beast? Is that what you call your wolf?" I asked
"haha no, I am a wolf so I am simply a wolf." I could imagine the awkward look on his face, clearly he was not the best source of information. He seemed a little slow on the uptake. It was kind of endearing. "When we find out what you are, then that what you will be." He continued on as if he was making sense in the first place.
I decided to go along with it and ask the old doctor another time. "Oh okay." I replied.
"you should be the same as your parents… do you remember what they were?" He asked gently.
"No," I replied, "I'm afraid I don't."
We stopped moving and he opened a door. I looked inside at the small round house with a double bed in the middle. It was like one of those Caribbean vacation huts. Even the wood on the poles of his bed were intricately carved. "Wow." I said as soon as I saw it.
"Hehe, sorry it's not much. I didn't need much…" He trailed off, sounding like he was embarrassed.
"What?" I asked, "It's beautiful!" I took a look around the place and realized that it was just a spacious bed room. There was no couch, just a large bed in the middle, some book shelves, a couple of chests, a small table and chairs, and a fur rug.
Wait… There's only 1 bed…
He must have noticed the change in my demeanor as we entered the house and he shut the door. "What is it?" He asked, sounding ashamed.
As I was unable to stand and there was no sofa, I did not object when he took me over to the bed and sat me down. "It's just umm.. there's only one bed…I think we are going to need more… " I trailed off. I definitely didn't want to kick this guy out of his own bed, but there wasn't even a sofa!
I looked up at him and his eyes darkened again, he leaned in slowly and I used my arms to scoot myself back. "Marshall…?" I asked, afraid of what was going on.
Suddenly he pounced on me and held me down on the bed. He started kissing my neck, working up towards my jaw. I froze, unable to move, and my mind went blank for minute.
I haven't been with a man before, I never got the chance. I was curious and it felt good, I was definitely into this. But I don't want this guy thinking that he can just jump on me when he feels like it!
As I tried to summon my self control and courage I suddenly felt him grab my breast. Oh! I've never felt that before! It felt so good, I wanted more. A gasp escaped my lips against my own will and he covered my lips with his own. His hands kneaded and teased my chest, his lips devouring my own. My own self control was slipping away as I desperately wanted more.