A Tigers Stripes Never Change

Chapter 6

Cat

I stared in wonder as the most beautiful orange tiger began to shift and change into an incredibly handsome, and very naked man with dark brown hair and caramel eyes. He was breath taking in all his glory. He tried to stand but his legs were weak and he almost fell. Instinctively I reached out for him and held him up. His manhood brushing against the inside of my thigh. I barely noticed at first because the instant my hands touched his skin, a heat wave shot through my body; warming me more than the hot sun.

“Thank you,” he said softly. His voice was barely a whisper. “I need to get some water, could you help me back to that shack?”

I nodded and hugged him tighter to me as we moved into the direction of the building. I didn’t know what to say to this naked Adonis. I didn’t even know who I was, but I felt like it was coming back to me little by little.

“Do…do I know you?” I asked him. I looked at him so he could see my face and I hoped there would be a flash of recognition.

He studied my face intensely for a moment. His eyes were soft and warm. A little smile perked his lips up and the desire to kiss them was strong. But I held back. We only just met but I knew he was something important to me. I felt my tiger purr deep inside me.

“I don’t think so,” he said. “But you’re my mate and I’m never going to leave your side.”

I smiled at him. I wasn’t sure how to tell him that I don’t know who I am. I didn’t even know I was a tiger until about 30 minutes ago.

“What’s your name?” He asked as we finally made it to the building. The whole place was destroyed. Medical tools and equipment was thrown all over and smashed. Puddles of liquid covered the floor.

“I don’t know,” I said looking for a place to prop him up so I could get some water. I didn’t want him falling down in whatever toxins were pooled on the floor. “I woke up here yesterday morning with no idea who I am and what I was doing here. I didn’t even know I was a tiger until I was climbing a tree trying to get away from Andy.”

“Andy?” He asked. He sat on a piece of wood that had been once a wall. He looked very very confused. I sighed.

“Maybe I should start from the beginning, but first let me find some water. It’s a really long and weird story and I’m still not 100% sure any of this is even real or some really crazy f****d up realistic dream I’m having” I verbally vomited at him. He smiled a beautiful smile before bursting out with deep hard laugh. 

“Grab as much as you can,” he said. “We shouldn’t stay here any longer than we have too. He’ll be back soon enough.  He’s weak and scared. Especially of you.”

“I chased him to the east of the river before I stopped,” I recalled. “You weren’t behind me and I needed to see where you were. When you I saw you on the ground I completely forgot about Andy. Sorry, I should’ve chased him and down and killed him.”

I hung my head. We were still in danger because I was impulsive. I could’ve easily tracked him, he hadn’t gotten far and his rotting stench still filled my nose.  I could’ve killed him then been back to take care of my mate without fear.

A hand appeared before my eyes and pressed against my chin gently; raising my head to meet his gaze. His fingers warmed my skin where they touched and it spread throughout my face. I couldn’t help but smile at him, I etched his handsome features into my mind. I never wanted to forget this face.

“Don’t apologize my queen,” he whispered. “The moment you leapt into my life, not even an hour ago, I knew you were my mate. I am tethered to you and every step away from you is too much for my heart to take.  We are stronger together than apart.” He pressed his lips against mine gently, but firmly.

Electricity exploded through my body as he kissed me. My tiger roared and my body felt as if I caught fire. But too soon, he pulled away from me. My face flushed red from the heat still rising inside me. I took a deep breath to steady myself. Okay, focus. Still in danger. We can explore whatever this is when we are safe.

“I-I’ll be right back,” I stammered. I turned my attention to getting provisions. There seemed to be quite the mess and I was barefoot. I paused.

“We should check that cabin,” he said. I turned in the direction he pointed. A few hundred yards away there stood a small cabin.

“Isn’t that his?” I asked.

“Yeah, but I don’t think he’s anywhere near here. His scent is fading. It’s only strong here because this is his place. We may be able to have a lot better luck finding what we need there.”

“Okay,” I replied and hugged him against my side.

 He moaned at the contact and I felt him grow against my thigh. I was suddenly very aware that I wasn’t wearing any underwear. They had exploded the moment my tiger took over. I was able to salvage enough of other clothing to make a tube top type shirt and a very short skirt. But I had no bra or underwear. I felt the moisture between my legs before I could smell it. My arousal didn’t go unnoticed by him. His nostrils flared and he looked at me hungrily. My tiger demanded to be marked by him, she pressed against me.

“What’s your name,” I asked as I lead him toward the cabin; my voice faltered and was little squeaky.

It was going to take a little while to get there at this pace. As badly as I wanted him to take me and claim me as his; he was hurt and needed to heal. We would have plenty of time to get properly acquainted when we were out of this mess. Besides I refuse to have s*x with someone without least knowing a first name; no matter how deliriously handsome he is and seems to be my mate.

“Jack,” he replied. “What shall I call you, my queen?”

“Yours,” I said as I smiled at him. His returning smile left me a dazed. “But lately I’ve been going by Cat.”

“You don’t remember anything?”

“No, I woke up in the forest with no clue who I was or what I was doing there. That much hasn’t changed. But I think I always knew there was something inside me. It had told me to run when I first encountered Andy, he must’ve been in his beast form.”

Jack stiffened at Andy’s name and a growl rumbled from his chest. I felt fur poke through his skin and it tickled my arm. I rubbed his arm and side as we walked trying to soothe his beast. It seemed to work because fur receded back and the growl turned to a purr.

“Tell me about Andy,” Jacks handsome face twisted as he said the name like it tasted bad.

“I thought I was being hunted by a bear or something, so I wasn’t expecting a guy to run past the tree I was sleeping in.”

“You slept in a tree?”

“Yes, like I said I thought I was being hunted by something. Sleeping in a tree just made sense.”

Jack nodded approvingly, “and you had no idea you were a tiger at this point?”

“Well sort of I guess,” I replied. “A voice has sorta guided me through this whole thing. It told me to run when Andy first chased me. It told me when something was poisonous so I wouldn’t eat it. And then right before Andy arrived, I had woken up from a dream. I remembered being attacked and injected with something. The voice said I was drugged.  I got really mad when I realized it must’ve really happened and next thing I knew I had fangs and claws and fur. As soon as it went away, I heard Andy come running through the trees.”

“Then what,” Jack prompted. He kept his face blank and stared ahead of him. I could tell he was angry.

“He saw me hiding in the tree and he said he had woken up in the woods and didn’t know who he was and where he was. We made up names for ourselves and started to walk along the river. I let him lead us past the bend and he happened to find the clearing.”

“What happened in the clearing to make you scream?”

“The whole time I was with Andy, I didn’t trust him. Something made me really uncomfortable about him. Then as we were standing looking at the clearing, he said something. It wasn’t really the words but the way he said it. I knew I had seen him before but I still don’t know how or where but I just recognize him. After that I decided to get away from him, so I told him to follow me and I just kept running until I was going so fast he couldn’t keep up. I wanted to get to the building I saw in the clearing. I knew something important was in there. I just didn’t expect it to be you. But before I could get there, Andy had shifted and attacked me. I jumped into the tree and climbed it and he started to shake it.”

Jacks brow furrowed and his caramel eyes turned dark, but they softened when he looked at me. “Youre so brave. I can’t believe this is how I met my mate. But I couldn’t be happier. You’ve saved my life in so many ways already.”

I leaned my head into his chest to hide my blush. I didn’t feel like I did anything special. I was trying to survive. And now I knew I was going to have Jack with me forever. I knew with every fiber of my being.

“Well this is one hell of how mommy-met-daddy story,” I sighed. I heard him chuckle deep in his chest.

“Already planning a litter, my queen?” He laughed again.

“Just wait and see when this is over, my king,” I replied.

We finally approached the steps to the cabin. I slowly lowered Jack onto the steps so I could inspect our surroundings. I quickly slipped out of my makeshift clothing and crouched down. Jack stared at me as if he were a starving man and I was the first meal. I held his gaze as I felt my tiger take over and we transformed.

Andy

I shifted as fast as I could after the white tiger turned and ran back to the clearing. I wasn’t sure where she was going but I wasn’t going to take chances. The shift was slower than normal, almost 4-5 minutes to completely turn into a man again. I had been a fool! I never should have risked my work like this and now it’s teetering on the brink of being destroyed or worse, I was going to die. I just pissed off two seriously strong shifters, who are apparently mates, and now they’re loose with no way for me to control them.

I stood up from my crouch and pulled on the clothes I had tied to my leg. It was only a pair of shorts but I just needed something. It was going to be a long walk to my vehicle. I knew that if I could just get there and back I’d be able to manage the situation. I also knew it was going to take time for the orange tiger to regain his strength. I should be able to make it back by then and hopefully finish this.

What were the odds that my two experiments were not only the same animal but ended up being mates?! She was supposed to be pure. No matter, I can still use her. My mate hypothesis is still underdeveloped and I shouldn’t have been so hasty. I’ll need to keep that in check. I seem to be in clearer head space now at least. Which is good because I’ve got a long walk ahead of me, I just hope I have everything I need in the Jeep. I’m running out of time and energy.

Jack

I waited for my mate to finish her perimeter check. I was still trying to wrap my head around this whole situation. Maybe she was right about this being some crazy realistic dream? How is this even possible? I was a loner before this. I drifted from town to town, never really fitting in anywhere. I didn’t really have a purpose; no one to answer to or speak for. Tigers aren’t a very common breed and they seem to be more loners than live amongst each other types. I’ve only come across a few tigers in my travels, but none of them were white.

I turned my head in the direction I knew she’d come. Our eyes met as soon as she came around the side of the cabin. She trotted quickly over to me and sniffed me all over. Her warm tongue licked my neck and my tiger pushed against me trying to get closer. Fur sprouted out from my skin. She paused; probably feeling the bristles against her tongue. She gently nudge my head with her nose and trotted back to her clothes.

I enjoyed watching her shift. Even her change was elegant and graceful. Everything pulling back in unison to reveal her human side. They were matched well. A snow white tiger is rare even in the natural world. I knew she was going to be just as special as a person. And this beautiful person and tigress is my mate. I smiled happily as I watched her shimmy into her black top and very mini skirt.

“So far so good,” she said approaching me. “Let’s see what we can find in here.”

She peeked through the windows of the cabin. The double glass doors were elegant. The furniture inside was modern but comfortable. The living areas were clean and orderly. Cat pushed on the handle of the door. It swung open and she turned to look at me.

“He probably doesn’t need to lock it out here. Doubt he knew his day would end up like this,” I said. “He’s kind of an arrogant prick.”

Cat smiled at me; her nose wrinkled at his scent wafted past her. It was nauseating, but at least it wasn’t strong; meaning he hasn’t been here since he left this morning. She helped me stumble inside and set me down on the couch. It felt like I was sitting on a cloud. She hurried to the kitchen and grabbed a water bottle from the group on the counter. She cracked one open and chugged it down in a couple gulps. Then she grabbed the rest and brought them to me on the couch.

“Sorry,” she said slightly breathless in between gulps of water. “I’m super thirsty. We should try to find some food to bring with us, definitely water, what else?”

“I could use some clothes if we are gonna be walking. I don’t mind being naked but I don’t want to make you uncomfortable or heaven forbid run into someone else.”

“I’m not uncomfortable,” she said quickly. Her eyes quickly flicked down my body then back to my face.  “I just, it’s just that….you need to heal right now.”

I stifled a chuckle and a smile. I grabbed a bottle of water and drained it in one long gulp. I quickly grabbed another and swallowed half of it. She watched me intently perched on the side of the couch like a little bird.

“Should I go look for some food?” She asked. She looked uncomfortable like she wasn’t sure what to do now.

“Yeah, I’ll go look for some clothes. I’ll see if he has anything that would fit you too.” Her nose crinkled adorably at the thought of wearing his clothes. “If we can make it to my car, I should have some extra clothes in there. But it’s gonna be long walk and I’m not strong enough to shift yet. I want to save my strength in case he come back.”

“You have a car?” She asked excitedly.

“Well yeah, I was driving and decided to go for a night run in the forest. Guess I picked the wrong forest,” I shrugged.

I looked around the living room. Aside from the couch there was another love seat and chair all polished and plush. It was an open floor plan and the kitchen was attached to the living room, separated by a large counter with four stools. A hallway stretched from the kitchen; leading further into the cabin. It was a lot of space for one man. I tried to sit up from the couch. It was really deep and comfortable. Little hands appeared and gently pushed me back against the cushion. I looked up to see her crouched next to me. Her face inches from mine and she stared into my face like she was reading a book. Her hands caressed my face gently; brushing the hair from eyes, running her fingertips across my jaw. My c**k raged to its full height and was rock hard for the hundredth time since laying eyes on her.

“Sorry,” I said. “You have quite the effect on me.”

Her only response was to gently kiss my lips. It was a long, soft kiss. It could’ve been hours before she pulled away. She smiled a little smile at me, then hopped off the couch and went to the kitchen. I took some deep calming breaths as I watched her; trying to lower the blood pulsing to my ever growing d**k. My god I want her. She opened the cupboard door and rummaged inside. A box of something tumbled out onto the floor. She bent over to pick it up; her mini skirt shifted up and revealed a pretty pink sight to see. A loud moan slipped out of me and she stood up quickly.

“Sorry,” she said as her cheeks blushed crimson. “I forgot about that.”

“Maybe we should find some clothes first,” I suggested. “Not that I don’t find you absolutely f*****g undeniably gorgeous and I seriously want to ravage you and mark you and make you mine. But we don’t have the time and I really don’t want this to happen here, in this place.”

My words came out in a rush and I could tell I had surprised her. She smiled as she nodded, but I could smell her arousal at the mention of ravaging and marking her. Her eyes had a mischievous glint.

“I’ll go see what I can find,” she said and left the kitchen to explore down the hallway.

It made me nervous that she was out of my sight though. I tried to get up off the couch again. I was feeling better than I was; my strength was coming back to me. My legs were a little shaky as I walked to the kitchen. I opened the cupboard and peeked inside. Just normal food. I grabbed a box of crackers and opened them up. I stuffed a few in my mouth and chomped on them. I took my snack with me as walked down the hallway. My mate’s lusciously sweet scent almost masked the disgusting rancid stench of that psycho.