Lupine Dreams--Chapter 7     Author:  Islador

Nikki walked in to the kitchen and started cooking the chicken.  He decided that since she was able to do this without his interference, he would watch the sun set.  He walked over to the window that overlooked the back yard.  It wasn’t all that big, a small flower garden in one corner, a couple small trees placed so that when they got bigger, they’d provide some shade for the house.  But it was nice.  He loved to look at the countryside as the sun went down.  It was his favorite time of the day.  With his enhanced vision, the colors were so much more vibrant and rich.  Especially the reds and oranges, they rippled and shone so bright in his eyes.  Green leaves tended to look a little white because his vision was so sensitive to the red end of the spectrum, but he didn’t mind.  He simply loved the sunset. 
 
A small flash on top of a hill caught his eye.  Without warning, the window in front of him exploded, the glass shards hitting him in the face.  He yelped and ducked under the window sash.  His eyes had survived intact this time.  He could feel some minor cuts, but none seemed too serious.  He slowly scooted back away from the window and crawled into the hallway.  Nikki came running into the room to see what had happened, he barked at her and motioned for her to get down.  She dropped to the floor and crawled on her belly towards him.  She maneuvered around the glass shards and got up to his face.  She reached for him, but he shook his head.  Comfort and healing would come later.  Right now there was someone out there trying to shoot him.
  
Nikki was outraged that someone had taken a potshot at her house.  Then her fear struck her, and she scanned his body.  She could see the hundreds of tiny cuts on his face and chest.  Luckily nothing was bleeding too badly, so she figured there wasn’t a bullet hole this time.
  
“Who the hell would know you were here?”  

He grunted; he knew exactly who was out there, that asshole Scott.  Somehow he had traced them to her house. He had sat up on the hill overlooking her back yard and had waited until his intended target stepped in front of a window.  It only took her just a few seconds more to put it together and she cursed.  What could she do to get them out of this crazy situation?  Then she had it. 

“Dagomarus, crawl down to the basement before you leave any blood on the floor.  I’m going to call the Sheriff and report this.”  

He shook his head.  

“Yes!  Now get down there now, I’ll take care of this.  I have a plan, but it’ll only work if you aren’t seen.  Now, GO!”  

He stared at her for a second then did as she wished.
  
Ten minutes later, the sirens of the Sheriff’s car could be heard coming up the street.  They cut off as the patrol car entered the driveway.  The deputy got out and walked up to the door.  Nikki was there in a robe to answer the door.  

“You okay, ma’am?”

“Yes, I wasn’t hurt, but my window is gone and it’s not getting any warmer out here.  Come inside and you can see for yourself.”  

He nodded and walked into the house.  She showed him the shattered window and pointed to the hill that she thought it had come from.  

“Ma’am, do you have any idea who would want to do this?”

“Yes, I do.  I know exactly who did this.”  

He raised an eyebrow at her tone.  

“Okay, well, let’s sit down in your kitchen and I’ll fill out a report.”  

She led him to the kitchen table and he sat down, taking out his notebook.  He went through the preliminaries of name, address, phone number, work, work phone, and then finally he her tell him what had happened.

“This really started Friday night.”  

She went on to explain about the grizzly attack on her camp site, noting that since it was dark and she couldn’t see, she said that there might have been two grizzlies.  Escaping out the back of the tent and making it to her truck.  She came back to town, re-supplied the next day and went back to see if she could salvage anything.  She said that since everything had been ruined, and she still wanted to spend the night in the woods, that she had gone to the abandoned ranger cabin.  

That Ranger Scott had found her and then seeing that she was alone, made unwanted sexual advances to her.  When he had tried to grab her, she had threatened him with a knife and he had run away.  Since she didn’t want to be alone in the woods anymore, she packed up and came back to town.  On her way back, two of Scott’s buddies, drunk buddies, had stopped her and threatened her with guns and she had threatened them back with a lawsuit and they decided they didn’t want any trouble so they let her go.  Then she got to today’s events and wrapped up her story.

The deputy had listened to the whole thing without saying a word.  When she was finished, he sat there looking at her for a few seconds.  

“Lady; that has got to be the weirdest story I have ever heard.”  

She started to protest but he held up a hand.  

“Oh, I have little doubt it’s true.  I know there are grizzlies in those mountains, and Ranger Scott putting the moves on you, of that I have no doubt.  The threats and his drunk buddies joining in is no stretch of the imagination either.  The gunshot through your window, well, that’s taking things too far.  The trouble is, ma’am, if you didn’t actually see him shoot the gun, I can’t go haul his sorry ass to my jail and lock him up.”

“Oh.  Well, what can you do?”

“I can file this report and get it on record that he’s threatened you and all that other stuff too.  Then I suggest you make a court appointment and file for a restraining order.  Tell the judge everything you just told me and I’m sure he’ll give you one with the maximum amount of restrictions against this Scott fellow.  Once that’s done, if he tries anything else, it will be an automatic violation and I can haul his ass off to jail.”

“What if he tries this again?  I didn’t actually see him; it was too far away.  What if the next time I’m out in the back yard and there isn’t a piece of glass between me and the bullet?” 

“I’m going to look this guy up and give him some friendly advice from one gun totin’ asshole to another, and if he isn’t careful, the toe of my boot too.”
 
“Thank you, Deputy.  I really appreciate all your help and advice.  I’ll go down to the courthouse first thing tomorrow morning and start the process.”  

The deputy had her sign some things and then he left.  She got out a dustpan and a broom and swept up the glass and then she mopped the floor, just to make sure she got all the glass shards.  When she was done, she noticed that the house was losing heat quickly, so she went to the basement and found Dagomarus sitting at the back of the room.  He had been hiding behind some boxes, but when he heard her, he came out from behind them.  

“He’s gone and I got the glass cleaned up.  Let me seal that window and then I’ll patch you up.”  

He nodded.  She went back upstairs and taped a heavy yard trash bag over the window and then went back to get Dagomarus.  She took him to the bathroom and put some anti-septic on his numerous cuts.  By the time she had dabbed the last one; they had all stopped bleeding.  She watched in amazement as the first cuts she had treated closed right before her eyes.  She had known in the back of her mind that he healed fast, but to actually watch it happen right in front of her eyes was frankly astonishing.  She shivered as the full impact of his ‘abilities’ hit her.

She stood up, motioning for him to stay in the bathroom.  

“I’m going to shut every curtain and close every blind on my windows.  I don’t want anymore disasters tonight.”  

He grunted his assent on that score.

She came back a few minutes later to tell him it was okay to come out.  When she walked back into the kitchen, she swore.  

“Damn-it!  The chicken is ruined and it’s too late to start anything that elaborate now.”

He shrugged.  While he was in her house, he was at her mercy for something to eat.  

“You don’t mind?”  

He snorted and shook his head.  He thought, beggars can’t be choosers.  

“Well, I have to eat something.  I have some of those high-energy bars left from the camping trip; I’ll just eat one of those.  It’s just not the same as marinated chicken though.”  

He shrugged.  He had no idea what ‘marinated’ chicken was, but those bars weren’t half bad.  Not the same as fresh bleeding liver from the belly of a cow, but they were okay.

She opened two packages and tossed him one.  He caught it, chewed twice and swallowed it down.  He went over to the kitchen sink and before he could hop up, she stopped him. 
“I know it’s not dignified, but until we are sure some gunman isn’t waiting to take another shot at you, maybe I’d better leave a bowl of water on the table for you.”  

He shrugged and nodded.  As long as she didn’t put it on the floor, he didn’t care.  She found a flat-bottomed bowl and filled it with water and set it in front of him.  When he was done, she refilled it and put it back on the table.

“Now that we’ve had a wonderful dinner, what do you want to do now?”  

Before he could answer, the phone started ringing.  She picked it up.  

“Hello?  Yeah, Faith, the Sheriff was here at my place.”

 “No, I wasn’t hurt.”
  
“That wacko ranger.”  

“Yeah, the same one when I was camping and I shut him down.”

 “No.  I have to get a restraining order against him.”

“Yeah, I’ll give you all the juicy details later.”

“OH!  I have to do all this stuff tomorrow, so I won’t be in at 8, can you tell Steve for me?”

“Yeah, thanks.  I’ll stop by after I’m done at the courthouse.”

“Okay, thanks again.  Bye.”

“Good.  Now I can be here when the new bed is delivered and maybe I can get the glazier here at the same time and get it all done quick.  Sound like a plan, fuzzy-face?”

He grinned at her.  A bigger bed sounded just fine with him.  He turned and walked into the living room, standing next to the couch, he looked back at her and motioned for her to join him.  She smiled and joined him on the couch.  They snuggled down into the cushions and curled up together.
  
She found a TV station that had some inane action movie with the perpetual surfer dude Keanu Reeves in it.  She didn’t think he was bad looking, but the minute he opened his mouth, he sounded like a pothead and a moron.  Dagomarus was completely fascinated and repulsed by the whole thing.  Every time some fantastic explosion or stunt would happen he would look up at her.  

“It’s all Hollywood make believe, dear.  It’s not real.”  

Then she thought about what she had just said--and whom she just said it to--and laughed.  It was too much.  At one point in the movie a particularly fantastic explosion went off and they both jumped and shifted positions.  She found his overly warm package touching the side of her foot.  She decided to be a little adventurous and started fondling him with her toes.

She marveled at how warm and silky soft it felt against her skin.  She slid one foot underneath it and used her other foot to caress it and roll it around with her toes.  His reaction was to close his eyes and rumble.  She continued to fondle him and his rumbling increased.  Since his ribcage was right up against her, she could feel the vibrations through her entire body.  These vibrations had a side effect.  It was a little like cuddling up to the world’s biggest vibrator.  

The erotic actions of fondling him and the vibrations started her juices flowing.  She was becoming very excited.  Her nipples hardened and this did not go unnoticed.  He inched his nose under her shirt and she giggled.  She pulled it off and sat back, letting his head rest on her belly.  He slowly began to lick her breasts.  Her excitement kept going up.  She had soaked through her shorts and she could feel his pre-cum wetting her leg as she fondled him.
  
She leaned down to his ear and whispered. 

“Make love to me, Dagomarus.”  

He raised his head and looked into her eyes.  She smiled and blushed.  

“Please?  Just be gentle, okay?”  

He nodded and licked her lips, running his tongue along her jaw.  He nuzzled her neck and crooned into her ear.  He rose up off the couch and stood next to her.  She looked up at him. 

“Where do you want me?”  

He lowered his head and nuzzled her neck again, licking behind her ear and along her jaw.  She shivered from the intense sensations he was subjecting her to.  She also realized that she was completely relaxed from his ministrations.  She smiled gratefully at him and nodded.  

“Yes, I really want this, Dagomarus.”  

He nosed her up off the couch and he tugged one of the cushions onto the floor.  She slipped her shorts off and looked at him.
  
He took one of her hands in his mouth and gently tugged her down onto her knees.  She faced him looking into his eyes.  He lowered his head and licked each of her breasts, squeezing the nipples with his curled tongue.  She shivered again, and held his head in her hands, rubbing his ears.  He licked her lips and motioned for her to lean over the cushion.  She slowly lowered herself over the cushion, shifting her legs apart for support.  She hugged the cushion to her chest as she nervously looked back over her shoulder at him.  

He nuzzled the back of her neck and blew softly into her ear, licking the edges with the tip of his tongue.  He shifted around and lowered his head to her soft, white butt cheeks.  He licked that skin softly, marveling at her taste and scent.  He ran his tongue down the inside of her thighs, stopping just shy of her knees.  He looked at her lips, extended and full with excitement.  Her rosebud twitched in tiny spasms.  He gently extended his tongue out and licked the crease between her swollen lips, opening her up.  She hissed between her teeth and pushed back into him.
He swirled his tongue around her opening, picking up her moisture and savoring it.  He extended his tongue fully and brought it up from underneath her, pulling it against the hood of her clit and along her lips, hooking it at her rosebud and rimming it as well.  She moaned and her whole body shook with a powerful spasm.  He slithered his tongue into her opening and pushed it to her cervix.  Circling it several times, he flexed his tongue, causing it to widen and push against the sides of her opening.  

She could feel his super-heated breath flowing over her, setting off series of tingles.  She relished the slow swipes along her clit.  She drew in a shaky breath as he tickled her thighs with his whiskers.

“That feels incredible, don’t stop.”

He continued to flex and curl his tongue, stretching her insides a little wider than they were used to.  It also served another purpose; she was going berserk.  Her whole body shook, her breathing was rapid and she was producing large amounts of juice. The scent of her excited core filled the room; he breathed it in and rumbled with his own pleasure.  He had her at just the right amount of excitement.  Her orgasm wasn’t too far off.  He pushed his tongue into her rapidly a few times and she went right to the edge, whimpering and shaking uncontrollably.  He pulled his tongue out and he could hear her whimper in disappointment and frustration.  She looked back over her shoulder at him. 

“Please!!  I need you NOW!”  She was ready.

He stepped up over her back, placing his front legs around her sides, against her bulging breasts.  His shaft slipped out of its sheath, dripping pre-cum onto the floor and onto the cheeks of her ass.  He positioned himself at her entrance, just parting her lips with the tip of his shaft, his pre-cum spurting into her.  He held himself there for a second.  She whined. 

“Don’t tease me, I want you inside me!”  

She tried to push back against him, but he held her with his forelegs.  She whimpered in frustration again and he knew she was as ready as she was going to get.

He bunched the muscles in his rear haunches and his stomach muscles contracted, and pushed his shaft into her all the way to its base.  The pointed wedge tip pushed against her cervix, opening it just a fraction.  Her moan-scream echoed in the small room and her orgasm shook her body violently.  Her feet slapped on the floor, and her fists grabbing the cushion almost ripping it open.  Her head shot up and her mouth opened wide. 

“OHHHHH GODDDD!!!”  

He stayed still for a few seconds, letting her body get used to the huge invader that split her open.  When she started pushing back against him, he pulled back and pushed it into her all the way again.  She had another orgasm when he hit her cervix.  He started moving in and out of her slowly.  He could feel their combined fluids leaking out between their bodies as he thrust into her.  

The pure male scent that emanated from him mixed with her musk, creating a heady mix of pheromones and the raw smell of sex.  This mixture of smells filled her nostrils, sending even more erotic signals to her already excited center.  She savored the unique smell of her lover, and when it was mixed with her scent, it unlocked something hidden inside of her mind.  It brought forth an urgent need to satisfy this deep-seated lust.   She could feel the incredibly soft hair of his belly rub along her back.  Her moans were low and almost tortured, but she was pushing back against him each time he thrust forward, so he knew she was enjoying this.
  
He started picking up the pace and her moans blended into an undulating scream.  He was getting close.  He started pistoning into her rapidly, pummeling her cervix with each stroke.  She was reduced to grunting, her lungs no longer able to keep up with the demand of her screams.  The strength of that beautiful body, flexing above her literally took her breath away.  As he approached his own climax, he felt his knot start to expand.  He started to pull back, when she growled.

“No!  I want all of you inside of me!”  

He didn’t argue, it always felt better when he could lock up with his mate.

He thrust several times rapidly, making her hiss.  Then he came, spurting into her, filling her insides with his hot liquid.  His knot sealed them together, making it impossible for anything to escape.  He could feel her inner walls expand with the force and the amount of fluid he was pumping into her.  She screamed. 

“YESSSSS!!”

She convulsed one more time and then went silent; she had passed out, going limp beneath him.  He shifted his legs so that her body didn’t pull against him so much.  He could feel her heartbeat through the fleshy knot that connected them, her breathing still rapid.

She moaned and her body went through several convulsions.  Her breathing began slowing down, but her heartbeat remained rapid.  Her body would convulse every few seconds and her moans would stutter with them.  

Her senses returned and she could feel how full she was, god he had filled her completely!  Nothing in her past experiences could compare to this feeling.  She was scared that she might have torn something, but there really wasn’t any pain, just this intense sensation of fullness.  She could feel his cum inside of her; like a liquid heat.  

Her cervix ached from the beating it had just taken, and there was something else, a funny trickling sensation deeper within her.  She had never felt anything like it before, so she really wasn’t sure what it was.  She could feel the tightness of her opening, almost too tight from his knot stretching her to maximum capacity.

When she heard him crooning above her, she smiled and looked up at him, his head just above her shoulder.  

“That was incredible.  Still is incredible.  How long are we going to stay like this?” 

 His crooning shifted to a deep rumble, setting off little tremors through her body.  

“Ohhhhh, that’s intense, lover.  I don’t know if I can take that for very long.”  

He stopped rumbling.  She felt his nose next to her ear, and then his tongue slithered along her ear and down her neck.  This sent her body into more tremors and she moaned again.  

“It just keeps going with you doesn’t it?  I have never had this many orgasms in one night.”  

She was just starting to fade off to sleep when she felt the knot shrinking inside of her.  When it had reduced enough in size that her muscles released their hold, he slipped out of her with a loud plop and a splattering sound.  She felt the huge amount of fluid pour out of her in a rush, leaving a large puddle on the floor and trails of it running down the inside of her thighs.  She started to giggle and blushed.

“God!  I never had that happen before either.”  

She felt him step back off of her and then he laid down next her on the floor.  His grinning visage told her everything she needed to know, he had enjoyed himself as well.  He flicked her nose with his tongue and chuffed in her face.

“Yeah, that was fun, wasn’t it?  Can’t say as I’m going to be ready to do that again soon, however.  That thing of yours is almost a torture device, a wonderful one; don’t get me wrong, but damn!  I am going to be sore tomorrow.  Let me rest here for a few more minutes and then I’ll get us cleaned up for bed.”  

He nodded and laid his head down on the floor next to her.

She woke up shivering.  She must have fallen asleep after relaxing from that intense fucking she had gone through.  She turned her head at looked at the clock; good, she’d only been asleep for twenty minutes.  She stretched and pushed herself off the cushion.  Looking at Dagomarus, she noticed he had fallen asleep too, his soft snoring just barely audible.  

Slowly standing up, she felt more of his fluid running down the inside of her leg.  That boy really filled me to the gills, she thought with a smile.  She took her first step towards the bathroom and almost slipped.  Their fluids were all over her wood floor.  She hoped it wouldn’t leave a stain or mess up the finish.  The cushion was a goner; she had ripped it at some point.  Well, that’s one more thing to get fixed tomorrow.
  
She went into the bathroom and grabbed a towel, coming back into the living room she threw it onto the large puddle and swished it around with her foot.  She didn’t think she could take being on her knees again so soon.  Dagomarus woke up when the towel hit the floor and watched her clean up their mess.  

After the floor was cleaned, she took the towel straight to the washer and tossed it into the tub.  Then she went back into the bathroom and turned on the shower.  She was only in the shower long enough to clean herself off, she decided she didn’t need to wash her hair.  She didn’t like going to bed with wet hair, it was always such a royal pain to control the next morning.

Slipping into a thick robe, she walked back into the living room to find it empty.  Eyebrows furrowed, she walked to the bedroom and started laughing when she reached the door.  Dagomarus had pulled the covers back and was waiting for her to get into bed.  She let the robe slide off her shoulders and she crawled naked into the bed, Dagomarus grabbed the corner of the covers and pulled them up to her chin.  He then crawled onto the bed and settled himself in next to her.

				*******

Nikki was dreaming of growling monsters when she slowly came awake realizing that there was something growling next to her.  She opened her eyes to see what Dagomarus was growling about when she noticed that he was still asleep and it was his stomach making that awful sound.  She giggled and remembered that they hadn’t eaten that much the night before and that with his size and energy level, he must need something more than a simple energy bar.  He was going to need several pounds of raw meat.  

She winced when she moved her legs, sore from last nights coupling.  That was something she was going to have to get used to.  Get used to, hmm, I just rolled that one out and didn’t even feel guilty about thinking it.  Everything that she had been raised with said it was a horrible thing to do that, and she had done it.  She had done it with enthusiasm, reveling in the feeling of her lover joined with her.  That spiritual feeling of becoming one with her lover through that act should be weighing on her conscience heavily.  All she felt this morning, though, was just a slight twinge of impropriety.  

She couldn’t deny that it didn’t feel good.  Truthfully, it was the best sex she’d ever had.  She had been filled beyond anything she had ever thought she could be.  The knot and being locked together was an experience she had no comparison for, it was frightening and wonderful at the same time.  There was something almost magical about the experience.  

She laughed to herself, magical, yeah, that’s the word for it all right.  He was a magical being.  Between her thoughts on that subject, plus the sexual aspect of their relationship, she was so far removed from reality, that maybe it didn’t matter.  She loved him, and that’s all that mattered.  Her decision made, her guilt was vanquished.  She was his, and he was hers.
  
She slipped out of bed, wincing again, and turned off her alarm clock before it had a chance to buzz.  Dagomarus watched her carefully, wondering if the inner turmoil he had seen on her face was going to explode and be directed at him.  She slipped on her robe and turned to see if her lover was awake.  She found him staring at her with his head down.  She frowned. 

“What’s the matter?  Don’t tell me you are having some second thoughts about what happened last night?”  

He lifted his head slowly and shook it.  She was aware that his usual chipper grin hadn’t made an appearance yet.  

“What is it, then, Love?”

When she used the endearment with her question, he grinned.  His relief showed through his entire body as he relaxed.  She watched his reaction and it dawned on her that he had been afraid of her, that she would reject him.  She smiled and went to him in a rush, jumping on the bed and hugging him fiercely, tears rolling down her cheeks.  

“Oh, Dagomarus, you don’t have to be afraid of me, I love you.  I thought about what we did and even though I was feeling a little disturbed about it, I still love you and want to be with you.”

Hooking a paw around her waist, he crooned in her ear, professing his love for her as well.  She sat back and looked into his eyes. 

“What you are now, and knowing that you had a human form, makes this situation a little easier to handle.”   

She slid back off the bed, still a little stiff and sore, and gave him a beaming smile.  

“Let’s go get something to eat, I’m starved after last night.  You like bacon and eggs?”

  He tilted his head, thinking back.  He loved eggs, and cured pork wasn’t bad if done correctly.  He wasn’t sure how she would serve them together, but he was willing to eat whatever she fixed him.  He looked at her, nodded slightly and shrugged.

“Well, I’m not sure about your answer, but that’s what I got and that’s what I’m fixing.  So get your furry butt off that bed and let’s go get something to eat.”  

She smiled to take the sting out of her words, and headed for the kitchen.  She filled his water bowl and set it on the table for him.  She got out two large cast iron skillets and started heating them on the gas stove.  She pulled out the butter and put a small pat in one of the skillets and then reached into the freezer and pulled out a large block of bacon.  She put the bacon in the microwave and hit the defrost button and turned it on.  She heard a yelp and the scraping of his claws on the kitchen floor.  She whipped around to see what the danger was and caught the fleeting glimpse of his tail as he left the kitchen.
  
She went out into the living room to find him with his head stuffed beneath one of the sofa cushions, holding it to his head with one paw.  She laughed at the sight, and then heard his whimper.  She suddenly realized he wasn’t playing and that he was in actual pain.  Why would he stuff his head under the cushions?  Noise?  Oh crap!  She turned and padded into the kitchen and hurriedly shut off the microwave.  She went back out to the living room and put a hand on his shoulders. 

“Dagomarus, it’s okay now, I shut it off.”  

He pulled his head out from under the cushion and gave her a hurt expression.
  
“Oh, Dagomarus, I’m sorry if I laughed at you.  I thought you were playing until I realized that the microwave must have been making some sound that hurt your ears.  I’m truly sorry.  Forgive me?”  

He pushed his nose up to hers and rubbed it back and forth.  Forgiven.  She smiled and hugged him.  

“Come on, I’ll finish making breakfast the old fashioned way.”

She took the still frozen bacon out of the microwave and peeled it out of the plastic.  She put it onto a baking sheet and put it into the oven, setting it on low.  She went over to the table and sat down.

“Want to listen to the stereo while we wait for the bacon to thaw out?”  

He gave her a quizzical look.  She laughed.  

“Oh, yeah.  You wouldn’t know about stereos.”  

She reached over to the counter and flipped on the small clock radio.  

‘I’ll keep you by my side with my superhuman might---Kryptonite’ started blaring from the speakers.  She smiled at the irony of the song and who her lover was.  Yep, Three Doors Down nailed it with that one.  She hummed and sang along with the song.  She looked over at Dagomarus for his reaction to the radio.  He wasn’t even looking at it; he was watching her.  His ears were standing straight up and his head was tilted to the side, grinning at her.  She laughed and continued to sing along with Brad Arnold, she really liked this band.

Dagomarus was enthralled, her voice harmonized with the music coming from that little box on the countertop.  He had never heard anything like it in his life.  If he hadn’t been in love with her before, her singing would have sealed his fate.  She looked into his eyes and realized the effect she was having on him with her voice.  She smiled and thought, I’ll really show him something if he likes this.  She turned the radio off after the song ended, and she watched his face change to disappointment.  She grinned. 

“Just a minute, fuzzy face.  I think you’ll like this better.”  

She got up and went out into the living room.  He followed her with a quizzical expression on his face.

She went to the large component system, turned it on and waited for it to warm up.  She loved her music, so she had an Onkyo NR-1000 receiver and matching CD player, combined with the Klipsch RVX-54’s, dual powered 12” subs, the four-bookshelf units and the center channel speakers.  She could shatter windows with this system.  Instead she listened to her classical music, mixed with a smattering of new rock and some old-school heavy metal for fun.  

She picked out the Three Doors Down CD and put it into the carrousel, picked up the remote and hit play.  She stepped into the center of the room, where she had centered the speakers to a ‘sweet spot’.  She removed her robe, throwing it onto the couch and when the opening guitar licks of Kryptonite started playing, she closed her eyes and swung into the music.  She was waving her arms up over her head, swaying her hips and bouncing on her toes.  She sang the lyrics; she felt that they fit her mood this morning.
 
When the refrain hit, she opened hers eyes to see what Dagomarus was doing.  He was even more enthralled; the rich sound filled the room, soaking into every fiber of his being.  She flowed towards him, reaching out to him.  He was frozen to the spot, completely enraptured with the music and her swaying naked body.  She ran her hands over his face and kissed him on the end of his nose.  She laughed, knowing the effect she had on him; she flowed back to her sweet spot and continued to sing the lyrics to the song.  When the final notes faded, she turned the volume down and turned to look at Dagomarus again.

Dagomarus was in shock; no woman had ever danced for him.  Her lithe form had flowed with the music and her voice had harmonized with the vocals from the man singing the song.  The total effect was one of wonder and to his mind, magic.  When the song faded and she turned to look at him, his first reaction was to howl his appreciation.  He wanted to give her back some of the magic she had given him.  He sat back on his haunches and filled his lungs, tapping into those deep emotions and the all-consuming love he had for her; he howled.
  
His voice rose in pitch, filling the room much in the way the sophisticated equipment had.  Where the stereo was clear and precise, his voice was rich and full of emotion, tinged with the magic he had inside of him.  The light in the room seemed to get brighter, the air thickened, seeming to sparkle on its own.  His eyes glowed, the deep blue color seeping into the air around him.  When his voice trailed off, he lowered his head and looked at her to see what she thought of his performance.  It was her turn to be enthralled.

When his howl filled the room, she could feel it in her very bones; her chest tightened and her head felt light.  Her insides were vibrating with every note; there was a feeling of a light breeze blowing in her head.  The heady scent of him was in the air, filling her nostrils with a tingling sensation, sending signals to her center.  When the howl faded off, she slowly returned to normal, standing in the middle of the room.  Feeling the aftereffects of that display, she felt warm and whole, content and at peace with herself.  She went to him, dropping to her knees, looking into his eyes, she hugged him and rubbed her cheek against his, humming with contentment and love.  He responded with his own hum, a deep bass rumble, felt more than heard.

“WOW!  That was incredible!  You make me feel so good, Dagomarus.  I’ve never felt anything like that in my life!  I thought I was a whole person before I met you, but I was fooling myself.  You make me a whole person; you are the other half of my soul that was missing until you entered my life.  Thank you for being here, my love.  Thank you.”  

She had tears rolling down her cheeks, tears of joy and love.

He felt the same way.  This was a strange feeling for him.  He’d had other loves in his life before her, but none of them even came close to what she meant to him.  They were hollow shells of humanity, a small flicker of flame compared to the raging fire that was Dominique.  He felt that she deserved to know what he was feeling, that no matter how his voice sounded in her ears, she needed to hear his true voice.  He knew she was ready for it this time.  He opened that connection again, softly this time, knowing just where to push and slip into her mind.

Yes, My Love.  I feel the same way.  You make me whole.  You are my reason for living now.  You are everything to me.  Thank you for loving me.

She jumped when the deep bass of his voice entered her mind.  It sent chills down her spine, making her break out in goose bumps all over her body.  She leaned back to look into his eyes, to see if she was imagining this.  He met her gaze and grinned, shaking his head. 
 
“You?  I’m not imagining things?  You can speak to me inside my mind?  How?  No, it doesn’t matter how.  All that matters is that you can speak to me; I can hear your voice!  YOU!  OH, Dagomarus!  This so wonderful!!”  

She laughed and hugged him again, crying with joy.  She thought about what this meant.  No more guessing, no more misunderstandings, they could TALK to each other!!  Her thoughts were running fast, going in several directions at once.  Does this mean he can read my mind?  OH!  This made her stop for a second, trying to come to terms with what it might mean.  Do I really want someone reading my most inner thoughts and feelings?  

However, this wasn’t just anyone, this was the love of her life.  Suddenly she didn’t care if he could or not.  She wanted to share everything with him.  She decided to test her question of him hearing everything she thought.  She concentrated, trying to center her thoughts towards him.  She didn’t know if this is how it was accomplished or not, but it was what she thought she needed to do.

He had pulled back from her mind when it started racing in all those jumbled directions.  He wanted her to calm down and get a firm grasp on what this would mean for their relationship.  When he felt her calm down and center herself, he gently slipped back in, just on the surface of her thoughts.
  
Yes, I could hear and see everything if I wanted to, but I won’t go that far if you don’t want me to.  I can sense when you concentrate and if you want me to, I’ll only look into you for that moment, going no further.  I can hurt you if I go too deep.  In fact I already have, and it pains me greatly to know that I accidentally hurt you.  I soothed over what I did, and made you forget that it happened.  You need to know that I have that ability.  You need to be able to trust me with this.  You need to know that I will never do that again.

He made sure that when he pulled back out of her mind this time, that he left the traces of his presence.  He wanted her to feel what it was he did when he entered her mind, so that she would know when it was happening.  She felt it this time; a strange shift in her thoughts and awareness.  She got the impression of an open window, one that she could open and close at will.  Never aware of it before, it was suddenly there in her minds eye.  She concentrated on that image; she could make the ‘glass’ opaque or clear when she willed it.  She thought to herself, this is neat!  She tried to open the window and speak to him through it, but found that she couldn’t.  Frustrated, she frowned and looked at him.

“Why can’t I talk to you that way?”

I need you to think about what I said, my love.  I know this is all new to you, but you need to slow down and really think about what this means.  When you have had a chance to really consider the implications and consequences of my actions, we’ll speak some more.  For now, just speak to me like you have been.

This little speech made her stop and think.  Oh!  He admitted that he had been inside my head before and made me forget about it.  This frightened her for a second.  This really was something to think about.  She looked at him, serious this time.  

“You’re right, love.  I do need to think about this.  I’m just a little scared over the fact that you have been inside my head and changed me.  Let me get dressed and I’ll finish making breakfast.”  

He nodded his understanding; relieved that she didn’t immediately get angry.  However, he was apprehensive over what she would decide.  He felt better for telling her the truth, but he was just as scared as she was.  He didn’t want this to split them apart.  He needed her trust and he hoped that she would understand, and forgive him.

She grabbed her robe off the couch and after thinking about it for a second, decided to change the music on the stereo.  She pulled the Three Doors Down CD out and replaced it with her favorite piece of thinking music.  She changed the settings on the receiver for classical music, set the volume to her ‘thinking mode’ notch, and went into the kitchen to finish making breakfast.  The first notes of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 floated out of the speakers.  She felt calmness come over her; this piece always did that for her.  She had several versions, but the 1962 recording by the Berlin Philharmonic and Herbert von Karajan was her favorite.

She went into the kitchen and started making breakfast.  She pulled the thawed bacon out of the oven and peeled off several slices and put them in the larger skillet.  The sizzling slices gave off the wonderful aroma of hickory-smoked bacon that always made her think of the mornings with her father.  She missed him and she wondered for a moment what he would have thought about Dagomarus.  Perhaps it was best that her parents weren’t alive to see her this morning.  She poked and flipped the slices while she thought about what had happened over the past few days.
  
Dagomarus wanted to give her some space; to let her think things out without him sitting there, watching her, making her paranoid that he might be listening in on her thoughts.  He purposefully shut out her presence, completely blocking out any feelings and thoughts that she might inadvertently send his way.  He walked over to the spot that she had danced in and found the sweet spot for the sound pouring out of the system.  He sat down and let the waves and notes of that wonderful music flow around him.  He thought back to when this music was new, bringing up with it all those memories of that time.  The last time he had walked the earth in human form.

He had loved Europe then, the people and the culture.  The women in flowing dresses; the ceremony that they felt everything had to be played out in.  The one thing he didn’t care for about that time in Europe was the aversion to bathing.  That was one custom that hadn’t survived the collapse of the Roman Empire.  Even when in human form his sense of smell was acute and the stench of the cities almost kept him away.  

However, the draw of the pretty women and the aristocracy, with all their pretense and pomp had amused him greatly.  When he had become enamored with a niece of some obscure Baron in France; that had been his downfall.  They had a wonderful time together, and even though he had no title, the stuffy old Baron hadn’t put up too much of a fuss.  He had wealth, and in those days it was almost as good, sometimes better than a title.

When they decided to get married, the whole family had gotten involved and that was a little much for Dagomarus.  When her mother demanded a truly princely sum for a bride price, he had really gotten angry.  The mother had propositioned him for sexual encounters several times before the engagement announcement, and when he had refused to give her that much money, she threatened to tell the Baron of his misdeeds and uncouth behavior.  He literally went off the deep end at that point, and his anger proved to be his undoing.  He had shifted form right in front of her and the servants.  In his rage, he had torn her apart and eaten her heart before he calmed down and realized his error.

The resulting furor of having a mad beast loose in the castle, and the guards chasing him off the grounds, was all it took for him to forsake the cities and humanity as a whole.  He wanted to get away from these stupid humans and their petty bickering and their stench.  He had escaped from the guards and the militia that had been summoned to chase the monster beast.  He had gathered all his worldly goods and all the money he could get his hands on and took the next ship bound for the newly formed states of America.  He set foot on the docks of New Orleans in the year 1833.  He traveled up the river and got off the boat in St. Louis.  He bought a horse and a pack mule and set off for the open west.
  
When he had a few encounters with the Indians, they always gave him safe passage through their lands.  Somehow those people sensed what he was and wanted no part in angering him, so they left him alone.  When he reached the Rocky Mountains, he stopped.  This was what he wanted, nothing but the mountains and forest with nobody around for as far as the eye could see.  There were buffalo by the millions and the elk and deer were plentiful in the mountains.  

He would never go hungry or have to worry about thousands of humans crowding him for space again.  He found a large rock and dug a hole underneath it, placing all his belongings inside.  Once he had finished that, he stripped the horse and pack mule of their harnesses, slapped them on the ass and sent them on their way.  He shifted into a full wolf form, and never looked back.

While Dagomarus was in listening to the stereo, she cooked the whole block of bacon.  Standing there flipping the slices in the skillet, draining off the excess grease into an old soup can on top of the stove.  She thought about what Dagomarus said to her.  She thought about the few days that they had been together and tried to find anything in her memory that would indicate that he had altered it.  

He had told her she wouldn’t know what he had done, or remember any intrusion into her thoughts.  This did bother her a little.  Did he make her fall in love with him?  Was that what he was talking about?  I hope not, I really do, because I do love him.  If this is all based on a suggestion that he planted in my brain, I don’t know what I’ll do.  Oh, god, I really don’t like this feeling.  Why did he have to tell me?  If what he said were true, I would never have known if he hadn’t told me about it. 
 
She didn’t even notice that while flipping pieces of bacon, tears were flowing down her cheeks.  She was really torn over this revelation.  He told me the truth about his ability, but he also went into my mind and altered it.  She did feel violated in a way.  The more she thought about it, the angrier she got.  Damn him!  Why did he have to give me that particular detail of our time together?  Why couldn’t I have been left blissfully unaware so this horrible feeling of dread wouldn’t be happening this morning?  

I need to know what he did and why before I judge him too harshly.  I love him too much to not give him the benefit of the doubt.  She finished flipping the last piece of bacon and put the heaping platter inside the oven to keep warm.  She noticed the tears when she bent over to open the oven door, and they hissed dully on its surface.  She wiped her face with the dishtowel, and then thought she should just wash her face, to try to get rid of her red eyes.  Once she was convinced that all traces of her crying were gone, she called to Dagomarus to come into the kitchen.

He heard the tone in her voice.  It was emotionally detached, distant.  He felt real fear then, right to his heart.  VAE!  Why did I have to tell her?  No, he knew why, she deserved the truth and if he had kept it from her any longer, she might have seen it inside his mind some day and the damage would be greater.  He walked to the kitchen slowly, forcing his feet to carry him forward.  When he stepped through the doorway, he saw her face.  

He could tell she had been crying.  This cut him to the bone, the pain in his chest clenching his heart, almost stopping it mid-beat.  He involuntarily let out a low whine of sorrow, his tail low between his legs; his ears back against the side of his head.  He had to look away; he couldn’t take it any more.  He hung his head; he didn’t want to see that pain and sadness in her eyes anymore.

When she saw his reaction, she thought he had been listening to her inside her head again.  She watched and listened to him whine and look away.  She concentrated her thoughts, but there had been no indication that he had been inside her mind again.  He had given his word and had kept it.  No, his reaction was due to the expression on her face.  She was angry and sad, and it was written all over her face and in her posture.  

She began to understand why he had reacted this way; he thought she was going to send him away.  This almost made her rush to him, to comfort and reassure him.  However she stopped herself from doing that.  She really was angry with him and she decided that if they were going to have a real relationship, she had to make sure he would never do that to her again.  Drawing a deep breath and blowing it out slowly, she knew what she was going to say.

“Dagomarus, look at me.”  

His head came up slowly to meet her gaze.  

“I am angry with you for violating me in that way, but if you hadn’t told me about it, I would have never known, right?”  

He nodded.  

“Okay.  Now I want to make this very clear; you need to tell me why you did that.  I want you to speak to me so that there are no misunderstandings between us.  Okay?”  

He nodded again.  She felt that window come back into her mind’s eye.  It was still closed, but she could see through it into the gray mist beyond the glass.  She watched as an image of a man’s face took shape in the mist.  It was a rough face; deep creases lined the cheeks and forehead.  White lines of old scars crisscrossed the visage.  She had never seen this face before.  Then the eyes opened, and she knew who it was, those deep blue pools were staring at her through the window.  The face smiled tentatively, and then went sad.  The lines on that face deepened.

Yes, this is my face.  Or it was when I was still human.  I will do as you ask.  When we were in the cabin that first day and I had shown you all those images of what had happened to me, I revealed what I truly am to you.  You went into shock; I had pushed you too hard, too soon.  I then spoke to you in your mind like I am doing now and that sent you over the edge; you just shut down.  It was too much for you to handle.  I am so sorry for doing that to you.  You mean so much to me and I wanted you to see what I had gone through so you would have no illusions as to who and what I am.  

I had to think back into my past and remember my lessons from the monks that I had lived with for a time.  They had taught me how to control my mind and myself.  So I used that knowledge to sooth over the emotional overload I had pushed into your mind and I erased the memory of our short conversation.  I went deep into your subconscious and pulled you back from the abyss.  I didn’t want to cause you any more pain, but I failed.  I needed to tell you the truth, and this has caused you pain.  For that I am truly sorry.

She sat there and listened to his explanation and it made sense.  She remembered the images and her throwing up and the shock of seeing those horrible bloody bodies.  Yes, she could see and feel where he had soothed the roughness off the edges from those memories.  Okay, so it isn’t what I thought it was, and now that I know what he did and why, I can live with that.  I’m not angry about this any more.  She still had that little seed of doubt in the back of her mind about how fast they had fallen for each other, and she wondered about it.  She remembered the sinking sensation she had felt that first moment she had looked into those beautiful blue eyes.

“I need to know, Dagomarus.  That first time; when you showed me your pain.  I know it was an accident, but I have to know.  Did you make me fall in love with you?”

You cut me to the bone, my lady.  But I can’t blame you for thinking this.  No, I didn’t make you fall in love with me.   I allowed you into my mind that time.  You saw the real me inside that quick glimpse.  Yes, there is a lot of pain and suffering I carry with me, but since I have fallen in love with you, it has gone away.  We saw into each other’s souls in that brief moment, and I believe that is why we fell in love.

“I see your point.  You’re right, I saw your soul and I knew we were meant to be together from that moment on.  Okay, I’m not mad at you anymore.  I love you too much to stay mad at you.  Friends forever?”

I am your servant, my lady.  I love you with all my heart and soul.  I only ask one small favor.  I am going to give you a phrase to say, and you must repeat it exactly as I give it to you.  Will you do that?

She furrowed her brow, not knowing what to think, but trusting him, she nodded.  

“Okay, I’ll do as you ask, Dagomarus, my love.”

Thank you.  I need you to say, Commodum habitus es. 
 
Not knowing the meaning of the words, she was slightly confused, but she had agreed to say the words.  She said it a few times in her head, to get the feel for the inflection and pronunciation he had said them to her with.  

“Commodum habitus es.”  

When she said the phrase, she watched him grin and nod.  He then stepped forward, laid down at her feet and kissed them with his tongue.  He laid his head between his paws, his chin just barely touching her toes.  She watched this with an odd smile on her face, not knowing what she had said or why he had acted like this. 

 “What did I just say to you?  Why did you do that?”

I am yours until death.  I will only serve you, my mistress.  I am your slave.  The phrase doesn’t translate well into English, but it basically means,’ You have just been owned’.  It’s an ancient Roman saying, used to signify the ownership of someone.  Which is precisely what you have done to me, my love.  I am yours.

“WHAT!?!  A slave?  I don’t want a slave.  I want an equal.”

Then, all you have to do is command me in whatever way you see fit, my mistress.  I will do whatever you wish, my love.

“You’re serious aren’t you?  You really think that you are my slave?”

Of course, my mistress.  I am serious.  You spoke the words; I am yours.

“Is this the way you are always going to talk to me?  In this reverent tone?  Doing whatever I tell you to do?”

Yes, my mistress.  If you want me to talk to you differently, you must command me to do so.  I have no other choice, my mistress.

“Well, shit.  I don’t know if I like this or not.  No, I don’t.  I want my old Dagomarus back.  No more groveling.  Well, maybe a little now and then.”  

She smiled at him when she said this.
  
Your wish is my command, my mistress.  You will now get your ‘old’ me back, until you command otherwise, my mistress.

He licked her toes once more and stood up.  He looked into her eyes and grinned.  She shook her head, laughing.  

“What am I going to do with you?”

Whatever your heart desires, my love.

She gave him a sharp look, but the reverent tone was gone.  Just plain old Dagomarus, the smartass.  This is whom she loved.

“Okay, now that that’s settled; how do you like your eggs cooked and how many do you want?”

I have only had them boiled or raw.  Seeing that you have enough to spare, I’m hungry enough to eat a dozen of the size you have there.  Cook them the way you like them.  I wish to taste something that you like.

“A dozen?  Okay, but it’s your heart attack, pal.”  

She turned to the counter and cracked a dozen eggs into a large bowl.  She put a little more butter into the skillet and carefully poured the eggs onto it.  She managed to not break a single yolk when she did this, smiling to herself at this accomplishment.  She sprinkled the eggs with salt and cracked pepper.  She waited to the count of ten, then poured a tablespoon of water into the skillet and put a lid on it.  She quickly put four slices of bread in the toaster and pushed the plunger down.  

She rummaged through her cabinets until she found the biggest platter she had.  It had a hand-painted turkey on the face.  When the toast popped up, she quickly spread butter on the slices, cut them and placed them on the side of the platter.  She then took the lid off the skillet, grabbed a potholder and slid the steamed over-easy eggs onto his plate.  She opened the oven, pulled out the bacon and put a dozen slices on his plate next to the over-easy eggs.

She carried this over to the table and set it on front of him.  

“Your breakfast, as requested, my love.”  

He looked at the plate with all the eggs and bacon.  It smelled wonderful.  Then he looked up at her, grinned and licked her hand.

Thank you.  This smells wonderful.

He grabbed one of the slices of toast between his fangs and pushed it into one of the eggs, then lapped the soppy piece into his mouth.  Then he picked up a slice of bacon and chewed for a few seconds, relishing the flavor, then swallowed it quickly.
  
This is the best breakfast I’ve had in two hundred years.  Thank you.

She smiled and felt a wash of contentment.  He liked her cooking.  Then the enormity of the comment hit her.  Best breakfast in two hundred years; there isn’t a woman in the world that has ever had that compliment paid to her.  She smiled even bigger and rubbed him behind his ears, right where he liked it the best.  She cooked her two eggs the same way, and only had three slices of bacon.  She couldn’t eat like this every morning; but once in a while, she liked to splurge and go all out with an artery hardening delicious breakfast.

By the time she was sitting down to eat her breakfast, he was licking his plate clean.  He sat back and let loose a gigantic rumbling belch.  He managed to look embarrassed, but he was grinning, showing all his teeth.

That was better than fresh liver right from the belly of a cow!  Thank you again, my love.  That was great.

She laughed, thinking how strange it was to have that particular ‘meal’ compared with her cooking.  Well, he liked it and that’s what counted.  She finished her breakfast and started cleaning up the kitchen.  Once she had all the dirty dishes in the dishwasher, she went back into the living room.  She watched as Dagomarus picked up the remote and brought it to her.

Can you play it again, please?  We were eating when ‘O Freunde, nicht diese Tone!’ was playing on this amazing machine of yours.

She laughed and took the remote from him and set it to play from track 4, 'Presto'.  

“You’re familiar with Beethoven?”

I hate to show my age again, dear, but I was in Europe when this piece of music was new.  I never met the man because I wasn’t in Vienna at the time.  I did speak to Wolfgang Mozart once, after one of his performances.  He was nice, perhaps a little crazy, but nice.

“You met Mozart, in person?  Oh, my god!  I don’t know what to say.  This is so surreal right now, I’m not sure I know what to do.  You met Mozart.  Shit!”  

She sat down on the couch and listened to Beethoven’s Ode to Joy play.
  
I’m sorry, my love.  I didn’t mean to upset you.  I know my immortality is hard for you to grasp.  I’ll stop referring to ancient things and people.

“No, you don’t have to do that.  I was just caught off guard there for a minute.  Mozart is one of my favorite composers and to find out that the love of my life actually met him in the 1700’s is just a little disconcerting.”  

She shook her head in wonder.  He had met Mozart.  She looked at the clock on the wall and cursed.  

“Damn it!  I didn’t realize how late in the morning it was.  I’m going have to go take a shower and get dressed.  I have to get down to the courthouse to get the paperwork started.”

She rushed back to the bathroom and got into the shower.  She skipped washing her hair.  She dressed in one of her more conservative business suits and came back out to the living room.  The last notes of the 9th Symphony were fading as she walked out.  She opened the carrousel on the CD player and loaded it with Mozart’s Requiem, Beethoven’s 5th Symphony, Carl Orff’s Carmina Burana, Bach’s Toccata and Fugue, and Vivaldi’s Four Seasons.  She hit play and turned to Dagomarus.  

“I loaded the player with enough music for you to enjoy while I’m gone.  I have no idea how long this is going to take.  So, just relax in the sweet spot there and enjoy.”
  
She kissed him on the end of his nose and headed for the door.  Just before she stepped out she heard his voice.

Thank you, my love.  Don’t worry; I’ll be here waiting for you when you return.

She turned and blew a kiss to him and walked out the door.