Kyle smiled over to Kira as she stirred a pot of stew for their lunch. The last week had been fantastic. After she had told him who and what she was, she was so much more open and happy. He loved to see her smile so much.
She had told him all about her village, and he had realized she was describing Victorian technology and culture. Apparently even though magic and shifters existed in this world, it was otherwise quite similar.
He was still trying to convince her to show him her magic. She was pretty nervous about flaunting her abilities, but he thought it was amazing that she could even do magic. After all, back home magic didn't even exist.
I cannot imagine a world without magic… Jasa said thoughtfully.How do people do the things I've seen in your memories? Motor cars and flying transports… it certainly sounds like magic.
He could see how technology might seem like magic to someone not used to it.
"What are you thinking about so hard over there?" Kira watched him with a grin.
"Just wondering when you're going to show me that awesome magic." He teased back.
He saw a flush color her cheeks as she looked at the stew thoughtfully. "After lunch we'll go outside." She said softly.
Kyle grinned happily, knowing it was a bit step for her to do this. He stood up and walked over to her, wrapping his arms around her waist and kissed her neck gently. "Thanks, babe. I know it's difficult for you."
Kira's face reddened more at his sudden closeness and Kyle felt that thrill of electric charge that had begun to spark every time they touched since their kiss. He didn't know what it meant, but he purred and leaned his mouth against her shoulder to watch as she stirred their meal.
Kyle walked out the door of the mansion for the first time since he rescued Kira, taking a deep breath and letting it out in a happy sigh. "I love the fresh air. We should go outside more often."
"Not with those hunters nearby." Kira shook her head nervously. "I doubt they've given up searching for me."
"Yeah well, if they try anything I'll just have to kick their ass." Kyle shrugged as if it was no big deal.
Kira giggled in amusement, knocking him playfully in the arm with her fist. "My fierce guardian."
"That's me." Kyle grinned and walked out onto the grass, feeling the strange prickly sensation beneath the pads of his cat-feet. God, that felt really weird.
It feels amazing. I have not felt grass beneath my paws since my last reincarnation. Jasa sighed.
Kyle smiled at that, making a note to come out more often so Jasa could enjoy the grass and feel of the forest around them. The leopard was stretching in his mind, making a long cat yawn and lazily basking in the smells of the forest. No matter how wise Jasa was, no matter how ancient, he really was just a cat at heart.
And proud of it. Jasa grinned.
"Well, do you want to see my magic or not?" Kira laughed as she walked ahead of him into the forest. Kyle followed behind with a chuckle, running to catch up to her.
"Alright. First is plants, is that alright?" Kira tried not to show the nerves that spiked through her. She had never purposefully shown her magic to anyone before. She trusted Kyle and Jasa, though. It was odd to think of them as separate people… they were more like two halves of the same whole.
"Of course." Kyle smiled reassuringly, making her insides flutter uncomfortably. His smile did that to her- made her suddenly feel too warm and restless.
"Okay. Here we go." She leaned down against the ground, setting her hands against the cool grass.
The earth was cool- as it always was. Sometimes it was almost cold, filling her with a chill that wouldn't go away for hours. It was worth it though, to show Kyle what she could do.
She had never been proud of her magic before. It had always been a burden. A way to get people around her hurt, and a reason to have people hunt her down like an animal.
She closed her eyes and let out a deep calming sigh, needing to concentrate. She couldn't think with so many fears running through her head, so she focused on the task at hand. She dug in the soil for a small seed to sprout, finding a long lost acorn among the stones of the earth. She nourished it and brought it back to life from its deep sleep, feeling it sprout and grow beneath her hand. She held her hand above the dirt until it hit the light, then clenching her hand into a fist as it continued to grow.
"Holy shit." Kyle gasped behind her as the sprout grew with amazing speed into a sapling. She let out a deep breath of relief, loving the feeling of life growing beneath her hands. She looked up to see Kyle touching a small leaf on the tree, staring at it with wide eyes.
"That was amazing!" He said in shock, looking at her with a wide grin. "Way more impressive than anything I can do."
"You can paint and draw- create what doesn't exist. I'd say that's impressive." She countered.
Kyle shrugged, obviously not thinking it was that special. Silly man, he didn't realize how amazing he was.
Now that she was concentrating, she felt a small presence among her magic- as if something was connected to her she hadn't noticed before. She mentally investigated it, finding what looked like a small yellow string attached to the well of green earth magic within her. She tugged on it and felt a gasp from Kyle a short distance away.
"What was that?" He asked in concern, his voice suddenly husky sounding.
"I'm not sure. There's something in my magic." She tugged at it again, this time a bit harder. Kyle let out a low growl, shaking his head as if trying to keep it clear. Perhaps if she tugged it in her direction it would detach…
When she tugged it to try and break it she gasped as a riot of sensation rushed through her, her skin heating and a shiver racing up her spine. What…?
It is the mate bond. A familiar voice purred through her mind.
"Mate bond?" Kyle asked, his voice low.
"Wait- was that Jasa?" Kira stared at Kyle in confusion. She had never been able to hear Jasa when he spoke, except for the night he had taken over his and Kyle's body. Why could she hear him now?
"You can hear him?" Kyle's eyes widened with surprise. "How can she hear you?"
The mate bond has connected us. It Pulls us together. The sensations you have been feeling when you touch- that is the Pull.
Kira shook her head, not understanding. She was human- why would she be feeling things like this? This was shifter stuff- things that they should only feel, right? Mates… that wasn't how humans worked.
Yet that golden cord was still there- shining with a magic of its own. There was no way to break it, at least not without hurting either her or Kyle.
You do not wish to be mates? Jasa's voice sounded sad. Terribly distant and depressed, suddenly.
"N-no, that's not what I meant…" She looked up at Kyle to see his blue eyes filled with pain as well. Oh, what had she done? Had she really looked that repulsed by it? "I'm just… I'm not sure if I can handle something like this. I'm already strange enough without being… mated."
Kyle let out a small bitter laugh. She didn't know what that pained smile was about, but it hurt to see it. "I don't want to hurt either of you- I didn't mean for that to happen."
"Too late." Kyle said gruffly. "If you don't intend to… be with us, then perhaps it's a lost cause."
She tried not to be hurt by the words, not knowing why he was suddenly being so hostile.
Kyle, stop. This is not her fault, she is just confused. Jasa growled.
Kyle waved a hand dismissively at Jasa's comment, turning his back to Kira. His ears were lowered against his head and his tail lashed behind him angrily. "Forget it. I might as well just go jump off a cliff. This isn't going to work." He started walking away, into the forest.
"Wait-" Kira's eyes burned painfully as the thread suddenly flared, making both of them gasp and stop. Kyle let out a low growl of warning before continuing to walk again.
She had to stop him. Throwing all caution to the wind she ran after him, wrapping her arms around his chest to stop him. She flinched at the strong magic that flowed between them, making her gasp and choke from it. "Please don't leave. I'm sorry- I didn't mean that I was rejecting the bond. I just need time to think."
"I don't have time, Kira." He said gently, looking over his shoulder at her with heated eyes. "That's the whole problem. I leave in two weeks, and there's nothing I can do about it."
Kira buried her face against his shoulder and nodded gently. "Then we'll make the best with what time we have."