Crossing Boundaries Pt. 06

Giselle growled and Kael held up his hand to stay her, forgetting himself. It was not a polite gesture to those that were not used to it, a group of rabbits clustered nearby gasping, though they could not help but watch the show.

"I don't think that is wise today, Zaid," Kael said, choosing his words slowly and carefully. "We're inside, there are others here, think of the damage that could be done. Neither of us should be out to prove any idea of power either, for we are both here for the same reason - to study."

Zaid laughed, yet the sound chilled Kael to the bone. There was no humour in that sound, something darker lurking, while their conflict drew a bigger audience, the hallway thick with anthros.

"You have no choice, human - or are you so weak that you don't think you can last a second against the power of a dragon?" Zaid's smirk grew cruel, lips twisting, a glint in his blue eyes that spoke of a chip of ice. "That must be it... You think that you're better than us, that you can send your servant out to do your work for you. That's all that humans do, of course, your weak-minded conquering. Maybe that's why they thought that sending one puny example of your kind would be enough to secure your encroach into the anthro lands of these weaker species."

Kael held up his hand, taking a step back. He'd heard those words before and they could have been placed into the mouth of anyone, whether anthro, human, or someone else entirely, meaning nothing.

"I think I will be going now. I don't have to stand here and listen to this, not when it benefits no one. Perhaps at a better time for all involved, we may duel, but not when it is against the rules and restrictions of student conduct on university grounds."

Half-turning to leave, his attention slipped, the warning growl from Giselle the only thing that notified him that something, seriously so, was awry. A hand closed on his shoulder as a bark ripped from her throat, Zaid spinning Kael back to face him even as Giselle's training kicked in. The German Shepherd barrelled by her master in a bundle of raw fur and fury, a snarl tearing from her lips, teeth showing as her lips pulled back over them.

"Stay away!"

A warning bark would not be enough for the dragon as the other two closed in, fists flying, resorting to crude physical force. Kael swore under his breath. Where was the magic that they had boasted, the duel that they had said was an exemplification of their power?

Yet Giselle was not in danger as she forced them back, her style of fighting far removed from anything that an aspiring battle mage may have gone for, though Kael was not versed in that either. He fumbled for what to do, for there was no script to follow for such an interaction, students squealing, backing away, a tight throng that didn't know how to give them space, the conflict rising, tension crackling in the air.

He should have been the one fighting them! And yet that was exactly what Giselle was there for, his bodyguard, a whirlwind of fur, her fur but a blur as tan blended with black. Yet what could not be missed was the flash of her white teeth, the cold hardness in her eyes, doing what training and her loyalty to her master dictated with wholehearted feeling.

"You cur!"

"Mutt!"

His heart lurched, Giselle taking a tail to the jaw, Malachi pressing her back to the wall, matching her growls with his own. The canine yelped but held her ground even as they advanced, grappling, throwing her weight against them, though they were larger and even taller than her, their wings confusing her, distracting her senses.

Maybe he should have left her to it, but some things were simply not possible when instinct and reflex took over. All he saw was the dog that he had grown so close too forced back, put in danger, his companion and trusted guide.

He reached for his psychic powers, lashing out before he even thought about it. It was reactive, instinctive, something that he had been familiar with for too many years, slamming into the dragons. In but a moment they were up in the air, as if flying, and then crashing down, forced into the ground with the power of a giant, invisible hand, wings splayed out, not even their muzzles parted in a groan.

Stillness overcame the hallway, even the students hushed, Giselle still with her hands up to trade blows, rocking her weight back. The figurative dust cleared, the effect of his abilities shocking to those watching, jaw-droppingly efficient, though one may have queried why he even would have wanted to learn magic with something like that at his disposal.

Giselle's tail lifted cautiously, wagging.

"Kael? Are you okay?"

He winced. The dragons weren't moving, though there was nothing obviously wrong with them. He would have known if he had done too much, for using psychic powers linked him with another, if he used his force on them, for a moment, leaving a lingering impression like after one closed their eyes. That did not mean that he did not flinch and worry, however.

"Yes, but..." He ground his teeth together, a muscle jumping in the corner of his jaw. "Giselle, they're going to kick me out for this - are they okay? Check them!"

Giselle took care of that but what Kael did not expect was an older dragon grabbing his arm. But that dragoness was not one that he needed to worry about, older than him with a wizened look to her, her fingers more gnarled than the youngsters in their prime that had accosted him, her scales red but faded as if she had seen many seasons already.

"Easy there, hatchling," she said, her voice quiet and yet still managing to be heard. "All is well. I was a battle mage once too, but we would never behave with such a lack of decorum as these."

She nodded, brow furrowed, the corners of her eyes creasing, but not in the manner that meant laughter. Kael swallowed hard and took a step back.

"Thank you, ma'am, for understanding. I didn't think, I'm sorry, I just reacted. I didn't want anyone to hurt Giselle!"

She eyed him shrewdly.

"Interesting... One would have thought you were thinking of yourself, which is entirely fair. Regardless, I was on the upper balcony when they began matters. If I had flown down, perhaps I could have intervened more swiftly, but the rules on flying within the building apply to faculty members too, not only students. You handled yourself well, Kael."

He blushed and looked away, wishing that he had fur to cover up the heat in his cheeks. It had been nothing, really, to him. It hadn't felt like anything at all. So why was he getting praise for something that had taking no real effort or skill to succeed in? It would have been different if he had used magic...

The older dragon eyed him and he could not help but notice that she had a feminine figure, though he had not realised that dragon-kind had that kind of "shape" to them too, not having seen a female before. He gulped, forcing the lump in his throat down, backing off, rubbing the back of his neck, awkwardness that was not becoming of him overcoming his senses.

"I will speak to you later about this incident," the dragoness said, "after I have dealt with these three. Expect a call from Oshun. We use first names here."

Kael nodded, but an escape route was offered to him as the students dispersed slowly, filtering through one another, the show over. They, of course, had classes to attend too and didn't want to face the wrath of a faculty member, one of the lecturers, either, for a dragon was nothing to be trifled with. He nodded politely and backed away, grabbing Giselle's wrist and dragging her along with him, not trusting himself to speak.

He'd think more on that matter, back in his quarters.

*

It was not so easy for him to relax, tension lining his body even as Giselle tried to massage it from him. She was not skilled in bodily manipulations like that as her fingers dug into sore muscles that did not want to let go of worried contractions, but she tried, her master's head hanging.

"Master, she said there was nothing to worry about. Why do you not believe her?"

"I don't know. It seems like there must be something more to it than that..." He grimaced as she dug into a particularly sore spot, though it was all his own doing. "There's to be no fighting on the grounds, no unscheduled duels. And I struck them down just like that! Why didn't I think? There were other ways to go about it..."

"Kael, you were defending me. I cannot see that as a bad thing."

He sighed. That was true. Bute intentions did not always come through so easily.

A knock on the door caught their attention, but they were hardly in a compromising position, even if he was not wearing a shirt. Kael gestured at the door.

"Could you get that?"

He didn't need to ask but Giselle obeyed without question, though neither of them could have expected to see a wolf enter, a female that neither of them recalled. Giselle's nose twitched, though she scented no danger, no anger, no fear, on the air, the wolf raising a narrower, more elegant chin and looking straight at Kael.

"I wish to speak with you."

Kael raised an eyebrow. Why the formality?

"Of course... But I don't know who you are?"

"Celine." The wolf steadied herself, keeping her words close. "I am Celine. And I know who you are already."

Kael grimaced.

"I'm sure everyone does by now... We stand out."

The wolf took a sharp breath.

"Yes... Yes, you do. And that is why I am here."

She quivered in place against her will, catching the dog's attention, though Giselle sensed no threat, even if her behaviour was strange. Celine twisted her fingers into the sleeves of her dress, again and again, the long, flowing garment forming a shape for her even though it did not reveal the shape of her body underneath, daring to dare when the moment that she'd longed for since spying on Kael for the first time had come.

"I want to know more about humans," she said simply, raising her voice, expressing the strength in it. "You've come here too to learn about us, haven't you? Why then, do you not impart any knowledge about your kind, your lives, to us?"

Kael shook his head.

"Mainly because no one has asked... But I'm happy to share. Perhaps we could take a meal together tomorrow evening and discuss it then? It's of a late hour now."

Celine nipped her lip, heart pounding. Giselle's ears pricked.

"Kael... What I am about to reveal and ask you is not something that can be spoken about over a public meal."

Her eyes slid between him and Giselle, the canine rumbling a growl, though Kael did not stop her. He stared at the wolf hard, as if seeing her for the first time, something recognisable in the lines of her muzzle, the set of her body, how she held herself.

Silence stretched out between them, the kind that ached through the quiet, words lost in the absence of them. Kael's chest shuddered against his will, wishing that he had something to cover himself right then and there, for the exposure was more than he could have bargained for.

What was it? The wolf paused, dragging out the tension, though it was unintentional on her part, merely trying to come to her sense of boldness once more. She had to try, had to see, had to do whatever it was that she could do. For her blood was hot in her veins, heart pounding, her feet shifting, toes curling into her shoes, though all she wanted to do was to stare at the human's strangely hairless chest, the muscle that could be seen there.

That was usually hidden on anthros by their fur. She didn't feel that on anyone else unless she ran her fingers through their fur and even that was too intimate for most anthros to allow. Celine let out a tiny whimper.

"I've seen you two."

Celine steadied herself, forcing the words that could change everything from her lips.

"You two... You are a couple. You are together. You are...intimate."

The facts struck Kael as if blows, even if Celine had not intended that, Giselle growling, blocking Celine from getting to Kael with her body.

"What do you know of that?" Giselle hissed, breath rushing from her. "Leave my master alone. I am here to protect him - and that means from wolves like you too!"

There was something there, a twist of concern for his safety, that had her defending him from words too. He'd wanted to keep their relationship quiet, a secret, the sexual teasing and pleasing that went on between them, and she could only respect that, even if Giselle could not honestly say that she saw or knew of anything wrong with that.

"What..." Kael's stomach churned, sinking, his toes curling. "What... How... How do you know?"

He should have been more discreet, should have hidden things better - but how could she have known? They'd not done anything in public! He stayed steady, steadfast, staring her down, eyes narrowing faintly, though the blood rushing to his skull, pounding between his ears, didn't help matters for that case.

Celine shuffled, licking her lips, her hands held up, but even Giselle understood that she meant no harm. There was a scent to harm, to danger, and she had no reason to attack without due cause. Her ears twitched, sliding her gaze back, though her master was too far behind her for her to see where he was, what his reaction was. His sweat lay heavy on the air, however.

"Please... I don't intend to hurt you. I'm not going to tell anyone."

Kael grumbled under his breath.

"Then why did you say it like that? I thought you were about to spread it all over the university!"

She flinched from the sharpness in his tone, but it was too hard to keep emotions in check with so much at stake, Kael not even knowing whether anyone would be coming to kick him out of the university or not for daring to have sex with an anthro. Would anyone even care about it there? Was it only taboo with humans? His palms sweated but there was no way to surreptitiously wipe them off on his trousers, shifting his weight. At the very least, he could be glad that he didn't have ears or a tail to give away his emotions. Maybe Celine did not know all that much about humans, like she'd said, if that was even the truth at that point... Kael stifled a grimace, smoothing out his expression. He could only hope.

"So, what do you want?"

Celine rocked back on her heels as if she recoiled, though she did not step away. Kael's brow furrowed. Was it that difficult to tell him?

"I..."

The words twisted around her tongue, chest shuddering, though she was not so crass as to press a hand to her breast, despite the tension there. It was okay, would be okay, though it was a big step, a very big step indeed.

Giselle growled.

"Say it. I can smell it on you."

Her eyes burned intensely, locked onto the wolf, yet the revelation of what the wolf stank of would not break anything down, even if it needed to come out, one way or another. Celine squirmed in place, her boldness and confidence gone, a pit of snakes worming through her stomach, twisting and turning.

But she had to say, had to take that step. There was no other way to see if what she wanted in the cut muscle of his torso was possible for her to have for her own too. His mate, Giselle, may hardly have been amenable to her, however...

"I'm sorry... I will keep it a secret but I'm not here to blackmail you." She blushed heavily, tipping her muzzle shyly away. "I wanted to see if maybe...you'd be...intimate with me too."

Oh, that sounded ever so formal even as Giselle gave a knowing bark, all threat simmering down. Tension slipped from her shoulders and she settled a little, her hackles easing, though Celine met Kael's surprised look with more confidence than she had thought that she could dredge back up from herself.

There. It was all out in the open.

Kael leaned back on the bed, something pulling at him, his heart beating a little quicker, warm again for the right reasons rather than the wrong ones. His fingers dug lightly into the bedsheets, but his eyes were only for the wolf, sweeping over her body, her shapely figure, how she stood a little taller under his scrutiny. He could not deny the stirring in his loins, how his shaft thickened lightly within the security of his undergarments, though he didn't want to make it too obvious.

That she was attractive was no question at all, the dress falling over her chest and hinting at a shape even if she appeared to have dressed more demurely than he may have expected. Kael didn't know what he'd have done if he'd been given more warning that she was wanting something more from him, barely (if at all) knowing that she existed at the university. But the moment was there to be taken if they so pleased, Giselle backing off, her tail lowering, a faint wag to the tip of it.

"She's genuine, Kael. There is no danger here."

Kael smiled warmly, a little more settled for hearing than from her, though the rapid pace of his heart did not soften.

"Thank you, Giselle... Though I don't think you ever wanted to expose us, did you, Celine?"

She shivered. It was good, in a strange way, to hear her name on his lips, and her feet were in motion, closing the distance between then before her mind had caught up with what her body was doing. All she knew was that her skin prickled with desire, something pulling, tightening, her guts squirming. She didn't want to see Kael's private life laid bare for everyone, only to be a part of it too, leaving all the worries and qualms she'd had about humans, from her mother, behind her.

It was not something to be carried into modern times, not as she knelt on the bed, her lips clumsily finding his. It was not the most comfortable of kisses, but a first kiss was not ever meant to be seamless and fluid, Celine murmuring as she pressed in closer, Kael's hands finding her sides, slipping down to her hips.

So bold...

It surprised him to find her on the bed with him, but Kael was hardly about to say no to her, not as his shaft rose, arousal and excitement rising in tangent with one another. They were one and the same in a moment like that, need swelling, his heart pounding more and more vehemently, as if it was about to leap out through his chest. He could never have expected that such a thing was going to happen on retiring to his quarters that day with Giselle, but, if anything, it was a day of change, so much coming together that some kind of beauty had to come from the conflict.

Giselle shifted her weight, kneeling, for it felt like a more natural position to be in at that moment. Her eyes shifted to the windows, checking the curtains, though the door was not locked, and she spared a moment to take care of that, a calm sense of security washing through her as the lock clicked.

Kael did not look up, too wrapped up in his kiss with the wolf woman, Celine, his hands sliding down her, lifting her skirt up. The wolf rocked her hips up to him, but the dress was too restrictive as they tried to press closer together, the thick bulge in his trousers impossible to ignore. The dress slid up her thighs, the ties that held it together loosened at the back, though it was of a kind that slipped off over the head and shoulders, which was not all that difficult to remove with a helpful partner to lend a hand.

As her body was revealed, the smooth underbelly that bragged a lighter shade than the bulk of her thick, grey fur, Kael paused, glancing at Giselle.

"Giselle..."

But the canine only had a smile and a wink for him, tongue lolling out as her tail wagged faintly.

"It's okay, Kael."

There was more wrapped up what she did not say, licking her lips, but there was no jealousy in her eyes. All she wanted was to see her master happy and if having sex with the wolf made him happy, who was she to judge him? It didn't mean that he liked her any the less.

Thus, Celine was laid bare on the bed, bar for her undergarments, a brassiere cupping her breasts tenderly like a lover's hands and a demure pair of underwear soft around her crotch and buttocks. The light blue of them may not have matched but they still set off the hue of her fur nicely, drawing the eye down, Kael shivering with delight.