The Wounded Lion

The door of the inn flew open with a bang, blowing in a gust of frozen air. Captain Dominic sat with his platoon of Therian soldiers in the small inn celebrating their latest win against the orcs. All of the Therians stilled and turned their watchful lion eyes to the group coming in.

Fairies.

Beautiful, glowing, fair-skinned, and golden-haired fairies, all of them dressed for war. Each carried a bow almost as long as them, which wasn't saying much since fairies were typically small. The tallest leader of the group only came to the mid-chest of a Therian, and Captain Dominic stood a head taller than the seven feet of a normal Therian lion-man.

The lead female, shoulders high, head back, strode into the room. Her shimmering golden hair caught the light from the fireplace.

One by one the talk from the Therian soldiers died down until there was only silence in the great room. They all stared at her, watching her as she glided into the room.

She glanced around the room, observing the eighteen warriors. Her sparkling hazel eyes landed on the captain, taking in his half lion face and his tawny yellow-and-black mane filled with braids of battle beads. Her eyes traveled to his scarred face and then to the battle-ax strapped to his back.

She nodded in acknowledgment.

He returned the nod.

The human innkeeper rushed over to her, bowing. "Good evening, mighty warrior fairy. Welcome! I have plenty of food and mead to go around but I must apologize. These fine Therians have already claimed all my rooms. I can put you and your sisters up in the barn. It will keep you warm and dry for the evening."

"We need no food or drink of yours. We could not eat what you serve anyway," her lip curled.

"Well beautiful warrior, what can I help you with?"

She paused, rubbing her delicate pale hand across her forehead. After glancing around the room one last time, she sighed, shook her head, and then seemed to make up her mind.

"What we need is... a ceremony. A sacrifice you might even say." She left the innkeeper with his baffled look and she strode right to Captain Dominic's table.

"May I?" she indicated the empty chair at his table.

He pushed it out with his foot and spread his arm to include it as an invitation.

His Lieutenant Drake jumped up from the table and held the chair for her. She stared openly at him with her sparkling hazel eyes, and then she smiled at him and took the seat he offered.

You would have thought the goddess herself sat there. The lieutenant grinned like a fool and hovered over her. Dominic shot him a look. Damn fairy magic was fucking with him.

His corporal pulled himself out of his drunken stupor and offered her his half-finished mead.

Her nose crinkled before she shook her head, making her golden hair dance around her shoulders.

By the gods, thought Dominic. Had none of his men ever met a fairy before? They were conniving, arrogant creatures, willing to use their fairy bewitchment without morals. They were not known to associate with what they considered "lower class creatures," which pretty much included all the were-animals and humans. These fairies must be desperate. He looked forward to finding out what they needed from him.

"I am Fayneen, of the western woodland fairies." Her voice sounded sultry and low, whispering over them. She used the standard were-animal greeting of placing her palm over her heart.

It raised the fur on his neck. How much of that was her real voice, and how much was the magical charm?

"I'm Captain Dominic, this is Lieutenant Drake, Corporal Raylan," he nodded at each one in turn. Both of his men beamed at her as she turned her attention to them.

"We are only passing through on our way to join the northern fairies in their war with the orcs," she continued. "They are short on archers and have requested our assistance. My squad and I are to meet up with them tomorrow evening." At the mention of her squad, she nodded her head at the eight remaining fairies, huddled at the door.

Dominic cocked his head and waited in silence.

"You are so brave to join the orc war. But such a beautiful woman should not have to risk herself," Corporal Raylan told her.

Her eyes furrowed and she pursed her lips as she stared at the corporal. Dominic had to hold back a chuckle. Lieutenant Drake punched the corporal in the arm.

"What? I meant no offense, it's one thing for us Therians and the were-animals to fight in the orc war, we are twice the size and strength of you and...." Corporal Raylan seemed to realize his mistake and shut his mouth.

Good, maybe we will get to the bottom of this, Dominic thought.

"So, Fayneen, let's cut to the chase, what is it you need from us? Because you didn't come in here for our winning personalities and conversational skills," Dominic cut in, shooting a glance at Corporal Raylan, who had the courtesy to look abashed.

"Well Captain Dominic, what we need are sacrifices. Not to kill or hurt or anything tremendously painful," she added after seeing his look of dismay. "We have a ceremony to the woodland goddess Bohyna that she demands we perform before a battle. It is our tradition before battle to...well...to have ceremonial sex. Wild sex. Usually, it is one large group sex, but as most of my squad are female and my personal preferences have me craving a different scene than that..."

This was not what he expected to hear.

There were a few collective gasps around the room. Several chuckles from his men. A few of the men looked over to the rest of the fairy group and loud murmuring started around the room.

Dominic roared and held up his hand.

The men went silent.

"So, let me get this straight, you...and your fairies want to have a what? A ceremonial orgy? With how many of my soldiers?"

"Not an orgy, per se. We would divide up. Smaller groups I think would be best, don't you? I would not want to overwhelm your men," she looked around at them as she said this.

"No, we wouldn't want to do that," he sarcastically replied. He knew this was a bad idea but by the look on the faces of his men, he didn't think he would live it down if he denied them fairy sex.

Several were already on their feet looking around at the fairies huddled in the doorway.

Dominic sighed. "Very well," he agreed. "But one night only, no magic, no strings attached, no permanent physical damage. Volunteers only!"

At this, the inn's great room echoed with the sound of chairs scraping and his men talking and laughing.

He shook his head, and asked quietly to Fayleen, "Birth control?"

"All my fairies are taking birch root, there will be no... unwanted consequences."

Dominic shook his head, but he kept quiet.

Fayleen divided the fairies and lion-men into small groups. When she finished, she returned to his table.

"I will be taking the two of you," she said, pointing to the lieutenant and corporal.

When Dominic realized this did not include himself, he raised his eyebrows at her.

"Oh, Captain, no offense. I am sure you are quite skilled in the bedroom, but us fairies, we...how shall I say it, prefer a more perfect...well, less scarred visage. Your battle scars are off-putting to us," she indicated the long, jagged scar bisecting his face.

He wanted to tell her there were a lot worse on the rest of his body. He knew this was not going to go well.

"But we have one of our own who is as scarred as you, I thought you two would be a good match tonight. Amina! Come here!" With this, the fairies pushed forward a fairy covered in a cloak. The fairies muttered in their language and laughed as Amina moved through them. Dominic could not understand the language, but he sensed the derision.

She shoved her way through them and stood before Fayleen and Dominic.

"Amina is not accustomed to, nor does she care for, our traditional sacrifice ceremonies. She is... virgin to them." At this seeming insult from their leader, the rest of the group became bolder in their laughter. "But she will perform the ceremony well enough I think." She then turned on her heels and glided off with the two men.

Within no time the Therians and fairies left to go to their rooms. Dominic watched them all leave until it was just him and the remaining fairy and of course the disgruntled innkeeper, who did not get included in any of the groups. He was human, and fairies hated humans almost as much as they hated orcs. He muttered curses under his breath as he cleaned up the abandoned mugs and plates of food.

Dominic realized the fairy had been quietly speaking to him.

"...so, I understand completely if you do not wish to spend the evening in my company." Her soft voice sent shivers down his spine.

"Why?" he asked, sensing he had missed the first part of what she said.

She paused before she responded.

"Because of this," she used her hand to imply her hidden face under the cloak. "And Captain Dominic, I am afraid it is not just on my face, but they continue onto the rest of me."

"What does?" he asked in confusion.

She dropped her head. "The marks," she whispered.

They stood facing each other for what seemed like several minutes. Dominic could feel his body tense and heat washed through him. "So, my vain little fairy, you must find my battle scars hideous then? You may have to find yourself another sacrifice for your ceremony!" he snarled at her, baring his teeth.

"Oh no! I did not mean...Captain Dominic, n...no!" she stuttered.

He could hear her take a deep, shaky breath in and out. "Captain Dominic, I find you quite...beautiful," she replied quietly, her soft voice like a hand brushing over his fur. She lifted her cloaked head to him; he could almost see inside her hood.

"Your face tells the story of who you are," she reached up as if to touch his cheek.

He grabbed her hand roughly and jerked it away from him, his lion claws extending, leaving marks on her wrist. That's when he noticed the feel of her skin. Soft. It felt soft under his touch. Was the rest of her as soft? He stroked his thumb across her wrist and over her palm, marveling at the delicateness of her hand compared to his rough, calloused one. He heard her catch her breath, felt her shiver, and it thrilled him to know his effect on her. His cock stiffened.

He leaned down toward her small frame. He could smell her scent, like the forest she lived in. She smelled of fresh air and he wanted to breathe her in. He placed her small hand on his face, over the scar on his cheek.

She did not pull away in disgust as he expected. She traced the line of it with her fingers. Gently. She caressed his scar with her fingers from his cheek down his jaw and across his neck where it disappeared into the collar of his shirt. Her hand lingered there, shaking.

His hands trembled; he wanted her to continue caressing him. He wanted to touch her. He needed to touch her. He struggled to find his voice. And to remember her name. What had they called her? Then he remembered.

"Amina," his voice caught in his throat. His hands caressed down her arms, annoyed that they were covered by her tunic shirt. He wanted to feel her bare skin.

"Amina," he whispered, his head lowering to hers.

"Yes...Captain Dominic?" she breathed his name.

"I need to see you. All of you. Show me what you hide under there," he tugged at the cloak but did not push it back. It would have to be her choice.

She stepped back from him, dropping her hand from his chest. He felt colder without her touch. He could hear her taking a deep breath. She slowly brought her hands to her hood, then she pushed it back. She looked straight ahead, waiting. Not looking up at his face.

He stared at her, his breath catching in his throat. She did not have golden hair like her fairy sisters. Her hair shone silky and black like a raven. And it looked soft. Did all of her have to seem so damn soft? He wanted to touch her hair. He wanted to crush it in his fist and run his fingers through it. But instead, he reached out to touch her face. Like her, his fingers were drawn to her scars. He ran his finger along her chin, caressing the scar that zig zagged across it. He tilted her face up to him to see her better.

She glanced away, not meeting his gaze.

"Look at me, little one," he whispered.

She shivered, then shook her head.

"Amina!" His voice was a sharp growling command that she could not resist.

She looked up into his yellow lion eyes. Her eyes were not the light hazel of her fellow fairies but were dark green with flecks of light sparkling in them. They pierced into him, mesmerizing him. She also had a healed wound on the outside of her left eye, on her temple.

His fingers trailed the raised mark across it. He heard her catch her breath. His gaze lingered down her face as she parted her lips. By the goddess, what lips she had, full and kissable. He wanted to taste them. He imagined how soft they might feel against his mouth.

Her little pink tongue peeked out and nervously licked those lips. He imagined how it would feel to have those luscious lips kissing him. A low rumble sounded from his chest. He had never seen a more beautiful creature than her. Her skin glowed from within, like fairy skin, but was the color of sand, warm and brown.

He felt himself harden even more, his cock straining against his pants as he thought of sinking himself into her. He closed his eyes and took a breath.

She mistook his pause. "You don't want to mate with me," her lips trembled, and her eyes shone. "It's all right, I would not expect a mighty warrior like you to tolerate my...imperfections," she whispered and tried to pull away from him.

He grasped her by the arms and refused to let her go. A strange feeling of possessiveness hit him; she belonged to him now and he wanted to claim her. He wanted to put his feline musk on her, in her, so that every male around knew she was his.

"I find you quite beautiful," he stared into her shimmering emerald eyes. "Your face tells the story of who you are," he smiled suggestively, using her own words against her. "And I would very much like to mate with you," his mouth inches from hers.

She stopped struggling in his arms, and her eyes widened. She met his gaze, his rigid cock jumped, and he could feel a rush through his blood that sent a pounding in his ears.

He wanted to pull her to him and sink himself into that mouth of hers and kiss away all the doubt and sadness from her. He closed his eyes again and took a deep breath. Damn fairies. It was her fairy blood affecting him, he told himself. She had the build of a fairy, thin and strong but her olive skin came from a different race.

She must be a half fairy.

He groaned, lost in his desire for her and he wanted nothing more than to feel how soft the rest of her skin felt. How soft she would feel underneath him. He wanted to hear that sweet voice of hers cry out his name as he fucked her until she thought only of him.

He grabbed her hand and pulled her behind him to his room. He locked the door and set his weapons near the bed.

She took off her bow and arrows and set her weapon near the door.

They stood there in awkward silence.

She spoke in a trembling whisper, "I can just remove my pants if you wish to go quickly?" Even her hands had started to shake as they moved to untie her drawers.

That's when he remembered, they had teased her about being a virgin. By the gods, he knew this was a bad idea. He would never take a virgin like this. He groaned and clasped her hands to stop her from untying her pants. "You're a virgin," he said.

She looked startled and then blushed. "Oh no! No. I'm not...virgin. I have...umm...mated before."

He raised his eyebrows. "Really, little one? You've had many lovers then?"

At first, she looked down, then must have gathered her courage because she finally met his eye and said "Well, I have had two mates...or so"

"Two...or so?" he questioned. "Tell me more, for I refuse to take advantage of an innocent."

"Well, when I was young, I had a...crush on a dark elf boy who worked for my father. We... saw each other a few times while he worked in the stable," she admitted. "I was terrified my father would catch us though. Father would have killed him if he found out," she looked at him with a sad smile.

Elf. She must be half dark-elf then. He stroked her face to encourage her to go on.

"Then a few years after joining the fairies, I...dated a boy. I thought...well, I thought it would be different. But he didn't like to touch me." She sighed. "To be honest, I don't understand what my sisters see in all of this," she waved her hand toward the bed.

He swallowed the lump forming in his throat and asked, "and the or so?"

She turned away from him and faced the wall, her voice small and quiet when she spoke. "It was a human. I was on patrol in the woods when I found him. He had left the designated road and had wandered into our territory. I told him I would lead him back to the road. When I reached to give him my day's ration, he grabbed me and tried to force himself on me. It took me by surprise, I did not expect such treachery from someone I was trying to help. I was on the ground with my clothes torn off by the time my training kicked in and I started to fight back."

He wanted to comfort her, to reach out and hold her. He wanted to kill the human who hurt her. But he just stood there, waiting for her to go on. And she did as if she needed to get this off her chest.

"He pulled a knife on me and we struggled. But you see, he was just a human. Yes, he was bigger than me, but my father...he's a dark elf lord. He made sure to teach me how to fight. Once my instinct kicked in, I didn't think, only act. The next thing I knew I was over him; I had taken the knife from him and plunged it into his chest. And then my anger kicked in and I pulled it out and...I stabbed him again..." she said. "And again." The last, just a whisper. A tear slid down her face.

That tear broke his heart. And he wanted to fix it for her. He pulled her against him, crushing her small body against his large frame.

At first, she stiffened, but then she let herself relax against him. His large arms encircled her. He leaned his head down to her and brushed his cheek against her glossy hair. It felt soft, softer than he imagined. He whispered to her, "You did what you had to. No one should ever touch you without your permission."

He lifted her chin and kissed her tear. He followed it down her cheek kissing her as he went. One hand stroked up her neck and then bunched into her silky hair. He let out a rumbling purr that reverberated through his groin.

She met his eyes, her brows drawn. "But...I killed him."

"He would have hurt you, taken from you, and even killed you if he could have. Never regret what you had to do."

She stared at him with those beautiful forest green eyes. Minutes seem to pass when she finally seemed to accept what she must have known all along. And she nodded.

He held her to him, her soft hair still fisted in his palm. Her body fit along his nicely. Unwilling to release her hair, his other hand smoothed down the back of her, pressing her body into him. His hand nestled into the small of her back.

She placed her small hands on his sides and ran them around his waist. His hardened cock pressed into her belly. He leaned down and rubbed his face against her cheek, her hair smelled of lavender. He breathed her in. When he could resist her lips no longer, he tilted her head up to him and kissed her.

He started with a light kiss, his lips brushing softly against hers. The taste of her overwhelmed him. His tongue sought hers. She moaned and opened her mouth to him, and he kissed her until they were both breathless. He pulled back to look at her. Her eyes were dark with desire. He warned himself to go slow with her, she deserved to be treated as a goddess. But his body wanted to claim her.