Anira

The feelings are mixed, and anger gives way to a sense of victory, then desperation takes over.
“Auror!” I scream, feeling that I’ve lost him.
“Calm down, Ann, they should be arriving soon.”
“No, Arow, something happened, I feel it, I need to go to him, he needs me, I stopped feeling.”
“It’s okay, Auror is the most powerful leader of the Férnus; he commands all the clans.”
“I feel it, I know he’s in danger.” I try to go out the back door when Arow holds me. “Let me go, Arow, he needs me.”
“Calm down, they should be back soon.”
“No! You don’t understand, I feel it, I know, let me go.”
“I can’t. Please, calm down!”
“No…”
Before I can continue, the door opens wide, and we see Férnus carrying Auror, and a huge, bloodied head is placed on the table.
“Haaaaaaaaaaaaa!” I scream in shock as I see it.
“Get that out of here!” a male says, and I don’t know who it is. “He needs medical attention.”
I’m paralyzed both by the sight of the head and by seeing him unconscious.
“Ann, pay attention to me, Auror needs care, you need to take care of him.” Arow snaps me out of my paralysis and I blink at him. “Do you understand, Ann?”
“Yes.” I blink a few times. “I don’t know anything about the Férnus.”
“We heal quickly, you just need to clean the wounds so they don’t heal with dirt, which is hellish.”
“But what if there are broken bones?”
“My father will set them, we know how to do that, but it’s always the companion who does the rest, your scent will keep him calm. When other Férnus get hurt and don’t have their companions, they need to be chained because we retaliate and attack; we only heal quickly in our feral form.”
“Understood, understood. Let’s go?”
I run to where they’ve placed him and arrive just in time to see Auror’s shoulder being set and a roar echoing through the room.
“GRRRRRRR!” His claw flies toward the male who dodges by mere millimeters.
“Ann, where is Ann? I want my companion, get your paws off me!” His hoarse and deep voice would scare anyone, but the males laugh.
“You just got a companion and you forget that we’ve taken care of you all these years?”
“Get out!” he roars powerfully, and even I am nearly compelled to obey.
The males leave, and Arow sets the first aid kit by my side.
“Auror, my God, what happened?” I approach him, making him look at me, and his irritated expression changes as his fangs retract.
I’m pulled close, his face buries into my neck, and he doesn’t care about his wounds, he just needs me.
“No one will ever hurt you; I won’t allow it.”
“I need to take care of you.”
“I’m fine, Ann, just let me smell you more.”
“I need to clean and wash your cuts.”
He slowly releases me, allowing me to examine him. He is more dirty than wounded. When I find the cut on his neck that surely caused him to faint, it’s large and filled with dirt, but it’s no longer bleeding.
I make him get up and sit down, starting to clean with saline. He grumbles a bit because it burns. Once I take care of him, I search his back and find more cuts. I get off the bed and check his chest, which has deep gashes as if claws had been driven into it.
I wash everything, and he just looks at me with devotion.


***


Auror


I wake up with the first bone being set back in place. My only desire is for her, her scent—so instinctive and visceral that it’s like breathing. The moment I inhale, filling my lungs with her scent, nothing else matters; I don’t want to let her go. I don’t need care; it’s all about her.
But she cares for me, cleaning my cuts with gentleness and care. All I can do is revere her, idolize her as mine, my companion, destined.
“What are you staring at?” she asks, her hair so bright it’s almost uncomfortable to look at for too long.
“Feeling what it’s like to have a companion,” I say, a bit shyly.
“Are you embarrassed by that?” She smiles, placing her hand on my face, feeling her thumb caress me.
No one should go so many years without this.
“No, just in disbelief. It seems surreal.”
“It’s not.”
“I had come to terms with not having anyone. It’s different and at the same time terrifying because now that I have you, the fear of losing you almost keeps me awake.”
“I understand what you’re feeling. It was horrifying to see you arrive unconscious. I was paralyzed with fear.” She moves closer, positioning herself between my legs, pressing her body against mine. “I was so scared that I started to feel so many things while I was away.”
Her face caresses mine, rubbing against me, craving the touch and the feeling that being close brings. I hear the powerful beat of her heart.
“How do I say that I love you? How will he handle it? Could he think I’m moving too fast? Yet, the fear I felt leaves me no doubts.” I hear her thoughts and am overwhelmed with happiness.
As she continues her gentle touches, I feel as if we are one.
“You don’t need to fear my reactions. I feel the same. Humans call it love; I can call it that too, but in my world, it’s proof that our bond is complete. We are strong, and nothing will separate us.” She hears me and is startled.
“You? How? My God!” Her hands stay on my face, and I smile at her startled expression.
“I don’t think even the drug you believe is in the water at Forty Mile could do this, Ann.”
“It’s surreal! A feeling so different from anything I’ve ever experienced.”
“I agree.” I bury her face in my chest and wrap her in my arms.
Even though I don’t want to, I need to wash; the burning scent of Orion stings my nostrils. It’s definitely why I sought Ann’s scent.
“I need a bath.”
“I agree. Even as our sensations mix, I can’t stand the smell of blood and ammonia coming from you.”
“Then I’ll go.”
“Can I come with you?”
“Do you want to bathe me?”
“Can I?”
“You can do anything you want with me, Ann, just ask.”
“Then let’s go, I’ll give you a bath.”
I receive a kiss on the tip of my snout that sends shivers through my fur, and even the pain I still feel doesn’t stop me from smiling. For someone like me, used to growling and roaring for over three hundred years, all these sensations are new and surprising.
She walks with me to the bathroom, helps me sit while she fills the tub with warm water.
“Come to the shower; let’s get the dirt and leaves off your fur. Then you can rest in the hot bath to help your muscles relax.”
“You’re quite bossy.”
“My patients never complained; you’re the first.”
I huff and head towards the shower. Soon, she’s naked, joining me. She helps me remove the dirt and blood from my fur. I bend down a bit to shorten the height difference, always doing this so it’s easier for her to touch me whenever she wants. It’s different having someone care for every part of my body. I control my senses, not wanting to become aroused or have my member become visible to her. I do everything I can to keep it hidden.
Ann has her hair tied up in a messy bun on top of her head and washes alongside me. After we’re clean, she guides us to the tub. I never use a bathtub; whenever I need to wash, I go to the river, but I wouldn’t take her there and would never stop her from caring for me.
As I sit, the hot water envelops me. The temperature is high, and she adds some scented items to the water, causing me to wrinkle my nose.