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  I didn’t know what he was talking about but after the previous reaction from the male members of my family, I wasn’t sure I wanted to know.

  I hadn’t bothered to look in the mirror after dressing. Maybe I should have as everyone seemed to be staring at me. I walked into the living room, directly to the mirror on the wall behind the couch. Looking at my reflection, I could see that my hair was at least six inches longer; shiny chestnut brown with golden highlights. It appeared that my face had aged a little. I looked older somehow. Wow! Talk about a hormonal change.

  “Um. Dad?” I could see in the mirror that he too, had joined me in the living room.

  “You’re turning into a woman Lana.” he said. I heard chuckles coming from Jason. God he was an asshole.

  Chapter 4

  When everyone was content with the kitchen’s cleanliness, we gathered outside to wait for the sun to set and the hunt to begin. Once everyone started to get undressed for preparation for changing, I ran into the house. My dad followed me. Thank god, he hadn’t undressed.

  “Lana where are you going?” he asked me before I could get upstairs.

  “Dad, I don’t want to get naked in front of them” I pointed put towards the back yard.

  “You have to change you’re too young to fight the pull”

  “Dad you just told me today that I put off a smell of some sort and to stay away from the only person that isn’t my relative. Now you’re asking me to get naked and walk outside?” I almost screamed. My dad looked down at the ground and put his hands on his hips. He understood my dilemma and that fact that I was trying to obey his wishes was making life hard, he recognized this and settled on a compromise.

  “Fine. Go up to your room but leave the door open so you can get out. Come out back when you change and we will go hunt. You are going to be the one to kill tonight. Got it?”

  I felt my stomach roll into a ball and turn over as I ran upstairs to my room. I had to hurry and get undressed for fear of what happened the night before when my clothes had been ripped to shreds when I changed. I didn’t want to have my dad buy me a whole new wardrobe after our little adventure up here. I stood in the huge bedroom away from the bed and waited. I started to feel the pull after a few minutes and knelt down. There was no use in fighting it, at least that was what everyone kept telling me. The change was quickly once I gave in and surprisingly less painful.

  Once I changed the temperature, the room felt hot now that I was covered in fur. I trotted down the hall with ease and to the stairs and looked down with dread, I was okay with walking on flat ground but I had a feeling stairs might be a problem. Maybe changing in the house wasn’t such a good idea. I had to think as I made my way down the suddenly (more narrow stair way) trying not to fall down it. I hoped someone left the front door opened, the back door was small, and I wouldn’t fit through. I made it to the bottom without falling. That it was a small victory.

  Indeed someone had left the front door open, I reminded myself to thank whoever it was. Running around to the back yard everyone was gone except for my dad.

  He motioned for me to follow him by moving his massive head back and forth then took off. He was already panting as we entered the forest. Yet it didn’t feel like I was running or labored at all. It felt more like a fast walk to me.

  “Lana smell the air and find the prey” he thought to me. I growled a little because I didn’t want to have to kill anything. Nevertheless, I smelt the air as I was told and caught a whiff of something that made my mouth water. Without thinking, I climbed the biggest tree effortlessly.

  When I reached the top I looked around and saw a giant bear coming closer to where I was precariously perched atop of. I didn’t see my dad anywhere around me and I wondered if he was still on the ground.

  My animal instincts kicked in. As the bear approached my tree, I threw myself on to its back and dug my teeth into his neck. I’d barely closed my mouth and felt a crack of bone that vibrated my jaw bones. The bear fell dead right where he stood. I took a step back and looked at what I had done. I felt so sick to my stomach.

  Dad ran up to me. “Lana, you hurt?” He thought looking at the giant bear and then to me. I tried to shake my head back and forth, which made me feel really silly, tigers don’t shake their heads.

  “Lana, since you can’t tell me how you did this, I am going to ask you again in the morning” he thought to me. He sounded really surprised I was able to kill a bear. I found myself shocked and taken aback but it was the idea that I had done it, not the realization that it was so easy for me to do.

  He stood away from the bear, I heard a lot of branches cracking coming from behind us. I knew it was all of my uncles and cousins converging. I just laid down on the ground succumbing to the dizzy feeling I was fighting at the sight of the bear laying in front of me. Everyone was amazed and half thought my dad had killed the bear. I’d just let them think that. What’s the harm in a victory I did not want and was still shocked at myself for killing an animal.

  They all seemed to be waiting and motioning to me to start eating so they could get a piece of this mouth-watering bear. Just the sight of the bleeding carcass made me feel sick. Not hungry in the least. I stood up and started to walk in the other direction, my dad growled at me.

  “Lana you must eat your kill now” he thought in an angry tone. I kept walking and I heard all the other tigers whine, so I let down my shields hoping to gain some insight into why they were upset.

  Uncle Tyler had the craziest thought. He was convinced I was going to challenge my father for “pride master”, whatever that was. Everyone seemed to be amazed that I was walking away from a beautiful kill. My dad began roaring at me.

  “Lana, if you don’t eat I will have to fight you. I don’t want to hurt you. Please eat” he was worried. I could feel that without looking in to his head. I jerked my head up and looked at him, not understanding what he was talking about; I just simply wasn’t hungry and killed the animal in a flare of sickening animal instinct I guess.

  I turned to walk once again when suddenly I was struck from behind, which threw me into a tree. It bugged me more then it hurt I didn’t like the feeling of flying through the air. I got up and growled at my dad. Why the hell would he hit me over food, stupid animal? I was giving it to them, take it as a present, I didn’t want it! My dad growled back at me and I saw all his fur on his back was standing straight up. That was it he was pushing me too far.

  I felt the fight coming on. I really didn’t want to cause trouble or prove I was big and bad but, I would defend myself. To complicate things, fighting my dad was not something I wanted to do. I jumped into the tree above me, twitched my tail looking down at my dad trying to play it off like I was a huge kitten ready to play, but also so I could see them all and not have my back to the pride or my Dad.

  “Lana only the pride master can kill and then give it to the pride, I am your pride master and you will obey me!” he thought in almost a yell. I growled at him. He apparently thought that his words would have some effect on me. They didn’t.

  On the offence, my dad jumped up in the same tree as me and tried to hit me again. I jumped down just before his claws would have cut into my face. My dad quickly jumped down as I did, and roared at me once more. I roared back. I so, wish I was a human right now. I had a hell of a lot to say and a serious fit I would throw with a little bit of a dramatic flair scene taking place in my head. I quickly shook off the thought so i was back on the defense.

  We began to circle each other with both of our fur standing up on our backs I was a bit amazed at that autonomic response. I was mad because he hit me. He was mad because I wasn’t listening to his command.

  My dad ran at me, I ran around him with lightning speed, pushed off a tree and launched myself backward at him throwing him into the forest. He hit the ground at least a mile from me with a loud thud as he slammed into
a tree and slide to the ground. I started to pant now from the emotional strain of deciphering my feelings of rage and my instinct of protecting my father. In effort to gather strength I felt for my Dad’s thoughts and found them, he was hurt, badly. I quickly ran over to him and found him crumpled at the bottom of an ancient maple tree. I was irritated and conflicted when none of the other tigers followed. Dad was barely breathing. The shock of hitting the ground so hard left him unable to move. I started to whine at my dad trying to tell him I was sorry, ranting how I didn’t mean to hurt him. Questions also flooded through me as to why did he start the fight in the first place.

  “Lana you just won a challenge for pride master” he thought. I made a completely futile gesture by trying to shake my head and started to lick him in the face apologetically. I started to hear bones in my Dad’s spine try to move and realign it sounded like rocks being clacked together. He thought to me that he was “healing”.

  I waited for what felt like forever until finally my dad was able to get up and we started slowing walking back towards the hunting ground where the bear laid. He still looked broken and oddly disfigured. Every now and then he would take a misguided step and stumble. Each time he corrected himself he looked a little more upright.

  Oddly, he kept trying to walk behind me and not in front of me in a display of subservience. I had to stop a few times so he would be at least close to me. When we got closer to the bear, my dad stopped to eat what little was left of it, I just watched off in the distance ashamed of my actions causing so much pain. I had gotten into a fight because of this damn bear; I wanted nothing further to do with it.

  Once he was done eating, we started towards the house. Everyone was still in tiger form when we entered the clearing. When I came close to my tiger family, I felt the fear they were conveying was directed towards me. They all bowed their heads to me as if I were a king. I just ignored them and their stupid thoughts.

  I brought my dad inside the house’s back patio door and into the living room. It was a huge room so there was plenty of space on the floor for us both; He took a spot on top the plush carpet while I walked over to the couch and picked up a blanket with my teeth, dragging it over to cover my dad as he slept. I watched him change back into a human form and was thankful I had been quick with the blanket. I walked up stairs and went to lie down on my bed room floor. I closed the door with my head. I felt awful for hurting my dad, but I was so exhausted finally I started to drift off to sleep. I didn’t have a chance to dream at all that night since it felt as if it was over so fast.

  When I awoke the next morning I peered out of my window and saw the sky was gray with overcast and horribly dreary. I took a shower and got dressed. I went to the kitchen, as I was very hungry after not eating last night. Walking passed the living room; I noticed that my dad wasn’t where I had left him asleep on floor. I figured he must have woken up sometime in the night and went to his room since that had to be more comfortable. I turned on the coffee machine, made myself a big breakfast of eggs, bacon, and toast. I must have eaten at least enough to feed three people.

  Uncle Allen was the first one to come down stairs.

  “Hey Lana, how you feeling today?” he said in an angry tone. I hadn’t done anything wrong that I knew of, so I figured he was still mad about the fight I had with dad.

  “So you’re mad at me, huh?” I asked looking at my coffee cup.

  “Lana, I don’t think you understand what you did last night and what has happened” he said sitting across from me at the table.

  “Well, enlighten me please” I said leaning back in my chair a little cocky.

  “Lana, your Dad was the leader to us, and because you made the kill, which is fascinating to me. When you didn’t eat it I don’t think you realize that only the pride master can kill and let the pack eat first. It is like taking care of the weaker one a paternal offering, or in your case a maternal. He challenged you because you wouldn’t eat the damn bear,” he said looking at me while swearing. I swallowed hard.

  “I don’t want to be any pride master” I said staring at him “Obliviously I didn’t mean any of this I am young and stupid, so I’ll back down, Dad can have the Alpha Male role again, I don’t want it. I just wasn’t hungry!”

  “Too late, you should have thought about that before you almost killed your father,” he said.

  “I don’t understand any of this tiger business and quite frankly, I would be happy to be rid of it. So dad can still be your “whatever” and I will just go on about my own business. I had no idea of what was going on to even try to think about it” I said standing up in my defense.

  “It doesn’t work like that Lana. He will have to beat you in a fight to become pride master again and judging from your strength I don’t think anyone will be challenging you anytime soon”. He said chuckling at me.

  “I don’t want to fight, Uncle Allen I want to be normal again! Can I fight for that please?” I yelled as I grabbed my cell phone from the charger on the counter and ran out back. I didn’t have service of course which just made me more angry at the world.

  “What the hell was happening?” I thought to myself. My life was a whirlwind all of a sudden; everything in my life had changed in the short time I’d been here. I didn’t want to have to give orders to those guys; I didn’t want to have any part of it. I didn’t understand what was happening last night, and if I would have known, I would have just eaten the damn bear and save myself all this regret. I stomped my feet and kicked a rock so far into the forest that I didn’t see where it landed. Then I heard the backdoor open and Derek sulked through door and over to me. I knew from his thoughts he was scared of me. I started to cry at the emotions that he felt before I had a chance to put my shields up.

  “Lana what’s wrong?” Derek said still keeping his distance.

  “You’re scared of me Derek, and that hurts since you are the closest thing I have to a friend here” I said sobbing. Apparently the sight of a weeping woman was to much for Derek as he wrapped his arms around me and held me tight to his big chest. I soaked his shirt with my tears, but it felt good to have a safe place to let it out.

  “Lana, I know you don’t want to hear this right now, but the only way for your dad to be a pride master is to let him challenge you tonight and you have to let him win” he said. Don’t be so hard on yourself for not knowing anything about our politics, I don’t even know half of them myself” he said bringing my chin up so he could see my face. I was so thankful that someone tried to see my position.

  “Derek I can’t” I said with tears running down my face, “I nearly killed him last night just defending myself”.

  “Yes you did, and I don’t think he will challenge you again unless you ask him to do so.” he said a little weary.

  “So, what all I have to do is let him hit me?” I asked looking up at Derek still holding me.

  “No, you have to be nearly dead for him to regain his title Lana you have to be incapacitated”. I gasped at the thought and pushed away from him. I stared at him, he stood perfectly still but wouldn’t meet my eyes.

  “I don’t know if I can do that, self-preservation and all, I reacted on instinct. Last night it was like, it wasn’t me. I mean when I ran from him that was me, but once he tried to hit me again something else took over Derek” I said calmly. Derek raised his right eye brow.

  “Your animal instinct is very strong Lana, and you won’t be able to give him his title back unless you can control that”.

  “I should have just eaten the damn bear” I said under my breath. Derek chuckled.

  “Yeah you should have, I’m surprised you didn’t. Especially once he commanded you too”

  “Commanded?” I asked a little puzzled.

  “Yeah, when he roared at you it didn’t seem to have any effect, but that was a command. Didn’t you feel the pressure he had when he roared? Were
n’t you almost feeling forced into it?” Derek asked.

  “No, was I supposed to?” I said a little bewildered.

  “Well maybe you’re supposed to be a pride master then” he said again a little hesitant. I didn’t want to talk about it anymore so I turned to walk back to the house. I wanted to talk to my dad and hoped he was still in his room or at least somewhere I could talk to him in private. I knocked on his door once I was upstairs, I heard him tell me to come in barley above a whisper through the door. He was standing by the window looking out.

  “Lana why didn’t you listen to me last night?” he asked, once I closed the door behind me.

  “I wasn’t hungry” I said looking sheepish and still puzzled myself.

  “But I commanded you to, and you were able to disobey. That takes a lot of strength and I’m a little worried about how fast you are showing such will power” he said still looking out the window.

  “Dad, I don’t want to be this pride master crap, so I’m asking you to challenge me again tonight. I won’t fight back” I said with a stern voice, he finally turned to look at me.

  “You almost killed me last night Lana, you think I want to die?” he said angry. I stepped closer to the door.

  “Dad, I don’t understand any of this and I don’t want to. I want things to go back the way they were before we came here!” I yelled.

  “I can’t challenge you since you beat me last night Lana that match has past and I cannot re-challenge you for the same position I just lost. Besides it is probably time I step down anyhow. You need to ask someone else to carry the torch.” I knew my mouth was hanging open after he turned his gaze back towards the window.

  “What?” I said after a minute. “Who else can I ask? Who else is ready or able?”

  “One of your uncles maybe, I have been pride master for over twenty years since I’m the oldest, it is time that I handed over the reins to someone; but I don’t want you to be pride master” he told me.