A small pang hits me in the chest as I see the disappointment on her face.
“But. He likes it. Why would you deny him happiness? Isn’t he a part of you?” she asks as her shoulders slump.
Damnit!
Normally, I don’t have a problem with putting my foot down when it comes to people wanting shit from me. I’m an Alpha and that’s what I’m supposed to do. Alphas don’t back down, we don’t compromise, period. But I find myself wanting to. Ineedto put that smile back on her face.
“You have a point,” I admit reluctantly, twitching with my desire to roll my eyes.
She lets out a high-pitched squeal and throws herself at me, and I easily catch her as she thanks me for agreeing with her. Having her in my arms, even for just a moment, feels like heaven. My wolf and gryphon both concur with my assessment.
“Thank you, Knox! I’m sure Fluffers is happier now.” I give her a scowl and she laughs, stepping back. I can’t help but feel a little disappointment at the loss of her in my arms, but at least she’s smiling.
“So you had fun?”
She nods her head like a little girl doped up on candy as she bites on her bottom lip. “Yep.”
“So does that mean you're willing to do the same for my gryphon?”
It’s like I offered her the world on a platter with how her mouth drops open and her eyes go wide.
“You—You have a gryphon?” she whispers in awe.
I can’t stop the grin from appearing on my face. I’ve never had anyone look at me with such reverence before. Most people either look at me with fear or like I’m a piece of meat. I have to admit it’s a nice change, and I can see myself getting used to her looking at me this way.
“Yea. Shifters have a smaller and larger form. Want to meet him?” I can already feel him pushing against me, needing to show off. “He’s my showboater. I’m sure if he was human, he would be considered a narcissist.” I laugh and in a blink, I feel my gryphon take over as my body shudders with the change.
My body elongates and my spine lengthens, growing a lion's tail with a tawny tuff. Our back legs bend and paws stretch as claws dig into the ground and our body grows taller than Rez. Fur sprouts and spreads along our lower half, tickling as it goes. My palms are the worst of the changes as they contract and pop yet extend while my fingernails morph into talons.
When I turn into my wolf, my shoulders expand and bulk up whereas it’s twice as wide when it comes to my gryphon. My shoulder blades shift out and expand to compensate for my wingspan. My neck quadruples in size and extends as white and gold feathers spread along my head and shoulders. The same colors run across my wings but there’s some black that decorates the underside.
“Oh, my God! Petey!” she exclaims and immediately my gryphon backs up and squawks, scaring Rez. She backs up quickly and gives him a once over. “Okay, then. No sense of humor. Got it.”
Our feathers bristle at the sting from her, but I must admit, I have to agree. He’s the biggest asshole I know, and I’m not surprised he’s not impressed with Rez at the moment. It would probably take an act of God and the Fates together to make him crack.
“Well, if you don’t have a sense of humor, I’m just gonna call you Polly until you lighten up,” she says, placing her hands on her hips and cocking her head with a look of determination.
I chuckle and feel my gryphon wonder if she’s serious—he deserves to be worshiped and adored, not teased like a common house pet. If I rolled my eyes any harder, they would probably fall out right now.
As if she can pick up on our intention, she gives us a coy smile. Pulling out something from her pocket, she approaches and opens her fist. “Polly want a cracker?” she says with a straight face and internally I lose it. My gryphon just stands there dumbfounded as she continues holding up the cracker for him. I’m also breathless as he gently reaches down and takes said cracker, enjoying his treat as she reaches up to run her fingers through our feathers.
“That’s a good, Polly. If you behave and let me have some fun, I might have more for you,” she winks.Winks. At a huge pelican with claws.At least that’s what I call him when he gets stubborn with a stick stuck up his ass.
She goes on to calling out names. Thank God, they’re decent ones and nothing like Fluffers. Just thinking of his name gives me the chills, but I feel happiness come down the line and it reassures me that he’s truly okay with the name.
“Pixie-Whistle?”
Letting out a small cry, his claws dig into the ground, showing our displeasure.
“Squeaks?” Rez gives us a teasing smile and if it’s possible, we try to give her a deadpan look. I’m sure if anyone could, it would be this asshole.
“How about Nibbles?”
Snapping our beak, she moves on to the next name.
“Pussfeathers?” The silence sits between us until she can’t hold it any longer and starts laughing. She laughs so hard, I can see tears gathering in her eyes as she continues on.
A few moments later, she finally gets control of herself and wipes her eyes. “Sorry, I couldn’t help it.” She chuckles and blows out her breath before giving us a serious look.
