The Rising Sun & The Morning Calm Ch. 25

Angela watched Genzo as his eyes followed Linnsa's every move. There was a subtle what could almost be termed hunger in his demeanor as he tracked Linnsa's movements. Momentarily she feared that her sister had gone into heat, but that was not possible considering it took her a few months to go into heat and even that was considered fast. Not only that, Sang Nam seemed no more interested in her than at any other moment since meeting her. So what was it that had Genzo so riled up? Wondering if she should give them some privacy, she asked Sang Nam to drive her out to pick up something to eat. Flashing a bemused grin at Genzo, for once he said nothing and simply motioned for Angela to follow him.

Seeing that they were now alone in the room, Linnsa kept her gaze fixed to the tabletop, not sure how to proceed. She could feel Genzo's eyes on her and was somewhat discomfited by the intensity that she felt. Not that it was all bad. She'd never had a man respond so strongly to her and it was flattering to say the least, but there was something about the forcefulness of his feelings that put her on edge. Her compassion winning out, she took her coffee cup in hand and joined Genzo on the sofa. "I guess we both feel a little weird, huh?" she said lightly with a smile.

Scratching the back of his head awkwardly, Genzo gave an embarassed laugh. "Indeed."

They sat next to each other in silence, avoiding eye contact. Nervous, she meant to place her coffee mug on the end table by the sofa but accidentally placed the cup too close to the edge and she let out a cry as it fell to the ground. There was a crash as it smashed against the hardwood floor. "Oh no," she muttered as she bent down to clean up the mess.

Genzo's head jerked up when he heard her draw her breath inward with a sharp hiss. "[Doshta] - I mean - what is wrong?" Looking down he saw her holding her palm where a ceramic shard had lodged into the skin. A thin line of blood dripped from where it had entered.

"Great, that's just great," she spat through gritted teeth.

"Hold still," Genzo ordered, taking her hand. She was momentarily distracted when she noticed how enormous his hands were compared to her own. As he reached for the jagged piece he felt her try to withdraw her hand from his grip. "I said to hold still!" he told he firmly. Shocked by the sternness of his voice, Linnsa meekly forced herself to refrain from flinching as he removed the shard from her skin with surprising gentleness.

"Oh, that wasn't so bad," Linnsa mused with surprise. "Stings like crazy though."

Holding her hand in both of his, he stared at her palm for a moment and hesitantly asked, "May I? I can fix this for you if you like."

"Huh? How?"

"If I clean your wound while in my animal state, it will heal momentarily." His expression was pleasantly expectant.

She'd forgotten about the infection. There really wasn't much to remind her of it, considering everyone around her stayed in their human form. Her curiosity getting the better of her, she asked, "Can you tell me a bit more about this...change in states or whatever it is you call it?"

"Eventually, you will learn to control it and change at will, but in the animal state, your body is much stronger and heals faster than when in your purely human form. In time, you will find that all of your senses will become sharper. You will also be free of any and all illnesses."

Almost afraid to ask, she did so anyway. "What do you look like when you, uh, change?"

Genzo smiled wryly. "I am much larger in size and have grey fur and yellow eyes."

She couldn't imagine his being any more jacked than he already was. Figuring it couldn't hurt to see, after all her sister appeared to have no problems with it, she nodded and said, "Well, if you think it will help, go ahead and do what it is you think will help me."

"Give me a moment," he requested, going into his room. Not wanting to ruin a perfectly good T shirt and jeans, he stripped to all but his boxer briefs and returned. "Do you wish to see what the change looks like?" he asked, unsure if she would be frightened by his metamorphosis.

Curiosity won over caution and she nodded. "Sure, why not?"

He didn't know why, but he liked the idea of her seeing him in his other form. Hoping that she would not regret her choice, he knelt on the ground and heard her gasp as he began to grow. His skeleton snapped as the bones lengthened and rearranged while grey fur covered his skin. Sickened by the sounds of crunching bone, Linnsa had covered her face with her hands so she had missed most of the change. When she finally peeked out from between her fingers, she saw a giant grey mass crouched where Genzo had been and her mouth fell open as he stood to his full height, the tips of his ears lightly grazing the ceiling. From between the rows of jagged teeth she heard an impossibly deep voice growl, "Are you alright?"

"Genzo?" she whispered in disbelief.

"Do not be frightened," he assured her. "I would never harm you." He took a step towards her and saw her back away. Stopping, he allowed her a few moments to really get a good look at him.

It was kind of funny to see a grey wolf walking upright and wearing a pair of black boxer briefs. Finally the absurdity of the situation got the best of her and all of a sudden Linnsa began laughing uncontrollably. The look of seriousness and confusion on Genzo's face only added to the comical picture and she laughed even harder. "I do not understand. What is funny?"

"I don't know, this is just all too much!" she chuckled, her laughter waning.

Feeling relieved that she did not seemed frightened of him any more, he took a tentative step towards her and smiled inside when she held out her tiny hand to him, still grinning. Seating her in his lap, he took her palm and gently began lapping the blood that had dried there. The sound of her giggling filled his ears as his tongue tickled her skin. He thought it the most pleasant sound he had heard in years.

As promised, Linnsa saw the skin seal until there was no trace of any cut. "No way!" Despite the fact that her hand was now healed, Genzo showed no signs of stopping. As he continued licking, she cautiously reminded, "Uh, Genzo, I think I'm good now." Still not stopping, she heard a rumble from deep within his throat, that had he been a cat, she would have sworn he was purring. Calmed by the noise, she reached up and ran her fingers through the thick fur of his mane as he continued tasting her skin. "You're so soft," she remarked with wonder.

Feeling her twine her fingers in his fur, Genzo began to lick more insistently and higher up on her arm. She tasted delectable and he wanted to christen every last inch of her body with his tongue. As he reached her neck, Linnsa began to feel her discomfort return. Though she tried to gently extricate herself from him, he held onto her and began ardently licking the side of her face. She felt his hand steal across her belly and pull her deeper into his lap and for the second time she felt his turgid cock press against her.

Fuck, he wanted her. He wanted to shred the clothes off her body and mount her right there in the middle of the floor. No longer thinking, his other hand reached under her shirt and began groping her breasts.

"HEY!" Wriggling out of his grasp, she whirled to face him, her cheeks flushed. "I think you need to calm down," she warned him. His amber eyes glazed over, he continued to circle her as she watched him nervously. To his surprise, when he suddenly lunged for her, she swiftly blocked his arms and jumped out of reach. "Genzo, I mean it. Stop!" Her protest awoke the hunter in him and only served to increase his need to submit her. Grabbing at her again, he was shocked when she jumped high into the air and landed a roundhouse kick to his chest with unexpected force, actually causing him to stagger a few steps back. "Whatever is going on with you, you'd better snap out of it," she snarled, "because I don't want to hurt you." Exhilarated by the fact that she was playing hard to get, he crouched down on all fours, licked his fangs and pounced.

*THWACK!*

Stars suddenly blinded his vision, then a searing pain in his sensitive nose followed. When he could see again, he saw Linnsa standing with her legs braced apart, her fists raised in front of her, eyes blazing. He was so surprised and confused by what had just happened that he slipped back into his human form just as Angela and Sang Nam returned.

"What the fuck is going on here?" she demanded, seeing her sister in a defensive fighting posture and Genzo kneeling on the ground holding his nose.

"Nothing," Linnsa muttered as she cracked her knuckles back into place and went to her room, slamming the door behind her.

"What did you do?" she asked Genzo in an accusatory tone.

"I am not entirely certain what just happened," he replied in a daze. When he removed his hand, a small trickle of blood escaped from his nose. "Did Linnsa do that?"

Angela couldn't help grinning at the wonder in his voice. "Oh yeah, forgot to tell you. Linnsa's a fourth degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do. I'd recommend not making her feel threatened."

"[Tsugoi]," he whispered, a lovestruck expression on his face.

Angela laughed. Go figure that Genzo would find it sexy that a woman could beat him up. "I'll go talk to her." Apparently Genzo was still so stunned by what just happened that he barely even heard her. Going into her sisters room, Angela found Linnsa applying peroxide to her knuckles. "Why is it I can never leave the two of you unsupervised?"

"And why is it you always tend to create opportunities for us to be alone together unsupervised," Linnsa asked back archly.

"Touche," Angela conceded. "What happened?"

"I dunno. I smashed a cup by accident and he asked if he could fix my hand after I cut it. I was kind of curious what all this infection crap actually looks like so I gave him the green light. Next thing I know, he's giving me a tongue bath and trying to grab my boobs!" Angela winced at that. "Then when I tell him to keep his hands to himself, he starts attacking me! I warned him a few times, but I had to show him I meant business." Gripping the counter with her hands she shook her head in disbelief. "What the hell is going on with him?"

"Well, in Genzo's defense, he wasn't trying to hurt you," Angela tried to explain. "He's part wolf, and wolves mate for life and they are extremely territorial. You're the first person in three centuries that he's had feelings for and I can imagine that in all that time, he must be really happy to have found someone he feels a connection with. As for the licking and attacking, they're hunters. He probably got turned on by your trying to get away from him."

"This is stupid! He's a man with a brain. You can't expect me to believe that some wolf DNA and testosterone could lead a man to lose all reason!"

"Uh, look what it does to women with just estrogen and progesterone," Angela pointed out. "As I recall, someone was having a rather difficult time this morning regulating her moods."

Flustered at the fact that her sister had a point, Linnsa shot back defensively, "That - that's totally different!"

"Mm hm," was Angela's only comment. "Look, he's gone from ignoring his feelings to opening the floodgates. He's bound to be a little intense."

"A little?!" she echoed incredulously. "He looked like he was ready to eat me!"

Angela laughed as her sister did not even realize the double meaning what she'd said had. "He's in love with you and you bring out the animal in him. Take it as an extreme form of a compliment."

"Gives a whole new meaning to 'beating them off with a stick'," she muttered dryly. "Why can't I just find a normal guy?"

"Oh come on, Linns, that would be too boring for you."
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tsugoi: cool, amazing (Japanese)
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Noboru decided to check on Angela and her sister. As he entered the suite, he was surprised to see Genzo was holding an ice pack to his nose. "What transpired here?"

"Apparently our little [agashi] is a fourth degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do," Sang Nam explained with amusement. "Genzo found out firsthand."

"And how did this information come about?" Noboru was doing his utmost to keep the amusement out of his voice. Linnsa's profound effect on Genzo's mood was nothing short of astonishing.

Embarassed, Genzo mumbled, "[Nan demonai]."

"Sang, could I have a moment with Genzo please?"

"Sure. I'm curious to find out how good Angela's little [dongsaeng] really is. I bet I could give her a run for her money." Both he and Noboru turned abruptly when they heard Genzo growl suddenly. "What is with you, man?" Seeing Noboru incline his head, Sang Nam took it as his cue to leave.

"Genzo, I am a bit concerned. I've never seen you act this way before," Noboru said tentavtively. "What is happening to you?"

"She feels something for me, and all I can think about is making her mine," he replied sheepishly, a deep red coloring his face.

[That would explain his reaction to Sang Nam], Noboru thought. "It seems difficult for you to control yourself. You've never been so...distracted." He paused as an idea flitted across his head. "Do you think she's going into heat?"

"No, I seem to be the only one affected by her," he answered half sourly, half relieved.

Noboru turned his eyes to meet Angela's as she came into the room. "What is going on?"

"My sister's ovulating," she explained with a woeful small smile. "I think that's why Genzo is being such a naughty boy."

"[Kso]," both men swore in unison.

"Well that would explain why she smells differently to me," Genzo surmised. "Is she angry again with me?"

"I think she's a bit confused and unsure of what to do with our animal instincts."

Genzo groaned in frustration and buried his face in his hands. "I keep making a mess of things. Is being in love meant to be this difficult?!"

Angela did her best not to chuckle at his distress, but Noboru's unease only continued to mount at seeing him so turned over. "Genzo, I am worried about your ability to be objective in your duties. Not that I am unhappy for you that you have finally found something that makes you feel so wonderful, but it has been so long and the experience seems to be quite intense."

Looking up at his friend with concern, he asked, "What do you wish me to do?" His voice was edged with concern.

This was going to be difficult. Taking a deep breath, Noboru replied, "Perhaps it would be best if you had some time to process all that has happened. If Linnsa is currently fertile, I am concerned about your potential reactions to her." The sound of Linnsa and Sang Nam's combined laughter floated out of her room and Noboru's jaw clenched slightly when he heard a low menacing growl escape Genzo's throat. "Case in point..."

"[Donno, onnegai]," Genzo anxiously stammered after snapping to. "I will not allow this to affect my behavior any longer." His voice softened as he added, "Please, do not send me away."

Observing his longtime friend with unease, Noboru couldn't bring himself to refuse. "Thank god this will pass in a few days," he mused.

"If I survive this, I will," Genzo muttered, returning his hand to his bruised nose.

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nan demonai: it's nothing (Japanese)
agashi: young lady, little miss (Korean)
dongsaeng: younger sibling or younger person (Korean)
kso: shit (Japanese)
onnegai: please, I beg you (Japanese)