Just Another Job

On the Road

Sorry it took so long. I really drew a blank for this part, and my notes weren't any help, since I had put absolutely no ideas down for this section. Sooooo updates might still be a little slow, since I have nothing to refer to, but they will be coming. I hope you like it!

Oh and that's a picture of Jo on the side

Of course, we had to travel light. With great reluctance, I left my jacket and weapons concealed with the rest of our stuff in a storage unit in town. I wasn't going to leave us completely defenseless though. Ian was a very large wolf, and unlike cats, was built to carry some weight. He had a small pack on a harness that strapped to his back in wolf form. It looked kind of ridiculous, but this wasn't some fairytale where everyone magically had what they needed at the moment, no questions asked.

Ian happily shifted into wolf form once we were back in the woods. Happily may have been too strong of a word, because his beloved Mustang was still stranded on the side of the road across from the other mangled car. I strapped the pack onto him as Jo went into the woods to shift. What kind of cat would she come back as? 

I elbowed Ian's ribs when he wouldn't stand still. "Stop acting like the mutt that you are and just behave for a second, okay?" I muttered. Ian, being Ian, ignored me and licked my hand. I pushed his head aside and finished buckling the harness. I went to the small pile of clothing and weapons that I had compiled and stuffed it into the pack. Ian wiggled around, his tail swishing back and forth furiously. I snorted. Wolves. Weird creatures.

I released Ian, and he bounded off into the woods after a squirrel. Some habits never died. I dropped to my hands and knees and felt the familiar tingle race up my spine. Within seconds, I was a very large, white panther. I opened my eyes, and despite the serious situation, I couldn't help the jubilation I felt. I stretched luxuriously, my new feline eyes seeing the world in much more detail than my human eyes ever could. 

Ian raced back into the clearing and right up to me. Lowering his front half to the ground, he wagged his tail and swatted at my face playfully. I hissed at him, slapping his face aside with my heavy paw. Ian, undeterred, raced out of the clearing.

I heard another cat approaching behind me. I turned around slowly, wondering what Jo would be. A tiger? A lion? I stopped in my tracks when I saw her. Whoa. She was an exotic clouded leopard, a form I recognized as the one she had shifted into after her tiger appearance with Jasper. It must be one of her favorite forms, and it was rapidly becoming one of mine too. She looked so damned sexy. I growled in approval, cat instincts on high alert. 

She slinked up to me, purring and arching against my side. She was a larger than average leopard, due to shifter blood, and she came up to my shoulder. Oh god, was it wrong to want some wild animal sex? Yeah, that was kind of weird. And gross. Well, Jo as a cat was hot. I would have to remembe this feeling later. Maybe we could shift back and have a quick shagging? 

Ian rushed into the clearing, skidding to a halt when he saw Jo arched against my side. He looked extremely distrustful of the new cat, thanks to dog instincts. It had taken him ages to be comfortable around me, and it had taken me just as long to not be so edgy around him. His hackles were raised as he slowly approached. Jo stood perfectly still next to me. Was she afraid? 

Ian grew bolder when she didn't move. Tentatively, he reached his muzzle out towards her, sniffing the air. In a flash of movement that made both Ian and I jump, Jo reached out her velvet paw and smacked his muzzle. Ian yelped and scooted backwards. He gave Jo a baleful glare as he resentfully rubbed his nose with his paw. 

I stepped forward before a fight could break out. It was time to start our journey. 

Two hours later, we stopped for a break. Ian was still full of energy, but Jo and I needed a rest. Cats really weren't the best travellers. But I couldn't complain too much. Roaming around in panther form was something I had sorely missed, and I hadn't nearly gotten my fill of it yet. We stopped next to a winding stream, a lucky break for us, because no one had to shift into human form to get out our water bottles.