Isn't Blood Thicker?

Red Eyed

Pulling up to the house,Emberly could see Luke's gray Audi sitting in the driveway; he was on time as always. She eagerly got out the car and entered the house,almost exploding with laughter at the sight before her. "So you see,if the ball makes it through the field goal then they get one extra point." Poor Luke, Grandpa had been explaining football to him for the past 15 minutes. "Oh My Gawd! Emberly, next time tell me to come over when you're actually here! I've been dying watching men pummel eachother over a damn ball!" He stands and she hugs him,whispering in his ear, "Good thing they're wearing jockey straps." She raises a knowing brow. "Well he didn't tell me about that part.", Luke's interest in football might have just grew then. 

Emberly leads him to her room where he plops down on her bed as she gathers a change of clothes. "What did your parents say?" She anxiously questioned, going to the bathroom to change. Luke pops a couple of peanuts into his mouth before speaking, "Said they never heard of anything like this. They told me to ship the necklace to them for examination but once I put it on I couldn't take the damned thing off."Emberly stopped in her tracks as she was walking out of the bathroom,eyebrows furrowed, hand on the pendant."What do you mean couldn't take it off?"

"Try it." Luke suggests rather casually. He really only had three moods, petty,dramatic,and casual which confused Ember. How could he act so nonchalant about a situation such as this one? Emberly tugged at the necklace but it moved no higher than her mid neck. It strangely felt like gravity had increased tenfold."You've got...to be kidding me..."She was at a loss for words. None of this made sense and the anonymous sender didn't mention this little perk.

"Yep, and when that happened I knew we were dealing with something real. I'm not saying it's the save the world crap that email was talking about but we definitely have a situation on our hands." Although he didn't express it, Luke was quite nervous and disturbed by the whole thing. 

Emberly didn't speak for a while until the thought hit her like a northern wind chill. "What if this necklace prevents us from shifting?!Luke..."Now the worry was evident in him as he hastily abandons his place on her bed,"Well we need to go check, c'mon."Hand in hand they rushed out of the house,Grandpa not even noticing how hysterical they were. Once outside, they ran into the forest across the street,slowing down when they were in deep enough. Turning their backs to eachother, they got undressed,leaving the two naked. "Ready?" Luke asked over his shoulder. "Let's do it", Her heart began to race as she let her human conscience slip away and her body started to transform. Vibrant striped orange fur replaced human skin,huge paws planted into the ground,and a massive tiger standing where a petite red headed female had just been seconds ago. The tiger huffed air through her nose and turned around,greeting the familiar leopard with a gentle headbutt. Mind linking is only possible through mating,so they had to leave communication up to the cats. Without a mating bond,anything could go wrong which is why it's important they try to stay in as much control as possible which is something Ember always struggled with. She's gotten better over the years but sometimes the tiger instinct was just too strong. 

After they become acquainted, Luke leaps onto a low lying tree branch and Emberly nears a small pond for a drink. Lowering her head and seeing her reflection in the water made her that much more ecstatic that they were still able to shift. But it's a wonder how the necklace was still around both their necks.

Rustle

The tiger's head raises in attention.

Rustle. Rustle. 

Ember tried with all her might to keep the tiger calm but to no avail. She slowly stalks the area from which the noise sounded. Luke remained in the tree but was alert and attentive. For a moment there was silence. No birds chirping,insects buzzing,or even a whisper from the wind. Then...

Snap

Out stepped a deer from behind a tree. Perceiving it as food the tiger was ready for the chase but something was....off. This deer's eyes were blood red and it simply just..stood there...staring. Luke hopped off the branch and took his place beside the tiger,observing the deer that was also observing them. The tigeress took a half step forward,a low growl sounding in her chest. Seconds later the deer turns and walks away..as if it hadn't just encountered two top predators. Immediately the forest comes alive with bird songs and hopping bunnies again.

Luke laid down where he was just standing and rolls onto his back but Emberly's attention remained on the stag that was no longer there. Her eyes searched the distant bushes and trees for any sign of movement but there was nothing. The tiger was now on edge and Ember knew it was time to put her away. Nudging Luke,she walks back to where their clothes are and shifts back to her human self. "Let's get out of here" She suggests while getting dressed. A few seconds later Luke responded. "Emberly.."He started but she interrupts, "Not here.", it felt odd to discuss what just happened with that deer possibly lurking around. 

As they left the forest Ember couldn't help but look back a few times. It's not that she thought they were being followed, the deer was just...off-putting. "Curiosity killed the cat,tiger"Luke joked upon entering the house. He had seen her looking over her shoulder expectantly a few times. "It was a weird encounter,i'll admit, but I don't think you should worry yourself. It literally just stood there and looked at us."Emberly opened her mouth to speak but figured it didn't matter anyway because there was no changing his mind. He was right though,nothing happened so there wasn't much to be nerved up about."So,why did you call me over?" He asked,plopping down on the couch and resting his feet on the coffee table,obviously relieved that Grandpa was in his room so there wouldn't be more talk about sports."What do you mean?I can't just call you over to hangout?" She was perplexed at first until she remembered the incident at work. Luke chuckled, "Since when do we ever hangout here?" Good point. Emberly tucked a curly strand behind her ear and began, "There's this new guy at work-" 

"Hold on!" Luke quickly removed his feet and perked up crossing one leg over the other and placing his hands on his knee,facing Emberly. This is the type of stuff he lived for. "Go on.."He instructed as if he was some type of therapist or gossip guru...which he is. "There's this new guy at work-"

"OMG what does he look like?!" He just couldn't help himself,men were his favorite topic after all."Tall..about 6'3 or 6'4..athletic built. Icy blue eyes." She stares out into space as she recalls Tobias' image. "Blue like mine or with a grayish tint like yours?"Luke questioned. "Blue like the Weddell Sea...and his black hair compliments them perfectly.His name is Tobias."

"Damn girl,I wonder if he's as fine as i'm imagining" Luke was surprisingly good at guessing what guys looked like so when Emberly said "Finer", he was beyond shook. "Okay so what happened with this Tobias guy,sugarbun?"