Alpha Female

Not my neighborhood

As said before, my english is very poor. I will take advantage of my inspiration and review the wording later on.

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Rosalie didn't thought. The moment her mind registered the presence of a large animal by her side, her body just acted in self preservation. Her hand flew to the fire pit, grabing a still lit branch, barely noticing that she singed her fingertips. She imediatly swinged it against the animal with a scream.

"Get away from me!"

It was effective, surprisingly. The beast jumped back, startled by the burning flame, them stumbled, its back leg failing to sustain its weight for a second.

Rosalia kneeled, but didn't tried to get up, afraid to give it any oportunity to get closer and bit her life off. The creature also didnt move, staring at her with its golden eyes.

She realized that, without any doubt, it was a tiger. Bright oranged and ivory fur, stripped black all the way from head to tail. Was it a real bengal tiger? Whatever species it belonged to, it was terrifying to notice how massive the animal was, this close to herself. However, it seen a bit thin and, now that she stared a bit longer, she understood why it stumbled by itself. A long, vicious scar crossed its left thigh.

'Thats why it get so close to the fire? A hurt animal that can barely hunt, desesperated enough to risk get close to humans? Did it escaped from the local zoo?'

Before she could try to think in what to do next, the animal moved. Not that it walked or something like that. It literally started to bend and curl on itself. It sinked, absorving fur and paws to give place to skin and hands. In the end, what was left was a tall, wide and very naked man. The only sign of the tiger was the feline ears poping between his orange hair and the long, thich tail behind his back.

"~~~~!!" Only a strangled hiss of shock left Rosalia's lips. The tiger man rose his hands in a peaceful gesture, taking a step back and somehow trying to look smaller than his fearsome self.

"I wont do you any harm female. I am no feral." Its, or his, voice was deep and hoarse and shook Rosalia out of her frozen state. She stumbled to answer, almost offended.

"You can turn into a tiger and dare to say you not feral?!" His ears turned back and down and his tail was also close to the ground.

"You must be from an herbivore tribe. I swear that not all carnivores are feral. We live in tribes just like yours, and even in mixed tribes, like the beast city." He explained carefully, but didnt approched. "Are you lost? Where you kidnapped from your tribe?"

Rosalie started trembling like a leaf loose in the wind. Cold sweat dripped down her forehead as she completly lost it.

'What with this absurd situation?! This is not possibe! This is not real! I- I must be dreaming!'

The tiger, in the other hand, didn't just watched her break down. He stepped foward, fast even with his limping leg, and took the flaming branch way from her hands. Rosalie didn't noticed until it was forcibly taken away from her that it was close to burn her hand.

The tiger man, on the other hand, noticed the dry blood in her head.

"You are hurt." He rose his hand to touch it, but stopped when the fear in her eyes threatened to go wild. "Tell me where your village is. I will take you back. Its the duty of all males to protect lone females."

Rosalie didn't knew what to say. She had no way to making excuses for her presence here, wherever here was. So, without really thinking (not that she was in conditions to) she answered.

"-nt know..."

"What is it, kitty?" He asked, unabled to understand the broken words.

"I don't know! I don't know where I am! I don't know from where I can from! I don't know how to go back!" Tears of frustration rolled down her cheeks and she aggressively wipped them off. Because of this she missed the how terrified the tiger man looked at sigh of a woman crying.

"It's fine kitty. Don't cry. Everything is all right. Just tell me you tribe and we will find out where it is. Are you from the bird tribe? The lamb tribe. Maybe ape?"

"I don't know!" Rosalia insisted, looking up again, but shouting made her head hurt again. She whined softly and touched the sore spot in her head.

"You... Don't know?" The tall man looked at her wound and back to her face, serious. He carefully put his hands om her shoulders. The feeling of his big, rough and hot hands managed to melt a bit of the cold panic where she drowned. She snapped from her despair and looked up to his eyes.

"Female, take a deep breath with me." He breath in, deep and slow, them let it out. She managed to let out a trembling breath. "Yes, again, nice and slow... Good kitty." They did it again and again until Rosalia stopped trembling. "Now, can you tell me your name."

With her mind clear and a pair of solid hands proving that this was all very real, Rosalia had to think. She knew nothing about where she was, how and why. The smartest thing one could do was give an excuse of why they where clueless. If she had to stay in this unknow place, at least she would have a explanation for knowing nothing about anything.

With no better in the heat of the moment, Rosalie oppened her mouth and said:

"I don't know. I can't remember it."