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Disclaimer - Getting lost in a good book is a wonderful thing, but being held in a book against your will is hardly how most people envision spending their Saturday night. So before you embark on this long and treacherous voyage, please realize that you are wandering into a sordid transformational tale of obsession, acceptance, and dappled desire. (This is a work of pornographic fiction. Please do not read if it would be unlawful for you to do so.)

Seeing Spots

During the previous "wild" Saturday night Nathan had exhausted most of what the small city had to offer. He had also exhausted himself. Not that he had anything against hanging around with friends, but sometimes being around so many people made him feel like he was just acting rather than actually enjoying himself. Then again . . . that might have just been the alcohol. His group of acquaintances and friend's friends were always trying to get him to hook up with new women, but it always felt forced at best. He just wasn't particularly smooth, and didn't really want to meet the kind of people who would hang around in bars hoping people would awkwardly sweep them off their feet.

On the next morning, awake and safe back at his apartment, it would have been the easiest thing in the world to just stay in bed all day and never leave the downy comfort of his tangled sheets. Just opening his eyes made him groan, little wriggling needles of pain digging from the corners of his eyes back into his mind.

But, the worst thing that could be done for a hangover was nothing, and so, after a healthy period of contemplation, he stepped out of his bed into the crisp morning air, and began his daily routine. Nathan dazedly stumbled into the shower and let the hot water cascade over him, rinsing off the excesses of the previous night, scrubbing his unruly hair and rather unremarkable frame before he dried off and managed to wriggle into some old moss-green corduroy pants and a loose blue T-shirt with the MGM logo on it. With the way his stomach felt, breakfast was the last thing he wanted to eat, but he managed to mournfully force down a banana and half a glass of milk.

When considering how to spend his day, he immediately crossed out friends from the list. He'd had quite enough of them last night judging from the pulsing sensation, as if someone was ringing his brain like a signal gong. Staying in was quickly crossed off as well: That might lead to introspection, which was the true mind-killer. There were no movies out worth seeing, and anyways, being in a theater with booming audio and a brightly lit screen didn't sit well with Nathan at the moment. He rose and walked towards the large cork board that he kept near the front of his apartment, containing scraps from here and there, a few bills, and all the things that caught his eye but he never could seem to find the time to do.

Camping? No time. Work tomorrow.

Improv Class? Wrong day of the week.

Chinese Acupuncture? Still kind of creepy, even if it had been recommended by a friend.

New Filipino Restaurant? The thought made his stomach recoil in horror.

The Zoo? . . . Well, it was certainly better than nothing . . .

Nathan had never actually been to the municipal zoo, even having worked in this town for what, four years now? It certainly wouldn't be as large as any of the menageries that existed in a real city, but people had said that this one was well kept, even if it was kind of small. It was just the right bite-sized excursion to make it feel like he'd accomplished something on a day that otherwise would have been lost to his own recovery.

The misty drive was calming in a sort of hypnotic way. There was barely anyone about, the town seemingly deserted as it always was on a Sunday. It was like the town was religious enough to avoid activity on the sabbath, but not religious enough to actually go to church. At the main intersection, he had to force himself to stray from the tangle of roads that would lead him to work. The habit of driving to the office was just so engrained in his mind that it felt vaguely sacrilegious to be straying to the edge of town towards the ridges with the zoo and the botanical gardens perched on their slopes, nestled amongst the low clouds of the gray overcast day.

Idling through the massive parking lot made Nathan feel uneasy. It wasn't that there was nobody here, but the twenty or so cars just seemed dwarfed by the yawning expanse of carefully measured out but decidedly empty asphalt. On a clear day, he would have been able to see all the way down to town, but today all he could see was a few of the taller spires poking up out of the white haze. It made him feel slightly anxious, not because the city might have been whisked away by some misty and indistinct god, but because the thought didn't bother him as much as it seemed like it should. If the whole town wasn't there when he returned, at least he wouldn't need to go into work tomorrow . . .

There was no line to speak of at the entrance booths, just an older woman in a brown polo cheerfully taking money in exchange for tickets from the family in front of him, who looked like they were doing a small comedy bit as they tried to get their carriage through the turnstile. Nathan payed in cash, feeling initially guilty at spending the better part of a twenty. It wasn't that it was really that much money, considering what he made in a month, but more along the lines of the fact that he had never been truly comfortable with spending money on anything other than bare spartan necessities. The gray-haired counter matron smiled at him and told him to enjoy himself before waving him through to the entrance that smelled of freshly spread bark chips.

There was a colorful sign that rose up before him, the zoo seeming more like a well kept garden with paths fading out into the mist on every side. The huge map had every section of the zoo color coded: red for the African savannahs, green for the South American rainforest, blue for indigenous species, and so on. It seemed a little sad that all of the reptiles got lumped into the gray block of the reptile house regardless of where they were from, unlike the other animals that got to wear their continental origins with pride. With such thoughts filtering through his mind, he decided to visit the scaled creepy-crawlies first, walking down the cement path lined with verdant leafy shrubs and trees.

Once he made it, the dim light of the tunnel was nice, the daggers behind his eyes temporarily downgraded to toothpicks as he walked through the faux-stone cave. Sadly, none of the reptiles seemed to have any interest in moving in the least. The snakes were all curled into tight balls or completely missing from their enclosures. The lizards seemed to be completely content just to sit there flattened out under heat lamps save for one persistent little gecko that had plastered itself to the glass pane in front of its cage.

It was all vaguely depressing . . . The animals seemed taken care of well enough, and the place was certainly well maintained; however, seeing them all trapped in their static glass and cement worlds made Nathan wonder about his own sheltered little existence.

As he walked along through the Savannah into the Brazilian rainforest he wondered if he would act any differently if he knew that he was being watched by some kind of unseen extraterrestrial force. Nathan was actually worried that it wouldn't change anything at all, and that his life would just be the same, but with one of those terrible laugh-tracks in the background, tittering as he tried to eke out some form of enjoyment from seeing the largely inactive animals.

As he ambled through his own thoughts, Nathan ended up in the Amazon Basin, staring down at some kind of large enclosure. It was bigger than most of the ones he'd been seeing, with large leafy trees, a pile of boulders in the center near a little spring, and dense leafy ground cover. The thought that anyone would be able to see an animal through all of the foliage seemed impossible, but his boredom changed almost instantly to curiosity when he saw a rustle, and what he swore was a tail tip that whipped around behind those rocks. He rested his head on the thick plate-glass window, moving curiously one way and then the other, but unable to see what exactly the creature had been. Looking from side to side, he found that there weren't even any signs to inform him of what he had seen, which seemed odd considering how eager the zoo had been to tell him about gecko toes and the digestive habits of tapirs.

But as he was staring down, he realized that there was another row of windows on the bottom level. That must be where you're supposed to look from, Nathan nodded to himself as he hurried down the stairs. Not knowing exactly what was in the enclosure was actually rather exciting. A smile crept across his lips as he reached the bottom, looking around at the dimly lit room with unfinished poured cement walls made to look like a natural cave. It smelled like a construction site, and was a little foreboding as there weren't any people around . . . and there weren't any windows either. He had definitely seen them, but the small space down here wasn't nearly big enough for them. The only thing in here was a rather heavy white door with an industrial looking aluminum handle on it.

Although he was getting a kind of employees-only vibe, the door offered no hints and gave no warnings, sitting there like a whitewashed enigma. His curiosity about the creature drove him to open the door a crack and peek through. It led to a short hallway, this one slightly balmy, with a more sturdy metal door at the other end. Surely if this was something just for zookeepers, they would have put a lock on it . . . or at least a sign.

He strode forwards to the metal door, scratching a finger through the stubble on his chin. This looked a lot like one of the airlocks to get into the aviaries he had passed, even if the doors were slightly heavier. It was probably just a bird that he had seen . . . although he swore that it had been the tip of some kind of fuzzy tail. His suddenly insatiable curiosity drove him to test the sliding handle on the metal door, which although it creaked like Freddy Kruger at a chalk board factory, opened the door without any resistance.

That settled it. This was obviously a place that he was allowed to be in. It probably just wasn't a very popular attraction . . . Stepping in, Nathan felt the balmy heat on his skin. The whole place was enclosed in something like a greenhouse, glass roof and windows trapping the heat inside. It was actually kind of nice on a chilly misty day such as this one. There were banana trees around, and the general creaking of some kind of unknown insect. What there wasn't, was a clear path, but he stepped forwards over a low bushy ferns towards the rocks in the middle of the clearing, feeling an odd rising wonder bloom in his chest. For the first time at the zoo, he felt like he was really discovering something, child-like wonder restored as he paced forwards towards the sound of running water.

Perhaps it was a lemur or something . . . but that didn't seem quite right . . . he pressed around the rough trunk of a banana tree, eyes widening as his breath stopped and his eyes fixed on something crouched by the trickling pool under the massive stones in the center of the room. His eagerness turned almost immediately to ice and trickled down the back of his neck as he got a good look at the creature, smaller than a lion, but still a terrifyingly large spotted cat. It stopped drinking lazily and looked back over its shoulder, rounded ears flickering independently as it licked its loose black lips.

Nathan froze as those golden feline eyes stared at him. The glowing circular orbs seemed to float amongst the blotchy rosettes of its glossy coat, like the feathers of some great predatory peacock. The jaguar slowly rose to its feet, tail twitching behind it as it turned to face the man with a kind of seemingly uncaring curiosity that only an apex predator could muster. Nathan was standing stock still, but as soon as the great cat started padding its way towards him, the instincts that lived in the base of his brain took over, screaming for him to get away from any feline that could plausibly call him 'dinner.'

He turned and surged forwards, one leg outstretched as his other got tangled in the ropey fern. To an onlooker, it would have looked like it was taking him ten seconds to gracelessly fall down, hands flailing at the bark-chip ground as he planted face first into it before rolling his legs under him and sitting up awkwardly.

By the time he had righted himself however, the cat was nowhere to be seen. His eyes scanned over to the burbling pool before he felt the prickle of whiskers and warm breath against the back of his neck, making his attempted cry for help come out as a meager squeak. Terror petrified him as he felt the great creature nuzzle in against him, with enough force to make him hunch forwards, catching himself on his hands before looking back. There was a deep low rumbling that filled the air . . . not with menace, but rather an almost comforting low buzz. Was it . . . purring?

His feet slid against the floor as he made to rise, sharp sound making the Jaguar's ears twitch towards him before it turned its huge head to the side, looking over at him quizzically before leaning in to sniff at his knee, pink nostrils flaring as its golden eyes looked up at him judicially. Nathan just desperately hoped that he didn't smell particularly delicious at the moment. The cat lazily opened its wide heavy jaws, pink tongue folding out and dragging against the knee of his pants, tugging at the thick material in a way that made Nathan's skin prickle up with goosebumps.

Nathan's mind was pulled in three directions: Jesus Christ, it's a giant death cat; I've got to get the fuck out of here; And a distant muted third of this thing is majestic as fuck. His feet pedaled back against the ground as he pushed himself back, body acting on various disparate impulses as he thunked up against the thick porous bark of a banana tree. He held his arms out between himself and the terrible beast, its muscles pulling sinuously under its glossy spotted golden coat as it strode impetuously forwards, running a plush cheek up against the side of his trembling arm, rumbling as it slid all the way up to his tender fleshy neck.

The man yelped, throat constricting with a high pitched wheeze of terror as the creature's massive cold pink nose pressed up against him, hot balmy puffs of air snuffling in around the collar of his shirt. He saw his rather bland life flash before his eyes in the minimal black-and-gray text of a mostly ignored obituary. But instead of a bolt of pain and then whatever came from beyond the pale, his held breath came out as a giggling snort as the creature snuffled past his ear and licked up over his mussed hair with its spiny comb-like tongue.

Although his heart was thumping in his chest like an abused bass drum, his shoulders sagged with relief. It was tame. Of course it was tame . . . It was in a zoo . . . He still hadn't moved, sweat beading on the skin of his forehead as he slowly let his breath out in a cautious sigh.

"Hey there . . ." he swallowed slowly. "I don't know if I'm really supposed to be in here." He chuckled nervously as the great cat continued to lick at his hair. "Ow, Ow! Hey!" It really hurt when the cat's tongue slid over his bare skin of his face, leaving it feeling pink and raw in a trail behind it.

The cat pulled back, jaws slightly open as it panted in short silent breaths, its heavy sharpened fangs showing through its dark lips. Nathan wasn't quite sure if the jaguar was miffed, or pleased, or simply curious . . . but he was relatively sure it wasn't hungry . . . At least, not at the moment. It circled slowly, walking past his legs to his other side with a lazily inquisitive flick of the white and black tip of its otherwise spotty tail. Nathan felt entranced, still not wanting to move too quickly as he pulled his knees up, and his eyes followed that hypnotically sinuous tail.

As it turns out, the great cat was most definitely a 'she.' A blush rose to the man's cheeks as he looked at her bared anus and the tight dark feline pussy nestled just below it. "Sorry . . ." He muttered, not sure precisely why. The sensation of being next to such a large animal was decidedly peculiar. The hair on the back of his neck was still tingling as the adrenaline fizzed away from his system. Postcards and television didn't do the sublimity of the situation justice. Her fur glinted in the hazy light of the refracted sun, light sparkling over glossy rosettes as she stepped in close again, now on his left side.

He realized that the strange animal odor in the air was coming from the cat herself, an intensely strange blend of earthy undertones and a blatant acrid reek that he couldn't quite place, like cardamom dissolved in battery acid. He could also hear her panting breaths, light and quick as she bent in and actually nuzzled in under his arm, purring before she closed her eyes and then reeled back with her powerful and yet sinuous body, lifting up his arm and pressing in against him with her furry bulk as he hovered with his hand over her plush back fur. Every rational part of his mind screamed to not touch the cat, from the flighty monkey instincts, to the part that had owned "Socks, the lazy" as a child, and knew how fast a fuzzy belly rub could turn into a murderous flesh-ripping mistake. And yet, almost independently, his fingers lowered in between the beast's shoulders, sinking into the plush silky fur, drawn by the human desire to touch anything as beautiful and soft as that pelt looked. He felt the thick skin underneath twitch against his digits as he let out a nervous laugh. He was petting a jaguar, in a zoo, . . . where he was probably not supposed to be at all . . . and oddly, he was really enjoying it.

Nathan swallowed as he looked up to the edges of the enclosure . . . "Ahh, look. I'm not really supposed to be here, I think . . ." He wasn't really sure why he was trying to explain himself to an overly amorous jungle cat. The cat just licked in under his chin, making him wince as he could smell her balmy animal breath. "So . . . I'm just going to get up here . . ." Saying it out loud felt like it helped as he gingerly got to his feet, trying not to disturb the cat rather unsuccessfully as it continued to grind its head and shoulders against his chest. The cat looked up at him, round black pupils staring right at him accusingly as it batted its tail with seeming irritation.

"Yeah . . . so . . ." He scratched the back of his head, half shrugging as he looked up again at the windows on the top of the enclosure, thinking back to what he had seen before. The windows down on this level were all tinted, so he couldn't see anything on the other side of the dark panes. "Goodbye?" he hazarded, making for the door awkwardly as the cat sat back on her haunches and watched him haughtily, tail twitching with bemusement. Nathan felt oddly guilty, unable to quite draw his gaze away from her golden glare, patting around behind him with a hand before he felt the handle of the heavy metal door and slipped back through it, fumbling to put the sliding handle back into place.

In the dim little antechamber, Nathan shook himself and took a deep breath. That had been the most surreal and yet exhilarating thing that had ever happened to him. Even as he closed his eyes to clear his thoughts, he could still see the way she had been looking at him, and feel her velvety fur under his fingers. He rubbed his palms over his face. It was just a good thing that no one had seen him . . . or at least, if anyone had, they hadn't done anything about it . . . yet. For all he knew, there was a herd of angry zookeepers right behind that other door, and perhaps a brigade of local policemen here to arrest him for . . . Jaguar fraternization?

Regardless of how silly it all sounded in his head, he certainly didn't want to be around for the trouble that he was convinced he was in. Squinting as he walked back up the stairs into the bright diffuse light of the misty day, he shivered as he missed the heat from the balmy jungle he'd just been in. He jammed his hands into his pockets and tried to be as nonchalant as possible, but ended up looking more like a desperately uncomfortable person who was perhaps trying to sell the twelve live mice he had wriggling around in his pockets. The sensation of discomfort was just too much as he half shuffled, half power-walked out of the zoo and back towards the parking lot.

"Thank you for visiting. I hope you enjoyed yourself!" The gray-haired woman's voice shocked him as he pushed through a turnstile by the main gate.

"Uhh. Yeah. It was great." Nathan laughed nervously. He considered asking about the jaguar exhibit, but immediately thought better of it. "I'm just going to . . . uhh . . . goodbye." He looked down as he hurried back out to his car.

His mind was not on the road as he drove home. As he gripped the wheel, he could feel the bark of the banana tree, and when the traffic lights turned yellow, he could almost see her eyes up there before he squeezed the brakes, coming to a rough jostling halt. Nathan just felt oddly confined, stuck in his car as he returned through town, eventually arriving at his apartment, pulling up the parking brake with a ratcheting wrench, and hurrying up the stairs to his one-bedroom, slamming the door behind him as he leaned back against it with a huff.

He slid down, resting against his front door as he thought about his bizarre experience at the zoo. He really wished that he had taken a picture, or recorded it somehow. None of his friends would ever believe that he'd been in an enclosure with a jaguar, survived, and didn't even get caught. Heck, even Nathan wasn't quite sure he believed it at his point, even though the experience seemed to have burned itself into his mind. He shakily rose to his feet. Perhaps he was just a little too worn out from the previous night to deal with all of his thoughts at the moment.

Nathan walked heavily over to his well-used orange upholstered couch, collapsing on it with one leg hooked over the back. He picked up the remote almost automatically, turning on the television. He watched the box of light more out of habit than anything else, stretching out and yawning before beginning to nod off, nuzzling against the arm of the sofa, not quite all the way asleep, but just in that hot muzzy area between ideas and reality. The flickering screen continued to play whatever the Discovery Channel had to offer, wrapping up a look at the culture of Rio, before moving to an examination of the dwindling population of the wild tiger.

As Nathan lay half awake, he continued to think of her, completely unable to put the experience behind him as he remembered the sights and smells. The TV droned on as he closed his eyes, one hand creeping under the waist of his pants and resting on the warmth of his member as he thought about her powerful feline scent. His tongue ran over his lips as he remembered the warm weight of her body leaning up against him, her rumbling purr, and that oddly knowing feral gaze. He lay there for quite some time, thoughts fermenting, all rife with the memories of the sultry jaguar. It was almost like he was nostalgic for the encounter even though it had only happened that very morning.

His murky muddled thoughts fixated on the feline in his dreams as the television continued blaring on in the background. As he rolled himself into a fetal position against the sofa, he licked his lips, vaguely aware that his teeth were beginning to feel strange, almost hollow in a sensation similar to being slightly more than buzzed even though he hadn't had anything to drink all day . . . The experience didn't wake him though, and he licked his tongue out over his lips again while he remembered her smooth graceful movements, the skin twitching and darkening slightly, fading from pink into a darker bruised-looking purple. His muscles twitched, the fabric of his blue shirt and slacks feeling oddly abrasive as he shifted around, trying absentmindedly to find a more comfortable position.

As the vaguely British narrator began to discuss the diets of big cats, Nathan rubbed at his crotch with the heel of his palm, murmuring wordless sleepy utterances as he felt his flesh pulse and then grow turgid under his unthinking insistence. His body felt warm, just like her fur had. He reflected on the plush sensation, subconsciously grinding his hips against his stroking palms.

He pressed in harder and harder, heart pounding in his chest as a suddenly reoccurring fantasy played in his head. There she was, looking over her shoulder, fur glistening in the diffuse light, spotted tail flickering and curling back on itself as he stared at her bared femininity, dark skinned edges twitching, smoldering scent inviting him forwards, but . . . why had he run away?

The tips of his fingers began to feel strange, twitching between his legs as he grumbled. It didn't feel right, his skin twitching, aching like the growing pains he had as a teen all those years ago. But even that didn't stop him from continuing to press and squeeze in against his crotch. The throbbing radiating from his groin just seemed to grow, even as the sensations changed subtly. It was easier and easier to rub over the entire length of his shaft as the tip felt like it was becoming more and more sensitive, making him growl in his torpor as he pinched around it with his strange feeling fingers. His testicles were becoming more and more sensitive as well, bulging against his boxers as they seemed to be pulled up tight against him. They swelled out, becoming less elongated and more spherical as his scrotum tightened, tugging back towards his clenched anus.

The man continued to doze, hunched over and breathing heavily against the cushion of the couch that his open mouth lay on. The sensation that pulled him from his daze was a strange one, a bristly tugging from his cock, like the feeling of electrically sensitive slick fleshy sandpaper.

Nathan coughed and sat up, shaking his head and squinting at the TV. The same show about tigers was playing, but it looked to be almost over now. He ran the back of his hand over his mouth, wiping at the wet cool spittle there as he licked his lips. He had no clue that he was so tired. His eyes came into focus as he looked blearily towards the flickering screen across the room from him.

The females become receptive for only periods of three to five days, often drawing attention to herself with roaring lows . . .

Nathan's eyes fixed on the screen as a female tiger walked across a snowfield, and a slightly larger male strode out to meet her. There was a cursory sniff, their whiskers twitching as the female walked along beside the male, his fluffy orange and black banded head turning to follow her, mouth slightly open, nose huffing in her scent. The man just couldn't tear his eyes away, hand squeezing around his crotch as his eyes remained fixed, flickering light glimmering gold against his retinas as he watched the heavy male tiger mount the female, bulging prominent testicles jostling as he lowered himself over her needy body. In his own mind though, it was still the jaguar from the zoo, looking back at him, twisting tail inviting him forwards . . .

A strange stunted yowl escaped his lips as he pumped at his crotch. The resulting prickling sensation was the same sawing rough bliss that had woken him up. He blinked, recovering from the jolt of animal pleasure before looking down and falling back against the cushions with a shout. With his underwear having been pulled down between his thighs while he slept, he could see his member in the dim flickering light, but it was wrong, shorter, and a bloody pink color. The thick length quickly tapered into an animal point, small translucent white flecks dotting the middle of the stunted tapered shaft. He reached down to try and scrape them off, but instead, he opened his jaws and shouted as his finger brushed over the small rough spines. The sensation was impossibly vivid, rushing through his body, leaving him panting as he stared down, holding his hand inches from his changed member.

This was obviously just a dream. He was only dreaming of the jaguar from the zoo. It was just . . . was that fur!? He stared down, trepidatiously poking the loose furry roll of white flesh dappled with dark spots that his hideously misshapen penis rose from. It was warm and incredibly soft. He could feel it too, sucking in a breath and closing his eyes as he remembered how her fur had felt, so fluffy and warm . . . His mouth hanging open as he huffed in breath, Nathan traced a straining sore finger down the loose furry skin, running to his plump testes, tight scrotum dusted with tawny velvet fur, looking more like the tiger's from the TV than anything human.

He hadn't had anything to drink all day . . . So why would he be hallucinating? He ran a hand worriedly over his face as his heart thudded and his mind raced. But even that felt wrong, something pressed against his gums and then there was a wet hard thunk into his palm. Tears of confusion leaked from his eyes as his lips twisted up in horror. It was a tooth: A fucking incisor. He reached up and felt the gap between his teeth. This was bad. He was dying. Perhaps he had contracted some sort of rare South American wasting disease. He pulled his boxers up over his mutated junk, stumbling as he stepped out of his unbuttoned pants and hobbled towards his bathroom. He was either dying, going insane, or everything was fine . . . It could have just been something he ate, and this was all just some bad pizza dream . . .

He grabbed at the handle, fingers oddly numb as he wrenched open the bathroom door and flipped on the brights. The row of bulbs over his mirror blazed into incandescence, and Nathan shielded his eyes with his arm, squinting before looking up. His jaw fell open as he stared into his twisting face, watching his pupils begin to contract, the brown of his irises flecked with glittering almost metallic overtones. His breath raced as he planted his hands against the side of his counter and leaned forwards, opening his discolored darkening lips to reveal his teeth. It was some kind of nightmare, many of them hanging from tendon-like threads as he reached up and plucked his other incisor from the roof of his mouth. It wasn't exactly painful, more like extreme discomfort, but that made the situation even more alien, terrifying the man he pulled up his darkening lips again and stared at his gums . . .

They pulsed, pink flesh twitching before ivory points poked out, knocking lose his canines which rattled into the sink. He could feel it, jaws straining as he snarled, a few drops of hot coppery blood welling out from the edges of the rapidly growing fangs that already were poking at his bottom lip. That wasn't even all though. His feet slid back on the bath mat slightly as a convulsion rocked his body and he leaned forwards, groaning out, staring at the white porcelain of the sink as more of his teeth clattered down into it like so many marbles. Other points pressed out from his lower jaw as tiny lesser incisors grew between them and interlocking predatory molars creaked out further back as he wheezed in fear.

His head ached, pressure building up as he groaned out, voice deeper than it should have been as he stretched his jaws wide and felt a halting tug from behind his sinuses. Darting a glance up at the mirror, he saw his flesh straining over the ridges of his skull as it creaked under his skin, stretching forwards as his lips tugged out, thinner and less pronounced as they darkened. He whined as he watched his nose turn up, prickly velvet brushing in along the length as the end flared, turning pink and wet as he retched a dry hacking cough, the rest of his human teeth spraying down against the counter. His jaws both ground out, looking less and less human as his flesh stretched to accommodate them, thinning loose lips pulled back into a feral snarl of confusion and terror.

The fur began to spread out from the bridge of his changing nose as the whorled glistening pink exterior huffed in desperate lungfuls of air. He could smell something in the air . . . something that reminded him of her. His tongue lolled from his mouth as his gleaming eyes went unfocused while he remembered her scent, deep and spicy. The sides of his muzzle twitched as he began to sniff in, thicker white whiskers poking out from the straw colored fur with smaller dark blotches. The smell wasn't quite the same as he remembered . . . It was male, but still animal . . . confusing, but oddly comforting in a way that made no sense to his still largely human mind.

He looked up as his eyes blazed into a truly luminous topaz. His reflection looked far more like a cat than a man at this point. Even his ears were changing, tugging out flatter and rounder, moving up his head as his muscles strained and bulged under them, causing the shifting cartilage to tense and flick to the sides. Trepidatiously, Nathan moved his hand up, running through his hair towards his ears before some alien fluffy brown mass drifted down into his sink. He turned his head in horror. That was his hair . . . Instinctually, he grabbed at his scalp, but instead of any resistance, more of his hair fell off like some kind of unsecured wig. But he was far from bald. His head was covered in a thickening pelt of yellow with deep black hollow rosettes, spreading slowly, tingling as it forced the last of his human hair down, stinging his eyes as it floated past his squinting lashes.

He clamped his hands over his eyes. This wasn't real. He was just having a bad reaction to something. He was probably just asleep after some bad Chinese food. His ragged breathing filled the room, much louder than it should have been as his ears continued to twitch and change. His fingers sunk clenched against his face, feeling his skull creaking out and muscles straining under his spreading silky fur . . . just like hers . . . Pink nostrils flaring, he thought about her coy glance back over her shoulder, the feeling of her rough tongue against his skin. The scent in the air smelled a lot like she had, just muskier, more masculine. He knew she would have loved it. In his mind he could see loneliness in her eyes as she looked back at him, and he wanted nothing more than to be there, with her . . .

As the nostalgic memory became more vivid in his mind, his tongue licked along his dark smooth lips before curling up, running up against his salty wet nose with a comforting bristly grind. He moved his hands and opened his eyes, watching his pink bristly tongue slide back into his mouth between his heavy feral fangs. As he moved his hands to his sides though, he felt pins and needles against his fingertips, and then heard a faint clack against the linoleum floor. He looked away from the huffing cat in the mirror, pushing back and looking down at the chip-shaped translucent thing on the floor. It was . . . a fingernail. His fingernail.

"Stop it. This-this isn't real!" He shouted to no one in particular, staring down at his fingers and noticing that the tips were slightly swollen, another nail peeling off before his eyes. He clenched his hands in a start of revulsion, but that didn't help at all. In fact, as his hand's twisting muscles clenched, the rest of his nails began to pry off, forced out by something pressing through his flesh from below. He stared in horror as the long whitish claws tensed out from his fingertips as they trembled. The bones in his fingers popped as his digits strained back slightly, becoming more blunt as his new claws unfurled, and his callouses darkened. The deep brown skin thickened and began to swell as his fingers widened, even as he stared in disbelief, curling his hands into fists and then relaxing, feeling the warm suede and the prickle of developing claws against his palms which were now beginning to turn leathery brown and bulge as well.

This had to stop. He needed his hands. He didn't want to be some sort of animal, but as he flexed his cruel hooked claws and watched them fold back into the forming sheaths on his blunt fingers, he wondered what she would think of it . . . When he last saw her, he had been so . . . startled, so unprepared. Now though, maybe she would see him in a different light. He ran a hand around the collar of his blue MGM shirt. It was itchy . . . uncomfortable. Absentmindedly, he flexed, claws tearing easily through the fabric as his muscles bulged. It was like tearing through paper, his new feline strength rending the garment with an accidental wrench as he suddenly tried to unhook his claws from the clingy material.

What it revealed was why his chest had been so itchy. Pillowy white fur ran down from his neck, blotchy black rosettes dotting the thick plush surface, each with a dappled tawny center. He ran his hands down even as they continued to creak and thicken. His claws raked out just enough to scrape over his thickening skin, which twitched with loose animal pliability. With irrational desperation, he ran his hands over his chest as if he were trying to scrape off the silky fur; however, his nervous ministrations only seemed to spread the fur down lower, his loosening skin prickling and twisting as the plush cascade seeped down over his belly.

His focus lowering down brought him back to one of the reasons he had rushed into his restroom in the first place. The bulge under his boxers was highly evident, with a dark damp patch in the middle of the plaid patterned fabric. His cock strained, tugging at the thin tented covering as he gritted his fangs and hooked his thick clawed fingers under the waistband as gently as he could. Even with his panicked terror, he didn't want to get hasty with his claws anywhere around his manhood. Wriggling the increasingly tight waistband from around his swelling frame, he gulped as he saw that his cock was just as alien as he remembered it, pointed and barbed, length glistening with pre as it jutted throbbing from his furry animal sheath. He swallowed heavily as he stared, nose huffing in his own growingly distinct scent. It looked a little bit further back though, like it had been tugged further behind his legs, heavy rounded balls jostling against his thighs.

How in god's name was he still turned on? Nathan looked back up to the mirror, seeing his worried expression on the reflected jaguar's face. He looked more like her at this point, his golden eyes staring back at himself. His eyes lost focus as he reminisced, feeling the hot puff of her breaths against him. This time though, he imagined leaning forwards, lapping against her furry cheek before they kissed, tongues entwining in a bristly hot tangle. The man's tongue slid out and lapped up at his nose as he indulged in the increasingly vivid fantasy. The changing man's spine popped and creaked as he shivered, feeling her warmth even as he thought about her, mad desire flowing through his changing senses as his paw drifted between his legs.

In his mind's eye he could imagine her butting against him with heavy warm force, her fur sliding against his own. His thighs tensed while the fur cascaded down them, brushing against his taut balls as he shifted his weight from foot to foot. Nathan's toes curled, digging into the shag shower mat under them as his ankles began to pull off the ground. He hunched forwards, mouth open as he continued to daydream, her predatory grin coaxing his mind's eye to follow her as she turned and raised her curling fluffy tail. One of his hands rested on the counter, claws straining out and scraping trails through the fake wooden surface as his other almost instinctually squeezed back between his legs. His smooth thick pads grasped around his pointed shaft, making his fur bristle as he fixated on her in his thoughts, staring at that tight dark pussy under her swaying tail.

He idly began to rub at himself as his legs continued to change, fur growing white between his thighs and glossy sand colored on the outsides, all sprinkled with evenly spaced black blotches that blossomed in with prickling acuity. The nails on his toes began to pry away from his flesh, but he was too lost to care at them moment, brow furrowed as his rough tongue slid over his lips. Claws pressed out from his wriggling toes as they bulged, pads forming on the bottom, feeling the weave of the carpet under them as his lengthening sickle-like claws dug into it. His legs strained back as he leaned forwards, the pads from his hand becoming slick as his cock jerked and tugged in his grip.

He was so close, his imaginary self smelling her, tasting her wriggling spiced femininity before he lifted himself up . . .

There was a sudden cracking twist from behind him, a clenching pressure below the small of his back. His legs both strained back as the mat suddenly slid from beneath him and he tumbled to the floor, turning so that he landed awkwardly on his side. The cupboards beneath the sink rattled as his flailing paw-hands grasped at them, claws prying out chunks of cheap wood. Suddenly shocked out of his fantasy, he tried rolling over onto his back only to yowl out in pain, feeling like he was somehow twisting his back further than it was meant to go. Propping himself up gingerly on one arm, he craned his neck over his shoulder, the position oddly easy to hold with his increasingly sinuous form as he stared down and his black lips pulled back in a bewildered snarl. A twitching fluffy nub pushed out from just above his rump, and as he twisted to see it better, it moved, and he could feel it, the short length cracking as it gyrated, pressing out longer even as the muscles around it pulsed and bulged, forming tugging connections that sent little shivering lances of raw sensation along his spine.

His claws scraped against the fake-tiles of the linoleum floor as he very carefully turned himself over, this time taking care to make sure that his thrashing tail didn't get caught under him . . . What was he thinking . . . He didn't have a tail. But he could feel it, and more than that . . . He was beginning to understand how to move it. The changing human laid on his back, propped up on his elbows as he stared over his throbbing erect spike of a penis, watching the fluffy band of his tail flap against the floor. He could feel his ass begin to tug this way and that as the muscles in the base thickened and stretched his anus which was quickly nestled amidst the white fur and dark spots of his undercoat. His nostrils huffed in, taking in his deep heady scent, his fluffy thighs rubbing together around his tight balls as he spread his legs for a clearer view of the obvious impossibility.

Maybe this was just because he'd been touching himself: encouraging whatever psychosis was running through his system. Perhaps if he just stopped . . . everything would be fine. He swallowed heavily as his eyes fell again on his short fleshy shaft with its spines and glistening pointed tip. Closing his golden eyes for a second, he forced himself to look away, gaze soon traveling down his legs, seeing the new glossy fur running all the way down to his feet. Sitting up, he reached out a paw towards the now seemingly alien appendages. They were somewhere between human and feline, sharp claws tensing as he tried to wriggle his toes. The balls of his feet had bulged, thick leathery pads forming on the bottom of the wide blunt digits, with gold fur nestled between each one.

He leaned in, wanting a closer look, surprised at just how easy it was to bend all the way forwards, his spine curling easily as his tail flicked, dragging along the floor as he rolled up. He reached forwards and gingerly grabbed one of his feet. The thinner, bristly fur tickled his padded fingers as he felt his own tendons running under the taut skin. He wasn't even really sure if he could walk like this at all. Maybe if he stayed to his tip-toes? The thick pads on his feet were actually more sensitive than he would have thought, and as he squeezed one gingerly, his claw poked from the sheath nestled in the fuzz atop the mutated digit.

As he fiddled in murky disbelief, his nose huffed and flared. His feet just seemed so alien, drawing his attention away from other things as he poked and prodded, feeling the taut tendons under the skin around his slightly thinned ankles. His whiskers twitched and his ears flickered, before a lightning strike of sensation arced through his crotch, making his entire body convulse before he looked down and his golden eyes drew into focus. His head was inches away from his erect cock, a fresh bead of pre sliding down the pointed tip as his furry chin brushed against it.

There was never a time in his life where he even considered being this flexible. His tongue licked out up over his nose, twisting to the side and running over his chops as his misshapen feet fell from his thoughts completely. It would be so easy to just lean in and . . . No. He clenched his hands into fists and tried to take a deep calming breath, only managing to fill his senses with his own sandy feline reek. It was impossible to take his eyes off of it, the small whitish barbs dotting the mid section while the top gleamed in the bright fluorescent light. All that pre was already beginning to dribble down and mat the fur of his sheath . . . What would she think if she saw him in such a state of disarray. It just felt . . . untidy.

The least he could do was to clean it . . . just a little bit. He could feel his breath, cool against the slick spire as he turned his head, raising a leg to give himself better access. He lapped out at the loose ruffled fur of his sheath, tongue sliding against it and combing the silky hairs all into alignment, tasting his own salty lust. He could feel the throbbing base of his cock through the malleable loose skin, but he wasn't really touching himself, so it couldn't possibly count. He licked out again, tasting his essence diffuse in his mouth, virile and warm while he continued to huff in his odoriferous animal need. It was the most natural thing to lap down in long caring strokes towards his heavy testes, making his curled body quiver as his tail creaked out longer. The taut skin of the heavy orbs quivered as a strange warm need rose up in his chest.

He could imagine her watching him, her eyes hanging on his motions as she huffed in his lusty scent. The bright light of his bathroom returned to that misty time under the banana tree, but this time, instead of being terrified of her gaze, he encouraged it, rumble building up in his chest as he lapped against his heavy testicles, whiskers tickling the sensitive skin of his shaft. He could smell her as well, memory of her own lurid acrid animal scent calling to him as his legs splayed, toe-claws clenching as he made sure she could see every tugging lap.

It wasn't quite enough though, as his thoughts continued to change. She walked around him imperiously, tail curling one way and then the other. He envisioned her head butting in next to his own, pressing him out of the way with a snuggling roll of her forehead. Her eyes beamed up towards him mischievously before her own hot tongue flickered out, just barely brushing along the edge of his cock. The faintest wet hot contact made him shiver and convulse, tail batting against the side of the bathtub as he imagined her, prickly whiskers teasing his pink spire.

In his fantasy, she lapped out, grinding up his feline prick in a blazingly sensitive streak, edges of her pliant tongue folding in around the edges, engulfing his shaft. Her rough tongue pulled at his barbs, each tugged spine making hot streaks of pleasure flush through his senses while his balls quivered below his pink huffing nose. Her lapping rasps became deeper, licking up his slick pre with relish, tasting his salty feline musk as his animal shaft spasmed and twitched, need growing tangible as it boiled inside of his chest. He could hear her purring as she pulled back, a thin streak of transparent male lust snapping between her curling tongue and the head of his quivering member.

He writhed against the floor, every muscle tense as he licked his chops, opened his muzzle, and imagined her sinking down over him, wet huffing nose butting against his taut furry testes. Her balmy muzzle sank over his maleness, thick fangs brushing past the length before she suckled in around his cock, fleshy maw contracting as he could feel her rumbling purr. The great cat sank down over his cock, heavy muscles tensing in her neck as she began to bob, grinding the tip of his shaft against the roof of her mouth. He felt every thin warm ridge of her palette as he lost himself further in the fantasy, mind alight with pleasure as he suckled at himself.

Like a warm living blanket, her tongue wrapped around his member, ruminating, not fully licking, but rather just slithering around his turgid pointed maleness, bristly tongue teasing his barbs and grinding over his slick fleshy tip. All of his claws extended, digging into the shredded bark of his dreams as well as the bathmat and linoleum flooring, his tail thrashing desperately. He wanted her, more than anything in the world, he just wanted her to let him finish as he growled and moaned, plump rounded balls squeezing and churning as he saw her golden eyes. They glinted with impish approval before she sank forwards, clenching around his shaft as her ears followed his growling huff of elation with approving twitches.

His entire body shook, fur standing on end, tail gyrating as his fingers scraped great divots in the floor. The blissful resonance rose from his belly, surging out from his twitching clenched testes before he came in a great hot rush of thick heady animal seed.

Even as his powerful yet sinuous form writhed, the taste that hit his tongue in hot halting spurts was wrong. It wasn't female at all . . . this was just . . . He pulled back, even as his cock continued to jerk and spurt out dribbling ropes of pressured essence, a great hot dollop splatting over half of his face so that he had to close one eye, feeling the warmth sink into his fur and begin to cool almost immediately. He stared down with horror at his pulsing animal cock, like it was somehow sealing his fate with every musky splatter. He could taste himself: his rich masculinity and his pining need, his feline virility laced with a few errant notes of humanity left.

It was terrifying just how easy it had been, to lose himself in that fantasy. He scrabbled back amidst the hair and nails that had fallen to the floor, trying to recoil from his pleasure, pressing himself back against the wall of drawers behind him, errant knob pressing into his back as he raised a paw and rest it on his chest, feeling his hammering heartbeat through the fur. He looked down at his animal appendage, flexing his fingers. Good. At least he still had thumbs, even if they had claws that slid out menacingly as he moved them. With uneven breaths he reached back and yanked himself up, braced on the counter as he pulled his legs under him. It took a second, his animalistic paw feet tensing as he found tenuous equilibrium.

He reached up and touched the cooling string of seed on his face, looking down to see his erection already half-retreated back into his sheath like some kind of alien spined worm.

"Fuck." He said aloud, voice deep and gravely.

"Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. Goddamnit." He was panicking, breaths coming in great ragged heaves. He threw open the curtain to his shower, reaching in and turning on the taps, pulling the lever before a hot steamy deluge of water hissed down into the tub, making his ears fold back at the sudden engulfing roar. He looked back to the mirror, and his golden animal eyes stared back before he reached over and swatted the switch for the lights, leaving the bathroom balmy and black as he climbed into the shower and let the hot water rush over him. He could feel the new sensation of it running through his fur, but he didn't want to think about it. Instead, he stayed perfectly still, closing his eyes and losing himself to the all encompassing sounds of running water.

Despite staying in the dark hot deluge until the water began to get cold, the fur didn't wash off. Well, some of it did . . . the drain would almost certainly never be the same. Nathan considered driving to the store to pick up an industrial bottle of Drano, but realized that that would be preposterous as he was now some kind of hideous cat creature. He turned off the taps reluctantly, fur feeling heavy and sodden, water sluicing from it even after he turned the taps off. With a frown, he grabbed his single brown cotton towel and began to rub himself down, the sensation feeling weird as he mussed his spotted coat the wrong way. Very soon, the towel was completely saturated, and he was still damp at best.

With a sigh, he stepped back out into his apartment. At least he wasn't cold: The fur was good for something at least. He walked over to the phone in his kitchen numbly, padded toes feeling the fibers of his carpet under him before he picked up the receiver and carefully dialed 9-1- . . . He set the receiver down again. What exactly was he going to tell them. "Excuse me. I seem to have been turned into a jaguar. No, I don't know why. Sorry, I don't really know how I'm talking either . . ."

His ears folded back as he walked over to his ragged umber couch and collapsed onto it. He was tired enough that he didn't care about getting it wet from his still-moist fur. The Discovery Channel was still playing, and he swore, picking up the remote and shutting it off with a snarl. Laying sideways on the couch, careful not to sprain his tail, he put his hands over his head, feeling his ears flicker of their own accord as he closed his eyes, and hoped that the world would be less insane when he opened them.

But even as he drifted off, he saw a spotted tail whisk by as she wandered into his dreams, looking towards him with her odd unreadable gaze. But there was a twinkle in her eye that made his frazzled mind think that maybe, just maybe, she was pleased with what she saw.

* * *

The sun filtered obstinately through the folding blinds on Nathan's windows. He squinted and rolled over so that the sun wasn't on his eyelids before sitting up with a yowl, tail wedged painfully between his rump an the couch.

Goddammit. This was supposed to be a dream . . .

He rolled his tongue around his mouth, which felt like he'd been swallowing dry cotton all night. The interlocking points of his thick pearly whites were still there, and he could feel the bristles of his tongue scrape across his lengthened palate. Coughing slightly, he rose shakily to his feet, still not used to the weird splayed stance of his foot-paws. As he looked down he noticed two things. First, was that half of his body had the animal equivalent of bed head, the fur all mussed in the worng direction. He had the odd instinct to lean over and scrape it back into place. The second thing he noticed, was that he was sporting a pink feline spike of morning wood. He shook as he remembered last night: how easy it had been to lose himself in the sensations, how good it felt, how much he still wanted her . . .

And that was really the strangest thing. Despite all of this impossible bullshit, he still couldn't bring himself to blame that wondrous animal. As he started to think about her, he shook himself suddenly. He wasn't going to do that again . . . He'd figure out something to deal with . . . whatever this was.

Trudging to the kitchen, he took down a glass from the cupboard and filled it under the tap. He raised the cup to his lips and tilted it, feeling the chill of the water over his gums before it splashed down all over his front, dribbling all the way down towards his erection, which made him shiver on his paws.

"The fuck?" He raised the glass again, slower this time, and was able to slurp down some of the water while the rest dribbled from the corners of his dark loose lips. His tongue twitched. Folding over itself as he thought of the water, throat still terribly parched. There was no way that he was going to lap up water like some kind of dog. He experimentally tilted his head all the way up, dribbling in water through his overlarge canines before swallowing. It worked a little better. Even if it was about the most awkward way to take a drink, at least he didn't spill anything this time. He refilled the glass and repeated the process, managing to master the fine art of drinking liquids while cursed with the predatory muzzle of a great cat.

Despite managing to stave off the desire to lap up the water, his tongue still twisted when he looked at where his fur was all mussed up along his left side. Disgusted by the idea of licking himself clean, he returned to the bathroom, brusquely opening a drawer and pulling out a blue plastic comb. He turned the lights back on, pupils contracting back into dark points as he set to work combing down the obstinate fur. The trying work was giving him time to come to grips with his situation, feeling his dense coat under his paws as the tines of the comb scraped over his loose tough animal skin. It took quite a while. Longer than getting his hair to cooperate as a human ever had certainly. But he did end up with unexpected satisfaction as he looked at the strange handsome black spotted gold cat-man that stared back at him from the mirror.

So . . . if this wasn't all just a hallucination, or some kind of dream, then what was he going to do about it? At least he could still think straight. The thought of losing all of his human rationality made him shiver. Not only out of fright, but also because he almost started thinking about her again.

To distract himself, he returned to his phone, picking up the receiver from the cradle. There had to be something that someone could do. Before he could stop himself, he carefully used the edge of a padded finger to punch in 9-1- and then hit the final 1, lifting the red barbell to his ear which protested the awkward contact by pulling to the side.

"Nine-one-one emergency services." A woman's voice picked up on the other side of the line before it even had a chance to ring. "What is your emergency?"

"Uh, hello. I've contracted some sort of disease . . . and I want to make sure that its not contagious, or harmful, life-threatening, I mean." He stumbled over his words, voice sounding low and rough.

"Do you believe that you are in immediate danger?" Her response was curt, causing him to look down over his body.

"Like right now?" He swallowed, tail twitching behind him. He certainly didn't feel like he was about to die . . . "No. I don't think so."

"What are your symptoms, sir?"

"Well, I've had some abnormal hair growth . . ." He began.

"On what part of your body, sir?"

"All over. And it's not really hair . . . It's more like uhh . . . fur. Yellow and black." It felt weird saying it, but it was also kind of cathartic airing his problems out loud.

"And, how long has this been a problem?" Even though her voice was next to monotone, he could almost hear her sigh on the other side of the line.

"Just since last night. I think I might have been drugged or something. I went to the zoo and . . ." He didn't really want to admit his trespassing to the authorities. "When I got back I felt really weird . . . I, I started doing weird things. Like at first I was just thinking, you know?" He just felt like he had to keep talking, otherwise he'd never manage to finish. "But then I started changing. My teeth all fell out, and my hands turned into paws, oh but I guess I grew new teeth. Also, I grew a tail, and now I can't drink water out of a glass because my mouth is shaped weird." He took a deep breath, steadying himself.

"What should I do?"

"Sir, are you telling me that you are a cat?"

"Yes! Well, kind of, I . . ."

"This service is not for jokes, sir. If you have a drug problem, you can call the medical services hotline, but this line is reserved for life-threatening situations."

"But I'm not lying. Really, I just need . . ."

"Goodbye, sir. Calling this number again may result in charges being pressed." There was a click and the line returned to the dial-tone.

He slammed the receiver down and grit his teeth, black lips pulling back as a low ominous rumble built up in his chest. Hearing the non-human noise emanating from himself, he closed his eyes, and counted to ten. Sadly, it didn't change him back into a human, but it did calm him down a bit.

Looking up at the clock, he realized that he was already supposed to be well on his way to the office. He had plenty of sick days left for the year, but as had just been proven by the dispatcher, apparently he wasn't sick at all. He thought about calling it in, but decided against it. There was a good chance that no one would notice him missing anyways. He'd just deal with it tomorrow, when everything would be better . . . somehow.

Instead, he decided to try a different avenue for finding out about his malediction, taking down the neglected Yellow Pages from the shelf above his microwave and looking up the zoo's number. It wasn't very hard, as the entries under "Z" were limited. Looking down at the number, he began to punch in the digits, before his large padded finger hit two keys at once. Hanging up, he picked up the receiver and tried again, only to have similar results. The numbers for 9-1-1 were all near the edges, but the other keys were making it hard for his broad animal fingers to differentiate.

Slamming down the receiver a fourth time, he half shouted, half growled in frustration. He picked it up once more and flexed his hands in frustration, feeling his claws slide out of their fuzzy sheaths and scrape against the red plastic of the old touch-tone phone. Nathan tapped his chin for a second, ears folding back before he extended a finger, letting his curled claw slide out and using it to dial, feeling the buttons tap against the deadly clear enamel as he typed in the number and waited as the phone began to ring.

"Independence City Zoo, how may I help you?" A nondescript man's voice picked up.

"Ahh, hello." Nathan cleared his throat with a low grumble. "I was wondering about your Jaguar exhibit . . ."

"Ohh, you and everyone else. It should be fully completed and ready to go by December." The man stated proudly.

"But that's not for months! What's there already then?" Nathan puzzled aloud. "And what about the jaguar that's already there?"

"I'm afraid the enclosure is still being prepared, sir. The new jaguar won't be flown in from Florida until its completed." The zoo employee said with a cheerful, if apologetic tone.

"But I saw her . . . err . . . it." Nathan interjected, claws tightening against the phone once again. "She was there, and she was . . . beautiful . . ." His words trailed off as he said them. It was true. He couldn't think of anything more perfect that he had ever encountered. But, it felt strange to say it out loud.

"I'm sure it will be, sir. You can reserve tickets a month in advance if you'd like, but you shouldn't need to. We're rarely ever all that crowded." His voice was friendly, and yet sort of patronizing, like if Mr. Rodgers had a judgmental twin.

"Fine . . . I'll uh, do that." Nathan let the receiver clack back down into the cradle. A fat lot of good that did him. Obviously the person had no clue about what was going on in the zoo . . .

With a sigh, he deflated back onto his couch, grabbing the remote and flipping through the channels, deciding to let the swearing and beetled brows of a daytime crime drama balm his increasing existential dread. Although his eyes followed the tough no-nonsense cop, his mind began to drift. This whole impossible situation was making him miss out on his life, but it was also showing him that there wasn't all that much to be missed. At work, the Felix report was due in sometime next week, but that hardly seemed pressing at the moment. He would usually have craved a day like this, where he could just sit on the couch and veg-out a bit. But now . . . it just seemed sort of hollow.

There were times there that he thought about going out, but then he had to laugh. Looking down at himself, he realized that he hadn't even put on any clothes for the day. Not that it really mattered, as he was pretty sure that, even if he put on a trench coat and fedora like the cop on the screen, everyone would still immediately see him as some kind of freak of nature. Regardless though, he decided to put on some athletic shorts and a black and gray striped T-shirt, but was left looking at himself in the mirror and scratching at the hems of his clothes.

It was itchy and tight, and the way the fur was tamped down at the elastic waist of his shorts looked weird. It made him feel like some kind of poodle, and gave him much more sympathy for people that dressed up their dogs for Christmas. He tried to go back to watching TV, but the feeling of the clothes was just too distracting, brushing against his body in strange ways. He ended up absentmindedly scratching a hole in his shirt before wriggling out of it and then tugging off his shorts, looking down to see pink creeping from the tip of his plump animal sheath. It was obvious what the sleek fabric of his shorts had been rubbing against.

His initial reaction was to ignore his Judas erection, but as he sighed and looked around the room full of the same junk he had when he moved in, he figured he didn't have much to lose. Anyways, he still didn't have any clue what had actually happened to him. It could have been a voodoo curse, or aliens. Surely just passing the time wasn't going to make things any worse . . .

Instead of looking away in revulsion from his twisted maleness, he focused his attention on it, reaching in with a padded finger to touch the fuzzy edge of his sheath. The sensation made him squirm slightly. It was just as soft and malleable as he remembered it being, and his cock began to thrum with his heartbeat, pressing out of the loose fluffy roll of flesh as he swallowed, tail flicking against the back of the sofa behind him. If it wasn't so inhuman, it actually would have been beautiful in a strange way. Heck, it was beautiful, or at least, he was sure that she would think it was . . .

When he thought about his life, and his current predicament, all that he could feel was the idea of revulsion. He felt it about his own stale life, others would certainly feel it towards the monster that he had become, but her . . . she was the only being that he could think of that never really seemed to judge him . . . No, that wasn't quite it. As he thought, he idly stroked one leathery brown paw pad up the side of his cock, shivering as it brushed past his spines and made his shaft pulse out to its full, if somewhat squat, pointed feline length.

She had seemed to judge him, but in something like a positive way. Whereas everything else in life seemed to just be another wasteful tick on the poorly wound clock of his life, she had this look about her, this feeling, that she wanted to take him and make him something different, something unique, something needed. He let his head fall back, eyes closed as he spread his legs, toe-claws grasping at the carpet while he began to stroke himself, lightly at first, but then grasping in harder, a buzz building up in his chest as he started to see her again in his mind's eye. He could smell her too, but more than that, he felt almost like he could understand her in a strange comfortable wordless way, and that was by far the most attractive thing about her.

He opened his fearsome jaws as his tongue slid out, twisting around his loose black lips as he panted. The feelings were just so intense, each barb of his cock a miniature nova of sensation while the pulsing hot pointed tip throbbed and glistened, pre leaking out as it jerked and his plump rounded balls tightened. This time, nothing got in his way and he clamped one paw around his shaft, fingers squeezing down as his strokes became tight and short, his mind filled with the thoughts of her, each one its own approving benediction.

He opened his eyes and yowled out, orgasm washing over him. Hot squirts of feline seed splashed out over his fluffy white belly and chest as his other hand's claws curled into the cushion of the couch next to him. He desperately thought about the need for tissue for just a second, before growling out the animal equivalent of "fuck it," continuing to squeeze his paw around his madly twitching feline spike, coaxing out echoing jolts of pleasure as the tugging jerks became smaller and smaller, fading away with a dribble of white.

He got to his feet and looked himself over with nervous anticipation, turning his paws over and then looking behind his back, seeing his tail curling up behind him. But he didn't really look any different than he did before, save for the few cooling streaks of cum on his fur. He wrinkled his nose as he huffed in. He could smell it, and even remember the taste, which was hardly appealing at the moment. He stretched out slowly, feeling his joints creak. Perhaps his claws seemed a little sharper, or maybe his legs were at a slightly more feline angle, but it was kind of hard to tell. He felt pretty much like himself, and that was almost frightening by itself . . . He was getting used to it.

Although it had taken him forever to dry off from his last foray with the shower, it wasn't like he had anywhere else to go. He actually really enjoyed the water, and experimented turning the water from hot to cold. The fur seemed to dull the sensation, or maybe he just didn't mind as much any more, but the feeling of cold water coursing over him felt incredibly refreshing as he took a bar of soap, dug his claws into it, and scrubbed to get every trace of his previous exertions from his fur.

By the time he was washed, combed, and dried as best he could be, the sun was still in the sky, and a glance at the digital readout on top of his stove told him that it was three in the afternoon. It also reminded him that he couldn't remember the last time he ate. He pulled open his fridge and looked inside at the rather pathetic spread, the smell of the leftover curries from weekends past stinging his nose like a vengeful specter.

He grabbed a bag of baby carrots experimentally, tossing one into his mouth and then chewing on it as best he could. It felt awkward, tough chunks digging into his gums and little flecks of orange tinging his lips. It tasted about as good as it felt, and he was forced to go to the sink and spit, letting the chunks of savaged carrot dribble out of his mouth. It was kind of what he had expected at this point. He'd never been much of a vegetarian anyways. Nathan looked into the freezer, turning over bags of peas and frozen fried rice before finding a half-finished stack of frozen hamburger patties. He took it out and set it on the counter with a thump. It smelled pretty freezer burned, but he could also make out the tinny scent of blood under the chilly white plastic.

Nathan had to get a knife to separate the meaty frozen log, despite the paper squares between the patties which had frozen just as solid as the rest of it. Once he had them all peeled of their dividers and laid out on a plate, he set them in the microwave, and turned it to defrost. While he watched them spin, he wondered if he should just eat them raw, but even though the smell of the now barely heated meat made the act seem vaguely appealing, he decided not to. Just because he was some kind of animal didn't mean that he had to act like one. Taking the time to fry up the patties gave his mind some time to stop worrying about his more pressing problems and wander a bit as he wielded the spatula with a bachelor's expertise. Really, it didn't seem like all that much had changed. Here he was cooking up hamburgers, and the world was still out there, just the same as it ever was.

He set out the cooked patties on a plate, which he then set at the little card table that served as his dining area. He very carefully used a knife and fork, taking the time to figure out how to comfortably rest their handles against his padded fingertips before cutting off a hunk of fried ground meat before looking down at the salt and pepper. He shook on a few grains of salt, and then a healthy sprinkle of pepper. Then a strange feeling welled up inside of him. He could smell the pepper, more than that, he could feel it in his nose, and he couldn't stop. A quick series of sneezes rocked over him, sounding odd and wispy to his ears, leaving him wheezing. He stood up and set the pepper on the counter in the kitchen before returning, wiping his watering nose on a paper towel.

The well done patties tasted just fine, if a little bland, but trying to eat them when they were still hot stung his tongue, so he stayed to the already cooling ones on the edges of the pile. The eight circles of meat were gone before he knew it, and a warm sense of fuzzy contentment settled in over him. He could have gone back to lay down on his bed . . . but he didn't want to get cat hair all over it, so he returned to the sofa, fur still slightly moist as he lay back and looked down at his body. He was still going to have to do something about this . . . Or at the very least, find a way to get some more burgers without being seen. But for now, all he wanted to do was take a little afternoon nap.

* * *

By the time Nathan awoke from his cat nap, there was no sign of the sun at all. He opened his heavy jaws, tongue folding out as he yawned, whiskers twitching as he looked at the clock on the stove: ten already. He rubbed the mussed up fur at the back of his neck . . . It would be pretty easy just to go back to sleep, not that it helped at all last time. However, he'd just about come to grips with the fact that he was going to wake up fuzzy.

Looking down, he saw the pink spike of his crotch exposed again, and immediately was flooded with a strange nostalgia for her. He had been dreaming of her, he was sure of it, even if he couldn't quite remember the specifics. Despite the haze of being in that muddled half-awake phase, he still wanted her, an ache growing inside of him as he thought back. No . . . that wasn't quite right. He wanted to be with her. He wasn't sure if she could answer questions. Maybe she could explain everything . . . but perhaps that didn't really matter. He thought about what the phone-guy from the zoo had said: no exhibit yet. Then what exactly had he seen?

Nathan took a deep breath. It looked like, for now, he was going to have to go figure it out by himself. He was so sure she was there. There was no way that she was just some sort of figment. He looked around in the dimness of his cluttered apartment, full of unread books and not much else that mattered. She was the most real thing in his life currently, and he was going to go find her. The only real question left was 'how?'

He strode into his room, looking for the loosest, bulkiest garments that he owned, settling on an old gray pair of workout sweats and a reddish plaid flannel shirt from his hometown that he never really wore. He put the pants on first, but ended up with his tail forced up along his back by the waistband. When he tried to pull down his tail, it pulled the pants down as well. He blushed as he saw himself in the mirror, like some kind of gangster cat. He took off the pants for a second, extending a claw thoughtfully as he considered just ripping a hole in the back. There was already one hole in the front though, so he slid the loose pants on backwards, reaching back and threading his tail through the fly. The shirt didn't offer any such resistance, even though it mussed up his fur uncomfortably in a few points so that he had to fiddle with it, unbuttoning the cuffs and tugging it until it was at least tolerable.

It wasn't comfortable by any means, but it did make him look at least a little more normal. He glanced at the shoes next to his bed, lifting one paw-foot over the mouth of one, noting the vast discrepancy in size and shape, and decided to skip them, as he was fairly sure his paws could deal with the concrete outside. He did decide to snatch up his pair of sunglasses off of the nightstand though, before trying to put them on and realizing that he didn't really have a nose anymore. Or maybe he had too much of a nose? Either way, the glasses weren't going to work. Instead, he found an old green mesh baseball hat that he'd owned since middle school, faded letters proudly proclaiming "Ferncreek Cougars." He smirked as he wedged it on his head, sighing as he felt it rub against his fur uncomfortably.

It was ten-thirty by the time he was at the door, paw resting inches from the handle as he thought about all the things that could go wrong. But as he really considered it, it was late on a weekday, and no one ever used the stairs anyways . . . Before he could second guess himself, he threw open the door and stepped out into the yellowish incandescent haze of the hallway. New scents assaulted his nose as he quickly closed the door behind him, his keys jangling as he locked the deadbolt out of habit. Nathan walked as quickly as he could, ignoring the urge to run as he made his way down the hallway towards the stairwell.

As he approached the heavy double doors, he heard the sickening crunch of the elevator lurching up to his floor, the doors opening and an arguing couple in their mid forties piling out of it, obviously having had a bit much to drink. Nathan lunged for the fire doors, slamming into the push-bar awkwardly and lurching into the stairwell. He began descending the stairs immediately, feeling the old polished concrete on the sensitive pads of his paws.

The man of the couple stared in disbelief for a second, swearing that he saw a tail flicker into the stairwell before the door closed. His wife complained that he was drunk and ushered him back to their room. She wasn't wrong, but later in his life, on late lazy evenings, he would always wonder about what he had seen that night . . .

Thankfully Nathan had parked near the stairwell, and slipping back into his car wasn't a problem, that is, until he fell into the seat and shouted out in pain, having crushed his tail under him once again. He swore, slamming the door before pulling forwards and touching his tail gingerly. It still hurt, but didn't seem like it was broken or anything. For how thin it was, the thing was surprisingly resilient. He made due by curling it to the side and sliding the seat back a little, leaning forwards and wriggling uncomfortably as he strapped himself in.

His wide padded toes spread over the pedals as he drove towards the zoo, the roads mostly clear. It felt oddly familiar, reminding him of the misty day that seemed so long ago at this point, but with all of the white mist faded out to black with yellow points from the city lights. Oddly, the night didn't seem to pose much of a problem at all. He could see much further than he was used to, looking up and seeing his wide obsidian pupils staring back in the rear-view mirror. This time, it was surprisingly easy to take the wrong turn on the way to work. He hadn't checked for missed calls before he left or anything, but he also really didn't care that much at the moment. All he wanted to do was prove to himself that she was real. The company could most definitely wait.

As he pulled into the great unlit parking lot, a problem quickly became evident: a ten foot tall reinforced concrete problem. The front gates had been closed, and the only way in at this point looked like it was going to be scaling the wall. He turned off his lights, still able to see fairly well with the faint glimmer from the stars that glinted between the clouds before he parked near the back of the great dark expanse of asphalt. Creeping out of the car and closing his door softly behind him, he made his way to the wall near a little island of climbing greenery and looked around. As far as he could tell, there wasn't really any security on the outside. There could have been cameras, but there could have been last time as well . . . Anyways, what would they do when they saw a jaguar in a baseball cap clumsily climbing back into the zoo?

It was actually a lot easier than he thought, his lithe muscles making it simple to haul himself up the ivy trellis as his claws curled out instinctually, digging into the wood. Actually, it might have been slightly too easy, as, with his growing enthusiasm, he hurled himself over the top, tail waving and claws scrabbling as he fell down amidst the bushes below him with a shuddering crash. Technically, he still landed on his feet, and on his hands, but at least it didn't really hurt more than his pride as the small leafed plants below him broke his fall fairly well. His ears perked up, swiveling around like military satellites as he waited for the inevitable troop of trained marines escorting a pack of bloodthirsty guard dogs. All that he heard, however, was crickets.

It gave him a second to really process all of the smells around him as well, his nose and whiskers twitching as his senses seemed to go haywire. There was the smell of industrial disinfectant, and hundreds of animals in far too small a place for their scents. He wasn't sure how anyone could stand it, really. Nathan didn't have time to reflect though, eyes wide open as he stepped out onto the path, shaking bark-dust from between his paw pads.

He was in Africa . . . or at least the African section. The whole place seemed much bigger in the quiet darkness, but as he remembered it, all of the South American stuff was just at the next area over. Couching quite unnecessarily, he followed the poured cement path down to where the slightly more verdant leafy plants began to lean over the edges of the walkway. This was it. He remembered it. There was a shaded area next to a large plate glass window. This time though, he noticed a sandwich board leaning folded next to it, as if to be put out when they reopened: "Coming Soon - The Jaguars of the Brazilian Rainforest. Central America's Largest Obligate Carnivore!"

Despite the sign, his heart skipped a beat as he approached the glass and looked down. It was just as he remembered it, the obscuring banana trees, the large pile of boulders, and the inability to really see anything from up here . . . His eyes darted from corner to corner of the enclosure, but the foliage was just too thick, even as he put his paws up and his breath fogged the thick glass. Before he knew what he was doing, he was racing down the stairs, tail flying out behind him as he entered the faux cave, just as barren as he remembered, save for that one white door. Licking his lips, he lurched towards it, heart thudding up in his throat as the handle turned, still blessedly unlocked. It slammed shut behind him, leaving him in a hallway that was black as pitch, save for a sprinkling of night light coming in through the grate of the heavy metal door before him.

He could feel the rough texture of the concrete under his paws, and smell the newly formed stone and steel around him. Perhaps they really were just building this place. That might explain why it was still open as well. The thought was almost physically painful though. If he hadn't seen her . . . or if she hadn't found him, then why had any of this happened? Why had anything happened at all? With growing trepidation, he reached a paw forwards, grabbing the chilled black metal handle and sliding it to the side, hearing the squeal of the mechanism before it too opened, and he walked into the location from all of his recent dreams.

It still felt vaguely balmy in the interior of the enclosure, and the leafy cover did its best to make it feel like he was in some foreign jungle. Yet oddly, it felt like he was coming back to something, like returning to a home he never knew he had. His nose twitched. There was still the scent of cement around the edges, but it was overwhelmed by damp earth, running water, lush vegetation, and a dancing acrid scent that made his heart flutter and his whiskers twitch. It was her.

He dropped to his hands and knees, the rest of the world fading from his mind as he sniffed at the chipped wood and earth below him. She was real, he knew it. He could practically taste her, tongue panting out of his half-open jaws. Her delicious reek was all over this place. His clothes felt even more uncomfortable as he rose back to his feet, particularly around the crotch of his pants. He distractedly tugged off the baseball cap as his ears twitched, and he stalked forwards.

The trickling sound of the water dribbling down from the rocks into the artificial pool echoed as he approached the tower of man-sized boulders. There was a flicker of motion, and he looked up, just in time to see a glimmer of gold and black slip behind one of the rusty orange rocks. He rushed over, leaning in and smelling her more recent scent, ebon pupils wide as he scanned around like a cat looking for an invisible piece of string. He made as if to climb the rocks, but his claws slid off of them, digging out great gouges of the sandstone, his form not the right shape for his environment. A frustrated growl escaped his lips, desperation clouding his thoughts before he heard something land behind him like a feather dropping into a pile of dried leaves.

Spinning around, he froze, breath catching in his throat, both hands resting back on the rock behind him. The great jaguar didn't even seem surprised to see him, but under her uncaring animal exterior, he could see that she was pleased. She padded languorously towards him, and his eyes followed her flowing feline motions from her head to the tip of her perfect swaying tail. There was a strange look in her eyes as she bent her muzzle down and sniffed in at the hems of his sweatpants before looking up with something nearing reproach. Immediately, Nathan felt terribly overdressed, cheeks fluffing up as he somewhat bashfully peeled off his sweats and wriggled out of the cloying flannel shirt, tossing them both to the ground.

Immediately, she butted her head against his knee before threading herself between his legs, silky fur rubbing against his own as she purred. Her tail curled up as she stepped through, dragging against his balls and bulging sheath, tickling the pink bristly spike that was quickly emerging before it flicked up and she stepped out imperiously from under him. He could tell that she was smiling as she turned around. His mind hazed over with elation as he knelt down, leaning forwards, hands spread out on the soft earth as she turned around and he pressed himself against her. They slid together in a sinuous silken grind that made his tail curl against her own, longingly dragging apart as she passed.

Being down so close to the ground felt immediately correct, even though his awkward stance on his hands and knees made it difficult to maneuver. His thoughts bubbled with the thrill of finding her, focusing in on the moment, his entire attention drawn towards her movements as he began to act with less and less trepidation.

Pink nostrils huffing, he bathed in her luxurious virile scent, turning slowly on hands and knees, eyes drawing down from her tail towards her tight femininity nestled beneath her twitching anus. She padded behind him, solid body moving like a liquid as her whiskers prickled at his flanks. He couldn't move fast enough to follow her, body feeling ponderous as he panted and shifted his weight on his knees. Her tongue curled out, dragging against the fluff on his rump, sliding in towards his exposed feline package. Nathan's upturned toes curled up behind him, claws grasping at nothing as she ground in over his taut feline testes, scraping back along them. His tail flicked back against her as he gasped, mouth hanging open as she rasped in again, insistent pressure making his loose skin tighten.

With every halting luscious lap, she dragged his jostling balls and tight dripping spire back until they were all nestled prominently just below his twitching anus. A yowl escaped his lips as she scraped back along his barbs, huffing nose buried in his musky tawny furred balls,making them swell and seethe, bulging against his taut scrotum as his fingers scraped back, claws digging through the dirt. She lapped up at the fur on the base of his tail, teasing the animal appendage as it twisted this way and that in pleasure. It tugged out thickening as it twisted while his hips began to creak, making him shift his weight uncomfortably. His anus was stretched taut and horizontal as it was pressed out to twitching animal prominence, his tail creaking as it thickened fully into a curling fluffy length that writhed back gracefully against her head.

The jaguar purred, dragging her cheek and whiskers against his rump, sniffing in his growing feral virility as she panted, attention moving down towards his legs where the muscles bulged with evident stress as he tried to get his paw-feet under himself unsuccessfully. She reached out with a wide paw, batting at his straining ankles and pulling herself close to the quivering joints with mischievous intent. She opened her heavy-fanged maw, gingerly nibbling at his raised ankles, feeling the tendons shifting under his tightening skin and glossy spotted fur. Nathan felt his weight lurch forwards, his arms bending as he leaned his chest in close to the ground. His hind paws strained, balls of his feet swelling out broader as his feet creaked out longer, aided by her careful supervision. As she bumped against him, rocking his body and making a shiver run up his pelt, she would occasionally sniff up and wrap her tongue around his bared vaguely downwards-facing prick, making him growl and wheeze as his legs and hips cracked out further, thighs growing stocky and thick while his calves strained and ground back shorter and shorter.

The sensations were all electric, tingling through him. It should have been disconcerting, his body twisting, thickening and pulling closer to the ground, but he felt so much better this way, his hind paws stretching, padded digits wriggling against the ground as his claws tensed every single time she rubbed against him. His cock pulsed and made a welling heat begin to build up in his belly while he raised his rump and looked back at her with awed wonder in his golden eyes while she coaxed his form into something that seemed infinitely more appealing to the both of them.

As his legs continued to strain and clench, bones creaking, she rubbed herself up against his haunches, leaning against him with all of her considerable weight, toppling him to the side with his more animal hind legs pedaling in the air as she looked down at his midriff. His tongue flickered up over his pink nose as the dim light of the stars glinted off of her round dark-pupiled eyes, twinkling as she bent in and nuzzled against the soft white fur of his belly. The sensation was oddly blissful, and he leaned his head back, closing his eyes as he could feel his spine creaking, changing alignment as his stomach began to slim down, her rasping wide pink tongue sliding over it and making him shudder, rear paws pedaling slowly as his tail batted through the brush on the enclosure's floor.

His breaths were growing deeper as he twisted under the broad dark canopy, ribs straining as they began to barrel out. His breath came out in uneven wheezes as his organs shifted around, slowly rearranging to fit his form as a lithe yet stocky predator. She flopped over and laid her head against him, her motor-loud purring seemingly infectious as his own body began to resonate with his own deeply contentment filled rumbling. He reached in with his hands, feeling his chest pulling in, losing width even as it pressed out, ribcage creaking as his belly pulled in, leaving him with a sinewy yet solid form.

Even as he ran his hand-paws through his fur, she snuggled her way in, taking one of them into her mouth playfully, heavy fangs combing through his fingers, tongue wriggling around his pads, mussing up the tan fur as he could feel his bones begin to strain and pull back, thicker and shorter. He stroked the side of her face, teasing her twitching whiskers as she lapped at his other paw as well, wet warm spittle quickly cooling in the night air. His digits swelled as they pulled back, pads slowly forced closer and closer together as his palms creaked out, forming a thick flat leathery surface. The tips of each finger tingled, claws growing longer, sheathes nestled back amongst his thick fur while his thumbs twisted down towards his thickening wrists, coaxed by her affectionate muzzle. Her rumbling praise was glorious, making him beam with pride as he wriggled against her. The fear of losing his hands slowly dissolved amidst the bliss of being so close to her.

Soon, instead of letting his fingers play through her fur, all he could do was reach forwards and grab her with both of his grasping heavy feline paws. She wriggled playfully as he pulled her in closer, both of them eagerly sniffing at the other before they both began noisily lapping into each other's muzzles. He could taste her passion as she twisted her fleshy tongue around his own, their rough surfaces catching together, matching with the sounds of their collective purring as they rolled together on the ground. As she licked over the inside of his mouth, it pulsed and creaked, pressing out fully so that no trace of humanity was left, only a thick graceful feline face, coated in glossy hollow rosettes. His claws scraped through her coat, caressing her skin, making it twitch under his playful hugging grasp as their tails twined together. As he held her, his frail limbs bulged, joints popping, shoulders tugging into a more bestial alignment as his new forelegs swelled with corded muscle.

With deft grace, she wriggled out of his somewhat clumsy grasp, dashing a few steps away, her calm graceful demeanor showing hints of growing enthusiasm. He rolled over and arched his back, stretching, dragging his forepaws back against the earth, long sharp claws raking the ground as his tail lashed from side to side and his rear legs strained. He thought briefly about trying to stand up on only two legs . . . but the idea just seemed so absurd. Why would he ever want to go back to walking like that when he felt so perfect on all fours? His flexible body thrummed with power as he dashed up to her, watching hungrily as she darted behind the pile of stones in a streak of coy spots.

As he followed, paws digging into the soft bark and dirt on the ground of the enclosure, he felt oddly free. He was still distinctly aware that he was in an enclosure, and that there were walls surrounding the outsides made of concrete and glass . . . But oddly, he could not care less. Why would he ever want to leave? Everything he wanted in life was racing ahead of him in darting zigs and zags, her tail flying behind her like a teasing banner. All that was on his mind was the moment, the thrill of her game as he felt the lush underbrush flicker against his thick protective fur. While his paws thundered under him, his neck thickened, spine cracking as he found it easier and easier to look parallel to his body, tracing her movements as they both raced in circles, making the enclosed space infinite as they played in a rushing wild game of chase.

He was amazed at how quickly she could move, and how easy it was to follow, predatory instincts driving him, nostrils taking in her delicious pungent scent, drinking in her heat as he flew. But soon his golden eyes lost track of her, and he was left padding at the foot of the pile of rocks, heart thundering in his chest. He scanned the areas around him carefully, panting as he licked his chops. Suddenly she flew down at him in a sudden pounce from the boulders, bowling him over as they both tumbled in a ball of joyous fur and playful growling that a passerby would have taken for two ravenous thunderclouds in a struggle to the death. He knew it was all in play though. He trusted her completely, the idea of lying seemingly incompatible with the glossy wriggling feline that he wrapped his paws around.

His body was much like her own now, somewhat larger but just as flexible, even if he lacked her practiced finesse. She snuggled in under his chin, twisting her head so that her ear flicked against his whiskers. He lapped at the top of her muzzle, tongue combing over the velveteen bridge of her snout while he could feel her entire warm sinuous form curl up against him. But even as they shared a moment, her whiskers twitched coquettishly and her tail flicked back, dragging its entire silken length against his plump testes and pulsing pointed feline cock. The rushing smooth silken sensation made him roar out, breath heaving as his body tensed. She waited for him to recover slightly before repeating the motion, making him groan and wheeze before she flipped over on top of him, inverting herself in one graceful move.

He was immediately confronted with her tail batting about against his face, but he hardly noticed the teasing pats. Instead, his golden eyes focused below it on her dark tight animal pussy, nestled just below her ass, already glistening amidst her spotted fur. Immediately, he craned his neck forwards, nose seared by the intensity of her acrid tang as he nuzzled against her rump, paws reaching up and grasping against her flanks. Before he could do anything else though, he shuddered as he felt her hot breath over his exposed cock. He wanted her so badly that it ached, but even as he opened his mouth and leaned in, wide tongue sliding out between his solid fangs, she was faster . . .

He yowled out as she lapped down at his exposed prick, huffing at the smooth tip before rasping playfully along the length. His back arched against the ground, tail writhing as his cock throbbed. She was careful, just bringing him to the brink before pausing, taking a moment to snuffle at his testes and wriggle her rump in front of him invitingly. It wasn't an invitation he could resist. Turning his head sideways he took a deep heady breath before letting his tongue slide out, grinding over her tight exposed labia, tasting her glistening lust before combing through her fur. Her thews stiffened under his paws, body wriggling in pleasure, encouraging him to lap in again and again, scraping over her quivering feminine cleft with increasing fervor.

Her claws strained out, clenched against the fluffy outside of his thighs, encouraging him to be rougher. He lapped up vertically in long loving tugs, feeling her moist flesh quiver and pine, her scent pouring over his senses. Her own ministrations became more bold. The tip of her pink tongue probed at the edges of his sheath, sliding around it before sinking in, making the loose roll of fuzzy flesh go taut as she wriggled around, sandwiched between it and the hefty base of his cock. Nathan's ears folded back as he rumbled against her curling tail, his entire heavy body arched and squirmed back against the ground. Drilling forwards with his tongue, he slid just slightly inside of her, making her ministrations halt with a needy yowl and then an encouraging purr as she nibbled affectionately at the head of his blindingly sensitive cock.

The abrasive stimulation made both of them pant, bodies drawing tight with need. Sparks of color danced in his vision as she eventually nuzzled her face against his package one last time before gracefully stepping off of him. With her back towards him, she looked over her shoulder, bowing with her front legs and raising her rump, tail curling slowly from side to side, wet pulsing feline cleft bared as her golden eyes proffered an invitation.

The thought of declining never even occurred to Nathan; he was drawn towards her as if by a tangible physical force. His wide pink nose huffed as he nuzzled in under her tail, taking in her scent one last time, catching her undulating tail in his teeth playfully while his insides continued to boil and pulse with desire. He knew exactly what he wanted, his actions flowing as if in a dream. Nathan's animal legs tensed behind him, claws digging into the floor as he pressed himself on top of her. Her pelt ground against his belly fur, every follicle tingling as he slid over her, front legs clasping against her sides as his hind legs pushed and pawed at the ground for purchase. She snuggled back against him, lithe warm form fitting him better than any clothes ever had.

Dragging his tongue over the back of her neck, he pulled himself tighter, back arching as he somewhat awkwardly positioned himself above her, feeling her legs bend as she lowered herself underneath him. The sensation of his cock running through her plush fur was immense, silky strands catching against his bristles as his heavy testes tightened and quivered, pointed rod leaking as his shaft jerked and tensed. His eyes went unfocused, his world temporarily limited to tactile feeling as he lowered his hips, point of his penis sliding closer and closer until it pressed against the wet hot clenched exterior of her pussy. Her tail twitched out to the side of him, making the tender orifice quiver.

There was no resisting it. His claws strained out against her as he rocked forwards, feline maleness spreading her impossibly tight passage around his tapered length. Her torrid channel squeezed around him like a fleshy vice, undulations running through her body under him as for a hanging second, they both went silent, nothing in the air but their panting. His smooth thrust buried himself completely inside of her, fuzzy edges of his sheath tickling her stretched labia as his balls jostled and his jaws hung agape.

As soon as he pulled back though, the silence was broken. Two booming roars split through the darkness. His barbs caught in the edges of her fleshy passage, dragging back, making her insides clench and writhe in surging undulation as his cock quivered and leaked out a jolt of pre inside of her. Every micrometer he ground back was blissful torture, subsuming his senses in blazing fireworks of passion before he thrust forwards again in a smooth motion, interrupted as he butted up against her furry rump. The twin sensations of the smooth slide in and the prickly, harrowing slide back both blurred together into a maelstrom of animal passion.

She rocked under him, yowling out and grinding back into him, reveling in the feeling of him filling her completely again and again. As his body tensed, he opened his jaws wide, leaning in and clamping down on her loose furry ruff. Her head pulled back, yowling as his spines scraped at her insides again, ravishing her pussy as she squeezed around him. His feral thrusts gained frantic desperation as his plump rounded testes jostled, churning in their taut home as his tail whipped wildly from side to side.

As he held her tight, her insides began to spasm, fluttering contractions wracking her body, clear female lust welling from her stuffed femininity and dripping down to the earth below. With one last surge of motion, he slammed forwards, hot breath heaving through the fur of her neck. His claws clenched against her, eyes dilating, ears folded back. His hind legs strained against the ground as his loose skin all tightened and twitched, throbbing sensation welling up deep inside of him, seeping out from his core, echoing around his body as his balls tightened, and he began to come, forcing out halting waves of feline seed deep into her womb.

She screamed out in wild terrifying ecstasy, pawing at the earth below her as he strained and surged into her. His entire body went tense as the throes of feline orgasm washed over him like a tsunami. He lost himself inside of her, clenching out wave after wave of thick virile seed inside of her wrenching fleshy passage as she growled out in lust for the both of them. They rocked together in a miniature infinity that could have been seconds or days, pulled so close that their spots blended together as they eked out every last mote of pleasure they could.

Eventually, Nathan slowly slid backwards, spines catching one last time as he slid out of his mate, her cleft squeezing around the smooth point longingly. Soon, she pulled out from under him, grinding against him sensuously. He stepped forwards, rubbing his body against hers as they nuzzled together before flopping into an exhausted spotted pile. They both looked up through the glass ceiling at the mix of stars and banded darkness, their breaths slowing as they gradually fell asleep: together, warm, comfortable.

Nathan wasn't worried about his job, the bills, the car he'd left in the parking lot, or anything else. He held her in his paws, smelling her contentment, and feeling it himself. She was everything he wanted, and he was hers: she was his.

* * *

The zoo checked all of their logs and ledgers, wondering where the breeding pair of jaguars had come from. The only clue that they had is that whoever had delivered them had left a hat, flannel shirt, and a pair of discarded sweat pants. From all of the literature they had, keeping a male and a female in the same enclosure was supposed to lead to territorial behavior and increased stress on the animals, but this particular pair seemed inseparable, as well as robustly healthy. So the zoo quickly added the planned locks to the doors, and finished the outside of the enclosure as best they were able. The two new jaguars energetic behaviors soon led to various parents having to answer awkward questions along the lines of "what are those two kitties doing?"

It took Nathan's company days before he was removed from the payroll, and it was a month before his landlord finally swept out his apartment and put it back on the market. The town continued to function, but Nathan didn't spare it any of his thoughts. His world was now small, and he knew every inch of his enclosure, but there was no place he would rather be than by her side. Over the next few months, her belly began to swell with cubs, and he stayed by her constantly. The zoo had tried to separate them occasionally, but eventually decided against it as the placid and even friendly feline had turned instantly into a spitting snarling hellbeast whenever they attempted it.

As they both awaited their new family, the outside world continued unchanged. Occasionally, people would come and stare down into their pen, watching the two great spotted cats chase each other or just bask in the sunlight lazily, often obscured by the leafy cover. Most visitors would pass by in moments, feeling sympathy for the caged animals, but occasionally, someone would just stop, looking down with something approaching jealousy, watching the two felines live on in their own blissful microcosm, completely protected from the stark gray world around them.