6. Chapter Five

Chapter Five

~Lochlainn O'Hare~

I sat back in my office seat, staring at the email that did not find me well. It found me frustrated and angry. For three days, Valerie woke up at the break of dawn and ate breakfast with either myself, Randolph, my RA, or Kahrina, my TA, out on the patio. She would put up a good front, but then while the rest of my students would filter out, going to class or going to their jobs, she would stay back. The first day she did all her classes in her room, barely leaving it. I only knew when I spoke with the wildlife that lived in The Grove. Yesterday she'd brought her work out into the gardens, and it felt like progress.

However, the email in front of me would destroy that progress. I tapped my fingers against my desk. A massive post on the school's discussion board had Valerie's face posted to it, calling the administrator foolish for not expelling the hag amongst them. I snarled as I closed down my laptop. The post would be removed within the next few hours, but the damage was done.

I needed to get back to The Grove before I broke out into fur and claw. Pushing all my equipment into my bag, I slipped out of my office. The druid classroom was more or less a greenhouse with garden boxes as desks. My desk grew out of a massive willow tree, its branches shrouding the office space. I pulled the curtain of vines apart and left them swinging in my wake. While I was teaching, the curtains were carefully tucked away from my desk, and when I was in office hours, I dropped them down like a wall for privacy. It was efficient.

I went through the motions of closing any windows left open, tucking in chairs, and headed out after I locked the door behind me. Not that anyone might break into my classroom; there was nothing to steal but seeds and watering cans.

The walk back to The Grove was excruciating as a feeling of dread grew. Even when I passed the thick scent of fresh pumpkins, damp herbs from an earlier rain shower, and the sweet smell of autumn in the air, I couldn't shake it. Something was wrong. Someone was pushing this 'villain' image too hard. Likely someone who would benefit from Valerie being removed at the least. Who? And why?

Maybe I didn't know my student like I thought I did because I couldn't imagine any reason someone would paint her as a villain. She was a quiet, head down, get her work done and get out kind of person. While around me she was rather animated, and I knew she had somewhat of a social life…how had she wronged someone so egregiously to warrant this? The longer I thought about it, the more my head spun.

I didn't realize I'd already arrived at The Grove, until I heard Kahrina's worried call. I straightened, pivoting to see her. "Kahrina?"

"Professor! Good, you're here…Valerie's gone."

"What!" I barked, dropping my bag onto the nearest surface. "Where? When?"

"Not that long ago. I went to go fetch her for dinner as we'd planned to go over her project for your class…and her room was abandoned. Bed a mess, door open, and I can't find her. No one remembers seeing her bolt so I…I mean…you don't think?" Kahrina's face was pinched in worry. All her hay blond hair was in a frenzied, frizzy state like she'd been tugging at it while pacing a hole in the floor.

"Whoa, wait, are we talking about Valerie?" Randolph perked up as he entered shortly after me. Both my TA and I whipped to face the dark skinned elf who put up his hands like a white flag. He laughed nervously, "I, uh, bumped into her on the way in. She was in a rush, said she needed to get into the woods."

"The woods?" Kahrina blurted out in bafflement.

"Of course!" I exhaled heavily. "She's a witch; she feels safest in the woods where she was conceived."

"What?" both Randolph, an elven druid from a family of wood elves from the other side of the forest, and Kahrina, a human druid from a family that never left this town, eyed me with confusion.

"I will teach you both a lesson about witch lineage another day," I laughed sheepishly. "She is a Contempt witch, she was born and raised in these woods…and I think I know where to find her."

"Shall I join you?" Kahrina softened her stance.

"No," I bowed my head slightly to my students, "Thank you both, and I appreciate your concern for her, Kahrina. I'll go see to her myself. You two hold down the fort, so to speak."

Randolph and Kahrina bowed their heads to me as I zipped around them and headed for the woods. I barely cleared the tree line before I burst. First come the paws, then the fur, then the snout. Inhaling deep through my nose, I caught her scent quickly. Randolph was accurate, she ran through here not long ago. The stench of sweat, panic was mixed with the sweet spark of desire and need. Her breeding season was still in effect.

No-no, we're here to make sure she's okay. I barreled through the trees, following her once frantic trail. As it turned into a steady direction, the panic fell out of her scent and it turned into only need. Desire, desperation, breed me, breed me now, it screamed . I tried to shake it off but the further into the trees I traveled, the harder it was to resist. Breed me, Professor. That dark, hungry beast in my chest engulfed me as I let out a mighty roar. The trees around me shook. My paws thundered against the ground.

Birds fled the orange painted leaves, the sun setting on the trees. Deep in the forest, I bound over underbrush and squished moss. It wasn't till I could hear her heartbeat did I realize I was close. It was spiked in ecstasy that only drove me more feral. I roared once more and I heard a scream of terror. If I were a more sensible man, I might have slowed down, explained it was me. But Valerie jumped to her feet, naked under the amber glow of sunset, panting for air and hands clenched over her breasts. I stepped into the clearing where I found her boots. Her scent led me straight to her.

Just as she had that night, she'd been sprawled in the moss, touching herself. Evidence clear as crystal on her glistening fingers. Her stepped back tentatively as I approached slowly. My paws crept forward, my eyes trained on her.

"Professor? Professor, please tell me if that's you." Her voice wobbled, her eyes blown wide with fear and the edge of bliss. Her devastating scent filled my lungs and threatened to choke all sense of reason. Of decorum. Of myself. Because had I been in control of my mind, I wouldn't have stalked closer, reveling in how she tiptoed backward. Her cunt, covered in onyx curls, damp from her pleasure, they called me to me. I wouldn't have curled my lip in a snarl, baring my fangs. Her pretty heartbeat spiking in her chest. I wouldn't have thrown my promise not to fuck her to the wind.

I lunged and she shrieked, flying away from me. My head tossed back of its own accord, a deep in the belly roar rattling the trees. She lept over a fallen log and bolted deep into the forest. I chased. Long, flowing locks of her hair behind her, legs pumping, I could hear how hard she was trying to put distance between us. Problem was my little witch was headed in the wrong way. If she wanted to be free of me, she should have run toward civilization. Instead, she headed into the belly of my woods. The trees were closer together, the ground uneven and full of little pockets.

The first time I nearly caught her in my muzzle, her ankle caught under a tree stump. Its roots were disguised with all the moss and grass. She tumbled to the ground. Yet, she used her momentum to roll out of my way and clamber to her feet. The scent of her fear was intoxicating. Valerie cried out, "Please! Please! Whoever you are, I'm not—"

I lunged and she scrambled from me again. The second time her body caught a branch by accident, she didn't try to reason with me. I dove for her and she narrowly escaped by pulling herself up into the tree. She quickly threw herself out the other side and ran. The moon crept up into the horizon as night darkened the woods. I was on her heel, unable to clear my mind of my frenzy. I needed her. Her running only enticed me more.

It wasn't until the third time she tumbled over a rock and rolled down a hill, that I even realized the fear was gone from her scent. As I stalked forward, finding her back to a tree, legs trembling, there wasn't panic in her heartbeat. It was steady, high but uniform. Her eyes met mine in the pearly moonlight, and they were strong.

"Professor…" She panted for air, fingers curling around thick roots that supported her. My gaze dropped to where her legs were clenched together. Inch by inch they spread before me, her heels digging into the earth. The scent of dew, freshly turned moss, and her desire filled my nose as I loomed over her ankles. "Lochlainn, you can't take me in this form."

I stepped closer, my paws at either side of her naked hips. Her eyes never wavered, glued to mine as my muzzle closed the distance between our faces. My wet nose brushed her, making her shiver. I growled deep in my belly, but my wild shape dropped. Suddenly, it was my nose brushing hers. Suddenly, it was my strong hands cupping her sides and pulling her out of the hole. Suddenly, it was my lips hers crashed against.