Heat of War

        Jade stood infront of the mirror, looking for the change that she knew would come. Every woman in the LeFang clan went through the changes before her first Craving. The Craving is he first heat taht all were-females went through. During the craving, the were-cat female went into heat, just like any other type of cat. The LeFang clan, the only Bengal clan in North America, took pride in their strong and independet females.

        Jade knew her craving was near, ever female, up until their Craving had the body of an adolecent. In the weeks before her time, the female's body blooms and turns into that of a womans. Her body had been showing the signs of the change for days, but she knew she wouldn't be ready.

          It was more than just the Craving, it was what happened afterward that scared her the most. After her first Craving, Jade would start her training as the next leader of the clan. Her mother's plans were unfolding perfectly. Sabre, Jade's mother, had been the leader of the LeFang clan for centeries. Sabre now had plans to give leadership to Jade, after her training.

          Normal females choose a male for life during their first Craving. That was not an option for Jade. Her mate had to be a strong, powerful male. The leader's mate has a major say and role in the clan's destiny. Her mother had decreed that for her first Craving, she would be provided a human male. There were too many unwanted chances with a were-male, like pregnacy. There was no chance of that with a human male, though the two species looked similar on the outside, they were very different on the inside.

            Even ignorant humans could sometimes tell the differences between them. They could not tell the differences from the outter appearences, but by an internal sense of preservation.  They would gen an uneasy feeling and walk away or be wary of the weres. Never really knowing the trouble they could be in if the were ever decided to attack.

            Jade did not know where her mother was getting the male, in truth, she did not care. Her life was getting more complicated by the minute. Usually, she tried to be sensitive to the feelings of everyone around her. Lately, she was too busy to care. Tonight was the night that she would meet the man that would be her mate for hte nect two weeks. She did not know the circumstances of his stay with the clan, but she did know that this was the most exciting thing that had ever happened to her.

            Syn walked into the meeting room, knowing that every eye in the room was on him. He had not expected to see any of these people ever again. HIs resentment towards them was obvious and well known. His curiosity over what would drive these people to ask for his help was his only reason for being there . His exile from the clan had caused these people to turn their backs on him. The thing they had seemed to have forgotten was that no one turned their back on a leopard and survived. He strode over to the seat at the head of the table and sat, knowing that the seat was reserved for the clan leader.

            He didn't care, these people wanted something from him, he was going to make them work for it. Not that he was going to help them under any circumstances, but he wouldn't tell them that. He looked every person around the table in the eye, each looked back, some eyes held regret, but it was too late for regret. But it was never too late for revenge. Each person familiar and clear in his memorites, childhood friends, teachers, neighbors , people he ahd depended on and cared for. These people he had once trusted his life to, now he wouldn't trust them wihth his drycleaning.

            Claymore ambled through the doorway, his unusually large body swaying with his gait. His dark eyes roamed the room as he shoved his large hand through his already mused hair. His gaze landed on Syn, who sat in his his seat at the head of the table. Syn stared back at him, daring him to say anything, anything to give him a reason to walk away. Claymore ignored the challenge and sat at the other end of hte table. The tension between them was palapable, as all the others watched the two powerful men stare at eachother.

              Syn sneered, they were the same people who had betrayed him. They were still the same people who had cared about their status in the clan over his safety and survival. Their opinions did not matter to him anymore. He had made his life a success, despite their abandonment of him when he was a child.

Claymore cleared his throat, drawing everyone's attention to him, before he started to speak,"As you know, we have brought Syn here to ask for his assistence," he adressed the group, then speciffically Syn,"Our enimies, the LeFang clan, are planning an attack on us. We cannot be fully prepared for hte attack until we know the deails. If that attack were to be successful, many people could die. " Claymore stated, watching Syn process the information he had just given him.

              "And why would I help you?" Syn asked, putting enfasis on the "you". A sneer twisted his face in contempt.

Claymore looked him dead in the eye and said the one thing Syn had never expected to hear,"Your sister, they didn't threaten the clan, they threatened Katona."

              "And you allowed this?" Syn demanded,"What did you do in response? Who was punished for this?" Syn was furious that anyone would threaten his sweet and innocent little sister. Even though he and Katona had different mothers, Syn could not have loved her more.

              "We tried to retaliate but could not get into the camp. Five men were killed trying to gain entrance to the camp," Claymore glanced around the table.

Syn notices and does the same, he realizes that three clan elders were missing. Though he had little respect for the men they had been, but regretted that they had died protecting his sister.

              "Where is Katona now?" Syn asked, wondering if she had enough protection.

              "She is with her mother, she is too close to her Craving to be around males right now."

              This was a very serious situation, the Craving added to the threat of her abduction, was a dangerous combination. If she were to be abducted , Syn doubted if they would have enough honor or control to leave her alone. Syn's face was grim and his jaw was set, he had no other option.

                "Your part in this plan, is to go into the enemy camp and to stop the plot on our camp and your sister," as Claymore spoke, he seemed to gain comfidence. He knew Syn would not turn his back on his sister, no matter how much he hated her parents.

                "How do I get into the camp?" Syn knew from experience that other clans didn't take in weres from other clans, no matter how much he hater her parents.

                "The LeFang clan matriarch," matriarch was said with scorn," is looking for a human mate for her daughter, who is going through her first Craving. We need someone who they would not recognize as a were. The fact that you spent time wiht humansand carry their scent, should help you get into the camp," Claymore stated, this time adressing the state as a whole,"This meeting must not be mentioned to anyone. If you mention this, you will be considered a traitor and be treated as such."

                  Jade sat in the sitting room waiting for her mother to bring the male that would soon be her mate to meet her. She had to struggle not to pace back and forth across the room. She had been segregated from all the males because of the Craving. She had dressed in a white skirt that fell to her knees and a pale pink sweater that was snug because of her changed body. It had taken her forever to find something that would fit her new body.

                    She tried to calm her nerves, she did not want to seem nervous infront of her human companion. Humans, like were-males, took many lovers after maturity. Were-females were not active in that way until their Craving. Even if hte were-female was interested in such before her Craving, most were not, were-males would not touch a female before her Craving, it was against the laws of the species. The humans saw them as the children that they appeared to be.

                    Jade did not want to embarass herself infront of the human in anyway, her lack of knowledge on hte subject embarassed her. She knew that her mother would not pick a weak or a faulty human, even just for this use. In order to blend into the human society, they had to study humans and their characteristics. From this, Jade knew that there were many different types of human males. There were the scruffy looking males who acted tough. There were the business type males that payed little attention to their mates. In comparison to the were males, human males, humanmales seemed to lack substance. She did not know if she could be attracted to such a male, though she knew that some were-females were. She sat there with her mind wandering , slowly relaxing as she thought of the possibilities.

                      The door opened and her mother strolled into the room, followed by the most amazing man she had ever seen.