A Tale of the Other Kind: A Therian Novel by Leandi Cameron Page B

her bones were starting to reattach, one by one, the vertebrae replacing itself like Lego blocks being stacked on top of each other. Kai stood back in awe and watched the scene unfolded in front of him. He couldn’t believe what was happening. In one swift movement, Astrid was back on her feet, and she now seemed more furious than before. 
    ‘You call me ugly ? You Kai, and I, are one and the same. You are no different to me. You might have transformed into a leopard, but our molecules are exactly the same. Yes, we are both human, or so you might think, but we can also change into magnificent beings. 
    ‘Did you really think that humans were the only species on earth? You are so naïve. Just like you thought that you were the only shapeshifter on earth. Please, the ego!’ Astrid laughed shrilly. 
    ‘You and I are nothing alike!’ Kai growled. 
    ‘Maybe not in transformation, but our anatomy is exactly the same.’ 
    ‘How?’ he demanded. 
    ‘Ugg, toddlers, so inexperienced,’ she said, absent-mindedly. 
    ‘You know, you are really starting to tick me off,’ Kai warned. 
    ‘Little kitty, we are both hunters, and a part of the supernatural realm that has been around for thousands of years. Yes, humans might have placed us all in different categories and added their own little fairytales to it, but we are not that much different. 
    ‘We both feast on flesh, but you my friend are the weak kind ... such a pity that you like random little animals. We could have had such fun together,’ she sighed. ‘ I , on the other hand, feast on blood – human blood, of course,’ she smiled slyly.   
    ‘So, you’re a vampire?’ Kai asked matter-of-factly. ‘In human terms, yes. That’s just the name they created to distinguish between our various forms. Creative little things, those humans,’ Astrid said condescendingly. 
    ‘So how can we be the same?’ 
    ‘Oh my little kitty, like I said before, we are all one of the same being ... vampires, werewolves, were-leopards or panthers, those stupid fairies, goblins and elves, you name it,’ she said, pacing up and down with her hands clamped together. ‘I guess there’s just something differentiating in our different personalities that triggers what we will transform into when we finally turn of age,’ Astrid explained. 
    ‘Turn of age?’ Kai asked, his curiosity prickled. 
    ‘Eighteen! When we turn eighteen!’ she replied impatiently. Kai crossed his arms, still keeping a close eye on her movements. 
    ‘I thought vampires became that way when they were bitten by other vampires?’ 
    ‘I can see that you’ve lived among humans for way too long. That is fictional. We do feed from them, but then they die. Or they live ... if we let them. That’s the end of it. It’s ridiculous if you ask me. We don’t have to bite them to be able to transform them into one of us,’ she laughed devilishly. 
    ‘I honestly don’t know if I should like you or kill you on the spot,’ he replied, astounded. 
    ‘Oh, but I was having so much fun with the latter,’ she smirked stepping forward. 
    ‘Why are you telling me all of this?’ 
    ‘If I don’t tell you, then who will? It’s not like you know any others shifters. We’re kind of, scattered and most shifters keep to themselves. Besides, your only link to our world is gone. Miss daddy much?’ she said harshly. 
    ‘How do you know about my father?’ 
    ‘Your father was one of us,’ she smiled. 
    ‘What?’ ‘Goodness, yes. However, he was the elusive black leopard which legends are made of. You know, the one everyone around these parts have claimed to see. His genes must have been really strong for you to have turned out to be a were-leopard too.’ 
    ‘You mean, you know my father?’ he asked, still trying to digest all the information he’d been given. 
    ‘Nope,’ she said gaily. She stood back and held up her hands, suggesting a truce. 
    ‘You want a truce? You stabbed me and then