A Wolf's Howl, A Fairy's Wing

After saying his goodbyes to the others, Erik followed Leila out of the room. He took the chance to look this woman over, since he'd barely interacted with her before.

As a member of the Bastet-Seti family, she was naturally bound by the same tradition as Naeku and the others. Her werepanther form was lithe and powerful, much like that of his fiance. In fact, there wasn't much difference between them.

Since they were closely related, the structures of their animalistic forms were very similar. Leila might be at least twenty years older than Naeku, but as a second-ranked Runebound, the grip of old age had already severely lessened.

Although middle-aged shapeshifters would usually experience a loss in fur quality and muscle mass, Leila couldn't be considered middle-aged anymore. Her lifespan had extended by an unknown but likely significant number, so her animalistic form was once again in its prime.

What this meant for Erik, was that his main method for telling them apart had become their smell, and the way they moved. That was the way most shapeshifters told each other apart anyway, even when there were more prominent physical differences.

Her clothes were also quite similar to Naeku's. Just like Erik's new fiance, she preferred to wear a light, somewhat ceremonial ancient Egyptian-style dress. Similarly, they both liked styling it with a flowing headdress, its design seamlessly incorporating their panther ears rather than just having cutouts for them.

"Did Naeku say what she wanted me for?" Erik asked curiously once they were in the hallway.

"She did not," Leila smiled lightly, yet with a mischievous twitch that Erik did not fail to notice. "But she seemed distressed. We'd better hurry!"

A sneaky suspicion was immediately born in Erik's mind, but he kept it to himself. He'd heard some curious things about Leila, both from Naeku and others, so he wanted to see where this would lead.

"Sounds like we'd better," he simply smiled. Elegantly waving his hand, he indicated for her to lead the way, which she gladly did. Her slander pantherform stalked through the palace halls with Erik in tow, but it wasn't long before they started veering away from Naeku's room.

Still smiling slightly, hands casually resting in his pockets, he called after her. "I believe we're going the wrong way, Leila…"

"Oh, no. Are we?" she answered playfully. She didn't turn around, but the tone in her voice was clear.

Before Erik could ask a follow-up question, Leila suddenly opened one of the doors near them, and disappeared into it. Erik halted in his tracks and looked at the still-open door wryly. "I guess it was inevitable…" he muttered, before going after her.

Once through the door, he found himself in one of the palace's many bedrooms. It appeared empty at first, but after taking a few steps, the door slammed closed behind him. Smirking, he slowly turned around.

Of course it was Leila standing there, but what he hadn't expected was for her to already be in her human form. He raised an eyebrow and didn't look away. She possessed the same bronze skin as Ankhur, and long, silky black hair cascaded down her body.

She was shaped like a cross between a pear and an hourglass. Her relatively wide shoulders gave her the classic hourglass figure, despite the fact that her body clearly favoured its lower part.

When not in her werepanther form, she was about half a head shorter than him. Her nose, now no longer a snout, was small, cute, and nicely complimented by her full lips and twinkling yellow eyes.

'Maybe I need to get the girl some of these clothes,' Erik muttered inwardly as he enjoyed the sight. The light Egyptian dress left Leila's toned midriff completely exposed and draped over her chest and hips so loosely, they gave the impression that any small gust of wind might leave her exposed.

"Like what you see?" she asked playfully, while slowly gyrating her body. She stepped closer and performed a flawless pirouette to show herself off in such a way that Erik couldn't help but become excited. Yet, he remained outwardly calm.

"Sure," he said with a noncommittal smile. "But should you be showing me this…?"

Leila shrugged with indifference, but managed to do so elegantly and in a way that still enticed him with her body. "First of all, I'm neither the king nor one of his children," she grinned mischievously. "The tradition isn't as clear on people like me. Second of all, it's a tradition, not law."

"And finally," she continued, now standing so closely she was almost brushing against him. "You're not going to tell on me, are you…?" she grinned widely and pressed one hand against Erik's sturdy chest.

"I certainly wouldn't care enough to, no," Erik confirmed with a shake of his head. Still smiling, he raised an eyebrow. "Although I might need you to spell out why you're showing me."

"Hehehe," she chuckled with some excitement. "Little Naeku told us about this sweet deal you've got going for you. You can fuck around with basically whoever, while your wives stay faithful? Not even my big brother could convince his wives of such a thing. It actually surprised me quite a bit that Naeku was okay with it."

"Naeku is far more open-minded than you give her credit for…" Erik answered calmly, his smile unwavering as he left an ambiguous silence before continuing. "But that doesn't answer my question, Leila."

"Hmm, I wonder why you're making me spell it out," she muttered curiously as lust rose in her eyes. "Do you need my clear consent? Are you just dense?" she asked, her eyes scanning his for an answer.

"It doesn't matter," she continued before Erik could answer, her grin widening. "I think you need to be punished for your lustful behaviour…" She started pressing harder against his chest, towards the bed behind him. "Lie down, and let your mistress take care of that!"

Unfortunately, Erik didn't move an inch. He simply grinned, and even started chuckling a little.

He didn't even remove his hands from his pockets as he tilted his head a little. "Does that routine really work on whatever simple-minded or submissive men you've played with before? Or perhaps they simply played along, for fear of the chance you might complain to your big brother…?"

Leila's eyes widened as frustration became clear in her eyes. "W— What are you talking about?!" She increased the pressure of her hand, but since she was ranked lower than Erik, he might as well be pushing against a mountain. "D— Don't be a spoilsport, just lie down!" she pouted aggrievedly.

Unsurprisingly, Erik had no desire to do so.