Rosy’s story:

I glance towards the doorway as Wade walks into the room followed by Micah, Sam and Mitchell. All of them have sober expressions on their faces. The sounds of joking and laughter that usually fill the quarters soon fade away, leaving only the faint sounds of the toms moving expectantly.

"We just got some important news," Micah says, "I’ll let Wade tell everyone since he took the call."

"Everyone take a seat," Wade says levelly and all obey even Marissa. Micah, Mitchell and Sam move to stand among other toms and I glance their way with uneasy curiosity.

"That was Stephan Willoughby … Steven, Mikkarl, straight out … Celeste and Andy are still alive and should recover." Wade says firmly.

"What’s happened?" Steven demands getting to his feet and I glance his way slightly alarmed. Micah has him by the upper arm either restraining him or steadying him I can’t tell which. I glance at Mikkarl and see Mitchell by his side as Mikkarl leans forward with a strained look on his face.

"As you know Andy is visiting your parents for a few days with Celeste turning eighteen. There was a car accident, the car Andy and Celeste were in blew a tyre and went off the road rolling several times. Lucky for them Conner and Kell were right behind them and were able to get them out of the car." Wade explains.

"How bad are they hurt?" Steven breaks in urgently.

"Both have broken bones, bruising and Celeste has some deep lacerations and a concussion but she should totally recover. Andy might have a limp or limited use of one leg but he is alive …" Wade stresses and stops to take a deep breath. "Kell was turning the engine in the rolled car off when it went up in flames …"

"No," Kirby yells and I look his way uneasily but Sam and Malcolm have a hold on him and are trying to calm him down.

"Conner?" Timny asks worriedly.

"He managed to pull Kell out of the car. Both are burnt … Kell real bad, Conner all up one arm and shoulder and across that side of his face." Wade tells us calmly. "Stephan wants you back home at least for a while Steven, and Mikkarl too for a few weeks. Kirby, Timny, Callum if you want to go see your brothers by all means go."

"This is only temporary, until Andy is back on his feet or Dad gets someone to replace him." Steven states as he gets to his feet and heads for the bedroom. Mikkarl follows Steven from the room and I glance at Timny and Callum who are getting to their feet along with Kirby with Malcolm at his side.

"I’ll just be a few days if Conner isn’t too bad," Timny says glancing between Micah, Wade and Mitchell.

"Me too," Callum adds.

"We all agreed you can take as long as you need," Wade tells them as he pats each of them on the shoulder before turning to Kirby. "You stay as long as your brother needs you."

"Thanks," Kirby says and glances between Micah and Mitchell before he hurries for the door.

Silence fills the lounge room and I look down at the muffin on my plate, I am no longer hungry and I glance around the room noting most of the others haven’t finished their breakfasts either.

"I’m making sandwiches they can take with them so they have something to eat, they won’t stop for food." I say scrambling to my feet.

"I’ll help," Donovan says getting to his feet along with me.

"I’ll do some thermoses of coffee," Justin announces as he too stands and follows us into the kitchen. I begin buttering slices of bread while Donovan pulls an assortment of cold meats from the fridge along with cheese, pickles and tomatoes. We soon have a large range of sandwiches made and in plastic bags while Justin adds boiling water to instant coffee in thermoses. I grab several heavy plastic mugs and sit them by the thermoses with containers of sugar and powdered milk.

"You rippers," Steven says as he comes into the kitchen and puts an old esky on the table to pack the food and drinks in.

"You take care of yourself Rosy, make sure you eat well so you’re nice and round and cuddly when we dance after the wedding, you hear." Steven orders firmly before dropping a kiss on my cheek.

"You’ll be back for the wedding?" I ask in surprise.

"Can’t let my best mate get married without me," Steven says then gives a bit of a laugh. "Besides, I want to be there in case you come to your senses and marry me instead."

"You driving?" I ask rolling my eyes and ignoring his teasing remark.

"Yeah, Mikkarl and I will take turns. I don’t think the others would do more then some low flying," Steven says with a crooked grin.

"Well you be careful," I tell him as I throw my arms around his neck in a hug, he gives me a gentle squeeze and pats my back before stepping back from me.

Mikkarl and Timny are finishing up packing the sandwiches in an esky while Callum grabs several large packets of chips from the pantry. I watch as Steven turns and leads the way out of the quarters with Mikkarl just behind him. Timny, Callum and Kirby fall into step behind them and the five toms file from the building heading for the shed where all of the vehicles are generally kept. Donovan puts a hand on my shoulder and I glance towards him, he is watching the others leave and I wonder at the closed expression on his face.

"Everything okay?" I ask Donovan as we head back inside when the vehicle is gone from sight.

"You really should have a shower before you go visit Jazzy," Donovan tells me seriously and I suddenly wonder where the spoilt but charming teenager I had come to adore has gone.

"Sure," I mutter and head for the bathroom. It is not until I am in the shower that I remember Sam talking to me about taking me to see my Unca Dunka

– Donald Caruthers who is a vet. I realise he may have some information I can check through to see if I can get any tips to help me gain weight, then I remember five of the warriors have just left, and Jazzy is coming into heat. I sigh and turn off the shower knowing my likelihood of visiting my uncle is probaly now non-existent.

"I’m going over to the house to see Jazzy," I call to Donovan, Justin and Malcolm who are in the lounge room.

"See you when you get back Stray," Malcolm calls bringing a smile to my face.

I walk to the main house slowing with apprehension when I open the yard gate and walk up the footpath, I can’t help but remember the last time I walked these same steps. The gun I had hated wielding, the choking fear I would be shut in a cage and the mind numbing terror that I was already too late to be able to help Jazzy.

I raise my hand to knock on the door and freeze as I slowly turn my head to look at the shady spot at the end of the house enclosed by green leafy hedges. I immediately spy the motionless figure leaning back casually in one of the patio chairs, a laptop across his thighs.

"Marissa is in with Jazzy, just go on in." Wade tells me levelly. I inhale sharply in surprise but manage a slight nod before all but bolting into the house. I walk through the house guided by memory and halt outside the solid oak doors that seal the secure room from the rest of the house. I open the door and step inside trying not to remember my own seclusion here months ago.

"Rosy! You came! Mum told me you and Micah are getting married," Jazzy gushes with excitement as she jumps up out of the armchair and rushes over to hug me.

"Of course I came to visit," I tell her with a grin. "And yes Micah and I are getting married. Three weekends from now so it gives you and me a little bit of time to do stuff for the wedding once you’re out of here,"

"I’ll leave you two to chat together," Marissa says as she gets to her feet. I watch as she leaves the room but I can’t control the shudder that goes through me when she locks the oak door behind her.

"You okay?" Jazzy asks with a worried frown.

"Yeah," I give a shrug and head for one of the chairs, my legs feel weak and shaky.

"You sure? Cause you’ve gone all pale," Jazzy tells me in concern.

"Last time I was here wasn’t so pleasant for me," I mutter as I look down at my feet.

"I should have realised! Do you want to go back to the quarters?" Jazzy asks and I can hear the disappointment in her voice.

"I’m okay for now I think," I say with an uneasy smile.

Jazzy pulls the other chair close and sits in it, she watches me for a moment then gives a nod.

"Doc said I’m well enough to invite someone into the cage if I want," She tells me with a wicked little smile.

"Don’t tell me you’re going to corrupt my brother," I tell her with a laugh.

"Me corrupt him? Mitchell has had me thinking naughty thoughts from when I was nine." Jazzy says with a laugh.

"You’ve liked him that long?" I ask curiously.

"Yeah, I went on my first run as a cat and while everyone else treated me like a sick little kid he treated me like I was normal." Jazzy recalls with a faraway look on her face. "Don’t get me wrong I’ve had crushes on other toms but with Mitchell it was different and he stayed there at the back of my mind even when I liked others."

"Which other toms, if you don’t mind me asking?" I say with a direct glance and Jazzy gives a self-conscious laugh.

"Loci Francis, but he never gave me the time of day after I refused to let him mount me first chance he got. And there was Leon, Malcolm and Chris’s brother. We kissed a few times, he wanted to go further but I wasn’t interested. I was only mucking around with him trying to get Mitchell to take notice. You remember Robby Inness? He got really friendly a couple of times I stayed in the quarters until Micah told him to keep away from me … there are a couple of others I had crushes on but I never let them know," Jazzy tells me with a shrug.

"So what finally caught Mitchell's attention?" I ask.

"You tell me when you first decided you liked Micah," Jazzy counters with a grin.

"At my house, near Pete Willoughby’s place. I had worked all night helping my Uncle with some cattle mauled by strays and came home exhausted. Pete, Micah and Steven dropped by and stayed for a while. On the way out when I wouldn’t have been able to hear if I’d been human Steven made some guy comment about my looks and Micah hit him." I laugh softly as I remember. "That’s when I knew liked him more than just thinking he had a hot body."

"That was when no one knew you were a cat isn’t it?" Jazzy asks.

"Yeah," I admit.

"I remember Steven giving Micah heaps because he liked a ‘human’ female," Jazzy laughs. "Steven said something about Micah kissing you, did he?"

"Yeah, after supper at Pete’s, Micah walked me to my car and kissed me like he wanted to eat me starting with my mouth." I take a deep breath and shake my head as my body tightens with memories. "My inner cat just about went crazy … about to come into heat and him so male …it totally scared the shit out of me."

"So which of the toms have you kissed other than Micah?" Jazzy asks.

"Chris, we played around a bit. Conner Stephan and Kell Lancaster, the two of them and me played around quite a bit when I was away at that Alpha meeting." I say.

"Who else?" Jazzy asks curiously.

"That’s all the cats I’ve let near me," I admit to her. "So who are the other toms you had crushes on?"

"Don’t laugh at me," Jazzy tells me defensively. "And you got to tell me if you ever considered any toms the first time you were on heat here or if there were any you liked last time,"

"Nothing either of us says leaves this room," I tell her. "And you tell me how you caught Mitchell’s attention."

"I had ‘crushes’ or probaly more correctly, I lusted after Timny and Malcolm. I watched them a few times when they shifted. Pretended I’d found it hard to shift," Jazzy laughs as she blushes slightly. "As for how I caught Mitchell’s attention … a group of us went to the swimming hole, Sam, Mitchell, Malcolm, Timny and Chris were there … we were swimming and mucking around, Malcolm was picking me up and tossing me in the air while we were in the water and when Mitchell went to try it I type of rubbed myself against him … he went all wide eyed and got the message real quick and easy. He was kissing me and had his hand between my legs while we were sunbaking afterwards. The others had decided to go hunting,"

"How long ago was that?" I want to know.

"About two and a half years ago," Jazzy admits. "So you ever consider any of the toms when you were in here?"

"Considered yeah, trusted them enough to even consider inviting them in, no. Micah, Edwin, Steven and even Malcolm and Chris were thought about that first time but I was petrified of them, felt sure they’d only want to hurt me." I say and shrug as I look at my hands clasped over my stomach. I stroke my belly for several moments before continuing. "Last time I had meant to get Sam and Mitchell to invite Conner and Kell to the compound while I was in here but I had already decided I wanted to invite Micah in here if he was at home, otherwise my next choice would have been Steven." I admit.

"What about Edwin?" Jazzy asks. "Weren’t you going to ask he be here when you were on heat?"

"No, Edwin manipulated that for himself." I tell her.

"Did you really mean it when you told Donovan you were going to kill the baby?" Jazzy demands and I look at her with shock and surprise. "Would you have been really able to do it like you reckoned?"

I take a deep breath as I cradle my stomach in my arms until I finally force myself to look at Jazzy. Suddenly I want to explain to her, make her understand exactly what a she-kitt would have faced.

"Vaygar Darnel said if the baby was a girl she would be kept for breeding. He wasn’t the type of werecat to wait until a she-kitt was old enough to be mature or even interested in toms, as soon as she was big enough for a tom to..." Tears fill my eyes and I swallow hard. "He didn’t want a she-kitt, he wanted a womb he could control. Even if it was a bit young … he once said to me ‘a field has to be well ploughed before it can be used to grow a seed in’."

"I’m glad clan warriors executed him," Jazzy declares.

We sit in silence for several minutes before Jazzy clears her throat and moves to kneel in front of me, I move my arms and lean back as she strokes my stomach.

"I let your father touch my belly this morning! Micah held me and I was able to let Wade put his hand on my belly," I tell her with sudden excitement.

"Everyone is scared you will try to kill the baby if anyone tries to touch you too much," Jazzy says quietly.

"But no one here will do all the horrible things the Darnels would have," I say upset.

"Don’t get upset Rosy! I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to upset you," Jazzy says getting to her feet hurriedly and moving away from me uneasily. I take several deep breaths trying to calm down, it takes me several minutes but I manage it and give Jazzy a nod when I am in control of myself again.

"Would you be Maid of Honour at my wedding?" I ask quietly.

"Yes," Jazzy squeals in excitement as she jumps up and down clapping her hands. "I’d love to be!"

I hear rapid footsteps approaching the door, the key turning in the lock then the door swings open and Marissa looks in guardedly.

"Rosy asked me to be Maid of Honour," Jazzy tells her excitedly.

"How lovely! Would you two girls like some cold lemonade and snacks?" Marissa asks.

"That would be wonderful," I say with a smile. Marissa leaves and Jazzy turns to look at my stomach longingly.

"Dad ordered Doc to make sure I had the injection but I want to have a baby too." Jazzy says wistfully.

"Oh Jazzy, I’m so sorry you have to wait but it is the best thing really. I’m finding it really hard at the moment being so thin and weak. I’m tired all the time and not just tired but exhausted like I been running and running from werecats and I can’t run anymore." I tell her softly. Jazzy is watching me intently and I smile sadly at her.

"I was enjoying being pregnant so much before when I was healthy but now … I still enjoy it, when I’m awake to." I give a self-conscious little laugh and a shrug. "If I have my way next time I’ll be fat and healthy all the way through the pregnancy."

"You’re willing to let Micah get you pregnant? Wow, that is great! Maybe we can work it out so we can have babies around the same time." Jazzy gushes.

"You got to be pregnant by yourself for at least a few months so you can enjoy the toms hanging around just to put their hands on your belly." I say with a laugh but I sober quickly as I remember they no longer do that with me. I look up to find Jazzy watching me, she gives a shrug and moves to kneel in front of me and I uncover my stomach eagerly. Jazzy rests her cheek against my stomach and I feel the baby move to press against the slight pressure.

"He’s trying to get closer to you," I say with a soft laugh as Wynn moves slightly.

"Of course he is! He loves his Aunty Jazzy," Jazzy exclaims with a smile.

"Yep, who doesn’t love their crazy old cat woman aunty?" I laugh happily.

"What did you call me?" Jazzy shrieks with laughter and tries to tickle me but I twist and turn as I giggle. One of her hands accidentally brushes my breast and she stills as she looks up at me, I narrow my eyes and shake my head in denial.

"Don’t," I warn her.

"Nothing wrong with playing around with another she-kitt," Jazzy purrs softly at me. "Some of us do it whenever we get together at meetings. Besides, Justin told me you once had a girlfriend, "

"I am not interested," I say between gritted teeth. "You’re like a sister to me. You’re supposed to be marrying my brother. Besides both Micah and Mitchell would get really mad at us,"

Jazzy gets up to sit in the other chair, she hooks her legs over the side and leans back over the arm of the chair letting her long hair fall down behind her looking like a little girl.

"I’m gonna ask Momma to invite Mitchell in here tomorrow or the next day," She says sulkily.

"I guess I’ll have to wait until you get back to the quarters to let you put your hand on my belly again then." I say as I straighten my clothes.

"Micah won’t like it you know. He’ll stop me if he catches us. He gave everyone orders not to bother you." Jazzy tells me uneasily.

"Well he’ll be bothering me if he stops you," I say and look towards the door as I hear a faint sound, a few moments later Marissa opens the door and walks in carrying a tray with a plate of sandwiches, cakes and a bottle of lemonade with condensation starting on the outside.

"Have you got any of those spice cakes there?" Jazzy demands as she sits up to watch her mother.

"Yes and the orange cake with ginger icing," Marissa says as she puts the tray on the small table in front of the chairs.

"Good! I’m starving," Jazzy exclaims and grabs several pieces of cake. Marissa looks at me and gives a rueful smile.

"Looks like my daughter turns feral," Marissa says as Jazzy growls as she glances at us as she eats. I give Jazzy a no-nonsense look I have perfected on the toms and frown at her.

"You be nice to your mother Jazzy, or she just might leave you go without food for a day." I warn her. Jazzy looks at me silently for a moment then looks at her mother.

"Thanks Momma," Jazzy says dutifully. I help myself to a sandwich and chew hungrily.

"Are you eating four or five times a day yet?" Marissa asks.

"No just the three times with everyone else," I tell her.

"I found it more comfortable to eat lots of small meals when I got to about your stage of pregnancy, especially with Micah, he was so large. The baby squashes your stomach making it hard to eat much at once." Marissa says helpfully.

"I’m hungry all the time it seems like but nothing seems to be what I want to eat." I say.

"I mainly ate what we hunted right up until about a week before I had Justin and Donovan, people food didn’t appeal." Marissa admits.

"Micah did say he would take me hunting today," I say with a smile.

"Wish I could go hunting," Jazzy says. "I know exactly who I’d be hunting." Her eyes are dark and she licks her lips as she glances towards the door, I smile to myself and shake my head and Marissa laughs softly.

"What?" Jazzy demands.

"Nothing dear," Marissa says in a calm tone.

"Looks like guarding my food is catching," I say and Jazzy stares at me a moment before understanding shows on her face and she laughs self-consciously.

"I just feel so grumpy all the time," she admits.

"That’s fairly natural," Marissa reassures her.

"I just wish this was all over so I can get back to the quarters and back to Mitchell! I hate being away from … Where did you sleep last night Rosy?" Jazzy asks suddenly with suspicion.

"With Micah," I tell her without hesitation.

"Why should I believe that?" Jazzy asks with narrowed eyes. I smile at her and lick my lips before taking a bite of sandwich; I chew it thoroughly before swallowing. I am sick of her jealousy over Mitchell and I am starting to feel irritated even though I know it is because of the hormones she is giving off.

"Because my name is Rosy, not Lotty." I growl low in warning.

"Come on now girls, no arguing." Marissa says firmly and I reach for another sandwich. I rub my stomach where Wynn is kicking energetically and smile to myself as I feel the small hand or foot connect with the palm of my hand.

"The baby is strong, healthy and very active?" Marissa asks with a warm look towards my stomach.

"Yes it seems he never stops kicking this last week," I admit.

"I got to touch her baby bump before," Jazzy says almost defiantly as she glares at her mother.

"Jazzy I am sure the last thing Rosy wants is to have others bothering her all the time," Marissa scolds with a guarded look my way.

"It’s okay, I enjoyed it. And the baby seemed to as well, he pushed against where Jazzy was touching." I say with a fond smile at Jazzy.

"As long as you weren’t bothered by it," Marissa says gently. I glance her way but Marissa is looking at the sandwiches closely before selecting one.

"Did your Mum tell you about what happened with Lotty?" I ask.

"No she hasn’t. Did Sam finally ask her to marry him?" Jazzy asks excitedly.

"No Miss Carlotta Inness got herself trapped in her own little web." Marissa says coldly with a glance for both Jazzy and I.

"What happened?" Jazzy demands. "Did someone catch her rutting with a tom? Someone she wasn’t supposed to be with?"

"No, apparently she didn’t come into heat when she was due to and her father forced her to name who was responsible. Lance Baxter. Mal called Stan, Lance’s father and told him, either Lance marries Carlotta, or he and his sons were going to hunt him down and castrate him. Well there is to be a marriage in two months," Marissa tells her with an amused smile.

"It’s about time she got her come-uppence! Oh! Poor Sam! Does he know?" Jazzy asks suddenly worried.

"Yeah he was told yesterday just before lunch," Marissa tells her. "And from what I’ve heard he took it hard. There was some talk about he was just walking out and leaving the clan but Rosy managed to talk him out of it thank goodness."

"Good! I’m glad we didn’t loose a high grade tom because of some little alley she," Jazzy spits before looking at me. "Both Momma and I don’t like Carlotta Inness. She has encouraged so many different toms to mount her not to mention she has tried to tempt several married Alphas as well. I bet Lance will not put up with any of her games and he will breed her every year or second year until they get a she-kitt. Momma do you think she’ll be a good mother? Or will Stan and Lance have Lauren raise the babies for a couple of years?"

"Jazzy," Marissa warns and I glance her way to find her carefully avoiding looking at me. I look at Jazzy only to find she looks away uneasily and glances back at me but looks away again when she sees me watching her.

"You said neither of you like Lotty?" I say to break the uneasy silence. There is obviously something going on and I have the uneasy feeling I know what it is because as a veterinary assistant I had helped hand raise kittens and pups rejected by their mothers at or soon after birth.

"Yeah, not long after Lotty and Sam started seeing each other she and her parents came here for a visit. When Sam went away on a job, she started chasing after all the toms in the quarters and got spiteful when she was turned down. I know she even presented to Justin and tried teasing Donovan but Micah, Dwayne, Alex and Edwin soon put a stop to her games." Jazzy tells me with her chin jutting forward belligerently. I’m not sure if she is annoyed with Lotty or me.

"I heard you got on well with her at the meeting," Marissa says quietly trying to gauge my reactions.

"I haven’t been raised the werecat way, and as long as Sam was happy then I had no problem with Lotty. But I must admit she is one she-kitt I would keep very close and not turn my back on. I’d want to be able to see her all the time," I say with a shrug. "Some times in the human world a family tolerates and is nice to the person their family member is with so they don’t hurt their own. So if Sam was to find someone else and I didn’t like her I would still be friendly and polite as long as she done the right thing by him."

"Werecats aren’t like that. Any tom I end up with has to be liked and respected by my family," Jazzy tells me. "He will become … or would … it doesn’t matter. I’m not getting married yet," she says with a nervous laugh.

"You must want to go have a morning rest Rosy," Marissa says with a smile and I sense the tension beneath it.

"Not really but since you would like some time with your daughter I’ll go see what Micah and the others are doing." I say with a smile.

"Don’t forget Mitchell is mine," Jazzy says sharply.

"Okay Jasmine Williamson, my brother Mitchell is your tom. But Micah is mine," I say making it sound like I obviously thought I was getting the better of the two.

"Nasty, nasty stray," Jazzy says with a laugh.

"Crazy aunty Jazzy, the cat woman," I say with a smile. Marissa laughs at both of us and I head for the door, she follows me outside when she opens it and once we are out of hearing of the room I stop and turn to face her.

"You really don’t like Lotty do you? Just a guess but did she … try something with your husband?" I ask evenly.

"Yes she tried but Wade would never lower himself to the likes of her. Miss Carlotta doesn’t have the moral fibre most of her brothers have and fortunately none of our sons were tempted by her, she was merely trying to cause trouble because both Edwin and Micah refused to play her games." Marissa tells me

"Is she likely to try anything once she’s married?" I ask suspiciously worried for Sam.

"If she thinks she can get away with it," Marissa says with a nod.

"I’ve already ground her face in the dirt, I can just as easily do it a second time," I mutter to myself. I go to turn away but stop as a question I meant to ask pops into my mind.

"Marissa, do you know if … um … if it’s normal to have sex a lot when pregnant?" I ask in a rush once I find the courage to put it into words.

"Is Micah asking you to let him make love to you?" Marissa asks levelly.

"No. In fact last night was the first time Micah has done more than just hold me since … since Donovan and I got back and I was just wondering," I say lightly as I look away.

"You had best talk to Doc first but Wade and I were very active sexually during all my pregnancies." Marissa admits with a quiet dignity. Marissa gives me a thoughtful look before giving a slight shrug.

"You don’t mind Micah mounting you after the strays mounted you?" Marissa asks quietly. I take a deep breath as I go to deny it and I realise she wouldn’t really understand my reply so I take another breath as I search for the words to explain.

"They are two totally different things. The strays used violence to control me, it was about their power over me or so they thought. They abused me and used my body but they couldn’t touch me, not my inner cat. Not me the being," I say quietly and give a soft sigh. "With Micah it’s different, it’s like when he touches me he makes … he heals all the wounds life has left on my soul and he makes me complete again. He takes away my pain when all others seem to do is cause it,"

"Well I’m glad you’re happy being with Micah," Marissa tells me. "I’m glad my grandbaby will be staying here and not being moved to another clan,"

"Don’t toms usually move to the clan that the she-kitt belongs to?" I ask curiously.

"Yes usually but our clan territory is big enough for two she-kitts as well as the fact that most of your mother’s territory was given to us by Ray when we took in your brothers," Marissa tells me.

"Who will end up being Alpha? Micah or whoever Jazzy ends up with?" I ask.

"Jazzy will end up with Mitchell, Wade has been training him for the position for the last year when we realised there was something growing between them. When you and Micah are married you will be able to move into your mother’s homelands if necessary." Marissa explains. The way Marissa subtly avoids my eyes yet looks directly at me warns me there is more to this than she is telling me and I tuck the knowledge away for exploration at some later occasion.

"I might head back to the quarters, Micah promised to take me hunting for lunch." I say. We walk to the front door but I stop in the hallway and tense as I lift my chin and sniff the air experimentally.

"Marissa? We have visitors," Wade calls from the living room and I walk to the door so Marissa can get to Wade.

"Wade darling, you should have called me. Mal, Angela, Carlotta," Marissa greets all of her visitors politely.

"Marissa, so nice to see you again. We’re just on our way to Stan Baxter’s compound and Lotty wanted to stop in here to see Rosy, we’d been told she was expecting but it looks like we were told wrong." Angela says quietly.

"Rosy and I are expecting our first child in a couple of months," Micah surprises me as he speaks and I step into the room to glance along the wall to where he, Doc and Dwayne are seated facing the visitors.

"Sorry! I’d thought I heard Rosy was more …" Angela breaks off with an embarrassed sound and I glance her way.

"I’m expecting as well Rosy, maybe we’re due around the same time?" Lotty breaks in with a friendly smile as she pats her still flat stomach.

"When are you due?" I ask with interest.

"I’m nearly four months along so I’ll start showing soon. My jeans are too tight already." Carlotta says with a smile. "Just wait until you start loosing your figure, it’s very trying."

"Sounds like your not enjoying it too much," I say my voice thick with sympathy as I smooth a hand down over the material of the very loose t-shirt I am wearing. The swell of my stomach becomes evident and I see the flare of irritation Lotty quickly hides at the sight.

"Oh wow," Lotty enthuses as she gets to her feet and approaches me. I flinch away from the hand she extends towards my stomach and repress the low snarl forming in my throat.

"You’ll have to excuse Rosy Lotty. She hasn’t been feeling like herself since she returned home to us." Micah says as he gets to his feet and comes to my side.

"I seem to remember Rosy being a bit … unusual at the meeting," Lotty says making it sound like she is being kind to me.

"Yeah that sounds like me," I say with a smile. "Unique, one of a kind. More stray than clan,"

"That’s not what Conner and Kell seemed to think," Lotty purrs almost inaudibly with a glance Micah’s way from under her lashes.

"What can I say," I smile widely at her as I resist the urge to pluck every hair from her head one at a time. "I was coming into heat, need I say more?"

"Isn’t it time for your morning rest?" Micah asks me as he meets my glance levelly.

"I’ll go lay down then," I tell him as I nod slightly.

"I’ll come with you. I could do with a nap as well," Lotty says as she links her arm through mine. I see the way both Micah and Dwayne suddenly narrow their eyes.

"We’ve got spare rooms here you can use if you want to lay down Carlotta," Marissa cuts in.

"Rosy and I have sooooooo much to talk about," Lotty says enthusiastically as she urges me towards the door.

"Rosy tell Mitchell I need to speak to him immediately," Micah orders.

"Yes Micah," I say with a glance his way before letting Lotty lead me from the room. Once we are outside the house Lotty lets go of my arm and sends me a closed look.

"I need to talk to Sam, explain to him what happened." Lotty tells me and I detect a note of something forced in her voice. She breaks into a jog and hurries towards the quarters ahead of me and I frown as I hurry my steps but refuse to break into a run. I arrive at the door of the quarters a few minutes behind her and I can hear her feminine tones as I open the door and walk in. I head towards the lounge room where I can hear the voices and pause in the doorway taking in the scene before me.

Mitchell and Sam are in the kitchen facing the lounge room and Sam’s face is a mask of anger and pain. Lotty is just inside the lounge room from the kitchen doorway with both of her brothers trying to stop her going after Sam. Justin and Donovan are standing between the lounge and the TV clearly unsure of what to do.

"Come on Sam, let’s go to your room and talk. You know you want to," Lotty tells him as she pulls one arm free from Chris.

"I have nothing to say to you Lotty," Sam snarls, "Everything is over. Finished. Nothing left between us to talk about."

"Come on Sam, we need to talk. I can explain everything," Lotty tells him.

"You heard what he said. He doesn’t want to talk to you or has pregnancy made you deaf?" Mitchell asks coldly.

"Shut up Mitchell! Just because you’re sniffing around Jasmine doesn’t mean a thing. None of the Alphas and their Queens will recognise her as a possible Queen. She’ll probaly drop dead before she can have a kitt," Lotty snaps disdainfully. "You know why the Williamson’s are keeping your sister here don’t you?"

"Do enlighten us Carlotta," I invite evenly.

"Don’t listen to her Rosy," Donovan implores as he comes around the lounge and puts an arm around me protectively.

"Lotty, leave Rosy out of this. We can go for a walk, I’ll talk with you." Sam tells her quietly, his voice thick with defeat.

"Yeah get her out of here," Justin mutters as he comes around the lounge and tries to lead me to a seat on the lounge.

"No, I’m waiting to hear what the Princess has to say," I tell them evenly.

"Enough Lotty," Malcolm growls at her as he tries to pull her away from where she is staring at me.

"Why? You said yourself they’re keeping her as a …" Lotty breaks off with a startled cry as Malcolm shakes her roughly.

"Shut up! You don’t know what you’re talking about," Malcolm tells her.

"Malcolm, don’t treat your sister like that," Sam growls as he stalks over to where they are but Malcolm releases Lotty and takes a step away from her as he eyes Sam warily, Lotty smiles as she steps forward to run her hands up Sam’s chest possessively.

"Carlotta Inness get your dirty hands off my brother," I growl as I step away from both Justin and Donovan. "I will not have the likes of you consorting with my brother!"

Lotty turns and eyes me assessing, and I bare my teeth in a mockery of a smile. Her eyes settle on the shirt that hides the swell of my stomach and I can almost see her trying to work out how vulnerable I am. She glances around the toms and I growl low in my throat as I take another step towards her.

"Don’t go worrying about them, I’m the one who is about to get in your face. You do not come onto my territory and play fucking mind games with any of the toms here let alone my brother!" I snarl as I advance another step towards her.

"Ever stop to wonder if this is on MacIntosh clan territory or not? Hell why even worry, Jazzy’s not here now and besides, I am bigger than her and a hell of a lot tougher and meaner than she is. Do you want to try your luck," I ask in a low snarl of a tone as I advance on her. Lotty stands her ground, her top lip curling in a snarl and I launch my attack as I leap the last few steps to be within reach.

My right hand catches the side of her head as she tries to duck my blow and then I am straddling her upper body as I knock her backwards onto the floor. I deliver a flurry of blows, hard stinging slaps to her arms and shoulders as she tries to protect herself from me. She digs her heels in and tries to buck me off but I twist my body keeping my balance, and grab two handfuls of hair as I lean forward and snarl down into her face.

"Let me go you bitch," Lotty protests as she tried to pull my hands from her hair but she only succeeds in making me pull her hair. "Malcolm! Chris! I am your sister, help me!"

"Can’t handle me by yourself?" I yell at her and stand up dragging her to her feet by her hair, she screeches in pain and I let her go to deliver a hard stinging slap to her face. I glance around quickly to make sure neither of her brothers is about to interfere before I let loose with a volley of slaps that catch her mainly on the arms and shoulders with the occasional one connecting with her face. I grab two handfuls of hair and begin to drag her towards the door out to the hallway, she struggles but I stop and pivot to pin her against the wall with my shoulder for a few seconds as I glare into her face.

"How about I mess that pretty face of yours up so your husband doesn’t have to worry about you luring any toms into your bed when his back is turned?" I ask in a snarl and her eyes go wide in fear. I release her hair and rain slaps down on her meaning to leave my mark on her, I feel skin break beneath my fingernails and I hear her cry of pain before I step back.

"Get the hell out of my building!" I snarl and I stalk her as she makes her way along the wall leaving bloody smears behind as she goes. She has her chin tucked down against her chest, both shoulders hunched giving the full impression of submission. At the screen door, she fumbles to open it and I take a step forward to reach around her and jerk the door open.

I almost miss the slight narrowing of her eyes and fear I am too late as I twist away desperately. Her elbow skids across my stomach then along the top of my hip. If I hadn’t managed to twist my body, she would have delivered a hard blow to the swell of my stomach. A screech of rage and pain escapes me and I take her down in a full body tackle in the doorway regardless of the hard surfaces around us, this time my hands are clenched into fists as I hit her.

Micah’s story:

"Micah! Micah!"

I hear Justin yelling even before the kitchen door slams against the wall and he runs into the house.

"Micah there’s big trouble!" Justin yells as he runs through the house. I step out of the living room and see Justin hurrying towards me with a worried look as he breathes heavily.

"Lotty and Rosy are fighting!" Justin bursts out. "Not arguing but fighting! Slapping and punching," he calls loudly then turns and heads back the way he came from in a hurry.

"We need to get them away from each other," Doc says worriedly as he pushes past me, and then heads after Justin.

"Dwayne," I call before rushing after them. Outside I overtake them as we run towards the quarters. I can see the two she-kitts struggling on the ground while the toms stand around uselessly. Sam is running both hands through his hair agitatedly and while both Mitchell and Malcolm make moves to step forward and grab one of the struggling pair both toms back off uncertainly.

I am relieved when I see Rosy get to her feet but my relief turns to frustration as she reaches down and hauls Lotty to her feet by her hair and drag her further away from the quarter’s door.

"Enough! Stop! I’m sorry! Please stop," Lotty screams and sobs but Rosy only releases her to grab another grip on her hair and jerk roughly.

"Rosy! Enough! Rosy! Stop it," Sam is yelling at his sister but doesn’t seem game to get close to her as she snarls and I pushes her face close to Lotty’s tear and blood stained one.

"You get the hell out of my building and keep away from my toms! If I so much as think you might have been near any of them I will gladly finish what I started and just for your own good … do not ever try to do anything to my unborn child again," Rosy almost screeches in anger.

"Micah! Get Rosy away from Lotty now," Doc yells.

At last I am close enough to grab Rosy around the lower ribs and lift her feet from the ground as I head inside the quarters.

"Let me at her," Rosy yells as the wooden door is closed behind us.

"Calm down sweetheart," I tell her as I carry her into the lounge room despite her wild struggles to get free.

"Where the hell is Doc? Why isn’t he in here with Rosy? Lotty slammed her elbow back into Rosy’s belly," I recognise Edwin’s voice and wonder what the hell he is doing on Williamson land as Rosy screeches with rage and struggles wildly in my arms.

"Shit! Someone go tell Doc," I roar and Rosy tenses in my arms.

I nuzzle against her neck as I sit down and I feel her take several deep breaths as I tighten my arms around her. My anger continues to bubble just beneath the surface and I lift my head to look around the room. Dwayne, Mitchell, Sam, Justin, Chris, Malcolm, Donovan, Edwin and his new partner Jacob are crowded around where I sit holding Rosy.

"You okay Rosy? Where did Lotty get you?" Edwin asks worried as he moves to squat down in front of her. I frown at him for a moment before shaking my head and pushing Rosy’s hair back off her face. Sweat has dampened her skin and I can smell blood though it doesn’t seem to be hers.

"What are you doing in here Edwin?" Rosy demands, her tone barely more than a growl. He manages a slight smile then looks nervously towards me before meeting my eyes.

"Making sure my soon-to-be sister-in-law and the baby are okay. Where did Lotty ram her elbow into you? I heard you give a yell of pain," Edwin’s voice is coarse with worry.

Rosy immediately begins to pull at one side of her t-shirt trying to expose side but one of my arms are in the way pinning one of her arms to her side.

"She got me on the hip, I managed to turn but it hurts like hell now." Rosy mutters and flinches when Edwin reaches out to touch her.

"Shit! You’re going to have one hell of a bruise there," Edwin says even as I growl possessively. Rosy is my fianc

é, how dare he touch her! Edwin lifts his hands shoulder high and moves well back from us, and a part of me notices he moves stiffly as if to avoid pain.

"Now might be a good time for you and Jacob to go outside. You can send Doc in when you do," Sam tells them in a hard voice beating me to it.

"Yeah we should be making sure our she-kitt is alright," Jacob mutters and I can tell by the tone of his voice that he does not like Lotty.

"Dwayne go get my mattress, Rosy is going to lie down in a moment." I say firmly and I glance at him to find him watching Edwin with narrowed eyes. Clearly all of my clan warriors are on edge with Edwin being inside the quarters.

"Get the hell out of here," I order tightly, "and I will be out shortly so you can explain to me what you are doing on Clan territory uninvited. You know you aren’t welcome here,"

"Come on Ed, looks like we’d better go." Jacob says as he places a hand on Edwin's biceps. There is silence as the two leave the room and I don’t look away from the doorway until I hear the doors close behind them.

"Rosy was provoked Micah," Malcolm says stepping forward.

"I know, Lotty was snipping at her before they’d left the house. I meant to get away as quickly as possible but it looks like it wasn’t quick enough." I say cuddling Rosy as I watch her closely.

"Chris, Malcolm if either of you have something to say about what happened here say it now in front of everyone." Dwayne warns on a low dangerous note.

"Lotty deserved it," Chris says with a shrug.

"Rosy should have used her fists from the start, not bitch slapped her," Malcolm says with a grin. "And that was a neat touch going for her face. Lance isn’t going to have to worry about other toms for a good while now,"

"No Malcolm," I say sternly before softening my voice as I look down in Rosy’s wary eyes. "That was very naughty of you Rosy, you don’t fight."

"The way Lotty was trying to get to Sam she’s lucky Rosy didn’t go straight for her throat," Justin growls.

"It’s a good thing Rosy didn’t walk in when she was all over you Mitchell," Donovan says and Rosy growls low in her throat as she tenses in my arms once more.

"Calm down Rosy," I say soothingly and she starts at the sound of the front doors opening and hurried footsteps come into the quarters.

"It’s okay Rosy, shhh, it’s okay. You’re safe," I murmur to her but she is growling in a low savage tone.

"Micah! Edwin says Rosy took a hit to her stomach," Doc calls and appears around the door. Doc hurries to come around to the front of the lounge and Rosy twists in my arms as she turns to keep an eye on Mal, Lotty’s father as he walks into the room behind Doc. Clearly she doesn’t want anyone she doesn’t know in the quarters or near her.

"I’m sorry about this Micah. If I had known Lotty was going to start trouble I would not have stopped here." Mal says as he glances at me. "Doc?"

I watch Doc lifting Rosy’s t-shirt to examine her stomach and sides but I am busy keeping a firm hold on Rosy as she moves uncomfortably and flinches at Doc’s probing.

"Dwayne, get my mattress," I order and I glance towards Dwayne as he hurries from the room.

"Any pain? Tightness?" Doc asks.

"No," Rosy growls as she continues to watch Mal.

"You should think about locking Lotty up until she’s safely married Mal. She came in here trying to lure Sam off so they were by themselves," Malcolm tells his father tightly.

"I’m as aware of what my daughter is like as you," Mal tells him and I glance between the two of them noticing Malcolm looks away from his father’s stare. "You can be sure Lotty is not going to get away with disgracing her family in such a manner. I am only glad Rosy decided not to go for Lotty’s belly, from the look of Lotty’s face Rosy wouldn’t have missed."

"There much damage?" I force myself to ask out of curtesy.

"With just a quick examination there appears to be only superficial scratches and bruising. Though the scratches will undoubtedly leave visible scars for several years if Lotty doesn’t shift several times to heal them," Doc says soberly.

There is silence for several minutes as Doc takes his time checking Rosy for injuries. Rosy watches Dwayne put the mattress on the lounge room floor and when I finally release her at Doc’s ok, she sits in the middle of it to at Mal silently.

"I’ll go and let Wade know Rosy is alright at present. Doc, I’d appreciate it if you could see your way clear to come finish tending to Lotty." Mal says before heading back outside.

"You are to take it easy for the rest of the day and no more fighting with Lotty while either of you are pregnant." Doc orders Rosy.

"I was not about to let her play her twisted little games with Sam, or any of the toms here." Rosy spits angrily.

"A natural instinctive drive to protect the toms of your clan plus Lotty is an intruder on your clan territory," Doc explains to her softly.

"You think I’m going to reject my baby," Rosy states without breaking eye contact with him.

Her remark catches us all off guard pulling sharply drawn breaths from the toms around us and I lean forward in my seat on the lounge as I watch her worriedly.

"Some young she-kitts will reject their first baby especially if the pregnancy has been trying or the delivery hard. Some just don’t like their off spring near them until they are older." Doc says gently. "And you’ve already talked about killing your baby,"

"So someone will watch me closely and be with me all the time when I’m close to giving birth?" Rosy asks without looking away from him.

"And afterwards until we know the baby is safe," Doc says cautiously. Rosy purses her lips with a slight frown as she considers his words before giving a slight nod.

"Sounds reasonable," Rosy says after some thought. "But I got one condition…"

"There are no negotiations on this Rosy," I tell her firmly and reach out to rest my hand on her shoulder. Idly I begin rubbing my thumb back and forth on the back of her shoulder.

"You have to start letting me share the baby with you all more. Before I was taken by the strays you always wanted to touch my belly and now no one even wants to feel the baby move." Rosy says quietly.

"But you started crying when Jazzy merely asked if I would have to uncover your belly to check on the baby’s health. She hadn’t even mentioned wanting to touch your stomach." Doc explains.

"I was always so scared the strays were going to do something, or hurt the baby in some way. Then here I was and I knew no one wanted to hurt me or the baby and I was so relieved," Rosy stops talking to take a deep breath and I notice the vulnerability in her eyes. "I could stop being brave and strong and cry because I had been so terrified."

I take a deep breath and realise I have tightened my hold on her shoulder. I slip down off the lounge and kneel behind her as she turns her head away from me with an uncertainty.

"Okay, more touching when I’m with you," I murmur softly as I slip my arms around her waist from behind to hold her.

"Exactly what did you mean when you told Lotty not to worry about Jazzy that you’re bigger than Jazzy and a hell of a lot tougher and meaner than her?" Justin asks tightly. I switch my gaze to him and watch him as worried thoughts race through my mind. Was Rosy starting to feel some kind of aggression towards my sister?

"If Lotty wants to come around causing trouble she can start with me," Rosy says tightly. "Lotty is not going to hurt my friend Jazzy,"

I glance towards Chris and Malcolm half expecting them to side with their sister.

"Somehow I don’t think Lotty will be doing that," Malcolm says with a grin.

"Dad’s likely to take her home and lock her in the secure room until her wedding day after this." Chris adds.

"So what was this she was saying about Jazzy never being? …" Rosy begins to ask a question.

"She’s trying to stir up muck and trouble," Malcolm growls as he cuts Rosy off in mid sentence.

Rosy eyes Malcolm for a few moments before lifting her chin and continuing to glare at him, he continues to hold her gaze. Rosy shift slightly before giving a huff and moving so her back is to him.

"When are we going hunting for lunch?" Rosy asks.

"Doc said you’re to rest for the rest of the day," I tell her gently.

"So what? You going to starve me?" Rosy asks coolly.

"No, we can cook something or make sandwiches." I tell Rosy calmly.

"Apparently we’re working on a need to know basis here. Obviously I don’t need to know the answer to the question about Jazzy I tried to ask. Well you only need to know I only intend to eat what I’ve hunted!" Rosy says abruptly as she moves away from me, stretches out on her side and picks up the remote control to the tv.

"Rosy," I growl in warning. I am not in the mood to put up with her temper.

"You know you might not really want to growl at me at the moment. I am really pissed off and I don’t play nice with others when I am pissed off." Rosy says dryly as she changes channels on the TV. I snatch the remote from her hand and she turns to glare at me through narrowed eyes.

"Temper tantrums will get you nowhere," I warn her tightly.

"Temper tantrum? You think I am throwing a temper tantrum? Ha! You wouldn’t mistake it if I did throw a tantrum!" Rosy snaps angrily before getting to her feet and heading for the bedrooms stomping angrily as she leaves the room.

Rosy’s story:

I find myself in the bedroom Micah and Steven share where I have been sleeping since being rescued from the Darnels. I feel edgy and unsettled, unable to sit or lay down to relax. Finally I open my side of the wardrobe I share with Micah and look at the jumbled mess that is usually neatly folded and stacked. On top of it all is my little treasure box containing my most valued pieces and I lift it into my arms to cradle it gently as if to erase the foreign touch from yesterday.

I open the lid and look down at its contents thankful to see my photo and wedding certificate tucked neatly inside. As I look further beneath them, I find more photos. Harry’s face looks back at me and I swallow the loneliness and loss I always feel when I see his picture. The straight black hair and deep liquid black-brown eyes with a sprinkle of russet around the irises, his smooth caramel skin over high cheekbones above a crooked smile that shows white teeth.

Underneath are more photos and I study the picture of me that Harry had snapped on one of our camping trips. I am in the act of climbing onto a thick limb. I am stretched out along the branch in the act of pulling my second foot onto the branch, long hair tumbling around my shoulders and face but not quite hiding the predatory gleam in my eyes. Another shot shows me laughing around an orange, juice dribbling down my chin and arm as I look towards the photographer.

Next is a photo of several women sitting in rocking chairs on a front porch, one is blonde with short hair cut in a pixie style framing a delicate face. The other has rich auburn hair so dark it is nearly black and I realise that in her face I can see both Mitchell and more strongly Sam. In her arms, she is cradling a small blanket wrapped form, cradling it against her chest and looking down at it enthralled.

The next photo is of me on Donald Caruther’s knee holding a gaily-wrapped present and wearing a party hat, I was clearly only four or five with long hair blowing wildly in my face. There are more pictures of me with the odd ones of Harry and Jeddah mixed in but right at the bottom is a picture I had long forgotten about, creased as if it had been folded into a wallet and yellowed with age I smooth it open and look at the two childish faces it contains. The older child sits behind the baby holding it upright. Both are dressed in blue and I recognise my brothers even in the childish faces.

As I sit studying the picture, I have to wonder about the woman who had left behind these little boys and their father yet clearly carried the picture of her sons with her. And if the state of the photo was anything to go by, she looked at it often. I turn the picture over and see on the bottom right hand corner a date only five months before my birth date then below that Mitchell and Sam’s names and ages. I frown as I realise Mitchell is under twelve months older than I am and I have to smile wryly, he had seemed so much older and more mature than me when I first met him.

I look at the rest of my belongings in the wardrobe and set about returning them to the neat and orderly manner I prefer. I come across my books and study material from my university course and leaf through it idly before putting it aside and picking up a box of odds and ends sorting through it curiously. I smile as I come across several old phones and I plug a recharger in and put my uni phone on to charge. It soon begins to emit the beeping signal that tells me I have received a text message and I laugh but ignore the phone as I continue sorting through my belongings.

"Rosy?" Donovan calls from the doorway

"What Donovan?" I ask and glance back over my shoulder at him.

"We got lunch ready, are you coming out to eat?" Donovan asks quietly.

"No Donovan I’m not," I tell him levelly before turning back to my belongings.

"You’re going to make Micah mad," Donovan warns in a worried tone.

"Yeah, let’s not make Micah mad. Doesn’t matter who else gets upset or pissed off just as long as it’s not Micah." I mutter angrily. I hear Donovan walk away and turn my full attention back to my belongings, it’s not long before I hear Micah’s familiar tread coming up the long room and I reach for another small box of loose papers.

"Lunch is ready," Micah tells me and I can hear the thread of annoyance running through his voice.

"Well go and eat it," I return flatly.

"You need to eat as well," He says evenly.

"I’m not hungry," I tell him.

"You have to eat whether you’re hungry or not, for the baby. He needs nourishment," Micah says tightly.

"I had some sandwiches your mother made when I visited Jazzy." I tell him.

"That was a couple of hours ago," Micah says evenly.

"It was? I didn’t realise so much time had passed," I admit with a start.

"I get that you’re mad at us, just come out with me, okay?" Micah asks and I can hear the strain in his voice. "Don’t refuse to eat just to punish us."

I glance at him and see the tension in his face but I shake my head before turning back to my belonging.

"I’m not hungry," I tell him again.

I open my eyes and blink sleepily as I try to work out were I am then it comes back to me. I am on Steven’s bed in the bedroom but I have no recollection of covering myself with the blanket off Micah’s bed, I frown for a moment as I remember dreaming Micah had spoken softly to me and stroked my arm and I know he must have came in to cover me up while I slept accidentally disturbing me slightly. I yawn and stretch before tossing back the blanket and sitting up slowly, I look around and get my bearings before swinging my legs off the side of the bed to stand up.

I use the toilet before heading out to the lounge room and pause to look around, Malcolm and Chris are playing the x-box and Donovan has stretched out in a chair asleep but there is no sign of anyone else.

"Where is everyone?" I ask and rub at my eyes.

"Hey Rosy, you woke up. Micah and Mitchell are talking to Wade. Dwayne, Sam and Justin are off on some errand." Malcolm says with a grin as he moves so there is a space for me between them but I shake my head as I glance around.

"What time is it?" I ask.

"It’s after four," Chris says.

"Hey Rosy," Donovan’s sleepy voice comes from the chair and I glance his way with a smile.

"I’m going to get myself something to eat since Micah isn’t here and there’s no chance of going hunting." I say as I head for the kitchen.

"We left you some flavoured milk if you want it," Donovan calls as I open the fridge. I study the contents for a few moments before taking out a container of salad mixed with pieces of chicken, take the cling wrap off the top and drizzle creamy dressing over it. I am sitting between Malcolm and Chris before I realise I forgot to get myself a drink and grimace before concentrating on my food. The salad is still fresh and contains my preferred mix of ingredients. I spear a wedge of tomato with my fork and lift it to my lips and catch a faint whiff of Micah’s scent, I refuse to smile as I pop it into my mouth.

"Good?" Donovan asks as he squeezes in between Chris and me making Chris move over.

"It’s food," I allow and I hear the tiny groan of frustration from Donovan.

"You’re not cranky with us anymore?" Donovan asks.

"I was not cranky with you Donovan, I just wasn’t hungry." I tell him but I can tell by the look that he gives he doesn’t believe me. I spear a piece of cucumber and nibble at it before grinning at Donovan and allowing myself to fall sideways against him.

"You all right Rosy?" Donovan demands startled.

"No, my pillow has started talking to me," I say and laugh. Both Malcolm and Chris laugh as well and Donovan growls softly.

"Funny," Donovan frowns at me. I smile back at him and move so I am reclining against him as I eat, I keep glancing up at him but he is clearly exuberant to have me using him as a pillow and makes no complaints.

"Hey, you’ve put on weight," I say startled as I realise his bones aren’t as prominent anymore.

"Yeah and you should be too, so you keep eating you naughty thing!" Donovan chastises me.

"I am eating at the moment," I say around a tender piece of chicken coated in the creamy dressing. I am aware of Donovan continually glancing my way making sure I am eating and when I finally finish the last of the food, I put the container aside with a sigh as I wriggle to get comfortable.

"Want a drink?" Malcolm asks and I look his way.

"Water for now. I don’t think milk would fit in flavoured or otherwise," I tell him. Malcolm grabs the empty container and the cutlery I used before heading to the kitchen, when he returns he has a large glass of water with several ice cubes in it and I take it with a smile.

"Want to come over here so Donovan has a fair go at the game?" Malcolm asks. I groan but grin as I sit up away from Donovan before moving towards Malcolm. Malcolm quickly lifts me so I sit between his knees and he encourages me to lean back against his chest. I am getting used to this new way of leaning on the toms since returning from the strays, and have found none of them wants to touch me in any way that makes me uncomfortable.

I lean my head and shoulders back against Malcolm's chest and soon fall into the half doze now common after a meal. Occasionally I open my eyes to watch the game for a few minutes but eventually I give up and climb to my feet to move to the lounge and make myself comfortable so I can sleep.

Micah’s story:

I barely taste the food I am eating as I stand by the kitchen bench. I watch Mitchell and Sam talking quietly as they eat their sandwiches at one of the lounge chair and I know they are just as concerned over Rosy’s refusal to eat as I am.

"Sam, Mitchell, Dwayne, I want to talk to you outside once everyone has finished eating," I say tightly as I think about Edwin still on clan grounds without permission.

Sam glances my way with a savage look on his face and I wonder if their whispered conversation is about Edwin more so than their sister. I know it would not sit well with Sam that Edwin is close by so soon after the beating he was given. Doesn’t he respect Sam’s fighting ability?

I wash my food down with a can of soda before heading outside, I hear the soft scuffle of movement and then the others file out the screen door behind me.

"What do you want boss?" Sam asks before he comes to a halt facing me.

"Edwin is on clan territory and I know I sure as hell didn’t invite him here," I growl angrily.

"Neither did I," Mitchell says with an icy smile.

"What are we talking about here?" Dwayne asks and I look at him to see his worried frown. "He’s obviously here with Mal and Angie,"

"Mal would have to be stupid if he didn’t know Edwin isn’t welcome here," Mitchell says thoughtfully. "Mal has four other warriors here besides Edwin and his partner."

"They’re testing us to see how we react," I say with angry certainty. "They’re counting on the presence of the five women to prevent bloodshed. Guess they didn’t plan on Lotty stirring up this blasted trouble,"

"I take it you want the pleasure of pounding on him since you missed out when he kissed Rosy," Mitchell says and I get the impression he doesn’t care who gets hold of Edwin as long as one of us do.

"Oh I got something that will be better than pounding the stuffing out of him," I say with a grin as the idea begins to form. "And it will remind him we see him as nothing more than a criminal,"

"Yeah?" Dwayne murmurs with interest as I look at the three of them.

"Who has a pair of cuffs or some zip-ties handy?" I ask casually.

A slow grin spreads across Mitchell's face and he heads back inside. "Just getting some now," he calls back over his shoulder.

When he returns he has both metal handcuffs and plastic zip-ties we use in handcuffing troublesome strays. I reach for half a dozen plastic zip-ties and grin as I flex them.

"Let’s go get us a trespasser," I murmur before heading for the main house. "Sam, Dorrington is yours if he tries to interfere. Dwayne, Mitchell, keep an eye on anyone else in the room."

I lead the way in through the main door and head for the living room where I can hear voices. I pause in the doorway with Mitchell just behind my left shoulder as I take in who is in the room and their positions.

"Edwin Williamson, you are under arrest on the charge of trespassing unlawfully on McIntosh

– Williamson Clan territory." I say as I march into the room towards him. The use of McIntosh – Williamson signifies that there is an engagement between the two families and the engaged couple will become the Alpha and his wife in the future.

Edwin turns to face me and his quick, unhurried reactions tell me he has been expecting some kind of action on our part.

"Turn around, face the wall and place both of your hands on the wall," I say sharply as I cross the room.

"Hey! You can’t do this," Mal protests as Edwin faces the wall.

Edwin isn’t moving fast enough for my likings and I slam him against the wall with a rough shove from behind. I place a hand between his shoulder blades and lean my weight into his body as I roughly kick one of his booted feet forcing him to spread his legs. He gives a soft grunt of pain as he moves and I grab his right wrist and twist his arm behind his back. I hold his arm in place hoping he will fight or resist but he allows me to grab his left wrist and bring that arm behind his back as well to fasten his wrists with a zip-tie. I use three to ensure he can’t break free before I grab him by the shoulder and spin him around to face me.

"Strange, looks like we are doing this to me," I say to Mal as I look him in the face.

"You had this tom come onto our territory with you even though you saw what transpired last time he was here." I say tightly. "You knew he would not be welcome and yet you still have him in your escort. Not him, not you, no-one bothered to ask permission for him to come here, so you have some explaining to do when he is locked up."

"I contacted Wade, he gave his permission for Edwin to come onto clan land." Mal says tersely.

"Wade is no longer Alpha, he is merely an adviser. In future it will benefit you to clear everything with either Mitchell or myself," I tell him firmly.

"Frankly Mal," Mitchell says in a level tone that has me glancing his way. "The prisoner here is lucky we tolerate him working so close to our territory. It is mainly out of respect for Marissa that we don’t run him from the East Coast of Australia."

Mitchell’s tone of voice has Mal and Wade glancing at him warily and Mitchell bares his teeth in a parody of a smile.

"I will be back to talk to you once I have the prisoner locked up securely," I say to Mal evenly. "He shall stay locked up until you leave and he shall not venture back onto our territory without permission."

"I would ask that you have your warriors wait out by your vehicles," Dwayne says, "being that my sister, Mitchell McIntosh’s fianc

é is confined to the secure room."

"I’ll attend to that immediately," Mal says with a slight nod of his head.

"We can talk over in the stone shed?" Wade offers, his tone questioning.

"That would be a good idea," Mitchell says. "That way we can keep track of where all the visitors are."

Rosy’s story:

The sounds of movement in the kitchen wake me and I sit up sleepily to glance over the back of the lounge and towards the kitchen. Sam and Micah are working at the sink and I catch glimpses of vegetables being prepared for cooking, I frown and glance at the clock only to be surprised by how long I have slept after having eaten my late lunch.

"Rosy’s awake," Donovan calls and I glance at him where he sits on the floor by my feet.

"How are you feeling Rosy?" Micah asks.

"Pretty good. Need to use the toilet in a minute though," I say. "Why do you ask?"

"If you feel up to it we can go on a twilight hunt." Micah tells me.

"Of course I feel up to it," I say abruptly as I sit up, dizziness hits and I wait a few moments before getting to my feet.

"We’re just about to fill up several of the slow cookers and put them on and then we’ll be ready to go." Micah says with a glance over his shoulder. "Remember you have to take it slow changing,"

"Okay," I call back over my shoulder already on the way to the toilet. I retreat to the bedroom to strip off and sit on Steven’s bed for a few moments before taking a deep breathe and concentrating. My inner cat is happy and I have no trouble achieving a steady change, I yawn and stretch before stepping down off the bed sedately and walking out towards the lounge room. I purr loudly as I walk towards the door and hear the toms pause briefly before returning to their activities, I stand in the doorway with my head held high as I look into the room.

Malcolm and Chris are changing while Donovan stands watching me guardedly, I give a small purr before heading for the kitchen where Micah and Sam are still in human form and finishing cleaning up after starting a ‘just incase’ meal cooking.

"Hey Rosy," Micah says as he goes down on one knee and I rub my head against him as I reach him. He scratches behind my ears and then down along my spine before lightly closing his hand around my tail and letting it slide through his fist as I flick it lazily. One hand skims down my side lightly to run over the fullness behind my ribs before stroking along my belly making me wriggle as it brushes my teats.

"Our baby boy is in there," Mica murmurs on a note of awe and I turn to stand up on my hind legs with my front paws on his shoulders as I rub my face against his cheek.

"Hi Rosy," Sam says and I hop down to walk over and greet him with a purr as I rub against his legs. His hand glides along my back as I move and I return to Micah who has stood up. Micah pulls his shirt off over his head and reaches for his jeans waistband causing me to step back and growl impatiently, he chuckles softly as he sheds his jeans and I don’t look away.

"Getting bold now that you’re going to be a mother are you?" He asks before kneeling on the kitchen floor. "Remember no touching while I change." He cautions me and I lay down on my stomach while my tail flicks impatiently. I watch as he moves to all four before starting his change, I tilt my head as I watch with interest. Finally, Micah completes his change and I get to my feet as he comes to greet me.

Shyness suddenly grips me and I tremble as I extend my nose for a sniff, Micah’s nose touches mine and I chirp like a kitten and dash behind Sam who turns and looks at me with surprise. I rub my head on Sam’s shoulder and press against his side as Micah watches me with interest, feeling bold once again I inch forward to sniff his nose and allow him to rub his head on my shoulder. Micah purrs loudly as he begins to groom my shoulder and I chirp once again as I press close. The screen door bangs and I chirp with alarm as I dash beneath the table, Micah turns towards the lounge room and stands in the doorway with his head down and ears laid back.

"Hey, what are we doing?" Justin asks as he stops in the door into the lounge room.

"For a start you’re moving so I can get past," Dwayne says and Justin moves aside allowing Dwayne, Mitchell and Doc to walk into the lounge room.

"Look at you Rosy," Mitchell exclaims and strides towards the kitchen. Shyness and caution hits me and I chirp several times, as I hide behind Sam. Micah growls and blocks the doorway into the kitchen and Mitchell comes to an abrupt halt as he looks in at me in surprise.

"What’s wrong with Rosy?" Mitchell asks in concern. "Why is she so scared?"

"She’s gone all shy and nervous because she’s so obviously pregnant, what’s your instinctive reaction to her behaviour?" Doc asks.

"Protect her, look after her," Mitchell says bewildered.

"More than usual?" Doc asks.

"Of course! She’s pregnant and might not be able to look after herself." Mitchell says with a worried look my way.

"Most she-kitts and queens don’t change this late in their pregnancy because they feel too vulnerable. Rosy’s reaction is a natural ploy to ensure protection from the toms of her clan and to provoke protective instincts rather than hostility over her obvious ‘difference’ to normal," Doc explains. "Look how protective both Micah and Sam have become."

I am listening to Doc as he talks to Mitchell with interest and I glance at Sam to see he has his ears laid back and his hair is standing on end making him seem much bigger as he glares at the toms in the other room. Mitchell is watching me with a worried expression and I chirp to Micah who looks over his shoulder at me and calls reassuringly.

"What’s that funny noise she’s making?" Mitchell demands and I see both Dwayne and Justin moving closer behind him to look my way and I press against Sam’s side once again.

"Rosy is chirping like a kitten, it’s a noise similar to a baby bird’s call. Werecats when they manage their first change call like that for a few months. It is another instinctive bid for protection. Hormones are making Rosy do it now," Doc explains.

"That’s right. I remember Jazzy and Donovan had that funny call for a while. Jazzy had it for a lot longer," Dwayne says with a laugh as he shakes his head.

"How about we change? Rosy must be feeling uncomfortable with us talking about her like this. Don’t worry, she’ll soon warm to everyone when she sees she’s in no danger." Doc informs them as he begins to strip his jacket off.

Micah comes back to sniff at me as I press against Sam and I recognise him immediately, I walk forward swishing my tail and sniff him over before purring and rubbing myself against his side enthusiastically. A soft call catches my attention and I look that way to see another cat just inside the doorway and two more behind him. I give several chirps of alarm, and both Micah and Sam rush towards them but all three cats lie down on their stomachs with chins against the floor and ears flattened to their heads as they close their eyes.

I chirp curiously and move until I am right behind Sam and Micah as I lower my head to regard Donovan, Malcolm and Chris curiously. I weave back and forth behind my two protectors as I study the three prone cats. I am nearly ready to sneak closer when another cat walks past them boldly before laying down and rolling onto his back, Micah snarls in rage but I lift my head as I sniff this new cat with interest, it’s Mitchell. I give several little chirps and rub my head against the hindquarters of both Micah and Sam as I sneak glimpses of the cats on the floor, finally curiosity gets the better of me and I sneak forward to sniff at Mitchell where he lays on his back. I chirp in excitement as I ease forward to sniff Donovan, Malcolm and Chris before returning to Mitchell and nudging him with my nose with growing confidence.

Mitchell stands up and I back off as I chirp uncertainly once again and Micah is suddenly there between us with his hair standing on end as he lowers his head and growls at Mitchell. I chirp again and shove my nose against Micah’s as I try to tell him not to hurt my brother, Micah turns his head and rubs it against mine before sparing Mitchell a glare. Mitchell extends his nose and I take a step forward for a sniff and chirp encouragingly as I flutter my lashes at him. I seem to have forgotten all I learnt about communicating vocally in cat form.

Mitchell moves to rub his head on my shoulder and purrs comfortingly as he rests his head on top of my back. With Micah on one side and Mitchell on the other, I advance to sniff noses with Donovan before moving to those behind him. Dwayne, Justin and Doc are waiting for me in the lounge room and I chirp nervously but can’t retreat because of the toms behind me. No one approaches me and I am left to approach them in my own time. Doc hangs back and because I am not familiar with him in cat form, I am loath to get too close to him.

Outside the air is sweet and I dash away with a burst of speed, my body reminds me of the precious cargo I carry and I slow quickly before turning and waiting for the others to catch up. Micah snorts gruffly at me and I purr as I rub against his side before nipping his ear gently to remind him I make my own decisions. We have not reached the tree line before the rustling in the grass alerts me to the presence of prey and I slow slightly as I rotate my ears to pinpoint the source of the noise, a second later I snatch up a fat mouse chew once and swallow my snack.

My hunting slows the movements of the group as I catch fat mice, lizards and finally a rabbit. Near the stream, I flush a hare from the long grass and growl in frustration as Micah sprints after it when it dashes almost beneath his nose in a blind panic. A few seconds later, he trots back to me carrying the freshly killed hare and drops it at my front feet. I snatch the hare up in my teeth and growl in warning before dropping it to the ground to put a paw on it and tear it apart as I bolt it down. Once it is gone, I look around for more but everyone is watching me with interest and I head towards the stream with a little huff.

A small drink of water cools my throat and annoyance so I seek a shady spot and stretch out on my side as I swish my tail contentedly, Micah comes over to nose me curiously and cool water drips from his muzzle onto my ear making me shake my head. He smells my ears, down along my neck and shoulder before carefully sniffing my exposed belly taking particular notice of my teats where they peek from the longer hair on my stomach.

The others settle in a loose circle around us and I close my eyes knowing that I am well protected. I doze off for a few minutes and wake to Micah snuffling around my ears, I open my eyes and sit up to find two more freshly killed hares awaiting me. I glance around and find Donovan and Mitchell watching me expectantly. I eat the hares slowly savouring the taste of their sweet flesh rich with the stored fat for the start of winter. Another drink fills me and I retreat to the shade to flop out on my side once again, this time I am full and soon roll onto my back with all four legs in the air as I let the cooling breeze drift over my distended stomach while I begin to digest my meal.

Soft sounds wake me and I roll onto my stomach before lifting my head to look around. Dwayne, Malcolm and Sam are dragging deer carcases into the shade by the stream and I sit up alertly trying to work out when they went hunting. Sam immediately calls to me and I make my way to his deer carcase where I begin feeding, it is not long before I move away from the carcase full. I watch as the toms take turns feeding, sharing the food and the duty of guarding me between them all. Night falls as the toms tear at the meat and it is not long before the carcases are stripped and all that remains are the odd bone or small piece of hide and a hoof or two.

Moonlight adds a silver sheen to the coats of those not in shadows and I get to my feet to sniff them curiously before glancing up to look at the moon. Micah nudges my shoulder as I stand in the glow of the moon, entranced by the play of moonlight I look towards the stream and see the moon reflected in its surface. I slink towards the water and bat at the silvery surface playfully before splashing in the stream. Shadows dance as leaves sway in the breeze and I skitter in the leaf litter trying to catch the shadows only they continue to move and dance across my forelegs despite my best attempts. I pause as I hear something in the distance and I stand still as I lift my head to scent the breeze.

A shiver runs through me and my legs tremble, it takes me a moment to realise that I am tired and my cat wishes to return to human form. I nudge Micah’s shoulder before starting towards the home compound at a fast trot that eats up the distance swiftly. Micah is almost immediately at my shoulder and he keeps pace with me as the other toms catch up to us. I break into a slow lope and I soon reach the tree line around the compound, Micah is still beside me but I notice he is breathing heavily. He purrs to me and I follow his lead as he slows to a walk, I swish my tail impatiently but continue as we approach the buildings.

Malcolm and Dwayne slip past us to enter the quarters and Micah blocks my path as he turns his head to look at me intently.

We must make sure it is still safe for you and the baby

I look at him surprised and sniff his nose before giving him an affectionate lick on his jaw line, Dwayne and Malcolm come out of the quarters and Micah leads the way inside with a gentle huff to me. I follow closely and when we reach the hallway door where we can either turn towards the bedrooms or turn towards the lounge room I hesitate and whine softly in distress. Micah turns to me and purrs in concern as he rubs his head against my shoulder, I take a step towards the bedrooms and Micah watches me but makes no move to stop me. I hesitate then walk slowly into the lounge room and lie down on Micah’s mattress pawing at the blanket and grabbing it with my teeth.

Micah is shape shifting beside me and I spare him a glance before grasping the blanket in my teeth and trying to roll and drag it across my body but all this achieves is to tangle me in the folds of the blanket and I whine as I wait for Micah to finish his shift.

"Rosy. What are you doing? What’s wrong?" Micah exclaims as he gently untangles me from the folds of the blanket. I whine as I settle myself on my stomach then look at him before glancing at the blanket he holds and back to his face.

"You want the blanket over you? Is that it?" Micah asks and spreads it over me at my slight bob of my head.

"Hey Doc! Doc can you come and look at Rosy? She must be cold or something she’s insisting on being covered with a blanket." I can hear the worry thick in Micah’s voice as he turns his head. I lower my chin to the floor and grit my teeth as I concentrate on controlling my change to a steady smooth change.

"What the … Oh! Micah look," Doc says as I lay panting softly beneath the blanket winded by the change back to human form.

"W… Rosy! It’s okay Rosy," Micah soothes gently and I feel him rearranging the blanket on my shoulders slightly as I rest my cheek against the mattress. I manage a slight nod and close my eyes for a few moments as I collect my strength.

"Rosy changed back to human in here," I hear Malcolm whisper excitedly.

"Is she okay?" Justin demands in a whisper.

"Don’t turn around! You know she won’t like it if any of us look her way," Donovan hisses. I open my eyes and lift my head to glance around, everyone has their backs to us or are busy getting dressed. Dwayne is even turning the TV on and starting the playstation as if I am not lying naked beneath a blanket a few feet behind him. I try to make sense of shape shifting here among the toms and can only conclude that my inner cat trusts them now.

"Sam can you go and get Rosy some of her clothes from our room?" Micah asks as he pulls his own jeans on before sitting on the edge of the mattress with one hand on my back between my shoulders.

"It’ll be alright Rosy. I’m right here," Micah tells me reassuringly. I can hear movement around the room but keep my eyes focused on Dwayne’s back too scared to look around incase I see someone glance my way.

"Here," Sam says and I hear the faint rustle of clothing and soft steps moving away from me before some soft clothing is pressed into my left hand.

"Dwayne go find something to do in the kitchen," Micah says evenly as I feel the mattress move beneath me.

Dwayne pauses the game he is playing, gets to his feet and heads to the kitchen without so much as a glance my way. I look toward Micah uneasily and he smiles reassuringly at me before offering a hand to help me sit up. I hesitate a moment but remember that not only has Micah seen my entire body naked he has touched and tasted it as well. My face burns with embarrassment as I sit up letting the blanket fall down to pool around my waist and hips as I slip my arms into the sleeves of the oversize t-shirt and pull it down over my head. Micah takes my track pants and slips each leg over a foot before helping me to my feet to pull the track pants up and around my stomach.

"There, all dressed." Micah announces with a huge smile and I glance his way self-consciously. I sit back down pulling my t-shirt down as far as it will go before glancing at Micah with a slightly embarrassed smile.

"The stews are cooked," Dwayne announces as he walks in carrying a big bowl of stew, a cup of coffee and a mug of strawberry flavoured milk.

"There you go," Dwayne says as he hands me the mug of flavoured milk.

"Thanks," I say softly.

"Hungry?" Micah asks as he gets to his feet.

"I’m full thanks," I answer before sipping the milk. I lick the rim of milk from my top lip and glance at the toms slightly embarrassed as they file into the room carrying their food.

"Am I the only one who had a decent feed?" I ask slightly surprised.

"The deer weren’t that big," Malcolm comments and I glance towards Donovan and Mitchell who are eating their stew hungrily.

"And you two gave me those hares. You are really sweet," I declare before draining my mug. Mitchell glances my way as he spoons a large chunk of meat into his mouth and chews on it before swallowing it.

"We’re just looking after you so you can look after the baby," Mitchell tells me evenly.

"Yeah," Donovan says around a mouthful of food. "You didn’t even want to go for a run all you wanted to do was hunt food."

I stretch out on my side so I can see most of the toms and look around at Micah as he walks into the room carrying his own large bowl of stew and an oversized cup of coffee. He pulls the blanket over me before sitting down level with my head and shoulders and I scrunch up one corner of the blanket to use as a pillow.

"Here," Justin says and hands me the pillow that lives on the lounge. I tuck it under my cheek and inhale the scents that cling to it noticing that all of the toms have touched it at some stage recently. I yawn and blink several times before glancing around curiously. I catch several of the toms glancing my way with satisfied smiles on their faces and frown.

"What has got everyone so amused?" I ask curiously.

"You finally trust us enough to change in the same room as us." Dwayne says as he looks me in the eye.

"I didn’t mean to," I protest as I look away from his gaze. "It just happened somehow! My cat took over and suddenly I was in here changing back!"

"Your cat works on instinct much more than on conscious thought. I have noticed your inner cat’s instincts are very strong even when you’re in human form. On some sub-conscious level you instinctively knew you could trust your clan’s toms even now when you’re at your most vulnerable." Doc tells me gently.

"No! I don’t trust any tom that much," I protest as I pull the blanket up over my head to shut myself out of the sight of the toms. I squeeze my eyes shut tightly as I concentrate on blocking out the noises the others make as they eat. I do not trust any of the toms enough to be naked around them, except for maybe Micah. The tension begins to ease as I realise he is right beside me and ready to protect me if I need it. Someone rearranges the blanket over my head so that even though it still covers me and blocks the others from sight it allows fresh air to enter every time I breathe in.

The need to go to the toilet wakes me and I remain motionless as I try to work out where I am. It is dark but there is a muted light to the darkness and I can hear the occasional sound of movement or breathing changing pace. I realise with surprise that I have a blanket over my head as well as my body and I frown as I push it down off my head and sit up carefully.

"Need anything?" Micah asks softly with a glance my way. I glance at him and smile, suddenly happy just to be near him.

"I’m all right," I assure him before climbing to my feet and heading for the toilet. When I return to the lounge room, I see that all the toms have carried their mattresses into the room and are adding pillows and blankets. A sudden sense of devilry overtakes me and I sit on the middle of Sam’s mattress where he is trying to spread a blanket out but I sit on it reducing it to a bunched heap.

"Anyone ever tell you what a great help you are?" Sam asks me straight faced.

"No, but ya love me anyway." I say with a laugh. Sam regards me silently for a few seconds and I begin to wonder if I have said something wrong.

"Yeah, I actually do you know." Sam tells me gravely before kneeling beside me and engulfing me in a big gentle hug. I tense in his arms at first not sure what to do, it is so long since I can remember wanting a hug. Instinct takes over and I lean into Sam’s embrace enjoying one of the few undemanding, unnecessary physical contacts not initiated by me I have allowed since my first change. I turn my head and brush a kiss along his jaw line feeling the slight rasp of his unshaven whiskers against the softness of my lips. I bring both arms up to hold his arms and rub my head against his shoulder.

"I love you too big brother," I say quietly.

"Enough soppy stuff already," Mitchell pretends to complain and I glance across at him to see him watching me longingly. I narrow my eyes at him and push out of Sam’s embrace before stalking towards Mitchell on my hands and knees taking care not to smile or display any emotion on my face.

Mitchell watches me closely and goes to move out of my way as I move onto his mattress but my sudden lunge is too quick for him and I take him over backwards, pinning him to the mattress as I look down into his face and laugh.

"Gotcha," I laugh down into his startled face.

"Hey be careful! You could hurt the baby," Mitchell warns alarm evident in his face and voice. I grin baring my teeth and pretend to try to bite his hands as he tries to catch hold of my shoulders to steady me.

"Rosy," Micah cautions softly. I look over my shoulder at him and frown.

"I never had brothers or sisters growing up I could play with and the local boys didn’t like getting beaten up by a mere girl." I tell him disdainfully.

"Micah, relax. It is very unlikely Rosy will do anything that is uncomfortable or painful so she’s not likely to do any harm unless whoever she’s mucking around with doesn’t watch what they’re doing." Doc tells him.

"Ha! See! You listen to Doc," I tell Micah before turning my attention back to Mitchell. I reach for his ribs where I know he is ticklish and he gives a snort of annoyance as he tries to twist away from my attack.

"No Rosy! You could end up getting hurt," Mitchell protests as he catches both of my wrists and prevents any further tickling. I narrow my eyes as I frown at him and move to sit on the edge of the mattress when he lets my wrists go.

"Worried I was going to get the better of you just like I do when you try to catch me when we run?" I ask dryly before turning my attention to the others.

Micah is watching me with concern but is making no visible effort to stop me and I look around at the others, Justin is eyeing me uneasily clearly not sure what to think while Donovan is showing interest but is clearly wary of Micah. Chris is lying back on his mattress watching me with amusement while Malcolm stands by his bed watching with a grin. Dwayne is looking at me levelly and when I glance at Sam, he raises an eyebrow at me as if questioning my behaviour.

"You lot are a bunch of scaredy cats," I mutter as I return to Micah’s mattress.

"Who’d be scared of a scrawny little thing like you?" Dwayne asks with a quick glance towards Micah before advancing towards me on all four, I eye him a moment then narrow my eyes as I brace myself on my hands and knees.

"Looks like you need a lesson in respecting other cats’ mattresses. You can’t just stalk across them like that," Dwayne tells me.

"Or sit in the middle of them when someone is trying to spread out their blanket." Sam joins in as he begins to stalk from the other side. I glance from one side to the other judging their movements, the play of their muscles in their shoulders that tell me how tense they are. I lift my chin and move my eyes towards Dwayne even though my attention is on Sam as well. I dodge Dwayne’s grab and scoot onto his mattress to grab his pillow.

"Oi!" Dwayne protests as I tuck the pillow under one arm and back carefully away from him using my feet to feel for any unseen toms behind me. He makes a playful grab for me and I duck to one side to avoid him and scramble to the opposite end of the mattress. Sam tries to catch a hold of me as I dash past, but I twist away from him as I scurry towards Micah’s mattress, I almost make it but a strong arm catches me gently across the ribs and I am pulled backwards and land on a hard male body as my captor rolls and uses his body to cushion my landing.

I use my own momentum to keep rolling right back onto my hands and knees but find that the arm remains around my ribs and I get lifted off the mattress and pulled back against a solid chest.

"Sam help me get my pillow back off this little minx," Dwayne laughs and I hug the pillow tightly against myself while I watch Sam approach me slowly as if he expects me to resist.

"I scratch," I warn him.

"You’ll need both hands if you hope to keep that pillow," Sam grins.

"I kick," I say as I narrow my eyes.

"You got both legs wrapped around the pillow as well," Sam points out as he stands over me looking down at me.

"I bite," I pretend to snarl savagely but ruin it with a giggle.

"Do I look like a rabbit or a hare?" Sam asks in disbelief.

"Maybe a little bit when I squint and tilt my head to the side … nah, more like a big fat old frog." I say grinning.

"That is it! You’re in for it now." Sam threatens as he reaches down towards me. I squeal and hug the pillow tightly as I wriggle like a worm, I feel Dwayne’s hold loosen and I try to roll to one side. Sam’s fingers find my ribs and I shriek as I collapse into laughter, Sam moves from one side of my ribs to the other as he tickles me and I wriggle as I attempt to escape from Dwayne’s hold.

"Enough," I finally gasp between giggles. My ribs are starting to hurt from laughing and my face muscles feel tired from smiling as I crawl away to Micah’s mattress when Dwayne releases me. I still have his pillow having refused to let it go and I grin as I glance back at him as I lean against Micah’s chest. Dwayne narrows his eyes at me and stalks towards me on all four, I eye him a moment before clutching the pillow to me tightly.

"It’s mine," I declare and Dwayne growls softly in play. I growl back and gasp in surprise at the speed of Dwayne’s attack. He straddles my thighs and catches both of my wrists in a loose hold.

"Going to give it back?" Dwayne asks with a wide smirk. I give an exaggerated sigh and let go of the pillow with a pout.

"Now what am I going to use as a pillow? Micah only bought his out and I’m not sharing it with him, he snores," I say woefully.

"Want me to move my mattress over here beside yours and Micah’s and if you need to you can come share my pillow?" Dwayne asks with a laugh. I give a disdainful snort and roll my eyes at him.

"Yeah sure and you’d probaly YANK it out from under me the moment I’m asleep," I pretend to pout. "But if you must …" I watch with interest as the mattresses are rearranged and return to leaning on Micah.

"Comfy?" Micah asks.

"There anything to eat?" I ask as I realise I feel hungry.

"I’ll get a bowl of stew for you," Malcolm says as he gets to his feet and heads towards the kitchen. He returns quickly with a large bowl of thick chunky stew and I begin picking pieces of vegetable from it to eat with the fork he got me. I spear a large piece of meat that keeps getting in my way and glance towards Donovan, I lift the fork up to display the meat.

"Want it Donovan?" I ask.

"No, you eat it. You need it," he tells me.

"I don’t want the meat just the vegies," I tell him but Donovan glances at Micah before he shakes his head once again. I glance around the other toms but they all avoid my eyes and I am frowning by the time I look at Micah.

"You eat the blasted thing so I can get back to eating my vegies." I say irritably.

"You need a balanced diet," Micah tells me firmly.

"I had a full feed of fresh meat and you’re worried because I won’t eat some cooked gunk out of a stew?" I demand angrily.

I move away from Micah and lean against the lounge as I look between the meat on my fork and the vegies in the stew I want to eat, finally I give a snort of annoyance and use the fork to flick the meat at Micah.

"Hey!" Micah snarls angrily as the meat splats satisfyingly against his chest.

"Deal with it," I snarl and begin eating a piece of potato. Micah gets to his feet and heads to the kitchen, I hear something thump as it hits the side of one of the bins then water running and I presume Micah is washing his hands as well as wiping off his chest where the meat had hit him. When he returns he places a small flat plate beside me before returning to his mattress.

"Put any pieces of meat you decide you don’t want on that. Don’t throw them at me again," He warns.

"Well stop telling me what I do and don’t need! I’m not stupid." I snarl at him before fishing another piece of meat from the stew and glancing at him.

"Eat it or put it on the plate," Micah warns in a low growl. I flick the meat onto the plate before fishing out several pieces of different veggies and eating them. Finally, all that remains of my bowl of stew is several chunks of meat on the plate and a few pieces floating around in the thick broth.

"Had enough?" Malcolm asks as he takes both the bowl and the plate.

"There anymore vegies left?" I ask hopefully.

"Probably a few, half a bowl or so." He informs me.

"Can I have them?" I ask with a smile. He soon hands me the bowl with mainly only the vegies I requested and a little broth. I am full when I finish and I happily relinquish the bowl to Malcolm before stretching out on Micah’s mattress once again. I yawn and stretch before making myself comfortable. I look at Micah and push my t-shirt up exposing my swollen stomach. Micah watches me for a few moments before giving a slight nod and placing his hand gently on the swell of my stomach, I smile happily and begin purring softly as I half close my eyes.

"Can I have a go as well?" Donovan asks quietly. Micah glances up from his hand on my stomach to look me in the face, I can see the worry deep in his eyes and I rub the side of my face against his pillow smiling at him.

"Please Micah," I beg him softly.

"Okay. Just a minute or two each," Micah says firmly. I lay quietly as Micah returns his attention to my stomach. His hand looks large and dark against the pale flesh of my stomach. After a few minutes, he reluctantly takes his hand off my stomach and moves aside slightly to let Donovan close to place his hand on my stomach. I watch Donovan’s face fill with awe as Wynn kicks energetically beneath his hand, Donovan glances at me and I smile happily.

"He moved," Donovan whispers softly as he lifts his hand and moves so the next tom can place his hand on my stomach. I lay on the mattress calmly as one by one those present have a turn of resting their hand against the swell of my stomach and even Doc lines up to take a turn.

"He certainly is active," Doc comments as a small foot kicks against the slight pressure of his hand. "He always this active this time of the day?"

"Yeah he goes real quiet about the time I have my afternoon nap and then not long after I wake up he starts moving around and kicking like this," I tell Doc.

"He probaly has a sleep when you do. Babies actually have periods when they barely move and are asleep while they are still in the womb," Doc tells me with a serious face.

"That doesn’t surprise me," I admit.

"Beside well fed how are you feeling," Doc asks with a grin.

"Good, pampered, spoilt … not only did I get fresh meat I got my fill of yummy vegies too," I glance at Micah and smile as I lift my arms above my head and stretch. I lift my chin and arch my neck as I tilt my head back before smiling ruefully at Micah.

"I was grumpy before, now I feel nice and calm and relaxed." I say and rub the side of my face on Micah’s pillow.

"Being well fed does that," Micah says wryly.

"Being petted and made to feel safe and protected does it too," I tell him and blink sleepily.

"How is your hip feeling?" Doc asks.

"Not as sore but still a bit stiff," I answer, I take a deep breath but can’t stop the yawn that escapes me.

"Justin turn the light off," Micah says as Dwayne covers me with a blanket. I open my mouth to protest but shut it without voicing my complaint, as I know they are just trying to look after me. I glance towards the doorway as I hear familiar steps on the gravel outside.

"Wade’s coming," I say as the light is switched off.

"Don’t worry, I’ll be right here." Micah says as he rests a hand lightly on my shoulder. I hear the screen door open then close and tense as footsteps sound in the hallway.

"Blown a light bulb or something?" Wade asks as he walks into the dark room.

"Rosy has had a big day and is just about to doze off," Micah tells him.

"I’ll just sit over here out of the way then," Wade says quietly as a chair squeaks slightly. "I’m only here long enough for your sister to use the shower and get a few things from her room she claims she can’t live without."