"I wouldn't allow myself to listen to them, so they took me over," she concluded. "My, for such an illogical being, that's a very logical step."

"More or less. Another thing you should understand is that your human instincts didn't fade away. They're still there. And when your human instinct coincides with your cat instincts, you'll find them nearly overwhelming."

"Like what?"

"Self-preservation," he said calmly. "That's a common instinct. So are the maternal instincts of a female."

"I take it the urge to reproduce is also a communal interest."

"It is, but it's guided by your human interests. Were-cats-all Were-kin, for that matter-aren't wanton harlots and philanderers. At least not all of them," he corrected. "You'll understand after a while."

"I understand now," she said. "Before I went mad, I had-let's say that I was very much looking for a man. But no human can satisfy me that way. I'd kill them, or turn them Were. I did try a few times, with some men that weren't afraid of me or had no idea of the danger, but it just didn't feel right."

"They weren't Were-cats. Both your sets of instincts would object if you tried to mate with someone outside your own species."

"I guess," she agreed. "I think that frustration only helped drive me over the edge. I was looking for something I couldn't have, and it made me angry."

"Why didn't you turn someone Were?" he asked curiously. "There was nothing stopping you."

"I don't know," she said, folding her arms beneath her bare breasts and looking away from him. "I did think about it a few times, but it seemed… wrong. I can't explain it."

"You weren't ready to destroy someone just for one night of fleeting contentment," he surmised.

"I suppose. It's as good a reason as any." She glanced at him. "Can I put my robe back on now?"

"If you need to ask, then the answer is no," he replied bluntly. "I'm going to break you of that annoying human trait the same way Jesmind broke me of it."

"How is that?"

"Practice. A Were-cat isn't that concerned about nudity because the clothes don't change with us. When you learn to shapeshift, you're going to be naked. When you change back, you'll be naked. And you'll stay that way until you get back to your clothes. There's no way you'll get around being seen, so it's best to get over any feelings of modesty you have right now, before it distracts you when I teach you how to shapeshift."

Jula blushed. "It's bad enough like this," she said quietly.

"Then I'm not challenging your modesty enough," he said. "Stand up."

"Tarrin!"

"I said stand up!" he snapped at her. "As you settle into your instincts, you'll lose this penchant for modesty. You're not going to run around naked all the time," he said quickly when she gave him a shocked look, "but you won't be embrassed to be seen nude in public. Were-cats wear clothes, until they need to shapeshift. Then the clothes come off."

Jula gave him a slightly challenging look, then did as he commanded. She stood up. Tarrin looked at her calmly, staring into her eyes, then blatantly looked her up and down. She looked much different than he remembered. She had been soft, feminine, slim. Now she was thin, with knotted abdominal muscle. The muscles in her arms and legs were defined, but not massively developed, gaining that inhuman strength that was the gift of his blood. She looked like a Were-cat, not a human. A very attractive Were-cat female, at that.

Her tail lashed behind her, a clear sign of her discomfort, but he said nothing. He simply looked up at her for a long moment, then made a circling motion with his hand. An obvious order for her to turn around. She glared at him, but she did as she was told, turning her back to him and setting her feet together in a stiff posture. Her tail writhed as he looked at her back and her posterior. He was doing more than staring at her to make her feel umcomfortable. He was sizing her up, getting an idea of her body, something he'd need to know when he taught her how to fight. She was smaller than him, not as strong, but she was fast. Speed techniques, with some leverage and power training. That would be best for her. Teach her how to fight better with her claws, but also teach her that her claws weren't her only weapons.

All matters aside, he had to admit. Jula had a cute butt.

"Sit back down," he told her calmly. "Can you still use Sorcery?"

"Yes," she admitted, sitting down with a defiant look in his eyes. She sat down cross-legged, like him, and her eyes dared him to look below her neck. "It took me a while. I had to learn how to touch the Weave all over again. After I changed, it altered my sense of the Weave." She placed her elbows on her knees and leaned on them, then propped her chin on her paws. "I'm actually stronger now than I used to be. I seem to have a greater limit for building power to weave flows as a Were-cat than I did as a human."

"It's your body," he replied. "Were-cat bodies are tougher than human ones, resistant to the damage that alot of Sorcery can cause, and they're more attuned to magic. It increased the amount of power you can hold, because that's something that depends partially on your body. It's a physical limit."

"That's exactly what happened," she agreed. "I had hopes that it would make me a Weavespinner, like you. I did get stronger, but nowhere near your level."

"Be glad it didn't," he told her with utter sincerity. "My condition isn't a function of my body. I was born this way."

"I know that now," she said with a small sigh. "You know, Tarrin, I actually feel a little better now."

"About what?"

"About everything," she replied. "What you said already has me thinking. From what I felt before, it makes sense. I have real hope that I can find that balance this time."

"Even if it changes you?"

"I get the feeling that the changes won't matter that much to me," she replied. "Being changed is a small price to pay for staying sane."

"That's a good attitude," he told her. "I want you to listen to your instincts while they're suppressed," he instructed. "Listen to what they're telling you while they can't affect you. That will help you understand what they'll be doing when they can influence your behavior. That way it won't feel as unnatural or frightening, and you won't be as quick to fight against them when they do. You'll find that if you pay attention to your other half, actually listen to it and give it weight in your mind, it will be very cooperative with you. It doesn't want to control you. It just wants to have a say in what you do. No more, no less."

"I certainly hope so," she said fervently. Tarrin let his gaze fall to her chest, and Jula's paws moved immediately to drop into her lap, covering her most intimate charms from his view. She didn't move to cover her breasts. Obviously, she was willing to let him see some of her, but not all.

"Let's make this easier, Jula. There's no part of you I haven't already seen. Since your modesty has already been compromised, why try to defend it now?"

"I can't change like that, I guess," she said ruefully. "I may be a Were-cat female, but I was still raised to not sit naked in front of a man."

"You weren't this shy in the baths."

"Everyone was in the same state in the baths," she replied.

Without batting an eye, Tarrin stood up and started unlacing the top of his loose shirt.

"What are you doing?" she demanded.

"Meeting you on common ground," he replied calmly, pulling his shirt off.

She stood up quickly. "No, you really don't have to do that," she said quickly, reaching down and picking up his shirt, then pushing it back at him. "I'm sure you were just as embarassed when Jesmind did this to you as I am now, so cut me some slack."

"It was worse for me," he admitted. "Jesmind took her clothes off first, then ordered me to strip in front of her. She didn't even try to make it easy."