Jason's Mansion, Chapter One

Jason’s Mansion Chapter 1

         I’m waking up slowly, on something soft and pleasantly warm. Before opening my eyes though, I let my other senses tell me where I am. There is something beeping steadily nearby, light is streaming softly through medium deep shades from the left side of the room. I stir slightly and feel something I immediately don’t like. My wrists are restrained. Then I notice the breathing at my right. As I assess all of this my eyes are still closed and the person beside me doesn’t know I’m awake.
         After a few more seconds of listening I recognize the heartbeat of the breather. Jason. Of course. He didn’t really bring me where I think I am did he? I open my eyes slowly blinking a few times and know my thoughts were correct. The room is set up to be homey, comfortable. But to me I’m in my own personal hell. I close my eyes again and turn my head to face Jason looking him square in the eye. He is good, I’ll give him that. It takes him an entire three minutes before he looks away from my burning gaze.
         He stands and puts his hand on my shoulder. “Hi Cathy.”
         I shoot him a look he knows well. To him it says, “It’s Catherine you lowlife.”
         “You’re going to have to talk sometime Cathy, other than in your nightmares. I can still read you a little and I know you won’t speak for a long while.”
         I turn my face towards the window deliberately ignoring him. He is explaining why he had to restrain me, so that if the sedative made my usual nightmares worse I wouldn’t hurt myself. But I know this. I used to help him run the House of Healing. Before I knew what he did for his father. It disgusts me to even think about thinking about it. No matter though, my senses are ranging out, feeling the house with my consciousness. There are about twenty nine patients, not including myself. I will not be labeled as such. Not many staff members here at the moment. Eleven including Jason.
         By this time Jason is removing the restraints from my wrists and handing me my clothes. My usual outfit, a black shape shifter woven jumpsuit, my panther fur black boots, even the queens headband. A comfort thing, so we don’t feel like prisoners while we “heal”. So, obediently as I shouldn’t be, I go into the medium sized bathroom and dress myself feeling confident already. I open the door expecting him to lead me to the cafeteria to get breakfast, when he just stands there looking at me. I can almost read his mind, almost. He was always a good blocker. He’s looking at my breasts and thighs, like he was examining a chicken at the grocers. But I know what he sees, ample but muscularly firm breasts, definite but not prominent abs. The big cat coiled inside me waiting to spring. But he couldn’t let that happen.
         Doing the most completely unexpected thing he could have, he kneels down and pulls my dagger and sheathstrap from under the bed and fastens it to my thigh were it belongs. He looks up at me quickly then leads me to get my breakfast. I have to say, most rich guys with a nice house that “donate it to those who need it” don’t bother to serve food that is actually edible. Jason Bruneaux is one of the few exceptions to this. Real bacon, real eggs, real coffee, and REALLY REAL medium rare steak strips. I take a little of each (just slightly more steak) and walk off alone to a little spot by the balcony.
         I am eating silently savoring the flavors, especially the steak, when a boy about my age, eighteen, comes up beside me. I only catch his hair, which is so blonde it’s almost white, and a flash as his electric blue eyes go to the necklace I’m wearing. I look down, a wheelchair. He likes horses. Hmm…. My left hand moves to my neck out of habit. Ok, so it’s not a necklace, it’s a choker, one that can shift when I do. Black of course. But the pendant is what caught his eye. Jade with a black onyx figure, a chikogee. Half horse, half panther. My hand covers it and he shakes his head. “Hi, My name is Ivan. May I ask for yours?” he holds out his left hand as an offering to shake. Usually one answers the question before shaking hands, so instead I take his forearm in a medieval friendship grip. A shocked look crosses his face just before Jason walks up behind him.
         “Ah, Ivan. I see you’ve met Catherine Black. If I’m nt mistaken you saw me bring her in last night. Awful dangerous even though she’s pretty. Watch out for her.”
         “I can tell, but thank you for the warning Doctor.” he says this in a way that bothers me, as if he can feel my essence. Just a human though…
         Shaking myself mentally I stand gracefully, nod to Ivan, and return my plate to the cafeteria before wandering out onto the balcony.  I sense the thought aura of Ivan as he decides to follow me or not. He doesn’t, smart boy. I need to be alone just now. I can feel my senses getting very acute. Heightening to that of a panther. Of the one I chose as myself, the name for me inside. Raksha, meaning demon.
         I get that feeling at the base of my skull, what could be wrong here? Everything. I’m trying my hardest not to shift blindly. The last thing I need is for all the mental people here to know what I am, and they’re everywhere. I check to make sure no one is looking and flip myself over the balcony railing landing silently in the soft grass. Wow that felt good. I take of running at an easy human pace. Too bad I have to be careful though. I would love to take a full running jump and flip twisting through the air as my bone structure changes, my ears pop out as does my tail,  big paws, razor-like claws, soft shiny black fur.
         I must wait until the woods meet the meadow though, and the pace I’m going is too slow to quell my impatience for the forest. But eventually I do get there, and taking off at a much faster speed I leap off the ground twisting through the air and stretching as I land on the thick bough of a spruce tree piercing the bark with my now in place claws. Flexing every muscle delicately, twitching my tail back and fourth, yawning my mouth full of tapered sharp thick feline teeth, it all felt so good. So right.
         But a branch snaps. My body loosens ready for attack. Someone (something?) steps through the brush below me. It looks up with a puzzled expression. Being very cautious the figure speaks “Raksha?” And the sound of that voice throws me off balance, falling off the branch I twist and land easily on my feet with a soft thud. The thing looks at me, I look back, and I’m stunned. How…?