Second Life, First Love

My sister Debra Evans and I came of age in the same year, and we were both chosen to represent humanity in the beast-clan mating ceremony. According to the ancient pact between humans and beasts, the first half-beast child born from this generation's unions would become the next ruler of the Human-Beast Alliance. Debra chose Jacob Griffin, the eldest son of the wolf clan—the strongest of them all. But every child she conceived ended up stillborn. Jacob flew into a rage and dissolved their bond. No other beastman would take her in either—not when she couldn't give them heirs. Meanwhile, I had chosen Patrick Bryant of the serpent clan. And I gave birth to the first half-beast child of the generation. They hailed me as a divine maiden. Patrick rose to power because of me. Debra burned with jealousy. She poisoned my child and shoved me off a cliff—I shattered on the rocks below. When I opened my eyes again, it was the very day we were to choose our mates. Without hesitation, Debra picked Patrick. I knew then: she had been reborn too. But she had no idea what I'd actually gone through in my past life. Chapter 1 When I opened my eyes again, Debra had already thrown herself into the serpent clan's arms. "King of Beasts, I choose Patrick." With that, she shot me a defiant look, her eyes gleaming with absolute certainty. I knew then: she had been reborn too. In my past life, Debra had been dead set on being the first to give birth to a half-beast, so she'd chosen the wolf clan without a second thought—the strongest of all the packs. She suggested I pick the serpent clan, saying their pregnancy rates were higher. I took her advice and chose Patrick. After Patrick and I mated, I got pregnant fast. And our child was the first half-beast of the generation. The King of Beasts immediately declared our child the next ruler. Meanwhile, Debra kept having stillbirths. She convinced herself it was the wolf clan's bloodline that made the babies hard to carry—so she crept into Patrick's bed in the middle of the night. What she didn't expect was that Patrick was fiercely loyal to me. He kicked her out of bed on the spot, then summoned the entire pack to prove his innocence. Jacob flew into a rage when he found out and dissolved their bond on the spot. A human without a mate can barely survive in the beast world. Debra tried to latch onto other beastmen, hoping to form a new bond and reclaim her place in the pack. But they'd only sleep with her—none of them would bond with her. When Debra was on the verge of starving to death, I took pity on her and brought her back. I fed her when she was starving. And how did she repay me? She poisoned my child, then shoved me off a cliff. The phantom sensation of falling still clung to my skin. But the pain in my chest hurt far worse than any physical wound. After Debra made her choice, the King of Beasts signaled that it was my turn. I scanned the remaining beast clans and pointed at Jacob. "I choose..." Before I could finish— Smack. A slap landed across my face. "You bitch! How dare you try to steal my mate!" It was the mate of Gary, the black bear from the pack. She stormed over, accusing me of seducing her mate and demanding an explanation. I was stunned. "There's nothing between Gary and me." "Still won't admit it?" She pulled out a tuft of fur and threw it at my feet. "Found this on my bed—it's your hair, isn't it?" But that didn't prove I'd slept with Gary. I wasn't the only human in the pack. Before I could defend myself, Debra stepped forward with a gasp. "Sis, no wonder I saw you walking with Brother Gary that night. So that's what you two were doing! How could you seduce a mated beastman?" With that one line, she sealed my fate. The other beastmen who had been showing off in front of me immediately backed away. Especially Jacob—the smile he'd been trying to hide vanished, and his brow furrowed. I stared at Debra in disbelief. In her eyes, I saw nothing but cunning. Then it hit me: in my past life, Debra had actually had a fling with this very same Gary. Suddenly, everything clicked. This was her setup. "Can't believe I was fooled by her. I thought she was so innocent." "Stealing someone else's mate—she should be banished from the pack!" The murmurs grew louder. The King of Beasts had no choice but to step in. Beastmen were fiercely possessive of their mates—they wouldn't tolerate this kind of behavior, even from a human. With a wave of his hand, the King cast me out. As I was leaving, Debra came to see me off. She leaned against Patrick's chest, playing the part of the concerned sister. "Julie, being banished isn't necessarily a bad thing. There are plenty of strong beasts out there—maybe you'll find your true mate." What a load of crap. Sure, there were strong beasts outside. But they were all madmen—rejects cast out by their own packs. A human like me, cut off from tribal protection, was as good as dead. In my past life, Debra had nearly died several times out there, and I'd been the one to save her. And this was how she repaid me—by stealing my mate after being reborn, and getting me banished. I let out a cold laugh. "Thanks for the good wishes, Debra. But you should worry about yourself. Patrick's a strong one—you better keep up your strength. Wouldn't want to disappoint him." Chapter 2 Patrick was a serpent clan beastman. And serpents were born with lust in their blood. He had no interest in hunting—all he cared about was what happened in bed. Once or twice a day was fun. But once or twice every three days? That was pure torture for the mate. And Patrick was especially violent in bed—no tenderness, no gentleness, just brute force. He was lazy and useless too. In my past life, I was the one supporting him—hunting, gathering, putting food on the table. But when I came back after a long day out, he'd spread rumors that I'd been out fooling around with other beastmen. Just thinking about it made my skin crawl, my whole body ache with old pain. Debra thought she'd landed herself a prize. She had no idea Patrick was rotten all the way through. "Julie, you've been kicked out of the pack. What do you have to be so smug about?" Debra's face went cold at my words. "I'll make sure you watch me become the pack's divine maiden with your own eyes." With that, she couldn't wait to head back with Patrick. Their lewd laughter drifted back to me, making my skin prickle with disgust. The moment I stepped out of the pack, I ran into a leopard. The moment he saw I was human, he lunged. His eyes burned with hunger and killing intent. I knew what lone beasts like him did to humans—especially women. Play with them. Break them. Then eat what was left. Survival instinct kicked in. I ran. I ran until I spotted a cave up ahead. I had nowhere else to go, so I darted inside. Strangely, the moment I entered, the leopard stopped dead in his tracks. He paced back and forth at the entrance a few times. When I didn't come out, he growled a few curses and took off. I soon found out why. A few steps deeper into the cave, a deafening roar shook me to the core. I looked up—and there he was. A magnificent white lion, gorgeous and proud, his massive jaws wide open. He could swallow my head in one bite. I turned and ran again. But after a few steps, I realized something odd. The lion had only roared. He hadn't even tried to get up. Like he was just trying to scare me off. Then I caught the smell—rotten flesh—and saw the wound on his hind leg, festering and raw. He was injured. I steadied myself and spoke. "Hey. You're hurt, aren't you? I can heal you. Can I stay?" The white lion seemed to understand me. He gave me a long look, then actually stretched out both hind legs toward me. His wound was severe. I pulled out the medicine powder from my pack. I used to be a healer. I'd treated plenty of beastmen before. But when the accusation came, not a single one of them had spoken up for me. That memory chilled me to the bone. I finished treating the white lion's wound. The killing intent in his eyes vanished instantly. He leaned in and rubbed his head against my clothes—his way of saying thank you. That was when I heard his stomach growl. He must've been too injured to hunt. He hadn't eaten in days. "I'll go find some food. Wait for me." I started to leave. He hooked me back with his claw. Then his massive tongue swept over me—licking me all over. I knew what that meant. He was marking me with his scent. With his smell on me, most predators would think twice before attacking. No wonder the leopard had backed off. This white lion was clearly no pushover. I didn't dare wander far. I gathered some wild fruit nearby and headed back. By the time I returned, it was already dark. I pulled out my flint, struck a spark, and started a fire. The white lion's eyes lit up. He shuffled closer to the warmth. And so I settled into the cave. By day, I changed his bandages and searched for water and food. By night, he served as my blanket and mattress—we slept curled up together. Half a month passed like this. One day, I came back after foraging—and froze at the sight before me. Chapter 3 There he lay—a man with flowing white hair and golden eyes. When he saw me, a pair of lion ears twitched gently atop his head. "You're back." His voice was even more beautiful than I remembered. My heart leaped. "You're the white lion?" The white lion nodded. "My name is Edward Stewart." I smiled. "Nice to meet you. I'm Julie Evans." Under my care, Edward had recovered enough to walk. He still couldn't do anything too strenuous, though. Still, the first time we went hunting together, he gave me a proper demonstration of just how fierce he really was. A wild boar—he'd torn through its throat in under a minute. That night, I finally tasted meat again after so long. I roasted the pork belly over the fire—the sizzling fat gave off an irresistible aroma. I ate until my face was covered in grease, then asked Edward which pack he belonged to. His eyes dimmed. "I don't. I have no pack." I froze. He said he'd been cast out as a child—the pack treated him like a monster. The memory clearly weighed on him. As he spoke, sadness flickered deep in his eyes. Cast out from childhood. No family. No friends. I couldn't imagine how much suffering he'd endured to grow this strong. I reached out and patted his head. "It's okay. You have me now. We'll live together from now on." Edward's face suddenly flushed bright red. Another month passed. Edward had fully recovered. Winter was closing in. To make it through the cold months, Edward and I were out from dawn till dusk every day. He hunted. I gathered wild fruit and medicinal herbs. Every day, we came back with full loads. I thought life would just keep going like this—peaceful, steady. Then Edward's heat season hit. He told me to stay in the cave for a couple of days—he had to leave for a while. I knew exactly what that meant. Every beastman went through a stable heat cycle. But if it went unsatiated for too long, it could become life-threatening. Even though he was already at his limit, when he saw the shock on my face, he tried to comfort me. "Don't be scared. I won't touch you." He was fighting his own body, forcing himself to hold back. Seeing him like that, my heart ached. So I made up my mind. I stepped forward, knelt down, and looked him in the eyes. "Edward, would you be willing to form a bond with me? I want to be your mate." At my words, Edward's face lit up with overwhelming emotion. "I—I do! I'm willing!" He answered without a second's pause. Hearing his answer, I cupped his face in my hands and kissed him.