Something has changed within me
Something is not the same
I'm through with playing by the rules
Of someone else's game
Too late for second-guessing
Too late to go back to sleep
It's time to trust my instincts
Close my eyes: and leap!

The waves rolled so calmly as they crashed against the white sandy shore, this place a home of beauty and peace. The air smelt salty and crisp, the wind blowing the grass in their own rolling waves just as the water moved. Everything here was so fluid and warm, one could not help but just let go and soak up all the positive energies. A person could just be themselves here, not worry of the judgment by the waves or the sand. The creatures in this place were so small and infinite, this empty beach was like a world she owned all to herself. Today the wind blew fiercely, the summer sky a vast ocean of blew, though lurking clouds in the distant promised a storm to come soon and coat the land with droplets of water while thunder boomed and lightening striked. But for now though, the great star twinkled over head and let heat coat the land in a blanket. The Lyris Shores was home to quiet and peace, a place where this particular individual could be free where no judging eyes watched her.

The nostrils of her tiny button nose sucked in the salty air, chest expanding to take in the fresh start and let out all the stress that had recently been bubbled up inside. She wore a summer dress, the wind pulling at the bright material as she walked barefooted in the sand, her sandals left with her pack where the white sand met the tall grass. The sand was hot to her naked skin, but she didn't care, just walked to the water edge and allowed the water to trickle up over her toes, up her feet up mid calf before it slid back and then returned once more in a calm low wave. Dark blonde curls wiped about her face as the wind picked them up, though the tanned young woman seemed not bothered by the movement of her hair. Her round face turned, hazel green eyes scanning up one direction of the endless shore then up the other. She saw nothing but emptiness, and with this mindset proceeded to walk further into the water. The water soaked her dress as it moved up her legs, over her hips. She walked as far out till the water reached just below her bust, the water forcing the dress to cling against her curved frame as the waves rocked about her. The young woman smiled, skimming her finger tips over the surface of the water.

This human looking girl seemed so care-free, no worry in the world, just enjoying life as it came to her. Of course, on a summer day as this, it was a day someone just needed to get away. Get away from the conformities of the real world. To stop playing innocent puppet of society but being her true self. Lost in her own world...well...she could be who she was born to be. Taking in a deep breath the blonde girl ducked under the water. Time passed, the waves rolled by and she did not surface. Suddenly the water broke, but it was not a girl who interrupted the waves. Instead of a biped as quadruped now stood in the water. The water reached nearly half way up the horses barrel, the coat a beautiful white. This horse looked wild in nature, eyes vivid and alive as they blinked at the beach, as if seeing it in a while new light. Pulling at the current the white horse trotted from the water and onto the white sand where she shook herself, droplets flying and reflecting the sun to cast rainbows over the sand. A golden main whipped in the air, the coat as white as snow. The mare stuck out against the white sand and against the blue ocean, a replacement to the girl who had gone into the water. But would it seem odd if this mare was the same as the young woman. Not a simple human, but a shapeshifter, who defied nature by being both human and animal. In this place, her own world, she could be herself. Society nearly did not exist in this place, her own sanctuary without limits, without rules. Here...she defied gravity, by being more than tradition.

This was Alexandria Melanie Zander, a farmer's daughter, sweet and simple...or that was at least how the label went. Though not virgin pure, her bright spirit glowed as great star in the sky and her smile twinkled as the stars of the night sky. Her heart soared and flew with the dragons and her thoughts ran with the wild centaurs that once occupied Larthen. She was her own oddity, and knew no one else of her kind. Alex was one of herself, alone, an individual even in her own family who could not see this body as a gift. It was pure curse to her mother, and something that left her father speechless. Even though banned at the home, here, in this place of her own world, Alex was herself. She could sun through the waters, biped or quadruped. It no matter, for no other eyes could see her being a child-like seventeen year-old. Of course, any of the people in Larthen would not expect a golden hearted lady-like her to be a monster, but no one else new of her gift, save her mother and father. She defied the limits, and the rules of game that was life.

I'm through accepting limits
'Cuz someone says they're so
Some things I cannot change
But till I try, I'll never know!

Pride. Envy. Greed. Lust. Wrath. Sloth. Gluttony.

Seven Deadly Sins.

Faith. Hope. Prudence. Temperance. Justice. Fortitude. Charity.

Seven Virtues.

The good person never housed a sin, or when they did they repented to the lord or feared being banished by their people and church. This person would be shunned away from the community, and live with their sin, while they looked out to see virtuous people while they remained full of sin. What made a person sinful? Being proud of the crops they grew? Wishing they could live the life of the royals? Wanting to own many acres of land? Possibly even a man wanting the woman with broad hips who could bear the children? Even getting angry at the man who cheated him on a few coins in a sale? Was this not showing sin, or was this just being human, being sensible? In this case, even this monster, this equine-human thing that looked so sweet innocent was very sinful. As much as she was sweet to strangers and respectful to her elders, she housed her own sin. She was proud of being a shape-shifter, envious of the girls that had already been married off, greedy to find the perfect man, lustful for men at the same time, wrathful of the men who robbed her home, slothful for not seeing her talents but only the faults that did not impress her parents, and finally gluttonous for having so much food in her backyard but still only selling it with her father and not donating to the hungry. Then again, every person had some sort of sin, and this monster found herself not more a demon than any other person of her city. The woman knew though she was not all virtuous, owed up to her sin, and did not expect that she could be perfect. Perhaps her greatest sin was being this monster, a shape-shifter and outcast and society. This great factor, did it totally override her sweet nature, and make her unimpressive for being different? Or was she virtuous for branching out and opening the eyes of individuality to the world? Neither. As much as she was a shifter, she was human. Bound for faults, and beautiful because of her imperfections. The little birthmark on her forearm, and other little quirks of herself made her neither sinful or virtuous, just human.

I'll keep you my dirty little secret
Don't tell anyone
Or you'll be just another regret
Hope that you can keep it
My dirty little secret
Who has to know?

No one knew, no one had to know. This other side of her, this totally other animal. It was like half the time the face was of a pretty blond human girl with her bright glittering eyes and pleasant smiles, but then the mask flipped and there was a tail and a long nose and a horse face replaced that of a human. The body molded from two legs to fours. A whole new person was born, though personality remained the same yet the body giving off the idea of a whole new thing. It was the secret, no one new, it was between herself, her parents, and the picket fence. Like the princess locked away in the tower by her evil step-mother who took over as queen and did not wish for the princess to take over her thrown. The princess beautiful and totally virtuous, the queen a complete woman of sin, a witch. This princess locked away and thought dead had so much to offer the world, yet she was not allowed to show her true face. It was time for some great escape, but was it safe out there? She knew not of the world, barely old enough and hardly seen any of it. Not much past the borders of Larthen where mountains and hills cut of her view of other worlds. This princess wanted to break free, but it was her dirty little secret, and the only time this secret escaped was in her own little world. Like the beach, where others did not tread and she could be herself, instead of the doll that had to be seen by society.

Throw it away
Forget yesterday
We'll make the great escape
We won't hear a word they say
They don't know us anyway
Watch it burn
Let it die
'Cause we are finally free
Tonight

Alex was tired of being the person no one really knew, she was tired of being the doll, beautiful but with no comment to make. Being the girl, dressed up in outfits earned by her fathers crops and lady lessoned by her mother in all sorts of crafts. to be the model future farmer's wife, or shop owner's wife, or whatever she would be to truly make her parents proud. Not the shape-shifter that traveled on the wings of her dreams. She was tired of that though, tired of living up to such high expectations. She was ready to retreat to her own world permanently, to shift when she pleased, to be who she placed. The thoughts drifted into her escape, her plans to do such things, bright eyes staring down the long sandy beach. A large hoof pawed at the sand, the wind blowing her main, the majestic animal so a part of this, so broken away from the world. That was, until the sound of a soft grunt broke her serenity. No longer in her own world, the shock and surprise, shocked the horse back into a human, a quick shift, thinking a human stood there watching her and not a large beast that could kill her. Now a biped stood on the sand once more, the colorful sun dress sun dried against her tan skin, her blond hair falling in curves about her shoulders. Her pretty face turned to the grasses, and her eyes grew wide to see the monster. Never had Alex really grown into her animal instincts, it was more an escape than a lifestyle. She did not investigate all her senses, and looking at the giant wolf, she saw and sensed a killer, not a shifter. She remained frozen, not daring to run, and thinking of shifting once more and run. The fear flashed across her face, the idea flashed across, but she remained frozen, not really sure what to do.

"Nice doggy..."

she spoke softly, her voice soft and sweet, an altos voice. She thought she'd try her luck that this was a nice animal, but the look in its eyes suggested otherwise to her. So she locked hazel green eyes into his jaded green, trying to read more pleasant thoughts and find that she was not on the menu this afternoon. She would try to run, but the shock of being caught had shocked her back to a human. The five foot eight inch woman tried to stand tall, maybe using a confident stance to keep the animal wall. She was taller than most woman, her bulk evident on her arms, though still fairly slight and the broad curves of a developed young woman. The seventeen year old young woman looked and acted older than her real age, but this animal would not realize that, she was sure all he saw was a meal. How silly she would feel to know he as really a shifter like herself. She took a step back, still pondering where she could weasel herself into a place where the large beast could not reach if he decided to attack. She looked at the rocks and caves, looked toward the forest and tall grass, and even the water, not waving her eyes very long from the beast that watched her.

What's wrong with me?
Why do I feel like this?
I'm going crazy now

Just because she was book smart did not make her logical. Just because her parents had trained her in both womanly housework and working out in the fields on the crops, did not mean she could be thrown own into the real world and be expected to survive without some sort of nudge in the right direction. One lesson her mother and father had failed to lecture her on was when there is danger, run, don't stand there and stare at it. Especially talk to it like the beast could have a heart or even a brain to consider sparing her. (Even though in this case both were true, if the male chose to listen to his head or heart.) The words escaped her lips, hopeful in seeking that she had just stumbled upon a beast of a dog, for this was obviously some sort of canine under her amateur eyes. Doggy might have been a stretch, wolf might have been closer, a wolf the size of a lion or something, bigger than a dog or wolf she had even seen. Internally she shook, though on the outside she stood solid, this almost like an attribute of an equine as they squared out or planted their hooves so as making the point that they did not plan to move. The nerves quivered from her frame even though she stood statue still, her eyes shifting for ideas to run and her chest rising for slow calm breath as she tried to keep her nerves calm and to stay still. This was definitely not a woman who could be thrown out into the woods with a dagger and be expected to survive, she did not have the logics to really do that sort of thing. She was a "city" girl, to a small degree that fit the "city" life in Larthen.

It's a thief in the night to come and grab you
It can creep up inside you and consume you
A disease of the mind, it can control you
It's too close for comfort

The beast stirred first, and now her eyes locked on him, her breath staggering as he seemed to be moving toward her. She could almost feel the tears getting ready to brew as she got ready to say her prayers as she realized that her thinking that running could save her from this wolf-dog-whatever it was. Two bounds and he could be towering over her, whole two strides of hers would not even get her to the nearest rock to hide behind. So she stood tall, held up her head, because at least if she was gonna die for her stupidity of going out into the wild without a weapon, she would do it being strong and confident. Instead of at her thought, he moved into the water and the rushing waves where she had just recently moved out from. She turned on her heal, slowly taking steps back as she found the chance now to run as the waves rushed about the wolf, at least making it more difficult now for the pursuit if the beast did choose to come after her now. Oddly, though, he seemed quite uninterested in her, but possibly running would make her some sort of chew toy, and that thought made her wince. The wolf was handsome, beautiful in its own wild and majestic way, but that did not override the fear that he instilled in her. This was an animal that could tear her to pieces, and being handsome would not make up for that sort of thing. Life just did not work that way.

Release me from this curse I'm in
Trying to maintain but I'm struggling
If you can't go-o-o
I think I'm gonna ah, ah, ah, ah

The wave finally engulfed the large body and she paused, walking forward now, eyes searching for where the beast had disappeared. Woman had gone into water and came out equine. Canine had gone into water, and as the water was interrupted, came out man. The back was to her, and the pure muscle that had sculpted a wolf, now became that of a beast of a man. Alex, screamed in shock and backed up, tripping over a small sandy rock to fall back on her butt. The young woman watched with wide fearful eyes as the muscles stretched, and the neck cracked, frozen on the ground as she openly stared. One thing that had been pounded into her head was never to stare, but how could someone not stare at that. A man of pure muscle, a handsome man of pure muscle. And on top he was a shifter, like herself, and that scared her more than him being a beast of a male. Never before had she met a shifter, she had heard of other shifters, Larthen even had a shifter queen and princess many generations ago of the original royal family, but never had Alexandria heard of any or known any in her generation. As he turned toward her and walked forward she crawled back on her bottom, not daring to turn her back to him and not really able to jump up and run, she was nearly frozen in place with fear and shock. His words did not amuse her, even if they did possibly tease her name for him of calling him a doggy and then how woman called him other things. He did not look amused, which made her even more scared. He had a blank face, as if he was a god that had been sculpted, perfection and handsomeness, though made with no emotion.

"S-st-stay away from me..."

the soft alto voice threatened as she back upon more on her bottom, her back hitting against a rock larger than the one she had tripped over though still not exactly one she could jump behind for defense. The green hazel eyes remained locked on the huge man, unsure which was scarier, man or wolf. Slowly she rose onto her feet, her summer dress being blown about her thighs by the wind and even dark blonde hair waving some in the wind. Running away from the wolf seemed impossible, and running away from the man was a little closer watched, but still not a fair game. She remained frozen, planted once more but standing as tall as now she faced a male, a shifter male.

Disturbia, it's like the darkness is light
Disturbia, am I scaring you tonight?
Disturbia, ain't used to what you like
Disturbia, disturbia