Boy... That was fast. Three reviews in one day after asking, i couldn't have asked for better. Plus.. The magnificent author part really helped. Heh... Keep in mind... This was done back when i first did this story - so don't expect much improvement from the first chapter. Also... it's debatable whether or not i'll keep going. This is simply a courtesy to the Ike/Lethe fans out there. It is to you that I salute.

Ike and Lethe: Chapter two.

Ike woke up to a blinding headache. Dots of light swam before his eyes as he opened them to the glare of the midday sun. Above him, the sky was bright and blue, with little cloud cover. Curiously, he was not lying on his cot in his quarters, but on solid earth and grass. Groaning, he tried to sit up but stopped when he felt a slight resistance on his arm. Turning his head, he saw Lethe sound asleep with her head on his chest. His clothes, he noticed, were torn to shreds in several places, mostly his pants, and there was very distinct blue fur running along his chest. Ike noticed that his arms had also grown quite hairy, and his legs were almost a jungle. He wondered what had happened, when he noticed some discoloration in several patches of grass. In a quick flash, several scenes danced at the tip of his memory. Ike was watching himself and Lethe go at it with alarming animalistic pleasure, and it hit him what had happened. He was going to be a father. This realization came with several emotions, some excitement while containing some fear and apprehension. Ike was unsure of what his child would be like, after all of his arguments he still wasn't completely sure himself. But he would not fear, he would stay with Lethe forever, not leaving her for anything. A slight growl from her told Ike that she was beginning to wake. With the arm that she was not clinging to, he scratched behind her ear. A low purr began to emanate from the orange cat, as the sensation travelled through her body. Ike leaned in closer to her ear and whispered lightly.

"Morning, Lethe." The catgirl opened her eyes in shock, before the memories hit her and her wide eyes shrank back to normal. To Ike, she looked stunning as she cuddled close to him and enjoyed his warmth. What freaked him out the most was his fur, though. Nothing could have prepared him for a permanent side effect such as this. Lethe began to talk, and Ike just sat there and listened to her.

"Well, that was unexpected to say the least." She said lightly, rubbing her head through his chest fur once more. He nodded his head, acknowledging the statement. Ike himself had not expected it, after she had attacked him the first time.

"Would you rather stay here and cuddle some more, or should we try to head back to our quarters and return to our duties?" The blue furred commander asked, although he personally hoped she said neither. If any of the mercenaries saw him like this, it would raise questions that he probably would not be able to answer without some sort of unknown disaster being plotted against him. He would probably use the sharp edge of an iron sword to crudely shave himself before stealthily returning to his quarters to find a change of clothes. Soren would doubtlessly kill him if the rest didn't get to him first, he reasoned. Next to him, Lethe sensed his discomfort and laughed softly.

"Relax, Ike. The effects aren't permanent. After one or two more injections like that you should be able to transform and revert like we laguz do, and turn into how you are now." She explained, running two of her fingers down the chest hair she wasn't using as a pillow. Ike shivered slightly at the contact, but it wasn't painful. Before he could stop himself a slight growl escaped from his throat, low and happy like a purr. Lethe laughed again.

"Although I kind of like you better like this. Still, it would raise questions, I suppose. Here, I'll help you." Lethe pushed herself off of him and sat up. She quickly rose her hand to the nerve of his shoulders. A quick pinch later, and Ike was on the ground writhing in agony again. Imagine a monster had just crawled out of your skin, and was now walking around in your body. Now imagine it crawling back inside of you forcefully, and you might realize the pain Ike was going through. A few seconds lasted an eternity before he finally stopped, panting heavily but back to normal. Lethe had her hand over her mouth, trying to hold back hysterical laughter. Ike grinned, narrowing his eyebrows at her. Revenge was a dish best served cold, however, so he calmly rose to standing position and dusted himself off. Running his hands along the back of his vest, he realized that it had been cut in half by a sharp swipe of claws. The relevant memory flashed before his eyes, and he laughed.

"Never expected that. Was that normal for laguz?" He asked, as he checked to see how bad the damage was on the rest of his clothing. Several places on his pants there were large holes, and almost the entire front of them had been ripped off to expose the pink flesh underneath. Along with everything else down there. Lethe had stopped laughing, thinking about what he had said.

"I'm not really sure. Remember, I killed everyone else that tried with me, so you are my first. But from what my instincts tell me, yeah that's how we usually do it. You actually did quite well for a beorc." She blushed slightly, and Ike could swear she was thinking about his animalistic side. He had been completely surprised what he had done when stripped of all logic and reason. Laughing slightly, he turned around to face her, not caring what showed. She had already seen it all, hadn't she?

"Well, it's not as if I know exactly how beorc do it either. Titania was the only girl in our mercenary troupe not related to me, so I never really had much to think about in that department…" Ike paused, as a very funny memory surfaced.

"Although you should have seen the look on Father's face when he caught Boyd with a picture. He went berserk! Boyd had like, a years worth of chores set out for him per day for a whole month after that." He laughed, remembering him grumbling and running around. That month had been the best of their lives, with nothing to do but practice or lie around. Behind him, Lethe was laughing as well.

"Really? You beorc are queer creatures. You actually take pictures to satisfy your urges?" She said incredulously. Ike laughed himself as he thought of the absurdity of it all. Maybe beorcs were the queer ones, and the laguz were the ones who were normal.

"Now you understand what I said about it being much sicker and more perverted. Definitely not something you want to know about." In truth, he was using reverse psychology on her. If he told her that she wouldn't want to know something and withheld it from her, she would most likely obsess over it until he finally gave in. The rest of the month was going to be fun, he thought. He wouldn't give in until she was practically dying of suspense.

"Hmm… perhaps… Shall we go back to the compound? I do not know how long we have slept, so perhaps we should get some clothes on you and then show ourselves." Lethe stood up, and together they walked out of the forest. Ike marveled at his new sharpened senses. He could see every leaf on every tree, feel the subtle changes in the air around him, hear the birds singing and the squirrels chattering. It was a world that he had been blind to, but Lethe had shown him the light. As they walked on a random path leading out of the forest, Ike placed his arm over her shoulders. He pulled her in closer to him and kissed her on the cheek. Blushing, she kept on walking with a slight grin.

"What was that for?" Lethe asked him. She was confused as to why he had done this. Laughing slightly, he told her.

"For your gift. Our senses are so much worse than yours, I'm amazed that we can survive at all." Lethe purred with pleasure at the compliment, resting her head on his shoulder as they walked. In that moment, Ike knew. This was the person he wanted to spend his life with. And he knew somehow that he would.

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Lethe purred with pleasure as they walked, her head on his shoulder and her arms around his stomach. After her instincts chose him as her mate, she began to see the blue haired commander in a whole new light. His stubborn pride became a sense of caring and duty. Ike's determination and skill became protectiveness, and his overall human exterior melted away to reveal a more laguz-like inside. She wanted to be around him more, and completely open herself up to him. Lethe would do anything to be near him and stroke his fur again, if only for but a few minutes. Gradually, the trees began to thin out and she could see the edge of the forest up ahead. They quickened their walking pace, to find that they had chosen a route that brought them face to face with the city. She could see the vast amounts of homes and cathedrals that made up the city of Begnion. In the noonday sun they gleamed with bright intensity, as the light was reflected off of the tan clay that served as Begnion's choice of bricks. The compound that contained their quarters stood in the center of the city, with the cathedral home to the Apostle marking the fantastic structure. Lethe wondered how he would slip into the city unnoticed, until he suddenly started walking off towards one of the walls surrounding the city. She called out to him, asking him to wait up. As she caught up to him, she voiced her questions aloud.

"So what are you planning? You can't slip through the gates unnoticed, and the citizens will see you in the streets." Lethe wondered what he was going to do, but he simply shook his head and laughed.

"It's amazing how we beorc never tend to look up…" Ike responded as he reached the wall. With a strong and powerful spring, he leapt up, and managed to grab hold at the top of the barrier with his leap. Lethe marveled at his increase in strength, as he pulled himself up to the top with only one arm. Not wanting to be left out, she easily scaled the structure using her claws to dig into the rock. Soon, they were over the wall and looking out at the city. Noone had noticed them atop the stone, as they were all too busy in their own duties. Lethe followed Ike as they leaped from building to building, speeding towards the cathedral with manic speed. Even she was panting from the effort of leaping again and again over the gaps between houses. Finally, they stopped. They had reached the compound at last. Ike spoke as they rested atop a small building overlooking the neat rows of rooms that made up the outside of the cathedral.

"Alright, I guess we split up here. You should probably walk around outside so that people can see you without me, or else there will be lots of questions that we might not be able to answer." Ike paused, shuddering once before continuing.

"And I should probably change, and then go seek out Soren to get my ass beaten for disobeying him. We can talk in a little while, okay?" Lethe was pleased that he cared for her enough to make time for her in his schedule. She leaned in and gave him a small kiss on the cheek, emulating the one she had received not too long ago.

"Alright, be careful that you are not seen." Lethe told him, before hopping down to the courtyard. Behind her, she could vaguely hear him move stealthily into the shadows. There were a few servants up and about, but noone from the company was to be found in the open. She decided to wash up for a while in her own room before seeing the others, and headed towards the room that she was assigned. After counting off a few doorways, she found the correct door and walked into her sparsely furnished quarters. It only contained a cot, a sack containing the things she brought with her, and a side door leading to a shower. Somehow, the Begnion city had managed to invent a plumbing system, and it was one of the few beorc inventions that she actually approved of. Having the water flow out of a nozzle instead of bathing in a stream was much more pleasant. Taking off her leather vest, she entered the shower stall. Lethe sighed as the water drenched her orange fur. The sweat and grime from rolling on the ground melted off of her, and the steam felt pleasant as it enveloped her body. Her tail swished from side to side as she thoroughly ran her fingers through her entire fur. Finding a small knot in one section, she licked it with her rough tongue until she was satisfied that it was neat and straight. After a few minutes, Lethe turned off the water and shook her fur dry. The steam from the shower filled the room, so it wasn't too cold as she re-strapped her vest to her form. Finally, she was able to leave her quarters and look for some of her companions. Lethe saw Mordecai sitting under a lone tree in the distance, so she took off in a brisk jog towards her laguz companion. Reaching the blue furred tiger, she sat next to him and enjoyed the shade under the large tree. For a while, neither spoke, and Lethe wondered what he was thinking. Finally, her companion broke the uncomfortable silence.

"Are you feeling better, Lethe? Mordecai does not wish you to feel so bad about attacking Ike, but Mordecai understands if you are still confused and depressed." He tentatively asked her, and Lethe suddenly remembered the reason she had gone into the forest in the first place. Idiot! That was my alibi and I had completely forgotten! She tried to think of a plausible story not involving Ike, and after a few seconds she found one.

"I am fine, Mordecai. I just needed time to think alone." Mordecai nodded at this, and they sat there watching the grass grow. It was nice not having to do anything for a change, just to wait for the next assignment. A nagging thought at the back of her head wondered how bad Ike was being tortured by Soren right now…

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"What were you thinking?!" Soren screamed at a cringing Ike. Behind the dark haired mage, his new friend Lea could hardly contain her laughter at the commander's expression. Soren could hardly believe that he would rush out of the hospital not two seconds after he had told him not to. He had just walked into Soren's chambers while he had been talking to Lea, and Soren had completely gone berserk on his superior. After all, wasn't Ike supposed to be the responsible one?

"How can you possibly defend yourself?" Soren paused, giving the distraught Ike a chance to speak. The blue haired commander began to try, but there was no logical excuse for leaving the hospital in Soren's eyes.

"Well, I had to go find Lethe…" He began, before Soren cut him off.

"Completely jeopardizing your health in the damn process…" The mage muttered, and Lea burst into a new fit of giggles. Soren didn't even give the irresponsible boy a chance to continue before he continued his rant.

"And what did you accomplish by finding her? Surely making her feel better was not your only reason!" Ike began to speak again before he paused in confusion.

"Wait, how did you know I found her?" Soren merely held up the scroll, pointing his right index finger to his and Lethe's entry. He could have sworn he heard Ike swear under his breath. Having finally hit his weak point, Soren pressed the attack into the story.

"So, spill it. What happened?" He watched as Ike sighed once, and started to spill the beans.

"I went and found Lethe in the forest. We talked for awhile, and I comforted her. We fell asleep on the grass, and then we came back here." Ike told him, and Soren smiled as he saw right through his story. But he played it off as if he didn't know anything yet.

"And… is that all you did?" Soren held his poker face until Ike finished nodding in affirmative. Afterwords, a wicked grin spread across his face as he pointed out the flaws in his story.

"So what happened to your clothes?" Ike merely shrugged, as if he had the answer already thought out.

"It was dirty on the ground, so I changed." Now, if he had not had any other evidence, Soren might have accepted his tale. However, the issue remained of the S++ rank relationship.

"So how can you explain this?" Soren asked mischievously, pointing to the S++ rank on the scroll. Ike's eyes widened as he saw the implications. The dark haired mage was impressed that he maintained a cool and level voice as he responded.

"No clue. Must've really bonded with her or something…" Soren merely smiled, having already known the answer. He turned his head behind him as he spoke to Lea.

"Hey, Lea… Would you mind plugging your ears while we talk? I'm afraid there is some classified information here." Soren nodded in satisfaction as Lea complied, before returning his gaze to Ike.

"There, now she can't hear us. I will give you one more opportunity to tell me everything that happened, or I will tell a few people what I think happened…" Soren let the threat linger in the air, and immediately Ike paled. After a few seconds of studying his expression, Soren confirmed his suspicions. So he really did do it.

"Ike, please tell me you did not have sex with her…" Soren pleaded him, hoping for his sake that this was not the case. Unfortunately for the blue haired commander, he silently confirmed it. Behind him, Lea gasped audibly. Swearing, he realized that she had not completely obeyed him. With a quick flash of a greenish tome, and a snap of his fingers, the other occupants of the room were quickly immobilized in midair. His Elwind spell was powerful enough to hold both in the air for as long as he wanted. Soren's rage could barely be contained, as he seethingly pointed a finger at Lea.

"You…" he paused. "Will not speak of what you heard to anyone." He spoke harshly, and the girl winced as his biting tone cut through to her sharp ears. Whirling around, he pointed another finger at Ike.

"And you, will tell me what in Ashera's Tellius was going through your thick skull! What you did was wrong on so many levels that Greil would assign you to more chores than Boyd had to endure if he were here! One, you almost got yourself killed, and two, DO YOU KNOW WHAT THAT CHILD IS GOING TO BE?!?!" In Soren's rage, he completely lost all control over his temper and revealed his rather intimate knowledge of laguz relationships. Ike would have cowered in fear had he been able to move. The dark haired mage was shaking in rage as he thought of Ike's complete disregard for the state of his own child. Behind him, Lea began to talk.

"Soren… How do you know all of this? Are you one of them too?" He shuddered as he realized that he had exposed his secret. In his anger, he no longer cared, and he spat out his response with as much venom in his words as he could fit.

"Yeah. It's high time everyone knew. I'm a branded child. An outcast. Ike, you have damned your child to be just like me. We are treated worse than beorc treat sub… laguz. You have no idea what you have done." In front of him, Ike was at a loss for words at Soren's outrage. Behind him, Lea fell to the ground as she skillfully negated his magic. He listened to her as she walked up next to him.

"I'm a branded child as well. We are treated like slime, like monsters by everyone. Our marks set us apart from all other races. Not even our parents want us. Do you understand now, beorc? What you have done is wrong. And-" Lea was cut off as Ike spoke.

"That's enough." In a cold and commanding tone, he ended their stream of comments.

"I will no longer sit here and listen to you two tell me what I have done. I knew full well what I was doing, Soren. Lea, you said that your parents didn't want you any more than anyone else did. Did you ever stop to consider that I would actually care for the child?" Soren stepped back in shock, hearing those words come out of the commander's mouth. Lea's eyes widened in surprise.

"What really makes you so different from us, Soren? Have we treated you any differently? If you go around telling everyone that you are scum, then they will treat you like scum. Our company has held you in the highest esteem, and we still would have even if we had known what you are." Ike's words cut through Soren's heart like a knife. He had forgotten the kindness that he had been showed, wallowing in his self induced pity all these years. The dark haired mage realized that Ike's words rang true.

"As for putting my own life in danger, that I will take full responsibility for. But don't you dare to assume that I would treat my own child like that." Soren's break in concentration allowed Ike to escape from his magical hold. Ike said but one more thing before he left them.

"If you tell anyone, your life will be filled with pain. I'm not the only one with secrets." With that, he left the room. All was quiet for at least ten minutes after he had completely gone, due to both other occupants shock. Finally, Soren broke the silence.

"You're a branded child too, huh…"

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Ike left the room in a rage, completely forgetting to ask Soren who the hell his new friend was. All he could think about was Soren, and what he had said to him. How could he even think that he would treat anyone like that? Out of anyone in the company, he had expected Soren to be the least enraged, but it turned out that he had been the most furious out of anyone. Ike began to walk, walk away from Soren and his biting words. His anger cooled as his legs carried him around the citadel once, twice, then three times. Suddenly, a voice called out to him.

"Ike! Lord Ike, are you alright? You look terrible!" Princess Elincia had seen him and walked over to him. In a low tone that did not even begin to conceal his anger, he responded.

"I'm fine." But Elincia would not leave it at that. She could tell that he was enraged, and tried to comfort him.

"Is there anything I can do to help? I have never seen you this angry before." Ike willed his breathing to slow and his mind to calm. Above all, he must control his emotions. After a few seconds of slow, calm breaths, he was able to respond with a semblance of serenity.

"It's nothing to be concerned about, Elincia. Pay it no mind. Perhaps someday I will be able to tell you what is bothering me, but not now." Ike felt better having calmed down, but inside he still felt the indignity of the two children's accusations burning within him. Elincia, seeing that there was nothing she could do, simply nodded her head.

"Alright, Ike. I trust you… The apostle has requested that we meet with her. Shall we go?"

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Ike lay down on his bed, pondering the events of the past few days. Their group had raided the stronghold of the Laguz Emancipation Army, recruiting Tormod and Maurim. A hermit of the desert had also been recruited by Lethe, and he had trained with him the day before. Already, his skills were becoming more polished and fluid. Stefan used a brutal combination of grace and speed, and was able to string five attacks into one effectively. Any axeweilder would have fallen to the powerful hermit in a heartbeat, with the technique he called Astra. Today, they had rescued a laguz of the heron tribe from Duke Tanas' villa, and Ike had been told of the Serenes massacre. He could see the flames licking at the forest in his minds eye, the burning image scarring his emotions. The commander could not believe that the people of Begnion could do that to anyone, no matter their hatred of the laguz. It sickened him to realize how horrible the beorc treated their partners. He was lying on his cot in his quarters, resting before the search for the heron the next day. Ike did not look up as the door to his room opened. He merely stared at the ceiling, replaying the horrible images within his mind over and over to himself. The door closed again, and he could hear footsteps approach his bed. A feline form sat down at the edge of his cot, and placed her hand on his shoulder. Ike felt the beginnings of despair form within his mind.

"How… how could they do such a thing… Why does it have to be this way, Lethe?" Ike pleaded with the catgirl sitting on the edge of his bed, as if she had a solution to the problem. Lethe merely stared at him, shaking her head.

"Beorc are cruel creatures. You see why we laguz have hated them now." Ike shifted his gaze, not wanting to look at her. It completely appalled him how his species acted, in almost every way. There was naught but silence in the room for several moments before Lethe spoke again.

"But if it makes you feel any better… I see you as more of a laguz." Lethe blushed slightly, and Ike smiled at the compliment. He moved over a little to give her room to lie down, and she did so gratefully. They stared at each other on the bed, their bodies facing towards each other. Ike smiled warmly, as he began the conversation again.

"So, any particular reason you are up and about?" He said lightly, and Lethe's tail began to swish back and forth behind her feline frame.

"Well, I got a bit lonely… And I felt like coming to see you. Since you're so depressed right now, I thought I'd cheer you up." Lethe showed a sense of kindness in her words, but Ike merely frowned at the thought of cheering up. Depression had a way of rejecting help from the most persistent sources.

"Thanks, but I just don't feel… right. I'm pretty disgusted with beorc right now, to think that they'd do something like that." Lethe didn't seem put off in the slightest at his reaction. In fact, she seemed almost happy. He narrowed his eyebrows, before she spoke again.

"Well, you don't have to be one… at least not for tonight…" Lethe almost purred in a voice Ike could only describe as sexy. He frowned once, and began to form another question.

"Are you sure you want that? You-" He was cut off by a finger over his mouth. Ike could see it in her eyes that there was to be no argument. He quickly took off his shirt, not wanting it to be ruined like the last one had been. Lethe leaned in when he was finally ready, placing her arm over his well built chest. She was definitely purring now as she spoke.

"So, where would you like to be bitten?" Ike's response was out of his mouth before he could even stop himself.

"Where would you like to bite me?" Ike immediately said back, and she seemed satisfied with the answer. As Lethe rolled on top of him, she said one last thing.

"Touché." He saw her lean into him, her mouth almost reaching behind his back. Ike could feel a small pinprick of pain as she bit him where his shoulder met his neck, and immediately felt the same rush throughout his body as he did the last time. Instead of the agonizing pain he felt last time however, it almost felt natural for his body to change. But it was weird in the sense that he still had full control of himself when it stopped. The front end of his pants had ripped in the transformation, and Lethe was smiling as he changed to a more furry form. It was weird feeling himself change and watching her stay the same. His questions were answered as she spoke again.

"So… how about you show me how you beorc do it…" For a moment, Ike almost agreed. But after thinking for a second, he decided that he liked the laguz way better.

"Would you rather do it our way than your way? I have no preference. Feel free to choose what you want." Ike offered, and Lethe considered it. Without warning, she began to lick him behind his now rather catlike ear, which he took as a sign that she would do it her way. Grinning, he watched as her body morphed into full cat form on top of him. A few moments of pleasure later, and Lethe's head was once again looking directly at his own. She began to growl, and Ike surprisingly could understand her.

"Let's mix it up a bit." Lethe's front paw drifted down along his chest until it closed around a rather blood filled area. His eyes widened as the feeling intensified, and Lethe was smiling rather wickedly. This was going to be a good night…

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