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A Tale of Two Kobolds

Chapter 2

By William W. Kelso

Within a few days Kix had recovered from her illness, never knowing just how close she had come to dying. Griswold had a better idea, but never told her, nor did he reveal how much he had spent for her medicine. The relief he had felt when he had woken to find her fever had broken had left him realizing just how much he would have missed the little reptile. Not only was she a good worker, and good company, she had also come to mean much more to him then he had realized. He no longer thought of her as a slave, but a dear friend. And there was one other change, no longer would she sleep huddled next to the stove on the first floor of his shop, but would instead spend the nights in his bed, at least until the weather got warmer. She had protested at first, saying it wasn't her place, but he'd insisted, and he knew that secretly she was pleased. That she slept in the nude did not bother him, even though she was female. They were, after all, entirely different species, and one a mammal and the other reptile to boot. So sex was not a part of their relationship, and he doubted it was even possible. Still, he had to admit he enjoyed the feeling of her smooth cooler body snuggled up close to his as they slept and her musky scent; and it was nice to wake up and realize he wasn't alone. But other then the new sleeping arrangements they went back to their old routine of running the shop.

A few days after Kix had recovered enough to resume her duties Griswold made a trip to a grocer; and to return the Vets funnel and pick up some additional medicinal supplies for Kix as he had read a book mentioning reptiles needed certain vitamins and other additives to their food if they were not in their natural habitat. As he was returning there was minor incident that would have consequences he would not know about until later. A rather large fellow had slipped on the ice and knocked the bundle of food and supplies out of his hands, and as the fellow helped him pick them up he didn't feel a slight jerk to the hair on the back of his head. The man mumbled a 'Sorry Sir', and then continued his way.

Melchet was delighted when 'Mr.Fontain' finally brought him the final ingredient he needed for his spell, a lock of Griswold's hair. The thief was an oaf, but very talented at what he did, and most importantly, discreet. Once paid, he remained loyal, which Melchet valued. It was far harder to cast such a spell from a distance, then to administer it by potion; by mouth or anointing, but he was talented enough to perform the difficult casting. Potions were for apprentices and hedge witches. Plus it was much harder to counter such a powerful spell, though he doubted Griswold was capable of any kind of counter spells of any kind anyway. The man was a second had bookseller, nothing more. And an irritation that needed to be removed, and taught a lesson. Melchet was much more adept then most realized, and in fact the good people of Konigsholm would have been shocked if they knew his true identity, and that he was in actuality a very powerful necromancer. But now that he had what he needed it was time to act.

Griswold watched fondly as Kix devoured a large piece of raw liver with gusto, the little reptile hissing in delight at the treat. He knew it was her favorite, and that it contained vitamins she needed to stay healthy. He had surprised her with the tasty surprise after she had prepared him a lovely dinner of kebabs with potatoes and turnips roasted in the fireplace, followed but a thick bread pudding that amazed him it was so good. How she could fix such wonderful meals she couldn't even eat, never ceased to amaze him. When she was through cleaning up after their dinners, he called her over to him.

"Kix, come here please."

Kix scampered over to her master, and said, "Yes Masster?"

Griswold had known what he was going to do even before Kix recovered from her illness, and had no second thoughts. It was the right thing to do. "Kix, he said, when spring comes and the snows melt I'm giving you your freedom, and will have you taken back to your home in the South." Then he reached down and took the slave collar from around the stunned reptile's neck, and threw it in the fire. "I've already prepared the papers."

Kix was shocked, so shocked she didn't even react as her master removed the collar from around her neck. She had been a slave most of her adult life, and had not even thought what it might be like to be free again. Then she reached out and touched his leg almost in a daze, then hissing softly she hugged him around the waist; which was about as high as she could reach, and rubbed her snout against his stomach. She couldn't cry as she had no tear ducts, but she closed her eyes tightly as she grasped him.

"B-But why, Masster?" Kix finally asked, still in shock.

Griswold squatted so he would be closer to her level, and said, "Because it's the right thing to do. I never realized how lonely I was until you came along, and you became far more then just a slave. How could I keep someone I care so much about in bondage? And when you almost died from the cold I realized this place is not for you, that eventually you would be come ill again and again until you died. I couldn't bear that thought, so once the roads are open I'll pay a caravan to take you back to your family, where you belong my dear little friend. And who knows, maybe I'll come to visit you some time?"

Kix didn't say anything else, she couldn't, and she held him for a long time while he gently rubbed her back.

Melchet and 'Mr. Fontain' moved unnoticed through the dark streets. Melchet was quite warm in his ensorcelled robes, and cared not if his hireling was shivering. He had decided to make his attack tonight, as another storm front was moving in and could snow in the city for days. He was too anxious to get his hands on what he wanted, and would tolerate no more delays. He would case his spell, disable to shops wards, and 'Mr. Fontain' would break down the door. By then Griswold would be in no condition to resist. He doubted there would be any interference or witnesses. The Watch didn't venture out on nights like this as even the criminals were smart enough to stay in next to a nice toasty fire. The shop was located in a little cul-de-sac, and the two other shops were vacant. One was empty, and the other only open in the warmer months.

Melchet had already prepared the spell, and needed only to invoke it with the final line of the incantation. He stood in the doorway of one of the vacant shops, closed his eyes and concentrated, then making passes in the air he spoke the harsh sounding words of the spell from a language long dead, and suddenly felt a little weak as the spell drained a little of his life force to power it, made a final gesture to end the incantation, and settled back to wait. It wouldn't take very long, just a few minutes.

Griswold had stayed up rather late to for a change in order to examine several new books he had recently acquired, one being a rare volume of poetry by an author he liked. Just as he was leaving his study/workroom to head upstairs to bed he gasped and leaned against a counter, then bent over and moaned as pain blossomed in his chest. Oh Gods, he thought, he was having a stroke! He knew he was out of shape, but still, he was too young! The pain lessened for a second, and he sucked in a deep breath of air, then the pain returned tenfold and he collapsed over the counter, hissing in agony as the pain radiated out from his chest into the rest of his body accompanied by wave after wave of sickening nausea, each more painful the last. Slowly he slid to the floor until he lay in a heap, gasping for breath as his body began to contort and convulse; his back arching from the powerful cramps. Oh Gods, it hurt, it felt like he was being torn apart inside!

"K-Kix..." He gasped weakly, then gritted his teeth in agony.

Griswold soon realized he wasn't having a heart attack after all, for one thing he knew they didn't last this long; he should have 'recovered' some by now, or been dead. But he still had no idea as to what was happening, and thought it might be poison as his guts churned and heaved, but try as he could he couldn't vomit. But; managing to prop himself up against the corner, he finally realized the true horror of what was happening to him.

He felt his fingers suddenly cramp horribly, the joints cracking and popping, and he looked at one hand as sharp claws pushed out from under his fingernails, the nails tearing loose oozing drops of blood. In growing horror he stared at his other hand, and it was the same. As his teeth began to ache, then his jaws, he knew. Transmogrification!! Someone had cast a transformation spell on him! But that was an extremely powerful and hard to master magic, and was outlawed! Next to death spells involuntary transformation spells were considered the most vile, and the other question was, WHY? Then he stopped thinking about much of anything as the pain and nausea reached a new high, and he gave a shrill scream of agony as his legs began to cramp horribly, and a gut wrenching ripple ran down his spine, the vertebrae cracking and popping as he arched and convulsed.

Kix was almost done cleaning up when she heard her master call out, his cry filled with pain. With a loud hiss she dropped the bucket of coal she was carrying towards the fireplace, and turned to run down the steep narrow stairs.

Melchet smiled as he heard a faint wail from inside the shop; good, not much longer now. He motioned to his shadowy companion, and the man started towards the shops door.

Griswold ground his teeth as his jaws began to push out; then opened his mouth with a gasp of pain as fangs began to push through his gums and his teeth changed shape. He felt the strangest sensation as his head began to change shape, softening and flowing like clay, his nose sinking into his lengthening upper jaw as it broadened, his legs kicking wildly as they bent and reformed into new shapes, and kicking off one of his heavy felt house shoes he saw long clawed toes flexing as the joints cracked, lengthening, toes covered in green pebbled hide. A sickening pleasure pulsed in his loins, and he gasped as he felt his balls draw up into his body even as they voided themselves, his now rigid cock ejaculating violently as he orgasmed, then his still rigid penis began to pull up inside of him, a most strange feeling. Something fell past his face, and reaching up he pulled back a large clump of hair, and gave a...hiss of despair. He was becoming a reptile or amphibian! Oh Gods, he thought, not a snake, anything but a snake!!

Kix flew down the stairs as fast as she could go, and opening the door to the shop she stopped in shock at what she saw. There was a heap of cloths, and she recognized her master's robe, but the pile almost seemed to be empty, except for something squirming inside of it!! Then she hissed in amazement as a scaly snout suddenly poked out of the pile!

Griswold struggled and hissed in pain as the horrible change continued, but was hampered by his clothes which were becoming looser and looser, and he realized he was shrinking, rather rapidly. He tried to claw his way free, but the agonizing convulsions and cramps continued unabated, and his guts felt like they were sliding around inside of him, the feeling sickening and unnatural, and he groaned helplessly, his struggles weak and uncoordinated. Finally he managed to poke his head out from between two buttons on the chest of his coat, and the first thing he saw was Kix staring at him, her snout open in apparent surprise. Then he gave a loud squeal of pain as a bulge at the base of his spine suddenly exploded outward as a tail began to push out, and sank back into the pile of clothes with a hiss of agony as his hips collapsed and began to reform to accommodate the rapidly growing tail and his new stance.

As his hire approached the door of the shop Melchet cast a spell of neutralization to eliminate any wards, and smiled as their faint glow vanished. Such wards might deter your common thief, but not a mage such as himself. A second later 'Mr. Fontain' kicked in the door of the shop.

With a loud hiss Kix ran to the pile of clothes and began to tear at them frantically. Somehow she knew the strange reptile in the pile as her master, that something terrible was happening to him, but just as she started the front door was suddenly smashed open, and she looked up a looming figure entered the shop.

Griswold hissed loudly as he felt a final series of small cramps ripple down his body to the tip of his...tail, and it was over. Suddenly, except for a little soreness, he felt 'normal' again, more or less. But wrong at the same time, and managed to stick his head out of the heap of tangled clothes and found himself snout to snout with Kix, and then snapped his head towards the sound of the front door caving in. As he watched he saw a large man enter the shop, and he said,

"Sssss! Kix, RUN!"

Kix didn't want to leave her master in his...condition, but as the man advanced she turned and ran back up the stairs, and slamming the door threw the heavy bolt. Then she ran back up to the second floor to search for a weapon of some kind. She had to help her master, he was depending on her!

Hissing in anger and frustration Griswold clawed at the heavy clothing that pinned him down, his new body strange and hard to coordinate. The damn tail kept flopping around with a mind of its own, and he couldn't get to his feet, his claws tangled in the cloth! Then suddenly, just as he managed to stagger upright, a huge hand grabbed him around the neck, and hissing and kicking he was pulled free from the pile of clothes and picked up, and a shadowy face said "Hello little lizard", and then he was stuffed into a smelly burlap bag, it was tied shut, and then dumped on the floor. Enraged he clawed and bit at the bag, but the material was too tough. Suddenly the bag was kicked, and the same voice said, "Calm down stupid". When he persisted, a second; harder, kick was immediately administered, so he 'calmed down'. Hissing angrily; terrified, he heard another set of footsteps enter the shop.

"Well, did you get them?" Melchet asked.

"Sorry Magistar, one got away, ran upstairs. I can get it if you wants me to."

"No, let it go. You have our 'friend', that's good enough. Now, I want the books from those shelves there. And once you've loaded them dump the rest of this rubbish on the floor in nice little heaps so they're burn better. In the meantime I'll fetch what we're really here for."

Melchet!!! Griswold realized, he'd know that smarmy voice anywhere! And burn?? What did he mean burn?? Desperately he began clawing at the bag again, only to get a couple more hard kicks until he settled down again. As he heard the sounds of vandalism, crashes and loud thuds, he tried to reach the mouth of the bag, but it had been folded over and securely tied. Finally he gave up in despair, and gave a wailing hiss of fear. What had been done to him, he felt so strange, so WRONG!

Melchet neutralized the wards on the strongbox with ease, and eagerly stuffed the books it contained into a waterproof carrying bag, and added the hefty bag of gold and silver as well, no sense it letting it to go waste after all. Then as he left the back room he said to his companion,

"Come, we must be away. There is always a chance of discovery the longer we dally here."

"What about the lizard, Magistar?" The hulking man asked.

"Bring him, of course, Melchet said, I have just the thing in mind for our little friend."

The man, already burdened with two heavy bags of books, picked up the small bag containing the angry reptile, and threw it over his shoulder as well. Then he left the shop and disappeared into the night.

Melchet paused and looked around, then with a smile of satisfaction he gestured and several piles of books burst into flames. By the time he left the first floor of the shop was already engulfed.

Kix backed away from the door, coughing, as smoke poured around it. She had found a long dagger, and was about to do her best to protect her master and home, when she'd heard, and smelled, the sudden roar of flames. She'd heard one of the attackers tell the other to bring 'the lizard', which she knew meant her master, so at least he was safe from the flames. But she wasn't, and the door was the only exit. She turned and ran back up the stairs, and stared around in growing panic. The two windows at the front of the shop were sealed for the winter with heavy shutters and there was no way she could open them, not in time as they were screwed shut. She heard a loud roar, and a tongue of flame came licking up the staircase as the door collapsed, and she could feel the heat. Suddenly, remembering something, she ran to the kitchen area.

Melchet smiled to himself as he unloaded the bag of books. In addition to the books from Cuthbert's library that were his main interest had had also 'acquired' several other very rare tomes on magic and related subjects, as well as those on the Natural studies. All in all, a most profitable evening. He looked up as 'Mr. Fontain' upended a bag and dumped a hissing squalling reptile into a cage, and slammed the lid shut and locked it.

Griswold rolled to his feet as he landed, and with a hiss of rage he leapt at the door to the cage, but it slammed shut in his snout. Angrily he shook the bars, then seeing Melchet sitting at a table, he screeched,

"YOU!!! What have you DONE to me, you BASSSTARD!! SSSSssssss!"

The other man, whom Griswold didn't recognize, poked at him, and said, "You be good little lizard!"

Griswold just hissed angrily, and snapped at the man's fingers.

Melchet laughed, and said, "That's fine Mr. Fontain, you may leave now. Your payment is on the front counter; and a nice little bonus as well. I will call you when I have need of your expertise again."

"Melchet, Ssssss, what havvve you DONE TO ME!?!? HISSSSS!" Griswold wailed in anguish as he got the first good look at his horribly inhuman body. All he could see as he stared down a long snout was dark green hide and claws, nothing human remained.

"Well, my dear fellow, Melchet said, I had thought it would be fairly obvious. At first I wasn't sure what form to give you, but then I realized how ironically suiting it would be, so you are now a kobold, of the same species as your scaly little slave. I thought since you evidently liked the little creature so much I would make you her mate, and breed the two of you for amusement. Unfortunately she got away, and we didn't have time to go after her. I would assume she's burnt to crisp by now, poor little thing."

A-A kobold?? Griswold, and looking at himself again he realized Melchet was telling the truth. He was about two and half feet tall, his naked body covered in tough pebbled hide and fine scales. And his damn TAIL wouldn't stay still! And then he suddenly realized what else Melchet had said, KIX! He gave a hiss of horror, then a wail of loss, oh Gods NO!! KIX!!" With a hiss of rage he threw himself at the bars, and shrieked,

"MURDERER, I'LL KILL YOU!! HISSSSSSSSS!"

"Now, now, be polite", Melchet said, and then he stood up and approached the cage containing the enraged kobold.

"I WILL KILL YOU!! Griswold raged, and when I tell the authorities what you've done to ME they will arrest you for necromancy!"

"Ah yes, Melchet said, well, I prepared for that eventuality. I mean, just in case they did believe a deranged lizard." Raising his arm, he gestured imperiously at the cage.

Griswold reeled backwards as he suddenly felt his throat go numb; and clutching at his neck he coughed and gagged, then as suddenly as it came the numbness was gone. He gave an angry hiss, and said, "HSSSSSS, Ssssss, HISSSS!" Blinking in surprise, he tried again, "HISS, HISSSSS, SsssssSSSSS!" Then stared at Melchet in dawning horror.

"Yes, I think you understand, you always were a smart one. Melchet said, that little spell has removed your powers of intelligible speech, at least anything a human can understand. Oh, and just in case you're thinking of writing any little notes it also removed your ability to write. You can still read, just not put down any recognizable letters. Problem solved, you're nothing but an untamed feral kobold now."

Kix squeezed into the meat pantry and clawed desperately at the release on the bottom. The outside storage pantry was made so it could be removed in the summer when it couldn't be used to store meat, and when the lower catch gave and the bottom fell open she grabbed the stone wall, and using her long sharp claws she easily climbed down to the ally below. As she did she could feel the heat of the spreading fire through the stone walls of the shop. She watched for a moment as the flames engulfed the second story, watched as the only place she'd ever really considered home burned. Then she turned and ran off through the snow.

Griswold raged for awhile, hacking and gagging as he desperately tried to form intelligible words, but other than snarls, hisses, and other bestial sounds he remained mute. Finally, with one final angry hiss, he settled down. Despite the glowing coals in the large fireplace against one wall he was uncomfortably cold, and squatting on his tail; to keep the damn thing still, he wrapped his arms around his narrow chest, and; shivering, watched in growing horror a Melchet proceeded to destroy the books from Cuthbert's library!

Melchet systematically used a razor sharp dagger to slit the covers of the books open as he destroyed them. He removed the pages one by one, held them up to a bright light crystal, scrutinized them, cast a spell of revelation, and then threw them into a pile one by one. Seeing the now quiet kobold staring at him with its bright yellow eyes, he said,

"I suppose you're wondering what I'm doing? Well, I guess there's no harm in telling you now. Have you ever heard of the 'Grand Compendium'?" As the little reptile suddenly sat up straighter, Melchet smiled, and continued, "Ah, I see that are familiar with that legendary work. In the five hundred years since it was written the only known copy to exist belongs to the dragons, and thus is out of the reach of man as those great beasts share nothing. One copy was destroyed in the siege of the Great Mage Severus's stronghold. That left the only other copy out of three made unaccounted for, until now. It would appear that our friend Cuthbert stumbled across is somewhere, and hid it again before he died. Think of it, the greatest spells of the greatest and most powerful Wizards, Mages, Witches, Sorcerer's, and Necromancer's ever to live, all in one tome! Think of the power one who could wield those spells would have! NONE could stand before such might! So, I am hoping to find a clue to its whereabouts concealed in one the books from the Cuthbert family library." Then he proceeded to desecrate more rare and irreplaceable books, one after another.

Griswold settled back on his haunches with a hiss of despair. The 'Grand Compendium'!! Good Gods, if Melchet got a hold of a copy he would indeed be the most powerful living Mage known. Most of the spells and other magicks of the golden age had been lost after most of the mages and other practitioners died in the wars, and were thought lost forever. Such spells had destroyed whole cities, whole countries. Only a madman would want to unleash that kind of destruction again, and Melchet eyes glowed with the fire of a zealot when he spoke of that fell tome. He could not be allowed to find it!! Griswold gave hiss of despair, but what could HE do about it?? He was nothing but an animal now, a dumb brute! An overgrown lizard. He watched until Melchet finished with the last book, and then threw the final page into the large pile. He was relieved to see the necromancer had evidently not found what he was looking for. As the man finally got up and left the room without paying any more attention to the large lizard in the cage, Griswold curled up and tried to get some sleep, his body ached and he was ravenous, but for a long time all he could do was hiss softly in sadness and despair. Kix! Oh, my dear little friend, he thought as he found out kobolds couldn't cry, but they could grieve and he thought his heart would break.

Kix watched the front of the building her master had been taken into. She had quickly found, and tracked, the men who had taken him. She moved easily from shadow to shadow, sometimes crossing over roofs to stay out of sight. She was freezing, but ignored the cold for now, her gaze intent. She knew he was inside, but for now could do nothing. A careful inspection had revealed no easy way in, and the only chimney was blocked by iron bars. Finally she had to seek shelter from the icy cold as it started to snow again, and found a fairly warm sanctuary in the basement of a large building she accessed through a broken window pain, and there were plenty of rats and soon her belly was full.

For four days the blizzard raged, and Griswold stared forlornly out of his cage as Melchet; or one of his clerks, came and went on various errands. His attempts to contact any of the clerks met with embarrassing failures, usually resulting in them yelling at him to shut up and be quiet. Once a tattered blanket was dropped into his cage, and he eagerly accepted the gift, wrapping it around his cold body. It helped, a little. And only once was he fed, almost as an afterthought, a small handful of almost rotten meat scraps. But he devoured them without hesitation, his agonizing warping into another form having burned all his once ample body fat so that he was now slim and almost emaciated.

He spent some time examining his new body with mixed feelings, part fascination, part revulsion, all tinged with despair. He knew he was still male, he could feel his penis inside the slit between his legs at the base of his tail, but to a human he would appear basically sexless, or more like a female then anything male. But that wasn't the worst of it, the sharp claws on his long fingers and toes, not to mention his fangs, were even more pronounced then the ones he had seen on Kix, as were the more prominent ridges on his head. On Kix they were little more than raised bumps, on him they were almost; but not quite, horns. Ridges of irregular protrusions of thick bone. And he had to get used to balancing on the 'balls' of his toughly padded feet, and get over the feeling he was going to fall over on his snout due to his digitigrades stance. And the tail! If he didn't concentrate on keeping the damn thing still it would constantly twitch and move slowly back and forth. Reaching up inside his mouth he felt along his top jaw, and wondered what the slits in the twin folds of muscles towards the tip were for. He could feel something, but wasn't sure what it; or they, were. Giving up poking around inside his mouth he shut his snout, his razor sharp teeth fitting neatly together. But there was a kind of gap in the very front through which he could flick his long pointed tongue without opening his mouth, and it was so WEIRD to be able to smell with his tongue! He just felt so strange! His mind was still fixed on his former human form, and everything about this new one was alien. He spent most of his time curled up in his shoddy blanket, hoping to wake and find it was all a horrible dream.

Five days later things changed again, and he kicked and hissed as he was grabbed by a clerk wearing thick heavy gloves so he couldn't bite him, and stuffed into another sack. Then he was carried, felt a blast of frigid air as they went outside, and then from the sounds was thrown into the back of a sledge. He could hear, and smell, the snowgoats, the bells on their harnesses tinkling merrily. But soon his only concern was the horrible cold. After what seemed like forever he felt the sledge stop, the sack was grabbed again, and again he was carried, but felt relief as the chill wind was suddenly cut off as they entered a building again. Then he heard voices, muffled at first, but then as he was set down they became clearer.

"Ah, my dear Melchet, do what do I owe this surprise visit on such a cold day?"

"My Lord, came Melchet's voice, I have a gift for you, an addition to your impressive menagerie of exotic animals. One of my clerks found this little beast half starved and living off scraps from rubbish bins. The poor thing was almost frozen to death. As it is a reptile I felt you would be most able to properly care for it, seeing as you have so many other reptiles."

"Indeed, came a voice that Griswold now recognized as Duke Conrad's, what type of reptile is it?" And Griswold felt the bag stir as someone picked it up.

"Um, my Lord, Melchet warned, I would not attempt to handle the beast without proper protection, it is a disagreeable little creature, and bites."

Griswold gave an angry hiss as the bag was dropped again, and the Duke said, "Ah, thank you for the warning. What type of reptile is it? It seems fairly large."

"I believe it is a feral kobold of some kind, Melchet said, it has no speech and seems to be naught but an animal. I felt your zoo would be the best place for it, I am ill equipped to care for one of the cold-blooded."

"A feral kobold, the Duke said with interest, I do not have one of those, and I'm sure I can make room for another exhibit. I will have one of my servants summon the caretaker."

Zoo? Griswold thought, and hissing, tore at the bag. ZOO!

"Ah, Humphrey, the Duke said, this bag contains a gift from my good friend Magistar Melchet, it is a kobold of some kind. Take it to the menagerie and find a cage for it, will you? There's a good fellow."

Griswold kicked and squalled as the bag was picked up again, but suddenly he felt a heavy blow, and a voice said, "Calm down you." So he did, hissing in rage and fear. A fairly short time later he was set down again, then lifted up, the bag was opened, and he was dumped into a new cage. Before he could scramble to his feet the door shut with a heavy finality.

Griswold got up and lunged at the door to the cage, but it slammed before he could reach it. Crouching, hissing angrily, tail whipping, he looked around and inspected his new surroundings. The first thing he noticed was it was warm; delightfully so, and humid as well. He couldn't help but give a hiss of pleasure as the warm soaked into his body, he had been so cold his metabolism had slowed down to the point he felt lethargic and his thoughts were slow and cottony feeling. But as he warmed up he began to inspect his new home more closely.

There wasn't much to see. He was in a fairly large cage with a heavy glass panel on the front, and the other walls and ceiling were stone. The floor was covered in thick loamy dirt; about a foot thick he found after trying to dig his way out, and there was a large hollow log, a few living plants, a small 'pond' fed by a steady trickle of water with a drain in the bottom, and a few large rocks. And that was it. After a short while he heard a sound, and turned and watched as a slot in the bottom of the door opened, and a plate with a small pile of raw meat was shoved through. He ran to the door and clawed at it, hissing loudly, trying desperately to talk, to tell the person who'd brought the food that he wasn't an animal! He didn't belong here, in a...a zoo! But all he got in response was an angry sounding, "Shut up and eat your dinner, you stupid thing!"

Finally he calmed down and ate the meat; hardly even looking at it, he was just so hungry he didn't care what it was. After he was through he pressed his snout against the glass and looked around. There was a row of other glass fronted cages across from his, and he could see other scaled forms in most of them, and realized his own cage was probably in a similar row though his view of them was blocked. Other than that there was nothing to see, so he plopped down on the largest flat rock in the cage to rest, the rock felt nice and warm and he wondered if it was heated somehow. After a few minutes he saw a door open, and standing up gave a hate filled hiss as Melchet and the Duke entered. As they stopped in front of the cage he heard them say,

"Well, the Duke said, looks like our little friend has found a new home."

"I'm sure he'll be quite happy here, Melchet said, it's certainly much better then foraging for garbage in the freezing cold, poor little thing."

Griswold gave an ever deeper hiss as he watched the expression of veiled amusement on Melchet's face. He's enjoying this, he realized, he's enjoying seeing a man reduced to an animal in cage.

"He is a welcome addition to my menagerie, the Duke said, he is by far the largest lizard, and the only kobold. I will have to see if I can find a female to keep him company."

"Oh, I'm sure he would enjoy that, Melchet said, now I hate to run my Lord, but I must get back to my shop. I can't leave it alone for a second with the kind of help you can find nowadays. Scatterbrains, all of them."

"Yes, quite, the Duke replied. Well, my thanks for the unexpected gift; please feel free to visit anytime you get the chance."

"Thank you My Lord, Melchet said, I will try not to be such a stranger." Then he turned to the cage, and tapping on the glass, said, "Enjoy your new life, my little friend." As he turned to leave, the Duke said, with a laugh.

"I don't think he likes you very much."

As they walked away Griswold gave an ear splitting shriek of utter hatred, but both the men just laughed as they left the menagerie.

Kix had been watching the building all during the four day long blizzard, and was sure no one had left during the storm. And now she followed the sledge containing the human Melchet and her master; she could smell him inside the sack the driver had thrown into the back of the sledge, and then watched as they disappeared into an impressive manor in the middle of large snow covered grounds. Even though it was different now; more familiar, she still recognized her master's scent. After some time Melchet emerged from the manor, but without the bag. As soon as the sledge was gone, she scampered across the snow, climbed the side of the building with ease; her sharp claws finding easy purchase in the rough stone, and finding an unlocked window eased it open and slipped inside. Closing the window again she burrowed into a chest of old clothes to warm up. She would wait until dark, then go and find her master.

Miserably Griswold curled back up on the rock, and watched as a rather large snake moved around the cage directly across from him. He didn't like the way it was looking at him, and was glad for the two thick panes of glass between them. I'm on display in a zoo, he thought in despair, and nothing I can do about it. I'm going to spend the rest of my life in this cage! And his thoughts kept returning to Kix, and he would give wailing hisses of grief and loss. He had been alone for so long, and had never even realized just how lonely and sad he was until she came into his life, and, now, to lose her like that, and the loneliness returned tenfold, crashing down like an avalanche of despair. Finally, exhausted, he fell asleep.

Kix stuck her head out the door, and looked around carefully, tongue flicking for any scents. But it was clear, so she left the room and crept down the dark corridor. The dark didn't bother her that much, her night vision was excellent, and she could see the differences in the temperatures of objects as well. Once two maids or servants of some kind walked across an intersection up ahead, their bodies glowing brightly, and she took refuge behind a wall tapestry until they were gone. It helped that it was much warmer inside the huge manor, though still very cool, but at least she could function properly. But as she searched she began to get worried, this place was a huge maze!

For several hours she roamed the confusing labyrinth of corridors and staircases, huge halls and too many rooms to remember, often crossing her own scent trail at intervals. Since it was night there were only a few torches or other lights burning, and she was able to move about relatively easily. But she knew she'd have to find a hiding place when the day came. But the nights were quite long in this strange cold land, and she knew she had several more hours yet to continue her search. She would find him, she HAD too! She knew she was free now, and could leave, but that just wouldn't be right.

She finally had a break when she found the kitchens and servants quarters, and it was even warmer there, so she stopped to rest and warm up, hiding under a large table with a tablecloth that almost reached the floor. As she squatted in the dimness a man came into the kitchen, and asked the only woman on duty,

"Ello' Maddy, the scraps ready for the beasties yet?"

The woman gave a squeal, and said, "You keep your hands to yourself Humphrey!" But the accompanying giggle belied her tone of voice, and she added, "Yes, I've got a nice big pile of goodies for the poor things."

Carefully Kix stuck her snout out from under the table and watched as the man loaded several platters of raw meat onto the top of a cart of some kind, then after giving the rather portly cook a quick kiss; accompanied by more squeals of mock outrage, he wheeled the cart away and out the door, and Kix followed closely behind. She could smell the raw meat, and her empty stomach ached.

The man wheeled the cart to a large heavy door, and after unlocking it he pushed it through, but thankfully didn't lock the door behind him. Kix slipped through, and after going down a short hallway she followed him through another door, then stopped and stared in wonder. She was inside a huge dome, and it was warm and humid, and there were trees, and barrel ferns, and vines!! Plants of all kinds! She gave a hiss of awe; it looked like home, but on a smaller scale! With a flick of her tail she disappeared into a clump of ferns without even a rustle.

She followed the man as he entered another chamber off to one side of the huge terrarium, and he opened a small door behind what looked like cages, and taking a platter of meat he entered the narrow corridor. Seeing her chance Kix ran up to the cart and grabbed a large handful of raw meat scarps, and disappeared back into the ground cover, all in a few seconds. Then she perched in the crook of a tree where she could see him and he couldn't see her, and feasted, hissing softly in pleasure as blood dripped from her claws and snout.

The man soon finished whatever he was doing, then moved over to the other side of the chamber and repeated his task. Then he took the now empty cart, and left the way he'd come. Kix didn't move, she'd smelled other reptiles, and had a feeling this was where she'd find her master. She waited awhile, making sure she really was alone, then ran down the tree head first, and entered the chamber with the strange glass cages.

She looked in the first cage she came too, and saw a lizard of a kind she wasn't familiar with. It looked kind of like a tree climber, but was smaller and stockier, and a small plaque read 'Northeastern Rock Lizard from Barrier Islands'. It watched her impassively as it finished eating its meal. Slowly she moved down the line of cages, once jumping back from one with a hiss of fright as she saw the large snake inside. She was familiar with that kind of snake; they wouldn't hesitate to eat a kobold if they were lucky enough to catch one on its own. Then she moved on to the next cage, which contained another large snake, but not a kind he recognized.

Griswold stirred as he saw some movement outside the cage. He'd been dozing off and on, and had just finished another meal and his full stomach was making him sleepy again. There wasn't much else to do here, other than eat and sleep. How do they stand it?, he thought, as he looked at the other prisoners in the menagerie. Frankly he'd never considered how an animal confined to a cage might feel, but it made a big difference in your point of view when you were in one. Then, seeing more movement, he raised his head in curiosity, and his mouth fell open in shock. At first he thought one of the other lizards had gotten loose somehow, but then he recognized the figure moving from cage to cage across the aisle from his own. KIX!! With a shriek of joy he threw himself at the glass panel, clawing frantically at it. "KIX!!" He hissed as loudly as he could.

Kix froze as she heard her name called, and then spinning saw another kobold clawing at the glass front of one of the cages, and ran over to him. She'd known her master had been transformed into a reptile, but hadn't known for sure what kind until now. He's a kobold, like me!! She realized, and isn't that...interesting! She knew it was him, she'd have recognized him in any form. As she reached the glass he stopped tearing at it, and they just looked at one another for a long while, and when he put his hands flat against the glass she put her own on the other side opposite his as they rubbed their snouts against the clear barrier.

Griswold stared at Kix through the thick glass, her yellow eyes staring back into his as they rubbed their snouts against the glass, and he was amazed he had ever considered them cold or expressionless. He could see a mix of emotions in their depths, and realized just how beautiful they were. In fact she was quite beautiful, her form slender and sleek. Pulling back from the glass he pointed at the door in the back of the cage, and she nodded and disappeared. A short time later he heard the heavy bolt being thrown, and as the door opened he grabbed her as she entered the cage, and hugged her tightly, hissing in relief.

"Kix! Griswold hissed, I thought you were dead! Oh, my dear friend!"

"Masster, Kix replied, what have they done to you?!? You're like me now!"

"Transformation magic, evil and vile, Griswold said, it is a foul thing to turn someone into an animal against their will. It is banned in all the civilized lands."

Kix thought her master looked quite nice actually, he had a very prominent crest and was larger than most male kobolds, but she didn't say so. Frankly she thought it was an improvement. She tried to imagine what it would be like to be turned into something else, and just couldn't.

As they talked they had been rubbing their snouts against one another's, without even realizing it, but as his excitement at finding her alive faded he realized what they were doing, but didn't stop. It was nice, and she smelled lovely. Then he realized something else, she had understood him! With a hiss he pulled back, and said,

"You can understand me!?"

"Why, yess masster." She answered in surprise.

"But I can't talk, Griswold said, that bastard Melchet cast a spell on me so I can't make any intelligible sounds, I can't even write!"

Kix hissed in amusement, "But masster, you're speaking kobold, not common, of course I can understand you."

Kobold?? Griswold thought in amazement, and then listened carefully to what he was 'saying'. It was a mixture of hisses, soft grunts & snorts, clicks, and other bestial sounds. Reptilian sounds. For some reason it had never occurred to him that reptiles might have their own languages, but it stood to reason. Fascinating. Evidently the spell of muteness didn't affect his 'natural' language, only those that could be understood by humans. Absolutely fascinating. He pressed his snout back against hers, and holding her hands, said,

"I thought I'd lost you, it was a...horrible feeling."

Kix closed her eyes for a second as he gently rubbed his snout against hers, and found the relief she'd felt at finding her master alive and well almost overwhelming. If she hadn't she didn't know what she would have done. And it was so strange he was like her now, and she'd never been in such close contact with a male kobold before; she had still been juvenile when she was given to Master Cuthbert, and his touch and scent caused a small thrill to run down her spine to the tip of her tail and back up again, and she felt a pleasant warmth bloom in her cloaca, the normally tight slit loosening as it began to soften and swell, and her scent changed. She rubbed back against him, hissing softly in growing pleasure, not even aware of what was happening.

Griswold paused, and gave Kix's snout another soft lick, and realized something had changed. She smelled...different...nicer...enticing. He rubbed his own snout against hers again, and ran his claws gently over her tough hide with a faint rasping sound. She was so...so beautiful, why had he not realized that before? While no virgin he had certainly never experienced anything remotely like what was happening, neither of them did at first as the responded naturally to their growing desire, and love for one another. With a deeper hiss his caresses and snout rubbing became more...urgent, and he felt a sudden pressure between his legs as his internal testes began to swell in preparation, his hemipene stirring.

Kix rubbed the male's snout back, hissing in pleasure as he rubbed his against her throat and neck, his strong hands rubbing her back, her tongue flicking rapidly as she tasted his musk, and she gasped as she reached full preparedness for mating, her sex now fully 'ripe' and ready, her slit swelling, slick and wet. She knew now what was happening, but she wanted it, wanted it more then she'd ever wanted anything, wanted to mate with this male she loved so much, who had been so good to her. With a soft hiss she gave his snout a low lick, then pulled away and dropped to all fours, and lifted her tail for him, wanting, needing, hoping.

Griswold was overwhelmed by what was happening; he just couldn't get enough of her scent, her taste, the feel of her lovely hide under his hands, her snout rubbing against him felt so...so nice. He was breathing faster now, confused, and things were happening so fast! As she pulled away from their embrace and dropped down in front of him, then lifted her tail, he found his gaze riveted on the swollen pink slit between her legs, thick fluid oozing from it, the scent making his body tremble in need. He felt a sudden stirring in his own cloaca, and looked down with a mixture of lust and amazement as he saw his new penis for the first time. It was long and tapered, strange and inhuman, dark red in color; an animal's phallus, pointed on the tip with no glans or corona, thin at the tip, but much wider at the base, and quite large in comparison to his body size. As he stared, chest rising and falling as he took deep breaths, his penis hardened to rampantness, and tingled pleasantly as a large drop of pre welled from the hole in the tip. Panicking a little he looked around frantically, this wasn't right! How could he...?? With a...? AS a..? But...she...so-so very beautiful! How he wanted her, to make her his!

Kix, her body trembling in anticipation and need, looked over her shoulder at her mate, and as she saw his rampant maleness she gave a hiss of delight. But something was wrong, he seemed confused, unsure, and she realized part of him was scared, and he was fighting his arousal. She gave a deeper hiss, snapping her jaws, waving her tail enticingly, and said,

"Pleassse,Ssssss my love, I need you!"

As Griswold heard Kix he looked down at her again, at her yellow eyes glowing with need and desire; desire for him, and he gave into the inevitable. With a guttural hiss he positioned himself behind her, and hooking a leg around one of hers he pushed her tail further out of the way, and mounted her with a gasp of intense pleasure as his aching hardness slid into her eager quivering sex. Despite more than ample lube he had to work at fully penetrating her, lunging into her again and again as her sex stretched to accommodate him. It was her first time, and he was larger than the average male, and she gave loud hisses of pain and pleasure, turning her head and snapping at him. But all that meant was more pleasure, for both of them. Then once he'd hilted he gripped her tightly and began to fuck her with rapid powerful thrusts, his eyes closed from the intense pleasure as he rested his head on her shoulder, their tails tightly entwined.

Kix had her mouth open in a silent scream of ecstasy as her mates weight settled on her back, his hardness pushing deeper and deeper into her slick wet sex. She had never felt anything remotely like this before, and certainly had not expected something like this to happen. It was so sudden, but so very wonderful, and felt so...right! She turned her head and tried to bite him in response , unable to control that instinctive reaction to the painfully pleasurable intrusion as she was mated for the first time. When he started servicing her she gave soft squeals and gasps of pleasure, the muscles of her sex rippling and caressing his shaft, and she felt his breath on the back of her neck as he grunted and gave hisses of pleasure of his own. Suddenly he lunged into her hard, then again, and she gave a loud hiss and snapped her jaws as she felt powerful blasts of cool cum filling her sex to the overflowing, and he gently bit her neck as they both climaxed. She hadn't thought such ecstasy was possible.

Griswold hissed and snarled as he thrust desperately, and, Oh, by the Gods, he'd never experienced anything anywhere near as pleasurable as this before!! He opened his eyes as he felt his need peaking, and found himself looking into one of her eyes with his, his own love and passion reflected in hers, then gave a deep hiss of ecstasy as, unable to stop himself, he bit her gently on the neck to help pin her as she arched and bucked underneath his weight as their sexes quivered and spasmed in mutual release, a release so intense and wonderful he almost passed out. Then with a final squeal of ecstasy he pulled out and squatted back on his tail, his penis going soft as it slowly slid back inside of him.

As the male dismounted from her Kix sank to the ground, then rolled over and kicked her legs in utter happiness, tail curling. She'd never felt so wonderful, so excited, so alive! She was still a little shocked by what had happened, but felt no regrets. She'd wanted him, and somehow knew his seed had found her eggs. She gave a squeal of exuberance, and rolling upright she scuttled over to the male she no longer thought of as her master, but as her mate. He was squatting down, a somewhat bemused and shocked expression on his snout. Hissing softly she rubbed her snout against his, but at first he didn't respond.

Griswold stared at the reflection in the glass panel, the reptile looking back at him with its large yellow eyes. He opened his mouth, and the reptile did the same, and hissed in confusion. What have I done?? How did that happen?? He thought, how could I do that, take advantage like that? It was wrong! He wasn't a reptile; he shouldn't have...mated like that! But, it had been so very wonderful. He had the normal needs of any man, and had visited some of the higher class brothels when that need became too great, but it had never been like this. For one thing, he'd never mated with a female he loved before, and yes, he realized, he DID love Kix, both as man AND reptile. He wasn't sure when it had happened, but it had. It was so confusing, but felt so very right.

As Griswold became aware of her snout rubbing against his, he responded and licked and rubbed her in return, but it was different now. Before it had been as friends, but now it was as lovers and...mates. As she hissed in pleasure, a pleasure he felt as well, and he felt all his remaining inhibitions fade away. He no longer cared why it had happened, only that it had. But he was still a little confused, and unsure how to react, he knew so very little about reptiles OR kobolds!

"I...I...that was..." he started to say, but Kix pressed her snout to his and he felt her tongue slide inside his mouth, and he pressed his hard lips against hers as their tongues entwined in what could only be a kiss, though a rather sloppy one; a deliciously sloppy one, the inside of her mouth wet and sweet. He caressed her slick lovely hide, her claws scrapping delicately over his own, making shivers of pleasure run down to the tip of his tail. How he loved her! His...his mate.

As their kiss broke, Kix hissed softly, and said, "Sssss, my love, I know you're as confused as I was at first, but I wanted it to happen, it's not your fault. With kobolds we let one another know if we find another kobold attractive, letting them know of our interest with our scent. You only responded to my...love and desire for you. Sometimes it's just...spontaneous."

"But...but I'm NOT a kobold , Kix, I'm just stuck in this body! We have to get out of here, find some way to change me back! We have to stop Melchet!" And he told her about the 'Grand Compendium', and she hissed in dismay.

Kix knew her mate was right about stopping the evil human named Melchet, and about returning to his normal form. But for now he was her mate; and she gave him another gentle rub with her snout, and that was enough. Even if they never mated again he had given her part of himself, would be the father of her hatchlings.

Suddenly Griswold snapped out of his post mating complacency, and realized it must be almost dawn! And as if to press that fact home they both heard a door open and close somewhere nearby.

"Come m-masster, Kix said, we must flee this place!"

"No, wait, Griswold said, if we both leave they'll know I've escaped, and have the whole day to hunt us down. I have no idea what powers the Duke's servants may have to aid in tracking down escaped animals. I'll stay here for today, but you need to find a good place to hide. If you can try and gather up some clothes of some kind for us, and anything else you might think useful. I'll stay and pretend to be a happy little lizard. Then as soon as the evening feeding is over you can open the cage again, and we'll get out of here. Now, quickly! If they find you here all will be lost, and we'll spend out lives in this horrible prison!"

Kix knew he was right, but still hated to leave him alone like that. But she exited and locked the door behind her, and quickly found a good hiding spot in the boughs of one of the larger trees in the terrarium. From her perch she could keep an eye on the menagerie. And it occurred to her that maybe it wouldn't be so bad if they were caught, at least they would be together the rest of their lives. But no, that life would be one of slow mental torment.

That day was the longest one he could remember, and Griswold spent it either pacing nervously, or lying on the nice heated rock. He thought a lot about what had happened between him and Kix, and was surprised it didn't disturb him more. You're a kobold now, he reasoned, it was just natural. But still, it had been far more than just two animals mating; there had been true love and passion as well. And there still was, and he found himself sniffing his own hide for the traces of her scent that still marked him, and remembering how it had felt as they had coupled. So very strange and wonderful. And he realized he wanted her again, very much so.

As the day passed several people; accompanied by the Duke, came and visited the menagerie. The Duke was anxious to show off his most recent acquisition, and was pleased by the suitable sounds of appreciation from his guests as they viewed his private zoo. The new reptile just lay on a rock and regarded them with its bright emotionless eyes, which was much nicer then the tantrums it had thrown the first day. It seemed resigned to its new lot in life. Lying like it was it looked much more like a true lizard then the bipedal reptile he knew it really was, and he tapped on the glass in the hopes of getting it to stand up, but it just hissed and stuck out its tongue in what he was sure was a rude gesture. But it stayed on its rock, and refused to budge. Oh well, the Duke thought, it'll be up and about later. Probably just sleepy. Later a servant came and swept a few stray leaves that had made their way into the display, then left. After that things quieted down.

Kix waited until the servant left, dimming the lights as he went, and then ran over to the cage. She rubbed her snout against the glass, her mate doing the same, and then went to find anything she thought might be useful. She knew that in this climate they would need warm clothes and other things as well. So she retraced her steps to the residential area, slipping quietly from shadow to shadow as she explored room after room, tongue flicking constantly as she listened, looked, and scented the air. Then she had a bit of good luck. As she entered another room she could tell it was not visited often from the lack of fresh scents, and the dusty smell. As she looked around she realized from the size of the bed it was a nursery, or a childs room. Maybe the Duke's when he was a boy? Or maybe he had children, but she didn't care. Hissing excitedly she dug through several chests of child sized clothes, and found several garments that looked promising. Then exploring a wardrobe she found some heavy coats and other cold weather gear, including heavy fur coats with removable liners and matching gloves and hats. There was so much she decided to leave it, and return with her mate late so they could decide what they would take. Then she headed back to the terrarium, her internal clock telling her it was close to feeding time. That was the last time the menagerie would be visited until the next day, and she could let him out afterwards.

Instead of eating the meat as it was slid through the slot in the bottom of the door Griswold just took the plate and set it one side, then settled down to wait. Soon he began to fret and worry as the minutes passed, what if she'd been caught, what if she'd been hurt! At that horrible thought he got up, and hissing worriedly began to pace rapidly back and forth. When he heard the bolt in the door slide open he breathed a sigh of relief, and rubbed snouts with Kix as she entered the cage.

"Let's eat this meat, and then get out of here!" Griswold hissed.

Kix was only too glad to comply, and they shared the meat, teasing one another with choicer bits before throwing the treats into one another snapping jaws. She was rather pleased when he gave her the best portions. Then, having finished their meal, she left the cage with him close behind. As they left the temperature controlled terrarium he shivered, and said,

"Goodness, I'd forgotten how cold it was! At least the cage was warm."

As soon as they reached the child's room Kix locked the door after them, and was pleased when he expressed amazement at her finds.

"Kix, Griswold said, this is amazing! Most of these clothes will fit us just fine with only minor alterations! We'll be able to move around outside with much more comfort and ease."

Quickly they picked out an assortment of clothes, and with a few well placed rips and other 'alterations' soon had passable winter clothing. Their tails were a problem though, so they'd probably have to just stick out, but the long coats would drape over them if they kept them tucked. Instead of putting them on yet they bundled them up so they could carry them more easily and they'd be able to move easier until they escaped from the Duke's manor. Since Kix was more familiar with the rest of the manor Griswold let her lead the way, and she soon led them back to the room she'd entered from. And as she opened the window she was met with a blast of snow, and it took both of them to close it again.

Hissing in dismay Griswold looked out through the window's small panes at the solid white wall of falling snow, the flakes 'sshhhing' against the glass as the wind blew it almost horizontally. It was a full blown blizzard! There was no way they could leave, they wouldn't get ten yards. The already deep snow would be virtually impossible for creatures a small as they were to get through, and visibility was zero. And he knew from experience the blizzard could last for days.

"We'll just have to stay here then, and hide." Kix said.

"No, we can't. Griswold said, they're bound to notice I've escaped fairly soon, and they'll search the manor. If it was just humans we could hide easily, but they'll use magic to locate me, and since the spell will be to locate reptiles they'll find you too." He gave her snout a gentle nuzzle, and said, "I can't let that happen, if I have too I'll let myself get caught and you can let me out again later."

Kix nuzzled him back, and replied, "But what if they DO catch me too, or put a lock on the cage door? Or a guard, or magical ward, or, who knows?? If we can't hide we HAVE to leave somehow."

"But we can't until the blizzard ends, and even then the snow will be piled too deep for us to be able to even move!" Griswold hissed worriedly.

Suddenly Kix straightened up, and gave a loud hiss. "I know! The drains, they lead to the sewers! We can leave that way! We're small enough, and any water in them is most likely frozen, or even if it's not there won't be much until the spring thaw."

"How do you know that?" Griswold hissed in surprise. He'd have never even thought of that possibility.

"I, um, er, did some exploring, Kix admitted, after I cleaned the rats out of the shops basement I, um, had to find other places to hunt."

"Yuck, hissed Griswold, I can't believe you eat those nasty rodents!"

"They're delicious, Kix said defensively, and the city ones are nice and plump and easier to catch then the ones in the wild. I don't think they've ever been hunted by kobolds before."

"I guess they don't have any predators other the cats." Griswold said, but was still disgusted by the thought of eating a rat, even though he was a kobold now. Then he gave her snout a lick, and added, "I'm sorry you had to eat rats, didn't I feed you enough?"

Touched by his concern, Kix returned the lick, and said, "Oh yes, I was getting fat. It's just that, well, I...we, need to hunt. It's an instinct I guess. Plus I needed to convince the rats to stay away from the shop. You took better care of me then any of my other masters ever did, even Master Cuthbert. But his manor was overrun with rats, so the hunting was good."

Moving closer they bobbed their heads up and down, gazes locked on their mate, hissing softly, and then came together, rubbing their snouts gently. Griswold hissed softly and rubbed his snout against hers, then moved on down her neck, and under her lower jaw. She returned the caresses with an intensity that pleased him, and as their scents changed he knew what was coming, both knowing what they wanted, needed, and this time didn't hesitate to accept her acceptance of his offer. He wanted her again, to make love to her, and figured they had time for that. But this time it was different, they were more in control.

Slowly he worked his snout down her back, rubbing his lower jaw against her sleek hide, and began to rub the base of her tail with his claws, hissing softly, his tail whipping slowly, and Kix found the display incredibly erotic and arousing as he courted her, and she rubbed her own snout across his back. As her need peaked she pulled away and hopped up on one of the beds; which though for a human child was quite large for them, and faced him crouching with her tail raised and whipping in the air, and as he tried to get on the bed she snapped playfully at him, hissing loudly. When he circled the bed she turned to keep facing him, watching intently as he bobbed his head and lashed his tail back and forth as he displayed for her, his bright eyes locked with hers. He's so big and strong, she thought, so handsome. When he finally reared and gave a loud grunting hiss, displaying his fangs, she slowly rolled over on her side, and lifting a leg offered herself to him.

When Kix jumped up on the bed Griswold tried to follow, and at first was a little put off when she hissed and snapped at him, refusing to let him join her. But he soon found her 'resistance' was arousing him even more; and something in him knew what she wanted of him, what she expected. He started strutting, his head darting forward and back as he bobbed and waved his tail, Kix watching him intently, her scent of arousal increasing even as his own did. As he circled the bed she turned with him, hissing softly, until finally he couldn't wait any longer, and with a loud snarling hiss he reared up and opened his mouth wide, spreading his arms in a dominant stance. The he watched as she rolled over and submitted herself to him.

Kix hissed as Griswold jumped on the bed, crouching over her and hissing deeply, her posture timid and submissive, and when he lowered his snout between her spread legs and she felt his breath as he snuffled at her wet and swollen sex she gave a groan of need. Then as his snout rubbed against her, and his tongue found her sex, she squealed in pleasure. She opened her mouth, hissing and panting, as his tongue slid between her welcoming nether lips and began to explore her depths. Leaning up she gently clawed at his head as he pleasured her, her whole body trembling in ecstasy.

I can't believe I'm doing this, he thought as he was attracted by the scent of her ripe swollen sex, irresistibly drawn to lick and taste the source of that amazing scent. He had never engaged in oral sex; at least on his part, with a human female, and in fact the thought had been rather revolting. If they wanted to suck his cock that was one thing, but he didn't return the favor. But this was different, it was a need almost as intense as his desire to couple with her, and he hissed in pleasure as his tongue licked across her wet swollen cloaca, gauging her readiness to mate, the taste of the thick fluid oozing from it indescribable, and without hesitation he pushed his tongue through her tight lips and deep into her sex, and could feel her trembling from his touch, and that excited him even more. He pressed his hard rigid lips against her wet softness, his tongue busy, her sex sucking and caressing it as she clawed at his head, her hisses of pleasure loud in his ears. The inside of her vagina was warm and slick, thick with her sexual juices as he eagerly lapped at them, and he just couldn't get enough of that wonderful sweet taste no matter how long he 'ate' her. But finally his own need became too great, and he pulled back from her quivering sex, her lips only reluctantly letting him go as his tongue slid from them with a wet 'slurp'. Hard and rampant he straddled her, and then lowering himself he slowly guided his aching hemipene into her, and she screeched and clawed at him as he began to thrust powerfully, her eager sex quivering and clenching around his hard shaft. So wet, so tight, so slick, so much pleasure!! And he threw his head back and gave a barking grunt as he took her, letting any other male know that she was HIS!

Kix kicked her legs slowly, tail flailing, as his tongue did wonderful things deep inside her eager willing sex, the scent of his rut filling her nostrils and tickling her tongue as it flicked rapidly. She had not expected this, nor the incredible amount of pleasure he was giving her, but as she gripped weakly at his head she didn't want it to ever stop. But finally he pulled out, and she stared at him as he positioned himself over her, his cock throbbing and dripping strands of pre, and as he took her she opened her snout wide with a shrill hiss of ecstasy as his hardness filled her and he gave his mating call, and as he mated her she gently nipped at his snout and neck, her tongue licking over his slick sweet tasting hide as she clawed at his back, ohhh, how she loved him!! Then as he began thrust faster she kicked her legs and gasped, and as his cock pulsed and his thick cum filled her she arched and trembled as her own unbearable pleasure peaked and a massive orgasm racked her body.

Oh Gods, Griswold thought as he moved in her, her vaginal muscles stroking and clenching against his aching shaft, their belly hides slapping together. The feel of her fangs gently biting at his snout and neck, her claws scraping across his back, was incredible. He wanted the ecstasy to last forever, but all to soon he felt his need peaking, and began thrusting faster as that wonderful irresistible pressure built up in his loins, and as he exploded inside her he threw his head back and gave a guttural hiss of sexual bliss as he filled her with his seed. Then he rested for a minute before he pulled out of her and rolling over on his back next to her, hissing happily. It had been even better then the first time, if a little less intense.

Griswold had thought it was over, but Kix had other ideas. After they both rested for awhile, she got up and bent over and gave him a long 'kiss', her tongue sliding inside his mouth, then started flicking her tongue down his neck to his belly, teasing him, then down to his cloaca slit, which was still soft, the tip of his not quite retracted hemipene protruding. She looked at him as he stared down at her, his snout open as he panted, and then ran her tongue over his cloaca and he gave a shudder of pleasure, hissing softly. Then as his hemipene reversed itself and began to extrude again she wrapped her tongue around it and slide the slick soft organ up and down his shaft as he quickly became rampant. The taste of his, and her own, sexual juices and pheromones on the swelling phallus was wonderful, and she lowered her snout over him and started sucking gently, tongue caressing his cock.

Griswold watched in pleased delight as Kix moved down his body to his sensitive claoca, and when she started licking his slit and hemipene he groaned in pleasure, and arched himself a little. When she swallowed his cock and started tonguing and sucking it he could only lie back and gasp in ecstasy, tail flailing. The feel of her fangs gently rasping across his sensitive member just made it even better as her tongue slide up and down his shaft. He knew he couldn't hold back much longer, and helplessly gave himself over to her ministrations. But Kix had other ideas.

With a slurp she let her mates cock slide from her mouth, and then she quickly straddled him, and lowered herself onto his slick hardness, throwing back her head and giving a shrill hiss of utter bliss as she impaled herself, and he bucked and squealed under her, snapping his jaws in a frenzy of intense pleasure. Then she leaned forward and they pressed their snouts together, tongues entwined, and stared into one another's eyes as she moved on top of him, rocking back and forth with a gentle steady rhythm as she pleasured them.

Griswold stared into his mates beautiful eyes as they move together, and was amazed that each coupling seemed to be even more pleasurable then the previous, and was also surprised; but very pleased, that he would have no trouble performing again so soon. In fact, there was no soreness, no post-coupling exhaustion. He was finding out, in a most enjoyable way, that kobolds are pretty much insatiable. And the more they mated while Kix's egg sack was full, the more eggs she would eventually lay as more were fertilized with each successful copulation.

After quite some time of nearly unbearable pleasure Kix could hold back no more, and begin to speed up her rhythm as she rode him, rocking back and forth, grinding down, faster and faster, her need intense now, her climax building. Griswold had been running his hands over her sleek hide as they hissed and gently 'bit' at one another's muzzles, but as he felt his next orgasm building he grabbed her in front of her legs and lunged upward as she ground down, and as they climaxed she collapsed over him, and he held her close as their bodies writhed in mutual ecstasy. They stayed joined until his hemipene finally slid back inside his body, then she rolled off of him and they held one another close for awhile, flicking their tongues over their snouts, and one another's.

"I love you so much. Griswold said as he licked Kix's muzzle tenderly, I have for a long time you know, even before I...became like this. This is so...so wonderful."

"I've loved you too, for a long time, Massster. Even before, you were so good to me, so kind.", Kix replied.

"Oh no, Griswold said, you can't call me master anymore. I gave you your freedom, and, well, our relationship is so...different now."

"But I can't call you Grissswold, Kix fretted, it's a stupid name for a kobold. Oh, I'm sorry mass..., I mean, it's a fine name for a human, a very fine name!"

Griswold tilted his head back as he gave a loud hiss of amusement, and then gave a softer hiss of pleasure as Kix licked his exposed neck. "I agree, my love, he said, it IS a stupid name for a kobold! Very well, while I'm like this I guess I need a proper kobold name. Um, can you recommend any? I'm afraid I don't know any but 'Kix' , which is quite pretty by the way."

"You like my name?" Kix said, delighted.

"Oh yes, very much, Griswold said, it suits you. I don't know, it just seems to be perfect."

Kix hissed shyly, surprised at how pleased she was that he liked her name so much. It was a fairly common kobold name, for a female, the closest translation into the common tongue was 'nimble one'. She had been given that name because right out of the shell she'd been a climber. But what would be a good name for her mas...Griswold? Then she gave a hiss of glee, and said,

"How about Griss?"

"Griss what?" Griswold asked.

"Just Griss, for your kobold name, Kix said, it's a good name. It means 'strong and/or steady' in my clan's tongue. It's a good name for a male, and it sounds like the first part of your human name."

"Why not Griswold, then?" He asked.

Kix snickered; a series of short hisses. Do you know what 'wold' means in kobold?" She giggled.

A little put out, he replied, "No, I don't."

"It means 'big chicken', Kix squealed in amusement, and Griswold means 'big strong chicken! Ssss, ssss,sssssss!"

Griswold blinked a couple of times, then started sniggering too, then they held each other for awhile until the loud squeals and hisses of amusement faded to bearable levels.

"Well then, Griss it is, Griswold finally said, I certainly don't want to be known as 'Big Strong Chicken'!

The he sobered quickly; though he had to admit the hilarity had left him feeling refreshed, and said,

"We've got to get on the move, Kix. As wonderful as it's been we've been taking up too much valuable time. We have to get OUT of here!"

Kix nodded her head in agreement, and each grabbed their bundle of clothing, and she went first, sticking her head out the door and looking both ways, and then moving down the corridor; keeping to the shadows, 'Griss' close behind.

Griss watched as Kix stuck her head around the corner of an intersection, her body flat against the floor, her tail twitching a few inches from his snout, and he had to admit he was enjoying the view. She was so sleek and had such lovely markings; marred only by faint remnants of welts from the beating her second master had given her. That enraged him to an extent that surprised him. Then she gave a flick of her tail to let him know the way was clear, and they both dashed across the intersection.

Kix was pretty positive she knew where to find a drain that would give them access to the sewers under the manor, the kitchens. They'd have a chute or large drain to dump garbage and dishwater down. But if that didn't work, they'd head for the basements. And she wished Griss would stop licking her tail every time they stopped! It was annoying, but in a very nice way. And she already wanted him again, but coupling in the middle of a hallway was probably not a good idea, though it would be interesting and very enjoyable.

They had indeed taken much longer to mate then they'd realized, and the manor was starting to stir. They had a near miss at being discovered when a lad came down the corridor lighting more candles, but found a dark niche to squeeze into and found themselves in a cloak room that had been unused for quite some time. They debated hiding there the rest of the day, but the fear of being tracked with magic finally caused them to move on.

As they reached the servants quarters and kitchens area Kix realized there was no way they could use the kitchen drains, there were too many people up and about now as they prepared the Duke's breakfast. So they waited until they had the chance, and then scampered across the entrance to the kitchen to what appeared to be a door leading to the basement as it was open and they could see stairs heading down.

Kix ran down the stairs on all fours, Griss following, and the stairs spiraled down in a way where it was hard to see more than a few feet in front of them. It was fairly dark as there were only a few small niches with candles, and paying more attention to the stairs she failed to hear; or scent, the person coming up the stairs until she literally ran into them and confused chaos ensued as Griss slammed into both to them.

The End

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