The Shadows of Night by Ellen Fisher

certain of it.  
    Before yesterday, she would have said that all Antler looked alike to her in their animal form, but she knew with every fiber of her being that this stag was Hart.   It was evident in the graceful stride, the powerful, sleek lines of his body, and the confident, almost arrogant way in which he held himself.
    In a strange way, she was glad he had followed her.   The thought of never seeing him again had been niggling at her mind, an unpleasant cloud hanging over her freedom like a dark thundercloud on the summer horizon.
    He paused directly beneath her tree and looked up at her.   In his animal form, he couldn’t speak, but the message was clear.   Come down.   Now.
    She held still, barely breathing, just in case he wasn’t sure of her location.   He pawed a hoof in an angry gesture and made a bugling noise.
    “Fine,” she said under her breath.   “I’m coming.”   She scrambled rapidly down the tree, jumped to the ground, and stared into the dark eyes that seemed to look straight through her, right into her soul.    She noticed he was holding a small metal object in his mouth, and wondered if that was another piece of magic, one that had allowed him to track her.
    “I want to go home,” she growled.
    He lowered his antlers in a threatening gesture.
    Faced with the sharp prongs, she was tempted to back up against the tree trunk, but she held her ground.   “I am sorry about your brother,” she said in a more conciliatory tone.   “Really.   I wish him no harm.   But all I want is to return to my people.   I know your monarch told you to imprison me in the keep, but could you not just tell him you were unable to find me in the forest?”
    The great stag tilted his head as he looked at her consideringly.   At last he swung his antlers side-to-side in a clearly negative gesture.
    “Please,” she whispered.   “I just want to go home.”
    The last words were uttered in a hoarse tone, and she realized her throat was clogged with tears.   She didn’t want to spend the rest of her life imprisoned in a tower, unable to shift, trapped amongst strangers.   For a brief time, as she ran alone through the forest, she’d imagined that she was going home to her Pride, and the disappointment was almost more than she could bear.  
    The stag regarded her, his head cocked to one side.   Abruptly his hide began to ripple and his features to melt.   His antlers seemed to withdraw into his head, his front legs left the ground, and his body grew upright.   The changes happened almost too quickly for the eye to follow.   A scant second later, Hart stood before her in his human form, naked and magnificent in the dappled moonlight.   He reached up and removed the small metal object from his mouth, gripping it in his hand.
    “My brother was just attacked by the Fang Kindred,” he said, his deep voice soft but forceful.   His eyes were dark with anger, but she sensed it was not aimed at her, but at the Fang.   “The bites were unmistakable.   You were attacked by the Fang yesterday.   Both attacks occurred in neutral territory, and their attacks are obviously becoming more frequent.   Surely you do not seriously expect me to leave you out here in the forest all alone?   And in your human form, no less?”
    “I am sorry about your brother.   Will he survive?”
    “Otwa believes so.   I certainly hope so.   I do not know what I would do without him.   He is frequently annoying, but he is my brother.”
    “It is strange that both of us should be attacked by Fangs and survive.   That is very unusual.”
    “Yes, it is.   Few have lived to tell of a Fang attack.   But my brother was able to make it back to the keep on his own.   You would likely have died had I not found you.”
    “I am not certain of that.   My people are strong, and I have survived severe injuries before.   But I cannot understand why they didn’t tear my throat out, or your brother’s.   It is their