jack would even envy the way she would change, how graceful it seemed to be compared to his own. there was no thrashing, no moaning, no awful sounds of bones and sinew. after the wolf would disappear at sunrise, there would always be a feeble man in its place. in her place, a beautiful woman. "I always like what I see..." but that didn't mean he also didn't find it, well, a bit odd.
jack knew that the woman sitting in tigra's place had been there the whole time. nothing had changed, but everything had changed. he had become so accustomed to her tail, her fur, her teeth, that she almost seemed naked to him. to look at her, and not see those green eyes peering back, was almost as unsettling as the first time they locked eyes. so her eyes were blue. just like his own...
seeing her shiver knocked him free from his trance, and he was quick to place his arm around her shoulders to shield her from the chill of a desert night. almost as reflex, he ran his fingers along her bare shoulder. to touch her and feel human flesh was odd. he was delicate in his touch, as though pressing any harder than a feather would cause it to peel off and reveal her stripes.
"do you remember that night, on the beach? the first time we met?" he never forgot. he never forgot staggering through that sand, holding off his change for as long as he possibly could, and locking eyes with the mysterious woman now sitting in his arms. he never forgot that agent of hydra cutting their moonlight rendezvous short with a swing of his truncheon. he never forgot how their clash of claws and teeth played out more like a tango than a battle. "what did you think of me?"