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  “You were afraid he had come after me?”

  “Oh, he did come after you. I am just glad that Karl stepped up.”

  Pansy blinked as she realised that her father had defended her. Sure, he kept other werewolves from trying to think she was an easy target, but she had never known that he had taken on a giant fairy and won.

  Watching Keelie eat was not something Pansy had ever been treated to before. She handled the food gracefully and not one drop of the burger escaped, which filled Pansy with envy. She usually looked like she had massacred the darned thing.

  “How do you manage to eat so neatly?”

  “Long practice, Pansy. I am older than I look.”

  Pansy knew when she should keep her mouth shut, and a woman’s age was definitely that topic.

  They finished lunch with a staring audience, and it struck Pansy that aside from the fact that she had known Keelie all her life, she never changed. They looked like they were the same age but that was where similarities ended.

  “How do you do it?”

  “Do what, Pansy?”

  “Live every day knowing that you will outlive those around you by decades if not centuries.”

  Keelie paused on their way back through the town, and the traffic on the sidewalk ceased movement with her. She sighed, stroked Pansy’s hair and urged her off the paving and into the woods.

  “I was born knowing that I would outlive humans and shifters alike. We are taught that we do not burn as brightly, but we burn longer. I think of humans as fireworks—brilliant and I wouldn’t miss watching for the world. Shifters are bonfires. You have to be careful, but they are beautiful and deadly all mixed together. The fae of all kinds are slow-burning candles. We light the corners and cast the shadows.”

  “Very poetic.”

  Her aunt grinned. “Thank you. It has taken a while to work out suitable comparisons. Fire seems to be the best unit of measure as we all burn out in the end. It just takes some of us longer than others.”

  Pansy couldn’t get that image out of her mind. “When did you meet your first shifter?”

  Keelie stepped lightly over a fallen log on the path. “I worked for a dragon quite a while ago as a housekeeper. She was a good friend and remains so to this day. She was my first shifter.”

  “An actual dragon?”

  “They do exist, you know. Most of the mythical shifters do, somewhere in the world. I have heard whispers of the phoenix, tales of unicorns and, of course, seen the silhouette of a gryphon. You just have to keep your eyes open.”

  The thought of mythical creatures had Pansy grinning. “You never did tell me how I was named.”

  “Ah, that. Well, your mother had six boys already, and she said, I bet this is another boy, and I said, I bet you are wrong. She said, If this is a girl, you can name her. I asked, What if it is a boy, she said, You will have to give him a car on his sixteenth birthday.”

  Keelie smirked, “It was confirmed after the first trimester, so I named you after my grandmother. Pansy Adara.”

  “You knew I was going to be a girl.”

  “Of course I did. Your mother’s scent changed and her power signature was shifting dramatically. You had to be a girl. Once that was determined, the second part of the plan was put into action, and I grabbed all the information on power bonding to a shifter that I could find. While you were still developing, you were given all the magic that this area could muster and that changed you from wolf to porcupine before you even saw the world.”

  “Why were you willing to put that much power into me? I mean, it must have cost you beyond what the local land gave up.”

  “Very perceptive. I do not have children of my own yet, and the opportunity to be godmother to a little girl whose mother was not long for this world was too tempting. I had to take the chance. There might never be another opportunity for me to be involved in a child’s life. It was too good an offer for me.”

  “Are children scarce in the circles of the fae?”

  They were approaching her home, and Pansy could sense all of her brothers and her father inside its walls.

  “They are not common. Our kind is slowly approaching its demise. There are small programs in place to blend us with humans, but there is the old guard who believe that if we are dying, we should do it with pure blood. I say, whatever happens, we should fight it and spread ourselves where we can, even if it is sharing our energies with other species.”

  “That is a very forward-thinking attitude.”

  “It is not a popular one among the fae. Our half-bloods have been less than what has been hoped for, but the amusing thing is that if our elders were keeping close track, they would notice that the children of the half-bloods are showing tremendous increases in magic. It is almost as if the power needed time to adjust to being in human form.”

  Pansy looked into Keelie’s face and nodded. “I can see how it might need time to adjust. Do you think that my children will have more of the natural magic than I do?”

  Keelie blinked. “I hadn’t thought about it. Your children might go with your form, the form of your mate or they could revert to wolves. As for the magic, no one knows. This sort of thing doesn’t happen much. There are no records of it occurring before.”

  “It must have happened though, or how would you know how to do it?”

  Keelie snickered. “I improvised.”

  Pansy laughed helplessly. “I am glad you have creative impulses, but I am more delighted that it was successful.”

  Keelie sobered. “I hope you know that I would have kept trying. Nothing would have stopped me from trying to carry out Bethanne’s last wish.”

  Pansy hugged Keelie with one arm. “I know you would have kept going. I am just glad that it worked and you were able to spend some quality time with my mother before she faded.”

  “As was I. Now, on to your party. I am sure that your family will throw you an event to remember.”

  Wrinkling her nose as she opened the door, Pansy said, “They usually do.”

  Chapter Five

  Dinner was a selection of her favourites. Pot roast, spaghetti and a giant bowl of glazed carrots were among the dishes.

  Once the meal was over, the cake was sliced and it was time for gifts. Each of her brothers gave her something small, but her father’s gift always made her tear up.

  “I give you the gift of this home and access to all within it. Life and safety within the pack house and access to all of its lands.” He kissed her forehead, and Keelie applauded with approval.

  She had been given the same gift every year since she was born. It didn’t matter that she wanted a pony; she got access to her family instead.

  Finally, after the hugging that was traditional, Keelie stood in front of her. “Time for my gift.”

  Pansy stood up. “It is not necessary.”

  Keelie smirked. “I offer you a transporter, unlimited time at the Crossroads and all the items you need to give yourself a makeover. Do you accept?”

  Pansy looked over at her family and nodded. “It is time for me to move on.”

  The men looked relieved.

  Keelie nodded sharply and looked to Karl. “May I bring the transporter into the pack house?”

  He nodded with the short head jerk that Pansy was so familiar with.

  Keelie removed a small seedpod from inside a lock of her hair. She crushed it with her thumb, and a moment later, there was a flash of light and a strange woman was standing in the living room.

  “Transport Guild Master, this is my goddaughter Pansy. She is ready to leave.”

  “Lady Keelie, I am only too happy to serve.” The woman inclined her head.

  Pansy inhaled, the woman was human but her body was rippling with magic. “Welcome to our home.”

  The woman smiled. “It is an honour to meet you as well, Lady Pansy. I must say, someone with your signature does not come along every day. Do you have the vial?”


  Pansy blinked, and Keelie reached into her sleeve to produce a glass tube wrapped in gold wire. “Here you are. All of her genetic lines are represented.”

  Pansy’s father jerked his head sharply in a nod.

  The transporter looked at the vial and smiled. “There is quite a bit in here, isn’t there?”

  “One of her spines, her father’s fur and a tooth from her mother.” Keelie’s voice was emotional when she mentioned Bethanne.

  The transporter paid attention to the tension in the room. “Right, well, here are the documents for you to sign. Once they are complete, I will send you through.”

  Five minutes at the desk going through release after release and promise to abide by her animal’s choice left her father with one final signature and Keelie with another as the funder of the entire arrangement.

  When all the documents were complete, the transporter got to her feet. “All right then. As you are picking up what you need in the Crossroads, prepare to leave.”

  Pansy’s eyes welled as she hugged her brothers, one after another, and finally squeezed her father until he grunted.

  “Go on, Pansy. You are going to have to search out the next step in your life, despite what I think.” He ruffled her hair and chucked her under the chin.

  Pansy smiled. “I will be back, maybe not here but nearby.”

  “Don’t make promises your mate might not let you keep.” Karl was serious.

  “Dad, if I pick him, we will be living nearby. It is not up for negotiation.” She scowled at him until he laughed.

  She turned toward Keelie. “Thank you, Auntie.”

  Keelie hugged her close. “Do your best. Enjoy everything you can and pick a good one. The people who run the Crossroads will take care of all the incidentals. Just keep them apprised of what you need.”

  “I will. I promise to call the moment I am home.”

  Keelie grinned. “Wait until after the honeymoon, sweetheart. Now, go.”

  She turned to the transporter, and the woman inclined her head and opened a ball of light until Pansy could walk through it easily. “Here you go. Have fun and may you find what you seek.”

  With a final look at her family, she smiled and then turned back to the doorway of light. Pansy took the step forward that would lead her to her future, and the moment that the warm energy wrapped around her, she screamed.

  Hands lifted her and voices were speaking to her softly. When Pansy finally opened her eyes, she was looking at a woman with the golden skin of a lioness but hair nearly as dark as Pansy’s. The other woman standing there was a vivid purple-blue with hair that seemed to shift colour the longer that Pansy stared at it.

  The lioness sighed in relief. “You are awake. Excellent. How do you feel, Pansy?”

  “Sore. What happened?”

  The blue woman exhaled with her own relief. “You overcharged the portal. Krisia knew that you were charged with fae magic, but she had no idea that you were full to the gills with wild magic. It was like shoving a lightning bolt into a household socket. Kris is suffering a little, but she wasn’t the one inside the portal when it blew. I am Teebie, by the way. I will be your tutor and help you with your makeover while you are here.”

  The lioness snorted. “She runs the Open Heart Bed and Breakfast and is the only non-shifter here. Your friend got in touch with her, and she pulled strings from her end of things for the full makeover.”

  Teebie laughed, “This is Lee, by the way. She is our medic, and her husband owns the Crossed Star Bar where you will be spending as much time as it takes to find a man that speaks to you and your beast.”

  Pansy sat up and looked down. Her body was naked and covered in scorch marks.

  Teebie disappeared for a moment and reappeared with a short, light cotton robe. “You can wear this until we cross the street and get your clothing. By the way, we are not the usual welcoming committee, but Teal and Tony are repairing the damage you’re your arrival caused.”

  Pansy winced as the robe slid on over scorched skin. “Can I shift first so I can heal a little more?”

  Lee nodded. “Of course.”

  Pansy handed the robe to Teebie and shifted into her porcupine form, making a few laps in the medical office before she resumed her human shape.

  Teebie’s face was bemused. “I haven’t seen a porcupine before.”

  Lee blinked. “Come to think of it, I have only seen the pointy animals, never the shifters.”

  Pansy slipped on the robe. “We are not common shifters and are randoms whenever we occur. Usually, a porcupine shifter will occur in a beaver family when we do show up. It caused some consternation in my family, I can tell you.”

  Lee asked, “Your family aren’t beavers, I am guessing.”

  “Wolves.”

  Teebie reacted to Lee’s expression of shock. “I am going to go out on a limb and say that wolves aren’t very accepting of the different.”

  Pansy wrinkled her nose. “Not so much, but my father and brothers did what they could to make me as close to part of the pack as they could. It took some creativity, but they managed pretty well. We were still a family.”

  “What about your mother?” Lee asked.

  “She died of breast cancer when I was a baby.”

  Teebie cleared her throat. “Enough for today. We need to get some clothing on her before you continue to grill her.”

  “Right. I apologize. You are not here to fill me in on your life story, but if you want to meet at the Crossed Star tomorrow after lunch, we could have a nice chat.” Lee’s tone was hopeful.

  Teebie snorted, “Or you can just come for breakfast, Lee. You know that I am closed to all guests except for Pansy. If she extends the invitation to you, I will play host.”

  Pansy smiled at Lee. “Would you please join us for breakfast tomorrow?”

  “I would be only too happy to. I will also need to confirm your recovery, so two birds with one stone.” Lee started to tidy up her office, and the dismissal was unmistakable.

  Wobbling a little, Pansy took Teebie’s arm and walked out into the sun of the Crossroads for the first time.

  Chapter Six

  She had heard of shopping as an endurance event but had never tested it herself. Teebie and the young male who ran the shop were on her side, but it felt more like a battle than anything Pansy had ever done in her life.

  The effort it took to try on outfit after outfit, to fit test bras and underwear, not to mention the balance of high heels, it all exhausted her.

  “Being a woman in modern times is tiring, or so my sisters say.”

  Andy grinned and took away the items that Teebie rejected based on the way they fit, leaving Pansy surrounded by the piles that had been authorized as suitable.

  Working in the garage and living with her family, she really had no clue as to what the modern woman looked like outside of the fashion magazines. Most of the women that Pansy came into contact with tended to wear uniforms. Medical personnel, waitresses and construction crews were the majority of her exposure to other women.

  The clothing that she had tried on so far was light, airy and wouldn’t stand up to a round in the tumble dryer. It did feel like puffs of air on her skin though, so that wasn’t all bad.

  She was in jeans, low heels and a silky top that was a gorgeous lavender studded with tiny glittering gems. Her underwear matched for the first time in her life and was neutral enough to disappear when the lavender fabric of her shirt threatened to turn transparent when certain angles of light struck it.

  “Good clothing should make you feel confident and put together, not that you are hiding. You should also never advertise anything that you do not intend to deliver, so make sure that you can look yourself in the eye when you check out your own reflection. It is an old-fashioned means of thinking, but when you are dealing with shifters and instincts, stay with the basics. Show what you are comfortable with and defend your body when someone gets too close.”r />
  Teebie was precise when she spoke; her voice rang with authority.

  “Okay. What is the next lesson?”

  She watched as Andy collected all of the clothing that was being purchased, and he headed for the counter.

  Teebie grimaced. “Makeup. Your friend sent your colouration ahead. I thought I was going to be working on Snow White for a while, but now I see what she meant. Does all of your family have porcelain skin?”

  “No. I am the lucky one. My father used to joke that I had my aunt’s colouring.”

  Andy prepped one bag and handed it to Teebie. “That is the makeup, here is the overnight bag.”

  Her blue friend took the bags, and together, they headed out onto the street, past the café and into the mild foot traffic. “I have to say, this is very exciting. Very few fae interact with shifters. I am glad to know that it isn’t an isolated incident.”

  “Someone you know?”

  Teebie laughed. “My grandmother a few centuries ago. Her children couldn’t shift, but their daughters were very powerful.”

  “So, it rippled up the chain, so to speak?”

  “Yes. Each generation gets stronger. Well, some of us do.” Teebie grinned. “Of course, I ended up looking precisely like my grandfather. How my grandmother could mate with something so different way back then was an amazing thing to me. She must have been a gryphon with nerves of steel.”

  Pansy froze in place. “Your grandparents were a shifter and a djinn?”

  “Yup. That is what I have been saying. My aunt is a dragon, and she raised her sister’s children before returning them to their father’s people. She wanted them to know a life, a true life, before being wrapped in djinn tradition.”

  “Wow. Dragons and gryphons, it is just like my aunt said.”

  They resumed their walk and passed several bed and breakfasts before approaching one with a charming sign that proclaimed it the Open Heart Bed and Breakfast.

  Once inside, Teebie led her up the stairs to the room with a starburst on the door.