More than a Panther (Shifty Book 2)

by Sara Summers

  “We’re going to need as many teachers as we can get, but the teachers for the shifter classes have to be shifters. Not many shifters want to give humans all our dirty secrets, so we were hoping some of you might be willing to teach a few classes.” She said.

  “I would love that.” Merla smiled. “I haven’t exactly finished my degree…”

  Jazz shrugged.

  “Take a few classes from SUV while you’re teaching everyone about eagles. There’s no degree requirement for teaching people about who you are.”

  “I don’t want to teach.” Cosette grimaced.

  “Good, because we want you to take complete control over the Seriously Shifty YouTube channel.” Jazz grinned. Cosette’s frown flipped upside down.

  “Perfect.” She nodded.

  “The first few years the money will have to go to the school, but after that if you keep doing it, it can go into your bank account.”

  “Sweet.” She nodded again.

  “I’ll teach a few classes about wolves.” Leah offered. “I’m pretty busy running the pack, but I have a little extra time.”

  “Nice.” Jazz nodded.

  “I won’t teach anything.” Ava shook her head. “But I’m sure I can convince one of my people to teach for you. How far is it from the ocean?”

  “Less than an hour drive to the bay, which leads straight there.

  Ava and Kennedy both nodded; mermaids and otters needed to be close to water.

  “I don’t really want to teach.” Kennedy apologized.

  “You’re studying art history, right?” Jazz checked. She nodded. “Well most universities have a department head who is also in charge of acquiring all the school’s art pieces. You could take that job if you want.”

  “Really?” Kennedy’s eye’s widened. “Okay, I’m definitely in.”

  “Sav, what are you going to do?” Leah asked.

  “I’ll teach some panther classes.” I shrugged. “Maybe eventually take up a writing class.”

  “Cool.” The girls agreed.

  “If you want someone to lead the school who won’t be distracted by kids or life or anything, I could do it.” Skye, Leah’s friend, spoke up. “My mate died a few months ago, so I don’t have much else.”

  A collective moment of silence and grief for that girl that passed through the skype message.

  “Oh honey, I am so sorry.” Brooke frowned.

  “Me too.” Skye gave us a sad smile. “I don’t have any certifications or college degree or anything, but I understand shifters. I can get some school done if you need me to.” She said.

  “We would love to have you run SUV.” Jazz smiled.

  “SUV?” Brooke looked over at the cheetah shifter, her nose wrinkled.

  “I just came up with it. Pretty good, huh?” Jazz grinned. “Shifter University. It works since there’s a ‘v’ in university.”

  “Oh, Jazz.” Kennedy shook her head.

  I yawned.

  “Alright ladies, the four of us are going on a bunch of talk shows tomorrow, and we haven’t worn makeup in months. Pray for us.” Jazz said solemnly.

  “Will do. I have to go. Bye, ladies.” Ava left the skype-call.

  “She’s acting weird.” Merla frowned.

  “It’s ‘cause she’s the mermaid queen, but doesn’t have a mate yet.” I explained for her, having been probably the only person who had talked to Ava since graduation. She had healed Leah a few months earlier, and that’s when we had the chance to talk.

  “She’s just under a lot of stress. I guess they even talked about using magic to force her cotie to change because she’s not supposed to be queen without a king.”

  “Shoot.” Kennedy grimaced. “Well I need to sleep too. See you guys later. Oh, and Bree’s in the hospital. She should have the baby tomorrow sometime, I’ll send pictures when I can.” She smiled brightly.

  “Dooooo it.” Jazz nodded. “Alright, we’re tuning out here. Love you ladies. Stay shifty.” She pushed the button to end the call.

  “This is really happening, isn’t it?” I asked my friends, shaking my head in disbelief.

  “You’d better believe it, girl. We’re making a university and meeting Karmin and we’re going to blow the world’s mind. It will be great.” Brooke grinned.

  “And after tomorrow is over, your parents will have to give Jordie and Lyssie back.” Jazz reminded me. “You don’t have to be a loner anymore.” She sang.

  “I know, I can’t wait.” I sighed. “I almost feel like Jordie’s just some distant dream I had, like he won’t actually come back to me. He’s my mate, but he doesn’t feel real anymore.” I admitted.

  “Aw, honey.” Brooke put an arm around me. “You’ll see him soon, and then he’ll keep your bed warm for the rest of your life.” She winked at me and I rolled my eyes.

  “And really, our mates feel like distant dreams too.” Jazz shrugged. “It’s normal, I think. You weren’t with Jordie long enough for him to really feel like a permanent part of your life. When he’s back though it’ll all go back to normal.”

  “I hope so.”

  “Who wants ice cream?” Brooke sang, latching onto Marley’s arm. Marley had been extra quiet and a little extra sad, so Brooke apparently thought she needed some love.

  “Ice cream makes you sick.” Jazz reminded her for the 57th time in two and a half months.

  Yes, I kept count.

  “I’ve told you this many times, JJ. Shush!” Brooke complained.

  Even Marley smiled as we walked into the kitchen, a group of best friends who were finally moving forward with our dream of making a difference.

  After tomorrow, we really would be more than shifters, which we’d wanted to become for as long as I could remember. It was a strange thing, feeling so close to achieving that dream. I almost didn’t know what I’d do when it was all over.

  Then I remember Jordie. His sexy grin, the love letters I’d read a hundred times each…

  And Lyssie. Her cute smile and all her sass…

  Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad to get the “more than a panther” dream over and done with. Whatever came next, I knew it would be so much better.

  Chapter 25

  “Alright ladies, we’re on in 3, 2,” the camera lady held up her finger for a 1.

  Everyone started cheering immediately. We smiled at the crowd, and Karmin politely waited for the audience to calm down.

  “I’m here with four of the ladies from the YouTube sensation known as Seriously Shifty. Say hello to Savanna, Marley, Jazz, and Brooke.”

  They cheered again, and we smiled again. The whole thing felt a little fake, but Karmin and the audience seemed to be eating it up, so I figured it was me.

  “You’re, respectively, a lion, cheetah, panther, and bear shifter, right?” She raised an eyebrow.

  “No.” Brooke laughed, then pointed at herself. “Lion,” she pointed to Jazz, “cheetah,” she pointed to Marley, “bear,” finally, she pointed to me, “panther.” She smiled.

  “Well, it was worth a shot.” Karmin brushed it off. She was a great show host, seeming to give everyone else her energy. It was actually really cool to be there if you took away the part where all of America was staring at us. “So, I hear you have an announcement of some sort?” She checked.

  “Yep.” Jazz nodded. “If the guys back there will just… oh, yep, like that.” She pointed, then awkwardly folded her arms. I bit back a laugh. “We’ve got a little video to show everyone.” She said.

  “Alright, turn your attention to the screen.” Karmin pointed at the screen. She wasn’t near as awkward as Jazz.

  The video began, and Brooke’s smiling face popped up on the screen.

  “Hello, people of America. We here at Seriously Shifty have an announcement.” She exclaimed. “With the help of the government and anyone else who would like to contribute, we are building the very first Shifter University.”

  An audible gasp went through the room.

  Jazz’s face repl
aced Brooke’s.

  “Shifters have been categorized with humans for way too long. We have our own culture, our own way of doing things, and our own species. At Shifter University, our unique traits won’t be clouded over. There will shifter history classes, shifter biology classes, and individual types of shifter classes.” Jazz explained.

  Marley’s face took over the screen.

  “Built on the border of Glacier, Washington, Shifter University is close enough to both the forest and the ocean, allowing every type of shifter a place to roam free. Shifters, like humans, need a place to call their own. Our animals aren’t our hobbies; they’re a part of us.”

  I forced myself to keep smiling as my own face came on screen.

  “Shifter University will open just over two years from now, allowing us plenty of time to make a nature and shifter friendly campus. We’ll accept both shifters and humans alike. Everyone will be welcome at Shifter University, and everyone will fit in. Whoever you are, and whatever you wear, eat, or look like, we hope to see you at Shifter University.”

  Brooke came back on the screen.

  “Yes, it’s weird that a bunch of twenty year old girls are opening a university, but the world is changing. We’re changing with it; are you?” she shrugged her shoulders.

  “Check out SUV.edu to learn how to apply. See you there.” Jazz closed the video with a smile.

  The screen lifted and the lights went back on.

  “Wow.” Karmin looked really, really surprised. “I don’t know what I was expecting, but it wasn’t that. I think it’s safe to say you just shocked everyone in the country.” She nodded.

  Marley, Jazz, and I smiled, and Brooke laughed.

  “Hopefully it was a good surprise.” Brooke said. “We just want to be equal. “ She shrugged. “People deserve to know about us, and if we’re going to study humans, we figure humans should study us too.” She gave Karmin another big smile.

  “I don’t disagree.” Karmin nodded again. “While this is quite the announcement, I wonder what will happen when all of you find your mates. In your culture, you’re expected to live wherever they live, right?” She checked.

  Okay, maybe Karmin wasn’t as okay with shifters as we thought…

  Jazz took over, a cool smile on her face.

  “That is tradition, yes, but if you check out our YouTube channel, you will immediately realize that times and traditions are changing. Savanna, our panther shifter, is actually building a house in Glacier as we speak. Her mate wants to live where she wants to live.” Jazz leaned her head toward me.

  I wanted to groan, but I kept my cool.

  “Huh.” Karmin nodded. “So, what’s it like to have a soulmate?” Karmin asked, knitting her eyebrows together.

  I shrugged.

  “It’s like having a husband who was made just for you. Like Jazz said, you can find more information on YouTube.”

  “See, some of us are skeptical about how that works. What if you don’t like each other, or what if you fall out of love?” Karmin asked. “What if you don’t like men?”

  My smile turned to ice the way Jazz’s did.

  “We are our own race, and all shifters are raised knowing that one day we’ll meet our perfect mate, the one person in the world who can make us whole. Love isn’t a requirement, and it doesn’t come with finding your soulmate, because love takes work.” I explained. “Why would you not like the person with the other half of your soul?”

  “But-“

  “I know everyone here is relatively new to the idea of shifters,” Jazz stepped in again, though our host may not have appreciated the interruption. “you’ve only known about us for a few years, but our ideas have worked for centuries. We don’t get to choose who we spend our lives with, but we do get to choose whether or not we’ll love that person.”

  “And what if you don’t?” Karmin asked.

  “Then you’re doing something wrong.” Brooke frowned. “Like Sav said, love is a choice. We find our soulmates, and then we choose to love them despite every unlovable piece that makes them up. If you fall out of love, you just choose to find it again.” She said.

  “It’s not that easy.” Karmin definitely didn’t seem thrilled with us anymore.

  “What about it isn’t easy?” Marley spoke up.

  “Love take chemistry, you need sparks and passion and romance. True love can happen in an instant, between any two people no matter their gender or beliefs.” Karmin explained her viewpoint.

  “In movies, that’s true.” Marley nodded. “And maybe even for some humans. But real love takes work, and time, and trust.”

  “What if you absolutely cannot stand your mate? What then?” Karmin folded her arms.

  She was usually such a happy person and I felt bad for killing her vibes.

  “I felt that way once.” I admitted. Everyone’s eyes turned to me. “I thought he was stiff and rude and completely unlovable. The real problem wasn’t him, it was me. I was only seeing my idea of who he was. So if you can’t stand your soulmate, it’s because you’re not letting yourself see who they really are.”

  “Anyway,” Karmin shook her head at me, then lifted her chin and gave the audience a bright smile. “It was great hearing your announcement, and truly, I hope everything works out with your university. Good luck ladies!” she gave the camera a thumbs up, then they stopped recording.

  She left the stage without saying anything else to us.

  “What the eff?” Marley muttered. “I thought people liked shifters.”

  “Oh, aych no. If I could’ve told that woman exactly what I was thinking, she’d go home bawling.” Jazz folded her arms, and the four of us stood up.

  “I have a question!” a woman called out, standing in the audience though everyone was sitting.

  “Alright.” Brooke smiled.

  “Will Shifter University have online classes? I’d love to learn more about shifters, I just can’t pick up and move my life.” She wondered.

  “It will.” Brooke nodded. “If anyone else has questions, go ahead and send them to seriouslyshifty@gmail.com. We’ll get back to you as soon as possible. Thanks for your time, everyone.”

  We waved as we walked off the stage, and the audience cheered just as loudly as they had when the show started. A man with a headset stopped us backstage. He looked worried

  “Ladies, I want to apologize on behalf of the whole station. We didn’t intend for our host to say anything like that, I guess she just hasn’t come to appreciate shifters or your culture.” He wiped a bead of sweat off his forehead.

  “It’s fine, really.” Brooke gave him a small smile.

  “Where could we send an apology to?” the guy checked.

  All of our eyebrows raised.

  “Well, if you’re offering, we’ll take a gift card to the one ice cream place in Poulsbo, Washington. Thanks.” She led the rest of us out to a waiting taxi, and we slid into the car.

  We had four more talk shows to visit that day, and not nearly enough energy to make it through all of them if they kept going like that.

  “Hey, can you stop at McDonalds?” Brooke called out.

  “No problem.” The taxi driver agreed.

  “Brooke…” Jazz warned.

  “You’re not my mom.” Brooke complained. “I know it will make me sick, and I’m eating it anyway.”

  “I feel so sorry for your mate.” Jazz shook her head. “He’s going to have his hands full.”

  “Thank you, I think he’ll enjoy having his hands full of me.” She grinned as Jazz and Marley both pushed her.

  After a round of soft-serve ice cream, we were ready to face the next talk show.

  “It’s over!” Brooke cheered, jumping up and down on the hotel bed.

  “Woo!” Jazz yawned, then dropped to her back on the same bed Brooke was jumping on. “If I ever have to talk about shifters again, I’m going to explode.” She said seriously.

  “Cosette’s coming to my house tomorrow for interviews…” Ma
rley reminded her.

  “Dang it.” Jazz complained.

  “Hey, Sav, you get your man back tomorrow!” Brooke exclaimed, and I grinned.

  “I can’t wait to see him.” I shook my head, my smile lingering. “It’s been way too long. I’m excited to be done with my family for good.” I admitted.

  “Wait, is the baby panther coming back too?” Jazz sat up and Brooke sat next to her. They both leaned forward, and I nodded.

  “Yeah. Lyssie’s going to be with him.”

  “You’re going to be a mom!” Brooke exclaimed. “Ahh! And you don’t even have to give birth to do it.” She shook her head. “Lucky duck.”

  I laughed.

  “It’ll be fun.” I smiled.

  “And if you stay at Mar’s place for a little bit, we can be your babysitters.” Brooke bit her lip, her eyes wide with excitement.

  “I mean, if you want us to.” Jazz shrugged, trying to play it cool.

  “That would be awesome.” I told them, and they both shrieked. Brooke and Jazz jumped off their bed, dog-piling me on top of Marley’s legs.

  Twenty minutes later, Brooke and Jazz were sleepily making jokes about King Arthur and Robin Hood again. Marley and I went out to grab some ice, not bothering with makeup or socially acceptable clothing.

  “Hey, Sav?” Marley asked, folding her arms over her stomach as she waited for me to fill the ice container.

  “Yeah?”

  “Do you think my mate will find me soon?” She whispered. “I know I’m not supposed to try to hurry him or anything, but I don’t know how much longer I can be alone.” She held back tears, rocking back and forth on her feet.

  “Oh, Mar.” I wrapped her in a hug, abandoning the ice bucket in the machine. “You won’t have to wait any longer than you can. You know he’ll find you at the perfectly-right time.” I assured her.

  “I know.” She nodded, hugging me back.

  “Jordie and I will need a place to stay until our house is done. We can stay with you if it helps.” I told her, and she nodded again.

  “That would be really nice.” She bit her lip and closed her eyes. “Thanks, you’re a real friend.” She pulled me close.