Seeds of Autumn

by HB Lyne

  Chapter Sixteen

  20th November

  'Okay. Well that's good, right?' Weaver said quietly, looking around at the pack.

  'Eyes,' Fortune barked. 'Get back to your family.' Eyes was out of the door before the Alpha had even finished. 'Everyone else, get some rest. It's been a long few days for all of us.' Fortune stomped up the stairs while the others lingered for a moment. Ariana felt unsettled by his abruptness. Could this conflict with the Witches be over so suddenly? She didn't quite believe it.

  Weaver looked sheepish, Ariana sensed that she was embarrassed and just as unsure as Ariana was.

  'Listen to Fortune,' Shadow said softly, patting Ariana on the shoulder. 'Get some rest.' He passed them and followed Fortune upstairs. The others drifted off. Morning had broken amid the chaos, so Flames went to open up the shop. Stone took Weaver up to the attic and Wind Talker decided to head down to the basement, having had some rest while Ariana and the others had been guarding Eyes' family. He cast her a dark look as he passed her, and her insides squirmed with guilt for excluding him.

  She sat down at the kitchen table and pulled out her phone. This new life was exciting and terrifying, but more than anything else, it was pulling her away from the things she had wanted for so long. She looked through her old messages from Rhys with a sense of longing, she needed him in her life, she missed him so much.

  Hi. How are you? Life has been manic here. Really hope to see you soon, love Ariana xx

  She rested her head on her arms on the table and closed her eyes, exhaustion starting to take hold of her. Just as she started to drift off to sleep, her phone buzzed on the table and startled her. She grabbed the phone and opened the message.

  Hi, so glad to hear from you. Pretty manic with work myself. Yeah, would be good to meet up soon xx

  Ariana smiled and thought about when and where to suggest meeting. Her life was so unpredictable now. How could she possibly make plans and keep them? Frustrated, she punched a brief reply into her phone.

  OK, I'll be in touch soon and let you know when I'm free xx

  She stood up, shoved the phone into her pocket and went to her little room to sleep.

  21st November

  Something resembling normal life began to take shape over the next day. Ariana slept a lot during the day and found herself up at night, like several other pack members and she supposed that this was normal in a family of largely nocturnal animal shifters. Lily slept in a room of her own, away from the pack and dutifully worked in the shop, as she had done throughout the chaos of Weaver's abduction. She asked few questions and yet seemed to know everything.

  They were sitting together for their evening meal. Stone and Fortune jostled around them preparing and serving a tasty fish and pasta dish. Lily leaned in close to Ariana and gave her a friendly smile.

  'We're both different, Ariana,' Lily whispered carefully. Ariana regarded her closely and then glanced around the kitchen to check that the rest of the pack were not eavesdropping.

  'How do you mean?'

  'Well, I can't change at all yet and you, well, there's more to you than a scruffy urban fox.'

  Ariana was taken aback.

  'I don't, I can't imagine, I mean that's just... what are you saying?'

  'Well, I was only mildly suspicious, but your reaction just confirmed it. What is it? What is so different about you?' Lily asked, her voice full of excitement.

  Ariana looked around anxiously again. No one was paying them the slightest bit of attention.

  'I seem to be able to shift into a cat too, maybe other things but I haven't tried. It's been total chaos and when I found out I wasn't normal it freaked me out. Shadow knows, so it's not a total secret or anything and I really want to talk to Fortune about it.'

  Lily's eyes went wide.

  'Can you show me?'

  Ariana grinned and nodded. The two young women slipped away quietly and snuck down into the basement. Ariana had tried hard not to think about her unusual ability and with everything that had happened since she changed it had been easy not to dwell on it. Now that she had the chance she was excited to see what she could do. Lily took a seat on the bench and watched expectantly.

  Ariana shook out her limbs and concentrated hard. She knew she could shift into a cat, so she tried that first, willing her body to take the shape of a small, grey cat. She felt everything crunch and shrink and shift, then looked up at Lily watching with wide eyes.

  With a shake and some serious focus, Ariana made herself stretch and change into a beautiful dark grey wolf. She turned a few circles in the cold basement, trying to catch sight of her own tail and Lily erupted into peels of laughter.

  Ariana let out a low bark of elation and then concentrated on the black and white, shuffling form of a badger, a moment later she was compelled to dart for the shadows under the stairs, drawn into the darkness by her new badger instincts.

  She emerged and focused all of her will on the form that she thought would be hardest to achieve, being the only flying animal among the usual shifter forms, an owl. She had no idea if she could do it or if she would be able to fly if she managed it. With great force of will, Ariana made her body change. She pictured a snowy owl and felt her limbs creaking and straining to take that form. With a delighted hoot she flapped her wings and managed to take off and flutter slightly awkwardly up off the ground and over Lily's head. Lily clapped and cheered as Ariana flew around the small space as best she could with such limited room.

  She landed clumsily on the floor and decided the time had come to really push the boundaries. She knew now that she could take any of the five shifter animal forms, but what about something else? There were countless species of animal on the planet. She had seen her hands become lion paws during her first change and with a sudden burst of lion's courage, she pushed outwards with her wings and little legs and directed the image of a proud lioness to the forefront of her mind.

  It was by far the hardest change she had attempted, it actually hurt a little as all of her bones and muscles shifted with crunching, scraping sounds. Lily watched with a hand raised to her mouth as Ariana changed shape.

  Ariana felt very strange, so much heavier than in any other form, and so powerful. She prowled around the basement, trying to focus her thoughts and keep them ordered. It was hard, her animal brain was stronger in this form, her instincts stronger. Just as the badger had sought out the darkness, the lioness wanted meat. She took a few steps towards Lily but stopped in her tracks when her eyes locked onto the girl. Lily was stood on the bench, pressed against the wall. She stank of fear and her eyes were wide in terror.

  Ariana let out a whimper of an apology and backed off. A moment later a noise on the stairs grabbed her attention and her head snapped towards the intruder.

  Fortune and Shadow stood near the top of the stairs, their eyes wide.

  'What the hell?' Fortune barked and Shadow placed a steadying hand on his shoulder.

  Ariana shifted quickly into her human form, her heart was pounding and she was sure the Alpha could hear it threatening to leap out of her chest.

  'I'm sorry,' she stammered, looking down at the ground. 'Lily, are you OK?'

  Lily nodded, still visibly shaken up. She slowly stepped down off the bench and took a few cautious steps forward.

  'That was just incredible,' she said after a moment's pause. 'I can't believe you can do that!'

  Ariana felt relief wash over her and the two girls laughed and embraced one another.

  'What was that?' Fortune snapped, jogging down the stairs to them. 'How did you do that?'

  He caught hold of Ariana's shoulders and looked at her, turning her this way and that and inspecting her eyes, hair and neck. Ariana let him and stifled a giggle.

  'I don't know. I just can. I think I can be anything.'

  Fortune looked severely at Shadow.

  'You knew,' he stated accusingly.

  'I did,' Shadow said softly, stepping down off the last step. 'Or I suspec
ted. She shifted into a cat on the first morning we spent down here.'

  'Why didn't you tell me?' Fortune released Ariana and turned on Shadow, his chest puffed out and his voice barely more than a snarl.

  'We were a bit distracted,' Shadow stated simply, remaining perfectly cool. 'I was going to tell you, when the moment was right and when I had had chance to look into the matter myself first.'

  Fortune spun away and paced the basement, his eyes flitting between the three of them. Lily looked nervous, but Shadow stayed calm and collected, he was obviously very sure of his place. Ariana didn't know what to think. She caught a glimpse now of how her difference might scare other shifters and she realised that might be very dangerous for her.

  'I'm sorry, Fortune,' she whispered. 'I should have told you. It wasn't Shadow's secret, it was mine.'

  'No,' Shadow said quickly. 'I urged you not to mention it.'

  'It doesn't matter,' Fortune snarled. 'What matters is figuring out what you are, why you are and how to keep it from the other packs.'

  Ariana flinched. She was a shifter. Wasn't she? His words cut like a knife. She knew she was a little different, but hadn't doubted her species before.

  'I'm a shifter, just like you. Artemis made you one way, when she turned you under a full moon. Well, she's made me another way. I don't know why. But we're more alike than we are different.'

  She tried to pull herself up to her full height, which wasn't a patch on Fortune's, but it was all she could do. He stopped pacing and looked her hard in the eye.

  'What else can you do?' he challenged, his tone benevolent, and she grinned in response.

  'I don't know. But it will be fun to find out.'

  The next two days were filled with more training with Shadow. She tried out lots of different animal forms with him, both in the basement and outside in Hepethia where she had more room. She flew over the buildings as a hawk, sprinted along the street as a jaguar and played on the fire escape as an orangutan. The birds were hard work, flying didn't come easily and it was necessary for her to spend a few minutes getting used to it each time. The bigger mammals were hard to shift into, and definitely seemed to take over her rational human mind more easily than other forms.

  The rest of the pack ambushed her about it and had spent a long time questioning her after she had emerged from the basement with Fortune, Shadow and Lily. Wind Talker didn't seem remotely surprised and speculated on other possible occurrences of this phenomenon among shifter kind. Weaver gave Ariana a knowing wink that told her she had known all along.

  Despite the fuss everyone made over her, Ariana felt that she had caught sight of what ordinary pack life would be like.

  Fortune ordered a new punch bag for the basement to replace the one Eyes had shredded a few nights previously, though Ariana had a sneaking suspicion that Eyes had paid for it, and as soon as it was delivered a queue formed to try it out. There was also some much needed down time for the whole pack. Most of them slept for long stretches, but there was time for a little mundane maintenance too, chiefly shopping.

  The betting shop kitchen housed a huge double freezer and it needed restocking with the meat on which their large pack was inclined to feast. On the Thursday morning Ariana went with Stone and Weaver to collect their order from the butcher. They received some odd looks from the customers and the butcher himself as he bagged up package after package of meat. All three of them left carrying several bags packed to bursting with steaks, burgers, sausages, bacon, minced meat, chicken, pork, liver and even some disturbing offcuts and specific body parts that Flames had requested, which Ariana was certain couldn't be for eating.

  That night Flames called the pack to join him in the shop for a ritual in honour of the newest members. It had only been a week since Ariana's first change, though it seemed like a lifetime.

  It was the first time Ariana had seen Eyes since their escapade to his house, he had returned home to his family and was spending as much time with them as he could in order to make up for his absence in the preceding days and nights. They grinned at each other on sight, a shared camaraderie between the two of them and Weaver from their unauthorised adventure and the trouble they had been in afterwards.

  'So I heard a rumour that you're a little different,' he said as they made their way into the shop and across the veil.

  'It's true,' she replied with a wicked grin. 'Sorry for not telling you right away, it was all a bit weird when Shadow and I first established it and then Weaver got snatched.'

  'It's fine, I'm not remotely offended. I understand. So you can be any animal you want?'

  Ariana nodded and Eyes gave her an appraising nod.

  'Very, very useful.'

  They both laughed and gave each other a friendly nudge.

  'Ariana,' Flames interrupted. Her attention went to him as her laughter subsided. 'I'd like you to help me cast the circle, please.'

  'Of course,' she replied, a little surprised.

  He passed her a smudge stick and invited her to walk around the circle with it, while he and Wind Talker opened the ritual. She was happy to be involved and took on the task with enthusiasm, even though it was quite mundane. She walked around the room waving the smoking stick of herbs as the rest of the pack formed a circle. Flames made a circle of red sand on the ground just behind the feet of the others and Wind Talker lit candles. In the middle of the circle was the fire pit and a selection of tools, including Flames' large knife with a bone handle, and several protective amulets.

  Flames held up the bone knife in one hand and a selection of macabre items in his other, including two eyeballs and something red and stringy that looked suspiciously like sinew.

  'I open this rite by invoking protection fae to us, see that we are not disturbed this night. All hail to Luna, we ask that you watch over and bless this pack, The Blue Moon. We invite our ally, Grins-Too-Widely to join us.'

  The fox slunk into the shop and sat down next to Fortune in the circle. Once the room was suitably smoky Ariana placed the smudge stick next to the fire pit and took her place in the circle. Flames gave her an encouraging nod before continuing.

  'We welcome our newest pack mates to the circle, Wind Talker, Fights-Eyes-Open, Weaver-of-Sky's-Loom and our newest youngster, Ariana.'

  Ariana felt a little pang of jealousy and frustration that she was the only one without a shifter name, her plain old human name, unusual as it was, sounded so wrong in that list. Stone stood next to her and gave her hand a squeeze, apparently picking up on her feelings, which Ariana tried to put aside.

  'We honour the waxing moon, Luna's face grows brighter and the time of the half moon comes again. We ask for balance, fairness and justice at this time. The growth of our pack is a blessing. But it has been a troubling period and we are thankful for the respite we have been recently granted, and ask that we enjoy more peace and stability in the days to come.'

  Across the circle a small chuckle escaped Fortune's throat and the rest of the pack smiled and stifled laughter of their own. Undeterred, Flames continued.

  'We celebrate the safe return of Weaver-of-Sky's-Loom from captivity and honour her new name. Let the world know that our business with the Witches is not concluded, justice will be sought, but patience will be the victor. There is no peace between us but let quiet days and nights be ours.' Flames passed a small bowl to Wind Talker and took the bone knife to his own open palm. Blood trickled into the bowl. 'My blood, the pack's blood, is shed to keep us whole and sacred. We honour our power and our duty. We are Luna's subjects and we spill our blood in her name.'

  As he spoke, Flames cut Wind Talker's palm and allowed the blood to flow into the bowl. Wind Talker then took the knife and went around the circle, cutting each pack member in turn and mixing their blood together. He came to Ariana last and gave her a reassuring smile as he opened a vein on her palm, she tilted her hand so that a few drops of her blood ran into the bowl.

  Wind Talker returned to the centre of the circle and passed the blo
od to Flames. He held the bowl up over his head, dipped the assorted bits of animal into it and then threw them onto the fire, which hissed and spat angrily. Ariana saw strange movements in the flames, shapes that resembled various animals and humans twisting over and around each other. It was sort of beautiful and infinitely fascinating, if a little morbid.

  'We give thanks to Luna and all of the fae present and close this rite.' Flames tossed some sand onto the fire and it went out with a loud hiss. Smoke billowed out and then dissipated. The pack broke into lively discussion but Ariana watched Flames as he carefully transferred the pack's blood from the bowl into a small brown vial and tucked it away into the satchel across his shoulder. She knew how potent their blood was and supposed that mixed together it would be even more so, but she couldn't help wondering if he had some specific purpose for it in mind.

  Fortune ushered everyone back across the veil and through to the kitchen, where he set about cooking up a feast. Ariana and Stone helped and in no time the pack was sitting down to generous helpings of spaghetti bolognese, and Fortune fetched a few bottles of mead from the basement.

  The pack sat around the table sharing jokes and stories. Weaver told the story of how she had escaped the Witches, painting vivid pictures with her words and Ariana grinned every time Weaver added a little embellishment here or there. Storytelling seemed to come so naturally to Weaver, she became so animated with it and it made Ariana very happy to see her pack-sister so comfortable and happy.

  Stone helped ensure no member was left out, each of them taking a turn to entertain the others, though she seemed to instinctively know who was least comfortable taking the limelight and respected them completely, chiefly Flames-First-Guardian, who hardly spoke except to add his deadpan humour to other people's stories.

  The pack grew quiet and listened attentively to Shadow's Step speak in his soft, lilting voice.

  'My grandfather was a respected elder in his village in India, his true nature was known and he was deeply venerated. The culture there at that time was very different to here and now, shifters were known of and celebrated, they protected their families and villages fiercely. He was known as a nāga, a snake skin shifter, they don't seem to exist on this island.'

  He gave Ariana a little smile and she returned it, thinking of his cobra form and her potential to take a snake form too. 'My father came to Britain during the late days of the Empire, having just escaped being drafted into the military to fight in the Second World War due to being too young. He worked as a serving boy to a wealthy family in Caerton. He had never changed, but when he married another immigrant from his new community he had shared the stories of his family with her and I was raised in full knowledge of my lineage. My father couldn't have been more proud when I did change, and I protected my community as he would have done in India, though with much greater emphasis on secrecy and keeping my nature from becoming known in Caucasian circles.'

  Shadow was vague about dates, but Ariana guessed that her mentor was about fifty now, though he looked much younger.

  When he finished his tale there was a lingering quiet around the room. Eyes broke the silence at last, fixing his steady eyes on Fortune.

  'Tell us about your first change, Fortune.' His face was serious but full of yearning and Ariana had to admit that she was curious to know about the Alpha's history. She knew he was older than the rest but not by how much. Flames let out a gruff bark of laughter and took a swig of his drink. Fortune ran his finger around the rim of his glass, his eyes glazed over.

  'Well, there's nothing quite like the dropping of bombs to scare a young pre-change shifter into changing.' Weaver and Ariana both took a deep breath of surprise and glanced at each other. Lily was sat next to Ariana and she shuffled in her seat uncomfortably. The rest of the pack were silent. Fortune glanced up before looking back to his glass and continuing. 'The change can happen at any time. Puberty is not uncommon. But for others it is later.' His eyes flicked back to Fights-Eyes-Open, who was by far the eldest of the four newest shifters. 'Often it happens at a time of great stress or trauma. I got the double, I was fourteen and it was the Blitz. It was a terrible time for Caerton. The port here was a big target, military ships were built here and it was a major import venue for Britain's food supplies. So we got hit pretty hard.

  'I was not raised by my kin, I grew up in an orphanage and knew nothing of our world. When I was twelve I ran away and found work in a factory making shell casings. Despite the air raids and the city being blacked out, the factories couldn't shut down. Just like today, they ran all night, it was far too expensive to shut down the machines and start them up again in the morning, so we worked through the air raids. One night we were hit. The west side of the building collapsed and the screaming began. The lights went out and the fire spread quickly.

  'I was just a child really, I was terrified and I changed right there in the chaos and blood and flames. Artemis chose a full moon for me, so I shifted right through the wolf and into the beast. I must have slaughtered a dozen men, women and children on my rampage through the wreckage, but at last I found my way out into the open and ran. I made it half way across the city before my limbs gave way and I found myself naked and covered in blood, sweat and dirt in the shadow of St. Mark's church. The Blue Moon found me and took me in.' He picked up his glass and knocked back the last of his mead.

  The room was utterly silent and Ariana had tears streaking down her face. He had told the story without a single crack in his voice, not a tear shed or a trace of a frown, no sign of pain or weakness at all, which Ariana found all the more moving. She didn't know if it was simply the passage of time that had eased the pain out of the memory, or if he was just a skilled expert at hiding it, but either way she felt for him deeply.

  She looked around at the pack, Flames and Shadow had clearly heard the story before, but kept a respectful silence. Eyes looked pained but not surprised and Ariana wondered if Fortune had already told him some of the tale in private. Weaver was shaking a little. Stone was sat next to the Alpha, her face was cast down but Ariana thought she saw a streak of a tear on her cheek and she couldn't help but notice Stone's fingers lightly brushing against Fortune's hand resting on the table. His fingers twitched and for the briefest second he returned the affectionate gesture before yanking his hand away and clearing his throat.

  'More mead!' Flames cried and started refilling everyone's glasses. The rest of the pack followed his lead and lively conversation began to flow again. Ariana joined in but Fortune's story echoed in her mind. It put her own first change into perspective and she felt a sense of release.

  In the early hours of the morning Stone announced that she was going to have a quick look around the neighbourhood before sleep and Ariana volunteered to go with her. Stone didn't object and they left together, walking out into the cold night. They walked in silence for a minute or two, Ariana wanted to talk to Stone about Fortune's story and the subtle exchange she had witnessed. It probably wasn't any of her business, but she couldn't deny her curiosity.

  'Fortune's story was really moving,' she said at last. Stone kept walking, staring straight ahead. 'It really put my change into perspective for me,' Ariana continued. Stone still didn't respond and Ariana began to feel a little foolish. 'Had you heard him talk about it before?'

  'Yes,' Stone sighed. 'Yes, he's talked about it with the pack and privately to me too. When I first joined the Blue Moon he was in a bad place and needed to talk things through, I was the first female to join the pack in decades. There are some conversations men can only have with women. You know?'

  Ariana nodded and waited for Stone to go on.

  'He bottled a lot of it up for a long time.'

  'And that made the two of you very close, didn't it?' Ariana asked, sensing that she was right.

  'Yes.'

  'Stone, do you love him?' Ariana was grinning, hoping to tease out a confession. But Stone stopped walking and glared at Ariana.

  'No,' she snapped.
<
br />   Ariana's smile faded and she felt as though Stone had thrown cold water in her face.

  'Sorry. I didn't mean to assume anything,' Ariana stammered.

  'No, it's all right,' Stone spoke with more softness and set off walking again. 'I should explain, you weren't to know. Once I would have said yes. Once, so would he. There is still love there, but it is like that between brother and sister.' Stone stopped again and took hold of Ariana's elbow gently. 'Shifters aren't supposed to fall in love with their pack mates. It's wrong, it's like incest, or bestiality, or both. I don't know, it's just strictly forbidden by our kind. We can breed with shifters from other packs, humans and those humans with shifter blood. But not our pack mates. It's important for our survival, it's genetics. Do you understand?'

  Ariana frowned. This revelation came as a surprise, but as she thought about how she felt towards her pack mates she understood. In a very short time they had become her family. She had never been close to her own family and had hardly spoken to them since she moved to Caerton, her pack were the brothers and sisters she had never had. The idea of forming a romantic attachment to any of them was deeply unsettling now that Stone mentioned it.

  'Yes, I do. That makes sense.' They set off walking again, but Ariana mulled over exactly what Stone had said. 'But it happens sometimes. It nearly happened with you and Fortune?'

  'Yes. Nearly. But we never even spoke of it with each other and this is the first and only time I have ever or will ever speak of it with anyone.' There was a trace of threat to her voice and Ariana understood completely.

  'Of course,' she whispered.

  They finished their walk around the block in silence and returned to the betting shop. It was dark and quiet inside and the two made their way upstairs to join the others in the attic. Ariana decided to stop by her room to check her phone on the way and let Stone go ahead without her. She felt so sad for Stone and Fortune, such a tragedy to have love denied to them like that. It made her think of Rhys with deep longing. She had felt that, she had come so close to what she thought could have been a true love and had felt it slip away from her. She sat on the bed and looked sadly at her phone. No new messages. With a heavy sigh of resolve she typed a message to Rhys.

  I need to see you. I miss you. Xxx

  It was far too early for him to be awake, so Ariana left her phone in the room and went to join the pack upstairs.

  Ariana's sleep was disturbed with dreams of Fortune raging through flaming rubble and a sense of deep longing. A black shape flitted through her dreams, it seemed almost familiar, but too illusive to be certain. Whatever it was, it stalked her and troubled her enough to keep her tossing and turning and waking to the black attic and soft breathing of her pack-mates. Fortune and Stone slept on opposite sides of the room, Ariana noticed, and she went back to sleep thinking of lost love and loneliness.