Black Wolf

by Steph Shangraw

  “You can,” Nick and Cynthia said in perfect synch, and looked at each other, and laughed.

  Sam smiled. “Otherwise… if I’m not so worried about keeping secrets, it might be nice just to relax and live.”

  “And come party with us,” Lori said. “We’ve been inviting you long enough.” She smiled. “And maybe other stuff.”

  “That too.”

  “Shaine?” Kevin said. “What are you going to do now? You don’t have to feel responsible for Jess anymore.”

  Shaine regarded him quietly. “I could just disappear.”

  “You could, but we’d miss you.”

  “True,” Sam said softly. “We would.”

  “You won’t find anywhere you belong better than right here with us,” Caitryn seconded.

  “Besides, without you, who’ll yell at me when I’m being stupid?” Jess asked. “And I might need you to tell a judge you saw lots of bruises. And I think you and Kev and Lori are going to have an awesome time messing around with fire and water magic. And…”

  Shaine held up both hands, palm out—for once making no effort at all to hide the delicate webbing between his fingers. “Enough already. So I’ll spend a lot of time in the lake but I’ll make sure I come visit.”

  “Lots,” Gisela said.

  “All right, visit lots.”

  “Good,” Bane said, satisfied. “Then as soon as we get dominance order worked out more permanently, it would seem we have a wolf-pack of seven—which is the biggest one I know of. And everything will now work out wonderfully, and we can all live happily ever after.”

  “Demon-luck…” Jaisan said hesitantly.

  “It’ll keep life from getting boring,” Kevin said.

  “I’d love some boredom,” Bryan said wistfully. “Not forever, just for a while.”

  Alfari, coiled on his lap, purred agreement.

  “Know something?” Deanna said. “We’ve been long overdue for a party. We have a whole long list of reasons.”

  “You’re absolutely right,” Nick laughed. “Now sound like a good time?”

  Jess groaned. “Oh, god, not another party…”

  “You always survive,” Liam teased.

  While plans were formed for a run to the store and other tasks, Jaisan glanced up at him and smiled. “It’s going to be good to have a home again,” he murmured.

  “Jess!” Deanna called across the room. “Go raid music collections, would you? I have to keep an eye on Kev… no way, phoenix, you don’t do anything in that kitchen without someone keeping an eye on you!” She darted after the elvenmage, and Jess rolled his eyes.

  “Yeah,” Jess said softly. “It’s good to know where you belong. And this is it. Come on, let me up, we’ve got a party to get going.”

  The Quicksilver Sphynx

  Miscellanea, June 1995

  Nick ‘Winter

  If anybody’s behind on news, that fight we warned you was coming came, and was won. But that isn’t half the news that happened to Sundark-Winter-Dandelion-etc in May.

  Remember I challenged anyone to prove to me that Alessandria Kore-Tremayne, Starluck’s wolf, had a seventh child that was fathered by a demon? I swear, I am never going to ask for any such thing again. I got proof, all right, in the form of three black wolves who can kill demons. If you haven’t met them yet, and you probably haven’t because they’re very shy, Jesse’s twin Jaisan and their sister Aindry showed up just in time. To those outside Haven who’ve helped them while they were alone, without knowing the whole story, just because they needed it: thank you isn’t enough. Just to confuse matters even more, water has children too (who are not going to be pleased when/if they discover that I’m telling you they exist), and we now have one—Shaine, in fact—living in the lake. Nor is Coven Whitethorn likely to be much of a threat for some time to come. Whitethorn, incidentally, no longer includes Rebecca, who apparently has decided to turn solitary.

  I do not have enough room to tell you everything, but I’m sure the whole wild tale will get around on its own, duly exaggerated. Flynn’s writing a story about it, and we’ll make sure everyone who wants to know the actual facts about Unity, about demon-wolves, about Samantha’s mysterious past, and about merenai has access to a copy.

  I do, however, need to ask for help, not only of Haven but of all the villages and all our friends. If there are any other survivors from Unity, whether alive out there and hiding or dead since then that you know of, please get ahold of us and tell us. Three demon-wolves (not to mention Sam) would like very much to know what happened to their mother (friend) Dena Kore-Tremayne, especially. Please, spread the word as far as you can, and tell them the demons that killed Unity are dead.

  News other than that I’m rather behind on, I’ve been a tad busy, but let’s see what I can tell you. There’s one wild summer solstice party being planned, a bonfire on the beach and all sorts of other stuff, get ahold of Covens Blackrose or Prism for more info or if you have ideas.

  Perdita ‘Harpsong has offered to give lessons to anyone interested in the use of song, drum, and dance in trance-work. Depending on the response, it might be individual or a group.

  Haven has a new coven, Coven Avalon, who are apparently staying here even after they all finish at the college. Elsinore is a human healer from Aralu, Hale’s a wolf from Falias, Natalia is a dryad herbalist from Irminsul, and Haven’s own Pavel is (as we all know) a dryad telepath. Blessed be, cousins, and love each other long and well.

  You’ll have to live without historical notes this month, I’m out of time. (Then again, the simple fact that Alessandria’s seventh child was real should be enough history for anybody!) See you next month, and have a great solstice!

  Afterword

  Thank you for taking the time to visit one of my worlds! If you enjoyed it, please consider leaving me a review at your favourite site, telling your friends, or dropping me a line to let me know. Keep your eyes open for more of my work!

  ~~Steph Shangraw / prysmcat

  Characters

  Note: those mentioned in the Quicksilver Sphynx but not appearing in the main text are not listed

  Jesse, our hero

  In Haven:

  Sundark:

  Kevin, an elvenmage with a troubled past

  Deanna, a dryad kitchen-witch who is loyal to her friends

  Bane, an alpha wolf

  Cynthia, a witch with an affinity for air

  , who acquires a feline friend, Hob

  Flynn, a seer, originally from Scarborough, lives alone with his mother Isleen

  Winter:

  Evaline, an alpha bitch

  Liam, a dryad healer, Deanna’s cousin

  Nick, a witch with an affinity for water, who acquires a feline friend, Malta

  Sonja, a human with an unusual set of psychic gifts

  Dandelion:

  Bryan, a wolf, Bane’s brother, Sam’s closest friend and roommate

  Naomi, a blind witch with an affinity for earth, who has a husky familiar/guide dog, Gwyn

  Lori, an elvenmage, Kevin’s cousin

  Solitary friends of Sundark-Winter-Dandelion:

  Samantha, whose past is a mystery, and who has a feline friend, Alfari

  Gisela, a dryad healer, Deanna’s sister

  Caitryn, a wolf bitch

  Whitethorn:

  Rebecca, an alpha bitch with social claustrophobia

  Karl, a wolf

  Moira, an elvenmage

  Avryl, a witch addicted to esoteric books

  Duayne, an elf who studies questionable subjects

  Others in Haven:

  Tomas, an elvenmage Adept, Kevin’s teacher, who runs the Brewery

  Katherine, an elvenmage Adept, of Coven Firedrake

  Claudia and Nyssa, full-time waitresses at the Brewery

  Sylvia, Rebecca’s aunt

  Adam, bank manager

  Mandisa, dryad healer and Haven’s official doctor

  Zarah, in Coven Helix, one of Deanna and Gisela’s
parents

  Outside of Haven:

  Shaine, Jesse’s friend and roommate in the city

  Aindry, a homeless alpha bitch

  Jaisan, Aindry’s brother

  Patrick Lucian, a solitary elvenmage with questionable priorities

  Troy, a dryad who isn’t where he should be

  Wynne, a runaway elf

  Jake, a high school sports star with a major vulnerability

  Pamela, a woman who attracts the wrong sort of man

  Lew, Shaine’s cousin, not seen in years

  Dena Kore-Tremayne, an alpha bitch widowed with three children

  Floria, a motherly dryad in Falias who offers hospitality

  Ian, an alpha wolf, in Floria’s coven

  Wren, a human healer, in Floria’s coven

  various demons including Sikial

  various predators

  various cats

  About the Author

  Steph Shangraw lives in southeastern Ontario, Canada, with three rescued cats and their other human minion. In the limited time spent not writing fantasy, she makes handmade cat toys, runs a lolanimals website for her friends to play on, tries to keep up with a writing blog, and of course serves her feline overlords. She started writing over 25 years ago, offered several novels on her website for her friends, and is finally venturing into “real” self-publishing.

  For more info, other work, or to contact her, visit: www.prysmcat.com