Pansy had to imagine that Tony was doing the same, and when she felt the tingle in her extremities, she fought the panic and kept her focus on the arms around her. The tingling became a prickling, and the moment that Axander tightened his grip, she knew he could feel it too. The light went from a glow around their feet to a column of light, and after a flash, she could smell home.
With a squeal, she turned in Axander’s arms. “We did it! No explosion!” She hugged him with all her strength, gratified when he returned the embrace and snuffled at her neck.
She looked up and kissed him with everything in her. They were home and all other details could be worked out.
“Prix!”
She ignored the voice and kept kissing her mate. His hands roamed over her and nothing else was going to distract her.
A hand touched her shoulder, and she lashed out with some of the residue of the transport. She heard a grunt, a shout and then a thud. She nibbled at Axander’s lips and sighed softly. “I guess I have to deal with this.”
“I am with you.” He kept an arm around her and steered her toward her family.
The brother that had grabbed her was Roger. He was sitting at the base of a tree and rubbing his arm. “What the hell was that, Prix?”
“New day, new mate, old name. Call me Pansy.”
Her brothers were arranged in an amused semi-circle with her father in the centre.
“Dad, I would like to formally introduce you to my mate, Axander Barkley. Axander, my father, Karl Medeela.”
Axander inclined his head and extended his hand to the older man. “A pleasure to meet you, sir.”
Her father looked at him, sniffed and tilted his head. “You are not a wolf?”
“No, sir.”
“Not a porcupine.”
“No, sir.”
“What are you then, son?”
Pansy sighed in relief, as did her brothers.
“I am a badger, sir. A honey badger to be specific. I am an in-species random.”
“Ah, you know my daughter is special.”
“I do.”
“You know she has magic of her own.”
Axander looked down at her, and he squeezed her. “I have never doubted that for a moment.”
Pansy blushed and smiled at her father. “You can let them bring their mates home now, Dad. I can defend myself from their females.”
He reached out and touched her cheek. “You knew?”
“I suspected. There have been reps from every family in the four closest states. The boys come home smelling like strange females in heat. There has to be something going on.”
Her father nodded. “I never wanted you to feel unwelcome in your own home. Keelie gave me a bit of a lecture after you left, and I am at peace with you moving into your own home.”
She looked up at Axander and back to her father. “Our home but bordering your territory. We will have to negotiate the borders as your family keeps expanding. It might mean weekly dinners.”
Karl grinned. “Jarrod would like the practice.”
“Oh, no, Dad. I meant me. In fact, I would like to request Jarrod as a tutor if I may.”
Her father crossed his arms. “I am unsure that it would be a good idea. We all know that you have been coaching him through the meals for the last two years.”
She blushed. “How did you learn that?”
“You have been gone a week. We figured it out.” Her father’s tone was wry.
Axander snickered, and it was the sound that broke her brothers’ restraint. Hugs flew, Thomas hauled her mate aside for some detailed interrogation, and she was once again in the embrace of her family.
Roger sprang for takeout, and they all sat around the huge table. Apparently, no one wanted to chance Jarrod’s smoked chicken. With all the windows open, the smoke was clearing rapidly.
After a lot of congratulations, Pansy had to know, “So, what happened to the transporter?”
Andrew cleared his throat. “Well, the Mage Guild Master showed up and picked up his wife, then he asked what the hell happened, and when we told him, he asked us what the hell we were doing sending a mage to the Crossroads.”
Doug said, “Aunt Keelie stepped in then and spoke to him. He stepped back a few times while she was talking, but eventually, he nodded and took his mate away. She was dazed and her hair was sticking out but otherwise fine.”
Jake nodded. “It looked like she licked a light socket.”
Pansy groaned. “That is going to zing me.”
“Aunt Keelie said she would handle it when you got back. Just call her, and she will be ready with an intervention.” Andrew nodded.
“That sounds ominous.”
Her father sighed and reached for the Moo Shu Pork. “It is ominous. You zapped a Guild Master, Pansy. There will be consequences.”
With that conversation killer, dinner was over. Pansy excused herself and showed Axander her room.
“Holy crud. I imagined a tiny space on the top floor. Not this.” He smiled and admired the benefit to living in a longhouse-styled home.
Her room stretched the one hundred feet of the house, giving her a workshop, a bedroom and a bathroom that many would envy. Her living space was confined to the windowed sides where light could wake her in the morning. The rest of the area was just too dark, even with the lighting that ran from one side to the next.
“The house is designed to look small from the front. The additions were modular and done with the full approval of the town council.” She smiled and put the extent of her wardrobe into one duffel bag. “Okay, I am ready to leave.”
“Just like that?”
She grinned and slid her arm around his neck. “Would you like sobbing? I mean, I broke my toe once, and I think I could remember how to cry if it was really necessary.”
“I like you sassy. Let’s keep the crying for the big stuff.” He leaned down and kissed her short and sweet.
“Excellent. Now, on to my new home and your new home if you like it.”
He chuckled. “Let’s see and compare. I live on my family’s property, so this might be a good change.”
“Right. You are involved in a family business. I forgot.”
“Yes, we drill wells. My expertise is in determining the strata layers and how deep the water is.”
“Do you enjoy it?”
“It has its moments.” He laughed. “You sometimes find mineral deposits on the way down. It can be very lucrative for folks.”
“Do you just do water wells?”
“Well, no. We also own a number of mines around the country. I travel about a month a year.”
They were at the base of the stairs when the entire family stopped them. In silence, one by one, they hugged her and when she finished embracing her family, there were definitely tears in her eyes.
“Okay. I have my cell. I am taking a few days off until I figure out what happens next.” She wiped her eyes, and Axander steered her carefully out of the pack house.
Once outside, she was able to straighten up and Axander held her hand as she led him through the woods, out of the pack territory and onto her own territory.
The yard was immaculate and well-tended. The topiaries were neat and in lovely geometric shapes.
Axander paused. “You win. If the house matches the yard, I am pledging my undying love for your horticultural skills.”
“This isn’t all me. My Aunt Keelie set up the landscaping years ago. All I have done is kept up the housekeeping and made a few additions.” She led him through the grounds and toward the house.
“You still win.” He squeezed her hand. “I can feel that this place has the same energy that you do. This is home.”
She grinned. “I am so glad. It means I won’t have to move the go-kart track or the mini golf course in the back.”
He laughed. “I am eager to see the interior but prepare yourself. When it comes to mini golf, I am a Viking.”
“I stand warned. So, let’s go pick a bedroom. I like blue, personally.” She laughed and hauled him forward at a run. He didn’t take much coaxing.
One week later, they had their first visitor, followed almost immediately by their second.
“Auntie Keelie!” She squealed and ran to hug her godmother.
Axander was amused, and he followed at a statelier pace.
Pansy turned to watch him approach. He was wearing a tight black t-shirt and faded jeans. He was a treat to look at.
“Keelie, this is my mate, Axander. Axander, this is my fae godmother.” She inclined her head formally.
Keelie shook Axander’s hand and then hugged him. “Welcome to the family, Axander. Now, I am sorry to bring trouble, but there is a mage guild representative behind me by about a minute. And here she is.”
A flash of light preceded a woman of mature years who looked to be in her fifties and who would tolerate no bullshit. “Is this her?”
Before Keelie could answer, there was a ball of light heading toward Pansy. She pulled a quill, charged it and flicked it toward the ball of light in an instant. The quill continued and buried itself in the woman’s shoulder.
“Ow! Okay, so the reflexes are there, the power is definitely there. She will have a tutor within the week.”
Pansy walked over and pulled the quill. “What are you babbling about?”
“Didn’t the fae tell you? You are getting mage training. We don’t have one of your kind on record as containing this much power, so we want you trained as a local mage and occasional transporter. This isn’t negotiable.” The woman scowled and rubbed her shoulder.
Keelie cleared her throat. “Assessor Win, please give us a moment.”
The woman growled and stomped off.
Pansy blinked and took Axander’s hand. “What is going on?”
“The blast when you entered the Crossroads showed a power signature that isn’t usual to shifters. Magical shifters can come and go without incident, but you almost blew the place apart. Your magic is bound to fae and human magic, not shifter kind. The second shape you have is a product of your genes and the magic is your environment. You are nature and nurture all in one. The question is are you, Axander, prepared to deal with what this will bring? Many of your kind will not be pleased to have her combination of talents in the area.”
Axander held her close. “I am hers, she is mine, our beasts are incomplete without the other. I am with her even if she grows a tail and can’t shift it back.”
Keelie smiled. “Good. Karl is on board as well. You will have familial support.”
“Will Assessor Win do the training?”
“Oh, stars no! You are going to be trained by the Transport Guild Master, Krisia. She’s the one you blew up, so she knows your power like none other. Your training will start in four days.”
Keelie turned with her long coat fluttering.
“Just like that? You are leaving already?”
“Oh, honey, the idea of you having strange powers has turned your mate on. Do pay attention, sweetling. I will be back to help with your training. Part of your magic is mine, after all. Have a good day, Pansy. I know Axander intends to.” Keelie waved farewell, grabbed the assessor and they disappeared in a swirl of energy.
Pansy turned and blinked. “She came and it wasn’t dawn or twilight. This must have been important.”
“It sounded important. Your aunt is perceptive.” His eyes narrowed, and he began to stalk her.
She giggled and a slight bit of anticipation ran down her spine. “Is she? Well, she isn’t a shifter, what could she know?”
Without warning, Pansy turned to run. If she got up the tree in the front yard, he would never be able to climb after her.
She didn’t even make it off the front porch. He grabbed her, and she kicked and squealed, laughing as he hauled her up to their room for a discussion on the finer points of instinct.
They had four days until she would start her training; he had better make the most of it.
Afterword
Nine children, each with a different shifter shape, were born to the Barkleys. Each one had a fae godparent, handpicked by Keelie.
Pansy’s pursuit of magic was remarkably successful and each of her offspring had her talent, her control and her ability to walk in high heels. It made the boys very popular during drama presentations at school. Five of the children married fae spouses and lived happily ever after. The other four went to the Crossroads under their own power and found the mate for them.
The Medeelas did indeed have mates waiting. Well, most of them did. Four were wed within two months of the Barkleys’ wedding and the other two were the first beings that Pansy sent to the Crossroads…but that is another story.
Author’s Note
Each one of these books is a different family, different situation and different set of rules. The only constant is the Crossroads itself and many of the staff members.
In Getting Wet, we will revisit an otter that we first met in Born Cheetah. With her sister mated and limited options in sight, going to the Crossroads is her best bet to find a man who likes to do it under water, in either shape.
Thanks for reading,
Zenina Masters
http://www.zeninamasters.com
About the Author
Viola Grace was born in Manitoba, Canada where she still resides today. She really likes it there. She has no pets and can barely keep sea monkeys alive for a reasonable amount of time. Her line of day job tends to be analytical which leaves her mind hopping to weave stories. No co-worker is safe from her character analysis. In keeping with busy hands are happy hands, her hobbies have included cross-stitch, needlepoint, quilting, costuming, cake decorating, baking, cooking, metal work, beading, sculpting, painting, doll making, henna tattoos, chain mail, and a few others that have been forgotten. It is quite often that these hobbies make their way into her tales.
Viola’s fetishes include boots and corsetry, and her greatest weakness is her uncontrollable blush. Her writing actively pursues the Happily Ever After that so rarely occurs in nature. It is an admirable thing and something that we should all strive for. To find one that we truly like, as well as love.
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