Authors: Penelope Fletcher
“
What the hell are you
doing,” I hissed.
“
Today you learn how to
fight.”
He came at me again, with the deadly
grace of a cobra, this time his foot flew toward my upper arm, and
I blocked him, barely. I still ended up being shunted two steps to
the side from the impact.
Conall wrinkled his nose. “You have no
technique, no instinct. You fight like a human. You must use all
your senses; feel what I am going to do before I do it.”
“
Now is not the time for
this lesson,” I said seriously, trying to reason with
him.
I pointed at Breandan and Alec who
alternated between quick swipes and bites, to rolling around,
pulling away, regrouping then attacking again.
Breandan’s torso was riddled with
scratches. I swear my own skin itched in the exact same
places.
“
Never will you have a
greater distraction than a friend in danger,” Conall said firmly.
“You must remain calm and focused even in the face of losing
everything you hold most dear.”
“
Fine,” I said sweetly.
“You asked for it.” I reached to magic and it flooded me with
white-hot rage.
Conall’s eyebrows lifted in surprise.
“You practiced as we ran.”
“
Hell yes.” I sent a blast
of golden energy his way and followed it through with a smack to
his gut with my fist. Before he could recover, I darted round to
his back, and kicked his leg out from beneath him. Conall fell, but
he twisted round to land on the tips of his toes and the palms of
his hands. His legs bunched up before he sprang up, body curving
into a perfect crescent moon before landing lightly on his feet and
shooting me a quick grin.
I laughed. “You think that’s
good?”
He came at me, and I flipped backward,
again, and again, cutting through the middle of Breandan and Alec’s
fight, the amulets bouncing off my chest as I went. Though the
world spun, but I was acutely aware of my surroundings. Before I
was a fairy had I executed this move the world would have been a
chaotic blur. Now I saw everything. I even saw the confusion
flicker across Alec’s face when I passed him, my legs up in the air
and my back arching. It was odd because he was a cat mid snarl, but
still clear as day, I saw how startled he was by catching his eye.
As I flipped upright, making an odd square between the four of us I
thumbed my chin at Conall who looked mildly impressed.
Breandan’s gaze locked on mine.
Mischief flicked across his expression and he winked at me. At the
playful gesture, my mouth dropped open.
My brother waved me forward the same
time Breandan rushed forward to meet Alec’s charge. I somersaulted
over and he slipped under me. Our faces came inches away from each
other. His silver eyes twinkled at me before the love in them was
replaced with hardness as his gaze twitched to lock on
Alec.
I landed with my back to Conall, no
longer caring that we were sparring and watched as Breandan
finished his fight by grabbing Alec’s jaw in his hands. He
straddled the shifter’s back and forced him to lie down.
The Pride fell silent.
And this was it, the horror they had
brought upon themselves. Alec had lost; his life was Breandan’s to
claim.
My heart pumped double time in my
chest. He would not do it. It was not in his nature. Oh gods,
please. I knew I could not interfere this time. This was Pack law,
no something I, Conall, or Breandan could override. The thought of
leaving passed through my mind, because if we left, right now, this
need not happen. We could try and track Devlin another
way.
Was this boy’s life worth my
revenge?
I pressed my eyes together and waited
for the sickening crunch.
There was a soft, warm pressure at my
mouth. My entire body relaxed and I wound my arms around the boy
who teased my lips open with his. I breathed him in. Sunlight and
soil mixed with the faint tang of salty sweat. The firm skin of his
back burned under my palms.
I heard a fierce roar and my eyes
flickered open.
Breandan smiled down at me, and I
pressed my fingertips to his cheek, reverent. Words could not
express how proud of him I was.
His face was animated with mischief
and he jerked his head to where Byron stood, clapping a panting and
weakened, human Alec on the shoulder. “We dance,” the Alpha
roared.
His Pack took up the chant as I
wondered if they had lost their minds.
Alec stumbled up to me with a dazed
smile on his face. His dark hair stuck up in awkward bloodied
clumps and his body was coated in a thick sheen of sweat. He looked
as if he had enjoyed the tussle, invigorated. “You dance?” he asked
me, breathless.
I scoffed, “No.”
He looked at Breandan inquiringly. “A
fairy that does not dance?” He sounded doubtful.
Taking my hand in his Breandan
followed behind the shifter-boy toward the bonfire in the centre of
the Pride.
“
Why do you think you
cannot dance?” he asked.
Embarrassed, I wanted to tell him that
I did not like to dance, and that it was dumb simply to save face.
Instead, I said, “Two left feet with no rhythm. And it’s not like
we had much chance. Most of my time was spent studying how to kill
demons.” I shrugged. “We did nothing but learn how to become the
best at what we did.”
He snorted. “The best? I have seen you
throw a punch. That does not come close to the best at hunting
other beings.” He slanted a look at me. “I will have fun showing
you how to use your body.”
I stuttered, trying to think of some
snappy response but managed only to totter behind him, lead by the
hand with a absentminded expression.
That was how I came to be standing in
front of the fire when the first drumbeat echoed into the night. A
slow, leisurely pounding that had my entire body shivering. The
sound seemed to sweep over my skin and ripple to the tip of my tail
that flickered mischievously. The shifters danced, throwing
themselves into the beat; ready to release the stress through
laughter, music, and movement.
A hard hand caught my chin and turned
my head. Breandan motioned me to watch him. Releasing me, he
inclined his head and pointed downward to his feet. It was a simple
thing, this dance. Booted feet a shoulder width apart, he rolled up
onto the tips of his toes then back onto his heels.
The drums were loud, urgent, and
insistent. Breandan rocked back on his heels then to his toes. He
looked at me expectantly. I did the same. His lips twitched with
the beginnings of a smile, and he matched the time of his movement
to mine.
Conall was beside us doing something
similar, and having one hell of a time judging by the relaxed
satisfaction dominating his usually stoic expression. One of the
braver females stepped up to him, smiling coyly, and waved him
forward. He joined her, accepting the invitation gracefully. They
danced, but never did they touch. It was like they were connected
in some other, unseen way. Eyes closed, heads flung back, lost in
the beat.
Breandan’s limbs entwined with mine,
and continued to rock us back and forth. We pressed together in the
writhing mêlée of bodies, and for a while, we swayed. Our bodies
twisted slightly so we could stare into each other’s eyes. A sigh
of awe hitched in my chest at the sight of him. When I began to
feel faint, I looked away, across the heart of the Pride to see the
entire Pack lost in dance of passion and hunger. I was shocked to
see some of the shifters in cat form, heads bobbing to the beat,
tails curling around the air in loose, lazy patterns. They weaved
through the crowd, backs arcing in pleasure as people stroked and
petted them as they passed. Some rolled in the dirt playfully,
purring up a storm.
I spotted Alec. He was near his Alpha,
jumping in smooth, audacious movement.
The shifters danced differently than
the fairies. The movement was bolder and slower in comparison to
the liquid-like slink of Conall.
My view of the dance abruptly changed
as I was lifted high into the air, Breandan’s arms around my waist.
Down I came, and remembered to rock back on my heels then up onto
my tip-toes. Breandan pressed closer behind me, matching the curves
of my body to his. I was tense now; my eyes wide and mouth
parted.
“
Let go,” he murmured in my
ear.
I sank my teeth into my bottom lip,
felt pain when the sharp tips sliced the delicate skin. Nervous at
the suggestion of giving into the wildness of my nature, I licked
up a sliver of blood as a flare of pain signaled my healing.
Trusting in him, the one I was bonded to, I did. I relaxed and
closed my eyes. Again, he lifted me up and instinct took over. My
arms rose up above my head; I arched my back causing my wings to
flutter, and gently kicked my legs forward. Down below the crowed
rejoiced and crowded closer.
It was a jubilant crush of bodies. The
ground became damp with sweat as we danced. The floor beneath my
feet shook. Everything I was hummed, joining into the collective
ecstasy of being outside. Free. Alive. Smoke hung heavy in the air,
mixing with the smell of wet grass and warm bodies. The drums beat
on. Louder, harder. Forced us to move with wild abandon.
A tingle of pleasure ran across my
lower stomach as Breandan’s hands drifted down to my hips and
coaxed me into rolling in time with the beat. I let my head loll
back and opened my eyes lazily to look up into the sky. Stars
already twinkled above in the dusk.
The tempo increased, driving us ever
higher, and I was off the floor, swinging my head to the side. My
arms flew up, legs thrashed. The breathless wail torn from my
throat was crystalline. A melodic cry infused with power. It seemed
to come alive and shoot sparks across the sky. As I fell the air
whistling past cooled my heated skin, but the moment my feet
touched back down I was enveloped in heat. Breandan spun me round
to lift me up so I could lock my legs around his solid waist. He
ran his hand up my back, and kissed my neck then nipped it roughly.
My pulse leaped as I nipped him back and felt his chest rumble with
approval.
He set me down and jumped high in the
air, landing silently. For a moment, I worried my bite, and his
lust had driven him crazy. Then I saw the shifter males did the
same thing. Unsure of what to do, I watched the females. I matched
the strange patterns of their limbs with my own. As the males
stomped the floor the torsos of the females rippled, their chests
rose and fell, hips bucked. As they daringly ran their hands over
the shoulders of their dance partners, they smiled seductively,
sensually trawled their fingers through their hair before spinning
away, faces turned upward to watch their men soar into sight with
powerful leaps. Their bodies beckoned their chosen ones to come
back down to touch and play.
My hazy focus was drawn back to my own
partner, and when Breandan came down for a third time I caught
surprise flitting across his face when I placed my hands on his
chest. Face hot, I stroked down over the smooth, hardness of him as
my body moved in soft undulations I had not thought possible. His
hesitation in returning my touch was brief. His arms wound around
me as he accepted my offer to join closer.
Over his shoulder, I noticed the
younger shifters, the cubs, were being guided away by their
mothers. Conall was no longer dancing, but glaring at us. My eyes
flicked to Alec. He shook his head, avoiding the advances of
several young shifter-girls trying to coax him into the dance.
Byron stood slightly in the shadows, arms crossed over his broad
chest. He nodded once at each young couple that slowly left the
light of the fire, consumed in each other. They stroked and kissed
as they faded into the coming darkness.
It seemed odd, almost ritualistic.
What dance would mothers not want their cubs to see? That Conall or
Alec refused to partake in with the female younglings … couplings
the Alfa must approve of … Breandan’s arms tightened around me,
and I was distracted by how close he was. I felt his chest expand,
drawing an intake of breath that carried the scent of
me.
The drumbeat changed, slowed into
singular thumps.
We were the only two left dancing. I
followed my fairy around the circle in a series of simple, but
beautiful steps that had me forgetting my confusion, and smiling
shyly at him. I ducked my head down so my hair covered my face when
he smiled back. He was so handsome. Not even the scar that ran
across his cheek lessened his silver-kissed beauty.
The fire deepened to rich violet. I
glanced at the horizon; easy on the flat grassland the heart of the
shifter Pride rested upon. I saw the sun, a slender arc of shady
orange visible in the distance that had yet to set completely. My
fairy eyesight – which transformed the world into a vision of
electric blue and purple at night – was not what had changed the
colour of the fire. The longer I looked I was sure I could see
naked forms dance among the flames. A warm wind wrapped round my
body and swept around me playfully.
He used magics for me.
I laughed and danced on. Happy, for
the second time truly, blissfully happy. I was aware, both times; I
had been in the presence of my fairy.