ELRETH

Elia dropped the last armful of clothing into the bag, then returned to her daughter's side. Elreth stared down at her. Elia's eyes were kind, lined at the corners, and her blonde hair was shifting slowly towards gray. But she was strong and lithe, and she moved like a cat. A small cat, by Anima standards, but not one to be trifled with.

"Don't you understand, Elreth?" her mother said, reaching a hand up to stroke her face. "You won the challenge because of your heart. Your mind. Your intentions. Not because of some grand road map. You don't have to decide what you're going to do. You only need to decide who you are—and who you have yet to become. The rest will happen naturally."

But what about the act of mating? Finding the right mate, a husband? Cubs? What about the fact that she'd never even been with a male, let alone walked the flames and smoke? What about how every eye would be watching her now and it was already something she'd felt nervous about? Elreth's stomach twisted with fear as her mind's eye bloomed with an image of herself at forty, a proud, powerful Queen… sitting on a solitary throne.

"Maybe I can talk Gar into ruling as King alongside me?"

Elia snorted so hard it sounded like she broke something. "Your brother is never going to rule, Elreth, and you know it. I would love to see you propose that to him, though. Please wait until I'm there to watch him lose his mind."

Elreth pursed her lips. "You aren't funny."

Elia patted her face. "Yes, I am. And you know it. As your father says, never deny the truth. Just time it to your advantage." She winked, then pulled Elreth into a hug and didn't let go. "Don't be scared, Elreth," she whispered. "You're going to be amazing at this. I promise."

Elreth squeezed her tight and prayed she was right, her eyes pinching with tears from an emotion that she couldn't quite define. And her mother kept swallowing too.

They were still standing that way when the sound of heavy male bodies, and deep male voices echoed through the cave.

They pulled apart before her father and Aaryn made it to the bedchamber. She and her mother both wiping their eyes quickly.

"…need to wake up Gar," her father was saying to Aaryn, referring to her brother. "He must be sleeping off last night's hangover. I can't decide if he's going to be angry, or relieved."

"Definitely relieved," both Elreth and Aaryn said at the same time. Their eyes met and they both chuckled. Elia beamed at them.

But Elreth's amusement didn't last. "Dad, can you please tell Mom that you guys don't have to move today. I don't need a whole cave yet, and—"

"Don't be ridiculous, Elreth," his father said, walking over to join her mother and slide his arms around her waist. He kissed her neck before he spoke again. "You have to be based here for the Guard to find and guard you in an emergency, and we don't want to share it. We need our privacy. We'll move to your tree this afternoon unless you don't want us there."

Elreth rolled her eyes. "Of course you can have my tree," she said. "If you want to be neighbors with Gar. That can get… interesting."

"On second thoughts," her father groaned and used it as an excuse to bury his face in her mother's neck. Elreth groaned. Her parents were so disgusting sometimes.

Then she caught Aaryn grinning at her and flashed him the finger sign for keep your mouth shut.

He poked his own palm twice. Touchy touchy.

Elreth rolled her eyes again. Aaryn had insisted for years that she'd taken her mother's human attitudes towards mating and affection—always embarrassed by the way her father lavished attention on her mother, and touched her, even when others were present.

But thinking about that ran far too close to Elreth's earlier thoughts about taking a mate and she didn't want to think about that. So she turned back to her parents and cleared her throat so that they'd stop pawing each other like adolescents. When they both looked at her, she sighed.

"If you're moving out, then I guess I better go pack so there's room for your things back at my place."

Her father nodded. "And while you're at it, go find your brother. He's been gone for three days and he needs to hear about this."

"But don't tell him your idea about him ruling with you until I'm there," her mother chuckled, but her eyes were tight. She worried about Gar.

"Very funny, mother," Elreth sighed, but Aaryn's eyes had snapped to her face.

'You won't take a mate?' he signed.

Elreth gritted her teeth and started for the door. 'Better question is: what mate would take me?'