"Better go let them in before His Royal Broodiness tears this place apart with his bare hands."
"This isn't—" He stops himself and blows out a heavy breath. "Okay."
Jack-Eye straightens. "I'll go with you."
Of course he will. Any excuse to get away from the big bad witch who turned his new friend into an amphibian. Wolves are so predictable. Soboring. Take away their agency once and they lose their ability to function.
Owen hesitates, looking from me to Grace and back again.
"Don't worry," I tell him with my sweetest smile. "We'rebestfriends. Right, Grace?"
The angel-descendant looks at her, his silver eyes troubled. "Will you be—"
"I'm fine," she interrupts, her cheeks flushing pink as she looks at me. "We're friends."
I press a hand to my chest, mock-offended. "Just a friend? After everything we've been through? I'm wounded."
Her face crumples with genuine concern, her green eyes widening as she reaches toward me. "Oh no, I didn't mean—I just—best friends! We're best friends!"
I chuckle. "Breathe, blueberry. I'm just messing with you." I wave my hand dismissively. "You're wound too tight. Relax!"
Grace's shoulders visibly relax, tension melting away as she exhales a long breath. "That wasn't funny," she mumbles, but there's no heat behind her words. A small smile tugs at the corner of her mouth despite her best efforts.
She's so cute. A sweet little bundle of innocence, wrapped in a world determined to grow her into a fate too large for her dainty shoulders.
I can see the threads of her fate, and they're beautiful.
But surrounded by so much pain.
The best fates usually are. The Divinity call itbalance, but I've never agreed.
Jack-Eye follows a hesitant Owen toward the exit, and I can't help but twirl my finger in the beta's direction. "Ribbit, ribbit."
He actuallysnarlsat me before following Owen out. At least he has some spice to his fear. Doesn't like being poked at, does he? Maybe he'll be more fun than I realized.
When they're gone, Grace collapses onto one of the cushions scattered across the floor, her eyes wide. "You turned him into atoad?"
"Just for a second," I tell her with an easy smile. "I wanted to talk to him, and it's the easiest way to get a point across."
"Is that why Jack-Eye is afraid of you too?"
I shrug. "Jack-Eye just has good instincts. Unlike your mate, who bulldozes through life with all the subtlety of a freight train."
Her face does that endearing pink thing again. "He's not my—"
"Grace," I interrupt, sitting beside her, "we're well past that particular denial, don't you think?"
She opens her mouth, then closes it, hands fidgeting in her lap. Her nervous energy fills the space between us—anticipation and anxiety in equal measure. It's sweet.
"Is Caine really upset?" she asks quietly.
"He's been tearing the city apart looking for you." I pat her knee. "In his own charming, homicidal way."
A soft smile plays at the corners of her mouth, and I marvel at how someone so genuinelygoodcould end up bound to a creature like Caine. The universe has a twisted sense of humor.
"I should warn you," I add, "he might be a bit... intense when he sees you."
Her smile falters. "Intense how?"
