7
DIANA
Diana spent the late afternoon learning the inn's personality. The seventh stair creaked like an old woman sharing gossip, while the third step from the top sang a different note entirely. The window in the corner guest room rattled at the slightest breeze, and the radiator in the parlor had a tendency to clank three times before settling into its rhythm.
She was testing the firmness of the newly repaired floorboard when voices drifted up from the lobby. Female laughter, bright and musical, followed by a deeper male voice that carried the easy confidence of someone comfortable in his own skin.
Diana descended the stairs, avoiding the gossip step out of habit now, and found two people in the lobby. The woman had copper-auburn hair that caught the light like fire, her green eyes warm as she arranged trailing ivy in a mason jar on the reception desk. The man beside her was tall and lean, with sun-streaked brown hair and hazel eyes that seemed to catalog every detail of the room.
"You must be Diana," the woman said, turning with a smile that felt like sunshine. "I'm Freya Bloom. This is Kieran."
"From the apothecary," Diana said, remembering Miriam's mention of the herbal shop. "The ivy is beautiful."
"For prosperity," Freya said, adjusting the trailing stems. "New beginnings deserve a little encouragement from the green world."
Kieran set down a heavy terracotta planter near the fireplace, his movements economical and sure. "Where do you want this one?"
"Wherever feels right," Diana said. "I'm still learning what the space wants."
"Smart approach." Kieran straightened, wiping his hands on his jeans. "Old buildings have opinions about where things belong."
Freya pulled herb bundles from a canvas bag, their scents mingling in the air. Lavender, rosemary, something that might have been sage. "These are for clearing the space and protection. You can burn them or just let them dry naturally."
"Thank you." Diana accepted the bundle, touched by the thoughtfulness. "Both of you. This is incredibly kind."
"Town takes care of its own, let us know if there’s anything we can help you with," Kieran said simply.
"Speaking of which." Diana hesitated, then decided directness was better than dancing around the subject. "I had a visit from Gerald Finch the other day. He made some comments about my unfamiliarity with shifter customs."
Freya and Kieran exchanged a look.
"Finch is a bureaucrat," Kieran said, his tone carefully neutral. "He likes to make people feel small. What exactly did he say?"
"That I should educate myself about shifter culture so I don't accidentally cause offense." Diana tucked a curl behind her ear. "I'm assuming there are things I should know beyond basic politeness?"
Freya settled into one of the lobby chairs, her expression thoughtful. "What do you want to know?"
"Everything, I suppose. Pack dynamics, territory issues, whatever might come up in day-to-day interactions." Diana sat across from her. "I don't want to stumble into some cultural minefield because I was too ignorant to ask and I have no idea where to begin looking."
Kieran leaned against the mantelpiece, his arms crossed. "Most of it's common sense. Don't challenge someone's authority in public unless you're prepared for the consequences. Don't get between mates. Don't touch without permission, especially if tensions are high."
"Mates?"
Another look passed between Freya and Kieran, this one longer.
"Shifters bond differently than humans," Freya said carefully. "When they find their person, it's... intense. Permanent. Not something to take lightly."
"Like marriage?"
"Deeper than marriage," Kieran said. "More primal. When a shifter finds their mate, everything else becomes secondary to protecting and providing for them."
Diana nodded, filing the information away. "What about pack politics? Finch mentioned those like they were complicated."
"Because they are." Kieran's mouth tightened slightly. "Every pack has its own hierarchy, its own rules. Some are more flexible than others. Some hold grudges longer than they should."
"Is that why people seem wary of Rowan?"
Freya's eyebrows rose, and Kieran's expression sharpened with interest.
