Read Online Little Prick by Zenina Masters - Free Book Online Page B

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