Nathan Poole is ready to become Sarah's Warden, but a long lost family heirloom changes his life and future.     Trial and Heiress Chapter 2 By Amethyst

Thanks as usual to Eof for a great universe to play in and to Eof, Maggie F and Donjo for their input.

“Mom. Wake up Mom.” I shook her lightly as I tried to wake her thinking that perhaps I should have thought of an easier way to break the news to her. Is there an easy way to reveal to your mother that her son is now her daughter and wearing a trinket she’s likely wanted to get her hands on her whole life? Well I guess in this case the trinket got itself on my hand. She had passed out with her body half in and half out of the garden. “C’mon Mom,” I said as I tried again to wake her. Her eyes started to flutter as she began to regain consciousness.

“Nathan is that you?” she murmured. “I had the strangest dream. There was a Pixie and you had Titania’s Glove, only you were a girl…” She trailed off as her eyes shot open and she stared at me. “I hope I’m still dreaming.”

I swallowed the lump in my throat, and gave her a weak smile. “Hypothetically, if you weren’t dreaming, how much trouble would I be in?”

She sat up and looked at me intently, taking in the Glove on my right hand, “Well Nathan, hypothetically speaking, if I weren’t dreaming I’d think you were in enough trouble already.”

“I would have to agree with you, hypothetically of course. So if this weren’t a dream, and I’m not saying it isn’t, what would we be doing right now?”

She frowned at me, “We would be dropping the hypothetical nonsense because we both know its bullshit. Then I would be marching all three of you into the kitchen to find out what exactly happened and what can be done about it.” She subjected Jason and I to a withering glare as she got to her feet. “Now move it.” Her eyes darted to Dandelion, who was trying to slip away, and she broke out the dreaded ‘disappointed mother’ tone. “All three of you,” she added icily. That tone could freeze molten lead.

We all sat at the kitchen table and I related how we had run into Dandelion and found the Glove. At the point where the Glove literally oozed onto my hand Jason took over, since I was unconscious for most of the story after that. She didn’t interrupt, though at a few points I think she wanted to, but let us tell the whole story before she said anything. Finally once we were finished she took a slow sip of her tea, the calming stuff of course, and asked me the big question. “How complete is the transformation Nathan?”

“Pretty complete?” I answered sheepishly and took a swallow of my own tea, did I ever need it right now. “I haven’t exactly taken an inventory, other than the obvious stuff but I certainly know what’s NOT there.”

My mother frowned at that, “We’ll have to take you to the Coven’s council so that they can examine you and the Glove. Maybe one of us can work out a way to get it off and reverse the transformation.” I almost smiled at that, until she added, “But don’t get your hopes up.” She looked at me sadly, “Why didn’t you come tell me when you met Dandelion or when you found the Glove?”

A sigh escaped my lips. I had indeed thought of that several times but I had ignored my instincts. “I thought of that,” I admitted, “But I wanted to be the one to find it. When you first told me about the Glove it was like you were sad that you missed out on the chance to have it. I wanted to be the one to bring it to you and see the look on your face when you saw it in person for the first time.” I looked down at my breasts and then to the Glove morosely, “This wasn’t exactly what I had in mind.” I shrugged, “And then when I was in the cave with it, it was right there and it seemed stupid to leave without it.”

“Nathan, the Glove is a magical artifact. You know as well as anyone how dangerous magic can be,” she scolded.

“You said it was passed down from mother to daughter or granddaughter. The last thing I thought was that it was going to turn me into this!” I snapped, now close to the verge of tears. Stupid girl hormones. I sniffled as I finished, “I thought it would ignore me since I was a guy.”

Mom gave me a sympathetic look and shook her head, “Obviously that isn’t the case. We need to re-think how the Glove works. It would seem that is tied to the Poole bloodline in general, not necessarily just the females. It must be physical contact with one of our line that causes the bonding and whether the wearer starts as female or not the Glove will change them to fit the template.”

“Oh I’m sure glad we know that now and not when some unsuspecting guy ends up with boobs,” I muttered wryly, rolling my eyes.

“Don’t be crude, they’re breasts Nathan not any number of derogatory terms you boys have for them, and you’d better get used to that.” She retorted before turning to lock her gaze on Dandelion, “That does beg the question though, why did you take Nathan to the Glove, didn’t you know you were looking for a female?”

“I just knew I was looking for the Poole,” the Pixie squeaked nervously. “I forgot who I was supposed to be looking for and then she told me her name was Poole, and she knew about the Glove so I thought she was the one.” She at least had the decency to look embarrassed by it.

“Hey! Who you calling a girl!? I’m a guy remember, or at least I was.” I grumbled, taking another sip of my tea.

“Ummm Nate,” Jason offered, “Sorry to break this to you man, but even as a guy you weren’t exactly a strapping example of manhood. You were skinny, kinda short, and with your hair and that heavy hooded jacket you were wearing, I could see how she could have gotten confused.” He kindly didn’t mention how confused seemed to be a permanent state for the Pixie.

Mom turned her stony gaze to Jason, “That brings us to you young man. Why didn’t you come find me when the Glove started to transform him?”

Jason frowned, “He was obviously in pain, and would have been defenseless if something found him there. I wasn’t going to leave my best friend like that.” He crossed his arms defiantly.

Mom sighed, “You’re right Jason, you did right by staying with him, but why not send Dani?” She looked down at the Pixie who was now poking her finger in Jason’s teacup and staring raptly at the ripples made in the cooling liquid. She quickly retracted her question, “Nevermind.” She sighed, “I guess we can’t change what happened so we’ll have to see what we can do to fix this.”

Mom was making some phone calls to arrange an emergency meeting of the Coven’s council and Jason had headed home after promising not to say anything to anyone about my situation. Dani on the other hand seemed to have nothing better to do then to hang around with me in the living room and watch television, after she finally believed me that people weren’t really trapped inside it that is. So while we were sitting watching something not even mildly entertaining to me, but which seemed to be the newest shiny object to catch Dani’s attention, I was able to relax a bit.

My mind though was still firmly centered on my current predicament, so much so that I hardly noticed when Rick walked in. In my defense though, Rick and I were so used to one another’s comings and goings that we often only half paid attention to one another, unless directly involved in a conversation. He hardly noticed me either except to say, “Hey Nate, how’s it hanging?” as he passed by.

I even started to answer before cold hard reality once again hit me, “Hey Rick its…” I stopped short, grumbling and cursing. That was the worst possible thing he could have said because while normally it would have ended at grumbling and cursing, this time it quickly escalated into sobbing.

Either my reaction got his attention or he caught the difference in my new, more feminine voice because he swung around and stared at me. “Whoa! You’re not Nate.” He looked at me intently as if trying to place a familiar face, “Sorry I thought you were my brother… Are you okay? Honest, Nate’s not that bad that you should be crying about it.” He started babbling as he was unsure how to handle the situation, “I really am sorry. I don’t know how I could have mistaken you for Nate, you don’t look like a guy at all.” This of course set me off crying even worse and since Rick was oblivious to the Pixie trying to comfort me and knowing he was way out of his element he did the first sensible thing to pop into his head. “MOM!!!”

I had been trying so hard to hold it together while we were out in the woods and when we were explaining things to mom, but now it all seemed to pour out of me in a torrent of emotions. Anger, despair, confusion and most of all the discomfort with my body, it all came out at once. All I could think now was how much I hated this. I hated my new body, I hated the hormones and the emotions they were obviously causing, I hated the Glove.

The next thing I knew I was wrapped up in Mom’s arms and she was cooing to me softly, “It’s okay baby, it’s okay, we’re going to try to fix this.” Mom and I had always been as close as a mother and son can, but it had been a long time since she had held me in her arms and let my cry out my frustrations. It had been a long time since I had needed it. I had considered myself a man and beyond that kind of thing. That was no longer the case and now I let out all my anguish, held securely in my mother’s arms. It was a while before I ran out of tears.

I woke up sometime later with Mom still holding me. I hadn’t even realized I had fallen asleep and I figured the stress from the transformation and then the crying must have worn me out. She must have felt me stirring because she spoke, “Feeling better sweetie? A good cry can really help sometimes.”

“I guess so,” I replied. I did feel somewhat better now that I had let it all out. It was like a weight that I hadn’t known was there was somewhat less now. The sleep may have helped a bit too. Or it could just be that I was emotionally drained at the moment. Regardless I hugged my mother tight, “Thanks Mom, I needed that.”

“I’m not surprised. As much as I wished we could get the Glove back, I would have never wished his on you to get it.” She looked away. Her eyes were red and puffy and I could only assume that she too had been crying.

“It’s not your fault Mom. You couldn’t have known this was going to happen, it wasn’t even Dani’s fault, she couldn’t have known either.” I sighed, shaking my head sadly, “It was my own damn fault, I should have come and told you, and the last thing I should have done was touch the damned thing.” I looked around, “Speaking of Dani, where is she?”

“She said she was going to talk with her Queen. I would imagine she’s going to let her know we have the Glove. She said she would come back later to see you. She was worried you know.”

I nodded. As infuriating as she could be, the Pixie’s heart seemed to always be in the right place. “And what about Rick? What’d you tell him?”

“I told him we would talk about it later. We’ll have a family meeting once he and William get back from tuning up the plane. You and I have a meeting to attend so I told them they would be in charge of dinner tonight, so expect pizza. You know them, like father like son, and they both hate cooking.”

“Ugh, yeah pizza is fine with me,” I responded. There’s a reason my dad and Rick both hate cooking, they’re terrible at it. “I guess you managed to get that emergency meeting of the Coven then?”

She nodded, “Yes, we’re meeting in half an hour, so we’d better get going. I convinced them that in your current emotional state you probably wouldn’t react well to a Summons and a formal Coven meeting. So we’re having an informal meeting, but you need to promise to keep everything that happens there secret. In other words, this meeting never happens, got it?”

I swallowed nervously but nodded my agreement, “Yes Mom.”

Half an hour later found us in the sitting room at Roseberry Manor for an informal meeting. The house was massive. I’d never been in it before and I thought it was a shame I couldn’t have the chance for a bit of exploration. After the maid ushered us into the room she was quickly dismissed by Helen Roseberry who gave us a warm greeting, obviously trying to make me more at ease. “Please have a seat Nathan. I’m sure you know most of us here. Please remember nothing said here is to leave this room.”

I nodded as I tried to get comfortable in one of the chairs, “Yes Ma’am.” She seemed to be the one in charge here, and not just because it was her home. She had an air of command about her that none of the others had, not even my mom. And it seemed that my mom was indeed one of them. The other three were Sarah’s grandmother, Agnes Taylor; our school principal, Janet Lawson; and Claire Dennis who my mother often had over for coffee.

They had me repeat the story of how I had found the Glove and what had happened since in as great a detail as I could. Then Mrs. Roseberry cleared her throat, “We all know why we’re here. So let’s all get to work.” With that said they all took turns examining both me and the Glove.

During Mrs. Lawson’s turn she shook her head as she carefully looked over the Glove for anything the others may have missed, “I thought I told you to stay out of trouble Nathan.”

I shook my head, trying to give her a cocky grin and probably not succeeding very well. “No Mrs. Lawson, you told me to keep a low profile.”

She arched an eyebrow at me, “This is a low profile? What do you do when you actually want attention?” I said nothing to that and she shook her head, “I can’t see any way to get this off. We’ll have to try getting it off with magic. I’m certain we won’t be able to reverse the transformation unless we manage to remove the Glove first, it seems to be tied in to how the Glove bonds to the host.”

After that they all tried various spells on their own, in pairs and even as a group. The only result after several hours seemed to be all of us getting very frustrated. Grasping at straws, Mrs. Dennis muttered, “Maybe Nathan just has to want it off?”

I glared at her, retorting sarcastically, “Oh why didn’t I think of that? Let’s see, I’ve tried pulling, prying, begging, pleading, crying, and wishing for it to go away! The only thing I haven’t tried is cutting my damned arm off! Obviously I don’t want it off bad enough!” I was shouting now and I could feel the tears coming once again. Mrs. Dennis blanched at my words and for a while the only sound in the room was my sobbing.

Mom held me again as I cried and eventually Mrs. Roseberry broke the silence. “We’ll keep looking into it but I fear we won’t get much better results. This is a powerful artifact and it seems like it’s bound to Nathan until his death if the Poole family history is accurate. We need to prepare for the probable eventuality that this situation is permanent.” Then they began coming up with a plan.

The plan was fairly simple. ‘Nathan’ had been getting into so much trouble that his exasperated parents sent him off to military school today to straighten him out; the fight with Eric had been the last straw. This would leave things open in case I could somehow change back. Later this week ‘Natalie’ will come to town. Natalie’s story is that she’s a cousin of Nathan’s and happens to be my mom’s favorite niece who recently lost her parents in a tragic house fire.

This story would explain Natalie’s lack of belongings or clothes and any moodiness on my part. And since Natalie and my mom are so close my parents thought Natalie needed family and were working on legally adopting her to make it all work out, that way I would only have to remember to call my parents Aunt Nora and Uncle William for a little while before I could call them mom and dad again. To make this all more believable Rick would fly me and mom to Vancouver early in the morning so we could all attend the fictional funeral and we’d spend a few days there before coming back later in the week so that a despondent Natalie can be seen getting off the plane.

With a story decided on the meeting came to a close with the promises that records for Natalie Poole and her fictional family would be created and the adoption process set in motion. Mom and I left Roseberry Manor and headed home where I was to be kept out of sight until we could fly to Vancouver. The meeting had gone late and it was well after dark as we drove home and I slouched back in my seat so that I couldn’t be seen by anyone. Not only could that complicate the plan but I also was a bit ashamed for people to see me as a girl. It was bad enough that the Coven’s council, Jason, and Rick had seen me like this.

We arrived home and mom had to half drag me inside. This was not a family meeting I was looking forward to. We went straight to the kitchen where she sat me down at the table while she went to the living room to gather Dad and Rick. I was still wearing the ill-fitting clothes I had been wearing since my transformation, but I didn’t have anything else that would fit any better, so changing clothes wasn’t extremely high on my current list of priorities.

I could barely hear Mom in the living room trying to prepare Dad and Rick for the inevitable as I helped myself to a slice of cold pizza from the box on the table. I could hear my mom better as the three approached the kitchen, “….now this is going to be very difficult on him and we’re going to have to do our best to support him while he adjusts.”

Rick was silent so maybe he had put two and two together to make four, my father though replied with, “Transformed how? Surely it can’t be that bad Nora, no matter what Nathan will always be our …” I heard his sharp intake of breath as he caught sight of me at the table. I looked up and saw him staring wide-eyed as he cursed, his voice barely above a whisper, “Son of a bitch.”

“Ummmm, hi Dad,” I gave a nervous little wave. “A funny thing happened while I was out training.” My brother and parents sat down at the table and an awkward silence fell over the room as none of us were quite sure what to say. I continued to nibble at my pizza, more to keep my mouth occupied so I didn’t say anything stupid than out of hunger.

“So that’s really you Nate?” Rick asked, breaking the silence. “Look I’m sorry about earlier, I honestly had no idea. At first you were sitting there in your normal clothes and I was only half paying attention so I didn’t think anything was different. Then you were crying and I knew you looked familiar but I couldn’t remember where I’d seen the face. I wasn’t really thinking about what I was saying, I was trying to make you feel better but I only made things worse. So I uh guess this means you’re my sister now?”

“Cousin actually,” my mother offered, “at least until we can formalize an adoption.”

I gave Rick a weak smile, “I know you didn’t mean it Rick. Besides I figure we’re even.”

Rick looked a bit confused at that, “Even how?”

“Because when I tell Gwen you made your sister cry she’s gonna kick your ass.” I replied with all seriousness.

“You wouldn’t.” He paled when the look on my face told him I most certainly would, “Oh crap you would. He’s definitely Nate.” The last was muttered under his breath.

“She’s your cousin Natalie, and we all need to remember that until the adoption is set up. Even after that she will be your sister. Nathan is off at military school,” my mother said sternly. “So from now we’ll need to refer to Natalie as female. We need to get into the habit now so we don’t screw up later.” She gave us all a look that made us sure there would be no argument on that.

“There’s one problem with your plan,” my father spoke up, always the analytical one. “She may have a girl’s body, but how are we going to convince anyone that she grew up as a girl?” He gestured at me where I was leaning back in my chair with my legs splayed apart scarfing down another slice of pizza. My mother sighed.

“What?” I asked, my mouth still full.

“I’ll have a few days to work with her while we’re in Vancouver, we’ll get her some clothes and necessities while we’re there too .Maybe I can…” Mom was interrupted by an insistent knocking at the door. “Natalie, you stay where you are, Rick go see who it is.”

Rick got up and left the kitchen to answer the door while the rest of us sat in silence. Soon I heard a very familiar voice and it didn’t sound happy. We could all hear Sarah quite clearly from the kitchen. “Where is he Rick! First Jason told me something about him being hurt and recovering here at home and that he wasn’t to be disturbed, then my grandmother says he’s been shipped off to military school! I want to know what’s happening and I mean now!”

Rick’s response wasn’t as audible and obviously wasn’t satisfactory to her because somehow she had managed to slip by him and into the kitchen. Her eyes slid over my mom and dad and then settled on me still sitting as I had been earlier and with a piece of pizza half in my mouth. She stared for a long moment, confused, taking in my clothes, posture and who knows what else. I swallowed both my pizza and the lump in my throat nervously when she finally spoke, “Nate?”

I knew I should have remained quiet but this was the girl I was in love with. She knew me better than anyone and I knew I wouldn’t be able to fool her long, even if I had wanted to. So I spoke using a geek reference I knew Sarah would get, “Hi I’m Natalie Poole, sorry about this.”

Her eyes grew wide and her jaw dropped as she continued to stare at me. “Nate… you’re a girl.”

“Yeah I kinda noticed that,” I muttered. I looked around at my parents and Rick who were all trying very hard to look away. “Umm, let’s go somewhere more private.”

More private turned out to be the back porch swing. We sat down together and I told her the whole story, except the part about the Coven’s council meeting. I glossed over that part since I had been sworn to secrecy and only told her the Coven’s plan. I started to sniffle and get a bit teary at the end and Sarah pulled me into a hug. “Sorry about all this emotional crap,” I sighed, “It’s been a rough day.”

She nodded, “I can only imagine how hard this is on you, but maybe you can grow to like being a girl, it’s not that bad.”

I shook my head sadly, “Not for you maybe, you’ve been one your whole life. I liked being a guy and I don’t know anything about being a girl and I’ve never had any interest to either.”

“I can help you learn about girl stuff, but what’s so great about being a guy?” she asked.

“Guys are bigger and stronger for one thing.” I replied.

She giggled at that, “You’re the same size as you were before and because of your size you always focussed your warden training on speed and agility rather than strength, and you’ll probably find that you’re faster and more agile now. So that’s not going to fly. Give me another reason it’s better being a guy.”

I shrugged, “I could write my name in the snow without using a finger. And there’s guy stuff, like fixing cars, camping, fishing, and sports.”

She made a disgusted face at me, “That first one is just gross and not worth responding to. As for those others you can still do them. Girls are just as capable as guys; most of us just don’t have the interest. There’s nothing wrong with girls who do like those things, I like camping and fishing just as much as you and Jason do. Try again; give me one thing you had as a guy, not including body parts, which you can’t have as a girl.”

I bit my lip, holding back tears as I looked her right in the eyes as I answered, “You.”

She sat there stunned for a moment, “Oh Nate. I’m… I never… You’re still you; it’s only your body that’s changed. I can’t say what will or won’t happen between us. I still care deeply for you and if nothing else I will always be your best friend. This is going to take some getting used to for both of us. We might not even be attracted to each other anymore with all of this. We’ll need time to sort it out. But I will always be there for you.”

I sighed, “So I’m being friend-zoned?” Tears were starting to form again. Why the hell do girls cry so easy? Stupid hormones.

She shook her head and took my hand, “No, I’m just asking that we take the time to both adjust to this and see how we feel then. We’ll stay good friends for now and if we both decide later that we can be more again, then there is nobody I’d rather switch teams for.” How is it that a simple sentence can make a person both depressed and elated at the same time? She looked me over again and stood up, and I assumed she was preparing to head home.

I attempted a smile, “Thanks Sarah, I think. I guess I won’t be seeing you until I get back from Vancouver then.”

“I’ll be back in a bit,” she said, squeezing my hand, “I think I can help you with your clothing problem, you need something to wear that fits properly. You’re still taller than me but I think between some of your clothes and some of mine we can put together an outfit that will work. Dressed like you are you’re only going to draw attention to yourself.”

“Okay, I guess.” I squeezed her hand back and then let her go while I sat in the swing thinking.

Not long after Sarah left I heard a tiny familiar voice coming from beside me. “I’m sorry, I was so eager to help. I wanted to help you find the Glove, I didn’t know much about it, all I could remember was that I had to take the Poole to the Glove.” There was sadness in Dani’s tone “I’m sorry, this is all my fault. I was hoping we could be friends but I never spent much time with humans before and sometimes I get distracted and forget things.”

I had already forgiven Dandelion seeing as it really was my own fault, and I suddenly felt bad that such a normally bubbly person was beating herself up over my stupidity. I turned to the Pixie and tried to smile for her, “Dani, it was my fault not yours. You know I could really use some friends right now and you seem like you could be a good one.”

“Really?” the Pixie asked, uncertain.

“Really,” I responded. “Sarah should be back in a bit, she’s also from a Witch family, so maybe she could be your friend too.”

I felt just a little bit better when she squealed, “Thank you!” and flew over to excitedly hug my arm.

I was being roused by a gentle shaking. I opened my eyes to see Sarah standing beside me with a medium sized suitcase in one hand. I must have dozed off while waiting for her. I started to move when I felt a very small weight shifting in my lap; apparently Dani had dozed off as well. I attempted to scoop the Pixie up in my hands without waking her as I spoke softly to Sarah, “Sorry for dozing off, it’s been kind of a long day.”

She smiled at me, “It’s okay, I’m not surprised.” She looked into my cupped hands at the sleeping Pixie, “So is that Dandelion?”

I nodded, “Yeah, this is her, she’s had a long day too I think.” I wondered briefly how her meeting with her Queen had gone before looking again at the suitcase. “Do we really need that many clothes?”

Sarah shrugged, “I wasn’t sure what would fit you so I grabbed a little of everything to be safe.”

We headed inside and up to my room where I deposited Dandelion carefully on my pillow. “I hope you didn’t bring anything too girly.”

Sarah set the suitcase down on my bed, “Like I said I brought a little of everything. I think right now we need to be more concerned about fit than fashion. Though, we don’t want you to stand out like a sore thumb either.” She opened the case and after some searching tossed me something that looked like a really short tank top. “You look about the same size as me and I don’t wear sports bras often so you can have this, it’ll work until you can get something better. I’m not giving you any of my panties though so we’ll have to try and find something else for that.”

I stared at the object in my hands as if expecting it to catch fire, “You don’t really expect me to…” I started to say.

She gave me one of her don’t mess with me looks. “Yes I do, you’re at least a B cup, probably a C you’ll need some support. Now hurry up and get it on.” She made no effort to leave the room so I assumed she was going to stay in here while I did it. With a blush I shed my clothes, leaving me only in my briefs. The briefs were a bit tight around my hips and loose in front but they would work until I managed to get something better. I stared at the bra for a moment unsure what to do. She rolled her eyes and showed me which part went in the front, “Now just put it on like one of your tank tops and make sure your breasts are properly inside so they’re supported.”

“Okay okay,” I grumbled. If anyone told me a few days ago that my girlfriend would be showing me how to put on a bra and that I’d actually need one, I would have decked them. I was really glad there wasn’t a mirror in my room and even gladder that Sarah hadn’t had anything for me to use as panties. I was not ready to deal with what was probably down there yet and I knew it. The bra and having to actually touch my breasts to get them situated properly inside it was bad enough. I shuddered at the thought. The words ‘my’ and ‘breasts’ just did not belong in the same sentence, let alone my thoughts.

Once we were finished squeezing my new additions into the torture device called a sports bra it was time to find something to wear over top. Sarah’s jeans fit better than my own, though they were a bit tight and short in the leg. It was lucky they did fit okay because the only other option was skirts and I was not wearing one of those. I made it quite clear to Sarah that it was not an option.

Tops proved to be more troublesome due to me being five inches taller than Sarah. Most of the t shirts she had and many of the sweaters as well left my midriff bared. Sarah said that a lot of girls wear midriff-baring shirts and I remembered seeing them but I also remembered how guys reacted to them. I did not want to give any guys any ideas about me and I shuddered once again at the thought of being the girl in some guy’s night time fantasies.

With that in mind I started going through my own shirts but sadly most of them were too tight in the chest and not only would that be uncomfortable but that too could give guys the wrong idea. Finally I stumbled across a baggy grey hoodie that I got for Christmas last year and didn’t wear much because it was too loose. After trying it on and finding it a comfortable fit I decreed that it was the one. The long sleeves had the added bonus of hiding the Glove as well.

Finally Sarah pulled out a pair of socks and sneakers and had me try them on. The sneakers were a little tight but that was far better than any of my shoes which were now far too big. With me now dressed in clothes that were fitting somewhat decently the two of us re-packed Sarah’s girly suitcase of doom and went downstairs to join my parents and Rick. Mom seemed pleased that I was no longer wearing Nathan’s hand-me-downs and Rick and Dad seemed a bit uncomfortable at me wearing mostly girl’s clothes. They should be glad it’s not them wearing them.

“That looks much better,” my mom said, giving Sarah and I a smile. “That’ll work nicely until we can get Natalie some new clothes, thanks Sarah.”

“No problem Mrs. Poole, I should get going though, mom is waiting outside for me. I’ll see you when you get back.” She gave me a big hug and reluctantly headed outside. I walked with her to the door and watched her get into the car before heading back into the kitchen.

Rick was just standing and stifling a yawn when I returned, “I had better go get some sleep if I’m going to be flying you both the Vancouver in the morning. Good night.” He ruffled my hair as he passed me, “You should get some sleep too Nat.” That little action and the fact that he had shortened my new name to something resembling Nate, told me that I still had my brother no matter what else may change.

“Good night Rick,” I called after him. Then I said my own good night to mom and dad and headed to bed myself to try and get some sleep. As long and stressful as today had been this was only just the beginning.

Nathan Poole is ready to become Sarah's Warden, but a long lost family heirloom changes his life and future.     Trial and Heiress Chapter 3 By Amethyst

Thanks as usual to Eof for a great universe to play in and to Eof, Maggie F and Donjo for their input.

I was on my knees, examining the mint before me. It was just mature enough for picking, the leaves a healthy green with no dryness or browning. A sound behind me caught my attention and I turned to see what it was. A handsome young man stood, leaning against a tree as he watched me. Though the war was well over for years now he was dressed as a soldier and held a rifle. Upon examining the rifle in his hands the hands themselves caught my attention; both were stained blood red.

My eyes shot quickly up to his smiling face. He was looking at the Glove intently as he spoke, bowing slightly with a tip of his helmet, and briefly displaying pointed ears. “That’s an interesting trinket you’re wearing. I am Ly Erg and I am bid to invite you to join Prince Sarric for dinner so that you may discuss matters of some significance to you both. The shifting of the rifle in his hands made it clear that refusing the invitation was not an option.

I ran through the woods, the hem of my long dress making it treacherous so I had it gathered up in my hands. The constriction spell I had used would likely not hold one of the Sacred for long and I needed to get to town quickly if I were to be safe. I was going over what spells I may be able to use if he should catch me up as I ran. It may have been foolhardy but just running scared without thinking of a plan seemed more so to me. Suddenly the ground gave way beneath my feet and I fell.

I was in a small cave and had fallen perhaps fifteen feet. My eyes darted about for some way out but there seemed to be none, not even handholds I could use to climb. “You should have come,” Ly Erg’s voice came from behind me and I froze. “I don’t think you will be much use to us. You’ll resist too much and who knows what protections Titania has put on that if it really is the Eochair. I think instead we will wait for a new host, one who is young, inexperienced, and easily manipulated.” He stressed each whispered word as he ran a blood-stained finger along my cheek.

I froze as his other hand rose to cup my other cheek as he continued his monologue, “At least she’ll be easy to find. You though my dear are useless to us, alive anyway. “ He now held both sides of my face in his red hands, “Let’s hope the next host is more agreeable.” I tried to break free but he held me fast and even the kick I delivered to his shin had little effect. The last thing I heard was the snapping of my neck.

I woke up from my nightmare gasping for air and shaking. I had never had a dream feel quite that real. It was like I could feel, see, smell, taste and hear everything clearly while it was happening and it had felt as real to me as the shivering and quickened heartbeat I felt now in the silence of my room. I made an effort to put the dream and the events of the last few days out of my mind, but it was a while before I was calm enough for sleep to claim me once more.

I awoke to the alarm and realized two things immediately. First it was way too early to be awake. The clock only said three thirty and I didn’t need to get up for school for hours yet. The second thing I realized was that I had an urgent need to empty my bladder. I sleepily rolled onto my side, accidentally squishing my breast beneath me. That woke me up pretty damn quick, as the events of yesterday, the long night before that, and my nightmare came rushing back to me.

I absently rubbed my breast as I padded my way to the bathroom grumbling, “Stupid boobs, stupid body, stupid Glove.” I had changed into one of Rick’s old t-shirts before going to sleep the night before and the hem was just below my thighs. It covered everything it needed to and there was no way I was wearing the clothes Sarah loaned me to sleep. I needed them for today and that sports bra squished my breasts uncomfortably. I stepped into the bathroom and stared at the toilet fighting my need to get some relief.

After a long moment of silence for my manhood I stepped up to meet destiny, made sure the seat was down, turned around and pulled down my briefs to sit down. Soon I was getting relief while at the same time shuddering in revulsion at the situation. The feeling of relieving myself was different and yet the same, but at least it still got the job done. I almost stood up again before I remembered that girls have to wipe afterwards. With another shudder I reluctantly wiped myself clean, realizing as I did so that it was official; I really was a girl now. “This is too much hassle, damn being a girl sucks,” I muttered as I washed my hands.

With my business done I made my way back to my bedroom and searched around the mess on the floor for the clothes Sarah and I had picked out last night. A shower would have been nice but I wasn’t going to have time for one since Mom wanted to leave the house by four o’clock and I didn’t think I was ready to get that intimate with all my new bits and pieces yet, just going to the bathroom had been hard enough. Finding the clothes in a pile by the bed I got out of Rick’s shirt and into the evil sports bra and soon the rest of my clothes followed.

It was almost ten minutes to four by the time I got down to the kitchen. Rick and Mom were eating some cold cereal with milk, so I shuffled over to the table and poured myself a similar meal. I was pouring a glass of juice when Dandelion, who was far more cheerful than should be legal this time of the morning, greeted me. “Good morning!”

In my surprise the juice container nearly flew out of my hand and some spilled on the table, “What’s so good about it?” I grumbled. Rick looked at me strangely and I guessed that he couldn’t see Dani. I shrugged and dug into my cereal. Dani proceeded to dip a Cheerio in my milk and nibble at it.

Mom shook her head at me, “I guess it’s no surprise that Natalie isn’t any more of a morning person than Nathan was.”

I swallowed my mouthful of cereal and grumbled, “This isn’t morning it’s hell, and I’m still Nathan on the inside no matter what you all think I should be called now.” The rest of breakfast, all five minutes of it, was spent in silence.

The drive through town was uneventful and we didn’t see anyone, not that I would expect to at this time of the morning. Dani had insisted on coming with me, saying that I needed cheering up, and I think she was hoping her own cheerfulness would be infectious. I was less optimistic. Finally we arrived at the dock and made our way to the plane under cover of darkness. Soon we were seated in the plane while Rick went over his flight checklist and radioed in our flight path to NAV Canada. Minutes later we were in the air and headed to Vancouver.

Since we weren’t catching a commercial flight at Vancouver Airport, rather than landing there we landed at the float plane docks. The float plane docks were better for our type of plane, we didn’t have to wait long to land, and we wouldn’t have to go through airport security where the Glove could pose a problem when they inevitably asked me to remove it. Best of all though, the docking point was by Harbour Park which is conveniently located by the Convention Center, Canada Place, and all the comforts of downtown Vancouver including several good hotels. Since it was still early Mom and I checked into one of those hotels to catch a few hours more sleep while Rick got the plane prepped for his flight back. He would come back and pick us up in a few days after the fictional funeral.

Mom woke me at nine o’clock claiming we had a lot to do today. I rubbed my eyes sleepily and looked over to find Dandelion sleeping and half tangled in my hair, this long hair was going to take some getting used to. After gently waking her and helping to extract her from my tangled mop I sat up and yawned, looking over at my mother who seemed all ready for a day on the town. “What could we possibly have to do today Mom? I thought we were just staying here while people think you’re at a funeral?”

My mother rolled her eyes at me and ushered me toward the suite’s bathroom. “We have two days to get you proper clothes and to teach you to act like a girl who’s had her whole life to learn what I have to cram into your head in two days. Now shower, just a quick one though. We’ll wait to show you how to shave until we get some of the supplies you’ll need.”

I was about to argue that I did know how to shave until I realized she wasn’t talking about my face. “Oh.” I said soberly, and made my way into the bathroom for the dreaded shower. I was really glad she had specified a quick shower as it didn’t give me too much time for thinking about just what body parts I was and wasn’t washing. In fact I think I spent more time on my hair than my body, long hair is such a chore to take care of. Then while drying I found that rubbing myself with the towel was irritating so instead I patted myself dry, which seemed to work a lot better. I thought to myself that being a girl is so much more work than being a guy.

I was still toweling my hair dry as I left the bathroom, “Grrrr, this is taking so long to dry. Mom have I mentioned how much being a girl sucks?”

“Only about fifty times Natalie,” my mother said, sighing. “There’s a hairdryer in there, use that, it will make things easier.”

“I’ve almost got it now Mom, but I’ll remember that for next time, maybe I’ll waste less time.” I finished toweling my hair and started to get dressed again. I frowned at the sports bra, “Do I really need to wear this mom?”

“You can go without it,” she began and I almost felt some pleasure over a small victory over all things feminine until she finished, “But the boys will notice and you’ll get a lot of attention.” At that I quickly put on the bra grumbling as I squished myself into it. Mom chuckled, “We’ll get you something a bit more comfortable while we’re out shopping today.”

“Is shopping all we’re going to do while we’re here?” I complained.

“Of course not,” she replied, “Once we’re done shopping we’ll spend tonight teaching you everything I would have taught you if you’d been born a girl. Then tomorrow we’ll go around town and start getting you used to being seen as a girl and put your lessons into practice.”

“Oh joy.” I grumbled, “You really know how to show a guy a good time.”

“Yes I do,” she said, grinning at me, “But you seem to have forgotten that you’re a girl.”

I glared down at my chest, “No Mom I haven’t and if I ever do I have two huge reminders.” Well maybe they weren’t huge, but when you’re not used to having breasts at all any size would be huge. Then her first comment sunk in, “TMI Mom!” As I finished dressing I noticed that Dani was staring raptly out the window at the city. I walked over beside her, “It’s pretty impressive isn’t it?”

She nodded excitedly as she fluttered over to sit on my shoulder, “It’s so big! There must be lots of people here.”

I actually cracked a smile at her excitement. “Yeah there are millions of people in this city. I wouldn’t want to live here myself but it is nice to visit once in a while. I guess you’ve never been off the Island before. You said you never had much interaction with humans?”

“No, that’s why I volunteered to help find you and show you to the Glove. I had never been out of the forest before but I was curious about where you humans lived,” she responded as she continued to stare out at the city.

“Well we’re going out there today, Mom is taking me shopping as a girl so I guess today we’ll both be getting a whole new world of experiences. “ I said, thinking that Dani was probably getting the better part of the deal. “If you’re interested in coming with us that is,” I quickly added.

“Can I?!” her eyes became huge in her tiny face.

“Sure,” I said, shrugging. The movement jostled her a bit but she didn’t seem to mind. “Just make sure the Norms don’t see you and try to stay with us.”

“Oh don’t worry, they can only see me if I want them to.” Well I guess that explained Rick’s strange look at breakfast.

Mom chose that moment to join us, her purse in her hand, “Okay girls, let’s get going, we’re going to head to Metropolis Mall and we have a lot of work ahead of us.”

It was a lot of work, well for me anyway. Mom and Dani just mostly watched while for the next several hours we migrated from store to store in the massive mall and I tried on more clothes than I had in my sixteen years previous. Okay maybe it wasn’t that many but it sure felt like it. Mom insisted we start on the inside and work our way out, so the first store we went to was called Suki’s, which seemed to be wall-to wall intimate apparel.

I was quickly measured once we had hailed a salesgirl. It turned out my band size, whatever that meant, was a 28 and I was a C cup. The salesgirl gushed about what a nice figure I had and started inspecting the racks for various colors and styles of panty and bra sets in my size. I wanted something as plain and non girly as possible but it seemed like I would be out of luck here since everything was lacy and seemed to range from cute to sexy.

I automatically vetoed anything in pink, plum, lilac or any other girly colors and we settled on three sets in black and another three in white. Mom had me use their change room to change immediately into one of the white sets. The panties were actually comfortable and after the sports bra anything else would be a godsend up top, in fact I felt much better now that my breasts were properly supported without being squished. I still hated having them on my body but they could be bearable if I could at least be somewhat comfortable.

Next we trolled various stores in the mall which catered to clothes for teenage girls. Mom and Dani tried to talk me into some feminine clothes but I settled mostly on t-shirts and jeans, though I made sure I got some long-sleeved sweaters and hoodies that I could use to hide the Glove. By this point I was getting sick of salesgirls commenting on my lovely ‘slave bracelet’ as they called it, and asking where I had gotten it. Next we bought me a warm jacket and gloves, then it was off to the shoe store where I managed to escape with only a pair of sneakers, then finally we broke for lunch.

So far I had spent the whole shopping trip grumbling and saying things like, ‘I will absolutely not wear that.’ When I wasn’t doing either of those I was quiet, which had not gone unnoticed by my mother. As we sat down at a table in the food court with some Chinese food she spoke. “Natalie, I know this is hard for you and you do not want to jump in to all the girly stuff and I understand that, I’d probably feel the same in your place. In fact I think the only reason I’m not freaking out with you is because I need to help you adjust and learn what you need to. Really it’s not all that bad being female though.”

I sighed, putting my fork down as I looked up at my mother, “Mom, it’s not the girl stuff. I mean it’s not only the girl stuff. Yeah I’m depressed, scared and a little intimidated by my change but I have a couple other things on my mind too. Like what happens between Sarah and I? I can’t exactly be her Warden now can I?”

Mom covered my hand in hers, “No, probably not. Now that the Glove has bonded to you you’ll be learning to be a Witch yourself, you’ll both need Wardens someday. A Warden can just be a protector, a close friend though, not all Witches marry their Wardens. You and Sarah may not have the Witch/Warden relationship anymore and you may both be girls now but your futures, and whether you want to share them together, are up to the two of you to decide.”

“But what do we do to carry on our family lines? You’ve always said it’s important that we do that.” I looked up at her sadly.

Mom chuckled at that, “There’s always other ways for you and Sarah to have children, In fact now you can both have babies and carry on the Taylor and Poole names.”

At that I started to cough as I choked on my forkful of chow mein, “Mooooom. I just became a girl two days ago and now you want me thinking about having babies?”

She shook her head and squeezed my hand, “I was just answering your question sweetie. There is still hope for you and Sarah if you both still want it and who knows, maybe someday you’ll be comfortable enough with the new you that you might start thinking about children. All I am saying is don’t think about all the opportunities you think you’ve lost, think about what opportunities you still have and what new ones may opening up to you. If you think of this as a curse it will be one, so take your time and get used to things with an open mind and see if you can make it a gift instead.”

I thought about what she was trying to say. I may hate being a girl and I may be really uncomfortable with my body right now, but should I actually give it a chance and try to see the good in it? “But I don’t know how to be a girl,” I whined. It sounded lame even to me.

“That’s why I’m going to teach you,” she said. “Sarah will too if you ask, and it might even bring you both closer together. But really being a girl isn’t much different than being a boy when you set aside the body parts. You said it yourself at breakfast, you’re still the same Nathan inside. Being female doesn’t define you, you still decide who and what you will be it’s just that you have a few different possibilities now.”

“Yeah apparently I can have babies now.” I muttered, though I was beginning to see her point.

Mom chuckled, “Yes you can if it’s your choice to. Other than being female though there’s only one other thing you don’t have a choice in. You’ll have to start studying magic with me. The Glove is too dangerous for you to remain untrained even without the Glove, magic is too dangerous without the proper knowledge.”

I nodded, “Yeah I kinda figured that one out. But I guess I can see this as bonding time with my awesome mom. Thanks Mom, I may still not like this but I think if I can be a girl my own way then it might be easier to get used to. It’s not like I have a choice now but to give it my best shot.”

“That’s all I ask sweetie.” She looked me over but apparently wasn’t satisfied about my state of mind so she pressed, “You said there were a couple things bothering you. What else is on your mind?”

I blushed, taking a deep breath before speaking, “I had a bit of a nightmare last night. It shook me up a little,” I admitted. Then at her insistence I related my nightmare to her in as good a detail as I could remember, which was far more clearly than I would have liked. Finally I finished with a shudder as I remembered the sound of my neck snapping.

She frowned as she considered this. “You said that when you were in the cave it looked like great grandmother broker her neck when she fell?” At my nod she sighed, “Do you think that knowing that may have influenced your dreams?”

“No.” I shook my head to emphasize that as I stared at the Glove peeking out from beneath my sleeve. “I don’t think so, I hardly even remembered that until you reminded me just now. I don’t think it was enough to let my imagination run with it. Besides it felt so real, too real actually.”

Her frown deepened at that, “We’ll need to let the Coven know about this. I don’t think it was just a simple nightmare. I hate to ask this of you sweetie but do you think you and Jason can find that cave again? Grandmother deserves a decent burial and there may be some clues there.”

I nodded, though I was a bit uneasy about returning there with everything that happened there, especially since my nightmare. “I think we can Mom.”

Dandelion looked up from her seat on the edge of the table. “I’ll go with you and when we reach the cave I’ll go and talk to her Majesty, that dream could be important. I hope I can remember it all.”

“I could always write it down if that would help.” I offered.

The Pixie nodded her head quickly as she beamed at me. “That’s a good idea.”

Mom nodded, “I think your father and I will go with you back to the cave, Rick and Gwen as well if we can manage it. Until further notice I don’t want you going into the woods without some sort of protection.”

I made a face at that, “I can take care of myself Mom, I was training to be a Warden.”

She shook her head, giving me a look that made it clear she would not be argued with, “You’re still getting used to your new body and you’re an untrained Witch with a powerful Artifact. You are NOT going out into the woods without protection, especially after that dream of yours.” That was the end of the discussion and we quickly finished our lunch so we could resume my torture.

Following lunch we used the restrooms just off the food court, where my mother had to gently remind me to use the ladies room rather than the men’s. The two really aren’t all that different aside from the ladies room having more stalls and no urinals. Then she dragged me into Icing, a store by the food court which had a lot of girly accessories. There we bought make-up suitable for my coloring, a purse to keep my things in and lastly a pair of earrings. I of course told her I didn’t need any of this stuff but she insisted this was stuff a normal teenage girl would have. When I pointed out that I didn’t even have pierced ears she just smiled and told me that was the whole reason were there. When we left the store I had a purse, make-up, and two more holes I didn’t want in my body.

Our next stop after that was one of the large chain drug stores where the torture took on a more psychological flavor. There we bought all the lotions, potions and self-care products that a modern teenage girl required. Instead of paying for everything herself this time, mom handed me her credit card and had me pay while she waited on a bench outside. I hadn’t even noticed she had put the tampons and sanitary napkins in the basket until I was unloading it at the checkout.

Moments later as I emerged from the store carrying the bags with my face beet red I handed my mom her credit card as I glared at her. “Mom that was just cruel. I know you’re trying to help make sure I adjust to this all, but that was just a little much.”

She raised an eyebrow at me as she accepted her card. “There’s nothing to be embarrassed about, you’re a young woman and it’s completely normal for women to buy those products. You need to get used to that and you might as well do it now rather than when you absolutely need to.”

“I’d rather have waited ‘til I needed them, or better yet not have to do it at all,” I muttered. “And you could have at least taken Dani with you, she kept asking what things were for and it was distracting enough without you throwing those into the mix. Not to mention embarrassing.”

“I guess you’re right,” she admitted, “I should have asked her to come with me.”

I sighed as I sat down beside her. “All these bags are getting heavy Mom, so are there any other stops on the torture tour or can we head back to the hotel?”

She chuckled at that, “There’s nothing else we need to do, no.” She looked away as she said it and there was a bit of sadness in her voice.

“There’s something you’d like to do though, isn’t there?” I asked, looking at her and feeling a little bad for my constant attitude today when she was just doing her best to help me adapt. I tried giving her a smile, “Mom I know I’ve been a bit of a jerk today, it’s nothing to do with you though. You’ve been great and I appreciate you doing this with me even if I don’t like ll the girly stuff and I have no idea how we’re going to afford…”

She stopped me there with a raised hand, “Don’t worry about how we’re going to afford this. Helen knew you were going to need a new wardrobe and such so she sent over a fairly generous donation to get you set up in your new life. There’s plenty there for more clothes when we get home too. Right now we’re just buying enough so we can say we got you some things while we were here to replace some of what you lost in the fire and give you something for school.”

I thought about that for a moment, “That’s a bit of a relief; I thought we were draining your retirement fund or something. Its bad enough you had to close the store while we’re here. But like I was saying, you’ve been great through this and if there’s something you want to do, please tell me. The worst I can do is say I’d rather not.”

Mom leaned over and kissed me on the cheek, “Thank you sweetie. When I turned sixteen and came into my magic, your grandmother and I spent a day out on the town shopping and having fun, much like you and I are even though it’s not much fun for you. Afterwards we got dressed up nice and had our picture taken together and then went out for dinner.” She sighed as she turned away, “I always wanted to have a day like that with my own daughter once she came into her abilities. After you were born and we found out I couldn’t have any more children I gave up on that.”

I bit my lip as I considered this, “So that’s the picture of you and grandma above the fireplace?” She nodded and I thought for a moment before asking, “Do you think there’s room for another one beside it?”

“I think that could be arranged,” she replied, carefully looking away.

I leaned against her, “Let’s go get something nice to wear then, just please no dresses or skirts.”

Something nice to wear turned out to be a pair of loose black dress pants for girls and a white chemise with a charcoal grey cardigan over top. The pants were a bit billowy and looked a bit like a long skirt when I was sitting but they were comfortable and not a skirt so I was okay with that. The chemise and cardigan weren’t that different from a guy’s dress shirt and sweater so overall the outfit was bearable. The only thing I really complained about was the black ballet flats, but since they were comfortable and didn’t have a heel I let Mom talk me into them.

So with me dressed in my new, only slightly girly, finery and my mom wearing a nice dark blue sweater dress we went to a portrait studio in the mall and got our picture taken together. I even smiled for the picture, though that was mostly due to Dani trying to encourage me from behind the photographer. The sight of the twelve inch pixie imitating my frowning, and then using her fingers to force a smile out if it, just seemed funny to me for some reason.

Since we would have to wait an hour before the photo studio would have our photos ready we left the studio to find a nice restaurant for dinner. The mall was staring to fill up with teenagers looking to do some after school mall trolling at this point and I was getting more appreciative looks from guys than I was comfortable with. Mom seemed to notice my discomfort and took my hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze. “You’ll get used to it in time sweetie.”

We managed to find a fairly nice restaurant after window shopping our way halfway across the mall. The Silver Spoon was a fairly upscale fine dining restaurant, well as upscale as any restaurant inside a mall can be. It was a nice place anyway and out of most teenagers’ price range so I was able to eat without being ogled too much. Mom and I chatted over dinner, a delicious fettuccine Alfredo, and she gave me my first pointers in acting more ladylike. I tried not to complain too much and let her have her moment, she deserved. it.

Once dinner was done we made our way back to the photo studio to pick up our pictures. They turned out pretty well and there was an eight by ten for above the fireplace and a sheet of wallet sizes so we could both have one to keep in our purses as well as some to give to Rick, Dad and anyone else we might want to give one to. With our shopping done and the photos claimed we called a cab to head back to the hotel since we had so many bags and we had almost lost Dani once already on the sky train.

Once we were back at the hotel room Mom began her girl boot camp. I was coached on how to sit properly, style my hair in different ways, shave my legs and under arms, take proper care of my skin nails, and hair, and various other things most girls take for granted. There were also lessons on make-up and the use of those feminine hygiene products we had bought. I didn’t think I would ever use the former, and I dreaded the day I’d have to use the latter, but Mom insisted I needed to know these things.

When we finally got into bed for some rest I was exhausted and my head was spinning from all the stuff Mom was trying to cram into my head. Despite how tired I was I had troubles falling asleep. Even once I did I was plagued with dreams of Pixies chasing me with bras and skirts, boys staring at me as I stood helplessly in all my naked glory, and worst of all a certain red-handed fellow with pointed ears and dressed like a soldier chasing me through the woods. At the last I woke up screaming.

Mom and Dani were at my side in moments. “Are you okay?” the Pixie asked, her little face filled with concern.

Mom was sitting beside me, “You were tossing and turning for a while there sweetie, did you have a bad dream?

I nodded, staring down at the blankets as I sat there shivering. “Yeah I had some weird ones, and then I dreamt Ly Erg was chasing me through the woods.”

Mom sat closer, putting her arms around me, “It’s okay sweetie, it wasn’t real. Was it like the first dream with him?”

I shook my head. “No, it didn’t feel real like last time, I think it was just a normal nightmare. That last one must have scared me even more than I thought.” Mom held me until I finally fell back to sleep.

The next day was spent going around the city and playing tourist so I could get used to being seen as a girl in public. I had been to Vancouver several times in the past so the only real tourist amongst us was Dandelion. She was eager to know all that she could though and her enthusiasm helped me to relax and almost forget about my gender as Mom and I described various landmarks and areas of the city to her and took in the sights.

It became a bit harder to not think about my new gender after the schools let out for the day and I started to get more looks from interested teenage boys. I was really glad I was with my mom since I figured that was what was keeping them from hitting on me. As it was I was seriously considering getting a t-shirt with the word ‘Lesbian’ written across the chest, but I figured that might just make some boys take even more of an interest in me.

Eventually we returned to our hotel, had a quiet dinner in our room, and found a movie to watch on television. While we watched Mom called home and let Rick know to pick us up the following afternoon. I don’t remember falling asleep but the next thing I knew I was waking up cuddled next to my mom with Dani once again tangled in my hair. Seeing that the alarm clock in the room signaled it was four in the morning I said the hell with it and went back to sleep without disturbing either of them.

After another morning of playing at being tourists we had a nice lunch in a café in gas town before going to Harbour Park to relax while we waited for Rick to arrive with the plane. Dani enjoyed watching some small children play while Mom and I went over my story in case anyone at school pressed me for details about Natalie’s non-existent past. It seems Natalie was a good kid, got good grades, and since she was a bit of a tomboy and studied pretty hard she never had any relationships.

Rick arrived at our designated meeting spot just after three thirty and was immediately put to work helping to carry most of my new things back to the plane. I didn’t make him carry it all since, girl or not, I still had two perfectly useful arms. It was not long after that we were in the air and on our way home where my life as Natalie would soon begin.

Nathan Poole is ready to become Sarah's Warden, but a long lost family heirloom changes his life and future.     Trial and Heiress Chapter 4 By Amethyst

Thanks as usual to Eof for a great universe to play in and to Eof, Maggie F and Donjo for their input.

We landed at Sena Island just after four o'clock that afternoon. On the flight Rick got us up to speed on what had been happening while we were away. The story about Nathan being sent to military school was being well accepted, largely due to Jason and Sarah's acting. I gathered they didn't have to act much though since in realty Nathan really is gone for good and they both were a bit shell shocked by what had happened to me. People also believed that Mom really was away at a funeral since Nature's Blessings was closed for the past three days and Mom never closed the store during week days except during emergencies.

Once we were at the dock Mom and I got off the plane and took a few handfuls of bags, leaving the rest for Rick as we walked along the dock and then down the street to where the car was parked. There were a lot of people around at this time of day, due to fishing boats coming in and people getting off work and school. Of all the familiar faces we passed not one looked at me with anything other than curiosity. These were people I had known my whole life and I was a stranger to them all. I could see the question in all of their eyes, even if they wouldn't say it out loud, 'Who is the new girl?'

Who was I indeed? I had said I was still the same Nathan but was that really true? Was I Nathan Poole in a girl's body or would this Natalie persona take over? Wouldn't my new body, identity, and my as-yet-unexplored magic change me by necessity? My future and all my plans had already changed. The minute I changed gender it all collapsed like a poorly built house of cards. There were so many questions and not enough good answers. With all of that on my mind I was in a dark mood as we drove home.

When we arrived at the house Mom headed into the kitchen to start preparing dinner and Dani headed.out into the woods to do whatever it is Pixies do out there. I was about to head upstairs to indulge in a little self-pity in my room when Rick stopped me with a hand on my shoulder. “Let's go down to the cellar and talk.” I hardly had the chance to even finish nodding before he took me by the arm and half-led, half-dragged me through the kitchen and out the back door. “We'll be in the cellar Mom,” he called out as we made our way out the door.

Our cellar isn't your average cellar. It was once the basement but when Mom's work room was built it was divided and walled off to give Mom privacy so that she had her place to work and so did the Wardens of the family. The remainder of the basement was our training area and a separate entrance was built for it. I guess I shouldn't say 'our' training area anymore. I'm a Witch now not a Warden and I had better get used to it.

We made our way down the steps to the cellar door and Rick opened it, reached inside and turned on the lights. The lights flickered a moment before illuminating the practice mats on the floor, the weapons racks, the padded sparring equipment, the small drink fridge, and the assorted other tidbits we used for training. Rick went straight for the sparring equipment and tossed me a set of padded gloves and a head protector. As we both started to gear up he launched right into our talk. Not being one to beat around the bush he came right out and said, “You're having trouble with this whole girl thing and not sure who you are anymore.” It was not a question.

I grunted as I got my head protector into place, “You think? I never would have realized that if you hadn't told me,” was my eventual snarky reply as I fastened my gloves, having a little trouble getting the right one on over the Glove. “How can I still be me with all these changes? What about all my plans?”

Rick merely shrugged, calmly replying, “So you've changed. Life is constant change and plans change too. We change with every new experience we have but at the core we're still ourselves. It's just that our 'selves' are constantly changing and evolving when we face new things. Human beings are adaptable that way. Who's to say you may not have fundamentally changed if the Glove hadn't changed your body and you had just brought it back to Mom. The whole experience may have changed your whole outlook on life anyway. You don't need to change all your interests because you're female now either, you may need to change how you do things but not necessarily what you do”

We both got into our fighting stances as I rolled my eyes, “If we're constantly changing then how do we remain ourselves smart guy?”

“By being true to our values, beliefs and who we feel we are deep down,” he answered as he moved from foot to foot waiting for me to attack. “Changes are going to come no matter what, they could be as small as nicking yourself shaving or as life altering as changing genders, but it's how we face change and adjust that shows who we really are... oof” He grunted as I hit him in the stomach but the blow did little damage as he stepped back, lessening the impact. Then he grinned at me. “The way I see it is you can let life beat the crap out of you and get hurt in the process or you can roll with the punches, try not to let it hurt you too bad and get on with your life.”

“Thank you Master Yoda.” I grumbled, throwing another punch.

He let the punch hit him, just shrugging it off. “Welcome you are. Hit like a girl you do.”

“Like I could hit any other way in this body you jerk!” I snapped, starting to get angry now. I couldn't seem to hit or make good contact even when I did and I was barely dodging his punches. He remained calm and it was bugging me, I had tried to throw him but it was like I was moving all wrong, I couldn't throw him and he landed a good punch to my head protector while I was trying. “Dammit!” I cursed in frustration.

“Moody aren't you? I hope it's not your time of the month,” he said while blocking another punch.

I had been getting so frustrated I didn't even see that he was goading me now. I was now well beyond frustrated. Now I was seeing red. “You asshole!” I put all my anger into a flurry of punches and kicks. Even once my moves were sluggish and my breathing heavy I kept pressing the attack, until he flipped me onto my back.

I lay there breathing heavy and staring up at the ceiling for several minutes before Rick sat down beside me. “Do you feel better now that you got all that aggression out?”

I did feel a little better, though I was still mad at him, “I guess so,” I grumbled.

“Good,” he replied with that infuriatingly calm face. “Now tell me, what are the three things you did wrong in that fight?”

I sighed. I should have known he was testing me. “I let you goad me into losing my temper and I was attacking someone bigger and stronger than me without thinking instead of having a plan.” I knew both of those and they were mistakes I usually knew better than to make. “I'm not really sure what the third one is though.”

He looked me over as he answered, “You were fighting me like a guy. I know you're used to being a smaller guy and you know how to fight bigger guys like that but you're a girl now and fighting like you used to won't work anymore. I think I may have figured out how to compensate for that though.”

“Oh really?” Do tell.” I sat up and took a deep breath to calm myself. “Because I could hardly touch you there and when I did it was ineffective. I couldn't even throw you.”

“Like I said you were fighting like a guy, moving with your shoulders and depending on your center of gravity being there to add power. But your center of gravity isn't there now, it's in your hips. That can actually be a good thing for you.” He motioned for me to get to my feet.

“I know about the lower center of gravity, Mom has been trying to get me used to it by focusing on walking from my hips but I have trouble with it unless I'm thinking about it. But how are these big hips a good thing?” I asked, patting my hips as I stood.

He shrugged, “You'll get used to it in time. I imagine it will get easier if we train you to use your hips in your fighting style too.” He pondered the best way to address my question before answering, “You don't have the power in your shoulders anymore and your arm reach isn't as long, that's why you were having trouble hitting me. But your legs are longer and connected to your center of gravity so you'll have a lot more power in kicks and leg sweeps. Lower center of gravity is better for throws too, so long as you're using your hips and not your shoulders. This is better for a style where you fight with a little more distance between your weak spots and your opponent, so hopefully you'll take less damage. It also gives you more options for getting your opponent on the ground so you can keep an advantage.”

“That makes sense,” I nodded, “Is there anything else I should keep in mind?”

He chuckled at that, “You were so focused on the fact that you could hardly touch me that you didn't seem to notice I hardly laid a hand on you either. You may have lost strength but your speed, agility and flexibility are much better. I think your balance may be too but we'll find out more on that as you adjust to your new center of gravity.”

After that we spent the next hour working on my new fighting style and I think I was starting to improve by the end. It was going to take daily practice to get to the point where it was natural though. We then washed up and joined Mom and Dad for dinner after which Dad took me out to assess my other skills. Luckily my aim with throwing knives and guns was still really good and my knife fighting skills weren't too impaired and should be close to what they were once I get used to my new body's quirks.

I had just gotten out of the shower after my session with my Dad and was heading to my bedroom when Mom stepped in front of me, arms crossed in front of her. “Where do you think you're going young lady?”

I pointed to my bedroom door down the hall, “Ummmm, to my room?”

“That is Nathan's room. Your room is that one Natalie. I already put your things away in there,” she responded while pointing to the spare bedroom. The spare bedroom was usually used for storage and was the biggest of the bedrooms in the house next to my parents' room. Mom had cleared it out a few months ago planning on using it as a sewing room, but she hadn't started doing anything in there yet. I stared at her for a moment, uncomprehending before she took me by the hand and led me back the way I had come to the door across from the bathroom. Once we were standing in front of the door she smiled at me and motioned for me to open it.

I braced myself for the pink walls that were the reason I had never claimed the room as my own. The sea of pink never materialized though and the room was very different from what I had remembered. It was obviously a teenage girl's room but it wasn't overly girly. The walls had been painted a soft cream color and the old worn brown carpet had been replaced with a pale blue-green one. There was now a twin sized bed for me to stretch out in as opposed to my old room's cramped single bed and beside it was a bedside table that looked to be made of pine with a reading lamp and my cellphone on top. There was also a pine dresser, a desk with a mirror on top of it, and a comfortable looking office chair.

I stood there speechless for a long moment taking in everything, “Wow Mom, this looks really nice.”

“We thought that in case anyone visits you should have the spare room. It would look strange for Natalie to be using Nathan's room when we have a spare bedroom, and this will look a bit more like a girl's room and shouldn't be too uncomfortable for you.” She pulled me into the room and sat me on the bed. “It's not too feminine is it?”

I gave her a big hug. “No Mom I think it's great, thanks.”

She returned the hug with a smile.“Your father and Rick were worried we'd be back before they finished it.”

“I'll have to thank them for this tomorrow, it looks like they put a lot of work into this.” I yawned, “I'd thank them now but I'm really tired after those training sessions.”

She nodded, “It's good you're trying to get used to fighting using your new body, but please try not to overdo it. Starting tomorrow you're going to come help me in the shop after school so we can start teaching you magic.”

I frowned at that. “How is arranging flowers going to help me learn magic?”

“Natalie,” my mother returned my frown and added the displeased mother look for extra effect, “You know very well we don't just sell flowers. We also sell herbs and other spell components and we'll be starting your training by having you learn the uses of all of them. What better place than the shop to learn that?”

“The woods?” I asked, hoping she may lift the ban on me going out without protection.

She shook her head, “Not until I'm sure you'll be safe. Nice try though sweetie. We'll have plenty of time for mother/daughter herb gathering walks in the woods later.” She leaned over and kissed me on the forehead, “Now get ready for bed and get some sleep, you have a big day tomorrow.”

Despite my tiredness I had trouble sleeping. Not only was I nervous about starting school as my new self tomorrow, but now I was going to be starting my training as a Witch as well. Both prospects terrified me more than I cared to admit. The only good thing about all this is that I'd be able to see Sarah and Jason again. I had missed them both while we were gone and I could have really used their support with everything going on.

When finally I did sleep it was broken and plagued by nightmares. First I dreamed I was at school and everyone was laughing at me and I didn't know why. Then I found mirror and saw that I was my old male self again, only I was wearing a dress. After that I dreamt that I was at the shop and I was arranging flowers and I couldn't stop myself. I had no control over my body and the Glove was controlling me like a puppet. Finally I was running through the woods and though I couldn't see him I knew Ly Erg was chasing me. I bumped into something and Ly Erg was in suddenly front of me. He held me in his arms, whispering into my ear, “You human girls are so easily manipulated.” And then he kissed me.

I woke up in a cold sweat, gasping for air. I was too panicked from my dream and my inability to breathe to even scream. I sat there for a while shaking as I tried to hold back tears. I heard a small noise in the darkness at the window and my head snapped around to see what it was. Dandelion watching me from where she was sitting on the window ledge. I let out a sigh of relief and waved her over. “Did you enjoy yourself out in the woods?” I asked, trying to get control of my breathing.

She nodded as she flew over to the bed and sat down, her face a mask of concern. “Are you alright? You looked scared when you woke up.”

I wondered how long the Pixie had been watching me sleep as I tried to reassure her with a poor attempt at a smile. “I'm fine, I just had some bad dreams. I guess I'm nervous about tomorrow.”

She smiled at me as she offered, “Would you like me to come with you? Maybe having company will make it less scary.”

As usual her heart was in the right place but her curiosity and tendency to ask me questions when my attention was needed elsewhere could prove problematic on my first day at school. I shook my head as I tried to let her down gently, “As much as I would love to have you keep me company on my first day I might have trouble concentrating on my school work.”

“Oh, okay,” she responded, looking a bit disappointed.

I felt a bit bad for disappointing her so I promised, “If it goes well tomorrow then I'll let you tag along on Friday, okay?”

Dani beamed up at me as she nodded her head excitedly, “Okay!” Then she gave me that worried look again, “I can stay here with you if it will help you sleep.”

I nodded as I lay my head back down on my pillow. “Thanks Dani, that would be great.” I had barely finished uttering the words before the Pixie curled up beside me on my pillow. Soon I was back to sleep, and this time no dreams plagued me.

Mom woke me an hour earlier for school than usual and knowing I would likely need the extra time to prepare I only made a token complaint. Once I had untangled Dani from my hair I took my shower and started getting ready since we needed to be at the school a bit early. As it was, once I had finished breakfast, we were running later than Mom would have liked. I could have only imagined how much longer things would have taken if I actually had an interest in wearing make-up or any outfit more complex than my favoured jeans and hoodie.

We arrived about fifteen minutes before classes were scheduled to begin and the hallways were already filling with students. Once again as we made our way to the office I was subjected to the curious looks from people I knew. I was actually happy once we got there and the secretary, Miss Evans, ushered us in to Mrs. Lawson's office. The meeting was fairly quick. Mrs. Lawson asked if I was sure I was ready to start school again today and once reassured that I was fine she gave me my new locker assignment and class schedule and sent me on my way. Mom stayed behind, probably to let my Principal know how I was adjusting to my new situation.

My day started with English which is pretty easy for me, although introducing myself to all these people I already knew was all kinds of awkward. Next was Chemistry where I was lucky enough to get assigned as Sarah's lab partner. It was a shame that so many people were close by and intent on listening to the new girl or I could have told her how things had gone in Vancouver instead of dishing out my false history as if we'd never met before.

I had my next class with Sarah as well, though I was none too happy about it since it was Gym. The class itself wasn't that bad since even though I was having problems with my coordination I was still in really good shape. I got a little trouble from Miss Snyder about wearing the Glove, but a call to Mrs. Lawson cleared that up pretty quick.

The bad part was after class. Of all the ways I had pictured seeing Sarah without her clothes on for the first time the girls shower was not it, at least not with me as one of the showering girls. Worst of all we both had to pretend that this was normal for me and I wasn't really her boyfriend in the body of a girl. I made sure to run the water nice and hot to have an excuse for why my face, among other things, was so red.

Sarah and I were both quiet as we walked to our lockers to stow our things during lunch. I was trying to figure out how to end the awkward silence when Jason showed up and had Sarah 'introduce' me. I was quiet as we walked toward the cafeteria and I was sorely tempted to find something to talk about that wouldn't invite trouble just so I didn't have to listen to all the whispering. *The new girl is pretty hot*... *What's with the emo look?*... *I heard her whole family died in a fire*... Thankfully it wasn't a very far walk to the cafeteria.

We were sitting down having our lunch when I noticed Eric making his way toward our table. Jason noticed him at the same time and cursed, “Damn, incoming Sarah.” One of the things Sarah was able to tell me earlier was that Eric had started hitting on her again as soon as the rumor started spreading that Nathan had left the island. I clenched my fists as I waited for the inevitable.

He walked up to the table and gave Sarah a cocky grin. “Hey Sarah, when are you going to get over that loser Nate and go out with me?”

Sarah gripped my hand under the table as I practically growled at Eric. “Does my cousin know you're trying to steal his girlfriend while he's gone?” I made sure to speak slowly, not only to make sure he understood me but also to make sure I didn't mess up my cover story in my anger.

“Your cousin?” Eric asked, momentarily confused. “Nate's your cousin?” I could feel my skin crawl as he looked me over appraisingly, and I could almost see the wheels turning in his head. “Nate's a good guy, it's too bad he had to leave the island before you came to visit, but maybe I can show you around. I'm Eric.”

“And I'm not interested,” I answered coldly.

At that point Jason stood up, “Eric let the girls eat their lunch in peace.”

Seeing the look on Jason's face Eric decided not to push his luck and shrugged, “I have to go anyway.” Then he turned his attention back to Sarah and I for just long enough to wink at us, “I'll see you lovely ladies later.” With that he left us, presumably to go harass some other girls.

After that the rest of lunch passed without incident as we quietly discussed my new schedule, how I was adjusting, and our plans for the weekend. Soon enough I was off with Sarah to our next class, Home Economics. That was another little surprise in my schedule that I was not thrilled about in the least. Although I could cook some simple things when I had to I had absolutely no experience in sewing whatsoever. My inexperience showed and Mrs. Jacobs spent a good deal of the class teaching me the basics. My day finally ended with History, another subject I was pretty good at. The class passed quickly and soon I was at my locker and getting ready to head to the shop. Sarah and Jason headed home after we all promised to talk later in the evening.

When I arrived at the shop Mom took me into the back room and gave me an old leather bound book and a second sturdy little book with a lock on it. The second book looked new and had the appearance of a diary with it's lock and pastel blue color and I frowned at it. “A diary Mom? Seriously?”

She shook her head, “It looks like one, and the lock should keep out prying eyes, but that book is for you to make any notes you me might want to remember on the things I'll be teaching you and that you'll be reading on your own.” She tapped the larger leather bound book, “This is a bit big to keep with you, but the diary can be kept in your purse if you want it on hand to refer to. You can also use it to record any spells I teach you.”

With a resigned sigh I nodded, “I guess that makes sense, I might want to keep that information on hand while I'm still learning. So what's the old book?”

“This is compilation of various herbs and other spell components and their magical uses. It also instructs on how and when to gather them, medicinal uses and where they can be found. A lot of them we can find on the island but there's quite a few we need to order from various suppliers. There's also some I grow in my garden.” She grinned at me, “So the first thing you'll be doing is to read that book and learn about all the types of herbs and other components in the book and look through the store so you can see what they look like when we sell them. While you're at it make a note of any we're running short on. I'll show you what the ones here on the island look like in real life once we're sure it's safe for you to go out in the woods.”

“Yay,” I muttered, “I get to study and take inventory for you. You just wanted part time help here didn't you?”

She chuckled and leaned over to kiss me on the forehead, “No sweetie, but here I can start to teach you magic, get some help around the shop, and I'll even pay you for working here. We both win.”

“Well I suppose it is a good way to start my lessons,” I admitted. “And the extra money will be nice.”

“Great!” she beamed at me, “Now how about I go over to Ground Zero and get us both something hot to drink and a treat to celebrate? Can you mind the store while I'm gone?”

I shrugged, “Sure Mom, I'll have a chocolate/caramel latte. It wouldn't be the first time I've run the store while you've been out.”

Mom took off after that to get our liquid refreshment and I stood at the counter and began my reading. I hated to admit it but the stuff I was reading was actually pretty interesting and I always was a bit curious about the things Mom did. Soon I found myself absorbed in reading and jotting down the things I thought were important, which seemed to be a lot. I was so lost in it that I almost didn't notice the bell above the door ring.

I looked up from my reading to see the last human I wanted to see approaching the counter. I slipped my 'diary' under the counter as I growled, “What do you want Eric?”

The jackass just grinned at me, “Is that any way to treat a customer? I want to buy a dozen roses.”

I rolled my eyes as I wondered what poor girl he was going to try and give those flowers to. “Yeah sure, a dozen roses,” I answered as I showed him to the flower cooler, “We have red, yellow, or white.”

He actually seemed to consider the color for a moment. I thought he was going to say red, and actually was about to reach for them, since most guys seem to think red roses are the most romantic. He surprised me though when he said, “White.”

I shrugged as I took a dozen white roses to the counter and began to arrange them with some baby's breath into a bouquet, “What do you want the card to say?”

He gave that stupid grin again as he replied, “For the fairest flower I've ever met. These do not compare to your beauty.”

I mentally gagged as I wrote the message on the card and placed it in a small envelope. I then rang up the purchase in the cash register, “That'll be twenty two dollars and forty nine cents including taxes. Unless you need those delivered?”

Eric shook his head as he handed me a twenty and a five. “No I'll give them to her myself, keep the change.”

I finished putting the cash in the register and gave him his receipt. Then I grudgingly said “Thank you for your business, have a nice day,” with a fake smile plastered on my face.

He took the flowers and after a few seconds put them back in my still outstretched hands, “For you.”

I stood there in shock for a moment before glaring at him, “If you're through shamelessly hitting on me I have studying and work to do before my Aunt Nora gets back.”

He looked around before giving another of those annoying grins. “You're working alone? Are you sure you don't want me to keep you company? We could get to know one another better.” He gave me a wink as he said the last.

My glare turned into a glower as I pointed to the door with the hand not holding the flowers, which happened to be the hand with the Glove on it. “Go!” I snapped. At that point I felt a burning of something inside me and the Glove caused my hand to tingle a bit. Then to my amazement Eric, without another word, left the shop.

Mom walked in a few minutes later with our coffees and snack. I was still standing there holding the flowers with a stunned look on my face as she asked, “So did anything interesting happen while I was gone?”

“You used a command spell?!” Sarah asked in shock as I laid in bed that night talking to her on the phone. After the incident with Eric the rest of the evening sped by in a blur of training from both my parents and Rick, which was only briefly interrupted by dinner. Now I was exhausted and more than happy to relax on my new bed as I talked with her.

“It was an accident! I was just so mad at him for the flowers and hitting on me and I wanted him to leave. I didn't think I'd actually be able to make him.” I sighed, shaking my head, “If I wasn't holding those stupid roses he gave me I would have decked him instead.”

“Wait!” Sarah sounded upset now, “He gave you roses and you accepted them?!”

I sighed again, “I wouldn't say I accepted them. I had just given them to him after he paid and he put them right back in my hands before I could pull them away.”

I heard a smacking sound from Sarah's end, “That's not the way Eric's going to see it. He gave you flowers and you didn't throw them on the ground or immediately return them. He's going to think you're interested and just playing hard to get. Don't you know anything about guys?!”

“Of course I do!” I retorted angrily, “If I remember correctly, I used to be one!You didn't seem to have any complaints about me when I was your boyfriend!” We were both yelling by this point and Dani was watching me in concern.

“Well you're not now! So you're free to flirt with Eric or any other boys as much as you like!” She hung up after that and I dropped my phone to the floor and I cried myself to sleep as Dani tried to console me. I was so tired from my busy day and my long crying session that my night was mercifully dreamless.

Friday I was withdrawn and quiet. I didn't pay much attention in class and avoided speaking to everyone, even Jason. When people did try talking to me I largely ignored them, not even paying attention to who was speaking, much less what they were saying. I had let Dani accompany me that day as I promised and she was all the company I needed or wanted for now. I didn't even have to worry about her distracting me since I was already not paying much attention to what was going on around me.

I avoided the cafeteria at lunch, deciding instead not to eat and to sit in an empty classroom staring out the window at the forest. My thoughts kept drifting back to the Glove and how it had ruined my life. I hated being a girl, I hated crying all the time, and I hated that the Glove had taken everything good I had and replaced it with this sick parody of my life. I went over my options in my mind time over time that day as I sat staring out windows, only moving when the bell rang.

My options were limited it seemed. I could try and adjust and somehow live with this, it was possible that I could given time. The options of either cutting off my arm or just ending it all were both briefly appealing until I thought about how much it would hurt my family, Jason, and probably Sarah as well. Finally as I put my things in my locker at the end of the day I was decided on the fourth option, though somewhere deep inside I had known all along that it would come to this.

As we walked through the woods Dandelion tried to convince me that this was a bad idea. I was supposed to be at the shop learning from my Mom and helping her out at the shop. I felt that I needed to do this though, for my own sanity. We had long since passed the cabin and the light was beginning to fade as we started to get closer to the Valley. In my distracted state I didn't even notice I was being followed until I heard the crashing behind me.

“Nat stop!” The voice was Sarah's and it broke through the haze of my depressed thoughts. I turned around to find her climbing down from Jason's back. Jason shook his antlered head to reinforce what Sarah had said, even as she came toward me and continued speaking, “Nat, I'm sorry about last night, I was upset and confused and I said some really stupid things. This is hard on me too, and I know you're probably hoping you can walk into the Valley, find Titania and have her change you back but that's foolish. Even with the Glove we don't know if you'd ever come back out again.”

I sighed, “Dani has been telling me the same thing the whole way here but the only alternative is for me to stay like this.” I gestured down at my body. “Neither of us wants that.”

She took my hand in hers and looked me right in the eyes, “I'd rather have you stay as you are now than lose you for good.”

I heard a slow clapping from behind me, toward the valley, coming gradually closer, “Isn't that sweet, humans are so sentimental.” There was a pause and then the familiar voice, even closer now, close enough to whisper continued, “If it isn't Titania's new pet witchling. I must thank you for your little display of magic yesterday, if I hadn't sensed that I never would have known that you claimed your pretty toy. Now it's time for me to claim mine.” Sarah and Jason stared at the speaker behind my shoulder and I could feel his hot breath against my ear. I didn't need to turn around to know who spoke. It was Ly Erg.

Nathan Poole is ready to become Sarah's Warden, but a long lost family heirloom changes his life and future.     Trial and Heiress Chapter 5 By Amethyst

Thanks as usual to Eof for a great universe to play in and to Eof, Maggie F and Donjo for their input.

Chapter 5

I stood frozen, my eyes darting around in panic as Ly Erg's hot breath bathed my ear and I could see Dandelion out of the corner of my eye as she fled for the Valley. It would seem we were on our own now, though I couldn't really see how someone her size would be useful against Ly Erg anyway. Sarah and Jason were watching, seemingly uncertain of what to do and I could see a bit of panic in their eyes. Jason began shifting back to his human form while Sarah still held my hand tightly. I gave Sarah's hand a squeeze and mouthed the word 'move' before letting go.

The silence seemed to drag on forever before the red handed murderer spoke again. “Come with me human girl I am...” He was cut off by his own grunt as I thrust an elbow into his solar plexus and dove forward into a roll which brought me up to my feet several feet away. Sarah had backed up at the same time and I turned beside her to face Ly Erg. He was already recovering from the blow. I had managed to catch him off guard but that wasn't likely to happen again. I needed to be smart here, keep him off guard and stall for time while I figured out what to do.

“Yeah, yeah you're Ly Erg, you're here here to invite me to dinner with Prince Sarric, blah blah blah.” I finished his previous sentence as I looked him over. He was wearing combat boots, camouflage fatigues, and had his light colored hair in buzz-cut which made his pointed ears very obvious. He now also wore a look of surprise, “Still going with the whole soldier motif after sixty years?” I kept talking, trying to keep him from reaching for the knife and pistol he wore. He probably had other weapons as well.

His eyes had widened a bit as I spoke, and I wasn't sure what surprised him more; that I caught him off guard, my appearance, or that I spoke like I knew him. It looked like they didn't really have any clue about what the Glove does, or at the very least didn't know about the clone aspect of it. I shook my head at him as I tried to use that lack of knowledge to my advantage, “I'm afraid I must decline Ly, I didn't accept your invitation back then and I'm not going to do it now.”

“I killed you, you were dead.” His eyes narrowed as if he thought he couldn't trust them.

I shrugged and made a show of displaying the Glove. “I got better. This is a pretty handy artifact, no pun intended.” I raised a Gloved finger to my pursed lips as if trying to remember something, “Let's see, I was picking mint that day when you found me. Then I refused your invitation and used a constriction spell on you. After that you chased me through the woods and I fell in a cave where you found me and broke my neck, that really hurt by the way. Ringing any bells here Ly?”

You can't be..”

I cut him off again, “I caught you off guard just now, not like last time when I kicked you in the shin. You see I've learned some things since I woke up.” I was really hoping he hadn't heard much of the conversation with Sarah before he made his presence known or given time to think he might put two and two together. I needed to keep him confused and not give him time to think. “I may not have used my magic much since waking up but I've been learning all sorts of other things. Still waiting for someone easily manipulated?” I taunted.

“It doesn't matter whether you're the same girl I killed or not,” he snarled as he started to step forward, “You will be coming with me. You will open the vault for us and once you've done that, you and your pretty friend will make excellent Sclabhai for Prince Sarric.”

I wasn't sure what Sclabhai meant but I was pretty sure that I didn't like the sounds of it. I could feel my magic burning inside me again but I had no idea how to use it and I didn't think telling him to go away was going to help this time. I held my Gloved hand in front of me as we slowly backed away from the advancing murderer. “Look pal, I've been trying to let you down easy, I'm not interested in going anywhere with you and neither are my friends so why don't you back off!” The Glove tingled on my hand and suddenly Ly Erg was thrown backward several feet. I stared for all of half a second before turning to Jason and Sarah who were both staring at me. “Umm guys, run!”

We took off running along the ridge that separated the Valley from the side of the island that the town is on. It was getting dark and running down a steep slope in the waning light was a good way to get us killed. We didn't have near enough of a head start and I was certain Ly Erg was right behind us. We had been running for several minutes when we all came to a sudden stop. Ahead of us were half a dozen grotesque creatures, and more were coming out of hiding from the trees lining the ridge.

The creatures were humanoid with lumpy greenish grey skin, hideous faces, yellow eyes, snout-like noses, fangs and they were armed with a variety of weapons. I turned to see Ly Erg behind us with two more of the creatures and I cursed. We were effectively surrounded and the way back down to the town was being cut off by the creatures coming out from the treeline. There were a dozen of the creatures in total and they were closing in quickly. Ly Erg watched smugly, “You can kill the Were, but the females I want alive.”

“Lucky me,” I heard Jason mutter.

“I don't suppose there's anyone else coming to help?” I asked as I positioned myself so that Jason and I were back to back.

“Not that we can count on,” Sarah answered. “Jason and I came up here to look because you were so out of it at school today and when you weren't at the shop after school we knew something was up. We told your family where we'd be looking but they may have trouble getting search parties out this early.”

“Just great, I can't believe I was so stupid,” I grumbled. “Sarah try and use whatever magic you can to help. Jason, we need to get try to get weapons from one of these things, preferably something that can keep some distance between them and us.”

Jason lowered his voice, “Can't you just do whatever you did to the army guy?”

I sighed, watching the goblins or whatever they were close in, as I returned his whisper. “I have no idea how I did that Jason, it's not something I can count on, I'm not even sure if it was a spell or not.”

Sarah whispered something, her hand glowing slightly, and one of our attackers seemed to trip over it's own feet before falling at mine. I delivered a good kick to it's head and stomped down on it's neck which made a sickening crunch. I reached down to take the curved sword it had been holding. “Thanks Sarah, just what I wanted.” I heard a similar sounding thud behind me, “You okay back there Jason?”

“Just fine Nat...” he paused as I felt him move behind me, “Cool, a mace I wonder if my dad will let me keep it?”

Jason and I were managing to them at a distance now that we were armed as Sarah helped by tripping them up, blinding them for a few seconds, and other small things like that. Still we were sorely outnumbered and beginning to tire. I heard a shot ring out behind me and felt Jason beginning to slump. I turned to see Ly Erg, who had apparently run out of patience was pointing his pistol in our direction and Jason was clutching his shoulder with a pained look on his face. Ly Erg smiled coldly, “If you want something done right it's best to do it yourself I guess. Get the girls while I finish off the...”

His words were cut off as several of the goblins shrieked as vines shot from the Valley wrapping around them and began to tear them apart. A veritable cloud of Pixies, Dandelion among them, followed in their wake brandishing swords as they set upon the remaining goblins. The vines began to wrap themselves around Ly Erg and he dropped his gun as he pulled his knife to try to slash away at the vines.

It was then that the most beautiful woman I had ever seen stepped out of the Valley. She had ash blonde hair that was elaborately braided, bright green eyes, full lips and pointed ears. She looked to be in her early twenties but I got the feeling she was far older than that. She wore armour that was very similar to the Glove on my right hand and carried a sword. To her right was a younger looking elven woman in leather armour with a bow and to her left was a large and handsome man covered from head to toe in plate mail, wearing a matching helm, and wielding a massive claymore. I couldn't see the man's ears but I was pretty sure from his looks that he too was a Sacred.

The three of us just stood there staring as the three approached. “Ly Erg,” the woman in the center spat his name out like a poison. “The child with my Glove is under my protection, as are her companions now. See that Sarric knows this. Anyone who goes after her or those she is with will be dealt with swiftly.”

The captive member of the Dunkelheit choked out as vines squeezed around his throat, “Prince Sarric will get into the vault, then he will kill you just as he did Oberon.”

Titania's eyes narrowed as she glowered at Ly Erg,“Sarric is a fool. Should he ever crawl out from whatever rock he's hiding under to try to face me I will see him paid back for Oberon, and for Sephrene.”

Sarah and I watched the exchange as we knelt by Jason, trying to make sure he was okay. Jason gave us a wink, “I'll be fine, Weres can heal up from a lot worse than this. Just give me a day or two and I'll be good. It's not like he was using silver bullets.”

“Okay Jason,” a responded with a weak smile as I gave his good shoulder a squeeze. “I'll hold you to that.”

Titania was apparently finished with Ly Erg as the vines began pulling him into the Valley as she turned and regarded us. She turned to the woman with the bow, “Giselle, see to the boy's wound.” She nodded and knelt beside Jason to examine his shoulder while her Queen turned to the man on her other side, “Count Hilliam if you could be so kind as to make sure we have no other unwelcome guests?”

He too nodded, answering in a deep baritone, “As you wish my Queen.”

The Pixies returned from dealing with the goblins and were immediately set to work patrolling the area from the air, though Dani and a blue haired Pixie were ordered to remain behind as Titania approached me. “Come child, we must speak.” I looked at Sarah uncertainly and the Sacred nodded, “Your intended may come as well.” We both stood and followed her with Sarah looking like she was nervous enough to explode.

It was a moment before any of us spoke, Sarah and I were too nervous and Titania seemed to be assessing us. Finally she broke the silence. “So you are the one who wears the promise. You are a bold child but you must temper that boldness with thinking.”

“You mean I should look before I leap?” I asked, a bit confused. “....ummm Your Majesty,” I quickly added.

“Yes,” she replied, seeming amused by my choice of words. “You could fall very hard if you do not look where you are placing your feet. Do not be afraid to take risks when needed, but do not take them needlessly.”

I sighed, “You sound like my mother and our school principal.” I looked at her curiously, “You called the Glove the promise?”

She nodded, causing her braids to sway from side to side, “Yes, I gave your family the power contained in the Glove in exchange for a promise.”

“I thought our ancestor did some sort of favour for you to get the Glove?” I asked, slightly confused.

Titania smiled at me, “In a sense she did. This favour as you call it, was her promise that her family line would be of service to mine in times of need. The Glove is the symbol of that promise that binds your family and mine. It is also the means of meeting the promise when needed.”

“So we're like your servants then?” the thought left bad taste in my mouth.

She actually laughed at that, “Of course not. We are merely allies of a sort, I suppose you could call us friends in a sense. How do you humans put it?”

Sarah giggled, “You scratch my back I scratch yours?”

The elven Queen smiled as she nodded, “That is it. We share a mutually beneficial relationship.”

I shrugged, “I guess I can understand that, but what do we both get out of it?”

Titania considered her answer a moment before replying. “I and mine get a powerful ally in your town, someone to bring aid if I am ever in need, someone I can trust to let me know of important goings on that may affect us, and someone who understands the human world.” She paused before continuing, “You on the other hand get the Glove's ability to amplify magic, what assistance you may need to live long enough to prove to be a useful ally to me and one other thing.”

“One other thing?” I repeated.

She nodded gravely, “Yes and this one thing grants you more power than the Glove itself ever could. The Glove represents our promise of mutual aid. Just as I may call on you when in need you may call on me and mine. Do not use this lightly. You alone have the right to call upon the Summer Court in times of dire need. If your people need aid and you call for us we will come. No other in the mortal realm but you may make that claim. You must make this very clear to your Coven.”

I barely kept myself from laughing, “Oh yeah they're just going to love that. Unstable teenage girl able to call in favours from the Queen of the Sacred.” I sighed as I looked at my right hand, “Your Majesty are you sure there isn't another better suited? I mean I wasn't even a girl before the Glove bonded to me. My mom knows all about the Glove and she's got a lot of experience with her magic.”

She shook her head sadly, “No child, you were the one meant for this. I sense dark times ahead for both our peoples. You need to train to face those times, gather allies and grow into a strong woman and leader for your town. You will represent your town, one will be chosen to represent the Summer Court, and a third will find the balance. Then together you will face the coming darkness. This has been foretold.

“Dammit,” I cursed as I tried not to look at Sarah. “Why will one be chosen to represent the Summer Court?” I wondered aloud, “I mean don't you do that?”

“I must lead my people and I can not be distracted from that overly much, nor can I be seen to be too embroiled in the affairs of the mortal world. Even this talk with you is more time than I should spend outside the Grove. I will choose someone as bound to the promise as you and I. She will need friends and allies when the time comes, for her path will be as hard as yours.” She spoke like she had already made up her mind.

I sighed as I stared at the Glove, “My friends and I will help her however we can. Is there anything else I should know?”

Titania looked back toward Jason who was being bandaged by Giselle, “Dark times are coming but I can not be sure when. Look for a Healer, if one is born on the island it will mean the dark clouds blow this way. If a Healer is born here it means that their abilities will be needed here within their lifetime.”

“How would we know if there's a Healer on the island?” Sarah asked, “Couldn't one have been born already that we don't know about?”

“It is possible, but Healers usually come into their powers much like Witches when they turn sixteen, very few ever have their powers remain latent for long. If they see someone injured their instincts to Heal will kick in,” she explained as we started to walk back toward Jason and Giselle who had been joined by Count Hilliam, “Most often the first use of their abilities will be uncontrolled, anyone nearby who is sensitive to magic would feel it.”

As we approached the three Count Hilliam was helping Jason to his feet and to arrange his cloak around the Were's waist to preserve his modesty. Titania called for the Pixies to return and then turned to face Sarah, Jason and I. “Forgive me for not making introductions earlier. I am Titania, Queen of the Summer Court, this is one of my cousins Count Hilliam, and my companion and protector Giselle, we are of the Aos Sidhe. Please do not think Giselle rude for not speaking, she is mute.”

She then gestured to a wispy green-haired Pixie who she introduced as Thymhelia, their Clan Leader, a violet-haired Pixie named Azrhea who was the Keeper of Names, and a Pixie with long blue hair. “This is Verbina,” the Queen said while looking directly at me. “She, along with Dandelion, will be your guardian. She doesn't speak much but she is a fierce protector.” There was no room left for argument, it sounded like a royal decree, in fact it probably was.

The blue haired Pixie smiled at me, “I am at your service.”

“I'm Natalie Poole, and in way over my head, and these are my friends Sarah Taylor and Jason McGreggor.” I muttered in answer.

Titania smiled at me, “You have a difficult path ahead Natalie but always remember a path is always harder and more perilous when walked alone. You have good friends to help you along your way. Lean on one another when you grow weary and face the perils together. They cannot take your place but they can help you to take it yourself.”

I looked down at my feet for long seconds before turning to Sarah and Jason, “Sorry guys. It was stupid of me to run off on my own. I promise that from now on when I run off to do something stupid I'll bring you with me. So ummm, who wants to come with to talk to my mom?”

“I am afraid that Count Hilliam and I must return to the Court, there are matters requiring our attention,” Titania said as she took my Gloved hand, and I felt the briefest tingle before she let go. “Giselle and your guardians will escort you home safely. Remember the promise Natalie.”

I nodded as I looked at the Glove, “Not much chance of me forgetting. It's always on hand.” With that said our farewells and went our separate ways, with Jason and I picking up the weapons we had earlier liberated from the goblins.

We moved carefully down the slope in the darkness with Giselle leading the way. Our pace was slow but the silent Sacred seemed to be able to see quite well in the dark and guided us along a safe path that seesawed back and forth as we descended. As soon as the ground began to level out our pace quickened, with the Aos Sidhe keeping a careful watch on the forest around us as Dandelion scouted ahead and Verbina watched our backs. Still it was slow going and those of us holding weapons kept them at the ready.

It was almost eleven o'clock by the time we reached the cabin. Through the windows we could see the steady light of a kerosine lantern and people moving around. As we approached the cabin Dani and Verbina joined us with news that there didn't seem to be any threats nearby. I took a deep breath as we stepped up to the door and lightly knocked. I could hear movement inside for the long seconds that followed and then the door was opened by my mom. “Ummm I guess I have some explaining to do?”

Her answer was to wrap me up in a tight hug and I dropped my sword to put my arms around her. I could hear her sniffling and felt her warm tears against my cheek as she held me tight enough that I thought my head might pop off. “You bet your ass you do young lady.” She stepped back and looked over our group: Me picking up a nasty looking curved sword; Jason with a mace in his hand, his shoulder bandaged and a cloak wrapped awkwardly around his waist; Sarah who looked very tired; Giselle the silent Aos Sidhe; and two Pixies. She shook her head and sighed, “Everyone come in and sit down and tell us the whole story, leave nothing out.”

We all entered the cabin where Dad, Rick, and Gwen were seated near the fireplace. Gwen's eyes lit up when she saw the Aos Sidhe and the two Pixies but for the moment she remained quiet. I quickly made the introductions and had to hold back a giggle at the looks on the faces of Rick and my dad as Dandelion and Verbina made themselves visible to the pair. Sarah did giggle. The weapons were placed by the door and Jason, Sarah and I all sat down wherever there was space which happened to be on the couch.

Once we were settled I began my story from when Sarah and I had our argument on the phone. The story took longer than it should have to tell as I was interrupted several times to clarify things. Dad and Rick seemed most interested in the fight with Ly Erg and his minions. Mom and Gwen on the other hand were especially interested in my talk with Queen Titania and the revelation of the promise and what that meant to both the Aos Sidhe Queen and myself. Once my story was finished Rick pulled out his cell phone and contacted Jason's and Sarah's parents to let them know that they, along with me, were safely at the cabin while the rest of us discussed the situation.

“We'll need to inform the Coven of this promise,” my mother began. “As well as your role with any future contact with the Sacred.”

Gwen nodded in agreement, “There's also the others she mentioned, one she said will be a Sacred, bound to the promise like herself. But who is this third person? The one who will 'find the balance'? The Coven needs to know all of this. We'd best hold off mentioning anything to the Unseen Council yet though. If the Sacred wish to make their presence known to the rest of the Unseen on the island, they will do so themselves or send a message through Natalie most likely.”

Giselle nodded vigorously at this, confirming that the Sacred wished to remain unseen for the time being. Verbina spoke up though to make it clear, “Until it is absolutely necessary to reveal ourselves to the Unseen on the island or Her Majesty sends word that it is to change we will remain hidden. Only those in this room and those on your Coven's Council should know of our presence and Natalie's importance.”

Rick chose that moment to return inside the cabin. “I let Jason's and Sarah's parents know they're here and safe. Dr. Dennis would like me to bring Jason to the clinic to have a look at his shoulder. He said Sarah can stay out here with the rest of you until morning, since I only have room for myself and one other on the quad.” He shook his head giving all us womenfolk a searching look, “I told Tanner that Jason had been wounded but I didn't elaborate. So how am I going to explain that his son got shot?”

We all looked to the Pixies and the Aos Sidhe. Giselle looked thoughtful a moment before nodding to Verbina who answered for her, “His parents and Sarah's can be told but it needs to be discussed privately and they must not speak of it with anyone else.”

My dad nodded, “We can get them out here and explain things before heading back into town. Rick see if you can get the McGreggors and the Taylors out here in the morning, tell them we could use some help retrieving your grandmother's remains and have some matters that are best spoken of privately. Maybe we could have a cookout once everything is finished with.”

“Great idea honey,” my mom replied with a smile, “It's been a while since we've all gotten together. Molly and Katherine have both been trying to get all our families together for a night of cards or something so we could make a day of it after everything is explained and we've gotten grandma properly buried.”

I sighed, “Sounds like a plan.” Actually it sounded like a very long and awkward day for me, but perhaps it was better to just get all of it over with. “Oh Rick. If we're going to be going to get grandma's remains, its pretty close to the Valley. Bring guns or whatever weapons you think best and let Jason's and Sarah's parents know that they should do the same. Somehow I don't think Ly Erg will give up easily.”

After that Rick and Jason took off on Rick's quad and Giselle left with a bow to return to the Valley. Mom, Dad and Gwen set up their sleeping bags between the door and the cabins bed and encouraged Sarah and I to lay down on the bed and get some sleep while they took turns keeping watch. I tried sleeping for a time curled up next to Sarah with my two guardians outside watching the woods from the roof of the cabin. Sleep would not come easily.

I slipped out of bed silently after removing Sarah's arm which was draped over me almost possessively. I sighed sadly at that thought as I padded across the floor past Gwen and my father, both fast asleep, and opened the cabin door. Mom turned immediately at the sound of the door opening. “Couldn't sleep?” she asked.

I shook my head, “No, there's something I needed to do first.” I sighed as I walked up and embraced my mother tightly. “Mom, I'm sorry. I was depressed and not handling things well but that is no excuse. What I did was unbelievably stupid. Not only did I not come and talk to you about how upset I was but I went and did something you had forbade me to do, when I knew damn well you only did it to protect me. My stupidity could have gotten not just myself but Sarah and Jason killed... or worse.” I shivered at the memory of Ly Erg saying that Sarah and I would make good Sclabhai.

Mom held me tight, running her fingers through my hair. “We all make mistakes sweetie, it's part of how we grow and learn. You've still got a lot to learn and there's a lot more riding on your shoulders than a girl your age should have to bear. When you need help or you need to talk or a shoulder to cry on come to me before you do something like that again. You're my baby, I'll always be here for you if you need me because I love you.” She placed her hands on my shoulders and held me at arms length, giving me a weak smile. “That being said, because I love you, once we get home you are grounded for a month. No going out other than for school and work at the shop unless I give permission ahead of time. Is that clear?”

I nodded having expected as much, “Yes Mom.”

“And,” she continued, “Tomorrow you will stay within sight at all times, no running off for any reason.” She kissed me on the forehead and pushed me back toward the door. “I love you, now go and get some sleep sweetie.”

“I love you too Mom, good night.” With that I slipped back inside and crept across the floor to curl up beside Sarah on the bed.

I was awoken the next morning with Sarah's arm and leg draped over me and Dandelion once again needing to be untangled from my hair. It was Verbina who woke me. “Your brother and Jason are almost here and there are four people with them.” She spoke once she was certain that I was indeed awake. “Your father is outside waiting for them.”

I nodded and tried to move but found myself hampered by Sarah. After helping Dani to work herself free of my hair I began to gently nudge Sarah, “Sarah, wake up sleepyhead, your parents should be here soon.”

“Huh?” was Sarah's reply as she looked at me sleepily.

I sighed. Seeing her waking up beside me like that was a painful reminder of just how much I still loved her. “Sarah, I said your parents should be here any minute now and you're kind of preventing me from getting out of bed,” I tried again.

Her eyes opened wide and she smiled at me. Then she seemed to realize the position she was in and quickly rolled off of me. “I'm so sorry Nat! I didn't mean to ahh... umm...”

I sat up and shook my head, “I didn't mind, I thought you were kind of cute sleeping like that.” I blushed as I quickly got off the bed, “Anyway I think everyone is arriving so we should go out and meet them.”

By the time we both got ourselves outside Jason and Rick had arrived with Jason's and Sarah's parents in tow. They had also brought some assorted muffins and bottles of juice which, having not eaten since breakfast the day before, I was very grateful for. So as we shared breakfast, after both families were sworn to silence, I told the Taylors and McGreggors the rather lengthy story of finding the Glove, my girlification, and the events of the previous night. Sarah's mother, Katherine, apparently already knew about my new gender status but she seemed very interested in the Glove and its connection to the Sacred.

After my story was finished all three sets of parents agreed that it would be better if none of us went into the woods alone for a while without suitable protection. None of us really liked that but after last night all grudgingly agreed with the need. Then Jason's and Sarah's moms wanted to know how I was adjusting to being a girl and Dr. Dennis said that I should probably come in to the clinic to make sure everything was alright with my new body. Sadly my mom agreed and they started talking about getting me in to see Dr. Brand for a physical. I was so grateful when my dad changed the topic to retrieving grandma's remains from the cave.

Dani and Verbina were sent ahead to scout for any possible dangers while the rest of us walked in a group, with the adults surrounding us teenagers. We all carried weapons except for Sarah who hadn't been trained in using one. Dad, Mr. McGreggor and Dr. Dennis all had high powered rifles; Rick had two large knives and a shotgun; Jason had his mace; and all the women, including me, all carried hand guns. I of course also had that wickedly curved sword I had gotten the night before.

The trip to the cave was made without incident and soon we were at the cave where all of this insanity had begun. It was a bit of an anticlimax as nothing at all happened. The men had carefully placed grandmother's remains in some canvas and brought it up to ground level while us women stood ready for any sort of attack. It's funny how I'd started thinking of it in those terms, them and us, and started grouping myself with the women. Was I adapting to my situation or merely giving in to the inevitable? Was there a difference?

These thoughts dominated my thinking as we made the trek back to the town. It wasn't until we were laying grandmother's corpse in a grave in the woods behind our house that I decided it didn't really matter. I am who I am and I need to play with the cards I've been dealt. I will do it on my terms. Some things about being a girl may really suck but a few things are a bit better, like my relationship with my mom. Maybe that's what living is all about building on the good things and sticking together with those we love to get through the bad.

After we buried great grandma properly and said a few words we headed back to our house to spend time as family and friends. Dad and Rick started up the grill in the back yard while everyone else chatted and Mom prepared a large salad. Why is it that guys that are absolutely horrible in a kitchen can be so fantastic with a barbeque? The meal was great and we all stayed up late catching up, playing cards and just relaxing in the company of good friends.

Ly Erg fumed. He had been so close. The girl was almost in his grasp and now he stood before Prince Sarric empty handed. “You have failed me Ly Erg, that is not like you.” Cold blue eyes focused on him from the impassive face of the prince of the Winter Court.

“I would have had the witchling if not for Titania's interference.” Ly Erg grumbled, “I will not fail you again my Lord.”

Sarric scowled, “See that you don't. Titania's interest in the witchling will make things more difficult, but this child who wields Titania's gift could very well be the Eochair. We have time, wait until they become lax in their protection of the child and then take her. I have some influence in the Summer Court. Maorg will tell you when the time is right. Soon the abomination born in the Summer Court will be dead and Titania's sights will be off the witchling. Then it will be time for you to strike.”

Ly Erg nodded, “Yes my Lord, and what shall I do until then?”

“Place spies in the mortals' town and inform me if anything else of interest appears. We must have an advantage before we move against Titania. We must acquire the Eochair or find something else to use against her.” The prince waved his hand in clear dismissal.

“It shall be done my Lord.” Ly Erg replied as he bowed and made his way quickly out of Sarric's presence to find Reshin.

Nathan Poole is ready to become Sarah's Warden, but a long lost family heirloom changes his life and future.     Trial and Heiress Chapter 6 By Amethyst

Thanks as usual to Eof for a great universe to play in and to Eof, Maggie F and Donjo for their input. And thanks to my readers for reading what I put out here and being patient when new chapters are delayed.

I sat impatiently in the waiting room. I was doing what one would expect in a waiting room, waiting. It would have been fine with me had I been waiting for something I was looking forward to, but sadly that wasn't the case. Instead I sat in the waiting room of Dr. Sandra Brand, flipping through a two year old copy of Woman's World and trying not to cringe at the thought of my first doctors appointment as a girl. The only good thing about the situation was that I had been allowed to leave school early for this.

I wished, not for the first time, that Sarah or my mom had been able to come with me today. Rick had offered to come with me but that would have just been weird. I was shaken out of my thoughts by the sound of my name. “Natalie Poole?” The receptionist repeated, “Dr. Brand is almost ready for you, please come with me to the examining room.”

“I'm Natalie,” I answered as I rose and put aside my magazine with a sigh before following the receptionist past two examining rooms.

She gestured to a third examining room with an open door. “Please remove your clothes and put on the gown on the examining table, Dr. Brand will be with you in a few moments.”

“Thanks,” I muttered, not really feeling grateful at all as I entered the room and closed the door behind me. I took one look at the flimsy paper gown on the examining table and cursed. “Shit. No, this isn't going to be awkward and embarrassing at all. Thanks a lot Mom.” I reluctantly removed my clothes, put the stupid gown on and sat on the bed to wait. I ended up waiting another ten minutes in that cold room before I heard a light knocking at the door.

The knocking was followed almost immediately by the door opening to allow Dr. Brand to enter. My mom’s doctor, I guess she was my doctor now too, was a bit on the short side with light brown hair and such light brown eyes that they almost appeared amber. She smiled at me, “Hello Natalie, Dr. Dennis and your mother informed me about your unique circumstances. I'll try to make this as painless as possible.” I think her smile was supposed to reassure me but I was decidedly not reassured.

“Let's just get this over with,” I muttered.

Dr. Brand began by checking my breathing, and heart rate with a very cold stethoscope. Once both were seen to be okay, she checked my weight, height, reflexes and pretty much everything else she could think of. Finally she performed some more detailed examinations that I would rather not think about, let alone divulge here. Finally she finished and went outside while I changed back into my clothes.

I had barely finished putting my hoodie back on before she once again knocked and entered the room. “So will I live?” I asked, to hide my discomfort over the very personal examination she had just finished putting me through.

Dr. Brand smiled and nodded, “You seem to be a perfectly healthy and normal sixteen year old girl, Natalie. Have you had your first period yet?”

I blushed beet red and looked down at my feet as I answered, “No.”

She didn't seem overly concerned, “Well you've only been female less than two weeks. You seem to be fully functional though so I imagine you'll have it before long.” She paused and I looked up at her, only to want to look at my feet once again when she spoke again. “Which brings me to the topic of sex. You are aware of the consequences of unprotected sex?”

“I don't think I'll ever be needing to worry about those since I have no intention of ever letting a guy do anything like that with me,” I mumbled.

“Nonetheless,” the doctor responded seriously, “Please remember to practice safe sex if you ever do. Should you find that you become interested in boys in that way, come and see me so that we can discuss birth control options.”

I left the appointment feeling extremely embarrassed as I made my way straight to the shop for my after school magic lessons. Being a girl really sucks and having Dr. Brand talk so casually about my new body's inner workings and the subject of sex had made me far too self conscious. I spent the entire walk to the shop trying to not think about being a girl. Sadly this proved impossible since the appointment had made me far too aware that I now was one. Dani wasn't helping either with all her questions.

I arrived at the shop in a grouchy mood and quickly buried myself in studying the big book of herb lore. Mom wisely did not ask me how my appointment went but left me to my work. After an hour of losing myself in reading I checked the supply of all of our herbs and spell components and ordered what we were low on. I took my time examining everything so that I could try and remember what herbs did what and how those herbs looked when we sold them.

Mom left me alone until closing. Then when it was time to lock up for the night she tapped me lightly on the shoulder, “Time to close sweetie. Hurry up, I want to get to the bakery for some fresh bread before Molly closes.”

I nodded and stood up, jostling Dandelion a bit where she sat on my shoulder. “Okay Mom,” I said as I put away the herbs I had been inspecting and then put the book away for the night before joining my mother at the front door. As soon as I got to the door she set the alarm and ushered me outside. Verbina was waiting for us outside where she was keeping a careful watch on the passersby. She had taken her duty as my guardian very seriously and was constantly on the lookout for possible attacks from the Winter Court. Once she gave us the all clear we walked two doors down to Sugar & Spice.

As usual the smells wafting from the back of the bakery were heavenly. As soon as the bell over the door rang at our entrance Jason's mother Molly came out of the kitchen with a big smile. “Hello Nora, Natalie, how are you both this evening?”

“I'm good Molly,” my mom replied, “Could I get two loaves of bread and half a dozen cinnamon buns please?”

Jason's mother smiled and nodded, “Sure thing Nora.” She set about gathering the requested goods and turned her smile on me, “How did your appointment go today Natalie?”

I shrugged, “Dr. Brand says I'm a healthy and normal sixteen year old girl. Hooray for me.” I said the last with a good dose of sarcasm.

Molly bagged my mom's purchases and set about giving her change for the twenty dollar bill she had given her. “It's good to hear you're healthy Natalie, that counts for something. But since you don't seem too happy about it, how about a little something to cheer you up, hmm?” How about something chocolatey? I have a very tasty mousse.” The last was an old joke she used with a lot of the island's Unseen.

“Yes, I'm sure you're very happy with your husband,” I joked back weakly, “But I'm not interested in going out with your son.”

She laughed at my little twist on the joke before giving me a smile “I know just the thing. Your favorite, ever since you were a kid this has always cheered you up.” She went into the back and came out a few minutes later with a small pastry box, which she handed to me after wrapping me in a hug. “You wait until after dinner to eat it okay?”

I hugged her back and took the box, “Thanks Mrs. McGreggor, you're the best.”

“You know you're like family Natalie. Now I think I better close up so I can get back home myself. Have a good night you two.” She waved us off and started getting ready to close while we said our goodbyes and headed out.

When we got home I worked on my fighting techniques a bit with Rick and Dad while Mom made dinner. Dinner was a brief affair as Rick was going out with Gwen and Dad was going to shoot some pool with some buddies at the local Unseen pub, On the Rocks. I helped mom to clean up the dishes before happily eating my chocolate eclair, which did cheer me up a little. It was after that that Mom decided to drag me down to the workroom.

I had been avoiding the workroom since my transformation, the paintings were just too big a reminder of my current situation. I was reluctant to head down those stairs but my mother just gripped my arm tighter, pulling me behind her down the stairs and into the center of the room. My eyes seemed to wander on their own, drawn inexorably toward the paintings. Mom took my face in her hands turning it to look straight at her own serious face. “Today my daughter,” she spoke gravely, “You begin to learn to control your magic.”

October 28th 2011

I stuffed the books from my final class of the day into my locker and began loading my backpack with my homework for the weekend. It had been a long week and I was glad it was over. My month long grounding had ended last week but between working after school, magic lessons with mom taking up most of my free time and the rest being spent training to defend myself in more mundane ways I was too tired to enjoy my freedom. It also didn't help that I was feeling like crap. I had been through my period once before this but it didn't seem to help make it any easier this time around. I was grouchy, feeling like hell, and I hated being a girl more with every cramp.

I suppose it wasn't all bad. I was actually getting used to my new body and the only time I really loathed it was times like right now. There were some positives about my life at the moment. For one thing I had successfully adapted my fighting style and was doing much better at moving naturally in my new body. Secondly, people had stopped trying to get me to be girly. I had made it clear that I may be female but I wasn't a girly girl and people were beginning to just take me at face value. Finally, I was no longer the new kid in school with all the attention that goes along with it. That dubious honor now belonged to a girl named Erin Brand who had moved to Sena Island with her parents to be closer to their family here.

I shouldered my backpack with a wince and securely shut my locker as Jason and Sarah made their way over. “Hey guys.”

“Hi Nat,” Sarah smiled at me, “I'm glad this week is over, are you feeling any better?”

I shook my head with a frown, “Ugh no. I hope I don't feel like this for the party tomorrow night.”

Sarah shrugged, “Take some midol and try to take it easy. Who knows maybe the party will take your mind off of it.”

Jason looked like he'd rather be doing anything else at that moment other than listening to our conversation. “So girls, you decided on your costumes for tomorrow night yet? I think I'm going to go as a cowboy.”

Sarah took my hand as she thought about her own costume. “I don't really know, but I thought that maybe as a joke I could go as a Witch. How about you Nat, any ideas?”

I sighed as I lifted the hand which bore the Glove, carefully concealed in the sleeve of my hoodie. “I have no clue, this makes my costume choices a bit limited. Some of the girls have been asking where I got this 'slave bracelet'. They've been asking if I'm going to show it off with my costume.”

Jason looked at me strangely, “Show it off?”

I nodded, “Yeah a lot of them think I've been keeping it hidden and that I dress like I do because I want to show it off and shock everybody with a sexy Halloween costume.”

Sarah looked thoughtful at that, “You know that's not a bad idea. Have there been any suggestions?”

I frowned. “Yeah, most the girls who have asked think I'm going as some sort of sexy Vampire though a few have guessed something like a warrior in a chain mail bikini, a sexy elf or a sexy sorceress.”

Sarah grinned, “That's a great idea!”

“I m not going as a Vampire Sarah,” I grumbled, “Let alone a sexy one. Vampires give me the willies.”

She shook her head, speaking in hushed tones as we left the school and began walking toward Nature's Blessings.“No Nat! We can pull one out of Becky's book. We dress you as an Elf sorceress and if anyone asks we say that the Glove is a magic item that makes you even more powerful.”

I stared at her. “Sarah even if we could manage the makeup and the ears, how would we find clothes that look like a costume an elf would wear. We'd need to go to a renaissance fair or something. We'd have as much luck finding a matching glove and armor.”

We all turned to stare at Dandelion as she looked at us confused and said, “But that wouldn't be difficult at all. You'd just have to ask Her Majesty for the rest of the armor from the set that the Glove came from.”

“That might be a little hard Dani,” I told her, not believing it could be that easy.

“Of course it's hard, it's armor silly,” the Pixie replied, giggling.

I sighed, “I can never be sure when you're joking. I would think that the armor is pretty valuable Dani she couldn't just give it to me as a Halloween costume. Besides what if she needs it?”

Verbina looked me over as I spoke and seemed lost in thought for a moment. “Her Majesty hasn't used that armor in a long time. It's probably sitting in the royal armory somewhere. What you saw her wearing when you met her was fairly new. You are close to the same size as Her Majesty so it would probably fit you. We are to keep you safe, that would be easier if you had armor you could change into should the Winter Court decide to launch an offensive.”

“Assuming I had time to change into it,” I muttered darkly.

We all parted ways once we arrived at the shop. Sarah headed home while Jason went to Sugar & Spice to help out his mom and Verbina took it upon herself to go to the Valley. Dani stayed with me while I worked and studied my herb lore. I didn't get much time to study since the shop was pretty busy that afternoon and the time until closing seemed to speed by. Mom and Dad were going out to a party that night at my father's office and Rick and Gwen were going to be spending the evening together. Mom, knowing how crappy I was feeling, mercifully gave me a night off from studying while they were gone. I spent most of it on the sofa feeling miserable.

Reshin waited in a dark cave for the rest of his scouts to return. The Duergar was far from happy. He had been tasked by Ly Erg to watch Titania's pet Witch and report when the time was right to take her. Reshin was no spy, he was a warrior, a fact proven by the muscles which covered his stout frame. He had to corrupt a small group of brownies to keep tabs on the girl and even then they could only watch from a distance, certainly not worth the blood price he had paid.

The girl was too well watched by Titania's underlings and it seemed that even now she was sending her most trusted protector to check on the girl. The brownies had proved useless but he might have one last use for them. They could serve well as fodder when he and his warriors attacked. He was tired of waiting for the right opportunity, he would make his own opportunity and take the girl. Perhaps rather than giving her to Ly Erg he would keep her for himself, after all, fortune favors the bold.

I woke up to a knocking at the front door. I was still on the sofa. The clock on the wall said eleven thirty and as I yawned and made my way to the door I wondered who could be coming over so late. Looking through the peep hole I saw Giselle standing out in the rain wearing a dark colored cloak with Verbina flying just over her shoulder. I quickly opened the door and ushered the pair inside.

Giselle bowed slightly and smiled in greeting, though it looked a bit awkward with the large bundle of greenish grey cloth she was carrying. Verbina flew over to land on my shoulder, shaking her wings out and getting my hair a bit wet in the process. “Hi Giselle, come in, would you like a hot cup of peppermint tea or something?” The Aos Sidhe nodded and smiled and I quickly ushered her into the kitchen where I started the kettle.

“It's nice to see you again Giselle, how is Queen Titania?” I asked, half-forgetting that the Sacred was mute.

Verbina answered from my shoulder, “Her Majesty is well and sent Giselle to bring you a package.”

I nodded as I took some dried and crushed peppermint leaves from the cupboard and placed some in a stainless steel tea ball. “Thanks for coming all this way Giselle, especially with how cold and wet it is out there.” I placed the now sealed tea ball in the tea pot and sat down to wait for the water to boil, gesturing for Giselle to do the same, “Have a seat and make yourself comfortable.”

The mute Aos Sidhe sat across from me and placed the very large wrapped bundle on the table between us, pushing it toward me and motioning for me to open it. I carefully unfolded the water resistant cloth to reveal what I assumed was clothing sitting atop a stack of bronze chain mail. On the top was a pair of brown suede ankle boots with a low heel which I set aside followed by the dark green tunic. Both were similar to what Giselle herself wore and the tunic looked to have a golden tree embroidered upon the chest.

Beneath the tunic was a chain mail wrist guard which looked to be the match to the Glove as well as a matching long sleeved chain mail shirt, chain mail leggings, and a sturdy leather belt to match the boots with both a sheathed longsword and dagger. Once I had looked through it all in stunned silence, Giselle reached forward to take the grey-green cloth it had all been wrapped in and shook it out to reveal a cloak like the one she herself was wearing.

“Wow,” I said, as I swallowed the lump in my throat, “Is this all for me?”

Giselle nodded and extracted an envelope from her own cloak, which she handed to me. At that point the kettle began to whistle so I quickly got up to turn off the heat and pour the hot water into the kettle. Once I had the kettle, two tea cups and the cream and sugar on the table I returned my attention to the envelope and the note inside while the tea steeped.

Natalie,

In keeping with my part of the promise to give you what protection I can until you can properly protect yourself, please accept this. Contained is the complete set of armor that your Glove was originally part of, as well as suitable accessories for one in service to the Summer Court. May it protect you as well as it did me.

Titania

P.S. Don't worry, this armor can be removed.

I rolled my eyes when I got to the postscript but had to stifle a giggle. “Thank you for bringing it to me Giselle and please give Queen Titania my heartfelt thanks as well.” I poured us both a cup of the peppermint tea, adding a bit of cream to my own. “Is there anything else I can get you?”

The Aos Sidhe shook her head as she smiled and took a sip of her tea, but motioned to the clothing and armor sitting on the end of the table. Verbina spoke from my shoulder. “You should try it all on Natalie so we can be sure it fits.”

“Good idea,” I replied with a nod, “I might need your help Giselle, I've never put on armor before. Let's go up to my room and I'll change there.” After we finished our tea I led Giselle upstairs and into my room where I quickly shed everything but my bra and panties. After using the showers for gym class for over a month I had lost any embarrassment I once had about changing in front of other girls. Once I was down to my under things I put on a pair of spandex leggings and a tight t-shirt to keep the mail from rubbing against my bare skin. Giselle nodded her approval at this as she held out the chain mail leggings.

I had to wiggle a bit to get into the leggings but they fit well, going from my hips to my ankle. I had been worried about them falling down until Giselle showed me how to tighten them so that they fit comfortably but snugly using some cleverly devised locking hooks. The shirt was next and went over my head easily though my right hand had a bit of trouble with the long sleeve. Luckily it was roomy enough in the arms for me to manage and the Glove and the sleeve had no noticeable gap between them. It also overlapped the leggings by a few inches. Once I had it on we fastened the neck protector with the same clever hooks as were on the leggings.

Next I placed my hand into the wrist guard and used the little hooks on the underside to fasten it on before I started to move around the room experimentally. The armor was a lot lighter than I had expected it to be. Sure the weight was going to take some getting used to but I found that I could still move pretty easily. I sat on my bed and slipped my feet into the suede boots. They were a good fit and very comfortable to wear even with the low heel. The tunic was large, fit easily over the armor and extended to the middle of my thighs.

All that was left was the sword belt and the cloak. I took the former and fastened it just above my hips, then adjusted the sword so that it rested comfortably on my right side and the dagger on my left. The cloak was last and Giselle wrapped it around my shoulders and fastened it with the clasp around my neck. The cloak was long, reaching down to the back of my shins, and the hood deep enough to hide my features in shadow and keep me dry in the rain. I turned to look at myself in the full length mirror and smiled at my reflection. “Wow, this is incredible.”

Giselle grinned at me and motioned toward the sword and dagger. I slowly drew the sword. It was a well made blade of what looked like bronze and had great balance. The blade was more slender and a bit longer than I was used to, but it was fairly light and I was sure that with practice I could manage it. The dagger, when drawn, proved to be of similar make and was also well balanced. I almost dropped it when I heard a noise from downstairs.

“Natalie,” I heard my mom call out, “Are you home?”

“Ummm yeah Mom,” I called back. “I just had some company come while you were gone.”

I could hear her coming up the stairs as she replied, “Is it Sarah? And how are you feeling? Any better? You were sleeping on the couch when we left.”

I was so distracted from Giselle's visit and the gifts she brought that I had almost managed to forget about how awful I was feeling. “No Mom, it's Giselle, she brought me something from Queen Titania. I was just trying it on.” I quickly sheathed both blades. “I'm still feeling awful but Giselle has helped distract me. We were having tea before we came up here.”

Mom came to my doorway and just stood there for a long moment looking at me before shaking her head as if to clear it. ”I assume that's to protect you? That's impressive looking armor sweetie but what do you do if someone tries to shoot you? If I remember correctly you said Ly Erg had a gun.”

I shrugged causing the armor to jingle. “I'm not quite as big in the ummm... chest as Queen Titania so it's a bit roomy there. If we get word that the Winter Court is launching an attack I think I should be able to manage to get a kevlar vest underneath to protect me from getting shot in any vital areas.”

“What about your head Natalie? That's a pretty vital area,” my mother retorted.

“I'll have to think about that Mom,” I said as I thought it over, “But I don't think Ly Erg would aim for the head.”

She arched an eyebrow at me, “Why not?”

“Because he could have just shot Jason in the head and he didn't, he aimed for the shoulder.” I took another look at myself in the mirror as I spoke. “I think Ly Erg is the type who likes to drag a killing out and make his victim suffer for a while before ending it. Besides, he wants me alive.”

Giselle nodded in agreement and my mother raised her arms in defeat, “Okay, you're probably right, you both have more experience with his kind than I do. I still worry though. Lets go downstairs and show your father, he'll want to see this.”

There are two major Halloween parties thrown every year for the teens on Sena Island. The first is the party at the school which is usually pretty tame and ends around ten o'clock. Only the Norms and those under sixteen ever stay that late though. The other party is called Unseen Teen Halloween, for obvious reasons, and usually gets going around nine o'clock. The Unseen party is a chance for all the Unseen teens in town to relax and just be themselves for a bit. It's usually hosted by one of the teens parents with a secluded home, and Jason's parents were hosting it this year in their back yard.

I had begged off going to the school party since I was still having my monthly visitor and spending the evening having jerks like Eric asking me to dance just didn't appeal to me. Sarah had decided that if I wasn't going, neither was she so around eight o'clock she came over to help me with my costume. I hadn't told her yet about Giselle's visit so when she arrived dressed in a black dress and pointy hat she was a bit flustered to see me wearing my usual jeans and hoodie. “Nat, I know you said you wanted me to help you look like an elf, but so help me if you just do the ears and go to the party dressed like that I'm going to scream. Did you even try to find something to wear for this costume?”

I just grinned at her, “I'll have you know I have just the thing, I just need you to to help me with the ears and some makeup to make me look more feminine. Let's go upstairs so I can change before you work your magic.”

Sarah sighed, “Okay, I'm not gonna argue. I've been trying to get you to look more feminine for the past month, so I'll take what I can get.”

I led Sarah up to my room and gestured for her to sit on my bed while I changed out of my clothes and into the spandex leggings and t-shirt I had worn under the armor last time. I thought briefly about trying the kevlar vest underneath tonight but there was really no reason to since it was just a party. I figured that the only work out I would be getting was some dancing. “Okay Sarah, I might need a bit of help with the rest.”

“What? Did you manage to find a gown or something to go as a sorceress?” she asked.

I giggled at that and silently cursed myself for doing so. “Something like that. Giselle brought me something from Queen Titania last night.”

She looked at me curiously at that and then when I set the armor on the bed beside her, her eyes went wide. “She didn't.”

“She did,” I grinned as I showed her the note. “I think Verbina managed to convince her I could be better protected if I had something protective to wear.” I smiled at the two Pixies sitting on my pillow. “Thanks Vina. And you too Dani, that was a brilliant idea.” Vina merely nodded sagely while Dani beamed at the compliment.

With Sarah's help I managed to get into the armor without too much trouble. Once I had the armor and the tunic on Sarah sat me down and began working my hair into an intricate braid. Even braided my hair was well past my shoulders and Sarah left the braid resting over my left shoulder while she started on the wax to make my ears seem larger and pointed. I had trouble not fidgeting as she worked on my ears and she had to tell me more than once to sit still. Once the wax was finished she began using makeup to match the wax to my regular pale skin tone.

Looking in the mirror at this point I was pretty impressed with Sarah's work. Then she blocked my view by standing in front of me and tilted my face toward hers so she could thin out my eyebrows into a nice slim arch and do my make up. She went with light colors to keep it subtle and work better with my coloring: A bit of blush, some mascara, a bit of light violet eye shadow and lip gloss rather than lipstick. The overall effect was very nice, I could still tell I was me but I looked very feminine and the ears made me look like an Aos Sidhe.

Once Sarah deemed me presentable I slipped my feet into the suede boots, buckled on the sword belt, and carefully settled my cloak on my shoulders to avoid doing any damage to Sarah's work before I closed the clasp. Sarah stepped back to admire the final product, “You look like you just walked out of the Valley,” she said with a grin. “Should you be bringing weapons to the party though?”

I shrugged, “I wouldn't have been allowed at the school party but I asked Mr. And Mrs. McGreggor earlier and they said it would be okay as long as I keep them sheathed. If I decide to take them off they'll put them in the house for me for safe keeping. I think they add to the whole Elvish Warrior look. Besides, once I told Jason what I was wearing he wanted to see the whole thing.”

“Too bad you didn't go to the school party, even without the real weapons you would have won the costume contest hands down,” Sarah said glumly.

“Yeah, and then I would have spent the whole time there with guys telling me how nice I looked and trying to get me to dance. And the girls would be asking why I can't be more feminine. And then there's the worst part,” I said with a groan.

Sarah looked at me confused, “What's the worst part?”

I looked down at myself sadly, “Do you realize how hard it's going to be to go to the bathroom with all this on?”

Sarah stared at me for a few seconds before she started to break down in laughter. “I'll bring you a can opener,” she managed to get out before her laughing got the better of her again.

“Very funny Sarah,” I grumbled as I checked myself to make sure I wasn't forgetting anything. “I guess I'm ready to go. Vina, Dani, are you both coming with us?”

Verbina nodded while Dandelion asked excitedly, “Can we wear costumes too?!”

I thought about it and then shrugged, “Sure, I don't see why not. But it's not like anyone is going to be able to see you other than Jason, Sarah and I. What would you do for costumes though?” My question was answered when Verbina's clothes changed into a replica of mine, only without the cloak and with the tunic in dark blue.

Sarah grinned, “That's convenient. What about you Dani?”

Dandelion's outfit turned into a flimsy green Pixie dress with little slippers with bells on them, while her short yellow hair was tied back in a high ponytail. The Pixie beamed up at us happily even as I groaned, “I knew I shouldn't have let you watch that movie.” Sarah just started laughing again.

Once we had Sarah calmed down enough to stop laughing she set about quickly fixing her makeup and then we headed downstairs. “Mom! We're going to head out to Jason's for the party now!” I called out.

Mom came dashing into the room to block the front door, camera in hand. “Not before I get pictures you aren't.”

I made a show of groaning theatrically, “Okay Mom. Just make sure you get my good side.”

“You're my daughter,” Mom said proudly. “Every side is your good side.”

I stifled another groan and smiled pretty for the camera while Sarah stepped closer and leaned against me. With Verbina on Sarah's shoulder and Dani on mine we stood there and smiled while my mother took dozens of photos. I was actually genuinely smiling. Sarah smelled so nice and her closeness made me happy. We might not have the relationship I wanted at the moment but she was at my side and that meant the world to me. I was still smiling well after Mom had gotten her fill of pictures and we left the house on our way to a night we would not soon forget.

Nathan Poole is ready to become Sarah's Warden, but a long lost family heirloom changes his life and future.     Trial and Heiress Chapter 7 By Amethyst

Thanks as usual to Eof for a great universe to play in and to Eof, Maggie F and Donjo for their input. And thanks to my readers for reading what I put out here and being patient when new chapters are delayed.

We arrived shortly before the party was about to get underway. We were also the first ones there, but that wasn't surprising since most the other guests had gone to the school party first and would have to extract themselves before joining us at the McGreggors. Jason and his dad were just finishing setting up some tables, benches, and even a few lawn chairs for the guests to relax in when we made our way into their back yard. “Hi Jason, hi Mr. McGreggor, is there anything we can help with?” I asked.

Both Weres turned toward us and once they saw us they just stared. Finally Jason broke the silence, “Wow Nat, that's really Titania's old armor? That is so awesome! You really look like Giselle in that getup, with the ears and all.” He chuckled at Sarah's costume, “I thought you were joking about that. I see even our Pixie friends are getting into the spirit of things. Nice costumes you two.”

Sarah just stuck her tongue out at him while Dani giggled on her shoulder. Mr. McGreggor smiled at us all. “Great costumes, I'm glad you could make it. Do you two mind helping Molly bring out the snacks and such? Jason should probably get changed before the other guests start arriving.”

“Sure thing.” Sarah answered for us both before pulling me in the direction of the house. “Let's get started Nat, the others will be here soon.”

When we stepped inside Molly was on the phone so we sat down to wait until she was finished while she gave us a smile and just kept on speaking. “... oh it's not a problem Sandra. One more teenager isn't going to to be a big deal. Besides this will be a good way for her to meet some of the island's Unseen and make a few friends right away. We look forward to meeting her, see you later.” She turned to us as she hung up the phone, “That was Sandra Brand. She wanted to know if it was alright if her niece came to the party tonight.”

I nodded, though I was a bit confused. “Of course she can come, I thought we already invited Erin.”

She shook her head, “No not Erin, though she will be coming as well. No this is her other niece from Japan, Moriko Brand. Her father is Sandra's brother Lyle. It seems your brother just landed with them on board. They will be staying with Sandra until they can find a place to buy here.” She chuckled, “Its almost a good thing Sandra lives alone that big house, it's going to be crazy there with both Lyle's and Gordon's families staying with her.”

I assumed Gordon was Erin's father. “Yeah that sounds like a full house. I know Erin is our age, how old is Moriko?”

Molly handed me and Sarah both large bowls of snacks while she grabbed a tray of her fresh baked sugar cookies. She motioned us out the door as she replied. “She just turned sixteen a few days ago. Sandra says she may be a bit shy so try not to be too hard on her.”

Sarah nodded, “We'll try to be friendly but not overbearing, right Nat?” she asked me pointedly.

I just rolled my eyes and didn't dignify her comment with a response. “It sucks starting in a new school halfway through the semester. At least Erin and I can both sympathize with her. I wonder why they moved at this time of year.” I placed my bowl on one of the tables.

Sarah grinned as she placed her own bowl beside mine. “Why don't you ask her when they get here. Tell her you only started school here a month ago. It might really help her to know there's potential friends here she has something in common with.”

As we went back into the house to fetch another load I replied, “I think I will. If it's bothering her it might help her to get it off her chest.” It was several more trips before all the snacks and drinks were outside. By the time we were finished Jason was dressed in his costume. As promised he dressed as a cowboy wearing a pair of jeans, cowboy boots, a flannel shirt and a cowboy hat. He even had a lasso.

Becky Lawson was the first guest to arrive wearing green face paint, antennae on her head, and a t-shirt that said 'The Truth Is Out There'. She sat across from Sarah and beside me in one of the lawn chairs. “Hi girls, nice costumes. Is that real chain mail Nat? It's gorgeous, where on earth did you get it?”

I grinned at her, “I have friends in high places. How are you Beck?”

“Better now that I'm with my friends. I'm so glad I'm done with that school dance and can unwind a bit. I swear, acting crazy for the Norms is driving me crazy.” She gave her patented wild eyed story telling look and laughed.

Sarah and I both laughed at that and Sarah said, “It was your brilliant idea to use absolute truth to keep the Norms from catching on to any of us Becky. You knew from the start you were going to tell some pretty crazy stories and huge lies to get it to work. I don't know how you do it. It seems your tales get wilder and less believable each time”

Becky shrugged, “Practice makes perfect I guess. It helps that I have all the Unseen students backing me by poking so many holes in the stories I tell that are believable.”

I shook my head sadly. “True Becky ,we do help with that, but you're the one who always ends up looking like a fool and being ridiculed. I'm with Sarah, I don't know how you can keep doing it. You know, none of us would blame you if you stopped doing it.”

“Honestly,” Becky replied while stretching out a bit, “I see it as a team effort. We all work together to keep each other safe and sometimes someone has to take one for the team. It was my idea so I should be the one to do it, it wouldn't be fair to ask anyone else to do it. Besides I've already got the reputation built up, it would be stupid to stop now when it's working. I could use some help coming up with new material for the Norms though.”

I thought about that for a moment “How could we help? Maybe we could all meet after school once in a while?”

She shook her head. “No, people would get suspicious. I'm a social pariah and my stories sometimes out of necessity are about one of our group. If somebody were to see me hanging out chatting with all of you at the school it would bring way too much attention to us all. The only time it's really safe to hang out with all my real friends is during Unseen only events like this.”

“That's true, it sucks we can't hang out more because of that,” Sarah said with a sigh. “Any ideas how we can help you without making people suspicious?”

Becky gave a big smile, without the crazy glint in her eye that she normally added for the norms. “Actually, I was thinking of starting a private online discussion forum where all of us can post ideas for me to play out for the Norms. Then we can discuss if we think they'll work or not and figure out all the holes in the story for you all to exploit beforehand.”

Jason came back from inside the house and took a seat beside Sarah and nodded at Becky's idea, “That's a pretty good idea Beck, it'll help us to be better organized. We can also discuss things like whether we think someone might be getting suspicious there as well. It sure beats the risk of getting overheard while talking in the halls or an empty classroom.”

It was at that time that the Selkie contingent decided to show up. Shawn O'Brien was our age and shared a lot of classes with me while his brother Jack was turning eighteen soon and would be graduating this year. Bailey O'Brien was their cousin. She was also in our grade and shared our gym class, as did their other cousin Jackie Whitefeather. Jackie was half native on her father's side and she took after his side of the family. Gary Moore was from another Selkie family who shared classes with Jack and would also be graduating this year.

Jason got up to greet them all and brought them over to join us. Shawn was dressed as a leprechaun, Bailey as a barmaid, and Jackie as an Indian. Jack and Gary hadn't gone to the school party since they both had just got off work but they came to hang out and relax with us before heading home for the night. I groaned at the costumes and pointed toward the woods. “The stereotype party is over that way guys. Ask Sarah to show you the way.” There were laughs at that, after Sarah kicked me. At least it wasn't one of the Selkies, they're really strong.

The next to arrive was Daphne Potts, Jason's cousin and fellow Moose, dressed as a chef. She had barely come into the back yard when I saw Karen Dennis and her cousin Melissa Graves as well. Karen and Melissa were both Witches, both literally and in costume. Sarah quickly covered my mouth before I could comment on our classmates' costumes. As soon as her hand was off my mouth I cleared my throat loudly, “We will now enact scene one from MacBeth, we hope you enjoy the show.” That earned me another kick. “Good thing I'm wearing armor,” I said, grinning at Sarah.

At that point, conversation turned to where I had gotten my armor. I couldn't exactly tell even Unseen about the Sacred and Titania, and my friends in high places response didn't fly well. I was trying to come up with a believable story when I heard another new arrival call out, “Hey there my peeps!” It was Andrew Harris, a Fox and cousin to the Whitlocks, with his girlfriend Chloe Freemont who was dressed as the little mermaid. So many unimaginative costumes, I was embarrassed that I talked with these people during class. Maybe the time really was better spent learning.

I sighed, “If Erin comes as a catgirl I'm gonna scream.”

Andrew just grinned at me, “C'mon Nat, you know how it is. This is the one night that we can let our hair down, relax with friends, and be ourselves. Some of us just like to be ourselves with a bit of humor. So what does your costume say about you?”

“That I needed something that goes with my normal jewelry?” I said grumbling. Most of the Unseen in school knew I never took off the Glove, even if they didn't know why.

“It couldn't hurt to take it off for one night,” Chloe suggested. “Was it a gift from your boyfriend of something?”

I shook my head vehemently, “I don't have, never have had, nor do I wish to have a boyfriend. It's a family heirloom and I can't take it off. It's ummm... a Witch thing.” I was hoping this would keep the non Witches from prying. I wasn't worried about the Witches since almost every Witch on the island knew what the Glove was, even if they didn't know who it was from.

I was glad when Jenny and Max Whitlock came around the corner of the house and quickly focused my attention on them. Jenny was dressed as some sort of Vampire and her younger brother as a zombie. Jenny was older by 9 months but since Max's birthday was in August and hers was in November they were both in the same grade as us. “Hey Jenny and Max, grab a drink and make yourselves comfortable.” Sarah said before taking a quick look around. “Looks like everyone is here but the Brands.”

“Brands? Plural?” Shawn asked. “I know Erin can be really energetic and has that whole peppy cheerleader thing going for her, but last I checked there was only one of her.”

I nodded, “There's still only one of her thank goodness. I don't think I could handle two girls with that much energy and sheer girliness. I already have plenty hanging out with Sarah all the time.” Another swift kick was delivered to my shin. “You're gonna hurt your foot doing that Sarah.” She just stuck her tongue out at me and I returned the favor before turning back to Shawn. “Jason's mom said Erin's cousin just got into town. She's from Japan and is supposed to be living on the island now too. Maybe the kitties are having some sort of long term family reunion. Anyway Dr. Brand asked if she could come too so she could get a bit of a welcome to Sena Island from her fellow Unseen.”

Melissa looked around at us all, “You know we never really gave Erin a big island welcome yet. Let's all do our best to get to know them both and make this a party they'll never forget.” We all nodded in agreement to that and talk turned to what we'd all been doing lately. Everyone was starting to relax in the company of friends we didn't get to see near enough of despite most of us being classmates.

Reshin's scouts had returned from the human town with promising news. The girl was at some sort of gathering at the edge of the town with other children, with only two Pixies for protection. They were all wearing strange costumes but the Brownies were certain that the girl was among them. If he and his warriors attacked now he could capture the girl for himself and find out just what made her so important to Ly Erg and the Unseelie Prince.

Thanks to Ly Erg and the brownies he even had a description of Titania's witchling. She was a pale human girl with black hair and a tendency to wear dark clothing. He did not feel that the other children would pose any difficulty. Human children could not hope to stand against five Duergar warriors, if they tried then they would die. Still, Reshin felt that the Pixies may pose a problem. He would have the Brownies attack first, then he and his warriors would take the girl in the confusion.

Erin Brand and her cousin didn't arrive until almost ten thirty and to my surprise they came from the direction of my house, accompanied by Rick. Erin was a bit on the short side, blonde and blue eyed with a nice figure and was dressed in a cheerleader costume. Her cousin was completely different. Moriko was close to my own height and slim with long black hair and light brown eyes which, like her aunt's, looked almost amber. Her features were obviously asian, though her skin was almost as pale as mine. She was also wearing a very familiar looking pair of black jeans and grey hoodie.

Rick waved me over to join them while Erin came to join the rest of the party. I shrugged and stood up, “Excuse me guys, Rick needs to talk to me I think.” I walked over to my brother and the girl reaching out my hand to offer to her. “Hi I'm Natalie, and if I'm not mistaken you're wearing my clothes.” Moriko reached out to take my hand, seeming a bit nervous. “I'm Moriko... I guess.” She looked at the ground as she spoke and then she seemed to notice my armor, “Nice armor, can you actually use that sword?” She looked up at my face then, though her posture made it look like she was ready to bolt at the first sign of trouble. “Sorry about wearing your clothes, Rick and your aunt said it would be all right.”

I tried to give the nervous girl a reassuring smile, “I can use a sword pretty well but this one is new so I still need to get used to the weight and such.” Then I shrugged, “Don't worry about it, sorry I didn't have anything more feminine.”

She shook her head quickly at that, “This is fine with me, I'm not really.... very feminine.” She looked away again and I sensed something familiar in her. I wasn't going to outright ask though. For one thing if I was wrong it would make me sound crazy and if I wasn't it could make her even more uncomfortable. If she decided she needed to talk about it she would bring it up.

Rick nodded, “We didn't think you'd mind. Moriko was going to try wearing some of Erin's clothes but they couldn't find anything that fit, so I suggested she come to our place and try something of yours on since she had nothing to wear.”

I stared at him confused for a moment, “Nothing? Did the airline lose her luggage or something?”

Moriko looked at the ground again, “Something like that.”

I wondered briefly why she hadn't just come in the clothes she wore on the plane but I shrugged it off. “So what brings you here all the way from Japan?”

She looked away,“My chichi, ummm dad is an English teacher, the school here has been trying to get him to come teach here for months. I guess he and the Principal are old friends. And my aunt Sandra and uncle Gordon wanted the family all together again. After my birthday Dad decided to accept the offer and move us all here.”

She was scuffing her shoes on the ground and I noticed she was wearing my shoes too. What the hell? Did she fly here naked? I just nodded and replied, “Our current English teacher is just a temp, it'll be nice to have someone new. Not many people want to come teach here, it's too remote. I think it'll grow on you though, I'm kinda new here myself and your cousin is too.” I took her by the hand and started to pull her along, “C'mon let's go meet the others and have some fun.”

We were all sitting around chatting about everything and nothing, enjoying the opportunity to just be ourselves completely in the company of friends. Most of us had a public face that we put on for the Norms and it was nice not to have to act within those restrictions. Even Moriko was beginning to relax a bit, and she and I got to talking about martial arts and weapons fighting. She didn't know much about guns, but she seemed to know her stuff where martial arts and more old style weapons like bows, swords and staffs were concerned.

It was during that conversation that Verbina flew back from her patrol and flew straight for me, “Natalie, we have a problem. I think the Winter Court is launching an attack. There are Brownies and Duergars in the woods and they should be here any minute.”

“Fuck!” I cursed as I quickly stood and drew my sword, startling Moriko in the process. “Dani get in the house and warn Mr. and Mrs. McGreggor. Tell them to call my parents and that we may need some guns.” Dani gave a quick affirmative and flew for the house. “Vina do you have any suggestions?”

“Fight them and hope for the best,” was her reply, “We would never get reinforcements from the Summer Court here in time and I'm more useful to you here than flying off to get them anyway.”

I nodded and cursed again as I realized Moriko and most of my fellow Unseen were looking at me like I was crazy. Jason had set off for the house at a run while Sarah looked at me expectantly.“Shit,” I cursed again. “Umm guys, some really nasty somethings are gonna come out of those woods any moment now. Dammit Vina there's no use in keeping hidden now. How many are there?”

There were several gasps, and Becky fell out of her chair, as Verbina showed herself. “There's ten Brownies and what looks like five Duergars. The Brownies probably won't put up much of a fight but it's the Duergars that are the really dangerous ones.”

It was then that ten small brown clad people erupted from the woods, screaming as they made their way toward us. The creatures weren't armed but they were quick and I figured they probably weren't meant to be much more than a distraction. Verbina drew a sword from nowhere and quickly dispatched the closest, as I yelled out, “If you can fight do it! Witches stay close to the house and cover us!”

Everything became a blur of motion then as I swung my sword at a Brownie that was almost upon me. The sword cut deep causing the creature to shriek in pain. It's shrieking ended once I thrust the sword into it's chest. As I was trying to pull my sword free I heard another shriek behind me and a muffled thump and I turned around to find Jason, bloody mace in hand, standing over a brownie with it's head caved in. “I got your back Nat.”

I nodded and retrieved my sword, “Thanks Jason.” The witches must have been doing their job as Brownies were tripping, sailing through the air and one was even hopping on one foot shrieking as it's shoe was on fire. I briefly caught sight of Chloe picking up a brownie by the arm and tossing it into a nearby tree where it crumpled to the ground lifeless. Meanwhile Daphne had changed to her Moose form and bulldozed over another before stomping it into a red mess.

Three Foxes were darting in and out nipping at one of the Brownies keeping it occupied and Verbina was quick to swoop in and end it's struggles. I looked for another to fight since that was taken care of and I saw that three of the remaining four were being pounded into oblivion by Shawn, Jackie and Gary. Where was the last one? I turned around searching and saw that Erin was backing away from one, obviously uncertain what to do.

Moriko wasn't near as uncertain as she leaped into action with a roundhouse kick which sent the creature flying back ten feet. She was about to finish it off when five more figures came out of the woods. They were all five feet tall at the most, but they were covered in muscles and wearing leather armor. One with a grizzled black beard picked up the Brownie and snapped it's neck like it was nothing. “Useless,” he said before looking over all of us. Finally his eyes settled back on Moriko, “So you're Titania's pet witchling. I don't see what's so special about you.” Then his eyes settled on me, “But there must be something if she has one of her own guarding you. I was told Titania's dog had left. Maybe you're this Eochair everyone is going on about after all.”

I realized that he thought Moriko was me, maybe he didn't know who he was looking for. Still I wasn't about to let him try and run off with her when it was me he was after. I stepped toward him, “She's not the one you're looking for you moron.” I turned to Moriko who looked really confused at the moment, before turning back to the Duergar. “Do you even know who you're looking for?” I shook my head sneering at him, “Probably not, you're just the errand boy aren't you? They didn't even tell you what you were getting yourself into because you're just not important enough to know.”

“Take care of the other children and anyone else who may come along,” the Duergar said to his companions, pulling a massive war hammer from it's place behind his back. “I will handle Titania's dog and the witchling.” The others pulled similar weapons, wielding them as if they were made of cardboard and started to move toward the others. One tripped as he made his way toward the Foxes, who spread out cautiously at his advance. I didn't get a chance to see much more than that though as my more immediate concern was the giant hammer swinging at my head as the nasty dwarf said, “I am Reshin, and I will be your death.”

I pulled my head back and took a step back just in time to avoid the probable introduction of my brains to the local plant life. How the hell am I supposed to do anything against that hammer with this thin blade? I thought. It'll snap in half if I try to block or parry with it. I'll just have to keep him off balance and get in hits when I can. “I'm Natalie, and I don't plan on dying any time soon, so I think you're a little premature there Reshin. Do you often have that problem with girls? Or is it just me?”

His answer was another swing of the hammer. I was keeping my distance though and managed to avoid it again as I looked for an opening. I saw one in his swing. He tended to put all his strength into a swing and as a result it would pull him a bit off balance during the follow through. Once he recovered enough to swing again I dodged the blow and as he was off balance from the momentum I darted in and slashed at his arm before jumping back again. He winced, but the blow seemed to do very little damage. What is this guy made of?

To cover my surprise at only barely scratching him I decided to taunt him again. “The strong silent type huh? I can respect that. Actions do speak louder than words. Though you don't seem to be very good at the action part either.” An overhand swing this time, one that would have turned me into a puddle had I not managed to step aside. I took a slash at his chest while Verbina did a fly by with her sword at his back. My cut was a little deeper this time, managing to slice through the leather chest plate, but it still only got a grunt out of him. This was not going well. I hoped the others weren't doing as badly as I was but I couldn't risk a second to check on them.

Reshin glowered at me as he swung again. “Die!”

At that moment Moriko delivered a kick to the back of his knee as his momentum carried him off balance again. It almost managed to knock him down and I got a good slash in at his shoulder, this time drawing blood and causing him to grunt again and drop the hammer. “I told you already I wasn't interested in that. Don't you know when a girl says no she means it?”

I wasn't quite fast enough backing out of his range and he managed a kick which knocked me on my butt. Fuck that hurt. He leaped toward me, quicker now that he dropped the hammer. I fell to my back, pulling my legs in and using them and his own momentum against him to send him flying behind me. My chest hurt where he had kicked me, but at least I had managed to get him away from that hammer. I got to my feet and risked a look to see how the others were doing.

Jason's father had come out of the house and he and Daphne were struggling to hold one of the Duergars still while Jason smacked it silly with his mace. Shawn, Jack, and Bailey were using a similar tactic on another as were Jackie, Gary, and Chloe. Meanwhile the Foxes were playing hit and run with another while the Witches were keeping it off balance. It was having trouble standing while Erin, who had finally changed into a tawny spotted Lynx, had joined the Foxes and was trying to take pieces out of it before dashing off and then going in for another pass.

Moriko had come up to stand closer and help me and I pulled my dagger handing it to her. “This might help a bit,” I said and turned to face Reshin. I was just in time to see him tackle me with a knife in hand.

“Die dog!” I raised my arm in time to block the knife and it skittered along my armor harmlessly. He had managed to knock me to the ground though, and the impact knocked the sword from my hand and the air from my lungs. I was going to be feeling that in the morning, provided I lived that long. He was standing above me with a hungry look in his eyes. Moriko tried to get him from behind with my dagger but he knocked her aside. “Humans are so frail and weak aren't they?” he said without even sparing her a glance. “She won't be much of a problem after I kill you, you pathetic worm.”

“You... say the sweetest... things.” I was having troubles breathing and I smiled up at him defiantly while pulling the wax off my left ear. “You got... something wrong though. She's not the human... I am.” I turned my head to look behind him at Moriko who was changing into a silvery beige colored Lynx with long black tufts on her ears and a furry ruff on her neck. Her amber eyes glinted in the dark and she was about two feet tall at the shoulders and almost three and a half feet long from her nose to the tip of her stubby tail. Reshin was looking at me, confused now as I started to laugh, which really hurt. “Here kitty... kitty... kitty.”

Reshin turned in time to get a bundle of fur, teeth, and claws in the face and I reached for my sword while getting painfully to my knees. He managed to dislodge the hissing, scratching and biting wildcat and tossed her to her side. Verbina made another pass, nicking him again, as Moriko quickly sprung to her feet and began to circle warily around him. As I was watching her circle I saw someone else moving up behind him as well. He didn't seem concerned about Moriko and Verbina, probably thinking them more of an annoyance than anything. I, on the other hand, had a sword even if I could barely move.

He knew I was in trouble, I could see it in the predatory look in his eyes. He was ignoring Moriko and Verbina's little strafing runs to focus on me. “You are stubborn human, I'll give you that. I will have you for my own. Prince Sarric and Ly Erg want you and that makes you valuable.”

“Oh you... say the sweetest things.” I dropped my sword and straightened up, holding out my right hand and focusing on my command spell. “Stay...right there.” I grimaced at the movement but I could feel the Glove tingle in response as it amplified my spell.

Reshin seemed surprised that I could hold him in place. “You may be useful after all. But how long can you keep it up? Do you really think you can hold me long enough for the Pixie and the cat to kill me?” I laughed and groaned at the pain it caused me and mumbled something under my breath. “What did you say witchling?”

“You... should have worn... a helm.” His eyes went wide as a shot rang out and then he fell forward, the back of his head a bloody mess. “Thanks Rick... what took you so long?”

“I was washing my hair,” he joked back. “Are you okay Nat?” He offered his hand to help me up.

I quickly picked up my dropped sword and dagger, sheathing the unused dagger as I let him help me to my feet. “I'll live. I hurt like hell though.” I caught sight of Moriko shifting back to her human shape and changing back into my clothes and quickly looked away. “So did Mom contact the Coven? I figure they're going to want to clean up this mess and keep things quiet.”

Rick nodded as he led me slowly back toward the house. “Yep, they'll want to do a clean up but since there were no Norms here I don't think they'll need to do much to keep this quiet.”

I chuckled at that, grimacing at the pain that caused in my chest and ribs. “Yeah, not even Becky would use this story for the Norms.”

When we reached the others Moriko had finished changing and caught up with us. The other Duergars had been taken care of and both Sarah's parents and mine were making sure everyone was okay. I paused to clean my sword on a piece of a Duergar's tunic before sheathing it. Erin had joined us to make sure her cousin was alright and I gave the pair a grin. “Welcome to Sena Island. Do we know how to throw a party or what?” Then I promptly passed out.

I wasn't out for long, and I awoke to Dr. Dennis was giving me a good look over. Apparently Sarah had helped them to figure out how to remove my chain mail shirt, and she didn't even use a can opener. “Hey doc, will I live?” I joked.

Sarah's father frowned at me. “Your chest is a mass of bruising and you may have some cracked ribs, but nothing seems to be broken. I'll want to take some x-rays later and run some other tests at the clinic. I'll drive you and any other injured there after the cleanup is done so Sandra and I can have a better look at you. Until then I've taped up your ribs. You'll be uncomfortable but you should be fine.” He picked up my cloak and put it on my shoulders.

Taking that as a dismissal for now I grabbed my chain mail shirt and headed toward the fire to join the others. Sarah leaped up and hugged me, causing me to hiss in pain. “Careful Sarah, I'm fragile.”

She hugged me again but less exuberantly, “Bullshit. But I'm glad you're okay.”

“I'll be fine.” I gingerly took a seat as I looked around at the others. Almost everyone seemed to be in good shape, though I saw Max had a bandage around his right ankle and Chloe had one on her left wrist. How about everyone else? You all okay?”

Chloe wiggled her fingers, “Everything works okay. Dr. Dennis thinks I may have sprained my wrist though while I was beating the tar out of that thing. Max twisted his ankle a bit but most of us got by with just some scrapes and bruises. Seems like you took the worst of it. How are you?”

I laughed, and damn did it hurt. “It only hurts when I laugh, or move, or breathe. Lots of bruising and maybe cracked ribs. He doesn't think anything is broken though. Those Duergars are tough bastards.”

“Their leader mistook Moriko for you didn't he?” Becky said, breaking the silence that had fallen over us. “In your clothes she did look like you in the dark.” I sighed and nodded. Of course Becky would pick up on something like that, probably more too. She confirmed that as she looked me right in the eyes and said, “Pixies, 'friends in high places', creatures we've never heard of before coming after you, that armor, and of course your family heirloom matches it. Nat, we're all your friends but whatever is going on with you put us in danger tonight. I think you have some explaining to do.”

Nathan Poole is ready to become Sarah's Warden, but a long lost family heirloom changes his life and future.     Trial and Heiress Chapter 8 By Amethyst

Thanks as usual to Eof for a great universe to play in and to Eof, Maggie F and Donjo for their input. And thanks to my readers for reading what I put out here and being patient when new chapters are delayed.

“Their leader mistook Moriko for you didn't he?” Becky said, breaking the silence that had fallen over us. “In your clothes she did look like you in the dark.” I sighed and nodded. Of course Becky would pick up on something like that, probably more too. She confirmed that as she looked me right in the eyes and said, “Pixies, 'friends in high places', creatures we've never heard of before coming after you, that armor, and of course your family heirloom matches it. Nat, we're all your friends but whatever is going on with you put us in danger tonight. I think you have some explaining to do.”

I sighed as I looked over my gathered friends, Moriko and Erin. The latter two weren't really friends yet, but they were one of us so they were friends in waiting. “Before I can tell you anything I need you all to promise me that this goes no further than this campfire. You can't tell anyone else, not even your parents, until I give the okay. This needs to be kept quiet, even from other Unseen.”

There were a few looks of uncertainty at that but each one of them promised to keep their mouth shut until I gave the okay. “We've all promised,” Becky said, “Now spill it Nat.”

“You all know who my cousin Nathan got sent to reform school right? And how I came here after my family died in a fire?” There was a chorus of nods at that. I took a quick look over to where Jason's, Sarah's, and my own parents were waiting for the Coven clean up crew to arrive, before speaking again quietly. “Every word of that is a lie. I am... was Nathan Poole.”

Most were shocked by the revelation but Becky and a few Weres merely nodded as if they had already suspected as much, “This has something to do with your family heirloom doesn't it?” Becky asked. I nodded and began to tell them all the story of how we had found the Glove, how it had changed me and a good portion of what had happened since.

“So you see,” I finished, “This Glove is sort of an agreement between myself and Queen Titania and I'm our representative to the Aos Sidhe. If she needs my help I'm to rally the island's Unseen and if we need help and I ask for it she'll bring reinforcements from the Valley. It's supposed to benefit us all. But the Aos Sidhe don't want to blow the whistle to all the Unseen on the island that they exist yet unless it's urgent.”

Andrew chuckled, “Unseen within the Unseen, who'd have thunk it.”

Chloe nodded, “Yeah, but I can kinda see why they don't want their presence known unless it's necessary. And it does explain a lot, especially the Valley.”

“Well now those assholes will know better than to mess with you Nat,” offered Jackie. “You know if you ever need any back up every one of us would have your back. If this Ly Erg or any of his toadies come calling again just give one of us a call and we'll spread the word and come help.”

I smiled at her, “Thanks Jackie. I'll remember to add a bunch of your numbers to my speed dial. I'm sorry I couldn't level with you all earlier, but this was strictly need to know and to tell the truth I'm still a little self conscious about the whole being a girl thing.” A glance at Moriko showed her give a small nod at that. I sighed and looked around at the others. “So I guess before we all go home or to the clinic we have one more important bit of business to discuss.”

“Oh? What's that?” asked Daphne.

I looked pointedly toward the Lynxes. “Moriko seems to have literally no clothes, she's wearing mine right now, which is probably why those morons thought she was me. Since I'm not into the whole shopping thing and Erin is still new here herself, we'll need volunteers who like and are good at shopping to take the Brand girls around town tomorrow and get Moriko what she needs.”

Moriko blushed as Jenny and Jackie quickly volunteered simultaneously, both putting an arm around our new Japanese friend. Jenny was grinning like, well like a Fox as she winked at Jackie. “Oh we are all over this. Tomorrow kitties we are going to shop 'til we drop.”

Moriko groaned, “Just what I needed.”

Jackie completely ignored her dismal tone of voice. “Sure it is. Retail therapy will cure all your ills. A few hours of shopping with us and you'll forget all about Japan.”I felt almost sorry for Moriko being stuck shopping with her cousin, Jackie, and Jenny but it probably wouldn't be near as bad as doing it with her mom and a pixie like my first time out. They'd take care of her and Erin and it was a good chance for them both to make a couple good friends.

Not long after that Dr. Dennis came to take Max, Chloe and myself to the clinic to check on our injuries. Chloe's sprained wrist was relatively minor and probably wouldn't bother her much. He told her to try not to do anything too strenuous with it for the next week or so. Max got off easy, he only got a bit of bruising when he twisted his ankle and with his Were healing would probably be fine by morning. I on the other hand had lots of bruising and four cracked ribs. My breasts were extra sore and sensitive from the bruising and on top of my period that didn't make me a happy camper. I resolved that next time I wore armor to have something padded to wear underneath.

Over the next few months things were quiet. Well at least we hadn't been attacked again by the Winter Court. Mom and I had come up with a pair of padded quilted leggings and a similar shirt with a Kevlar vest sewn on to it to provide me with more protection when wearing armor. I was also spending what little time I did have for physical training practicing my fighting while wearing my armor to get used to the weight and how it felt.

Most of the rest of my afternoons and evenings were devoted to learning magic. In light of the attack both mine and Sarah's moms had decided to put more time into out magic training. The only real time I had for socializing was in school and what free time my mom would let me have on the weekends. The increased training was helping though. Now in addition to my command spell I had four others: a spell to make things hot, one to create light, a tracking spell, and a spell that causes confusion. The spell to make things hot took quite a bit of practice as when I used too much of my own power and the Glove amplified it things got a bit too hot, too fast. It took a couple small fires and over two dozen exploded microwave dinners before I learned how much power to use.

What little free time I did have was spent with Jason and Sarah though occasionally Moriko would come over to spar or practice with me. She was really good and she showed me a few new tricks in martial arts that worked well with my fighting style. By the time the last day of school before winter break came Sarah and I were both burnt out. I was at my locker putting my things away and getting out my coat and gloves when Sarah and Jason made their way over to me. “Am I ever glad we have a few weeks off school,” Sarah said with a sigh.

“I know what you mean,” I replied tiredly. “Mom's been working my butt off since Halloween and I really need a bit of me time. At least she said she'd let up a bit on the training over Christmas break. I just hope the Winter Court doesn't live up to their name and choose now to try to attack. I'm too tired to fight for my life again.”

I yawned and made sure to be quiet while a group of Norms passed us, one of which was sadly Eric. He gave us an arrogant smile as he handed both Sarah and I an envelope. “Merry Christmas ladies. Here's a little something for you both so you don't miss me over the holidays. If you do anyway give me a call and we can get together. I always have time for you two.”

I groaned and shook my head, “Don't you ever give up Eric?” If there was what I thought was in those envelopes I'd be using my hot spell on them really soon. I looked over his shoulder and pretended to notice someone. I waved at the imaginary someone excitedly. “Hey Moriko!”

Eric paled at her name, “Uh, I gotta go home. Later.” He didn't even bother to look back as he took off down the hallway to the exit.

We all laughed as he took off and Jason grinned at me, “That was a good one Nat. I don't think I've ever seen Eric that eager to get away from a girl before.”

“Well if all a girl has to do to get him off her back is kick his ass maybe I should think about doing it myself.” I said as I grinned back at him.

Sarah just smiled and shook her head. “I don't think it was just the fact she kicked his ass but the way she acted when she did it that has him spooked.”

I stifled a girly giggle, “True, she's my friend and she was so cold it scared me.”

Sarah jabbed me in the shoulder, “Wow Nat, coming from you that's saying something. You might have competition for the ice queen crown.”

I stuck my tongue out at her, “I'll have you know I'm very friendly... to certain people.”

“Who are all present and accounted for,”joked Jason.

“Very funny,” I deadpanned. “I gotta get to the shop and do the whole mother/daughter work and learn thing.” I looked at the envelope in my hand before adding, “And burn this.”

Christmas morning I was woken by Rick pounding on my door at five o'clock. “Come on Nat! Get up there's gifts to open!”

I groaned as I looked at the alarm clock. “Rick do you have any idea what fucking time it is?!”

Rick's answer was to open my door, “Come on Nat! It's tradition for me to come wake you early on Christmas, I've been doing it since we were kids.”

I sat up in bed, my over sized t-shirt threatening to fall off my shoulder as I glowered at him, “Looks like one of us still is a kid. And you should know better to come into a girl's room like that. What if I wasn't decent?”

“You're never decent,” he said with a goofy grin. “And what's with this admitting to being a girl? I thought you were still all 'I'm a guy' and stuff.”

I lifted my legs over the side of the bed, “Oh how droll, humor at five o'clock in the morning. Remind me to laugh when I wake up. As for the girl thing, well if the boobs fit... I may be a girl but I'll be one my way. Hasn't Mom said often enough that it's a woman's prerogative to change her mind?”

Despite my protests Rick dragged me out of my room and downstairs still clad in only the t-shirt and my panties. We got downstairs to find Mom and Dad already seated by the Christmas tree, Verbina on the arm of the sofa looking far more alert than should be legal at that time of the morning, and Dani flying around looking at all the presents. Rick pulled me over to the fireplace where there was a stocking hung with my name on it. “Oh come on! Aren't I a little old for a Christmas stocking?”

Mom smiled at me, “We thought that since it was Natalie's first Christmas a stocking was in order. I think you'll like what's inside.”

“Fine, I'll play along.” I shrugged and took the stocking before going to sit on the floor beside my mom in what was probably a very unladylike manner. Inside were some chocolates and other sweets as well as an envelope. I carefully opened the envelope and unfolded what looked like some sort of legal documents inside. I took a few minutes to look them over before asking, “Is this what I think it is?”

Dad nodded, “The adoption finally went through, you're officially our daughter now.”

I grinned, “Awesome! That means no more calling you Aunt Nora and Uncle Will. Keeping that up for the Norms and those that don't know about me was driving me crazy. I don't have to worry about calling you Mom and Dad anymore!” I gave them both a big hug before sitting back down and nibbling on a chocolate. Yes chocolate before breakfast, I am such a bad girl.

“Okay time for presents!” Rick said as he tossed one over to me, “Open mine first Nat. I had it made special for you.”

“Someone's in a chipper mood this morning,” I grumbled as I started to unwrap the bulky, soft package to reveal black cotton. Once the black cotton was shaken out it turned out to be a black hoodie. Emblazoned across the chest in cursive pink script were the words, I joined the dark side and all I got was this lousy hoodie. I rolled my eyes at him. “Oh very funny, asshole.” I had to try very hard not to crack a smile.

He grinned at me, “I thought you'd like it.”

“I opened yours, so you open mine now.” I said, trying to hide a smirk.

He opened the wrapping to reveal a small oriental looking box. Inside were a pair of metal jingling balls decorated with the yin yang symbol. “Are these...” he began to ask.

“Baoding balls or chinese medicine balls, they're supposed to help with dexterity and they're really relaxing. I thought you might like them. I also thought you could use a pair since Gwen has yours.” I stuck out my tongue at him.

“But I've never had a pair of...” he started and then he suddenly got my joke and grumbled, “Oh that's really funny coming from you Nat.”

The rest of the gifts were opened after that. I mostly got new clothes and a few new bras and such. Some were a bit girly but those were mostly from Dad, but he wasn't used to buying clothes for a teenaged girl who used to be a teenaged boy, and they weren't too bad. The bras Mom had got me because mine were starting to get a little too tight. They were simple white and black like I liked them, but they had a bit of lace. I didn't really care too much about that as hopefully nobody would be seeing me in my underthings any time soon and my tender growing breasts would appreciate them.

I had gotten a gift of sorts for both of my Pixie pals and presented them to them once all the other gifts had been opened. Verbina had been hard to shop for so I had tooled around in the workshop and made her a small Pixie-sized shield out of copper and leather to go with the sword she seemed to pull out of nowhere whenever she needed it. Dani had been a bit easier to figure out. I had gotten her some Pixie cartoon DVDs that I would keep in my room for her to watch when she wanted. Dani was like a kid on her first Christmas, which I guess she kinda was. Almost as excited about the pretty paper I had wrapped it in as the gift itself.

After presents had been opened I went into the kitchen to help Mom make us all a big breakfast. I had been learning to cook from her since we spent virtually all of my time together when I wasn't in school and I was getting pretty good at it. Home Economics had helped quite a bit with that too. So we were both happily puttering round in the kitchen when I happened to look outside and saw white. I rushed to the window almost forgetting the sausages I was frying, “Holy crap! Mom it's snowing!” We didn't get much snow on the island, mostly just rain. Whenever we did get snow it usually didn't stay long, a few days at the most.

The sputtering of grease on the griddle reminded me to keep an eye on the sausages. They were finished so I scooped them onto platter and started on a large batch of scrambled eggs while Mom continued working on the pancakes. Mom managed a peek outside. “Well what do you know, a white Christmas. I hope it stays long enough for you kids to get some enjoyment out of it.” I nodded in agreement as I added some milk and spices to the now beaten eggs and mixed them in. Then I poured the mixture on the griddle to cook.

Breakfast was delicious and I was kind of proud that I had done just as much work to make it as Mom did. As much as I might protest at times, as long as it wasn't overly girly I was actually really enjoying what Mom referred to as mother-daughter bonding time. Speaking of enjoying, Dani discovered that she loves pancakes smothered in maple syrup. Verbina seemed to like them a lot too. I gathered that I'd be making pancakes more often now.

After breakfast I changed into a pair of my new jeans, a new panty and bra set, and the hoodie Rick had gotten me. I had just started one of Dani's Pixie movies for her when my phone rang. Before I could even get a hello out I heard Sarah's voice screaming, “Snow! There's snow Nat!”

“I know! I know Sarah!” I replied copying her tone. “How about we see if Jason is up to going with us to Johnson's Hill? I wonder if he still has that toboggan.”

It turned out that Jason did still have the toboggan as well as a few crazy carpets from when we were kids. We'd had to look through their garage to find them, but it didn't take too long and soon were were loading them in the back of Jason's dad's truck. Johnson's Hill was on the edge of town close to Sorcha Bay where the cliffs overlooking the ocean had become merely a very steep hill. It was named after Edward Johnson. In the late eighteen hundreds he had led an attack against British seal hunters who had wished to use the island for hunting and as a base of operations. The attack had been launched from the hill that was named after him. A fact only known to the island's Unseen is that Johnson was a Selkie.

We spent the day sledding, building a snowman and having a snowball fight with Moriko, Erin, Jackie, Jenny and Max who had also shown up to enjoy the snow. Once we had had our fill of the snow we all headed over to Ground Zero for some hot chocolate. Meara O'Connor, the owner of the coffee shop, was a fiery lass from Ireland and didn't have any family on the island so she often stayed open during the holidays. Meara was in her early twenties and had come to Sena Island from Dublin a few years ago. Like Jackie and her O'Brien cousins Meara was a Selkie.

After chatting over hot chocolate we all said our goodbyes to Meara and split up to head home. I spent the rest of the day spending time with the family and laying on the couch with Dani and Vina while we watched movies. After dinner I got in some fighting and weapons practice with Rick before joining Mom in the workroom to start learning a new spell and to meditate and get more in tune with my body and my magic. Mom felt that one of the reasons I was having trouble controlling my magic and learning new spells was that I wasn't in tune with being a girl and a Witch yet. As a result meditation and self discovery was added to my daily routine.

During dinner on December 27th Mom and Rick were distracted. It wasn't like Rick to be so quiet, and Mom was only like that when she was trying to solve a problem. After I had cleaned off my plate I gave them both a long look. “Is something wrong? You two haven't said much of anything all night.”

Rick nodded, “Nat, do you remember my buddy Keith?”

How could I not, he and Rick were best friends when I was a kid, he and Gwen were always around. “Yeah, he's Gwen's cousin isn't he?” I asked.

Rick let out a long sigh, “Yep. He's off at University in Toronto. Usually he calls home every year on Christmas day. This year he didn't and Gwen and his family are starting to get worried. I'm worried too, it's not like him not to call home.”

I thought about it for a moment, “Is there any chance he just got caught up in something and forgot?”

Rick shook his head, “Not much unless that something has him away from home for days at a time. His family have tried calling, so has Gwen and her mom. Hell I've tried calling myself, but there's no answer. If he was going to be away he would have told Gwen, she chats with him fairly regularly online. There's been no sign of him online either. He hasn't logged into his instant messenger account and there's been no replies to email. We're all beginning to fear that something bad has happened.”

“Couldn't we use magic to find him?” I suggested.

Mom shrugged, “I and half the other Witches on the island started looking for him by magic today. I haven't heard anything from the others yet, but I've had no luck whatsoever.”

“Could it be you're too far away?” I asked.

“I don't think so,” mom replied, “But I suppose it's possible.”

“What if I tried the spell? The Glove amplifying it might help if it's a range issue.” I pulled up my sleeve to offer my Gloved hand.

Mom considered it for a moment before nodding. “It's worth a try. The spell isn't a difficult one, not too different from the tracking spell I taught you actually, and amplifying it could help.” She stood up and took my offered hand, “Let's go to the workroom, we have work to do.”

After an hour Mom felt I was ready for trying the spell. She had given me one of Keith's hairs that his mother had gotten from his baby book and had me tie it to a crystal pendulum on a length of cotton thread. After that I had spoken the words, while focusing on memories I had of Keith from my childhood. I kept my focus on finding Keith as I tried holding the pendulum over first a map of Toronto we had printed out and then a map of North America. There was no pulling feeling from either of them and the pendulum just hung like dead weight. “Nothing. I'm getting nothing Mom. I know I'm doing it right but it's like he doesn't exist.”

She nodded and sighed, “I was afraid of that, I got the same thing when I did it. Lena and Gwen are not going to like hearing this”

I was sitting on the sofa watching television with Verbina and Dandelion on the 29th and it was after midnight when the phone rang. Mom and Dad had already gone to bed and Rick was dozing in one of the chairs so I got up and answered it. “Hello.”

Gwen's voice was on the other end, "Hello. Natalie? Sorry to call this late.”

“It's okay Gwen,” I replied, “What's up? Any news on your cousin yet?”

Her voice had a tinge of excitement to it when she answered. “Yes, there's a... ummm... lead. I need to be at the airport in Vancouver tomorrow morning at seven to fly to Toronto. I was trying to call Rick to make sure he could fly me there but he seems to have his cellphone off or forgot to charge it again.”

I laughed at that, “He probably forgot to charge it. He's right here asleep in a chair. You want I should wake him for you?”

“Thanks Nat, I'd really appreciate it.” she answered.

“My pleasure Gwen, and I really hope you're able to find your cousin.” I put down the receiver and walked over to Rick, delivering a hard kick to his shin.

Rick almost jumped out of the seat, “Ow!! What the fuck was that for Nat!?”

“You forgot to charge your cellphone again dumb ass, Gwen's on the phone for you. She needs you to fly her to mainland in the morning.” I answered with a smile as he glared at me. Rick nodded and grunted something like a thank you as he got up and headed to the phone. Not wanting to eavesdrop I returned to the sofa, my Pixies, and a documentary on the life of the Canada Lynx in the wild.

It was after breakfast on New Years day and it was dreary out. At least the rain seems to be stopping, I thought, so maybe I can manage some fun with Jason and Sarah today. My thoughts were interrupted by my mom calling, “Natalie, Helen Roseberry is on the phone, she wants to talk to you.”

“Okay Mom, I'm coming,” I called out. I wondered what I could have possibly done recently to get a call from the Coven's High Councillor. Could it have something to do with why Mom had to leave for Coven business after midnight last night? Come to think of it that Coven business happened pretty close to the same time that Rick got back home from picking up Gwen. I shrugged and picked up the phone, “Hello Mrs. Roseberry, you wanted to speak with me?”

The woman on the other end sounded tired which wasn't surprising given how late that Coven business had lasted. Mom had gotten in late. “Hello Natalie,” she said. “I was wondering if you could do a little favor for me. Consider it Coven business if you like.”

“Umm, sure, what can I do to help you?” I answered, wondering just what I was getting myself into. Is it serious enough she needs me to call in a favor from Queen Titania?

“There's a new Unseen girl on the island around your age. I would like you to show her around town today and let people see you both if possible. She's new to being Unseen and may have some problems adjusting to her new situation, so she may need a friend. Gwen brought her back with her from Toronto and they were attacked from Hunters while there. So make sure she knows how to keep a low profile and stay out of trouble.”

“New to being Unseen?” I asked. “Is she some sort of Were? If that's the case asking one of the Were families would be better wouldn't it? Or is she a Witch and that's why you asked me?”

I heard her chuckle, “No she's not a Were dear. She's not a Witch either though she was born to a Witch family. She's a Vampire.”

I nearly dropped the phone. “A Vampire?! What if she like thinks I'm a snack or something?”

Another chuckle as she replied, “Gwen said they show a lot of restraint about feeding. They don't kill their meals and they make them forget what happened. They mostly try to blend in.”

“They? There's more than one?” I asked now a bit worried. Vampires gave me the willies.

“The only one you need to worry about is Kayla. The other one, her Maker, will be spending her time with Gwen. There was a third but Gwen said she perished in that fight with the Hunters. The other two and Gwen were lucky to get out of it alive. Gwen counted around twenty Hunters in all,” Mrs. Roseberry replied.

“They took out twenty Hunters?!” I swallowed the lump in my throat. “Remind me not to get on their bad side.”

She laughed at that, “Vampires can be very formidable adversaries. I am glad these ones just want to blend in and seem to be willing to work with us.”

I nodded in agreement though she couldn't see it. “Yeah me too. Is it okay if I bring some friends along and make it a group outing? Meeting some other Unseen besides me might help.” And I'm not really sure I want to be spending the day alone with a Vampire, I thought.

“Of course,” was her answer. “Come over as soon as you're able, I'll let Kayla know you're coming.”

I hung up the phone and went to my room to get my cellphone and get Sarah and Jason in a conference call. Once they were both on the line I asked, “Jason do you think you can get your dad's truck today? And do you both think you can spend the day hanging out?”

Jason answered first, “I can try to get it, and I've got nothing to do today. I thought we were all going to hang out anyway. Just a sec, let me go ask Dad about getting the truck.”

Sarah answered while Jason was off talking to his Dad. “Sure Nat, my schedule is wide open today. You got something special planned?”

“You could say that. I'm doing a favor for Gwen's mom and I thought it would be better as a group,” I replied.

Jason jumped back into the conversation, “Dad says I can have the truck today. So what are we doing?”

“Cool,” I said grinning, “We're going to be showing a new Unseen girl around the island. Show her some of the sights, tell her some of the history from an Unseen point of view, and stuff like that. Maybe we can go for pizza or something too. She's supposedly around our age so I imagine she'll be going to school with us when it starts up again. I'm a bit nervous about meeting her and I thought a group outing would be more fun and make me a bit more relaxed.”

“Sounds like a good idea to me Nat, but why are you nervous about meeting her?” Sarah asked. “What kind of Unseen is she?”

I sighed, “I'm nervous because I've never met an Unseen like her before. We've never had one of her kind on the island before.”

“Oooooh!” Sarah squealed happily, “A type of Unseen we've never seen before?! Come on Nat, spill it, what is she?”

I groaned as I replied, “She's a Vampire.”

“Whoa, no way! A Vampi..” Jason started to say.

“Get out!”Sarah broke in, “Is she more like the Twilight Vampires or, Bram Stoker's Vampires?”

I sighed at her exuberance. “Sarah, please tell me you're not going to go all Vampire fangirl when we meet her. She's pretty new at being one from what I was told and she might be uncomfortable with it.”

Jason asked, “So why did she come here of all places? I would have thought the Coven would have been against having Vampires here. And I bet they're gonna hear about it from the Unseen Council tonight.”

I shrugged as I answered, “I have no clue. From what Mrs. Roseberry said, Gwen vouched for her and the other Vampire she came with. She said they try to blend in and they don't kill their meals. Can't say the same for Hunters though. She told me Gwen and the two Vampires along with a third took out twenty hunters.

“Holy shit!” Jason cursed, and I could hear his mom in the background telling him to watch his language. “Twenty? And they're going to be living here?”

“Awesome!” Sarah squealed again. “So she's more like the Blade type Vampire, kicking ass and taking names. I wonder if I could have a Vampire as my Warden? You know, since my first choice didn't pan out.”

“Hey!” I shouted, “I was supposed to be your Warden!”

“Well you can't be now can you? You're a Witch too, we'll both have to find Wardens. Maybe Jason could be yours?” She was teasing me now, mostly, and I knew it.

In answer I blew a raspberry at her over the phone, “Whatever, let's all get ready to meet this new girl. We can all meet at Jason's once we're ready.” We all hung up and I put on a grey hoodie, jeans, sneakers, a warm jacket and gloves. Then I headed down to the kitchen where Mom was baking some cookies and gave her a kiss on the cheek. “I'm heading out Mom. Jason, Sarah and I are going to go to Mrs. Roseberry's house to pick up the new girl so we can show her around.”

I guess Mom was in on the secret because she nodded and joked, “Try to relax and have fun, I'm sure she won't bite.”

I groaned as Verbina and Dani flew up from the table where they'd been keeping Mom company while I was on the phone. “Ummm girls,” I said as they landed on my shoulders, “I know you both want to be able to protect me, but I don't know much about this girl yet. I certainly don't know if I can trust her. Just in case she might be able to somehow see you both I want you to keep your distance whenever I'm with her. At least until I know she can be trusted.”

Verbina nodded, “Yes Natalie, we'll watch the house while you are gone then. You should be safe enough if you stay in town or close to it. If you have need of us just use your magic and we will come find you.”

Dani nodded as well but she wasn't very happy about it.“I wanted to have some fun with you and your friends today.”

Mom came to the rescue, “Dani I thought you were going to help me finish these chocolate chip cookies. And since Natalie will be gone I'll need someone to taste them and make sure they turn out okay too.”

The yellow haired Pixie looked torn for a moment but gave in, “Okay. I'll help you, they do smell really good. I'll see if they taste as good as they smell.” I chuckled and gave both Pixies a very light hug. After all this time I still find hugging my Pixie friends a bit weird. They're so tiny I'm afraid to hurt them, especially their wings but they both liked the show of affection from me. With my goodbyes done I headed out the door and over to Jason's place.

Sarah had caught up with me on the way and when we got to Jason's he was already waiting in the truck. We both climbed in and once we were in our seat belts Jason put the truck in gear and headed into town. The town was quiet today but that was to be expected with the holiday. The weather was cold but at least it wasn't raining anymore, the sky was starting to clear up which made me wonder if this Vampire girl could go out in daylight. I suppose I'll find out soon enough, I thought as we pulled up in front of the doors at Roseberry Manor.

Nathan Poole is ready to become Sarah's Warden, but a long lost family heirloom changes his life and future.     Trial and Heiress Chapter 9 By Amethyst

Thanks as usual to Eof for a great universe to play in and to Eof, Maggie F and Donjo for their input. A bit late this week due to being sick, possibly from lack of proper sleep. Thanks to my readers for reading what I put out here and being patient when new chapters are delayed like this time.

The door was answered by Mrs. Roseberry’s maid. I think her name was Julia or something like that. “Hello again Miss Poole, it’s been a while since you’ve been here. We’ve been expecting you, you’re here for Kayla right?” she asked with a smile. I nodded and she let us in to wait in the foyer. I had almost forgotten how huge this house was. To think Rick would be living here once he and Gwen were married. At least he had finally managed to ask her, though I think he was still a bit down that I couldn't be his best man. I hoped they managed to find his buddy Keith so he could do the job.

I was distracted from my thoughts by the girl who had just come down the stairs. She looked to be about fifteen with long hair, dyed purple of all things, and bright blue eyes. She even dressed like a Vampire; wearing a pleated red plaid skirt with something poofy made of black lace underneath, a black and blood red corset that looked really painful to wear, torn fishnet stockings, fingerless black lace gloves, black knee-high leather boots with buckles all up the sides, and a black lace choker with red ribbon and a polished red gemstone in the shape of a teardrop hanging from it. She also had a black leather jacket slung over her shoulder, though she didn’t look inclined to put it on at the moment.

Overall the girl was gorgeous and that body did not belong on a fifteen year old. I doubted she had any problems luring away male victims. If I weren’t still head over heels for Sarah I may have considered it as well. She seemed to be giving us all the once over with her eyes and I really hoped at that moment that she wasn’t hungry. I gave her a nervous smile and saw from the corner of my eye that Sarah was doing the same, though Sarah really did look happy to meet this girl. Jason was just staring, completely enthralled and maybe drooling a bit and as a former guy I was a bit embarrassed by his behavior. As she approached he caught her scent and sniffed the air, wrinkling his nose slightly before looking at her again. I wondered briefly what she had smelled like to him.

She walked up to us and smiled, “Hi I’m Kayla, thanks for offering to show me around. Just so you know I can’t spend a lot of time in direct sunlight, maybe an hour at most.” She seemed almost as nervous about this little outing as I was.

I nodded trying to meet her eyes with my own but I was nervous and I kept looking down at my feet. “I’m Natalie and this is Sarah and Jason. We were just thinking of showing you a few of the important things and let folks see you a bit and then we were thinking about going to Gino’s, it’s open even with the holiday today and we can get a booth in the back where it’s dark.”

The Vampire girl smiled at that and seemed to actually perk up a bit at the mention of Gino’s. I wondered if Gwen or somebody had mentioned it to her, it does have a pretty good reputation on the island. “Sounds good, can we get going then?” She looked around, fidgeting nervously and gave an almost longing look toward the front door, “I’d really rather get out of here before the other guests show up.” What was it about these ‘other guests’ that made her nervous? If they could make a Vampire nervous then I really hoped not to meet them myself.

We all headed out to Jason’s dad’s truck and climbed in, Sarah and Kayla taking the back while Jason drove and I rode shotgun. We had just gotten on our way to our first destination when suddenly Kayla said, “So Natalie, I don’t remember Risk having a younger sister, but I do remember that his brother Nathan would have been about your age.” I gasped and heard the others do the same as I swung around in my seat and looked at her wondering just how she knew so much about my family. “W-what?” I replied, too nervous to give much more of an answer than that while I went over my options in my head.

She raised her hands, hopefully to show that she meant no harm. “Don’t worry I’m not here to cause trouble, in fact I’d like to avoid it. Do you know why Gwen was in Toronto?”

Sarah answered since I was still trying to figure out just how much this girl might know about me, and how. “She was looking for her missing cousin and Rick’s friend Keith. Most of the Witches on the island, including my mom, have been looking and turning up nothing. My mom is starting to worry he might be dead.” I knew all this of course since I had done some searching of my own.

“Well she found me,” Kayla said with a shrug, and she gave an awkward half bow in the back seat.

I tried to process what she meant by then and then I gasped as it hit me. I just stared at her as I replied, “You’re Keith!?!” This was Gwen’s cousin who had been going to University in Toronto?!

Jason slammed on the breaks, jarring us all in our seats, and turned to stare at her. “You were a guy?! Damn, first Nate and then you, no offense to any of you but I’m really glad I’m not from a Witch family right now.” He looked Sarah over and grinned, teasing her by adding, “You sure you were born a girl?” Sarah just punched him in the shoulder as he turned and started driving again.

While we continued on to the first stop on our tour she told us how she as Keith had met a beautiful woman named Genevieve who had turned out to be a Vampire. She had turned him not only into a Vampire but also a fifteen year old girl. The girl part was apparently done on purpose via some sort of spell but the age part was not. Her Maker still had no idea why she had regressed in age though there were a few theories. She told us about Genevieve and her fellow Vampire Carly and how they treated her better than her own human mother ever did. She looked ready to cry when she told us about Carly’s death at the hands of the Hunters.

I reciprocated by telling her a carefully edited version of how Nathan had become Natalie. I felt bad about all that happened to her but she was a Vampire and I didn’t know her well yet so I wasn’t going to trust her with all the details, especially about my connection to the Sacred and Titania. We all promised to keep these stories between the four of us as we arrived at the edge of the woods outside town.

We all left the vehicle and Jason gestured to the forest, “Growing up here you probably heard the stories of people getting lost in the woods and never coming back right?” Kayla nodded and he continued on, “Well most of those stories are true. If people get lost we’ll launch search parties and try tracking them but not even Unseen will search the Valley, people who go into the Valley usually don’t come out again.”

Sarah nodded sadly as she put in, “Yeah search parties won’t go that far, the people of the Whitefeather tribe think the Valley is some sort of holy ground and the Unseen here don’t like to enter the Valley without permission from the Sacred.”

“The Sacred?” the Vampire asked, looking a bit uncertain.

I made an attempt at smiling at her as I thought of my involvement with the Sacred during the past several months. “That’s what we of Witch blood call them; some people call them the Fae or other things. Believe me they exist and there’s good and bad ones.” I shivered at the memories of Ly Erg.

“Okay so don’t enter the Valley, got it.” she said as she looked out into the woods. “Anything else I should know while we’re here?”

Sarah pointed up in the air above the forest, toward where the Crossroads was. “Well there were several reasons our town founders chose this island to settle on. One of them is up there.”

“Fresh air?” she asked. It looked like her mother really had kept everything about the Unseen a secret from her. We would have to change that if she was going to be living here.

Sarah just laughed at the unintentional joke. “No, up there is a Crossroads. Five ley lines intersect there making this island a bit of a hotspot for magical energy. That’s why your ancestor Sorcha Roseberry and Aaki Whitefeather, the Nui-chal-tulth Shaman at the time chose the island. From there John Whitlock chose the site of the town for the hunting and fishing available.”

“I thought the town was founded because the Nui-chal-tulth and the Irish settlers were tired of British colonial rule?” she asked having possessed only the Norm version of the island’s history.

I shrugged as I decided to field the answer to that. “That story works well for the Norms and it’s mostly true except that the Irish and the natives weren’t the only ones included, Weres, Witch families and some other Unseen were a big part of it as well. In fact all four of us are from some of the major families which founded the town.”

She seemed to go over that in her mind for a moment before replying. “Okay so I get the three of us are from Witch families but what about you Jason? You said you weren’t.”

Jason gave her a silly looking grin, “I’m a Were, a Moose to be exact.”

She just looked at him confused and then gave him a dirty look when she seemed to figure he was messing with her. “A were-moose? Seriously?”

He just nodded, completely serious. “If you want I’ll show you one day when we’re not pressed for time.”

At that we all returned to the truck and Jason drove again until we reached the ocean and a good view of Sorcha Bay. There was a large group of seals and Selkies sunning themselves out on the rocks. We all piled out of the truck again and moved close enough to watch the seals from a distance. I pointed out to the bay and the ocean and told Kayla, “This is Sorcha Bay, do you see all those seals?” I figured the seals would be pretty hard for her to miss if she really had grown up on the island.

Vampire girl nodded as she answered, “Yeah, I see them.”

I replied, “I bet almost half of them are Selkies. A large portion of the Irish settlers who came here were Selkies. We have a Nereid family or two here as well. The island is almost the perfect location for them. A lot of us Unseen here on the island know each other and can be ourselves when we’re with other Unseen. Just remember not to mention anything about Unseen matters around the Norms.” Having not known about the Unseen before, I felt it very important that she know to keep our existence a secret.

“Ummm what are Selkies and Nereids?” she asked. I felt bad for her that she had grown up in the most influential Witch family on the island but had been kept completely ignorant of her heritage.

Jason shrugged, “Nereids are a bit hard to explain but Selkies are a lot like Weres. They’re people who change into seals like my family changes into Moose.”

For the next half hour, we drove her to all of the island’s historic and important Unseen spots and taught her about the history of the island and about the island’s Unseen as well as Unseen in general. Finally we made our way to Aaki Square where we planned to go to Gino’s for a bite to eat. I shuddered as I thought about what ‘a bite to eat’ meant for her and wondered if she could eat human food at all anymore. Well, human food as in food humans eat not as in ‘human food’ since technically that was probably all her new diet consisted of.

When we entered Gino’s Kayla got a lot of curious looks. People could tell she was new in town and her clothes kind of made her stand out anyway. So we were doing a good job of getting her seen by the townsfolk. At least people would leave her alone if she was with us, expecting us to introduce her if it was necessary or appropriate at the time. We sat at one of the booths in the back where it was fairly dark. It was pretty quiet due to the holiday and we were the only ones sitting in the back so at least we were able to talk openly, even if we had to do so quietly. The four of us talked as we ate and Kayla seemed to open up a bit as she got comfortable with us.

“I remember Gino’s pizza tasting so great.” Kayla said, sounding disappointed as she placed her barely eaten slice of meat-lovers back on her plate. She took a sip of her coke and sighed sadly. “It’s a pity I can’t eat much, and that I can’t taste it. Usually this pizza would be to die for.” Kayla had a pretty morbid sense of humor and I noticed that whenever something about her situation seemed to upset her she would make a joke related to death or children. I thought I had it bad just getting the whole gender switcheroo but she had that plus nobody would take her as the adult she was now and she was probably going to be like that forever or until she died.

I ignored those thoughts and smiled at her joke as Jason and Sarah did the same. Jason took a quick look around to make sure nobody was in hearing range before saying, “I was wondering about that, you seemed to be eating well enough.”

She shrugged, her response quiet, “I can eat really small amounts, it helps me appear human but I can’t eat very much and it doesn’t really do me any good. I need blood to survive.” I swallowed hard and looked away nervously before she quickly added, “Don’t worry I can control myself and I only feed on guys. Plus I think feeding on another Unseen might be some kind of taboo, though I’m pretty new at all this.”

I breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that maybe Kayla wouldn’t be all that bad after all. She suddenly looked concerned and asked “What’s wrong Sarah?” I turned to see that Sarah was frowning and looked toward the entrance even as Jason turned in his seat beside Kayla to do the same. I frowned as well as I saw Eric and hoped he wouldn’t notice us in the back. Sarah grumbled, “It’s Eric Peters. That arrogant jerk has been after me ever since ‘Nathan’ left the island. He’s a Norm and he figures with Nathan gone he can move in on me.”

I grumbled as well, almost a growl as I took Sarah’s hand in my own and added, “Yeah the asshole didn’t wait very long. And then when I started back at school as Natalie he tried hitting on me too. He thinks he’s God’s gift to women.” Then I saw that he noticed us and sighed loudly over the sure trouble I felt would come out of this, “Damn he’s coming this way.”

Eric swaggered confidently up to our table, his attention on me and Sarah. He didn’t even seem to see Kayla or Jason, or just felt them beneath his attention as he gave us that stupid grin of his. “Hello ladies, how about I join you? I know you’ve both probably been missing me with school out for the holidays.”

Jason was beginning to get fed up with Eric’s actions over the past several months and started cracking his knuckles, “Listen Eric, they’ve both asked you repeatedly to leave them alone, besides the table is full. Take off so we can finish our meal in peace.” He may not be able to beat some sense into Eric at school but from the look on his face it wouldn’t take much for him to try it here.

Eric turned his attention to the other side of the booth and its occupants, his attention now on Jason. “I wasn’t talking to you, I was talking to…” And then he saw Kayla. I heard her groan and figured that she knew as well as I did that he was about to hit on her. He wasted no time in doing so. “Hey there gorgeous, I haven’t seen you around here before.”

Kayla looked at him as if he was something unpleasant that she had just found on the bottom of her shoe as she said, “No you haven’t.” My opinion of her went up several notches at that. The girl had moxie.

“Ouch, that hurt, don’t be so cold baby.” Eric replied, trying to come off as smooth, but it sounded more like whining to me.

Kayla narrowed her eyes at that, and I could only imagine what she was probably wishing she could do to him right then. I was worried she might flip out and make a scene and I was about to come to her rescue with a command spell when she looked straight into his eyes and spoke very slowly and deliberately as if addressing a particularly stupid child. “You’ve interrupted our meal and your advances aren’t welcome, you’re very rude. I think you should apologize.”

“I’m sorry, I was very rude,” he answered, sounding like he was in a daze. I looked at my right hand in confusion for a moment but I was absolutely certain that I hadn’t used the spell. Was this something she was doing? Was the Jedi mind trick some kind of Vampire thing?

“I think you should go eat and forget you talked with us,” she told him, still looking into his eyes and using that slow and deliberate speech. “You saw us in passing but you never spoke to us. You won’t even think about having seen us until we are gone.” Then he just left without another word and went to one of the bar stools at the counter to place an order like everything was normal. We all just stared at her for a moment as she smiled, “Well I’m finished, I’ll eat something a little more filling later.”

Sarah suddenly burst out laughing and grinned at the purple haired Vampire saying, “I have got to learn to do that.” I barely heard her because I was laughing as well; this girl might be fun to have around.

It was dark when we dropped Kayla back off at Roseberry Manor. I promised to call her the next day so that we could do something else. Then we took off for home to join our respective families for dinner. Rick was thoughtful as we all ate dinner together. Finally he looked at me over the turkey and asked, “You spent the day with that Vampire kid right Nat? Did anything strike you as odd or familiar about her?”

I thought about telling him that the Vampire girl in question was his best friend but I decided it wasn’t my place to tell. I also didn’t want to be the one to break it to him. Gwen was supposed to be coming over tonight for a visit so he could ask her then. “Odd? You mean other than being a Vampire and dressing the part? No not really. She actually doesn’t seem that bad once you get over the blood drinking and all that, and she told me she doesn’t feed on Unseen.” He didn’t seem happy with that answer but didn’t push it and remained quietly pensive throughout the rest of the meal.

After dinner Mom got me back to work on my magic studies to make up for the time I spent with Kayla and company. It was sometime later as I was in the workroom with Mom, Verbina and Dani that I heard Rick’s voice roar, “She’s Keith!?!” I just chuckled and returned to my work. I noticed Mom was chuckling too. We all returned what we were doing, which was playing hide and seek. Basically Mom was having me practice the locator spell using as little power as possible while Dani and Vina took turns turning invisible and hiding somewhere in the house. Finally, after I found Dani in one of the kitchen cupboards nibbling on a cookie, Mom decided we were done for the night.

I quickly wrote my cell number on a piece of paper, then with Dani and Verbina sitting on my shoulders I headed out to the living room. I grinned at Rick who was sitting on the couch with Gwen, “So Gwen told you huh? Are you planning on talking to your Vampire friend?”

Rick glared at me, “You knew?! And you didn’t tell me?”

I shrugged, “She told me today while we were out, but I didn’t figure it was my place to tell you that you are going to need a new best man. Now are you going to talk to her?”

He nodded, “I’ll be going over in the morning to help Gwen get them settled in. Tanner just called to let us know they are going to be allowed to stay, provided they follow some rules that they agreed to with the Coven.”

I handed him the slip of paper as I replied, “Cool. Make sure you give this to her so she can call me when she’s ready to go out. We’re all supposed to get together again tomorrow and we’re going to show her some stuff in the woods.”

He took the paper and pocketed it, “Sure Nat.”

“Okay,” I said with a grin. “I’ll leave you lovebirds alone to discuss china patterns or whatever you were talking about before I came in. I’m going to get some sleep.”

Gwen laughed and Rick gave me a dirty look as he said, “Good night. Don’t let the Vampires bite.”

I awoke late the next morning after a poor night’s sleep with some disturbing dreams. I worked at untangling Dani from my hair and then headed into the shower to prepare for the day. Once I was clean and shaved in the right areas I got dressed in a white bra and panties, a pair of jeans, a long sleeved sweater, hiking boots and a warm flannel jacket. Then I went downstairs to call Jason and Sarah and have a bit of breakfast before Kayla called. She called around mid-morning and once I was off the phone with her I quickly prepared a backpack with supplies we might need.

Dani and Verbina were a bit concerned about us going onto the woods without their protection but I told them that they could follow us at a distance and remain unseen. If they felt that we were in danger of an attack from the Winter Court they could come to warn us. Jason and Sarah were dressed similarly to me, ready for a walk in the woods, when we met at Jason’s place. I teased Jason as we climbed in his father’s truck. “Are you ready to spend another day with the hot Vampire girl?”

He shrugged, “She is really hot but she smells like a graveyard. It took a little bit of getting used to yesterday. She does seem pretty nice, though I doubt we have much in common.”

Soon we were at the doors to Roseberry Manor again and being greeted this time by Kayla who was dressed in a similar style as the day before, only instead of a corset she was wearing a long t-shirt with a skull on the front of it. She was also wearing a gold chain with a crescent moon pendant on it, and her eyes seemed a darker blue than the day before, almost violet. I shrugged it off as we all climbed into the truck.

We mostly just made small talk on the ride out to the woods. She told us that Gwen’s mom had made her the pendant she was wearing so that she could spend as much time in the sun as any other teenager. I was relieved to hear that, since limited time in the sun might make it difficult for her to blend in. We also talked about school a bit and Kayla confirmed that she would be joining us when we returned, though none of us was looking forward to it.

She also told us something we didn’t know about Vampires, that each one has a unique ability. Her maker’s ability was that nobody could lie around her. That was certainly nice to know in advance. Kayla had discovered hers before the Unseen Council meeting. It seemed that she could change her eye color at will. She even demonstrated it for us and it was pretty cool, even if it wasn’t very useful. I think she was a bit disappointed in it since even she admitted there were far better Vampire abilities out there.

We had just arrived at the edge of the woods when Kayla suddenly blurted out, “Natalie would you be interested in being a part of Rick and Gwen’s wedding?” She shrunk back a bit as if the question would make me suddenly explode or something.

I tried to reply calmly and not let my disappointment show. “Well Rick said before that he was thinking about having me be his best man but that there was another choice. I don’t really know how else I could be involved now.”

Her reply was to giggle, “Yeah I was the other choice.” Then she calmed herself and added, “But Gwen asked me if I’d be her maid of honor instead given my current situation. We were kind of wondering if you’d want to be one of her bridesmaids. It would mean a lot to Risk having us both involved somehow, and it would mean a lot to Gwen too.”

Sarah grinned and put her hand on my shoulder, “You should do it Nat, it could be fun and then Kayla won’t have to suffer all alone.”

I didn’t like the idea at all, but Kayla seemed willing to do it and it would mean a lot to them both. Plus I couldn’t refuse Sarah much of anything especially when I could feel her touch. I so wished we could do more than just casual touching and holding hands. I wished she wanted more. “I guess so,” I answered, “It’s not really my kind of thing, but if it’ll make Rick happy I suppose I can handle one day in an ugly dress.” She and Sarah both hugged me tight and I suddenly felt really awkward. I think I may have blushed a bit.

Then Kayla suddenly turned to Jason with a grin, “Risk’s 0 for 2 with his best man choices. You should volunteer for the job Jason; I bet you’d make a cute girl.” I had a very hard time not giggling at that.

“Oh very funny Kayla, I’m very happy as a guy thanks.” He replied, rolling his eyes at her. He stared at her for a moment before frowning, “And would you stop changing your eye color like that, it’s a bit creepy when you do it while I’m watching.”

She punched him softly on the shoulder, “Well if you’d stop looking at me like that you wouldn’t have to watch it. You poor boy, you just can’t take your eyes off me. Now speaking of changing wasn’t there something you were going to show me?” I laughed quietly to myself thinking that Jason really couldn’t take his eyes off her. He’d been stealing glances at her since they met.

The three of us girls walked through the woods following Jason in his Moose form. The look on her face when he changed was priceless and I was wondering just how she would react when he changed back into a naked guy. Jason probably wouldn’t do that in front of her though, as shy as he was. Sarah and I were explaining things about Unseen on the island and telling her about some of the herbs and such that we knew when we passed them while Jason kept alert for danger. Our first stop was the cabin. Sarah explained that the Unseen Council kept it stocked for those lost or wounded in the woods and as a base of operations for search parties. We also showed her where all the supplies were stored in case she needed them in the future.

It had taken us a few hours to get to the cabin so we decided to sit down and rest there for a while before continuing our walk to the Valley. Kayla had been carrying Jason’s backpack for him while he was in Moose form since she hadn’t brought one of her own and when we arrived at the cabin she had left it outside for him. Jason changed back to his human form and into his clothes outside where she couldn’t see, just like I figured.

Kayla had seemed to relax quite a bit since we started our walk and was no longer nervously touching her new pendant whenever she thought nobody was looking. Jason came into the cabin and handed us all cans of soda from his backpack. He smiled sadly as he looked around, “It’s been awhile since we’ve been out this far Nat, I’ve missed it.”

I nodded and sighed. I really missed coming out here and training but until we knew that the Winter Court wasn’t going to be a problem there wasn’t much I could do about it. After a longing look around the cabin I turned to Kayla to explain. “We used to come out here all the time. We’d check the supplies for the Council and do some training out here, sometimes we’d stay a few days at a time.”

“I guess your family must have put a stop to it when you got girlified huh?” was her reply.

I nodded at that, “Yeah, when I was a guy and training to be a Warden, it was encouraged for me to come out here with Jason to train. Afterwards…” I couldn’t finish that sentence. It would make it seem like only bad things had come out of my transformation. There were good things: my Pixie pals, my relationship with my mom, and I was even enjoying learning magic.

Kayla looked pensive before replying. “What were they worried about you being out here all alone with a boy? I guess I could see that since you two kind of gave off a vibe like you were a couple when we first met. I think you’re more close friends though.”

I nearly choked on my soda and just the thought of what she had implied was wrong on so many levels. Sarah just giggled as I made a face and made my displeasure at the thought known. “Ewwwww gross! No, my parents decided since I’m no longer training to be a Warden and I’m heir to the family’s magic I should be kept safe while I learn magic until I have a Warden of my own.” It wasn’t the whole truth, but I hardly knew Kayla and wasn’t sure I could trust her with the whole story yet.

Jason placed a hand on my shoulder, “Yeah we’re just buds, nothing more. I think your parents may let up so long as we go in groups, you and Sarah may not have Wardens yet but I’ll do my best to keep you safe.”

Kayla nodded, a determined look on her face. “You can count me in too. I haven’t known you all long but you’re good people. I won’t let anything happen to you while I’m around. We’ll keep you safe.” She bit her lip, looking like she could cry at any moment. “I… I wasn’t able to do anything to save Carly. But I promise I won’t let anything like that happen to a friend again if I can do anything about it.” She took a sip of her soda as she pulled herself together.

I suddenly felt really bad for not telling her the whole truth. This girl had been through a lot, she was a kindred spirit and I was treating her like she was a Winter Court spy. I told myself that it was needed until I knew more about her and could be sure she could be trusted. Sarah hugged her and I quickly joined in as Sarah said, “We’ll all look out for each other, that’s what good friends do.” She gave us a bright smile to try and lighten the mood, “Now let’s not get all mopey, we still have to show Kayla the Valley and it’s a hard walk.”

Kayla looked at her, seeming a bit confused. “I thought you all told me not to enter the Valley.”

I took another pull of my soda as I nodded, “You don’t want to enter without permission from the Sacred or you might never come back. We’re not going into the Valley though; we’re just going to show you where it is so you know when you’ve gone too far.” Who knows maybe Titania or one of her court would be nearby and could tell me if Kayla could be trusted.

After that brief break we began the walk to the Valley, heading up the increasingly steep slope. Kayla seemed to keep up pretty well and showed no signs of tiring as we climbed, even after a few kilometers when the slope was almost sixty degrees and heavily forested. We had to start being careful with our footing but she just kept going without signs of strain even when the rest of us were starting to tire. She did eventually ask, “How could someone not realize they’re heading to the Valley with a climb like this?”

Jason grinned at her as he climbed up beside her. “I know right. You’d think people would realize that if you want to get back to town you need to go downhill.”

Sarah nodded in agreement as Kayla helped her climb over a large rock, “Usually it’s local Norms or people not from the island who get lost. The local Norms think the disappearances are just to scare people and do it to prove how tough they are, and the people not from the island get lost and think civilization is just over the next rise.”

“It’s one of the many reasons we don’t encourage tourism.” I added. The last thing we needed on the island is tourists to get lost and never return and bring a media circus on our asses.
“I always wondered why we don’t promote the island to tourists; it could bring a lot of revenue into town,” she commented as she looked around, taking in the scenery. “A lot of people would love the island for vacations.”

I frowned at that, my thought still on the possibility of disappearing tourists. “The Valley is one of the major reasons but there are others as well. One is that tourists bring litter and we would rather the island stay as untouched by man as possible outside of town. Another reason is that sleepy little towns with not a lot of visitors seem boring and the last thing people expect would be anything unusual so we Unseen can hide in plain sight. The less attention we bring to the island the less we have to hide,” I explained hoping she would see things that way.

She apparently did since she nodded. “That’s true, I grew up here and I thought the town was the most boring place on earth. I was a bit shocked by all this Unseen stuff happening right under my nose all those years.”

Jason gave Kayla a serious look. “There’s one more obvious reason. Tourism for a place like Sena Island brings game hunters. Can you imagine what would happen if one of those hunters shot the wrong fox, lynx or moose? Or what would happen if they saw one of the Unseen in the woods or while fishing? That could cause all sorts of trouble.”

She let that stew in her mind briefly before answering. “I guess knowing what I know now I have to admit that it’s better to be a sleepy little town. The less people who come here, the less people we need to worry about finding out about us.”

I waved my hands broadly toward the Valley as we stood atop the ridge. “The Valley is pretty big, it covers near one third of the Island and the Crossroads is right above it. We think it’s possible that could be part of the reason that most people who go in don’t come out.”

Sarah nodded in agreement, “It could be anything though, it could just be the size of the Valley, it could be something to do with the way being too close to the Crossroads screws with electronics, or it could have something to do with the Sacred.”
Jason looked up at the sky, “We should get going, it looks and smells like it’s going to rain, we might even get snow. Besides it gets dark early right now and we’re supposed to be back in town before then. Dad needs the truck back by then.”

I frowned at the thought of going down that slope in the rain. “Yeah we should get going home then. One of us really needs to get our own vehicle.” We were quick to start heading back down the slope toward the town.

It seemed like as soon as we started on our way down it started raining. It was a freezing rain and quickly started coming down in a torrent. Even though the cold rain didn’t seem to bother Kayla much, the rest of us were getting cold quick even in our warm clothes. We tried to be as careful as possible going down the slope. None of us said much, as we were too busy paying careful attention to where we placed our feet as the rain came down progressively harder. We were starting to get close to the bottom when Sarah slipped on a rock. I could hear a popping sound and she screamed in pain as she lost her balance and fell down the slope.

Suddenly Kayla threw caution to the wind and was practically flying down the slope after Sarah. I was stunned for an instant by what had just happened but then I too started to half slide down the hill recklessly with Jason at my side. When we got to the bottom of the slope, we found Sarah lying next to a tree, out cold. Kayla seemed to be checking for a pulse, and was looking her over. Sarah’s ankle was not at a good angle and she was bleeding badly from a wound on her head. Her hood and hair were covered in blood and I was so scared that I was going to lose her. Kayla looked really worried too as she said,” Someone needs to get help and medical supplies.”

Jason ran toward the cabin to get medical supplies while I pulled out my cell phone and dialed the emergency number, my hands shaking. Kayla tore a section off her shirt and started putting pressure on the head wound. Sarah had lost so much blood and I was worried about her ankle and that head wound. I was panicking and started cursing as I couldn’t get a signal. I knelt down beside them trying to think of some way I could help, but I didn’t know any healing spells. I reached out with my mind focusing through the Glove and called out to Dani and Verbina. Maybe one of them knew a healing spell or could bring help.

I couldn’t bear to lose Sarah, I was still in love with her. I opened my eyes and saw the light. Kayla’s hands were glowing with a pale white light as she held them and the scrap of her shirt firmly against Sarah’s head. The light grew brighter and she stared at her glowing hands in confusion as Sarah began to glow white as well. Then she and Sarah were both glowing so bright that it hurt my eyes to look. I cursed and shielded my eyes trying to see what was happening. And then the light vanished and Kayla collapsed atop Sarah.

I checked Sarah over. Her ankle looked a lot better, no bruising and it was no longer at that horrid angle. The wound on her head was gone, only a small scar remained on her bloody head, she was breathing steadily but I couldn’t wake her up. Hoping she was alright I went on to check Kayla. There was no pulse and she wasn’t breathing but she was a Vampire so that told me absolutely nothing. I looked again at the tiny scar on Sarah’s head in disbelief before looking back at Kayla. I stared at her as I waited for my Pixies to get there and for Jason to return and all I could think was, what in the hell is she?

Nathan Poole is ready to become Sarah's Warden, but a long lost family heirloom changes his life and future.     Trial and Heiress Chapter 10 By Amethyst

Thanks as usual to Eof for a great universe to play in and to Eof, Maggie F and Donjo for their input. Thanks to my readers for reading what I put out here and being patient when new chapters are delayed like this time.

What the hell is she? I thought again as I looked over the Vampire collapsed atop Sarah. Kayla had claimed to be a Dud before she was turned, but she had just used some sort of healing spell that was beyond the abilities of any Witch I knew. That was a lot of magic and I feared that she may as well have just sent up a flare to alert the Winter Court to our location, and we were still uncomfortably close to the Valley. Was she working for them and the Vampire bit a ruse to get close to us? She had looked confused and more than a little shocked after starting her little light show. Was it an act or could I actually trust this girl?

I was interrupted from my train of thought by the arrival of Dandelion and Verbina and I quickly gave them both orders. “Dani, go catch up with Jason, he was heading to the cabin. I need you to tell him Sarah seems to be okay now but both she and Kayla are out cold and I’ll need his help. Vina, I need you to go alert my Mom. Tell her what’s going on here and that we won’t be able to take Sarah and Kayla to the clinic with what just happened and we need to get some sort of rescue here quick. This is probably a Coven matter now. We’ll need help to move them.”

Both Pixies were quick to comply and flew off in the direction of the cabin, and in Verbina’s case beyond it to my house. Jason and Dani came back about fifteen minutes later and I quickly explained to him what happened. He checked them both for any sign of injury, but quickly came to the same conclusion I had. “It’s kind of hard to tell with Kayla, but Sarah is definitely in a really deep sleep. I wonder if it’s some kind of coma? Otherwise they both look fine, other than the blood all over Sarah’s head; I hope she didn’t lose too much.”

I nodded silently as I was worried about the same thing. After a moment I spoke. “We’ll need to move them soon, I think we need a more experienced and stronger Witch than me to look them over. I think we’re also way too close to the Valley; I’m worried someone may have felt Kayla’s power. We can’t carry both of them all that way though.”

Jason looked the girls over again, taking off his jacket and putting it over Sarah, “Yeah, that’s going to be a problem. I’m worried about all this rain too. Kayla didn’t seem bothered by the cold, but Sarah is shivering, we need to move her fast of figure out a way to keep her warm and dry.”

Jason and I quickly took a small tarp out of his backpack and made a rough lean-to over the girls. Then we gathered some pine branches and I used my hot spell to get a fire going. We were hoping that the fire would keep us all warm until rescue could get here and that the smoke would be noticed even in the dim light of the late afternoon storm. If not the smoke then at least maybe the fire itself would help people find us.

The light was getting fairly dim by the time we heard the tell-tale sound of the clinic’s medivac helicopter growing closer. It seemed to home right in on the smoke and hovered above us. I wondered how they were going to get to us since there was no space to land and due to the trees they were a good fifty feet above us. A litter was slowly lowered and no sooner did we unclip it to move it closer to Sarah and Kayla than some crazy redhead came flying down the cable before dropping the last twenty feet to land beside us.

I didn’t stare, I was too worried about Sarah to give the woman more than a cursory once over. I had never seen this woman on the island before and believe me I would have remembered it if I had. She looked to be in her early twenties and was drop dead gorgeous. She was about my height or maybe an inch taller, with waist length wavy auburn hair, pale skin, a fantastic figure, and deep green eyes. She was wearing an emerald green sweater dress and dark brown ankle boots that showed off her legs. She was easily as hot as Kayla was and then it hit me, this must be the other Vampire.

She just nodded to Jason and me and gently moved Kayla aside before doing a quick check over Sarah, looking for any injuries. “She seems to be alright, just sleeping!” She turned to us, yelling to be heard over the helicopter. “I’m Genevieve, I’m going to take Kayla up to the helicopter and bring Gwen down to make sure it’s going to be okay to move her!” I nodded and watched as she picked up Kayla and slung her over her shoulder like she weighed nothing at all. Then she started scaling the cable up to the medivac. I just sat down and held Sarah’s hand tightly in my own as I mentally begged for her to be okay.

It wasn’t long before Genevieve was back on the ground with us, along with Gwen. She looked worried but after we explained what happened, she quickly checked Sarah’s head, neck, and ankle for any signs of injury and then did a quick scan magically. She nodded and mumbled to herself as she looked Sarah over and nodded to Geneveive who picked Sarah up and put her in the litter. Once that was done, the pair started securing the straps and making sure the litter was securely clipped onto the cable while Jason and I put out the fire and disassembled the lean-to.

It had been a short flight back in the helicopter once we were all aboard. We couldn’t take them to the clinic, especially Kayla, so Rick landed the medivac at Roseberry Manor. Gwen’s home had plenty of space for a proper landing and there were lots of guest rooms where Sarah could be made comfortable. Genevieve was quick to get both Sarah and Kayla in bed while Rick returned the medivac to the clinic. Genevieve had decided it was best that she stay with Kayla in case the younger Vampire woke up needing to feed and I volunteered to stay with Sarah in case she awoke while Gwen made phone calls to let all of our families know what was going on.

It was two hours before anything changed. I stayed with Sarah while Dani and later Verbina kept me company. None of us said much of anything as we were all worried about Sarah and I was so scared that she wasn’t going to wake up. What would I do if I lost her? She may not feel the same anymore since my change but I was still in love with her and the thought of losing her brought tears to my eyes. I cried for a time, until I heard voices coming from the next room where Kayla was sleeping. It sounded like she had woken up so I quickly dried my tears and hoped that Sarah would wake up soon as well.

It was almost an hour later that there was a light knocking at the door. I motioned for Dani and Verbina to make themselves scarce and looked up as the door opened to see Kayla enter the room. I smiled in relief as she didn’t seem to have seen the Pixies as she opened the door fully to let Sarah’s parents and Jason in behind her. “How is she? And how are you holding up?” the Vampire asked.

“She’s still asleep, but she’s a lot better than she was before,” I replied. “What did you do? I thought you were a Dud.” I pulled nervously at the right sleeve of my sweater to make sure the Glove was still hidden as I rose from the chair to let Sarah’s mom sit. She looked like she had been crying for a while; her eyes were red and blotchy. Dr. Dennis looked worried too, as did Jason as he put a tray of wrapped sandwiches on the bedside table.

Kayla sighed, looking genuinely confused as she shook her head, “I have absolutely no idea. Nothing like that has ever happened to me before. Genevieve said that I used some sort of magic. If it helped Sarah I don’t really care what it was.” I nodded at that, I didn’t care much what it was so long as Sarah came out of it okay but I still wasn’t sure if she could be trusted. For a while there was an awkward silence in the room, with nobody knowing quite what to say.

The silence was broken by a soft sigh, movement on the bed and the whispered rustling of the sheets as Sarah started to wake. Everyone seemed to notice all at once and as Sarah’s parents stood up at her bedside Kayla, Jason and I rushed to the foot of the bed to make sure that we hadn’t imagined the sounds and that she was indeed waking up. Sarah looked around at all of us surrounding her looking a bit confused for a moment before finally speaking, her throat sounding parched. “What happened? Where am I?”

Sarah’s mom took her hand looking as though she were ready to cry again, and couldn’t seem to speak at the moment. Dr. Dennis noticed her trouble and explained instead. “You’re at Roseberry Manor, you had a bit of a fall. You were brought here because you and Kayla were both unconscious and they weren’t sure what to do about her.”

Sarah looked around and focused on us at the foot of the bed, “Are you okay Kayla? Did you fall too?”

Kayla waved off her concerns, “Hey, don’t worry about me, you were the one that was hurt. I’ve fed and now I’m just fine.” I frowned at the Vampire, and was about to tell Sarah exactly what happened but she cut me off. “Can we talk about this later Natalie? There’s some water there if you need a drink Sarah, there’s sandwiches too. We thought you might be hungry.”

Sarah sat up in bed and took a long drink of water and then began to devour the sandwiches as her parents told her how glad they were she was okay. They also informed her of everyone waiting downstairs for her to wake up. All of us had been very worried. Once Sarah was full her father, Dr. Dennis, gave her a quick examination to make sure that she really was okay. Her mother spoke as he checked her over, “Your Grandmother couldn’t be reached as she was elsewhere on the Island or she would be here too. We were all so worried about you.”

Dr. Dennis smiled in relief as she checked out okay. “You seem to be fine now honey, though you may be a bit tired for a while. We’re going to let you stay here tonight so you can get enough rest and talk to your friends. Kayla, how are you feeling?”

Kayla thumped her chest with a fist. “I’m feeling fine since I fed Sir, though I did have to drink a bit more than I usually do.”

Sarah’s father nodded, “I’ll take your word for it, I’m afraid I don’t have much experience treating Vampires.” He chuckled at that before giving Kayla a serious look, “From what I’ve been told you saved Sarah’s life.” He looked briefly to Sarah’s mom who nodded, “We are in your debt, if you ever need anything let us know.”

Mrs. Taylor nodded again in agreement, “Thank you Kayla. We’ll go down and tell the others that Sarah is awake and seems to be fine so you can all talk. Just try to make sure you get enough rest Sarah.”

Once they left and closed the door Sarah looked to each of us who were now sitting on the bed with her. “Okay does someone want to tell me what exactly happened?”

“You slipped and fell down and hit your head,” Kayla answered simply. “I tried to take care of the wound while Natalie tried to call for help and Jason ran to get help and medical supplies.”

I glared at her for understating the seriousness of it all. “What she isn’t telling you Sarah, is that you lost a lot of blood and she passed out after using some kind of healing magic to save your life. You had what looked like a broken ankle and a nasty gash on the back of your head and now there’s nothing but a small scar.”

“You used magic?” Sarah asked, echoing my own thoughts, “I thought you were a Dud.”

“I seem to be full of surprises, what’s the big deal anyway? It’s not like the two of you can’t use magic,” the Vampire snapped, looking a bit upset.

Jason quickly put his hands out, “Okay ladies time out, let’s calm down here. Kayla saved Sarah’s life and I’m very grateful for that.”

I took a deep breath to calm myself, “Kayla look, I can never thank you enough for what you did and I’m sure Sarah feels the same.” Sarah nodded her head quickly in agreement at this as I continued. “I’m not trying to give you a hard time here but whatever you used was well beyond the abilities of a Novice Witch, I certainly couldn’t have done it or I would have. But I think you need to be warned.” The thoughts of Ly Erg or another member of the Winter Court getting their hands on Kayla bothered me.

Kayla narrowed her eyes suspiciously, “Warned about what?”

“Several things,” I replied. “First, using that type of power attracts attention. There are other types of Unseen out there besides the ones in town and you might as well have set off fireworks to let them know where you are. This could put you in danger. Secondly, whatever you did looked like it was all power and no control so others could see you as a danger.” If she had as much power as it looked like and no way of controlling it she could be a danger to everyone around her and frankly my life and those of my friends had been in enough danger the past few months.

Jason nodded, his face grim. “I overheard some talk while you were both still asleep. The Coven is going to want to test you and have you trained by one of your family members if it turns out you’re a Witch. I know how you feel about your mother and odds are she’d be the one to train you.” It really didn’t surprise me that the Coven was responding that way. If she really was a Witch she’d need training, and I knew that as well as anyone.

The Goth Vampire cursed. “Damn, even when I’m dead my life sucks.” She just sat there quietly clenching her fists. I wondered what her mom could have possibly done to make this girl dislike her so much.

Sarah reached out and took one of Kayla’s hands after a long silence, “Kayla, are you okay?”

“Well let’s see, a few weeks ago I was a normal college guy who didn’t even know the Unseen existed. Since then I was turned into a Vampire, I found out I’ll be spending eternity shopping in the Junior Miss section, I’ve been attacked, I had someone close to me killed, I had to come back here, I had probably the worst welcome the town could roll out, I found out my parents have lied to me my whole life, you nearly died on us after I promised to keep you safe, and I apparently have some kind of magic that could possibly put me in danger from people and things I don’t even know. Does that sound like I’m okay?!” Kayla listed it all off, seeming to get more upset with every item. The last was practically growled, causing Sarah to pull back a bit. Seeing the look on Sarah’s face, she quickly apologized. “Damn, I’m sorry Sarah.”

Jason put a hand on Kayla’s shoulder as Sarah took one of her hands again. I quickly took the other hand as Jason looked into the Vampire’s eyes and said, “Well when it’s put like that your life really does suck, but you forgot one thing.”

She rolled her eyes, replying sarcastically, “What’s that? The happy magic bonding time I’ll be soon enjoying with my lying mother?”

Jason just grinned at her, “Nope, you made three awesome friends who are going to stick by you no matter what.”

Jason and Sarah seemed so willing to give Kayla a chance, and yet even after she saved Sarah’s life I still doubted her. I decided I would give her a chance since she had a lot in common with me and had saved Sarah’s life. We all talked for a while, about everything and anything, until Sarah started to look sleepy, then we all said our good-nights and went to our assigned rooms. I spent a long time thinking about Kayla, Sarah and the whole situation before sleep eventually claimed me.

The next morning I awoke early and gratefully accepted Gwen’s offer to use one of their showers to clean up before breakfast. Once I was clean I threw on some clothes mom had brought for me the day before, a pair of jeans and a black t-shirt. She had brought me a clean hoodie too but I decided to hold off on that for now. After changing I quickly headed downstairs where Sarah and Jason were in the kitchen having breakfast with Gwen and her mother. Jason was dressed similarly to the day before while Sarah wore a white blouse, tan capris, and a big smile. “Feeling better today Sarah?” I asked.

“I feel great this morning Nat. The rest really helped.” Her smile seemed to get even bigger and my heart felt as though it would melt at the sight of it. Sarah was alive and smiling and at that moment nothing else was important. As we finished breakfast she sighed, “I guess we should get home soon for magic lessons. Let’s go wake Kayla up and say goodbye first though.” We all got up to go before Sarah shook her finger at Jason, “Nuh uh, Jason. You need to wait for us. Can’t have you coming and risk you seeing Kayla undressed.”

Jason seemed disappointed and was in all likelihood picturing Kayla in a state of undress as Sarah and I headed up to Kayla’s room with Dani and Verbina following. We slipped inside and sat on the end of her bed. “Okay Dani and Verbina stay above her and out of sight until I give the word,” I said in a whisper. Dani seemed to find this terribly funny and couldn’t help giggling. The giggling seemed to nudge Kayla into wakefulness as she sat up and looked for the source before her eyes focussed on Sarah and I. I wasn’t sure whether to be turned on or jealous that the Vampire still looked utterly gorgeous right after waking and it disturbed me slightly as I repositioned myself to keep the Glove out of sight.

Finally, Sarah smiled and said, “Good morning.”

Kayla, dressed in a simple black nightgown that hugged her curves, stretched and smiled back at us. “Good morning, how are you feeling this morning Sarah?”

Sarah just grinned even bigger as she responded. “All I needed was a good rest it seems, I feel great now. Thanks again for what you did.”

I swallowed the lump in my throat and bit my lower lip a bit before taking a deep breath to calm myself down. Once calmed I said, “Kalya, I owe you an apology.”

She blinked sleepily at me, looking a bit confused as she asked, “What for Nat?”

I looked down at the bed while Sarah squeezed my left hand. “I… wasn’t sure if we could trust you at first. Don’t get me wrong, I like you and I think we can be great friends but I’ve been through a lot the last few months and I have trouble trusting new people. Last night I realized that you’ve been through as much as I have and in a lot less time. I feel bad that I couldn’t trust you with the whole story, even after you told us everything about what you’ve been through. After what you did for Sarah I think you deserve to know.”

Kayla gave me a beautiful smile as she admitted, “I probably wouldn’t trust me at first either if I just met me. I mean first I’m a Vampire and second, well you’ve seen how I dress.” At least she didn’t seem to be offended and I really didn’t see anything wrong with how she dresses, it suited her in my opinion. She seemed to be looking me over and I noticed her eyes moved to where my Gloved hand was hidden at my side. “What do you mean the whole story?” she asked.

“Well,” I began, “I only told you that I found a family heirloom and it changed me into who I am now. I left out a lot of details about how I found it and what exactly it is.” I slowly raised my right hand to display the Glove. She stared at the Glove for a long moment as if it was the last thing she had been expecting. “This is Titania’s Glove, it’s what changed me and I can’t take it off, it’s stuck to me until I die. It’s been in our family since we settled on the island and it had gone missing over sixty years ago. I had a little bit of help finding it.”

At this point Dani giggled again and Kayla looked above her to end up staring at the pair of Pixies in shock. After a moment she seemed to shake it off and asked nervously, “Are those what I think they are?”

I nodded and tried not to smile at her uncertainty, “Yup they’re pixies. Kayla meet Dandelion and Verbina, we call them Dani and Vina for short. They’re kind of my guardians and Dani was the one who first led me to the Glove.”

“Hi! I’m Dani!” Dandelion said in her typical chipper tone.

Verbina gave Kayla a friendly smile but was assessing Kayla as she introduced herself in a more subdued manner than Dani. “It’s a pleasure to meet you Kayla.”

“It’s nice to meet you both,” the Vampire replied, possibly still a bit shocked, before turning back to look at me dumbfounded. “These are your guardians?”

I nodded, “Yeah, you see when I warned you last night about sudden displays of uncontrolled magic attracting unwanted attention; well I know that from experience. Queen Titania decided that if I was going to live long enough to be useful I should have some protection.”

“Okay well now you have two pixies, another witch, a Were-moose and whatever the hell I am for protection.” Kayla replied as she looked at the Pixies, probably wondering what type of protection they could offer. She looked like she wanted to know more but was holding herself back from asking. “I’m curious though, why didn’t I see them before? I’d think they would attract attention.”

I looked down at the bed at that, feeling bad for not trusting her, although I still felt I was right getting to know her a bit first. “I asked them to keep their distance while we got to know you, you’ll probably see them hanging around now that we know you can be trusted. Most people can’t see them though, so don’t get in conversations with them in public places unless you want the Norms and even some of the other Unseen to think you have a screw loose.”

Sarah nodded in agreement, “And fair warning, Dani can be a bit… flighty. She may forget at times that we can’t talk so just try to gently remind her when you can get away with it.”

Dandelion looked confused at that but didn’t seem too bothered by the comment. “Of course I’m flighty that’s why I have wings.”

Kayla groaned at that, but seemed to take it in stride and we all talked for a bit longer before Sarah and I left to head home with Jason. We all promised to try to get together on the weekend if we could get some time off from magic lessons with our respective mothers. Once we were all in the truck Sarah spoke up, “I’m so glad you decided to let her in on the whole story Nat. Kayla seems like a nice girl and I think she needs good friends right now with all she’s going through.”

I nodded, “Yeah I think she’ll be cool to hang around with, and we do have a lot in common. I’ve noticed you both seem to really like her too.”

Jason blushed at that but remained quiet while Sarah grinned. “Yeah she’s cool, I think we’ll all get on great and she did save my life. I am a bit jealous though.”

“Okay I get it, Vampires are cool but seeing what Kayla is going through would you really want to be one yourself?” I asked with a groan.

She shook her head, “Oh no, it’s not that Nat. Vampires are cool but I have no desire to join her in that. I was talking about how gorgeous she is. I mean she just woke up and she still looked like some sort of teenaged Goth fashion model. And did you see how her curves filled out that nightgown?”

Jason blushed even more at that and I gave him a gentle elbow to the ribs from where I was riding shotgun. I was blushing a bit myself though, since Kayla really was hot. “She’s going to be beating off the guys at school with a stick. You better make your move quick if you want a chance at her Jason.”

Jason just shook his head, “I dunno Nat, I like her and all but I don’t think we have much in common. I doubt she’d be interested in me.”

Sarah gave him a light slap to the shoulder, “You’re a great guy Jason any girl would be lucky to have you. Besides, didn’t you see the way she was flirting with you yesterday? I think she’s interested but she’s not gonna push it unless she knows you are.”

Jason was quiet for a moment before answering. “She may act more girly than Nat but she’s still new to the being a girl thing. I don’t think she’d appreciate the attention from guys yet. You saw how she was with Eric the other day.”

I groaned, “News flash Jason. That was Eric, all girls are like that with Eric. Kayla really seemed to be enjoying teasing you yesterday. If you want to wait to be sure she’s interested and that you have stuff in common then do it. Just try not to wait until someone else goes after her instead. She doesn’t seem to really have a problem with being a girl other than looking like she’s jailbait.” Jason spent the rest of the ride home in thoughtful silence.

The rest of the week was spent mostly working on magic lessons with my mom, though Sarah would sometimes come over in the evenings and we would relax in my room. On Friday Morkio came over after dinner for a workout. I was getting used to practicing in full armor with the padding underneath, but Moriko was still a hell of a sparring partner and she kept me on my toes. She had that cat-like grace of hers but even without it she was damn good with that sword of hers and in unarmed combat as well. We were taking a break after a really good workout when Moriko took a slow sip of her water bottle. “I heard there is a new Unseen girl on the island.”

I nodded, “Yeah, Sarah Jason and I were hanging with her a bit earlier this week. Kayla’s cool. She’s a Vampire, but once you get past that and the whole Goth look she has going she seems like a nice girl.”

Moriko arched an eyebrow, “A Vampire? I’ve never seen one of those before. Is she tough?”

I chuckled at that, “Looking for another sparring partner? I haven’t seen her fight, but she doesn’t really carry herself like a fighter. But Gwen said they along with to other Vampires took out twenty Hunters. She said the Vampires are really strong and fast. I do know she doesn’t tire easily though.”

She nodded, looking thoughtful. “If she were properly trained she might make an interesting opponent.”

“Maybe you’ll get to meet her once school starts,” I offered. “Are you and your mom still looking for students for your dojo? It sucks that such a small island doesn’t give you many potential students.”

“We have a few girls and a guy who started coming for lessons since the incident with Eric. I even got Erin to start learning. Mama seems to like having others to teach. I think she misses the family dojo in Tokyo.” She shrugged, “I miss it too but I’m getting used to things here.”

I gave her a friendly slap on the back, “I’m glad you and your family are finally settling in. It’s good you’re getting students too, maybe I’ll try to convince Sarah to learn some self defense.”

She nodded, “It wouldn’t hurt her to learn. We’re starting classes again next week when school starts up. We have a beginner’s class Friday nights. Bring Sarah and this new girl by if you like and we can see what they’re made of.” After that Moriko helped me out of my armor and headed home while I went to take a much needed shower.

It was late Saturday morning and Sarah Jason and I were sitting on the couch at my place watching TV when my cell phone rang. I picked it up and hit the button to connect the call, noting that it was Kayla’s number. “Hello?”

“Hi Nat,” she replied, “Its Kayla. I was wondering what you, Sarah and Jason were up to today?”

I thought about it, we couldn’t really do much without transportation though. “Nothing much, we were about to call you and see if you wanted to come over and do something here since Jason couldn’t get the truck today.” I explained before asking, “Did you have something in mind?”

She paused before replying, “I was thinking I need to do some shopping to make my room more personal and maybe get a few other things too. You think you all might want to come? I can handle the transportation.”

“Just a sec, I’ll ask.” I turned to ask the others as I covered the receiver, “Do you guys want to go shopping with Kayla? She says she can handle the transportation.” They both nodded and Sarah grinned at the mention of shopping. “Sure we’re all game, Sarah is eager to do some shopping and Jason and I don’t mind tagging along while you both do your thing.”

“Awesome!” she responded. “Give me ten minutes and I’ll be over.”

I disconnected the call and nodded to the others, “She says she’ll be here in ten.” We all went to the door and got our shoes and jackets on. It was just over five minutes later that we heard a car horn from outside. Jason was the first out the door and he suddenly stopped short in the doorway. Sarah and I pushed at him and complained until he walked out into the rain saying, “Is that a…”

Kayla was leaning against the driver side door of a red Mustang convertible. Her purple hair was mostly down but with ponytails on the sides held in place by black hair ties adorned with skulls. Her eyes were a dark violet to and she was all Gothed out, even wearing make-up; black lipstick and eye shadow to give her eyes a smoky look. She wore a purple and black corset, black leggings, what I was beginning to expect were her favorite black leather boots, and an open black leather jacket.

She grinned at Jason as she patted the car, “A 1965 Ford Mustang convertible with a 289C V8 engine, fully restored. Try not to get too much mud in it, will you?” Jason took a slow walk around the car, looking like he was in love. It was funny to look at; he was a big fan of classic cars. I was pretty impressed myself, it was a sweet ride. Sarah didn’t share our enthusiasm as she dragged me into the back seat with her. We were careful though to get the mud off our shoes. Jason climbed into the front passenger seat while Kayla got behind the wheel.

Once we were all inside the car Kayla turned up the heat to a comfortable level, put the Mustang in gear, and began the drive into town. Jason couldn’t keep quiet for long though. “Where in the world did you get one of these?” His fingers ran along the dash like he was caressing a lover.

“It’s mine,” the Vampire answered as she turned onto the road into town, “Dad and I spent a lot of time when I was growing up restoring this baby, and he gave it to me. Dad always had a thing for classic muscle cars and I grew up learning from him so I kinda caught the bug. Are you into the classics too?”

Jason nodded enthusiastically, “Hell yeah! I love classic cars; I didn’t picture you as the type to get all dirty and greasy working on them though.” Maybe this will be the thing in common Jason needed to make a move on her, I thought.

Kayla giggled in response. “I thought the same thing about you, but I did used to be a guy, remember?”

Sarah let out a giggle of her own. “It’s easy to forget that sometimes Kay, you’re so girly sometimes. Not like some guys-turned-girls we know.”

“Hey, if I’ve got to be a girl I’ll do it on my own terms,” I muttered, crossing my arms. “Nothing wrong with being a tomboy.”

Since we were entering town at that point Kayla asked, “Where to first Sarah? I want to make my room look like a teenage girl with a bit of history lives there, and maybe get some casual clothes we didn’t get at Oh My Goth.”

“Okay, let’s go to Denman’s first,” Sarah answered. Kayla nodded and took the next turn in that direction. Soon we pulled up in front of the huge old department store and climbed out of the car to run inside. Then Sarah and Kayla got into the whole shopping thing. I was glad Sarah got a friend in Kayla who seemed to enjoy it as much as she did. It might save me some suffering. We spent hours in Denman’s, and Kayla spent a lot on casual clothes and stuff for her room.

She bought several pairs of Jeans, most of them in black and some spaghetti strap tops, baby tee’s, sneakers, and some warm clothes for wet and rainy days. And of course she and Sarah had to try on everything. Jason and I left them to go look at hunting gear when they decided to look at lingerie. Neither of us needed to be seeing them try those on. Once we were sure it was safe to join them again we reunited to get some little things to decorate her room. It was mostly stuff any teenaged girl would have in her room, though we’d have to take some pictures to go into the frames we bought at some point.

Sarah thought to get her some stuffed animals as well, claiming that every girl needs at least one. Kayla seemed to prefer these stuffed animals made to look like animal skeletons and two of those, a cat and a penguin. Jason, in a surprising move bought her a stuffed moose, blushing fiercely as he gave it to her in the car. We shoved all the bags in the trunk of the Mustang and headed to Sally’s to eat.

Dandelion and Verbina joined us for lunch at the drive in restaurant and we began to talk about possibly going to the cabin later that afternoon to maybe spend the night and have some fun before school started on Monday. We were discussing plans and trying to figure out how to convince our parents when Kayla’s phone rang. After checking the phone’s display she answered, “Hi Gwennie-bee.”

I assumed it was Gwen on the other end and she had asked something as Kayla replied, “Sure Gwen, we’re at Sally’s right now so we can be there in about fifteen minutes.”

Kayla disconnected the call and put her phone back in her purse before asking, “Do you all mind if we go see Gwen at the bookstore before we head out? I’ll need to eat something before we go anywhere anyway and Gwen has some books that she thinks will help me with my ‘gift’.”

“Sure thing, it’s your car we’re in, I don’t mind if…” Jason began to answer.

“Oooohhhh! A gift?! Is it wrapped in pretty paper?” Dani interrupted, her attention now focused on the Vampire rather than sharing said Vampire’s milkshake with Verbina.

Kayla smacked her forehead, “I can’t believe I forgot to tell you all!”

“Tell us what?” I asked with my mouth full of cheeseburger.

“It turns out I’m not a Witch,” she said with a shrug. “I can’t use magic worth shit.”

“But…” Sarah began to say. I was a bit confused myself. How could she have done what she had with Sarah if she has no magical talent. I saw her use magic with my own eyes.

Kayla shook her head, “I’m something different, I can’t use magic. Aunt Helen and Gwen said I’m a Healer.” Suddenly she had all of our attention. I remembered what Titania had said about Healers and figured she would want to know about this if it were true. She continued on as I was thinking. “Umm yeah, apparently there’s not many of us but my family sometimes has girls who become Healers instead of Witches when we turn sixteen. Genevieve thinks my power may have been latent when I was Keith and getting turned triggered it and may have caused my age regression.” She looked very uncomfortable as we stared at her. “What?”

I let out a soft sigh as I spoke up. “Queen Titania is going to want to know about this. Vina can you go tell her and meet us at the cabin later? I think we found our excuse for going.” Vina nodded and took off like a shot out the open window.

Kayla turned in her seat and looked at us all, ignoring Dani, who was quietly going back to drinking the Goth girl’s milkshake. “Does someone want to clue me in?”

I gave her a long look as I tried to phrase my answer in my mind. “Queen Titania told me that I was led to the Glove because at some point soon it would be needed but she couldn’t guess as to when. It could be me or it could be one of my children that need to use it. The Sacred don’t really have the same sense of urgency about time that we do.”

“And what does that have to do with me?” she asked looking confused.

“She also mentioned Healers to me,” I answered. “She said they’re harbingers of a sort and she believes that they are born when they are most needed. She said if a Healer is born on the Island then there is a good chance something big is going to happen here in their lifetime and they will be needed.”

Sarah took my hand in hers and I smiled as she spoke up. “That means whatever Queen Titania is so worried about will likely happen in our lifetime, possibly soon.” Sarah’s touch felt so nice and I wished again that I could have more.

“So what’s that mean for us then?” Kayla asked, seeming a bit uncertain.

“It means we need to be ready.” I replied, squeezing Sarah’s hand tight. “So we all need to work our asses off to make sure we’re the best we can be at what we do and be prepared for anything. “

Jason nodded in agreement, “I think we’ll need to warn the Coven and the Council.”

“And tell them what?” I snapped bitterly. “That I have a bad feeling that something is going to the Island? We don’t exactly know what is going to happen or when.” We couldn’t go to them until we knew more, though we could keep them unofficially in the loop via our parents.

“The Coven already knows something is coming, probably the Council too,” Kayla said. “I heard Gwen, Genevieve and Aunt Helen talking. Aunt Helen said she finds it unnerving that both the Glove and a Healer re-appeared so close together and she was going to inform the Coven. And with both her and Genevieve on the Council now, it’s a good bet they’ll know soon too.” I nodded at that, not surprised that the Coven was concerned.

“Not much else we can do then until we know just what it is we need to prepare for except to work together, try to learn what we can and keep our eyes open,” Jason said with a shrug. Kyla nodded and put the car in gear to drive to The Book Mark.

Nathan Poole is ready to become Sarah's Warden, but a long lost family heirloom changes his life and future.     Trial and Heiress Chapter 11 By Amethyst

Thanks as usual to Eof for a great universe to play in and to Eof, Maggie F and Donjo for their input. Thanks to my readers for reading what I put out here and being patient when new chapters are delayed.

We dropped by The Book Mark so that Kayla could speak with Gwen who had some books for her and wanted her to work there afterschool. It was kind of funny the way she had just wordlessly passed the books to Jason and he took them like a lost little puppy. After that Kayla dropped us off at home and went to talk to Genevieve for permission to come out to the cabin with us and get ‘a bite to eat’ as she put it.

After she had dropped me off Dani and I went inside. “Mom! I’m home!”

Mom came out of the kitchen and gave me a hug. “Did you all have fun?”

“Yeah Mom, but we need to go out to the cabin. I need to talk to Queen Titania or one of her representatives. Kayla mentioned something today that she needs to know about. Kayla’s planning on coming with us to protect us and in case anyone gets injured.”

Mom looked thoughtful for a moment before nodding. “Alright, if she’s going to be with you and you’re sure Queen Titania needs this information then I’ll allow it. But be careful and take weapons just in case.”

“I plan on it mom,” I answered as headed upstairs to pack a large duffel bag. I packed a change of clothes, my weapons and my armor. Jason had agreed to carry most of the important camping gear and he and Sarah were going to split the food and supplies. Once I was packed I got dressed in jeans, a warm sweater, hiking boots, jacket, gloves, and hat. Once dressed, I grabbed a shotgun and stuffed a few handfuls of shells in my jacket pockets. “Okay Mom I’m going to go wait in the backyard.” I hefted my duffel bag and slung the shotgun over my shoulder.

“Okay sweetie, have fun and be careful.” She kissed me on the cheek and gave me a hug before letting me make my way outside with Dani fluttering along behind me.

Sarah and Jason showed up before Kayla, and once they arrived I sent Dani off ahead to look for any possible dangers. Kayla wasn’t far behind the others and soon showed up wearing a pair of black jeans tucked into hiking boots, a thick sweater, an open jacket, and gloves with her camping gear in a large camping backpack slung over her shoulder. It was kind of weird seeing her wearing regular clothes. She looked pointedly at the shotgun, her eyes questioning. I merely shrugged as I said, “We’re going to be out there at night and you never know what we might run into. I don’t like to rely on magic too much since we’re only Novices. I sent Dani ahead to check for anything dangerous though.”

The Vampire nodded, “I’m a bit surprised your parents were all okay with this.”

Sarah smiled, obviously happy to be able to go with us. “Mine didn’t like the idea but I convinced them that you and Jason would be there to protect us. Nat’s mom approved it once she knew that we were going to talk to the Sacred about you.”

“Wait, that’s why we’re heading out there? To meet these Sacred?” she asked, looking nervous.

I nodded as I shouldered my duffel bag again, “That’s the idea, they may send someone to talk with you or they might just send a message with Vina, you never know. Queen Titania is usually kept too busy with her own matters to see us mere mortals personally unless it’s important, but at least the possibility gives us an excuse to head to the cabin.” I started walking off into the woods with the others close behind.

We arrived at the cabin much earlier than I had expected and dusk was just settling as the cabin came into view. Dani told us everything was clear and we all went inside and Dani helped me start to build a fire in the fireplace while Jason and Sarah saw to dinner. I encouraged Kayla to keep watch for both welcome and unwelcome visitors while the rest of us went about our own tasks since she claimed to have good night vision and enhanced senses. While she sat and kept watch out the window I got the fire going and soon, thanks to Sarah and Jason, we had a pot of stew cooking on the fire.

Dinner was almost ready when Kayla finally said, “Ummm guys, I think that company may be arriving.”
Less than a minute later I heard her mutter, “Damn that’s a lot of Pixies.” Kayla stood and made her way to the door even as the rest of us did the same.

I got to the door first and quickly opened it, motioning for our guests to come inside once I saw the Pixies and the two hooded figures. “Please come in and get out of the rain.”

The smaller of the two larger figures shook off her hood revealing a very beautiful blonde Aos Sidhe with deep green eyes. Underneath her dark green cloak she was wearing bronze ring mail and had a long slim sword strapped to her hip. “Thank you, I am Lisianne, this is my husband Paul…” Paul shook off his hood to reveal a human man in perhaps his mid-thirties with graying brown hair. He also revealed that he was carrying a child as Lisianne added, “And this is our daughter Marie.”
I quickly introduced myself and the others and encouraged our guests to make themselves comfortable. Kayla seemed completely spaced out and was staring at the baby. I thought if she had stared at anyone it would have been Lisianne as I could remember doing so during my first encounter with Titania, but no, she couldn’t take her eyes off Marie. The baby was a year old at most with her mother’s features and I suppose she was pretty adorable. Maybe Kayla had a thing for babies. Suddenly a look of horror and shock spread across Kayla’s beautiful young face as she said, “She’s been poisoned.”

I stared at her dumbfounded; everyone stared at her with various degrees of shock and anger on their faces. The Pixies buzzed around Paul and the baby, furious. Lisianne gave Kayla a long searching look, “Are you certain about this?”

She nodded gravely, “I may be new to this whole Healer thing but whatever has her sick does not feel right. I think if it were an illness it would feel more natural to me and closer to an injury, but this just feels wrong. It doesn’t feel like it’s throughout her body or in any specific area, but more like it’s running through her bloodstream and tainting everything in its path. How long has she been sick? Any symptoms?” The Vampire motioned at the cabin’s bed, “Please lay her down on the bed.”

Paul placed her on the bed as he answered her question. “She started getting a high fever about three days ago and she’s got a bad cough. Can you heal her?”

Kayla let out a sigh, wringing her hands nervously, “I can try. But I’ve only known I’m a Healer for a week and I’m still new at this. At least I have a good idea what the problem is and that should make things easier. I’m going to need some blood afterwards though.”

Paul stared at her in confusion. “Blood? For what, a transfusion?”

She shook her head, “No, I don’t think I’ll need to be poking her with needles and such. You see I’m a Vampire and my Healing ability takes a lot of energy since I’m still learning. So unless you all want a hungry Vampire in your midst I’ll need to feed once I’m finished.”

Paul turned five shades paler but quickly nodded, “If you can heal our daughter my life and blood are yours.”

“I’ll gladly take your blood Paul but your life is yours to keep. I don’t kill my meals.” She gave Paul and Lisianne a reassuring smile as she added, “And I would heal your daughter regardless.” We all watched in silence as Kayla examined Marie and gently laid her hands on the infant. Horror, disgust, and anger passed over her face and she almost jumped back at one point. She took a deep breath and a look of concentration cemented itself into her features. White light encompassed her hands and washed over Marie, pale at first, barely noticeable. Then it began to get brighter and brighter still. It wasn’t as blindingly bright as when she healed Sarah but it was enough that most of us were shielding our eyes.

The light began to slowly fade from Kayla’s hands and Marie and the Vampire opened her eyes slowly and smiled tiredly, “She’ll be fine now I think, she just needs to rest and she’ll be hungry when she wakes up.” Everyone was staring at Kayla, even me and I had seen this once before. She seemed nervous at all the attention and suddenly pointed to the window, “Look! A distraction!”

I groaned as Dani and a few other Pixies fell for it, with Dani looking about frantically, “Ooooh! Where?!”

Kayla let out a soft sigh. “Soooo, could we all do something besides staring at the hungry Vampire? Explanations would be a good start. An even better start would be a bite to eat.” She looked pointedly at Paul as she said the last.

After Kayla and Paul returned from outside the explanations began. Lisianne explained to us for Kayla’s benefit that she is one of the Aos Sidhe and that she and Paul had met several years ago when he wandered into the Valley. While she nursed him back to health the pair had fallen in love and decided to unofficially marry despite the protests of the more hardline members of the Aos Sidhe nobility. Marie’s birth caused a bit of an uproar but they and Marie were at the very least tolerated. Queen Titania had taken an interest in the child so even most of the hardliners were keeping their opinions to themselves.

Lisianne was convinced that a member of the Winter Court behind her daughter’s poisoning since some of them seemed to see her as a danger. When Titania had learned of the presence of a Healer on the island she arranged for Lisianne and Paul to bring Marie, to test Kayla’s claim and to attempt to save the baby, and had sent the Pixies as a guard. Jason frowned as Lisianne finished explaining things, “But why would anyone see a baby as a danger? I could see maybe wanting to use her as leverage against your Queen, but why view Marie herself as a danger?”

Dani, responded absently from my shoulder, “Oh, they probably think she’s the Eochair.” Her fellow Pixies glared at her apparent slip up.

“The Eochair?” Kayla asked, looking very curious.

“Somewhere in the Sacred Grove there’s supposed to be a vault, hidden and protected by Her Majesty’s magic,” Lisianne replied. “The rumor is that only Her Majesty or the Eochair can get into the vault and there are powerful magical artifacts inside. Nobody has any idea who or what the Eochair is though so often people think when Her Majesty takes an interest in a person or thing that it must be the Eochair.”

Sarah turned her gaze toward Marie on the bed, “So because she’s something of a rarity and Queen Titania’s shown an interest in her people think she may be this Eochair?”

Paul shrugged, dismissing the possibility. “I doubt she is, it could be just about anything she’s shown an interest in. And it doesn’t necessarily have to be a person. Because of the possible existence of the Eochair though people are always going to assume a connection whenever she takes an interest in a person or object.”

I raised my right hand and muttered, “Like a certain Glove?”

Lisianne nodded solemnly, before looking toward Kayla, “Or even a Healer.”

I scowled as I thought of the Winter Court and remembered that Ly Erg had mentioned this Eochair and the vault when we had met. “Well they’ve come after me before it wouldn’t surprise me if they come after you too Kay. Even if you’re not this Eochair they’re looking for you’ve got to admit that your healing ability would make you a pretty tempting target for them.”

“Just great,” Kayla growled, looking very unhappy at that prospect.

Jason looked around as if he expected members of the Winter Court to suddenly burst in through the door and windows. “We might want to stay in town for a while. As nice as it is to be out here, right now the town is probably a lot safer for both of you.”

“You’re probably right Jason,” I replied, “Though we’ll have to be careful even in town I think. At least I have Vina and Dani. I can send one of them for help if I get into any trouble.”

The Pixies all gathered around Azrhea and Thymhelia, and they were all introduced. I was glad I already know the Clan Leader and the Keeper of names as there were lot of new faces I didn’t know. Finally the last introduction was made as a Pixie with fire engine red hair was pushed toward Kayla by Thymhelia. The Pixie seemed very shy and nervous as she was introduced. “This is Silphia, she is still young but she is our fastest flyer. She will serve as your guardian Healer Kayla.”

Kayla shrugged and gave the Pixie a friendly smile. “Nice to meet you Silphia, I don’t know if I’ll need much protection but I’m sure you’ll be a big help if I do.”

“N-n-nice to meet you Healer Kayla. I will do my best,” came Silphia’s stammered reply.

“Just call me Kayla please. Or you can call me Kay, most my friends do,” she said with another smile.

Kayla had gone outside to be alone for a bit while the rest of us dug into the stew. It hadn’t looked like she was happy having a guardian but I was sure the pair would get used to one another eventually. After a time Lisianne went outside to join her. The pair had been talking for a while and I was starting to get worried when Lisianne came back inside and sat down on the bed to check if Marie needed changing or anything. Kayla still hadn’t come in after a few minutes and I was getting worried about our new friend. She had seemed lost in thought and a bit brooding when she had gone outside. Finally I grabbed Jason and Sarah and opened the door so we could join Kayla outside.

I immediately slapped the Vampire cheerfully on the back once she saw us. “So how does it feel to have your very own Pixie babysitter?”

She groaned and looked toward the cabin door.. “Ask me once I get to know her a bit. I have no idea how I’m going to explain this to Genevieve. It’s kind of hard to keep secrets from someone you can’t lie to.”
I thought about that and shrugged. “I don’t see the harm in telling her if the topic comes up. I mean Gwen, my mom, Sarah’s mom and your Aunt Helen all know about my little friends. Just be careful not to mention any of the Sacred except to Genevieve or those already in the know. The Sacred are not known of even among most of the Unseen and we don’t want to out them unless it’s their choice.”

“I guess you’re right. I’ll tell her if I have to, but nobody else who doesn’t know already.” She took a quick look around to make sure we were alone. “So what do you all think of this Eochair business?”

Sarah answered before I could. “I don’t think you, Marie, or Nat are it. Queen Titania is smart and powerful and she would have to realize that anyone or anything she takes an interest in could be suspected by people. For all we know you all may be red herrings and she’s setting up protection for you because she knows somebody will take the bait.”

Jason nodded, his eyes on Kayla. “I have to agree with Sarah on that, though you both still need to be careful. Someone will eventually take the bait plus there’s the fact that you already have something about you that makes you attractive.” Seeming to realize what he had just said Jason blushed at that and hastily added, “As some sort of tool or bargaining chip.”

Despite the darkness we all noticed his blush and I chuckled as I took Sarah’s hand. “C’mon Sarah let’s go inside. We should probably leave these two alone.”

Sarah grinned and took my offered hand, and we opened the door to head inside. Just before we shut th door behind us Sarah called out over her shoulder, “Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”

It was barely five minutes after Sarah and I had headed inside when the door opened and Kayla ran inside looking panicked, shutting the door behind her to rush to her backpack on the floor. After a fast and furious search of the contents she pulled out a stainless steel water bottle and quickly opened it. She slowly swallowed the contents and seemed to calm down after a few moments. She licked her lips and took a quick look around the room looking ashamed. “You okay Kayla?” Sarah asked, her voice touched with concern.

“Fine, peachy, nothing wrong here,” the Vampire quickly blurted out still looking ashamed and embarrassed even though she couldn’t blush. “I just thought I would have a quick drink before I check on Marie. You know, to make sure I got all the poison, can't be too careful.” She walked over to the bed to check on the baby trying very hard to make it look as if nothing was wrong.

“Are you sure?” I asked. I didn’t believe her and wanted to press her but we hadn’t known one another long and I figured she would talk about it when she was ready.

“Yeah I'm fine, why wouldn't I be?” She quickly sat on the edge of the bed by Lisianne and focused on Marie. After a few minutes she gave us all a weak smile, “Seems like I got it all. I didn't detect anything this time.”

Lisianne smiled at Kayla but looked as concerned as I was as she asked, “Thank you Kayla, are you sure you're all right?”

“I'm just tired,” she said dismissively, “Healing takes a lot out of me. I think I'm gonna try to get some sleep.” She returned to her pack, set up her sleeping bag and without another word to anyone she closed my eyes. Jason come in after a while looking a bit down. I promised myself I would talk to him about this later as we all went to bed.

I awoke later than usual and Kayla was holding Marie while Paul and Lisianne were just finishing making breakfast. The scrambled eggs, and pancakes were good and we all enjoyed the meal. Normally I’d have bacon too but Jason is a vegetarian and so are Aos Sidhe so we hadn’t brought any meat. While we all ate Kayla sat quietly holding Marie and seemed lost in thought. I guessed that she had a lot to think about and something was bothering her last night. I thought I might have a pretty good idea what it was.

It was late in the morning, not long before lunchtime, when Lisianne, Paul and Marie left for the Valley under the protection of the Pixies. Kayla, Sarah, Jason and I headed back to town with Dani, Verbina and Silphia keeping a close eye out for trouble as we made our way through the woods. It was a very quiet walk back home and Kayla seemed to be keeping her distance from Jason. Finally we all arrived at my house and Sarah and Jason stayed to hang out while Kayla headed home, promising to pick us up for school in the morning.

Jason was depressed all afternoon and after Sarah headed home I finally I decided it had gone on long enough. “What’s wrong Jason? Is this about Kayla? You’ve been acting emo all afternoon.”

He sighed and shrugged as he continued to stare at the television set. “It’s hard to be happy when you have your first kiss with a girl and she recoils in horror and runs away.”

I groaned and turned to look at him. “Jason, I don’t think it was you or your kissing ability that she was running from.”

He turned to look at me confused. “What do you mean Nat?”

“Do you know what the first thing she did once she rushed inside in a panic was?”

He shook his head saying, “No. What did she do? I don’t think Kayla’s the type to curl up in a ball and cry.”

I punched him in the shoulder. “The first thing she did was run to her backpack and search frantically for a water bottle and drink the contents. I’ll give you one guess what I think was in that bottle and it wasn’t water.”

“She drank blood? But she had just fed a little while before and she said she only usually feeds once a day or so. Why would she need to do it again so soon?”

I shook my head. “I don’t know. Maybe it was some kind of instinct when you kissed her. Maybe it was being so close to your neck. Whatever it was she wasn’t expecting it and it scared the shit out of her. She may have been afraid of losing control and biting you. I think you need to give her a chance to think and then when she’s ready she’ll talk to you about it.”

Jason seemed to consider that a moment before nodding. “Maybe you’re right. When did you become such an expert on girls?”

“Probably the morning I woke up in a cave with boobs.” I leaned back into the couch. “Becoming a girl has kinda changed my perceptions a bit. I guess we are who we are mostly because of what’s in our heads, but our bodies can’t help but play a small part in how we perceive others and the world around us.”

Kayla was quiet the entire ride to school the next morning. She looked like she might say something, but she stopped when Sarah complimented me on my outfit. She was back in full Goth mode, wearing her favorite boots, a short plaid pleated skirt with black lace, torn black leggings, a dark red and black corset, elbow length fingerless black lace gloves, and her eye color was blood red.

“Ummm Kay?” Sarah asked as we piled out of the car in the school parking lot. “How are you going to explain that eye color?”

Kayla looked in her purse for a moment before pulling out a contact lens case and grinning. “I bought contacts of course, and I have them in so many colors.”

I shook my head, chuckling as I shouldered my backpack. “Come on guys, let's show Kayla to the office so she can get her schedule.”

Kayla got quite a few stares as we walked toward the office but I wasn’t surprised. She was hot, Goths aren’t common on the island and she was new. Dani, Verbina and Silphia followed us at a discreet distance remaining invisible. As we entered the office Miss Evans up and nearly fell out of her chair once she got a good look at our Vampire friend. “Hi,” Kayla said with a friendly smile. “I'm Kayla Dunn, I'm supposed to be picking up my schedule and stuff.” She pulled out a bunch of papers and offered them to the secretary. “I think I have everything you need here.”

Miss Evans looked over the paperwork and smiled. “Oh! You're the prodigy! Mrs. Lawson mentioned you'd be registering today. Welcome to Sena Island, I hope you'll enjoy it here. I'm afraid we're not quite as exciting as Toronto.” She once again looked over Kayla’s outfit while I wondered just what the hell was going on. Prodigy? I thought Kayla was supposed to blend in… well as much as Kayla possibly could anyway; she kind of attracts attention regardless. Miss Evans finished Kayla’s paperwork and provided her with a schedule and locker assignment. “The Principal has arranged for you to spend your last class of the day at the Sena Island Clinic. Do you know where that is or would you like another student to accompany you today?” Okay, this was news to me as well, what the hell happened to being a normal student?

Kayla shrugged, smiled and replied excitedly, “Oh the clinic was one of the first places I went to see when I got here. I'm looking forward to studying there and I hope it will look good when I apply for medical school in the future.”

Jason and I were both staring at her and I imagined that Jason was as in the dark about all this as I was. Sarah winked at her though as we walked down the hall to find Kayla’s locker and gave us both a confused look. Confused my ass. She said, “Oh silly me. I didn't tell you both when I introduced you to her that Kayla is going to be studying at the clinic with my Dad. The doctors are all excited to be teaching such a smart girl with an interest in medicine, it's all Dad talks about.” She was talking loud enough so that her voice would carry easily to the students we were passing in the hall.

Kayla made a show of shushing Sarah as we passed through a crowd of students, “Sarah! I told you I just want to be a normal student here. I got way more attention than I was comfortable with at my last school.”

“But Kayla,” Sarah answered in a pretend whine. “It's so cool that I'm friends with a child prodigy. And despite your strange fashion sense you're probably one of the prettiest girls in school. Who wouldn't want to brag about a friend with beauty and brains.”

Once Kayla had her stuff in her locker and the students had flown to the four winds to spread the rumor Sarah grinned at us all. “Mission accomplished.”

Kayla shook my head, whispering, “You're evil Sarah. I take it your Dad told you to spread the word about me.”

Sarah nodded and whispered back. “Yup and I'm so glad you dressed up all Goth today. The red eyes are particularly great for when Becky Lawson starts her part of the plan later today.”

“Am I missing something?” Kayla asked looking very confused.

I figured out what Sarah was implying and broke out laughing. “Oh that's so perfect!” I was having trouble keeping my voice down as I laughed. “We'll let you know later Kay, for now we'll let it be a surprise.”

Classes were as usual boring that morning and sadly I didn’t share any with Kayla, though Jason was in my Geography class and Sarah was in my English class. Mr. Brand was bearable as teachers go and he was pretty enthusiastic about the material. Moriko’s dad really seemed to like teaching. Lunch eventually rolled around and Jason Sarah and I wandered over to Kayla’s locker to wait for her. She was walking with Tara Hill and Janice Meyers and they parted ways just before Kayla reached us. She put her gym bag away and pulled out her stainless steel water bottle. Sarah grinned at her and produces an identical gesturing for Kayla to put her own in her purse and take hers. She shrugged and did so as she closed her locker and we headed to the cafeteria.

Kayla seemed to be a hot topic as we walked down the hall. The prodigy rumor had spread and apparently she showed up Mr. Phelps in math class. It looked like it was going well and that Kayla would stand out in such a way that people would ignore anything else odd about her We had gotten our meals and were sitting eating while Kayla made it look like she was eating too and our Pixies helped by sharing some of her meal. Kayla looked as if she was going to say something when Becky came to the table and made her declaration that Kayla was a Vampire.

Laughter had ensued and Kayla looked worried and confused for moment before she got into the act saying her red eyes were from contacts. The best part was the disgusted look on Becky’s face when she drank the tomato juice in the water bottle that she had claimed was blood. That girl is an awesome actress but I felt bad that she kept taking one for the team and being made fun of. But she was so damn good at it and it was always fun to watch. Hopefully Becky stating the obvious would keep people from seriously suspecting that she really is a Vampire.

The cafeteria had calmed down somewhat after Becky stormed off and people had drifted back to their own conversations when Kayla took a deep breath and looked toward Jason. “Jason, could we talk privately for a few minutes?”

He shrugged, “Sure, I guess. I know a spot outside where we can talk.” He and Kayla both grabbed their things and walked out of the cafeteria with Kayla’s new Pixie companion following.

I turned back to talking with Sarah and a few moments later realized I had forgotten something and cursed, “Damn!”

“What’s the matter Nat?” Sarah asked looking concerned.

“I wanted to talk to you and Kayla about something, but it completely slipped my mind what with everything that happened over the weekend and this morning,” I replied.

“What did you want to talk to us about?”

I stretched back in my chair and shrugged. “Moriko thought it might be a good idea for you to learn some self-defense so she asked if you and Kayla might want to attend their beginner’s class this Friday evening. Her mom decided to open a dojo so she has something to do with her spare time and Moriko says she’s a great teacher.”

Sarah chewed on her lower lip while she considered it. “Sure, if my mom has no problems with it I’d love to. Given how crazy our lives have been this year it’s probably a good idea. I’ll try to convince Kayla to come along as well.” We talked over the rest of lunch as we waited to see if Kayla and Jason would return from their talk. They were conspicuously absent for the rest of lunch and I could have sworn Sarah was moving closes and closer as time went on.

I was beat after a long afternoon of classes and then helping mom at the store and studying magic. I was about to go down to the cellar to train regardless of how tired I was when there was a knock at the back door. Since I was heading in that direction anyway I went back to answer it to find Sarah there. “Hey Sarah, I was about to go train for a bit, what’s up?”

Sarah gave me one of those beautiful smiles that make me melt and wish that things could be different between us. “Hey Nat, Kayla’s coming over to my place for dinner tonight and I was wondering if you’d want to come over too.”

I smiled back at her, feeling so lost in those emerald eyes of hers. “Sure, I’d love to.” I turned back inside and yelled out to Mom, “Hey Mom! Sarah invited me to her place for dinner!”

Mom called back. “Okay sweetie, have fun but don’t be over too late, it’s a school night!”

We started to walk across the back yard toward her place with Dani and Vina following when she stopped and grabbed my hand. “Actually Nat, before we go over there I was wondering if we could talk about something. Y’know, privately?” She started wringing her hands nervously.

I wondered what was making her so nervous and gave her hand a comforting squeeze. “Sure Sarah.” I turned to the Pixies, “Vina, Dani, would you both mind going into the house and entertaining yourselves tonight? I’ll be fine if we’re just talking out here and going to Sarah’s. I’ll call if I need help.” The two Pixies took off back toward the house and Sarah turned off the ringer on her phone so she wouldn’t be interrupted. I pulled Sarah over to one of our benches at the edge of the wooded area between our homes. “What’s on your mind Sarah?”

As we both sat Sarah turned to look at me, her face serious. “You’re still in love with me aren’t you? I can see it in your eyes whenever you look at me. You want more than friendship and it hurts you that I’m being a bitch and not giving you that.”

“Whoa Sarah! I have never and will never ask you to be more than friends if you don’t want it. Yes, I still love you, but I know you’re not into girls and I don’t think you’re being a bitch. You’ve been there for me this whole time.” I gave her a stern look and I squeezed both her hands.

I could see tears starting to come to her eyes. “I… I have been a bitch. I’ve been keeping you in the friend zone even though I know you want more because I’ve been too damn scared to admit the truth.”

I looked at her confused. Was she trying to break off our friendship? What would I do without her in my life? I could feel tears starting to sting my own eyes. “The Truth?”

“I’ve been so stupid. Spending all this time with you, refusing to see what was right in front of my face. The whole thing with Jason and Kayla has gotten me thinking. Nat, I’m not into girls… I’m into you. Your body has changed, you’re a witch now and can’t be my warden, but one thing hasn’t changed. Despite your changes, inside you’re still the same person I fell in love with… the person I’m still in love with.” She leaned forward and kissed me softly on the lips.

It felt so good to have her kiss me again; it had been far too long. I returned the kiss, wrapping her in my arms. I wanted to stay like that forever but I broke the kiss and looked at her seriously. “Sarah, you don’t have to do this for me. If we make this public we’ll be known as lesbians and that could be a bad thing in a town this small.”

She shook her head. “I’m not doing this for you, I’m doing this for us. For me there is nobody else but you and it’s been hurting me as much is it has you being just friends and wishing you were male so we could be more. But I refused to see that maybe you don’t have to be male for us to be more. Let’s not make it public until we’re sure, but I want to give this a try. I love you, and though I didn’t really want to admit it to myself before, I’m still attracted to you. I want to see if we can get back what we lost.”

“You’re sure about this?”

Her answer was to push me onto my back, climb on top of me, and kiss me hard. We continued kissing for what seemed like seconds and an eternity all at once. Sarah seemed to become more passionate as we went on and it was really getting my juices flowing, literally. I didn’t even care that this position was really uncomfortable; all that mattered was that I had Sarah. Suddenly there was a whisper beside us. “And I thought Jason and I were bad at lunch today.”

Sarah and I both scrambled to get into a sitting position and nearly fell off the bench in the process. I tried to straighten out my clothes and Sarah was blushing fiercely as she said, “Ummm, hi Kay, it's not what you think.”

“Let me guess,” she said smirking at us. “Natalie broke a filling and you were checking it for her... with your tongue. Please, it's been obvious you two are still into each other since I met you. You're almost always together, you're always holding hands and you keep stealing glances at one another when you think nobody is looking. I'm just glad you're finally doing something about it, I could practically taste the sexual tension around you two.”

“Did you have to sneak up on us like that though?” I grumbled at her as I tried to collect myself. That kiss felt so wonderful after all this time and I was a little upset it had been ended so soon.

The Vampire shrugged. “Actually I came to tell you dinner is ready. I didn't notice you until I came out of the trees and then you were right in front of me, after that I couldn't resist. Where are your Pixies anyway?”

I could feel myself blushing. “I sent them into the house so Sarah and I could talk privately.”

She giggled and shook her head at us. “Well if you'd had them patrolling, maybe your 'talk' wouldn't have been interrupted so abruptly.” Silphia was sitting atop her shoulder and was giggling right along with her. T least the pair seemed to be getting along. “Anyway let's get back to Sarah's, you both probably worked up an appetite.”

“Kay?” I asked as we began to walk to Sarah's. “Could you not tell anybody what you saw. We'd like to be sure that this is what we really want before we tell anyone.”

She enveloped us both in a hug. “It's not my place to tell. I won't tell a soul, not even Jason. And I'll try to avoid telling Genevieve too if I can manage it. This is between the two of you, you'll decide when you're ready to go public, and no matter what you both decide I'll support you.”

“Thanks Kay,” Sarah said as we both hugged her back. “I guess we'd better hurry back.”

“Yeah, we should,” she replied as she started walking again. “And Nat should probably wipe the lipstick off her face, it's not her color at all.” I quickly wiped my face as we walked.

I hadn’t had dinner with the Taylors in months. Sarah’s mom is a great cook and she always treats me like a second child. After dinner Sarah and I grilled Kayla about what happened at lunch and apparently they had kissed and made up, after they had been interrupted by some strange girl with a Vampire obsession. I was a little worried about that but Kayla didn’t seem overly concerned yet, especially with Silphia to keep an eye out for her. I had been right about her first kiss with Jason too. She had felt a desire to feed when they kissed as it seemed sex and feeding was somehow linked. “I'm sorry I didn't tell you both sooner, I just really didn't feel comfortable with you seeing me feeding, I was ashamed of what you might think of me,” she finally admitted.

“We're your friends Kay,” Sarah said as she hugged her. “We knew you were a Vampire from the start so we knew what to expect. We all expect to someday see you feeding in an emergency, or killing when we're fighting for our lives. It's not going to change a thing, you'll always be you.”

“What if I lose control?” She asked, looking a bit worried.

I snorted at that, like Kayla would ever let that happen. “Kay, you're too paranoid about losing control to ever lose control and if we ever think you're close we'll be there to bring you back from the edge.” Soon Sarah’s dad gave Kayla the medical texts he promised her and she was on her way home. I said my good nights shortly after and Sarah came outside to see me off and give me a very long good night kiss. I went to sleep that night a very happy girl.

Nathan Poole is ready to become Sarah's Warden, but a long lost family heirloom changes his life and future.     Trial and Heiress Chapter 12 By Amethyst

Thanks as usual to Eof for a great universe to play in and to Eof, Maggie F and Donjo for their input. Thanks to my readers for reading what I put out here and being patient when new chapters are delayed.

The next morning Kayla picked us up for school again and this time she was dressed elaborately in a black dress with white lace that looked like it belonged in a history book, with white silk gloves, her choker, and red ribbons holding her hair up in twin pony tails. She still seemed to be the talk of the whole school when we got there. Three guys hit on her during lunch hour including Eric, but the Vampire just shook her head and snuggled up to Jason, “Sorry, I'm already taken.”

Eric grumbled, “Your loss, freak,” as he left the table.

Kayla held Jason back when he was about to go after the jerk. “Ignore him Jason, he's an ass. And it's his loss actually, but your gain.” We started eating again and talked about our classes and what we planned on doing after school. Kayla and I both had our part time jobs and Sarah and Jason weren’t sure what they were going to do, though Jason said he might swing by Sugar and Spice to see if his mom needed anything. Lunch passed too quickly and we had to return to class but at least I had my Pixies to keep me awake when classes got too boring.

Between my classes I ran into Moriko who was wearing very tight jeans and a black shirt with a scooping neckline that displayed the tops of her breasts. The top was a sharp contrast against her milky skin as was her dark hair, which framed her face. The night she had come here she had been trying to hide her face in her hair and wore one of my baggy hoodies to hide her figure. Hanging out with her cousin, Jackie and Jenny had changed that, as the three seemed determined to make her come out of her tomboy phase and embrace her feminine side. I wasn’t about to complain, it was a nice view.

It was kind of strange seeing her not in workout clothes or her gi. Most times when we got together we were sparring or we’d have our swords out and she would teach me some new tricks. “Hi Nat,” she said as she approached me, “Did you ask Sarah and Kayla about coming to the dojo on Friday?”

“I talked to Sarah. She’s up for it and she’s going to ask Kayla,” I replied.

She smiled and nodded, “Great, hopefully we’ll see them at seven on Friday then. The lesson starts at seven thirty but we’ll want them all there by seven for some pre-lesson stuff. Let them know that we’ll give them the first lesson free and if they decide they want to learn more we’ll give them both a discount rate on the lessons.” Then she added as she remembered something, “Oh, and tell them to ring the bell when they get there because the doors will probably be locked.”

“I’ll let them know,” I said with a nod.

She pulled out a few white business cards and handed them to me. “The address and phone number are on the cards. I need to get to class, I‘ll talk to you later Nat.”

I nodded as I took the cards and shoved them in my pocket. “See you later Moriko,” I called out before heading to class myself.

After school Jason and Sarah walked with me to Nature’s Blessings with Sarah and I holding hands almost the entire way while Dani and Vina kept an eye out for anyone who might be trouble. When we arrived at the shop we talked for a bit while I took an inventory list. “So what are you two doing after this? Are you going home for your lessons with your mom Sarah?”

Jason smiled as he said, “I’m going to go visit Kayla at the bookstore for a bit. I promised her I’d stop in and visit. Do you want to come by with me Sarah?”

Sarah nodded enthusiastically, “Sure Jason, I can visit her for a bit before I have to head home.”

I looked up from my inventory list after marking down that we were running low on Vervain. “Do you think you can ask her about the Friday lesson at Moriko’s family dojo? I keep forgetting. She told me it’s at seven o’clock and they’ll give you the first lesson free and a discounted rate if you decide you want to keep learning.” I fished around in my pocket and pulled out the business cards and seeing that there were three I gave two of them to Sarah. “The address and phone number are on here and she said to ring the doorbell because the door might be locked.”

“Cool,” Sarah replied as she took the cards. “I’ll make sure to ask her Nat.” She looked around to make sure that my mom or anybody else was looking and gave me a quick kiss before moving to catch up with Jason, who was already half out the door. I spent the rest of the afternoon finishing off the inventory and practicing magic with my mom.

Maorg watched Titania’s witchling go about her business in the store from a bench across the street. The sleepwalker had been fortunate this time as a teenage boy had fallen asleep in a park bench which gave her a good view of the shop. Keeping tabs on this girl without alerting her tiny protectors was child’s play for her. She would merely occupy the body of a sleeping human and use their eyes to watch her while she was in public. The only problem was that sleeping humans were not always readily available near the girl and she no longer had the power to possess a human with power. She wished that one had been available so that she could have seen what had happened to cure the abomination. She knew the girl and her friends were involved but was it the witchling or one of her friends that had done the healing?

Whoever had done it had cost her a great deal of time and effort. She had bided her time and caught the human father of the abomination asleep and used his body while his mind slept to poison his own daughter. The irony had been delicious. But now all that effort had been wasted, the child was healthy, and the Summer Court was even more guarded than before. She knew that she must find out who the Healer is. Not only would their existence complicate any further plans of hers but she could use someone with such a talent.

She would have to expand her surveillance to include the witchling’s friends as well. If the witchling wasn’t the Healer then she would give her to Ly Erg. The possibility of her being the Eochair didn’t interest Maorg. She wanted the Healer. With the Healer in her hands her deteriorating body could be healthy once more and she wouldn’t suffer such limits to her power. Yes, the Healer would be hers and then Ly Erg and Prince Sarric would bow to her power. Her thoughts were interrupted as the human’s mind began to stir and she was forced to return to her own withering body. She expanded her senses once again to find a sleeping human near the witchling or one of her friends.

I was tired when Mom and I got home so I decided t help Mom make dinner rather than do training in the cellar. As she was working on the pasta and sauce and I was putting together a salad I thought about Sarah. “A penny for your thoughts,” I heard Mom say once I had been quiet for several minutes.

I shrugged, “I was just thinking about Sarah Mom, and our relationship since I got the Glove.”

“It’s hard to believe it’s been almost four months that you’ve been Natalie now. Try not to worry too much. Anyone can see how much you and Sarah still care for one another. If it’s meant to be you’ll work things out and be together again,” she said giving me an encouraging smile.

“I know,” I replied as I shredded some lettuce. “How would you feel if Sarah and I did get back together?”

She gave me a curious look and kept smiling. “I would be very happy for you if that happened honey. I know how much you love her and she still cares for you too. Your father and I just want you to be happy and Sarah is like a second daughter to us.”

“So you would be okay with me being a lesbian then?” I asked.

Mom burst out laughing at that and it took a moment for her to finally get control of herself. “Sorry honey, but since you’ve gotten the Glove you’ve never acted like a heterosexual girl so I’ve never given a second thought to you still liking girls. Of course I wouldn’t have a problem with you being a lesbian, it’s all part of the wonderful girl I have as a daughter. One of the first things I told you when you became this way was that there are other ways for you to have children and carry on the Poole line.”

“Oh yes, that wonderful conversation we had about me having babies. How could I forget,” I commented dryly.

Mom giggled again. “None of us in this house have a problem with or would be terribly surprised with you and Sarah getting back together and Katherine and Oliver feel the same. We all just want you both to be happy whether that’s together or with someone else. Sarah will come around or she won’t. Until she does just value what time you do have with her.”

After dinner Sarah came over so we could work on our Chemistry together. I know what you’re probably thinking but it was Chemistry homework or at least it started out that way. Finally I remembered to ask, “Did you ask Kayla about the class on Friday?”

Sarah nodded and smiled as she responded, “Yep, she said she’d go with me. I was wondering if you have plans for Saturday night though Nat.”

I shook my head, “I’ve got nothing planned. Did you have something in mind?”

She just stared at me for a moment, “You mean you haven’t heard? I’d have thought Melissa would have told everyone in school, well I guess Kara only just told her the other day so maybe they’re gonna put up posters or something.”

“Heard what?” I asked. “I don’t really get much of a chance to talk to Melissa Graves, much less her sister Kara.”

“Do you remember the old warehouse that was used for the cannery before it burnt down?” She asked.

The cannery had burnt down when we were both really small and the town had decided not to rebuild it since it had been losing money anyway. There was a warehouse that had been next to it that had escaped the fire unscathed but it had been pretty much abandoned until someone bought it from the town a few months ago. “Yeah, I heard that someone bought it a few months back,” I replied.

“That someone was Melissa’s older sister Kara,” Sarah explained. “She was off last year taking business courses in Vancouver and she bought the place when she came back. They’ve been renovating for months in there to convert it into a dance club and they’re going to be having a grand opening on Saturday.”

“Sena is getting a dance club?” I asked in shock.

Sarah nodded eagerly, “Melissa said that one of Kara’s big beefs about growing up here was that there was nothing for young people to do for fun besides outdoorsy stuff, so she wanted to do something about it.”

“That’s awesome! Are Jason and Kayla gonna come with us?”

She shook her head, “No, though we’ll probably see them there. Jason’s taking her there on a date. So I was wondering if you might want to dress up and get a nice dinner, just the two of us, and go together as well.”

I blinked as I tried to process what she just said. “Whoa, you’re talking about us going on a date? With all those people around? What happened to making sure this was right for you before making it public?”

“Yes I want to go as a date, me and you,” she replied, seriously. “I was thinking about it after we kissed last night. I’m still in love with you and I don’t give a shit what anyone else thinks. You are still the one I want to spend the rest of my life with, and if it turns out that I’m not attracted to you physically as a girl then I will damn well find a spell to change that. I don’t want to lose you.” She leaned over and took my hands in hers, kissing me softly.

“I guess I’ll see if I can borrow the car and pick you up at six then,” I answered breathless before kissing her back. We spent the next half hour working on a completely different type of chemistry until Sarah had to head home.

I was kind of in a daze for most of the day on Wednesday as I kept thinking back to the night before and the promised date on Saturday. I needed to ask Mom if I could borrow the car and I would need something nice to wear. I only had dark hoodies and jeans though. What was I going to wear? I considered this all throughout the school day and finally decided that I might need to do the unthinkable. I would have to go shopping.

Lunch came around and both Sarah and I were having trouble not openly showing affection. We had decided that we would publicly unveil our relationship on Saturday night. Verbina and Dani watched us and occasionally Dani would let out a giggle but neither of them let on anything about Sarah and I to Jason or Kayla. I kind of felt bad for Kayla. It seemed that all she was doing this week was coming to school, working or studying. Maybe things wouldn’t be so bad for her if she could test out of History like she was hoping.

Finally the end of the school day rolled around and while Sarah and Jason headed home I went to the shop. Mom was going through a shipment that had arrived earlier in the afternoon and set me to arranging flowers into bouquets and putting them in the flower cooler. Once Mom had finished her work she came to check on mine. “Those are lovely bouquets honey; you’re getting pretty good at that. I couldn’t have done better myself.”

“Thanks Mom, could I ask you a favor or two?” I asked as I finished another bouquet and set it aside.

Mom raised an eyebrow. “What kind of favors?”

“I was wondering if I could borrow the car Saturday night,” I admitted. “I kinda have a date.”

The other eyebrow rose to join it’s companion, “A date? I suppose I could allow you to borrow the car. Who are you going out with?”

I beamed at her, “Sarah. We’re going to go for a nice dinner and then to the new dance club Kara Graves is opening.”

Mom beamed back and wrapped me in hug. “I’m so happy for you honey! You finally decided to ask her huh?”

“Actually Mom, she asked me,” I replied. “So I was figuring I would need the car, maybe a nice bouquet for her, and something else. That brings me to the other favor.”

Mom nodded along as I spoke, “It’s good that she feels she’s ready for this. So what’s the other favor?”

I looked at the counter and sighed before I looked back up to her. “I have nothing to wear! I want to look my best for her so I really need you to take me shopping Mom!” Mom stared at me for a long moment before breaking down into giggles. That of course set Dani into a fit of giggles as well and even Vina had a smirk on her face.“ This isn’t funny Mom! I really need your help here.

When she finally managed to get control of herself she wiped the tears from her eyes and said, “Sorry honey but you sounded just like a normal teenage girl there. I never thought I’d hear you say that. There’s not much to do here Friday so I’ll see if we can get Rick to mind the shop while we go shopping after school.”

“Mom we close at six on Fridays and the other stores stay open until nine won’t that give us plenty of time?” I asked.

Mom patted my hand. “You poor deluded girl, we need to find you the perfect outfit, plus accessories, shoes, figure out something to do with your hair. I’m not sure if six hours is going to be enough. We’ll save your hair for Saturday since you probably don’t want to mess with it beforehand. “

I groaned and placed my head in my hands. “What have I gotten myself into?”

We were eating dinner when Mom turned to Rick and asked, “Do you have any flights booked for Friday Rick?”

My brother shook his head, “No, did you need to head onto the mainland or something Mom?”

Mom smiled, “Great, and no I don’t need you to fly me anywhere, I was just hoping you could mind the shop on for us that afternoon and close up when it’s time. I need to pick your sister up from school and we have a busy afternoon and evening planned.”

Rick groaned. He hated watching the shop as much as I used to. “I guess I can do it for you, but what’s so important that neither one of you can be there?”

“We’re going shopping,” Mom explained.

He looked at Mom incredulously, “Shopping? You’re asking me to mind the store so you can drag poor Nat on a shopping trip?”

“Ummm Rick,” I quickly put in, “I asked her to take me. I have a big date Saturday night and I have nothing to wear.”

“Who are you and what have you done with my sister?” Rick deadpanned. Then he shrugged, “I’ll watch the shop since it seems important to you Nat. So who’s this big date with? It’s not Kayla is it? Moriko? I never thought I’d see you date again unless it was…”

“Sarah,” I answered. “She asked me to go out to dinner and to that new club that’s opening.”

I didn’t need to say anything more than her name before Rick nodded. “I’ll do it. I know how much you still love her and If she asked you on a date that means a lot.”

I gave him a big smile. “Thanks Rick, I owe you one.”

Friday finally came around and I was sitting having lunch with Sarah, Kayla, and Jason. Though the Pixies were eating Kayla’s lunch very subtly while she pretended to take small bites and studied. “So Kay, you think you’re ready for your History test?” I asked.

She shrugged as she looked up from her book. “I hope so. I’ve read the textbooks from cover to cover and I already knew quite a bit of the material. I’m looking forward to being able to relax a bit tonight once this test is behind me. Are you and Jason coming with me and Sarah to the dojo tonight?”

I shook my head, “No I can’t. I’m doing something with my Mom after school and she thinks it will likely take all evening. We had to get Rick to watch the shop for us this afternoon. You’re both in good hands with Moriko though.”

Jason nodded, “I’d come with you but I think I’ll just let you both enjoy some girl time together.”

“It should be interesting and it is a good idea for me to learn how to defend myself,” Sarah admitted. “And spending a bit of time with Kayla and Moriko will be a nice change. Are you still picking me up after you get off work Kay?”

“Yup. After work I’ll go grab a quick bite,” the Vampire said with a wink. “Then I’ll swing by to pick you up for a fun night of getting knocked on our butts.”

“Sounds good,” Sarah said with a laugh.

Lunch was over far too quickly and we all headed to our respective classes. As my classes went by I tried to figure out what kind of look I wanted to go with for my date with Sarah. She intended to get dressed up so I felt that I should do the same. I considered various types of suits or slacks with maybe a nice long sleeved blouse as ways to cover up the Glove. I shook my head as I thought about that. Why should I hide the Glove? Most people just think it’s a slave bracelet anyway and those aren’t that uncommon from what I’ve heard. Besides Sarah planned to use this date to show who we are and what we mean to one another so hiding a part of myself would be stupid.

I wanted to look my best for Sarah but maybe my best is different than it used to be. I was lost in thought about this as I made my way to my locker after class and nearly bumped into Moriko. The Japanese girl was looking hot in a pair of really tight jeans and a midriff baring halter top. “Oops, sorry Moriko, I was kinda lost in thought there.”

“That’s okay Nat. Is something bothering you?” She looked concerned as she asked in a quieter tone, “It’s not something with the Winter Court again is it?”

I shook my head. “No it’s nothing like that Moriko.” I looked over her obviously feminine clothes and asked, “What made you change your style? I’ve kinda been wondering for a while now.”

“You mean what made me start dressing like a girl?” she asked with a laugh. “I guess I figured that changing what I am doesn’t change who I am. It helped that I had a lot of encouragement from Erin, Jackie and Jenny. I can dress to reflect being a girl but that doesn’t mean I have to change who I am in here,” she said while tapping her head. She seemed to think a moment before pulling out a pack of gum. “This is my favorite gum, I love the cinnamon flavor. The packaging is pretty nice and I’ve gotten used to it over the past several months. If they changed the packaging would I suddenly feel different about the gum?”

I shook my head, “Probably not if they didn’t change the flavor.”

“Exactly,” she said with a grin. “It’s still the same gum inside. Sure the new package might take some getting used to but I might grow to like that package too because it still contains my favorite gum. Clothes and even our bodies are the same. Wearing a different style may take some getting used to but you’re still the same you inside. Changing the package doesn’t necessarily change your flavor but it might make someone want to try a taste.” She said the last with a wink.

“Thanks Moriko for the ancient wisdom,” I joked.

“You’re welcome Nat,” she said as she popped a piece of gum in her mouth and offering me one before putting it away. “Are Sarah and Kayla coming tonight?”

I took the offered piece of gum and popped it in my mouth. It was just gum, sweet and with a bit of cinnamon but just gum, and yet the package had been meant to catch the eye. “Yeah, Kayla’s going to pick her up after she gets off work and they’ll head over. I should get going; I’ve got to meet my mom. I’ll see you later.”

“Cool, I’ll see you later Nat,” she said with a wave.

Mom had decided not to go to Denman’s since we both really wanted something nice for me to wear on this date and Denman’s didn’t really cater much to the teen crowd except for casual wear. She decided that first we would go to Danica’s, a local clothing store that is pretty popular with teenage girls. To my utter embarrassment I discovered that Bailey O’Brien was working there. When she saw us she immediately came over smiling, “Hi Nat, it’s good to see you outside school. What brings you here? We don’t stock many grey hoodies,” she joked.

I groaned as I replied, “I have a hot date tomorrow night and I have absolutely nothing to wear.”

Bailey looked at me and then to my mom grinning. “Who is this teenage girl and what has she done with Natalie?’

“Oh very funny,” I retorted, “It’s even better the third time I’ve heard it.”

Bailey giggled and hugged me. “Sorry Nat, I shouldn’t tease but I am a bit surprised. I thought you only had eyes for Sarah.” Then she seemed to put two and two together and nodded. “I’ll help you find something perfect. We don’t have many slacks for girls though, mostly skirts and dresses.”

“If we can find something nice enough a skirt or dress should be fine though I’m not really used to wearing anything like that.” Both Bailey and my mother stared at me in shock.

Mom turned to Bailey, “I think I heard her wrong. I could have sworn she just said a skirt or dress would be fine.”

Bailey shook her head, “No that’s what I heard too. Nat what’s up? You’ve been hiding your body and refusing to accept anything girly since you got that fancy piece of jewelry.”

“I had a talk with Moriko about gum today,” I answered cryptically. Then I went on to add, “I’m still the same person I always was. I just figure it won’t hurt too much to dress more femininely. I should stop fighting this and just be me. And apparently I’m a girl who has a big date so what’s the harm in wearing a dress for a special occasion. I want to make her eyes pop out of her head.”

Bailey grinned at me. “Well you in any dress will make the eyes pop out of her head or anyone else’s that knows you. Don’t worry Nat, I’m gonna make you look hot. How about we try a sheath first?”

I shook my head, “I’m hoping for a night without any Unseen madness so I don’t think I’ll need to bring a sword.”

Bailey just gaped at me for a moment before turning to my mom, “She’s serious isn’t she?”

Mom sighed and patted my hand. “I’m afraid so.” Then she looked to Bailey, “Do you want to explain it or shall I?”

“Explain what?!” I asked, somewhat exasperated.

Bailey led us to a rack of dresses and pulled a dark red one. “A sheath is a type of dress that hugs the curves of your body. I know you’re used to hiding it Nat but you have a great figure and a sheath would really help show it off.” She turned back to my mom, “What size is she?”

Mom shrugged, “How should I know? This is the first time she’s shown any interest in clothes.”

Bailey gave my mom a look that seemed to say ‘you poor woman’. “I’m going to guess she’s about a size four. What about her bra size?”

Finally a question I knew the answer to. “I’m a 28C though those are a bit tight.”

“Are they tight in the band or the cups?” she asked.

“In the umm… cups,” I said with a blush. “The band seems to fit fine.”

Bailey grinned at me, “Well if you’re going to make Sar… your date’s eyes pop out of their head we’ll need to flaunt those assets.” She turned back to my mom, “What do you think with her coloring? Black or red? We don’t want the Glove to clash.”

Mom seemed to think about it for a long moment, “I think a nice crimson, it will make her black hair stand out more.”

Bailey nodded and looked through some dresses until she found a red one in the right size. “Here Nat, try this one on while your mom and I look through some others for you to try.”

With a sigh I took the dress Bailey was holding out and made my way over to the change room with Dani and Vina following me. Once inside I locked the door and pulled off my shoes, jeans, and hoodie. “Aw damn, how the hell do I put this thing on?” I managed to figure out what side was the front and stared at the dress in my hands. Bailey must have chosen the wrong size this dress was way too small. I discovered that the material was fairly stretchy and that there was a zipper along one side which I promptly unzipped to about halfway down the dress. Then I stepped into the dress making sure that the front was facing forward.

After some pulling and shimmying I had the dress in what I thought was the right location, though it only seemed to cover me to about halfway down my thighs. I struggled with the zipper on the side and once I had it zipped I noticed it was very tight on me. It was sleeveless and I couldn’t even seem to find any straps to keep it secured. Dani whistled and giggled while Vina tried to keep her quiet. Then I heard Bailey on the other side of the door. “Hey Nat, have you got it on yet?”

“Uh… I think so,” I replied.

“Come on out and show us,” my mom called out. “We have a few others here for you to try on as well.”

I swallowed the lump in my throat and opened the door to step out. “I think you got the wrong size Bailey.” I looked up from my feet to see both of them staring at me.

Bailey shook her head with a stunned expression on her face, “Nope that’s a perfect fit.”

I gestured at my very bare legs, the hem at mid-thigh, and my breasts nearly spilling out the top. “But this hardly covers anything, I feel naked.”

“And you look hot,” Bailey replied. “Trust me Nat, that dress was made for you. Though, if I know you we’re going to have to show you how to sit down in it. So have a look in the mirror and tell me what you think. Is that the dress or would you rather try on a few more?”

I rolled my eyes and turned around to look at the mirror. “Holy shit,” I said as I stared at the girl in the strapless red dress looking back at me. I did look hot. “Sarah would never expect me to wear something like this.”

Bailey giggled as she nodded slowly, “I’m right here and I’m still trying to make myself believe it’s you Nat.”

Mom gave me a long look, “It does look gorgeous on you Natalie. With most girls I’d be worried about them wearing something like that on a date, but you’re going with Sarah and I know you can defend yourself. Try the other three on though and we’ll decide which one we like best.”

I tried on the other three dresses. There was a knee length black number with a scooped neck and short sleeves, a backless sequined black gown that showed even more leg and cleavage than the red one (and that was saying something), and a dark blue pantsuit that I really didn’t care for at all. Finally after looking through and trying on more outfits I decided on the red sheath dress, much to Bailey’s delight. “Okay Nat,” she said. “That dress is strapless so you’ll need to have a strapless bra with it and I think you should have a nice belt to bring attention to your slim waist.”

“Why would I need a belt?” I asked, somewhat perplexed. “Belts are used to keep one’s pants up. I won’t be wearing pants and I’m more worried about keeping the hem down in this dress.”

“Honey,” my mom explained. “You need to learn that girls outfits come with girls accessories. The right accessories help to complete the look of an outfit and that includes belts.”

“I think I have just the thing,” Bailey announced before heading off to the other side of the store. She came back a moment later with a gold chain and a black leather purse. “Let’s fasten this around your waist Nat.” she wrapped the chain around me and used the end clip to fasten it loosely around my waist with the end hanging down in the center. “There, that will tie it together nicely with the right shoes and maybe a necklace and some bracelets. And this purse matches it.” I noticed then that the shoulder strap of the black purse was the same gold chain as the belt. “What do you think Mrs. Poole? Nat?”

I looked over the outfit with the belt around my waist and the purse hanging off my shoulder. “I have to admit it looks pretty good and they go pretty well with the Glove.”

Mom nodded, “Let’s see if we can find a nice pendant and a bracelet or watch to go with it.” I actually started to get into it a bit at that point and helped Mom and Bailey look for something suitable. We settled on a nice bronze watch and a gold teardrop pendant that fell to just above my breasts, seeming to call attention to my cleavage. There was also a matching pair of earrings that mom insisted I get too. Once we had the look put together we bid farewell to Bailey for the night.

We had spent over three hours in there with Bailey trying stuff on and finding the accessories. Once we left we headed to Inside Out, a lingerie store where the sales lady helped us to find a crimson colored strapless bra and matching panty set. They were silk and lace and looked like something that someone would want to see their girlfriend in. The only problem was that I was the girlfriend in question. They felt nice though and she had found a slightly larger C cup that didn’t feel so tight.

After that we were off to Sole Train, where we had to find a pair of shoes to go with the dress. We eventually settled on what Mom called “a pair of crimson pumps” with a modest one inch heel. I was worried about walking and dancing in heels but they weren’t that bad. The heel was really no higher than the cowboy boots I used to wear sometimes as Nathan. I promised myself I would practice in them a bit tomorrow before the date though to make sure I would be alright at the club.

Our next stop was Snippets, where mom made an appointment for me for after lunch the next day to get my hair and nails done. Then it was off to Kiss and Make-Up, a store that caters toward teenage girl casual clothing, accessories, and of course make-up. We did some more clothes shopping there; a few pairs of tight jeans, a skirt, and some more feminine blouses. Mom was trying to get me into more girl clothes while my resistance was low I think. I shrugged it off and just tried on the clothes, it couldn’t hurt to look feminine once in a while, especially after I end up going all out for the date with Sarah. Finally, after we had gotten the make-up that Mom had said we’d gone in for to have the right coloring for tomorrow night, we went to Gino’s for some pizza and to chat.

“I told you we’d need all the time we could get,” Mom said. “I hope it wasn’t too horrible for you honey.”

I shook my head as I nibbled on a slice of pizza and practiced sitting with my legs together. “No Mom, I actually had a bit of fun. It’s not something I want to do all the time, but I think I can manage shopping in small doses. Besides it will be worth it to see the look on Sarah’s face.”

Mom giggled on response, “I’ll have to warn Katherine to have her video camera ready.” Then she turned serious, “Are you sure you’re ready for this?”

“I think I am Mom,” I admitted. “I’ve been fighting this long enough and I think I can take the girly stuff once in a while. And if I’m going to start I might as well jump in the deep end. Besides if Sarah doesn’t freak out about this then I think our relationship can take anything that comes along.”

Nathan Poole is ready to become Sarah's Warden, but a long lost family heirloom changes his life and future.     Trial and Heiress Chapter 13 By Amethyst

Thanks as usual to Eof for a great universe to play in and to Eof, Maggie F and Donjo for their input. Thanks to my readers for reading what I put out here and being patient when new chapters are delayed.

When I got home I practiced in my new shoes for over an hour as I thought about the next night’s big date. Was I wrong to go out of my comfort zone and wear something so blatantly feminine and sexy? What if seeing me that way caused Sarah to rethink this whole thing? Still I was committed now and since I would rather not make a fool of myself on the dance floor I kept practicing. The shoes really weren’t that bad and other than a few clumsy moments that set my Pixies off laughing I was doing fine. Besides it was better that my invisible friends saw me messing up and got a good laugh out of it than everyone in the club.

The doubts persisted and with a sigh I decided I needed to talk to someone. I couldn’t talk to Sarah or Kayla because I wanted this to be a surprise. Jason was out for the same reason and because it would have been awkward talking about girl stuff with my best bud. Rick and Gwen were out on a date so I didn’t want to bother them and my parents had heard enough of my bitching and moaning about being a girl. With a sigh I looked through my phone for Bailey’s cell number. She was already in on the secret and she might tease but I figured she’d probably listen and try to understand too.

I sat there for a moment staring at my phone and wondering if perhaps it was too late to call her. It was Friday night though, so I was hoping she would still be awake. She answered on the first ring. “Hello?”

“Hi Bailey, it’s Nat, I’m not calling you at a bad time am I?” I was still a little unsure about this.

She seemed to perk up a bit when I told her who it was. “Hey Nat, what’s up? I’m just sitting in bed watching a movie.”

“I kind of need some advice Bailey. And you’re the only one I could think of to talk to that wouldn’t be awkward explaining myself to,” I admitted.

“Is this about the big date?” she asked before quickly correcting herself. “Wait don’t answer that, of course it is. I don’t think I’ve ever heard you sound uncertain about anything. I think this might take a personal touch, how about if I come over and we can talk about things and watch a movie together or something? We don’t really get to hang out much. It’ll be fun and I can help you with whatever is bothering you.”

I liked the idea but I didn’t really want to get Bailey in any trouble. “Are you sure? It’s after ten and this will probably take a while.”

“You got a spare sleeping bag?” she asked.

“Yeah we have a few,” I answered not quite sure where she was going with this.

“Well if it’s okay with your mom we could always have a sleepover, you’ve probably never had one before.”

“I’ve been camping with friends lots of times Bailey,” I retorted.

I could hear her groan on the other end. “That is not a sleepover Nat, I’m talking about two or more girls just talking about their love interests, clothes and stuff and maybe doing makeovers. You know, a slumber party.”

I had heard horror stories about slumber parties but I did need to talk about all the stuff she mentioned. “Just a sec, I’ll ask my mom if it’s okay, just promise me you won’t put ice in my bra or something.”

Bailey giggled at that but quickly vowed, “I won’t do anything like that. So hurry up and go ask.”

I walked down the hall and downstairs where my parents were on the couch watching a really bad horror movie. “Hey Mom, can Bailey come over for a…” I took a deep breath and tried not to groan as I said the words, “slumber party.”

Both my parents turned around and stared at me. “A wha…?” my mother asked in shock before shaking her head to clear it. “I must have heard you wrong. I could have sworn you just asked to have Bailey over for a slumber party.”

I rolled my eyes, “I did Mom. We’re gonna talk about tomorrow night and she’s gonna show me some things I might need to know.”

Mom gave me a searching look before finally nodding. “I don’t see why not if her mother is okay with it.”

I put the phone back to my ear and said, “She says its fine with her if your Mom gives the okay Bailey.”

“Sweet! I’ll be over in fifteen minutes. See you soon.” She had sounded far too happy about this for my peace of mind.

“She says she’ll be here in fifteen,” I quickly told my mom.

Mom got up off the couch and wrapped me in a teary hug, “My little tomboy is growing up. You go get the sleeping bags for you both and I’ll make you girls some popcorn.”

I went to the storage room and grabbed two sleeping bags and an extra pillow. If Bailey was planning to sleep on the floor it would only be fair if I did it too. I ran those up to my room and dropped them on my bed with my phone. By the time I got back downstairs Mom had some popcorn made and handed me a tray with the bowl, a couple of sodas, and a plate of cookies. I gave her a confused look and she said, “Junkfood is a tradition at slumber parties. You need to get the whole experience.”

I just shrugged it off and carried the tray up to my room. I had just placed it on my desk when the doorbell rang. I gave Dani and Vina one of the cookies to share while I went to go meet Bailey, but I didn’t even make it to the stairs before I heard Bailey and my mom greeting one another. I heard Mom say, “She’s just putting some things in her room, you can head on up. You girls have fun.”

“We will Mrs. Poole, thanks for letting me come over so late. I think this will really help Nat,” she replied. I waited for her at the top of the stairs and showed her to my room. She took a quick look around and grinned at me. “It’s cleaner than I was expecting. It’s a shame it’s only us two here, it would be more fun if we had more girls.”

I had to laugh at that, “It’s not just us Bailey, remember I have two Pixies here as well and I’ll bet neither one of them has ever had a slumber party.”

“What’s a slumber party?” Dani asked from her perch on my desk.

Bailey gave a very evil looking grin. “Awesome! Three slumber party virgins!” Then she turned to explain to Dandelion, “A slumber party is when a group of girls all get together for a sleepover in one of their rooms. Usually there’s not a lot of sleeping though. We often do each other’s hair and make-up, watch movies, play games, talk about the guys.. or girls we like, and give each other advice and stuff.”

“That sounds fun!” Dani said with far too much enthusiasm.

So it was that I was initiated into the ranks of somewhat normal teenage girls. We played some games, watched a movie and just chatted for a while and once the Pixies were snoozing we got down to the reason that Bailey had come over in the first place. “So Nat, what’s the problem? Are you nervous about the big date with Sarah?”

I sighed as I leaned back against my bed holding my pillow. “Yeah, I’m kind of worried about it. I’m doing this because I want to look nice for Sarah and to prove to myself and everyone else that I can be feminine when I want to be. What if I’m going too far though?”

Bailey looked thoughtful for a moment. “Yeah you are kind of pulling a reverse Neil Armstrong.” At my look of utter confusion she said, “You’re taking a small step for womankind but it’s a giant leap for you. You’re jumping straight from emo tomboy to mega-babe in one night.”

“I am not a mega-babe,” I scoffed.

“Nat, you’re hot and in that outfit you’re going to be super hot. Your problem is you still see yourself as a guy. Granted you are taking a really big step here toward admitting you’re a girl, but tomorrow you need to look at that girl in the mirror and see her for what she is. Being the girl you are doesn’t change who you are. One night of wearing a dress and looking hot isn’t going to make you suddenly love chick flicks and start drooling over Neanderthals like Eric.”

“You’re probably right about that,” I admitted. “What if seeing me all girly is too much for Sarah and she decides she’s not going to be able to handle being with me as a girl?”

Bailey surprised me by wrapping me in a hug. “Then it’s better to find out now instead of once you’re both in a relationship that’s only going to end badly. If Sarah really wants to give this a try though I don’t think this is going to scare her off. She might actually like seeing this new side of you. You only show people the tough emo girl, but there’s more to you than that. Let yourself enjoy some new experiences and explore that side of yourself a bit. I am actually really honored that I’m the first one of your friends who you’ve let see this side of you. I can’t wait to see how everyone at the club reacts tomorrow.”

I blushed at her little pep talk and hugged her back. “Thanks Bailey. I’m really nervous about tomorrow though.”

“I’ll bet, this is new territory for you. I’ll be at the club tomorrow too and if anything goes wrong or you need advice I’ve got your back. I can even come help you with your make-up and stuff before you leave to pick up Sarah, since I assume you still want this to be a surprise.”

I nodded, “I want to blow her mind. I have an appointment to get my hair and nails done at one o’clock and I’m a little nervous since Mom needs to run the shop and won’t be able to come with me.”

“I could go with you if you want Nat,” Bailey offered. “I’ve got nothing to do tomorrow so we could go to Gino’s to grab some lunch and then head over to the salon. Then we can do anything else you need to do and I’ll go get my outfit for the club so we can come back here and both get ready.”

“It would be nice to have someone to go with. Are you sure you don’t mind?” I asked.

“What are friends for Nat?” she said with a grin. “Besides I want to see this whole transformation before anyone else gets a look. You might need some help choosing a nice hairstyle too. Tomorrow night there will be no letting it all hang down and hide your pretty face, got it?”

I tried to frown at that but I just couldn’t, Bailey’s grin can be infectious. “At this rate nobody will recognize me at all.”

Bailey just winked at me, “Then we’ll just introduce you as Nat’s hot, less inhibited cousin.”

“Uh-huh, does this cousin have a name?” I responded dryly.

“Of course,” she replied without missing a beat, “It’s Jean.”

It took me a moment and when I did get it I groaned, “Jean Poole? Seriously? You’re horrible Bailey.” I couldn’t help cracking a smile though.” I may have to de-friend you after that joke.”

She stuck out her tongue at me, “Too late now Jean, I helped you have your first slumber party, we’re gal pals for life now.”

We had eventually gotten to sleep and as I lay there drifting off I resolved to spend more time with Bailey when I could manage it. She was fun to be around and had a great sense of humor. She also took me as I was and was so easy going about everything that she made it hard to care whether I was male or female, I could just be me. I had only really felt that way with Moriko, Kayla, and Jason before and I was just starting to feel that way with Sarah again now that our relationship was being rekindled and I didn’t feel pressured to try to become a guy again to save what we had.

We woke up surprisingly early, or rather I should say that she did, it was the pillow slap to the face that woke me up. A pillow fight ensued which left us both grinning and breathless and Dani in a giggling fit. Once we caught our breath we both wandered downstairs in our nightshirts and worked together making some breakfast. As we ate I told Dani and Vina their mission for the day. Since I wanted tonight to be a surprise, I wanted them to keep an eye on Sarah and Jason and warn us if either of them started to get too close.

Once breakfast was eaten and the Pixies were off on their mission Bailey and I took turns showering and I was very careful to do a good job while shaving my legs and underarms since both would be very bare tonight. Then once Bailey was out of the shower we went back to my room and she coached me on some things a girl at a club needs to know, even in a small town like ours. She specifically told me never to leave our drinks unattended and coached me on the finer points of getting guys to back off without punching them. She also wanted to make sure I was remembering how I would have to sit in that dress.

After we were done cramming all the knowledge she thought I would need into my head we got dressed. Against my better judgement Bailey convinced me to wear the black miniskirt Mom had bought me the night before with a frilly white long sleeved peasant blouse that hid the Glove but showed a lot of cleavage. “I’m not so sure about this Bailey, what if someone sees me in this?”

“They’ll think you look hot,” she replied nonplussed.

“But I’m not planning on going all girl until later tonight. What if someone from school sees and blabs to Sarah? I don’t want to ruin the surprise.” It was a lame sounding excuse even to me.

“Don’t chicken out now Nat, besides this will get you used to showing that much skin in public before tonight.” She sat me down on my bed. “Here, let me get your make-up kit and I’ll make you look a bit older, then we can pull your hair back in a braid and nobody will guess it’s you. With your hoodies and your hair in your face nobody ever see’s much of your face anyway.” Then she got to work. I had to admit that I did look different enough to fool most people at a distance or in the dark booths at Gino’s. I looked almost twenty and with my hair in a braid I looked a lot more feminine and less like an ‘emo tomboy’.

We took our time chatting over pizza about school and some of the Unseen. She hadn’t met Kayla yet but she had heard about her and was anxious to meet our new town Vampire. I explained that Kayla only went to school for half the day because she was learning medicine from Sarah’s dad and Moriko’s aunt. This seemed to get her even more interested and I promised to introduce the two at the club if I could manage it. That was when Eric and his friend Mike Hartley decided to show up. I groaned as I saw them walk in and scan the booths. “Well shit.”

Bailey turned around to see what I was looking at and watched them come up to the table. “Hey Bailey,” Mike said once he was close enough to speak. “Who’s your hot friend?”

“This is Natalie’s older cousin, Jean Poole. We met at the flower shop. She’s visiting Sena for the weekend.” She winked at me and I silently thanked the dim lighting for both holding up my disguise and for hiding my snicker at the joke.

Eric and Mike both gave me a good looking over, especially my chest and I had to suppress a shudder. Why was I worried about them recognizing my face? It’s not like they were looking there. “Natalie’s cousin?” Eric asked. “I bet Natalie could look that good too if she wasn’t trying to look like a dyke all the time.”

Mike nodded in agreement, “Anyway, we’re going to head to that new place tonight, you girls want to come with us?” He looked at my chest again, “We could have lots of fun, and the drinks will be on us.”

Bailey turned to smile at me, “Awww isn’t that sweet, they escaped from the museum of natural history just to hit on us. I’m flattered, aren’t you flattered Jean?”

I almost spit out the sip of Coke I had just taken to calm myself at that comment. I carefully made my voice a bit huskier as I said, “Oh yes, and the way they talked about Natalie just makes me want to do this even more. You guys said the drinks are on you right?” I asked.

The Neanderthals just grinned at one another as Eric said, “Hell yeah!”

“This will be our pleasure then,” Bailey said with that crazy grin of hers. We both got up and dumped our sodas on their heads. Then, as they stood there shocked and sputtering, we grabbed our purses and went to pay for our pizza. We were both still laughing when we got to Snippets.

Due to a cancellation Bailey was able to get an appointment at the same time as me and we continued to talk and laugh about the Neanderthals as we both got a manicure and pedicure. It was weird having someone doing things to my fingernails and toenails but it was kind of relaxing as well, especially with a friend there to make the time pass quicker. They painted my nails a dark red to go with the dress I would be wearing and Bailey opted for a sparkly blue.

Once they unbraided my hair we discussed what styles would make me look best. Finally we all agreed on giving my normally long straight hair some curl and parting it in the center with my long bangs off to the sides to not just show off my ‘pretty’ face but to nicely frame it. They had to put rollers in my hair and let them set for a while but Bailey didn’t seem to mind waiting once her hair was done. When they finally let me out from under the hair dryer and took the rollers out I was amazed at how nice the black ringlets framing my face and cascading over my shoulders looked. Maybe there was something to be said for hairstylists after all.

Once we were finished I paid for my beauty treatment with the money my mom had given me and thanked Laura for doing such a great job. Then Bailey and I headed to her place so she could pick up something to wear before going to the shop to get the dozen white roses I had asked my mom to set aside. We both walked in and Mom looked up from writing notes at the counter. The look on her face was priceless. “Natalie is that you? You’re wearing a blouse… and a skirt! You look great honey.” Apparently she wasn’t going to look a gift horse in the mouth as far as my clothing went.

“Yeah Mom, Bailey convinced me I should probably get used to showing off this much skin before tonight.” I admitted.

Mom smiled at that. “I think you need to have dates with Sarah more often, or have Bailey come and visit more.”

I smiled and shook my head. “Bailey can come visit whenever she wants Mom, but it doesn’t mean she’ll get me into skirts every time. Could I get the roses please? We need to go get ready for tonight.”

“They’re waiting for you in the cooler sweetie.” Then almost as an afterthought she asked, “Dare I ask why two angry boys came in wondering where Bailey and my ‘niece Jean’ were?”

I went to the cooler and took out the roses. As I went to the counter and gave her a kiss goodbye I answered, “You know what they say Mom, Ignorance is bliss.”

“I see,” she said with a frown, but she couldn’t hold it for long. “I’ll be home by five thirty and I want pictures before you leave.”

“Yes Ma’am,” I said offering a salute. “Hopefully we’ll be ready by then. Looking hot is hard work.”

“Welcome to the joys of womanhood sweetie,” she said with a chuckle as Bailey and I headed out the door.

We were both ready by five thirty, but just barely. I was wearing my crimson pumps, the sheath dress, and the gold chain belt with my new underclothes. The dress was as short as I remembered, barely covering to halfway down my thighs and showing a hell of a lot of cleavage. I also wore my bronze watch, the gold teardrop earrings and the matching pendant that seemed just shy of getting lost between my breasts. Bailey didn’t have a date tonight but she was wearing a very nice blue dress that set off her eyes with matching shoes and a white leather purse. I wondered why she was getting so nicely dressed and she claimed, “Just because I don’t have a date it doesn’t mean I can’t give the boys something to look at when they can tear their eyes off you.”

I just blushed at that and let her get to work on our make-up. When she was done we both looked hot as hell. She encouraged me to put the make-up she used in my purse in case I needed to freshen up later. I did that right away and added it to my wallet and the other necessities she and my Mom had been telling me a girl should always carry just in case. I figured better safe than sorry and they did have a lot more girl experience than me.

Bailey was going to head off to meet Karen Dennis and Jason’s cousin Daphne for a pre-party dinner but Mom insisted she get a photo of us both together first so we could both have something to remember the day by. Once we posed and smiled for a few shots Bailey took off, promising to see me later. Then Mom took a couple thousand photos of me before finally giving me the car keys and rushing to the phone to warn Sarah’s mom to have the video camera ready.

I stood outside Sarah’s door nervously clutching the roses as I waited for someone to answer my knock. It was a bit cold and I figured that later I would probably regret not bringing a jacket but I had forgotten to get one the day before and none of the ones I had went with my outfit. It was only two days and I was already becoming a slave to fashion. I could hear Sarah’s mom speaking on the other side of the door. “No Sarah, wait there by the stairs, I want to get this on film.” I groaned and then as she opened the door I tried to give my best smile.

Sarah was wearing a black knee length dress with matching shoes and purse with an emerald pendant that probably looked really good with her eyes. Those eyes were locked on me as she looked up and stared. Mrs. Taylor stared too and almost forgot to film it but quickly recovered and trained the camera on Sarah’s face before turning it to get good footage of me. Well this was awkward. I held out the roses and swallowed the fear I was feeling to say, “I… uhhh… got you some flowers Sarah, I arranged the bouquet myself.” She was still staring, her eyes seemed to take in the dress, my legs, my breasts and I suddenly felt very exposed. Dammit, I knew this was a bad idea.

Mrs. Taylor interrupted the awkward moment, taking the flowers and saying, “Why don’t I go put these in some water for you Sarah. You two have a good time tonight.” Then she left us alone.

My heart felt heavy in my chest and I was almost ready to turn and run when I felt her take my hand. How did she get so close all of a sudden? “Nat? You look amazing. You didn’t do all this just for me did you?”

I blushed and quoted her, “I’m doing this for both of us.” I looked away, “I thought we were going to show who we really are tonight. I’m a girl that wanted to look my best for a date with someone I’m hopelessly in love with. This was probably a bad idea, I’m sorry, I should go.”

I turned and headed for the door but she held my hand tight. “You’re not going anywhere Nat. You’ve done some incredibly wonderful things for me in the time we’ve been together but this… this has to be the most wonderful thing you’ve ever done. I’m sorry, I was just really shocked that you would go this far… you know how I said if I wasn’t attracted to you as a girl I would find a spell to change that?”

“Yeah,” I answered nervously, barely a whisper. I was really scared about where she might be going with that.

“I don’t think that’s going to be necessary.” She pulled me into a passionate kiss and held me tight for a moment before stepping back to get a better look at me.

“You mean you’re okay with me? Like this?”

“Duh!” She exclaimed, “Look at you Nat, you’re smoking hot! I am soooo attracted to you right now. And do you know what the best thing is?” I shook my head and she answered, “The best thing is that inside all that ravishing beauty you’re showing off is the person I’m still in love with.” I felt like I was about to start crying when she said, “Now let’s fix our lipstick so we can go to dinner and I can show off my hot girlfriend. Aww come on, don’t cry Nat or we’ll have to spend forever fixing your eye make-up too. ”

I couldn’t help it, I giggled at that. I felt like a humongous weight had just been lifted from my shoulders. All that weight I had been carrying since the Glove changed everything was just gone. Sarah still wanted me, and right now nothing was more important than that. We both fixed our lipstick and headed out to the car hand in hand.

I had made reservations for dinner at Serendipity, which was the only real fine dining establishment on the island. They had some terrific seafood and pasta dishes and the atmosphere was romantic with candlelight and soft music. As we ate I told Sarah about how Bailey had helped with my makeover and about our little slumber party and how she had hung out with me and helped me get ready. “I don’t think I could have gotten everything done without her help,” I finished.

“Well I owe her one then,” Sarah replied. “Because looking at you it’s worth every minute you spent. I’m sorry I missed the slumber party though, we’ll have to have another one.”

“I don’t think Dani will mind,” I giggled, “She was a little upset that she fell asleep before the makeovers.”

“We should get Bailey, Moriko, and Kayla to come if we have one. Maybe Becky too if we can arrange it without her getting seen coming to your place,” she suggested.

I nodded in agreement. “That’s actually not a bad idea. I feel bad that Becky doesn’t get to hang out with any of us very often.”

“Well she is in the Friday night martial arts class now,” Sarah said in a hushed tone. “It’s an Unseen only class and Moriko’s mom is closing the dojo to the public Friday nights so we can all come and not worry about being seen together.”

“Really?” I asked, my interest piqued. “That’s a great idea. I think we all need to learn how to fight. Titania seems to think something big is coming and we’re all probably going to be right in the middle of it if our luck holds.”

She reached out and held a finger to my lips. “Shush. No talking business tonight. Tonight is all about me and you.” We finished our dinner, giving one another little smiles and glances over the table and I could feel Sarah’s foot rubbing against mine. It was turning out to be the best date ever.

We arrived at the club at eight o’clock just as the doors were opening to the public. The neon sign above the entrance said “Rave-olution” and there was already a line up outside. A lot of the people I recognized from school, though there were some people in their early twenties too. I started getting flashbacks to when I first became Natalie as I heard people whispering as Sarah and I walked by. Who is that?... Holy shit! Is that Natalie Poole?... How can she hide such hotness under a hoodie all the time?... Maybe we can get her and Sarah to dance with us…

Kayla and Jason didn’t seem to be around yet but Bailey, Daphne and Karen were near the front of the line. Bailey called out, “Nat! Sarah! We saved you a spot!”

“Hey Bailey, thanks for all the help today and last night,” I said as we approached them.

Daphne and Karen were staring at me and Karen blurted out, “That’s Nat?! You weren’t kidding Bailey.”

Sarah giggled as we joined them in line. “I reacted the same way.”

“You’d think you all never saw a girl in a dress before,” I grumbled. Then I displayed my Gloved hand, “See, it’s really me.”

Daphne just shook her head and said, “You feel that chill in the air girls? I think Hell just froze over.”

“Very funny Daphne,” I said with a groan, “Where’s your cousin and the Goth…”

I was interrupted by Eric. “Damn. It really is Natalie.” He and Mike were glaring daggers at Bailey and I. “I bet you two think you’re so clever. I knew there was no Jean Poole!”

“Of course there is,” I shot back. “But I think you two have been swimming in the shallow end.” This was met with some confusion from the Neanderthals and outright laughter from the girls.

Eric grumbled and Mike muttered something to which Eric replied loud enough for half the line to hear, “I told you she’s a dyke.”

I raised an eyebrow at that. “You really need to come up with new material Eric. A girl doesn’t need to be a lesbian to find you repulsive. Besides, even if I weren’t here with my date, you’re not in my league anyway.”

Mike snorted at that, coming up with the oh-so-clever reply, “You’re the one who’s not in our league. We were being nice offering you a chance to go out with one of us. I don’t see any guys with you, are you with your girlfriend?” The last was said in a sing-song voice and he and Eric started laughing at that, and so did some of the guys behind us in line.

All laughter stopped when Sarah said very calmly, “Yes she is.” And then she kissed me so hard I thought my shoes would pop off.

I was smiling from ear to ear as I tried to catch my breath. “Yeah, what she said. So now that you know there’s two more girls you stand no chance with, though I think that’s probably every girl on the island anyway, take a hike.”

“I’d take her advice if I were you,” Jason said from behind the pair.

They turned around to see Jason in a t-shirt and jeans and Kayla dressed in her typical Goth wear with amber eyes. There were two of them and with Mike as backup Eric probably wouldn’t hesitate to try and take on Jason. “Or what?” he said. “You and the dark queen of the nerds are gonna start something.”

Jason nodded grimly and Kayla just smiled at Eric and said in a casual tone, “Well I hate to use my medical knowledge for harm, but did you know that if you kick a guy in the balls hard enough you can render him impotent for life?” Then she grinned at me, “You’re looking great Nat, you like my new combat boots? They’re steel-toed.” The pair looked from Jason to Kayla and then to one another before they took off for the back of the line.

This set Bailey off laughing and she said, “Oh I like her!” Then once she was in control of herself again she asked Kayla, “Is that true?”

Kayla just shrugged, “The hell if I know, I was just making that shit up, but it would hurt like hell.” She gave that grin again. “Did you see the way it made them run?”

By the time Sarah managed to introduce Kayla to Karen and Bailey we were at the front of the line and after paying our cover we got our hands stamped. The stamp we got would mark us as minors so we couldn’t go to the second floor where alcohol was being served and the non-teens would be dancing. We were all quite content to remain on the first floor and took a large table before Jason, Bailey and I went to go get drinks for us all. As we were waiting for drinks Jason said, “Damn Nat, you look good. I didn’t even realize that was you in line until Sarah planted that kiss on you.”

“Oh please,” I scoffed, “You’re here with probably the hottest girl in the club. So how’s the date going?”

“Pretty good,” he replied with a smile, “I mean how many sexy girls want to start a date by getting under the hood of a classic car?”

“Very true, usually it ends in the back seat of one,” I joked.

Jason actually blushed and looked away at that and I wondered just what had gone on during their date so far. He quickly changed the topic, “So your date seems to be going well.”

“Hell yeah,” I said with a grin, “I got Sarah back and I think I’m finally coming to terms with this whole girl shtick. I couldn’t have done it without Bailey here though, she’s been a good friend the last two days.”

“You’d have done the same for me Nat, besides it was fun. Now that you’re not afraid of your inner girl you and Sarah should come shopping with me sometime, it’ll be a blast.” She quickly turned and ordered the drinks for herself Karen and Daphne.

After I had ordered Sarah and I both a virgin long island Iced tea and paid for them I told Bailey, “I’ll think about it, but remember I’m trying to ease into the whole girl thing.”

“Uh huh, that dress is really easing into things,” she said with a laugh as we headed back to the table with Jason behind us carrying a Coke for himself and a virgin Bloody Mary for Kayla.

We all stayed until closing; drinking, talking and dancing. I got a lot of dance offers but I only danced with Sarah and sometimes in a group with some of the other girls. I think guys started to get the message though once they saw that Sarah and I were dancing together to all the slow songs. Once the club closed we said our goodnights to the others and I drove Sarah home. It was almost an hour before we left the car with fogged windows to walk Sarah to her door. It was another ten minutes after that when she finally went inside.

Nathan Poole is ready to become Sarah's Warden, but a long lost family heirloom changes his life and future.     Trial and Heiress Chapter 14 By Amethyst

Thanks as usual to Eof for a great universe to play in and to Eof, Maggie F and Donjo for their input. Thanks to my readers for reading what I put out here and being patient when new chapters are delayed.

The morning after my date with Sarah, I awoke in an extremely good mood. It was perhaps the best that I had felt since I had found Titania’s Glove, all seemed right with the world and I was finally comfortable in my own skin. The little Nathan in the back of my mind argued, as he always did that I shouldn’t be comfortable like this, that I wasn’t born a girl. I promptly bound, gagged, and tossed him to a forgotten little corner in the back of my mind. I could be comfortable like this, last night had proved that, and it was time that I started looking at the good things about my transformation instead of trying to get back something I no longer needed.

When I thought about it there were a lot of good things that had come from my transformation. First I was learning to use magic and my mom and I had become much closer as a result. Secondly, I was a lot closer to all of my friends. Nate had been so focussed on being a great future Warden and as a result he kind of distant from people except for Jason and Sarah. I had much stronger friendships now and new friends like Kayla and Moriko that I probably wouldn’t have been as close to otherwise. And then there was Sarah. We were closer than ever and I felt that if our relationship could survive me being a girl than it could survive anything.

I gave a little yawn and stretched as I slipped my legs over the edge of the bed and made my way to the bathroom for a nice long shower. When I was finished I wrapped a towel around me and headed back to my room to find something to wear. Once I had opened my closet I stood there for several minutes just staring at the scene inside. “Holy shit… everyone is right. My wardrobe really is made up of only jeans and grey hoodies. How could I have never noticed that before?” I could smell breakfast cooking so I rushed downstairs to the kitchen “Mom!”

Mom looked up as I entered the kitchen and was quick to scold me, “Natalie, get some clothes on, you can’t just walk around in a towel.”

“But mom, I have nothing to wear,” I complained. “I wore my new skirt and the peasant blouse yesterday while I was out with Bailey and I can’t wear the same thing two days in a row.”

My loving and sensitive mother just stared at me for a moment before she burst out laughing. She managed to get control of herself and was about to say something when I raised my hand to stop the words about to come from her mouth. “Don’t say it. I am well aware of the state of my wardrobe. I just never thought about it before now. I can’t just wear jeans and grey hoodies all the time, it’s ridiculous. Why didn’t someone smack me upside the head and tell me how stupid I was being?”

Mom turned off the stove and guided me back toward my bedroom. “You were so resistant to being female. We all wanted to give you the time that you needed to adjust. I figured that sooner or later this phase was going to end but I wanted you to make that decision so I wasn’t pushing you. That’s why I was so happy when you asked me to help you shop for clothes earlier this week. You still have two tops that we bought the other day so just wear one of them with a pair of jeans. You can go clothes shopping today; you hardly spent any of the money that the Coven provided you with for a new wardrobe.”

“But I was supposed to help you at the shop today,” I argued, “And you were going to teach me water scrying if we got finished with inventory early.”

“I can manage the inventory by myself,” she assured me, “And you having a day off from your lessons isn’t going to kill you. Why don’t you call Sarah and a friend or two and you can all make a day of it. Don’t be too long getting dressed though, breakfast is nearly ready.” We were in my room now and she left me to find something to wear while she went back down to the kitchen to finish making breakfast.

By the time I had slipped into a bra and a pair of panties Dani and Vina were awake and asking me excitedly about how the date with Sarah had gone. I gave them all the juicy details as I searched for a pair of jeans. There was one pair that Mom had gotten me for Christmas but I hadn’t worn yet because they were white low rise jeans and at the time I had felt they were way too girly. I shimmied into them and they fit nicely, though they just barely reached my hips. Then I looked through the other two tops that mom had bought me when we got my dress and decided on the dark red halter crop top. I was going to be showing off a lot of my midriff but I knew that I was in good shape and after last night I was realizing that I didn’t need to be ashamed of my body.

I brushed out my hair and was pleased that some of the curl from last night still remained, giving it a wavy look. I parted it at the center as it had been the night before so that it framed my face. “How do I look?” I asked my small friends.

Dani gave a playful whistle and giggled while Vina smiled, “You look very nice. Are you planning on going out again?”

I shook my head, “I’m going shopping for some new clothes but I think that’s about it. I’m going to see if Sarah, Bailey and Kayla want to come along, and of course I’ll want you both there. I’ve been having the feeling like I’m being watched lately so I want you both to keep your eyes open okay?”

“We will be on our guard,” the blue haired pixie replied seriously.

Dandelion gave an energetic nod in agreement as she flew up to land on my shoulder. “We can still help you pick out clothes though can’t we?””

“Of course, maybe with your help I’ll be more appropriately dressed the next time I get visitors from the Summer Court, they always seem to catch me at the worst times,” I joked.

I headed back downstairs where my parents and Rick were already at the table. My brother got one look at me and nearly spat out his coffee. When I was seated and he had sufficiently recovered from his coughing fit he looked me over carefully, “Who are you and what have you done with my sister?”

I rolled my eyes as I finished my sip of juice. “Very funny Rick.”

Mom gave me a nod of approval, “You look very nice dear. Don’t tease your sister Rick, you should have seen her last night.”

“He probably will,” I pointed out. “You certainly took enough pictures of me last night.” That of course had Mom running off to fetch her digital camera to show Rick and Dad documented evidence of the previous night’s girliness. It had been late once I had finally gotten home from dropping Sarah off and everyone had been asleep but both Rick and Dad made sure to get any teasing that they may have missed. Mom was still showing them pictures when I finished my breakfast and picked up the kitchen phone to call Sarah.

“Hello?” Sarah’s voice came alive on the other end.

“Hi Sarah its Nat.” I said.

“Hello there gorgeous,” Sarah purred, “I really had a good time last night. I enjoyed getting to show off my sexy girlfriend.”

I chuckled at that. “I must admit I kind of enjoyed being showed off. How would you like to show me off some more around town today? I was hoping we could go shopping for some clothes, maybe invite Bailey and Kayla along.”

“You had me at shopping.” I could almost feel her smiling on the other end. “I’ll call Bailey and be over in a bit. We might want to wait a bit before calling Kayla though; she mentioned wanting to sleep in today last night and I’m not sure I want to go shopping with a grouchy Vampire even if she is my best gal pal.”

“I thought I was your best gal pal,” I pouted into the phone.

“You got promoted to sexy girlfriend so I had to find a new one,” she replied.

“Does sexy girlfriend get paid more?” I joked back.

“No, but I think you’ll enjoy the benefits. I’ll talk to you soon beautiful.” We both hung up and I turned around to find Rick and both my parents trying to hide smiles. I didn’t even bother trying to explain and instead headed up to my room to put on some light makeup before Sarah and Bailey arrived.

Sarah and Bailey arrived around mid-morning and of course once they heard how much money I still had set aside for clothes they started talking about a whole new wardrobe. I don’t think either of them was too surprised that I was wanting to broaden my fashion horizons after last night and we spent the remainder of the morning discussing what looks would suit me best. I of course wanted to make sure I would still have some freedom of movement in case I got attacked by the Winter Court or something but other than that I was pretty open to suggestions. I began to worry though that the pair might go a bit overboard so around noon I called Kayla.

Sadly Kayla was supposed to be meeting someone with Genevieve during the afternoon so she wasn’t able to come with us. I sighed and shrugged as I told the others, “Looks like Kay has to meet with someone today. We made tentative plans for next weekend though and I’m almost glad she can’t come.”

Bailey seemed pretty disappointed about it. “Aww that sucks that she can’t come; I was hoping to get to know her better today. She seems nice and has a great sense of humor. Why wouldn’t you want her coming though?”

“It figures that you would love Kayla’s sense of humor. Just wait until she starts in on the Vampire and death jokes. For a Goth she is really good at seeing the positive side of things. It’s nothing against her; she just threatened to take me into Oh my Goth for a makeover.”

An evil grin spread over my girlfriend’s face at that. “You know Nat we should get you one Goth outfit as a surprise for Kayla. With your pale skin and dark hair you could really rock the whole Goth look.”

“And just think about it,” Bailey put in, “the short skirts like she wore last night are sexy and you’ll be able to move in them. And she did mention the virtues of steel toed combat boots last night.”

I knew I was probably going to regret it but I gave in. “Fine, but only one outfit. One full time Goth in our group is enough.”

We went to Oh My Goth first and it turned out that we bought about two full outfits in a style that Kayla would approve of, but I could probably mix and match them with one another or other clothes for a variety of outfits. I did have to admit that I did like the knee high combat boots with the one inch heel that we got. After that we planned to go to Danica’s, Kiss and Make-up, Soul Train, Denman’s, and Inside Out for a variety of other clothes and accessories. Bailey and Sarah tended to want to get the sexier clothes for me and I really didn’t need much convincing with my newfound confidence regarding my body. Come school the next day my classmates were going to see a whole new Natalie Poole.

Maorg watched the three girls from a safe distance. She had been fortunate to take possession of a teenage boy who had fallen asleep in the place the humans referred to as Sena Island Library. The boy had fallen asleep over a book and was ironically dreaming of Titania’s witchling wearing some manner of red dress. She left the small building and reached out with her senses and soon caught the girl’s magical scent. She found her target with two other girls, the other Witch and another that she had seen with the witchling with the previous day, and casually followed the trio into a large shop called Denman’s.

Those pesky Pixies were going to be a problem, Maorg could feel it. They had nearly sensed her other hosts twice before and at the moment they seemed to be keeping an especially close eye out for trouble. If she were at her full power she would not need to be concerned about the Pixies, the girl or her friends. She was not though and so must use stealth rather than merely taking over the girl by force. She would not be watching this girl at all if Ly Erg and Sarric were not pressing her for information.

No, Maorg knew that the girl in black with the purple hair was the real prize in this human town. She would rather be watching that one and finding her weaknesses. The girl was a predator, Maorg could sense it but she must have her weaknesses and she intended to exploit those weaknesses. She must have desires, or people that she cared about. The Healer would be hers and she would be powerful once again. Then Sarric, Ly Erg, and perhaps even Titania’s witchling would all do her bidding.

She shook off those thoughts; boredom was causing her thoughts to stray. Didn’t these girls talk about anything but clothes? Occasionally the girls would stop and whisper something else but the body that Maorg currently inhabited was too far away to hear what it might be and she dare not get any closer for fear of catching the attention of the Pixies. Once they were finished their business in Denman’s she followed them outside, down several side streets and into a store that seemed solely devoted to lacy garments in various colors that would be shameful as anything but undergarments. She had just realized this when the three girls began walking deliberately directly toward her current body. The witchling wore an angry look upon her face and seemed about to say something as Maorg fled her host and opened her eyes to her own bedroom.

The sleepwalker cursed and closed her eyes once again to find one of her assigned host bodies within Prince Sarric’s home. The eyes she opened belonged to a human Sclabhai: a beautiful young woman with honey blonde hair and bright blue eyes. This came as no surprise to Maorg, she had used this host before and Sarric had forbidden her from taking over the bodies of anyone in his home but his pleasure slaves. He claimed it was because the minds of the Sclabhai were so broken that she could possess them even when awake but Maorg knew better. Sarric wished to put her in her place when she came to his home and the lovely bodies of his pleasure Sclabhai did that and served a cruel reminder of what her now broken and withered form once was.

Maorg had been one of the great beauties of the Winter Court in her day and had the power to rival even Prince Sarric himself. Then she had helped Sarric to slay Titania’s husband Oberon and to bind their daughter Sephrene as his own Sclabhai. Sarric, that devious bastard had gone into hiding and made sure that all blame would fall on her when weeks later an enraged Titania came seeking both her daughter and her vengeance. Titania’s wrath had been swift and sure and the curse she had laid upon Maorg twisted her body and stripped her of most of her power.

The Sleepwalker pushed those thoughts aside as she sought out Sarric. She found him in the sun room of the large mansion and knelt in submission when she approached. Someday soon, she thought, our roles will be reversed and it shall be you who bows to me. The mansion was in North Vancouver and overlooked the water of Vancouver Harbour and city of Vancouver itself on the other side. Sarric seemed to take great pleasure in her kneeling before him and took his time before acknowledging her. “Maorg, don’t you look lovely today? You have good news for me I hope.”

The lovely face that Maorg now wore frowned at the compliment. “Titania’s witchling is well watched. It grows harder for me to keep a close eye on her. Titania gathers the Queens soon for a meeting, perhaps that is the time to strike, when her attention is elsewhere.”

The Aos Sidhe considered the suggestion for a long moment before finally nodding. “You may be right. Keep an eye on the witchling as best you can until Titania’s attention is elsewhere and inform Ly Erg when the time is right for him to claim the prize. Do not fail me Maorg, I want the Eochair.” His cold blue eyes focused intently on her and she knew just what the price of failure would be. She would not fail, she would have the Healer for her own and leave the witchling to Ly Erg and once she was powerful once again they would all belong to her.

We were at Denman’s when Dani and Vina warned me about the boy following us with a whisper in my ear. I carefully positioned myself in front of a mirror and held a green poets blouse up in front of me to see how it would look on me. My position relative to the mirror allowed me to see the boy they were talking about in the reflection. I called Bailey and Sarah over by asking, “What do you girls think of this top on me?” Then once they were close enough to compliment my taste I whispered, “Don’t look now but we have company. Dani and Vina said he’s been following us and watching me since we came into the store.”

Bailey just smiled and kept on talking like nothing was wrong, “I saw that same top in black and I think it will look a lot better, the style suits you but green isn’t really your color. Let’s put this one away and I’ll show you the black one.” As we headed toward the clothes rack bailey had indicated she whispered, “Yeah that’s David Kelly, he’s graduating this year and he’s definitely got his eyes on you. I think I saw him at the club last night. He’s usually a really nice guy, it’s not like him being all creepy and stalkerish, maybe he wants to ask you out but he’s afraid or something, he is pretty shy.”

“I think Sarah made it pretty clear last night that neither of us is interested in boys,” I whispered back causing Sarah to blush as I returned the green top and took out the black one. “You’re right Bailey this one is much more my color.

“So what do we do?” Sarah asked quietly as she handed me a white nearly sheer halter top that made me raise my eyebrows at her. My girlfriend just blushed and said, “That’s more for me than you, you’ll look awesome in it.”

I looked over the top and it really would look great on me so I added It to the other clothes I had as I replied, “Okay, I’ll get it for your sake Sarah.” Then quieter I added, “We’ll keep shopping for now and make like we don’t notice him. It could just be a coincidence or he could just be really shy about approaching me. Dani and Vina are going to keep being extra cautious and try keeping an eye on him.”

We kept shopping at Denman’s for another hour and the whole time David was somewhere nearby watching me. “Well, I think it’s safe to say it’s not a coincidence,” Sarah finally mentioned quietly as we made our way to the checkout. “He hasn’t’ taken his eyes off you the whole time and I can’t think of any normal boy who could watch three girls shopping and talking about clothes for this long without getting bored out of his mind and leaving.”

“Just great, so either I have a stalker or something else creepy is going on,” I muttered. I finished paying for my clothes and we put them in Bailey’s car then I grinned at the other girls and said, “We were planning on going to Inside Out next weren’t we?”

Bailey nodded as she took a casual look around to see if our new friend was still following us “Yeah we were but given the circumstances I’ll understand if you don’t want to.” She looked disappointed for a moment and then her eyes lit up as she seemed to catch my meaning. “Oh Nat, that’s just perfect.”

“I grinned at her and Sarah and nodded. “If he follows us in there and keeps watching me then there is definitely something up, and Chloe’s mom won’t take to kindly to a guy following a girl into her shop and staring at her.” With that plan in mind we walked along a couple of side streets to make our way toward Inside Out where we paused in front of the door where Vina and Dani joined us.

“He’s still following you,” Vina pointed out. “But he’s been keeping his distance and it’s like he can see us and is actively trying to avoid our notice.”

We stepped inside and told the owner, Lessa Freemont, what was going on. Then as she went into the back to watch the surveillance cameras for us we made our way to the back of the shop where a lot of the more risqué items were kept. I definitely saw a few things there that I wouldn’t mind seeing Sarah in and I think she was feeling the same way about some of the things she was suggesting for me. Bailey giggled at the looks on both our faces and set us both to blushing as we heard the bell above the shop door ring. David entered the shop and we made like we didn’t notice him as we laughed and looked at more lingerie and chose some that would work well with my new wardrobe.

Ten minutes later he was still near the front of the shop watching me and I got fed up. “Okay girls, time to find out what the hell is going on.” We all turned and walked toward him and I let just how pissed off I was show in my expression. His eyes suddenly went wide as he realized that we were on to him and then he fell to the floor in a heap. “What the hell?” I muttered as we raced toward him and I checked his pulse. I felt something and the Glove tingled in response before the feeling was gone. “Did you feel that Sarah?”

Sarah nodded as she knelt on his other side. “Some kind of magic but it was there one second and then suddenly gone and David is fast asleep.”

Chloe’s mom came out from the back of the shop looking worried, “What happened girls? He was standing there watching you one minute and then he just seemed to pass out.”

“Whoever that was following us I don’t think it was David,” I said with a sigh.

“Maybe we should wake him up and see if he remembers anything,” Bailey suggested.

I shook my head as I considered that. “No, Sarah can you make sure he stays asleep? The Coven is going to want to know about this. Mrs. Freemont would you mind closing up a bit early?”

The Nereid smiled and said, “It’s no trouble Natalie, but I would like to know what’s going on.” She stood up went to the entrance to lock it and when she returned she asked, “So what does the trouble seem to be this time?”

I gave a nervous laugh in return as I looked in my purse for my phone. “You make is sound like we’re always in trouble. If I had to make a guess though, I think somebody is using some sort of magic to spy on me. David has been following us around and watching me all afternoon and from what Bailey said this is not like him at all.”

“No, it’s not,” Bailey agreed. “He’s shy but he would never do anything that he would think could make someone else uncomfortable.”

I managed to retrieve my phone and called my mom’s cell phone first. Mom picked up on the third ring. “Hello? How’s the shopping going Natalie?”

“It was going fine,” I replied. “Unfortunately we seem to have run into something that I figured the Coven might want to know about.” I quickly recapped what had been going on all afternoon finishing with David falling to the floor and the feeling I had gotten from him.

“You’re right; we needed to know about this. If someone is watching you we will need to start taking more precautions. I’ll call the other Coven members and we’ll send someone over to try to piece together what’s going on. You and the girls stay there; Lessa won’t let anything happen to you.” She disconnected the call and I sat down with the others to wait.

Twenty minutes later Sarah’s mom showed up and she had Genevieve with her. Once Mrs. Freemont had let the pair in I quickly apologized to the red-headed Vampire. “I’m sorry if this interrupted the meeting you and Kay had, I didn’t think they would call you in on this.”

She shook her head and patted my shoulder gently, “It’s alright Natalie, we finished up before Gwen called me. I would have brought Kayla with me but she had already left the house to help out a friend with something. The Coven wants to make sure that this boy is telling the truth when Katherine questions him.”

I would not have wanted to be David when Sarah’s mom woke him up. Not only did she look very pissed off but Genevieve was there too and that woman is gorgeous but you to not want to see her angry. The boy in question opened his eyes and looked very confused. “Where am I?”

“That is not important right now,” the Coven’s Inquisitor said, “What is your name boy?”

“David Kelly,” he replied. Not only was he uncertain where he was but he was starting to look scared as well.

“Why were you following these three girls around and which one were you spying on?” she asked, gesturing to Sarah, bailey and me and ignoring his obvious discomfort. I had never seen her doing her job as the Inquisitor before and it was like she was a totally different person from the sweet and caring woman I had known my whole life. This was a woman with a purpose.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he said in a panic as his eyes darted around wildly looking for some kind of help. “I wasn’t following anyone or doing any spying, honest!”

Sarah’s mom sighed and asked, “What is the last thing you remember David?”

“I was studying at the library and I think I fell asleep because I was dreaming.” He tried backing away from her but Lessa Freemont was behind him and was holding him by the shoulders so he wasn’t going anywhere.

The next question was, “What were you dreaming about David?”

“I was dreaming about her,” he said looking at me with a panicked look in his eyes. “I saw her at Rave-olution last night and I was dreaming about her. She was in that red dress, we were kissing and she started to…’

“Okay, that’s all I want to hear about that. Next question please,” I swiftly interrupted as I tried to hide my blush and the fact that I was getting slightly nauseous. I did not need to know that this guy was having wet dreams about me, let alone the content.

Sarah’s Mom, Genevieve and surprisingly David himself all gave me an apologetic look. “Was there anything unusual about the dream? Any voices telling you to do things?” the Inquisitor pressed.

“No nothing like that, it was just a dream; I have dreams like that all the time,“ he said in a rush.

She sighed as she gave me a helpless look and asked, “So there was nothing telling you to spy on these girls or giving you a desire to learn more about them? Was there anything important that you can remember? Some details you may have missed before.”

“No! There was nothing like that she was just a hot girl that I was having a good dream about. I’ve had those types of dreams about a bunch of girls. I n my dream I didn’t need to know anything other than she was hot and she was…”

“And I think it’s time for that line of questioning to end… please.” Now I felt dirty and inadequate, this was shaping up to be a great night. I gave Sarah’s Mom a pleading look and she nodded.

“I don’t think we’re going to learn anything more by questioning him any further anyway. I haven’t detected any magical energy on him but given what you girls have described I would say that someone was definitely using this boy to spy on Natalie. You said he was only looking at Natalie correct?” She asked us all.

Bailey answered for us all. “Sarah and I both left her a couple times to get something and he didn’t seem interested in us.”

Vina left my shoulder and added, “Whoever it was also knew that we were guarding her. They were trying to keep their distance and not draw our attention.”

“There’s not much more we can do here,” Sarah’s mother admitted, “We’ll have to keep a better eye on you though I’m afraid. I want you to make doubly sure that whenever you leave your home that you have your phone, your Pixies and one or more Unseen that you trust with you until we find out what’s going on Natalie. You are not to be left alone anywhere for any reason.”

“Anything else?’ I asked morosely.

“Try to act like nothing is wrong. Be a normal high school girl for a few weeks if you can,” Genevieve advised. “If anything does happen we’ll deal with it then. Your family and friends will be there to look out for you.”

It’s pretty hard to be a normal high school girl when every other day there’s something attacking me, or spying on me or the Sacred wanting to talk to me about something.”

I wouldn’t worry about the last one for a while,” Dandelion provided cheerfully, “Queen Titania will be preparing to host the other Queens in a few weeks so she probably won’t need you for anything until that’s over.”

“What?” I asked before I quickly decided, “No, you know what, at the moment I’m too tired and creeped out to care about whatever Sacred royalty may be coming to the area. I’m just going to hope that for once I don’t get dragged into whatever they have going on.”

“I doubt it will affect anyone here,” Verbina pointed out. “Only the Queens and their entourages will have any involvement and I doubt any of them will leave the Sacred Grove.”

“Good, let them bother one another for once, I have enough problems. Are we done here?” I asked testily.

Sarah’s mother nodded. “Genevieve, I think we can send this boy home now.”

The vampire nodded and looked deeply into David’s eyes. A moment later she was speaking to him in a relaxing tone. “David, you will not remember anything that has occurred here. You will go home from here and when you get there you will remember only falling asleep in the Library. You were asleep there for several hours and when you woke you decided that you had enough studying and should go home.”

When she was done speaking David stood up and Mrs. Freemont let him out of the shop so he could go home. Bailey drove us home and she and Sarah helped me to take all my new clothes up to my room while Genevieve went out to eat and Sarah’s mom went to inform the Coven of what was going on. Sarah and Bailey offered to stay and hang out for a bit once all my clothes were put away so we went to the kitchen and worked together on something for dinner since my Mom and Sarah’s likely wouldn’t be home for a while. Then we settled down to watch a movie and talk about everything that had been going on lately until my Mom came home.

The next few weeks leading up to Valentine’s Day seemed to pass quickly. There wasn’t much going on in the Unseen world during that time and I was relieved as I was pretty much able to settle into the life of a normal teenage girl for a bit. We were being extra cautious though, with the possibility that someone may be keeping tabs on me magically. I still had magic lessons and I kept up with my combat training as well, but other than that and working after school I was able to spend more time relaxing with my friends, getting used to my sudden popularity at school, and preparing for possible trouble ahead.