Nathan watched as Harper leaned forward, her expression animated. The way she lit up when discussing shifter nature never failed to captivate him.
"That's because it's magic," she explained, her eyes bright with enthusiasm. "The Change isn't physiological at all - it's purely magical in nature."
His mother's pen paused above her notebook. "But all those movies and books..."
"Get it completely wrong," Harper finished with a gentle laugh. "All that dramatic twisting and morphing of limbs, bones cracking and reshaping - that's not how it works at all."
Nathan found himself nodding along, remembering his first time seeing Harper shift. There had been none of the grotesque transformation scenes he'd grown up watching in werewolf movies.
"The current form simply... dissolves," Harper continued, making a flowing gesture with her hands. "And the new form takes its place. Like water flowing from one vessel to another. There's no pain, no intermediate stage where we're half-human, half-animal."
"Fascinating," his father murmured, leaning forward in his chair. "So the transformation itself is instantaneous?"
"Almost," Harper agreed. "It takes maybe half a second? Though it can feel longer when you're watching it happen." She glanced at Nathan with a small smile.
Nathan remembered that moment in his music room, when Harper had first shown him her fox form. The way her human shape had seemed to blur at the edges, like watercolors running together, before Reyna stood before him. It had been beautiful rather than frightening, leaving him in awe of the magic he'd witnessed.
"That's another reason why the Yosemite video was so important, according to the Council," Harper added. "It showed people that shifting isn't scary or grotesque. It's natural, elegant even. The way magic should be."
His mother was scribbling frantically in her notebook now, trying to capture every detail. Nathan felt a surge of affection for both his parents and Harper - their genuine curiosity and her willingness to share her world with them.
Charlie stood, gathering all the coffee cups, and retreated to the kitchen. He returned with the cups filled, on a tray with creamer and sugar, which he set down on the coffee table.
"Harper, I'd very much like to hear more about this Council," he said as they all settled back in with their coffee.
"Their main purpose, through the centuries, has been to keep our existence secret," she replied. "And setting contingency plans in place for when we were outed, which everyone has been aware was inevitable. Now, the focus has shifted to those contingency plans. That is, damage control. Protecting the shifters who have come forward in public, and shielding those who'd be in the most danger should their identities be disclosed... families with children, teachers, and so forth. Also, those in certain careers have to keep their anonymity, because they could very well, almost certainly, lose their jobs... teachers, librarians, those working in the political arena or in the military. Doctors could lose their licenses, or lose hospital credentials, lawyers could be disbarred."
Nathan nodded. "And that's not even taking into consideration the very real possibility of personal attacks, and attacks on homes and businesses."
"Yes," Regina sighed. "We're already seeing news reports of those across the world, including in this country."
"We've actually been surprised at the huge amount of support that's been generated," Harper said. "People are loving the possibility of shifters, and a glimpse into... as you said earlier... a whole new world."
"Are you, yourself, planning to go public?" Charlie wanted to know.
Harper blanched. "Not ever, if I can help it. My fox needs to feel safe, and we didn't, not in San Francisco, where everyone was studying every red-haired woman they saw on the street, trying to figure out if she was the one on that video. It washorrible. I had an old friend from work, another shifter who'd worked in the same bank with me in San Francisco, but had moved here, to the Hudson Valley, where he'd been born and raised. He reached out to Maroulla Kazakis, that's Katerina's grandmother and the head of the Northeastern US Shifter Council, and she reached out to me. And, here I am."
Regina's leaned forward, looking interested. "You work in banking?"
"Yes, I'm a certified Financial Planner, and I've been working as a Personal Finance Officer for a few years now. I got a position at a local bank before I even left San Francisco. Which was actually a bit of luck," she added. "My predecessor had health issues, and had to retire early, and unexpectedly. They were just starting to look for a replacement when all that happened in Yosemite," and she waved her hand toward the big screen television on the wall. "Jake, my friend, told them he knew an experienced PFA looking to relocate and they had me send my resume."
"Everything just lined up like dominos," Charlie said, impressed.
Harper nodded. "It really did! It all fell together like it had been planned. I packed up some clothes, arranged for a moving company to pack and move my whole apartment, and I got on a plane barely a week after the... um... the incident." She grimaced. "That's still how I think of it. The Incident. All caps."
Regina looked sympathetic. "That's understandable. But you're here and settled, now." She slid a glance to Nathan. "And dating our son."
Charlie rose to his feet with a slight groan, his shoulders sagging from jetlag. "And on that note, it's time we headed to our hotel. It was a long flight across the Atlantic."
"Yes, it was." Regina stood up, smoothing down her skirt, as did Nathan and Harper. Nathan noticed his mother stifling a yawn behind her hand. "We'll see you both for breakfast?"
"That works, Mom." Nathan stepped forward to give both his parents a quick hug, breathing in his mother's familiar lavender perfume. The scent brought back memories of childhood piano lessons at her side.
Nathan walked his parents to the door, watching as they headed down the walkway to their rental car. His mother paused halfway, turning back.
"It was lovely meeting you, Harper," she called softly.
"You too," Harper replied, standing close to Nathan's side. "Have a good night."
