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He chuckled, seeing the light emanating in the distance as Luna stood before the pack healer.
“Oh, looks like it was pretty minor,” he said, addressing Sasha as Luna walked back toward them.
“She’s still not getting another marshmallow,” Sasha teased, clutching the bag of marshmallows tighter when Luna came close enough to see her dramatic performance.
Eventually, the funeral pyre was done, and every shifter body was disposed of. Still, they spent as long as they could soaking up the dying embers of the second bonfire, even as the rest of the pack began to scatter and return to their homes.
As they finally called it a night and poured buckets onto the fire, Adrian embraced Luna.
“You know, your grandma stayed up pretty late,” he said, admiring the elderly woman who was still there, helping clean up. “Maybe we should invite her over to stay for a bit.”
He was nearly delirious from being so tired, but he didn’t want to sleep.
Luna almost jumped at the suggestion. “I’ll go ask her right now!”
She bolted over toward her grandmother, helping her clean up trash before returning back to Adrian several minutes later.
“She said yes.”
“Good,” Adrian chimed back. “That’s good.”
They escorted Luna’s grandmother back to Adrian’s house, walking slowly to match the elder’s speed. Somehow, she seemed barely tired, and Adrian wondered what her secret was. How did she command such deep reserves of strength and alertness?
“It’s tea,” she replied. “I’ll show you how to brew something that will keep you awake for weeks on end if you like.”
This brought one unfortunate thought into Adrian’s mind. Soon, they would need to say goodbye, and though Luna could keep in touch over the phone, he hated the thought of them separating again. Since Luna’s grandmother had come into her life, Luna had been so much happier.
“This is quite an impressive place you have here,” Luna’s grandma said, admiring the three-story house.
Adrian held the door open for her, leading her into the living room.
It felt like they talked for hours, learning about her history. The most interesting thing to Adrian was how different pack laws used to be before they were refined over time.
Shifters lived among humans before they had to separate, and there were all sorts of steps and half-measures. The secrecy involved in living in a world where shifters weren’t always accepted as themselves stunned Adrian.
“You’ve seen so much, Grandma,” Luna said, running her hands through her hair as she sat beside her grandmother on the couch.
“Not half as much as you have, dear,” her grandma replied. “We never appreciate the time we’re given. Only what comes before. Make sure to treasure it before it’s all gone.”
Luna nodded. Adrian felt himself nodding off but fought the urge, reprimanding himself to stay awake.
“All that said, I really should be going, dearie,” her grandmother said.
Luna moved in for a big hug. “Do you really have to go?”
“My pack needs me,” she said with a weak laugh. “Apparently, they think my insight is beneficial in day-to-day operations, and I’m like an advisor to them.”
That’s when Adrian had an idea. It was a long shot, but it was still worth suggesting.
“What would your pack say to an alliance or some kind of merger?” Adrian asked suddenly.
Luna’s grandmother brought her hand to her chin slowly and thought.
“I’m sure we’ll be in touch, but I don’t know why they’d say no,” she said, trailing off. “Truth is we don’t have a lot of territory these days …”
“You could always move in with us,” Adrian suggested. “There’s plenty of land around for you to claim. We’ve got empty forests for miles.”
He could see the joy in Luna’s eyes immediately.
