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Her mother replies, "They are beautiful, but remember we don't get anywhere near them, okay?"
I think about being beautiful to people in a completely different way. One that has nothing to do with my body shape and everything to do with the attractiveness of the kind of animal I am.
I look over at Annie, my new sister and friend. “I'm sorry you can't have children. That must have been hard to find out.”
“It was, but then my mate died, and I'm not sure I would have wanted to have to raise them alone.”
Something about talking in our heads makes me braver than usual.“How did it happen?”
She growls.“He and my father were killed by hunters. They say it was humans, but I think it was Victor.”
A powerful urge to strike out tingles in my muscles.“I’m so sorry, Annie.”
She reaches over and pats me.“So see, you have to hurry up and get pregnant so I can help raise your babies, okay?”
“I'm counting on it.”
Annie stands. “We should head back.”She dives off the rock, and I watch her powerful strokes as she swims away.
When we get home, I find shifting back is easier. Even after all the fish we consumed, my stomach growls. Annie can hear it, and we make our way to the kitchen. She makes us huge tuna and cheese panini sandwiches, and we sit at the island to eat.
It must be the part bear in me that makes me so ravenous. I get up to make another once I'm done with the first one. The griddle creaks as I open it to pull my sandwich off.
I ask, "So what else do I need to learn?"
Annie wipes her mouth on a napkin. "You need to learn to fight. It's not nearly as fun, but it’s necessary. We have a couple of trainers for the new shifters, and I'm going to set one up to come and train you here. I'll join in because my skills are rusty."
My first instinct is to groan about exercise, but then I remember how powerful I feel in bear form. "Okay. I guess I'm going to get good at shifting, aren't I?”
Annie smiles at me. "You're already good at it. It's as if you were made for this."
I bite into cheesy tuna goodness, and as the flavor drowns my taste buds, I think,Maybe I was.
