Mag-log inKenna
Evander’s mouth crashes against mine. The roar of the waterfall behind us fades to nothing but a gentle hum as the sound of his pleasure–a low, guttural growl–fills my ears and blur my senses.
We’re both stark naked and slightly sweaty from shifting. There’s nothing between us now–nothing stopping us from just being with each other.
He picks me up and kneels with me in his lap, his hands on my hips to hol
OakleyGrandma Freya doesn’t care about the hustle and bustle of the harvest season. The only thing that matters now, as the first leaves begin to yellow and crinkle on their edges, and the air has a sudden cold bite in the morning while still warm and toasty every evening, are the massive piles of wool that need to be tended–washed, brushed, dyed, and spun. Grandpa Andrew has spent the last two weeks ensuring all the looms are repaired, if necessary, and moving without a hitch. While the rest of Silverhide dips into the chaos of the harvest, our family settles into the thrum of preparedness for a long, dark winter ahead, spinning and weaving. I’m rather good at it. I make my own clothes. I weave the tapestries my mother and father bring to the harvest festival year after year. My woven creations are wrapped around babies minutes after they are born and cover the bodies of our elders while they rest atop their funeral pyres in wait for their grand journeys into the stars. My skills
ZaynSeveral Months Later…It’s raining, and it’s my fault. I can’t help it. I can’t draw back the angst sending storms whirling over every major island system in KiloKilo. Maybe it’s an act of the old gods. Tonight, everything I feel, my people feel. Every step I take carving tracks in the floor outside of our bedroom sends new storms into being. I want this to end. “She’s fine,” Tali says, gripping my shoulders. “I need to be in there with her,” I argue, breathless, but Tali violently shakes his head. “You don’t. You’re making it worse.”“She kicked me out,” I snarl, and Tali shoots me an incredulous look. “You cannot handle this, and that’s okay, but you’re flooding the back garden, so enough. Go to your study, Alpha King. For fuck’s sake, your wife is going to live, but she’s going to fucking kill you if your storm destroys the new pergola.”I suck my teeth, squeezing my eyes shut as another low, angry, but muted, scream of pain echoes into the hallway. “She’s all right,” Ta
FallonA few months later…The last of the season's golden leaves fall in a spiral toward the garden, dappling the benches and pathways weaving between wilting rose hedges. I press my fingertips to the windowsill, breathing deeply, drinking in wet, rainy late autumn air. It’ll be a while until I return to the mainland, especially this time of year. I can’t say I don’t mind seeing a real fall for the last time in a while.The bite in the air is chillier than I remember. I don’t think it ever gets this cold in KiloKilo. I haven’t needed to wear a cloak this thick in weeks. Murmured voices echo back and forth across the ballroom, where a group of people, nobles, a handful of high-ranking Alphas, and three Alpha Kings, gather around a table just out of sight. I look at them over my shoulder, catching my dad, the Alpha King of the Roguelands, and my uncle Aris, the Alpha King of Veiled Valley, deep in conversation with Ryan, Alpha King of the Deadlands. “The Alpha King of Tarsian didn’t
FallonIt feels strange being back in the palace in Moonrise. We arrived last night after several days in Maatua, where Zayn had to bounce back and forth between there and KiloKilo, leading the rescue efforts. I was, of course, under house arrest, again. I let it slide only because my mom was either on the verge of tears or furious with me, and I was just tired. Tired and absolutely glowing with my success, which I didn’t rub in anyone’s faces, even though I desperately wanted to utter “I told you it’d work out. I was right, ha ha!” many, many times. But now I’m in Moonrise again, at least for a little while. Zayn is here as well and will remain for the next week until we both return to KiloKilo for what I hope is a long time. “The tour will be a few months, at the least,” Blake says, tilting an itinerary in Zayn’s direction. “It’s mostly for show, but there’s business to take care of in terms of nautical routes and policies, etc."“I’ll sign anything,” Zayn grumbles, back to his us
FallonThere is no point in bracing myself. Aunt Sarah grabs me and pulls me against her chest, cursing first, then mumbling a rushed prayer while tangling her fingers in my hair. The familial compound on Maatua looks and smells the way it always does. Nothing has changed. Not a single picture is out of place. But everything feels different now. Tense and strained. It’s, most definitely, my fault. “Is my mom going to kill me?” I murmur against her collarbone. “She’s made threats, yes,” Sarah doesn’t let me go for a long time. So long, in fact, that I start to wonder if she’s embracing me this way because she’s forgotten she’s doing it. I untangle myself, leaning back enough to track her eyes. She’s staring at the old man in the doorway. “This is Magnus, my father-in-law,” I say as I step away from her.She lets out a sigh of relief when it’s clear I know him, and a threat didn’t follow me through the aether when I spirited here only moments ago with no suitcases in sight, bruised
FallonThe Grand Wizard covers his head, but the damage is done. The rafters splinter under the falling weight of tons of ancient stone. I throw up my shields and fall to my knees, bracing myself as ceiling tiles shatter to the ground, exploding in sharp shards and larger chunks that slice through the throne and rows of stone benches, destroying everything. My shields barely hold. My magic flickers, threatening to burn out. The wind is unreal. I can’t see a Goddess-damned thing for what feels like an eternity. The warmth in my chest blooms into pure, unfiltered heat that makes my skin prickle in warning. The mate bond tugs sharply, like Zayn is reaching toward me through the aether, fisting my powers and keeping them from tapering to a weak finish. Someone’s screaming. It’s a bright, shrill, terrified sound. It takes several brutal seconds for me to realize it’s me. A burst of energy erupts so violently that my shields fail, and I’m thrown across what’s left of the room, which is b
SorenSomething’s off. I yank against the knots, ignoring the pain in my body. I have to give credit where credit is due, I suppose, seeing as the two women who tied me up did a fine job of it. I hear a door close and water running, then make my move. Maeve thinks she has the upper hand because sh
BrieAt first, I feel nothing but his mouth on mine. He inhales, but otherwise, is still as stone. The tension between us is so thick I could drown in it, and I wouldn’t bother saving myself by coming up for air.I pull away just a touch–just enough t
MistyI sink to the edge of the bathtub and test the water, steam rising in ribbons that dance around my wrists. The lavender and honey scented soap wafts through the air, which is still and dark, mingling with the comforting, candle-lit darkness all around me. Kenna and her family left three hour
Brie“He can’t be that bad, Brie,” Maeve hisses as she clutches the crook of my arm, leading us down one of the winding staircases in our castle in Veiled Valley. Sconces flare to life on their own accord, lighting our way. “Mom said he’s been dy







