"Starving, actually."
I prepared a simple meal: dried meat, bread I'd traded for at the border markets, and berries that grew in abundance around the valley. She ate eagerly, sitting cross-legged by the fire pit.
"Your people really don't like me being here, do they?" she asked between bites.
"They're cautious of outsiders."
"They think I'll hurt you somehow?"
"They think you'll change things."
She considered this, chewing slowly. "Will I?"
"You already have."
The shadows around her feet shifted again, coiling like living things. I wasn't controlling them, which meant...
My thoughts scattered as a presence entered the cave, ancient and powerful. Umbra, eldest of our tribe, her shadow form more fluid than solid. She materialized fully at the entrance, her eyes fixed on Aya.
The human woman froze mid-bite, sensing the weight of authority that Umbra carried.
"Elder Umbra," I stood immediately. "I intended to bring her to council tomorrow."
"And yet you brought her to our valley today." Umbra's voice was like stone grinding against stone. "I would speak with you, Varkolak. Alone."
I glanced at Aya, who nodded slightly. "I'll be right back."
Outside, Umbra led me to a secluded outcropping overlooking the valley. The moon cast enough light to illuminate her displeasure.
"You've overstepped, bringing a human directly to our sanctuary."
"She's my genetic match. Where else would I bring her?"
"The border dwelling would have been sufficient until she was properly tested."
I crossed my arms. "Tested?"
"You know our laws. No outsider dwells among us without proving their worth and loyalty."
"She's not just any outsider. She's my mate."
"Potential mate," Umbra corrected. "The claiming isn't complete."
Heat rushed through me at the reminder. "What tests do you have in mind?"
"Three trials. Strength, wisdom, and loyalty." Umbra's form rippled. "If she fails, she returns to her colony with no memory of us."
The thought of Aya forgetting me, forgetting this connection between us, sent a surge of something fierce and protective through my chest.
"Absolutely not."
Umbra studied me, her ancient eyes seeing too much. "You're already attached. Dangerous."
"She's mine to protect."
"Is that what you're doing? Or are you endangering us all for a genetic match that might not even take?"
I had no answer that would satisfy her.
