“What in all the realm has happened?” Audric shouted.
“No,” Blaise held a furry arm up to inspect it. “No, not again.”
“I cannot go back to being a monster,” Lance lamented.
“Do you think that I'm monstrous?” I asked Lance.
He flinched and then blinked. “No, of course not.”
“Look at me, all of you,” I said firmly. The brothers stared at my sleek, werewolf body. “What do you see?”
“You're beautiful, Sylvie,” Blaise said. “In any form, I see you, and I love you.”
“And that's how I feel about all of you.” I nodded. “But I also love myself, in all of my shapes. You need to love yourselves too.”
“Love ourselves?” Audric asked. “How can I love this?”
“I've tried to tell you.” I sighed. “You all are magnificent in these forms. There is power and nobility in your beasts. Accept them as part of you, and maybe they will accept your human side too.”
“Accept them,” Lance looked over his massive body. “Yes, you're right, Sylvie. I lived in this form for years and hated it the entire time. I need to change that. Hating yourself can only lead to pain.”
Lance took a long, deep breath and closed his eyes; just accepting. As he did, his body shifted back to human. The other men gasped, but I smiled, my suspicions confirmed.
“It worked!” Lance said when he opened his eyes. Then he saw my face. “You knew it would!”
“I suspected,” I admitted.
“You mean, we can shift back?” Blaise asked.
“Accept who you are, Blaise.” I closed my eyes and serenely called my human body back to me. I transformed easily into a woman. “Love who you are; every aspect.”
“I do.” Blaise smiled and closed his eyes.
He changed back into his beautiful human body. Audric immediately closed his eyes and concentrated, but nothing happened. He growled in frustration, and I eased over to him. I slid my arms around him and nuzzled my cheek to his.
“You're the most striking bisclavret I've ever seen,” I whispered in his ear. “Your fur is as black as the midnight sky and your eyes are like thunderclouds.”
Audric shivered against me and shifted back into his human form. He opened his stormy eyes and stared at me in relief.
“Bisclavret?” Blaise asked. “What's a bisclavret?”
“I am a loup garou–a werewolf,” I said gently. “My family can trace its lineage back to the bisclavrets; the originals. But we have evolved into something more wolf-like over the years. It was necessary for our survival. You three are bisclavrets; a mix of several beasts and man. Bisclavrets are the ultimate warrior, meant to rule all races. That witch who cursed you actually did you a kindness.”
“She changed us into royal werewolves?” Blaise asked.
“Something like that,” I agreed.
“Are you saying that we could have shifted back to human at any time?” Lance asked.
“I'm not sure.” I shook my head. “The curse seemed to have layers to it, but I don't think it was ever intended to free you fully. You needed to learn to be good rulers; to love your people and yourselves, but the witch also wanted to punish you, and give you an obstacle to surmount. So, she turned you into bisclavrets; beasts whose very nature drives them to rule and love, but who also love so fiercely that they mate for life. You had to embrace the bisclavret while you fought against its instinct to possess its mate completely.”
“Tricky witch,” Lance huffed.
“Tricky and very wise,” I said. “I'd like to shake that woman's hand.”
“So would I,” Audric whispered. “I feel fantastic. From just that one shift, my body feels more powerful.”
“Loup garous and bisclavrets heal with every transformation,” I explained. “Used regularly, the shifts can curtail the aging process. When you are a beast, time cannot touch you. I believe that it's the reason Blaise was able to come back from death; he was transformed just in time.”
“Hold on,” Blaise said. “That sounds like immortality.”
“It's very close.” I smiled. “We can live extremely long lives if we choose to.”
“If?” Lance lifted a brow. “Who wouldn't choose to live forever?”
“Forever can grow tedious.” I shrugged. “Let's just take it day by day, my beastly princes.”
I leaned forward and they caught me, surrounding me with a love that may just be strong enough to last us an eternity.
