Summoner 20, p.22
Summoner 20, page 22
“Ah, so that’s Freya’s sister,” Erin whispered to Cyra. “I can see beauty runs in the family.
Though it’d only been over a year since we’d last seen Freya’s family, her younger sister’s appearance had matured. Vahla was still petite in frame, but her dark red hair flowed down to her waist, and her face had lost its childish roundness. If she were taller and blonde, the girl could have easily been Freya’s twin.
“I’ve missed you, too, Freya,” Vahla replied in the language of the clans. “It’s been too long and incredibly boring around here since you left.”
“I’m sorry,” Freya apologized as she continued to cling to the younger shapeshifter. “The past year has been so crazy. I did not mean to leave for so long.”
“This is just a visit?” the younger hawk shifter asked sadly, and the corners of her mouth tilted downward. “Oh.”
“I live in Mistral now,” Freya reminded her sister gently. “My husband, my sister-wives, and I all have a wonderful home there.”
“You have a wonderful home here, too,” Vahla contradicted her, and her emerald-green eyes lost a bit of their shine.
I felt a pang of sadness in my heart as I studied my sister-in-law, but Vahla took a deep breath and regained her composure.
“I’m here now,” Freya insisted as she wrapped her arms around her sister even tighter. “I know it is not a permanent return, but we’ll have plenty of time to talk.”
Vahla considered her sister’s words for a moment and then nodded. “Okay. You are right. We will have fun together, no matter the length of your stay.”
“We’ll be here for the next week,” I informed Freya’s sister, and then I quickly shifted my attention to Fenrir and Ratreya. “If that’s alright with you, at least. I don’t want to take advantage of your hospitality.”
“You’re welcome to stay with us for as long as you wish,” Fenrir replied.
“Yay!” Vahla exclaimed, and the russet-haired shifter finally broke into a large smile. The hawk-sisters finally ended their embrace, and then Vahla noticed the bundle in my arms.
“Freya?” Vahla asked quietly as her eyes grew larger. “Is that… is that child yours?”
“Yes.” Freya nodded at her sister happily. “This is Lahrra.”
“You had a baby!” Vahla squeaked, and then she looked between us. “Congratulations to you both! I cannot believe I am an aunt! Oh, this is so wonderful!”
“Thank you, Vahla.” I smiled at my sister-in-law.
The shifter immediately rushed over to our daughter, and to her delight, Lahrra began to excitedly wiggle around in my arms to get a better look at her aunt.
“She is so precious,” Vahla gushed, and Freya’s younger sister melted at the sight of her niece. “Such beautiful and golden features. She looks as if she was born of sunlight.”
“She was,” Freya replied to the redhead with a smile. “She was born on one of the sunniest mornings I’ve ever seen. When her lovely eyes opened, I swore she held the sun’s rays within her. That was the initial reason she was named for Lahrra the Golden.”
“She is perfect,” Vahla sighed, and she skimmed her fingertips across Lahrra’s pale cheek. “Oh, I am so jealous of you, my sister.”
My daughter let out a tiny laugh, and Freya’s sister squealed in delight. Much like my warrior wife, Vahla was usually composed and stoic, but it was damn near impossible to remain stoic when such an adorable child was involved.
“Your time will come one day,” Freya assured Vahla. “Don’t sacrifice your youth too soon.”
“I’m not a child,” Vahla pointed out with a raised eyebrow. “I have almost reached my eighteenth year.”
“You still maintain your maidenhood, do you not?” my blonde wife shot back, and Vahla’s cheeks flushed red.
I looked away quickly so the younger shapeshifter didn’t involve me in this conversation.
“Freya, Vahla, that is enough,” Ratreya chastised her daughters, and then the hawk woman offered me an apologetic glance. “I am sorry for my children’s squabbles, Gryff. You have this to look forward to when your fledglings have grown. No matter how close they are, bickering is unavoidable.”
“It’s okay,” I assured her. “I don’t have any siblings myself, but I have quite a few friends I consider to be my brothers, and I’m used to their squabbles.”
I felt a tap on my shoulder and turned around to see Cyra behind me.
“Is everything alright?” Cyra asked me quietly. “There’s quite a bit of dialogue happening, and Erin and I are a little lost.”
Erin and Cyra had hung back again, and I was worried they were feeling left out of this interaction. I wished there was some way I could lend them the gift of translation so they could speak with the hawk shapeshifters. It would certainly make things so much easier if we could all communicate in the same language.
“Everything is fine,” I replied to my dark-haired wife. “Just normal sibling talk.”
“I recognize a few words here and there from Freya saying them back at home, but not enough,” Erin said. “Maybe I can get Freya to teach me some common phrases.”
“I think that’s an excellent idea,” I agreed with the mimic.
As Vahla and Freya continued to talk to each other in hushed tones, I noticed the number of bystanders had increased. Hawk shifters in every form started to hover near us, and Freya halted her conversation with Vahla and offered her people a kind and polite smile.
When it came to her fellow clansmen, my blonde wife tended to keep her emotions and expressions as guarded as possible, but she seemed to be making an effort to change that.
Fenrir also took notice of his people gathering near us, and the imposing hawk leader raised his chin and cleared his throat before he addressed the crowd around us.
“Our beloved Freya has returned to Hawk Clan for a visit,” Chief Fenrir’s voice rang out through the hollow mountain. “Tonight, we shall throw a feast in honor of our daughter, her husband, and our granddaughter! All of Hawk Clan will gather to praise and welcome the golden-eyed Lahrra to our family.”
Once the chief concluded his proclamation, the hawk shapeshifters let out collective hoops and hollers of excitement. I looked down at my daughter to see how she was responding to the sudden noise, but Lahrra appeared thrilled by all of the commotion. Her golden eyes were wide with awe and wonder, and her soft lips were pulled up into a gummy smile.
“You’re too kind to us, Chief Fenrir,” I thanked my father-in-law once the cheers had settled down.
“You are my family now, Gryff,” Fenrir reminded me. “The occasion of my granddaughter’s birth deserves a celebration befitting of royalty.”
“While we attend to the preparations, Vahla will take you to your room,” Ratreya announced to us. “I am sure you are exhausted from your long journey, so we will make sure you have a place to sleep or freshen up before the evening’s festivities.”
“Thank you, Mother,” Freya replied to her. “Though I’m sure I could handle bringing my family to our room--”
“I want to bring you there myself,” Vahla interrupted her sister, and her emerald-green eyes flashed with intensity. “And besides, the chamber mother speaks of is not one you’re familiar with. Its construction began soon after you departed Eyrie Island, so you haven’t seen it before.”
“You created a chamber just for us?” Freya asked Ratreya, and the older hawk woman nodded in response.
“We did not know when you would return to us, and we wanted to be prepared,” Ratreya revealed. “You will find a number of beds for both you and your children.”
“Enough for all six of us?” I clarified with a raised eyebrow.
“Yes,” Vahla confirmed for her mother. “We did not know how many children Freya would one day return with, so we had a number of infant beds made just in case.”
“You make it sound as if I were some kind of brood mare.” Freya narrowed her eyes at the russet-haired hawk girl.
“What Vahla means is we knew that with so many women, your husband would likely sire more than one child,” Ratreya chimed in, and Freya’s face relaxed significantly.
“That is a fair enough point,” she murmured, and a deep pink blush spread across her pale cheeks.
“We shall come grab you this evening,” Ratreya announced to the group. “Should you need anything before then, we will be around.”
“Don’t hesitate to ask for anything,” Fenrir added. “Our home is your home, and we want you to have as comfortable of a stay as possible.”
We thanked the hawk chief and queen once more, and then Vahla leapt into action and led us across one of the many bridges to our chamber.
My women and I took our time to carefully traverse the bridge, but we managed to cross the length of it with little issue. Thankfully, it appeared Vahla was leading us to a room on the first level, so there wouldn’t be too much bridge crossing in our futures. Hawk Clan wasn’t exactly suited for those without wings, and especially not human babies, but it seemed like Ratreya had taken our lack of bird features into consideration when she’d had the room arranged for us.
We made our way down a carved corridor, and then Vahla suddenly stopped in front of a doorway.
“This is it.” Vahla waved her arm in the doorway theatrically.
My women and I all shared glances with one another, and then I decided I would take the lead and enter the chamber first.
When I crossed the threshold, my jaw dropped slightly. The living quarters were even more spacious than they appeared on the outside and featured four separate rooms. One was a large bathroom, another was a kitchen, and the other two appeared to be bedrooms. The larger of the two housed an enormous bed big enough to hold several bodies, and the room just beside it held four children’s cribs. Freya’s parents had taken the time to make the space comfortable and relaxing, and I was impressed by the amount of care put into the chamber.
“Wow.” I whistled. “This is amazing.”
“That bed looks so comfortable,” Cyra sighed. Her dark-brown eyes admired the thick comforter, and I knew that if she weren’t holding our son in her arms, she would have dove right into it.
Vahla tilted her head in a bird-like way and studied my Mistral lovers with inquisitive eyes.
“Gryff, what did they say?” the younger hawk shifter asked. “Do they like the room?”
“They do like it,” I assured her. “They were just saying how comfortable the bed looks.”
“Oh, good,” Vahla replied, and the corners of her lips turned up into a smile. “The comforter on your bed was handwoven, and it’s filled with stray hawk feathers and down. Don’t give me that look, Freya, they’ve been cleaned, I promise. The bed should give you a comfortable rest… and it should work just as well for… other activities.”
“Vahla!” Freya shrieked, and her younger sister flashed her an impish grin.
“Lighten up, sister,” the hawk girl giggled. “It’s not as if you’re a stranger to--”
“That’s enough, Vahla,” my shapeshifting wife interrupted her sister before she could finish. “Please halt your words before I cut out your tongue.”
“I don’t even want to know.” Erin shook her head at the pair of women.
“Fine,” Vahla chuckled, and she still wore a grin on her face as she pointed a long-nailed finger toward the kitchen. “You used to have a sense of humor, my beloved sister. Anyways, you’ll find the kitchen is stocked with food, but I can arrange for more if necessary. Most of the supplies in the pantry are ones that would not go bad, but if you require fresher meats, it can be arranged.”
“I think we’ll be just fine with what’s been provided,” I insisted. “But thank you, Vahla.”
“You are welcome.” The younger hawk shifter nodded her head at me. “Everything else should be well-stocked, but if there’s anything you need, let us know. For now, I will leave you to your rest, but I’ll find you this evening for the feast.”
“We will see you soon, then,” I said as I nodded back, and my women seemed to sense the younger shifter was leaving without me having to translate.
“Thanks, Vahla,” Cyra and Erin said to the younger hawk woman in unison, and the pair cracked up at one another.
Vahla smiled at them, and then after she and Freya shared a brief hug, she departed the room.
Once Freya’s little sister was gone, the three of us explored our lodgings more, and I was surprised by the amount of care and detail Hawk Clan had put into this chamber. Everything from the woven rugs, the piles of pillows, the wood-burning fireplace, the number of baby beds, and the broad table with enough seats for all of us showed that my in-laws really cared about our comfort, and their hospitality was not lost on me. Should they ever visit Mistral, I would be sure to show them the same courtesy.
Cyra and Erin wasted no time and set the babies up in two of the cribs. Lahrra’s eyelids were struggling to stay open, so I decided to follow suit and set her in the one beside Milo.
“That was awfully kind of them to arrange this chamber for us,” Erin gushed as she tucked Olivir in. “Especially since we just sort of dropped in unexpectedly.”
“Incredibly kind,” Cyra agreed. “I’m really glad we all took this trip. I’m definitely a lot more excited now than I was before. Thanks for inviting us to come along, Freya.”
“I am glad you are all happy to be here,” the warrior princess replied as she ran her hand through her tangled blonde waves. “It is so wonderful to have you all here, and I know we will have a pleasant stay.”
We all settled into silence after that, and I could tell everyone was worn out.
“Are any of you hungry?” I wondered as I glanced at the kitchen. I wasn’t particularly hungry, but I wanted to make sure my women were taken care of.
“Honestly, I’m mostly just tired,” Erin admitted. “That trip was long, and after all of the flying, I’m not feeling my best.”
“That’s entirely understandable,” I assured her, and I inclined my head toward the bedroom. “You should go ahead and get some sleep. It sounds like we’re going to have a long evening, and I want you to be able to enjoy yourself.”
“I think Erin has the right idea,” Cyra chimed in. “I know I don’t have as much room to complain, but after constructing the landing pad, a good nap sounds pleasant.”
“Shall we all try to get some rest, then?” I asked around the room.
Erin and Cyra nodded vigorously, but Freya seemed reluctant.
“If it’s alright, I think I would like to find my mother,” the warrior princess said, and her gold-flecked brown eyes fell to the chamber entrance. “Perhaps stretch my wings a bit? I haven’t shifted for quite a while, and spreading my wings around my homeland sounds pleasant after being away for so long.”
“I think that’s a great idea,” I agreed with her. “Go enjoy yourself, we’ll be right here when you return.”
“Thank you, Gryff,” Freya smiled at me, and without further prompting, she closed her eyes and stretched out her arms. Then her figure blurred and changed until she was in her hawk form. My wife looked exactly like a normal hawk, only on a much larger scale, and I felt a swell of amazement as I admired her impressive wingspan. The magic the shapeshifters possessed was fascinating to me, and watching Freya shapeshift was easily one of my favorite things to witness.
My hawk wife gave us a wink and then took off through the chamber door.
“I’m glad she’s so happy to be home,” Cyra assessed in a pleased tone.
“Me, too,” I agreed with her.
“I’m happy to see this bed,” Erin sighed dreamily as she moved past us and stared at the bed like it was the most beautiful thing she’d ever seen in her life. “I’m about to sleep so hard.”
“Should one of us stay awake to watch the children?” I wondered before I crossed through the doorway.
“I’m a light sleeper,” Cyra replied. “If the kids make a single sound, I’ll hear it straight away, but I really don’t foresee them waking up any time soon.”
My women and I stripped down to our undergarments and piled into the bed. I situated myself on my back, and Cyra and Erin laid on either side of me with their heads on my chest. The position shouldn’t have been as comfortable as it was, but the scents of my lovers’ perfumes combined with the softness of the mattress lulled me into a daze.
When I’d suggested we all get some rest, I didn’t think I was all that tired, but as I settled into the bed, my eyelids grew increasingly heavier. A short nap would do me some good, and once I rose, I would find a snack and take the time to bathe myself.
A couple of hours passed by, and when I woke up from my nap, only Erin remained in the bed. My eyes frantically searched around for Cyra, but then I heard my curly-haired wife’s footsteps in the other room.
Erin was still fast asleep, so I carefully pulled myself away from her. She was so exhausted that she didn’t even stir, so once I was free from her embrace, I tucked her in and gently eased myself out of bed. Then I took care to close the door as quietly as possible, and when I stepped out of the room and into the general living chamber, I was greeted by two pairs of dark-brown eyes.
“Good morning, sleepyhead,” Cyra whispered as she bounced Milo in her arms.
Our adorable son flashed me a wide smile and reached his chubby little arms out to me.
“Hey, you,” I replied. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to sleep for so long.”
“Don’t even worry about it.” Cyra waved her free hand in the air. “Milo and I have just been spending some quality time together. Is Erin still--”
“Yeah,” I said, and Cyra nodded her head knowingly. Then we sat in silence for a while and played with Milo, who managed to stay quiet as well.
As much as I enjoyed the various sounds of Hawk Clan, it was nice to have this quiet time for ourselves, and I relished the sweet silence.
Erin joined us a little while later, and soon after that, Freya returned to the chamber. The warrior princess’ wild blonde mane was even more tangled than usual, and her golden-brown eyes were brighter than I’d seen them in a long time. There was a lovely flush of rose across her face, which made her porcelain skin glow, and happiness practically radiated off her.
