Page 1 of Myths and Shifts

Chapter 1

Pierce

“Are you sure we aren’t already in an alternate reality? Another planet? One of those Marvel multiverse things?” The locals were all so strange. “There are clowns everywhere.”

“I don’t know.” Frowning, Wren shrugged. “Um, they’re all kind of weird, but I’m pretty sure we haven’t gone through a portal.”

Since we were in the crazy town to figure out what was happening with the portal, I hoped we hadn’t gone through it accidentally.

But with the number of clowns I was seeing, anything was possible.

Clowns.

Not even just stupid people running around asking weird questions…they had clowns.

“They go well with all the sparkly white decorations, though.” Wren probably only liked it because he was little and loved anything sparkly, but he wasn’t exactly wrong. Reality-bending choices aside, it was beautiful…but he was just accepting the insanity at face value.

He wasn’t even questioning why some of the flowers had a verymagically manipulatedvibe to them either.

Did carnations naturally come inglitterywhite?

I’d seen any number of oddly dyed flowers at the weddings I’d been dragged to over the years, but something was off with perfectly sparkly flowers that didn’t seem to droop even when half the vases were dry.

One of the clowns had clearly been in charge of watering them.

“It’s…how did we get dragged into coming to a wedding reception again?” His sigh at my question said he knew whose fault it was.

“But everyone is so nice.” Barely pouting, Wren aimed wide eyes at me, looking very much like the bird he’d been named after. It wouldn’t work, but he liked practicing on me since he hadn’t found his mate yet. “And they said we’d get cake.”

I’d have bought him the fucking bakery if it would’ve kept me out of the strange party.

“I’m pretty sure half the room doesn’t understand why they’re here.” I wasn’t exaggerating either. Someone had already come up to me asking if I knew when the baby was due and several kept looking at the clowns like they were aliens. “This town is odd.”

And it wasn’t the mix of human and other that mingled so easily.

“I think it might be all the people from the different councils.” Wren liked to see the bright side in everything. How we were related I’d never know. “The locals seem to understand why we’re here because they’re very angry they didn’t get to go to the wedding.”

“How did you hear that?” The only thing I’d picked up was that the couple was a mixed pair and true mates. There’d also been something about bugs, but I couldn’t decide if they meant listening devices or actual insects.

And asking hadn’t gone anywhere either.

“I go to the diner more often than you do.” Wren shrugged, having happily thrown himself into the town chaos. “The gossip’s hot there, not the bakery.”

That explained why he’d picked up a passion for diner food since we’d gotten to the ridiculous town.

“The men at the bakery don’t ask me nearly as many strange questions as the ones at the diner.” I still couldn’t decide why I should tell anyone if I was Team Pony or Team Binkie.

I’d gotten the distinction more quickly than several other newbies in the diner had at that point, but it wasn’t anyone’s fucking business if I wanted a pony or a little. Unfortunately, my refusal to participate and maybe my frown at the whole ridiculousness put me in something they were describing as Team Badass.

I hadn’t asked what that meant since the men kept frowning and nodding like I was an interesting science experiment.

Pressing his lips together to keep from laughing, Wren was saved from my frustration by a hush coming over the crowd. He’d happily announced binkies were the best and then explained I was his cousin and still believed in the quaint notion of privacy.

Quaint.

He’d actually used that word.

“They’re coming. Shh.” I couldn’t place the voice but they weren’t terribly old and everyone quickly obeyed. “Quiet.”

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