Page 78 of Sidhe
“He wouldn’t have been able to do that,” Sasha said right away. “Puck can create things out of nothing sometimes, sure, but there are still rules. He can’t just make someone an incubus. Only initiation can do that.”
“And since we’re on this line of thought,” Nathan added, “why not leave me alone and just make you human? He could have done that. Human is like…neutral, just a depowering kinda thing, right? I mean, it’s not like I carewhatwe are, as long as we’re together. I’m just saying.”
Nathan stared into Sasha’s blue eyes, sparkling in such a new way now that he was human, then turned to look at Jim. Neither of them showed signs of recognition, but Nathan understood; he knew the true power of this gift.
“It had to be a full switch, because making me an incubus means I’m not human. And ifI’mnot human,” Nathan smiled so wide his cheeks hurt, “then Malak can’t have me.”
Those simple words fell upon Jim and Sasha like drops of rain, washing away little by little their confusion as they came to understand just as Nathan had what this really meant.
“I take back every bad thing I ever said about the bastard,” Nathan laughed in regards to Puck. He scooted closer to Sasha, hoping he had the pheromones under control, at least enough so he could kiss Sasha’s lips once more, if only briefly. “What do you need, baby?” he asked in a hushed voice. “Do you need anything? Hungry, sore, tired? Tell me something I can do for you.”
“Nathan,” Sasha laughed in kind, just as deliriously happy as Nathan was. Even Jim in the background shook his head at them, smiling. “I’m not your pregnant wife. You don’t need to coddle me. This is just…different. It isn’t bad. Even feeling a little sore and tired isn’t bad. It’s actually kind of…peaceful. I’m so used to the throng of everyone’s emotions hitting me from all sides, being able to justfeelso much. It’s quiet being human.” He said that with adoration, with reverence, and then turned, smiling, and tipped his feet off the bed so he could get up, apparently done letting Nathan do his Florence Nightingale impression.
Nathan got off the bed after Sasha. “Peaceful, huh? Coz feeling likethis?” He closed his eyes and drank in what he could feel all around him, beneath him, everywhere in the Gatehouse. He couldn’t pinpoint where Alex, Walter, and Wally were or what they were doing, but he couldfeelall of them.
Then Nathan felt the absence of Iain like a blow, the simmering grief that everyone was radiating beneath the surface, especially Walter, who Nathan knew blamed himself fornot being able to intervene. For a moment the flood of emotion was too much.
A hand on Nathan’s face alerted him back to where he was, to the joy and love he could feel from Sasha and the support he felt from Jim. It was surreal; he hadn’t ever expected to enjoy being an incubus so much, but he liked the sensation of feeling everyone around him, even if the ache from losing Iain felt five times as deep.
He pushed his face into Sasha’s hand, his eyes opening so he could gaze at that beautiful face. It hadn’t lost even the smallest bit of its radiance now that Sasha was human. Part of Nathan missed the red hair, but the black was striking too. Nathan couldn’t help leaning into Sasha’s body to steal another kiss. It was as if every fiber, every cell in his body called to Sasha.
“How do you ever keep your hands off me, feeling like this?” Nathan grinned around their lip-lock, keeping it simple, sweet, only fleetingly touching tongues as they kissed, and kissed again.
Sasha laughed a puff of warm air against Nathan’s mouth. “Me? What about you? Do I really make you feel like this, Nate? So…wonderfully dizzy?”
“Every damn day.”
Another laugh and puff of air. “Even with the pheromones settled down I…I feel like my skin’s onfire,” Sasha gasped.
“I can…go,” entered Jim’s awkward interruption.
“Sorry, Jim,” Nathan said, looking past Sasha at where his brother was still leaning against the wall, all bemused and blushing.
“Come on, you two,” Jim chuckled as he pushed from the wall. “As much as I’d be fine with leaving and locking the door behind me, I think we all know that wouldn’t be such a great idea. Besides, we need to fill the others in, and I’m still not convinced this is completely…good. Something doesn’t sit right with me about it.” He frowned as he moved for the door.
“What’s up, Jim?” Nathan called after his brother, detaching from Sasha finally. “I thought you said you were happy for us. Thought you agreed this is pretty frickin’ awesome, coz, hey, Malak not being able to wear my meatsuit around can’t be anything but good, right?”
“It’s not that I don’t think you deserve this, Nathan,” Jim said to the door, not turning back to look at him, “and part of me wants to believe that you’re right, that Malak can’t touch you like this and it will all work out in our favor. But then I think of who gave you this gift,” he said, glancing back over his shoulder and looking pensive all ways this side of Sunday, “and I have to wonder: when has Puck ever given someone something for free?”
Nathan felt a chill cling to the base of his spine. He mustered a grin. “Hey…don’t think too hard about it. You know what they say: quickest way to end a miracle is to ask it why it is or what it wants.”
“I know, Nate,” Jim said with a somber smile, “I do. And believe me…I really hope I’m wrong.”
Chapter 28
Asitturnedout,Shiarra was still indisposed taking care of the young incubus, Adrian. Of course as soon as the situation was explained to her, she promised to join them as quickly as she could. This meant they had to contact the Sex Squad, as Nathan had dubbed Sasha’s childhood friends, and it was obvious who out of the five Nathan felt most comfortable calling on.
The twins agreed to hit the road immediately and would arrive later that day.
It was when Jim first led them downstairs to where the others were waiting that Nathan really felt how different he and Sasha were now, at least if the gaping stares were any indication. They had already seen Sasha and Nathan changed when Puck snapped his fingers and left them unconscious; what was the big deal?
Of course it was different to see their eyes, Nathan figured—his glowing green, Sasha’s a slightly duller human blue—as wellas their changed presence as they walked, existing as something completely different than they had been an hour ago.
“This doesn’t change anything,” Nathan said. “We start recruiting like we’re supposed to, get as many people here as we can who’ll fight—fae, friendly seals, anyone. The only thing that’s different is that now Malak can’t hold anything over me. He doesn’t own any part of Sasha or me, not with us like this. Al,” he turned to the owner of the Gatehouse, “what do you think our odds are of getting the seals that pass through here to join us?”
“That really depends,” she said. “There are plenty of seals that stick to their own path, only hunting what they deem dangerous. But just the same, there are more than enough I can think of that’d fight whatever you set in front of them. I think it goes without saying that we should not let it slip to any seals that join us that we have non-human helpers. Not right away. Where are we going to start on the fae side of things?” she asked with a curious raise of her brow.
“I’m sure we can call on Ula in Maine,” Sasha said. “Even a sweet, mousy shapeshifter is stronger than the average person, and she’s been spreading the word for us already, gathering intel and support.”
