Chapter 1
My last class was finally done for the day and my stomach could not decide if my liver or kidney would be better to eat. The bungalow we owned was located up hill from the small college.
This little college town sat snuggly at the base of a mountain with the old neighborhoods rising up the mountain side. The community could be Mayberry. We all knew each other and looked out for people. Everyone cared about each other. There were three shifters beside my brother in our area. The college could be called a shifter college. Well, not publicly. The school could be said to have half shifters and half humans. So parties, when they happened were wild. Normal days it was a calm place to be.
Ninety percent of humans think they lived alone in this world. The other ten percent are like me. People like me, somehow have a connection to a shifter. I have been raised in a dragon clan for over a century.
Our college though could be called eclectic. We had shifters from all types. Even vampires but they keep to themselves.
The ride up the hillside normal was a good workout. Add the fact of my hunger, and today, it was all I could do to keep going. Should have eaten breakfast, I thought.
Finally, I had made it to the last corner in our neighborhood. The cute girl humans living across the road waved as I pulled into the driveway of the old 1950s house that I shared with my brother. We had remodeled it into a great home for two college kids.
Behind the house, the dense forest backed up to our backyard. The yard’s privacy and size sold us when we looked at the house. When your brother needs to become a fifteen foot dragon and fly out of here without the neighbors seeing a privacy fence is not quite tall enough.
The tension feeling started in my stomach and worked up my spine as I turned off the road and into the driveway. My first memories were of feeling other people’s feelings from far away. The special sense made Josh’s Grams notice me and bring me into the family.
A hundred years ago, when Josh and I were young children. I played in the creek in Indian Territory. My parents were sod farmers. Dad immigrated from Ireland. He always said he found an Indian princess and had to marry her. Mom was from a local small tribe. The town did not accept our family and called us half breeds and other hateful names. The other kids were not allowed to play with my brothers and me.
The Engone family treated us differently. They were rich, kind, and helpful. We were allowed to go to school with their kids. They had a small school down the road that the town people made fun of. The school had nice books and charts. My parents appreciated that we were allowed to learn and the Engones did not ask us to pay for anything.
After school we all played in the creeks together; making swings, chasing each other, climbing trees. One day Josh and I were playing alone. He became angry about something. I do not remember what and I tried to pushed a calmness mist over him. I was not very good at trying to overly emotions and soften their feelings back then. He morphed before my eyes into an emerald dragon. I ran home and hid under my bed. Mom coaxed me out and I kept telling her about Josh becoming a dragon. At first she thought it was a kids overactive imagination. She made me go with her to Grams’ house to prove I was wrong. Well that day, I learned that dragons were real. When Grams found out what I could do. Mon did not act too surprised. Grams talked my Mom into allowing me to become a part of their clan. Since Mom had already seen my gifts and worried about teaching me to use them, Grams offered to find me special teachers.
Grams explained my gift had a name, path kinesis. Anyone within my view could be emotionally altered. It felt like a little wave being pushed toward the person. After practice and training with Grams, I learned to lay a fog or mist in a room. The whole room would calm or become excited. I can only push one emotion at a time. So the whole room became happy or ready for a brawl. Most people don’t even realize they are being manipulated. Grams, Pa, my “parents” and Josh can tell only from years of being around me. And maybe trying to manipulate them into letting me go to a party or two as a younger person.
At eight after my real mom and dad allowed me to go, I moved in with Josh and his parents. They were great parents. I could go visit my real family anytime. Josh’s parents helped me to become confident and not back down or cower from anyone. Over time I noticed that, my brothers and sister grew older, I stayed young. As my biological siblings began having families and babies, it became harder to explain me to their spouses. I only visited when my parents were alone as time went on.
When my parents died, I sat on the very back pew. At the graveside, one of my brothers stopped and hugged me. When his daughter that looked my age asked who I was, he smiled and told her that I was a friend from a lifetime ago. I cried in Josh’s arms after they left, because I lost my whole family that day.
Josh’s parents took me in, fed me, and taught me. They loved me like I was their own blood. I traveled to different countries, learned languages and history in that culture. This was not even my first college or degree. Just Megs Kriz’s first college degree as a twenty year old college student. I could not have them finding out how many degrees I really have earned. Each college has a degree for a Megs, Megan, Megon with a different last name. This time I aimed to learn “modern” psychology.
I parked my bike under the carport and walked into the back door. The sunlight filled the large open downstairs from the windows in the front of the house and down the far wall. The kitchen laid out in front of me. We had opened the downstairs up so this was one big room. The back wall had a stove and icebox. Under the window on the far wall was the sink. The whole room was light grey and the cabinets were a pop of bright orange. The middle of the room had a rough wooden table and chairs. The front of the open floor was set up as a living room with a Magnavox tv and couch and comfy chairs.
Down the wall from the back door I sat my bag on the bench. Josh stormed up and down the floor by the wall. The way he walked, I worried about the damage to the hardwood floors. Acting like I did not notice him, I walked into the kitchen. The air hung with tension but I kept the air of nothing being wrong as I washed my hands.
Josh still paced. So I started making myself a sandwich. From the bar, I could look all the way across the main living area. Which gave me a good view since Josh marched from the front door all the way to the back.
I piled a slice of homemade bread from the local bakery full of ham, cheese, lettuce, tomatoes and onion. Then put up the ingredients and took a bite. Acting as if nothing in the world could be exciting I slowly ate. Enjoying every bite of my food.
Calmly I pushed energy toward him. Praying he did not shift and take the house down as I ate slowly. After living as siblings for seventy five years, I know he can contain his dragon better than to shift in our house. I also knew, it was better to wait for him to start the conversation. When he was in this mood, it was wise to keep silent.
Taking a bite of my ham and Swiss sandwich, I watched my brother grow angrier. Josh stood six foot three with dark hair and green eyes. His muscled, tan body made most girls swoon. Today, the vein in his neck bulged and his neck muscles could be used to pluck like a banjo. As usual, he wore a black t shirt and dark western cut jeans . His cowboy boots made no sound as he paced back and forth.
Finally, he burst, “How can you eat at time like this?”
I spoke calmly and softly, “I have been in class all day and I’m starving.”
Josh slapped the letter down. “Grams have summoned us.”
“She probably found your mate. We have been gone five years, maybe it is a family dinner.” I dismissed his anger.
“She wants both of us. Does not work, if she found my mate. She would not send a letter for a dinner invite.” He blew through my attempts to calm him.
I consumed the last of my sandwich in two bites.
“Let me go and change. We can go see what she wants.” Today I wore a pair of capri pants that hugged my butt, cute heels and a cute low cut bright yellow sweater. I walked to the front of the house and turned to go up the stairs.
“Who are you trying to impress this week?” Josh asked, as he stopped to really look at me.
“A mountain lion shifter. He looked fun.”
Josh growled. “Really?”
“I can have fun too. College is about freedom and finding yourself.”
Josh rolled his eyes and walked away from the stairs. He knew I would not mate a feline shifter. He also knew I did not fear adventurous guys. Normal humans did not catch my eye. Most were too weak or scared for my taste. My ideal man stood toe to toe with me. Someone that would let me stand on my own two feet but back me when I needed. Clingy guys that hung all over their woman made me want to take a cold shower. Also he had to like my family.
I swiftly walked upstairs and changed into jeans and a shirt. Quickly I grabbed a jacket and slid my boots on. Grabbing a backpack that was always prepared to fly, I headed downstairs.
When I came down the stairs, Josh was talking on the phone with the bear shifter that was the local police. Since their unusual friendship, crime had decreased in the college town. Most shifters stayed to their kinds. For a bear and drake to become drinking bodies, could be classified as odd. Jacob let him know we would be out of town. To anyone listening in, it would sound like a friend canceling a drinking date.
We walked out into the backyard. No one could see in with the dense forest surrounding us on three sides. Josh was still muttering to himself. Laying a hand on his back, I pushed some calmness into him. He met my eyes and sighed. He knew when I had pushed energy into him from all the times I had done it growing up. His eyes thanked me. I turned away while he striped his clothes and turned into a dragon. I felt the change of human to drake.
When I turned around Josh stood very tall with a large wingspan. Horns went from nose to tail. down his spine. His emerald green hide shimmered with blue hints like fish scales in the sun. His eyes were green too. Not wanting to ever let him know, I thought he was beautiful as a dragon. He puffed smoke all around me to hurry me up.
I picked up his clothes and put them in my bag and ran over to climb on his back. I loved to fly. Not many humans got this chance.
