Blaze POV.
The days suddenly started to fly by now that I had something to focus on. Danger had decided that she would take me under her wing and educate me. I had adapted to the nocturnal lifestyle that everyone seemed to live by fairly quickly and tended to keep pretty much the same hours as everyone else. It was currently 2AM and all of the guys were out on a mercenary job, Val was spending time with some of her friends and I was wandering around the house looking for Danger. Music and a soft voice caught my attention.
“She was so adored by everyone, When it came to looks she was next to none, But loved partying and having too much fun, Then she hooked up with the wrong someone, And he promised everything under the sun.” I headed in the direction that the voice was coming from, finding myself in Zacky’s bedroom. Danger was halfway up a ladder, painting. She was softly singing along to the music that she had playing in the background. I paused in the doorway, unsure whether or not to disturb her, she seemed so concentrated.
“Are you going to come in or are you going to dither in the doorway?” She asked, in her soft melodious voice. I was so surprised that I practically jumped into the room. A soft smile graced her lips, although her concentration never wavered. She only glanced up as she set the small pot of paint that she was using down and washed her paintbrush. “How can I help you?” She asked, nodding at the heavy, leather-bound tome that was tucked under my arm. The book had been given to me by Danger in order to help me understand the world that I had been hurtled into. It was, essentially, an A-Z of the Otherworld and the creatures that walked within it. Well, okay, it was a bit more complex and in-depth than that, but that was how I internally referred to it.
“I was actually just wondering if I could sit and study this with someone around to answer any questions that I think of. But you’re busy, I can find somewhere else. It’s fine.” Danger waved her hand at me.
“Nonsense, take a seat. I like having company anyway.” She gestured at the armchair by the large, arched windows. I often wondered why the guys had bought a house with such a large amount of glass when they couldn’t enjoy the views out of them during the daylight hours. I asked Danger as I sat down.
“The boys loved the house from the moment that they first saw it. It’s perfect for our business, remote and easily defendable, as well as being beautiful. It wouldn’t be a house without windows, just a box. Anyway, the views can be just a beautiful at night. You’ll see that when you come through the Change.” We both lapsed into silence as I thought about Danger’s words and as I began to read and Danger was absorbed once more by her painting. I kept glancing at her as I read, the work of art that she was creating really captivating me. The walls of the room had been painted a plain white but Danger was painting a Japanese style blossoming cherry tree mural in black and grey with hints of purple. It was breath-taking, and she had only done about a third of the wall. We both worked and read in a companionable silence that was only broken when Danger occasionally began to hum or sing. A sentence made me pause and think deeply for a moment. The gift of Illusion is a gift that all of the Fae share. However the Gwragen are widely known as the masters of this gift. I frowned, what did I recognise about that particular sentence? Trying to remember, I flipped through the book until I found the section on types Fae. I quickly scanned through until I found Gwragen. Something about the name was ringing a bell somewhere in my mind. Still wondering, I began to read. As with most Fae, Gwragen are Gaelic in origin. In appearance, Gwragen typically appear to be short in stature, with rather sharp features and long, curved ears. To those unaware of their true nature, the Gwragen can appear to be non-threatening. However, despite their non-threatening appearance, Gwragen are extraordinarily skilled illusionists and this is what makes them exceptionally dangerous. I looked up. That was it! I glanced at Danger. It was a Gwragen that had kidnapped Danger when she was a kid. I studied Danger in silence. Since the night that she’d had the vision, Danger hadn’t mentioned anything about her capture and imprisonment. I wondered if it had changed her, how it had affected her, why her family hadn’t rescued her, what had happened between her and her mother, how she’d escaped, how she’d met Zacky and the others. As I thought, I realised that what I knew about my mentor could be summed up in just a few sentences. She was half Fae, half Werewolf. She would be my Alpha when I finally went through the Were-change. She had spent ten years of her childhood imprisoned by a Gwragen. She can see the future, although she can’t control it. Even though she’s half Fae, she’s still got very strong magic. She’s extremely dangerous. She helps other Changelings learn to survive in Faerie. She’s Zacky’s Soul Mate. I was so deep in thought that I didn’t realise that she was watching me.
“What’s going through your mind Little Wolf?” She’d taken to calling me that recently. Unfortunately, it had caught on with the others – especially Jimmy – and now it had become a nickname.
“What happened to you when that Gwragen took you prisoner?” The words were out of my mouth before I could stop them. Instantly I clapped a hand over my mouth in shock. Danger froze, completely tense. Neither of us moved, until slowly Danger began to visibly relax.
“Nothing much, he kept me imprisoned in one of the cells in his dungeon.” She smiled softly. “It wasn’t that bad really. He didn’t treat me like a prisoner, more like a guest. I was never bored. I always had books to read when I was younger. I painted a lot as I got older and the time that I wasn’t painting, I used to teach myself to fight. He mostly left me alone, while he waited for my mother to come and try to free me, as he wanted her to. Occasionally he would use me as a ‘decoration’ at whatever formal event he was hosting, by placing a glamour on me so that only he or my mother, should she deign to show up, could see me as me, the rest of the guests would see some rare or exotic animal.” Danger shrugged. “But that rarely happened. That was my life until I met Zacky.” She smiled again and resumed her painting.
“How did you meet Zacky? I mean, you were a prisoner. Did he see through the glamour?” A soft laugh came from the doorway. I looked up with a start to see Zacky, leaning in the doorway. Danger had started painting again, so she had obviously heard him coming or at least known that he was there before he spoke.
“I wish that I had. As it was I didn’t know that he had even had a prisoner until I met her.” Danger paused in her painting to give Zacky a long suffering smile.
“How many times must I tell you not to blame yourself? You couldn’t have known that he held me. The only people that knew were him, the Hob’s that worked for him and my mother.” Zacky shrugged and walked over to me, perching on the arm of my chair. I moved over slightly so that he would have a bit more room. With a long-suffering sigh Danger returned to her painting. Zacky smiled at her before returning his attention to me.
“So you want know how me and Danger met?” I nodded wordlessly. “It was about six years ago. We’d just started our mercenary business and we’d just been given our first big contract. We’d been hired to return a list of valuables to their original owner after they had been stolen by a Gwragen.” I raised my eyebrows but said nothing. “We planned it so that we would raid his manor in Faery whilst he was in the human world on business.” This time, I did interrupt.
“But can’t only those with Fae blood get into Faerie?” Zacky nodded.
“Yes, but it was a Fae who hired us and part of the contract was that they had to arrange both our entrance and exit into Faerie.” I nodded, now it made sense. “We were making our way through the dungeons as we searched for the vaults that he kept scattered throughout the place. Johnny stopped us outside one of the cells. Johnny is sensitive to magic, he can tell when someone has cast a spell or a spell has been triggered, it’s just another thing that makes him odd. The cell that he stopped us outside, he told us had been heavily guarded with magic. We all thought that it was another vault that he had disguised as a cell.” He paused and snorted. “The Gwragen was short-sighted. Spells only act as they are directed to, and he only directed his spells to ward against other Fae. It was a simple matter for us to pick the locks.” He smiled broadly. “Of course we didn’t find exactly what we were looking for. I think that it’s fair to say that all of us were shocked when the door swung open to reveal Danger sat at an easel painting. Even more so when she smiled and told us that it was ‘about time’. As it turned out, she’d had a vision three years of earlier of a group of five strange men rescuing her.” I smiled.
“When did you realise that you were Soul Mates?” I asked curiously.
“As soon as I saw her. It’s an instant thing. You just know.” He paused and shook his head. “I can’t describe it, but you’ll know it.” I smiled and let Zacky and Danger begin talking about the job that Zacky had just done. I was lost in my own thoughts, wondering how I would meet my Soul Mate. And indeed, if I would meet him.