Chapter Two
A Shape-Shifter Made Known
The vulture hovered six feet off the ground, his shifty eyes wavering about the clearing in the forest outside Pirate's Swoop. He finally convinced himself it was safe to land and let his jagged talons dig into the dry, hard earth. Slowly, the bird beak became a mouth and nose, followed by the wings into arms and feathers into skin and hair. The full shifted figure was a tall man, young to be shifting so perfectly, but a man who looked older than he really was. For his purposes, this factor was well fitted. The solid jaw line was pulsating as he clenched and unclenched his teeth. Taking out a standard issue hand knife, the man made a long vertical gash down his side, then another down his cheek. Gritting his teeth fiercely, he hobbled up the gate of Pirate's Swoop. The guards at the turrets began shouting, calling out to him to remain where he was. He smiled to himself as he fell over, faking the pain and agony he knew he should be feeling.
"He has on a uniform of the Royal Court! Help him in!" The voice floated from above and felt like music to his ears.
It worked…
***
"Daddy!"
Ana dove into her father's lap after she forced open the door to his workroom. Wrapping her arms around his long, stork-like neck, she gave him a sloppy kiss on the cheek. She climbed down and ran off to find Kitten, the twelve-year-old dragon that lived with the three at the Tower. She brushed past Daine, who was pushing open the door herself when Ana scurried out of the room.
"Sweet. Another glorious midsummer's morning. Nothing terrible happened while I shut myself away in this horrid room, I hope?" Numair Salmalin took Daine by the hand and guided her into his lap. She sat for a moment, kissing his lips tenderly, teasingly, to the brink of flirtation. Then she pulled away and stood up.
"She was hiding again, today."
Numair sighed heavily and drew in another deep breath before brushing a hand through his hair and shrugging. "I don't know what else to do. We've tried everything but punishment to stop her from this habit, but nothing works. One of these days, we may not be able to find her. Daine, I know we have to do something, but what that something is may take a while to figure out."
Daine relaxed and sat back down on her husband's lap. She rested her head on his broad chest and closed her eyes. "Maybe punishment is the only way to make her learn. Some extra responsibility won't hurt her too much. She could dust your books or help me with the scrubbing in the kitchen. There's always something to do in there."
"Perhaps, or we could sit her down for another talk. See what happens then." Numair kissed the top of her head and hugged her tightly. "Go on and find our daughter before she and Kit burn down the Tower. We'll talk more tonight…" He trailed off and winked at her, which usually meant there would be no talking that night.
She smiled coyly at him and walked out the door, closing it softly behind her.
A/N: To Grace: yes, the title does have significance, just not yet. And this story is about Daine and Numair, Ana just happens to be the basis of the plot. Any who, is this any better? What do you think? Sorry if I didn't use any of your ideas, I just thought of this great idea a few hours ago and decided it would go great with the story. So, please R/R, since I love to hear from all my readers. Keep throwing out the ideas. I might use one next time. (Don't worry, u'll get full credit for it, I'm not going to cheat u out of a perfectly good idea and then give no credit)
Thanks. Please R/R!! ;-)
*Kyla*