~Moon's POV~

"Bacon and chia pancakes?" I laugh, a memory floating through my mind in a cloud-like manner.

"Nothing better than nostalgia." Julius sways his hips and flips the pan, swirling in turn with the radio. The A Team. That seems to be my God-given theme song. I hum along to the song, jumping on the black tiles and avoiding the white to get to the other side in a childish manner. Julius holds his shirt a bit closer, outlining the muscles in his arms while flipping the pan once more. He croaks along with Ed, giggling halfway through his terrible serenade.

Beating my leg with my hand, I follow the rhythm into the bridge before singing along, stopping Julius mid-flip. His mouth stands agape, eyes wide in shock and fascination. "If you can sing like that, why the duck are you on the streets selling yourself?"

"Duck?" I chuckle, grabbing a pancake straight out the sizzling pan, "I really only sing when I'm happy." I shrug nonchalantly with a sly grin, pulling my gray hoodie over my shoulders.

"It's eerie, how much you sound like him too."

Ignoring the comment, I head to the purple and blue cloth covered oak table, brushing a strand of hair from my eyes. I watch as Julius sits unusually close to me, grinning ear to ear before taking a large bite of food.

"Julius?!" I shriek as he coughs and sputters, spitting the pancake out and clawing at his tongue.

"How do you eat that meat stuff?!" I take a closer look at my pancake, giving a slight smile when I notice he attempted to use Shifter meat.

"It's delicious what are you talking about?" With an almost suggestive eyebrow raise I devour my pancakes and his, rocking my chair back and forth as his violet eyes spark with curiosity.

"You want to talk about it, don't you?" I say with a frown. He reaches out to stroke my hand and I naturally recoil, relaxing a bit when he slightly draws back.

"We don't have-"

"Yes, we do, or you'll just keep asking questions I don't want to answer." Hugging myself, I stare out the window and allow him to briefly hug me before uncomfortably wiggling out of it.

"Just answer a few please?" He begs.

"Fine," I groan when the orange aroma hits me. "ask away."

He grins at the déjà vu taking place then hits me with the first question, leaning in on his elbows across the oak table. "Were you bit by another shifter? How did you become one?!" The excitement he feels can't be contained as he's nearly bouncing out of his seat.

"I was born like this."

"So your..." He pauses to carefully test the words. "parents.." Julius rushes as I involuntarily flinch. "were shifters?"

"No, you don't have to have shifter parents to be a shifter. The shifters who are allowed to have kids usually don't have their kids popping out as shifters either. It's a genetic mutation that anyone can get. Something that has to do with Chromosomes, I'm not good with science though."

"What do you shift into? A grizzly bear? Cheetah? Crocodile?"

"House dog. A shaggy, black, house dog." I chuckle, once again rocking my chair on it's back legs.

"Why does everyone-"

"Hate us? We're cannibals. I think that is enough."

"Plenty of people are cannibals, Moon." He seems almost sympathetic, his pink lips pouting and leaning closer. Close enough to ki-

I scramble away from him at the thought, a shocked expression popping up on his face. "What?!" He panics.

"Nothing..." I reply, regaining my chill demeanor. No need to cause a scene.

He stares at me for a moment, biting into his 'nonpoisonous' biscuit. "So..."

"So...?" Cocking my brow quite amusingly with a smirk to finish it off. It's a show, him stumbling over his words and all.

"They have to hate you for something else!" He blurts and hits the table with a pale fist. "They have to!"

"We eat our own children." I flinch, the subject of kids a touchy one.

"Moon-"

"The minute we know she's pregnant we kill her. No one knows why we do it we just do."

"What if the woman is a shifter?" The pain and curiosity fills his amethyst eyes as he covers my hand, this time I don't flinch.

"Then she kills herself."

Julius hastily switches the subject with a plastered grin and a biscuit smothered in clover honey. "Are you excited to see Kai?" He spreads on the butter with a knife, shoving the third biscuit down his throat.

"Of course!" I jump from my seat a few inches, reaching for a biscuit a bit too joyously.

"I can tell, just his name brings a smile to your face."

"We're bound, of course it does." I mutter dreamily, pressing the biscuit to my face but not yet taking a bite.

"What does that even mean, being bounded?"

"Well...see this ring?" I ask, holding up the ring to his face beside me. "It shows we're bound, Kai has one also, it's like a wedding ring."

"So you're married?"

"Yes, but not to Kai."

"What?!" He exclaims, dropping the biscuit on the table.

"Any-who, it's like a wedding, you have a big ceremony and invite family and friends and neighbors, have suits and dresses. Our ceremony was private though, just Kai, me, the Brothers who conducted it, and a spider as a witness. The place was beautiful, there was a legit waterfall behind us, Julius. A waterfall. We said our vows and split ourselves-"

"What?" His face twists into a grim expression of disgust as a rather disturbing thought pops in his mind.

"That's what binding is. You're splitting your soul and giving half to the other person. I have half of Kai in me and he has half of me in him. If I die, he dies and vice versa. If I cut my arm, he'll bleed too. If he stubs his toe, my toe will hurt as well. It's like we are the same person in two different bodies. We felt that way before, but we just wanted it to be official."

Julius nods in meek understanding as my cellphone buzzes and jumps in my pocket. Matt.

Hey wanna meet up @ Sweet Ceces?

That's Downtown right? I text back under the table, continuing my conversation with Julius which has switched from binding to interior decorating.

Nah lets go to teh one in the Magie

There is one in the Magie? *the btw ;)

Just come already!

With a quick kiss and wave to Julius I sprint out the door to the car, driving full speed into the Magie until I find Matt sitting at a pink and blue table.

He gets up to hug me as I exit the car, obviously having packed on a few pounds of muscle.

"Why so urgent?" I whisper to him as we sample the fro-yo and it's more exotic Magie flavors and toppings. Blood cherry (slang for heart) is the most normal one there.

"I just have a few things to tell you about that's all." I drool at Matt's figure (not in a gay way but an admiration way) and second guess the pound of yogurt I just bought.

"First of all, I just wanted to say thanks for clearing up my mind. I'm bi and now I know that."

"T or B?" I grin through my yogurt.

"Top mostly, it just depends on the gu-"

A feminine shriek draws all eyes to the other side of the road where Eden is seen rushing to our table, purse swinging and swaying this way and that.

"Matt and Moon what a surprise! Lovely weather isn't it!" He cheshire-grins.

The weather is nice. The winter chill isn't as harsh today and I managed to make it out of the house in a T-shirt that's a bit too lose. I crunch some yellow and red leaves between my foot and the graying concrete, observing the heat flood into Matt's cheeks. The wind swirls a few broken leaves from my iron grasp, floating my attention back to Eden.

"I'm not invading your outing am I?" His face burns with embarrassment as he grabs his purse but I quickly pull him back.

"You know it is always a joy to see you!" I say, lifting his spirits ten fold without meaning to.

"You look really good today, Eden." Matt rubs his neck and stares at his yogurt.

What. The. Total. Fuck.

"Thanks! A maroon sweater and dark skinnies can go a long way." He flicks his index finger, giving his attention to the shop and rummaging in his purse for cash.

"What do you want?" Matt chuckles as Eden empties the bag's contents on the table.

"Nectar sorbet with honey and fairy dust but I can't find my wallet!"

"Isn't that cannibalism?" The disgust on Matt's face has me noticeably shrinking in my seat.

"Fairy dust comes from flowers not fairies! Besides," Eden glances at me. "being a cannibal isn't a bad thing."

Matt disappears into the store giving me the perfect chance to slaughter Eden with questions.

"How did I know?" He grins and leans back in his seat. "It's a gift really. You took longer than most but I eventually got it. My lips are sealed by the way."

"What's with Matt?"

"I don't know but hot damn apparently he is bi and you don't even know what I would give to hit that!" He jumps up just as Matt returns with another cup of yogurt.

"Thanks." Eden blushes and licks at the fairy dust stuck to the honey. "Do your parents-"

"No. Does-"

"No." He smiles and plays with his purse strap. With the sudden feeling of invading their privacy dawning on me, I say goodbye to both to begin wandering the Magie.

•••

This is my fifteenth spell shop. You have got to be kidding me. I've probably been wondering the Magie clueless now for half an hour, wanting to give Eden and Matt as much time as possible to get comfortable. I can go without the awkward skinny-love moments. The wind bites my bare arms as I turn the corner coming face to face with a shifter's equivalent of Satan. The 'Open' sign flutters in the wind, telling me to run as my gut begins to empty itself. This can't be happening. Not now. I run back to the yogurt shop, past a kissing Matt and Eden, the leaves and bare trees becoming a blur as my eyes water from tears and air.

I pass the car and continue to run to Julius, to safety, I don't turn around until I'm at the doors and inside the house, bumping into Julius's chest and limply leaning into it as I sob. "Moon? Moon what the hell is going on?" He screams, drawing me closer.

"I-I saw a p-p-pet shop."

He sighs and pulls me away but I push past the restraints and into his orange scented chest. The heat of the home wraps around us in a calming manner, my breathing becoming ever so slower. "It's just a pet shop."

"It was in the Magie, Julius!"

"And?! Just spit it out already because I don't understand."

"I'm a pet, Julius! Pet is an offensive term for shifters! It's ten times worse than calling a black person a ni-"

"I still don't-"

"Pet stores sell shifters!" My state of hysteria returns as I shout at him to understand me. "They take our shifting away and sell us as pets to people! T-they just abduct you a-and take it a-away!" He rubs my back, confused but still trying to be comforting. I applaud that. "I don't feel safe here anymore." I whisper into the groove of his neck. "I want to go to Andrew's now."

"Now?"

"Now."

He pushes me away to lead me up the steps, grabbing luggage and emptying drawers left and right.

He pauses to look at me. "How long are we staying?"

"Forever."

"We aren't coming back? What about my servants? I can't fire them! What if a lunatic takes them?"

"Give them to your brother. Arrange for Lucy to be in charge."

He helps me pack my bags with a little push from the radio and lots of hip swinging. Soon we are out the door, loading the car and waving goodbye.

This is it. This. Is. It. I'm going to see Kai, Clide, James, everyone! Kai...

I stare down at the little ring around my finger near my wedding ring, swirling it around and leaning back in the passenger seat. Eleven hours until I'm back home. Until I'm reunited with Kai. I settle back into the seat and watch the trees fly by as a swirling blur. Let's just hope the time does too.

Note:

Yay! I can bold and italicize! Sorry if this feels rushed but my wrists hurt and I'm angry at spell check. Bye!