As we ride towards Animulus; the home of the Faery Queen and the only true place that the mingling of Fae species is encouraged, I explain the faery anatomy and reproductive system to Isaac, his eyes darkening at the mention of 'sex is just for fun'. Males. I also tell him a little about Faery, its borders and landmarks and the other mystical species that reside here.

"If there are more than just faeries then why is the land called Faery?" he inquires.

"Faeries were the original species to discover this dimension and for many centuries we were the only beings to know of its existence. However at the time of the Dividing the Faery Queen knew that all supernatural creatures would be ridiculed and hunted to extinction, blamed for the dying of earth. So she welcomed the others and our land was segregated based on needs and numbers and it has always been peaceful here. Despite differences we leave each other alone and can mingle well with the one golden rule that no one can touch you without your consent. It's a spell, although the consent does not need to be verbal it needs to be mutual or you physically cannot lay a hand on them."

"That's amazing, a solution to so many problems."

I nod in agreement before continuing. "Any crimes committed do not go unpunished but that is rare, we are all creatures of reason we do not act without purpose. The Queen is the sole decider of a person's fate, she possesses the ability to see the true nature of a person's soul. Each Queen reigns for a couple of millennia, training her successor chosen by the Goddess in her last century or so. The Queen's rein does not end when she passes on, As powerful fae can live a lot longer than a millennia or two, instead it ends when the Goddess feels a new mind, a new heart and new ideas would be good for all of Faery."

"That seems reasonable" Isaac trails off before continuing "so anyone can be chosen to rule?"

"As long as they are female and faery then, yes" I reply simply, glancing at him over my shoulder, not entirely sure what he is getting at.

"The other creatures all have their own political leaders; kings or queens or politicians, depending on the traditions of the race, that answer to the Queen, but she is our only true leader." Isaac accepts this and silence falls.

"Elaina" Isaac starts after several minutes of comfortable silence, "about last night..." Understanding where this conversation is going I involuntarily stiffen, my body warming at the memory of lust filled hazel eyes. Large hands move from my hips to wrap around my waist as Isaac leans into my back, close enough that his breath tickles my ear when he speaks again. "You cannot deny what transpired between us nor can you deny that since I tasted your blood this morning and the fae in me awakened that the desire has only grown." Now his fingers are grazing the hem of my shirt before sprawling out on my stomach and caressing the sensitive skin there, causing my breath to hitch in my throat.

"You can only resist so long my love, and I am sure when you need to feed again and it is Zavier's turn to supply that he would absolutely love" he draws out the word his voice husky and lips now skimming the skin of my neck, "to join in on the fun. As your guardians it seems the Goddess made us very good at sharing you."

If I wasn't aroused before, I am now; wings trembling and an ache developing deep within my core. What is this male doing to me?

Luckily for me and my unstable hormones Zavier appears beside us, pollen glazed hands now covered with leather gloves and Caelestis following closely beside him . "The land on the other side of the river has changed from Vampirine land into that of the Mystical Creatures, so we must be only another half a day's ride from Animulus. Thank Goddess." Isaac mumbles his agreement. These sooks really don't like riding do they. Their loss. I glance at the river flowing beside us, uninterested in their complaining and menial conversation. The water glistens in the scattered sunlight, racing the winds that toy with the leaves on the trees above the water. A shadow looms between the trees on the far side of the river, running alongside us. As the trees thin the shadow takes shape, a brilliant white coat cover a powerful hide. A unicorn. Ethereal and as pure as freshly fallen snow, from horn to hooves she is exquisite. Her mane falls well past her shoulders, black thundering hooves seem to never touch the ground and her horn, a thing of powerful magic, seems to glow even in the absence of the sun, staring at it too long would surely render a person blind.

Moments pass and she continues to run beside us, before casting a single striking whiny to the wind and disappearing into the land on the far side of the river. As I watch her form shrink in the distance a soft voice fills my mind, warming my skin and sending me comfort. "You have our blessing Elaina of the Faeries, use it wisely" with that she was gone.

Suddenly a burning feeling seems to crawl across the skin of my right arm and I gasp, a mix of pain and surprise. Looking down I can see white light scorching its way across my forearm. I clutch at the skin there, willing the pain to recede, Isaac realises my discomfort and calls out to me. The pain only lasts a few seconds and the white light fades, leaving a symbol in its wake, something that looked similar to the shape of a gem; three sides, with a line running from each corner into the centre. The rune for beast. Goddess what does this mean?

Slowly, muddled and disorientated thoughts take shape and Isaac's voice becomes clearer "El! Elaina! Are you okay?"

"Yes, I am okay now" thankfully my voice doesn't shake as I respond.

A sigh of relief then "what happened?"

"The unicorn, from on the other side of the river left me with a parting gift, but I don't know what it means."

"Elaina" now it was Zav's turn to speak, "what unicorn?"

"You're telling me you didn't see her?" Both men shake their heads and I glance at them each in turn, searching their faces for a hint of a lie, there wasn't any. Why was I the only one who saw her? And why leave the beast rune marred into my skin? Strange.

"You're okay now though, right?" Zavier questions, I nod my response, unsure if the madness is claiming me already.

"We believe you Elaina, she must have not been for us to see. Unicorns are very secretive creatures, there hasn't been a sighting in years. Relax." Zav assures me, his words combined with Isaac's warmth behind me calms the chaotic nerves within and shortly the incident is filed away for another time. Instead I seem to have the urge to open my big mouth. "Zave, you do know that I never bloomed right?" instantly the boys' bodies return to their ridged states, horror written on their faces. Seriously? You can attempt to seduce me, whisper dirty nothings in my ear but as soon as I mention a flower growing from my spine you freak? Isaac is the first to speak, curiosity gaining the upper hand. "Isn't that supposed to happen the first time when your wings sprout?" Good he was actually listening. "Yes, but for me it never did but I am not like a human either where reproduction comes from sex, Freya already checked she, and now you two are the only ones that know, so you can relax a little. They only reason I mentioned it Zave was because you were worried about touching me with the pollen on your hands, but you needn't worry" I conclude, giving Zavier a smile, one which he returned. That's my man. The tightening of my chest making yet another appearance.

"Is that what Verum meant about discovering the rest of your powers, that he thought you weren't completely faery?" Isaac asks and my brow furrows at the memory. I had forgotten the cryptic words Verum had thrown at me that night, what had he meant? Seeing Isaac is waiting for a reply I grace him with one "I'm not sure, but he wouldn't have said anything if he didn't have a reason to, the old man is unable to speak anything but the truth, it's one of his gifts."

"Apparently so is being elusive and cryptic" Zavier finally comments, about time he had something sarcastic to say, I was starting to get worried. Isaac's chest rumbles in silent laughter and a smile graces all of our faces, the events of this morning no longer in the forefront of our minds. "Let's stop and have something to eat before we continue on to the city" Isaac and I nodding our agreement to Zavier's proposal.