Logan Chapter 67

-Emory-

Ugh. Great way to start a working relationship, Emory. I’m sure snark is exactly what they want in their Luna. Logan, of course, is still looking at me like I invented indoor plumbing, and Nanette is already tittering with her friends. I’m sure the whole pack will have heard about this by the time I go to bed tonight.

I pause my self-lecturing when I see Elias grin. “Well now, you might make it after all. Good to see you have some backbone, even if you are human.” I was raised in the South. I know a back-handed compliment when I hear one.

I give him my most insincere smile. “Oh bless your heart, thank you! Now, we’re not just here for introductions. Logan said y’all are the people to talk to when we have questions.”

Logan lays a hand on my lower back. “Before we get to that, I wanted to catch you up on everything going on with this article. Then you’ll have all the context we can give you for our questions.” At their agreement, Logan tells them what was in the article, who wrote it and why, and the steps we’ve taken so far to curb it. They didn’t interrupt and didn’t have many questions, so it went relatively quickly. These people are well experienced at keeping this particular secret from the humans around them, and human nature doesn’t really change.

“What’s being done about the girl?” Orson speaks for the first time, and I’m surprised by how deep and smooth his voice is. I know he’s the oldest one here, putting him over two hundred years old, so I was expecting him to sound reedy and maybe even feeble. He still speaks with authority.

Logan is used to him, and so doesn’t need to take a second like I do. “Landon is looking after her until her trial. The police and my lawyer all seem to think this is an open and shut case.”

“Cora isn’t the type to run. I’m sure she’ll be checking with every contact she has to wiggle her way out of charges.” I break in. Nanette nods, having also met her.

Calvin tilts his head back and forth like we’re missing the true question. “I don’t think this Cora person is the issue. I think the issue is what she started. You haven’t told us what the humans’ reactions have been. If we don’t keep an eye on that, it can quickly get out of hand.”

Logan and I think for a second. Neither one of us has thought much about the current reaction, figuring we’d fix it with a retraction from Hot Tea and Cora facing a guilty verdict. I pull out my phone to check on it. “Let’s just see here… It looks like most people believe it’s just really good CGI. They’re perfectly fine believing that Logan is actually an abusive jerk, but shifters might just be a bridge too far for the general public.”

Logan nods along with me. “There might be some conspiracy theorists that light up, but nobody believes them, anyway.”

Calvin still looks uneasy, but nods as well. I guess now it’s time to bring out our questions. I wish we could have started with a happier subject, even Nanette and her friends- I’ve got to come up with some cute nickname for them- are uncharacteristically quiet. We all take a minute to think through the information dump, then I take a deep breath.

“I suppose the most important thing to know is what you’ve heard about shifter-human matings, as well as the fated mate bond. My biggest worry at the moment is the difference in our life expectancy. That seems like a difficult hurdle.” I smooth down my sleeves, fixing my cuffs nervously.

Blanche gives me a sympathetic look. “Oh, sweetie, you don’t have to worry about that part. We haven’t had many shifter-human relationships, but the full moon ceremony will take care of any issues there. You won’t be able to shift, but you’ll be an almost half-shifter afterward. You’ll be a little faster and stronger, and you’ll live just as long as Logan will. The downside is that you’ll live exactly as long as Logan. When he’s done, you’re done.”

That’s better than I was thinking, at least. The main fear with that is making sure any children we have are old enough to take care of themselves without us or that they have someone to watch out for them. “Okay, that’s helpful. Are there any records or memories of a human Luna? Has that happened before?” Immediately I see head shakes all around.

“Most of the time, missy, Alpha will choose from within the pack or as a political alliance with a nearby pack. I guess Logan is close enough friends with the other alphas around here that you’re not depriving us of that, at least.” Clearly, it’ll be a while before Elias and I get along. I try to push down the flair of inadequacy that comes with his statement and move on.

“None of you said much about the fated mate bond. What do you know about it?” Orson looks up again at this one.

“Fated mates are to be treasured. It’s said that they’re more common during difficult eras for shifters. The stars know we need some help getting through and nudge us along with the pairings that will result in the strongest relationships, the strongest offspring, to take us through the trouble and back into peace. It’s said fated mates live longer, are stronger physically, that they can read each other's minds and- sometimes- that they have powers of intuition. It’s been a long, long time since I last heard of a fated pair, and it was in China when the shifter packs around Shanghai had all that upheaval.” Orson sits back like speaking tires him out. “Essentially, you’ll both come out of the full moon ceremony as the ideal leaders and you’ll be able to shoot lasers out of your eyes. I’m sure the legends have been exaggerated over the years.”

Logan and I look at each other, a little intimidated. We still have a week until the full moon, so I suppose there’s time to get used to it all. “Last question. Will our babies come out more like Logan or more like me? Will they be weaker because I’m human?” I reflexively lay a hand on my stomach.

Elias scoffs, but it’s Ethel that replies. “Any children from mixed matings have taken after their fathers, mostly. They should be just as strong as your mate.”

Logan kisses my head before pulling me out of the room. “With all this talk of mates, I’m thinking I need to go feed mine. You all have given us a lot to think about. Thank you for answering our questions, Elders. Have a great night.”