Beasts and Maidens Page 5

  Chapter 5

  Selene slept in accidently. When she woke up Dahlia was gone and the covers were thrown back, exposing Selene through her nightgown to the chilly morning air. When she looked out the open window and saw how high the sun was in the sky, she scrambled to get dressed and ready for the day.

  When she went downstairs she found her mother in the corner of the cramped kitchen that she used to make potions. She was cutting up some ingredients, but she put her knife down when Selene entered the room.

  “I was starting to think you’d be sleeping all day,” Frieda said. She wiped her hands on her apron.

  “You could have woken me up; I didn’t mean to sleep for so long. Where are Dahlia and Henry?”

  “Henry had to go out looking for a job. There are a few places around the village that need the help, so he shouldn’t have too much trouble. Dahlia went with him to show him around. She was in quite a good mood this morning.”

  Selene grabbed an apple from a basket on the counter and then sat at the kitchen table to eat it. Her mother returned to cutting up clover root.

  “I could use your help with collecting a few plants I need for a healing draught,” Frieda said.

  Selene rolled her eyes behind her mother’s back and groaned inwardly. She just wanted to get to the forest, and she was late enough already. “I kind of already have plans, Mom. Is there any way you can do without me for today?”

  Her mother sighed. “Fine. I’ll let you off the hook for today, but I’ll be expecting your help tomorrow. We’re going to have to work as hard as we can to save enough money for an addition to the house. Wood isn’t cheap, you know.”

  “I’ll help as much as I can,” Selene promised. She wanted the new addition as much as anyone else, and she wasn’t afraid to work for it. She could help her mother with a lot of things, especially with her witchcraft. She was pretty good at making potions, and as long as her mother was the one to give them to their customers they’d get the money for them.

  As soon as she was finished eating, Selene left the house. She almost ran to the forest in her haste to get there, and she was very glad that there were no other people around. She slunk into the forest and followed her path to the mossy clearing, where Tornado was already waiting for her.

  “I wasn’t sure you were going to be able to make it,” Tornado said. His tail was dancing around behind him as if he couldn’t control it.

  “Of course I came. I just accidently slept in, is all. I’m far too excited to miss this. I hope there hasn’t been any change of plans?”

  “Not on my side,” Tornado told her. “I haven’t exactly told anyone that I’m bringing you, so expect them to be surprised. Hopefully they’ll react well, but you never know. I’ve got my bow with me just in case, but I highly doubt that I’ll have to use it. I’m going to take you through the main camp first, and then out to where your brothers live.”

  “Did Edgar mention me to anyone?” Selene asked. She hadn’t been back to the forest since he’d seen her, and during that time she’d lived in an anxious state; always thinking someone was going to come and take her away for breaking the rules. She was still worried about it, though she was about to do something far more drastic that would be much more likely to get her in trouble. At least it was intentional this time.

  “He didn’t say a word to anyone but me,” Tornado assured her. “He mentioned it to me once when we were alone together, but he wasn’t accusing either of us of anything. He just wanted to know who you were, though I didn’t feel comfortable telling him. He didn’t ask me anything else after that.”

  Selene breathed a sigh of relief. “That’s good,” she said. “Can we go now?”

  Tornado grinned his wide grin, displaying all of his small, flat teeth. “Of course. Just follow me.”

  They didn’t talk much as they walked through the woods. Tornado was excited and yet relaxed, and he knew the forest well enough to have to pay little attention to where he was going. Selene was nervous, and she was in unfamiliar territory, so she had to pay close attention to the ground and trees around her to avoid tripping or walking into anything. She couldn’t help but enjoy the walk since it was a beautiful day. The sun was shining brightly and it warmed her whenever she was out of the shadows, and the air was a little more humid, though a slight breeze kept it from becoming stuffy.

  Selene knew when they were close to the camp because she could hear it. There were the sounds of people speaking as well as the sounds of people working. Some of the beasts weren’t capable of proper speech, and they made some unusual sounds, including gargling and a high-pitched wailing.

  She saw the beasts before they saw her. When they were at the edge of the camp she saw that the ground was different. It was well worn, and there were no bushes or other short plants growing there; only tall trees, some of which held up homes. There were brightly coloured beasts walking around, mostly carrying things like pieces of wood, vegetables, or dead animals. There were small huts and tents everywhere, almost as if they were a natural part of the forest. They were in the trees, around the trees, on the ground, and some even seemed to be underground.

  When Selene and Tornado stepped into the main clearing of the camp, the beasts finally noticed that there was a stranger in their midst. They stopped what they were doing and stared. All of the younger ones and some of the older ones had never seen a woman before, or any man other than Martin, who brought the beasts supplies. They looked at her with as much interest as she looked at them. She had heard of the variety of different beasts, but it was a whole different experience to actually see them.

  Something happened then that caught Selene entirely by surprise. She was looking around at the beasts, taking in all of their colours and shapes. Then she stopped on one of them. He looked gigantic, since he must have been at least seven feet tall, and he was covered in ragged black fur. His eyes were small and bright green, and he had a snout that was full of razor-sharp teeth. He had one arm that seemed to be coming from his chest, and his three legs were long and spindly. He was probably the biggest and ugliest beast there, and yet there was something in his eyes that drew Selene’s attention and made her heart pound in a way that wasn’t entirely unpleasant. A few seconds later he started to transform right before her eyes.

  The transformation looked painful. He moaned, and then he fell down to his knees. The arm in his chest shrunk, and two new arms started coming out of his shoulders, and they were free of fur. In fact, all of his fur seemed to be disappearing, except the fur on his head, which only changed colour and texture. His face flattened out, and his body shrunk as his legs became shorted and more naturally shaped and one disappeared entirely. In what seemed like only seconds, there was no longer a beast kneeling there. He got up and had to keep a hold on his shorts to keep them from falling off.

  Selene admired his beauty. His entire upper body was bare, as were his lower legs, so she could see how well he was built, and it sent a shiver down her spine. He had curly brown hair and eyes as blue as a clear summer sky. He looked at her with those eyes, and she felt like she wanted to melt.

  The other beasts had watched his transformation with amazement. Many had never seen it happen before, and to see it then was wholly unexpected. They looked at Selene, who was in more shock than they were. Love at first sight was a very rare occurrence, even during the ceremony.

  The beast who had just become a man walked up to Selene and took one of her hands in one of his, using the other to keep his shorts up. He felt awkward using his new limbs, and yet they felt more natural to him than his previous ones ever did. “My name is Jenson Redwing,” he told Selene, who hadn’t resisted his hand. He thought she was incredibly beautiful, with her fiery red hair and penetrating grey eyes.

  “I’m Selene Brookbank,” she managed to reply. She didn’t really know what else to say to this man who had just changed for her. All she knew was that she never wante
d to let him go.

  Tornado cleared his throat loudly. Selene turned to look at him, though she continued to hold onto Jenson’s hand. Everyone turned to look at him, actually, so he decided to address them all. They waited in silence.

  “Everyone, this is Selene,” he said, motioning to her. “Despite the risk and the law, she has come here to meet everyone. She isn’t like most normal humans because she’s able to see past what we look like, and she’s been trying to help us for a while, though it’s proving to be a difficult task.”

  An older-looking beast with a scaly brown body stepped forward from the crowd. “It ain’t a smart idea to be bringing her here,” he growled. “You’ve already caused one problem by doing so. If Jenson leaves the forest with her they’ll both be in serious trouble.”

  “Yeah, I wasn’t really expecting anything like that to happen,” Tornado admitted. He turned to Selene. “That’s Brisham, the beast who raised me.”

  “It’s nice to meet you, Brisham,” Selene said, nodding in his direction. She had heard much about him from Tornado during the years she’d known him. “I apologize for the disturbance I’ve caused.”

  “I’m not sorry,” Jenson spoke up, looking down at Selene and smiling. She blushed slightly and smiled back.

  Brisham shook his head. “Kids,” he muttered, turning to go back to his hut. A few others went back to work as well, though a few stayed to watch Selene, still amazed to see her.

  “Um, I guess we should continue on,” Tornado said. “We’ve still got to get to the outskirts to see your brothers.”

  “Is that why you came in here?” Jenson asked.

  “Not entirely,” Selene told him. “It played a large part in the decision, but it wasn’t the only reason. I kind of wanted everyone to know that there was someone out in the village who still supported them, and wasn’t afraid to be around them.”

  Jenson nodded, but he didn’t comment. He started walking with them to her brothers’ hut, but Tornado stopped him.

  “I think you should probably get some clothes on,” he pointed out, since Jenson was still struggling to keep his shorts up.

  “Fine. Will you be coming back here?”

  “Yeah. We’ll pass through on our way back.”

  Jenson reluctantly let go of Selene’s hand, and he gave her a parting smile before turning and heading for a nearby tree that held up his home. She watched him for a few seconds before following Tornado out of the camp.

  “That’s going to create a few problems,” Tornado said as they walked through the woods, passing the occasional hut or tent.

  Selene sighed. “I know it will, but it’s not like I did it on purpose. Now I have no idea what I’m going to do, but I have to do something. I didn’t even want to fall in love, but now that it’s happened I can’t say I really regret it.”

  Tornado was actually a little jealous of both of them. He wished that he too could fall in love, and not only so he could be human. He was a bit of a romantic, though he would never admit that to anyone. Regardless, he was happy for his friend.

  The Brookbank brothers, all still together, lived in a one-room wooden hut by the edge of the stream. They had been with a guardian for most of their lives, but he had died two years before. They were old enough to be on their own anyway.

  They didn’t know that they had two sisters. They were only now aware that they had one, since two of the brothers had met Dahlia during the ceremony, but they didn’t know about Selene. They were certainly surprised when she walked up to their camp with Tornado, who they barely knew.

  Andy, the youngest, was outside when they arrived. He was only twelve years old, and he was covered with bright yellow fur. He was short and round, and his face was flat. His fingers and toes were short and blunt, which made it difficult for him to hold things. He was shocked to see a normal person in front of their hut, and he ran inside to tell his brothers, who didn’t believe him until they came out to see for themselves.

  The other three were Rocky, Domino, and Max. Max was the oldest, and he had hairless green skin, wide yellow eyes, and a very small round mouth. Domino, the second oldest, was tall and incredibly thin, and he had purple skin and long black hair, and four eyes. Rocky was red with black fur on his abdomen, and a bat-like face. They all looked at Selene.

  “Who are you?” Max asked, breaking the silence.

  “I’m Selene,” she told them. “I’m your sister.”

  “We have two sisters? Are there more of you?” Domino asked. His voice was oddly high-pitched.

  “No, there’s just me and Dahlia. I’ve wanted to meet you my whole life.”

  Andy suddenly went up to Selene and hugged her with surprising strength. She smiled and hugged him back, and her heart felt like it was swelling in her chest.

  “It’s dangerous for you to be here,” Max said. “Still, it’s good to finally meet another member of the family. I hope you don’t find us too hideous.” He smiled, though it was hard to tell since his small mouth barely moved. It was more visible in his eyes, which turned up at the corners.

  When Andy finally let go, Max stepped up and shook her hand. Rocky and Domino held back, though they were also happy to see their sister. They all introduced themselves.

  “Don’t mind Andy,” Domino said. “For some unknown reason he always likes strangers. I swear he likes them more then he likes us.”

  “I like new people,” Andy said, shrugging.

  “You really don’t mind being around us beasts?” Rocky asked, speaking for the first time. There was a tone in his voice that reminded Selene of her father. “I thought all humans hated us. Isn’t that why we have to live in the forest?”

  “Most people don’t like beasts,” Selene admitted. “I’ve never felt that way, even though I was brought up to. I actually find you all very interesting. You’re all so much more unique than the rest of us. I think it makes you special, not worth hating.”

  “I knew we’d have a cool family,” Andy said, grinning and looking very much like a bright yellow sun. Selene didn’t think he was ugly at all. “What are our parents like?”

  “Well, Mom’s a witch, so she’s usually busy making potions and doing spells for people. She sews a fair bit as well, though she tends to make clothes that aren’t really in style. She’s very loving, and she’s especially fond of our sister. She’s been waiting for you all to become men so she could finally meet you, and she gets very anxious every year during the ceremony.”

  “Cool! I can’t believe we’ve got a witch in our family. Maybe we’ll have powers when we’re human,” Andy said.

  The beasts never had magic, even if they came from magical families. Sometimes, however, they would gain powers when they became human. It didn’t happen to all of them because witch blood tended to run more strongly in females.

  “What about Dad?” Rocky asked.

  “Dad’s kind of quiet, and he’s very thoughtful and affectionate. He works hard to earn money for us, so he’s often gone, but he’s there when you need him.”

  Domino smiled wistfully. “I can’t wait until we get to meet them. I hope I don’t end up marrying someone in Blue Falls or Three Lakes.”

  “How old are you, Selene?” Max asked.

  “I’m seventeen,” she replied.

  “Ah. I guess you’ll be going though the ceremony next year, then.”

  “Um, actually...”

  “That’s not going to happen,” Tornado said. “She turned Jenson Redwing into a human not an hour ago when she walked into the main camp.”

  “That’s not good,” Domino said. “I mean, I like Jenson and all and he’s twenty one so he’s old enough, but with you being only seventeen that’ll cause some problems, unless Jenson stays here.”

  “I’m sure we’ll figure something out,” Selene assured him, though she wasn’t too confident.