Demon Day by Penelope Fletcher

And when I pull away from you
it’s because I want nothing more than to be close to you. You know
how your family and mine feel about us. Why do you continue to
doubt me?”
    The feeling that overflowed in my
chest was euphoric, but tinged with shame. I did not feel good
enough for him and it was frustrating. It was like I wore big
boots, but my feet were pitifully small, and no matter how hard I
tried to run in them without tripping over they were simply too big
for me. Tears trickled down the side of my nose. Why was I not
brave, honest, and selfless? Maybe there was something broken
inside making me selfish and devious.
    Breandan dropped to his knees, taking
my head in his hands. Disgruntled I tried to pull away, but he held
fast and sighed, brushed my tears away. “I do not like to see you
cry. Be calm, Rae-love, we will be together. We are together.
Alright?”
    “ I don’t feel
like–”
    Eyes turning from pained to scary
alert his head snapped to the side and he peered across the plain.
Seeing nothing in the solid dark I started again, needing to
confess everything, how I felt about him.
    “ Breandan, I–”
    “ Silence.” He placed a
finger to my lips and closed his eyes. He nodded, satisfied. “We
are in a shield. We cannot be seen as long as we stay still.” I
peered into the gloom wondering what he hid us from. “A demon is
close,” he said into my ear as I curled against his
chest.
    Breathing in deeply I extended myself.
Since I had become a fairy, what I could perceive had changed
immensely. My consciousness could feel further than just a few
feet. My mind could seek life forces miles away and that is what I
did, pushing myself to the limit. I started. Someone two natured
was nearby, a male. He was coming closer, curious, and wary. He did
not want to hurt us; it was his job to check we were
friendly.
    I opened my eyes and glanced around.
My sight was keen and I had paid little attention to our
surroundings other than how pretty it was at a glance. Now, I
focused then saw a line of the grass moving in the opposite
direction of the rest.
    “ The wind blows east and
carries our scent into the Pride,” Breandan explained and pointed
to the grass. “It is not polite to run in another’s territory
without permission, even if you mean peace. Before we reveal
ourselves I want to be sure he means us no harm.”
    The scream of a cat echoed across the
Pride, and the soft stomping of heavy paws drawing closer found us
through the silence. A panther raced into view. He weaved through
the grass, unerringly in our direction.
    Oddly enough, I relaxed, and my knees
went weak with relief.
    Breandan secured my waist and slid me
behind him as the panther slid to a stop and exposed his sharp
teeth in a vicious snarl and hissed menacingly.
    Conall simply appeared from thin air,
and held up his hands to both Breandan and the shifter; thank gods
because it seemed like they would have torn into each other had he
not. He shook his head, exasperated. “It is a good thing I decided
not to scout too far ahead. Always are you in trouble,
Rae.”
    I curled my lip at him. How unfair.
Like this was in any way my fault.
    Roaring, the panther leapt forward a
bound. His ears were flat to his head and his claws scratched up
the earth. He was huge, coal black, and I found myself wondering
how the hell I had not seen him in the green grass. It was taller
than him, coming up to just below my breast, but still. After his
display of dominance, he turned his head to look at me, and
blinked. His beautiful eyes were the trigger that revealed I did
indeed have a memory of him.
    I laughed and held out my hand.
Breandan pushed it back. “Wait,” he ordered and watched the cat
carefully. He was not taking any more chances after our last
encounter.
    “ Hai,” I whispered to the
panther. “It might sound crazy, but it’s good to see
you.”
    He padded over cautiously, whiskers
quivering when Breandan hissed a warning. The panther slinked