How do we proceed from here

Anabel was smiling broadly. She was very proud of her children. They had both done exceptionally well and had decided to sacrifice for others.

Anabel knew that she was not the individual to judge other's sacrifices. She was extremely selfish and she felt that she had every right to be so.

But when it came to the success of her children she understood what they needed to reach their goals.

Suddenly her heart tightened, and on cue, Allistar put an arm around her and drew her into his side as if he wanted her to become a part of him.

And he probably did. He kissed her temple.

"They will be okay."

"I know. I just wasn't expecting this to happen right now."

"I know." Allistar kissed her temple a second time. This time it was much softer and Anabel found herself leaning into him as if she were trying to obtain more.

And maybe she was.

"Mother, father, Solnm and I are going to explore the dimensions for a while. I know that I have only just returned and I am a soulmate as well but Solnm needs to do this if he is to begin to truly understand himself.

"I can always be called back, and…."

Jolan started laughing beside her. She frowned and was about to tell him off when He pointed in the direction of their mother. She stood there with a smile on her face and tears in her eyes. She understood instantly and moved to hug her mother.

"If you need me, you will call me."

It was not a question but a command. Amethyst smiled and nodded.

Solnm looked expectantly, not sure if he was allowed to hug or be hugged. Anabel laughed again and hug him tightly.

"You are family now. Don't be shy." He smiled relishing the feel of it. Of this thing that he could not quite explain.

Allistar patted him on the back in a gesture of understanding and comradary.

"Remember that it is important to know and experience how a family loves each other. We are not perfect. We sometimes hurt each other but it is important to know that anything can be forgiven if you are honest and able to accept that you were wrong."

"You will learn in time. Don't confuse him Allistar." Anabel looked to Amethyst.

"I will send some spirits with you."

Amethyst wanted to argue but thought better of it and simply nodded in acceptance. Anabel returned her nod with a curt one of her own.

"Bev, Shining Light, and Marose you will be with Amethyst and Solnm while they travel."

She looked to Amethyst and Solnm.

"They are all apparitions so you can have them disguise themselves as the living, they can walk with you completely invisible to others, or they can appear as ghosts or spirits.

"they are all very powerful and able guards as well. Take care of them and they will take of care of you."

"You will stay the night and leave tomorrow right? I mean I am being selfish but didn't you and Solnm just go through an intense ordeal? Should you run off just like that without a little love shown like mom and dad said?"

"You have a very good point. You are a selfish brother but you are also a good brother."

Anabel hugged Jolan, perhaps a bit tighter than she should have, and then clapped her hands together in excitement.

"Good good. Let's get started working. Come Allistar the four of them are our guests of honor so you will assist in cooking."

"I live to serve my love. It would be my pleasure to help you."

Jolan and Amethyst shared knowing looks but said nothing. They sat down in the clearing on the cliff and Lase and Solnm eventually followed.

Jolan looked to Solmn and frowned.

"What's wrong Solnm?"

"feel I should help and maybe catch some fish or something."

Jolan shook his head slightly. "We are the guests of honor and it would be considered rude if you helped. Think of it like this. You decide you want to honor Amethyst with something you made and you tell her that you will do this. Suddenly she is helping you and giving you suggestions.

"I know you would forgive her but think about how that would make you feel."

Solnm frowned and thought about what Jolan had said after sometime his face lit up in enlightenment. He smiled to Jolan.

"You are very smart."

Solnm leaned over and brought Amethyst to him, almost into his lap. Her eyes went wide but she didn't say anything.

"So. Tell us about your adventures."

When Jolan didn't speak for a long moment Lase looked at him. She giggled under her breath at the deep red shade of his face. She leaned into him and whispered I to his ear.

"He wad in that illusion living hundreds of lifetimes with your sister. That must have been a natural reaction for him. She has said nothing so maybe you should calm yourself a bit."

Jolan wasn' sure what it was but he calmed almost instantly. At that moment he remembered that he needed to speak to his mother about his healing wards.

He looked to Solmn with a stiff smile. When he saw the look of distress, love, and confusion on Amethyst's face he almost laughed and knew that Lase had been right.

"Well it all happened so fast I don't think I can explain things."

He looked to Lase for help.

"Well all I can tell you is my part. I am from Kanear. It is a fire realm many star systems away. I am a shapshifter, and a seer. I see through dreams and I can easily pull others into soul walks.

"well I was on a soul walk and I saw Drousan but it did not have the whirlpool around it. I walked back and forth looking at it because something about it made me nervous.

"When I finally decided to walk away I heard it."

She looked at Jolan. "I now know it was the voice of your spirit Specter.

"He told me to come because he was their. I said who and he told me that I already knew the answer to that.

"Still I did not move and I could feel the passage of time as it moved faster and faster around me. I did not realize that waiting had caught me a trap.

"I know a little about time magic, as you now know, so I knew it was a time rift but my skills are not to the level where I can pull myself from one. Still I fought.

" I was eventually pulled through the rift and my being was torn in two. Since I was on a soul walk my spirit was split but not into equal parts. I was put in a dark space and when I finally understood things again I was both inside the cottage and phased from it.

"The time specter apologized to me and said that it had to be done to attract the new owner. As we waited he taught me magic and I created the mini loop inside the main time. I had been I there for at least a thousand times."

Her voice became low and she started staring at her hands.

Jolan wanted to put an arm around her But stopped himself. What was wrong with him.

"It was a difficult situation but you survived it. You are a very strong person."

She smiled and nuzzle into him. Amethyst sat up and, following Lase's lead, nuzzled into Solnm.

She smirked at her brother and shook her head.

"That is the only way you will get love from that one. You will have to take it."

Lase laughed loudly while Jolan merely frowned in confusion.

"Don't be so hard on your brother. He is not fully healed yet. He does not remember such things." She kissed his cheek and before either could ask she explained.

"I already told you I was a seer. I have dreamed of you my entire life. In a way I am just like Solnm in that I have had a lifetime to understand and accept my feelings for you."

She shrugged and kissed him again.

All he could think was how his mother was always right. He thought he was back to one hundred percent but that is completely ludicrous. The healing potion was powerful but this was time and a time backlash was always infinitely more than it ever seemed.

He looked down at her as she stared up at him with a smile. He cleared his throat.

"What type or shapshifter are you?"

Her eyes lit up.

"Do you know the different types of shapeshifter? "

"I know three types." He looked at his sister and all she could do was shake her head. She didn't know any.

He shrugged.

"I know of the Albar, Parsh, and the most powerful type, the Shoushou."

Lase nodded. "Many people think that the ShouShou are the most powerful but that is only because no one really knows of the Pri. We ShouShou had to force them back to the black dimensions and trap them there. They are not kind beings.

"But you do know ow the three largest clans. There are eight clans of shape shifters and we all have different characteristics and abilities. From weakest to strongest we are

"Albar

Shon

Pillet

Parsh

Tou

Raus

Shoushou

Pri."

"The Albar are the weakest but there are more of them than any other group. They always populate human dimensions and realms more than the others because they have an intense love for humans. We shapeshifters believe that this love has caused the Albar to weaken.

"The Shon are a small clan of fire shape shifters and they prefer to live within the hotter stars.

"The Pillet also love living around humans but for different t reasons. They like to scare humans. The more they frighten humans the more intense their magic gets. The are animal shifters but they can even shift into animals that never existed before. Hence the terrified humans."

Lase shook her head and pursed her lips.

"The Parsh are another large clan and they are elemental shape shifters like the ShouShou. As a matter of fact they are very closely related to the ShouShou. The Parsh like to deal in realms that mainly consist of their favored element. This is also what the ShouShou do.

"The Tou and the Raus are dark shifters related to the Pri. We actually think that the Pri created the Raus. All three of these shape shifters sift into shadow. Not just two dimensional shadows all three groups can transform into three dimensional shadows. They have substance when they want and they are insubstantial when they want.

"The Pri and the Tou have banned the Raus from their little club because the Raus continues to remain passive helpful beings.

"and like I said my people are the ShouShou. We are the second largest clan and tend to live in elemental realms or dimensions or with humans within realms dense with magic."

Amethyst had been listening intently.

"So your preferred element is fire?"

Lase smiled and nodded.

"it is. But I can change into any element and like Pillet I can shift into elements that do not exist."

Amethyst found herself rather impressed. She looked at her brother and shook her head. She could tell he was just acquiring information.