"It is complicated. It may be the most complicated magic you ever learn." Titania was torn between ignoring and addressing the thorny truth her stepdaughter introduced. Yes, there was another way Blair could run with the pack. It was the truth that woke Anya in a cold sweat more than once. All men of the family took the bite. By tradition, that horrible fate was only fated for the males, but this was not the first time Blair had made such mentions.

"The other way is no shortcut, Blair," she cautioned, her voice losing all warmth in her sincerity. "The bite means early death; that is all that it promises." Titania ached to say the words, but she knew they were true. She was a healer; she'd seen death come from a bite, and she'd seen others beg for death upon survival. Never would she wish that on her youngest beloved.

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