Hart and Hunter

Chapter 14

Ch. 14: Julian

"It goes back to the origins of the Fae-Wolf Conflict, really," Halloran begins, relaxing into the sofa cushions as the painkillers Chloe had given him kick in. "You'll need a bit of history there as well, I suppose."

I glance at Dane, who watches Halloran with a masked expression. He'd given me the basic overview, and I knew his mother had played a crucial role in bringing the war to an end, but he hadn't covered the finer details.

"Like I said," Halloran continues, "there are thin places all over the world, but some make more suitable portals than others. A few, like the one here in Spring Lakes, are especially well situated, with a strong alignment between realms. Such places are rare and held as sacred by the Fae. Many human cultures hold them sacred as well, sensing the power that bleeds through. Over the last few centuries, wars, invasions, colonization, and 'development' have led to the loss of many, making those that remain more valuable still."

"Valuable how?" Ingrid asks. "And what's it got to do with Wolves?"

Halloran lifts his brows at her. "The land, of course. Haven't you wondered why Spring Lakes is such a magnet for all things strange and wonderful? Why those with unusual gifts seem drawn here as moths to a flame? It's the thin place — or rather, the power that bleeds through to saturate and bless the land. Shifters and Wolves can sense it, and though they may not know it, many Wolf territories overlap with thin places such as this."

"What about Faerie?" I ask. "Does this side... 'bleed through,' as well?"

Halloran nods. "Your human scientists would say that there are certain laws that govern the physical world, correct? Thermodynamics, gravity, the speed of light, and so forth. It's more or less the same across dimensions, with slight variations. In Faerie, things are possible that are impossible here, and vice versa. What you would call 'magic' is merely a type of energy we are able to harness and use. It's hardly detectable here, but in Faerie it's much more a part of the fabric of reality. Likewise, there are 'energies' here that are scarce on the other side."

"So... this world has something Faerie doesn't?"

Halloran nods. "The Fae realm is brimming with life. There are equivalents for most of the flora and fauna you find here, and then a whole extra dimension of things you can hardly imagine: forests of moss-clad trees with mushrooms that glow beneath the stars, and uncanny beasts of all sizes and sorts. And yet, Fae children are rare."

"Why?" Chloe asks, leaning forward in her seat, a cup of tea cradled in her hands.

"Well," Halloran says slowly, "Some consider it a blasphemous notion, but more than likely it's because we Fae originated here, in this world, long ago. It would explain our ability to have children with humans, and why we are physiologically more or less the same. Whatever the case, it seems there is something in this world that we need, so we often come here to... 'conceive,' with either a Fae or human partner."

"My grandmother used to tell stories about changelings," Chloe says, her blue eyes wide with fascination. "She said that children born in Faerie often 'weak and sickly,' so the Fae would bring them here and trade them for a human child."

Halloran nods. "A legend grossly distorted by time, but essentially true. It seems the problem has deep roots, but has grown worse in recent centuries, as our worlds increasingly diverge. Ironically, as thin places grow scarce, the more essential they become."

Dane nods. "And scarcity triggers conflict. Tale as old as time."

"Wolves and Shifters saw the Fae as intruders from another world; Fae saw Wolves and their like as trespassers on sacred ground. The truth of how it started, and of who started it, has been lost to time," Halloran says, shifting in his seat. "Some say it was a misunderstanding or an accident; others say it was purposeful, but however it started, it wasn't long before Wolves and Fae were 'natural' enemies, and a war was in full swing. Fae assassins slipped into this world and slew troublesome alphas; Wolves figured out how to open the doorway themselves and sent raiding parties into Faerie. Before long, neither side needed an excuse to kill the other. Such was the situation when my sister first came to Spring lakes."