51. Jasmine

51

JASMINE

J asmine listened with great interest to Kian's tale of falling in love with Syssi. The poor guy had had some scary moments when Syssi had been transitioning, and then his sister had gotten kidnapped by a Doomer. That story had a happy ending, though. Amanda and Dalhu had turned out to be truelove mates and were now the proud parents of a baby girl.

It was so obvious that Kian still loved his wife passionately and she was his everything. Having a baby girl together had only made their marriage better.

Jasmine wanted what they had and what Aru and Gabi, Ella and Julian, Margo and Negal, and Frankie and Dagor had. She had never before seen people so fully committed to each other and who truly loved being together.

When Ell-rom reached for her hand under the table and gave it a light squeeze, Jasmine wondered if similar thoughts had been going through his head even though all he had been exposed to was Kian's sweet love story. He hadn't seen the other couples and how they interacted with each other, but he would, starting tomorrow.

"That was a lovely tale," Ell-rom said. "But I am a little worried about my ability to induce Jasmine's transition. I am only half god, and I don't know what my Kra-ell half will do. Did the Kra-ell also take human partners?"

The goddess settled back in her chair, her fingers laced around her coffee cup. "The Kra-ell situation is similar, but not identical. They too have hybrid children with humans, and these offspring often exhibit strong Kra-ell characteristics. When these hybrids have children with humans, however, their offspring are born human. It is the same pattern as with gods and humans."

Jasmine had heard the explanation about how gods came to have immortal children and how the second generation was born human, but she knew next to nothing about the Kra-ell.

"There was one notable case of a human female whose mother was a hybrid Kra-ell," Annani continued. "Her transition was induced by an immortal, but she did not turn immortal. She developed the same characteristics of a Kra-ell and human hybrid, and we assume that she will be long-lived like them. That is not good enough for her immortal mate, though. I hope our science will one day solve the problem of turning humans immortal."

Ell-rom leaned toward his sister. "Is it significant that she was induced by an immortal male and not a Kra-ell hybrid?"

The goddess smiled. "You are so astute, brother of mine. A Kra-ell male's venom isn't potent enough to induce transition. Only the venom of an immortal or a god can do that."

Ell-rom's face fell. "What if my venom takes after my Kra-ell half rather than my godly half?"

Jasmine felt a flutter of anxiety in her stomach. She hadn't considered this possibility, and now that it had been brought up, she was worried. The thought of having to approach Edgar for help to facilitate her transition was uncomfortable, to say the least.

Before Ell-rom had entered her life, she would have done that without much hesitation. But now? The idea of being with anyone other than her prince was intolerable.

Annani placed a reassuring hand on Ell-rom's arm. "The Fates would not have brought you and Jasmine together if there was any chance you lacked what was necessary to induce her transition."

"The Fates?" Ell-rom asked. "You've mentioned them before. What exactly are they?"

Annani's eyes lit up at the question. "Gods and immortals loosely believe in the three Fates who shape destinies. It is not a religion per se, and some believe more strongly than others. Supposedly, the Fates are in charge of truelove matchmaking and personal development, but sometimes they meddle in more than just that."

Jasmine nodded, recognizing the concept. She'd heard Edgar and the other gods invoke the Fates often enough, but this was the first time she'd heard a proper explanation.

"The Fates must answer to someone, though, right?" she said. "Since the scope of their duties and what they are in charge of is limited, they cannot be the creators of the universe or the ultimate arbiters of all the different worlds."

Annani turned to her with an encouraging smile. "What do you believe in, Jasmine?"

"The Goddess, the Mother of All Life." Jasmine pushed a strand of hair behind her ear. "I mean, it's just another spin on the belief in an omnipotent creator. Most people think of the creator in masculine terms, but Wiccans worship the Goddess, and I'm more comfortable with that image than the guy with the long beard."

Ell-rom regarded her with a puzzled expression. "What guy with a long beard?"

She waved a dismissive hand. "That's how many people imagine God."

"Interesting." Ell-rom frowned. "I wonder how that started. Does the Eternal King have a long beard?"

Annani laughed. "I do not think so, but we can ask Aru or Jade later."

"It was just a thought." He turned to Jasmine. "I am glad that we share a belief in the same deity. I don't know what that belief entails, but you can tell me. A shared belief should be a good foundation for a relationship." He seemed embarrassed for a moment. "I don't know where that came from. Maybe my priestly training is starting to come back to me."

Annani let out a laugh, the sound so rich and melodious that it raised goosebumps on Jasmine's arms. "Many different things contribute to a good relationship." Her eyes twinkled with amusement. "Respect, patience, the ability to compromise, and great sex."

Jasmine couldn't help but laugh along. "I couldn't agree more, Clan Mother."

She glanced at Ell-rom, expecting to see him join in their mirth, but instead she noticed a nervous expression flitting across his face, and she suspected the reason for that was fear. Ell-rom was a novice, and he was afraid of not meeting her expectations, which was natural.

Wanting to change the subject and ease his embarrassment, Jasmine turned back to the Clan Mother. "You mentioned that the Fates are responsible for truelove matchmaking. How does that work exactly? Do they just push people together?"

Annani looked pleased by the question. "The Fates weave intricate webs of circumstances and coincidences. Sometimes, it takes years for their plans to come to fruition. They might influence a person's career choice or prompt them to move to a new city, all to set up the perfect meeting between trueloves."