Episode Fourteen Détente

S hanna

"Guys? We're coming in. Ro, no one's going to hurt you, got it? Alex, I don't think you're top of the pecking order anymore."

I grab Chaska's hand, then give myself silent props for not shivering when I touch his claws and scales. Less than 24 hours ago, I was married to three men. Today I'm married to a wolf, a rabbit, and a dragon.

Life sure got real strange, real quick.

The closer we get to the bedroom, the harder it is to pull Chass forward, but I won't be deterred. We need to forge ahead.

Alex and Ro react just as I'd expected. Ro hops off the bed and presses his back into the far corner of the room. Alex's eyes narrow and he initiates a non-verbal pissing contest. It consists of wolf growls that expose dozens of sharp white teeth vs soft dragon roars, accompanied by a poof of smoke.

It's the puff of smoke, I think, that causes Alex to yip—so weird—and it appears Chass is now the top of the food chain. To his credit, I don't think he's happy about it.

He seems to have kept more of his right mind than the other two, because he squats lower as he saunters toward Ro. This makes him appear smaller, less threatening. He's still a sweet man. Maybe I should start calling them all males because none of them really qualify for the description "man" anymore.

"Ro," Chass says, "you must be flooded with fearful rabbit shit in your head right now. Listen to me. Stop it."

When a dragon orders you to do something, it's hard to even consider arguing. Ro simply stands still.

Chaska looks like a dragon, but his voice, although deeper and slightly garbled with the longer jawline and sharp teeth, is still Chass. Our Chass.

"Remember that last drug raid you told us about? How you were the first one through the door? How scared you were, but how you went forward anyway?"

He pauses, waiting for Ro's nod.

"Watch that video in your head again. Feel it. Remember what it's like to feel the fear and do things anyway."

Chass is brilliant, because I can see the changes on Roman's adorable rabbit face as he seems to relive his brave moment.

Chass keeps talking, reminding Ro of other courageous things he's done, until Ro stands taller and steps toward him. Unbelievably, he walks right into Chaska's embrace.

"You've got this, Ro. We've all got this. We're a family. We love each other and we're going to move beyond this," Chass says as he pats Ro's back, protectively tucks a wing around him, and pulls him toward Alex's side of the room.

"Alex. You seem to have gotten your shit together. We're going to listen to the latest news report, then we're going to determine our next steps. We can't keep worrying that you're going to try to eat one of us. You're an attorney. What would you say in your closing arguments to convince someone to control their animal instincts?"

Chaska, because he's the youngest of us and was the last to join our poly group, has never seemed interested in a leadership position in the sea of testosterone that is our family. That changed about ten minutes ago.

When Alex doesn't answer, Chass persists, "Say it out loud, Alex. I want to hear you convince yourself to push your wolf mind to the background and let your humanity come to the fore."

Alex scowls. It's a scary look on his wolfy face, but it doesn't deter Chaska, who goads, "Say it."

"You're a man. Act like one," Alex says petulantly.

"You're fired," Chass says. "That was pitiful. If you don't give it your best effort, we, the jury, are going to vote to convict."

"Shit," Alex grumbles, then he doesn't just sit up straight, he stands. One hand still cuffed to the radiator, he rolls his shoulders as if he's getting into character for the role of a lifetime. "Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, this male may appear to be a ne'er-do-well. He may not look like the best or the brightest, but looks can be deceiving."

He warms to his topic, looking each of us in the eyes.

"Underneath his… brutish exterior is an educated man. More important, he's a family man who loves his wife and husbands enough to get control over his baser instincts. He deserves to be acquitted and perhaps even forgiven for his previous bad behavior."

At this last sentence, he looks directly at Ro for the first time since he bit the cop's neck.

God, I love these guys so much. Ro, fear hormones still raging, hurtles into Alex's embrace. After much backslapping, a couple of I'm sorrys, and a sweet kiss of forgiveness, the tension in the room eases.

"We need to see if there's anything new on our news channel," I say. "After that, we probably need to get moving."