Violating her sanctuary. Sol moved with the confidence of a conqueror. Of one who knew he matched up favourably to the best life had to offer.

She sat on the high ridge, hugging her knees, trying to forget Sol standing in all his glory under the thundering water. Soapy hands gliding over firm flesh. Slicked-down hair clinging to broad shoulders and muscular arms. Her first sight of a naked man had stolen the breath from her lungs and stirred up disturbing feelings that left her dazed and confused. How did he feel when he touched himself? How would those capable hands feel on her own body?

Let go, the wolf urged.

"I'm trying. I thought it would be easier."

Then try harder, the wolf said, exasperated now and eager to start the ritual of wintering. We need to hunt. Get fat. Can smell the snow. It's coming.

"I know." Was Sol asleep in her bed? Would he come looking for her?

He's a warrior. Yes, he will come. Tian, we must leave.

"Did the Magic stone lie? It showed me a future I could never have imagined. Do you think we can trust him?"

He's come to take you away. To a cage without bars, but to a cage all the same.

Curiosity nagged at her. A disquieting confusion of wanting to put distance between her and Sol and, at the same time, wanting to creep down the mountain and learn more about the men her mother had so vehemently warned her against. Part of her acknowledged the physical attraction. That was beyond her control. The tingling low in her belly and the flush of heat that had crept over her skin as she'd watched him pleasure himself was nature's way of making sure human-kind lived on into a new generation. No different from a wolf taking a mate to ensure the survival of the pack.

Damnation! Why did he have to be so physically attractive? If the Goddess had sent a dwarf with one eye and rotting teeth, this would have been much easier.

Despite her best intentions, she crept nearer to the hut. No light shone from the window. She sniffed and caught Sol's unique scent, mingled with that of the horses; the more discernable for being new and unfamiliar. No matter how well he hid, she would be able to track him. Sol matched her only in strength. He did not possess the instincts of the wolf.

She shivered and pulled the coat around her naked body, oddly nervous as she peeked through the window hung with thick squares of glass bartered for at one of the trading fairs. Half expecting to see her mother standing by the stone sink, singing as she cleaned vegetables, Tian's wolf-eyes picked out every detail of the familiar room.

No ghosts. Only flesh and blood, lying flat out on her mother's bed, one arm dangling from the side, feet hanging from the end. His bare chest rose and fell in deep, even breaths and his unbound hair formed a tangled halo around his head.

Like the sun in high summer, she thought, fingering her own midnight-black locks. It lent him an air of innocence that belied the well-muscled arm hugging the patchwork quilt to his body. A sword arm, no doubt. Beside the bed lay his blade and the object she'd guessed might be a powered weapon. Next to them lay his boots, huge to match his frame. His image wavered and blurred.

"Please," she whispered to the wolf. "Give me sight. I need to see."

Why? This is dangerous.

"I'll be careful."

Now you have seen him, you wish to mate with him?

"No. No, of course not. I'm merely curious. I've never been this close to a man."

They're evil, Tian.

She shook her head. "No, not him. He ... intrigues me."

The wolf snorted. Pheromones. Nothing more. He wants to mate with you too. Can smell it.

"I know." Tian smiled and then checked herself. The physical attraction was undeniable. Why else was she staring wide-eyed and breathless through a darkened window at the sleeping man? No need to deny that when he'd pleasured himself, she'd imagined those hands on her own body, bringing her to the same shuddering climax.

The wolf is right, she thought and ducked down out of view. This is dangerous and reckless. Flushed cheeks, trembling hands. A liquid longing deep inside. Sol's body spoke to hers with an eloquence that didn't need words and hers was answering with an age-old song.

Too distracting. It muddled her mind when she needed her instincts clear and sharp. She wanted to go inside. Touch him. Let him touch her. She--

Run, Tian run.

What? Too late, she picked up Sol's scent. Heard the pad of bare feet on the wooden deck boards. Before she could scramble upright, a strong hand closed around her wrist and held her in place. A man's voice, low and urgent filtered through the fog of her confusion.

"Tian, I'm not going to hurt you. My name is Sol. The Goddess sent me. Stay, I need to talk with you."

She, who could hear the flap of a bird's wing on the high thermals, hadn't heard him coming? The crystal stone--he must be using its magic to cloak himself. Panic-stricken, she glanced at the restraint made by his curled fingers. He'd trapped a strand of his own hair between her skin and his.

Change, Tian.

I can't, he'll see me naked.

"Don't change, please. Stay human. We need to talk."

"Let me go." Whipping back her arm, she sent Sol sprawling onto the wooden boards and fled, running with all her might for the shelter of the trees. Behind her, she heard a curse followed by the determined thump and squelch of Sol's footfall on the slippery clay. Without breaking stride, she shed the coat and morphed into her wolf, pouring all of its energy into a sprint that sent it hurtling through the trees with dizzying speed. The man had no hope of gaining. The wolf broke through the wood and stood, quivering, on the edge of a shallow ravine.

Another curse, Sol's harsh rasping breath. The footsteps slowed and then halted. The man's heart beat with the same frantic tattoo as its own.

My coat, Tian said from deep inside the wolf. I need my coat.

Leave it, the wolf warned. Didn't I say he wanted to keep you?

He frightened me. Up close, he was so ... big.

But we are stronger. Let us go, he's coming.

Perhaps I should talk to him. Tell him why I cannot return with him.

He will take our freedom, Tian. Do you not hear the determination in his voice? Don't trust him.

"Tian, please talk to me." The man edged closer. "I've come a long way to find you, Tian. Sent by the Goddess. At least hear me out." Sol stopped, pushed the hair out of his eyes and raised his hands away from his body to show he carried no weapons. From one finger hung her coat.

The wolf assessed the chances of clearing the ravine from a standing start. Its back paws groped for the edge sending a shower of stones skittering down the stone walls. Too risky. The ravine's smooth sides would trap it as much as Sol meant to. Curling back its lips, it bared its teeth and growled, low it its throat.

"You don't scare me," Sol said, keeping his voice low. "I have no weapons, see. Tian, you're no longer safe. I'm here to offer you my protection."

The wolf lifted its head. Its eyes flashed a warning.

Sol placed one foot carefully in front of the other, stepping into a patch of broken moonlight that striped his chest and hair with silver. "I respect your strength, wolf. Tian needs me. Let her speak."

No, Tian. Hold me forward. I can take him.

Don't hurt him, Wolf. He means us no harm.

"Tian, I know your mother taught you the Universal language. Push back the wolf and listen to me. That's all I ask. If you don't wish to go back with me--that's your choice. Please, I've come a long way. A long way..." He offered the coat. "Take it."

Tian didn't miss the sag of Sol's shoulders. The weary resignation in his tone. His appeal weakened her when she needed to hold firm. Though he represented a threat, a part of her longed for the things Sol offered so openly. A mate. Friendship. A life with others of her kind.

The revelation startled her as much as the sudden feel of wind ghosting over skin instead of fur. Sol's eyes widened, first in appreciation, then in concern as she fought to keep her wolf forward and attempted to cover her naked body with her hands and hair.

"Tian, the wolf knows we need to talk. That's why it changed. Remain human."

"Stay away from me!"

"You know I'm right," Sol crooned, his voice low and seductive. "I'm handing you the coat. It's cold. Let's return to the hut."

"I have nothing to say to you. You're trying to confuse me so I'll go back with you. Wolf, where are you?" The precious balance, the control she needed to synchronise with the creature inside, was all awry.

Inside her, the wolf spiralled stubbornly away, taking with it the ability to see. Sol's image, the trees and wet mulch under her feet merged into a blur of shadow and moonlight. Momentarily disorientated, she stepped back, her foot hovering over the chasm. Sol's cry of alarm startled her even more. She tumbled over the edge arms flailing wildly, grappling for balance.

"Change, Tian!"

Sols' voice, so near it whispered against her skin. Firm fingers grasped her wrist as she went into freefall and the blurred world see-sawed away from her. First the weight of his body bore her down, then it was below, supporting her. The wolf burst through, every drop of energy poured into self preservation, and sprang. With a sharp scrape of claw against stone it found purchase and leapt from the abyss.

A woman again, Tian lay panting on the edge of the ravine, the skin of her thigh scraped raw by the rough scratch of stone against flesh. The sound of her own heart pumping fit to burst, hammering in her ears.

What of Sol? He'd leapt to save her. Where was he? She sat up and squinted her eyes, trying to determine which of the moving shapes were man and which were merely tree branches blown by the wind. The air reeked with the scent of panic and fear, both his and hers.

"Sol?" She called out, hoping the wolf hadn't hurt him. It had all happened so fast. She remembered hovering on the air, then something solid beneath her. A springboard for the wolf made with Sol's body?

Oh no. What have we done?

Her heart slowed and the ringing in her ears died down to be replaced by the familiar sounds of the night. The swish of birds on the wing, the leaves whispering in the breeze. Of Sol, no sound.

He's gone, Tian. We go now. Quickly.

"Have I killed him?" The quaver in her voice surprised her. After years of believing she would kill without remorse, the thought that she might have taken a life, sickened her.

"Goddess," she whispered. "Is he dead? Guide me. I don't know what to do."

Search your heart, child. I sent Sol to help you find yourself. He will do that.

"He lives?" Drained to the core, she flopped backwards onto the damp earth. She hadn't taken a human life. Thank the heavens.

His life is in your hands, child. Only when we are tested to the limit, do we see our true worth. I would have you find yours.

Go, Tian, the wolf said. He cannot follow. Leave him for the crows to pick clean. By spring, he will be nothing more than a memory.

"Goddess?"

Nothing more.

Should she grab this opportunity and become the wolf? A human life held only uncertainty. Better a simple life on the mountain than a life spent navigating the tangled paths humans insisted on walking.

Tian reached for the discarded coat, calm now and in possession of the wolf's sight. In the dark depths of the ravine, wedged into the V of the crevasse, she made out the unmoving shape of a man. Waiting for her to decide whether he would live or die.

So this is what it meant to be human? The wolf would gladly leave him to rot. She could not. To wilfully allow such a brave soul to die alone and in pain was an unforgivable sin. He'd offered his life for hers. She could do no less than offer it back to him.

"I'm sorry, Wolf. I cannot leave him to die. You must understand."

If you save him, he will keep you. Take you away from all this. The wolf let out a sigh of resignation. Choose wisely, Tian. What you start, you must finish.

She nodded. "I know. And I need you with me. I cannot do this without you."

Begging the Goddess's pardon--I do not approve of this. I will not help.

"I will compromise. We will save him then I promise we will leave on your terms."

Tian studied Sol's still form with the sharp clarity of her wolf's eyes. A bright splash of crimson stained his pale hair. One arm bent back at an unnatural angle. With her wolf senses, she made out the slow thud of Sol's heart and a steady pulse of blood pumping from the wound. The walls of the ravine were polished smooth by millennia of ice and woefully bereft of footholds. Perhaps if she found a rope?

"Lend me your strength, Wolf. He's too heavy for a mere woman."

Do it, the wolf replied without hesitation. Send him home to his family and then we live as wolf. It's a good plan.

"Yes, a good plan," she said, absently. "A good plan."