"Bane darling is everything alright?" She asked him with worry in her sparkling eyes.

"I hope so dear. I really hope so."

"What's going on?" she asked half way fearing what he was going to say to her. Bane did not seem like his usual self today. 

"Annaleigh, there is something about me I must tell you," Bane slowly began to tell her what he had to. He didn't want to tell her he had no choice.

"Tell me dear what is it?" She asked with panic in her eyes as the color began to drain from her face.

"I'm not exactly sure the best way to put it."

He had her completely on the edge of her seat heart pounding furiously, scared half out of her mind. She listened to every single word that escaped his lips. She could not move she had to focus to breathe.

"I'm not sure how to put this", he spoke as if the words physically hurt him to speak.

 Annaleigh was scared confused and worried all at the same time. It felt as if her heart was stuck inside her throat as she waited for him to tell her something important.

"What I must tell you honey, I don't know if you'll believe it."

"Whatever it is you can tell me, honest." She spoke to him from her heart but he knew better. 

                    The last one he was with Rebecca said the same thing to him right before he told her and she fled from him. He heard she settled up north of here. He just hoped she was happy wherever with whoever. He needed to focus now. He needed to gently break this to her, but how do you break something like this gently?

 How you do you tell the woman you love with all of your human side that she is loved by the cursed? That she would be better off falling for one of the solders of the dark? He was not sure anymore and he could tell the suspense was getting to her. He couldn't back out now. He was at a point of no return with this now. Bane took a very long slow deep breath before he opened his mouth to speak and finally tell her what he had to.

"What I must tell you darling, I am so sorry to have to tell you the truth," he paused looking down at the floor of her hut. He was breathing hard trying not to lose his nerve. "I am not entirely human, only part of me is mortal." He looked at her with fear in his eyes and a bit of shame in his heart.

"What do you mean by not completely human?" She asked with confusion in her eyes. She was alarmed by where this conversation was going, she did not know how to react so she did nothing she was like a statue.

"I need you to know I will never ever hurt you in any way". When Bane spoke it seemed to only frighten her more. She looked as if she were in shock, or had just seen a ghost.

"Please explain this to me." She had not asked but demanded that he tell her.

Bane took a deep breath and started over. He had a look of deep concentration. He then started what he had no choice but to say to her.

"Do you remember hearing how things here are not as they seem?" He asked her with a look of death knocking at the door seriousness.

"Yes, Aerostat and a few others have said that to me, why?" She pondered wanting to know what in the realms of sanity was going on here.

"I am what am known as a shifter. I was not bitten, like those movies from your world. I am born of supernatural decent." He paused a moment to catch his breath before continuing on with his story.

"Every full moon I transform into a different creature."

When he paused this time she got up from where she was sitting. He thought this was it she was going to order him out of her home and her life, or slap him across the face before kicking him out. He was surprised to see she did not have any intention of throwing him out. She walked out of the room for a few minutes and returned with two cups of gargoyle ale. He had drunk it a few times in his life; it was a very potent drink. Under these strange circumstances he knew it was probably necessary this evening. He took a deep swallow of the warm liquid, feeling it tingle down his nervous throat.

"Go on tell me more about this, please." She asked softly fascinated by this new information. Bane was confused. She was not horrified, she did not run from him she stayed there, she wanted to know more. He could not believe it. He wanted to pinch himself to see if he was just dreaming that he had told her.

"The only thing that scares me anymore is the thought of losing you. I love you; I would do anything for you." Bane confided in her.

"I love you too. When I arrived here months ago I had to adjust. I noticed most of the people here have magic within them."

"It does not bother you?"

"I will admit it is a strange concept to me, but I think I have been able to handle this change." She replied to him. Bane had never felt as relieved as he did right now. She was going to accept him with his curse, he was actually going to be able to have her and not worry that the curse would chase her away from him. He leaned over and kissed her softly.

"How can you be so understanding about it my love?" He asked her.

"It is just in my nature I suppose." Annaleigh replied to him in a sweet as an angel tone of voice. She then downed the rest of her gargoyles ale. Bane was impressed with that most magically inclined Halflings couldn't down that stuff without passing out on the floor before setting the cup down. That night he felt complete and free. His life had never been better in all of his years he had never felt as optimistic as he did now. When he returned to his hut he slept very well that night.

Bane spent the next few days away from everyone he knew. Bane had traveled far and deep into the eastern section of the forest, further than the humans even magical ones would travel. He stayed out there for the few nights that the moon would be full. Bane always came out here right before shifting. He could not always tell what he would shift into, so he came out here to ensure the safety of the people in the village. Bane was a tough fellow when he needed to be, but he never really wanted to harm anyone. Just then, slowly and with agonizing pain he felt that transformation begin. He felt his muscles tear and bones break as he morphed into a large black wolf.

While bane was shifting in the forest, she did as he asked and stayed inside. She curled up on her very small bed with a good book and candles lit, she tried to relax. She had fixed herself a hot cup of tea, it was a strange herbal tea that bane had given to her before having to disappear for a couple of nights. The tea was very good it reminded her of a type of coffee. She was doing her best to have a nice quiet evening at home with a good book. She did more worrying over bane than reading. Annaleigh had expected to worry like a crazy person on the first night of bane being gone. Eventually her worrying had exhausted her enough that she had fallen asleep with her book open to the chapter.

Over the next day she had thought Banes absence would not bother her as much this night, but as anyone in love knows when their mate was gone it was like a twisted sense of torture to be away from them. She had thought it would be a little easier the second night but it wasn't it was harder than the first night had been. Bane was only going to be gone three days but to her it felt like a lifetime.

For three days and three night's bane relied on his animal instincts and his long known friend Bernard. Bernard was also a shifter but the poor guy would under the full moon shift human. Bernard could always tell it was bane no matter what he shifted into, Bernard could read it in a sense. Bernard had told him years ago to come to him during the change. Bernard had a sanctuary out in the woods, he kept it stocked with food and clothes enough for Bernard bane and a few others to help get through the change. It had been a while since Bernard had seen bane in his other forms.

By the end of the third day of the change bane could not wait to get home, specifically to annaleigh more than anything. Bernard could sense his friends worry. He bent down to stroke banes fur.

"It's okay, it's almost over now." Bernard comforted his friend. Bane looked up to his friend with a sense of appreciation. A moment later the sun began to set. As the moon rose no longer full, bane began to slowly shift back into his human form. While bane was turning into a human again, Bernard began his shift as well. Slowly Bernard began to transform back into a wolf. He was only human during the full moon. Bane thanked his good friend for all of his help before heading back through the miles of forest terrain, to get back to the village, his home and his love.

�Ar� z~