When she entered the living room, still wearing nothing but Flint’s t-shirt and her underwear, the three men were waiting for her.

Camdan cleared his throat and pointedly looked down at the floor. “Why are you walking around naked?”

She shrugged. “I don’t have any clothes.”

Flint chuckled. “Girls. I’ll get you some later. Weren’t you wearing jeans yesterday?”

Now it was her turn to look at the carpet, hiding her blushing cheeks. “I ripped them by accident. My claws must have come out without me noticing.”

“Yes, Flint told us what happened between you two,” Cam sighed and she swallowed hard. She was tempted to run back to her room and hide from all the embarrassment. Forever. Instead, she looked up, giving them all dirty looks.

“Do you always gossip like pesky little selkies?” she hissed, ignoring the fact that her hair was turning green in anger.

“We don’t gossip,” Flint grumbled. “They needed to know.”

“Did they now,” she growled, but inside she was getting curious. He’d promised her she’d find out more about them today. Maybe she should stop being angry?

“Sit down, Macey,” Cam commanded. She hissed at him but did as he said. That didn’t mean that she had to stop glaring at them, though.

“How do I start...,” Flint murmured, more to himself than her.

“Easy,” Jared grinned, “you’re fire, she’s water, opposites attract each other.”

Cam groaned, hitting his friend in the ribs. “Do you ever think before you speak?”

“Rarely.”

“I’ve noticed. Now be quiet and let Flint explain it properly.”

Jared smirked but didn’t reply. Macey was staring at them open-mouthed. What the fuck was going on here?

Flint sighed again, obviously feeling uncomfortable. “What do you know about the Seven Elements?”

“Aren’t there just four?” she asked, taken aback by this strange question.

“That’s the human way of thinking. In truth, there are seven: fire, air, earth, water, ice, wind and lightning. We call them Seachd-Sìona in Gaelic.”

“Wait, aren’t air and wind the same?” she interrupted? “And water and ice?”

“Similar, but not the same,” Flint explained. “Their base essence is different. Which is why there are seven of us.”

He paused to let it sink in, but she was having none of it. “Seven what? Idiots?”

Cam chuckled. “Seven Wardens.”

“Please tell me you’ve heard of the legend?” Jared groaned dramatically. Macey shook her head, embarrassed at her lack of knowledge of the supernatural world. Her grandmother had told her stories, but most were about the peoples roaming the sea and waters, not... Wardens, whatever they were.

“May I remind you that you didn’t know it either when you joined us?” Cam reminded him sternly and Jared grimaced.

“That’s different. I didn’t grow up in your world.”

“Have you asked Macey how she grew up?”

Jared shrugged before admitting, “No, I haven’t.”

“Then don’t be so quick to judge.” Cam turned to Flint. “Brother, would you do us the honour?”

Flint smiled and got up, bowing dramatically.

Macey smiled. This was going to be interesting.

Clearing his throat, Flint began to chant in a deep, smooth voice.

Silence followed his recital, broken only by the flickering of the flame he suddenly conjured, hovering above his outstretched hand.

“I am fire.”

Cam got up and lazily moved his fingers through the air, creating a tiny tornado in the palm of his hand.

“I am wind.”

Jared stood up as well, opened his mouth - and laughed, bending over as his chuckles grew louder. “Sorry, but you’re a little too dramatic,” he wheezed in between laughs. “And I can’t show her earth without destroying the house.”

“You just destroyed my performance,” Flint complained, but a grin was slowly appearing on his face, making his eyes sparkle in the light of the fire he was still holding.

“Sorry,” Jared shrugged, still laughing. “Oh and by the way, you’re water, Macey.

“I got that, believe it or not,” she muttered. Maybe that wasn’t the comment she should have been addressing, after all, they had just told her she was a Warden, whatever one of those was.

“Just making sure,” Jared said, a boyish grin spreading across his face. She liked it, it lit up his eyes and made him seem ten times less intimidating than when he’d arrived the night before desperate for a feed. He looked far healthier now, which didn’t make any sense. How was that possible? Had he gone back out to find another woman? She hoped not, that idea wasn’t sitting very well within her; in fact, if he’d done that, there’d soon be a woman out there with claw marks on her face and the fear of gods that didn’t exist in her. If she’d had her magic, maybe she’d even try her hand at one of the curses Aunt Nessie had taught her.

“You don’t look as bad as you did yesterday,” she prompted, hoping he’d get the hint and she didn’t have to ask more outright. Jared chuckled, giving her a knowing look.

“Something you did seemed to work on me.”

“I didn’t do anything,” she said with a frown. This time, it wasn’t just Jared that laughed.

“You did plenty, Two,” Cam said and she scowled at him. He’d have done plenty too if he’d given into her. It wasn’t her fault that they’d all turned her down, even if she was secretly glad about that.

“Has that ever happened before?” she asked Jared, completely ignoring Cam’s comment.

“No, this is the first.” He looked far too pleased with himself for her liking.

“Right, okay, moving on,” she said. She crossed her legs, being careful to make sure the t-shirt slipped further up her legs. Three pairs of eyes bored into her, and she smiled to herself, satisfied with their response. She’d have them caving to her in no time. Which was definitely a good thing. She didn’t feel quite as horny as she had yesterday, but there was still something simmering under the surface, and that was an itch she definitely wanted scratching. Three times, preferably. “So where are the other four?” She looked at Flint, figuring he was the most likely to answer. He’d taken the lead before after all.

“You mean three,” he said gently. “With you, there are already four of us.”

“Oh.”

“But we don’t know. We always needed you before the next part could come to pass,” he added.

“Me?” she squeaked. “As in, me, Macey?”

“No, as in you, water. That you’re you, Macey, is just a bonus.” His eyes trailed over the length of her body, lingering on her exposed thighs. Score one for Macey. She’d have fist pumped the air if she didn’t think they’d take the piss out of her for it. Maybe she’d save it for when they left her alone. Unless they never did. Hmm, not a bad thought.

“So there are three more elementals out there, and you have no idea where or who they are?”

“That sounds about right,” Jared said, looking way too pleased with himself. She shot him a dirty look. If he wasn’t careful, she’d let him get too desperate again before she fed him. That’d serve him right, though would probably punish the rest of them in the process. Okay, maybe not her best ever idea.

She ran through the prophecy Flint had recited in her head a couple of times, already surprised that it was so imprinted in her mind. “Guess that means we’ll find Lightning next?” she asked tentatively, glancing up at Flint, who nodded proudly.

“I suspect Lightning will come with Ice, but in effect, yes.”

“And that’s not going to complicate things?” she glanced around the three of them, instantly regretting what she’d said. Except, no, she was a Princess, she wouldn’t be ashamed of what she was saying, or thinking, as the case may be.

“Complicate what exactly?” Cam asked, a mischievous sparkle in his eyes.

“Nothing,” she muttered. “So what’s the end?”

“We have no idea,” Jared answered this time, looking serious for once. Or at least, for once while he wasn’t starved out of his mind.

“It’s always been a little bit of a mystery,” Flint added. “But you’re here now, so we were hoping it’d all become clear.”

“Just like that?” She couldn’t stop the laugh that escaped as she asked. It all seemed a little far-fetched really. She wasn’t the answer to anything, except who was the kelpie with no powers. Ah, her powers. This was probably the time to tell them she had none. Well, that she had no access to them.

“We don’t know,” Cam answered, his storm grey eyes watching her intently. “We weren’t exactly expecting this.”

“Me neither.”

“Any more questions?” Jared asked. “I’m starved, and it’s Cam’s turn to cook.” Oh good, she could get on board with that, especially if the food was as good as the sandwich he’d made her the night before.

“Do any of you know anything about unlocking water powers?” she asked quietly.

“Think this one’s yours, Flint,” Jared said, standing and slapping his friend on the back.

“Good luck,” Cam added as he stood and moved towards the door, dragging Jared along behind him.

“What’s all that about?” she asked once they’d left, hopefully to go to the kitchen, she really could do with some food.

“I think they’re trying to avoid the fire versus water thing.”

“Oh, will it be bad?” She hadn’t actually considered that part yet.

“I don’t think so, if opposites attract, then it doesn’t make sense for it to be explosive. At least, not in that way.” Even though he didn’t do it, she could hear the wink in his voice and let out a small giggle. “Your powers are locked then?”

“Yes, my Father locked them before I came on land.”

“Why?” His eyebrows drew inwards in a perplexed expression that only brought her giggles back. Damn, when had she become such a girl?

“I don’t actually know,” she responded once they’d subsided slightly. “It was one of the conditions of me coming onto land. I suspect it was so I’d go back home quicker, but it’s hard to tell with him.” It had always bothered her that there was no explanation to the block on her powers; it didn’t seem to achieve anything really. Except for her not being able to do certain things.

“But you shifted, last night when we—”

“I know,” she interrupted. “That’s a different type of kelpie magic. I can shift, but not fully unless I’m underwater, but I can’t do any of my other magic.”

“Can I see it?”

“No, I can’t do magic on land.”

“You shifted, I meant,” he replied.

“Oh, no, you don’t want to see that. It’s not exactly an elegant form.” She shuddered at the thought. Kelpies weren’t exactly the most attractive of things to shift into, and she didn’t think she was ready for Flint’s opinion of her to change quite so drastically.

“One day I want to see it,” he said, his voice holding a sultry promise that she wouldn’t be able to ignore.

“So what do we do now?” she asked, changing the topic. After all this talk about shifting, she suddenly had the picture of him riding on her kelpie form in her head... she’d rather have him ride her in a different way. In their current forms. Right now, preferably.

She shook off those thoughts, cursing herself for being so desperate for being touched. It had to be a side effect from Jared’s feeding, it had to be. She wasn’t usually this flirty.

“Now we see if my fire can coax out your water,” he whispered, pulling her close. His eyes were burning coals, warming her in all the right places. She was craving his touch, wanting his lips on hers, wrapped around each other, not letting go.

“I’m not sure my father intended me to unlock my magic like this,” she chuckled, and he grinned.

“Like what?” Flint teased, hovering only a breath away.

“Are you going to kiss me?” she whispered, posing a rather rhetorical question.

“I shouldn’t...” He gave her a tiny kiss on the nose. “But I want to.”

Then he crashed his lips on hers and she forgot all about her magic. This was magic, the sensation of him claiming her mouth, of their bodies pressed together, of being united by a fierce, all-consuming kiss.

All too soon he pulled away, leaving them both breathless. “We should get to work before the others come back,” he sighed.

“Isn’t this how you’re going to help me?”

He frowned for a second, then laughed. “No, this was just because I like to kiss you. Your lips are so soft, so... kissable.”

“Is that all you can come up with?” She winked and he chuckled again.

“I’m not a man of many words. I’m a man of actions.” He suddenly conjured a large flame in his right hand and she flinched, stepping back. “Don’t worry, I won’t burn you.”

“Until three years ago, I’d never seen fire before. We don’t have flames underwater.”

He huffed. “How do you keep warm? Where do you get your light from?”

“We’re kelpies, we’re warm when we’re shifted. And even in my human form I don’t get cold easily. Especially not in water. And for light, we have bioluminescent plants and fish. I used to have a light-up squid as a pet.”

“Didn’t you grow up in a Scottish loch? I didn’t think they had squid in there.”

She smiled. “He was a present from a distant relative. And besides, most people don’t know kelpies live in the lakes around them, so how would they know about a few squid.”

“Point taken. Is it okay for you to come closer to the flame?”

Not wanting to be seen as weak, she approached him, eyeing the fire warily. When she first came to the surface, her brothers had played a prank on her, pretending the lit candle on their table was there to be touched. She couldn’t remember why she believed them, but she could still feel the pain echoing in her hand. Those bastards, why was she trying to rescue them again? If they needed rescuing - she still wasn’t any closer to finding out.

Macey stared into the flame, somehow feeling a pull inside of her, urging her to come closer.

She lifted her hand, passing it closer to the flame than she probably should, but it was so tempting and the urge to touch was too difficult to ignore. She waved her hand over the top of it, feeling the prickle of heat on her palm, along with Flint’s intense gaze.

“Oh,” she said as she watched the flames turn blue slightly.

“That was unexpected,” Flint said softly and she turned to look at him, her eyes locking with his and revealing a combination of curiosity and desire. Good. She was glad he was still feeling it, or the fire simmering in her blood was misplaced. She gave a short laugh. The fire in her blood? How ridiculous was that when she was a water being. Kelpies didn’t want or need fire, there was no reason for her to be feeling it. Well, no reason other than the tall, handsome man who was looking at her like he could devour her.

“What do I do now?” she asked, definitely feeling uneasy about the whole situation.

“Do it again, but move closer this time.”

She frowned. That wasn’t what she expected him to say, nor was it something that particularly appealed. But then again, she didn’t think he’d let any harm become her. Which was another odd thought. She’d been kidnapped and separated from her brothers, and yet here she was thinking about how attractive one of her captors was? Not only that, but how much she trusted him. Macey shrugged it off, remembering a piece of wisdom her Aunt Nessie had told her once; “Always trust your gut.” Of course, being Aunt Nessie, that hadn’t been all there was to her lesson, it had come laden with stories of her own misspent youth, but the point had been driven home. Sometimes, Macey had to trust her own instincts, even if they seemed wrong.

Which meant moving her hand closer to the flame. Taking a deep breath, she did just that, almost touching the top of it this time, and once again, the flames themselves turned blue. But nothing else happened. She didn’t feel the surge she normally did when her magic was close to the surface, making her sure that it hadn’t come.

“Closer?” she asked before she could stop herself.

“I guess so,” Flint said, a worried note in his voice. She studied the flame, which was almost entirely blue now, but the intensity of it didn’t seem to have waned, and she felt the heat of it against her skin still. She took another breath, knowing she just had to get on with it, or she’d chicken out. Before she could put too much thought into it, she thrust her hand into the middle of the flame.

It was hot, but it didn’t burn, which was completely at odds with what she’d discovered after her brothers played their prank on her. Looking back at Flint, she could see the worry on his face as he glanced between her and the flame, seemingly confused about what was happening. Well, that made two of them.

“What did you expect to happen?” she asked carefully, dreading the answer.

“I wasn’t sure...” he hedged, making anger boil up in her.

“You thought it was going to burn me, right? Why would you do that?” Her voice turned into a shout. “I trusted you!”

The door was thrown open and Cam barged in, looking around for the cause of the noise. “Is everything okay?” he asked, his relief obvious at there being no immediate danger.

“He burned me!” Macey hissed and pointed at Flint.

“What the fuck?” Cam growled and strode towards his friend who held up his hands, the flame still flickering dangerously from between his fingers.

“Calm down, she wasn’t hurt,” Flint defended himself, but he did do her the courtesy of looking a little downtrodden. “She’s fine. But I thought if her body assumed it was under attack by the opposite element, her magic might spring into action.”

“So you burned her to test a theory?” A breeze began to roam around the room, making Macey’s hair flutter in the wind. Cam was getting angry, and so was the air around him.

“Look at her hands, she’s fine!” Flint shouted over the wind that was getting louder. “Macey, show him your hands, he needs to see if you want the house to stay intact!”

With a sigh, she showed Cam her unmarked skin. This was for the benefit of structural integrity. But she wasn’t going to let Flint get away with it. He had broken her trust and he was going to pay for it.

The wind died down almost as quickly as it had arrived. Cam took her hands into his, examining them closely. When had he become so protective?

“How are you not burnt?” he asked under his breath, more a statement than a question. It was clear that none of them knew.

“Does that mean that Jared’s magic can hurt you? Even though he’s your opposite?”

Cam laughed grimly. “Oh yes, he can definitely hurt me. We weren’t always friends. When we found him, he was... broken. He drank too much, and when he did, he got violent. Strangely enough, it was after our biggest fight that he finally began to trust us.”

“But maybe that’s because we’re not sure if he actually is your opposite,” Flint mused. “With fire and water, it’s clear. Earth’s opposite could be wind, but it could also be air, or lightning. So maybe we haven’t met your match yet.”

“Why are you assuming there are pairs anyway?” Macey asked. “If there are seven elements, it doesn’t work out.”

“It’s something Malan said according to the legend, just before he foretold the Prophecy of the Wardens. That he knew that six pairs were going to come, led by one who was different. In the prophecy, Air is mentioned as joining on its own, last, so we assume that it’s the leader who will tell us what to do.”

“Ehm, who’s Malan?” she asked, once again annoyed at her own ignorance.

“A prophet who lived a long time ago. Maybe two hundred years? Or has it been longer?” Cam replied, deep in thought.

“It was just after we met. Three centuries, perhaps?” Flint said, and Macey gasped. Then giggled. Then gasped again.

“Did you just say that you met three hundred years ago? How bloody old are you?”

Cam shrugged. “Not sure. It never really mattered in the Mists. Only when we left and started exploring other worlds did we notice how fast time passes for other beings.”

“So I’m just a quick blink in the passage of time?” she asked, the words sounding less bitter than she’d expected, and just coming across a little sad. They’d already affected her a lot, and this was the most excitement she’d had in, well, ever. But if all she was to them was the fleeting moment of yet another year, then really, what was the point for her? She shouldn’t let herself fall too deeply, or she’d just end up hurt, and they’d be the ones laughing all the way to the ends of the earth without her.

“Hardly, weren’t you listening to the prophecy?” She glared at Flint, not appreciating the way he was talking to her. He’d better stop or he’d soon find himself in a wet heap on the floor.

“Yes I was listening, but unlike you, I haven’t had centuries to get used to the idea,” she snapped. She spun around, almost losing her balance until normal temperature hands caught her, resettling herself on her feet.

“Whoa, Macey, calm down.” Cam pulled her closer. Reluctantly, she went with it.

“Calm down?” she shouted. “Calm down?! You’ve taken me from my home, kept me here, told me some stupid prophecy that has no real explanation, burned me, then revealed that I’m nothing but a nanosecond in the immense span that is your lives. And now you expect me to be calm?”

“I didn’t burn you,” Flint said from behind her, sounding much like a spoiled child. She ignored him, it was that or end up ripping his head off with her bare claws.

“Erm, Macey?”

“What?” she snapped at Cam, no longer able to contain her anger even if she knew that she should. After all, it wasn’t Cam’s fault she’d nearly been burned.

“Your hair’s turning green.”

“Eurgh.” She took a few deep breaths, trying to regain control of her shift. That was twice in as many days; accidental shifting had never happened so often. Maybe she needed to do a full one? Get some of the pent up energy out of her system, that way, she wouldn’t keep doing it by accident. “Do you have a swimming pool?”

“What?” Flint responded before Cam did. Though Cam’s confused face reflected Flint’s tone.

“A swimming pool. You know, big, filled with water, you can swim in it?” She turned around, not moving away from Cam’s arms, and his hands trailed over her in a tantalising way she almost couldn’t ignore.

“I know what one is, just not why you want one.” She raised an eyebrow, wondering how long it’d take him to catch on. “Oh.” Understanding dawned on his face.

“So, do you have one?” she repeated, just about refraining from tapping her foot with impatience. He really was trying his very best to wind her up.

“Yes, we have a swimming pool,” he answered eventually.

“Great, where is it?”

“Down the hall, I’ll take you in a second,” Cam whispered in her ear, and she nodded.

“Can I watch?” Flint said hopefully, referring back to his desire to watch her shift.

“No.”

“Why not?” he demanded, his voice firm and more than a little inviting if she was honest. A part of her wanted to take him up on the promise there, but the rest of her squashed it down, reminding her that she was still mad at him.

“Because I’m not shifting in front of anyone,” she responded. Maybe one day, she’d feel comfortable shifting in front of them. But the last thing she wanted was for the men she was so attracted to to see her in her rather ungainly form. Kelpies weren’t the most elegant of species.

“But—”

“No,” she said firmly, and to her surprise, Flint nodded, finally accepting her decision.

“Come with me.” Cam linked his hand with one of hers and pulled her down the corridor that headed in the opposite direction to where the bedroom she’d stayed in was. How big was this place? And how hadn’t she noticed how big it was before? It was like a labyrinth. Which just made her wonder what else was hidden about here.

She followed him without saying a word until he directed her into a room smelling strongly of chemicals. She wrinkled her nose, already hating it, but knowing she needed the water to shift. Technically, being underwater might unlock her powers again too. She didn’t actually know, this would be the first time she’d shifted since leaving the loch.