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Chapter 81: After One Hundred Years

Liam lay in his son's arms for a minute, thinking. He looked up at Ciaran and wryly said, "This was, perhaps, not a wise thing to do. I am at very low levels of chi and my meeting will cause Lowell to surface repeatedly. I may end up unconscious before the night is through." He smiled and continued, "It was a most enjoyable diversion. I am pleased with your progress; your ofuda have improved and you appear to have learned a few things I have not taught you." He weakly shook his head. "I do think some of them were overdone. What would have occurred should I have not removed the charm from the door and someone else opened it during our combat? I am aware that it was primarily comprised of air, not fire, but it was still most dangerous."

Ciaran looked shamefaced. "I didn't think about that, Da. I'm sorry. I was just looking forward to sparring with you again." He frowned. "You seem... um, different."

Liam chuckled. "I am fourteen and a Rottweiler. Why are you surprised? Of course I am different. If that was an attempt to ask why I seem weaker, then the answer is also the same. I am fourteen. I do not have the same strength I did as Lowell, I do not have the store of chi, nor do I have the same muscle memory. Such things will return as I mature and train; I will, in fact, have far more chi than I ever did as Lowell." He reached up and placed a paw on Ciaran's shoulder. "I am very proud of you, Ciaran. Faelen gave no indication he thought you were suspicious of my true nature, nor of my profession. You have kept my secret well, and it sounds you are keeping your own secret just as close. There are, of course, some suspicions amongst those close to you, and Faelen and my friends know of Lowell's past profession so they suspect, as well."

Liam could feel Faelen getting very anxious. Faelen could most likely feel how weak he was, and was justifiably concerned.

Ciaran helped Liam to his hindpaws and looked him over. "I have some old clothes from when I was younger that you can wear; I don't think going to see everyone with blood on your clothes is a good idea. I also have a styptic to make sure the cut on your chin doesn't drip."

Liam waved at him, then wobbled as Ciaran moved away. "I have already stopped the bleeding; I did so when I drove out the poison. The change of clothing would be appreciated, but I do not know what to do with these." After a moments though, he continued, "Nathanial may be able to repair them, and would not ask too many questions; I just do not know the best way to get them to him, discretely."

Ciaran led him into the back, where he had a small, but very crowded, store room. "They should be around here, somewhere." Ciaran began flipping through clothes on some hangers.

Liam glanced around and saw an old trunk. "In there." He pointed at it. "Unless you repacked it, that trunk contained many of your clothes and personal effects from your young teens. I remember you placed one of my favourite suits of yours in there."

Ciaran shook his head as he moved some boxes off the trunk. "I completely forgot this was here; I'd never have remembered what was in it, either. You have to love perfect memory, don't you."

Liam shook his head. "No, you do not. It has its uses, but it also has problems. There are many unpleasant things that happen in which it would be a blessing to be able to forget. There are many things I would like to unsee or unhear, but I cannot. In any event, Faelen is on his way and has likely mentioned that I am weakened, so others may be accompanying him. Please delay them; your home is in a state that would be too difficult to explain. I will be along once I change."

Ciaran bowed. "Yes, Da." The grey wolf slipped out of the room silently and ran toward the front door.

Liam quickly pulled out the suit: knee-length forest green britches, a matching coat with brass buttons, a high-collared white shirt, and a cravat. Liam had been very glad that Ciaran was too old to be placed in those odious Lord Fauntleroy 'suits', and this was actually the last suit Ciaran had worn that was not trousered. Liam could hear Faelen and Ciaran talking while he hastily dressed; Faelen was agitated, he was likely smelling Liam's blood in the room and had heard quite the commotion.

Liam raised his voice, "I am well, Faelen. Go to Lorie's room and wait, I will be along shortly and explain what I can, later. Later, as in in private." He knew it was not loud enough for anyone other than Faelen and Ciaran to hear. Ciaran's hearing was exceptional; his sense of smell differed from Faelen's, but was also sharp.

Liam felt Faelen's frustration and worry, but he left. Ciaran trotted back into the room, carrying a charm, and helped him finish dressing. Ciaran put the ofuda, the one that had been modified to create an electrical web over the door, on a shelf. The older wolf blushed when he saw Liam's confusion. "I... wanted a memento, Da. I was really upset at how little you seemed to have accumulated, as Lowell. You were always bringing stuff back, but it always... vanished before I knew it. I would've thought you'd have tons of stuff from your lives."

Liam put a paw on Ciaran's arm to steady himself as they walked out of the storeroom. "To what end? I will die and lose whatever I have accumulated. I can recall with perfect clarity anything I have had as an Ancient One, thus there is no purpose for mementos. I have a very small number of items I keep across lives, passed on by the Monks. One is the sword I had made as Song Xun, which you have seen and was passed back into their keeping prior to my death. The other was the cane I had as Song Li, which was not kept by my direction, but out of reverence by my disciples. When they heard I was alive again, as Lowell, it was shipped with my sword to London, and from there to me in Halifax in this life. I have no other possessions from earlier lives."

"I have your journals, Da. I can give them to you."

Liam stumbled slightly, and was caught by Ciaran, as they stepped into the courtyard. Aedan was walking to Lorena's home with Aoife. The tall wolf looked surprised. "Ciar? Who...? That isn't...Da, is it?"

Liam chuckled, then winced as Lowell tried to wake. He really should take some medicine before the meeting went into full gear. "Hello, Aedan. Aoife." He pushed himself up from Ciaran and slowly stepped toward his children.

Aoife's breath caught in her throat, "Are you all right? You aren't... sick, are you?" She was obviously thinking of how he had moved before he was too weak to climb from bed in his last days.

Aedan looked confused and disbelieving, but Faelen interrupted them. "Inside. Shoo." He sounded almost angry and held a steaming mug. "You better have some of your medicine with you, Liam." He looked at his older relatives and Liam could feel his love's temper flare. "I said go inside. I have him, so get going."

Ciaran smiled softly and shook his head with amusement, but went in. Aoife looked scared by how weak Liam looked, but grabbed Aedan's paw and dragged him inside, murmuring, "Let the love birds have their privacy when they fight, Aedan. I think... Liam will get an earful."

Liam pulled out a packet of his medicine and poured it into the mug Faelen was holding. "Thank you, my love. You have anticipated me once again."

Faelen's hackles were raised as he hissed angrily, but quietly, "What the fuck was that? What were you doing over there? Why are you bleeding? You were short on chi before we came down here, and whatever you were doing, fighting from the sounds of it, took enough to almost make you pass out!" Faelen glanced around, his ears twitching like mad. "I'm guessing Uncle Ciaran was Lowell's... apprentice and you had a sparring match, but couldn't that have waited? Bloody hells, Liam, couldn't you have told me!?"

Liam chugged his medication down. "I taught each of my children what they could make the best use of. Some things I may only discuss with the Alpha's permission. Which is likely an answer in its own right, so I must have your word that it remain secret."

Faelen growled, "Yeah, I know. I swear, Liam. I don't really know what this medication does to you, other than reduce your ability to produce chi, but we're going to have to cut the meeting short tonight and get Geoff's help in replenishing you as much as we can. Gods, Liam, I never thought I'd have to remind you to show some restraint!"

Liam placed his paw on Faelen's cheek. "It has been very long since we last saw each other. There are times when restraint is difficult, even for those who are normally reserved. That was how we cut loose and bonded." Liam smiled broadly. "It was great fun, but I am sorry if I scared you. Ah, the memories."

He shook his head as he saw Ciaran going through a form, alone, for the first time. The first sparring match, and the last one. His first ofuda and his first jutsu. The jutsu was a simple sleep effect; Ciaran snuck up on Aedan and reached around to tap him on the forehead. The jutsu worked, barely, and Aedan fell asleep, though he woke up when he fell off his chair. Liam had been proud of Ciaran, both for the jutsu and for sneaking up on Aedan, but he had to punish Ciaran for almost exposing his training.

Faelen waved his paw in front of Liam's face. "Back to the present. Let's go in."

Liam nodded and followed Faelen inside Lorena's home. His breath caught as he saw the living room, it was set up almost identically to the one they had right after they first married. "Lorie, my darling. How did you get all of this? Why would you recreate it? It... it's... oh, Lorie."

Lorena walked out of the kitchen. "Welcome home, Lowell. I trust the Season went well?" She wore a recreation of the dress she wore when Alpha Ruarc introduced them: a deep wine dress with white lace and crimson accents. It was not an overly elaborate dress by the standards of the day, but it had suited her marvellously, and still did.

He bowed. "I offer my warmest greetings, Miss O'Conall." He reached over and kissed her paw, as he did in Ruarc's study. "I trust the day finds you well?" He said the exact same words, in the same way, that he did then; he even copied Lowell's voice.

Her eyes filled with tears as she smiled. "You remembered. I can't believe that after all this time you'd remember. You are Lowell, you even sounded just like him."

"But I look nothing like him." Liam's voice was wry, and no longer Lowell's, "I remember everything, Lorie, and that is no exaggeration. It is part of who I am. I cannot believe you would, nor that you put so much effort into recreating so much of this. It..." Liam swallowed around a lump in his throat and walked into the living room. He ran a paw over the back of the chair and laughed, "It's the same chair! It still has the dent in it from when Danny fell into it when he was seven! You knocked your tooth out, pup, and the tip of it broke off in the wood." He checked the dent and saw the tiny piece of tooth still there. "I can't believe it. Lorie, I just can't believe it."

Aedan looked disconcerted at being called 'Danny', he seemed annoyed and pleased at the same time.

Liam ran a paw over the gramophone, it looked almost the same, but it was not the same one. It was far too new. He looked at all of the paintings and portraits on the walls; most were done by Muireann, but there were a number of paintings by other artists and old daguerreotypes, or photographs on silver plates, on the walls as well. Liam ran a finger along the frame of one of Muiry's 'newer' portraits of him, of Lowell. "Will my beautiful little Muiry be here?"

Aedan sat on the couch; Liam could not truly understand why, it was hideously uncomfortable. His son seemed discomfited by more than the furniture. "Liam... Smith, was it? You say you're Da? Muireann won't be here. She doesn't want to see... you, and she's not allowed to have company. Why do you sometimes sound like Da, Lowell, and other times not? Why don't you look anything like you did? Why... just why?"

Liam walked over and sat beside his eldest, and said what he felt Aedan actually wanted to hear, "Because each life is short. Because it was my time. Because I was afraid. Because I love you, Aedan." He leaned back, fingers locked behind his head. "Now, lad, do I have to keep answering questions left unasked? You could guess that I'm not Lowell snatched from the clutches of death and tossed willy-nilly throughout time. Nor would you expect a pup of fourteen to carry my rich and lovely voice. I grew up in Nova Scotia, why would you expect me to have a Cork accent? Think, pup, and it'll all make sense. You're my son, you're bloody smart when you bother to think things through."

Aedan leaned away a little and twisted on the couch to look at his 'father'. He shook his head in disbelief. "I've been doing nothing but thinking since Faelen dropped that bombshell on us. I knew, somehow, that you weren't a Spirit. I tried to not think about it, but when I did I thought you were a Fur, one of those Monks you often talked about. An Ancient One? You never told us about them... you. Why? If you knew you were coming back, why put us through all of that? We... gods, um, Lia... uh, what the bloody hells am I supposed to call you? We thought we'd never see you again! You fucking died! You left us to mourn!"

Den walked into the room, a little stunned to be greeted by his father's anguished yelling. Lorena was standing at the door to the kitchen, tears running down her face, and Aoife stood beside her, also crying. Ciaran sat on the floor by Lorena's chair watching his brother with mild interest.

Liam sat forward. He had a half smile on his face, and his accented voice was warm, "Better, Aedan. I can answer some of those. I didn't want you to know what I was, so why would I tell you about Ancient Ones? If you heard about them, us, elsewhere I could say that there are so few Ancient Ones I saw no reason to tell you about them. I didn't tell you what I was because," He sighed heavily, "Hera help me, I didn't tell you because I was ashamed. Come on, Aedan. How could I tell you? Just plunk you all down one day and say, 'Good day, family of mine. Just thought you should know I'm going to die while you're still young and get reborn at some unknown point in the future. I've done it many times before, so I know it bloody hurts. Oh, and I'm a dancing pansy, too. Willing to shag any fine piece of manly ass that crosses my path.'" He snorted, but found he couldn't meet anyone's eyes. "Aedan. Everyone. Don't you think there were so many times I wanted to tell you? I swore to Ruarc, and he swore to me, that this was a secret we both had to keep for the good of the Clan. I was allowed to tell you when all of you became adults, but at that point it was just so hard. I'd lied to you for so many years and I convinced myself it just didn't really matter."

Liam stood up and paced a bit as he tried to answer the rest of Aedan's outburst. The room remained quiet until he spoke, in his normal voice, "As to why I let you think I was dead and gone? I did so for the simple reason that if my rebirth occurred as it had in other times, I may not have been back while you were still alive. This was my shortest space between lives. Furthermore, I had never interacted with people from a previous life before and thought it would be best for all involved if I never did so. I did not foresee meeting Faelen. I did not foresee falling in love with him. In truth, I foresaw little of what had occurred since this school year began. I am sorry for the pain you endured; I can truly understand what you felt. I feel the loss of everyone that has gone from my life, lives, and it does not truly fade. I mourned you when my life as Lowell emerged; I will mourn again each time we are separated, until you are taken from me forever."

Aedan turned his head away; his tone was soft but bitter, "But you knew the truth, we were left with a lie."

Ciaran answered before Liam could, "For which he's apologized and gave his reasons. I agree that knowing the truth wouldn't have made his death any easier, and it would probably make it harder to get over it. We would've spent the last hundred years constantly wondering when he'd show back up, and looking at every Fur trying to figure out if that was Da, but without his memories of us returned." Ciaran sounded almost haunted, "You'd meet a Fur who reminded you of Da and have to fight the urge to try to coax memories of you out of him, try not to see if you could wake Lowell up in him. No, Aedan, I don't think knowing he'd come back, eventually, would be any easier."

Liam felt like he had just been stabbed in the heart. He saw Faelen wince and his nose twitch, but his love also seemed hurt by Ciaran's words. He must be thinking of how Geoff and Dirk would feel when he died.

Aoife twitched. "Ciaran, that was a surprisingly fast and profound epiphany. Da..., er, Liam also went to see you first. Did you know who he was? Was Muireann right, you were Daddy's favourite?"

Aedan sat up in surprise and glared at Ciaran, who merely looked at Aoife with a raised eyebrow. Liam stepped in before it devolved into one of their frequent sibling squabbles. "Aoife. Either Da, Daddy, or Liam is fine; I am not biologically related to you any longer, though I will always think of you as my daughter." He smiled fondly. "I can still recall the trouble you would cause. I was just talking to Luke about the time Uallach convinced you to go walking with her to Dublin." Aoife blushed and looked at her hindpaws. Liam looked at her slyly and teasingly asked, "But I don't suppose you remember that, do you, my sweet little lass?"

"Daddy, please." Her large ears folded flat against her head. "Don't start teasing me; it always made me feel like a little girl, even as an adult." She looked at him, now a tiny little rottie pup. "I don't know how you can make me feel like that, even as..." She waved her paw. "That. You're small, a tenth of my age, you look nothing like you did, but you still make me feel like you caught me raiding Mama's biscuits."

"Tell me about it." Den's voice was dry. "I spent a week over there and half the time I felt like I was ten, again. The other half I was trying to wrap my head around seeing him and Faelen kissing and cuddling." Den gave a mock shudder.

Aedan appeared horrified as he looked at Den, then back and forth between Faelen and Liam. "Don't you dare. Aphrodite spare me, just... don't."

Ciaran looked up from his seat on the floor. "Mama? You're being very quiet. Are you well?"

Lorena was still by the kitchen door, an occasional tear trickled down a soaked path in her dark grey fur. "I should finish getting the tea." She turned abruptly and went into the kitchen.

"Excuse me," Liam said, as he followed his former wife. He stopped just inside the kitchen. Lorena was leaning against the stove; the kettle appeared full, but she had yet to turn the element on. "Lorie? Have I said anything to hurt you?"

She gave a start and straightened up, then wiped her eyes with a kerchief before turning around. She smiled, sweetly. "No, of course not, Low... Liam. I'm just feeling a little overwrought."

Liam walked over and pulled her into a hug. "Lorie, my darling. I've been... I was a terrible husband. I know I must've hurt you deeply, and I'm truly sorry. I can never properly apologize for how I must've made you feel."

Lorena pulled away, then turned her head aside so she was not looking at Liam. "L-Liam. Please. Just stop. I understand it, on some levels, but this is just so hard to assimilate. Hearing you, seeing the way you move, I-I see Lowell. You look nothing like him and half the time you sound like you're having one of those fits where you think you're someone else for a minute. I thought you had one of those multiple personality disorders." She gave a hollow laugh. "I guess you did, of a sort." She turned a bit farther away and blew her nose. "Sorry."

Liam interrupted before she could continue. "Ms. O'Conall, I recall my whole life as Lowell, I have seen you in far more compromising positions than a simple runny nose." He intentionally made his voice and tone very formal. "I am sorry if I was too forward and offended you; I am not your husband, but I have his memories. I will try to keep my distance, if that is your wish."

Lorena recoiled as if slapped. "Don't start that with me! You and your 'wounded formality'! Ooh, that always got me so angry!" She saw the twinkle in his eyes and laughed. "You can be such a knave. Liam, I'm not trying to push you away, I just need to try to figure out how I feel about this. A week of trying to get used to the idea that you, even just part of you, Lowell, whatever, are alive couldn't prepare me for hearing you again. I-I need to go lie down. You'll be here tomorrow?"

"Yes, Lorie. We will return to Nova Scotia on Sunday. I understand, I was overwhelmed by the mere smell of the air and seeing Den; go, rest. I will send word on the morrow after we wake; we are, and will remain, on Atlantic time so we will wake well after you do. I am pleased to see you, and I am glad you wished to see me. Tanai was not as receptive to my return. You may wish to speak with him, the shock was a little much for him."

"Is he all right?" Lorena's eyes were wide and she looked like she was preparing to rush out to see him.

"Shh, yes, yes. He will be fine. I put him on a few days sick leave, Alpha McDougal will have to deal without him till Monday, but it was just a preventative measure. Why not take him out for lunch? After he has calmed, of course. Think on it, but go rest."

Lorena nodded. She turned, picked up a tin, and passed it to him. "Take some biscuits with you. I know you, Lowell, used to love these." She patted his arm. "I'm sorry to kick you out like this."

"It is understandable. I will have to retire early, as well. Today has taken much out of me; the entire last month has been difficult." He smiled at her. "Den brought a tin over last week, I never did have a chance to taste one of those. Perhaps I will have more luck, tonight."

They walked back into the living room, silencing the conversation. Lorena paused. "I'm off to bed. Tonight has been draining."

Ciaran stood up from his seat by her chair. "Are you all right, Mama?"

"Yes, dear. I'm just tired and need to think about this and rest." She walked into the hall, then turned around. "Good night."

"Ah! Lorie. One moment." He grabbed the bag Faelen had carried down and pulled out a package. "I have brought you a small gift." He moved over to her. "I did not have time to prepare it properly, but I hope it is to your liking."

She unwrapped it, and saw six compact discs of music he had recorded with his father's assistance, along with Nicholas-san's input. The akita was quite gifted with the sound programs on computers. Lorena looked at him questioningly.

"It is music. I recorded myself playing many of your favourite songs and painted cover art for each disc. With the assistance of a friend I also created some duets wherein I played the violin and the bamboo flute. I did not have time to transcribe them onto vinyl for the gramophone; I hope you have the means of playing them."

She laughed, one of her dusky laughs that Liam had always found very fetching. "Yes, Liam, I do. The gramophone is new." She walked over and flipped down the front. "It has a CD drive, USB ports, and a dock for my MP3 player." She pointed to several pieces of furniture and spots on the wall. Liam could see the netting common to speakers in the furniture, blended in marvellously, and discrete speakers on the wall. "Surround sound. Very high end speakers, too. I enjoy my music and I'm willing to move with the times to get the best sound possible, even if I prefer the décor of the past. Thank you." She looked at the discs with a smile, then waved her paw at everyone. "Again, good night."

Everyone said their farewells as she left the room. Den stood up and said, "Let's give her some peace. We can go to my cave and carry on for a bit longer."

They all trooped over, with Faelen picking up the bag, and went over. Aedan and Faelen sat down on the leather couch with a sigh. They glanced at each other and grinned, while Den went and put the kettle on. Aoife stifled her own sigh as she sat on the loveseat and pulled her hindpaws up beside her.

Liam sat between Aedan and Faelen, then smiled as Ciaran sat on the floor by him, leaving the recliner for his nephew. Liam took the bag from Faelen and passed the tin over. He dug into the bag to pull out the first of three of the remaining gifts.

It was a book. He passed it to Aedan to give to Aoife. She unwrapped it and gasped as she opened it. "Liam? This is written out by paw; it looks like one of Daddy's journals or one of the ecological treatises done in the late eighteen hundreds."

"I used the treatise I wrote on the flora and fauna of this region as a template, but wrote one using my memories as Song Li on the ecology of the mountains around my monastery in the ninth century China." She quickly glanced through it in awe. "I do not know if you ever made it to Tibet to study; this was the best I could do to remedy that."

"Oh, Daddy, I-I..." She opened it to the title page; her paws trembled slightly as she traced the words, then froze as she turned the page and started to read the dedication. She closed it and clutched the leather covered book to her chest, unable to continue.

Aedan seemed almost scared as Liam pulled out his gift. Aedan had been very difficult to pick a gift for, but Liam had wanted a gift with meaning. He had decided to give a gift of memories. It was a larger package, and Aedan placed it on the coffee table as he unwrapped it.

It was a set of three canvases, each was a painting of Aedan and Den. The first was when Den was a newborn and Aedan held him for the first time. The expression of wonder and love on Aedan's face had always made Liam curious as to what his own looked like when he had held Aedan. The second was when Den was three; Den was riding on his father's shoulders as they ran down the lane to greet him. The final piece was when he saw them turn to leave his room for the last time, the last he was alive to see. Aedan had placed his paw on Den's back and they had turned their heads to look over their shoulders at him at the same time. The pain and sorrow etched on their faces had cut him deeply, and still did.

Liam cleared his throat a few times before he could speak; the emotions in the room were very high, and he was also quite choked up. "They are titled, 'The First Embrace', 'Welcome Home', and 'The Final Goodbye'. I apologize that I did not have time to get them framed; I did not decide on what to get you until quite late. You two have the privilege of being tied for the second person I have ever painted, Faelen being the first. I can bring these home... to Halifax, to have framed, if you wish. I have a person that does the framing for my other works."

Aedan tried to answer but he was fighting back tears as he looked at the three ink paintings laid out on the table. He stood up, walked to the far side of the room, and braced himself against the wall with one arm.

Liam went over to him and rubbed Aedan's back. He ducked under the tall wolf's arm to look at him. "I love you, Son. I'm sorry I hurt you so much, but, please, never forget that I deeply love you."

Aedan couldn't hold back the tears and wrapped Liam into a tight hug.

It took several minutes before most of them had calmed enough to continue. Ciaran had fetched the tea in the interim, and placed some of the biscuits on a plate. "I have to confess to being a little curious about what you got for me. You set yourself up with a hard act to follow, Da."

Liam smiled. "Indeed. Your gift is a little more practical." He passed it over.

It was a long, black leather coat. It was trimmed with the Shadow Mastiff pelt, the buttons were set with the bones, and it was accented with other bits of the piece of Snow. The inside of the coat had been stitched with ink soaked thread, Liam's tailor friend had followed his directions well, so Liam had no problems turning it into an artefact. This week had been so draining; Faelen and Dirk did not seem to mind, overmuch. Ciaran looked at it curiously; he obviously wasn't sure what to make of it.

"It is a leather coat, Ciaran." His son shot him a dark look. Liam continued, amused, "You were always being teased of not standing out, this will aid in that. I also heard you travelled frequently, and I know you always worried when I travelled, so I made you a protective artefact. The pelt trim, along with all but the core of the coat is from a Shadow Mastiff, a planar entity from the Elemental Plane of Darkness. The thread stitching on the inside has been soaked with a very powerful ink concoction with its blood as a key ingredient. It is practical and expensive, but..." He sighed, "I still regret not being able to find a gift laden with the meaning behind Aedan's and Aoife's gifts. I am sorry. I do hope it serves you well, regardless."

He could see a little disappointment in Ciaran's body language, but it was mostly covered in his curiosity and wonder. "I'll make good use of it, Da. Or rather, I'll wear it and hope I don't need to." He stood and put it on. The average looking wolf suddenly took on a menacing aura, making everyone flinch away from him. Ciaran straightened the collar of the coat, smoothed it out, and stood up straight in his very unassuming posture and he once again appeared very non-descript and unthreatening. Even the coat seemed to blend into the background and appear mundane.

Aoife looked at it in wonder. "How did it do that?"

Ciaran perked up. "Do what?"

Aoife jumped off the loveseat and begin fiddling with the coat. "You were very aggressive looking, terrifying actually, then you just became... you, again. It's like the coat turned you into the Alpha when he's grumpy for a second."

Ciaran arched an eyebrow at his sister. He asked her, sarcastically, "I normally don't scare you?" He dropped into a mock-aggressive stance and she jumped back with a muffled shriek, genuinely scared.

Liam's voice was dry, "Perhaps I should mention that Shadow Mastiffs feed upon fear and are able to evoke such feelings with their bark? They are also able to blend into shadows. I will go through the powers I placed into the coat at some other time."

Ciaran nodded and took the coat off; there was a slight flicker of jealousy in his eyes as he glanced at the other two gifts, but it disappeared as he sat at his father's hindpaws.

Faelen's ears twitched. "Granny Lorena is listening to one of your CDs, Liam. They turned out very well."

Liam nodded. He was no longer really paying attention. His paw was resting on the bag where Muireann's gift remained: alone, unopened, and unwanted. He whispered, "Muiry."