"Ouch ouch ouch!" Heda shouted. The only way she was going to get this girl to let go would be to knock her out.

“Madison, stop that right now or . . . ouch ouch ouch!" Madison had gotten a handful of Heda's somewhat short hair and was pulling hard. Madison, as it turned out, knew how to fight like a girl, which was considerably nastier than most people gave it credit for.

"This is rather undignified," Billy said, astounded by Madison's tactics. She was only still conscious because Heda obviously did not want to hurt her, but the eagle shifter's patience was obviously nearing its end.

"Madison, please stop," he told her.

“She's going to... never mind."

Heda slipped her free arm under Madison's chin and started choking her out, tightening her grip as Madison's teeth finally let go.

“Fuck that hurt," Heda said. Once she had Madison's arms secured, she released the choke. Madison let out a Little gasp, then her breathing slowly began to return to normal.

"Still... gonna . . . kick your ass," Madison muttered as the blood flowed to her brain.

"Madison," Heda said, her blood starting to boil again, "you can't win every fight just by being stubborn." She let Madison go, and the blind girl turned around. She was exhausted, flustered, and more than a little humiliated.

Madison lowered her face, her sweat-soaked hair cutting off any view of those lovely features. She wanted to say something, but could not.

They wouldn't get it. She turned and went back to the house, but stopped just short of the door.

"You win," she said, her voice cracking.

"I'll leave."

Heda was completely befuddled. She looked at Billy and then at Sasha, but neither of them seemed to have any answers.

“Hey guys, why don't we . . . uhm —-" Sasha started, but then just trailed off.

Joanna put a hand on Heda's shoulder.

“Maybe you should try talking to her again. Or better yet, maybe just listen."

Heda nodded, then followed Madison's footsteps, through the door to the basement, and then downstairs. On the bed was a tattered old suitcase, which was the only piece of luggage that Madison actually owned. It had been given to her by her last set of guardians in the changeling foster care system, right before being told to get out and not come back. That was when something hit Heda like a ton of bricks.

She looked over at Madison who was standing in front of her closet, reaching randomly for clothes to pack away.

"Madison, we're not getting rid of you," Heda said softly.

"Believe me, I wish we could just catch this guy and then you could stay right here."

Madison's hands fell, one of her several identical simple brown dresses clutched in a trembling hand.

“You know, Billy was the only person I really felt safe around before you. Sasha's great, but she couldn't keep Alvin or his guys away. Then you show up and you're perfect and strong and I think . . . I really think that things are okay. And now you and Billy just keep telling me that the best thing for me is to not be around the only people who ever made me feel that I was worth a damn. You want me to go live with someone who I barely know and don't really trust. All because there is yet another whack-job out there that's decided to hate me. It wasn't enough that fate made me a laughing stock of the shifter world. Oh no, it had to make sure that I was loathed, harassed and . . . and now someone wants to kill me? Because I studied hard and complained to a department head about Reichert's grading?"

She sunk down and pushed herself back into her closet. Heda knelt in front of her, not wanting to intrude into her lover's space quite yet.