“Are you?” she countered.
In answer, I removed the Damon Amulet from my neck and used the power of the wind to position it against the chest of my old self. One of Ana’s hands held it in place as I put my hand on the tiger. The old me screamed. The tiger next to Ana dissolved into light and his life essence shot into the body Ana touched.
Once the tiger was there, struggling inside his new form like Ren had with his tiger, I assumed our work was done, but Ana, her hands still on my former self, said, “Now we must make him Damon.”
I furrowed my brow. “I thought gifting him with the tiger was enough.”
She shook her head. “We must name him and seal the amulet to him forever. This tiger’s curse of yours was never about Ren or Kelsey. It was about you, my love. It was always about you.”
Closing my eyes, I let the impact of her declaration sink into me and settle. Damon was a name I would carry for the rest of my life. The black tiger and I would be together until the universe deemed our sojourn was over and the work was done. Sucking in a breath, I considered all of the things I had given up and would give up, but then I reflected on everything I’d get in exchange. When Phet offered me the soma, he’d said it would give me what I wanted most in the world but would leave me lacking something as well. I’d accepted that drink of the gods then and I’d still accept it now.
“Will you help me give him this final gift?” Ana asked, pulling me from my thoughts.
“I…I don’t know how,” I confessed.
“Do you remember when Kelsey and Ren touched?”
“It produced the golden light.”
She nodded. “We must create a light of our own and pour it into him.”
Pressing my cheek to hers, I slid my palms down her arms, careful not to come into contact with my former self. He was still moving in the air, but it was slow enough that we could compensate for it. I closed my eyes and let my mind and heart open to Ana. Our energy mingled until our hearts beat as one and the air entering and exiting our lungs moved in perfect synchronicity.
“Prince Sohan Kishan Rajaram,” Ana said with the voice of thunder. “We gift you with a new name. Henceforth, you will be called Damon, and you will be imbued with all the powers carried by the goddess Durga as well as those of her tiger consort. All our manifold abilities will be yours to wield. You are tasked to serve the goddess for the remainder of your days. The Damon Amulet is, and has always been, your legacy. We charge you with guarding it and its power. Do you accept this duty?”
My old self, mouth still wrapped in a scream, was unable to respond, so I did instead.
“I do,” I murmured softly.
“Then so be it.”
There was a rush of power that flowed out of both of us and into my old self. If I thought embracing the tiger was painful, it was nothing like taking in the power of the goddess. The eyes of my old self rolled back and he passed out and I caught the scent of burning flesh. The amulet around his neck had branded him. A red welt, the outline of a tiger, rose on his bare skin.
Ana stepped back, holding the Damon Amulet, and lifted a hand to her lips. She blew him a kiss and the skin on his neck healed instantly. She took my arm, pulling me away. “It is done,” she said. Whispers of threads moved across her body and her extra limbs shimmered and disappeared. Soon she was back in her green hunting dress. Snapping her fingers, Ana worked her power so time flowed naturally around us once more.
Ren transformed first. The white tiger burst from his form, claws first. He shook himself and snarled at Lokesh. The old Kishan was falling. His human form had been unconscious but the tiger was very much awake and aware. He transformed before his body hit the ground. The tiger leapt forward immediately and led the way to the jungle. Ren followed him. The two tigers paused at the tree line looking back.
Ana smiled as they disappeared in the greenery and clutched my arm, pressing her head against my shoulder.
Before we left, I went back to Yesubai. Gently, I touched her face. Picking up her hand, I pressed my lips to it. “She didn’t deserve this fate,” I said. “By cursing myself and Ren, I’ve cursed her too. It’s selfish of me.”
“No, Sohan,” Ana said. “You gave her the greatest gift a person can give another.”
I glanced up at her and dashed my hand across my face to wipe away a tear. “What do you mean? It was Yesubai that gave us the gift of healing at the cost of her life.”
“That is true.” Ana nodded. “But did you know she herself wondered if it might have been better if she’d never been born? Yesubai didn’t want the fate of your family to be in her hands. She thought herself a coward for not standing up to her father earlier.”
“He would have killed her.”
“Yes. And I would agree that Yesubai’s short life was tragic. Her potential was wasted. But you, my wonderful tiger, loved her, and she was able to love you in return. I’ve heard the pleas of countless people who suffer loneliness, heartache, and longing. Above all else, they desire love. Most of them die never having discovered it. It is a most precious thing—a miracle—a spark in the heart that not even a goddess can produce. Though her time on earth was brief, she tasted something that was delicious to her soul. Love. You gave her that.”
Ana stayed with me as I sat there holding Yesubai’s hand. Finally, I kissed her forehead and said good-bye. Wrapping her arms around me, Ana said, “Come, my tiger. It is time to leave the past and set our feet on the path that leads to our future.
We spun in a vortex and were back at our home on the lawn of her rose garden before I knew what was happening. Ana stepped away as if to leave me, but I skimmed my hand down her arm and took her hand.
“Where are you going?” I asked.
“I…I thought you would like to be alone.”
“I think I’ve been alone far too long. Besides, you promised me a vacation.”
She cocked her head. “And you wish to begin such a trip now?”
“Hmm, I think I could be talked into it.”
“Very well, then where shall we go first?” she asked as I took her in my arms.
“I think there’s something we need to discuss before we make any further plans, Ana.”
“Oh? And what is that?”
“It’s the way you keep flinging around that blasted word. The one I hate.”
“What word?” she asked, puzzled.
“Consort.”
Ana snorted a laugh. “Am I to understand that you are offended by this word?”
“I am.”
“I see. Then what word would you prefer me to use when speaking of you?”
“Oh, I don’t know. How about husband?”
Ana’s smile was slow and sweet, and when it burst forth in all its brilliance, it took my breath away.
***
We sought out Kadam and asked if he would do the honors. He’d been thrilled when we asked him to marry us, but both of us knew by looking in his eyes that he’d already known we would. When we said we wanted the wedding to take place in Shangri-La, he nodded and pulled out a document that, in fact, granted him the ability to perform such a wedding. Ana shook her head, laughing over my insistence at formality, but I wanted to start off our relationship properly.