One’s first shift was often a private affair and Sorne had never been present for anyone’s other than her own. She had three younger brothers, only one of whom had shifted at the time that she had left Basamortah. Despite being family, her parents had refused to allow her to watch.
“Siblings are competitive,” her mother had explained time and time again. “And Basamortan’s are shallow people. Everyone's shift is different and I want each or you to journey through yours in peace without the judgement of others.”
Sorne had always admired her mother, a no-nonsense beta, whose loathing of simple-mindedness had shaped much of who Sorne was today. It was her mother that she thought of as she watched the new beta shift slowly and painfully. It didn't mean a thing, she knew that, but she worried
