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“Some have been sighted. Where are the portals?”

“That depends on where I am.”

She gave him that narrow-eyed look again. “Wales. The radio is speaking Welsh. Do you know where Wales is?” She pushed a plate stacked with cheese sandwiches towards him.

“It’s part of the British Empire.”

“The Empire no longer exists…it hasn’t existed for decades. What are you?”

Pan ignored her question and feigned confusion. “Decades? Time must move differently between the two worlds.”

“What two worlds?”

“Mine and yours, of course. I need to find the dragons.” Then he’d find out which Tarikian town was nearby. He took a bite of the sandwich, not caring what it tasted like, and chewed.

The woman put away the bread and cheese, then she turned, her gaze stuck on the floor. “You’re bleeding.”

Some of it was his. Some of it was not.

He’d tried to wash the selkie blood off in the sea. After all, it wasn’t a good look to walk around covered in someone else’s blood. Only a few gods pulled that look off, and he wasn’t one of them.

He swallowed, the bread almost sticking in his throat. “I cut my foot.”

The partial truth was near enough.

“Are you a demon with those little horns?”

Pan gave her a cold glare—he remembered that from last time. Humans tended to call anything with magic that they didn’t like a demon…or a monster. “I am not a demon. They don’t exist.”

“Huh.” She put a white box next to his plate. “First aid kit. So you can clean it and put a bandage on it.”

“That’s pretty pointless unless I have shoes.”

“I suppose not.” She returned to where there was food and knives on the bench, which is what she must’ve been doing before he’d let himself in. “What are you going to do?”

“Find the dragons.” He took a sip of water as an idea formed. “Pray to Pan.”

“I have got plenty of pans for you.” She laughed and waved her frying pan at him.

He didn’t laugh. “He is a god from my world.”

“One of the old gods?”

“Yes.” Or at least what humans thought of as old gods. The ones older than him. His parents were not the kind of beings humans should trouble.

Confusion flicked in her eyes. “Will he be here? Will the other gods be here?”

“I hope so.” Though he wasn’t sure how the humans would react, as even two hundred years ago, most humans hadn’t worshipped them, choosing instead to worship one—one who had been banished from Tariko.

Banishing him had been a mistake, though by the time they’d realized it was far too late.

As much as he wanted to eat the second sandwich, he should save it. “Can I wrap this? Then I will leave you to your work.”

She washed her hands and gave him a tub. “Here, take an apple and berries, too.”

“Thank you.” He was so grateful he’d give her a blessing without asking, except there wasn’t even a tingle of magic in his blood. “Would you like to pray with me?”

“Sure. Might as well get in the good books of the old gods since they’re back. Some people are saying we’re being punished.”