“Janessa and Yevgeny Copperstone,” Gareth said. Janna stared.
“Copperstone?” she whispered. The red-haired woman, Janessa, and blond-haired man, Yevgeny, before her beamed happily. Janessa covered her mouth, gray eyes filling with tears.
“Oh, you’ve grown to such a fine young adult,” she sobbed. Janna walked up to her. She looked so much like Janessa that she had to ask.
“Are you- are you my mother?” she whispered. Janessa let out another sob and flung her arms around Janna.
“Yes, my darling, I am! I am so sorry you had to grow up so far from your mother and father. But rest assured, we sent you away out of love.”
“Janessa, my love, give her a moment,” said Yevgeny, Janna’s father. He looked Janna up and down, smiling. His eyes were the same bright blue as Janna’s. “Gareth has kept us updated on you, so we know you are the most accomplished warrioress in the kingdom.”
“I would be if Gareth allowed me to prove my mettle,” Janna said, crossing her arms and glaring at her foster father.
“There is a reason you were kept in isolation,” Gareth rumbled.
“What?”
“You are the true heir to the kingdom,” Gareth said simply. Janna’s jaw dropped.
“Gareth!” Janessa hissed. Gareth rolled his eyes.
“It has been almost eighteen years, My Prince. I have no patience for drawing this out further,” he said. He turned to Janna. “Your mother, Janessa, is actually the missing Prince Jasper, transformed into a beautiful woman. She is the woman who carried and birthed the octuplet sons of King Antyny. After that, she bore septuplets with Yevgeny, a son of the witch stock Copperstone noble family. You are one of those septuplets.”
“Whoa. Okay.” Janna put her hand on her forehead. “But how could I be the true heir? Even if my mother- father- parent was the missing Crown Prince, the octuplet Princes are the same. And they are older. Surely, the oldest octuplet is the true heir?”
“No. The octuplet sons were octuplet daughters,” Yevgeny said solemnly. “Antyny transformed them on their birth to ensure he had heirs. He has done that with every child of his that was born female.”
“I thought it was odd he had so many sons and no daughters,” Janna said. She frowned. “Still, I do not understand how I am the heir! If the octuplets are not heirs because they are truly women, I cannot be heir, either. I am a woman.” Janna’s heart stopped. She met her parents’ eyes. “Unless…”
“You were born male,” Yevgeny confirmed. “You were turned female for your safety. If you grew up male and looked like the missing Crown Prince, you would be in danger.”
“That explains a lot,” Janna mumbled. “Particularly as of recent.” She had begun to get dreams where she was a handsome, strong young man. Janessa, Yevgeny, and Gareth nodded. “Why am I being told all this now?”
“The octuplets will return to their true forms soon after you and your ‘sisters’ return to your true forms on your eighteenth birthday,” Janessa explained. “We are gathering the septuplets together so we may take the crown back.”
“Will you wish to sit upon the throne?” Janna asked her mother. Father. Whatever. Janessa shook her head.
“No. I have found happiness with Yevgeny.” She stroked her stomach, smiling. “And I am with child yet again, so I could not become Jasper even if I wished to.”
“Another girl?” Gareth asked. Janessa shook her head.
“A boy. My first son since the septuplets. We plan to name him after you, old friend.”
“Old friend?” Janna asked.
“I was the Head of the Prince’s Guard,” Gareth said proudly. “And as such, the only one who could be trusted to raise and train the oldest septuplet.”
“We will visit the next oldest of your siblings next,” Yevgeny told Janna. “We must fetch all seven of you.”
“Will I be coming with?”
“No. You will accompany Gareth to the Capitol, where we will gather the true heirs and our forces, so we may take back the throne once the octuplets return to their true forms.”
“I see.” Janna cocked her head curiously. “Is it possible to remove the spell upon me early?”
“You wish to become a man earlier than planned?” Gareth asked. Janna shrugged.
“It will give me time to adjust,” she said simply. “By the way, I assume I have a true name for my true form?”
“Yes, you do,” Janessa confirmed. She smiled. “Your true name, my firstborn son, is Jareth. Jareth Copperstone.”
“Jareth,” Janna tested. She smiled. “I like it! So, may I become Jareth earlier than planned?” Janessa turned to Yevgeny.
“Your father will have to answer that question,” she said. “He is the only witch present, and as such, the only one who could lift the spell upon you.”