The third and and final novelette in the Sirronde's World series. The aging Rodmistress Sirronde faces an ultimate challenge as she discovers she must go up against the Shadow during the Dreadnights, that wintry time of year when the Goddess's archenemy is at its strongest -- and with no help but that of two most unpromising traveling companions: a deeply flawed young man and a kitten. Her fate lies in their hands (or paws) and theirs in hers as the three venture into the darkness under the mountain, none of them knowing whether any of them will live to see the dawn...

Parting Gifts originally appeared in the Dell SF anthology Flashing Swords 5. The novelette that appears before it in the Sirronde's World chronology, The Span, was originally published in Dragon Magazine in February 1999 and is also available at Ebooks Direct. The middle work, Sirronde's World 2, is presently in progress and will appear at Ebooks Direct in Q2 of 2023..

Reader advisory: This novelette contains adult / mature themes and situations set in a sexually diverse and inclusive universe.