Aurelia's POV
We left before dawn.
The tower was still groaning under the strain of Jarek's pressure when Talon opened a hidden passage behind the upper chamber wall. Cold air rushed in, sharp with pine and frost, and the moment my boots hit the stone steps, my knees nearly gave out again.
Lucien caught me without a word.
"You're shaking," he murmured.
"I'm not cold," I said, though my teeth chattered. "It's… inside."
The magic was restless. Not exploding. Not fading. Just… pacing.
Raffyn went first, fire barely contained beneath his skin, lighting the narrow passage in brief, controlled flares. Talon followed close behind him, every step measured, alert. Lucien never let go of me—not even when the stairs turned steep and the ceiling dropped low enough that his wings flickered uncomfortably against the stone.
We emerged beyond the eastern ridge, far outside the normal patrol routes. The forest here felt different—older somehow. The trees grew closer together, their trunks twisted and marked with symbols I didn't recognize.
But my body did.
The moment my feet touched the forest floor, the pressure in my chest shifted. Not gone—but redirected. Like something inside me had turned its head.
"She's close," I whispered.
All three of them stopped.
Raffyn glanced over his shoulder sharply. "You sense her?"
I nodded. "I don't know how. But yes."
Talon's eyes darkened. "That confirms it."
Lucien frowned. "Confirms what?"
"That Aurelia isn't reacting to threats alone anymore," Talon said quietly. "She's responding to magic."
A branch snapped somewhere ahead.
Raffyn's fire flared instinctively. Lucien moved in front of me without hesitation, wings flickering into partial existence. Talon raised a hand—not in warning, but restraint.
"Don't," he said softly. "If it's her, aggression won't help."
The forest went still.
Then a voice drifted through the trees—calm, cool, and unmistakably amused.
"You always were terrible at subtle entrances, Draven."
A woman stepped out from between two ancient oaks.
She was taller than I expected, wrapped in layers of dark fabric that moved like smoke when she walked. Her hair was silver—not gray, but luminous, catching the weak morning light as if woven from moon threads. Her eyes were violet, sharp and assessing, and when they landed on me—
The world tilted.
Not violently.
Reverently.
"So," she said, her gaze never leaving mine. "The Witchwolf wakes at last."
My breath caught painfully. "You know what I am."
She smiled faintly. "Child, I've known since the night you were born."
Lucien stiffened. Raffyn swore. Talon went utterly still.
"You knew," Talon said flatly.
"Of course I did," the woman replied. "I was there when her mother died."
The words struck like a blow.
I staggered forward before Lucien could stop me. "You were there?"
Her expression softened—just a little. "I helped hide you. I helped seal your scent, your signature, your magic. It was the only way to keep you alive."
My head spun. "Then why now?"
"Because Jarek felt you," she said simply. "And once he did, hiding became useless."
Raffyn stepped closer, fire licking up his forearms. "You're Silvara Moonfall."
She inclined her head. "Exiled. Hunted. Correct."
Lucien's voice was low, edged with fury. "You left her."
"I protected her," Silvara snapped back, the forest reacting instantly—branches creaking, leaves rustling. "If I had stayed, she would have been found years ago. Witchwolves draw blood. Always have."
Her gaze returned to me, intense and unyielding. "Tell me, Aurelia Vale—when Jarek called to you, did your magic answer?"
I swallowed. "Yes."
Silvara exhaled slowly. "Then we are already behind."
Talon stepped in. "Can you help her?"
"Yes," Silvara said. "But you won't like how."
Raffyn scoffed. "Try us."
Silvara's eyes flicked to each of them in turn. "Training will hurt. Control will come slowly. And the bonds already forming around her—" she paused, studying the space between us "—will complicate everything."
Lucien tightened his hold on me. "Explain."
"She was never meant for one anchor," Silvara said. "A Witchwolf Queen stabilizes through balance. Through convergence."
My heart was hammered. "Queen?"
Silvara didn't answer right away. Instead, she lifted her hand and pressed two fingers to my forehead.
The forest disappeared.
For one terrifying heartbeat, I saw silver fire, water spiraling through air, wings unfurling beneath a split moon—and three shadows standing at my back.
Then it was gone.
I gasped, knees buckling as Lucien caught me again.
Silvara stepped back, her expression grave. "You are standing at the edge of a war older than any pack here. Jarek knows what you are. Others will too."
Talon's jaw clenched. "Then teach her. Now."
Silvara nodded once. "At dusk. We begin grounding first."
Raffyn crossed his arms. "And until then?"
Silvara's eyes hardened. "Until then, you keep her alive."
Her gaze locked onto mine again.
"And you," she said softly, "stop fighting what you are. Or it will tear you apart long before Jarek ever gets the chance."
The forest stirred.
Somewhere far away, som
ething howled.
And for the first time since all of this began, I understood one thing with absolute clarity:
There was no going back.