SELENE POV
Time became a river.
Flowing relentlessly forward. Carrying Selene from child to woman. From student to weapon.
Each season brought new skills. New scars. New nightmares.
But also new strength.
Age Thirteen:
Winter. Snow covering the forest in white silence.
Selene and Mira fought in wolf form. Circling each other. Breath steaming in cold air.
Mira lunged. Selene dodged. Counter-struck. Her teeth finding Mira's shoulder.
First blood in weeks of trying.
They shifted back to human. Both naked in the snow. Both breathing hard.
"You've mastered the shift," Mira said. Approval clear. "You can move between forms at will now. No hesitation. No pain."
Selene looked at her hands. Then let her wolf surge forward. Bones cracked. Fur sprouted. Four legs instead of two.
Then back. Human again. Seamless. Natural.
"It feels like breathing now," Selene said. "Like it's always been part of me."
