The Luna Choosing Game

Chapter 0625

"Have you ever heard anything like this?" I asked. "I can feel Miracle. I know she's there. But she's not speaking to me and she's not coming forward to help me shift."

Nicholas's brow crumpled as he considered my question.

"I've never heard of anything like this specifically," Nicholas said. "But it does sound like how it feels when a wolf first begins to manifest. It can be unpredictable. But I've never heard anything like that happening to someone with an established wolf."

*Could it be because I was separated from my wolf for so long?" I asked.

"I don't know. It seems strange that it would only happen now, after you've been reunited with your wolf for weeks without this kind of issue. If this was part of the process of Miracle returning to you, then it should have happened before now."

These weren't the answers that I wanted. I had hoped that Nicholas had solutions that I lacked. But it seemed he was equally as confused.

"Perhaps we should speak to Veronica," he said. "Maybe she knows."

"Could it have to do with the ritual? From the island?" I asked. Was that what he was alluding to?

"We can't rule anything out," Nicholas said.

The Oracle could have been clearer about the side-effects of the ritual. I would have still gone through with it of course, but it would have been nice to know what giving up some of my life force would entail on my body and my future.

"But I've shifted since then," I said. "And that's when I heard the voice.."

Nicholas frowned. He inched closer to me, and our arms brushed together. The heat of his skin seared pleasantly against mine.

"Try not to worry," he said. "We'll figure it out. Miracle is still there. We'll find a way to reach her."

I wanted to believe him but he didn't know any more than I did. Yet even so, his quiet confidence gave me

strength. Yes, maybe, so long as he was by my side, I would find a way to survive this - just as we had survived everything else.

Suddenly, the wolves perked up, turning their ears and faces toward the woods. Their stances went still and alert. A bit a fear slithered down my spine. "Elva," I called. "Come stand near me."

Elva, for a moment, glanced between the two wolves, Silver and Night, before nodding and then rushing to my side. The wolves must have told her the same that I did. That she needed to get to safety.

"What do they sense?" I whispered to Nicholas.

He scented the air. As an Alpha wolf, he could sense and smell things from a farther distance than I could. He could also be more in tune with the dangers lurking nearby, as this was his territory.

"Something's there that shouldn't be," Nicholas said.

"What is it?" I asked.

"I can't tell."

Night grumbled and chuffed.

"I'll go with you," Nicholas said.

Miracle, at that moment, came close enough to the front of my mind for me to understand Night's reply. "You need to protect our pack," Night said through grumbles and barks. "Protect your mate and the pup." My heart leapt into my throat. They had called me Nicholas's mate. For wolves to recognize me as such... I couldn't think of that right now. Not when we might be in clanger.

Nicholas curled his hand into a fist. It looked like he wanted to argue. He wanted to go forward and join the wolves in defending his territory. But in the end he stayed right where he was.

"Very well," Nicholas said.

The wolves turned and rushed into the woods. They disappeared in a flurry of fur and rustled leaves.

"We have to get back inside," Nicholas said. "Now. I need to alert the guards."

Nicholas used his Alpha voice. Even Elva could understand his urgency. Together, we hurry toward the palace. When we reach the doors, Nicholas urges us forward.

"Go inside," he said. "I need to speak to the guard."

"Sir?" the guard asked.

I ushered Elva into the house. Then I continued to push her forward until we were well away from the door and nearer the stairwell.

"Mommy?" Elva asked.

"It's okay, honey. Just keep walking."

*Mommy, I'm scared."

The shake in her voice gave me pause. As we reached one landing of the stairs, I stopped her. I dropped to my knees and pulled her into my arms.

"We're safe," I promised. "Nicholas and the wolves are going to protect us, okay?"

*Something was out there," Elva said. "The wolves seemed... scared.*

Elva spoke to the wolves better than I ever could. If she said she could sense their fear, then she surely could.

This confused me, though. What on earth would be enough to frighten two very capable and strong wolves?

"They said something.." Elva sniffed. "About... a bear?"

"A bear?" I gasped. Elva's eyes widened, and I cursed my mistake. I tried to lower my voice back into calm. "I'm sure it's nothing. The wolves would be enough for handle any wayward bear. Besides..." I cleared my throat. "The bear is probably just lost. They can help it find its way home."

It was a gentle lie for the sake of a child, incorrect in two different ways.

For one, wolves and bears spoke differently. They wouldn't be able to understand each other in their wolf and bear forms. For two, bears were physically stronger than wolves. If the wolves stuck to their pack, they could overtake a bear. But if it was one on one... or even two wolves against one bear...

I couldn't let my fear and uneasiness show on my face.

"It will be fine, okay? We'll go see Silver and Night again soon."

"When?" Elva asked.

"As soon as we can."

Elva frowned at me for that comment. She wanted something definitive. I wished I could give her a definitive answer. But even if I would tell her white lies, I wouldn't outright deceive her.

Truthfully, I didn't know when we would be able to go outside again. So, for now, I needed to be vague.

Nicholas caught up with us then. He knelt beside us and smiled. "Nothing to worry about. It's most likely just someone lost in the woods who happened upon our property. It happens sometimes. It's not always with ill intent."

"Not a bear?"

Nicholas blinked and his eyes went wide. "Who said anything about a bear?"

I looked at Nicholas, trying to determine if he was being purposefully obtuse to protect Elva, but he seemed genuinely confused.Property belongs to Nôvel(D)r/ama.Org.

Elva glanced between me and Nicholas.

"Maybe... I didn't..." Her face scrunched somewhat in puzzlement.

"It's okay," I said, rubbing Elva's back slightly.

She was slowly calming down, thank goodness. Yet when I looked at Nicholas, I could see the stress sinking in

his features. His closed mouth tightly.

He might have had some stress before, but Elva's mention of bears seemed to intensify it up to a thousand.

He wouldn't say a word about it in front of Elva. He might not even say anything about it in front of me alone.

But he didn't need to.

If it was a bear, there was every reason to be afraid.