Chapter 3 — The Forbidden Forest
2040 Words
Chapter 3 — The Forbidden Forest
I couldn't stop thinking about Xavier's words.
Some truths are dangerous.
They followed me all the way home.
I barely spoke during dinner. I barely tasted the food in front of me.
My mind kept returning to the same questions.
What did he know?
What had my mother been hiding?
And why had that voice told me I was remembering something?
By midnight, I was still awake.
Moonlight spilled through my bedroom window, painting pale silver lines across the wooden floor.
I sat on the edge of my bed, staring at the pendant I had found in my mind during the vision.
Except it wasn't really there.
That was the problem.
I had seen it.
I could remember the crescent moon engraved on it.
But when I checked my room, there was nothing.
Maybe the vision hadn't been real.
Maybe I was losing my mind.
I pressed my palms against my face.
“No.”
I couldn't keep doing this.
I needed answers.
And I knew where to find them.
The northern forest.
The place everyone had warned me to avoid.
I stood and pulled on my boots.
I slipped a small knife into my waistband, grabbed a lantern, and quietly left the house.
The village was asleep.
I moved between the houses, keeping my head down.
The farther I walked from the pack, the quieter everything became.
Soon, the lights of Silver Moon disappeared behind me.
The forest stood ahead.
Dark.
Silent.
Waiting.
I stopped at the boundary.
For a moment, fear returned.
Then the voice whispered inside my head.
Come.
I swallowed.
“You brought me here before.”
No answer.
“Then tell me what I'm supposed to find.”
Silence.
I stepped across the boundary.
The temperature dropped instantly.
Cold air slipped beneath my clothes and raised goosebumps along my arms.
I wrapped my arms around myself and continued walking.
The forest seemed different at night.
During the day, I had seen trees.
Now I saw shadows.
Branches twisted overhead like skeletal fingers.
Roots pushed through the ground like sleeping creatures.
Every few seconds, I heard something moving in the distance.
I kept walking.
Then the voice returned.
You are close.
“Close to what?”
The first door.
I frowned.
“What door?”
No answer.
I continued deeper.
---
I don't know how long I walked.
Ten minutes.
Maybe thirty.
Time seemed strange inside the forest.
Then I noticed something unusual.
The trees had changed.
The trunks were enormous now, much older than the ones near the pack.
Their bark was almost black.
Their branches formed a thick canopy overhead, blocking most of the moonlight.
I reached a clearing.
And stopped.
A massive tree stood in the center.
It was unlike anything I'd ever seen.
Its trunk was so wide that several people would have needed to join hands to surround it.
Its bark was black and rough, covered in strange markings.
I stepped closer.
One symbol immediately caught my attention.
A crescent moon surrounding a wolf's eye.
My heart began pounding.
I touched the pendant around my neck.
It suddenly became warm.
“What are you?”
I reached toward the carving.
The moment my fingers touched the tree—
Pain exploded through my hand.
I screamed and pulled away.
A thin cut appeared across my palm.
Blood welled from the wound.
But instead of dripping onto the ground, the blood moved.
It crawled across my skin.
Toward the symbol.
I stared in horror.
The blood disappeared into the carving.
Then the entire symbol began to glow.
Silver light spread through the cracks in the bark.
The ground trembled beneath my feet.
“What is happening?”
The voice whispered.
Blood remembers.
I backed away.
“What does that mean?”
Touch it.
“I already did.”
Again.
I hesitated.
Every instinct told me to run.
But something stronger pulled me forward.
I placed my palm against the tree again.
This time, there was no pain.
Instead, warmth spread through my entire body.
My heartbeat became louder.
Then—
A howl echoed through the forest.
I opened my eyes.
Two golden eyes were staring at me.
I stopped breathing.
A wolf stepped out from behind the trees.
It was enormous.
Its body was covered in thick black fur, with silver strands running along its shoulders and back.
Its legs were powerful.
Its paws were huge.
Old scars crossed its muzzle.
But its eyes were the strangest thing about it.
Golden.
Bright.
Almost human.
I slowly lowered my hand.
“You.”
The wolf stared at me.
“You were at my window.”
It took one step forward.
I stepped back.
It stopped.
I swallowed.
“Are you the one who's been talking to me?”
The wolf tilted its head.
I almost laughed nervously.
“That's a stupid question.”
It stepped closer.
I raised my knife.
“Stay back.”
It didn't.
My hand trembled.
But the wolf didn't attack.
Instead, it lowered its head.
Something inside my chest suddenly tightened.
Not fear.
Recognition.
I didn't understand it.
I slowly lowered the knife.
The wolf moved closer until it stood directly in front of me.
I could feel its warm breath against my fingers.
Against every instinct, I raised my hand.
My fingers touched its fur.
The moment I did—
The forest disappeared.
---
Fire.
That was the first thing I saw.
Flames consumed a village beneath a black sky.
Wolves ran through the streets.
People screamed.
A woman stood in the middle of the chaos.
She was young.
Beautiful.
Her long dark hair whipped around her face as she held a baby against her chest.
I knew her.
Somehow, I knew her.
“Mother…”
She looked toward someone standing behind her.
“We don't have time.”
“I won't leave her.”
“They'll find her.”
“Then hide her.”
“They'll know.”
The woman looked down at the baby.
Tears rolled down her cheeks.
“Take her to Silver Moon.”
A man stepped closer.
“They will never accept her.”
The woman closed her eyes.
“They don't need to know what she is.”
My heart stopped.
“What am I?”
The woman suddenly looked directly at me.
Her eyes widened.
As if she could actually see me.
Then she whispered—
“Let her sleep.”
The vision shattered.
---
I screamed and fell backward.
The forest returned.
The wolf was gone.
I looked around wildly.
“Mother?”
Nothing.
My breathing was uneven.
I touched my face.
Tears.
I was crying.
I couldn't remember the last time I'd cried because of my mother.
I had barely remembered her.
Now I could see her face.
Feel her presence.
Hear her voice.
And somehow, that hurt more.
I wiped my cheeks.
“What did you hide from me?”
The voice answered.
Everything.
I looked around.
“Tell me.”
Not yet.
“Why?”
Because they are watching.
My blood ran cold.
“Who?”
A branch snapped.
I turned.
Nothing.
Another branch broke.
Closer.
I tightened my grip on the knife.
Then I saw them.
Eyes.
Dozens of them.
Glowing between the trees.
Wolves.
Rogues.
Their bodies were thin and scarred.
Their fur was dirty and tangled.
Their teeth were exposed.
One stepped into the moonlight.
A gray wolf with a torn ear and a long scar across its muzzle.
It growled.
I slowly backed away.
“Please…”
The wolf lowered its head.
Another moved behind me.
I was surrounded.
My heart raced.
I looked for an opening.
Nothing.
The largest wolf suddenly lunged.
I screamed and threw myself sideways.
It crashed into the tree behind me.
I hit the ground hard.
Pain shot through my ankle.
Another wolf charged.
I raised my arms to protect my face.
“Stop!”
The word exploded from my throat.
A powerful force burst from my body.
The wolves were thrown backward.
The trees shook violently.
Leaves exploded from the branches.
I stared at my hands.
Silver light covered my fingers.
My breathing stopped.
“What…”
The light disappeared.
The wolves scrambled to their feet.
For several seconds, they stared at me.
Then they ran.
All of them.
I remained frozen.
I slowly looked down at my hands.
That was me.
I had done that.
But how?
My wolf had never awakened.
I had never shifted.
I had never shown any unusual power.
So what was happening to me?
Something glinted in the dirt.
I crouched and picked it up.
A small silver key.
The crescent moon symbol was engraved across its surface.
The moment my fingers closed around it, the voice whispered—
Find the door.
I stared at the key.
“What door?”
The one they sealed.
“Who sealed it?”
Silence.
Then—
Your father.
My blood turned cold.
“My father?”
Before the voice could answer, a branch snapped behind me.
I spun around.
A figure stood between the trees.
Tall.
Motionless.
Watching me.
“Who are you?”
The figure didn't answer.
It stepped forward.
I took a step backward.
Then a familiar voice came from the darkness.
“Judith?”
My heart jumped.
Xavier.
He emerged from between the trees.
His black hair was disheveled, and his clothes were covered with dirt and leaves.
His chest rose and fell heavily, as if he had been running.
His dark eyes immediately found me.
Then they moved to the silver key in my hand.
His expression changed.
“What are you doing here?”
“You followed me.”
“I was looking for you.”
“Why?”
He didn't answer.
Instead, he looked toward the trees.
“Where is it?”
“What?”
“The wolf.”
My eyes widened.
“You know about it?”
Xavier stepped closer.
“Judith, give me the key.”
“No.”
His jaw tightened.
“You don't understand what you're holding.”
“Then explain it.”
“I can't.”
“You always say that!”
My voice cracked.
“You know something about me. You know something about my mother. You know something about this forest. Every time I ask you a question, you tell me to stay away.”
Xavier stared at me.
For a moment, something like guilt crossed his face.
Then he whispered—
“Because I'm trying to keep you alive.”
My anger faltered.
“Alive from what?”
He looked toward the darkness.
“Everyone.”
A distant howl echoed.
Xavier's expression hardened.
“We need to leave.”
“Xavier—”
“Now.”
He reached for my hand.
I pulled away.
“I can walk.”
His eyes dropped to my injured ankle.
“You can barely stand.”
“I said I can walk.”
He sighed.
Then, without warning, he crouched in front of me.
“Get on.”
I stared at him.
“What?”
“I'm carrying you.”
“No.”
“Judith.”
“I don't need your help.”
His eyes met mine.
“Maybe not.”
His voice softened.
“But you're getting it anyway.”
I hesitated.
Another howl echoed through the forest.
Closer this time.
I reluctantly climbed onto his back.
Xavier stood effortlessly.
His arms supported my legs as he carried me through the forest.
I could feel his heartbeat against my chest.
Strong.
Steady.
Far too close.
“Xavier?”
“What?”
“Were you afraid when you saw me yesterday?”
He became silent.
“Yes.”
My heart skipped.
“Why?”
He didn't answer.
I rested my chin against his shoulder.
Then I noticed something.
A faint silver mark was visible on the back of his neck.
The crescent moon.
My breath caught.
“Xavier…”
He stopped.
“What?”
“You have it too.”
His entire body went rigid.
Slowly, he turned his head.
Our eyes met.
And for the first time, I saw something in his face that terrified me.
Recognition.
“You were never supposed to see that,” he whispered.
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