Moonbound Flames

Chapter Five

CHAPTER FIVE

The dreams came that night, immersive and impossible to ignore, leaving vivid tales of surreal landscapes, whispering secrets of the subconscious, pulling me into a realm where reality blurred endlessly.

I stood in a clearing, bathed in silver light, the air thick with the scent of damp earth.

The moon's glow casted long shadows around the forest floor. Wolves circled me, their movements graceful and deliberate, not threatening but reverent, as if I was their anchor in a sacred ritual. Their fur shimmered in the moonlight, gray, white, black, each step a silent promise of loyalty.

One stepped forward, taller than the rest, his dark coat blending into the night, his eyes a piercing amber I knew too well. Edgar.

He shifted before me, his form rippling like water as fur gave way to skin, muscle, and those same intense eyes. He reached for my hand, his touch was warm and steady against the night sir. “Don't let me go again,” he said, his voice echoing through my bones.

Before I could respond, the scene shattered. Fire erupted around us, devouring the trees. Screams tore through the air, mine, his and others I couldn't place. The sky split in two, and I woke up immediately gasping for air. My heart was pounding so hard, my legs tangled around the sheets like a trap.

Each night, I had different dreams about a life I didn't recognize. In them, I wasn't Lia Mason, the quiet 24 years old who spent her life trying to blend in anywhere. I was older, wiser, and a woman who carried the weight of centuries in my soul, deeply In love and forever losing that love to some unseen force. And always, at the center of it all, was Edgar. His face, his voice, his touch, haunted me even in the daylight.

—

Quinn and I had barely had a proper conversation for days as I was always too engrossed in my thoughts. She was patient and rarely said anything to me.

That evening, I lingered at the bookstore. Browsing the shelves with my eyes and hands, I picked up a worn copy of the popular Wuthering Heights, drawn to its themes of wild, untamed love, though whispering echoes of a love I couldn't escape.

“Wuthering Heights?” Quinn questioned, her voice kind but probing. “Everything alright?”

“Everything isn't alright and you know it.” I said in my head because I couldn't say them out aloud since it was pointless asking for explanations at this point.

I forced a smile, tucking a strand of my long amber straight hair behind my ear. “Just needed a good book to distract me from reality,” I replied, avoiding her gaze. Anything I said other than that would lead to a questioning session and a session where I don't get the answers I needed, plus I didn't want that especially when it has to do with me dreaming about the man she had told me to avoid right from time.

She nodded, but her eyes lingered on me a moment longer, as if she could sense I was lying.

The walk home was a familiar one, a winding path through Duskwood quiet streets, past the bar with its lively chatter, and the town square where a group of children still played despite the late hour. The sky was strangely clear, the full moon casting a glow over everything. I clutched the book to my chest, my steps quickening as the forest loomed closer. I’d always loved the woods surrounding Duskwood. The soft rustle of leaves, the way the air felt alive with secrets, but tonight, they felt different.

I was halfway through the woods, when a strange sensation overtook me. It started as a low humming pressure in my chest, like a drumbeat growing louder. My limbs began to tremble, my fingers tightened around the book until my knuckles whitened. A wave of heat surged through me, followed by a bone deep chill, and I stumbled, my knees buckling beneath me.

I collapsed to the forest floor, the book slipped from my grasp and landed in the dirt. My breath came in shallow gasps as my skin prickled with a thousand tiny n*****s. My bones ached, grinding pain that felt like they were trying to reshape themselves, to break and reform into something new. Panic clawed at my throat, my vision swimming as the trees around me seemed to tilt and blur.

A low growl pierced the night, sending a shiver down my spine.

Edgar emerged from the shadows of the trees, his tall frame cutting through the moonlight like a blade. His dark hair was tousled, his amber eyes wide with alarm as he took in the sight of her crumpled on the ground. He rushed to my side, dropping to his knees and grabbing my hand, his grip firm but gentle.

“You're shifting,” he said, his voice tight with urgency. “Too soon. Too fast.”

“I can't stop it,” I gasped, my words barely audible as another wave of pain ran through my body. My vision blurred further, the edges darkening, and I felt like I was slipping away, drowning in the chaos of my own body. “Make it stop, please.”

He pulled me into his arms, his warmth a contrast to the cold sweat coating my skin. He held me close, his voice was low and commanding, cutting through the fog of my panic. “Listen to me, Lia. If you don't accept what you are, it will destroy you.”

I clutched his shirt with trembling hands, my nails digging into the fabric as I fought to stay conscious. The pain was unbearable, a storm raging inside me, tearing me apart from the inside out. I felt the wolf within me, clawing to break free, its presence both foreign and achingly familiar, like a memory I'd buried deep.

“But if you embrace it…” Edgar continued, his voice softening as he brushed a strand of hair from my face, “you'll survive. You'll become something stronger.”

I stared into his eyes, tears pouring down my cheeks, leaving trails of salt and fear. His gaze held me, steady and unyielding, a lifeline in the storm. “I'm scared,” I whispered, my voice breaking on the words.

His expression softened, a flash of vulnerability crossing his features. “So am I,” he admitted, his voice barely above a whisper. “But I'll be here. I swear.”

And in that moment, under the watchful gaze of the full moon, I stopped fighting.

Not him. Not myself.

Not the wolf.

The pain didn't vanish, but I shifted, becoming something I could bear, something I could channel. My breathing steadied, my body still trembling but no longer resisting. I felt the wolf within me rise, not as an enemy but as a part of me, ancient and powerful, its strength flowing through my veins like wildfire. The forest around me seemed to hum in approval, the air vibrating with a cool energy that matched the rhythm of my heartbeat.

Edgar held me through it all, his presence a quiet anchor as the shift began to take hold. I didn't know what lay ahead, but for the first time, I felt ready to face it, not as the girl who'd hid in books and shadows, but as something more.

Something wild.

Something whole.