“That’s what the curse took from you. Full integration with your animal form.”
Matriarch Lydia addresses the crowd, her voice carrying across the ceremony grounds. “Tonight, we broke free from a curse that shaped our culture for three hundred years.Tomorrow, we begin learning who we really are without magical chains binding our hearts and wolves. It won’t be easy, but nothing worth having ever is.”
The crowd responds with cheers and howls, both human and wolf voices joining together in celebration.
“Thank you,” Sera says quietly, just for me. “For believing this was possible when I wasn’t sure myself.”
“Thank you for trusting me enough to try.”
We stand together as the celebration continues around us. The Thornridge threat has diminished significantly with Bastian’s retreat, and their tactical advantage destroyed. The Llewelyn pack has gained something they’ve never had—true freedom to choose their own paths with their wolves fully present and strong.
And Sera and I have found something neither of us expected when we started this research. Not just partnership or shared purpose, but genuine love built on trust and mutual respect, and the kind of connection that only comes from facing the impossible together.
The future stretches ahead with new challenges and opportunities, but we’ll face them as true partners bonded by choice and strengthened by the magic we helped break.
Chapter 25 - Sera
I wake to find Reeyan’s arm draped across my waist like he’s afraid I’ll disappear.
Sunlight streams through the windows, warming the tangled sheets wrapped around our legs. My body aches in places I’m still getting used to feeling, a pleasant reminder of everything we did last night after the ceremony. After we came back here, and made love without anger or fear between us. Just the two of us, finally honest about what we wanted.
The mate bond pulses softly in my chest. Not overwhelming anymore. Just there. A constant presence that connects us without controlling either of us.
I turn my head on the pillow to study his face. Dark blond hair sticks up in every direction, and his mouth is slightly open as he breathes.
Mine, my wolf whispers with satisfaction.
Ours, I correct her. We’re partners now.
She doesn’t argue. Just settles contentedly inside me, closer than she’s ever been before. The curse suppressed our connection for my entire life. Now she’s simply part of me in a way that feels natural and right.
I reach up to touch Reeyan’s face, tracing the line of his jaw with one finger. His green eyes open immediately, focusing on me with such warmth that something behind my ribs squeezes.
“Morning,” he mumbles, voice rough from sleep.
“Morning.”
He pulls me closer until I’m tucked against his chest. I can hear his heartbeat, steady and strong beneath my ear. His hand strokes down my back in lazy circles that make me want to purr.
“How do you feel?” he asks.
I consider the question. My body is pleasantly exhausted. My emotions are…everything. Joy at waking up beside him. Contentment from the bond between us. A flutter of nervousness about what comes next. All of it vivid and real without any magical dampening.
“Full,” I finally answer. “Like I’m experiencing everything at maximum volume after a lifetime of muted sound.”
“Is it too much?”
“Sometimes. But I wouldn’t trade it for the curse’s control.” I tilt my head to look at him. “I cried yesterday watching sunset colors reflect off the packhouse windows. Just stood there crying because the oranges and pinks were so beautiful.”
His mouth curves into a smile. “You’ve always been able to see colors. What’s different now?”
“Before, I could acknowledge something was aesthetically pleasing. Now I feel it. The beauty doesn’t just exist outside me. It resonates inside me until I have to cry or laugh or do something with all that feeling.”
“That’s what emotions do when they’re not suppressed.”
I press my palm flat against his chest, feeling his heart beat against my hand. “How do people function like this? Everything is so much.”
“You learn. Your brain adjusts. Eventually, feeling everything won’t overwhelm you quite as badly.” He kisses thetop of my head. “But you’ll still cry at sunsets sometimes. That’s just who you are now.”
