Page 38 of Wolf Proclaimed

The weight of her words settled over me. The dream and peace seemed to hang in a precarious balance. But Gretel was right. We both knew the rules of magic. There was no perfect spell, especially one that toyed with the very fabric of reality.

Taking a deep breath, I nodded. "So, what do we do now?"

"We go with it," she said, her voice filled with resignation and hope. "We just hope the peace and happiness will last as long as possible."

I nodded in agreement. We had no other choice. The die was cast, and all we could do now was play the game to the best of our abilities.

Gretel and I walked toward the ledge, the pebbles crunching under our boots. We had just made some weighty decisions, and our footsteps seemed to punctuate our thoughts. The group was ahead of us, and Mira held out her arms to us as we approached. Her eyes were shining with a new sense of peace, and her smile reached up to her eyes in a way I hadn't seen for a long time.

"Bastian, I'm glad to see you here," Mira said, her voice as soft as the mountain breeze.

I smiled back, feeling a twinge of sadness, knowing that the happiness I saw in her now was an illusion. But I swallowed my feelings and nodded for her sake and the others. "I wouldn't miss it, Mira."

"I just wish..." she trailed off, looking past me to the horizon where the sun was starting to set.

"That it could always be like this?" I finished for her, my gaze following hers.

She gave a small laugh, her eyes shimmering with unshed tears. "Yeah, something like that."

I didn't know what to say to Mira. Instead, I just put a comforting hand on her shoulder, a silent promise that I'd do whatever it took to help them get through whatever was to come.

As we traversed the winding path back to my village, the gravity of our predicament settled over me, an unspoken tension cloaked my shoulders. This illusion was not just for the sisters—it needed to encompass everyone who had been part of their lives. Their chosen mates, their friends, our packs... each of us would have to embody a role in this illusion, all for maintaining a delicate peace.

Gretel, her voice soft as the rustling leaves, voiced the unsaid. "We must explain the spell to everyone." She was correct. A harsh reality we couldn't avoid. It was merely a matter of time before questions formed and strange looks turned into suspicion. The more we played along, the less likely the illusion would crack.

"Let's divide our tasks," I proposed in a hushed tone. "You converse with Petra’s pack and the sister’s mates. I'll handle my pack."

She bobbed her head in agreement, determination etched in every feature. "Bastian," she added, locking eyes with me, "This must be done correctly. They must be convinced. Any error could lead to disaster."

My gaze met hers, the severity of our situation sinking in. "We won't let that happen, Gretel. It's the least we owe them." We then split, walking our separate paths, each carrying the heavy burden of our secret.

As the first stars began to glitter in the inky abyss overhead, a longing for simpler times wrapped around my heart, times when magic and deceit hadn't stained our lives. Arriving back at my territory under the ethereal glow of the moonlight, I was met with a mesmerizing tableau of flickering firelight casting dancing shadows across the settlement. I found myself in the company of Theon and Dmitri.

"There's an uncanny peace tonight," Theon noted, his gruff voice barely above a whisper.

"Yes, an unusual calm," Dmitri echoed, his gaze distant, caught by the dancing flames in the center of the village.

"That’s because it is," I sighed, turning to them. "A peace we must work to uphold."

I relayed to them the events of the day, Mira's desperate spell, the transformation of our history, and the need for us to play along.

"We have to pretend?" Theon's eyebrows shot up, his face a mask of surprise.

"Yes. The girls, Mira, Petra, Jezebel... they've forgotten the conflicts. Their past is now a well of pleasant memories, of sisterly love and camaraderie," I said, my voice heavy.

"And Luna and Gretel?" Dmitri asked, his tone cautious.

"They know, but they're playing along. Gretel fears that the spell might not hold forever and that cracks will begin to show. If the girls sense even a hint of contradiction, it could trigger those cracks, and all hell might break loose."

A silence descended upon us, broken only by the distant sound of laughter and merry-making. Theon grunted, rubbing his temples. "So, we play along, and we hope?"

"Yes," I replied, a sense of unease settling within me. "We hope the magic holds and that when it fails, as Gretel fears it will, we're ready to handle the fallout."

Dmitri gave a slow nod, his gaze far away. "Then we will do our part, Bastian. For peace, for unity... we will do our part."

Standing there in silence, under the moon's cool gaze, we committed ourselves to the enchanting illusion, each aware of its uncertainty and risk. As the merriment of a joyous reunion reached our ears, I couldn't shake off the sinking feeling. We were walking a fine line, and there was no way to predict how long it would be before our facade would crumble.

Chapter Eighteen

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