The name almost shattered the enchantment right then and there. A crack zigzagged across the black sky, splintering one of the glowing runes. The voice came again, urgent now, "No, no, no… don't remember him. He left you. He betrayed you. You are here where you belong—with your father."
Father.
No.
A new voice echoed behind the first. This one was older, deeper, cold as winter rivers.
"Rise, my daughter."
This wasn't the king's voice. This voice felt ancient, coiled around her very bones, hidden deep within the places she never dared look.
"You have been asleep long enough."
She gasped. The flowers beneath her feet rippled, their glow pulsing faintly with her heartbeat. Her fingers twitched, curling slightly into fists. For a moment—just for a breath—her reflection in the glowing petals wasn't herself at all.
It was a wolf. Tall, regal, crowned in shifting silver light. Not fur—light.
The Moon Goddess.
