Chapter 4 The Wolf Dream Potion

Cold stone pillars. Dim firelight.

The carved wolf heads on the walls cast long, stretching shadows.

From the darkness, High Elder Magnus emerged, his gaze heavy.

"Clare, what do you think you're doing?! You've disrupted Arthur's arrangement. Vivian was the candidate he personally submitted to the Alpha."

His voice was sharp with reprimand, his cane striking the ground with force.

Arthur Ravencroft-my grandfather.

As Beta, he had always been responsible for advising the Alpha.

"Do you even understand what the blood pact means? Who gave you the audacity to change the chosen one? Arthur will not tolerate you making this decision on your own!"

Aunt Clare smirked.

"My father?" she echoed, tilting her head slightly. "He missed Vivian's awakening ceremony, didn't he? But you were here-you saw it with your own eyes. Her talent is exceptional. Shouldn't that be put to better use?"

The High Elder's gaze flickered, hesitation flashing across his features.

But only for a moment.

"Vivian may be gifted, but that does not justify you defying the Beta's orders. You should know-honor and order stand above all else in this pack."

His voice was filled with both anger and authority.

Aunt Clare let out a sigh, her expression shifting into one of concern.

From where I stood, it looked utterly fake.

"I am thinking of the Beta-my father," she said smoothly. "You know how humiliated he was when Evelyn rejected the Alpha's proposal back then..."

She trailed off, as if choosing her words carefully.

"David... he cares for Vivian. I don't want our family to disappoint another Alpha."

The High Elder hesitated.

Then, his gaze turned to me.

Aunt Clare seized the moment.

She shoved me forward, her voice dripping with calculated persuasion.

"This is the better solution. Let her go instead-this ensures the pact is signed while preserving our warriors' strength."

I let out a cold laugh.

"My mother made it clear-the Alpha and she were just friends! He only wanted to help her. It was never a command."

This all happened before I was even born, yet Clare was still trying to use it against my mother.

Ridiculous.

Aunt Clare shook her head, looking at me as if I were a naïve child.

"Is that so?"

Her smirk deepened, her voice laced with something almost pitying.

"Aurora... do you really believe that?"

I clenched my jaw.

Of course, I believed my mother.

But she had never told me the full story.

And Clare knew that.

She was banking on the fact that after so many years, no one would bother questioning the Alpha over something long buried in the past. She could twist the truth however she wanted, throwing dirt on my mother's name without consequence.

I realized something then-if I kept getting tangled in her words, I'd only be falling into her trap.

I had to change my approach.

"I haven't awakened!"

I met her gaze head-on.

"Didn't you all say the blood pact requires noble blood? This is deception! My mother told me-Duskwood Pack has survived for generations because we uphold honor!"

The words stung even as I said them.

Because deep down, I knew the truth.

A werewolf who couldn't awaken-was I even a werewolf at all?

No matter how much I held onto my identity, it didn't change the rules of our kind.

A werewolf without a wolf... was nothing.

Aunt Clare's eyes gleamed with cruel amusement.

"Look at our little half-wolf."

She studied me, her smile venomous.

"Evelyn raised you well. But tell me, did she ever teach you this-'Responsibility comes before everything'?"

Then, she turned back to the High Elder, her demeanor shifting back to one of false sincerity.

"Rest assured," she said smoothly. "I have the perfect solution."

Her expression was one of quiet triumph.

Like a strategist who had finally moved her last piece into place.

***

Aunt Clare slipped a hand into the hidden pocket of her black noble gown, retrieving a slender vial etched with intricate silver patterns.

Inside, a dark, inky liquid swirled, tiny bubbles rising to the surface.

"See? How considerate of me-I had this prepared just for you."

"The Wolf Dream Potion."

She spoke the forbidden name with eerie calm.

The High Elder's face changed instantly. His cane struck the ground with a sharp crack.

"Clare, have you lost your mind?!"

Clare let out a soft chuckle, her gaze dripping with contempt.

"Lost my mind? No." She smirked. "Werewolves can't use this potion-but is she really a werewolf?"

She turned her gaze on me, smiling sweetly.

"Aurora and Vivian came of age on the same day, yet only one awakened. Perhaps this is the Moon Goddess's will."

The High Elder's eyes stayed locked on the vial.

His grip on his cane trembled slightly.

The Wolf Dream Potion.

---

"The last warrior who drank it on the battlefield led the pack to victory."

I turned to the High Elder, watching him hesitate.

"That wolf later lost his mind... and was torn apart by his own pack."

This was a story my mother once told me-tragic, but true.

Aunt Clare arched an eyebrow.

"Exactly."

She tilted her head, her voice light, almost amused.

"See? You get to be a hero, and best of all... you won't even lose yourself to the wolf. Isn't that just perfect?"

Then, her smile deepened, turning razor-sharp.

"Or do you have another reason to stay in the pack?"

She let the words hang in the air before continuing, voice slow and deliberate.

"What will Evelyn do this time? Beg the Alpha and your grandfather again?"

Her smirk widened.

"She no longer has the Beta heir's title to bargain with..."

The High Elder tapped his cane against the ground twice, silencing Clare.

He studied me for a long moment-the first time he had ever truly looked at me.

Then, his voice came low and weighted.

"Aurora. You bear the Ravencroft name... and with it, a duty to the pack."

His gaze darkened.

"You are Evelyn's daughter."

His words were slow, heavy.

"Tell me you can do this."

Something inside me dimmed, like a flame flickering out.

Of course. My opinion was never needed. I was never seen. I was just... convenient.

I was still unseen.

They only needed my compliance.