Chapter 5 Whispers

Luna

The moon hadn't yet faded from the dawn sky as I knelt in my garden, trying to ignore the whispers. They'd started after I saved Elder Emma-soft sounds like wind through leaves, but with meaning just beyond my grasp. I'd blamed exhaustion at first, then stress. Now, watching my herbs lean toward my hands without being touched, I wasn't so sure.

"Witch."

The word carried clearly from the path beyond my fence. A group of pack women walked past, their eyes hard with judgment. I recognized Katie among them-the same Katie who'd once sought my help with morning sickness, who'd brought me bread and soup as thanks.

"They say the plants grow thorns when she's angry," one whispered. "Just like in the dining hall."

"Unnatural," Katie agreed. "Did you see what she did to Elder Emma? That wasn't normal healing magic."

I bent my head, pretending to focus on the herbs while their footsteps faded. But my hands shook as I reached for the lavender, and suddenly the entire plant surged toward my touch, wrapping delicate stems around my fingers.

*Safe*, something whispered. *You are safe with us.*

I yanked my hand back, heart pounding. The lavender swayed, as if disappointed.

*Don't fear us, little healer.*

"I'm losing my mind," I muttered, pressing my palms against my eyes.

"Talking to yourself is generally considered a bad sign," Mae's voice came from behind me. "Talking to plants, on the other hand..."

I spun to find her watching me from my cabin's doorway. She moved like smoke these days, appearing without warning. Ever since the rejection, she'd taken an intense interest in my life-teaching me new herbs, bringing rare books, watching me work with unnervingly sharp eyes.

"The plants," I started, then stopped. How could I explain what was happening without sounding crazy?

"Are speaking to you." Mae settled onto my garden bench, her expression unreadable. "As they once spoke to others like you."

"Others?"

"White wolves were healers once," she said, running her fingers along a mint leaf. "Before the packs turned to modern medicine, before they forgot the old ways. They communed with forest spirits, wielded magic that came from the earth itself."

The mint leaf curled around her finger, and for a moment I glimpsed something ancient in her eyes-something that made my wolf stir uneasily.

"Why are you helping me?" I asked suddenly. "Why now?"

Her smile didn't quite reach her eyes. "Perhaps I see potential in you. Perhaps I have my own reasons for wanting to preserve the old ways." She stood smoothly. "Come. There's something you need to see."

I hesitated. Mae had been kind, yes, but there was always something else beneath her guidance-something hungry, almost desperate.

"Trust is earned," she said softly, reading my expression. "As well it should be. But if you want to understand what's awakening inside you, follow me."

The forest welcomed us like old friends, branches lifting to let us pass. Mae led me deeper than I'd ever gone, to where the trees grew so ancient their trunks were wider than pack houses. The air felt different here-heavy with magic and memory.

"Listen," Mae commanded, stopping in a clearing filled with moonflowers. "Not with your ears. With your blood, your bones, your wolf."

I closed my eyes. At first, there was only silence. Then...

*Welcome, daughter of the moon.*

The voice came from everywhere and nowhere, ancient as the earth and young as spring shoots. I opened my eyes to find the clearing transformed. Figures moved between the trees-not quite solid, not quite spirit, their forms shifting like mist in moonlight.

*We have waited so long for one who could hear us.*

"What are you?" I whispered.

*We are the first magic,* they said. *The pulse of the earth, the song of growing things. We remember when wolves ran with us, when white healers channeled our power.*

"Like me?"

*You are more.* The spirits swirled closer. *You are awakening. Becoming.*

"Becoming what?"

But they were already fading, leaving only whispers: *Time will show... time will show...*

"Well?" Mae's voice cut through my awe. "Do you understand now what you could become? What we could restore?"

I turned to her, struck by the intensity in her face. Not just hunger now-there was triumph there, and something else. Something almost possessive.

"We?" I asked carefully.

Her expression smoothed. "A poor choice of words. Come, you should rest. We'll begin your real training tomorrow."

As we walked back, the forest whispered warnings I couldn't quite understand. My wolf paced restlessly, torn between trust and instinct.

I was so distracted I almost missed Selene's scent until she stepped out from behind a tree.

"Such a long way from your little garden," she said softly. Her smile was pure poison. "These woods are dangerous, you know. Anything could happen to a lone wolf who strays too far from pack protection."

"She's not alone," Mae said, her voice carrying a subtle threat.

"No?" Selene's eyes glittered. "But you won't always be there, will you, Mae? And once I'm Luna..." She let the threat hang in the air before turning away. "Sweet dreams, little witch. While you can still have them."

The plants around us bristled with thorns, responding to my fear. But it was Mae's expression that chilled me most-the calculating look that crossed her face as she watched Selene leave.

"Yes," she murmured, almost to herself. "You'll do nicely."

"Do for what?" I asked.

But she just smiled that not-quite-warm smile and gestured toward home. As we walked, the forest spirits whispered again, their words just beyond my understanding. Warning or welcome, threat or promise-I couldn't tell.

I only knew that with each passing day, I was changing. Becoming something new, something powerful.

I just wasn't sure if that was a good thing anymore.

The walk back to my cabin felt longer than usual, each step weighted with questions I wasn't sure I wanted answered. Mae moved silently beside me, and I caught her watching me with that same calculating look when she thought I wasn't paying attention.

"You're troubled," she said finally, breaking the silence.

"What did they mean, I'm 'becoming'?" I asked. "Becoming what?"

Mae's smile was enigmatic. "What do you think they meant?"

Before I could answer, a commotion near the pack house caught our attention. A crowd had gathered, their voices carrying clearly in the evening air.

"Did you see what she did in the forest?"

"Plants moving on their own-"

"Elder Thomas says we can't trust that kind of power-"

I stopped walking, my chest tight. Among the crowd, I spotted Elder Thomas gesturing animatedly, his face twisted with familiar disgust.

"She's corrupting the natural order," he was saying. "First the rejection, now this dark magic-"

"Interesting," Mae murmured, "how quickly they label as dark that which they don't understand." Her hand settled on my shoulder, her grip just slightly too tight. "Perhaps we should show them what true darkness looks like."

A chill ran down my spine at her tone. The plants around us stirred restlessly, and the forest spirits' whispers grew urgent, though I still couldn't make out their words.

"What do you mean?" I asked carefully.

Mae's eyes gleamed with something ancient and hungry. "Power demands respect, little wolf. Or have you enjoyed being their victim?"

"I'm not-"

"No?" Her laugh was cold. "Then why do you let them treat you like one? The spirits have chosen you. The old magic rises in your blood. You could make them regret every whispered insult, every turned back, every moment of pain-"

"Stop." My voice shook, but I stepped away from her touch. The nearby plants writhed, torn between reaching for me and recoiling from the darkness in Mae's words. "That's not what I want."

"No?" She studied me like I was one of her rare specimens. "Then what do you want, Luna?"

*Be careful*, the spirits whispered, finally clear enough to understand. *Old wounds make dangerous teachers*.

I met Mae's gaze steadily. "I want to heal. That's all I've ever wanted."

Something flickered across her face-disappointment? Anger? But then her usual mask of benign wisdom slipped back into place.

"Of course you do, dear." She patted my cheek, the gesture somehow both affectionate and threatening. "We'll see how long that lasts."

She turned to leave, then paused. "Oh, and Luna? Do be careful with those new abilities of yours. You never know who might be... watching."

I waited until she disappeared into the growing darkness before letting out a shaky breath. The plants around me gradually settled, their agitation easing with mine.

*She carries old pain*, the spirits murmured. *Old hatred. Remember that*.

"Why did you choose me?" I whispered to the empty air. "What am I supposed to become?"

But the only answer was the rustle of leaves in the evening breeze, and the distant sound of my pack-my people, though they didn't want me-preparing for another night of celebrating their Alpha's upcoming mating.

His mating to someone else.

The pain of that thought should have devastated me. Instead, I felt something new stirring-not just power, but purpose. Mae might have her own agenda, the pack might fear me, but this magic, these abilities... they were mine. And I would find my own way to use them.

Even if I had to do it alone.

*Never alone*, the forest whispered. *We are with you*.

I smiled faintly, touching a moonflower that had somehow bloomed in my path. Its petals glowed softly in the gathering dark, a reminder that beauty could survive even in shadow.

"Then help me," I murmured. "Help me become whatever I'm meant to be."

The flower's glow brightened in response, and for just a moment, I thought I saw figures dancing in its light-ancient spirits celebrating a promise I didn't yet understand.

Behind me, the pack's whispers continued. Ahead, my small cabin waited, no longer quite the sanctuary it had been. And somewhere in the darkness, Mae plotted, Selene schemed, and my future twisted like vines reaching for the moon.

But for the first time since the rejection, I wasn't afraid.

I was becoming.