Elara's POV
The Oracle's words echoed in my head as the bookshop dissolved around us.
One moment we were standing in the ruins of my workplace. The next, we were somewhere else entirely.
A cottage. Small, cozy, tucked into a forest that hummed with wild magic. Through the windows, I saw trees that glowed faintly in the darkness.
"Where—" I started.
"Safe house," the Oracle's voice came from nowhere. "Rest. Recover. You'll need your strength."
Then silence.
Ash and I stood in the middle of the cottage's main room, both of us shaking from exhaustion and adrenaline. Our bond thrummed between us—stronger than ever but raw, new, like a wound that hadn't healed yet.
"Your father," Ash said quietly. "He sacrificed everything for us."
"I know." My throat tightened. Two years of hating him, and then he'd thrown it all away to save us. "I don't know how to feel about that."
"He loved you. He just loved his pride more." Ash touched my arm gently. "Until he didn't."
I looked at him—really looked at him for the first time since the True Bonding. He was still Ash, still had those intense dark eyes that flashed gold when emotional. But something was different. More solid. More real somehow.
"You can shift now," I said. "Between human and wolf. Whenever you want."
"Yeah." He flexed his hands, staring at them like they were foreign objects. "It feels... strange. Like I'm finally whole for the first time."
"Show me."
He hesitated. "Are you sure?"
"I want to see it."
Ash closed his eyes. For a moment, nothing happened. Then his body shimmered, shadows swirling around him like a cloak. When they cleared, my shadow-wolf stood before me—massive, sleek, with those same golden eyes.
Beautiful.
He shifted back to human in a fluid motion that took my breath away. "The Oracle was right. We changed the rules."
"We changed everything." I sat down on the cottage's worn couch, suddenly exhausted. "What if we made things worse? What if—"
Ash knelt in front of me, taking my hands. "Hey. Look at me."
I met his eyes.
"We survived," he said firmly. "Your father gave us a chance. We're going to use it."
"But war is coming. The Oracle said—"
"I know what she said." His grip tightened. "And we'll face it. Together. Like we've always done."
The way he said "together" made my heart stutter. Because it meant something different now. We weren't just witch and familiar anymore. We were partners. Equals.
Bonded.
"Ash," I whispered. "What we did—the True Bonding—do you understand what that means?"
His eyes darkened. "Do you?"
"It means..." I struggled for words. "It means we're connected forever. Soul to soul. What I feel, you feel. My magic is your magic. We're—"
"One," he finished softly. "Yeah. I know."
He stood abruptly, running his hands through his hair. The movement was so human, so unlike the wolf who used to pace at my feet.
"I should sleep on the floor," he said, not looking at me. "Give you space. This is all new and—"
"Ash."
He stopped.
"I kissed you," I said. "I chose this. Chose us. You don't have to sleep on the floor anymore."
He turned slowly, vulnerability written across his face. "Elara, I've loved you since you were seven years old. Every day for eighteen years, I watched you, protected you, wanted you. And now that I finally can have you, I'm terrified I'll do something wrong."
My chest ached. "You could never—"
"I'm still learning to be human!" His voice cracked. "I don't know how to do this. How to be what you need. What if I—"
I stood and crossed to him, cupping his face in my hands. "You've always been what I need. The form doesn't matter."
"It matters to me." He leaned into my touch, eyes closing. "I want to be worthy of you."
"You saved my life. Multiple times. You've been my best friend, my protector, my constant. You're already worthy."
When he opened his eyes, they blazed with an intensity that made me shiver. "I want to be more than that."
"You are more than that."
The air between us crackled with tension. His hands came up to rest on my waist—tentative, like he was asking permission.
I leaned closer.
We were a breath apart when—
CRASH.
The cottage door exploded inward.
Ash spun, putting himself between me and the threat instantly. Shadows erupted around him.
But it wasn't demons or enforcers.
It was a woman.
She stumbled into the cottage, bleeding from a dozen wounds. Her clothes were torn, her face battered. But I recognized her immediately.
"Mira?" I gasped.
My best friend collapsed to her knees. "Elara... thank god... I found you..."
I rushed to her side. "What happened? Who did this?"
"Caspian." Mira coughed, blood on her lips. "Before the Oracle banished him... he sent assassins... to everyone you care about..."
Ice flooded my veins. "Who?"
"Me. Rowan. Marcus the gardener. Anyone who helped you after your exile." Tears streamed down her face. "They're killing everyone, Elara. Everyone who showed you kindness."
"No." Horror choked me. "No, no, no—"
"Rowan's dead," Mira sobbed. "I watched them... they made me watch..."
Ash's hand found my shoulder, steadying me.
"Marcus?" I whispered.
"I don't know. I ran. I'm sorry, I ran, I—"
"You survived." I pulled her into a hug. "That's what matters."
But guilt crushed me. People were dying because of me. Because they'd been kind to the exiled witch.
"There's more." Mira pulled back, her expression terrified. "Caspian... before they killed Rowan... he said something. About the True Bonding."
Ash tensed. "What did he say?"
"That it wasn't complete. That you only did half the ritual." Mira grabbed my hands. "The True Bonding requires three stages: the kiss, the magical merge, and... and..."
"And what?" I demanded.
She looked between us, horrified. "The consummation. You have to... fully join. Body and soul. If you don't complete all three stages within three days, the bond breaks. And when it breaks—"
"What happens?" Ash's voice was deadly quiet.
"Both partners die."
The words hit like a physical blow.
"Three days?" I whispered. "When did we start the ritual?"
"Today," Ash said. "When you kissed me in the bookshop."
Mira's eyes widened. "Then you have until—"
"Three days from now." I did the math, stomach dropping. "Seventy-two hours."
Silence filled the cottage.
"There's more," Mira said, her voice barely audible. "Caspian knows. He knows you have three days. And he's planning something—something big. I heard him talking about the Council, about forcing them to execute you both before the bond completes."
"He can't do that," I said. "The Oracle banished him—"
"She banished him. Not his allies. Not Vivienne. Not the other Council members he's bought." Mira's hands shook. "Elara, he's declaring you both enemies of the magical realm. He's making the entire Council hunt you."
Ash pulled me closer. Through our bond, I felt his determination warring with fear.
"We complete the bond," he said firmly. "All three stages. That's the only way to save ourselves."
Heat flooded my face. Because completing the bond meant... everything. It meant trusting him completely. Joining with him in every way possible.
It meant crossing a line we could never uncross.
"Elara." Ash turned me to face him, his eyes intense. "I know this isn't how you imagined it. I know the timing is terrible. But if we don't—"
"I know." My voice came out steadier than I felt. "Three days. We complete the bond or we both die."
Mira struggled to her feet. "I'll stand guard. Give you privacy. You need to—"
She swayed, and Ash caught her before she fell.
"You need a healer," I said.
"I need you to survive." Mira smiled weakly. "Please. Don't let Caspian win. Don't let my friends die for nothing."
Ash carried her to the bedroom, laying her on the bed. I found medical supplies in the cottage—the Oracle had thought of everything.
As I cleaned Mira's wounds, my hands trembled.
Three days to complete a bonding ritual that would tie Ash and me together forever.
Three days before the entire magical world came hunting us.
Three days to save ourselves by doing the one thing that terrified and thrilled me in equal measure.
Ash appeared in the doorway, his silhouette backlit by firelight. His eyes met mine across the room.
And in that moment, I knew.
We'd survived betrayal, demons, and attempted murder.
We'd face this too.
Together.
But as Mira finally fell into an exhausted sleep, her last whispered words chilled me to the bone:
"Elara... there's one more thing Caspian said... about your mother..."
Her eyes closed before she could finish.
I stared at her unconscious form, ice spreading through my chest.
My mother had died when I was twelve. Natural causes, they'd said. A sudden illness.
But what if it wasn't natural?
What if Caspian had been planning this for longer than I knew?
What if he'd killed my mother too?
I looked at Ash, and saw my horror reflected in his eyes.
Because if Caspian had been orchestrating this since before I was twelve...
Then nothing—absolutely nothing—about my life had ever been real.