Chapter 33:

Aurora’s POV

I didn’t remember falling asleep. One second, I was curled under my blanket, shaking and staring at the ceiling like it might crack open and reveal the answers I didn’t get today. The next—

Silence. But not the kind that comforts. This was the hush of deep woods. Ancient. Listening. Breathing. I stood barefoot in a forest painted with silver light.

The moon above me was massive—full, glowing like a lantern against an inky sky. Its light drenched everything, casting long, sharp shadows that danced across the mossy forest floor.

And the trees… God, the trees were beautiful.

Towering pines and twisted oaks stretched endlessly into the stars, their bark laced with veins of white like lightning frozen in wood.

The leaves barely moved, yet I could hear them whispering. Not in words. In feelings. In rhythm. A soundless symphony.

I turned in a slow circle. No wind. No birds. No footsteps but my own. The air tasted electric, like the moment right before thunder.

My skin prickled