I woke to the sound of laughter.It was loud, messy and layered with the thudding footsteps of half a dozen little ones running over the dirt yard outside my window.Eren’s was the loudest. Four years old now, taller and far more stubborn, with a head of wild curls that refused to obey combs or logic, he’d become the unofficial ringleader of the pack’s younger children. I could hear his voice, high and delighted, barking out orders for some imaginary battle that involved sticks and an alarming amount of mud.I sat up, rubbing sleep from my eyes, and for a moment I just… listened. Four years ago, the pack had been smaller, quieter, a place where every home was next to the other. Now, the air was filled with the clatter of life: pots clanging in the kitchen, bubbly voices trading gossip over the courtyard, the occasional bark from the dogs we’d trained to keep watch at night.I never wanted to leave this place.The mark on my hand, still hidden under Lera’s cloaking, tingled faintly, li
Last Updated : 2025-08-12 Read more