FernThe Solstice Ball was supposed to happen before the war. It was planned before the blood, before the betrayal, and before I knew what it meant to choose between mercy and survival.For a long time, no one spoke of it again. It felt wrong to celebrate when so many graves were still fresh, and when the scent of smoke still lingered in the valley.But peace cannot exist without ritual, and tonight isn't about celebration. It’s about acknowledging what happened and promising to never let it happen again.While I know that it is crazy to hope for. A girl can dream, right?The great hall of Blackmoor has never looked like this. Silver lanterns hang from the high beams, their light soft and lunar instead of bright and triumphant. White banners from every allied pack line the stone walls, each marked with their crest.Music plays quietly, not the loud victorious kind, but something older. Something steady. Something meant for rebuilding.I pause just outside the entrance. My hands ar
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