Page 73 of Wolf Bound

The guys wanted to use an old outpost building at the far end of the forest that used to be used for pack meetings before the new building was made. No one really goes there since it's out of the way, which gives us the privacy and space needed to perform the ceremony.

We walk in silence for a bit, my mind on a bit of an overload with what's coming. The goddess helped the fears I had, but there's still so much that goes into this and it's going to change things in a drastic way.

Penn saying he hasn't seen anything sticks in my head. He's seen most major parts of what has happened, so you would think he'd have been given a glimpse of what happens when dormant magic comes back to shifter kind.

"You really haven't seen anything?" I ask, the worry settling in my chest.

"Nope." Penn shakes his head. "I think the goddess is keeping it under wraps from us."

"But why?" I twirl my hair anxiously. "What's going to happen?"

Penn shrugs and doesn't look worried in the slightest. He’s my most go with the flow mate, I really shouldn't have expected any less.

"I don't think it matters much what happens, we still have to do it. This is our goddess given task," Penn explains in a gentle tone.

"That's pretty much what Adessa said to me back in the meadow," I admit. "That it's fate and to tamper with the threads of fate is not for mortal or immortal beings. Fate is beyond us."

"Exactly, so I would just let it go."

"Of course you would," I tease and bump him with my shoulder. "You let most things go."

"No point in sweating the small stuff," Penn states with a smirk. "Maybe the big stuff we can sweat a little bit, but who has the energy for that?"

A laugh sneaks out, the sound lightening the weight on my chest just a bit. The building comes into view, with Wes and Alaric talking to each other outside of it. Wes is pointing to a few things in the sky and Alaric is nodding in response. I catch the words stars and constellations and decide to leave them to that.

Penn nudges me towards the door before walking over to Wes and Alaric. I take the hint and head inside to find the most beautiful painting on the floor. It looks exactly like the drawing in the journal from the Hartfields.

Drayton approaches me slowly, giving me time to take in the room. Blue circles and runes cover the rustic wood floor. Each rune echoing a symbol from the picture, one that should match each of my wolves as well. In the center is a pair of wings, painted in the same teal colour as my hair, a rune representing me sitting in the middle.

It's me, at the center of it all. Surrounded by my mates.

"Beautiful," I whisper to Dray, my eyes drifting to him for a moment before being drawn back. "I can feel the magic already."

"I can, too. It feels like us, doesn't it?" Drayton pulls me into his arms from behind, resting his head on my shoulder. "This was made for us."

His words ring true right down to my very core. My very soul reaches out for the runes like a long lost lover. A gentle embrace not much different than the one Drayton is giving me right now, but on a spiritual level.

Everything has been leading up to this moment for us. Every touch, every caress, every moment of love and ecstasy. This ritual won't just awaken a dormant magic, it's going to bind our very souls to each other and be the magic.

I move out of Dray's arms and see all of my men now in the room with me. Forrester is to Dray's right, with Penn, Wes, and Alaric to the left, closer to the door. Looking into their eyes, one after another, I feel the hair on my arms stick up and my heart skip a beat.

"It's us," I finally say, tears welling in my eyes. "We're not just waking up dormant magic, we're becoming the conduit for it. The magic will live through us, connecting to each shifter and then connecting them back to us."

Wes looks at me in confusion and awe. "How do you know this? I thought it was just to wake up magic that was already in them."

"I can feel it," I explain, looking back at the circle. "It's talking to my soul."

"What's talking to your soul?" Alaric asks, his voice tight with concern.

Turning to my mates, I smile to reassure them but it just makes them all tense up more. All except for Penn, my nonchalant man.

"The magic in the runes." I gesture to the circle. "They're sentient. Each one of them is a part of you, much like your wolf is. If you stop and listen, I bet you'll hear it too."

A silence descends on all of us, our breathing and heartbeats the only sounds within the building. My magic dances along my skin the longer I listen, seeking to be connected to the runes in front of us. I tame it the best I can, and wait for my mates to come to the same understanding as me.

"Fuck," Forrester breaks the silence with a curse, his grey eyes finding mine in disbelief.

"What he said," Wes says, running a hand through his hair. He releases a deep breath and chuckles. "How did none of us notice this before you got here?"

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