After lunch, I told Caelum I wanted to walk. He didn't stop me. Didn't ask where. Didn't even send someone to follow me. He just smiled and said, "Don't go too far."
It still surprised me how much he trusted me. Not like I was fragile or easily lost—but like he believed I'd return. Like he believed this was my home now, and I wouldn't want to run from it. I didn't. I just wanted air.
I wandered through the outer edges of the Royal Capital, past the servant wing and the quieter paths near the knight's dormitories. Flowers bloomed along the stone walls. Birds sang overhead. I walked without looking for anything.
That's when I saw him. Jason. Not in his wolf form. In his human one. Leaning casually against a tree, arms crossed, golden eyes bright under the sunlight. His hair was tousled like he'd been running, and there was something playful in the tilt of his head.
"Hey, little shadow," he called.
I blinked. "Shadow?"
"You sneak around so quietly, I thought you were Lloyd."
I didn't know how to respond to that. He walked over, crouched, and grinned. "Want to go somewhere fun?"
I hesitated. "Will I get in trouble?"
Jason chuckled. "Only if you tell someone."
"…Okay."
He shifted. One blink—he was human. Next blink—wolf. His fur was red and burnished like molten copper. His paws were large but precise, his build lean and quick. His golden eyes remained exactly the same. He crouched low. "Climb on."
I stared.
"Come on. I won't drop you."
I stepped forward and placed my hands on his back. His fur was warm and surprisingly soft. I swung a leg over, still a little unsure. My hands gripped the thick fur at the base of his neck.
"Hold tight."
Then we ran. The trees changed. At first, we moved through a part of the garden I recognized—where the paths wound lazily and the hedges were high. But then the stone walls fell away. The sky vanished behind canopy. The air cooled.
We entered a forest. I should have been scared. But I wasn't. Jason didn't run recklessly. He moved like he'd done this a thousand times. Every turn was smooth, every step quiet despite his size. The deeper we went, the darker it became. Not the scary kind of dark. Just the kind that made you whisper without knowing why.
The air changed again. Something in it shimmered. Then… the trees glowed. First it was the moss—soft blue, clinging to the trunks. Then vines with flowers that pulsed faintly like sleeping stars. The path lit itself as we went, like the forest remembered his paws. And then—We broke into open space.
A clearing stretched before us, rimmed by trees that reached so high I couldn't see their tops. In the center rose a low stone mountain, worn smooth by time. Jason leapt onto it in long, sure strides. And at the very top, he stopped.
I slid off slowly and stood beside him. Then I gasped. Below us lay a whole world. Not just trees. But everything. To the east, a glowing lake shimmered under moonlight. Pale-blue lilies floated on its surface. Tiny lights danced above the water like fireflies. To the west, a sprawling flower field bloomed in every imaginable color—petals glowing faintly in the soft silver light.
There were bridges, and caverns, and small waterfalls that poured over rock without a sound. In the far distance, I saw what looked like a glowing ring of stones—like a ritual circle made of crystal.
I whispered, "Where… are we?"
Jason sat beside me, his tongue lolling like he was smiling. "Home." He looked up. "Lloyd and I were born here. Long before you or Caelum or even Alric. Before the Empire. Before even Lisa."
I turned slowly. "You were… born here?"
"In a way. Spirits don't come from mothers. We're born from purpose. From wishes. From need. This place is where the strongest of us first form."
I sat beside him on the cool stone, legs curled.
"This is where the Bonding Rituals happen. You saw the top layer during the ritual. The chamber with the runes and the stars. But this… this is below that."
I blinked. "So we're still… under the palace?"
"Yes. But time works differently here."
That's when I noticed. The moon was already out. High in the sky. Silver. Bright. But… it had only just passed lunch when I left with Jason. "How?" I asked.
Jason shrugged, wolf-style. "Time flows where it's needed. Spirits don't measure hours like you do."
I didn't understand it. But I didn't mind. The moonlight made everything glow. And I liked it. Suddenly, I heard a soft sound behind us. Paws. Large, slow, deliberate. I turned. A second wolf stepped into the clearing. His fur was silver—pure and soft, almost glowing from within. He moved with grace, each step deliberate. His eyes were amethyst. Lloyd.
He walked straight to Jason and rubbed his snout against Jason's side, slow and steady. Jason bumped him back, tail wagging lazily. They didn't speak. They didn't need to. Then Lloyd turned to me. He lowered his head until we were eye to eye. "You came far."
His voice was the same. Deep, calm, thoughtful. It didn't feel strange to hear it from a wolf's mouth.
"I followed Jason," I said.
Lloyd huffed, a sound like quiet amusement. "And he brought you here. Figures."
Jason growled softly in mock offense. Lloyd sat beside me, tail curled neatly around his paws. "Sit. Watch the stars with us."
I did. We watched as the moon rose higher. Tiny stars began to dot the sky, one by one, like paint spilled across velvet. Jason laid down, chin on his paws. Lloyd stayed upright, always composed. They didn't talk. Neither did I. But it wasn't silence. Not really. It was the kind of quiet that makes you feel included, even without words.
After a while, I whispered, "Will I get a familiar like you someday?"
Lloyd's ears twitched. "You will."
"But… I'm not like the others. Not strong. Not brave. Not royal enough."
Lloyd turned his head toward me. "You are everything you need to be."
"But—"
"There are spirits already watching you."
I blinked. "Really?"
He nodded. "Some of us are born to wait. Some are born to guide. And some… are born to follow those who shine even when they don't realize it."
I looked down at my hands. "…How do they choose?"
Jason opened one eye. "They don't choose by strength or rank. They choose by resonance."
"Like a song?"
"Exactly," Lloyd said.
"When your heart calls out," Jason added, "we hear it."
We stayed there longer than I realized. Time melted like wax. But I didn't feel tired. Just safe. Like I had stepped into a dream so big, it didn't end when I opened my eyes. Eventually, Lloyd rose and nudged Jason. "It's time."
Jason whined but got up. He crouched low beside me. "Come on, shadow," he said. "Let's take you back."
The ride back was slower. Calmer. The moonlight faded as we moved, and the glow of the trees softened. By the time we reached the edge of the forest, sunlight began pouring through the leaves again. The moss stopped glowing. The vines grew still. When we emerged near the knight's courtyard, the world was exactly where we'd left it. Warm. Golden. Mid-afternoon.
I slid off Jason's back. "Thank you," I whispered.
Jason nudged my shoulder with his snout. "Anytime."
Lloyd stepped past, tail brushing my arm. He looked back once. Then disappeared into silver light. I walked back toward the palace slowly, my head still full of stars and glowing petals. The ribbon on my wrist shimmered faintly in the light.
Somewhere, deep inside me, I could feel it. The pull. The call. Like something old and waiting, curled around my soul. Listening. And maybe—someday—Answering.