Nora's POV
The Archive felt too big.
Too old.
Too alive.
Rows of towering shelves stretched into the dim glow, each humming with drifting threads of arcane mist. The air vibrated with something ancient—waiting.
Lila stood beside me, clutching her empty coffee mug like a talisman. Her eyes were wide, but she stayed close.
Thorne moved to the center of the room, his coat whispering around him. In the shifting lamplight, he looked exactly his age—Centuries old.Heavier than truth.Sharper than grief.
"We'll start with the night everything changed," he said quietly.
My chest tightened.
Lila's hand brushed mine. Not grabbing—just a silent I'm here.
Thorne faced me first.
Velkan Blake
"Nora… your father was Velkan Blake," Thorne said. "Alpha of Wolf Creek. Wolf-born of two alphas. A powerful man. A devoted mate. And he loved you more fiercely than anything in this world."
My throat tightened.
"He had a human form," Thorne continued, "but he was born wolf-first. His instincts and strength ran deeper than most."
Something pulsed under my skin—an echo of something that belonged to him.
My wolf.Sleeping.Listening.
The Night They Died
Thorne's voice shifted—soft, but edged with sorrow.
"The creature reached Velkan first. Hours before it found your mother and Lila's parents."
Lila's breath hitched.
"Wait… same night?" she whispered.
"Yes," Thorne said. "You were both seven."
The room tilted.
He continued:
"Your mother, Evelyn Blake, had no magic. But the mate-bond to Velkan gave her strength far beyond any human. She held on long after she should have fallen. She refused to move from in front of you."
My eyes burned.
"She shielded both of you with her body," Thorne murmured. "She fought with nothing but courage and love."
Lila trembled beside me.
"And then," Thorne continued softly, "your parents, Lila… came."
Briar Corvus-Morwyn & Julian Morwyn
"Your mother, Briar… was Morwyn, yes—but also of the Corvus bloodline. A rare and powerful lineage. Shadow-born witches. Seers. Guardians."
Lila's voice cracked: "My mom was… a Corvus?"
"Yes," Thorne said. "And your father, Julian Morwyn—gifted, disciplined, fierce."
Lila covered her shaking mouth.
"They joined Evelyn," Thorne said. "Briar's Corvus magic. Julian's Morwyn binding. Together, they held the creature long enough for me to arrive."
His jaw tightened.
"But it had already mortally wounded them."
My heart split.
Thorne lowered his head.
"Velkan was already gone. Hours before. The creature struck him first."
I felt Lila's fingers clutch mine tighter.
"When I arrived," Thorne said, voice roughening, "the three of them—Briar, Julian, and Evelyn—formed a last stand. Together with my magic, we forced the creature back. Banished it. But the spell drained them to their final breath."
Silence pressed heavy as stone.
"They died protecting you both," Thorne finished softly. "And their sacrifice held."
The Spell
"You hid all this from us," I whispered.
"Yes. I sealed your memories," Thorne said. "To protect you from the trauma—and to keep the creature from sensing you through fear or magic."
Lila shuddered. "But it's gone… right?"
"Yes," Thorne said firmly. "Banished from this realm. It does not know you are alive."
Some tension left her shoulders. Some—but not all.
Nora's Wolf
Thorne turned to me.
"No one ever sensed a wolf in you," he said. "Because she was asleep."
A soft pressure shifted in my chest—a pulse I recognized.
"Your mother's death, your father's loss, and the sealing of your memories pushed your wolf into slumber. But now… now that you are here…" He paused. "She is waking."
My heartbeat hammered.
Lila stared. "Nora… you're actually—"
"I guess so," I whispered.
Lila's Magic
Thorne faced Lila next.
"And you. Your power has been stirring since you stepped onto these lands. The Morwyn and Corvus bloodlines run deep in you."
Lila blinked. "But I've never done magic."
"You will," Thorne said. "When it awakens… there will be no doubt."
Lila groaned softly. "Fabulous. Love that for me."
Why Foster Care
"But why foster care?" I asked. "Why not the pack?"
Thorne exhaled.
"You had no parents. The pack was in chaos. Velkan entrusted leadership to his closest friend—the father of the current Alpha. A good man. Loyal. But he feared the creature might return for you."
He folded his hands behind his back.
"So I found two related couples—your bloodlines—who could keep you safe together. They loved you. That is why I chose them."
Lila nodded slowly, eyes damp.
Why He Stayed Hidden
"And why didn't we know you existed?" she whispered.
"Because you needed to stay hidden," Thorne said. "From enemies. From your power. From the truth—until you were ready."
He studied us—quiet, almost fatherly.
"And at twenty-four… you are ready."
The lights flickered—magic rolling like a breath through the room.
The Room of Keeping
Thorne led us into a circular chamber. Lanterns flickered over a stone pedestal carved with old runes.
He lifted his hand.
The lid slid open on its own.
Inside lay:
A cracked silver wolf pendant
A Morwyn-Corvus ring, glowing faintly
A folded parchment tied with red thread
My breath caught.
"The pendant was your mother's," Thorne said gently.
Lila touched the ring—its glow flaring warmly.
"It recognizes your blood," Thorne murmured.
Lila swayed.
My gaze dropped to the parchment.
"What's that?"
"A warning," Thorne said. "And a promise. Written moments before the attack."
Lila stepped back quickly. "I'm not touching that until my soul is steadier."
But I stepped forward.
"I need to know."
Thorne placed it in my hands.
The runes brightened.
My wolf surged like a spark igniting.
Heat shot down my spine.
"Nora?" Lila whispered. "Are you okay?"
Thorne watched me sharply.
"Her wolf recognizes the memory."
My heart pounded.
Images flickered—moonlight a scream someone yelling Run. blood on stone—
Then—
A pulse.
Not mine.
Not the Manor's.
Older.
Deeper.
Thorne stiffened.
The lanterns dimmed.
"What was that?" Lila whispered.
"The memory ward…" Thorne said quietly. "It is beginning to crack."
My breath hitched. "Our memories?"
"And more," Thorne said grimly. "Your bond. Your bloodlines. Everything your parents died to protect."
The Archive fell silent.
Then the parchment in my hands gave one slow, ominous throb—like a heartbeat.
INTERLUDE: LILA
You ever feel the world tilt?
Like someone took the floor and pulled it six inches to the left?
Yeah.
That's how it felt when Thorne said:
"Julian Morwyn and Briar Corvus."
My parents.
My real parents.
Alive in stories for exactly three seconds before he told me they died saving me.
I wanted to scream.Cry.Run.Laugh.Throw up.All at once.
But instead I stood here, holding a glowing ring that suddenly felt too warm, too alive.
Morwyn.Corvus.
Two names I'd never heard.Two bloodlines I was apparently born from.
I looked at Nora.
Her eyes were shining, glowing almost—and something inside her was waking.
A wolf.
My best friend had a wolf inside her.A sleeping wolf that was now stretching, yawning, coming to life.
Meanwhile…
My magic?
Oh yeah.
Apparently that was a thing too.
I'm twenty-four.I'm a nursing student.I work part-time as a barista at the college coffee shop.I burn popcorn.I have a plant I've killed three times.
And now I'm a witch.
A witch with a dead family I never knew.A family that died saving both of us.
My hands shook.
I curled my fingers around Nora's sleeve because if she didn't hold me,I might disappear.
And when Thorne led us into the Room of Keeping—and when that parchment pulsed like a heartbeat—
I swear something inside me whispered back.
Something old.Something mine.
I didn't ask for any of this.
But it's here.
And whatever comes next?
Me and Nora will face it together.
Even if the truth rips the world open.