— Moon, you should have told us this earlier… What are we going to do now? — Ace said in a hurried and worried voice.

— Us? — Gunner was confused. — Why am I included? That’s not my problem…

— Hey, he was after you too, in case you forgot… — Griffin laughed as he hugged his companion and rested his head on the boy’s shoulder, ignoring everyone else’s shocked expressions. — Ace is right. What are we going to do?

— Ada and Hux are meeting with Josiah. — Moon replied as she poured herself a glass of water. — My uncle, Barlow, and Casey went after Tyr in the Redlands.

— Redlands? — Gray asks. — There’s nothing there but dust…

— There were lupirrens there. It was an ambush… They were injured but they brought one of them. They will try to get something out of him…

— The war that Caelan declared against the South has only just begun… — Griffin commented. — Some towns north of Berkshire have already been destroyed… It’s only a matter of time before he ends Berkshire…

— A war? That’s tough… — Ace rubbed his palms over his face, pacing back and forth.

— And what will we do? — Griffin looked at his brothers. — The choice is yours, Moon.

— I think it’s time to go back… — Moon grimaced, irritated. — It wasn’t what I had planned… But I got my powers back… I can’t guarantee that I won’t lose control… So… Ace, I’m counting on you.

— And not us? — Griffin points to himself and his brother. — We are strong dynamis.

— You can’t hold back a vanik’s magic. I can. — Ace says. — Moon, you need to help your brother with his powers… Even though he’s not the same as you, he’s still a vanik.

— And that doesn’t make much sense to me…

Gunner looked at them confused.

— Why doesn’t it make sense for us to be in the same class?

— Because… We’ll talk about this later. — Moon patted his shoulder. — Griffin, take him to Evanora. She’ll help you like she helped me…

— And then? — Griffin asked.

— We need to decide when we will leave Mendraria. — Moon replied.

Gunner grabbed Griffin’s arm, catching everyone’s attention.

— Ace can go with me… You need to tell him about what happened earlier… About Arthur… and Archie…

Griffin nodded. He stood silently, watching Ace lead his companion away, equally confused.

He looked at Gray, the calm brother standing beside Moon.

As he opened his mouth, ready to tell what had happened earlier, suddenly, they could hear Hux shouting Moon’s name from outside, and soon the door was brutally opened, while he, covered in sweat, desperately shook the young witch.

— She’s gone… Ada’s gone… I can’t find her… Someone took her from me, Moon… Someone took her from me…

Hux kept repeating the same words, frantically, and both Griffin and Gray didn't know exactly what to do. They couldn’t calm their friend down or get any answers to their questions.

When? Where? How?

Moon was quiet, focused, looking out at the forest beyond through her wide-open door. She heard something. Something they had missed due to their panic and confusion.

— Shh! — Moon suddenly stops the voices as she covers Hux's mouth. — Did you hear that? — she asks in a whisper.

She continued to look, trying to make out the sound she had heard. But there was nothing but the ticking of the clock.

— I think you're paranoid… We're all getting paranoid… — Griffin laughed. — We should calm down and think of a plan. Quickly.

As if everyone's nervousness wasn't enough, a dog ran into the house, scaring everyone.

— For the love of the Goddess, Bilbo, are you trying to give us a heart attack? — Gray knelt, hugging and playing with the dog, who licked him happily. — I'll get you some cookies, how about it, big guy?

— Was that the noise you heard? — Gray asked, approaching her and watching the big, fluffy Siberian husky run around her legs.

—How did you hear him? — Griffin asked, still not understanding.

— Vaniks are known for their heightened senses. Did you forget she is one? — Hux answers. — Moon… I need to find Ada, you need to help me…

—That's not what I heard… — Moon tilts her head, confused.

Moon had always hated having her back to the door, but if what she heard wasn't outside, then it was inside. And that could be dangerous.

She turned around, close the door, and began to observe the environment more carefully until she felt something pass close to her face, very close, buzzing in her ears.

Her gaze immediately falls on Hux and she sees a red dot in the middle of his chest.

The dot has become a large stain, and Hux falls.

•

— He’ll be fine… — Josiah patted Moon on the shoulder. — The doctor just said he’s out of danger.

Moon just nodded absently, staring at the door in front of her, with the numbers one-zero-three carved into it. On a plastic compartment were Huxley's name and some information about him. No visitors were allowed yet. Since Huxley had no relatives, especially in Mendraria, Moon, although younger, immediately set herself up as his guardian. Away from Berkshire, Hux was the brotherly figure she so desperately needed, and so this was her way of giving back.

Not far from her, Gunner was fast asleep on Griffin's shoulder while he himself was fast asleep with his head lolling to the left, resting on Nora's shoulder, in an obviously uncomfortable position.

Gray was discussing something with Ace, Gus, and Josiah, away from her.

Moon stared at her own hands, stained with dried blood.

Everything happened so fast that she didn't even bother to put on her shoes, as she was used to going barefoot inside the cabin. Her jeans, as well as her blouse, were stained with blood, reminding her of every detail of that horrible scene.

Hux fell as the bullet wound continued to bleed, and the deafening silence in the cabin alarmed her. Following her instinct, Moon hurriedly shouted for Gray to close the curtains and lock the door while she applied pressure to the wound. Griffin immediately picked up his phone and called Josiah, summarizing in a few seconds what had just happened.

No matter how strong your wolf is, or you yourself, a bullet near your heart when you are in human form can be fatal.

Moon was sure they weren't alone in the hospital, as she could see dozens of people around, but not a single word was heard; she was so absorbed in what had just happened that she didn't notice Noira's weak attempt to speak.

The whispers she heard were not from living people, and Evanora listened intently.

Moon continued to stare at her hands, not realizing that she was slowly entering a deeper and deeper state of shock.

But then, when her eyes focused back on her feet, there were hands covering her feet and soon, those same hands held hers and, with a white cloth, began to wipe away the blood.

She knew those hands.

— You did well… If it weren’t for you, he would probably be dead by now.

Her hands were clean now, but the feeling inside her was turning her stomach upside down, and she felt her eyes start to burn. Moon grabbed his shirt and buried her face in the crook of his neck, trying her best to breathe slowly and not cry.

Not in front of him. Again.

But his scent, their connection, and probably the exhaustion she was feeling were enough for her to let things go, and she cried silently.

— I don't think they'll wake up any time soon, but… Do you want me to take you home? — Gray asked almost in a whisper.

— I'm not going back there… I'm not going-

— Not there, I promise. We could… We could go to the Mellow Mapple Inn. Martha would be happy to give us her best room… — he replied, still on his knees.

Moon nodded weakly, and as she stood up, she soon fell down, feeling exhausted.

— Great… Even my legs can't work properly now… — she murmured, covering her face with her hands while resting her head with her elbows on her knees, taking a deep breath.

— Come on… — Gray said, sliding his hand under her thighs and pulling her up as he stood up. — But don’t get used to it… — he laughed.

Although surprised, Moon was too tired to protest and let herself go, not caring about the looks people were giving them. She closed her eyes and settled into his shoulders.

The warmth was cozy. Gray was like home. Her home.