Third Person's POV Rain veiled the mountains like a mourning shroud. "Do you think," Celestine murmured, her lips curving, "that I stole your home?" Her voice was smooth, silken, the kind that hid barbs. "But it was mine all along. I simply reclaimed what should have been mine by birthright." Aysel's wolf stirred beneath her skin, silver eyes flickering with light. "What do you mean?" she asked quietly, though the growl beneath her words betrayed her restraint. Celestine did not answer at once. Instead, she looked toward the road where the Moonvale brothers-Fenrir and Lykos-were climbing the slope to meet them, rain pouring off their shoulders like molten steel. "Same blood," Celestine continued softly. "But our mothers' fates were worlds apart. And that difference will only grow wider with time." Her lips curved, serene and cruel. "You're lucky, Aysel. Even at the end, Grandmother still favored you." Her gaze sharpened, voice dropping into a whisper laced with venom. "Do you know what her last words were before she died?" Aysel's heart thudded once. The air tightened. Celestine smiled through the rain, baring her teeth. "She said-‘Save me.'" The words landed like a strike. Aysel's vision flared red. In the downpour's roar, her control snapped. She lunged, claws flashing pale through the rain, fingers closing around Celestine's throat. "You killed her," she hissed. Celestine choked for air, yet laughter bubbled between her gasps. "Killed her? No, Aysel. I merely didn't save her. Why should I have? She shielded you, not me. Always you." Her lips trembled into a snarl. "It's your fault she died. If you hadn't clung to her, depended on her, she wouldn't have burned herself out protecting you!" Aysel's eyes burned silver, the mark of her bloodline flaring along her wrists. "She loved you too. When our parents returned to Moonvale, it was Grandmother who stood between us and that monster, Carden Voss. You were never the unloved one-" Celestine spat a bitter laugh. "That's your delusion. From the day I changed my name, I swore the world would never treat you and me differently again." Her breath came in ragged bursts. Aysel's grip tightened, rain mixing with tears on both their faces. Then-"Aysel!" Lykos's shout cut through the storm. In an instant, he shoved his real sister back. Aysel's body struck the marble edge of Yuna Ward's grave. Pain splintered through her spine, but she didn't cry out. Fenrir caught Celestine as she sagged, cradling her limp form. Without a glance toward Aysel, he gathered her into his arms and strode down the slope toward the waiting cars. Lykos hesitated at the ridge, torn between bloodlines. The rain lashed harder, stinging his eyes. After a breath, he turned-shielding Fenrir and Celestine with his umbrella as they disappeared into the downpour, his own back soaked through. From Fenrir's arms, a flicker of motion-Celestine looked over Fenrir's shoulder. Through the veil of rain, she saw Aysel standing alone among the graves, drenched and shaking, her hair matted to her skin like a forgotten ghost of the Vale line.For one strange moment, Celestine felt as though the world had inverted-she, the once-shadowed girl, was now the chosen one. Mother, you'd be proud, she thought faintly, and smiled without sound. Below, at the gates of Moonvale. Luna Evelyn hurried forward as Fenrir and Lykos approached, Celestine limp in Fenrir's arms. "Where's Aysel?" she demanded. Fenrir's voice was ice. "Leave her. She needs to reflect." Luna hesitated. But Celestine's soft groan pulled her attention-pain, faint but deliberate. She steeled herself. "Then let's go. To the healer." Alpha Remus lingered last. His gaze lifted up the slope where a lone figure stood against the rain, small and unmoving before Yuna's tomb. His jaw clenched, but he said nothing. "Let's go," he muttered finally. The Moonvale cars sped away through the storm. The world fell silent, save for the pounding rain and one heartbeat-Aysel's. She stood before the tombstone, staring at her grandmother's serene smile etched in stone. The rain stung her skin, cold as judgment. "Is this my punishment?" she whispered hoarsely. "But Grandmother... you were theirs too. Why?" Her voice broke. "If I give you my life, will it make it right?" Her body shivered violently, heat and chill warring beneath her skin. Her wolf keened somewhere deep within, lost, unanchored-adrift like a leaf on dark water. She swayed, vision swimming, and at last her knees buckled. Before she could fall, a shadow moved-a large black umbrella unfolding above her, a strong arm catching her as she collapsed. The scent hit her first: smoke, storm, and Alpha dominance. "Easy," his voice murmured, deep and steady as thunder. "Aysel Vale. You're safe. You're coming home." Rain slicked the sharp lines of his face, softening the usual edge of his power. In the reflection of his silver eyes, the moon burned like fire through the storm clouds. Aysel's lashes fluttered once before she went still, surrendering to the warmth of his hold.