"Raymond, what is going on? Why do you look like you have seen a ghost?" Jason asked.
I…I think they do exist, I said quietly. "And I think I am one of them."
"What exists?" Jason asked.
I was too shocked to speak. I only pointed toward the stage, and he seemed to understand.
"You don't know that for a fact," he said. "You might not even be a werewolf. You could be a witch… or a wizard."
How is that helping? I snapped. Panic tightened my chest as everything that had been happening to me began to fall into place.
I'm sorry, Jason said. I don't even know where that came from. Take it easy, Ray. We will figure this out."
What do you make of this festival, I asked, "and the cursed dreams I've been having?"
"What dreams?" Jason said, frowning. That was when I realized I had never told him, neither about the dreams nor about the wolf I met in the woods.
I've been having recurring dreams, I said slowly.
They feel like a summon. I stand before a vast, empty throne marked with silver runes, and before it stands a massive white wolf, speaking to me.
The wolf commands me to remember who I am… and to remember my name. It feels like a call, like I am being summoned home.
Jason's eyes widened. "Why didn't you tell me? How long has this been happening?"
For a while, I replied. But it stopped a few days ago… after I encountered the same wolf in the woods.
"You're saying the wolf from your dreams appeared in the flesh?" he asked.
Yes.
"The same wolf?"
Yes. The same one.
"How did it happen?"
It was at sunset. I had slept after spending the day by the lake. When I woke, I turned on the light and looked out the window, and there it was. A great white wolf, standing in the distance, watching me.
This must be some play being performed on stage," Jason muttered. "Because I refuse to believe this truly happened."
It did happen, Jay. At first, I thought I was losing my mind. But when I jumped through the window to get closer, the wolf ran.
"And you chased it?" Jason asked, his voice rising.
Calm yourself. Nothing happened to me.
"I can see that, but it was reckless."
It did not harm me. If anything, it felt as though we were engaged in a strange game, chasing one another until I could run no more.
When I thought I had lost it, the wolf appeared before me without warning. It was enormous—it towered over me.
Jason stared at me as though I had spoken madness.
I felt no fear, I continued. Only familiarity. I touched its fur… and I embraced it.
"You embraced a wolf?" Jason said.
I laughed. It licked my face, like a hound greeting its master. And I did not recoil. I felt… comfort.
"Like a mother's touch," Jason said quietly.
That is not what I meant, I protested.
"But it is what you felt," he replied. "And if you are truly of the wolf, then the one you met may have been your mother."
Enough, Jason. This is not a jest.
"I am not joking. My mother once told me that when you were brought to our village, two wolves led you to your father. Among them was a white she-wolf. beautiful, commanding, the leader of the pack."
If my guess is right, you are of royal blood. Look at your hair, white as her fur. You are being called back. The empty throne in your dreams is not a symbol—it is a claim."
She came to the woods to see you. Perhaps she has watched over you all along."
His words chilled me to the bone.
You always loved solving mysteries, I said, forcing a laugh. "But this… this is too much."
"Then let us wager," Jason said. "If what I say proves true, you owe me. If it is false, I owe you."
What do you say, wolf man?"
Do not call me that, I said, though I smiled. But I accept.
"Good. Let us enjoy the night while we still can."
We joined the dancing, and for a time, the weight on my heart eased.
"I hear you are called the village monster," a soft voice said behind me. "What sin earned you such a name?"
I turned and saw her—the girl Jason had spoken of. Lena.
Her brown hair fell in waves, her hazel eyes sharp and watchful. She was beautiful, yet there was a coldness in her gaze that unsettled me.
I do not know why they call me that, I said. You may ask them yourself.
"And your name?" she asked.
Raymond.
"Then it is good to meet you, Raymond. I am Lena."
Her presence felt wrong. heavy, like a storm waiting to break.
I should return to my friend, I said. I promised we would leave together.
"It is fine," she replied, a faint smile on her lips.
"Till we meet again… wolf man."
My blood ran cold.
What did you say?
"I said, till we meet again, Raymond," she answered, her gaze unwavering.
I must have misheard, I said quickly.
She said nothing more. She simply turned and vanished into the crowd.
I tried to shake the unease from my chest and return to the music, but her words lingered like a prophecy yet to unfold.