[Hyacinth]I have never bought into the idea that rogues are somehow worse than us just because they are packless. There are so many reasons a wolf may find themselves without a pack, including several that are beyond their control. Wolves like me. The only reason I was sent out in the cold was to preserve my family's honor after I “broke” a law that made no sense to begin with. A law that victimized the victim in many cases, because it didn’t get any kind of consideration for who it affected. Because they didn’t have the name of the wolf who had taken my honor, they had no way to bring us both to justice. So instead they punished me, shamed me even, rather than listen to me. Hearing Gamma McCoy apologize did little to heal my deep emotional wound. I am still so angry at all of it. But right now, I need to focus. Because the circumstances of how we met don’t matter as much as my necessity to save him. I love Slate. And even though they didn’t treat me well, I still love my pack. “

[Hyacinth]Roderick then goes on to explain that when he casts illusions of this level, it requires consent from the person at the center of the illusion to release the illusion. “It’s anchored to him in a way that makes it possible for him to keep the illusion even when I am not nearby,” he tries to explain. “To do that, because he is a wolf with such sophisticated mental abilities, and because those abilities are a key part of making this illusion work, I needed his permission. Similarly, I need his help, or at least his willingness to remove it. He has enough power, even now, to keep me out of his mind if he chooses.I look at the newest ally in our group with sheer terror. “So the success or failure of our task relies on the mood swings of a 5-year-old boy?!” My gamma places a calming hand on my back, but I’m in no mood to be calm. Shaking him off, I take a step closer to the Full Moon Wolf. He raises his hands defensively. “We can still get this to work to our advantage,” Marian

[Ashlynd]Tonight, the Grand Warlock will test the spell with the wolves on hand before we move forward with the final phase. The true sacrifices will be arriving in the morning, dozens of moon wolves cultivated for just this purpose. Mother tells me it is easier if I don't see these wolves as real people. "They're beasts," I can still hear my mother snarl. "They are beneath us. We do not mate with them." I do not care about my mother's opinion. In this case, she is completely wrong. I don't care about what she says--I plan to use some of the powers of manifestation during this spell to bring a true joining between myself and my wolf. We will have our mate. The wolf of a witch like mine isn't a traditional wolf-like those gifted to the weres. My wolf is cobbled together from bits and pieces of other wolves, carved from the souls of Moon Wolves. We don't stitch a complete soul to a witch's body anymore because a single soul can often overpower the host. But a cobbled soul like mine

[Hyacinth] The foreboding feeling wouldn’t go away. I tried praying to the Moon Goddess for guidance, but all that I could feel was the pervasive power of whatever spell enchanted this place into existence. "Do not eat anything," Cameron advised us both. "I still remember everything from when I was under her power, and one way that the spell is strengthened is through herbs added to the food. As long as everyone eats or drinks the potion, and she keeps the energy of the spell going she can keep the spell going."I nod and then turn to Bash, who still looks like Alpha Davis. "So don't eat or drink anything, Bash. Even if it's cake." He pouts. "What about ice cream?""It's evil ice cream," I speak quietly and close to his ear, "full of dark magic." His head moves up and down slowly as he contemplates whether or not I am telling the truth or just trying to keep him away from dessert. Cameron and I scan the room, looking for senior staff members that we can free from the curse discr

[Hyacinth] Slate takes another big step backward, pushing open the door to the outside. As soon as the door closes, he collapses to the ground, screaming in pain and I am helpless to make it any better. "SLATE!" I push more power into him as I struggle to tease the spell apart. He cannot speak in response. He screams over and over again, barely gasping for air. "We need to hurry," Halcyon urges, howling in pain and frustration within my mind. "You are taking too long and he is screaming too loudly. There is no way the witches won't feel this. They'll come searching when they notice he is gone." "I'm so sorry," I weep as I kneel on the cold grass next to him. I can feel the illusions that Roderick cast upon me slipping away as my focus slips and as I try to burn the toxin of this curse from Slate's system. But the spell holds on to him tightly, refusing to let go, springing back into place each time I pull a strand of its infernal sickness from his soul. Like sucking poison from