<h4>Chapter 1237: Chapter 1237</h4>
"Changed," Lucy said softly, not looking up.
"Yes."
Rose sat up slowly, arms wrapping around her knees. "It showed me what I could be. What I was afraid I already was."
"It showed us all that," Sophie murmured.
"But we came back," Susan added, her voice steadier than most. "And that means something."
"It means the ind trusts us more now," Natalie said.
"Or it’s giving us more responsibility," Emma whispered.
Zoey looked up. "What if it’s both?"
They fell quiet again, the fire cracking like punctuation in the stillness. Then, Jude stood.
"I want to walk," he said. "Alone."
No one stopped him.
He stepped into the trees, the familiar moss beneath his feet whispering under his weight. The night was warm, humid, the scent of blooming flowers thick in the air. He didn’t know where he was going. But the ind had a way of guiding when it wanted to. And tonight, he let it.
After some time, he came upon the river.
It looked different under moonlight - quieter, more solemn. The water barely moved, as though it, too, was deep in thought. Jude knelt beside it and dipped his hand into the current. It was cooler than usual. Crisp.
Then he saw her.
Rose.
Across the river, standing ankle-deep in the water, her red hair wet and clinging to her shoulders. She was facing away from him, hands raised just slightly as if in prayer.
"Rose?" he called softly.
She didn’t turn around.
He stood and crossed the river slowly. The current barely resisted him, but the moment he stepped to the other side, something shifted. The air felt denser. The light dimmed.
Rose turned.
She was smiling.
But not with her usual spark.
It was that smile again.
The one from before.
Eerily calm.
Eyes wide.
Unblinking.
Jude froze.
"Rose," he said carefully, "what are you doing?"
"I saw something," she whispered. "In the me. In the tree. In myself."
He stepped forward. "We all saw things."
"I saw the future," she said, tilting her head. "I saw the others. I saw what we be. And it’s beautiful, Jude."
He didn’t like the way she said it.
"What do you mean?"
"We stop pretending we’re scared," she continued. "We stop fighting what we are. This ind... it’s not just watching us anymore. It’s bing us. Do you feel it?"
He nodded slowly. "But that doesn’t mean - "
"We have to embrace it," she interrupted. "Let it take us in. Fully. No more fear. No more resisting the changes."
Her fingers trailed along the surface of the water, and where they touched, the river glowed faintly purple.
Jude stepped closer. "And what does that mean for us? For the others?"
Her smile softened, just a little. "It means I’ll help them see. Like I saw. Like La did. Like Zoey will."
Jude’s heart dropped.
"You’re... changing them?"
She stepped out of the water,pletely nude, glistening in the moonlight, her body more radiant than ever before - but wrong. Something was off. Not visibly. Not even emotionally. Just... beneath the skin. An echo.
"I’m waking them," she said.
He reached for her arm gently. "Rose. You don’t have to do this."
She leaned into him, pressing her body against his, lips brushing his ear. "You don’t understand, Jude. I already have."
And then she kissed him.
It was passionate.
Desperate.
Wild.
But underneath it, something burned.
A pulse.
A pull.
Like the ind itself was moving through her lips.
He broke the kiss, panting, stepping back.
She smiled again.
Then walked past him into the forest.
Gone.
When Jude returned to the sanctuary, it was almost dawn. He walked in slow, eyes scanning the group. Most were still sleeping, except Sophie and Lucy, who sat near the now-dying fire.
They both looked up at him.
He didn’t speak.
Just nodded once.
And Lucy’s eyes filled with understanding - and dread.
"She’s further than we thought," Lucy whispered.
Sophie swallowed hard. "What do we do?"
Jude stared into the mes.
And said, "We start watching. All of them."
As the sun began to rise, golden light washing over the clearing, one figure stirred a little too early.
La.
She sat up, slowly, her hair tangled, lips parted.
And she was smiling.
La’s smile lingered as she sat upright, the firelight dancing across her face and catching in her eyes like something hidden beneath ss. She stretchednguidly, like a cat basking in warmth, her movements fluid, unhurried. The others were beginning to stir, but Jude couldn’t take his eyes off her. There was something strange in the way she moved - still La, still beautiful and confident, but there was a rhythm now. Like she was moving to a tune only she could hear.
Sophie nced at Jude. She had seen it too.
La ran her fingers through her hair, eyes half-lidded as she looked around the group. She caught Zoey’s gaze and held it just a second too long. Then she smiled again. This one more yful. More... inviting.
"Morning," La purred, rising to her feet and walking barefoot toward the stream where they often washed.
Zoey stood as well, slowly. "I’lle with you."
Jude moved as if to follow, but Lucy caught his wrist gently, shaking her head. "Let them go. We can’t stop it. Not yet."
He clenched his jaw but stayed still.
The rest of the group began waking. Natalie rubbed her eyes beside Emma, both of them unaware of the subtle shift in the air. Susan was whispering something to Grace, and Ste sleepily reached for Sophie’s shoulder, murmuring a good morning.
But Jude’s eyes remained locked on the trees where La and Zoey had disappeared.
At the stream, La knelt by the water, her reflection shimmering in ripples. Zoey stood behind her, arms crossed, watching her cautiously.
"You’re different," Zoey said quietly.
La nced over her shoulder, smiling again. "So are you."
"I haven’t changed."
"You will," La replied, dipping her hand into the water. "It’s not a bad thing, you know. It’s just... rity."