Ellie POV


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    The halls of the Moonstone packhouse were alive with morning light and quiet motion. Warriors moved through the corridors with armfuls of reports, omegas crossed with trays of breakfast for the Alpha''s office, and somewhere down the hall, children''sughter drifted from the training yard.


    I walked slowly, the twins bnced on my hips, one drowsy, one tugging curiously at the loose strands of hair falling over my shoulder. It had been a few days since she''d told Kieran goodbye, and the air still felt thick with everything she hadn''t said.


    I hade here for ric, to talk through the logistics of the uing announcement about my identity, but my chest ached with something heavier than


    nerves.


    The dream had returned the night before: the same field of silver light, the blue-eyed wolf chasing me, the ck one stepping between us.


    I had woken with my heart pounding and Nn''s name on my lips.


    The second I thought of him, I heard the deep, calm tone of his voice nearby. It made me freeze in ce, uncertain if it was real or if I was imagining it. But this didn''t feel like another sudden vision. The world was still stark and real; there was no silvery light or soft air on my skin.


    The sound of his voice now, echoing faintly down the corridor, made me stop.


    He shouldn''t be here. Not today.


    I shifted the boys'' weight and took a cautious step forward. The hallway opened into one of the broad, sun- washed foyers that connected the upper levels of the packhouse.


    Cassian''s voice carried from near the stairwell, low and conversational, and beside him stood Nn.


    For a heartbeat, I couldn''t move. He looked almost exactly as I remembered, yet utterly different. His posture was still proud, his shoulders broad and set, but his eyes - those deep, storm-gray eyes were softer. Tired.


    He turned at the sound of my footsteps.


    For a long, breathless moment, neither of us spoke.


    Then his gaze dropped, and the world seemed to still.


    The twins.


    Nn''s breath left him in a soft exhale. He took a slow step forward, then another, until he was standing just in front of me. His hand hovered, uncertain, before he knelt - the movement startlingly reverent.


    "Hey there,” he whispered. His voice was rough, breaking a little at the edges. "You''ve gotten so big."


    My throat tightened. I hadn''t expected this, the tenderness in his voice, the way his hands trembled as though he were afraid they''d vanish if he touched them.


    Nnughed softly, a sound half-caught between wonder and grief. "You remember me?" he murmured.


    August gurgled, kicking his legs in delight, and Nn''s smile broke open, unguarded and raw.


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    Around us, a few pack members passing through the foyer slowed their steps, curiosity flickering across their faces. Cassian said something quiet to them, and they discreetly turned away, leaving the four of us in a fragile pocket of peace.


    I watched as Nn brushed a hand throughn''s hair, his thumb tracing the curve of his cheek. The tenderness in the gesture made my chest ache.


    I had dreamed of him as a wolf so much recently, ck fur, eyes fierce and familiar - throwing himself between me and danger. Now, kneeling before our sons, he looked almost the same: a creature built to protect, softened by the weight of love. He looked up at me then, and the expression in his eyes nearly broke me.


    "Ellie," he said quietly. "They''re perfect."


    I nodded, unable to speak past the lump in my throat.


    "I''ve missed so much," he said. "I know that''s my fault, but-” He stopped himself, his voice faltering. "Thank you for taking care of them."


    My vision blurred. "They''re good boys," I said, my tone trembling. "You''d be proud of them."


    "I already am."


    The words came out so softly I almost didn''t hear them.


    Maybe it was because of the conversation with Kieran the night before, but Nn''s words hit me like a truck. The gentle acknowledgement of the work it take to care for the boys and the assurance that he epted them as they are was almost too much for me to process.


    Cassian, still standing nearby, cleared his throat gently. "I''ll give you two a moment," he said, his voice careful, and slipped away down the hall.


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