Elara’s POV

Morning light filtered through the gauze curtains of the medical wing, soft and golden, painting everything in gentle warmth. My daughter was asleep against my chest. Her breathing came in tiny, rhythmic puffs. Each one a small miracle I couldn’t stop counting.

I traced the curve of her ear with my fingertip. So delicate. Like something carved from porcelain. Her dark lashes fanned against cheeks still flushed pink from sleep. A dusting of fine, dark hair—ebony, like her father’s—capped her perfect little head.

Mine, I thought. You’re mine, and you’re here, and nothing will ever hurt you.

The door burst open.

"MOMMY!"

Valerius rocketed into the room at full speed, dark curls bouncing, golden eyes blazing with excitement. He skidded to a halt beside the bed, bouncing on his toes, vibrating with barely contained energy.

"Easy," I whispered. "She’s sleeping."

He froze. Peered over the edge of the blanket. His mouth formed a perfect O.

"She’s so tiny," he breathed. Reverent. Like he’d discovered something holy. "Look at her fingers, Mommy. They’re like little worms."

I bit back a laugh. "They’re fingers, sweetheart."

"Tiny worm fingers." He reached out, hesitated, then very gently touched Lyra’s hand with one fingertip. She stirred. Her rosebud mouth puckered. Valerius yanked his hand back. "Did I break her?"

"No, baby. She’s fine. She’s just dreaming."

"About what?"

"I don’t know. Warm things, probably. Milk and heartbeats."

He considered this with tremendous seriousness. Then he looked up at me, those dark gold eyes shining. "I think her name should be Lyra."

"Lyra?"

"Like the stars. Uncle Cassian showed me the constellation last night. He said Lyra means music. And she made a sound when I touched her. Like a little song." He paused. Frowned. "A grumpy song. But still a song."

The door opened again. Kaelen stepped in carrying two cups of coffee and a stack of papers tucked under his arm. He looked like he hadn’t slept. Shadows bruised the skin beneath his eyes. But when he saw Valerius leaning over the baby, something cracked open in his expression. Something raw and tender that he couldn’t hide.

"Lyra," Valerius announced, straightening up importantly. "That’s her name, Daddy. I decided."

Kaelen set the coffee on the side table. Looked at me. I shrugged one shoulder, careful not to jostle the sleeping infant.

"Lyra Nightfire," Kaelen said slowly. Testing the weight of it. Then he smiled—one of those rare, unguarded smiles that transformed his entire face. "It’s perfect, son."

Valerius beamed.

Kaelen settled into the chair beside me, his hand finding my knee beneath the blanket. Warm. Steady. He leaned over and pressed his lips to my forehead.

"Discharge papers," he murmured against my skin, nodding toward the stack. "Morgan says we can leave later today."

For a moment—just a moment—everything was whole. The four of us in this small, sunlit room. Lyra sleeping. Valerius chattering about constellations. Kaelen’s hand on my knee, solid and warm and there.

Then Valerius climbed onto the edge of the bed. Wriggled closer. Pressed his face against my arm and inhaled deeply.

He pulled back. Frowned.

"Mommy?"

"Hmm?"

"You smell different."

The warmth drained from the room.

"What do you mean, sweetheart?" I kept my voice light. Casual. As if my chest hadn’t just caved in.

"Before, you always smelled like..." He scrunched his nose, searching for words. "Like the warm fireplace. And winter roses. Like warm things. Safe things." His golden eyes—so much like his father’s—looked up at me with innocent confusion. "Now you smell like... nothing special. Just regular. Like the people at the market."

"It feels empty," he added quietly. Not accusing. Not cruel. Just honest, the way only a child could be. "Where did your warm smell go, Mommy?"

Kaelen’s hand tightened on my knee. "Val, why don’t you go find Uncle Cassian? He mentioned something about sword practice."

"But—"

"Now, please."

Valerius looked between us. Something shifted in his expression—that uncanny perceptiveness that made him seem so much older than he was. He slid off the bed without another word and padded toward the door. Paused. Looked back.

"I still love how you smell, Mommy," he said softly. "Even if it’s different."

Then he was gone.

Silence.

Kaelen’s thumb traced circles on my knee. "Ela—"

"Don’t." The word came out sharper than I intended. I stared at the wall. "Just... don’t."

He was quiet. Waiting.

I wanted to explain. Wanted to tell him that our son had just confirmed the thing I’d been trying not to think about for months. That the wolf inside me—Moonlight, my other half, the supernatural essence that had defined what I was—was truly gone. Not sleeping. Not suppressed. Gone. And every creature with a functioning nose could tell.

I smelled like nothing. Like a mortal. Like someone who didn’t belong.

Lyra stirred against my chest, and I held her tighter. Pressed my lips to her downy head.

You were worth it, I told myself fiercely. She was worth everything.

But the hollow space where Moonlight used to live ached like a missing limb.

---

A few days later, Brenna dragged me out of the house.

"No," I said, again, as she physically steered me down the cobblestone street toward the market district. Lyra was bundled in a carrier against my chest, sleeping through the chaos with stubborn determination.

"Yes," Brenna insisted, her grip on my elbow unyielding. "You need real clothes for this baby. Practical ones. Cotton. Wool. Things with buttons."

"Kaelen already ordered—"

"Kaelen ordered a stack of miniature court gowns embroidered with the imperial crest. Your newborn daughter does not need silk brocade, Ela. She needs practical cotton shirts."

I almost smiled. Almost.

The baby supply shop was cramped and bustling. Shelves crammed with cloth diapers, woolen blankets, tiny knitted socks in every color. The smell of fresh cotton and cedar filled the air. Mothers browsed the aisles, some with infants strapped to their chests, others corralling toddlers away from breakable displays.

Brenna moved through the store with military efficiency, loading my arms with practical items. Soft linen shifts. A set of muslin swaddles. Wool booties lined with fleece.

"These," she said, holding up a pack of plain white garments. "A whole stack of them. Because babies are messy and you’ll go through a lot before the morning is over."

I took them. "You’re very bossy today."

"I’m bossy every day. You just haven’t been outside long enough to remember."

We made our way to the counter. The shop was busy enough that a small line had formed. I shifted Lyra against my chest, adjusting the carrier. She made a soft sound—not quite a cry, more like a protest—and settled again.

The girl behind the counter was young, in her late teens. Her hair was an unfortunate shade of bleached yellow with dark roots creeping through, and her face was caked in thick, cheap cosmetics—heavy foundation that didn’t match her neck, smudged liner, aggressively overdrawn lips. She wore her shop apron with visible disdain, as though the uniform personally offended her.

She processed the customer ahead of us without looking up. When we reached the counter, Brenna set our items down.

The girl—another clerk had just called her Brittany—finally glanced up.

Her nostrils flared.

I saw it happen. The automatic, involuntary scenting that every wolfblood did when they encountered someone new. The brief inhale. The classification.

Brittany’s eyes swept over me. Lingered. Then her lip curled.

"Coin or barter?" she asked, her voice dripping with something that wasn’t quite hostility. Not yet. Just the sharp edge of contempt, barely concealed.

"Coin," Brenna said, pulling out a pouch of silver.

Brittany scanned the items with deliberate slowness. She picked up each piece between two fingers, as though they might contaminate her. Her gaze kept sliding back to me. To the carrier. To the baby.

"These are wolfblood-grade swaddles," she said flatly. "You sure you need these?"

Brenna’s eyes narrowed. "That’s what we picked. Is there a problem?"

"No problem." Brittany shrugged. She leaned forward slightly, raising her voice loudly to make sure everyone in the shop heard. "Just seems like a waste, is all. For someone who doesn’t even have a scent."

The words landed like a slap.

Two women in the line behind us exchanged glances. One of them whispered something to the other. I felt their eyes on me. Measuring. Judging. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

"Excuse me?" Brenna’s voice went dangerously quiet.

Brittany straightened. She seemed emboldened by the audience. Her eyes locked onto mine with a cruelty that looked rehearsed—the kind of meanness that came from someone who had spent her whole life looking for people she was permitted to look down on.

"I said what I said." She tossed a bundled linen shirt into the bag with careless force. "No scent. No aura. No power. Walking around town with a wolfblood baby like you actually belong here." She snorted. "You’re just a desperate mortal slut, if you ask me. And that baby is destined to suffer mental issues and physical deformities."

My face burned. My hands trembled where they cradled Lyra.

Brenna slammed her palm on the counter. "You shut your mouth right now—"

But Brittany wasn’t finished. She leaned over the counter, craning her neck to peer at the carrier. At Lyra’s sleeping face. At her delicate features. Something ugly and satisfied twisted her painted mouth.

"Your daughter?" Brittany laughed cruelly. "Honey, that in there is no wolf pup. That’s a mistake. A dirty little half-breed freak who’ll never fit in anywhere."