Tangled in Moonlight: Unshifted

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248 Ava: Fever Dreams

“How would he know?”

Vanessa shrugs. “They’ve been around for a long time. I guess the Fae go into heat, too.”

Flopping onto my back, I groan at her words. “Fae aren’t shifters”

“From what he says, the biological heat is the same, and the suppressants will work. All we can do is try. She checks my temperature, clicking her tongue. “It’s down, but you still have a fever.” With all the sweat trickling down just about every part of my body, I’m surprised. I thought the fever already broke. “When will Magister Orion be back?”

“Soon, I hope.”

“So am I sick, or just going into heat?” I squint at Vanessa, the dim light of the room enough to burn my eyes. “Because let me tell you, if I’m going to be miserable every time, I think I might just want my uterus taken out.”

She laughs softly. “You might be sick. Magister Orion thinks it might be from your increase in power. Something about backlash overwhelming the body.”

Selene mentioned that I go into heat in order to gain power, or something like that before. I still don’t know the exact details, but it makes sense, I suppose.

“How long do I have before I go into heat?” No matter how hard I try to think back, I can’t remember how long it was between meeting Selene and wearing the necklace.

She sighs. “I have no idea. You’re an unusual case in every possible way. The sooner we get the suppressants, the better it will be. For it to be already affecting Marcus when you have no other

signs of heat is almost unheard of.”

This blasted heat is the stupidest thing I’ve ever had to endure.

“Do me a favor and knock me unconscious if you can’t suppress it. I don’t want to repeat past

mistakes.

Leaning forward, Vanessa flicks my forehead. “Don’t borrow trouble before it comes, Ava. Get

some rest.”

Twigs snap beneath my feet as I trudge through a barren forest. Snow glistens, but isn’t cold against my bare feet. Despite being the dead of winter, the temperature is comfortable. A dream. It has to be a dream, because I’m asleep in the Fae Ward.

The moon casts an eerie glow, turning skeletal trees into ominous shadows against the sky.

I’ve never seen a forest so lifeless. Even in the depths of winter, there should be evergreens. But here, there’s nothing. No pines, no firs, not even the hardy juniper bushes that cling to life in the

harshest climates.

A chill runs down my spine, but it’s not from fear. This place, for all its desolation, doesn’t feel

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248 Ava Fever Dreams

threatening. It’s more like walking through a graveyard–solemn and empty.

The silence is absolute, broken only by the crunch of my footsteps and the whisper of my breathing.

I keep moving, drawn forward by some inexplicable pull. The moonlight plays tricks on my eyes, casting shadows that seem to move and dance at the edge of my vision. But when I turn to look, nothing’s there.

Just more bare trees and frozen earth.

The path I’m following winds through the forest, leading me deeper into its heart. I lose track of time, my mind drifting as I walk.

Hours must have passed, but my muscles don’t ache.

Just as I’m starting to wonder if this forest goes on forever, I see a break in the endless sea of lifeless trees.

My pace quickens.

I step into a and my I

catches in my throat.

In the center, defying all logic and reason, is a single flower.

It’s unlike anything I’ve ever seen. The petals are gorgeous in color–deep purples fading to brilliant blues, edged with a shimmer of gold. It seems to glow from within, the only beacon of life in this dead world.

The flower sways gently, though there’s no breeze I can feel.

My heart aches at the sight. After the monotony of the forest, this burst of color and life is almost painful, a reminder of what’s missing in this place.

I’m drawn to it, my feet moving of their own accord.

The stem is a vibrant green, so bright it almost hurts to look at. Tiny droplets of dew cling to the petals, catching the moonlight and scattering it in prismatic bursts.

It has to be magic. Nothing like this exists in our world.

Or maybe it’s some fantastical Fae flora.

I reach out, wanting to touch it, driven by a need deep within that urges me closer.

“Ava.”

Silence is shattered. I’d know that voice anywhere.

Whirling around, my eyes scan the treeline. “Lucas?”

But there’s nothing. No movement, no sign of life. Just trees upon trees.

I turn in a slow circle, searching for any hint of movement. “Lucas?” I call again, louder this time. My voice echoes through the clearing, bouncing off the trees and coming back to me, distorted. and strange.

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248 Ava: Fever Dreams

I was so sure I heard him. The voice was so clear, so real. There’s no way that was my

imagination.

My gaze is drawn back to the flower. It seems even brighter now, its colors more vivid. The petals sway gently, as if beckoning me closer.

A gust of wind sweeps through the clearing, rustling branches and sending a shower of dead leaves skittering across the ground. I shiver, wrapping my arms around myself.

For the first time in this place, I’m cold. It’s worse than being in the snow without shoes or other appropriate clothing. It’s a bone–deep freeze, where heat no longer exists.

The wind dies down as quickly as it came, leaving the forest in eerie stillness once more. I turn back to the flower, half–expecting it to have vanished.

But it’s still there, vibrant and alive, a splash of color in this world of gray and shadow.

I reach out once more, my fingers inching toward the delicate petals.

“Ava!”

The voice comes again, louder this time, more urgent. I spin around, my heart racing.

“Lucas?” My voice echoes through the trees. “Where are you?”

But just like before, there’s no response.