Chapter 72 Am I Embracing my Werewolf side?
Daevir's POV
I paced the room, over and over again, but that didn't quell the burnings in my chest.
It was a full moon night, and I was shifting. I know it.
I could have hurt Catherine, snapped her neck in two. What would the people think of me when I do it?
The new Emperor killed his spouse on their wedding night. What sorts of beast do that?!
I scoffed.
"They can't see the beast in you! A pity." Ezriel spat.
"Quiet!" I growled back.
I felt Ezriel roll in me and chuckle. "You can't keep me bound for so long." He sighs. "It is a full moon night, won't it be fun to go bathe in its ambient and feel the forest soil on your purs"
"I'm Emperor now, Ezriel!" I spat back
"And I'm what? A slave that you should bind?!" I could feel Ezriel's anger seeping into my burns.
"I'm getting out of here, Daevir." He snapped, and suddenly, my flesh began sinking into revealing silver furs.
The last time I got this way, I found myself a terrifying beast that terrorized the palace towers. I could have killed and been killed.
I didn't wait for Ezriel to finish. I lunged out of the room and found my way through the shadows till I was out of the palace, bursting into the wind racing on all fours.
I was a full wolf, and I had never felt such freedom before. The full moon loomed on top of me, and I felt a radiant energy burst through it, sleeping into my flesh. I felt the wind on my face, and for the first time, I loved being a wolf.
The shift did not hurt.
That was the first surprise.
I thought there would be tearing, screaming, bones rebelling against flesh, but instead, there was only release. A loosening. As if something knotted tight inside me finally gave way, and the world exhaled with me.
I hit the ground on all fours outside the palace walls, stone replaced by earth, my silk by night air. My senses detonated.
The world opened.
I could smell everything: the damp moss clinging to old stone, the iron tang of distant rivers, the fading perfume of torch smoke trailing behind fleeing guards. I heard the pulse of insects hidden in grass, the low breathing of the forest beyond, the echo of my own heart beating strong and steady in my chest.
Strong.
I laughed, or meant to, but what left me was a breathy huff, warm and animal, carried away by the wind as I ran.
Gods, I ran.
My paws struck the ground in perfect rhythm, muscles coiling and releasing like they had been waiting for this all along. The night blurred past me, trees bending, shadows peeling away as I surged forward. There was no hesitation, no thought of direction. Only movement. Only now.
The pain I had carried for so long, the constant weight behind my eyes, the ache in my bones, the sharp, grinding guilt lodged in my chest, it bled out of me with every stride. Each breath carried it away until there was nothing left but heat and motion and a roaring joy that filled my blood.
The full moon hung overhead, vast and brilliant, pouring silver fire into my veins. I felt it sink into me, saturating muscle and marrow, feeding something ancient and fierce. Power rippled through my limbs, effortless and endless. I was not tired. I could not imagine being tired.
I was made for this.
The wind tore past my face, cool and sharp, flattening my ears, dragging a sound from my throat that might have been a howl if I let it loose. I wanted to chase the horizon itself. To outrun memory. To leave names and titles and crowns scattered behind me like discarded skins.
Prince. Emperor. Husband.
None of it mattered here.
The road ahead dissolved into forest, then field, then wild, unclaimed darkness and I welcomed it. I hoped it led nowhere. I hoped it never ended. I hoped I could run until the moon fell from the sky and the world forgot the shape of my former life.
For the first time, I did not feel cursed.
I felt free.
And I did not want to stop.
The forest swallowed me whole.
Branches lashed past my flanks, but I felt no fear, no caution. My body knew the paths before my mind could question them. Roots revealed themselves a heartbeat before I struck them. Stones shifted beneath my paws and yielded, as if the earth itself recognized me and stepped aside.
I owned this place.
Every scent told a story. Fresh deer spoor ignited a low, pleased hum in my chest. The musk of foxes, the damp sweetness of fallen leaves, the sharp green bite of crushed pine needles, all of it poured into me at once, overwhelming and exquisite. I could taste the forest on my tongue, breathe it into my lungs until it filled every hollow space left behind by grief.
My muscles moved with terrifying grace.
Each leap sent me flying farther than I thought possible, my body weightless for stolen seconds before gravity remembered me. When I landed, it was soundless, perfect. I felt invincible, like no wall could stop me, no blade could pierce me, no command could bind me again.
The moon followed me through the canopy, its silver light fracturing through the leaves and painting my fur in fire. It fed me. I could feel it sinking into my spine, awakening something vast and ancient, something that did not kneel, did not doubt, did not hesitate.
Power thrummed through my blood, steady and intoxicating.
I was faster than fear. Stronger than regret. Untethered from the chains of reason and rule.
The wind roared in my ears, carrying my scent forward, announcing me to the world. Let them know, some feral part of me thought. Let the night hear me coming. I wanted to throw back my head and howl, not in pain, not in mourning, but in triumph.
This was not an escape.
This was becoming.
Every step stripped another layer from me. The emperor fell away. Guilt followed. Even my name felt distant, unnecessary. There was only motion and breath and the fierce joy of existing without permission.
I did not think of dawn.
I did not think of returning.
I ran because running felt like the truth.
And as the forest stretched endlessly before me, dark and wild and alive, I knew with sudden, terrifying certainty that if I never stopped, if I ran until my heart burst beneath the moon, I would die happier than I had ever lived.
The night began to wind down, and clouds shrouded the full moon. Darkness loomed on the terrains ahead, and after running miles upon miles with a breath of rest, I knew I had to rest for the night.
Ezriel gave a loud, excited whelp of victory, and finally, his hold on me loosened, and I morphed back to a man.
It's strange how I wished he could hang in a little longer.
Is this what I thought it was? Am I finally embracing my werewolf side?
I shook myself. "Never, I will never let myself go to be a monster!" I spat out loud.
"The only monsters I know are men." A familiar voice blazed behind me.
My gaze whipped around, and I froze in the spot.
I knew he would come around. But I didn't expect him to come so soon. It was like he had been waiting for me.
"Brother…" he said with that damned smirk on his face.
"Theron,"