A painful dread pierces through my chest, as all light vanishes. All sound seizes and so does the wind.

“Jace?” I call, reaching out to feel my way through the darkness. “Jace, where are you?”

There's no answer. I reach towards where I last saw him crouching for the stones, but there's only air where his body should be. “Jace!’

Panic starts to claw up my throat as the air feels thicker and thicker. It weighs down on me pressing me onto the earth and I can do nothing but beg.

“Please,” I say. “We meant no harm. He didn’t know.”

He was warned, The forest responds. You humans are always warned. And yet you never heed the warning.

“I didn’t warn him enough,” I say cursing myself the fool. “This is my fault. If anything, you can kill me but let him go.”

You both shall perish here.

The ground groans and I fall as the air whooshes out of my lungs. I attempt to breathe but it's not possible. Little by little my chest tightens. Leaves creak as I try to crawl my way out but I don't even know where out is. The darkness is complete, not even a sliver of light coming through the trees.

And there's no moon to guide me.

Is this how I die? I wonder as the possibility edges toward reality. How pathetic. After all that planning and plotting this is how it all ends.

I didn't get to finish my mission.

I didn't get to save my friends.

Everything will happen as it did in the past, except this time, I did not make it even a month in this lifetime.

My thoughts get hazy from the lack of oxygen and I sink into the ground, too weak to even turn myself over. Dirt is in my mouth. My vision starts to blur.

Well at least, I can say that I died trying to help a friend. It's one of the more honorable deaths I've had. At least, I'm not freezing somewhere in the wasteland while a beast waits to eat my flesh.

Still, I feel like I'm going to die for nothing,

Please, I beg one more time but the noose squeezes around my neck. All of a sudden, a growl split through the silence and I freeze.

Well, looks like I'll be beast food once again.

Get out!

The growls get louder and closer, accompanied by the snapping of branches. An angry screech sounds in my ears as the teeth sink into my shoulders. I can't even cry out from the pain. It's not bad enough to be suffocated to death, I'm going to be mauled by a wild animal at the same time.

I only hope it has the decency to kill me before eating me. Being eaten alive just sounds like more indignity than I can handle right now.

I barely feel the pain as the animal runs, dragging my body along towards... somewhere. At this point, I don't even care. I'm too focused on the pressure in my chest, that feels it wants to explode my body into a million pieces. Despite the wind slapping my face, I haven't breathed in a minute and I'm probably going to die soon enough before the animal eats me.

What a relief.

But then suddenly a bright light grows in my blurry vision, brighter as we go. I close my eyes to block it out, wanting the sweet bliss of darkness as I slip into the abyss.

And then something else happens.

Suddenly, air slams into my lungs and I draw in a deep, hacking breath that makes me cough up my lungs.

I feel gentle licks on my face, licks that aren't unpleasant.

And then it's gone.

I lie there gasping for who knows how long.

I open my eyes and see the moon in a cloudless sky, looking at me like a welcoming friend.

Then I heard the rustling of grass, and look aside just in time to see the tail of a beast disappearing back into the forest.

I peer at the shadowy form, but I'm unable to make out what it is.

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I close my eyes again, breathing slowly, still feeling unbelievably weak.

Weak but alive.

And that's the most important thing, I think as I slip into unconsciousness.

I'm not sure how long I'm out for, but at a point, I think I feel lips pressing against mine, pushing warm liquid down my throat. But then it's gone, and I'm nearly certain I imagined the whole thing.

I come back to awareness with the notion that someone is cradling me in his arms.

Wolf. I've come to recognize his body, those large callused hands, and the careful way it runs through my hair.

The heat of his body feels like great insulation against the cold and I lean into him some more, murmuring at the pleasant sensation. He runs his hand down my back and murmurs in my ear, “Are you awake?"

“No,” I murmur back scared he'll stop if I tell him I am.

Wolf emits a grunt that could have been a chuckle and that tells me how ridiculous I'm being.

Finally, I reluctantly open my eyes and find him staring down at me.

“Hello,” I whisper.

“Hello,” he responds.

I put my hand out to his chin, enjoying the feel of the stubble. "I thought I’d never see you again.”

He shakes his head. "I haven't given you permission to leave me yet."

The words strike a familiar chord within me. It's the same thing he said in the past when I was his prisoner. He saved my life, rescuing me from a wild beast that knocked me unconscious. When I woke up he was by my bedside. Those words were the first thing he said.

I haven't given you permission to leave me yet.

Without thinking, I rear up and kiss him.

I taste the surprise on his lips, but it's not enough to shock me back from the kiss. Rather I lean into it, savor it, thank whatever deity saved me from my certain doom. Because I thought I wouldn’t do this again. I thought I would die without kissing Wolf again the way I wanted to, wildly, passionately.

Wolf breaks away, eyes closed. “Stop.”

My desire immediately turns into regret. God, what was I thinking?

“Sorry I didn’t mean–‘

"I don’t have control around you," Wolf interrupts. “When you do that I lose myself.” His eyes open to reveal a whirling storm of emotion, his yellow gaze shifting darker, redder. I stare at them enraptured.

I don't have control around you.

The words send untold pleasure coursing through me. It's an immense compliment even though he spat them out like he was ashamed of it.

“That's comforting," I tell him. “Because it seems I lose myself around you too.’

His eyebrows furrow in confusion. "I thought I terrified you.”

"I terrify myself," I say. “What I feel for you terrifies me. My past terrifies me.”

“They will never hurt you again,” he says.” I swear it."

I nod and cup his chin. I know he's referring to the men who attacked me and I have no doubt Wolf will try his best to protect me.

But I've learned that the only person who can save me from my cruel destiny is me.

"You never terrified me, Wolf," I tell him. "Maybe in the beginning, when I didn't know you, I was cautious. Still, a part of me knew you wouldn't hurt me." The silent warrior snarled and growled and snapped at me on occasion.

But that was merely when he was grumpy or wanted his space.

He never attacked me needlessly.

And he never used his power to dominate me.

A groan interrupts us and I search around for the source, which happens to be the crumpled form of Jace on the floor next to us. That's when it all comes swimming back to me.

The forest. The bird. The gem. The suffocating.

“Jace,” I gasp and reach out to him, but Wolf refuses to let me go.

His countenance turns stern.

“You went into the Dark Forest," he says. "That was a stupid idea."

“I know. I went to help Jace. He needed Shrewk feathers for his mother.”

“Jace is stupid too. And a bad influence. You should stay away from him.”

“He’s my friend, perhaps one of the only ones I have."

Wolf's frown deepens. “I thought I was your friend.”

"No Wolf, you’re more than my friend.”

He nods appeased. “Did you get the feathers?"

"I think so," I say and check my other palm, which has been instinctively folded in a fist this entire time. The feathers are crumpled up in it. I don't know how I managed to keep hold of them through all that chaos, but Thank God I did.

I can't imagine if we did all that for nothing.

“I have it," I say, and Wolf grunts.

I finally grin in relief, hardly able to believe what happened in the forest. “Did you know you could just ask the Shrewk for its feather and it would give it to you?"

“Yes, “ Wolf answers immediately, shocking me.

“Well, why didn’t you do that for the last trial at the very least." Even if he had gotten it just for himself, it would have been some kind of win.

“I did," Wolf says. “It refused.”

"It refused? Why?"

One shoulder lifts. "It must like you more than it likes me.” He says it grudgingly and that in addition to his clenched chin tells me that this might be a sore spot for him.

“Sorry," I tell him.

"I don't care," he says but from his sour expression, he clearly does. I try not to smile or let out a giggle.

“It's okay," I pat his shoulder in comfort. “I'm sure it was just your big scary teeth that terrified it. You should try smiling more.”

“Funny,” he says, and then we hear another light groan from Jace. He turns his face in the grass towards us and apart from a few scratches on his cheek and a bite mark on his shoulder, he doesn't look any worse for the wear.

Wait, a bite mark.

I turn and check my shoulder. My tunic is torn and there's some blood but no bite mark.

"There was a beast," I tell Wolf. "I think it brought us out. Did you see it?"

Wolf shakes his head.

“Your friend is alive,” Wolf declares, and then shifts me higher on his arms rising. “Let’s go home.”

“Wait,” I say even as I wrap my arms around his neck. He takes three long strides away and I say it again. "Wolf, wait."

Thankfully, he pauses.

I give him an incredulous look. “We can’t just leave him here.”

"We can’t?”

“No.”

"He'll be safe,” Wolf counters. ”Animals don’t come here.”

"Well, at least one animal did." The one that dragged me, and presumably Jace too, out of the forest. To what end I still don't know.

Wolf thinks about it and then says, "Animals except that one don’t come here."

"You know the creature?"

He shrugs.

I sigh. He must be no longer be in the mood to answer questions.

"Just get him," I say. "Please."

Wolf rolls his eyes. He places me back down on my feet. Then he goes to hoist Jace up with the back of his tunic, slinging him over his shoulder as if he weighs nothing more than a sack of apples.

Then he comes back to me and swings me into his arms, carrying two people like it's nothing.

"Let's go home."