I watched as Rhett and Slater approached me and knelt in front of where I sat on the ground.
Their faces were filled with concern and something else—a tenderness I’d never seen before. They were looking at me like they were trying not to spook a wild animal.
Kael stayed behind, not bothering to join the boys.
"Charis, I know you can hear us," Rhett said gently. "Try shifting back to your human form."
"Shift back to my human form?" I blinked at him in surprise. "What do you think I’m in right now?"
The boys continued to stare at me with worry.
"Hey, Slater, can you hear me? Did you hear any word of what I just said?" I said again.
Rhett turned to Slater and said quietly. "I think she’s trying to say something, but she thinks we can’t hear her. When it’s all noise that we can hear."
"Noise!" I scoffed. "Are you kidding me right now?"
After a moment, Rhett reached for my hand, rubbing it gently.
"Charis, I know it feels like you’re still in your human form, but all we can see is this large, beautiful brown wolf with red patches around your paws and a distinctive white mark running from your eyes down to your chest. It takes some getting used to, but please, it’s dangerous for anyone else to see you ."
"Eamon, not Charis," Kael said and moved to come and stand next to the boys. "You’re saying the wrong name."
I felt Slater pause, his eyes widening with realisation. They’ve been calling my real name and referring to me as a girl.
"Shit," Rhett muttered under his breath, turning to look at Kael." Her name is Charis. It’s complicated, but you’ll understand in a few minutes."
"Charis?" Kael tilted his head. "That’s the name of his wolf?"
"And I told her to tell him," Rhett said through gritted teeth. "She never listens."
Both of them sighed deeply like they’d been bracing for this before Slater rose to his feet to face Kael directly.
"We wanted this to come from Charis herself, but given the current situation, I think you should know the truth."
Kael arched his eyebrow, staring at Slater with growing suspicion. "What truth?"
"Eamon is actually a girl," Slater said quietly. "I know you’re used to seeing her as a boy, but look at her wolf, she’s female."
Kael stared at Slater for several long minutes before letting his eyes slide to where I sat. He looked at me intently, his expression shifting from confusion to surprise to something I couldn’t quite identify.
He lowered himself to a squatting position, imitating Rhett as he studied every inch of me. ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ ɴo(v)elFɪre.ɴet
He stood up slowly, then took a step backwards, more like stumbling backwards.
"Eamon... is a girl? That’s not possible. I should have known, right?"
"Wearing boys’ clothes and binding your chest doesn’t automatically make someone detectable as female," Rhett added gently with a humourless smile. "I was fooled, too, initially. But yes, she’s a girl, and her name is Charis."
Looking at Kael’s distressed expression, I felt my heart break. This wasn’t how I’d wanted him to find out. I hadn’t planned for any of this to happen. I hadn’t expected to shift into my wolf today.
Since I’d already gotten my wolf at 14 and discovered it was a Shadewolf, I didn’t think it would manifest four years later. With Shadewolves, there are no guarantees.
But hadn’t Slater called me a Direwolf when they first saw me? What was that?
I pushed the thoughts from my mind. There was still time to figure all of that out, but right now, I need to concentrate on making Kael understand that I didn’t intend for him to discover my true identity while I was in my wolf form.
The guilt and regret I felt were overwhelming. I’d wanted to tell him the truth myself, in my own way, when the time felt right. Instead, he was learning everything at once in the most shocking circumstances possible.
I closed my eyes and tried shifting back. It was harder than I expected. My muscles resisted, and my bones refused to return to their human form.
Rhyme must have sensed what I wanted to do and quietly guided me.
Focusing on Rhyme’s guidance, I slowly shifted back to my human form. The transformation felt natural now, like slipping from one skin into another. But as soon as I was human again, I tried to stand and go to Kael, who was standing apart from us, just staring.
My legs gave out, and I hit the grass. "Easy, there," Slater said, catching me under one arm while Rhett immediately grabbed the other.
"Relax, Charis," Slater said gently. "You’re naked. Let’s get you covered up first."
"Kael," I called out to him, my voice was shaky.
He walked back toward our group, his eyes still fixed on me. As he drew closer, I rose unsteadily to my feet, using my hands to cover my exposed body as best I could.
"I’m sorry," I said quietly, looking into his eyes. "I wanted to tell you, but you never gave me the chance."
Kael’s gaze was roaming over my body, and I wondered if he was even hearing what I was saying. His pupils had dilated, and there was something primal in his expression.
"Kael," I reached out to touch his arm.
In response, he grabbed me and pulled me against him, his lips crashing down on mine with desperation. The kiss was hungry, possessive and filled with weeks of suppressed desire and confusion finally finding release.
That wasn’t the reaction I’d been expecting.
Both Slater and Rhett immediately intervened, prying me away from Kael. His eyes had darkened with desire.
"Relax, Kael," Slater snapped. "We’re not immune to having our mate standing naked in front of us either, but we need to get her out of here and back to the dorms before someone else discovers us. Her clothes are torn, we need something that can give her full coverage."
Kael immediately shrugged out of his long coat and handed it to the boys. "Here, this should be enough to cover her."
Slater took the coat, eyeing Kael suspiciously as he settled it over my shoulders.
"You’re way more chill than I expected," Slater said quietly. "Didn’t you hear what I said about her being—"
"Yes, I heard, and I can see that," Kael interrupted, his eyes wandering appreciatively over my form as a smile curved his lips. "I’m not angry. I’m not, I swear. I’m relieved."
He walked a short distance from our group and raised his hands to the sky, laughing with joy. "I’m normal! I’m normal!"
Then he rushed back to where we stood, his face glowing with happiness.
"What happens next?" he asked eagerly. "When can I mark her?"