Dear Enemy, You're My Mate

Chapter 49 **

Dior

Endless darkness surrounds me. It circles my throat and licks my skin as I'm searching for an exit. I want to run, but there is nowhere to flee. Voices are snickering in my ears, telling me to tread carefully or they will tear me apart.

They overestimate me—I've already succumbed and given up. My soul has been ripped in the middle, and my hope has been blown out like a candle. I'm unable to sort my thoughts in the dark and remember who I am.

And where the hell am I?!

I flail around, entirely blind, until I see a flickering light. Without thinking, I approach it, desperate to get away from the everlasting night. Someone might be there—fires don't go igniting themselves.

"Hello?" I call out into the dark. "Anybody there?"

There isn't a reply as I walk through what feels like sand underneath my naked feet. I'm not sure how long I mooch, but a bubble of hope lifts from my chest the moment I near a crackling fire. At first, I think it's another hallucination, but then I experience the warmth caressing my skin.

"Oh-my-god, light!"

My eyes have seen nothing but the darkness for so long that I'm forced to blink repeatedly. Right now, I'm like an animal who has hibernated the entire winter and is now seeing the light for the first time in months.

"Ugh, so bright!"

A cackle echoes through the night. "So the young alpha has finally found his way over here. Amazing. I was wondering how long it would take you, days, hours, months?"

I furrow my eyebrows, not sure if I'm dreaming.

In front of the fire sits an elderly lady. She is wearing a Victorian dress, a colorful one that seems to have belonged to Marie Antoinette. Her hair is grey, and while her skin is wrinkly, her eyes are fierce.

"Good evening, Dior," she speaks my name as if we are old friends and gestures at an empty spot with her hand. "Why don't you take a seat?"

Without a word, I sit down in front of the campfire. I've missed the warmth and take a deep breath, not even caring to ask if the old lady is a friend or a foe.

"Thank you for letting me stay," I mumble before closing my eyes. I'm exhausted, and eventually, I fall asleep.

I don't perceive how much time has passed when I wake up to stretch my arms and turn attention to the older lady. It turns out my new friend is a funny woman, not shy in the slightest. She isn't even trying to hide the fact that she probably never looked away from me.

"Who are you?" I dare to ask.

She is playing with her bottom lip with her fingertip. "I could ask you the same question—who are you?"

I laugh. "You already know my name."

"A name doesn't tell me much."

"Oh..." I stare down at my feet with wrinkles appearing on my forehead as I realize what the older woman desires. I take a deep breath. "You want me to give you a deeper answer."

"Yes."

My lips curl into a sad smile. "I don't have any profound answer for your question."

The older woman sighs, touching me with her cane and bringing it to my chin to force eye contact between us. Weirdly enough, I'm perfectly content with this stranger.

"Lies." The woman smirks in that way only older women with mischief up in their sleeve can do. "You are the alpha of the Winterbite pack, and soon will come a time where your wolf family needs you to fight, but the question is: are you a wolf or a monster?"

Fear claws at me. "I'm not sure…"

"Look down at your heart."

I listen to her words and glance down, gasping at a hollow in my chest. It's dark and menacing, eating me alive, but there is also a tiny fragment of light trying to fight.

"Light and darkness..." I whisper, absorbed by the inner war going on inside of my chest. "Do I have to choose between them?"

Instead of giving me a direct answer, the older lady gives me all of her focus and tells me something else. "The other you chose the route of darkness and gave up his inner white wolf. He let himself be controlled by his fear, and now I wonder: what will you choose?"

My lips press together as I try to think. Sadly, my head is a sea of questions and arrows flashing in various directions until I'm confused and not able to figure out which path is right and which one is wrong.

"I-I don't know..."

The elderly lady digs her eyes into mine. "You have to make a decision Dior, or you won't be able to leave this place. The darkness has a way of making people lose grasp of themselves, but if you can figure out who you are, then the night can't control you."

"It's not that easy!" I snap at her. "You're asking me to disregard another part of myself; at least that's what this feels like!"

A ghost of a smile plays over the older woman's lips. "Is that your final answer?"

"What do you want me to say?" My tone is frustrated.

"Exactly how you feel."

"I'm frustrated! Another person might find it easy to throw away the monstrous part of themselves to be happy and normal, but that thought saddens me! The other wolf might be a creature of the night, but he is still me, just like the white wolf is also me."

The woman snickers. "You're picking both?"

I shrug, smiling in agony. "I would much rather stick with my white wolf, but I don't want to kill the other part of me. I don't think we are supposed to be entirely good."

"Then a merge would be the best solution."

Sudden anxiety washes over me. "A merge?"

The elderly lady stands up, suddenly younger, with half-moons glowing beneath her wickedly white eyes. Her skin is russet, and her hair is a spooky white. She is gorgeous, especially when her dress turns into a shimmering silver, one that hugs her curves.

"Your white wolf shall become your greatest ally in the battles to come, but I won't take away the darkness. It will remain inside of you—after all, you can only find the light in the dark."

The beautiful lady approaches me and presses her hand to my chest with her eyes locked on mine. "The monstrous wolf won't disappear—he will be merged with your white wolf, but don't even for a slick of a moment think the simple part starts here. It's not easy carrying both the power of light and darkness in your heart."

"Both?" I lift an eyebrow with suspicion churning within me. The lady seems so familiar, like I've met her presence before. "And who are you?"

"A friend," there is another snicker as the lady steps back. A smile graces her white lips, and interest flares to life across her face. For some reason, I get the sense she is sheltering secrets. "In a way, I'm grateful to the other you—I've been given a new chance to save humanity from the darkness. He is not the enemy here; you have to stop June and the council from gaining more power."

"And how do I do that?"

The lady giggles. I notice she is vanishing into the darkness, disappearing from my line of sight. Amusement coats her features, and she has this peculiar way of regarding me—as if the future isn't written into the stars and she doesn't know what tomorrow will bring.

"Where are you going?" I ask. "How am I supposed to get out of here? You haven't answered the most important question! There is no end to the darkness!"

"I can't stay, Dior," her lips crack into a wide grin. "I have other places to be, people to match and meet! You see, a lot of werewolves are turning eighteen today, and love needs to bloom! The mate-bond shall conquer and bring people together!"

My lips quirk up to form a half-smile, and my arms slump down by my sides as I stare at the lady. "You're the moon goddess."

The only answer I get to that question is a wink. "Good luck, Dior—remember you control the darkness, not the other way around. Trust in your wolf and embrace who you are!"

I fall silent and blink into the nothingness as the moon goddess disappears. Once she is gone, I realize the real training starts here—I have to master my shadow abilities.

I take a step forward and close my eyes as I let my skin be replaced with a white coat of fur. My hand becomes big paws, and when I open my eyes, I realize new strength is rushing in my veins. And now, I will do everything in my power to master it.