Chapter 231

#Chapter 231: Shifting Early Moana I felt my eyes go wide at Kat’s proposition.

“Really?” I asked quietly. “You could actually help me shift… today?”

Kat nodded with a smile on her face. “It’s easy,” she replied. “You could get it over with really quickly.”

I could feel my wolf reacting strongly to this. It had felt as though Mina was coming close to shifting for a while, ever since Edrick and I marked each other, but it still hadn’t happened. And maybe, just maybe… shifting could finally make all of this ambiguity stop.

“What do you think?” I asked Mina.

She seemed excited. “We should do it,” she replied. “I’ve been feeling stuck, like I keep coming close to shifting but I just can’t make it happen all the way. This could be what I need… And I trust Kat.”

I agreed with Mina. With a smile, I nodded at Kat. More than anything, I was just excited to finally be able to shift. Maybe then, Edrick wouldn’t think that I was so incapable of taking care of myself.

Maybe if I shifted, I could actually be my own person again, and not a damsel in distress who needed a man to protect me.

“Let’s do it,” I finally said.

Kat grinned, then glanced over her shoulder at the house. We were still within sight of the house itself despite being in the forest a little ways. Suddenly, she took my hand and began to lead me deeper into the forest.

“Where are we going?” I asked. The deeper into the forest we walked, the more quickly the air temperature lowered. Soon, I let out a little shiver just from the chill in the pine-filled air.

“There are herbs that grow in the forest that can help induce the shifting process. We need wolfsbane and valerian roots. It shouldn’t be too hard to find either of those around here…” Kat looked around as we walked, occasionally pausing to check by tree stumps or around mossy rocks.

I watched as she occasionally bent down to small patches of weeds. She rifled through them, inspecting the leaves and flowers as she looked for the right plants that we needed. However, pretty soon the gap in the trees where we could see the house was becoming smaller, and the house was turning into a small speck in the distance. I started to get worried that we would eventually lose our way in the woods, especially since it was getting much darker out because of the oncoming storm.

I felt a bit clueless about all of this, but Kat seemed to know where she was going, and so I decided not to cause a fuss. As we kept walking further into the forest, I felt my anxiety starting to rise. The sky was darkening and I could feel the damp sensation in the air of oncoming rain.

There was almost a sort of static electricity to the air, like a thunderstorm could happen at any moment.

“Are you sure we have time?” I asked, looking up at the sky as Kat let go of my hand for a moment to stoop down behind a log and pick at some weeds. “It looks like it’s about to storm.”

As I spoke, the wind started to whip my hair around me even through the trees, which only solidified my concerns.

But Kat simply shook her head and stood again. She was holding a few small flowers in her hand. They were a dark purple color, and she held them up to me with a smile.

“Don’t worry,” she reassured me. “I already found some wolfsbane. Valerian might be a little more difficult to find, but we should be able to find some if we go just a little deeper into the forest.”

“Oh… Okay,” I replied. I felt reassured by my bodyguard’s warm smile, and followed her once again as she started walking down a gradual slope with the wolfsbane in her hand. She kept swiveling her head from left to right, searching.

“What happens when we find the valerian?” I asked. “Do we make it into a tea, or…?”

Kat shook her head. “You can simply ingest them, so long as you do it at the same time.”

“What happens after that, though?”

My bodyguard stopped, then crouched down to look into a hollow tree trunk. She muttered something to herself, then stood and started walking again.

“After that, it should only be five to ten minutes before you shift,” she said. “It’ll be easier if you shift out here. I’ll keep an eye on you, so if it gets to be too much and you lose control, you won’t get lost or anything.”

I had to admit to myself that I felt a little nervous about all of this; I wanted Edrick by my side when I shifted for the first time. It was scary to know that he wouldn’t be next to me when I shifted, and when I looked up, I realized that the house was no longer in sight.

By now, the rain had begun to fall. It was just a drizzle now, but I could tell from the wind in the air that it would soon get much worse.

“I-I think we should go back, Kat,” I finally said, stopping. “Maybe we can get the valerian tomorrow.

This oncoming storm is making me uneasy, and besides… I don’t want to shift without Edrick here.”

Suddenly, Kat turned toward me with a concerned look on her face.

“Edrick wouldn’t let you shift,” she said, sounding somewhat stern. “He’ll just make up an excuse or tell you that it’s too dangerous for the baby— which it isn’t, I promise.”

I stared at the bodyguard for a moment. She seemed genuine. Something felt amiss, but maybe it was just my nerves getting to me. Maybe she was right; maybe Edrick wouldn’t let me shift, and it would only make things even worse.

“Come on, Moana,” Kat said with a warm smile. “You can trust me. I’ll be right by your side the whole time, and it’ll be over before you know it. Besides, I think the valerian shouldn’t be too much farther now.”

I chewed my lip, thinking, then finally nodded. “Alright,” I said quietly. “Lead the way.”

Kat grinned again, then started off down the slope once more. We finally came to a small stream, and she helped me step over it, balancing on the slick, mossy rocks as we went. Once we were on the other side, she paused for a few moments and looked around, mumbling to herself.

“Let’s see… Hmm…”

“Is it close?” I asked. I almost had to shout now to be heard over the sound of the raging wind.

Suddenly, Kat’s smile widened. Without a word, she took off into the woods and disappeared through the trees.

My jaw dropped.

“Kat?!” I called, jogging after her. “Did you find it?!”

But there was no answer.

I stopped and looked around, turning in all directions. Maybe she spotted it and would be back soon…

At least, that was what I told myself in order to feel better.

In all actuality, I had a very bad feeling about all of this.

Maybe I shouldn’t have trusted Kat after all.