Chapter 49 Alexander

• Feeling the wind glide through my fur has always brought me a peace that nothing else in the world can. It’s as if each breeze carries away a part of the restlessness that resides within me, lifting the weight of my thoughts and easing, even if temporarily, the burden I bear. Every gust connects me more deeply to the earth, to my most primal self, to the beast that lives within me. The firm forest floor beneath my paws anchors my mind, giving form to the chaos that constantly threatens to consume me. Each step I take as I run grants me a sense of control, of stability—something I so desperately lack when I’m in my human form.
• Shifting into a wolf, especially here in the heart of the Veridiana kingdom after so many years away, still comes with a mixture of surprise and relief. Everything around me is both familiar and distant. The sturdy trees, the bushes whispering in the wind, the scent of damp earth and leaves—all of it forms a scene that is part of me, that lives in my memory, yet seems different after so long. Each time I allow my body to take this form, I feel as though I am rediscovering a part of myself that had lain dormant, as if the wolf within me awakens from a long slumber, hungry and eager for freedom.
• Yet, no matter how far I run, no matter how deeply I dive into this temporary escape from reality, my thoughts always return to the same place. To her. Aria. My sweet, beautiful, gentle Aria. Her image invades my mind like a storm, a presence I can never fully banish, no matter how hard I try. The longing I feel for her is something that transcends reason, a fire burning in my chest that refuses to be extinguished. It cannot be measured simply, like the number of stars in the sky or the drops in the ocean. It is infinite, immeasurable—a constant void that nothing but her presence can fill.