Selene's party returned to Nightshade at dawn, exhausted but alive. Aria met them at the border, relief flooding through her when she saw all four walking on their own feet.
"You're safe," she breathed. "I had the worst dream..."
"It wasn't just a dream," Selene said grimly, handing her the ancient tome. "We have information, but it comes with complications."
In the council chamber, they shared everything the Shadow Witches had told them. The revelation that Luna would have to choose a realm by her eighteenth birthday hit Aria like a physical blow.
"Eighteen years," she whispered. "That's all we have?"
"Sixteen years now," Dante corrected, his arm around Aria's shoulders. "But it's time. Time to prepare her, teach her, help her understand what she is and what her choices mean."
"A ch
