"Alora... Alora." Says a familiar voice as I feel them shake my shoulders. I open my eyes and immediately close them as the brightness of the sun assaults my sensitive eyes.

I groan as I uncurl myself from my seated position and hear my bones crack and pop. It makes me wonder how long I've been frozen in that position.

As I clear my mind of my whirling thoughts, I focus on the face in front of me and immediately jump to my feet. She grins and her blue eyes sparkle in amusement.

"I take it you've seen me before?" Says Hazel as she grins lazily. I look behind her and see Rose's other sister Naya standing closely at her side. Behind Naya stood the Nightshadow Coven alongside several other covens.

"Where am I?" I ask as I look around at the clear blue sky.

"Welcome to The Oasis, little one." Hazel announces with a smile.

"Where's my family?" I ask and Hazel sighs.

"They are in their own little corner of The Oasis. If you'd like I can escort you there but first I'd like to have a chat with you."

I nod and she smiles. With a snap of her fingers the world swirls and we're standing inside a replica of the Umbridge Castle. The witches disperse and Hazel motions for me to sit across from her in the armchair close to the fireplace.

She catches me staring at the flames and fights back a smile. "You really are drawn to fire."

I focus my attention on her and shrug "Fire brings me comfort. It can be destructive or it can provide warmth to survive. It all depends on how you look at it."

"That's a grand way to perceive it." She nods as she studies me.

I groan and roll my eyes "Look. I've just about reached my quota of small talk. I hate wasting my time so can you get on with whatever it is you need from me so that I can go with my family."

"There she is." She chuckles "I was wondering when your impulsivity would appear."

"What do you need Hazel?" I all but grunt out as I run my hand down my face and hold back the urge to scream in despair. This is what my life is going to be like now. Nothing matters. Everyone here is dead. There's nothing to work towards, nothing to accomplish, nothing to enjoy. The only thing that I am happy with is the fact that I've left my pack in the very capable hands of Nick... my mate...

"You seem a bit glum there, child. Could it have anything to do with the handsome young man that's currently holding on to your corpse like it's his lifeline?" She says as she flicks her wrist and a crystal ball materializes onto the coffee table.

I stumble out of my seat and kneel in front of the table as I place my hands on either side of the ball. Hazel grins as she sips a cup of newly materialized tea. My eyes water at the scene before me. It appears as if not much time has passed. Lucius and Asha are still standing a few feet away from me while Nick is holding my body close to his chest. Sobs wracking his body violently as my grandfather kneels beside us with a hand placed comfortingly on Nick's shoulder.

All of the packs have their heads lifted towards the sky as a chorus of continuous sorrowful howls filled the air. Even Clementine and the vampires had their heads bowed in respect. The most shocking thing of all however is the fact that Rose is staring at the scene before her in disbelief, and I do mean staring.

I look up at Hazel in shock "She can see?"

She chuckles and nods "The second blast of the portal restored her eyesight."

I look back down and see Asha and Rose now locked in a fierce embrace while Lucius stares at his mate in adoration. I nod in satisfaction. At least I was able to provide some happily ever after's. Sighing I look at Hazel and nod "Okay I get it."

"Get what child?"

"You, showing me that I can move on because they're going to be alright."

She laughs and shakes her head. "Sweet girl that is a very beautiful sentiment but that was not at all the purpose of this. Everything is not resolved. Take a closer look."

Scrunching my eyebrows in confusion I focus again and this time I feel the realization dawn on me as I see the barbecued werepires begin to twitch back to life.

"We have to do something." I say urgently. "Once they come to, they will head straight for Lucius and attack everyone else in that field for stopping them from completing their goal."

She nods "Correct. If something is not done there will be another battle and this one will be very gruesome. Now what happens next is completely up to you."

"What? How is it up to me? I'm dead."

"That is true yes, but it is up to you if you stay that way. There is a way to get you back down there."

My heart races and I shake my head "What's the catch? Resurrection is huge which means the price will be steep."

She nods as amusement shines in her eyes "You are an intuitive girl, I'll give you that. Yes, there is a price and if you are willing to pay it we will return your soul to its body."

"Well? What is it?" I demand impatiently.

"Because your hybrid species has disrupted the laws of nature and is the cause of so many unnecessary deaths, we cannot allow any more of you to continue walking the Earth. In order for you to return, all Werepires must be terminated. Wiped clean from the planet. Only then will nature's balance be restored."

"No." I state immediately "I will not allow you to murder them. Most of them didn't voluntarily choose that life. They were forced into it. Forget it, I will not pay that price."

Hazel sits still as she studies me quietly for a few moments before nodding "Very well. What would you say to... a compromise?"

"What kind of compromise?"

"We let them all live... but we pull away the magic that's turned them into hybrids?" She suggests.

"You mean like removing the vampire side? They'd just revert back into regular wolves again?"

She nods "Yes."

"I'd like to add something." I say as I come to a stand. Hazel mimics my movements and stands before me, gesturing for me to continue. "I know that you've formed a sort of truce with the spirit of the Moon Goddess. I'd like you to convene with her and create a new law. One that forbids the creation of any more werepires. Those who attempt to break that law will fail to complete the transformation, resulting in their death."

Hazel stares at me for a moment before she nods approvingly "Very well Miss Lume. Consider it done. But be warned, that law also applies to you. Once we send your soul back you will go back to being a regular wolf."

I scoff "I was never regular. Hybrid gene or not, Alpha blood runs through my veins."

She smirks "You've got some spunk. I like you."

I shrug in answer and she waves her hand towards the side and a slight shimmer in the air causes a door to plop down beside us. "Go on and say goodbye to your family while I meet with the Goddess to pass that new law." She says. I nod and turn the knob, stopping only when she places her hand on my shoulder "Be sure to say your proper goodbyes, for now. The next time you die it will be permanent so get your closure now and move on so that you can live a full and happy life."

I only nod in response as any form of coherent sentence vanishes from my mind because what was I supposed to say to that?

Walking through the door I find myself standing inside my father's office. Taking in a deep breath I am immediately assaulted with the very familiar smell of burning coal and laughter coming from the backyard; Which can only mean the pack is having a barbecue. Smiling, I make my way outside and am instantly tackled to the ground by none other than my sister.

"I missed you too." I chuckle as I wrap my arms around her and we roll carelessly around in the grass.

"And here I thought you'd forgotten how to let loose." Says my father as he stands above us, hands on hips, apron on and a bright smile on his face. He extends his hand and pulls me up to my feet and then into a tight hug. "Oh my brave little girl. I am so proud of you."

"Proud? What are you proud of?" I ask as I pull back.

"The witches who have graciously opened their home to us keep us well informed with what's going on down on Earth since in one way or another we're all involved. They told us what you did. It's finally over honey, you can finally relax and focus on yourself." He says as he squeezes my shoulder. "Now come eat, we're celebrating you and everything you've managed to accomplish."

"So this whole time you knew about the witches? You do know that piece of information would've made the process of finding Rose that much faster right?"

"Oh it absolutely would've." He agreed "Unfortunately we were all spelled into secrecy."

I groan in annoyance. Of course they were spelled, anything to make things more unnecessarily complicated. "Where's mom?"

"In your room. She spends a lot of time there." Answers Nora with a small smile. I excuse myself and quickly make my way towards where my room would be, hoping this replica of the pack house was accurate. I reach where I assume my room would be and feel my chest tighten as I see my mother laying on my bed in a fetal position hugging my little wolf plushie. Her eyes were puffy from crying and her red hair was tangled and messily tied. Seeing how she is now versus the last time I was here, the difference is as clear as night and day.

"Mom? Are you okay?" I ask in concern as I step into the room. Her eyes widen and she sits up quickly wiping away her tears. A futile effort as more come streaming down her cheeks. As I close the distance her lips quiver and she pulls me into a tight hug as she comes to stand. Her quiet sobs broke my heart and I unleashed tears of my own.

"I'm so sorry." She manages to choke out.

"Why are you sorry?"

"A mother knows her child." She says "And I knew I saw something special with you and Nick. I just knew it. I know mates when I see them."

My wolf howls painfully at the mention of Nick and I try my best to remain calm as I answer. "That doesn't explain why you're crying mom. What's wrong?"

She pulls away to look in my eyes and if possible her eyes were even more puffy. "I'm crying because these damn witches play your life like a damn tv show around here. Do you have any idea the torture it is for a mother to sit by uselessly as her child suffers right before her eyes? I couldn't do anything but sit and watch as you jumped through hoops and went through literal hell in the last three days. And if none of the pain you went through was enough, to top it all off, the moment that you realize who your mate actually is it's taken away from you. What was supposed to be the happiest day of your life turned out to be the worst. I am so sorry Alora. I've failed to protect you... I've failed as your mother. I'm so sorry."

I felt my heart flood with so much appreciation and love for this woman "Mom, listen to me, it's okay. I'm okay."

"Knock knock." Says my dad as he and Nora come in.

"Mom? Are you okay? What's wrong?" Asks my sister as she immediately rushes over.

"Actually, I need to speak to all of you. Come in dad, everyone sit." I command. "There's something that I need to say and, it's actually very hard for me, so don't rush me."

"Take your time sweetheart." My dad encourages me softly.

I look at them, really look at them. My father still as strong as ever. My sister still as bright and happy as the sun, and my mother who is the embodiment of love itself. These three people, along with my grandfather, are the core of who I am and without them... well we've seen how that's been. Feeling a knot form in my throat I clear it before speaking.

"The past few years since the attack have been hard." I begin and they nod solemnly "I lost my way. I know I did but that didn't stop me from spiraling out of control and taking out my anger and pain on others. Yes they were rogues who possibly had it coming but that doesn't change the fact that I became so cold hearted and murderous. You guys are my heart and without you around... I lost myself. I closed myself up and stopped loving, stopped living. Sometimes the pain came bursting through the so called impenetrable walls I put up. It scared me just how deep the pain actually went. I learned to hold it back and never let it out all at once because if I did... I would suffocate on it. It would've killed me. It hurt so much I couldn't breathe." Just thinking about all of those feelings was overwhelming. It all came rushing back, with nothing stopping it from being released. I was done with burying it.

My mother went to speak but I held up a hand to let me finish. "This is really hard to let out, so please let me finish. Missing you guys every second has been so incredibly difficult, and painful. I never got to say goodbye. You were taken from me in the cruelest way possible so I thought the only way to cope was to become just as cruel as your death was. I see now that I was so consumed with revenge and hate that I closed the door to love and friendship. My heart hasn't been the same since the attack. It knows no love, only sorrow. It's an ache that's become soothing. An ache that I crave because feeling the aching pain of your absence is better than not feeling anything at all. But I don't want to feel that way anymore. I don't want to just survive anymore, I want to live. I want to let love and friendship back in. I want to be a worthy alpha, just like you dad."

In all my years on this Earth I have never once seen my father cry. Except for this moment. He stands up and with tears in his eyes he crushes me into him. Soon after, my mother and sister join in and I feel drowned in the most amazing warmth and love. Whatever walls were still up came crumbling down and a flood of happiness came bursting through every nook and cranny of my heart and soul. Washing away the darkness.