Chapter 464: You actually did this

Chapter 464: Daphne

I cannot believe it, but I did it.

I look at the fully functioning amusement park. Sure, it is not huge, but it is by no means small either. Besides, I was on a time crunch.

I watch as the cranes do the final pieces—the giant statue of a tiny panther modeled after Lyra in panther form, the decorations, the random Redmoon wolves I got to be staff at the booths.

It is perfect.

The roller coaster curves against the sky. The carousel gleams with painted horses. The water slide—functional, safe, and exciting—looms in the distance. The cotton candy machine is ready. The games are set up. The lights are strung.

I stand in the middle of it all, my work vest still on, my hands on my hips.

I did this.

Well, I did not do this technically. But I certainly provided the money and pointed around.

The sun starts rising in the distance. Lyra will be here soon with her little friends—literally all the pups in Redmoon—to play for her ninth birthday. Last year was our first birthday together, and she did not want a thing. Just to spend time with me.

I may be overcompensating for the years I was not in her life.

I stand at the entrance of the park, watching the morning light spill over the roller coaster. The giant statue of a tiny panther gleams in the golden glow. The lights are still on from last night’s final test run.

It is 9 AM when I see the black sleek car and two trucks with more than a dozen little children at the back.

Is that safe?

Then I remember they are not human children. I have seen a little wolf fall, pop their shoulder, pop it back, and keep playing.

They are certainly not children I should be worrying about.

The car stops. The trucks stop. Children spill out like a flood of fur and chaos.

Lyra is the first one out.

She is wearing black shorts and a t-shirt. She runs toward me and slams straight into my stomach. I have to take a couple of steps back.

"I CAN’T BELIEVE IT!!!" she screams.

"YOU DID THIS!!!"

I carry her. She wraps her legs around my waist and her arms around my neck. It is like a cat on catnip.

Wait. Panthers are cats. Do I have to worry about catnip?

"Did you not ask me to?" I ask.

"I DIDN’T THINK YOU’D ACTUALLY DO IT MOM!"

I laugh.

"Of course I did it. I promised you."

Her ears pop out. So does her tail. Her eyes turn golden like a cat’s, and she is jittering in my arms.

"YOU’RE THE BEST!!!!!"

Her hands on my shoulders have claws digging into my skin. I have to put her down for my own safety.

"Yes, so happy birthday, I love you, and—"

She literally jumps out of my arms, over my head, and runs straight into the park.

"...I hope you enjoy your day," I say weakly to the girl who has already run away.

I stand there, rubbing my shoulders where her claws dug in.

The crow lands on my shoulder. I shove it off. It looks offended, but my shoulders are currently sore.

*

I sit on the park bench, helping myself to cotton candy, as I watch the poor helpless wolves running around after energetic children. If human children are a lot, werewolf ones are worse. It is 4 PM. They have been running around since 9 or 10 AM. Making them eat lunch was a fight, and it doubled their energy.

I watch as a werewolf pup falls from a rollercoaster. Bored, apparently. Someone catches it. The pup switches to human form and starts screaming again.

I think I am starting to understand why the werewolves are isolated. I can picture them jumping out of high-rise buildings.

Lyra is happy.

And I am happy.

Someone sits next to me on the bench. It is Elara.

"Don’t you think it is too much?" she asks.

"Maybe."

"You spoil her too much."

"You are the disciplining parent. I am the fun one."

She snorts.

"Too much fun."

I shrug in response.

"There is no such thing as too much fun," I say.

She laughs a little and leans her head on my shoulder. I move my arm and wrap it around her shoulders instead.

She fits perfectly. She always does. She always will.

We watch the children and panicking guardians. The children are still running, still screaming, still living. Lyra is in the middle of it all, her dark hair wild, her grin wide.

"She is happy," Elara says.

"I may have set the bar too high." I watch Lyra drag a group of pups toward the water slide. "What on earth could I possibly give her for her next birthday?"

She laughs.

"Do not worry about it." She leans against me. "When it was just us, we would just sit around the fire. I would cook her favorite meal and maybe give her a doll. So I am the one who feels inadequate."

I squeeze her shoulders slightly.

"Do not say that." I press a kiss to her hair. "I do not think that way. Lyra certainly does not."

She is quiet for a moment.

"I know," she says. "But sometimes I wonder if I did enough."

I turn her face toward me.

"No such talk," I say, and lightly pinch her cheek. "You are an amazing mother. You raised her alone for seven years. You kept her safe. I am the one at fault for not being there."

"No, it is not your fault."

"And it is yours?"

She keeps quiet and pouts her lips. She is so cute.

We hear a squeal and immediately turn our heads toward the source. It is a false alarm—Lyra is merely laughing. You can never tell when it is an "I am having fun" one or an "I am in pain" one.

Elara relaxes back into my arm.

"She is going to give me gray hair," she says.

"Enjoy it while it lasts." I watch Lyra run past with a group of pups. "Once she turns into a teenager, it will all be gone."

Elara groans.

"Do not remind me."

"I am just saying."

"I do not want to think about it."