==Lila==
The council room still buzzed with voices when I slipped out the side door.
Darius's words burned in my ears. The real curse. His father's orders. I needed answers and I needed them now.
I did not wait for permission. I walked straight to the bakery. My thick thighs rubbed together under the dress with every step. My soft belly moved gently.
Every curve felt like a question mark now. Like my body was asking why it had been made this way.
The little shop sat at the edge of pack land. Paint peeling on the old wooden sign. The smell of fresh beignets and strong coffee hit me before I even opened the door. It smelled like safety. Like home.
Grandmother stood behind the counter. Her old hands worked the dough with a steady rhythm. She looked up the moment I stepped inside. Her eyes knew everything already.
"You came," she said quietly. No surprise in her voice. Just acceptance.
I locked the door behind me with a soft click. My heart pounded. "Tell me about the curse."
She wiped her hands slowly on her apron. Calm as ever. "Sit down, child."
I stayed standing. My full breasts rose and fell with angry breaths. "No more secrets. Darius said Remy's father started it. To weaken plus-size wolves. Is that true?"
Grandmother sighed. She looked smaller suddenly. Tired in a way I had never seen before. "It started long before Remy's father. But he made it worse. He hated anything that did not fit his perfect image.
Slim wolves. Fast wolves. Strong in the way he liked."
She paused. Her fingers twisted the edge of her apron. "He believed soft bodies made weak blood. So he twisted an old ritual. Turned it into a curse on every curvy wolf born in this pack."
My stomach dropped. My soft belly tightened with the words. "And you knew?"
"I tried to stop it." She came around the counter. Her steps were slow and careful. "But the curse took root deep. It made our wolves smaller. Meeker. Easier to control. Until you came along."
She touched my arm. Her fingers felt warm against my soft skin. "Your blood fights it, Lila. That second howl? It is breaking the chains one by one."
I swallowed hard. My throat felt tight. "Why me?"
"Because you never tried to be small." She smiled a little. Sad and proud at the same time. "You baked with love. You carried your body with quiet strength even when the world tried to make you hide. The moon noticed."
Grandmother reached into her pocket. She pulled out a small blood-red amulet. It hung on a thin silver chain. The stone pulsed like a heartbeat. Steady and alive.
"Take this," she said. "It belonged to my mother. It will wake your wolf fully. Make her bigger. Stronger. But it comes with a price. Truth always does."
I took the amulet. The stone felt warm against my palm. My curves tingled right away. Power stirred deep inside me. Like waking up after a long sleep.
Before I could ask more the front door burst open.
Remy stormed in. His face was dark with fury. Chest heaving like he had run the whole way. "You left the house again? After everything?"
I turned to face him. The amulet dangled from my fingers. "I needed answers. Real ones. Not your half-truths."
Grandmother stepped back. She watched us quietly from the side. Her hands folded in front of her.
Remy crossed the room fast. His eyes flicked to the amulet. Then to me. They lingered on my wide hips. My soft belly. My heavy breasts under the thin dress. "You have no idea how dangerous this is."
"Dangerous for who?" I shot back. My voice rose. "For me? Or for your perfect image of what an Alpha's mate should look like?"
He grabbed my wrist. Not hard. But firm enough to hold me there. The partial bond flared hot where our skin touched. Heat rushed up my arm and settled in my chest.
Grandmother spoke softly from behind the counter. "Let her be, Alpha. She is stronger than you think."
Remy ignored her. His grip tightened just a little. "You could have been killed. Darius is circling like a shark. The council is watching every move. And you run off alone?"
I yanked my arm free. The amulet swung between us. The red stone caught the light from the window.
Suddenly it glowed brighter. Hotter.
A vision slammed into both of us at once.
I saw myself. Older. Blood on my chest. My curves pale and still. Remy held me in his arms. Tears cut tracks down his face. He rocked me gently. Whispered my name over and over like a prayer.
"No," he growled in the vision. His voice broke. "Not like this."
The image shifted. Me dying because the bond stayed broken. Because the curse won. Because he never claimed me fully.
Then it ended as fast as it came.
We stood in the bakery again. Breathing hard. The amulet still glowed between our bodies.
Remy's eyes were wide. Raw fear mixed with something deeper. Hunger. Regret. Need. All of it written plain on his face.
I touched my own chest. The vision lingered in my mind. My soft curves felt fragile now. Precious in a way they never had before.
Grandmother watched us. Silent. Her face is calm but her eyes are full of knowledge.
Remy stepped closer. His hand reached for the amulet. His fingers brushed mine. The glow pulsed stronger between us.
The bond vision had shown the truth clear as day.
If he did not claim me, I would die in his arms.
I stood there trying to catch my breath. The smell of beignets still hung in the air. It felt strange. Normal baking smells mixed with the heavy weight of curses and visions and death.
My legs felt shaky. I finally sat down on the wooden stool by the counter. My wide hips settled heavily. My soft belly rested against my thighs.
Grandmother moved quietly. She poured a cup of coffee and slid it toward me. No words. Just the small kindness she had always given.
Remy paced a few steps. His hands ran through his hair. He looked torn. Like he wanted to shout and hold me at the same time.
I stared at the amulet in my hand. The red stone had gone quiet again. But I could still feel its warmth. Like a promise and a warning rolled into one.
"Why did no one tell me sooner?" I asked. My voice came out smaller than I wanted.
Grandmother leaned against the counter. "Because knowing hurts. And some hurts we try to spare our children."
Remy stopped pacing. He looked at her. Then at me. "I thought pushing you away would protect you. From the curse. From me. From all of it."
I shook my head. "It did not protect me. It just left me confused and alone."
The bakery felt smaller now. The three of us crowded by truth and fear.
I slipped the chain over my head. The amulet settled between my full breasts. Warm against my skin.
Power hummed through me again. Deeper this time. My wolf stirred stronger. My curves felt heavier. More alive.
Remy watched the amulet rest there. His eyes darkened. Not with anger now. With something raw and hungry.
Grandmother nodded once. "It has begun."
I took a slow breath. The coffee sat untouched. My mind raced with the vision. Blood. Tears. Remy holding my still body.
I did not want to die like that. I did not want to leave him broken.
But I also did not want to be claimed out of fear.
I looked up at Remy. "What now?"
He stepped closer again. His hand hovered near my shoulder. Not quite touching. "Now we face it together. No more running. No more secrets."
Grandmother smiled faintly. "The second howl is waking. Be careful what you wake up with it."
The bakery door creaked in the breeze. Outside the bayou waited. Dark and full of secrets.
Inside I sat with the weight of my body. The weight of the curse. The weight of a future that might end in Remy's arms if we got it wrong.
My soft belly rose and fell. My thick thighs pressed together on the stool. My heavy breasts moved with each breath.
Every curve felt different now. Not a weakness. Not something to hide. But something the moon had chosen.
Something worth fighting for.
I closed my fingers around the amulet. Warm. Steady. Like a second heartbeat next to mine.
Remy's eyes met mine. Fear is still there. But also determination.
We had a curse to break. A bond to finish. And a future that might cost everything.
But for the first time I did not feel small.
I felt ready.