CHAPTER 207: THE CHOICE THAT CHANGES EVERYTHING

BROCK POV

As the two babies reached for each other, the air was filled with dark magic. As Shadow-Hope reached out for real Hope’s hand, I knew that if they touched, everything we loved would be gone for good.

It hurt like hell when I threw myself forward, but I was too far away. The claws of the shadow things held me back, and normal fighting wouldn’t save Hope now. There had to be something they wouldn’t expect from me.

Then I remembered the secret I’d kept from everyone my whole life.

As I yelled, "Hope," my voice cut through the noise. "Listen to Uncle Brock."

While her tiny hand was still reaching for her dark twin, the real baby looked at me with stars in her eyes.

"I want to tell you about the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen," I said. It was weird to say those words. I had never told anyone about the things that made my heart happy. Warriors weren’t supposed to notice beauty.

But maybe that’s exactly what Hope needed to hear.

"There’s a patch of wildflowers behind the old training grounds," I continued, avoiding a shadow creature’s swipe. "They grow in the rockiest, hardest ground you can imagine. Every winter, the frost kills them. Every spring, they come back stronger."

Shadow-Hope hissed, her progress slowing. "Don’t listen to him, sister. He’s trying to trick you."

"No tricks," I said, looking straight at real Hope. "Just truth. Those flowers could grow anywhere easy, but they choose the hard places. You know why?"

Hope gurgled, and I felt through our family bond that she was actually listening.

"Because when something beautiful grows in an ugly place, it makes the whole world brighter." My voice cracked with feeling I’d never let anyone see before. "Just like how your laugh makes even the grumpiest wolves smile."

The shadow animals around me started backing away. My words were forming some kind of barrier they couldn’t cross.

"And sunrises," I went on, my heart racing. "Every morning, the sun has to push through the darkest part of night to bring light to our world. It could just stay hidden, but it decides to fight the darkness every single day."

Shadow-Hope’s glowing eyes flickered with uncertainty. "Stop it! You’re filling her head with useless dreams!"

"Not useless," I said strongly. "Necessary. Hope, when pack pups fall down while learning to run, they don’t stay on the ground crying. They get up and try again. And when they finally succeed, their joy is so pure it makes everyone around them remember why life is worth fighting for."

Real Hope pulled her hand back slightly, no longer reaching for her dark twin.

I pressed on, my inner artistic soul finally finding its voice. "I’ve watched you sleep, little one, and even in your dreams you smile. You dream about everyone in the pack being happy. Not because you force them to be happy, but because they choose happiness themselves."

"That’s foolish!" Shadow-Hope screamed. "People make bad choices! Wars happen because people choose wrong!"

"Sometimes," I agreed. "But the most beautiful thing about people is that they can also choose love. They can choose to help instead of hurt. They can choose to build instead of harm. And when they make those choices willingly, it means everything."

The golden light around real Hope grew brighter, pressing back against the shadow magic.

Through our family link, I felt Hope’s tiny mind working through my words. She was learning something important.

"Uncle Brock," she whispered, and my heart nearly stopped. Hope had never spoken before.

"Yes, sweetheart?"

"People... choose?"

"They choose," I confirmed. "And that’s what makes their love real."

Shadow-Hope let out a shriek of rage. "If you won’t come to me willingly, I’ll take your power by force!"

But something had changed. Real Hope’s light now made a shield around herself and Lily. The baby looked at her shadow twin with sadness instead of interest.

"You’re scared," Hope said to her dark self. "Scared people make bad choices."

"I’m not scared!" Shadow-Hope snarled. "I’m powerful!"

"Scared," Hope repeated gently. "Scared no one will love you if you don’t make them."

For a moment, Shadow-Hope’s angry face faltered. In that instant, she looked like what she really was - a baby who was afraid of being alone.

But then her face hardened again. "Love is weakness. Control is strength."

"Love is choosing," Hope corrected. "Even when it’s hard."

I felt a rush of pride for my niece. She was only a baby, but she understood something that had taken me years to figure out.

Shadow-Hope raised both hands, dark energy flowing around her. "Fine. If I can’t convince you, I’ll destroy this whole realm and rebuild it the way it should be!"

The shadow creatures behind her began to glow with the same dark power. But instead of attacking us, they started attacking the dimensional cracks themselves, trying to tear them wider.

"She’s not trying to invade our world anymore," Caleb shouted from behind me. "She’s trying to destroy it completely!"

I watched in horror as the cracks in reality started spreading faster. The shadow realm wasn’t just trying to replace our world - it was going to ruin everything and start over.

"How long do we have?" Aiden yelled.

Elder Iris hobbled forward, her face pale with fear. "Minutes. Maybe less. When the cracks hit critical mass, both realms will collapse into nothing."

Real Hope looked at me with those wise baby eyes. "Uncle Brock, what happens to the flowers when winter comes?"

My throat tightened. "They die, sweetheart."

"But they choose to come back?"

"They choose to come back," I confirmed.

Hope nodded slowly, then did something that made my blood run cold. She began crawling toward the biggest dimensional crack.

"Hope, no!" Lily screamed.

But the baby looked back at all of us with an attitude far too mature for her tiny face. "Someone has to choose to fix it."

"Hope, you’re just a baby," I argued. "This isn’t your job."

"Yes, it is," she said simply. "I’m the bridge between light and dark. I have to choose which side wins."

My heart shattered as I understood what she meant. Hope was going to sacrifice herself to fix the cracks.

"There has to be another way," I said desperately.

But Hope was already at the edge of the largest crack, her small hands glowing with enough power to either save both worlds or destroy them totally.

She looked back at me one last time. "Tell everyone I chose love."

And then she jumped.