The shift did not begin at the boundary.
It began at the center.
At Silver Fang, the convergence held steady.
For several hours, nothing unusual occurred.
The patterns observed earlier in the day—delay, noncompletion, sequence interruption—did not repeat immediately. The system responded with its usual precision. The world moved forward in clean, uninterrupted continuity.
Arvella almost believed, for a moment, that the earlier disturbances had passed.
Not resolved.
But… paused.
She stood alone now in the garden.
Lucas had gone inside briefly—only a short distance, only long enough to retrieve what Bianca had insisted should not be forgotten.
Food.
The ordinary insistence of it had grounded him.
Had grounded them.
Selena rested where she had been placed, her attention drifting
