The video spread faster than anyone could stop it. By the following morning, it had reached nearly every corner of the world. The footage was impossible to ignore with how violent it was. A werefox walking peacefully through Central Park. Children taking pictures with him. Families laughing with him. Then the shouting. The silver. The violence.
People watched the recording over and over for what seems like forever and of course, they became angry. Not just supernaturals but also the Barebloods too.
Protests began erupting across multiple countries almost immediately. Small gatherings formed outside city halls and government buildings before growing into crowds numbering in the thousands. Some carried signs demanding justice for the werefox. Others demanded protections for supernatural races. As the demonstrations grew, younger members of the Witching Hour began appearing openly among the crowds as well. Vampires arrived beneath umbrellas, wide-brimmed hats, and every form of sunlight protection available, standing beside Bareblood protesters rather than hiding from them. Werebeings were even harder to miss. Many attended in their beast forms without hesitation, tails swaying, ears twitching, scales glinting, or fur catching the sunlight as they marched through streets that would have terrified their parents' generation. For the first time, large numbers of supernaturals were not gathering in secret, they were standing openly among ordinary people demanding the same thing: protection and recognition.
Many simply asked the same question. How was this allowed to happen?
The answer only made things worse clearly.
The attackers had been arrested. Then released almost too fast. The legal system had run directly into a problem nobody had anticipated. Most countries possessed no legal framework regarding supernatural races. No protected classifications. No established definitions. No existing laws designed for beings that had only officially existed for a few weeks.
A talented defense attorney took advantage of every loophole available, and before long the attackers were walking free. The decision immediately sparked outrage, causing the video to spread even further across news networks and social media. Protests that had already begun growing only became larger, while every major platform turned into a battlefield of arguments, accusations, and endless debate. Supporters demanded justice for the werefox, critics defended the attackers, and countless others added their own opinions as the incident consumed public attention worldwide. Supporters and critics battled endlessly through comment sections, livestreams, forums, and news broadcasts. Fear mixed with sympathy. Conspiracy theories mixed with facts. Propaganda circulated from every side.
Meanwhile, inside a New York hospital, silence filled a private room. The werefox remained unconscious on the sterile bed. Silver burns covered large portions of his body. Bandages wrapped his arms, shoulders, and neck. The Alpha, the werefox's leader, had spared no effort. Alongside the hospital's treatment, he had personally requested assistance from several witches skilled in healing magic, hoping to speed up the recovery. The spells helped the werefox and eased some of the damage, but silver wounds were notoriously difficult for supernaturals to recover from. The burns refused to disappear completely through magic alone, forcing them to rely on ordinary medicine, bandages, ointments, and time to do the rest. Recovery was no longer a question of survival, but it would still be a long and painful process.
Beside the bed sat another werefox. Older and larger. His Alpha, the one who requested the healing magic.
He had arrived only hours after the attack. Since then, he had barely moved. He simply sat beside the hospital bed, staring quietly at the unconscious member of his pack. The similarities were difficult to ignore. Like Silas, the young werefox had left home hoping to experience the Bareblood world for himself. Like Silas, he had been curious. The difference was that Silas had met Ingrid. This one lived alone in his apartment, enjoying the world. Yet, the moment he showed himself freely, he had met a silver ring crashing all over his body.
The Alpha's hands remained clenched tightly enough to leave marks in the chair's armrests.The attackers were free. That thought refused to leave his mind. Doctors entered carefully whenever necessary. Nurses spoke quietly, unsure how sensitive to noises their ears were. Nobody wanted to be the one who disturbed him. Not because he threatened anyone but because everyone could feel how hard he was trying not to.
As more information became public, public opinion continued shifting.
Many Barebloods had initially assumed supernaturals were dangerous predators lurking among humanity. The reality turned out to be far less dramatic. Most vampires obtained blood legally through regulated blood banks and medical distribution systems that had quietly worked with the Witching Hour for years. The amount they could receive was limited, however, and even birthrights that subtly influenced human thought could not simply bypass public regulations without drawing suspicion. When supplies ran short or became unavailable, many vampires relied on animal blood instead. It kept them alive, but most agreed it was a poor substitute compared to human blood. Werebeings largely lived on ordinary food. Some hunted wildlife. Others bought groceries. Witches were simply people capable or practiced the use of mana. That answer alone had sparked countless discussions afterward. Many Bareblood women immediately became interested in learning magic themselves after discovering it was a skill that could be studied rather than something reserved for mythical figures. Some men had been equally eager until Mildred Rossi clarified during the public hearing that no male equivalent existed and that magic, at least in the way witches practiced it, was exclusive to women. The revelation disappointed many aspiring "wizards" overnight, though it certainly did not stop them from complaining about it online.
The more details emerged, the harder it became for many people to justify treating every supernatural like a monster. Support continued growing. Not everywhere. But enough. Governments struggled with the growing public unease. Every press conference created new problems. Every answer produced more questions.
Could supernatural races become citizens?
Could they vote?
Could they own businesses?
Could they serve in government positions?
Could supernaturals adopt children without the risk of exploitation?
Would magical education become regulated?
With every new question, one thing became increasingly obvious: nobody actually knew how two worlds were supposed to live together. Not even the Witching Hour with its long age.
Several days later, one interview changed the conversation entirely. The discussion had originally focused on the werefox attack. It was supposed to be another panel regarding coexistence. Instead, it became international news.
The human woman participating in the interview had clearly reached her limit. After spending days reading increasingly hostile comments online, she openly criticized the growing hatred directed toward supernatural races. Then she revealed why she cared so much in the interview she initiated. It was because her husband was a vampire. For a brief moment, the conversation stalled. Across televisions, livestreams, and countless phone screens, millions of viewers listened in silence. Then the vampire sitting beside her quietly confirmed it. And then came the second revelation. They had a child. That was the moment everything changed. Not because of the relationship. Because of what the child represented. The future. The possibility that humans and supernaturals were already building families together. The woman angrily defended her husband. She spoke about years of secrecy. Years of hiding and the time spent listening to people describe supernatural races as monsters while knowing the father of her child belonged to one of them.
Beside her, the vampire admitted that he had spent much of his life pretending to be human whenever they went outside together. Fear had simply become routine. Long before meeting his wife, he had been exiled from his clan and spent decades alone, never expecting he would find someone willing to love him, much less build a family with him. Then the interviewer asked what part of human society he enjoyed most. The vampire laughed softly.
Halloween.
Of all things. Halloween. He explained that it was the one day every year when nobody questioned him when he bares his fang and controls rats, his birthright. Parents complimented his fangs. Children admired his appearance and the rats making cute noises on his shoulders. Strangers assumed he was wearing a costume or that he trained the rats to act cute for treats. For a few hours, he could walk beside his wife and daughter without pretending to be someone else.
The interview spread across the internet before it even ended. Reactions arrived immediately. Some praised the family. Others accused the woman of betraying humanity. Arguments intensified, support grew, and so did hostility. But one unexpected thing happened. People began coming forward. Days turned into weeks. More relationships appeared publicly. Human and witch couples. Human and vampire couples. Human and werebeing couples. Families that had spent years hiding suddenly realized they were no longer alone. For every couple that appeared publicly, another found the courage to follow. The world watched as stories that had once remained secret slowly surfaced one after another.
Inside Nocturne, the Witching Hour watched everything. The interviews. The protests. The arguments. The families. The social media chaos. The senators had expected political consequences. They had expected legal complications. Most had not anticipated this. Society itself was changing.
Soline stared at the latest reports in silence. For weeks she had focused on governments, policies, diplomatic negotiations, and public hearings.
Now she realized she had been looking at the wrong thing. The real transformation wasn't happening in senate chambers. It wasn't happening inside government offices. It was happening in homes, schools, workplaces, communities, and relationships.
The exposure had already gone beyond politics. It was beginning to reshape everyday life and there was no putting it back.
Across major cities throughout the world, crowds continued gathering. Thousands became tens of thousands. Then more.
Humans stood beside witches. Werebeings stood beside ordinary civilians. Vampires joined demonstrations openly. Signs filled the streets.
Recognition.
Protection.
Representation.
Coexistence.
The demands grew louder with each passing day. And as the protests spread across the globe, one message rose above all others. The world no longer wanted secrecy. It wanted laws. Laws that would allow humans and supernatural races to live together.
And it wanted them now.