When The Moon Remembers

Chapter 3: The Cursed Prince

Elowen’s Pov

He had killed the wolf that wanted me dead… and I couldn’t decide which terrified me more—its snapping jaws or the silver-eyed lycan who had ended it.

The day that was meant to be my happiest had curdled into my worst. Mother and Serenya rushed toward me, skirts billowing, their faces pale beneath the torchlight. Mother’s sapphire earrings swayed as she moved, her hands trembling when they found my arms. Serenya’s grip was harder, her nails biting into my skin before she let go.

They helped me to my feet, but I could still feel the tension crackling in the air. The entire hall seemed to hold its breath, every gaze drawn to the figure who had appeared from nowhere.

Our eyes met. And I froze.

It was as though he had slipped into my mind without permission, each thought pulled into his orbit. His appearance was nothing like the whispered horrors told in the shadows. His dark hair framed sharp cheekbones, his skin pale as moonlight, and those eyes—silver, glinting like the edge of a blade—were both beautiful and dangerous.

A faint coldness clung to the air around him, as though winter itself had followed him into the room.

The murmurs began to stir, whispers gathering like storm winds.

“He is the cursed prince…”

“I thought he was dead.”

“Wasn’t he locked away?”

“She will not die,” he roared. The sound was a weapon—deep, resonant, leaving the air thrumming in its wake. Silence fell like a command obeyed, and then—he was gone. Vanishing so quickly it was as if he had been only a shadow.

The seer stepped forward, her robes whispering against the stone floor. Her eyes were clouded but sharp, as if seeing me more clearly than I saw myself.

“She is a different one,” she declared. “The Moon Goddess has brought her to us for a reason. No harm shall befall her.”

Her words were meant to soothe, yet they settled over me like a prophecy—one I didn’t understand.

The rest of the night passed in uneasy silence. By the time we returned to our castle, I was no longer the girl who had gone to the ceremony. I didn’t come back as a wolf. I came back as a riddle.

The cursed prince had saved me. And now, the whispers claimed I must be cursed too.

A thick velvet blanket, embroidered with silver wolves mid-run, lay heavy over me. Mother stood at the foot of the bed, her red hair pinned perfectly in place despite the long night. Her eyes carried a sorrow I didn’t want to name. Serenya was beside her, holding a silver tray of fruit, her expression carefully arranged into neutrality—but the slight lift of her chin spoke volumes.

I sat up, the firelight casting long shadows on the stone walls. Mother moved closer, perching on the edge of the bed, while Serenya remained standing—a deliberate choice. No one had forced her to come here, which meant she had come to witness me like this. Weak. Humiliated.

Mother’s fingers brushed my arm, gentle but tentative, as though I might break.

“You should rest,” she murmured. “Tonight… was not what we expected.”

No, it wasn’t. I didn’t come back a wolf—I came back a question the court would whisper about for years.

Serenya’s posture was perfect, but her grip on the tray betrayed a faint tremor. She set it down with a sharp clink, the silverware striking the wood.

“Well,” she said, her tone dipped in mockery, “I suppose I should get used to being called the outcast’s sister. And the cursed prince appearing for you? Now half the court will whisper that he’s marked you. Do you have any idea what that makes me look like?”

I stared at her. “This isn’t about you, Serenya.”

“It is about me,” she snapped, her mask slipping. “Now Kaelis won’t even look at me—he’ll be too busy wondering if you’re some fated freak the Moon decided to curse.”

“Serenya!” Mother’s voice cracked like a whip. “The seer herself said the Moon Goddess sent Elowen for a reason. No harm will befall her.”

Serenya’s jaw tightened. “And you believe that? She’s the first in our pack’s history to stand in the Moon’s light and not wolf out. That’s not destiny, Mother. That’s—”

“Enough,” Mother cut in sharply. “What it is… is none of your business to decide.”

The air thickened, heavy with all the things we weren’t saying. My blanket felt heavier; my skin, colder. The cursed prince’s silver eyes flashed again in my mind—the way they had locked onto mine, the way the room had gone utterly still at his presence.

Mother’s voice softened, but the weight of her words pressed into me.

“Elowen is under the Moon’s will. And until the Goddess herself says otherwise, she remains my daughter—and your sister.”

Serenya gave a short laugh without mirth. “If you think that’s going to stop the whispers, you’re dreaming.” She turned to me, her gaze sharp as cut glass. “Enjoy your little miracle, Elowen. It won’t save you from what’s coming.”

She swept out of the room in a rustle of silk and perfume.

I exhaled slowly, my hands clutching the velvet blanket. Mother’s hand found my shoulder again, warm and steady.

“She will need a little time to adjust,” she said softly.

I nodded. “It’s not like she’s ever seen me as a sister—only as a rival.”

Mother didn’t respond, her silence answering for her.

“What about Father? And Aedric?” I pressed. “What do they think of me now?”

Her grip tightened slightly. “Aedric is worried for you. He’s never been one to show it, but it’s there. As for your father… he will come around. In time.”

I lowered my gaze, shame settling like a weight in my chest. My back still ached where the omega’s claws had raked through my gown. The memory surged—the open jaws, the blur of silver that cut between us.

“Mother… what if the prince hadn’t shown up? His appearance is once in a lifetime, and Serenya’s right—people will think I am his—”

“You are not.” Mother’s voice was quick, almost too quick, as if severing the thought before it could take shape.

She lingered long enough to smooth a hand over my hair. “Rest. Don’t dwell on tonight.”

But when she left, the silence was worse. The cursed prince’s face refused to leave my mind, and for the first time since the ceremony, I wondered if he had saved me… or claimed me.