The Werewolf and the Dragon King

ONE MONTH AGO -SELENE- In the dim moonlight, my gaze locked onto the ancient chalice, my breath held tight. Tonight, the mate curse would either break or consume us all. My heart raced faster than a thunderstorm rolling in. The sun had long dipped below the horizon, leaving the silver moon to cast its soft glow over us. I was shivering, but it was more anticipation than the cold night air on the hills surrounding my friend Pippa's estate. My family and Pippa's, along with our mates, stood frozen like statues. The only thing moving was the thrum of our hearts, beating in unison. We watched as Petru, Pippa’s father, stepped forward to a raised stone platform. The king of the vampires took an old, sharp dagger and sliced a clean gash across his palm without flinching. A frown overtook his royal features as he concentrated on the task. His fist clenched, knuckles pale, until dark blood welled and fell from the center, landing inside the chalice. One drop, a second, a third—several drops until Petru decided it was enough. It seemed to last forever, though it may have passed in only a few seconds. I couldn’t say. The wind whispered around us, as if ancient words were being chanted. Petru raised the chalice, the light giving the old relic a faint glow. Lohe stood close, his strong arms encircling me like a barrier against the world. My mate didn’t want me in this place. His every instinct screamed to keep me safe, to protect me at all costs. But I had to witness it for myself. I needed to see with my own eyes the moment the curse Petru had placed on the chalice five centuries ago would finally break. Because in a moment of pure despair, the vampire king had used the sacred relic to doom himself, severing his ability to feel the mate bond. But he hadn’t grasped the full consequences. The chalice was more than a sacred relic. It was the final gateway to my mate’s realm. Its power was immense. The curse triggered a chain reaction, not only breaking the bonds between other destined pairs but also trapping Lohe, barring him from ever returning home. So for centuries, Lohe waited in a hidden cave, imprisoned in his dragon form. Bound to the chalice, he guarded it relentlessly, hoping one day it might offer a way back to his world. But it was only when I found him—and the chalice—that things finally began to change. My friends and I went to the cave and found my mate in his dragon form, his mind cloudy by the chalice's magic. I hadn’t known he was a shifter then. Wounded by my sister’s mate, he lay broken and silent. I healed him with my powers, instinct guiding me before understanding could. From that moment on, everything shifted. Lohe reclaimed his human form, and with it, the truth. He saw me. Recognized me. His mate. But I didn’t feel it. You see, the stupid chalice was growing stronger by the day, and it blocked me from feeling the bond. Until this day, I still can’t, even when my whole body screams that I belong at Lohe’s side. I’m in love with him. My soul sings his name, my body aches for his touch. Even if my wolf doesn’t feel the mate pull, she knows that he is ours. Our hearts are already entwined, even if we are not marked yet. He’ll stay with me, no matter where I go. I only care about breaking the curse for the others’ sake and to weaken the chalice’s power. Because right now, the chalice is too powerful to be destroyed. After this, Lohe will take it to a faraway place and melt it with his dragon fire. Still, we don’t know if the curse will truly lift. My heart thundered in my chest, louder than the wind sweeping across the hills. "It’s going to be okay," Lohe whispered behind me, his voice deep and steady. "Petru knows what he’s doing." His lips grazed my cheek with a soft kiss that assured me of his love. Petru brought the chalice to his mouth and took a couple of gulps, his throat slowly bobbing. He lowered the cup, tongue licking his lips. For a moment, nothing happened. Just silence. Then the whispering began, soft at first, then rising, swelling into a chorus that filled the air. We stood frozen, breathless, the silence broken only by the pulse we all felt echoing between us. Then a crack rippled through the surrounding energy. The wind surged—a whirlwind tearing through the earth, lifting vegetation and stones into the air. The night deepened, the moon swallowed by shadow as silver wisps of magic spiraled between us, wild and frenzied, lashing our skin with their fury. Lohe’s arms locked around me, his body shifting—part dragon now, red wings unfurling to shield us in a cocoon of strength and fire. The chalice in Petru’s hand absorbed all the energy at once. A loud crack echoed, shaking the ground. My teeth clashed in my mouth as I fought to keep my eyes open against the raging wind. Then the chalice gave it all back, the energy rippling through the air. And I felt it. Deep in my bones, in my soul. The curse was broken. The mate bond struck like lightning. I staggered, breath stolen, senses flooded. A tidal wave of sensation crashed into me—my skin tingled, alive beneath his touch, my heart threatening to burst. Lohe’s scent wrapped around me like silk and smoke, intoxicating and comforting. His head was still nestled in the crook of my neck, his strong arms wrapped around me from behind, his warm breath fanning against my skin. And in that moment, I knew I hadn’t been foolish to believe I loved him before. Because now, with the bond blazing between us, I understood what love truly was. It was madness I welcomed. A fire I touched without caring if I got burned. Because I was already branded. Lohe lived in my heart, nestled between my thoughts, in every breath. Every inhale, every heartbeat, every motion whispered his name. My soul reached for him, my body craved him. He was no longer just mine—he was part of me. I spun to face him, arms sliding around his neck. His brown hair was tousled, his lips curved in the faintest smile. But it was his eyes—those deep, chocolate-brown eyes with a yellow ring around the pupil—that undid me. They shimmered with passion, wonder, and something so raw it made my throat ache with unshed tears. "I love you, Selene," he said, voice trembling with truth. "I don’t know what I did to deserve an amazing woman like you. But I won’t question the gods, even if they paired a werewolf with a dragon shifter. Because in this chaotic world, you are the only thing that makes sense, the only certainty I wouldn’t refute. Mate bond or not, you’re my truth. My soul belongs to you. Always. Until the end of time." My smile was shy and radiant before my lips met his in a kiss that echoed through my very essence. His wings folded around us, a sanctuary of warmth and devotion. His hands traced me with reverence—my face, my hair, my shoulders, my back—each touch a vow. Our bond was beyond reason, beyond time and space, beyond fate. He was the fire to my oxygen, the light to my darkness, the rough edge to my softness. As I whispered my love into his mouth, my chest brimming with joy, I sent a silent prayer to the Moon Goddess. Please, let this moment last forever. But she must not have heard me. Because one month later, everything would change. Everything I loved—everything I held dear—would be ripped from me completely. In a single breath. Forever.