Rejected, Then Crowned Queen

Chapter one

The full moon's glow illuminated the valley as it hovered over the Silver Moon Kingdom in pale silver hues.

Tonight was the Moon Bond Ceremony, the night when every young wolf would discover their fated partner to spend the rest of their days with.

The valley buzzed with excitement as families gathered on the stone tiers, children playing among the rows of seats, and grins plastered across eager faces.

Lyra Ashwyn stood on the edge of the gathering, her damp palms smudging against her dress as she tried to suppress the flutters in her stomach.

"Just let me find where I belong," she murmured to herself.

She longed to belong somewhere, anywhere, really.

After her parents had vanished in the past few years, the Ashwyn family had taken her in under their care, but nobody had truly welcomed her with open arms.

Her existence was a mystery to many, and she was regarded as the strange outsider daughter with no pack or future.

They said cruel things about her, some calling her useless while others considered her cursed.

It was easier this way, pretending not to hear them when they said such things.

But tonight, tonight was different.

The Moon Goddess herself decided who would become bonded, and if there was ever a night when everything would change, it was tonight.

"Lyra!"

She turned to see Emma pushing her way through the pack of people, a grin plastered across her face.

"You look like you're about to faint."

Lyra chuckled weakly, her heartbeat hammering in her ears.

"I may be."

Her friend bumped her lightly on the shoulder, eyes sparkling with mirth.

"Relax, maybe your mate will be exceptionally good-looking."

"I'd prefer him to be kind,"

Lyra replied, and Emma grinned at her.

"I think that's even rarer."

As Emma spoke, the deep rhythm of drums began to echo around the valley, and the murmuring crowd fell silent as all heads bowed to the incoming figure.

Elder Orion reached the Moon Stone at the top of the gathering, his silver robes flowing like water as he raised his hands and bowed his head.

"Children of the Moon Goddess," his voice rang out across the hushed valley. "Tonight, the fated bonds shall be revealed."

The Moon Stone pulsed with energy as the silver-blue light from the full moon bathed it in a soft glow, etching old runes across the surface.

The young wolves took turns walking up to the stone, all of their expressions ranging from joy to tears of happiness as they embraced their fate.

The valley practically buzzed with excitement as the newly bonded pairs were announced, and Lyra stood in awe as all those happy couples interacted with each other in their joy.

Would anyone look at her with such expressions of pure happiness? Would anyone make her feel as special as those couples?

"I declare..." Lyra's ears perked up at the sound of her name being called. "...Lyra Ashwyn."

Her heart gave an involuntary leap, and all eyes were suddenly on her as she nervously walked up to the Moon Stone.

Every step felt like a mile as she reached out a hand and pressed it to the cold stone, feeling warmth flow through her veins.

She gasped as a silvery thread of light manifested before her eyes, stretching and twisting until it wrapped around hundreds of wolves before coming to a stop.

The valley fell silent as the glowing strand connected with the royal platform, and the sight of Kael Draven standing there sent her heart into overdrive.

The future Alpha King was her fated mate.

The entire valley exploded into a mix of emotions as murmurs of shock turned to gasps of disbelief as they stared at the sight before them.

"No..."

"It can't be..."

"Her mate is Kael Draven?!"

Lyra stared at the boy before her, her eyes wide with a mix of confusion and something deeper, something she couldn't quite place.

The second their gazes connected, a sudden voice echoed inside her head, filling her with a strange emotion she had never felt before.

Mate.

Tears of joy welled up in her eyes as something inside her stirred, filling the void that had been there for so long.

Maybe all these years of loneliness, of rejection, of pain and suffering, were finally coming to an end.

She walked up to Kael, the crowd parting to reveal the stoic boy standing at the royal platform.

The sight of him sent her heart skipping another beat as she stopped before him, bowing her head respectfully.

"My Alpha..."

Kael didn't appear to hear her, his cold gaze locked onto hers as though he had never seen her before in his life.

"Your duty is clear," his father, Alpha King Aldric Draven, spoke as he stood beside his son. "As the future ruler of the Silver Moon Kingdom, it is your responsibility to wed Lyra Ashwyn."

Lyra's heart pounded in her chest as Kael's eyes bore into hers.

She looked back just as determinedly, something inside her breaking as a sudden thought crossed her mind.

If she were to be his mate, would he still look at her like this?

It was as if he loathed the mere sight of her, disgust written all over his face.

Kael took a deep breath, the sound of it echoing through the valley as he straightened his shoulders.

"I, Kael Draven, future Alpha King of the Silver Moon Kingdom, refuse to accept Lyra Ashwyn as my fated mate."

Her heart clenched painfully in her chest, stealing away what little breath she had left.

"You what?!"

Lyra took a step back, but Kael's next declaration knocked the wind right out of her.

"I, Kael Draven, future Alpha King of the Silver Moon Kingdom, refuse to accept Lyra Ashwyn as my fated mate."

The valley fell eerily silent as countless murmurs of confusion rippled through the crowd.

The words had stunned her beyond words; she hadn't even realized she was on her knees until she felt the rough fabric of the ground dig into her palms.

The bond between them had snapped, and all she felt now was an unbearable emptiness in her chest.

Around her, she heard gasps and hushed whispers as the crowd dispersed, their expressions ranging from pity to disgust.

She was stunned to hear someone curse her name as the next one joined in, soon followed by a few more until it became a deafening chorus of voices chanting her hated name.

"Cursed!" They cried. "Cursed!" "Cursed!"

Emma pushed through the gathered wolves, but the royal guards blocked her path.

Tears streamed down Lyra's cheeks as she looked up at Kael, her heart breaking at the sight of him.

"Why?" Her voice was barely a whisper as she struggled to her feet.

"If we are fated..." Her voice trailed off as she stared at him, her eyes pleading. "Why?"

For the first time, something flickered across Kael's expression, a brief flash of regret before vanishing just as quickly.

"A future queen cannot afford to be weak," he said coolly, his eyes locking onto hers. "You are not worthy of standing beside me."

The last remnants of her heart shattered with his words, and the last thing she heard before her world went dark was the strange, unearthly wail that came from the Moon Stone.

The Moon Stone cracked, and the gathered crowd of wolves fell silent in stunned horror as cracks raced up the monument's surface.

The pale blue moonlight began to bleed red as the sky darkened ominously.

A frigid wind whipped through the valley as the elders paled in fright.

"This... this can't be happening," Elder Orion murmured, his voice barely audible over the rising wind.

Never in his long years had he witnessed such a thing.

Deep beneath the earth, buried in long-forgotten ruins, two sets of ancient eyes opened in the darkness.

And a long, forgotten voice whispered a name that had not been spoken in centuries.

"Lyra."