Lost Luna

Chapter 2

Nymera’s POV

The next morning, I walked into class nervously, expecting Bruce to start again.

Instead, the moment he saw me enter beside Astra and Prince Kaelith, he looked away immediately.

Astra smirked proudly. “See? Problem solved.”

Prince Kaelith pulled out a chair for me. “Sit here.”

My eyes widened. “Beside you?”

“Do you see another Nymera in this class?”

Astra rolled her eyes dramatically. “You always sound so serious.”

“You always sound too loud.”

“You’re annoying.”

“You started it.”

I stared at both of them before a tiny laugh escaped my mouth.

They both turned toward me immediately.

I slapped my hands over my mouth in embarrassment.

But instead of laughing at me, Astra grinned.

“There,” she said proudly. “She laughed.”

Prince Kaelith smiled, too. And somehow, for the very first time in my life, school didn’t feel so scary anymore. Weeks passed quickly after that. Bruce and the others completely stopped bullying me. Mostly because Astra threatened to break Bruce’s nose if he touched me again. And because Prince Kaelith once made an example out of another boy by forcing him to apologise publicly after calling me “useless.” Nobody wanted trouble with the future Alpha.

Soon, the three of us became inseparable. At lunch, we sat together. During classes, Astra copied my assignments while pretending she understood anything the teachers said. And Prince Kaelith always walked me home halfway before his guards dragged him back toward the palace.

“You spoil her too much,” Astra complained one afternoon while we sat under the big oak tree near the training grounds.

Prince Kaelith looked up from the book in his hand. “How?”

“You carry her books.”

“They’re heavy.”

“You gave her your dessert yesterday.”

“She likes strawberry cake.”

Astra gasped dramatically before turning to me. “Nymera, he has never shared strawberry cake with me before.”

I panicked immediately. “I-I can give it back next time…”

Astra burst into laughter.

Prince Kaelith shook his head. “Ignore her. She enjoys confusing people.”

“I do not.”

“You absolutely do.”

I smiled quietly while watching them argue again.

Years later…

Years passed quickly after that. The older we got, the more people talked.

Not just about Prince Kaelith being the future Alpha or Astra becoming one of the strongest girls in training class. People talked about me too. Mostly because I still didn’t have a wolf. I had no strength, no heightened senses. But Kaelith and Astra never left me behind. Every afternoon after classes, the three of us stayed together near the palace gardens while Kaelith trained with the warriors. Well... Kaelith trained while Astra mostly showed off.

“Did you see that?” Astra grinned after knocking another teenage boy flat on his back during sparring practice.

The poor boy groaned from the ground.

Kaelith barely looked up from fixing the bandage around his wrist. “You almost broke his shoulder.”

“He’ll survive.”

“You say that every time.”

Astra smirked before walking toward us proudly. “Did you watch me, Nymera?”

I nodded quickly. “You were amazing.”

“Obviously.” She flipped her hair dramatically before dropping beside me on the grass. “One day I’ll become commander of the female warriors.”

Kaelith snorted softly. “You’d terrify the entire pack.”

“I already do.”

I laughed quietly while Astra grinned proudly at herself.

Then Kaelith suddenly tossed an apple toward me.

I nearly missed it.

“You need faster reflexes,” he teased lightly.

I glared at him while Astra burst into laughter.

“That was mean.”

“She caught it.”

“Barely.”

I crossed my arms. “You’re both annoying.”

Kaelith smiled and that stupid feeling in my chest appeared again. It had only gotten worse as we grew older. Back when we were kids, I thought maybe I only admired him because he was kind to me. But now I noticed everything. The way his voice deepened when he laughed. The way girls stared at him during training, the way older warriors already respected him. And the way my heart acted strangely whenever he looked at me too long.

Unfortunately, Astra noticed too. And sometimes her smile tightened slightly whenever Kaelith paid too much attention to me.

Kaelith reached over suddenly and brushed a leaf from my hair.

“There,” he said simply.

I froze.

Astra’s grin flickered for just one second before returning immediately.

“You treat Nymera like she’ll break apart if the wind touches her.”

Kaelith frowned. “I do not.”

“You do.” Astra leaned back against the tree casually. “You never notice when girls flirt with you, but somehow you always notice when Nymera sneezes.”

My face heated instantly.

Kaelith looked confused instead. “What does that even mean?”

Astra laughed loudly. “Exactly my point.”

I quickly looked away while pretending to focus on the apple in my lap.

Sometimes Astra said things like that. It was never enough to sound serious.

But it's enough to make my stomach twist awkwardly. Still, she remained my closest friend. She braided my hair during festivals, snuck desserts into my room during pack celebrations, and helped me practice speaking whenever my stutter got bad.

And whenever people mocked me for being wolfless, Astra always looked angrier than I did. Which was why I ignored the strange feeling that appeared sometimes whenever Kaelith smiled at me. I told myself I was imagining things.

That night, the palace held a celebration feast after one of the warriors returned from a successful patrol mission. Daddy was busy organising records with the elders, so I sat quietly beside Astra near the long dining tables while music played around us. Kaelith sat directly across from me. Unfortunately, several girls from the higher training class also sat nearby. And they would not stop staring at him.

One of them said, “Prince Kaelith looked at me during training today.”

“No, he looked at me.” The other replied.

“You’re both delusional.”

Astra rolled her eyes so hard I almost laughed.

Then one of the girls suddenly leaned closer toward Kaelith.

“Prince Kaelith, would you dance with me later?”

Kaelith blinked slowly, like he genuinely didn’t understand why she was asking.

“I don’t dance.”