Destiny's Curse: Queen's Tale

Chapter 2: The Darkmoon Alpha.

Zane's Point of View.

Zane stood in the dark of the woods, his sharp eyes on her. Elena, the girl, had been running away from something. He didn't know what it was, but he knew she was hiding and running away from something.

She shook as she tried to calm her breathing, as if the forest was too much for her to handle. He could smell her fear, which was thick and heavy, but there was something else there too. Something odd,something that made his heart race in a way he couldn't explain.

He wanted to turn away. He wanted to go back to the pack house and act like this wasn't his problem. But his feet were stuck to the ground, and he couldn't look away. She was a charming beautiful girl but he didn't know how to deal with her.

But that connection... that pull.

It was like a pull on his very soul. His wolf made him feel uneasy under his skin, and a low growl shook his chest.

"Stay calm, Zane," he whispered to himself. His voice was almost lost in the trees. "Pay attention."

But he couldn't.

Her hair was wild and brown, with streaks of sunlight catching on it. It swung around her face as she turned, and her wide, scared eyes caught his. For a brief moment, they looked at each other. The shock in her eyes matched the pulse of something deep inside him, something that got stronger with every heartbeat.

He wanted to run, fight, and protect her, but his mind told him he was an i***t for even thinking about it. A person and a werewolf. There might never be a bond.

"Who are you?" Elena's voice shook, but there was a strength in it that showed she wasn't afraid.

Zane came out of the shadows slowly and carefully. He wanted to go up to her, but something stopped him. His wolf growled, a strange mix of want and fear.

Finally, he said, "Zane," and his voice was rougher than he meant it to be.

"I'm the Darkmoon Pack's Alpha."

She didn't flinch, but she did take a step back and looked him over as if she didn't know whether to trust him or run.

"I'm Elena," she said, her voice a whisper now, but it still had strength, which he hadn't expected.

Her lips shook, but she kept her fists at her sides. She wasn't giving up. Okay. He hated being weak.

He didn't know what to say but he said to her “You're my friend”.

The words stuck in his throat were too heavy to say and hard to believe. How could he even think of that? How could he, the leader of the Darkmoon Pack, have anything to do with a human?

"You're... you're not..." She stopped and narrowed her eyes. "You can't be."

Zane's body went stiff. "Do you mean that?"

She opened her mouth like she was going to say something, but then she closed it quickly. She looked at the trees behind him and then back at him. There was something about her that was otherworldly that made him uneasy. Maybe magic? No. That wasn't all. It was like something old was calling to him and demanding his attention.

She looked down at the ground, her breath shaky as she tried to stay calm. "I don't know what's going on," she said quickly, her voice a quiet but desperate plea. "There's something wrong with me." The bond... it's waking up.

Zane's chest got tight. He wanted to know more, to know why the thought of a bond made his wolf claw at the inside of his ribs. His instincts told him to run, push her away, and deny everything, but his body wouldn't let him.

What was going on with him?

"You mean..." He couldn't finish what he was saying. It sounded stupid. But the way she talked made something inside him feel like it was echoing something old.

Her eyes softened, and the fight in them turned into weakness. He could tell she was scared. But there was still an undeniable strength in the way she stood. She was trying to control whatever this was, whatever bond they were supposed to have. He should have left. He should have walked away and let her deal with whatever this was.

But his feet wouldn't budge.

Elena's chest rose and fell with each shallow breath, and her eyes searched for him, as if she were begging him. "Please... I don't know why I'm here. But I can't run anymore. I don't know how much longer I can keep this from happening.

Zane's chest tightened when her voice broke. He hated seeing her hurt and how it made him feel. But this... this wasn't just her issue. It was also his. He could feel it deep down.

"What do you mean by 'hold back'?" Zane's voice broke, not because he was scared, but because he was angry.

She was making this more difficult than it had to be. The bond wasn't real. She was a person,a human being. He shouldn't have felt any of this.

Elena's hands shook as she reached out to touch the bark of a tree nearby. Her fingers brushed over the rough surface as if it were the only thing keeping her grounded. "I can feel it... the pull." "The bond," she whispered, her voice shaking. "I've been running away from it my whole life." And now... it's happening.

Zane stepped back, and a growl came from his chest. "No," he said sharply, with a low, dangerous voice. "You aren't..." He couldn't speak because the pull inside him got stronger and stronger. Can't be ignored.

But this wasn't just a curse. It was meant to be. He realized that fate had no mercy.

He clenched his teeth and narrowed his eyes as he looked at Elena. "You're not making sense." The curse... it's not real. A tale. A story to keep people like you in check.

Elena's eyes got bigger, and her face turned red with anger. "I never asked for this!" she yelled, and the strength of her voice surprised Zane. "I never wanted to be tied down to anyone!" Not a werewolf, though!

Zane stood his ground, even though her words hurt. He knew she wasn't to blame. But still, the truth hurt him. This wasn't how it was meant to be.

The air around them changed all of a sudden. As Elena's body stiffened, the tension grew and the temperature dropped. Zane's wolf growled softly in his throat.

There was something else here now, something dark that was pulling on both of them.

"You have to go. "Now," Zane growled as he stepped back. "Before I lose my mind."

Elena didn't move. "I can't," she said in a whisper, her eyes wide with fear. "You don't get it. It will be worse if I run now. I can feel it... I can feel the bond... it's too strong.

Zane's heart was racing. "Don't make me do this," he said. "I don't want to hurt you."

But Elena's face changed, and a strange determination came into her eyes. She whispered, "You already are."

Zane realized that it wasn't just the bond that was bringing them together at that moment.

The curse was the problem. The curse that was meant to keep them from being together.

And now, whether they liked it or not, it was keeping them together.

He moved closer to her and spoke more softly. "You can't stay." It's not safe.

But Elena looked at him with eyes that were burning with something he couldn't quite put his finger on. "I'm not going," she said, her voice stronger now. "Not anymore."

The air around them seemed to hum as she spoke. The ground shook under Zane's feet, and a low growl echoed through the trees. Zane felt it…a presence…something much darker than they had thought was getting closer. He yelled, "Get back!" but it was too late. The shadows in the woods were no longer just a background. There was something watching.