Where The Opal Light Leads
1159 Words
Evening light streamed through the tall crystal windows of Vaeluna Castle, brushing every curve and contour of my room with silver. I stood before the grand mirror, breath catching as I adjusted the bodice of my gown.
The blush-hued tulip dress faded to pearl at the hem, simple in silhouette but daring in detail. It clung to my figure more boldly than I was used to. My shoulders were bare, my back mostly exposed, and the sweetheart neckline showcased a hint more cleavage than any royal etiquette scroll would have condoned.
But I didn’t care.
Tonight, I wasn’t just a princess. I was a woman claiming her fate.
My sisters had braided my hair with meticulous care, weaving in strands of rose quartz that gleamed like dawn caught in glass. My skin shimmered faintly under the glow of golden iris pollen—an enchantment that left my shoulders and collarbone radiant, kissed by starlight.
Alluring. Irresistible. Dangerous. Like a Venus flytrap dressed in moonlight.
And that was the point.
I turned from the mirror, spine tingling. A pulse shimmered across my collarbone—a phantom kiss, right where the opal necklace once lay.
He kissed it. I know he did.
My breath caught. Noctis.
Surely it was only imagination. Wishful thinking. But somewhere deep down, I knew.
The necklace I had given to Seryna—laced with my magic, bound to my light—had been activated. And I had felt it.
For months, I had lived with the ache of distance and the weight of a promise made. A vow to my mother, the Queen, that I would not seek him out. I don't know what had caused her to change her mind and I didn't care.
I let out a slow breath and faced the mirror again. My heart thundered with both fear and anticipation. The banquet would begin soon. Five different suitors, each vying for my hand. But I knew the truth.
Tonight, I would make sure he saw me.
And the others?
They were wasting their time.
I fastened one final detail around my neck—the red jewel crafted from Noctis’s own blood. The very necklace he had made to keep me safe, a talisman that had once summoned him when my life was in danger. As the cool chain settled against my skin, I pressed the gem to my collarbone. It pulsed faintly, as though responding to his kiss across time and space.
The door burst open.
My sisters swept into the room like a whirlwind of silk and wings. Irisel led the way, regal and poised in a one-shoulder gown of royal lavender. Real lavender blooms adorned her bodice, dissolving into misty silk that trailed behind her like fog at dawn. Purple—the color of our house, our bloodline, our crown. She, like our mother, bore the wings of a violet owl moth—wings reserved only for the Queen and her heir.
Myrelle followed, bold and radiant as always. Her dress was a masterpiece in motion: deep violet petals of an iris flared outward to form the skirt, the golden throat of the bloom wrapping her torso like living armor. It was striking. Fierce. Entirely her.
Myrelle and I had inherited Father’s wings—lunar moth, like moonlight spun into silk. But unlike either of them, I had once dreamed of a different life. Being so far removed from the throne had granted me freedoms they never knew—freedoms that led me to study nature and medicine abroad, to run my own spa.
“It’s time,” Irisel said, smoothing the skirts of my gown with practiced hands.
“Try not to trip,” Myrelle added, grinning. “Unless it’s into his arms.”
I chuckled, nerves rippling like harp strings through my chest. They flanked me like sentries, each taking an arm as we headed down the glittering halls of Vaeluna Castle.Perhaps they feared I would flee.And perhaps they were right to.
Had Myrelle not told me the truth, I might have done just that—left five confused suitors standing alone while I hid behind the moon gardens, sketching cloud patterns into the sky.
But then Myrelle had whispered of a candidate from the Moon Kingdom, selected by Queen Seryna herself.
From that moment on, everything changed.
Tonight, I would not hide. Tonight, I would not wait for fate to find me.
Tonight, I would claim him.
Let the others try.
He was already mine—and I would be forever his.
— Noctis
The portal flared to life before me—a shimmer of iridescent magic rippling like a veil across reality. With one last glance behind, I stepped through.
I had expected animosity. Vampires don’t exactly inspire warmth in other realms, thanks to centuries of superstition and the crimes of those who follow Noctyra. We’ve been painted as monsters—harbingers of death.But that couldn’t be further from the truth.
Not all vampires drink the blood of sentient beings. Only the fanatics do—the ones corrupted by darkness, followers of the Goddess Noctyra. Most of us live off animal blood. Some go even further, sustaining themselves on red vegetables, berries, and herbs rich in the nutrients blood carries.
I balance both. A careful mix of blood and nourishment from the earth—it keeps me strong, allows me to live among wolves and mortals without fear. I only hunt when gravely wounded or in preparation for battle. And never—not once—have I harmed a sentient soul to survive.
So yes, I had expected suspicion. Cold glances. Whispers. But Vaeluna met me with silence.
Not fear. Not hate. Just a heavy, waiting stillness. Magic in the air so thick it seemed to shimmer.
This was my first time entering the fae realm. You cannot cross into Veluna unless welcomed—and I had never been.
It was… breathtaking.
Liora had told me stories during our many late-night conversations. Her voice always softened when she spoke of her home: the golden fields of the Sunstride Plains, the flower-laced towers of Blossomreach, the frost-kissed woodlands of Frostmere, the endless orchards of Ambervale.
But Vaeluna—Vaeluna had always been her favorite.
And now I understood why.
The city unfolded before me like something conjured from my wildest dreams. Glass towers twined upward like vines, catching and refracting moonlight from the twin orbs suspended overhead. The roads shimmered beneath my feet, made from enchanted crystal, humming with power.
Fairies zipped through the skies above, their wings catching starlight as they passed between floating bridges and blossom-draped balconies. Magic pulsed with every breath, every heartbeat.
And somewhere in this radiant world… was her.
My steps slowed. My past—my exile, my losses—faded beneath the weight of wonder.
I had made it.
I was here.
And soon, I would see her again.
Let the others try.
But I knew she would be mine.
- Writer
