moonbound hearts

I was born in Lupinia, the land of Bloodmoon wolves. We are the strongest, the smartest, the bravest, or so every story says. Other packs like the Irondaw, Darkpine, and Shadowfang might argue otherwise, but deep down, they know the truth. Bloodmoon wolves are unmatched. My father told me so since I could remember. I wouldn’t know for myself. My mother died giving birth to me, and my father, Fenris, a Bloodmoon warrior, belongs more to the battlefield than to me. He’s my father in name, but my life has always been filled more with his absence than his presence. Still, I clung to his rare words, especially the one he repeated most: "A Bloodmoon can never mate outside our pack. We are the strongest. What would you do with a Darkpine wolf?" I asked him once why the Goddess forbade it. He never explained, just gave that answer again as if it were enough. Tonight, it was supposed to be enough. I was eighteen now, the age when the Moonlight Goddess would reveal my destined mate. I’d only ever heard stories from friends, stories they’d heard from their parents. My father never told me what it would be like. I thought I was ready, but my heart kept thudding faster every time the word “mate” crossed my mind. That evening, I overheard two girls in the market whispering, their voices trembling with excitement. "The Moonlight Goddess will choose the eighteen-year-old girls tonight, " one giggled. Before I could linger, my father arrived home. “Selena, ” he said, his voice uncharacteristically soft, “you’ll be meeting your destined mate tonight. I just heard the news. ” I should have been happy. Instead, my thoughts spun wildly, What if he’s dark? Fair? Tall? Short? What if he hates me? Then my father went inside and returned with a small bundle. He unwrapped it to reveal a white dress, short, delicate, the fabric shimmering faintly. “Your mother wore this when the Goddess revealed her to me, ” he said, a faint smile breaking through his usual hard expression. “I was too blessed to have her. It felt like the Goddess already knew exactly who I wanted. ” I took the dress from him, my heart swelling with a strange mix of pride and fear.When I stepped into the sitting room later, dressed and ready, his eyes softened again. me proud. ” “Make The Moonlight Mate Ceremony was already alive when we arrived. The air hummed with excitement, the moon’s glow silvering the gathering of wolves. Nine girls, myself included, stood waiting for the Goddess to call our names. My gaze swept the crowd, and stopped. Adrian Blackthrone. The Alpha’s only son. Power clung to him like a shadow. Midnight hair framed a face both sharp and striking, his broad shoulders wrapped in a tailored black coat. Even before his eyes found mine, something in my chest tightened. But I looked away. I didn’t want to hope for something impossible. The Moonlight Goddess’s voice rang out, clear and commanding. Names were called. Mates were paired. Laughter, tears, gasps. Then... “Selena. Step forward. Adrian Blackthrone, here is your mate. ” The breath left my lungs. Heat flooded my chest, my hands trembling. Against every rational thought, joy bloomed, until he spoke. “I am the Alpha’s only son, ” Adrian’s voice carried, deep and steady, “and I will need a confident, fearless wolf by my side as my woman. So I, Adrian Blackthrone… reject you as my mate. ” The words hit harder than any blow. Around me, the crowd gasped, their shock slicing the air. I searched his face for even a flicker of doubt. There was none. Behind him, Alpha Roderick’s smirk was sharp as a blade. Beside him, Nivienne Blackthrone’s eyes glimmered with something softer, pity. But she didn’t speak. No one did. I ran. I didn’t stop to breathe, to think, to care where my feet carried me. Home. Clothes stuffed into a bag. My father’s voice called after me, telling me to stay. But I couldn’t. Not with the humiliation burning through my veins. My vision blurred with tears. I refused to let fall. The forest swallowed me, moonlight flickering through the branches. I didn’t know how far I’d gone until the air grew colder, the scent of unfamiliar earth filling my lungs.A sound. Branches shifting. Leaves crunching. From the shadows, a tall figure stepped into view, broader than Adrian, eyes sharp and unreadable. An arrow sliced through the air. He caught it mid-flight, his hand closing around it like it was nothing. “I can boldly say you’re a Bloodmoon wolf, ” his voice was low, dangerous. “What are you doing here?” I said nothing, my breath shallow. “Darkpine wolves don’t mix with Bloodmoon wolves, ” he continued, stepping closer. what brings you here?” “So, lady, “I just lost my way, ” I said softly. “I just… need shelter. ” His gaze didn’t soften. But he didn’t walk away either. He tucked the arrow into a knot of bark. Up close, moonlight caught a pale scar along his cheek. “You shouldn’t be alone, ” he said. “The woods aren’t kind to hearts that bleed. ” “Why help me?” I asked. “Because some cruelties are tasteless, ” he said. those who ask. ” “There’s a hut not far, Mera keeps it. She helps He offered a name. “Damien. ” “I’m Selena, ” I answered, my voice almost lost to the night wind. We moved through the hush of trees. Lupinia’s glow shrank behind us. Each step away felt like a small reclaiming of myself. When the hut’s smoky light winked through branches I let out a breath I hadn’t known I was holding. Damien led me in without fuss. Inside, the kettle hissed and Mera’s questions were gentle. Tea warmed my hands, and with every sip the raw edge of humiliation dulled. The scent of pine smoke wrapped around me like a blanket, and for the first time that night, I didn’t feel hunted. I realized then that being chosen by a goddess mattered less than choosing myself.The Moonlight Goddess may have fashioned destinies for some, and Adrian may have staged rejection like a curtain fall. But the stranger who’d caught an arrow for me had given me a different kind of fate, shelter, compassion, and the quiet freedom to decide what came next.