The Alpha's Forbidden Luna

The moon had never chosen a Luna before. Not in Nightfall Pack. For generations, the Moon Ceremony had been nothing more than tradition—a night when wolves gathered beneath the silver moon, offered prayers to the Moon Goddess, and celebrated the bond between their Alpha and his chosen mate. Tonight was supposed to be no different. Aria stood at the edge of the ceremonial grounds, trying not to draw attention to herself. She had no reason to be here. She wasn't an important wolf. She wasn't a warrior or the daughter of an influential family. She was simply the healer's daughter. And people like her were supposed to remain invisible during ceremonies like this. "Stop looking so nervous," Mira whispered beside her. Aria glanced at her friend. "I'm not nervous." "You've been twisting that ribbon for five minutes." Aria looked down. Her fingers were, indeed, wrapped tightly around the end of her dress ribbon. She quickly released it. "I'm fine." Mira smiled knowingly. Neither of them believed her. At the center of the clearing stood Alpha Damon Blackwood. He was impossible to ignore. Tall. Broad-shouldered. Dressed entirely in black, with the silver crest of Nightfall Pack embroidered across his chest. The entire pack seemed to become quieter whenever he moved. Beside him stood his Beta, Cassian. While Damon watched the crowd with a cold, unreadable expression, Cassian's eyes moved constantly, observing everything. Aria had always found that unsettling. The Alpha was intimidating. The Beta was worse. Damon raised one hand. The conversations immediately stopped. "The Moon Ceremony will begin." A low howl rose from the warriors surrounding the clearing. Aria lowered her head. She had attended the ceremony every year since childhood. She knew what would happen. The Alpha would stand beneath the moon. The elders would perform the ancient blessing. Then Damon would return to his position beside the woman everyone believed would one day become his Luna. Selene. Beautiful, powerful, and born into one of Nightfall's oldest families. Aria had never understood why she kept looking at them. Perhaps because something about tonight felt wrong. She couldn't explain it. Her wolf had been restless since sunset. Not afraid. Excited. Almost expectant. Aria pressed a hand against her chest. "Calm down," she whispered. Her wolf didn't listen. The ceremony began. The elders stepped forward and began chanting. The wind moved through the trees. Clouds slowly drifted away from the moon, revealing a brilliant silver circle in the night sky. Damon stepped into the center of the ceremonial circle. Everyone bowed. Aria did the same. Then she heard something. A whisper. Not from the people around her. From inside her head. Come forward. Aria froze. Her breath caught. She looked around. Nobody seemed to have heard it. Then it came again. Come forward, Aria. Her heart slammed against her ribs. She took one step. Mira grabbed her wrist. "Where are you going?" "I—I don't know." Another step. The ceremonial fire suddenly flared. Everyone looked up. The elders stopped chanting. Damon turned. His eyes locked onto Aria. For a moment, neither of them moved. Then the moonlight changed. A silver beam descended directly onto the clearing. And landed on Aria. Gasps erupted through the crowd. Aria stared at her hands. Silver light shimmered across her skin. "What is happening?" she whispered. The elders backed away. One of them dropped to his knees. "No." The word echoed through the silence. Damon's expression hardened. "What did you say?" The old elder looked at Aria with unmistakable fear. "That's impossible." Cassian stepped forward. "What is?" The elder didn't answer. Instead, he stared at Aria as though he were looking at a ghost. Then the Moon Goddess's mark appeared on Aria's wrist. A crescent surrounded by three small stars. The entire pack fell silent. Damon's wolf suddenly growled inside him. He staggered half a step. Cassian noticed. "Alpha?" Damon didn't answer. His eyes remained fixed on Aria. Something was happening between them. Something neither of them understood. Then a voice rose from the crowd. "The Luna." Another followed. "The Moon chose her." "No." "That's the Luna's mark." Aria's eyes widened. She shook her head. "No. You're mistaken." She looked toward Damon. He looked equally stunned. Then Selene pushed through the crowd. Her face had gone pale. "She's lying." Everyone turned toward her. Selene pointed at Aria. "She has to be." Damon finally spoke. "Enough." His voice silenced everyone. He walked toward Aria. With every step, Aria's wolf became more restless. When he stopped in front of her, she had to tilt her head back to meet his eyes. For the first time, she saw uncertainty in the Alpha's expression. "Show me your wrist." Aria hesitated. Then slowly extended her hand. Damon stared at the mark. His jaw tightened. Cassian came closer. "Alpha..." "I see it." "But that's—" "I said I see it." The anger in Damon's voice made Cassian stop. Aria swallowed. "What does it mean?" Damon looked at her. For several seconds, he said nothing. Then his face became cold again. "It means nothing." A murmur spread through the crowd. Aria stared at him. "But the mark—" "Is not enough to make you Luna." The words struck harder than she expected. Damon turned toward the elders. "The ceremony is over." "But Alpha—" "Over." The pack slowly began to disperse. Aria remained frozen. She looked down at the silver mark glowing faintly on her wrist. If it meant nothing... Why did the elders look terrified? Why had the Moon chosen her? And why did Alpha Damon look at her as if he had just discovered the one thing he had spent his entire life being warned about? Behind Damon, Cassian remained still. His gaze shifted from Aria's wrist to the oldest elder. The elder was trembling. Cassian noticed. And suddenly, he understood something. The elders weren't confused. They knew exactly who Aria was. They were afraid she had finally been found. And whatever secret they had buried for generations... the Moon had just exposed it.