Fangs and fates

Chapter2

The moonlight shone through the training field that night, casting silvery beams over the empty space. Everyone else was asleep, but I couldn’t fall asleep. I stood near the edge of the forest, clutching my jacket around me as the cool wind bit at my cheeks.

“Mia,” a voice called softly behind me.

I turned, startled. It was Alex. His blond hair wasn't the brightest but it had that glow that stood out wherever he went.

“You’re up late,” he said, stepping closer.

“So are you,” I replied, my voice barely above a whisper.

He smirked but didn’t reply right away. Instead, he stopped a few feet away, his gaze searching mine. “What’s wrong?”

I hesitated. “Everything.”

Alex stayed silent, waiting.

“I don’t belong here,” I admitted, my voice cracking. “Everyone knows it. I’m too weak, too different. They look at me like I’m some kind of mistake.”

“You’re not a mistake,” he said firmly, stepping closer. “You’re… different, yeah, but in a good way.”

I let out a bitter laugh. “You don’t know what it’s like to always be the outcast.”

“You think I don’t?” Alex’s tone sharpened, surprising me. “My family didn’t want me when I shifted for the first time. I was the runt, Mia. I had to fight for every bit of respect I got here.”

I stared at him, stunned by the vulnerability in his voice.

“You don’t have to prove anything to them,” he continued. “They’re not the ones who matter.”

“Then who does?” I asked, my voice barely audible.

Alex stepped closer until he was right in front of me. His hand brushed against mine, and I felt a spark shoot through me.

“You do,” he said simply. “You matter, Mia. To me.”

The world seemed to stop. My heart pounded in my chest as his words sank in.

“Alex…” I whispered, but before I could say anything more, he cupped my face gently, his fingers warm against my skin.

“Can I?” he asked softly, his gaze flicking to my lips.

I nodded, and before I could overthink it, he leaned in. His lips met mine, and I felt like I was floating. The kiss deepened, and for a moment, the doubts and fears melted away.

When we pulled apart, Alex rested his forehead against mine. “I’ve wanted to do that for a long time,” he admitted with a small smile.

“Me too,” I said, breathless.

We sat under the stars, talking in hushed tones about dreams, fears, and the future. He told me about the places he wanted to see, the life he wanted to build beyond the haven. I found myself dreaming alongside him, imagining a world where we could be free.

“I’d take you with me, you know,” Alex said, his voice soft.

“Promise?”

“Promise.”

The next morning, Alex wasn’t at breakfast. I didn’t think much of it—maybe he was training or caught up in something. But by lunchtime, I couldn't take it anymore.

“Have you seen Alex?” I asked Clara, trying to keep my voice casual.

“No,” she said, frowning. “Why?”

“No reason,” I lied.

Later that night, it was clear something was wrong. Alex’s bed was untouched, his belongings still neatly folded in the dorm. My stomach twisted with worry and dread.

“He’s gone,” Clara said the next day, her voice grim.

“What do you mean, gone?” I demanded, my heart pounding.

“Some of the patrols said they saw him leave through the east gate last night. He didn’t tell anyone where he was going.”

I stared at her, unable to process her words. “He wouldn’t just leave. Not without saying something. Not to me.”

Clara gave me a sympathetic look but didn’t say anything.

Days passed, then weeks. There was no word from Alex. No sign of him in the forest or the surrounding towns. The haven moved on, but I couldn’t.

Had I been wrong about him? Had I been just another fleeting part of his life, someone he could leave behind without a second thought? I cared a great deal about him, I wasn't sure if I could call it love but he meant a lot to him. And I thought he did too. Well, until he up and left without a single word

The whispers started again.

“Guess she wasn’t enough to keep him here.”

“Maybe he finally realized she’s not worth it.”

I tried to block them out, but their words stuck. And as much as I wanted to believe otherwise, I knew that they may have been right. No one ever wanted me. Not my peers in the haven. And sadly not Alex.

One night, unable to sleep, I walked to the edge of the forest where Alex and I had shared that kiss.

I sank to the ground, hugging my knees to my chest. The tears I’d been holding back finally spilled over, hot.

“How could you leave?” I whispered into the darkness. “How could you say you cared and then just… disappear?”

The wind rustled through the trees, carrying no answers.

I woke up one morning disoriented. I wasn't sure what was wrong but I felt that something was going to happen.

The air was heavy that morning. Training was quiet.

I stood on the edge of the field, watching the others spar. My mind wandered, as it often did these days, to Alex. It had been over a month since he disappeared, and the ache hadn’t lessened.

Then the alarm bell rang.

A sharp, piercing sound that broke the silence and sent everyone scrambling. My heart leapt to my throat. The bell meant one thing. Someone had entered the haven.

But how?

No one ever came to the haven.

The iron gates groaned open and the stranger stepped inside cutting out the oxygen.

He wasn’t like anything I’d ever seen. Tall and broad-shouldered, his presence filled the space around him, commanding attention without a word. His black shoulder-length hair shimmered like it caught light that didn’t exist, and his eyes—a piercing, unnatural blue—scanned the crowd with a very disturbing calmness.

"Stay where you are!" Elias barked, stepping forward, his hand resting on the hilt of his sword. His voice was sharp, cutting through the tension like a whip. No one dared to move.

The haven was a fortress, a sanctuary where no one entered uninvited. The fact that this man had arrived, unannounced and unchallenged, was enough to shake us all.

The stranger ignored Elias entirely. His gaze swept over the crowd, searching for something—or someone. His movements were smooth and deliberate, like a predator moving through a herd.

"Who are you?" Elias demanded, desperate to make his tone hard but I could hear the slight quiver underneath. "State your purpose, or leave."

The man didn’t even flinch. He kept walking, each step measured and confident. The crowd instinctively parted, people shrinking back as if they could feel the power radiating from him.

And then his eyes locked on me.

My stomach twisted into knots. His gaze was piercing, holding me in place like I’d been struck. I couldn’t look away, even if I wanted to.

He stopped directly in front of me, his towering frame making me feel small and exposed. The silence was suffocating. He looked me over with the most condescending look that one had ever stared me with.

"You," he said, his voice low and smooth, yet somehow it carried through the tense air like a command.

I couldn’t breathe. And then he said a word I never thought would be regarded to me.

"You’re my mate," he said, his words cutting through the silence like a blade.

The crowd gasped sharply, some hissed while Whispers erupted immediately, hushed but frantic.

I stared at him wild-eyed, my mind reeling. Mate? impossible.

"You must have the wrong person," I managed to say, my voice shaky.

His gaze didn’t waver. "There is no mistake."

Elias took a step forward, his sword now unsheathed. "I don’t know who you think you are, but you can’t just walk in here and—"

The stranger turned slightly, his calm eyes landing on Elias. It wasn’t a glare, but it held more weight than a shout ever could.

"Stand down," he said, his tone quiet yet carrying an undeniable authority.

For a moment, it seemed like Elias might strike anyway. His knuckles whitened around the hilt of his sword, his jaw clenched in barely restrained fury. But he didn’t move. He couldn’t.

I stepped back instinctively, my heart racing, but the man moved with me, closing the space between us.

"Don’t," he said softly, his voice gentler now. "You have nothing to fear from me."

Fear wasn’t the right word for what I was feeling. It was a storm of emotions—confusion, panic, and something deeper, something I didn’t understand.

"Who are you?" I asked, my voice barely a whisper.

His lips curved into a faint smile, though it didn’t quite reach his eyes. "I’m Ethan," he said, his voice steady. "And I’ve been looking for you for a very long time."

The whispers in the crowd grew louder, restless and disbelieving. Clara, standing a few feet away, reached out to grab my arm, her grip firm and grounding.

"What’s going on, Mia?" she hissed, her voice urgent.

"I don’t know," I whispered back, my words shaky and raw.

Ethan’s gaze flicked briefly to Clara before returning to me. His presence was overwhelming, his intensity unrelenting. "I’ll explain everything," he said, his voice quieter now, meant only for me. "But not here."

Elias took another step forward, his fury bubbling over. "You don’t get to dictate what happens here," he snarled, his sword raised. "This is my haven, and I—"

Ethan turned to him fully, his posture still relaxed, but his presence was suddenly suffocating. "Your haven?" he said, his tone calm but cold. "You’ve done well to hide her, but she isn’t yours to protect anymore."

My knees felt weak, my mind spinning out of control. This wasn’t supposed to happen. Nothing about this made sense.

Ethan turned back to me, his gaze softening slightly. "You’re coming with me," he said, not as a question, but as a statement of fact.

The crowd erupted into chaos, voices rising in confusion and fear. But I barely heard them. All I could hear was the pounding of my own heart and the words that Ethan had spoken, words that changed everything.

Mate.

My life in the haven had never been perfect, but it had been predictable. Safe. Now, it felt like the ground had been ripped out from under me.

“Bring her with me.” He commanded and two other men who I hadn't even noticed showed up and took me by the arm.

And just like that, everyone watched a stranger drag me out.