MOONBOUND Beauty under a curse

The full moon trial

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*CHAPTER NINE: THE FULL MOON TRIAL*

*ANA POV*

Night 1 of 6.

The courtyard. Full moon.

My scars were on fire. Silver light crawling up my arms, my neck.

I looked like I was made of moonlight.

I hated it.

Lucian stood 10 feet away. Also not looking at me.

_‘He’s counting his breaths,’_ Lucas said. _‘To not look.’_

"So," I said. Voice small. "What are we testing?"

"If being near each other under the moon does anything," he said. Staring at the sky. "Without blood."

"And if it doesn’t?"

"Then we try something else tomorrow."

Hours passed. Cold. Silent.

The snow glowed. The whole pack was locked inside. Because of the curse.

My scars hurt.

"Does it hurt you too?" I asked.

A beat. "Yes."

_‘Tell him to stop,’_ Lucas whispered.

"Lucian."

"What."

"Don’t let me glow alone."

He didn’t answer.

But 2 minutes later, he was sitting on the bench next to me.

Still 10 feet away.

But not alone

- LUCIAN POV*

She was glowing.

Gods, she was glowing.

Like the legends. Like the tribute.

_‘MATE,’_ Lucas was losing his mind. _‘CLAIM HER.’_

"No," I said out loud.

Ana flinched. "What?"

"Nothing."

My chest felt like ice. My 30th birthday was 11 months away.

And she was 8 feet from me, dying by inches.

"Does it hurt?" she asked.

"Yes."

"Then why are you still here?"

"Because you asked me not to let you glow alone."

She didn’t say anything after that.

We sat until dawn.

Nothing happened. The curse didn’t break.

But when the sun came up, her scars were dimmer.

And mine didn’t hurt as much.

Small progress.

5 more nights.

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*End of Chapter 9*

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