My Luna

Chapter 1- Mate

The afternoon sun bathed the campus in golden light, but Kira’s mood was anything but bright. The classroom buzzed with chatter, her classmates locked in endless bickering that grated against her nerves. Their teacher had vanished to a sudden meeting with the Faculty of Arts, leaving behind only answer sheets to occupy them. The silence of concentration never came, only noise, laughter, and arguments.

Kira tapped her pen against the desk, staring at the blank paper. Her mind was elsewhere, already calculating the hours she had left before her part-time jobs. Every tick of the clock was a reminder of the weight pressing down on her.

When the bell finally rang, relief surged through her. She snatched up her belongings, abandoning the papers without a second thought, and pushed her way toward the door. Her thoughts raced ahead... Elijah needed picking up, Mr. Donaldson’s basement awaited cleaning, and her body already ached from exhaustion.

But outside, Blake was waiting. His tall frame leaned casually against the wall, as though he had all the time in the world. The moment her eyes caught his, she veered sharply, hoping to escape unnoticed.

“Hey, Skye! Wait up!” His voice rang out, chasing her like a shadow.

She ignored him, quickening her pace toward the main exit.

“Come on, Skye. Talk to me.” He was beside her in an instant, his stride effortless compared to her hurried steps.

“I don’t have time for your jokes, Blake. Not now.” Her glare was sharp enough to cut, but he only grinned.

“Hehe! That’s not why I’m here.”

She brushed past him, determined to keep moving.

“Skye—”

Still, she gave no answer.

“Alright then. If you won’t talk, I’ll just go to your house and tell your par—”

“Fine! You win!” She spun on him, exasperated. “What do you want, Blake?”

Her schedule pressed heavily on her mind, Elijah, the basement, the endless cycle of responsibility.

“I just want to apologize,” Blake said, his tone softening. “I was mean yesterday. I went too far. I’m sorry, Skye. I shouldn’t have done that.”

“Apology accepted. Now, please, get out of my way.”

“But we’re good, right?” His puppy-eyed smile was almost disarming.

“Yes, Blake. We’re fine. But if you keep following me, I’ll know you’re up to something again.”

“I just want to offer you a ride. Consider it my peace offering.”

“No. Thanks, but no. I’ll see you tomorrow.” She waved him off, already turning away.

“Okay… but are you going somewhere else?”

Her frustration boiled over. “I have two part-time jobs, Blake. I don’t have time for you right now.”

“Oh. Okay! See you tomorrow then?”

“Yes.” She broke into a near run, desperate to escape his persistence. Blake cared for her more than anyone else, but his constant hovering was as exhausting as it was endearing. He insisted on calling her by her second name, Skye, because to him, she was serenity itself.

Kira sprinted across campus, her breath coming in short bursts, until she reached the elementary building. She arrived just in time to collect Elijah. The boy’s face lit up at the sight of her, though disappointment quickly followed when he realized his mother was absent again.

“Hi, Kira. Is Mommy late again?”

Kira knelt, her voice gentle. “Yes, Elijah. But she promised she’ll be home before dinner.”

“Really?”

“Uh-huh.” She ruffled his hair with a smile, masking her own fatigue.

Together, they left the classroom, and once Elijah was safely with his grandfather, Kira hurried to her next job. Sweat clung to her skin by the time she reached Mr. Donaldson’s house.

“Hi, Mr. Donaldson. I’m here to clean the basement.”

“Hola, Kira! My wife told me. Go on downstairs, the tools are in the cabinet.”

“Aye, aye, sir!” she replied, forcing cheer into her voice before descending into the dim basement. Dust and shadows greeted her, the air thick with neglect. She tied her hair back, rolled up her sleeves, and set to work.

---

Meanwhile, far from the ordinary bustle of Kira’s day, shadows stirred in the Red Valley Moon Pack.

“Alpha,” Kent’s voice echoed through the mindlink, urgent. “Two of our members were attacked near the eastern boundary. They’re injured.”

Caspian’s fury ignited instantly. “What? How? Did Loracia tend to them?”

“Yes, Alpha. They’re resting now.”

“Good. Investigate immediately. Deploy scouts and warriors to the borders. Warn the others, this could be the beginning of something greater.”

His command rippled through the pack, his authority unquestioned. Caspian, the Great Alpha of Red Valley Moon, was feared and revered across Northern America. His celestial beauty masked the monster within, a beast no enemy dared provoke. Yet despite his strength, one thing eluded him, his Luna.

That night, the council gathered. Alphas from neighboring packs filled the hall, their voices rising in shock and suspicion. Caspian silenced them with a single thunderous command.

“Two of my pack members were attacked. The culprits remain unknown. Did anyone forget the peace treaty we signed?”

Denials rang out, but unease lingered. Perhaps the threat came from within.

As the meeting adjourned, Caspian remained alone, brooding on his throne. The hall was vast and silent, shadows stretching like claws across the stone floor. His wolf, Fenrir, growled restlessly within him, sensing danger.

Then, a voice pierced the silence.

“The answer lies in the hands of the celestial being.”

Caspian’s head snapped up, his growl reverberating through the chamber. “Show yourself!”

A radiant figure materialized, a woman in flowing silk, her presence overwhelming.

“Moon Goddess...” Caspian bowed, shifting into his wolf form.

“Danger lies ahead,” she warned. “Protect the celestial being, or all will fall.”

Visions swirled before his eyes, a woman, a vampire, a school.

“Find them. Protect them. Only then will you survive.”

“And if I fail?”

“Bloodshed. Death. The end of your kind.”

Her words seared into his soul.

“Why me?”

“Because it is your destiny.” Her smile was gentle, yet her power shook the hall. “Seek, and you shall find.”

A blinding light consumed the chamber, and when it faded, Caspian stood frozen in wolf form, the echo of her prophecy burning in his mind.