The full moon hung low in the sky like a silent judge, casting silver light over the Moonlight Pack's ceremonial grounds. Torches burned along the stone path leading to the sacred hill, where the Alpha would welcome the new generation of wolves into adulthood. The air was electric with excitement, anticipation… and something else Freya couldn't quite name.
She stood alone near the edge of the crowd, her palms damp, heart racing. Tonight was her 18th birthday—the night her wolf would fully awaken, and the bond to her fated mate would reveal itself. She wasn't just nervous. She was terrified.
Her long chestnut hair was braided with silver thread, her gown a soft shade of moonlight that clung to her body like fog. She had never felt beautiful, not really. Not in a pack that valued strength over kindness. But tonight, she had dared to hope.
Somewhere in the crowd, she knew he was watching her.
Alpha Kael Blackthorn.
Her chest tightened.
He was everything she wasn't—towering, dominant, with eyes like storms and a voice that could silence an entire room. He'd ascended to leadership young, after his father's death, and ruled with absolute authority. He was feared, respected… and the one her wolf had chosen.
Freya knew it in her bones. Her soul called out to his. Every time she saw him, her wolf stirred with recognition, longing. It had to be him. The mate she'd waited for. Dreamed about. Prayed for.
And tonight would prove it.
The ritual began with the Elder's chant, a low rumble of ancient words that echoed through the trees. One by one, the young wolves stepped forward, letting their wolves rise, accepting the bond of adulthood. Some cried out as the bond snapped into place, finding their mates instantly. Gasps. Cheers. A few tears.
Freya's heart pounded as her name was called.
She stepped onto the stone altar, the moonlight bathing her like a blessing.
"Freya Evergreen," the Elder announced. "Daughter of healer Marelle. Do you accept the rise of your wolf?"
"I do," she whispered.
A warm sensation bloomed in her chest, then spread through her limbs. Her wolf—silent and dormant for so long—finally stirred to life. The shift didn't come fully, but her senses exploded. She could smell every scent, hear every heartbeat in the crowd. Her vision sharpened. Her soul stretched—
Mate.
Her breath caught. The word wasn't spoken aloud. It pulsed inside her, echoed from within. Her eyes snapped to the crowd—and found him.
Kael.
He stiffened.
Their eyes locked.
Everything else disappeared—the crowd, the Elder, the torches, the chanting. Her wolf whimpered, aching with recognition. She took a step forward. Hope surged in her chest like a second heartbeat.
But then…
Kael's face twisted. Not in joy. Not in shock. But in disgust.
"No," he said.
The word cut sharper than a blade.
"No," he repeated, louder. "This is a mistake."
The crowd gasped. All eyes turned toward him.
Freya froze.
Kael stepped forward, tall and imposing, his jaw tight with fury. "The Moon Goddess made an error. She would never pair me with a weakling. A healer's daughter. Someone who's never even shifted fully. This—" he motioned at her "—is not my mate."
The silence was deafening.
Freya's heart cracked. Her knees nearly buckled.
"You… you felt it," she whispered. "You looked at me. You—"
"I reject you, Freya Evergreen," he said, voice like ice. "I, Alpha Kael of the Moonlight Pack, reject you as my mate."
The words hit like a punch to the chest.
"No," she whispered, her voice trembling. "Please…"
He turned away from her like she was nothing.
Her wolf howled inside her, a sound of pure agony. The bond that had barely begun to form shattered violently. Freya fell to her knees, clutching her chest as pain tore through her. Her body shook, her vision blurred. It felt like something sacred had been ripped from her soul.
Laughter echoed from the crowd—some mocking, some pitying. She could barely hear it through the roaring in her ears.
A pair of hands grabbed her arms—her mother.
"Freya, we need to go," Marelle whispered urgently. "Now."
Freya looked up, eyes swimming with tears.
Kael never looked back.
---
The forest was cold and cruel at night.
Freya had run without direction, without thought. Her mother had begged her to come home, but Freya couldn't face anyone. Not after being humiliated. Rejected. Broken.
She stumbled deeper into the woods, her dress torn by branches, her skin scraped by thorns. The moon followed her like a curse.
She reached the riverbank and collapsed, gasping, sobbing, curling into herself.
"Why?" she screamed at the stars. "Why would the Moon Goddess give me to him?!"
No answer came.
Only silence.
Until—
Snap.
A branch cracked nearby.
Freya sat up sharply, her heart in her throat. She wasn't alone.
A pair of glowing yellow eyes stared at her from the darkness.
A rogue.
Her blood turned to ice.
The figure stepped forward—a man, tall, lean, covered in blood and dirt. But there was something in his eyes that wasn't madness. It was… recognition.
"You," he rasped. "You're her."
Freya backed away. "W-who are you?"
He dropped to his knees.
"You're the last," he whispered. "The blood of the Luna Queens… you carry it."
"What are you talking about?"
"The Moon Goddess… she never makes mistakes," he said, smiling through bloodied lips. "She just waits."
Before Freya could speak again, he collapsed. Dead.
And in the air around her, something shimmered.
The moon pulsed.
And Freya's world changed forever.