Falling hurts.....
No, I'm not being poetic.
I literally just fell down a hill from a carriage.I don't know how I got here, but someone is definitely losing their job because of this.
The unfortunate part wasn't the fall itself.It was where I landed.
Face-first.
In a patch of prickly bushes.
"Ow..."
I pushed a branch away from my face and glared up the hill where the royal carriage had already disappeared.
Wonderful.
Apparently, my future as the Alpha's fiancée wasn't important enough for anyone to notice I'd been thrown out like an unwanted sack of potatoes.
I brushed leaves from my dress and winced.
"My dignity is officially dead"
A crow cawed from a nearby tree.
"Don't laugh," I muttered.
It cawed again.
"Traitor"
I adjusted the old violin case strapped securely across my back. Unlike me, it had survived the fall without a scratch.
Good.
If anything had happened to it, Grandma's ghost would probably crawl out of her grave just to scold me.
The violin was the only thing she had left me before she died.She always said it was more valuable than gold.Personally, I thought she was exaggerating.It was just an old instrument.
Nothing more...
A cold breeze swept through the forest, carrying the scent of pine and damp earth.For a brief moment, everything became unnaturally quiet.
No birds.
No insects.
No rustling leaves.
It felt as though the entire forest was holding its breath.Then the feeling vanished.
"Weird"
I shrugged it off and climbed back toward the road.
By the time I reached the carriage, the guards looked as embarrassed as children caught stealing sweets.
"My lady!" one of them exclaimed. "We... we didn't realize you had fallen"
"I noticed" I said coldy
Another hurried over.
"Are you injured?"
"My pride is beyond saving"
The guards exchanged awkward glances.One of them coughed to hide a laugh.
"I heard that"
His ears turned bright red.I climbed back inside the carriage and settled opposite the only person who looked genuinely worried.
Ronan.
The future Alpha.
My future husband.
The moment he saw the scratches on my hands, he frowned.
"What happened?"
"I challenged a hill to a duel"
His lips twitched.
"And?"
"I lost"
Despite himself, he laughed.
"There she is"
"There who is?"
"The girl who jokes whenever she's trying to hide that she's scared"
I looked away.He knew me far too well.
Of course he knew I was a bit scared of the mating ceremony tomorrowToday wasn't just another day.
Tonight was the Moon Bond Ceremony.By this time tomorrow,We were supposed to stand before the entire pack as mates.At least, that was the plan.
Ronan reached across the carriage and gently took my hand.His thumb brushed over the scratches.
"You should've told them to stop"
"I didn't want to delay the ceremony"
"There are a hundred ceremonies but there is only one you"
Heat rushed to my cheeks.
"You've become very smooth with your words lately" I said blushing.
"I've had years to practice"He replied.
"For me?"
"For my future Luna"
I smiled despite myself.
This was Ronan.
Patient.
Kind.
Hopelessly devoted.
We had grown up together.He was there when I cried over scraped knees, when Grandma died, when I almost gave up learning the violin.
He had promised, at twelve years old, that one day he'd marry me.I laughed in his face.He never took the promise back.
The carriage rolled through the towering gates of the pack.Cheers erupted outside.Children ran alongside the wheels.
"Alpha Ronan!"
"Our future Luna!"
I smiled and waved.For just a moment.Everything felt exactly as it should.
Then...
An elderly woman standing at the edge of the crowd stepped into the road.The horses screeched to a halt.Before anyone could stop her, she pointed directly at me.
Her cloudy white eyes locked onto mine."The moon," she whispered.
Then louder...
"The moon has chosen twice."
The smile slowly disappeared from Ronan's face.The old woman's trembling finger never left me.
"And when the second choice arrives..."
She smiled.
"... everything will fall apart"
The guards rushed forward.But when they reached her...She was gone.As though she had never been there.An uneasy silence settled over the crowd.
Ronan squeezed my hand and said
"It's just another prophecy."
I nodded.I wanted to believe him.I really did.But for some reason.I couldn'tThe violin on my back felt strangely warm.And somewhere beyond the mountains.
A pair of golden eyes suddenly opened.