Five( Ivy’s POV)

He turned, already walking away. He didn’t wait for me to finish my words. But my heart paused for a few moments, as if something about him had shifted something inside me. He was gone before I could blink, disappearing down the hall like a ghost. I stood there frozen, unable to move, as though the air had turned solid around me.

My heart hadn’t slowed since the moment in the hallway. I could still feel the heat of his hand around my arm, the way his eyes locked onto mine like they had seen me before.  But now he was gone, and I was standing alone like a fool, hand pacing over the place where he had touched me. I hadn’t even asked his name. I wasn’t sure I could have formed the words even if I had tried. My head was tight and my head felt light.

I turned back toward the party slowly, letting my feet carry me even though my body felt too light. Like part of me was still with him in that hallway. The Moon Ceremony was still unfolding, bathed in silvery light. The courtyard glowed, lanterns swaying gently from trees strung with vines. Shadows danced across the stone tiles as couples twirled beneath the moon, their laughter echoing in the air. The scent of wildflowers, burning herbs, and something sharp like cinnamon lingered. Wolves from every pack were here, dressed in ceremonial white robes, some glowing with the buzz of fresh bonds, some standing stiff with tension.

And there he was. I froze behind a tall lantern, nearly falling. He was back. That man. The one from my dream. From the sketches. From the hallway. His back was to me, but I knew it was him. The way he stood but slightly detached, as though he never truly belonged in any room. His white robe gleamed beneath the moonlight, tailored, but he looked uncomfortable in it. Like the ceremony didn’t mean anything to him either.

Beside him stood a woman with long hair, His  Beta? She laughed, nudging a man whose arm was wrapped around her waist. The way they held each other reminded me of something I didn’t know I had lost.. My fingers twisted by my side. I was still holding my sketchpad. I hadn’t even realized I had  brought it with me.

Sera appeared by my side again, her eyes darting from me to the direction I was staring. “Is that him?” she whispered. I blinked. “What?” “The guy from the hallway,” she said, softly. “Because you’ve been staring like you’re going to melt Ivy.” I looked away quickly. “No. It’s nothing.” Sera tilted her head. “You’re a terrible liar, Ivy.” I sighed and hugged the sketchpad closer to my chest. “I don’t know what’s happening to me, Sera. It’s like my dreams are bleeding into real life. I saw him before I met him. I sketched him before I knew he existed.”

Her teasing expression dropped, replaced by quiet concern. “Your mom said not to come. Maybe this is why.” “I didn’t plan this,” I whispered, eyes drifting back to him. “I didn’t even want to be here.” And then, he turned. Our eyes locked across the crowd. For a heartbeat, everything else faded, the music, the laughter, the lights.. Just him and me. His brows furrowed like he recognized me too. Or was I imagining it?

My wolf howled deep inside, clawing against the seal like it had tasted something it couldn’t resist.. Something sharp stirred in my bones, fears  and recognition. He looked away first, jaw tightening. I exhaled sharply, heat crawling up my throat. “He looked at me,” I muttered. “Yeah,” Sera said, glancing between us. “He looked at you like you were… something.” “Like I was trouble,” I whispered. She smiled sadly. “Maybe you are.” We didn’t speak for a moment. I stood still, hiding behind the glow of the lanterns as the man, no the Alpha spoke with others. He moved like a shadow wrapped in light. Still distant. Still unreachable.

But even from here, I felt it. Something pulled me. “I have to go,” I said suddenly. Sera blinked. “What? Now?” “I need space,” I said, stepping back. “I can’t breathe. I’ll meet you back at the house.” “Ivy wait!”

But I was already moving, threading through the edges of the crowd like a ghost, pulling away from the light and the noise. My chest was tight, lungs fighting to keep up with the storm in my veins. The further I got from the celebration, the clearer everything became. The stars above looked impossibly close now, the forest line swallowing the light behind me. The music was fading, turning into a memory I no longer wanted to hold.

Why now? Why him? I didn’t know the answer but some deep, buried part of me did. So did my wolf. I hadn’t shifted in years, but she was howling now, restless under my skin, like she knew something I didn’t. Like she recognized him… claimed him.

I didn’t look back. The laughter, the dance, the entire Moon Ceremony. It blurred behind me like something out of a dream. One I had walked away from, and maybe never belonged to in the first place. There was no magic in it anymore. Only pressure. And the feeling that something old and sacred had cracked wide open inside me and  it couldn’t be sealed again.

I clutched the sketchpad tighter. My fingers trembled. Then my mother’s voice echoed in my mind, low and heavy with warning:

“If you go… you won’t come back the same. And neither will he.” Who was he? And why did it feel like the moon knew… what I didn’t? Sera didn’t follow me. Maybe she knew. Maybe she has seen it in my eyes that  everything had changed the moment his eyes met mine.

I stepped past the treeline. The forest welcomed me with silence, wrapping around me like a secret. The stars blinked overhead, ancient and watchful. The air smelled of moss and memory. The music had faded now. The night had ended. I had come here looking for answers. But instead… I found him Or maybe… he found me.