CHAPTER 3: WHEN THE MOON WATCHES

Back in Cold Valley, as the sun dipped low and shadows stretched across the rooftops, Alison returned home with a bag of apples, some fresh bread, and a heavy heart she couldn’t explain. Mr. Fisher met her at the door with a warm smile and a dad joke that didn’t quite land, but she laughed anyway.

“ I think you should focus entirely on food, jokes ain't for you dad ” Ally teased as she laughed at the bad joke Mr Fisher always makes when she felt down

“ I know deep down you love my jokes, come on let's have dinner ”

Later that night, after dinner, she stood on the diner’s back porch staring up at the rising moon.

In another realm, Damian stood on the edge of his kingdom doing the same.

“ Today I'm getting my freedom ” Damian assured himself

Neither of them knew it yet, but the moon was pulling them toward each other. Two fated souls on a path no one could stop.

The storm had not yet begun.But the winds had shifted

Alison exhaled softly, her breath forming a faint mist in the cool night air. Crickets chirped lazily in the bushes nearby, and the faint rattle of leaves in the breeze whispered lullabies no one else could hear.

She clutched her silver bracelet as she stared at the glowing moon. It felt warmer tonight.

“Althea,” she whispered, repeating the name from her dreams. It sounded foreign, yet familiar. Like a song she’d once loved but forgotten the words to.

Behind her, the screen door creaked open.

Mr. Fisher stepped out, carrying two mugs of hot cocoa. “Figured you’d be out here.”

“Thanks dad,” she said softly, accepting one and taking a sip. The warmth seeped into her hands, grounding her.

“You’ve been quiet since you came back from the market,” he noted, settling into the wooden chair beside her.

Alison hesitated. “Do you ever feel like something’s coming? Like your life’s about to change, but you don’t know how or when or why?”

Mr. Fisher chuckled low. “Kid, that’s what it feels like right before falling in love or falling into trouble.”

Alison smiled faintly. “Falling in love, I don't know ”

They sat in silence for a while, the quiet between them full of comfort. Eventually, Mr. Fisher stood, ruffling her hair gently.

“Try to sleep early. You’ve got school tomorrow, and don't think a lot concerning the future .”

Alison lingered a little longer, staring at the sky. The stars twinkled like secrets just out of reach.

Then she went to bed, unaware that on the other side of the veil, the wolf prince who would change everything was plotting his escape.

Meanwhile, in the Kingdom of Arvendale…

Damian stalked across the royal stables under the cover of night, a black cloak draped over his broad shoulders. The moon above lit the cobbled path like a silver guide, its pull deep in his bones.

Kevin was already waiting by the gate, holding two enchanted medallions.

“You sure about this?” he asked as Damian approached.

The prince gave him a look. “You’ve known me since we were pups. Have I ever looked more sure?”

Kevin sighed. “You’re insane, that’s what you are.”

“And you’re coming with me,” Damian smirked.

“Because if I don’t, you’ll die within two hours of entering the human world.”

“That’s the spirit.”

Kevin handed Damian a medallion. “This will suppress your scent and wolf aura. To humans, you’ll smell, feel, and look normal. It should last long enough.”

“And our forms?”

“We’ll pass as transfer students. I already arranged everything with help from one of my father’s old human-world contacts.”

“You really thought of everything, huh?”

“Of course. Because you never do.”

They mounted their horses, enchanted to take them through the hidden veil and galloped into the forest, toward the crossing point that shimmered like water in moonlight.

As they rode, Damian felt a strange energy humming in the air. A pressure in his chest. It wasn’t nerves, it was something else.

A calling. Is it the freedom he longed or something more than that

Back in Cold Valley...

Alison tossed in her sleep for hundredth time in one night.

The dream returned.

She stood in the forest again. Tall trees surrounded her like sentinels. Moonlight poured through the branches, illuminating a path of silver leaves.

A voice echoed again soft, urgent.

“Althea.”

She turned toward the voice and caught a glimpse of a figure in the distance. Tall. Broad-shouldered. Golden eyes glowing in the shadows.

She stepped forward but the ground crumbled beneath her feet.

She fell.

She gasped awake, sitting up with a jolt. Her forehead was damp with sweat, and her pulse raced. She checked her clock on the table it reads 3:30 am.

“ Ugh that dream ” Ally groaned

Outside, the wind howled louder than usual, like something had passed through Cold Valley in the dead of night.

Alison’s fingers brushed the bracelet again. It hummed faintly beneath her touch.

She got out of bed as she felt pulled to go watch what was outside her window. She crossed to the window, and pulled the curtain aside.

There, standing at the edge of the diner parking lot, half-hidden by shadows, was a large, silver-eyed wolf staring directly at her.

Not real, she told herself. It must be a dream still.

But when she blinked, the figure was gone.

“ I need to stop thinking too much into this, I Have exams soon and I can't be distracted with my hallucinations and weird dreams ” Ally scolded herself and went back to sleep

Back on the human side of the veil, in a town near Cold Valley...

Damian stood under a broken streetlamp, adjusting the collar of his black jacket.

“Well,” Kevin said beside him, yawning, “Welcome to the human world.”

Damian looked up at the moon again.

“ Did you choose this area because it's easier to hide here than in the city ” Damian asked

“ Finally you used your brain ” Kevin teased

“ I love it already, the air of freedom. ” Damian smiled

“ Don't you miss Betha ” Kevin teased because he knew how much Damian hated the girl

“ Don't ruin it ” Damian warned

The two guys drove to a house that Kevin had already prepared for them, a new beginning that will bring changes started