THE MOON FESTIVAL

The Moon Festival transformed Moonridge into something out of a dream. Lanterns glowed along every path, swaying in the cool night breeze, their golden light washing the village in warmth. Stalls brimmed with food, music pulsed from drums and flutes, and laughter filled the air as wolves and humans alike celebrated beneath the rising full moon. Amanda moved through it all as though she were watching from a distance. Her dress, chosen carefully by her mother, shimmered in the lamplight, but she still felt out of place — a human pulled away from one life and grafted awkwardly into another. Cassian, of course, didn’t notice her unease. He bounded to her side with his usual grin, tossing a candied nut into his mouth before offering her one.

"Try it. It’s tradition. Sweet enough to make you forget whatever’s weighing on your mind."

Amanda smiled faintly, taking one, though it felt wrong in her mouth, too sweet, too heavy. Still, Cassian’s easy warmth eased her nerves, if only a little.

"You’ll survive tonight, and if you don’t, I’ll make a dramatic scene at your funeral. You know, really sell the tragedy", he teased, nudging her with his shoulders.

Despite herself, Amanda laughed. He was ridiculous, but that was the point. Cassian made her feel normal, grounded, even if just for a moment. But her fragile calm shattered when Samuel’s voice rose above the crowd.

"Tonight", the Alpha proclaimed from the podium, his deep voice carrying across the festival, Amanda and Cassian stopped, moving to the back of the gathered crowd where there were least people.

"We celebrate the Moon’s blessing. We dance under the moonlight, a symbol of the Moon Goddess' power and we celebrate the Goddess' favor on us for it is only through her abundance that our pack has thrived", he continued.

There was a sweep of agreements from the crowd.

"As it is our tradition, on this sacred day, I am humbled and honoured to present to you the future of Moonridge, my son, Skylar Blackthorne."

A hush swept through the crowd as all eyes turned to the young man stepping onto the stage. Amanda’s breath caught. Skylar looked every inch the Alpha he was meant to be — tall, broad-shouldered, golden-eyed, his presence commanding even in silence. He moved with lethal grace, confidence etched into his posture and clinging to his arm like a jewel displayed for the crowd was Tessa.

"Who is that?", someone next to her whispered. 

"Tessa. I heard she's the daughter of a powerful alpha", another person answered.

"Why is she going on the podium with Skylar? Could she be the next Luna?"

"I don't know. I mean it's possible."

Amanda’s chest tightened.

On the podium, Tessa leaned into Skylar, radiant and smug, her hand curled possessively around his bicep. She looked like she belonged there, perfectly poised beside the heir of Moonridge. Amanda tried to shove down the spark of jealousy clawing its way through her. She had no right to feel this way, not about him. He was her stepbrother. He was the future Alpha and she… she was supposed to be nothing more than human. But she couldn’t look away. She watched as Skylar accepted the cheers of his pack with the faintest incline of his head, his eyes sweeping the crowd. For a fleeting second, she thought they had landed on her, but then Tessa whispered something in his ear, and the moment shattered.

Cassian nudged her again, his grin softer this time. "Careful, Amanda. You’ll burn a hole in his shirt staring that hard", he whispered.

She shot him a glare, but her cheeks burned. The festival carried on, music swelling again, couples taking to the square to dance. Amanda tried to focus, to enjoy the celebration, but every glance at Skylar with Tessa made the knot in her chest tighten until she couldn’t breathe. Finally, she couldn’t take it anymore.

"I need air", she muttered, turning away.

Cassian called after her, but his voice was drowned out by the beating of drums. Amanda slipped past the crowd, her heart racing, the night air sharp in her lungs. She wanted to run, to escape the suffocating pressure of eyes, of expectations, of emotions she couldn’t understand. But then the full moon broke fully over the horizon and everything inside her snapped.

Pain tore through Amanda’s body, sudden and violent. She stumbled, clutching at her chest, gasping as fire raced through her veins. Her vision blurred, her skin burned, her bones ached like they were breaking, reshaping. A scream ripped from her throat... but it wasn’t a scream at all, it was a howl. Gasps echoed through the square as the crowd turned, eyes wide, mouths open. Amanda collapsed to the ground, writhing, her body twisting in ways it shouldn’t. And then, with a final shuddering cry, her human form shattered, replaced by silver fur that gleamed beneath the moonlight.

The festival fell silent as she stood on four legs, her paws sinking into the earth, her senses exploding with clarity she’d never known. Every sound, every scent, every heartbeat pulsed around her like a symphony. The pack stared in stunned silence. Amanda, the human stepdaughter of the Alpha, had shifted. 

Gasps broke into murmurs, some fearful, some awestruck. "Silver… she’s silver…"

Amanda’s wolf heart thundered. She turned in a circle, panic, confusion and exhilaration colliding inside her. What was happening to her? Why was she so close to the ground? What was this force that seemed to be invading her mind? Why could she smell everything? She wasn’t supposed to be this, she wasn’t supposed to be anything.

And then she saw him, Skylar. His eyes locked on her, wide with shock, and something else. Something that seemed to be rising from the depths of him, something primal. The air between them thickened, charged with a force neither could resist. His body trembled, his control snapping and then he shifted. It happened so fast. One moment he was human, the next his massive wolf stood where he had been, golden fur bristling, eyes locked onto Amanda’s silver form.

He moved before she could react, barreling through the stunned crowd, his wolf instincts unleashed. Amanda tried to step back, afraid, but he was faster. He collided with her, his weight pinning her down, his teeth sinking into her neck in a fevered, uncontrollable motion. Amanda howled, the sound torn between pain and something deeper. Fire spread from the mark, burning through every vein, every nerve, until she thought she would shatter. The force of it ripped her back into her human form. Naked and trembling, she collapsed to the floor, gasping, the faint mark of his bite glowing red on her neck.

Skylar shifted back too, stumbling away from her, his chest heaving, his eyes wide with horror. The crowd was chaos now: shouts, screams, disbelief rippling through the festival. Skylar stared at the mark on her, his face pale, his body trembling.

"No", he whispered, his voice broken. His eyes met hers, and she saw terror there, terror of what he’d done, terror of what it meant.

"No."

And the world crashed down around them both.