The Mating Night

The silver thread glimmered like a dying star between my fingers as I pulled the final stitch. I had spent weeks carving a masterpiece out of a mess, breathing life into a gown that was little more than a hand-me-down from Nora, the chief maid. It was a relic of the royal palace, salvaged from the scrap heap of a life I was never meant to lead.

Lia stood beside me, the yellow of her dress blending seamlessly with her pale skin. She looked like a soft sunbeam, a stark contrast to me. With my almond-tinted hair and emerald eyes that seemed too large for my face, my fair skin was a curse, it made me stand out in a pack that preferred I remain invisible. No one ever looked past the surface to see the girl drowning in a pathetic, orphaned story.

“What if you get mated to Alpha Kai tonight, June?” Lia whispered, her eyes dancing.

 “You know the tales. The Moon Goddess loves to bridge the gap, mating the lowest beta to the strongest alpha to create a perfect balance. That could be you.”

I held up the gown, watching the moonlight catch the beads. It glowed with an ethereal, haunting light. No one would ever guess this was once junk. It was my armor, built on sleepless nights and desperate hope.

“Can you imagine the fallout?” I countered, my voice tight.

 “The Alpha of the Crescent Pack tethered to an orphan? The clan would be the laughingstock of the territories. I’d be humiliated far beyond the small cruelties we face now. Kai is a warrior, Lia. He isn’t the kind of man who knows how to mend a soul as shredded as mine.”I pulled the dress on, the fabric cooling my heated skin.

 “Besides, I don’t want to spend my life serving a pack that never offered me a home. Why should I shred my spirit to lead people who treated me like a ghost?”

We walked toward the palace hall, the grand stone arches looming like the mouth of a beast. With every step, the rhythm of my heart grew louder, a frantic drumming against my ribs. By the time we reached the heavy oak doors, the sound was deafening. Music sounded like senseless noise and the smell of celebration suddenly made me feel nauseous.

“I can’t wait for us to finally belong somewhere. Good luck, June,” Lia whispered, squeezing my hand before drifting toward the dance floor.

The moment she left, I vanished into the shadows of the crowd. I watched the room like a spectator at my own execution. Slowly, the moon reached its peak. It felt like a cruel competition. Every passing second, a gasp would erupt, another Beta finding their mate, another couple entwining their souls.

I stood in the corner, my knuckles white as I gripped the silver fabric of my skirt. I began to pray, a silent, choking plea to the Moon Goddess.

Life has taken enough from me, I thought, my throat burning. Don't take this, too.

“Goddess, please,” I choked out, a sob threatening to break through.

 “Even if you give me an orphaned beta like me, I swear on my parents’ graves, I will love him. I will cherish him. Just give me someone to call mine. Please.”

Suddenly, the music died. The air in the room grew heavy, charged with a static that made the hair on my arms stand up.

“Caska?”

It was Kai’s voice, deep, resonant, and laced with a rare note of alarm. My eyes followed the crowd’s gaze to the center of the hall. The Seer, Caska, stood frozen. She was the pack’s shield, a woman of terrifying, mysterious power. Usually, she was the picture of composure, but now her eyes had rolled back, showing nothing but a blinding, milky white.

A cold shiver raced down my spine. Something inside me, something ancient and dormant, stirred in response to her trance. I felt a pull in my gut, a golden tether tightening. I didn’t like the eerie feeling.

“Alpha Kai…” Caska’s voice wasn't her own; it was layered, echoing like a chorus of spirits, almost like the moon goddess was speaking through her directly. Her eyes flickered back to life for a split second, landing directly on me in the shadows, before they went white again.

The silence was absolute. You could hear the flicker of the torches on the walls. Kai stepped toward her, his powerful frame tense, his scent,cedar and storm clouds, filling the room.

“Speak, Seer,” Kai commanded, his Alpha aura radiating enough heat to singe the air.

Caska’s head snapped toward the crowd, her finger trembling as she pointed toward the dark corner where I stood, trembling in my silver-beaded rags.

“The destiny of the Crescent Pack is no longer in the hands of the strong, but in the blood of the hidden. Alpha Kai… is mated to June, the Orphaned beta.”

The room erupted into a deafening silence. I felt Kai’s gaze hit me like a physical blow, cold, shocked, and utterly lethal. The bond snapped into place.

“The moon goddess must have made a mistake.” I say it almost immediately.

Slowly, sneers and whispers of mockery fills the hall. I do not need to lift my head up to know I’m being mocked. 

“She must have surely made a mistake.” 

I swallow hard. I comfort myself reminding me that all my life, I’ve been tagged unworthy. This shouldn’t come as a surprise.

My sheer strength collapses when I notice blood dripping from the side of my lips.

“You’re severing the mate bond?” I hate how obvious it is to the ear, my trembling voice. 

“Did you think I was going to let the moon goddess tie me and my clan to the fate of a woman who can’t even trace her own history?”

“There’s only one way place you can lead my clan to with your pathetic self, and that is to oblivion. But I will not watch my kingdom be buried into ruins just like your father and your mother.”

“I, Alpha Kai of the Crescent Pack reject you, June Dore as my mate.”