°•○♡Chapter 5~The Moon Has Returned

Four years later…

《》Aria's POV

The mirror didn’t lie. I looked beautiful.

But I didn’t feel like it, not tonight. Not while my heart pounded in my chest and the ache in my gut hadn’t gone away since sun set.

I smoothed down my dress. The deep midnight blue silk hugging my curves like a second skin. The slit rose high enough to show the mark on my thigh. The same mark I used to be ashamed of. A faint moon-shaped birthmark humming with quiet power under the light.

My hands trembled as I reached to wear my earrings.

“You’re shaking” came a familiar voice from behind.

I turned toward the door and found Ronan leaning casually against the frame. He was dressed in a sleek black tux which had been tailored to perfection. He looked absolutely breathtaking as always—maybe more.

But it wasn’t how he looked that took my breath away, rather, it was the way he looked at me. Like I wasn’t a woman broken and rebuilt. He looked at me like I was whole.

“I’m fine” I said, way too quickly.

He walked in slowly, the strong scent of cedarwood and his own distinct scent wrapping around me as he stepped beside me.

“You’re not fine” He said as he took the earring from me and clipped it into place, brushing my hair back gently. “You’re nervous”

“This is my first public appearance since I… since everything,” I whispered. “What if someone recognizes me? What if—”

“Let them,” he cut in firmly, his hand cupping my cheek. “Let them see the stunning woman you've become. You’ve earned your place tonight, Aria. This isn’t about them anymore. It’s about you. About what you are”

My heart did a little flip at the way he said my name.

I looked up at him. “You’ve always believed in me, haven’t you?”

He smiled, the same warm smile he'd given me after he saved me from the rogues. I'd never admitted it, but that smile gave me butterflies.

“I always will” He whispered.

And for a moment—just a heartbeat—it felt like there was more between us. Like a little spark growing brighter with each passing second that we held eye contact. More than loyalty. More than friendship. Something unspoken.

But the knock on the door spoilt the moment.

“It’s time,” a guard announced.

I swallowed the lump in my throat and gave Ronan a small nod. “Let’s go”

The grand ballroom of the Lunar Citadel was bathed in moonlight—literally. The domed ceiling had been peeled open, revealing the full moon in all her glory as beams of silver light bathed the guests below.

Werewolf nobility from every corner of the continent had gathered for the Moongala—a sacred event held once in a generation. The Moon Goddess herself was set to descend and name the next ruler of the High Bloodline.

The occurrence was a myth to some, a prophecy to others. And tonight, it would become reality for me. This is what I'd trained four years for.

Whispers followed me as I entered, Ronan remained at my side like a shadow made flesh but with the way the women gawked at him, he was also my arm candy. With my head held high, I crossed the marble floor under the weight of hundreds of eyes.

And then I saw him.

Lucien.

He stood tall among his delegation, dressed in dark regality, his expression unreadable… until his eyes found mine.

The breath he took was visible—sharp, stunned. Like he’d seen a ghost. Of course after four years, that's what I probably was to him. A ghost.

I slowed, my heart pounding against my ribs.

Time hadn’t dulled him—he was still painfully beautiful. But something in his eyes cracked. Something… haunted.

Selene stood at his side in a blood-red gown, her lips curled in a venomous smile the moment she saw me. She nudged Lucien in my direction along with her.

“Well,” she purred, stepping forward. “Look what the moon dragged in”

I said nothing.

She circled me like a vulture. “I didn’t know the help was invited tonight. Is that a new charity initiative, Ronan?”

Ronan’s jaw clenched beside me. He was one of the highest members in the wolf society also. It wasn't a surprise that they knew who he was.

I took a slow breath. “Still clinging to me like a shadow, Selene? After all these years?”

Her smile slipped just slightly, but she recovered fast.

“Be careful, darling,” she whispered. “Not everyone’s forgotten who you really are. Some of us still remember the dungeons. The blood. The treason”

Lucien hadn’t moved or said a word. He was still staring at me, his expression unreadable.

Selene turned to the guards. “Remove her. She’s not welcome here”

The guards hesitated, unsure. No one outside the Citadel knew of my new status and even those within only knew what we let them. Ronan had kept it that way while he prepared me for my true destiny. Mira was right afterall. I was no omega. I was something far more powerful.

“Do it!” she snapped.

Before the guards could take a step, a blast of ethereal light erupted from the center of the ballroom.

The music stopped suddenly and the air became stagnant. It was like time had stopped. Every pair of eyes turned toward the dais at the far end of the hall, where moonlight converged into a single beam, and from it, a figure emerged.

Tall. Ethereal. Ageless.

The Moon Goddess had arrived.

All around people murmured. “So this really isn't a myth? I wonder who this high ruler will be” Selene whispered to Lucien who was still relatively unresponsive.

Gasps rippled through the hall as the divine being raised her arms.

“Enough” she said, her voice was immaculate, like thunder over water.

She turned slowly, her glowing eyes scanning the room until they landed… on me. My breathing quickened. This was it.

The Goddess smiled.

“The time has come,” she declared. “For the truth to be known. For the heir to rise.”

The crowd shifted, murmurs growing into whispers as she pointed directly at me.

“All of you have waited centuries for my blood to return”

The ballroom went silent.

“Here she is”

My knees trembled. When Ronan first told me about my lineage, I didn't believe him. How could I? All my life I'd been a weak omega, taunted and abused by the likes of Selene…

“She is the daughter of my line. My flesh. My will. My vengeance and my mercy. The Moon reborn” The Goddess continued

I saw Selene’s face turned to stone. The same woman who assaulted me was now far beneath me. Meanwhile, Lucien looked like the floor had been ripped out from beneath him.

Ronan simply smiled—he’d always known.

Admittedly I'd always doubted. But not Ronan. He'd explained to me that my powers would be awakened once the Moon Goddess appeared. And in that moment, I felt it. The burst… the awakening.

The Goddess’s voice echoed one last time.

“Kneel before Aria, daughter of the Moon Goddess… and your true Queen”