Aria's POV
The Nightfall Pack's celebration was the last place I wanted to be. Only hours after facing Mara and discovering Elena was alive, Rowan had announced a feast to "welcome" my father. As if we were honored guests instead of prisoners.
"You need to eat something," Dad whispered, pushing a plate toward me.
The Great Hall buzzed with activity around us, pack members laughing and drinking as if nothing was wrong.
I pushed the food away. "How can you act so normal? Elena is alive and being controlled by a witch who wants to use us in some ritual tonight."
Dad's eyes darted nervously to where Rowan sat at the head table, Lyra draped possessively over him. "Keep your voice down. We need time to plan."
The mark on my chest burned beneath my dress. Since it had appeared, my wolf felt closer to the surface than ever, restless and angry.
Caleb slipped into the seat beside me. "The pack borders are heavily guarded," he murmured. "And I've been ordered to stay away from you."
"By who?" I asked, though I already knew.
His eyes flicked to Rowan. "Our Alpha isn't himself. Something's wrong with his eyes."
I'd noticed it too. Sometimes silver, sometimes cloudy, like someone else was looking through them.
Music started playing, and couples moved to the center of the room to dance. Lyra pulled Rowan to his feet, pressing herself against him. Watching them made me physically sick.
"I need air," I mumbled, pushing back from the table.
I'd barely made it to the doorway when a hand caught my arm. Rowan's scent hit me before I turned—pine, earth, and something darker, like smoke.
"Where are you going?" His voice was cold, but his fingers trembled against my skin.
"Away from you," I replied, trying to pull free.
His grip tightened. "Dance with me."
It wasn't a request. He pulled me toward the dancing couples, ignoring Lyra's outraged expression.
"What are you doing?" I hissed as his arm slid around my waist.
"I don't know." His voice sounded strained, confused. "My wolf... he's fighting me."
We moved across the floor, his body stiff against mine. The bond between us hummed with tension.
"Fight it, Rowan," I whispered. "Fight whatever she's doing to you."
His eyes cleared for a moment. "Aria," he breathed, like he was really seeing me for the first time. His hand moved to my face, fingers brushing my cheek.
The mark over my heart flared with heat. My wolf surged forward, responding to his touch. I gasped as power coursed through me.
"What's happening to you?" Rowan asked, his eyes fixed on my face.
"My wolf is waking up," I whispered. "After being silent for ten years."
His fingers traced down to my neck, stopping just above where the mark burned beneath my dress. "I can feel it," he murmured. "The Moonstone power."
Around us, the pack members kept dancing, unaware of the crackling energy between us. But across the room, I caught Lyra watching, her face twisted with hatred.
Rowan's eyes darkened again, confusion replacing clarity. "I need to show you something," he said suddenly, pulling me away from the dancers.
He led me down a dimly lit hallway, away from the noise and prying eyes of the pack. My instincts screamed danger, but my wolf pushed me forward, drawn to him despite everything.
"Where are we going?" I asked as he pushed open a heavy wooden door.
"My private quarters," he answered, voice flat again. "Alpha's orders."
I hesitated at the threshold. "Whose orders? Yours or Mara's?"
Pain flashed across his face. He gripped the doorframe, knuckles white. "I don't... I can't think straight when you're near."
I stepped closer, drawn by the struggle in his eyes. "Then don't think. Feel."
My hand lifted to his face, and the moment our skin touched, something electric passed between us. Rowan gasped, his eyes clearing completely.
"Aria," he whispered, his voice his own again.
Then his mouth was on mine, urgent and desperate. The mate bond exploded with heat and light, washing away everything else. My wolf howled in victory as his arms wrapped around me, lifting me against him.
We stumbled into his room, the door closing behind us. His hands tangled in my hair as he pressed me against the wall, his body hard against mine.
"I've fought this for so long," he groaned against my neck. "Every instinct in me screams that you're mine, but something keeps blocking it."
"The curse," I gasped as his lips trailed fire down my throat. "Mara's using it to control you."
"I feel it breaking," he said, his hands moving down my sides. "When I touch you, it weakens."
My wolf responded to every touch, growing stronger with each passing second. The mark on my chest glowed visibly now, light spilling through the fabric of my dress.
Rowan stared at it in wonder. "The Moonstone mark." His fingers hovered over it, not quite touching. "My grandfather told stories about the last Luna who bore it."
"What happened to her?" I asked, breathless.
His eyes met mine, dark with desire and something like fear. "She destroyed herself trying to break a witch's curse."
The words sent a chill through me, but I refused to let go of this moment—this precious clarity.
"Whatever power I have," I whispered, taking his hand and pressing it against the mark, "I choose how to use it."
The touch sent a shockwave through us both. Rowan's eyes flashed pure silver, his wolf rising to meet mine. He kissed me again, deeper this time, walking me backward until my legs hit his bed.
As we fell together onto the sheets, a searing pain shot through my head. I cried out, clutching my temples.
"Aria?" Rowan's voice sounded distant through the pain.
An image flashed before my eyes—Mara standing under the willow tree, Elena kneeling before her. Blood dripping into a stone bowl.
"She's starting the ritual," I gasped. "She's not waiting for midnight."
Rowan grabbed my shoulders, his eyes fierce. "What do you see?"
"Elena. The willow tree. We have to go now!"
The door burst open. Lyra stood there, her eyes burning with hatred. Behind her loomed a cloaked figure with violet eyes—Mara.
"How touching," Lyra sneered. "The true mates reunited."
Mara stepped forward, her eyes fixed on the glowing mark on my chest. "Perfect. The bond is amplifying her power. Just as I planned."
"You wanted this?" Rowan growled, positioning himself protectively in front of me.
"Of course," Mara replied smoothly. "A spirit wolf's power is fueled by emotion. Love, hate, desire..." Her eyes gleamed. "All delicious fuel for what comes next."
She raised her hand, and Rowan collapsed, his body convulsing in pain.
"Stop!" I screamed, rushing to his side.
"Bring her," Mara told Lyra. "And kill him. We don't need him anymore."
Lyra smiled coldly, pulling a silver knife from her belt. "With pleasure."
My wolf erupted within me, rage and fear fueling her strength. I felt my body change, bones shifting slightly as my wolf pushed forward—not a full shift, but something new, something between human and wolf.
"You will not touch him," I growled, my voice deeper, rougher.
The mark blazed like a small sun, casting eerie shadows around the room. Lyra stepped back, sudden fear in her eyes. Mara's expression shifted from smug to alarmed.
"Not yet," she hissed. "You're not ready!"
She flung her hand out, and darkness engulfed me. The last thing I saw was Rowan reaching for me, his eyes desperate, before the world disappeared and I felt myself falling into shadow.
When I opened my eyes, I was under the willow tree, its branches swaying in a windless night. Elena knelt before me, her eyes vacant, blood dripping from her hand. And Mara stood over us both, smiling in triumph.
"Welcome to your awakening, little Moonstone," she said. "Tonight, you will finally fulfill your destiny."