The attic room smelled of damp wood and dust, the kind of smell that never left, no matter how many times I scrubbed or aired it out. My mattress was thin, very thin,my blanket thinner, and the early morning chill blew strongly under the cracked window, crawling along my arms and legs like a snake. It sent chills down my spine .Downstairs, my stepmother's voice rose sharp and piercing.
"Aria! Get up this instant! Don't think you can laze around while there's work to do!"
I groaned and tried to pull myself upright, my fingers numb from scrubbing the floors the previous night. My stepfather's footsteps rumbled in the hall as he muttered something I couldn't catch. My life had been this way since I was eight—my father gone, my step-parents in control, and me… invisible. I was a ghost, a shadow of a daughter, unnoticed except when they needed something done.I was a slave
But lately, something change and hence being invisible became a lot more harder.
Every full moon, a warmth pulsed under my skin, strange and violent, like fire licking through my veins. Sometimes, when the stars shone bright in the sky, I could hear a whisper—a voice soft but, unmistakable.
"Aria.
You are not weak.
You are mine."
I would wake with my heart beating very fast, unsure if it was a dream or a warning.
On this particular morning, as I bent over the laundry basket, my fingernails—usually dull and short due to chores,changed sharply for an instant, like claws. I blinked, and they were normal again. My chest tightened. Something about me was changing, I could feel it.
I grabbed the bucket and hurried out to fetch water from the well. The chill of the morning wind brushed my cheeks, and I felt the pull again, stronger this time, like invisible threads pulling in my heart. I shook my head and muttered beneath my breath, "It's nothing. Just… nothing."
But i knew deep down there was something.
Far away, in the shadowed forests beyond the village, a man stopped mid-step, his black cloak catching the morning light. Kael Draven, Alpha of the Blackfang Pack, whose name alone sent cold shivers down the spines of even the bravest warriors. His eyes, sharp as a predator's, were drawn to me, even across miles.
The Red Moon Goddess had whispered my name to him countless times over the years. He had ignored her, refused the signs, and rejected the pull of destiny. He expected his mate to be strong, fierce, untouchable—but she was supposed to be him. Not me.
Yet the Goddess persisted.
By the river that ran past the edge of the village, I knelt to scoop water. The reflection staring back at me made my stomach twist: my brown eyes flashed silver for a heartbeat, and my hair, always dark and dull, shimmered under the sunlight as if alive. I froze, staring at myself, heart hammering.
"Aria…" a deep voice rumbled from the treeline.
I turned around, clutching the bucket. "Who's there?" My voice trembled.
A shadow moved, tall, with an impossibly strong aura, stepping into the light. Kael's eyes glowed faintly, an almost feral shine that made my blood freeze and race at the same time. He looked at me and something unreadable passed over his face—conflict, warning, desire or denial.
"You shouldn't be here," he said, voice low, but commanding.
"I… I didn't know," I stammered, gripping the edge of the bucket like a lifeline. "I'm just—"
"You're mine," he interrupted, but the words weren't a claim—they were a warning.
I swallowed hard, my throat dry. "I… I don't know what that means," I whispered.
Kael's gaze softened for a fraction of a second. "Do you understand what's happening to you?"
"I… I feel it," I admitted, "but I don't understand."
A long silence stretched between us, the river flowing like time itself. Then he shook his head, a shadow of frustration crossing his sharp features. "I… cannot accept this. Not now. Not yet."
Before I could reply, he turned, stepping back into the trees, disappearing as if swallowed by the forest.
My heart pounded in my chest. I opened my mouth to call after him, but only the wind answered.
And then, just as suddenly, I was back in my attic, the first rays of sunlight creeping across the floorboards. My wrist burned faintly where the crescent-shaped birthmark glimmered in the morning light.
Was it a dream… or the beginning of everything?
I didn't know. But something deep inside told me that my life, the life I thought I knew, was about to change forever. For good or bad,either wats there was going to be a change