Flora’s P.O.V
“Ezra will kill us if she finds out!” Emma warned in a hushed whisper as we made our way to the library.
“If she finds out.” Daphne shrugged confidently, making us believe that this wasn’t the first time she had done something like this.
“It’s the middle of the night.” I offered. “Wouldn’t it look less suspicious if we came in the morning?”
“Do you think I can last till the morning?” Daphne turned to ask me the question. “Will you last till the morning? I’d rather have a good night’s sleep than wait eagerly for morning to come so I can find out about some forbidden ritual.”
Well…she did have a point.
“Ezra will kill us!” Emma repeated once more.
“Oh, hush, pussy cat!” Daphne scolded Emma. “Ezra hasn’t hurt a fly in centuries and she isn’t about to st
Flora’s P.O.V“Flora…Argentine? ReedStone Pack?” Emma looked at the paper then towards me, before turning her attention back to the papers again. “They knew?”I felt my hands and feet go numb from the shock of it all.Yes, Malachi knew, that much he had made clear to me the night I got my memories back. But this room? This section? These all fell under Ezra’s jurisdiction.She knew! She had known all along!My knees gave out and I fell to the floor at an awkward angle and if it weren’t for both Emma and Daphne’s quick response, I would’ve fallen onto the files, crumbling the fine paper.“Flora!” Both women said at the same time, settling me down properly against the back wall so I didn’t risk falling over once more.“They knew…” I whispered to my friends, once I was able to speak past the knot in my throat. It was difficu
Flora’s P.O.VI knocked on Ezra’s door once again.I was very much aware that it was past two in the morning and she must be tired and asleep, especially after the ceremony tonight, but I didn’t…just couldn’t wait till morning to discuss this with Ezra.I raised my hand once more to knock on her ornate mahogany door, but before I could rasp my knuckles on the wood, the door opened to expose a tired looking Ezra in a bath robe and her hair wet. The scent of her lavender shampoo told me she had just gotten out of the shower.“Flora?” Ezra looked at me in confusion. “What brings you here at this hour?”“I need to talk to you…its urgent.” I told her, the weight of the book unusually heavy inside the bag.“Of course.” Ezra moved aside to let me in and I snuck into her room, feeling much more relieved after she had shut the door behind us.
Flora’s P.O.VThe winds howled through the walls of the tower; the sky a dark, dark black with the full moon the only source of illumination.Any other day, I would’ve admired the moon. Would’ve praised how it blanketed the world in silver, spreading its tendrils to every corner of the planet…seeping into the waters of the lake.But now, after what I had learned today…everything seemed to be falling apart. The moon no longer looked beautiful; rather, it felt ominous. In fact, it seemed to swallow all other stars in its vicinity tonight, like a giant black hole ready to suck in anything around it.I rested my hand on one of the pillars in the tower balcony trying to piece together what I knew and what I learned.Blood sacrifices…the true meaning of the Blood Moon Ceremony. And not just any blood…the blood of true lovers.My mind felt like it was about to explode once
Flora’s P.O.VAndre’s arms came around me instantly, holding me to his chest as he deepened the kiss.The wrongness of it all hit me full force and I knew I had made a mistake.This wasn’t how it was supposed to be! This wasn’t the person I was supposed to be with, or kiss or let him touch me. I felt my skin crawl at the thought of going any further and I hit his chest a couple times to let him know I was uncomfortable.A growl left Andre’s throat as he pulled me even closer, to the point where I was plastered against him. And I knew I had to stop him.Gathering all my strength, I pushed him back with my wolf’s force, making him release me and tumble to the floor, but not before I felt one of his claws slice through the exposed skin on my arm. He wasn’t just a werewolf, but a soldier with immense strength and I had a hunch that if I hadn’t taken him by surprise, I wouldn’t have
Flora’s P.O.VClay growled deep in his throat and tore away from me.At first I thought it was because I had Andre’s scent on me, but when he kept looking at my arm, I frowned and looked down to find blood.“What-?”When did I- but then I remembered that when I had pushed Andre off of me, he had accidentally scratched me with his claw. The bleeding had stopped and only a dark red line of dried blood remained that too would heal by morning. But Clay was probably angry I got hurt by him.“It’s alright,” I told him, cautiously taking a step in his direction. “It’ll heal soon. I’ll be fine.”“He hurt you!” Clay said, his voice a growl. “I saw!”My entire being came to a standstill. “You saw?”“Everything.” Clay nodded in confirmation and I felt like the ground had been removed from under my feet.
Flora’s P.O.V“Flora?”I turned back to face Daphne, my hands clenched by my side. Out of all the people who could’ve caught me returning back to my room, Daphne was the worst one.She might have a wild streak in her; she might like doing some things that were considered dangerous and naughty…but I doubted kissing rogue wolves was something she would consider anything but stupid and risky. Not to mention the betrayal I felt the instant I heard her voice and my brain connected the dots.“Yes.” I answered her, my voice coming out shrill and overly-friendly. “You wanted something?”“Yes.” Daphne folded her hands in front of her chest. “I wanted to know what you were doing out in the woods at this time in the morning.”Shit!“Come with me.” I reached out and took her hand before tugging her along with me to my room. I had to keep lo
Flora’s P.O.VI needed to get out of here. I needed to be with Clay.I paced around my room restlessly, unsure of what I was to do next.No, it wasn’t that I was unsure of what I had to do next…it was more along the lines of how I was supposed to do it.I found myself fiddling with my pendant unconsciously as I paced in front of the window. The last I had seen Clay, he had to flee because of Andre’s guards and I told him to return tonight. No matter what happens, I plan on keeping my promise.**I have a lot to lose as well, if I decide to help you and no matter what you think I’m capable of, know that I’m always on your side and that is one truth that even the Goddess cannot change.**Ezra’s voice kept playing in my head as I kept going over my conversation with her last night. Why would she have anything to lose? Why was I or Clay in any way related to her?Was she
Ezra’s P.O.V I placed the moon crystals in a circle around myself, keeping to my position right at the centre of the circle. The crystals all looked like tiny full moons, all in perfect rounds in a beautiful milky white colour and bearing some kind of black marbling on them. Even though the moon was no longer full or at its brightest, it still held power. As the Shrine Maiden, I could harness that power and bestow it upon my Alpha and my packmates, making them stronger, more resilient to the rogues and powerful in their own right. Shrine Maidens were created because the Moon Goddess needed a medium to bestow her powers on her beloved creations, her werewolves. And since the Shrine Maiden’s body alone wasn’t enough to hold all the power, the Lunar Maidens were created. I like the peace and quiet it provided, this meditation a while drawing on the power of the Moon. It was a feeling of being in heaven itself, of being bathed in the pure
Bonus Chapter 3:The Beginning of a Legend:Ezra’s P.O.V400 years ago…“Beta, we are ready for battle.”I looked at the soldiers who had lined up outside my tent; all muscular men who wore the stripes of blue paint on their cheeks to show loyalty to their pack. Their wolves were young, not even close to the age where they have to find their mate and yet, they looked at me unsurely.A beta? A woman? Their thoughts were so clear it felt like I could hear them as if they had spoken out loud. But that didn’t deter me from my path. It wasn’t the first time I had seen suspicion and doubt in their eyes and it certainly would not be the last time either.“Listen clearly and listen well.” I announced to the young wolves. “We go into battle with the Lindersay battle today and do not make the mistake of thi
Dorothy’s P.O.V3 years ago:“Fucking, Trevor!” I looked at my phone for the thousandth time. He was supposed to pick me up after class at 4PM, but it was past 4.30 and I had been calling and texting him for the last half hour to no avail.“What’s gonna be his excuse this time? Abducted by aliens or fell into a crater and ended up on the other end of the earth?” I hugged, flipping my dark hair behind my back.I could’ve asked Flora to pick me up, but she was busy frolicking with the future Alpha, out in the woods somewhere.Ever since the rogue attack, Flora and Clay have been inseparable and even though I didn’t admit it to Flora…I have been feeling a bit left out. And now, even my boyfriend was ghosting me.“Looks like I’ll be walking home after all.” I rolled my eyes and switched off my phone. If Trevor wasn’t going to answer m
Clay’s P.O.V“You have to calm down.” Riley told me as he placed a hand on my shoulders. “If you keep pacing like this, you’ll create a crater.”I gave him a nervous smile, not in the mood for jokes or laughter.Flora’s water had broken this morning at the crack of dawn and she had been in pain ever since. Mercy had told me that since she was birthing twins, the birth might be a difficult process. But now that I could hear Flora’s screams from outside the room, I wanted to break down the doors and reach for my mate, to erase the cause of her pain.Only, this time…the cause of her pain was our children.Twin births were very rare in wolves and the fact that we had only found out after six months of her pregnancy, it was a risk in itself.“Yeah…” I took a seat outside the birthing room, just so Riley and Dorothy wouldn’t
Flora’s P.O.VI held Clay’s hand tightly in mine as he brought the car to a stop on the road right outside our pack unit in the forest.Three years.Three years that felt like three whole lifetimes.Clay and I had been through so much together…been separated for two years and had to endure test after tests from the gods, just so we could be together.And now…we were finally back to where it all started, but not permanently.“What are we going to say to them?” I asked past the knot in my throat.“The truth.” Clay answered simply, giving my hand a light squeeze. “They deserve it after everything we put them through.”Clay was right; I realized suddenly.For us, the last three years had been filled with tests and tribulations, but for our family…our old pack…I was the one who ran away suddenly after my best friend turned out to be C
Flora’s P.O.V“This is excessive.” I told both Emma and Daphne as I looked at myself in the mirror.“No!” They both protested at the same time. “This is just perfect!”“But…but…it’s supposed to be a wedding dress,” I pointed out. “This looks like someone robbed a Queen!”“Today, you are no less than royalty,” Emma came forward to adjust the veil of my dress. “You deserve it, after everything you have been through. Besides, it’s pretty much your coronation to the position of the Shrine Maiden. So enjoy the spotlight girl and stop complaining!”I gave Emma a wide eyed look. “Since when are you so forward?”“This one’s been rubbing off on me.” Emma shrugged, pointing over her shoulder to a smirking Daphne.I sighed and looked back at my reflection in the full-sized mirror. The
Flora’s P.O.V“W-wh-at?” I stuttered.“You are our blood, Flora.” Malachi smiled at me like a loving father, his eyes glossed with unshed tears. “It was a knowing deep in my bones the instant I set eyes on you. We have been waiting centuries to find you.”I shook my head, trying to make sense of it all. “If you are my ancestor…that means…the Goddess…”“Yes,” they nodded. “You are the descendent of the Goddess as well. You are our grandchild’s child.”I shook my head in denial…but how could I deny the connection? I had always felt comfortable around Malachi and Ezra. I had always felt like they were my guardians, my blood. Now that they were saying that I was actually their blood…it did make sense, but at the same time, it seemed like a farfetched fairytale.“How is that even possible? My parents&hellip
Flora’s P.O.VCheers went all around the castle as we entered through the main doors.Mercy came rushing towards us along with four guards carrying a stretcher. Malachi was immediately escorted to the infirmary and Ezra went along with him.I saw almost all of the maidens rush toward the wolves that belonged to Clay’s pack. They turned to their human form to embrace their lost lovers and everyone started rejoicing all at once. I had never seen my friends, my sisters so happy. The entire castle felt vibrant, alive.“Come,” I took Clay’s hand in mine. “Let’s get out of here.”I brought him upstairs to the maiden’s quarters where my room was located and shut the door behind us. Clay’s wounds were healing faster now, but they might leave scars.I went to use my healing on him but Clay caught my hand. “Aren’t you going to see your packmates first?”
Flora’s P.O.V“We wish for Endymion to wake up.” I told her, shocking almost everyone around us.Goddess Artemis tilted her head to the side, studying me. “You wish for Endymion to wake up? Why?”“Because every time the Goddess Selene curses one of us wolves for rejecting the mating bond, it’s the pain that she herself has been suffering for centuries.” I explained. “Yes, she sees her lover every day, but he rests in an eternal slumber. She can never hear his voice again; never hear him tell her how much he loves her. We are vocal creatures and no matter how much a person shows us they love us…those three words can do so much more than just give us reassurance. Words. That’s why I want Endymion to wake up, so he can hold the Goddess in her arms and tell her from his own lips how much she means to him.”The Moon Goddesses looked at me in stunned silence. They hadn't e
Flora’s P.O.VThe figure of a woman appeared from the center of the column of light that stretched up straight to the sky.Clay was by my side in an instant, holding my hand in his as the winds swirled around us wildly. Thunder rumbled, lightning struck the land around the column of light and we moved back further to shield Malachi and Ezra from the flying debris.The war among the wolves had also come to a sudden halt and everyone was now looking at the column of light in fear and anticipation.And then the light disappeared, leaving behind a Goddess.Just like the Moon Goddess, Goddess Artemis stood taller than us by a few feet. Her skin was the color of ivory and it held a glow to it, like the blood inside her veins were illuminated. She had long dark brown hair that reached her mid-back and her eyes were a dark brown.She wore a white tunic with a short skirt that reached her knees and on her hand was a golden bow.