Chapter 20

Ethan's heart was beating fast as he stood at the edge of the Moonlit Meadow. This was where he had gone to find peace and where he had met a girl he didn't expect to like. The full moon was low in the night sky, giving the clearing a golden glow. He could feel the old power of the place, which he thought was the power of the Moon Goddess.

Amelia stood next to him, her eyes shining like the moon. Her presence soothed his soul, and he couldn't help but be thankful that she had come into his life like a shooting star in the middle of a dark night.

"Isn't it beautiful?" Amelia spoke in a whisper that was as soft as the night breeze.

Ethan said, "Yes," and he couldn't take his eyes off of her. "It is, yes. "Same as you."

Amelia's cheeks turned a little pink, and she smiled. "You're a smooth talker, right?"

Ethan took a step toward her, and his heart started to beat faster. "Only when I really mean it."

When their lips touched, it was a soft kiss that showed how much love had grown between them. It was a kiss full of love and hope, and it hinted at a future that they both wanted very much.

But just as the kiss was getting stronger, a sound from the nearby trees broke the spell. Their senses were on high alert as they moved apart.

Gabriel Rivers came out of the darkness, his eyes full of regret and purpose. He had found them here, and the weight of his mistakes made his heart heavy.

"Ethan," Gabriel said in a shaky but determined voice, "I can't change the past, but I can change our future. Give me a chance to make things right, please."

Ethan took a quick look at Amelia. His heart was torn between the two people who had become so important to him. The Moon Goddess had made everyone's fates into a complicated fabric, and he had to figure out how to untangle them.

"Gabriel," Ethan said in a strong voice, "I need time to think about things. I can't decide what to do right now."

Gabriel nodded, and his eyes showed that he got it. "I'll give you the time you need, but please know that I love you and will do whatever it takes to win back your trust."

Gabriel then turned and went back into the night, leaving Ethan and Amelia alone again in the Moonlit Meadow.

Ethan couldn't help but wonder what the Moon Goddess had in store for him as they stood there in the moonlight. The fabric of fate was still coming together, and he was determined to see it through to the end, no matter where it might lead.

As the sounds of Gabriel leaving faded into the night, Ethan's heart pounded in his chest. He turned to Amelia and looked into the depths of her eyes for answers.

The touch of Amelia's fingers on his face was comforting. "Ethan, I'll back you no matter what you decide. Just promise me that you won't forget how much I care about you."

He nodded, happy that she got what he meant. After one last long kiss, they went their separate ways, each lost in their own thoughts.

That night, Ethan couldn't sleep. His feelings were all over the place, and his heart was torn between a past he couldn't forget and an unknown future. Once a place to find peace, the Moonlit Meadow now felt like a place where people with different goals were fighting.

As soon as the sun came up, Ethan knew what to do. He had to talk to Gabriel, face the pain of their shared past, and figure out if there was any chance they could put back together what had been broken.

Gabriel was at the edge of the pack's area, where he could see the whole forest. There was a lot of stress between them, but Ethan knew they had to talk to each other.

Gabriel turned to him. He had been up all night and his eyes were red from lack of sleep. "Ethan," etc.

Ethan put up his hand to stop him. "We need to talk, Gabriel. About ourselves and our future."

The alpha nodded, and the look on his face was a mix of hope and fear.

Their talk was raw and intense, bringing up painful memories and facts that had never been said. But as they cried and got mad, they started to rebuild the trust that had been broken.

Hours went by, and when the sun went down, Ethan and Gabriel came out of the woods. Their steps were lighter, and their hearts were on the way to getting better.

At the pack village, Amelia was waiting for them with her eyes full of understanding. She knew that Ethan needed to put things to rest, so she gave him time to do so.

As the three of them stood together under the soft light of the moon, it became clear that fate was much more complicated than they had ever thought. Love brought them together, and love would lead them through the rest of their lives, no matter how complicated and hard the threads of fate got.

The Moon Goddess watched over them. Her light was a quiet gift on the choices they had made. 

As the three people stood under the moon's watching eye, a sudden, scary howl cut through the night. It was a sound that made them shiver because it was a call they were all too familiar with.

The Council of Alpha.

Gabriel, Ethan, and Amelia all gave each other worried looks. The Alpha Council was a group of strong and mysterious leaders who ran not only their pack but also all the other werewolf packs in the area. Only trouble could come from their coming.

Gabriel said, "We should go," and his voice was tense.

But before they could move, a group of people with hoods came out of the dark and made them feel scared. The head of the group stepped forward. His eyes were cold and calculating.

"Ethan Hartley," he said, "you are hereby summoned to stand trial before the Alpha Council for breaking the sacred laws of our kind." Ethan, Gabriel, and Amelia were all shocked. What had Ethan done to deserve such a terrible call, and how would they get through the tricky seas of werewolf justice? As they were led away, they still didn't know what was going

on. Their lives were now in the hands of the mysterious council.