Twice Marked, Twice Chosen

LYRA's Pov

The sky was dark. The wind howled through the trees, yanking at my hair and flinging leaves across my face.

"Hello?" I shouted, spinning wildly. "Who's there?!"

No answer. Only the rush of wings...birds exploding into flight above me.

"Show yourself!" My voice cracked.

A thunderclap ripped the sky apart.

I screamed. "HELP!"

The ground beneath me shuddered.

"What the hell?" I stumbled, falling backward, dirt scraping my palms.

Then..

"Lyra..." A whisper. Soft. Sinister.

My breath caught. "No," I whispered. "Not again..."

"Lyraaaa..." The voice grew sharper, like claws dragging across my name.

"Stop!" I clutched my ears. "What do you want from me?!"

Silence.

And then..

"LYRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

"NO-!"

***********

I jolted upright, chest heaving.

My blanket tangled around my legs like vines. Sweat clung to my skin.

"Mom!" I gasped.

She rushed in, robe flying, eyes wide. "Was it the dream again?!"

I nodded, shaking. "It was worse. So much worse this time..."

She crossed the room in two steps and pulled me into her arms. "I've got you. I've got you, baby."

I sobbed into her shoulder. "It felt real. Like it was calling me. Like I was supposed to..disappear."

She rocked me. "You're safe. I'm here. I'm here."

"But why does it keep happening?" I whispered, clinging tighter. "Why me?"

"I don't know," she murmured. "But you'll be okay. You always survive, Lyra. You're strong."

"No, I'm not," I snapped, pulling back. "Everyone else transforms. Everyone else belongs."

"You belong."

"I don't!" My voice rose. "I'm twenty and I haven't shifted once! They look at me like I'm some freak.."

"Stop it," she said sharply. "You're not a freak. You're my daughter."

I looked away. "That's not enough."

She sighed, her voice softer now. "The ceremony's tonight. Maybe this time.."

"No," I cut in. "Don't give me hope. I'm tired of hope. Hope hurts."

Her lips tightened. "Then do it for yourself. Show up. Face it."

I turned away. "Fine. I'll get ready."

She lingered in the doorway. "Lyra.."

"Just go, Mom."

She left quietly....but..

She stopped at the door. "Join me in the kitchen," she said before finally leaving.

"Huhhhh..." I forced myself out of bed, shrugging the nightmare away.

The cold floor bit into my feet as I followed her. When I stepped into the kitchen, the scent of firewood, herbs, and boiling broth hit me.

Hazel stood by the hearth, stirring something thick in a clay pot, her dark curls wrapped in a scarf.

"Morning," she said without turning.

"Morning," I muttered, voice scratchy.

Mom greeted Hazel and went beside her to assist, picking up a wooden spoon to check the barley stew.

Then Hazel glanced over her shoulder at me. "Two days ago, when your mom sent you to the market... You came back looking shaken. What happened?"

I blinked. "Wait... you noticed?"

She turned to face me fully. "I always notice."

I hesitated. "I..I don't know what happened. I just... felt something. A pull. Like a cord tugging at my stomach."

Hazel raised a brow. "Go on."

"It was strange. I was walking past the cloth merchant..Mrs. Edla...and I suddenly stopped. My heart started pounding so loud I thought I was going mad."

My mom froze mid-stir, listening.

"I looked around, everywhere. Behind the stalls, the alleys... I circled back three times. It felt like someone was calling me, without sound. I knew it. My mate was there."

Hazel's eyes widened. "You're sure?"

"Yes. I felt it deep in my bones. My wolf..if I even have one..she stirred. I've never felt that before. But..."

"But?" Hazel prompted.

"But I didn't see anyone. No face. No voice. No one looked back at me. It was like... he vanished."

Hazel stepped closer. "That doesn't mean he wasn't real. Sometimes fate reveals only pieces."

"A piece that walked away?" My voice cracked. "What if he saw me..and left? What if he hates me?"

"Don't think like that."

"What if my mate rejects me?" I asked, the words tumbling out. "Everyone else in the pack already does. What if he does too?"

"You don't know that."

"But I was there, Hazel! I felt him. The bond was so strong it made me dizzy. And then... nothing. Just air."

A tear slipped down my cheek before I could stop it. "What if I'm not enough for him?"

Hazel reached out and wiped the tear. "Lyra, listen to me. You are enough. If he's truly your mate, he'll come. He might not even know what he felt yet. Sometimes, the bond awakens one before the other."

I shook my head. "What if he did feel it and still walked away?"

Mom set the ladle down with a loud clack. "Then he's a fool."

Hazel smiled gently. "Exactly. And he won't escape forever. Fate always circles back."

"But I'm scared," I whispered. "Scared of tonight. What if the ceremony humiliates me again? What if I stand there and feel nothing...just silence in front of everyone?"

Hazel squeezed my hand. "Then you'll stand tall. And we'll stand with you."

"You two are the only ones who do."

Mom looked at me, her eyes full. "That's because we know who you are."

"The rest of the world doesn't care," I said. "They see what I'm not. I'm not shifted. Not special. I'm just... Lyra."

Hazel held my gaze. "And that's exactly why your mate won't resist you when he finally finds the courage."

"I hope so," I whispered.

But deep down, I wasn't sure.

****************************

And just like Mother wanted, I'm at the ceremony again even though I don't want to.

The Moon Field buzzed with bodies and light and laughter.

I didn't laugh.

I sat under a tree, head buried in my knees.

"Look, it's her again."

"She really came?"

"Does she never get tired of failing?"

I clenched my fists. Shut them out. Just shut them out.

"You're not a wolf," someone hissed. "You're a mistake."

I gritted my teeth. Don't cry. Don't cry now.

The Moon Keeper's voice cracked through the field like lightning. "SILENCE!"

Everyone turned.

My gut twisted.

"Tonight," he announced, "you awakened."

He motioned forward. "Caleb."

Of course.

Caleb strutted into the circle, grinning like a crowned king.

"Watch and learn," he sneered as he passed me.

Jerk.

He closed his eyes. A breath. Then the sound..bones breaking, muscles tearing.

Seconds later, a black wolf stood proudly where Caleb had been. He howled.

The crowd erupted. Claps. Howls. Cheers.

One by one, they transformed. Some shaking. Some screaming. But all of them made it.

Except me.

My throat tightened. My chest burned.

The Moon Keeper turned to me.

"Lyra."

Gasps rippled across the field.

"No way."

"She's trying again?"

"Pathetic."

I stood frozen.

"Lyra," the Keeper said again, firmly. "Step forward."

My legs wouldn't move.

"Go on," someone jeered. "Fail again."

"She's cursed."

My hands trembled.

"MOVE!" a voice barked from the crowd.

I snapped.

"No!" I screamed. "Stop talking about me like I'm not here!"

They fell silent.

"I'm trying!" My voice cracked. "Every damn year, I show up..I stand here..and I try! But maybe I wasn't meant to shift, okay? Maybe I'm broken! Maybe the Moon Goddess made a mistake!"

No one spoke.

Tears blurred my vision.

Then I ran.

I shoved past the stunned circle, past the howling, judging wolves. Past the sacred stones and the ancient roots.

"Lyra, stop!" a voice called. Maybe Keeper's. Maybe someone else's. I didn't care.

I kept running.

Branches sliced my skin. The wind whipped my hair into knots.

"Get out!" I screamed into the forest. "Get out of my head!"

Faster. My heart thudded. My breath came in sharp bursts.

The trees thinned. The ground dipped.

My foot caught a root.

"Ah...!"

I tumbled forward, arms flailing..then nothing but air beneath me.

Water.

Cold, black water.

I hit it hard.

A scream gurgled from my throat, swallowed by the river.

I sank.

Then darkness.