Chapter 5 Echoes of the Bond

The days following Aria's trials were unlike anything she'd ever imagined.

After surviving three ancient rites and proving herself as Luna, she expected the cold stares and rigid silence of the pack to begin to thaw. But instead, she was met with a deeper, more complex stillness-less like contempt, more like cautious curiosity. The warriors bowed, but not deeply. The Omegas served her, but with eyes that flickered away quickly. Even the children, who once whispered behind corners, now merely stared with wide, unreadable expressions.

It was progress. If progress could be measured in inches instead of strides.

The fortress itself had changed around her, or maybe it was her who had changed. Where she once felt like a prisoner wandering stone corridors carved with the blood of old wars, she now walked those same halls with her chin high. Her wounds had healed, mostly. Her pride, however, was still bruised.

Kael gave her space. He hadn't touched her since the trials, not in the way the bond longed for. But he watched her closely. Always. And when their eyes met in the long candlelit halls or across the stone tables of strategy meetings, something unspoken simmered between them.

Longing? Regret? Desire?

Maybe all three.

---

"You're still not sleeping."

The voice belonged to Leif, Kael's Beta, and perhaps the only other wolf in the fortress who dared speak to Aria like she wasn't a statue made of frost.

She didn't glance up from the stack of reports on the table. Her study, once an abandoned observatory tucked behind the eastern wing, had become her sanctuary.

"I sleep enough," she said.

Leif raised an eyebrow. "That's not what the dark circles under your eyes say."

"I dream too much," she admitted. "And when I don't dream, I feel... empty."

"Bond symptoms," Leif said casually as he leaned against the stone windowsill. "You're resisting it. That's why it hurts."

Aria set the parchment down slowly and looked at him. "Do I seem like the type to throw myself at a man just because the Moon Goddess drew a line between our souls?"

Leif laughed. "Not at all. You're stubborn. That's what makes you interesting. But resisting the bond has consequences."

She frowned. "Like what?"

He ticked off his fingers. "Emotional instability. Mood swings. Heightened senses. Fatigue. Irritability. Nightmares. And the worst of them-

Aria scowled. "Don't say it."

"-uncontrolled desire."

"I will punch you."

He grinned. "Only proving my point."

She leaned back in her chair, sighing. "It's not that simple, Leif. I don't even know who I am yet, let alone who I am with him."

"You'll figure it out," he said softly. "But in the meantime, we have a more immediate problem."

She sat up straighter. "What is it?"

"Scouts returned this morning. Rogues are gathering near the northern borders. That territory once belonged to the Bloodline pack. It's no coincidence. They're testing our strength."

Aria felt a familiar cold settle in her chest. "How many?"

"Not a full force. A few dozen. But bold enough to leave tracks. That's a message."

"What's Kael planning?"

Leif straightened. "He's preparing to send a scouting force. And he wants you to bless them."

She blinked. "Bless them?"

"You're Luna now. They'll want your voice before they ride. Your presence. Your strength."

"I'm not a symbol."

"No. But you are a leader. And leaders inspire fear-or loyalty."

She exhaled. "Fine. When do they leave?"

"Tonight."

---

Twilight bathed the training grounds in gold as Aria stood before the assembled warriors.

Two dozen fighters-some seasoned, some barely of age-all stood in disciplined lines. Their armor gleamed under the dying sun. Each carried twin crescent-shaped insignias on their chests, the emblem of Darkfang: the black wolf devouring the white moon.

Aria walked down the line, her spine straight. She could feel the tension in their shoulders. Some avoided her gaze. Others met her eyes as if silently demanding to see if she was worthy of the title she wore.

She stopped in front of the first warrior.

"Return with honor," she said.

He pressed his forehead to her palm.

Again and again, she repeated the ritual. Her words didn't change, but the power behind them grew. She could feel it-the connection sparking between them. A Luna's magic was different from an Alpha's. It wasn't domination. It was unity.

And by the time she reached the end of the line, the air felt electric.

Kael stepped into view, his armor black as a starless night, his presence a force all its own.

The others bowed and cleared the way.

He didn't speak at first, only watched her with those storm-gray eyes. Then, slowly, he reached out and took her hand.

"You carry the bond well," he said.

She didn't pull away. "I carry it because I must."

He inclined his head. "And one day, you'll carry it because you want to."

Her breath hitched.

He turned without waiting for a reply.

---

Later, she found herself in the Moon Garden again. A place Kael had shown her after the trials-tucked away between battlements, filled with silver lilies that bloomed only beneath the full moon.

The night air was cool, brushing across her cheeks like a whisper. She sat on the edge of the stone fountain, watching the petals sway.

Aria had always believed she would die young. Her life in Mooncrest had been peaceful but brief. Then the war came. Then exile. Then the bond. Then the trials.

But she hadn't died.

Instead, she was here.

Still breathing. Still standing. Still burning.

Footsteps echoed behind her.

"I knew I'd find you here," Kael said.

She didn't turn.

"You let them see me tonight," she said. "Let them see me as Luna."

"They need to see you. As more than just my mate. As more than just the orphan girl who survived."

She finally turned to face him. "Do you believe I'm more?"

He stepped closer. "I believe you're more than any of them deserve."

She swallowed hard. "Then why do you keep holding back?"

Kael's jaw tightened. "Because if I give in to this bond now, it won't be gentle. It won't be soft. It will be everything."

"I'm not asking for soft," she said, voice trembling. "I'm asking for real."

He knelt in front of her, eyes blazing.

"Then here's real," he said. "I don't want you because of fate. I want you because every time you speak, you sound like the future. Because you walk into every room like it's already yours. Because you challenge me. And because you survived the worst of me-and still look at me like I could be more."

Aria's heart thundered. Her breath came in shallow waves.

"Then stop waiting," she whispered.

Kael's lips brushed hers, not like a warrior claiming territory-but like a man asking permission. She leaned forward. Their foreheads touched.

The bond snapped tight between them, not painful this time-but warm. Electric.

And for the first time, she didn't run.

She let it in.

Let him in.

The garden seemed to breathe with them.

Above, the moon watched in silence.