Chapter 3 The Goddess's Cruel Joke

Dora's POV

Today was my day. The day I had been waiting for my whole life. My eighteenth birthday.

I stared at myself in the mirror, a small smile tugging at my lips. "This is it," I whispered, touching the edge of my dress. "No more being called a kid. No more being seen as a nobody."

And most of all... today was the day I would find my mate.

I had always dreamed of becoming a Luna, just like the stories I used to hear under the moonlight. I'd sit quietly, legs crossed, listening to the older girls whisper about how they met their mates. How the bond felt. How their wolves just knew.

"Do you think the goddess will bless me with a strong mate?" I had asked Susan once.

She had smiled at me, brushing my hair. "The goddess knows your heart, Kat. Just keep believing."

Susan is my best friend. My only real family since my parents left, since they vanished. She was the one who stood by me when the rest of the pack wished I didn't exist.

They never forgave me for being the daughter of traitors.

"Here, let me fix your hair," Susan said now, standing behind me as she gently braided a few strands and tucked them behind my ear. "You look beautiful. The goddess will have no choice but to bless you today."

I smiled weakly. "Thanks, Su... I really hope today changes everything."

"You deserve it," she whispered. "You've carried so much pain... too much for someone your age, and for all this years."

She was right. I had lived under the shadow of a taritor, that of my parents' sins for years. People would cross the road to avoid me. Whisper behind my back. Sneer when I passed by.

I'd always hear people whisper to one another, traitor's daughter. That's what they called me.

I hated my parents. I hated that they left me with a name that brought shame. I hated that I had to grow up defending something I didn't even understand. I had nothing to do with their crimes, but I was still paying the price. On the contrary, why would they leave without me?

There were days I wanted to give up. Days I cried until my chest ached, days when i peayed for my own death, nights I thought about ending it all.

But I didn't. Because I had a dream, becoming Luna. Not for the title, but because it meant being accepted. It meant being respected and loved.

I didn't want to be buried with shame. Moved and tossed into the cursed river, like the others who took their own lives. No, I had to fight. I had to fight for myself. I had to fight for a better future.

Today, I felt hope rising again. The pack square was buzzing. Drums beat loudly, laughter filled the air, and colorful fabrics danced in the wind as everyone gathered for the mate selection ceremony.

Girls my age were dressed in their finest. We all lined up in anticipation. Some giggling, some anxious. I stood quietly with my heart pounding.

I looked up at the moon. "Please, goddess... let today be my day."

And then, it happened. A strange warmth filled my chest. My wolf stirred inside me, restless and eager. I looked ahead, straight into the eyes of Alpha Ronald.

Immediately, Time froze. Gasps filled the air. The crowd broke into whispers.

"No way...!" someone said behind me. "She's his mate?"

"Impossible!" another voice added.

I could barely breathe. My heart pounded like a drum. Ronald? The Alpha Ronald? My mate?

He looked at me, he looked straight at me and our eyes locked.

I smiled. A gave a real, full smile. The first genuine one in a long time. My wolf howled in joy. It felt right. It felt... perfect.

But that feeling didn't last long. Ronald's expression changed.

"What is this nonsense?" he suddenly barked, his voice echoing across the square. "A traitor's daughter? My mate? The goddess must be joking."

I blinked. "W-What?"

He stepped forward, his eyes looked cold and hard. "This is the most insulting thing that's ever happened to me. There's no way I'd accept you as my Luna."

I could hear the crowd.

"She's cursed!" someone shouted.

"She's trying to kill the alpha like her parents did!" another yelled.

I froze, feeling embarrassed and empty. Tears filled my eyes. I looked around, i could see faces twisted in hate, disgust, and mockery. Even the younger girls standing beside me smirked and giggled.

"History's repeating itself," one whispered loudly. "She wants to kill him too."

"Loser," another one snickered.

I looked back at Ronald, hoping and praying that he'd change his mind. That maybe, just maybe, this was a cruel test from the moon Goddess.

But instead, he turned to his guards and said, "Punish her. Loud and Publicly."

My heart sank. "No... please... Ronald!"

He didn't even glance at me.

One of the soldiers, one I recognized as someone who always hated me, walked up slowly, gripping a whip in his hand. His eyes were filled with satisfaction.

"Finally," he muttered under his breath, "the day I get to put you in your place."

"Don't do that!" Susan's voice rang out, loud and desperate. She tried to push her way through the crowd, but two guards grabbed her by the arms and held her back.

"Let me go!" she cried. "Kat! Please! Stop this! Somebody do something!"

Her voice was with so much emotions, but no one cared. No one moved. They just stood there... watching and cheering. Some were even smiling.

I turned to look at her, she was my only friend. Her face was red with tears, and her eyes were full of fear and helplessness. I wanted to run to her, to tell her I was okay, even if I wasn't. But I couldn't. My feet wouldn't move. My body felt heavy, like I was made of stone.

Around me, the crowd laughed, some snickered, some whispered. Others didn't bother to hide their hatred.

"She deserves it."

"Serves her right."

"Like mother, like daughter."

Every word stabbed me deeper than any whip ever could. I could feel the shame crawling over my skin like fire ants. My heart pounded so hard I thought it might tear through my chest.

Tears blurred my vision. I tried to hold them back, but they just wouldn't stop.

I wasn't crying because of the whipping, not yet.

I was crying because of everything I had lost.

This was supposed to be my day. It was supposed to be my birthday. The day I found my mate. The day I would finally stop being called a traitor's daughter. The day I could finally lift my head high and dream of being Luna.

But instead... I was being dragged through the mud again.

Alpha Ronald had rejected me in front of everyone. He had humiliated me like I was nothing and that alone was worse than nothing.

And now, I was about to be punished... just for being chosen. For having the audacity to be someone's mate.

I could hear my wolf howling inside me.

She was in pain too. We both were.

As the soldier raised the whip and the crowd leaned in eagerly, I shut my eyes tightly.I didn't want to see it. I didn't want to hear it.

The sound of the whip slicing through the air... The sting as it hit my back... The sharp, burning pain that followed...

It was too much.