Rejected by my Alpha, the Moon Goddess Chose me

May's Pov.

The evening air was filled with the scent of roses and burning incense, caressing through the crowds. The night was serene as petals and shadowed plantations beautify the premises. The moon shone bright above, making the premises glowy, as the wolves of the BlueCrest pack were gathered. Tonight was a big deal- Our Alpha was about to be crowned and his mate would be revealed.

And me? I was just there to serve wine and patch up any injuries.

I adjusted the leather purse at the side of my waist, and my hands wouldn't stop trembling. My purse was torn and old and packed with poultices, bandages, ointments, and calming herbs. Those were the tools I used as a healer's apprentice. These were what defined my place in the pack– just a healer and nothing more.

I was meant to stay in the background. That is my role as always, though it sucks but I was already used to it.

Everything seemed fine until I looked up-and saw him.

Alpha Castello!

He looked like he stepped right out of a hall of golden flames. A very dominant figure, broad shoulders wrapped in a black ceremonial clothing, a well-defined chiseled jaw, and eyes like thunderclouds-cold and wild, impossible to hold. Both every female wolf and half the males tried.

He moved through the crowd, followed by his Beta and the candidate for his mate, Ceryn. Her platinum braid sparkled in the moonlight. The pack adored her-she had a powerful lineage, a strong wolf, with a perfect shift, and had been groomed since birth to be Luna.

I felt so small next to her, so irrelevant, and then... everything changed

Castello turned to face me, his eyes locked onto mine.

Time stopped! My breath trembled, and my heart palpitated like it would break free from my ribs. The cheers and the chatters made by the wolves all faded away, leaving a thud of silence between us. It felt like he and I were in a different world, just the two of us.

And just like that, our bond moved into place like a thunderstorm in my soul, and I begin to shift

Fated mate!

It wasn't just wishful thinking. It was real, not expected, or explainable. He widened his eyes, he was shocked, he barely knew me so he didn't expect that i would be his fated mate. I put my hands to my chest, I could feel a sharp and excruciating pain underneath my ribs, because there and then, I felt something I hadn't felt before.

My wolf stirred.

The one everyone said I didn't have. The one I had wished to have since I was eight. She whispered a name through the shock.

*Castillo.*

But then his expression shifted. The lit and eagerness I saw in his eyes earlier changed to horror, disgust, and anger.

He approached me, his moves were fast and unpredictable, his approach wasn't in a welcoming way, but more like disdain or hate

"No," he growled, but in a low tone that only a few wolves nearby heard him, other wolves turned towards our direction, as they sensed the tension in the air.

I stood shaking, my mouth a bit widened, it felt dry and sour as my heart palpitated.

"No," he said again, this time more loudly. "This is a mistake, You are not my mate." Everyone screamed with surprise, as they murmured and glared at me mockingly

.I opened my mouth to say something, perhaps to plead, to explain what I'm feeling, what I knew, but no words came out.

Castillo grabbed Ceryn's hand and pulled her forward, placing her in front of him like a shield. He grabbed her waist and stared at her subtly with satisfaction.

"I reject the bond," he finally said, as his eyes turned back at me, instantly cold. "You are not worthy of me." He shouted

Gasps swirled through the crowd. Someone dropped a wine glass and it shattered into pieces, another echoed; "Look she's glowing."

Of course I was.

My skin shimmered brightly in the moonlight, I was shifting as my fingers trembled vigorously with immense glow. I felt warm, like something in me had awakened. I hadn't imagined the bond; the Goddess had chosen me.

But Castillo had just spat in her face. He didn't seem to care. He turned away, his cloak snapping behind him like a judge's gavel, and kissed Ceryn right there just right after he had torn my soul apart. It was obvious I was wounded, and I staggered back my knees giving way.

And then my wolf... howled. I shook profusely as she let out a heart-wrenching scream of pain and distress, that no one else could hear aside from me. Then she vanished, her presence pulled deep into the back of my mind, like a door being slammed shut.

I collapsed to the ground in silence. Everyone began to depart from the premises one by one, I was too weak to move, to stand up and nobody cared to help. Even my friend Lucy ignored me. I saw her walk past me following Ceryn.

Her demeanor and attitude changed, she behaved like she didn't know me, like we didn't see and speak two nights before. It was obvious she now works for Ceryn. I was frightened and in so much pain, I had no one else come to help me as I lay there in the cold of the night

I looked up and the moon turned red above me. Castillo didn't flinch nor did he give a damn about how his rejection made me feel.

They kicked me out before sunrise the next morning, no explanation, nor farewell ceremony. I barely had time to grab my belongings, the only few things I managed to take were the clothes on my back and the purse of herbs still strapped to my waist from the previous night.

"You're a disruption to the bond ceremony," Beta Nelson said, his eyes hard as stone. "Your presence is... problematic." He stuttered to say as if looking for the most demeaning words to describe the situation.

"Problematic?" I asked my eyes widening, like I was some broken artifact they didn't know how to explain to guests. Like I had ever caused trouble or dishonored any of the wolves in the park. I could feel my heart sink, like something sacred had shattered inside me.

No one would meet my gaze. Not even the healers I'd spent five years working alongside. Not even Elder Rowan nor Enchantress Mara, who once told me I had "a gift of gentle light." Maybe they saw the mark blooming over my heart when the bond ignited-a silver crescent moon etched into my skin like a drawing.

Perhaps the whispers were already spreading; that the bond was fake, that maybe I had used evil magic to trigger it, or that the Goddess had made a mistake. That a lowly girl like me, without a wolf, couldn't be chosen by someone like him; their almighty Alpha

"Keep moving, girl," the border guard yelled, interrupting my thoughts as I hesitated at the edge of Blue Crest territory.

I turned back one last time.

Castillo's black fortress sparkled against the pale blue dawn. The banners still waved from the towers. Gold and Green.

They'd celebrate him for years to come, and no one would ever speak my name and even if they did it would be speeches of mockery and hate. Tears filled my eyes as I blinked immediately to hold them back. I wouldn't want the guards or Beta Nelson to see me cry.

---

Hours Later – (At the Forest beyond the Border)

I walked until I had wounds all over my legs and my feet bled through the soles of my boots which are now old and thin

The forest here was wild and cold. The wind howled as dead branches shook harshly and little chunks of snow stung my cheeks. I was getting hungrier and my mouth was dry, but I wouldn't touch the dried roots I carried. Those were for healing. For survival, though consumable they aren't food.

My body felt like it wasn't mine anymore. The world was quiet, but my mind was in chaos. Honestly, I wasn't sure I would be able to survive.

What did I do wrong? Why didn't Alpha Castillo feel what I felt? Or did he feel it-and just chose to ignore its sensation and reject me?

Was I that easy to cast aside? So many thoughts rampaged through my head

---

*At dusk –( The Riverbank)

By nightfall, I finally found the river. It seemed a bit frozen in some places, but I could feel the water from beneath the ice. I knelt beside it, my reflection looked different, and I didn't seem like me anymore that I barely recognized myself.

My lips were cracked. My eyes were hollow and my complexion a bit darkened. The silver crescent mark still pulsed faintly over my heart-tho faded, but still there. Still real, I could feel it.

"I don't understand," I whispered, my voice spluttering. "Why did the Goddess choose me... just to break me?"

Silence was my only answer.

But then something stirred in the trees.

A rustle. A whisper. The sound of a cracked tree branch under heavy feet.

I stood up instantly, heart racing.

A wolf? No, Several of them?

I couldn't see them, but I could feel their presence. Shadows circling just beyond the clearing, too silent and too careful to be heard.

"Rogues"

I backed up slowly, reaching for the small blade hidden in my boot. My hands shook, but I refused to show fear.

The leader stepped out first.

A man who looks tall and malnourished , with dark, scattered hair and yellowish-brown eyes that glows faintly even in the fading light. His scent hit me like smoke from burning wood and rot. Not pack.

"Not safe" I mumbled

"Well, well," he said, grinning like a snake. "The little moon-girl wanders far from home."

I froze. He shouldn't know, he couldn't know.

"What did you call me?" I asked, my voice steady despite how scared I was

His grin widened. "The Moon-Blessed. We've been looking for you, Maybel"

Hearing my name pronounced fully by him felt wrong, dirty, claimed. Very few people call my name in full

"I'm nobody," I said. "You're wasting your time."

But he stepped closer, and suddenly I couldn't move. My legs were frozen in place, my body locked up.

Witchcraft!

"We saw what you did at the ceremony," he whispered, his voice like shattered ice. His breath, disgusting "You shone like a silver flame. We've waited a long time for a girl like you to appear."

More shapes shifted behind him. Wolves in half-shifted form. Red eyes. Too many to outrun.

"I don't want anything to do with you," I said, my voice steady. I had to be strong.

"Oh, but you don't get to choose, little moon," the rogue leader said, tilting his head. "The old ways are returning. The world needs balance. The packs have grown too proud, too cruel."

He stepped closer, and then I did the only thing I could think of. I leaned forward and slashed my palm with my blade, letting my blood splashed across the snow and as it flowed, the witchcraft they used to hold my legs and lower body at a place got destabilized

The rogues hissed, some of them pulling back. My blood shimmered faintly in the moonlight.

The leader let out a frown. "So it's true. The Moonfire runs in you."

I felt my leg become free as I turned and ran. The dried leaves hanging lazily on tree branches whipped against my face. The cold air affected my lungs. I had no idea where I was headed as I ran, I just knew I shouldn't stop.

I heard howls behind me as I raced blindly into the mountains, heading to a place I had once read about. It looked deadly and no pack member nor wolf dared to enter. The old maps called it cursed - 'The Cold Lands'

I finally collapsed at the foot of a big tree, my lungs almost out of breath, as my heart palpitated.

The last thing I saw were silver eyes in the dark, then a massive black wolf emerged from the shadows.

And then- Darkness.

(Somewhere in the North – Unknown Territory)

Pain was all I felt right as I opened my eyes. Every breath felt like pins pierced against my ribs. My head ached like it would explode. My whole body felt wounded and bruised. I could feel it from within, like it had been set on fire but surprisingly I was warm and covered.

I was wrapped in soft cozy blankets, shielding myself from the cold wind. Nearby, wood burned subtly, filling the air with scents of smoke and wolf

I scrubbed my eyes and opened them. The room was dim, lit only by the wavering firelight and some pale lighting sneaking through a half-covered window. I realized I was in a cabin. It looked hand-built and remote. Everything smelled like snow and ash. Weapons decorated the far wall-blades, axes, and sharp-tipped iron spears.

And in the corner, sitting in an old wooden chair covered in strange-looking leather, was the finest man I had ever seen.

He was tall and broad, with good-looking muscles wrapped in leather and fur. His blonde hair fell messily over his forehead, and his eyes- wow his piercing eyes were silver-gray, seductive, and Impossible to read.

The same eyes I saw before everything went blank. He watched me like a predator would watch its prey, it had decided to chase and devour

"Good. You're alive," he said, his muscular voice sounding deep and sexy. "I thought you might be stupid enough to die."

I flinched. "Who... are you?"

He didn't answer immediately. Instead, he paced around the room, and then he knelt beside me. I defensively tried to pull away, but he held me, grabbing my wrist gently. Even though his grip was soft, it felt like he could break me into two if he wanted.

"Your fever got intense four hours ago," he muttered. "You lost a lot of blood. That wound on your hand... It's glowing."

I glanced down.

My palm-the one I had sliced open was completely healed. But a faint, silver scar remained in the shape of a crescent just like the mark over my heart.

I pulled my hand back

"Who are you?" I questioned further, my voice more stern this time.

He stood slowly, studying me like I was a puzzle trying to decipher what and who I am

"Aether" he finally said. "Alpha of Northwood pack."

My heart skipped a beat. "Aether Thorne? Northwood?" I said almost in disbelief

A pack that hardly anyone believed was real, just whispers from old stories. They were known as outcasts-ghost wolves living in cursed lands. They were tough, fierce, and not to be messed with

Not the kind of Alpha you'd want to beg for mercy.

"Why did you help me?" I asked, feeling a mix of confusion and curiosity.

"I didn't," he replied hastily. "My patrol found your half-dead body near the black ridge. You were screaming in your sleep. Almost bit one of my men when he tried to lift you."

My cheeks flushed in embarrassment.

Alpha Aether crossed his arms akimbo, squinting his eyes.

"What were you doing that far north, with that scar glowing like a gesture for rogues?"

I didn't give him an answer.

He leaned in closer. "You're not just a lost girl. So why don't you tell me what you are?"

I bit my lip. "I'm certain it's none of your business."

"I disagree," he said calmly. "You stumbled into my territory. You bled on my packs sacred land. And now the snow smells like you."

I stiffened. "I don't intend to stay here."

"Good!" he said. "I don't want you here either."

His words were plain, and a bit rude. They stung more than I expected.

But then he added, "But you're not walking out that door until I get some answers. And besides you're not strong enough not to collapse."

I didn't want to argue, so I turned away and stared at the burning fire.

–––

Later at night, I stayed awake long after he left the cabin. Sleep didn't come easily anymore.

When I finally pulled away the blanket and stood, my legs felt half-frozen. The cabin was quiet, but I could sense the pack outside-silent and sharp-eyed. Watching.

I slipped outside.

The Cold Lands stretched out endlessly-mountains and silver woods covered in deep snow. But it wasn't lifeless. I could hear bird sounds and see torchlight flickering along the outer walls.

The Northwood pack wasn't extinct, they were fierce and surviving. A movement caught my eye-up on the ridge. It was Aether Thorne

He stood alone at the edge of the cliff, as the wind blew towards his direction scattering his blonde colored hair. his face turned as he stared towards the full moon. He looked like a beautiful ghost. A mini god, like someone who didn't quite belong to this world.

I'm not sure what got into me, but I realized I was walking towards him.

His voice echoed right away before I could get too close to him. "Your wolf," he said without turning. "She's silent."

I stopped in my tracks.

"How do you know that?" I asked, feeling a chill run down my spine.

He turned his head just a bit. "I've seen it before. The Moon-Blessed sometimes go mute when their fated bond is broken."

My heart raced. "You know about the bond?"

He finally faced me completely. "I don't believe in mates." He uttered

"Why not?" I pressed further

"Because bonds lie. People lie. Power doesn't."

I stared at him, I was shivering, and not just because of the cold.

He took a step closer. "You're dangerous, May of Blue Crest. I don't know why the Goddess marked you. But until I figure it out, I'm keeping you here"

He took another step, we were close now-too close.

My breath fastened. "You can't make me stay if I don't want to"

He let out a frown. "You're free to leave. But- You won't survive out there," he said simply, his eyes glowing. "And we both know it."

He stared at my chest for just a moment-right where the crescent moon mark was, hidden beneath my clothes. I immediately sensed that he could see the mark

Then he looked back at my face, as if to read my thoughts, but stepped back, nodded, and walked away

Back in the cabin, I covered myself up under the blankets, my heart racing.

He didn't believe in mates. He doesn't trust the Moon Goddess, but the way he looks at me says something different:

Everything about him makes me feel unsettled.

Aether Thorne, the unrivaled Alpha, a man with unpredictable actions, and maybe... just maybe, there's more to him than I can imagine