The luna's misery

Nora

"Hey, where are you going with those tiny legs of yours?" Helen scoffed, coming closer towards me.

Oh shit, not again. I cursed under my breath.

"I-I'm going to my room," I stuttered, my hand shaking and my whole body shivering.

"Did a cat catch your tongue?" Felicity blurted out. Her voice echoed, making me realize Helen was never alone. She and her friends always followed, like shadows that brought nothing but pain.

They laughed. They always laughed.

"Oh baby girl, don't mind that piglet of a girl. Maybe her dead parents died with her tongue," Helen chuckled. The sound of her cruel voice stabbed through me, and her friends burst out laughing behind her.

Hot water,no, tears dropped down my cheeks before I could stop them. Reminding me of my parents' death was always their favorite weapon. My precious uncle had told me the story again and again. He said my parents were brutally killed by rogues that stormed the pack sixteen years ago.

My father had fought bravely. He tried to protect my mother and me, but he was struck down with a silver sword that no one knew where it came from. According to Uncle, all the rogues had been killed, so who brought the sword still remained a mystery. My father's blood covered the battlefield.

He told me my mother had been told to run with me, but because of the mate bond, she returned when she felt my father's pain. She ran back into death, unable to stay away from him. The mate bond was too strong.

I hated that bond. I still do.

Because of it, I lost everything.

Sometimes I blamed my mother. If only she had obeyed my father and kept running, maybe I would have had someone to fight for me now. Maybe I wouldn't be stuck under Helen's torment every single day.

But what I hated the most was that I couldn't remember anything. I was six when it happened. I should know their faces. I should know their voices. But my mind is empty.

Whenever I asked, Uncle Johnson would tell me the same thing.

"My dear, you suffered amnesia. The trauma was too much for you."

So I lived with emptiness, and with Helen's cruelty.

Since she returned from college when I was ten, my life has been nothing but misery. She uses me as a rag, forcing me to clean her floor five times a day, screaming if she finds even one speck of dust. She steals everything Uncle gives me clothes, shoes, food and laughs when she sees me walking around like an omega. Even omegas, weak as they are, are stronger than me.

Still, I keep quiet. What else can I do?

"Are you okay, little Nora?" my precious uncle always asks when he sees my swollen eyes. I call him precious uncle because he is the only peace I have. He gives me what I need and makes sure I survive.

But how do I tell him it's his daughter giving me these swollen eyes? How do I explain that Helen takes everything away?

"I'm fine, Alpha Johnson," I always reply with a sniff. He insists I call him that, though at first it felt strange. Over time, I got used to it.

Helen smirked now, her eyes glinting with hatred. "Are you dumb, you daughter of stupid dead parents?"

Her high heel slammed into my head before I could move.

I screamed, the pain sharp and hot. Something warm trickled down my forehead and dripped onto my clothes. I touched it with shaking fingers.

Blood.

"Oh my God, it's my blood," I cried out, my vision spinning.

The laughter around me grew louder. "Look, the little weakling bleeds like a slaughtered pig," Helen mocked. Her friends joined in, their voices echoing like demons.

My knees wobbled. The hallway blurred. I wanted to run but my legs felt nailed to the floor. My heart pounded so fast I thought it would burst out of my chest.

"Pathetic," Felicity muttered. "She doesn't even fight back."

I bit my lips so hard they almost bled. Fighting back was useless. They were stronger, faster, crueler. And me? I was just... Nora. Small, weak, unwanted Nora.

My tears mixed with the blood on my face. I wished my parents were here. I wished I could remember even one moment with them, one hug, one word, something to hold on to. But all I had were stories told by my uncle, and I couldn't even be sure they were true.

"You should have died with them," Helen hissed, bending close to my ear. Her breath was hot and sour. "Maybe then the pack wouldn't have to carry the shame of you."

Her words cut deeper than her shoe.

Something inside me snapped. I wanted to scream at her, to curse her, to tell her she would pay one day. But my lips trembled, no words coming out.

Then, as my body swayed, I noticed something at the far end of the hallway.

A shadow.

A tall figure stood there, watching. My heart stopped. Uncle Johnson? Was he here all along? Did he see? Why didn't he come?

I blinked, and the figure was gone. Maybe my eyes were playing tricks.

But before I could think, my legs gave out.

The world tilted sideways. The laughter faded into whispers. My blood smeared the floor as my head hit the cold tiles.

And in that fading moment before darkness swallowed me, I heard something strange-Helen's voice, low and sharp.

"She doesn't even know what she is. Uncle would kill us if she finds out..."

What?

What did that mean?

My lips tried to form words, but nothing came.

Darkness dragged me under.

I was running.

All around me were wolves of many colors black, brown, grey, even white. Their glowing eyes pierced the night, but not a single one of them looked at me. My chest rose and fell in panic. As wolves, they should have been able to smell my scent, feel my presence. But no one turned. No one saw me.

"Why can't you see me?" I whispered, my voice weak.

They passed me like shadows, their paws pounding the earth, their breath heavy in unison. It was like I didn't exist. My legs trembled beneath me, the weight of the silence pressing against my chest. What if I really were dead?

I reached out desperately to touch one of them, but my hand slipped through like smoke. A chill spread up my arm. My knees buckled, and I fell to the ground. My mouth opened to scream, but no sound came out only emptiness.

And then beep.

The sharp sound cut through the darkness like a knife. I turned, searching, but the wolves vanished as if they were never there.

I snapped my eyes open.

The white ceiling of the pack hospital loomed over me, blinding against the dim dream I had just escaped. My body felt heavy, my chest rising and falling too fast. The smell of antiseptic and herbs clogged my nose, the one scent I had hated all my life. My head ached, and when I lifted a shaky hand, my fingers brushed over a thick bandage wrapped around my skull. Pain shot through me, making me wince.

A soft voice pulled me back to reality. "How are you doing, Nora?"

My gaze shifted, and I saw a woman in her early forties standing beside my bed. Of course, in human years, she would have been over eighty, but one of the few blessings of being a werewolf was that age hardly touched us. Her face was smooth, kind, her eyes glowing faintly gold.

"Why am I here?" My voice came out hoarse, and I frowned, the ache in my head pressing down on every word.

She smiled gently. "You were rushed in here by a warrior. Your whole body was soaked in blood." Her voice softened, concern seeping through her tone. "Nora, you've been unconscious for fifteen hours. Are you sure your nutrition is okay?" She looked at me with the eyes of a mother worried for her child.

Fifteen hours?

The memory of what happened rushed back like a nightmare. Helen's sharp heel slamming into my head, the mocking laughter that followed, the weakness in my legs as the world tilted. My chest tightened.

"Oh, moon goddess," I muttered under my breath. Fifteen hours of unconsciousness. Helen had finally pushed me to the edge of death. Sometimes I wondered if the goddess herself had made a mistake in sparing my life when my parents died. Why did I have to remain here, drowning in misery, when I could have gone with them?

Helen had already given me enough scars to fill a lifetime.

I clenched my hands weakly at my sides, my nails digging into my palms. What was I really? I couldn't even shift into my wolf, not at twenty-two. Most wolves shifted by fifteen. Even Helen, who was my age, had shifted long ago. She had it all-beauty, strength, a perfect wolf form. Her long brown hair always carried the sweetest scent, her oval-shaped face flawless, her curves enough to make any man desire her.

And me? Tiny, fragile, almost breakable. My hair was always wild, the strange deep blue-or was it grey?-making me look nothing like the others. I had heard the whispers: She doesn't even look like a wolf. Sometimes, I ask myself the same question.

"Don't worry, Nora," the nurse said softly, pulling me from my thoughts. "With time, you'll heal. Just take this medication and rest. Alpha Johnson said he'll see you soon."

Her words jolted through me like lightning.

Alpha Johnson.

My precious uncle. The man who raised me when my parents were gone. The only peace I had in this pack, the only one who showed me care when Helen made my life a living nightmare.

But... why did he want to see me now?

My thoughts drifted back to the shadow I had seen before collapsing. At the far end of the hallway, someone had been watching me. For a moment, I had thought it was him. But was it really? Or was I just hallucinating from the blood loss?

I touched the bandage again, wincing at the sting. My healing was slower than most wolves. Another reminder that I wasn't like the others.

The nurse excused herself, leaving me alone with my thoughts. The silence wrapped around me, heavy and suffocating. I closed my eyes, and Helen's words replayed in my mind.

She doesn't even know what she is. Uncle would kill us if she found out.

The memory sent chills crawling over my skin. What had she meant? What was I?

The door creaked suddenly, pulling me from my thoughts. My heart skipped. Slowly, the door opened, and Alpha Johnson stepped inside. His tall frame filled the room, his aura commanding respect. His eyes locked on me, and for a fleeting moment, I thought I saw something worry. Or was it guilt?

I swallowed hard, the words stuck in my throat.

"Uncle..." I whispered.

He didn't answer immediately. He walked closer, his boots silent against the floor, his presence overwhelming. Finally, he spoke, his voice low and unreadable.

"Nora, there's something you need to know."

My chest tightened, my pulse racing. His eyes held mine, sharp and heavy, as though he was deciding whether to say more or keep the truth buried forever.

The room felt colder.

My lips parted, but no sound came out. Deep inside, I knew whatever he was about to reveal would change everything.

But before he could continue, the door slammed open.

Helen walked in, her eyes narrowing on me, then flicking to her father. Her lips curled into a smile, but it wasn't kind it was venomous.

"Father," she said sweetly, her voice dripping poison. "What are you doing here with... her?"

The silence that followed was sharp, dangerous. My heart pounded as Alpha Johnson's jaw clenched. His gaze lingered on me, then on his daughter, and I felt the air in the room shift.

Something was about to break.

And I wasn't sure if I was ready for the truth.

"How are you, my princess?" Alpha Johnson's voice was gentle, carrying the kind of warmth every child dreamed of receiving from their father. His lips curved into a soft smile as his gaze settled on Helen.

"Daddy, I would like to see you," Helen said, her tone sharp, her eyes flickering in my direction with a look of pure disdain.

Her glance pierced through me like knives. What did I do to this girl? No matter what I said, no matter how I behaved, she always found a way to ruin my peace. It was as if my mere existence was an offense to her.

"Little Nora," Alpha Johnson said, turning to me. "I will talk to you later. I need to attend to my daughter first."

My heart clenched painfully at his words. The man who stood before me, the one who was supposed to protect me, to guide me, to value me as family, dismissed me with such ease. He chose Helen, again. He always chose Helen.

I tried to hold my composure, tried not to let my face betray the storm raging inside. "Okay," I whispered, nodding.

He rose to his feet, his presence filling the room like a shadow, and walked away with Helen without sparing me another glance.

I was left alone with my thoughts, my heart aching as though it had been torn into pieces. What was it he had wanted to tell me before Helen interrupted? Could it have been something about my dead parents? Some truth I had longed to hear? I would never know at least not now.

I sank deeper into the bed, the wooden frame creaking beneath me. The room fell silent, almost too silent, and the stillness pressed against my chest until it was hard to breathe. My mind drifted back into memories I had tried countless times to bury.

Why did life have to be this way? Why couldn't I have a father who put me first, just once, before anyone else?

I sighed and rubbed my temples. Maybe that was too much to wish for.

Everything that had happened to me lately, all the cruelty, all the whispers, made me wish I could just disappear. Maybe I could run away, like Helen's mother had done years ago. The stories still circled the pack, whispered with venom and curiosity.

When the burden of being Luna became too heavy, when Alpha Johnson stopped accepting her, Helen's mother had nearly turned into a servant within her own home. The rumors claimed it was because she and Alpha Johnson were not true mates he had chosen her, mated with her by his own will, and when the initial love faded, there was nothing left. The bond was shallow, fragile.

The pack members had complained, murmuring that it was doomed from the beginning, because only a chosen mate bond could hold true.

Eventually, Helen's mother ran away. She fled with her daughter, desperate to start over, to escape the suffocating life she had fallen into. But Alpha Johnson chased her down, tore Helen from her arms, and nearly killed her for the betrayal.

And yet... he adored Helen.

Even now, I still didn't understand why he loved her so much, why he could bend mountains just to see her smile. That girl, who wore cruelty on her lips as if it were lipstick, was the apple of his eye.

Sometimes I wondered what my uncle truly was. He wasn't just feared by the pack, he was revered. Even the elders, men who had lived through blood and war, bowed at his word. His dominance was unmatched, his power absolute. And yet... why did he treat me differently? Why was his love always so conditional?

The ache in my chest deepened.

A sudden knock on the wooden door broke my thoughts. The sound jolted me, sharp against the silence.

"Come in," I said softly, pulling the blanket tighter around me.

The door creaked open. The nurse entered first, her familiar smile bringing a small comfort. But behind her was someone else. A tall figure stepped into the room, his presence commanding, though not in the overbearing way of an alpha.

He was young, perhaps a few years older than me, yet his aura radiated strength. His pale skin carried a resemblance to my own, his curly short hair neat, his jaw strong. He was well-built, with broad shoulders stretching the fabric of his tunic, the definition of a warrior.

My breath caught in my throat. My jaw dropped before I could stop myself.

He was... breathtaking.

But it wasn't just his appearance that struck me. It was something else. Something deep in my veins stirred, a ripple beneath my skin, as if my very soul recognized him.

He smiled, and the room seemed brighter. "How are you doing, Nora?" His voice was deep, steady, the kind of voice that could anchor you even in a storm.

Shock flashed across my face. "I'm... getting better. But how do you know my name?"

The nurse chuckled lightly. "He is the warrior I told you about, the one who brought you in yesterday. If not for him, you might not be sitting here now."

Realization washed over me, followed by gratitude. My lips curved into a small smile. "Thank you... Thank you so much for saving me. Who knows what would have happened if you hadn't found me in time?"

He laughed gently. "I'm glad you can talk now. Yesterday, you were so unconscious, I thought you had died." His tone was playful, but the seriousness behind his eyes betrayed his words.

Relief and something else, something unexplainable warmed my chest.

"I'm Warrior Ellia," he said, stretching out his hand.

I hesitated for a moment, then placed my hand in his. "I'm Nora Anderson."

The instant our skin touched, a wave of heat surged through me, flooding my veins. It wasn't the tingling spark of a mate bond that the elders often described. No, this was different. Stronger in some ways, and yet not romantic.

It was as though my blood itself recognized him.

I stiffened, trying to hide my reaction, but Ellia's eyes narrowed slightly, as if he had felt it too.

A warm, almost electric current pulsed between us, leaving me breathless. My heart raced, not with desire, but with confusion.

What was this?

It couldn't be a mate bond. I had read enough, heard enough to know how a mate bond felt desire, passion, yearning. But this was something deeper. Something primal.

Like family.

I pulled my hand back quickly, my mind whirling. Why did this stranger, this warrior I had never met before, feel like... home?

Ellia tilted his head, studying me with unreadable eyes. "Strange," he murmured.

"What's strange?" I asked, my voice lower than a whisper.

For a heartbeat, silence hung heavy in the air.

Finally, he smiled again, but it didn't reach his eyes. "Nothing. I'm just glad you're safe, Nora."

But I wasn't convinced. That moment that spark lingered in my veins like an unspoken truth.

And I knew, deep down, that this wasn't the end. Whatever connected us wasn't chance.

It was blood.