Steven’s POV
I picked up one of the training sticks that lay strewn around the open space and balanced its weight in my hand. Not much-just a stick, smooth enough, sturdy enough to practice with. Satisfied, I turned back toward Luna and tossed it out to her.
“Here,” I said.
She caught it easily, firm and sure, the grip steadfast as she whirled it once through her fingers.
“Nice,” I said, nodding in approval.
She smiled slightly. “I used to be a gymnast.”
I raised an eyebrow. “Let’s see how good you really are then. Come at me.”
Her confident expression faltered just a bit as she looked at me, as if trying to gauge whether I was serious. “You want me to fight you?
I nodded, rolling my shoulders back and planting my feet firmly on the ground. “Show me what you’ve got.”
Luna let out a sharp exhalation, her fingers tightening around the stick as she adjusted her stance. “Okay then,” she said, the flicker of determination dancing in her eyes. “Do not blame me if you get injured.”
She moved swiftly. One instant, she stood still; then, the other, she hurtled towards me with determination. Her long stick was directed against my face; her posture unyielding and her form maintained-she didn’t swing with wild abandon; she was deliberate. Testing.
But it was with reservation.
I saw it in the way her grip loosened at the last moment, in the way she slowed down just as her strike was about to land. It was instinctive-unconscious restraint.
That was all I needed.
Before she could complete the movement, I snatched her arm, mid-air, twisting just enough to cause her to stumble off balance. A slight jolting of her body backwards as her breathing caught in surprise.
Then I yanked her arm behind her back, securing it there.
Sharp inhalation. “Ahhh!”
I held her there for a second, letting her feel the vulnerability of her position before finally releasing my grip. She stumbled forward slightly before righting herself and spinning to face me with a glare of irritation.
“I hesitated,” I said, crossing my arms.
The clench of her jaw, the flex of her fingers around the stick, spoke volumes. “You were just standing still! I didn’t want to hurt you!”
I let out a sigh and shook my head. “Fear is the beginning of failure, Luna,” I said evenly. “On a battlefield, the moment one hesitates-well, he’s dead.” Another step forward and I held her gaze without any break. “For the record, you can’t ever hurt me.”
Luna swallowed hard, but she didn’t back down. There was still fire in her eyes, even if doubt lingered beneath it.
I stooped down, picked up her fallen stick, and handed it back to her.
“So try again.”
She glared at me a moment, clenching the stick in her fist. She breathed a little raggedly, her shoulders tight. Then something gave way. Her face hardened, her stance set, and I knew-this time, she would not stop.
Good.
That was just what I wanted.
******
Freja’s POV
The moment I sank into the couch, a deep satisfied sigh escaped me. James’s house had this weird sort of familiarity to it now, though I’d never been here more than once in my life. I glanced around me, taking in the elegant, slightly chilled atmosphere. Just like him-refined and distant, unmistakably intriguing.
“This is the second time in your house,” I said, my fingers tracing around the edge of the couch cushion.
James, leaning against the armrest, cocked his head to one side, studying me with an inscrutable look on his face. “The first time wasn’t so good, was it?” His tone was level and neutral, but I could tell he was feeling the waters, hoping I’d show some kind of reaction.
I snorted softly, shooting him a pointed look. “Considering the fact that you snapped my neck the previous night? No, it wasn’t that good.”
A slow smirk tugged the corner of his lips. “Well, you paid me back,” he reminded me, his eyes flickering with amusement. “You went all crazy on me when you woke up.”
I nodded immediately. “It was well-deserved, what happened to him.”
He chuckled, the brief laugh accompanied with his head shaking, like it had been truly humoring. Sometimes, I would think that even in violence-as snapping my neck, for example-we talked so easily, almost like just passing time.
Still, this somehow diffused some of the tension between us, and I settled back against the couch.
“So…” He gave me a lazy look. “What secret of yours are we going to unravel today?”
His tone was light, but I didn’t miss the flicker of hesitation in his eyes. He was stalling.
I crossed my legs, leaning forward slightly. “James,” I called, soft but firm. “We talked about this, remember? We agreed to do this.”
He exhaled slowly, as if weighing whether he was ready to say it. Then, finally, he spoke. “I have a sister.”
I raised a brow, waiting for more, but he just stared at me as if that was supposed to be enough.
“And?” I prompted when he didn’t continue.
There was a long, deliberate pause.
I blinked at him, unimpressed. “Is that all? You have a sister?”
“Yeah,” he confirmed, completely unfluttered by my disappointment. “It is a secret, and you said one secret a day. So, your turn.”
I narrowed my eyes, shaking my head in disbelief. “You think you’re smart, huh?” I muttered, folding my arms.
His chuckle was low, smug. “I try.”
I rolled my eyes but gave in. “Well, I have a sister too. A twin sister, actually.”
That got him going. He looked surprised-smacked, for real, slightly tensing at the news as his brain chewed on those words. “You’re a twin?!”
I nodded, admitting with a small sigh, “Yeah. and she can be very problematic.”
A knowing smirk twisted his lips. “I’m not surprised. She is your twin, after all.”
I scoffed, shaking my head. “I walked right into that one, didn’t I?”
“You did,” he said smoothly, his expression smug.
We sank into a comfortable silence for a moment, and I found myself studying him once more. It wasn’t often that James showed much emotion, but lately, I’d noticed something different.
“You seem to be smiling a lot lately,” I said, cocking my head to one side in observation.
His eyes met mine, the smirk softening to something genuine. “I couldn’t help it. You make me want to smile.”
I blinked, for a moment taken aback by his words. My heart did this ridiculous little flip in my chest, and I had to remind myself to breathe.
“Okay, that’s… that was a bit romantic,” I said, all of a sudden feeling a bit flustered.
“Was it?” He arched a brow, edging a bit forward as his eyes danced with amusement. “Did I make your heart flutter?”
I snorted, hoping I came off as aloof. “No, you didn’t.”
His smirk grew wider and he stared at me as if staring right through my lie. “The truth, Freja Blackwood.”
I let out a deep sigh, rolled my eyes in an exaggerated circle, and relented. “Okay, okay. Maybe my heart did flutter. Just a little tiny bit.”
His laughter mingled with mine, light and easy, filling the room in a way that made everything feel a little less complicated.
For the first time in a long while, I felt like I could actually enjoy the moment.
That, and more, scared me than anything.
*****
Freya’s POV
I sat on the couch, looking afar, with my mind trailing farther than the confines of this mansion. Recently, my mind has been twisted and tangled to bring me in an unending cycle of misgivings and doubts. However hard I tried, the thoughts did not leave me like a shadow tagged along, which never went away.
The sounds of the bustling mansion barely registered in my ears. I was vaguely aware of voices in the background, of footsteps moving about, but they felt so very far away-like they belonged to a world I was no longer fully part of.
“What’s up with you?”
Freja’s voice cut through my haze, startling me slightly as she dropped down onto the couch beside me. Sharp eyes studied my face with concern, as if she could read all the emotions I was struggling to hide.
“Nothing,” I said quickly, my voice coming out too fast, too defensive.
Freja raised an eyebrow, unconvinced. “I’ve been watching you for the past two days, Freya. Every time you’re alone, you just. zone out like this. You disappear into your head, and it’s like you’re not even here anymore. The whole pack is busy preparing for The Hunt tomorrow night, and yet you’re barely into it. That’s not like you. What’s wrong?”
I hesitated, my fingers digging deeper into the couch. For a moment, I almost dismissed it again, telling her that it was nothing. But something about the way that she was looking at me, waiting silently-demanding the truth, at least-I couldn’t keep inside anymore.
“Liam wants to get bonded with me,” I finally said.
Freya’s eyes shot wide in surprise before a surprised gasp left her lips. “Oh my goddess!” she exclaimed, practically bouncing in her seat. “This is amazing!”
I blinked at her, taken aback by her reaction. “Amazing?” I repeated, my brows furrowing in confusion. “You think this is good news?”
“Of course, Freya!” she said, as if it went without saying. “The goddess is finally giving you another chance to find happiness! You should be celebrating this!”
“But. but what about Brown?” I whispered, my voice barely audible.
At the mention of his name, the excitement in Freja’s eyes dimmed just slightly. She sighed, reaching out to place a gentle hand over mine.
“I know what you’re thinking,” she said softly, understanding laced in her tone. “Brown will always be your first mate. No one can take that away. But Freya, he’s gone. He’s been gone for years. You’ve mourned him, you’ve suffered, and you’ve held on to that pain for so long. Don’t you think it’s time to move forward? Don’t you think you deserve to be happy again?”
I swallowed hard as my throat constricted. “But what if Liam isn’t meant for me? What if the goddess hasn’t destined us to be together?”
Freja’s lips arced into a smirk as she abruptly stood up, yanking me up with her. “Then let’s go ask the goddess herself.”
I stared at her, confused. “What?”
“The shrine of the Moon Goddess is not too far away from here,” she reminded me. “Let us go there and consult with the priestess. If you have to find out the answer, then let’s find out.”
I looked dubious; still a seed of doubt bothered me. But deep inside, I knew that she was right.
“I guess you are right,” I admitted with a small sigh. “It is best to first hear the priestess’s opinion before I decide on anything.”
“And maybe, while we’re at it, I could ask some personal questions of my own,” Freja added casually, though the slight twitch of her lips gave away that she was holding back something.
I narrowed my eyes at her. “You mean you want to ask the priestess if the mysterious guy you’ve been sneaking off to meet is your destined mate?”
She laughed and shook her head. “Let’s just go.”
With no more time to waste, we came out of the mansion and headed toward the Moon Goddess’s shrine. Quiet was the journey, but not my mind. It was like a tempest inside me, with thoughts fighting for supremacy between what I had lost and what I would gain, between the past and the future.
Entering inside, the priestess stood waiting at the shrine gate as if awaiting our arrival. Standing impressively tall, her severe glance cut us as if it pierced our hearts, into two parts: one would argue it saw those questions before a single word spilled out.
“What brings the Blackwood twins to my domain today?” she asked in a voice quite calm, yet with an undeniable weight of wisdom.
I stepped forward first, taking a deep breath before speaking. “I have some questions.”
The priestess gave a knowing smile. “Everyone has questions, Freya. Few ever find the right answers. But go on, what do you seek?”
Slowly, the air let loose from my mouth as my hands clenched at my sides. “I was once mated, years ago. The goddess had blessed our union, but then. he died. I mourned him for years, and now, unexpectedly, I find myself drawn to another. I need to know, priestess-does the goddess truly intend for me to have a second chance at happiness? Or am I betraying the bond I once had?”
She studied me for a long moment, her eyes deep and unreadable. Then she turned to Freja.
“And I suppose you have a question as well?”
Freja shrugged, crossing her arms. “I’ve never been one to believe in fate when it comes to mates. If I had my way, I’d avoid it altogether. But then. I met this guy. He’s mysterious, unpredictable, and every time I’m around him, I feel my wolf yearning for him. I want to know-could he be my destined mate?”
The priestess stood there, silent as if for eternity, then spoke in a slow, deep sigh; her voice carried heavy with something I couldn’t quite place.
“I have seen the future,” she whispered, her voice near sad. “And what I see is draped in darkness. The fate of the Blackwood twins is one written in sorrow, one which even the gods themselves dare not change. One of you shall live alone, forever without a mate. And one of you shall die alone, fated to never know true love’s embrace.”
A heavy silence fell over us, thick and suffocating. I felt my breath hitch, my chest taut to a painful degree as her words sank in like daggers.
The priestess finally turned away, her voice final. “Tomorrow is the night of The Hunt. I have many preparations to attend to. You should return home.”
And with that, she walked away, leaving us behind in stunned, shaken silence, with a prophecy we were not ready to hear.