I was not leaving the Mooncrown without a farewell, just not the kind they expected.

Before taking the skybound griffin that would carry me away, I had one final place to visit. One last knot to sever, clean and without mercy. Ending a bond did not always come with kindness. Sometimes it came like a blade, cold, sharp and silent. That was the severing bond I chose.

Selene.

She was still staying inside the Healer Sanctum of the Mooncrown, said to be “recovering.” I doubted most of it. With her, pain was often exaggerated, shaped to draw pity. She had always known how to twist truth until it cried.

I walked through the stone passageway of the sanctum, the sound of my boots echoing with each step. It felt like a countdown. Every pace brought me closer to freedom. My hand tightened around what I carried, a bundle wrapped in dark cloth, the flowers inside as black as night.

Black roses.

They fit perfectly.

Flowers of parting. Of endings. Not death of flesh, but death of bonds, lies and the past I once believed in.

When I reached her chamber, the door was slightly open.

I looked inside and everything became clear.

Selene was not resting in bed as the Alpha and Beta claimed. She was not bound by healing charms or lying weak. She stood before a mirror, humming softly, swaying as if listening to her own tune. Her healer’s robe slipped from one shoulder. Bare feet touched the floor lightly.

She was dancing.

I allowed myself a small smile before knocking once and pushing the door open.

She turned, startled, her face twisting when she saw me.

“What are you here?” she demanded, her voice cold and uneasy.

I stepped inside calmly. “I came to leave something behind.”

I held out the black roses. Under the lantern glow, they looked almost unreal.

“I heard you were in pain. Yet you seem quite well.”

Her eyes dropped to the flowers, narrowing. “Black roses? Are you mocking me?”

“I thought they suited the moment,” I replied lightly. “And your act.”

She scoffed. “You’ve lost your mind.”

“No,” I said, moving closer. “I finally opened my eyes. I used to think I was the one seeking attention. But it was never me. It was always you.”

She crossed her arms, the robe slipping lower. “So what? They chose me. You can’t accept that.”

There it was. Her truth. Simple and cruel.

“You envy me,” she said.

“Once, perhaps,” I answered without flinching. “Not now. I didn’t come to argue. I came to say farewell.”

Her brow twitched. “Farewell?”

“You can keep them,” I said plainly. “Alden. Draven. All of it. I’ve already moved forward. I have another bond waiting.”

She burst into laughter, sharp and mocking, the kind that once tore at my confidence.

“Don’t tell me you’re truly entering a Moonbond Ceremony,” she sneered. “You?”

Her words dripped poison. “Who would claim you as a mate? You are cold. Hard. Demanding. You are not Luna material. You are wearing around the neck.”

I smiled. Small. Controlled. Burning.

“Maybe,” I said. “But I remain a she-wolf with an Alpha blood of Obsidian Fang Pack. I still carry a bloodline. A name. A pack that wanted me, not one that took me out of pity.”

Her color drained.

“And let this be clear,” I continued, stepping close enough for her to smell my scent, “everything you have, the sanctum, their care, your place, exists because I brought you in. I shielded you. Fed you. Gave you a den. And you repaid me by trying to replace me as Luna.”

She opened her mouth, but I was finished listening.

I dropped the roses onto her lap.

“Recover well,” I said calmly and turned away.

Right on cue, the sobbing began. Loud. Broken. Crafted for sympathy. She had always been skilled at that, using tears like armor.

I did not look back.

I left her chamber and walked into the passageway, ready to leave all of it behind. Ready to breathe air free of betrayal.

But fate was predictable.

Heavy footsteps rushed toward me. Draven. Alden.

“Liora!” Draven growled, gripping my arm. “What did you say to her?”

“Why is she sobbing like that?” Alden demanded, breath tight, eyes darting to the room, then to the flowers. “Black roses? Are you provoking us?”

I looked at them. Their faces, angry, defensive, blind. Always ready to guard her. Always ready to turn me into the enemy.

Again.

I slowly removed Draven’s hand from my arm.

“No,” I said quietly.

Then I smiled.

Not the smile they knew.

The smile of a Luna who had already walked away.

“I wish death upon you all.”

“I am wishing death upon you all.”

Alden’s face turned cold. “You do not mean do such things.”

“I do,” I replied without warmth. “Everything I said.”

“You have lost yourself,” he growled. “Do you think this is right? Calling for death because your heart is cold?”

I turned away. I had said what I came to say. There was nothing more left between us.

“Apologize to her,” Alden ordered suddenly. “Now.”

I stopped. A short laugh slipped from me. “For what? For speaking what is true?”

“You made her weep again. You always do this, making things into chaos just to feel powerful.”

I did not answer. I walked on, each step heavy.

Then his hand closed around my arm. Rough. Tight.

“Release me,” I said, pulling back.

“No. We are not finished.”

His grip hardened, dragging me toward him. My heart raced, my wolf stirring in warning.

“Alden, let go.”

He did not. He never did when he believed he ruled me.

I twisted, trying to break free, but with his Alpha strength, I could not. So I ran.

I tore myself from his grasp using the Alpha blood running in me, shoved past him and fled down with my wolf speed the stone passageway. I did not care where my feet carried me. I only needed distance.

Then my boot caught the edge of the stairs.

The world spun.

The fall came fast.

Darkness swallowed me whole.

I woke to a clean scent and low rune-humming. White stone above. My body ached, but it was whole. A healer entered, her face calm.

“You have awakened,” she said gently. “You are fortunate you have an Alpha blood. No broken bones, only heavy bruises. You must rest.”

I blinked. “Was… anyone here with me?”

She tilted her head. “You do not recall?”

“I thought there was… a man. Perhaps I dreamed it.”

“You did not. A man named Kaegan brought you to the Mooncrown Healer Sanctum. Paid most of the healing cost. Stayed beside you through the night.”

My chest tightened. “Kaegan…”

“Yes,” she nodded. “And he nearly fought two wolves who tried to enter. One with brown eyes, one taller. He ordered them away. They obeyed.”

My breath caught. “Did he leave word?”

“No,” she said softly. “He departed at dawn. Said you would understand.”

I did not. And yet… I did.

Kaegan. Appearing when no one else did. Watching from the shadows. Protecting without asking. Who was he? Why hide?

The healer left and I remained alone.

As always. Cycles ago, the two wolves would have run to me for the smallest wound.

I remembered the cycle in which I twisted my ankle during a clan trek. Alden had reached me first, lifted me without question and carried me down the mountain.

“You are not just anyone,” he had said that night, pressing cold herbs to my ankle. “You are my mate. I will always come first.”

He kissed my brow. I believed him.

Draven, too, once crept into my chamber when fever took me. He stayed until moonfall, feeding me broth, distracting me with old tales.

“Luna,” he whispered, brushing my hair back, “even if the pack turns on you, I will not.”

They brought me sunflowers. Alden said they matched my smile. Draven once carved a rune-charm for me, swearing to add to it every cycle we stayed close.

“You will never be alone,” he promised, looping his finger with mine.

But now, they ran to Selene.

She coughed and they wrapped her in furs. She sneezed and they brewed herbs. I lay bruised in the sanctum, heartbroken, bond torn.

No flowers. No charms. No comfort.

Only silence.

I was once their center.

Now I was nothing.

No mindlink calls. No crystal messages. Not even a knock.

I was a closed tale to them. By late light, I decided.

I signed my release parchments myself, ignoring the healer’s concern. I would not wait in another chamber for wolves who would never come.

My travel pack waited at the Moonrest Inn. I left without ceremony, secured passage on the next skybound griffin, even if rushed.

I could not stay.

Not another breath.

My crystal communicator pulsed.

Draven: [Where are you? Why did you leave? You are still hurt. If harm comes to you, do not blame us.]

I did not answer.

Another pulse. Not to another third mindlinked.

Then Alden's name showed.

Alden: [Where are you? Who is the wolf that stayed beside you all night? Is he your mate? Have you betrayed me? You are filth. How long have you been cheating on our bond? You’re shameless. You’ll regret this.]

I read every word calmly. Then I sent one reply.

[Do not worry. You will receive notice of our Moonbond Ceremony soon.]

Without pause, I severed the connection.

The call to gather sounded through the travel grounds. I stood and tightened my grip on my travel seal.

As I stepped onto the skybound griffin, I did not look back.

Because at last, I was bound to begin with my new life.