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Natalie
Lucian had sent me a message earlier in the day letting me know that he needed to be at the festival early to help with preparations, but that he’d see me there. So I decided to take the opportunity to get to know my family a bit better.
I took Brian's hand, and we teleported to the festival together.
“Hey, you didn’t stumble this time.” Brian released my hand when we appeared in a dense part of the forest.
"I've been practicing," I told him as we walked towards the sound of laughter coming from our left.
Tonight was a full moon and the biggest werewolf festival of the year. Saying I was excited would be an understatement. I'd never been to a festival with so many packs.
I even purchased a new outfit just for the occasion—comfortable black boots, dark jeans, and a studded deep-olive jacket. You couldn’t beat the shopping opportunities in the God Realm, that was for sure.
This was all so new to me. The gatherings I attended on Earth never had more than a few members from other packs whether it was during a full moon or otherwise. But several entire packs coming together for one night? I’d never seen anything like it.
I hadn’t considered joining any of the packs here, where I'd be able to experience more frequent gatherings, and I wasn’t sure I ever would. No pack could ever replace my Blackmoon pack on Earth. But I still wanted to be a part of the wolf community.
To tell the truth, I wasn’t even sure I wasn’t already a part of Elinor’s Bloodmoon Clan, if only by association. I’d have to ask her.
But I was fine not belonging to a pack in this realm, even though back on Earth I would’ve been considered a rogue. Rogues were wayward wolves who often, though not always, had been kicked out of a pack for serious crimes or disobedience to the Alpha.
On Earth, we avoided rogues. Most of the time, they were trouble. But a small percentage of them were lone wolves by choice.
Packs weren’t a prison—a wolf could leave if they chose to. But wolves were pack creatures and lone wolves were few and far between. Here, I wasn’t sure the term rogue was even used.
Because I’d belonged to a pack on Earth, I found this realm very lonely at first. But now that I found my mates, a few friends, and a family I never knew about, and had also figured out a way to contribute to this society by finding my purpose, I felt a sense of freedom that I'd never felt before even on Earth.
I wanted to keep exploring that for a time.
Sure, I sometimes missed my duties as an Enchanted, but this was my chance to do more—to be more.
I still had the issue of Lucian and Rumir disliking each other to resolve, but that would work out eventually. Or at least, I was hoping it would.
It had been great spending time with Rumir at the club and getting to know him, but I still felt a little uncertain about us being together. Our bond was true, but what would it be like to be marked by a dragon? I'd never met one on Earth—I wasn’t sure they even still existed—and I didn’t know what to expect.
Even though Rumir was a hybrid and not a full dragon, he was still drastically different.
“Are you ready for the sacrifice tonight?”
I stopped walking, but Brian kept going, then realizing I'd stopped, turned back to face me.
"What sacrifice?" I asked.
“A wolf sacrifice is made to the Goddess each year during this festival. You weren’t told?”
“What?” Brian’s lips curved impishly, and I sighed with the realization that he was only teasing. “You’re an ass.”
He shrugged. “It is how I pass the time. You need to get out of your head. Tonight is about celebration. So come on, it's just up ahead.”
“I was just thinking about Rumir," I told him as I caught up to him, and we continued walking together. "I know he's a hybrid, but he’s—"
“He’s not a wolf." Brian finished my sentence knowingly, and I nodded. "I get it. The fact that Rumir has a mate means I might have one someday. But it’s not something I ever worried about. And I told my mother not to meddle and ask the Goddess about it. But I understand your concerns. If I do find a mate, she might have the same reservations about me being too different as you have about Rumir.”
He buried his hands in his pockets. “I’m a half-vampire, half-wolf, and the only one of my kind. I feed on blood, although I don't need it solely, and that'll be a big difference between my mate and me. I’m fully aware I might end up being rejected because I’m not a pureblood, and even though I understand, it still stings. I figure it’s easier not to have a mate.”
"You're in the God Realm, Brian, and that speaks for itself. You're half-vampire but you're still you. Just like Rumir is still—Rumir. I’m sure I’ll get used to his scales. So far, I’ve only seen them on his arms, and I haven’t yet seen him in his full dragon form.” I chuckled at the thought. Wow, am I ready for that? “I’m sure your mate will get used to you needing blood from time to time.”
“Perhaps,” he mumbled.
