Luna's POV
The pencil snapped in half.
Luna Nightwhisper stared at the broken pieces in her hands, her heart racing. She had been drawing so hard that she didn't even notice how tight she was gripping it. On the paper in front of her was the same face she had drawn a million times - warm golden eyes, a gentle smile, and hair that seemed to glow like sunshine.
"Not again," she whispered, quickly flipping the drawing over before anyone could see.
But she was too late.
"Luna!" Sage Riverstone's voice bubbled with excitement as she floated through the bedroom wall on a stream of sparkling water. "Were you drawing your mystery boy again?"
Luna's cheeks burned red. "It's not what you think."
"Oh really?" Sage grinned, her blue hair dripping tiny droplets that turned into butterflies before hitting the floor. "Then why do you look like a tomato right now?"
"I don't look like a tomato!" Luna protested, but she could feel her face getting even hotter.
Sage giggled and tried to grab the paper, but Luna was faster. She clutched the drawing to her chest, protecting it like it was made of treasure instead of just pencil marks.
"Come on, let me see!" Sage begged. "I promise I won't tell anyone about your imaginary boyfriend."
"He's not imaginary!" The words burst out of Luna before she could stop them.
Both girls froze. Sage's mouth fell open, and Luna felt like she had just confessed to stealing the crown jewels.
"What do you mean he's not imaginary?" Sage asked slowly.
Luna's stomach twisted into knots. How could she explain that the boy felt more real than anything else in her life? That she had been dreaming about him for three whole years? That sometimes she woke up thinking she could still feel his warm hand holding hers?
"I just... I have these dreams," Luna said quietly. "Really clear dreams. And he's always there."
Sage's eyes grew wide. "You mean like prophecy dreams? Luna, those are serious! You have to tell your mom right away!"
"No!" Luna jumped up so fast that her chair fell over. "Promise me you won't tell her. Please, Sage. She already thinks I'm not a good enough moon witch."
Before Sage could answer, the bedroom door swung open with a loud bang. Queen Celeste Nightwhisper stood in the doorway, her silver crown catching the moonlight from the window. Her dark eyes swept the room, taking in the fallen chair, Luna's red face, and the paper clutched against her daughter's chest.
"What is going on in here?" the Queen asked in her most royal voice.
"Nothing, Mama," Luna said quickly, stuffing the drawing behind her back.
Queen Celeste raised one eyebrow. "Nothing? Then why does it sound like a storm hit this room?"
Sage cleared her throat. "Um, Your Majesty, I was just helping Luna with her... homework."
"Homework that involves shouting and furniture falling over?" The Queen stepped into the room, her long dress flowing around her like liquid starlight. "Luna, show me what you're hiding."
Luna's heart hammered against her ribs. "It's just a silly drawing."
"If it's silly, then you won't mind showing me."
There was no escape. Luna slowly pulled the paper from behind her back and handed it to her mother. Queen Celeste looked at the drawing, and her face went very still.
"Who is this boy?" the Queen asked, her voice deadly quiet.
"Nobody," Luna whispered.
"This is nobody?" Queen Celeste held up the drawing so Luna could see it. The golden boy's face smiled back at her, so detailed it looked like he might step right off the paper. "You drew every eyelash, every freckle. You even drew the way the light hits his hair. This is not nobody, Luna."
Tears started burning behind Luna's eyes. "He's just someone from my dreams."
"Dreams?" Queen Celeste's voice got even quieter, which was somehow scarier than if she had yelled. "What kind of dreams?"
"Happy dreams," Luna said, wiping her nose with her sleeve. "We fly together and laugh together and... and he makes me feel like I'm not weird for being different."
The Queen was quiet for a long moment, studying the drawing. When she looked up, her eyes were filled with something that might have been fear.
"Luna, you are the princess of the Night Realm. You don't have time for silly dreams about boys. You have duties. Responsibilities. Your magic training is already behind schedule."
"But Mama—"
"No buts." Queen Celeste crumpled up the drawing and tossed it into the fireplace. Luna gasped as the flames ate up the golden boy's face. "You will stop wasting time on fantasies and focus on what matters. Show me your shadow magic. Right now."
Luna felt like her heart had been torn in half, but she knew better than to argue when her mother used that tone. She held out her hands and tried to call up shadows like she had been taught.
Usually, her magic was soft and gentle, creating pretty shadow-shapes that danced in the air. But today, something was wrong. Instead of silver shadows, bright golden sparkles burst from her fingertips.
Sage gasped. Queen Celeste took a step backward.
"What was that?" the Queen demanded.
Luna stared at her hands in horror. Golden light was still flickering around her fingers like tiny suns. "I don't know. I was trying to make shadows, but this came out instead."
"Try again."
Luna closed her eyes and concentrated harder. She thought about moonlight and starshine and all the shadow magic she had learned since she was little. But when she opened her eyes, even more golden light poured out of her hands. It was warm and bright and completely wrong for a moon witch.
"Make it stop," Queen Celeste ordered.
"I'm trying!" Luna shook her hands, but the golden sparkles only got brighter. They started floating around the room like happy little fireflies, and everywhere they touched, things began to glow with warm light.
Sage reached out to touch one of the sparkles, and when it landed on her finger, she smiled the biggest smile Luna had ever seen. "It feels like sunshine and honey and the best hug ever," Sage said in wonder.
But Queen Celeste did not look happy. She waved her own hand, and dark shadows swept through the room, swallowing up all of Luna's golden light. The room felt cold and empty without it.
"This cannot happen again," the Queen said firmly. "Do you understand me, Luna? Your magic must stay silver. Moon witches do not create golden light."
"But why not?" Luna asked. "It felt good. It made Sage happy."
"Because it's dangerous," Queen Celeste snapped. "Golden magic belongs to the Day Realm, and we have been enemies with them for a hundred years. If anyone finds out you can create their kind of magic..."
She didn't finish the sentence, but Luna could guess what she was thinking. War. Fighting. Maybe even death.
"I'll practice more," Luna promised, even though her heart was still aching from watching her drawing burn. "I'll get better at shadow magic."
"You will," the Queen agreed. "And you will stop having dreams about strange boys. Whatever is happening to your magic, it needs to stop before someone gets hurt."
After her mother left, Luna sat on her bed feeling empty inside. Sage floated over and put a wet hand on her shoulder.
"Are you okay?" Sage asked gently.
"No," Luna whispered. "I don't think I am."
That night, Luna lay awake staring at the ceiling. Her hands still tingled with leftover golden magic, and she couldn't stop thinking about the boy from her dreams. Was he real? Was he somewhere out there wondering about her too?
She closed her eyes and tried to remember every detail of his face before the drawing had burned up. Golden eyes that were kind and brave. A smile that made her feel safe. And something else - something she had never drawn because she couldn't quite put it into words.
He felt like home.
Luna drifted off to sleep still thinking about him, not knowing that miles away in the Day Realm, a certain golden-haired prince was having the exact same dream about a girl made of starlight.
As she slept, tiny golden sparkles leaked from her fingertips, floating around her room like fallen stars. And each sparkle seemed to be reaching toward something - or someone - far away.
But Luna didn't know that her magic was trying to find its match. She didn't know that somewhere across the border between realms, another teenager was lying awake with silver flames dancing around his hands, wondering why his sun magic kept turning the color of moonlight.
All Luna knew was that something big was coming. Something that would change everything.
And it was starting with her dreams becoming real.