Dimitri's Point of View
The carriage shook over the winding forest paths, but Dimitri barely noticed. His mind was elsewhere. The Moon Goddess had been silent when he underwent the ritual her message cryptic as always. She hadn't named his Luna.
"You will find her yourself."
That was all.
like he didn't know what that even mean
Part of him was relieved. Another part… restless. He had always known that the fated mate would appear eventually, but to leave it entirely up to him felt like a challenge he was born to accept. He could control the hunt, the approach, the outcome. The mystery didn't frighten him...it exhilarated him.
He glanced at Lucien and Rylan seated beside him, their faces unreadable. Both had grown accustomed to Dimitri's obsession with control, his need to dictate outcomes, but even they could sense the tension in the air.
"I don't like waiting," Dimitri muttered under his breath.
Rylan mumbled, "but you've been waiting for your white moonlight for over a year now"
Dimitri's jaw tightened, but he didn't answer. Soon, they would arrive at Silvercrest Park, a place he had never visited but had studied carefully. It was just some small pack so he has never paid that much attention to it, if not for his parents convincing him to attend saying that it was an old friend of his and that he could use this opportunity to look for his mate "as if, maybe if I finds her i might actually dispose of her here". he thought.
...
Clarice's Point of View
Clarice stood before the full-length mirror, her reflection barely recognizable. The dress she wore was soft and flowing, pale silver that shimmered under the candlelight, the closest thing she had ever come to a "ceremonial gown." She had braided her hair carefully, pinned a few loose strands around her face to soften the look.
It was a coming-of-age ceremony, marking her eighteenth year the day every werewolf fully awakened to their wolf form. The thought of it should have thrilled her. Instead, her stomach fluttered nervously.
The dining hall was buzzing already. Members of other packs, visiting Alphas, and royals mingled, exchanging smiles and subtle glares. Clary kept her back straight, her eyes low. She didn't want attention. She didn't want whispers. Tonight, she wanted to exist without anyone forcing her destiny on her.
Slipping in quietly, she found a spot near a shadowed column. From there, she could watch the crowd while remaining mostly unseen. She kept her hands folded in front of her, legs crossed subtly, her eyes scanning the mingling wolves.
She caught glimpses of older pack leaders and visiting Alphas, their pride and authority radiating in subtle ways eyes scanning, tails shifting, jaws set. She shivered slightly, tightening her grip on her dress.
Stay calm. Just stay calm, she reminded herself. It's just a ceremony. Just a birthday party with rules.
she was still finding a way to avoid her family so she could make have move I mean if they knew she does not want to find her mate they'll surely be disappointed. maybe after she leave for some years then they'll would have come in terms with her not having a mate. and beside she has always wanted to school in the human world she can continue her college from there.
As the moon rose high, the center of the hall cleared. The elders called for the transformation rites. Midnight approached. Wolves of her age were to awaken fully, to feel the surge of power coursing through them, and to step into their wolf forms for the first time.
Clary's pulse quickened. Her mind raced. She could feel the hum of energy around her, the latent scent of wolves sharpening as they anticipated the moment. She tried to breathe steadily, tried to remind herself to wait—but instinctively, she edged toward the exit.
I need space… away from everyone, she thought.
Not far from the perimeter, Dimitri's presence was already a storm. His impatience radiated like heat from his body, fingers tapping against the carved wood of the balcony where he waited.
He clenched his jaw. Lucien and Rylan kept giving him side glances but he didn't care he was already frustrated enough to attend this banquet and he didn't know why he was feeling irritated all of a sudden
Clary's feet barely made a sound as she slipped past a side gate. She had almost made it. Freedom was so close.
But then...
A shadow moved in her path. She collided with it, nearly tripping.
"I'm so sorry," she whispered quickly, her eyes flicking up.
Dimitri froze.
The scent hit him first, a crisp, intoxicating aroma that made his chest tighten. And then he heard it, the soft, melodic voice that had haunted his memory since the woods, the one that had comforted him in his darkest moment.
She's here.
"Wait!" he called, instinctively reaching out. But before he could step closer, she darted away, faster than thought, slipping past his grasp.
...
Clary's heart pounded as she ran, finally reaching a secluded clearing outside Silvercrest's borders. The moonlight bathed her in silver, and her body began to tremble—bones shifting, muscles stretching painfully, spine realigning. The cracking sounds echoed in her ears as she transformed into a majestic white wolf, fur gleaming, claws digging into the earth.
Her mind screamed, her senses expanded, every nerve alive with the raw power of her wolf form.
Dimitri, just a few hundred meters away, smelled her fully now. He closed his eyes briefly, trying to resist. but the mate bond, invisible yet undeniable, pulled at him relentlessly. With a growl that's mixed frustration and hunger, he took off after the scent, faster than any human eyes could track.
When he rounded the trees, he saw her: the white wolf moving effortlessly, every stride perfect. And then...just as suddenly...she shifted back, human form restored, clothes torn along the arms and legs.
Dimitri's eyes widened.
She's mine.
But she was already running again, disappearing into the night. And with that, the chase began.