“It was a long time ago, over thousands of centuries ago, the King of the wolves– the Alpha over all Alphas– and his wife were blessed with a child by the moon goddess. They finally had an heir to the throne, after so many years of waiting. The only issue was, their child was a Lycan. The Alpha was indeed stunned, he began to wonder why the moon goddess had blessed them with a Lycan rather than a regular wolf like the rest of them. The child was named Ares. Ares was born with deadly powers, with distinctive features such as a slanted scar that ran from his left eyebrow down to his right cheek. Growing up, he developed into a troubled teen who was short-tempered and had glowing red eyes whenever he was enraged. A few years later something so terrible happened –“ Nana paused, her eyes flickering between Ama and I.

This was the part that always had me filled with anticipation. This wouldn’t be the first time our Nana had told us this story. It was a rule made by my forefathers that every descendant of theirs must know this. Just like before, I could see my younger sister, Ama, shaking her head in disagreement with what was about to come.

I looked back at our Nana and she smiled, her wrinkles creasing further.

“The Alpha and his luna were murdered by wolf-hunters, human wolf-hunters. And all hell was raised between the humans and the wolves. Now the owner of the throne, and the king of the Alphas over all, Ares had enough power to extinct half, if not all, of the human race. But he didn’t, instead, he went after the people who murdered his parents. Indeed he was a man with a heart after all. But that didn’t end his hatred towards humans, no, instead it made him loathe them further. He, therefore, brought about a new rule; no wolf under him would be mated to a human. The aftermath of defying his rule was death and if was merciful enough, they would be sent into exile.” Nana smiled grimly, her eyes became hazy for a minute like she just recollected a distant memory.

Looking beside me, I could almost see the fumes coming out of Ama’s ears. Ama was strongly against dictatorship, she never quite believed the tales Nana told. But for me? I could never get any word out, I always listened with rapt attention whenever Nana told this particular tale as though my life depended on it, not wanting to miss out on any detail.

“This is bullshit, Nana! Why did he do that? That was uncalled for. He can’t go against the moon goddess or whatever they called her. I don’t believe in any of the crap but I know for sure that mates are destined for each other, just like soulmates. Again, I think Ares was an ass.”

Ama was sixteen but had the foul mouth of an angry seventy-five-year-old lady. No one liked to get on her bad side.

Nana and I watched with smiles on our faces as she got ready to stand up and storm off like the other times we were told this tale.

“You haven’t listened to the best part yet,” Nana announced, halting Ama’s movement.

This was the first time she had ever said this. It had mainly ended with when Ares made the new rule. I watched eagerly as Nana grimaced. This wasn’t normal, she was supposed to be smiling, rather, she looked pained.

“The moon goddess and other moon deities came up with a solution to tame Ares. The moon goddess blessed him with a mate. Of course, legends have it that he still hasn’t met her –“

“Is that the best part?” Ama questioned dryly, looking about ready to bolt.

Nana smiled. “No. But Ares was blessed with a human mate.”

Ama’s face blossomed with a smile.

“This makes so much sense! Where can I find the moon goddess? I need to kiss her feet.” She declared.

Ama groaned after some seconds, “I have to go to bed. I have a chemistry quiz tomorrow.”

She gave Nana and I a kiss on our cheeks before walking out of our small living room.

We’ve both been living with Nana ever since we lost our parents when I was just four years old and Ama was barely a toddler. Immediately Nana had come to our rescue and taken us in, she lived in a small town, called Lake-town, which was mainly surrounded by tall trees and shrubs. The houses here were not as big as the ones in the city, no, the ones here were generally cottages, cabins, and a few vintage homes, with just one public college which I attended, one high school which Ama attended, one hospital where Nana worked as a nurse part-timely and a lot of other ‘ones’.

I looked back at Nana to see her gaze already on me. “Akira, do you know what a mate means?”

I slowly shook my head.

“Every human has a mate. Even supernatural creatures such as Lycans and werewolves all have destined mates, chosen for them by the moon goddess. A mate feels every flicker of emotion running through their other half and they will always want to be close to their mate.”

I nodded my head slowly, still not understanding where she was going with this.

“I want you to know that the moon goddess has a purpose for everyone. Ares might seem brutal but all he needs is a mate to love him for who he is and teach him the art of forgiveness.”

I frowned, “But Nana-“

She promptly stood up, making me pause. She walked over to the little cushion I was seated on before bending down to smoothen the bangs over my forehead. The streaks of grey on her hair shown in the dim moon light filtering into our little sitting room.

“Hush my grandchild, for soon, the truth shall prevail,” Nana said, her face stern and her voice serious.

I watched, confused, as her attitude swiftly changed. “Come on! I’ll make you some tea.” She was smiling in a heartbeat as she joyfully walked into the kitchen.

After making us both some tea Nana retired to her bedroom, mumbling about how much knitting she had to do tomorrow.

I sat quietly In the living room, listening to the crickets chirping. After a few minutes of pondering on what Nana said, I stood up and walked to my bedroom.

My short legs led me to the little bookshelf in the corner of my room and I wasn’t alarmed when the next book I picked was a book about Lycans.

“Your smoothies always taste so good, Akira.” Eve moaned, taking another sip of the cup of smoothies.

Nancy and Josh both nodded in agreement.

“Buuuuuuut, her Nana’s cookies are the best! Can I get that?” Josh countered, his green eyes fluttering cutely.

I nodded, a smile on my face as I quickly wrote down his order. It was a Friday afternoon and my friends decided to visit my Nana’s little cake shop, where Ama and I helped out.

“By the way, have you thought about it yet?” Josh suddenly raised and they all turned to look at me expectantly.

I placed the little notepad in my front pockets and lay my hands on the flat surface of the wooden table, before giving Eve my full attention. “Thought about...what?”

Eve looked at me like I was crazy. “Don’t tell me you forgot!”

“If you don’t want to go to the party, all you have to do is say no, Akira.” Nancy snapped, drawing in the last bit of smoothies through her straw.

My face quickly flushed at her accusatory tone.

Eve gave her a warning look before glancing back at me with a pitiful look on her face. “The party, Akira. The one where all the cool kids will be attending.”

I loved Eve to death but these days all she wanted to do was be with the cool kids. Although Nancy has a hand in her sudden change of heart.

She had always been the most outspoken one out of the both of us, I was the meek and timid one. Eve was a blonde with beautiful blue eyes and an outstanding slim figure, she was breathtaking. She usually had guys flocking all over her anytime we were out together, which was usually a good thing since I never really liked any form of attraction and had always loved living in her shadow.

“I don’t think I will be able to make it, Eve. My Nana had warned me about how young girls and guys of our age are mysteriously going missing. I d-don’t think I can take that risk, guys.” My hands instinctively went to the edge of my apron, and I suddenly began to feel little.

They all looked at me dumbfounded.

“I told you she wouldn’t go.” Nancy grinned maliciously. “After all, she is nothing but a scared little virgin.”

Unshed tears filled my eyes at her words. This was exactly how I envisioned this conversation to play out and I was so not prepared.

Eve tugged my hands down, clasping in tight in her palms. “Come on, Eve! It’ll be fun, I promise. Besides, Josh and I will be there to protect you.”

Nancy quietly snickered at her last sentence. My palms suddenly became sweaty and all I wanted to do then was run to the back room and cry.

I swallowed the huge lump lodged in my throat before replying with a phoney smile. “Alright then. I’ll go. What time is it?”

Eve gave me a large grin, showcasing her straight, pearly whites. “Not like you had a choice, I would’ve dragged you there myself if you said no. I’ll pick you up by 7.”

I gave her a curt nod, right when I turned to walk away, Nancy harshly gripped my wrist.

“And please, for the love of God, Akira, dress sexy. No more grandma gowns.” She sneered looking at the length of my gown with distaste.

I frowned as she released my wrist, listening to Eve chastising her as I walked away from their table to the counter.

“What happened?” Ama asked immediately she saw my face.

She looked down at my left hand cradling my right wrist. Her eyes flashed with anger at the red and angry bruise looking right back at her. My skin was pale so it was easy to bruise.

“Don’t tell me that bitch did that to you.”

Ama and Nancy had never really liked themselves ever since Nancy became friends with us, or Eve rather.

“I don’t think she meant it,” I answered softly. Looking down at my gown, tears filled my eyes again. I had always had a thing for Victoria Era vintage gowns which I always got from the thrift store a few blocks away. This particular gown wasn’t even as long as she made it up to be.

Ama gave me an unbelievable look. “Oh, please! That girl hates your guts and you know it.”

I gave her a reassuring smile. “I know. I can take care of it, I promise.”

“I have to go. Duty calls,” I announced, nodding towards the older couple that just stepped in, brushing off the unsure look she gave me.

Soon, it was six pm, Ama and I locked up the shop and headed home. Occasionally talking about everything and nothing as we took the short trek to our home.

“I have about forty minutes to get ready for the party.”

“Yup, you’re lucky you have me as a sister,” Ama smirked as she unlocked the door, my legs already wishing for a break after a long day.

Immediately we stepped into our home, a familiar sense of comfortability washed over me, making me release a huge breath.

“Come on! Go freshen up so I can dress you up.” Ama shouted, snapping me out of my thoughts.

I pouted, “ I don’t want any of your short dresses, Ama.”

She quickly gave me the stink eye. “You don’t have a choice. You have to prove to fancy Nancy that you’re not stuck-up.”

Although I wanted to tell her that I didn’t have to prove anything to anyone, I ran to the bathroom to shower as fast as possible.

When I was done, I called Ama and we both started raiding my closet for an outfit worth wearing to a college party going to be filled with frat boys.

Ama groaned some minutes later, clearly frustrated at the clothes in my closet. “Where the hell did you get all these dresses from?”

I looked at the lumps of clothes on my bed and smiled. “From Loki’s thrift.”

She shook her head at my response before dragging me to her room right opposite mine.

I slowly stepped towards her closet filled with sparkly dresses, mini skirts, and crop tops. Although they were pretty, I didn’t have enough confidence like Ama to put them on.

Shuffling through the hanging clothes, she brought out a short black silk gown, with a dropping neckline. She had a huge smile on her face as she looked between me and the dress.

I quickly shook my head, stepping back. “Nope. I’m not wearing this.”

Ama scoffed, pointing at the towel wrapped around my body. “Get that off and put this on. This gown is at knee-length, Akira. It’s the longest thing I own.”

With a sigh, I dropped the towel to the floor and begrudgingly put the dress on. Of course, it was a bit of a hassle since I was a lot curvaceous than Ama. The gown hugged my torso and hips tightly, making me look slim, but at least I could breathe. The black colour made me appreciate my pale skin for the first time and the contrast between my pale skin and the black dress was indeed beautiful.

Ama lowly whistled, looking at me from head to toe. “You don’t even have makeup on yet and you already look so damn hot.”

I narrowed my eyes at her, with a huff I tug the gown down to my knees a little.

“Don’t you think it’s too short?” I pouted, walking to her closet to find something longer.

But Ama wasn’t having it, she dragged me to sit on the pink chair in front of her bright pink vanity dressing mirror.

She did my makeup as quickly as possible, making me shut my eyes close while at it. Seeing as we had not much time left, we both opted for something simple.

I opened my eyes when she was done and I almost didn’t recognize myself. The mascara and the smoky black eyeshadow made my dull blue eyes pop and the pink strawberry lipgloss made my lips look fuller. My red hair was curled and it flowed down my neck in thick vibrant waves.

I released a huge breathe when I stood up, turning to face Ama who looked astonished.

“You look beautiful.” She simply said, an adoring smile on her face.

I gave her an air kiss, turning to go find some shoes to put on. But Ama stopped me with a tug on my wrist, a look on her face as she stared at my small feet.

“I have just the right shoes for you.” She said, bending at the foot of her closet to search for something.

She came out with a pair of black strappy sandals.

“I don’t want to hear a word from you. You’re wearing this and it’s final.” She snapped immediately she saw the look of disagreement written all over my face.

I quickly put the shoes on, briefly admiring my small feet as they fit perfectly. I rushed to my room to pick up a small black purse before walking down the stairs with Ama.

“There’s spaghetti in the oven. I’ll be back before ten.” I told her.

She snickered. “Sure.”

Right as I was about to ask her what she meant, a knock resounded on the door.

“That’s them, I have to go.” I promptly said to her, leaning to kiss her on her cheeks.

“Love you!”

I dashed out the door, and I was met with the face of Eve. She looked stunning, with a short black leather skirt, pink crop top, and black heeled boots.

“Wow, Akira.” She breathed out, looking short of words for some seconds. “You look fucking hot.”

I blushed, thanking her as we both walked to her father’s Jeep.

“Wow, Akira, I never thought you would brush up this good,” Nancy said immediately I slipped into the back seat right next to Josh.

I didn’t know if what she said was a compliment or an insult but as soon as she sent me a nasty look, I figured out it was the latter.

“You look beautiful tonight, Akira. I mean, really beautiful.” Josh whispered right next to my ear.

I shivered uncomfortably at our proximity and I gave him a grateful smile before looking out the window, taking in the trees and cool breeze.

“We’re here!” Nancy shrieked almost an hour later as Eve parked in front of a huge house. The huge building was right outside the border of our small town.

We walked into the building, the loud bass of music made the entire floor vibrate as a sensual song blasted from the speakers.

The strong stench of alcohol assaulted my nostrils and I fruitlessly tried to avoid brushing against the bodies gyrating on the dance floor, while the lustful gazes coming from the frat guys made my skin crawl.

Eve dragged me to a corner of the room and asked me to stay put like I was going to go ahead and introduce myself to people.

I nodded and watched her walk to what looked like a makeshift bar, my legs tapping the ground and following the beat.

A hand tapped my shoulder, scaring the living daylight out of me. I sighed in relief when I realized it was Josh. He already had a cup in his hand which he took a sip from.

“Hey!” I smiled, shouting over the loud music. “Where’s Nancy?”

Josh shrugged with a grin on his lips. “I don’t know. Probably in a room with a guy.”

I laughed, knowing he was telling the truth.

Eve suddenly appeared with two red solo cups in both hands, she abruptly shoved a cup in hand and the alcohol spilled a little.

“Come on, Akira!” She screamed. “Dance, fuck the rules, and live wild!” She was already sounding like she was on the verge of getting drunk.

I shook my head at her tipsy words, taking a small sip of the alcohol and immediately, I winced at the bitter taste.

I looked back at Josh to find his gaze on my cleavage. I quickly cleared my throat, snapping him out of his daze.

“Do you wanna dance?” He suddenly announced, looking around the crowded room.

I took a rather large sip this time around before I nodded, needing a little boost of confidence from the alcohol. I didn’t know why I suddenly needed to prove something to myself.