The Enchanted Luna

The Party

Somehow, I managed to finish cooking food for nearly 450 pack members and guests who will all be arriving at the party. I set up the tables, chairs, and tents, then finished off by decorating the whole back area of the packhouse. The ceremony is all set to begin, which means it's time for me to start getting ready for my departure.

As the sun starts to set, the stars begin to appear. The DJ must have arrived because the music is playing loudly outside as the trail of cars drive into the courtyard. The sounds of chatter and car doors opening and closing as guests exit them to make their way to the backyard fill the house.

Even though I wasn't invited or even wanted to go, I can't help but think about what it would have been like if the circumstances were different. If the Alpha and Luna actually cared for me as one of their own or if their son was actually my mate. Would he have been more gentle or caring? Would it have made being here bearable?

I shake myself out of fantasy land and grab my backpack. With not much to begin with, there's not much I needed. I finish packing the go-bag with two water bottles, an extra shirt, underwear, and pants, along with some fruit I had snatched while setting up for the event.

I wait for the big announcement when everyone's attention will be occupied by the Alpha stepping down. After a while, the noise outside grew louder from all the people who had arrived as they began talking and laughing with each other.

I check the clock to see the hands read 10:30. The ceremony was about to commence in 15 minutes. I get up to start stretching. Unsure how far I'm actually going to walk, I know I need to be prepared for at least 25 miles as that is the closest distance to the pack border.

When the clock strikes 10:45, I hear someone begin to tap on the microphone, which means it's time to make my escape. I head down the stairs, then through the empty hall to make my way to the service exit, which I typically only use anyway because I was the only one who ever took out the trash.

Once I see the night sky and feel the cool breeze on my skin, I begin running and never look back.

I focus on the gravel getting crushed beneath my feet, so I won't get tired. I think what it would have been like to have a wolf so I could shift and be out of this territory within 15 minutes. Even a slow wolf could be out of here in 20 minutes if they wanted it bad enough. I push the thought aside and just keep running.

I need to make it far enough that I can't hear the loudspeakers so I can at least make enough distance between myself and this territory before anyone notices I'm missing. With each step, I get further and further away from the packhouse as the sound from the event disappears behind all the trees. I stop running for a second when I realize it's getting harder to catch my breath from sprinting the whole time instead of trying to pace myself like I was supposed to.

After catching my breath, my adrenaline takes over again and I'm able to run some more. I check my watch and notice it's 3:56 in the morning, which was good news for me as the ceremony should have ended. People should be in their rooms sleeping or doing other activities by now. With no alarms being sounded that I was missing, I decided to take a quick break, drink some water, and eat the apple I had brought with me.

I thought to myself, with the pace I have been keeping, I should have about 3 miles left. I decid to head north because I know we have tensions with that pack, but through a treaty, we were technically in a period of peace. I hope their Alpha was at the ceremony so I can pass through the territory without being noticed. Then, once I left their territory, I could make my way to the city so I could enter the human world to be free. If I was never going to have a wolf, then I didn't want to be surrounded by all the reminders.

I walk the rest of the way and see this clearing and what looks like an invisible barrier that shimmers as it separates the pack borders. I walk along the edge of my border, or should I say the Red Moon pack's border because as soon as I walk across, I'll be a rouge. I see an area covered by trees that somewhat connects the two borders. I use it as cover as I cross over into the territory belonging to the High Crescent Moon pack.

The exact moment I cross the threshold, I feel as if something has taken over me. To make things worse, an unimaginable pain engulfs my body, causing me to let out a loud scream that I so desperately try to contain. Before I know it, my vision starts to blur, and my knees begin to buckle. I fall to the ground when I notice something in the distance. Someone is running towards me, but before I can try to move and run away, everything turns black.