8 THE MOON FESTIVAL - Part 2

"Meredith, the other three heads are all here. Keelin, Gyrod and Ryne, and they've agreed to give you the marks. We still have time. You don't have to do this," Arlan said again.

I shook my head, "I... I'm sorry, Arlan but, I won't complete the marks."

"Is it because you'll be a queen someday? You don't have to worry about it. My father's in the Council. And soon we'll be too. No harm will come to you from swearing allegiance to it. Besides, all of us are under its protection anyway and I trust de enough to know that you'll be fine. I have personally convinced so many humans to be a part of the Circle. I wouldn't do it if I didn't have full faith in this system, Ditty. And, you are a part of it too, right?" Arlan tightened his grip on my shoulder and looked at me with pleading eyes.

"Mark collection is only a punishment if you intend to betray the Council," Ryne said without looking at me. He then got up and put his hands in his pockets.

The moon seemed to be playing a prank on me for his form lit up in a halo of sorts and his energy throbbed, making me want to gravitate towards him. My heart rode a roller-coaster and my core ached for reasons I wasn't very happy about. I then remembered what he said and got so mad that I wanted to chew his head off and then mine for being so weak in the face of god-like beauty.

"I don't want to put my trust in a ti-eglor who confuses a minor transgression with a capital offence," I said curtly.

He turned to look at me and the surprise on his face made it evident that he hadn't expected me to respond that way.

"I don't want my life to be in the hands of another person. Who knows when you'll decide that I'm not important enough to exist? If I were to complete the marks, all you would have to do is declare that I have committed a second offence. The marks on my body would force me to take my own life. Do you think I don't know that?" I asked, glaring at him.

"So you're scared you'll die?" Ryne let out an amused laugh.

Tears prickled in my eyes. As an accursed royal, I had lived with that fear all my life. Someone like him would never understand me, "Yes, I am very scared of death. Is it so wrong to want to live?"

He was taken aback by the truth in my voice. The silence was deafening until we heard loud cheers from behind us. I swallowed my emotions and looked away from him.

"What if I promise that I will never do so?" his voice softened and he paused for a second too long. He then looked at Arlan and said, "Arlan is very dear to me. I would never do that to," he cleared his throat, "to his fiancé."

I looked up at Arlan and then at him, "I would rather get this over with."

Ryne's eyes hardened, "So bloody stubborn," he said through gritted teeth.

Gyrod got up, grabbed Arlan's arm and pulled him away to a seat. Placing his arm across Arlan's shoulder, he tilted his head and looked up at me as if he were issuing a challenge. In a second however, his expression went back to being the usual uninterested one. I could only frown in confusion at his actions and turn towards the fight. The muscular boy with long blonde hair yelled haughtily at the crowd after throwing his opponent down. He then pointed his finger at me and banged his chest. As if that weren't enough, he thrust his hips forward lewdly, stuck his tongue out and guffawed. Bile rose from my throat and I looked away from him, disgusted.

I caught the eyes of Ryne who raised his brow before sitting back down. "The ball is in your court," he said, resting his arms on his knees.

"And I'll stick by my decision," I replied.

"Even if it means having to deal with him?" he asked, nodding at the contender who was currently winning.

"It doesn't matter to me. And it's not over yet," I said before taking a seat next to Keelin.

Almost as if I had jinxed it, a girl went up and announced that the blonde werewolf had won. The thunderous cheers of the crowd could not muffle the drumming of my heart. It was over. This was it. My brain melted into a pot of panic. I looked at the werewolf on the platform who removed his pants and arrogantly threw it at the horde. I couldn't help the shudder that ran down my body.

"If you are that determined to suffer, go ahead. I only tried to help as Arlan's friend. This is supposed to be your punishment anyway," Ryne said getting up. He turned to Arlan, "My intervention ends here, unless," he folded his arms across his chest and said, "Your fiancé begs me to help her out."

I clenched my fists in anger and shot up. Right then, the victor called out to me and the crowd roared. My blood turned to ice but the rage I felt at everything melted it back instantly. Fixing my eyes on Ryne, I began unbuttoning my cardigan.

"Beg him? Not even when hell freezes over," I resolved.

Ryne, who was about to move, became rooted to his spot. He visibly swallowed as he watched me intently. For an instant, I saw only him. In the crimson light, I noticed the smallest changes in his body. I saw the dilating of his pupils. I saw the tightening of the muscles under his shirt. I saw his breath becoming jagged and I saw him lick his lip. I wanted to defy him, but somehow it had turned into a strip show and, in my head, a very private one. I removed the last button and the thin, delicate material underneath became visible. I shrugged off the cardigan and let it drop to the ground.

The reverberating cries of the crowd brought me back from the intimate space I shared with him. I took a deep breath and looked at the werewolf. When I glanced back at Ryne, I saw him shaking his head as if to get rid of the effect of the moon.

"I'm sorry," I told Arlan about what I had just done as well as what I was about to do. Then, straightening my back, I climbed down the stairs with as much poise as I could muster. The crowd parted for me and I took slow deliberate steps towards the wolf waiting to devour me. As his form became bigger and bigger, fear gripped my heart. Tears threatened to fall as I realized that I was going to let this vile creature touch me and that too in front of all these people. He smirked and checked me out like I was an object. Just as I was nearing him, he bounded down the platform and approached me.

I froze in my spot as he came closer and closer. In a sweeping motion, he picked me up bridal style and carried me to the podium. I realized that while just the sight of fully-clothed Ryne was maddening sometimes, being in the arms of a naked werewolf did nothing but nauseate me. As soon as the scent of his sweat mixed with blood hit me, I held my breath and clutched my arms tighter around his neck. Believing my actions to be out of desire, he chuckled as he gripped me tighter and leaped up to the platform. He dropped me down and roared victoriously at the onlookers. Before I could chance a look at Ryne, the werewolf shoved me onto my knees. The coarse stone floor scraped my skin and I hissed in pain. He clasped my hair and pulled it back roughly.

"I hear this is your punishment. I can't make it very easy for you then, can I?" he said, his razor-sharp fangs glistening.

My scalp throbbed, but it was no match for the searing pain in my heart. I took a deep breath. I hadn't reached my limit yet. I told myself that I was stronger than this when he touched me everywhere with his dirty hands. I told myself that I could bear it when handled me like he would a tramp. I told myself I had a bigger cause when he made a show out of my humiliation for the cheering onlookers. When he grabbed my face and slapped me, however, my heart felt like a cloth being wrung. I, the queen of dragons, finally wanted to give up. It had only begun, but I couldn't do this anymore. I just couldn't.

All of the sudden, the crimson light of the moon disappeared. While the rest of the crowd noticed it and wondered what had happened, the werewolf pulled me up and began to kiss my neck sloppily. Something had changed. I ignored his touch and looked up at the sky. Eyes wide, I realized what had. Thick chains ran around the surface of the moon, limiting its power.

I pushed the werewolf away and turned to Ryne. He stared back at me, first in confusion, then in recognition and finally with so much anger that I wanted to shrink away from him even though he was nowhere near me. Although I didn't understand the reason for his reaction, I knew for sure that he was the one behind the shackling of the moon.

No one else would believe that he was capable of something so colossal. But I had heard Lord Dragomitus himself say that he was the most powerful magic-kind in existence. If anyone could pull off such an act, it was him. But he had helped me... I couldn't understand why.

After a moment of confusion, Ryne, Arlan, Gyrod and Keelin walked towards us. The combined energy of all of them together had everyone watching silently. Even the wolf stopped touching me. Ryne muttered something and Arlan tried to hold him back as if to stop him. What the hell was happening?

"The blood moon has been disrupted. We don't know exactly what happened or how. But it cannot be a one-man act. I shall find the people responsible for it and personally hand them over to the ti-eglor. Meanwhile, we cannot continue the Moon Festival. I request all the wolves to return to their dorms while we uncover what happened.

The crowd booed and the wolf beside me jerked my arm. "This isn't over, bitch. I earned you fair and square," he said. He clasped my neck and was about to kiss me when he was sent flying.

"Show's over," Ryne said in a booming voice as he climbed up the platform. Wait, why was he coming towards me?

He stalked up to me, pinched my chin and yanked my face up to him. "Who are you?" he asked.

I pulled away from him and glanced at Arlan who looked at me worriedly.

"What do you mean?" I asked with a nervous chuckle. Had he figured me out? "No way!" I refrained from touching the bracelet. But I knew it was there. He couldn't have sensed my energy.

"Look up and tell me what you see," he said.

Confused, I scanned the sky, "The moon has chains around it?" I said unsure.

Everyone began muttering at once while peering up. I wondered what they were saying. I stared at Ryne and saw his lips pull into a lazy smile. My eyes widened. No, he couldn't have. But his expression was a confirmation that I had messed up. I had messed up, big time.

"Those are Perwaldian chains," he said with a chuckle, "Visible only to the most powerful beings. I noticed how everyone else seemed confused as to what happened but you looked up at the moon and instantly knew what was wrong. So, I will ask again and this time you better not kid around. Who the fuck are you?"

"Oh, Lord Dragomitus, help me!" I prayed. Just as I expected, the great god didn't answer me when I most needed him. I looked around at the number of people around me. I couldn't believe that I would be the first queen to give away the existence of dragons in a thousand years and that too in front of a warlock.

I took a step back. What if I ran away? He would hunt me down. What if I made up a lie? But what would I say?

"That's an interesting bracelet," he said and took a step closer to me. I inched away from him, my heart in my mouth. "Camouflaging spells only work until there's no suspicion of their existence. Did you not know that?" he asked. He knew that he had me cornered. He was a picture of confidence.

I held my bracelet tightly and took another step back as he came closer to me. He reached out and grabbed my arm. I tried to pry it off but his grip was monstrous.

"I bet you believed your fiancé to be just another human, Arlan," he said aloud with a laugh. He held my arm with one hand and clutched the bracelet with another.

"No, please don't. Wait," I pleaded, as I continued to fight against his grip.

"Oh, now you beg me?" he asked amused.

"Please," I said, my voice cracking.

He bent forward, brushed his cheek against mine and whispered into my ear, "Too late."

With one yank, the bracelet tore off. All the energy that I had suppressed within me for so long, exploded like an unleashed spring. While it mostly shot outward, the pain of the sudden release was unbearable. I let out a loud, guttural scream and for the first time today let the tears fall, not from the pain but, from the knowledge that I had failed. I had failed miserably.