The Half Blood

NALA

“Elenor and Daria Dawler,” Maeve announced to the gatekeeper, “though she might be listed under Darious Dawler. People always mix it up.” She fluttered her lashes at him, playing the innocent.

The guard’s face brightened as he found our parents’ names on his list.

“Ah, here you are,” he confirmed, “and yes, she’s under Darious.”

“Story of my life,” I quipped, rolling my eyes as if this was a common occurrence.

He swung the grand golden gates open, granting us entry.

A long, lantern-lit path stretched before us. It felt like stepping into a storybook.

Thankfully, Mom had packed two extra dresses, in case she had a last-minute change of heart. Without them, we would have been sorely out of place.

I was draped in a floor-length purple gown, silky and elegant. It made my blue eyes stand out. Maeve, on the other hand, had chosen an emerald green chiffon number. We looked like we’d stepped out of a fantasy.

The path led us to a courtyard, its centerpiece a fountain crowned with a large statue. I studied the marble figures, a pack of Lycans, expertly carved. We seemed to have reached a dead end, encircled by hedges and towering trees adorned with twinkling lights.

“Now what?” Maeve wondered aloud, scanning our surroundings for any hint of what to do next.

“Perhaps I can be of assistance,” my wolf suggested in my mind.

“How so?”

“I can open the gate.”

“Then by all means, go ahead.”

“But there’s a catch.”

“Let me guess,” I responded, ~“we need to go for a run soon.”~

“You know me too well.”

“We’re one and the same, of course I know you.”

“I have finally come home, let me in, all mighty Lycan castle.”

As my wolf finished her sentence, the hedges and trees began to recede, revealing the most breathtaking palace I’d ever laid eyes on.

“That wasn’t me,” Maeve declared, clearly puzzled.

“I know,” I admitted, still in awe, “it was my wolf.”

The castle was a medieval masterpiece, its reddish-brown exterior surrounded by a shimmering moat. A bridge served as the entrance to the fortress.

Once inside, it was clear that despite its ancient origins, the castle had been updated with modern conveniences.

Electric chandeliers, dripping with glass pendants, hung from the ceiling. The corridor walls were adorned with exquisite Renaissance paintings.

The sound of a beautiful melody wafted from the ballroom, filling the hallways.

I froze.

“Hold on, Maeve,” I said, pulling her back. “I don’t think I can do this.”

“Nala,” she pleaded, “please. Don’t you want to know for sure?”

“I... I’m not sure.”

“Regardless of what happens, we can still have a fun night.”

She had a point. The King probably wouldn’t even notice me among the throng of court members.

And even if he did, one glance at me would confirm that a nobody like me could never be his Queen.

Maeve and I entered the ballroom together. I could feel the weight of the crowd’s gaze as we navigated through the sea of people. Before we knew it, we were each holding a flute of champagne.

“Just think, we could have been at that dingy bar tonight,” Maeve whispered in my ear.

The crowd was captivated by a couple dancing in the center of the ballroom. I couldn’t tear my eyes away from him. His powerful figure moved with such elegance. I barely registered the woman he was dancing with. I was so entranced by him that I bumped into someone.

“Nala? Maeve?” It was my mother, looking bewildered, “Are you wearing my dresses?”

“Girls,” my father chimed in, equally perplexed, “what are you doing here?”

“Aren’t you glad to see us?” Maeve retorted.

“Absolutely, darling,” my mom embraced us, “we just didn’t see it coming. Look over there. That’s King Alaric with his latest flame. I have to admit, if I were a bit younger, I’d be tempted to snatch him away from her.”

“He’s quite the looker,” I admitted, somewhat dreamily, “isn’t he?”

“I’d love for you two to find someone like him. I’ve heard through the grapevine that he was quite the ladies’ man, but for the past few months, he’s been exclusively seeing this girl.”

I watched them twirl around the dance floor. I was overwhelmed with a whirlwind of emotions. It felt as if an unseen force was drawing me towards him.

The moment he glanced my way, I froze. There he was. The man from Maeve’s drawing.

I found it hard to breathe.

“I need to get out of here,” I told my family before bolting from the ballroom.

***

KING ALARIC

“Darling, why don’t you ask me to dance?”

I took her hand and led her to the heart of the ballroom. This was exactly what I’d been trying to avoid. Now everyone would think that Salla could be their future Luna.

Out of politeness, I agreed to dance with her this time, but I made a mental note to exit the room before the next dance began.

The opening dance should have been performed by the alpha king and queen. Salla was neither.

As the music started, we began to move. I held Salla’s right hand with my left, and with my other hand, I held her slender waist.

I couldn’t deny that Salla looked stunning tonight. Her golden dress, which accentuated her curves, fit her like a glove.

Trying to hide my boredom, I scanned the crowd, not really focusing on any of the faces staring at us.

I spotted one of my advisors in the corner of the room. But it wasn’t him who caught my eye, it was the woman standing behind him.

My heart skipped a beat when I saw those familiar blue eyes. I tried to steer our dance towards her, hoping to get a better look at her face.

My gaze was broken when Salla asked me something. I nodded and smiled at her, pretending to be interested. When I looked back to where the mysterious woman had been, all I saw was the wall.

My advisor was still there, but she was gone. I scanned the room, feeling a sense of frustration.

Was she real? She felt so real to me. Those blue eyes staring at me. I couldn’t have been imagining things. Was I losing my mind?

I pondered again. Maybe it wasn’t her. Or maybe it was just a woman with blue eyes. There were plenty of those around.

The song ended, and I escorted Salla off the dance floor. “What’s up?” Hado, my beta, asked me, sensing that something was bothering me.

“Nothing,” I responded, not in the mood for a chat.

“My love?” I heard Salla’s voice.

As much as I cared for her, it irked me to hear her call me my love, especially in front of everyone. Lately, she seemed overly confident about our relationship, as if she was certain she was my mate.

I cared for her, yes, but she was not my wife, let alone my queen.

“When is the Hunt?” she asked me.

“In two days,” I replied.

“Is everything set?”

“Yes. This year the event will be held just outside the castle grounds. Everything has been arranged accordingly,” Hado answered.

“How many people are participating this time?”

“Around fourteen,” I said.

I despised that damn game. Why did those women enjoy participating? Every year, I could only thank the Moon Goddess that none of them were my mate.

The image of blue eyes returned to me. I didn’t know why, but every time I saw the mysterious woman in my dreams, I felt weak, as if just looking at her had sapped my strength.

This wasn’t a typical dream. This one was different. I felt this one in my bones, as if she was right there in front of me, twirling with her dress in her hands.

How was it possible that I only remembered the color of her eyes and not the rest of her face?

I sighed in frustration. I shouldn’t be dwelling on this nonsense. I should be focusing on the mess unfolding in the Kingdom of Witches.

Apparently, Evanora, the Witch Queen, was frightened of something. No one knew what it could be, but her subjects had noticed her paranoid behavior.

It was odd, given her immense strength. Darious would have to be the one to approach her. Their communication had ceased after his marriage to Eleanor, but the current situation was too critical. We all needed to put our past disagreements behind us.

Darious was the only one she had faith in. I couldn’t afford to jeopardize my realm like the previous incident.

My instincts to safeguard were more intense than ever, as if there was more at stake. Despite the chaos and my obligations to my kingdom, I was compelled to seek out the woman with the sapphire eyes. Those eyes I craved so intensely that I was almost certain I was seeing them in the faces of passersby.