Immediately she turned away from her father, her heart calmed in it's race. Selene met her at the entrance, looking puzzzled.
How? When did she sneak back and already met with their father?
"Sister, you're here." She faked a smile as she breathed out, her lashes fluttering uneasily. Luna returned her fake smile, though hers more of discomfort as brows twitched.
"Yes. I met with father. I went to...I went to see to the maidens' complaint," she said, making her way out of the chambers' premises as selene followed her, nodding without making her mockery obvious. "They say some men claims them without their approval."
Hmm, what a lie.A very convincing one. Luna can fool anyone else but her. Let her have her way now while her doom awaits her. When that time comes, no fib can save her.
"Oh, men are shameless. So what are you going to do about it?" She purposely said while her gaze lingered intently.
"Well, "she knew she didn't need to think of an answer. "They'll point out the troubling guys. I'll have a meeting with them." She was becoming so uncomfortable. They way Selene stared at her. In her eyes. She was sure she knew something.
"I feel so... tired after the dancing. I need to sleep." She stuttered, hurrying past her with her legs not touching the moon-swept ground. Like she was sailing on earth. A white smoke erupting underneath her legs. Selene smirked. Running away huh? She was always gone like that whenever she wants to escape from something.
The moonlight poured like silver over the palace walls as she slipped quietly into her chambers. Her room breathed calm—the ivy along the walls glowing faintly, the canopy above her bed shimmering like a web of stars. The fragrance of night-blooming lilies drifted in through the wide arched window, and for a moment, she felt safe, as though the forest itself were cradling her. She let her fingers brush the whitewood of her bedpost, grounding herself in its quiet magic.
She didn't know when she snored off, awaking to see the moonlight streaming into her chambers and painting an image she wished she knew. And in her sleep, she knew she had dreamed of Kael. A smile crept at the corner of her lips.
Across the hall, Selene's laughter rang faintly. Her chambers were alive with candlelight and shadow, velvet curtains drawn tight to shut out the moon. Inside, golden flames danced across jeweled cushions and heavy furs, catching her reflection in the tall mirror she so adored. She leaned back against a pile of scarlet cushions, running her fingers lazily through her hair, her eyes glinting with a satisfaction she wore like a crown.
The two sisters' rooms were divided by a narrow antechamber—a place lined with carved doors where their paths sometimes crossed. Tonight, Luna paused there, drawn by the sound of Selene's voice.
"Still awake, little dove?" Selene called, her tone honeyed but sharp. The door to her chamber stood ajar, spilling warm golden light into the cool, silvery hall.
Luna turned, her white gown trailing softly across the stone floor. "The moon is full tonight," she said gently, avoiding Selene's eyes. "It feels wrong to sleep while it shines so brightly."
Selene smirked, resting her chin on her hand. "Always the dreamer. But be careful, sister—dreams have a way of turning to nightmares." Her gaze lingered on Luna, almost piercing, before she turned back to her mirror, as if her own reflection were more interesting.
For a heartbeat, Luna stood caught between the two worlds—the quiet glow of her own chamber behind her, and the glittering shadows of Selene's before her. One filled her with peace. The other promised danger.
She chose the moonlight, retreating into her sanctuary and letting the door shut behind her. But then once inside, a wild thought crept in her head. What if she go see Kael now? Nobody will ever know. It was the time even the birds of the forest are fast asleep. She peeped from the curtain into Selene's room then shrugged that she shouldn't have. Her snore could even be heard down the hall. Right. She only had this night to do this. She would go and find Kael. She would summon him.
The forest was alive. Not with birdsong or breeze—but with breath. Luna could feel it stir beneath her bare feet, pulsing through the roots like a heartbeat. It was ancient, wild, and watching. But she didn't fear it.
Not anymore.
Wrapped in a cloak of dark green moss, with her braid thick and long like a river of ink, she moved silently through the sacred glade. Moonlight fell in silver sheets through the canopy, lighting her path toward the ruined altar—the one her mother had died protecting.
Tonight, the veil between realms thinned. The forest would speak.
And Luna would listen.
She knelt before the moss-covered stones, whispering the old tongue. Not from memory—but instinct. Something older than blood stirred in her bones, tugging at her chest like a forgotten name.
"By the breath of the first leaf,
By the tears of the goddess tree,
Let the truth unfurl in me."
The wind stilled.
The air thickened.
And from the dark behind her, a voice—low, rough, forbidden—slithered through the trees.
"You shouldn't be here, Forest Heir."
Luna froze. Not because she was afraid. Because she had longed for that voice.
She turned slowly. Behind her stood a figure cloaked in smoke and shadow, with silver hair that gleamed like stolen moonlight and eyes that burned—not red, but gold. A traitor's gold.
"Kael." Her lips trembled, his name tasting like ash.
He stepped forward, the leaves curling beneath his boots. His gaze locked into hers.
"Why're you here?" She purposely asked, looking down at her toes and biting her lips nervously.
" You've summoned me . You lit the flame," Kael said, his voice soft through his chuckle. "You knew I'd find it."
Luna's jaw tightened as he spoke her mind. She had known this method three moons ago, a method used in the moments of desperation in summoning an Umbra. The people that didn't belong in their realm now.
They were the banished bloodline, sworn enemies to the forest people, and he was a son of the Umbra Court. They were being summoned then through this method when their realms were still one. Before they were banished.
And now, she had used it, summoned him through fire—a bond that was forbidden by every law of the forest. She knew even if they were still united, she still cannot love. Even if the forest spirits take back their punishment like she had told him, it was still impossible as the heir. It was her fate. Her unfair destiny.
As he stepped closer to her and whispered her name which rolled off his tongue like mist, the trees rustled at his words. Like they hated him. His kind had poisoned the roots, scorched the sap, turned sacred glades into ash centuries ago. The Forest Realm's laws were clear:
' Love the Umbra, and you betray the crown.'
'Bind with the Umbra, and you die.'
Still, Luna stepped closer. Her heart was louder than her blood.
"I dreamed of you," she said, barely a whisper.
Kael's eyes softened. "Then let's run. Tonight." He said seriously, like he had been harbouring the dangerous thought.
Luna's breath caught at this statement.
Leave?
Abandon the Realm? The sacred grove? The crown? But wasn't she already a traitor for wanting him?
She closed her eyes—and saw it. The day her mother died defending the Thorned Crown. The council that now watched her every move. The coldness in her father's eyes. The weight of destiny crushing her ribs.
And Kael. The only warmth she'd ever chosen.
"If I go with you," she said, "the forest will never forgive me."
"But I will," he replied.
Luna shut her eyes for a while and shook her head as if trying to shake off something. A horrendous thought. Kael didn't know. She didn't tell him that not only were they not allowed in being with an outsider. Not only was she being restrained by the forest spirits but also her fate. But right there, a choice bloomed before her like a poisonous flower. She was being tempted, and her mind was clogged.
That night, beneath the bone-white moon, Luna kissed Kael again this time around.
And the forest wept.