Chapter 2
The Girl Who Waited for a Father
Setting Summary
This chapter takes place inside Luna's little cottage beside the forest and also in the quiet village beyond it. It shows friendship, memory, pack truth, and the diary waking up. Secrets about family begin to break open.
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Luna did not sleep after she ran from the forest.
Sleeping felt useless anyway. Her heart was still beating like she had been chased. Every time she closed her eyes, she saw those amber eyes again, burning behind her lids.
The cottage felt wrong tonight.
Too quiet.
Too empty.
The kind of silence that makes you feel watched even when you are alone.
She sat at the small wooden table near the window with the diary placed before her. It felt heavier than it had ever been. No book should feel like this. It sat there like it owned the room.
The candle beside it burned low. Its flame moved even though there was no wind.
Outside, the forest stood dark and thick. Trees pressed together like they were hiding something. Somewhere out there was Aiden Blackfang.
And the way he had looked at her…
Like he had been waiting for her for years.
A sound reached her ears.
Soft.
Careful.
Footsteps.
Luna froze.
These were not human footsteps.
She could feel the difference inside her bones.
They were light. Familiar. Close.
Her chest tightened. Her body was ready to fight or run without her telling it to.
Then the knock came.
"Luna?"
Elena's voice.
Before Luna could answer, she was already on her feet. She opened the door fast. The moment Elena stepped inside, Luna pressed her forehead to her shoulder and breathed her in. Her scent felt safe. Real.
Her fingers tightened in Elena's jacket without thinking.
Elena laughed softly. "You are doing it again."
"Doing what?" Luna asked quietly as she stepped back.
"That wolf thing," Elena said gently. "The sniffing. The checking. Like I might disappear if you do not make sure I am real."
Luna looked away, embarrassed. "I did not even notice."
"It is fine," Elena smiled. "It means you care."
Then her smile faded as her eyes really looked at Luna.
"You look like you saw something that changed you."
Luna swallowed. "It feels like I walked into something that has been waiting for me my whole life."
Elena closed the door and locked it without being told. "Then you are lucky you are not alone."
Only then did Luna really notice how Elena looked.
No makeup.
No fake smile.
Just strength.
Her dark hair fell loose around her shoulders. Her eyes were sharp like she could sense danger even in silence. Standing there, Elena seemed like the type who could chase away monsters with just her stare.
They sat on the floor together and wrapped the small blanket around their shoulders. Their backs rested against the bed.
For a moment, neither of them spoke.
Then Elena said, "The forest called you again, didn't it?"
Luna nodded.
"And he came this time."
Elena raised an eyebrow. "He?"
Luna hesitated.
"I do not know how to explain him yet," she said. "But the forest made me think about my dad."
Elena rested her head gently against Luna's.
"The man who disappeared and took half your childhood with him?"
"Yeah," Luna whispered. "That one."
They sat quietly.
Then Elena spoke again, carefully, like she was touching something broken.
"He used to walk you to the edge of the woods."
Luna smiled faintly. "And made me swear never to go too deep."
"He always smelled like rain and smoke."
"And brought leaves in his hair," Luna added softly.
"And pretended not to notice," Elena said.
They both smiled.
But it faded quickly.
"I do not miss him the way I used to," Luna admitted.
Elena lifted her head. "What do you mean?"
"I miss the idea of him," Luna said slowly. "I miss believing that one day he would just walk back home."
Her throat felt tight.
And somehow that hurt more than the fact that he was gone.
Elena took Luna's hand. "Maybe he never really left."
The diary suddenly shook on the table.
Both of them gasped.
"Did you see that?" Elena whispered.
The pages began to turn.
Slowly.
By themselves.
The ink changed.
Old words darkened.
New ones appeared.
Elena jumped back. "No. Nope. Books do not do that."
Luna stood frozen. "It has never done that before."
The diary opened to a blank page.
A thin line appeared.
Then another.
Letters formed slowly.
TWO BLOODLINES
ONE HEART
A LAW WAS BROKEN
Elena held her breath. "That is not normal."
The page turned.
A LOVE STARTED A WAR
Elena whispered, "I officially hate this house now."
The candle flickered wildly. The room grew cold.
Another page wrote itself.
HE DID NOT VANISH
HE WAS DIVIDED
"Divided?" Luna whispered. "Divided how?"
The diary did not answer.
Instead, it turned to another page.
HOUSE OF NIGHT
PACK OF FANGS
ONE CHILD LEFT BEHIND
Elena stiffened. "Pack as in wolves?"
Luna nodded. "I have felt them my whole life."
Elena swallowed. "Wow. That explains a lot."
The writing continued.
THE PACK WATCHES FROM THE TREES
THE HOUSE WATCHES FROM THE DARK
BOTH WAIT FOR YOU
"That is beyond creepy," Elena murmured.
Luna sank onto the floor. "They were waiting before I was born."
The words softened.
YOUR BIRTH BROKE A CIRCLE
YOUR HEART WILL CLOSE IT
Silence filled the room.
Elena whispered, "What if your dad never abandoned you?"
Luna looked up sharply.
"What if he was taken into all of this?"
The diary burned red.
WHEN THE VAMPIRE REMEMBERS YOU
THE WOLF WILL BLEED FOR YOU
A name carved itself into the page.
Aiden.
Elena gasped. "You know that name."
Luna breathed out slowly. "I met him tonight."
The air felt heavy now.
Elena sat beside her again. "So what now? Wolves. Vampires. A magic diary. And you in the middle."
Luna tried to smile. "When you say it like that, it sounds stupid."
"Good," Elena replied. "Stupid is safe. Destiny is scary."
Luna laughed.
Then cried.
Elena pulled her close.
"I do not know who I am," Luna whispered. "Or who I am supposed to love. Or fear. Or trust."
Elena wiped her face. "Then just stay alive long enough to learn."
The diary closed quietly.
Outside, something shifted in the forest.
Eyes opened.
The pack listened.
And in a far place…
Something ancient opened its eyes.