Their Forgotten Luna

The Nightfall Hunt

Cierra:

“I have an idea,” Dom said softly, though my eyes were still on the seats where the elders had just sat.

“What’s that?” I asked, finally turning toward him with a deep breath.

“Why don’t you join me for the Nightfall Hunt?” he paused, as if he were fearful I might say no to his offer.

“I’d like that.” My words were rushed, quiet, but eager.

“Really? Great!” His smile made something hot and wild bloom in my chest, a warmth that spread throughout me, chasing away any doubts I had left about the council meeting or my injuries and lost memories.

“It starts at ten. What you're wearing is perfect, and I will see you at the front gate as soon as I get ready,” he gave me a quick kiss and was gone like a school boy getting ready for his first date, which, in some ways, I guess this may be our first date.

Slowly, I made my way to the gate where the pack was gathered. On the right stood my father and stepmother. In the middle were crowds of people I couldn’t recognize, no matter how hard I tried, and on the left of the group stood Dane and Alyssa. I took a deep breath and began backing away, running into something hard, hot, and solid.

“Don’t let them intimidate you, Cierra Darling.” Dom’s hands caught my shoulders, steadying my urge to turn and run. “You can ride on my back since you can’t shift right now. Some mates do it this way anyway, it makes taking targets down much easier in teams.” Dom’s words struck a chord in me. On the one hand, he acknowledged our bond, and something about that warmed me; on the other, I watched as Dane shifted and Alyssa climbed on his back, and something about that crushed something inside of me, a long-lost part I couldn’t reach no matter the effort.

Dom crouched low, heat rippling off his skin in waves, his body trembling with the beginning of his shift. One heartbeat, he was solid and human, the next, he blurred into something larger, more feral—his wolf. Silver fur caught the moonlight, his massive form so sleek and powerful it stole the air from my lungs. He bowed his head once, a silent invitation.

And despite the dozens of eyes burning into me from every direction, I pressed my hand against his thick ruff and swung onto his back.

The crowd erupted, cheers and howls echoing across the clearing. The elders raised their hands, and for one breath, silence fell over all of us—an electric hush before the storm.

Then a voice rang out. “Run!”

The pack surged forward as one. Wolves of every size and color exploded into the forest, some carrying riders, some sprinting alone. The pounding of paws against the earth thundered in my ears, the air alive with the wild magic of the hunt.

Dom lunged, his body a coil of speed and muscle, and the world tore past us in a blur of trees and shadows. The wind whipped my hair, stealing my breath, but his movements were so smooth, so sure, that I barely had to cling to him. For the first time since the attack that stole my memories, I felt…free.

“This is insane,” I breathed, knowing he couldn’t answer with words—but through the bond, I felt him. His determination burned hot, sure, carrying me with it.

The Nightfall Hunt was simple in theory: whoever brought back the most prey by dawn won. But in practice, it was chaos. Prey ranged from ordinary stags and boars to enchanted creatures loosed by the elders just to test skill.

Dom’s ears flicked, catching a sound ahead. He veered sharply left, the motion so instinctive I didn’t have time to think. A stag burst from the brush, its antlers like glowing branches, its eyes rimmed in faint silver light.

“Now!” I cried.

Dom lunged, teeth snapping. He crashed into the stag, and the impact shuddered up my spine. I slid from his back as he pinned the creature, my hands fumbling for the strip of cloth tied at my belt—the hunter’s mark. With shaking fingers, I looped it around the stag’s neck, claiming it.

“One,” I whispered, breathless, climbing back onto his back.

We raced deeper into the woods. Twice, prey slipped through our grasp, scattering before Dom could close the distance. My frustration burned, but I felt his resolve through the bond—unyielding, steady. He wasn’t going to let us fail.

Then came the scream.

It wasn’t human, but it wasn’t natural either. A shadow beast crashed through the underbrush, its form taller than any man, its body a mass of smoke and jagged teeth. Its glowing eyes locked first on Dane and Alyssa.

My chest clenched as I saw them. Dane’s wolf braced for the attack, Alyssa clinging to his back, her face pale with terror. The beast slammed into them, and Dane staggered, almost toppling under its weight.

“Dom!” I screamed.

We didn’t hesitate. Dom’s muscles coiled, and then we were flying through the air, hitting the beast with bone-cracking force. He tore into it with his teeth, smoke curling from the wounds like foul mist. The shadow roared, flinging him back, and I was thrown sideways, hitting the earth hard enough to rattle my bones.

“No!” Alyssa’s voice cracked as she begged Dane not to attack again.

I scrambled for a weapon—anything—and my hand closed around a fallen branch still glowing faintly from the elders’ wards. It burned against my palm like fire, but I held on.

The beast reared back, its smoke-like body reforming even as Dom lunged again. This time, I didn’t hesitate. I ran forward, heart hammering, and drove the burning wood into the shadow’s chest where Dom’s teeth had ripped it open.

The beast shrieked, a sound like thunder and wind, and for one breath I thought it would devour us whole. But then its body collapsed inward, crumbling into ash that scattered across the ground.

Silence fell.

Dane’s wolf stood rigid, Alyssa clutching his fur, her wide eyes locked on me. Something unreadable burned in Dane’s gaze, something that twisted sharp in my chest. But before I could linger on it, Dom moved, his massive wolf body stepping between us, fur bristling, teeth bared. He shielded me without hesitation.

I pressed a trembling hand to his side. “We did it,” I whispered, my voice shaking with triumph.

The hunt didn’t end there. We pressed on, adrenaline carrying us. Together, we brought down two boar and another stag before exhaustion began to claw at my limbs. Each time, I marked the kills, my fingers growing steadier with every knot I tied. Each time, Dom’s wolf moved like he could sense exactly where I needed him to be.

By the time we stumbled back toward the gates, the moon sagged low in the sky. Wolves returned in ragged groups, laughter and growls echoing as prey was dragged or carried into the clearing.

We weren’t the only ones with kills. But none matched ours.

Three stags. Two boar. And the ash of a shadow beast was witnessed by everyone.

The elders conferred in low voices before the oldest among them raised his hand. “Dominic and Cierra,” he announced, his voice carrying like a bell through the night. “Winners of this year’s Nightfall Hunt!”

Howls erupted, wild and fierce, echoing against the trees. Wolves raised their muzzles, voices braiding together in celebration.

Dom shifted back at my side, his body slick with sweat, chest rising and falling with each heavy breath. He caught me before I could sway, his arm tight around my waist. His eyes burned into mine, honey brown and endless.

“You were perfect,” he whispered in my ear, his voice raw, reverent. “No one else could have done what you did out there. No one.”

“Thank you,” I managed. “You were amazing!” It was true, his beast was this magnificent being of light and power.

Around us, the pack celebrated, but not all faces were joyful. I caught Alyssa glaring, her mouth pressed thin, her hand still clinging to Dane’s arm. And Dane… he didn’t look at the elders, or the crowd, or Alyssa. His gaze was locked only on me.

I turned away, pressing closer into Dom’s warmth, willing myself not to feel the ache that stirred where Dane’s eyes met mine.

For tonight, the hunt was ours. For tonight, victory belonged to me and Dom.

The clearing had been transformed by the time Dom and I returned, our kills laid out before the elders as proof. Fires blazed high, flames licking at the night sky, the scent of roasted meat thick in the air. Wolves and humans alike crowded around long wooden tables set beneath lanterns strung from tree to tree. Laughter rolled through the pack like a tide, and for the first time in days, I felt that weight of grief and fear loosen from my chest.

Dom never let go of me. His hand stayed firm on my lower back, guiding me through the crowd. Every time I glanced up at him, he was already looking at me—his smile boyish and wild, his pride in me written in every line of his face.

When the elders lifted their cups in salute, the crowd followed. “To the victors!” they roared.

“To Dom and Cierra!”

The cheer rattled my bones. I felt my cheeks burn, but when Dom raised our joined hands high, the flush in me turned to something else—joy, fierce and undeniable.

Platters of food were passed down the tables, tankards filled with mead and wine. My stomach growled as the roasted venison was set before us, still steaming. Dom carved thick slices onto my plate first, ignoring the jeers from his friends who shouted things like, “Already whipped!” and “Our Alpha spoils his mate!”

I should have been embarrassed. Instead, warmth bloomed inside me.

“Eat,” he murmured, pressing a cup into my hand. His voice was low enough that only I heard, but the look in his eyes said more. He wasn’t just making sure I ate—he was making sure I healed, that I knew I belonged here, that I wasn’t an outsider.

The meal blurred into celebration—songs rising, mugs clashing, laughter echoing across the night. And still, the undercurrent remained. The gazes that followed me. The whispers that carried just loud enough for me to catch fragments.

“—a formidable warrior, though—”

“—but Dane—”

“—the way she fought the shadow beast…”

I tried to block them out, focusing only on Dom and the warmth of the fire. But then Alyssa’s voice cut through the noise, sharp as a blade.

“Funny,” she said loudly enough for the nearest tables to hush. “Some of us trained for years for the Hunt. And yet someone without a shift or her memories somehow wins it all.”

The air stilled.

I froze, the meat half-lifted to my lips.

Dom’s chair scraped back with a growl low in his chest. “Watch yourself, Alyssa.” His voice was calm, too calm, and that was more dangerous than shouting.

Alyssa smirked, swirling her drink as though she hadn’t just insulted me in front of the pack. “I’m just saying, it’s…convenient. That the girl who doesn’t even remember who she is just happens to shine when the prize is glory and attention.”

Gasps rippled across the table.

My hand trembled, but before I could speak, Dom was already on his feet. His shadow fell over Alyssa, his wolf flashing in his eyes. “She fought,” he said, his voice rumbling. “She bled. She killed the beast that would have torn you apart, if you’ve forgotten. Without her, you’d be ash on the forest floor.”

Alyssa flinched, her smirk faltering.

For one long moment, I thought Dane might step in. He sat beside her, silent, his jaw tight, his hands clenched on the table. His gaze burned into me, heavy, unreadable. But he said nothing.

And somehow, that silence cut deeper than Alyssa’s words.

I forced myself to stand, my knees weak but my voice steady. “Dom doesn’t need to defend me.” I let my gaze sweep the table, the pack, and the elders who were listening now, too. “I may not remember who I was before the rogues. But tonight? I proved who I am now. And I don’t need anyone’s permission to belong.”

The pack stirred, murmurs spreading like fire through dry grass. Some nodded. Others looked away, uncomfortable. But the current had shifted.

Dom’s arm slid around my waist, pulling me tight against him. His lips brushed my temple, his words meant only for me. “You were perfect.”

The pack’s song rose again, wild and free, and though the ache of Dane’s silence lingered, I let myself lean into Dom. Into the warmth of the fire. Into the truth that—for tonight—we had won and that victory tasted sweeter than I had ever dreamed.