Fated by Moon and Sea

Chapter Five: Little melody

Savannah’s POV

The sun beats down on my skin, warm and steady, as I stand on the cliff overlooking the ocean. The salty breeze whips around me, sending my hair flying as I let the familiar scent of sea and sky settle something deep inside me. Below, waves crash against jagged rocks, their rhythmic roar like a melody, steady and endless.

I close my eyes and start humming, letting the tune spill from my lips, a song that’s been sitting in my head all morning.

In the quiet of the night, when the stars refuse to shine,

I hear your voice, a whisper, in the echoes of my mind.

Love was like a river, flowing wild and free,

But now I’m left with memories of what we used to be.

Love it lifts and breaks, like the tide upon the shore,

A dance of joy and sorrow that we can’t ignore.

In the echoes of our past, I find a duty clear and true,

To carry on the love we knew in everything I do.

“That’s beautiful, Vannah.”

Orion’s deep voice rumbles behind me, and I don’t have to turn around to know he’s watching me. The scent of Saltwater and crisp ocean breeze clings to him, familiar and intoxicating. A shiver runs through me, not from the breeze but from the way my body always reacts to him. He steps closer, his warmth pressing against my back as his arms wrap around my waist, strong and sure. He dips his head, brushing a soft kiss against the crown of my head, and I melt into him.

Anyone else would kill to be in my position. Orion Ahearn, heir to Aetherium—the mirror universe to Lunaris, the kingdom of lycans and werewolves—is mine. And I am his. Betrothed for years, bound by duty, but somewhere along the way, love took root. Despite the weight of expectations, despite the uncertainty of what’s ahead, I love him.

He’s different from the wolves and lycans that rule Lunaris. As a Triton, Orion is elegance and power wrapped in an ethereal presence. People mistake his kind for mermen, but they couldn’t be more wrong. While sirens are known for their haunting voices and irresistible allure, Tritons are their male counterparts—strong, intelligent, and devastatingly refined.

Orion is everything a Triton prince should be.

His physique is lean and toned, not built for brute strength like the wolves but honed for precision and power. His movements are fluid, and every step is calculated. His silver-blond hair cascades past his shoulders, shimmering like the moonlit ocean, always perfectly styled—never wild or unruly like a Lycan’s. His skin carries a faint iridescence, catching the light just enough to remind me of his connection to the sea. But it’s his eyes that always get me. Deep blue, endless, like staring into the heart of the ocean itself. They hold a kind of depth, a quiet strength that doesn’t need to prove itself.

And he looks at me like I’m his entire world.

But a part of me wonders if I really deserve that.

I know what people say. That I’m lucky. That I should be grateful. And I am. But there’s always been this nagging insecurity buried deep inside me, a fear that no matter how much love I’m given, it won’t be enough to fill the parts of me that still feel empty. Maybe it’s because I was never meant to be here in the first place—an illegitimate daughter, the product of a moment my father never talks about. Maybe it’s because I don’t look like the others and don’t move with the same effortless confidence the sirens do. Maybe it’s because no matter how much I try to fit in, I still feel like I’m standing at the edge, looking in.

And Orion? Orion is everything. He’s twenty-nine, a prince, a man who has the world at his feet. He’s spent years waiting for me, devoted and unwavering. And part of me wonders… what if one day, he realizes I’m not enough?

But that’s a thought for another time.

Because right now, he’s here, and he’s mine.

In six months, I’ll be eighteen. Old enough for the vows.

Tritons don’t have fated mates like the lycans and wolves in Lunaris. Their bonds aren’t written in the stars or carved into destiny. They choose. But their choosing isn’t simple—it’s magic in its own way. A siren’s song, raw and untamed, calls out to its match. And if the Triton answers, if their souls resonate in harmony, the bond forms. It’s not fate—it’s creation, a connection built by desire and will.

I was fifteen when my voice finally settled into its power. I didn’t know it then, but my song had been seeking Orion for years, whispering through the tides, curling through the air, waiting. And when I sang that night, my voice wrapped around the room in a melody spinning from my soul, Orion heard it.

He felt it.

I remember the way his head snapped toward me, his ocean-blue eyes locking onto mine like I had just rewritten the laws of existence. The air in the hall had thickened, charged with something ancient and electric. Every siren, every Triton present, felt it. The room had gone still.

And then, Orion moved.

He crossed the space between us like it was nothing like the pull between us was a current dragging him forward. When he reached me, he didn’t hesitate. He took my hand, his fingers brushing my skin, and I felt it—the bond settling into place, not forced, not demanded, but accepted.

“You called me,” he had whispered, his voice rough, his hands steady. “And I answered.”

It had been simple and undeniable. Orion had chosen me. And I had chosen him right back.

My best friends, Aurelia and Laasya, have been my anchors through all these changes. Aurelia, a Fairy Shifter from the Luminara Clan—the royal fairy clan—is a burst of energy and light. Mischievous and magnetic, she makes the world brighter just by existing. Laasya, my fiercely loyal werewolf best friend, has never let me feel alone. She’s my rock, my safe place. Anyone who dared question my place in Aetherium would have to go through her first. And yet, despite all the love around me, I still feel that quiet fear that one day, it won’t be enough. That I won’t be enough.

Orion’s voice pulls me from my thoughts.

“Your father is looking for you, little melody,” he murmurs, the nickname sending warmth through me. “He wants to discuss some important matters.”

I sigh, already knowing what that means. Another political discussion. Another conversation about duty. But I nod, forcing a small smile. “Thanks, Orion. I’ll go see him now.”

He squeezes my hand, eyes soft with something deeper than affection. “Remember, my little melody, I’m here. Always. No matter what.”

Something tightens in my chest. I stretch up on my toes, pressing a lingering kiss to his cheek before pulling back. “I know.”

As I turn to leave, I send a silent prayer to whoever might be listening. That Orion is right. That love is enough. That no matter what comes next, we’ll face it together.

Because no matter what, I want this, I want him.

And I hope to the Goddess nothing takes him away from me.Grammer