The Calling
Serafine POV
I keep my head lowered. The weight of this book is grounding me, even as my heart still flutters from what I’ve just read. There’s so much in this that I never knew, and would never have understood. It’s scary to think that I had to think something was wrong with me last night because my family failed to give me any advice at all.
I can’t dwell on that though, on the lack of care my father had. His lack of worry for what would happen when those drugs finally wore off and everything came back to the surface.
Flipping the page slowly and carefully, the next chapter begins with a symbol pressed into the margin. It’s a crescent moon surrounded by tangled vines. The title reads: The Calling. It sounds like something ominous.
I’ve heard whispers of it before, and I’ve noticed the tension in the wolves‘ bodies as the date came near. No one explained what it was to me, though, and Xander didn’t really either. He didn’t really give me anything, just to read about it.
“The calling isn’t born of romance or love. It’s not for fated mates, it’s the surrender of restraints beneath the moon’s shadow. Wolves from within a pack come together, purely to release the tension that clings to the soul. When instincts are denied for too long, they can twist. They can also rot. They ruin the wolf from the inside out.”
I stop breathing for a moment. It’s strange, it feels more ominous now than before. What is weird, though, is that it sounds familiar. The ache, the emptiness, it’s how I’ve felt like my own wolf had been starving for something that I didn’t understand. It’s like if I went on for much longer the same way, I would no doubt have broken apart completely.
My eyes lower again and I continue to read.
“The Calling takes place during the dark moon. It’s often done within the forest, under the gaze of the goddess. There is no hiding, and no secrecy. All the wolves who are of full maturity take part. They take part in full view of each other, no one hides away. Pairings are chosen not with logic, romance or fated bond but with instinct. Bodies answer bodies, and there are no expectations. There’s no binding after, only silence. It’s not spoken of again.”
My hand tightens around the book, and I continue to read.
! “It’s rare that fated mates will come together under The Calling, the night is for the wolves to be who they are, and that
often means mating for one night with one or more wolves who are not your fated mate.”
Not my fated mate? So, this means that during The Calling, I could honestly end up with anyone? It’s purely instinct? I try to imagine it, the way the trees must look, lit by torchlight, and silver shadows. The way the wolves will shed everything they are restricted by, and surrender to what lives beneath the skin. I don’t know how to feel about it. It says it’s sacred, but it sounds so…vulnerable, to be seen like that. To want without shame.
“Many packs follow this ritual, some, however, don’t. Those who don’t take part will stay indoors before the moon rises until it sets fully. They will ensure no moonlight comes through the windows. The moonlight is what captures the wolves and brings them to The Calling.
So I don’t need to take part, I can hide inside, keep the curtains closed and avoid the moon? I get it, it’s a ritual, it’s part of who we are, but I’m not ready for this, not yet.
Turning the page again, the chapter shifts.
The True Moon.
That is something else that Xander mentioned.
“The True Moon rises once a month, and unlike The Calling, it’s exclusive to fated mates. It’s for those who are bonded by the threads of destiny, and marked by the goddess’s will. During the True Moon, the wolves are drawn to one another by forces beyond scent and instinct. It’s a night where fate completes what it began.”
That is better, my pulse still kicks up, but at least it’s not random people you mate with.
“The bond in this moment is at its strongest under the True Moon. Mates who complete their union during this time are said to form an unbreakable tether. Their wolves also become near inseparable, and are able to sense each other’s pain, presence and desire across great distances. The act is spiritual and it’s not about pleasure alone, but fusion. A becoming.” A becoming? I stare at those words for a long time. I always thought that I’d never have that. I assumed it was for others, for girls whose fathers didn’t hide them away. For the wolves who hadn’t been drugged and caged. I remember last night, though, the way that he touched me. The way our wolves wrapped around each other like they had been waiting. I remember the way the bond settled after, not light or warm hut doon–rooted.
That was just claiming and mating, so how mu Successfully unlocked! Moon?
I’m still lost and shocked. Is it real? Is he really my mate? I close the book gently, not wanting to draw attention to myself, and hold it against my lap. The classroom continues around me, the soft voices and quiet laughter along with the sound of pencils scratching against parchment. My thoughts, though, are far away now, tangled in the trees, in the moonlight and the memory of his voice when he whispered that I was his. The terrifying thought for me is that maybe I have been his all
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