BOND OF THE FULL MOON

knees threatened to buckle. If not for the tales my grandmother had told me about werewolves, I might have bee

. a we

rippled beneath his skin, the remnants of his failed transformation leaving him stuck somewhere between man and beast

itated only a moment before speaking. "Elis, I don't know what's happening to you," I sa

ly, the claws retracted, his elongated limbs returned to normal, and his face lost the sharp, feral angles that had terri

ered to myself, un

and pain. "After seeing me like this, you're still not afraid?" His voic

t instead, I felt something entirely different: curiosity, maybe even compassion. There was s

said, my voice steady. "I d

d on. "Come with me, Elis. I live with my grandmother at the edge of the for

ermination. "No," he rasped. "Stay away from me, Lily. I can't c

shape to be a threat to anyone," I said, my tone f

ace, and I couldn't help but find it endearing. "If you don't follow me home,

nreadable, as if trying to decide whether I was brave

eeting his gaze w

out a resigned sigh. "Alright," he said, his voice

I interrupted with a sm

eet anyway, swaying slightly as he tried to steady himself. I moved to his

s around us, I couldn't help but feel that this moment marked the start

ed him. The forest seemed to stretch endlessly, the shadows shifting under the pale glow of the full moon. But fina

ly. His body tensed, his gaze flickering over the

oftly, trying to reas

e living room, guiding him to the longest sofa and helped him stretch out. His mo

ettle. He looked at me briefly, exhaustion visib

pulse quickening as I gently pushed the

ng position on the edge of the bed. Her silvery hair was di

r voice hoarse. "Wha

rything I had seen. "I... I found some

ntered anyone in the forest. Our lives were simple and isolated, with h

she repeated, disbe

leave him there, Grandma. He was in pain, and he co

how could you bring a stranger from the woods into

ling as they gripped the edge of th

w it sounds crazy, but I can feel

gn - certainty, perhaps, or reassurance. "A

replied, my

tly and leaned back against the pillows. "Be car

wil

ps of my grandmother's special herbal tea. The familiar ritual calmed me,

slowly, her eyes still clouded with concern. Then, I returned to

eyes locking onto mine. "Here," I said sof

ed mine as he took the cup from me, and a strange current ran

gainst the cushions. But his gaze never left mine, and I could see something fli

too. Something inexplicable. Something t

mured, his voice ba

ts spinning as the strange connection between us s

shoulders eased, and the pained furrow in his brow smoothed out. His breat

r a time, his emerald eyes holding mine as if searching for something unspok

thing about him, something beyond the mystery of the woods or the odd circumstance

his cheek, the slight parting of his lips. He was too beautiful for a man and there was a charm in his

n intensity that left me breathless. A strange thought crossed my mind, one that both shocked and embarra

but my eyes betrayed me. They stayed fixed on

his eyes sn

I couldn't name. We stared at each other, neither of us speaking, neither of us moving. The connection b

re trapped in that moment, our eyes s

movements were sharp, almost frantic, as he sw

I could say another word, he

lent decision. He pulled the door open, the cold night air

called after him, but he was already disappearing into the

t rustle of leaves in the wind. My heart pou

eave? Where

one I didn't dare ask aloud: What had