Awakening The Silver Wolf

RAVENNA POV 

This was what true happiness felt like—the laughter that danced through the air, the warm smiles that wrapped around me like sunlight, the rhythm of the music that made my heart sway in unison. 

It wasn't just joy, it was a pull from deep within, a force that gripped my very soul and held me tight. It was as if every moment, every heartbeat, was an invitation to stay—tangled in the beauty of it all. 

And in that embrace, I found peace, the kind of peace I never knew I needed. 

I had never smiled or laughed this hard in my entire life. I had never just let go and let myself feel before. But here… here I could let go. 

It all felt like some kind of dream, the ballroom was adding to that feel. It was large, with ceilings so hard I couldn't see where they ended. Chandeliers hung up, their crystals giving the room a fairytale feel. 

Long tables of food were lined up by the side, with another even longer tables of drink. The musicians played on raised platforms and there were dancers in front of them. 

It felt like I'd been transported to another era, an era where balls were held. 

"I could literally see the happiness pouring out of you," Dalian said, dragging my attention back to him. We were currently dancing to fast music. He twirled me and I spun and went back to his arms, a wide smile on my face. My cheeks were beginning to hurt with how hard I'd been smiling but I wasn't going to stop. 

"If there's a bigger word for happiness I would use it," I said, moving in sync with Dalian. 

He mirrored my smile, his eyes bright. "It looks good on you," he said softly. 

If it was when I hadn't shifted I wouldn't have been able to hear him. But now everything was sharper, the music, the smell of food. It added life to the party for me. 

"Darius is smitten with you," Dalian said suddenly. "When I found out you shifted I had been worried, hoping you hadn't fallen into the wrong hands. But from that day I saw Darius and he looked like he wanted to tear my head from my shoulders, I knew you were in the right hands." 

I laughed softly, my chest warming at the mention of Darius. I looked for him in the crowd but I didn't have to look long. He was like a lighthouse and I was the ship. 

He was currently dancing with Mia, his smile big and wide. Mia said something to him and he threw his head back and laughed before he picked her up and spun her, Mia's laughter joining his. 

I looked back at Dalian to see him watching me. "Yeah," I agreed. "I am in good hands. More than two hands actually." 

"More than two hands," he repeated with a nod. "The pack loves you. I think even before you became their Luna they've seen you as their own." 

I wasn't going to tell him that that hadn't been the case in the beginning. But since that day I've declared that Darius was mine in front of Zara and the whole pack, they had changed, became softer. I guess it was since that day I joined their family.

"Mother would be so proud of you right now," Dalian whispered, his voice barely audible but I heard him clear. "She was devastated when the witch told you that you shouldn't find your mate, or the spell would be broken. She never found hers, you see. So, she wanted her children to find theirs, to experience what she never could."

My eyes pricked at the mention of the mother I never knew but felt a strong love for. I wished she was here to see me have that dream she wished for. 

"Have you found your mate?" I asked, changing the topic because I was at the edge of breaking down. 

Dalian shook his head. "No. But I hope I do."

I squeezed his hand that was on mine. "You will." 

We continued dancing until the next song ended and I was transferred into Lucian's arms. He still had that smile on his face and I found that I liked it. There was something about seeing stone-cold Lucian smiling. 

I danced with Mia next, trying not to trip over ourselves since we were both drunk. We laughed and giggled over nothing, spun and twirled when we weren't supposed to. 

After Mia, I danced with a few members of the pack, the alcohol in my belly increasing as the night went. 

Oh, it felt so good to let go, to be free from all your thoughts. 

At one point I needed up in Darius' arms. 

"You're a wreck," he said, a soft smile on his face. The smile I've come to know he reserved for just me. No, all his smiles were just for me. 

"You–" I hiccuped. "You love me like that." 

He drew me into his arms so we moved slowly to the music. "I do, indeed." 

I pulled away from his arms because I wanted to look up at him. I kept my arms around his waist and smiled up at him. "You're so beautiful." 

He chuckled softly before he leaned down and rubbed my nose with his. "Nobody has ever called me beautiful before." 

"Good. I want to be the only one to call you that." 

He raised a teasing eyebrow. "Possessive much?"

"Shut up." I nudged him playfully.

But inside, I felt something shift—something deep and unspoken. No one had ever truly seen him, had they? Not the way I did. I wanted to protect that, to hold it close to me.

His grin widened. "As my lady wishes." 

I stared up at this man who had stolen my heart and kept it locked up. Never in a million years have I thought I would have fallen helplessly in love with him. The man who people called a savage, a heartless beast. 

Oh, how wrong they were. 

He was anything but heartless. His heart was as big as his room, and his love was overwhelming. And not just love for me, but love for his whole pack.

"What are you thinking?" he asked softly.

"That your eyes are so beautiful." 

I had expected him to laugh but his smile turned sad. 

"I had them from my mother," he said, his eyes turning glassy. "She would have loved you, you know? In a way, you're both alike. Both women of their world, both stubborn but oh, so bright, so filled with love and big smiles. She would probably have loved you more than she loved me." 

A tear slipped down his eyes and the sight broke me. 

"Oh, baby." I hugged me tight and buried my face in his neck. "I'm sure she wouldn't love anyone more than she loved you." 

He hugged me tighter and buried his neck in my neck, inhaling deeply. After a while, he pulled away and his smile was bright again. 

"I know you're currently drunk as a sailor–"

"I am not!"

"–but there's something we need to do first." 

I raised an eyebrow. "What?" 

"We need to shift and go running. I know, baby. I know," he added when I groaned. "But I promised it won't hurt that much. The alcohol will dull the pain." 

I inhaled. "Why do we need to shift?" 

"It's tradition. We let our wolves come out and they'll spend a few hours running and, uhm…" 

"And what?" I prompt. 

"And fuck." 

My face heated. "Oh." 

Darius laughed softly. "Yeah. We don't have to be conscious of that. We could just retreat to the back of our minds."

I released a breath. "Thank God." 

"Come on." He released me to take my hand and led me out the hall. "After the run, I have a surprise for you." 

I piped up, curious. "What's it?"

Darius rolled his eyes. "It's called a surprise for a reason, love."