Chapter 64
Chapter 64 – The Moon-Thread Vow
"Not every bond is chosen. But the ones we choose, with blood on our hands and love in our bones—those are unbreakable."
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The court of healing had no throne, yet Selene stood at its center, wrapped in a moon-thread gown woven from the shadows of the Abyss and the light of her mother's final blessing.
She had been born beneath a curse.
Raised in silence.
Hunted for a fate she never asked for.
And yet—tonight, she stood.
Valerian stepped beside her, his hand reaching for hers without hesitation. They wore no crowns. No chains. Just scars and the soft weight of everything they'd survived.
Tonight was not a coronation.
It was a vow.
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The court had gathered. Nova, Bea, the children from the Omega Sanctuary. Even the Fanged Princes who once bowed to the Council of Fates stood now in reverent silence.
The moon pulsed full overhead, silver light spilling like wine over the glassy clearing. In the center, a circle had been drawn with their joined blood.
Selene looked up at Valerian.
"Do you remember the first time you touched me?" she whispered.
His eyes darkened with memory. "I was afraid."
"So was I."
"And now?"
She placed her hand over his chest. "Now I'm choosing you."
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The vow began.
But there were no priests. No scripts. Just two hearts, and the words they etched into the stillness.
Selene spoke first, her voice strong as the tide:
> "I was born to be devoured. To be burned by the prophecy that named me. But I name myself now. And I name you, Valerian—my match, my ruin, my reason.
If the moon breaks, I'll hold the pieces. If fate turns its back, I will not."
Valerian stepped closer. His fangs were visible, his pupils rimmed with gold.
> "I was born in the dark. Raised by war. Bound to a throne I never wanted. But I want you.
Not as a king, not as a savior—just as the man who will follow your fire, even if it leads me to ash."
Their hands met in the circle.
The blood shimmered, glowing white-hot.
And then the sky cracked.
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Above them, the moon split open—not broken, but reborn. A second, fainter orb hovered within it. A sign never seen in their realm.
Nova whispered, "A mirror moon…"
Bea tightened her grip on her cloak. "Two souls. One bond. The prophecy didn't predict this."
"No," Nova said, eyes wide. "It feared it."
Because this was no cursed pair.
No omega and alpha.
No king and subject.
This was two forces—equal and eternal.
Chosen.
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Selene and Valerian kissed beneath the light of the mirror moon.
Their bond sealed not by fate, but by choice.
By vow.
By love that made even the stars pause to witness it.
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End of Chapter 64 – Next: Chapter 65, "The Hounds at the Gate"