Chapter 150 Liam & Luna Bonding
POV: Luna
The howl faded, but the unease remained.
"What was that?" I asked.
"I don't know. But we should get inside."
We headed down from the roof. The Academy was quiet. Most students were sleeping.
But I couldn't shake the feeling that something was watching us.
"Tomorrow," Liam said as we reached my dorm. "We start investigating my family. Figure out what that sigil means."
"Agreed. But Liam, if your family is dangerous—"
"Then I'll deal with it. They're my responsibility."
"They're our problem now. We're mates. We handle things together."
He smiled. "I like the sound of that."
"Good. Because you're stuck with me."
"Best thing that's ever happened to me."
He kissed me goodnight and left.
Inside, Nova was waiting up.
"How did it go with Cole?" she asked.
I told her everything. The confession. The doubts about Liam. The sigil.
When I finished, she was quiet.
"That's a lot," she finally said.
"I know."
"Do you think Liam's family is involved?"
"I don't know. But we're going to find out."
The next morning, Liam and I met for combat training.
Not the official Academy kind. Private. Just us.
We needed to work together. Build trust. And figure out if we could really fight as a unit.
The training room was empty. Perfect.
"Ready?" Liam asked.
"Always."
We started with basic drills. Testing each other's reflexes.
Liam was fast. Faster than I'd realized. His wolf form moved like water, anticipating my strikes before I made them.
"You're holding back," he said after the third round.
"So are you."
"Then let's stop holding back."
We went all out. Full power. Full speed.
It was exhilarating.
Our movements synchronized perfectly. When I attacked high, he defended low. When he circled left, I covered right.
We moved like we'd been fighting together for years instead of weeks.
"This is incredible," I panted, shifting back to human.
"It's the mate bond. It lets us anticipate each other."
"No. It's more than that. We're naturally compatible. Our fighting styles complement each other."
"Lucky coincidence?"
"Or fate."
He pulled me close. "I prefer to think it's fate."
We trained for hours. By the end, I was exhausted but satisfied.
"We make a good team," I said.
"The best."
We sat on the bench, cooling down.
"Can I ask you something?" Liam said.
"Sure."
"Your past. Before Silverwood. What was it like?"
"Complicated. I was human for most of my life. Didn't even know wolves existed until my mark appeared."
"That must have been terrifying."
"It was. But also exciting. Like discovering a whole new world existed."
"And Miguel? Your first love?"
Pain still tugged at my chest when I thought about him. "He was human too. Didn't survive the transition into this world. Died protecting me."
"I'm sorry."
"Me too. But his essence is still in my mark. Part of my power now. So in a way, he's still protecting me."
"That's beautiful. Tragic, but beautiful."
"What about you?" I asked. "Any tragic backstory?"
He laughed. "Nothing that dramatic. I grew up in the network. Training. Learning. Being groomed to be a recruiter."
"Sounds lonely."
"It was. Everyone around me saw me as a tool. A means to an end. Not as a person."
"Is that why you're rebelling? Choosing me over them?"
"Partly. But mostly because you're the first person who sees me. Really sees me. Not what I can do for them, but who I am."
Through the mate bond, I felt his loneliness. His need to belong.
"I see you," I said. "And I like what I see."
"Even the chaos? The questionable family? The tendency to show up at exactly the right moment?"
"Especially those things."
He smiled and kissed me.
My mark flared with warmth. The mate bond strengthening.
This was real. Whatever Cole had said, whatever doubts I'd had, this connection was genuine.
We were pulling apart when we heard it.
A growl.
Low. Dangerous. Close.
We were on our feet instantly.
A rogue creature emerged from the shadows. But not like the ones we'd fought before.
This was different. Bigger. More twisted.
"How did it get past the wards?" I asked.
"I don't know. But it's coming for us."
The creature attacked.
We moved as one. I went left, Liam went right.
It tried to follow me. Liam caught it from behind, teeth sinking into its flank.
It roared and threw him off.
I shifted fully and attacked while it was distracted.
Claws. Teeth. Eclipse power flooding through me.
The creature was strong. Too strong for a normal rogue.
Someone had enhanced it.
"Luna, watch out!" Liam shouted.
The creature's tail whipped around, catching me in the ribs.
I flew backward, hitting the wall hard.
Pain exploded through me.
Liam engaged the creature alone, buying me time to recover.
Through the mate bond, I felt his determination. His refusal to let it hurt me again.
I struggled to my feet.
"Together!" I called.
"Together!"
We attacked simultaneously. Coordinated. Perfect timing.
I went high, he went low.
Eclipse power met physical force.
The creature dissolved into smoke.
We stood there, breathing hard, staring at where it had been.
"What the hell was that?" Liam asked.
"Enhanced rogue. Someone sent it specifically for us."
"The sigil?"
I looked at his hand. The mark was glowing brighter now.
"It's tracking you. Whatever that sigil is, it's calling these things to you."
"Then we need to remove it."
"How?"
"I don't know. But we'll figure it out."
We cleaned up and headed to the library.
Sienna was already there, surrounded by books on curse marks and magical sigils.
"Heard you had a rogue encounter," she said.
"Word travels fast."
"Lyric has her ways." She showed us a book. "This might help. It's about tracking marks. Sigils used to monitor and control people."
"Can they be removed?" Liam asked.
"Yes. But it's complicated. You need to know who placed the mark and what binding ritual they used."
"My family placed it. Through the ritual knife."
"Then we need to contact them. Get them to undo it."
"That's not an option. If they're involved in the conspiracy—"
"Then we find another way," I interrupted. "What about breaking it forcefully?"
"Possible. But dangerous. If you break a tracking mark violently, it can backlash. Damage the person it's attached to."
"How badly?" Liam asked.
"Anything from minor pain to death. Depends on how strong the mark is."
"Fantastic."
We researched for hours. Finally, we found something.
"Here," Sienna said. "A cleansing ritual. It's designed to remove curse marks without backlash."
"What does it require?" I asked.
"A blood sacrifice. Magical energy from someone bonded to the marked person. And a full moon."
The full moon was tomorrow night.
"We can do this," I said.
"It's risky," Sienna warned. "If the ritual fails, the mark could become permanent."
"And if we don't try, Liam keeps attracting enhanced rogues. We don't have a choice."
We spent the rest of the day preparing.
Gathering materials. Learning the ritual. Making sure we understood every step.
By evening, we were as ready as we'd ever be.
"You sure about this?" Liam asked.
"Completely. We're mates. We face things together. Remember?"
"I remember."
That night, I couldn't sleep again.
Too much anxiety about tomorrow's ritual. Too many what-ifs running through my head.
I went to the roof.
Liam was already there.
"Can't sleep either?" I asked.
"Too nervous. What if something goes wrong?"
"Then we deal with it. Like we always do."
"You make it sound easy."
"It's not easy. But it's simple. We fight. We survive. We protect each other."
"Is that your life philosophy?"
"It's gotten me this far."
He laughed. "Fair enough."
We sat under the stars, the mate bond humming between us.
"Luna," Liam said eventually. "If this ritual works. If we remove the mark and survive. Will you do something for me?"
"What?"
"Let yourself be happy. Just for a little while. Stop waiting for the next disaster."
"That's harder than it sounds."
"I know. But try. For me."
"Okay. I'll try."
We stayed on the roof until dawn, just being together.
Tomorrow would bring the ritual. Danger. Potential disaster.
But tonight, we had this.
Peace. Connection. Love.
And maybe that was enough.