Chapter 8 Library
Selene overheard her classmates whispering that classes had been suspended. The professors were in an emergency meeting, discussing the upcoming Bloodbound Rite—a once-a-year event within the territory. Once invoked, the rite could only end in submission or defeat.
The Bloodbound Rite was an ancient challenge revived within Red Moon University. To many, it was believed to be a contest of honor and dominance. But its true purpose ran far deeper. The rite existed to determine who had the right to stand beside another under the Moon Goddess’s favor. Once invoked, no rank, no bond, no lie could fully shield the one being claimed.
As for Selene—She headed to the library to look for something.
On her way there, she caught a glimpse of the two people she once loved clinging to each other, bodies pressed too close, mouths brushing like they were desperate to taste what no longer belonged to them. The sight stirred nothing but a dull ache—familiar but distant.
Selene didn’t stop.
She shook her head and walked past them, disappearing between towering shelves of books. What she needed now wasn’t confrontation. It was answers. She no longer cared what they were doing, not now. What mattered was why this had happened. How she had returned. And what force had pulled her back to this moment in time.
She needed the truth behind the Moon Hourglass.
Selene moved to the first shelf, scanning the spines carefully. Legends. Pack histories. Ancient rites.
Nothing.
No Moon Hourglass.
“History of the West Pack. West Pack Family Generations…” she muttered, rolling her eyes. “Do you really think I need this?”
She continued searching, moving deeper into the library until she reached the last shelf. Her patience thinned with every title that failed her.
“Why is it so hard to find anything about that hourglass?” she sighed.
Still, she didn’t give up.
She checked every book she could reach, flipped through pages, skimmed indexes—until exhaustion finally won. Selene sank into a chair at the far corner of the library, resting her elbows on her knees, staring at the floor as her thoughts tangled.
There had to be something. Somewhere.
Unnoticed by her, far above the shelves, a painting along the decorative wall pulsed faintly. Hidden within its frame, an ancient book stirred, its glow muted, patiently waiting.
Selene stood, brushing off her skirt, ready to search another section.
“That’s a dangerous thing to look for,” a voice said quietly behind her.
She froze.
Selene turned sharply. “What?”
A tall figure stood a few steps away, hands tucked casually into his pockets, expression calm yet unreadable. His presence felt… heavy. Not oppressive—but undeniable, like the air had shifted around him the moment he spoke. Selene recognized it instantly.
That warmth. That faint, intoxicating scent.
The same one she had noticed earlier in the cafeteria—the one that had curled through her senses without warning, rich and magnetic, impossible to ignore. It clung to him now, understated yet commanding, like heat beneath skin rather than something worn openly.
Her wolf stirred again, alert and unsettled, responding before her mind could fully catch up.
Whoever he was, he wasn’t just another student.
And the fact that her instincts had noticed him twice—without her permission—made her pulse quicken despite herself.
“I asked what you were looking for,” he continued, eyes flicking briefly to the shelves she had been searching. “But I think I already know.”
Selene narrowed her eyes. “You’ve been watching me?”
A corner of his lips lifted, faintly amused. “Hard not to notice someone tearing through the restricted history section like it owes her answers.”
She studied him now—his posture relaxed, his gaze sharp, far too perceptive for a student who claimed coincidence.
“And you are?” Selene asked coolly.
He inclined his head, just enough to be polite. “Ryzen.”
The name settled strangely in her chest.
“Selene,” she replied, unaware of how the air subtly shifted at the exchange—as if something ancient had just acknowledged them both.
Behind them, unseen, the hidden book glowed brighter. Selene studied him for a long second longer than necessary.
There was something… off about him.
Not threatening. Not suspicious. Just unsettling in a way she couldn’t quite name. Like hearing a melody you swear you’ve known your whole life, but can’t remember where you learned it.
“You didn’t answer my question,” she said at last. “Why would it be dangerous?”
Ryzen didn’t respond immediately. His gaze drifted past her shoulder, toward the shelves she had searched so thoroughly, before returning to her face. When it did, there was a flicker of something she couldn’t place; recognition, maybe or restraint.
“Because some things,” he said slowly, “aren’t meant to be found without consequence.”
Selene scoffed lightly, crossing her arms. “That sounds like something professors say when they don’t actually know the answer.”
A ghost of a smile touched his lips. “Does it?”
She hesitated. That smile that is too subtle and too controlled sent a strange ripple through her chest. Her wolf shifted restlessly beneath her skin, not alarmed, not aggressive… just alert.
“And you?” she asked. “Are you one of those people who pretend to know more than they do?”
Ryzen chuckled softly. “No. I’m one of the people who knows when not to say too much.”
That earned him a sharper look.
“Then why say anything at all?” Selene pressed.
He took a step closer, not invading her space, but close enough that she could sense him fully now. His presence was steady, grounding, like standing near a fire that hadn’t burned yet.
“Because you don’t look like someone who gives up easily,” he said. “And because people like you tend to dig deeper when told not to.”
Her breath caught, just for a fraction of a second.
“You don’t know me,” Selene replied.
Ryzen’s gaze lingered on her eyes. “No,” he agreed quietly. “But it feels like I should.”
That did it.
Her wolf stirred sharply, a low, questioning hum vibrating through her chest. Familiar. Too familiar. The sensation tugged at her instincts, whispering of something unfinished, something misplaced.
Selene frowned. “We’ve never met.”
“I know,” Ryzen said.
The certainty in his tone made her skin prickle.
Silence settled between them—not awkward, but heavy. Selene became acutely aware of how close he was now, of the faint scent clinging to him—clean, sharp, carrying something ancient beneath it. It curled through her senses before she could stop it, tugging at her in a way that made her uneasy.
Her wolf leaned forward, curious.
"Careful", Selene warned herself.
She took a step back, breaking the invisible thread. “If you’re not going to help, then I suggest you stop distracting me.”
Ryzen watched her move away, his expression unreadable. “You won’t find what you’re looking for out in the open,” he said.
Her hand paused on the spine of a book.
“And how would you know?” she asked without turning.
“Because,” he replied calmly, “what you’re searching for doesn’t want to be found.”
Selene turned back to him slowly.
“That doesn’t make sense.”
Ryzen met her gaze and for just a heartbeat, something deeper surfaced in his eyes. Something old. Something that mirrored the ache she carried without knowing why.
“It will,” he said softly. “When the time comes.”
Before she could respond, he stepped aside, giving her a clear path down the aisle, as if he had never intended to stop her at all.
Selene walked past him, but her pulse refused to settle.
As she moved deeper into the library, she couldn’t shake the feeling that she had just crossed paths with someone she was never meant to forget.
Behind her, unseen, the painting’s hidden book pulsed once more—stronger this time.
And Ryzen remained where he was, watching her go, jaw tight.
“Not yet,” he murmured to himself.