Moon of Desire

The night was cold, and I hated that place. The small town of Vár-Midra was surrounded by dense forest, with no sign of life except for the distant howls echoing through the night. My breath came out in small white clouds as I clutched my coat tighter to my body, trying to shield myself from the icy wind.

It was my mother's idea to come here, far from any sign of civilization. She had always been obsessed with isolated places, but I could barely imagine that it would be in this remote part of the world where everything would change. Where I would change.

It was the kind of night where I could feel the presence of something greater. A strange vibration in the air, as if the forest itself was... alive. It was like it was watching me. Every tree, every shadow between the branches seemed to have eyes.

"It's just your imagination, Nyla," I muttered to myself, quickening my pace. My name is Nyla, and until then, the strangest thing that had ever happened to me was getting lost on a mountain trail as a child. Little did I know that I was about to get lost in something much, much more dangerous.

That's when I heard it for the first time. A low, guttural growl coming from the darkness. I froze. Every cell in my body turned cold. I tried to take a deep breath, but the air seemed to refuse to enter my lungs. Another growl, closer this time. The sound wrapped around me, as if it was coming from all directions at once.

I knew I should run. Any sane person would have fled at that moment. But I couldn't move. Something inside me wanted to know what was out there. Something primal, almost like a calling.

And then he appeared. Amber eyes glowed in the dark, reflecting the moonlight that barely managed to pierce through the trees. The wolf was enormous, taller than any animal I had ever seen, with fur black as the night and fangs gleaming under the faint light. He was watching me, standing still, as if he was waiting for something. The world seemed to freeze for a second.

My heart raced, the sound echoing in my ears. I should run. I knew that. But those eyes... There was something in them that kept me from taking a single step. It was like he was studying me, as if he wanted to understand me. An immediate connection formed there, in the silence of the forest.

And then, as quickly as he had appeared, he vanished into the darkness. I stood there, breathing heavily, as if I had been snapped out of a trance.

"What the hell was that?" I whispered to myself. But before I could do anything, a deep, rough voice came from behind me.

"You shouldn't be here."

I spun around abruptly, my heart racing again. And there he was. Tall, imposing, with the same amber eyes as the wolf I had just seen. He wore a leather jacket and dark jeans, his hair disheveled and an air of wildness that made the atmosphere around him feel electrifying. It was as if the air around him was charged with energy, ready to explode.

"What... who are you?" My words came out in a weak whisper. My body trembled, not from the cold, but from his presence. Something about him drew me in, in a way I couldn't understand. Something dangerous, intense.

"That doesn't matter now," he replied, his voice a deep purr that sent shivers down my spine. "What matters is that you shouldn't have come here. This forest is not for you."