My Fated Mate Can Have Her-Chapter 135: The Formal Hall

Violet

The dress felt too fine against my skin.

I stood still as two attendants fussed over the flowing fabric, adjusting the drape of the sleeves and smoothing out non-existent wrinkles. The pale silver-blue material cascaded down in soft waves, loose and elegant without being restrictive. It felt wrong for me to be dressed so finely, but the older wolves that would be accompanying me insisted.

Astrid supervised from her position near the vanity, her sharp eyes tracking every adjustment the attendants made.

My thoughts drifted despite the activity around me, circling back to that night with Kael.

Something had been wrong.

He’d held me so tightly, almost desperately, as if I might disappear if he loosened his grip. The way he’d buried his face in my hair, the tension in his entire body, the careful way he’d avoided my questions.

’"I am fine, Violet. Just let me hold you for a while."’

But he hadn’t been fine. I had felt it in every rigid line of his body, along with how he had walked into the room in the first place.

What had happened before he came to me?

"You’re frowning," Astrid said, drawing my attention back to the present. "Keep in mind that you need to be focused today, not lost in your thoughts."

I merely nodded with a sigh and the attendants stepped back, satisfied with their work. As they gathered their supplies and left, I noticed the way Astrid kept her distance. Not obviously, but there was a careful space between us that hadn’t been there before. Along with how she no longer readily met my eyes like she used to.

She had been like this since the eclipse. She had especially seen what I was capable of doing.

She likely knew what I was.

"You will do well," she said as she led me out of the room. "Just remember what they taught you. Stay calm, answer clearly, and do not let them provoke you into saying something you’ll regret."

"I understand," was all I could say.

This morning felt so strange. From thinking about that night to having wolves actually dress me, and Astrid herself coming to assist with it.

I also especially didn’t feel like talking today of all days.

The two wolves who had been here with Kael and Tow weeks ago to guide me on how the trial would play out were waiting in the entry hall. 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

The older wolf, Gregor, and the slightly younger one, Sermaine.

My stomach slightly twisted with nerves as they offered brief greetings.

"Please, do well to remember," Gregor said, his voice low and steady as he pinned me with a sharp stare. "Answer only what is asked. Do not volunteer information they haven’t requested. If you are uncertain about a question, you can ask for clarification."

"And keep your composure," Sermaine added. "The more composed you are, the less credible his accusations will seem."

"This isn’t entirely too serious a matter, and there is the high likelihood of the Alpha being punished for providing wrong information to our Supreme Alpha." Gregor was already heading towards the entrance.

I drew in a deep breath, trying to settle the nervous flutter in my chest. Oddly enough, beneath the anxiety, I felt a strange sort of confidence I hadn’t expected.

Everything would be fine.

It had to be. And he had assured me so.

Astrid left to handle a few matters and would be entering the main hall later. The two wolves led me through the castle’s winding hallways, far deeper than I had ever ventured before. The walls here were thick stone, and I noticed how the sounds from outside grew muffled and distant as we walked.

The powerful soundproofing was likely why I never heard anything from the summit sessions despite being inside the building. Unless I stood right outside the hall itself, which was something I have deliberately avoided doing for the past four days.

Kael had been occupied every evening since the summit began. Formal dinners with the other Supreme Alphas and their delegations, reinforcing relationships and managing the delicate political dance that came with hosting such an event.

I didn’t mind the distance. It had given me space to think, to prepare, to try and sort through the tangled mess of emotions and questions I didn’t have answers for.

But now, standing outside the massive open double doors that led to the central hall, my chest tightened.

Kael was not the only one I could sense in there.

That other Supreme Alpha was there too...

’This is so frustrating.’

Other wolves were trickling in, some moving in and out. This was the early hours of the 5th day and the procession wouldn’t start until the next hour. Gregor and Sermaine gently ushered me inside and the vast expanse of the hall nearly stole the breath from my lungs.

The ceiling soared overhead, supported by elegant stone columns carved with intricate patterns of wolves and moons. Enormous windows lined the upper walls, letting in streams of morning light that caught on crystalline fixtures hanging at intervals, scattering rainbow fragments across the polished floor.

The space could easily hold several hundred wolves, and from the number already present, it seemed intent on doing exactly that.

Rows of seats curved in a gentle arc around the center of the hall, rising in tiers so everyone would have a clear view of the proceedings. The seats were already half-filled with wolves from various delegations, their clothing and markings identifying which pack and nation they represented.

But what dominated the space was the raised platform at the far end.

Twelve seats sat behind a dark wide slab on a slightly elevated platform, each one clearly crafted for the Supreme Alphas.

Some of the Supreme Alphas were already there, standing near their chairs and conversing with one another. The older ones made me go still, not trying to conceal their powers like Kael usually did.

My eyes found Kael immediately.

He stood, speaking with another Supreme Alpha. His gaze shifted to me and his expression softened, just slightly.

Relief flooded through me and I allowed myself a small smile, just for him.

Until I felt another gaze that was heavy with a familiar intensity.

My eyes shifted almost against my will, drawn by the pull I had been trying so hard to ignore.