Chapter 42 - The final battle part 2

Ara freezes.

“Your mother hates you, she can’t stand the sight of you because you remind her of your father,” Wonbin spits, and Ara can’t seem to look away from him, because his words are true. Her mother hates her. “What you just saw is what can be your reality, Ara, it’s what you can have for the rest of your life.” His offer sounds awfully tempting, and Ara bites her lip.

Staying with her father means seeing him again, happy, alive, and Ara wants that. Her eyes are a bit teary when she looks into Wonbin’s narrowed ones, and the man grins triumphantly, his hand on her wrist tightening.

But then, Ara hears Baekhyun’s pained howl, Tao’s angry growl, and she jumps back to her senses, because she has her pack now.

Sure, they can never give her the love only her father and mother could, but they make her happy and she loves them just as much. And also, she is their Luna, leaving them is not an option.

Wonbin notices the change in her eyes and he panics, his fingers suddenly tingling with magic, and Ara tries pulling her wrist out of his hand, shaking her head angrily.

“I’m not giving you my powers,” she snaps, and then she feels Kai somewhere behind her, magic buzzing from his skin and she doesn’t look back as she stretches the arm Wonbin hasn’t claimed backwards, managing to brush her fingers against Kai’s back. Wonbin hisses in pain when his fingers suddenly burn, and he lets go off Ara’s wrist, taking multiple steps back.

Kai had been defending Ara from the shadows when he had felt her touch on his back, and he quickly steps closer to her so she has more access, feeling his body heat up with magic as Ara sends a thick cloud of fire directly in Wonbin’s direction. The man barely has time to duck, the right side of his face heating up painfully as he rolls away.

The shadows suddenly disappear, and Kai frowns, the rest of the boys all stagger towards him and Ara, creating a circle around the girl as they stay alert in case of another attack, but it doesn’t come because Wonbin is weakened, and Ara figures that out when he growls in pain.

She points her palm towards the grass on the ground and prays to God that the spells works, and it does, roots and branches shoot out from the ground and they enclose around Wonbin’s arms and legs, holding him down on the ground.

“Find Chanyeol and Suho,” Kai yells, and Sehun and Tao disappear inside the house, Baekhyun, Chen and Kyungsoo staying next to their alpha and Luna. 

Ara feels her head throbbing in pain, but magic is buzzing through her veins, making her feel more powerful than ever, and she lifts her palm up so Wonbin is hovering in the air, the roots and branches preventing him from moving.

Wonbin looks absolutely terrified, fear and panic radiating off his body, but then he grins and chuckles like a psychopath.

“You’re this powerful already, I can only imagine how strong you’ll become if you practice some more,” he says, and Kai moves his hand from Ara's shoulder to wrap it around her waist, a low growl emitting from his throat, and Wonbin rolls his eyes, despite his current compromising situation. “I didn’t know that you’d be the Luna of a pack, but I guess that’s what makes you this powerful.”

“You killed my father,” Ara grits out between her teeth, anger burning through her veins, and Wonbin grins manically, nodding almost proudly.

“I had to wait until your magic was activated, and since I didn’t know what exactly was going to trigger it, I had to befriend your parents and stay close.” He clicks his tongue and huffs out a laugh. “He was fun, Insung was, but he became a pain in the when he deliberately kept you away from me. I almost used up all of my energy that day, manipulating his thoughts into making him think his friends were in danger, but God, was it worth it.”

“You killed my father!” Ara screams, and she closes her hand, the roots and branches tightening around Wonbin’s body, and his eyes suddenly widen, breath knocked out of his lungs. 

Ara sees red, and she clenches her jaw, her hand tightening into a fist, Wonbin looks like he’s about to burst from the inside out because of the pressure around him. But Kai suddenly puts his hand over Ara’s, and she blinks in surprise, keeping her eyes planted on a choking Wonbin.

“Ara, don’t,” Kai tries, but Ara removes his hand from her fist and places it on her shoulder instead, and she holds her other hand up, turning her fingers so Wonbin’s neck is exposed. “Ara, he’s not worth it,” Kai warns, but Ara can’t hear him, the only thing on her mind being her father’s pained frown, his familiar scent, his touch, and then she screams out in pure agony, and Kai doesn’t try to stop her again.

Tao and Sehun stumble out of the house, both supporting a barely conscious Chanyeol and a frowning Suho, and they all stop next to Baekhyun, Kyungsoo and Chen.

“I can’t let you live,” Ara whispers, angry tears gathering in her eyes, “I can’t allow you to live anymore, you’ll just hurt us again.”

She can’t take the pain anymore, her head throbbing harsher than ever, her heart feeling like it’s going to burst because of all the emotions she’s feeling a