Saphira
Murmurs spread through the crowd like wildfire.
"Her name is Alina," He continued unwavering. "Fate has chosen her for me, and I will honor that bond."
Gasps fill the room. Wolves of high ranking, pack members whisper, some omegas stumble, some falling the tray of drinks they held— the sound of it resonating throughout the ballroom, shocked that he would humiliate his luna this way.
The new woman, Alina, steps forward, confidence in every step; Kieran stretches his hand out to her, which she happily takes, blushing prettily as she reaches Kieran's side, and to my utter disbelief, he tucked an invisible stray strand of hair behind her ear. She giggled. She looked timid, but it was obvious she just wasn't.
I watched them in silence.
No emotion. No reaction.
Because I refused to give them that satisfaction.
It was ridiculous. We were true mates. We had met a year ago and felt the bond, the undeniable pull of destiny. The spark and everything.
So whatever this was, whatever game he was playing, was nothing but a ploy. A cruel, calculated attempt to humiliate me.
Kieran turned to me, feigned sympathy painted across his face. "You are still Luna if you wish," he offered as if it were a kindness. "You have been a good Luna, that I can not deny. But this… this is fate."
I could feel the weight of a hundred eyes watching me, waiting for my reaction.
But they would wait in vain.
I gave him a small, cold smile.
"Fate," I murmured, my voice carrying despite its softness. "Fate is a fickle thing, isn't it, Kieran?"
His expression flickered for a fraction of a second — a tightening of the jaw, a glint in his eye that only someone who knew him as well as I did would catch. He was warning me with his eyes not to do anything to provoke him. I must have played the part of the submissive wife so well that he thought he could step all over me this way.
Alina blinked, her hand finding his arm, likely expecting some kind of outburst from me.
How disappointing for her.
I lifted my chin.
"May the Moon Goddess bless your union," I said, raising my glass as if in a toast. "May you both find in each other what you lacked in yourselves."
Gasps rippled through the room, and a few nervous chuckles from those who understood the weight of my words.
I drained the glass, the wine burning my throat but fortifying my resolve.
Alina walks towards me, her eyes seemingly innocent, with a large smile plastered on her lips. She looked to be about eighteen years old, but I could be wrong; wolves don't always look their age, and she had long brown curly hair with brown eyes, alongside facial features one might consider cute.
She stands in front of me and then proceeds to hold my hands, which I don't accept. A flash of annoyance crosses through her features, but she masks it with yet another smile. I wonder, does she not get tired of faking smiles all the time? If I did that, my face would hurt every day.
"Luna, Kieran....oops, my mistake." She chuckles, placing a hand timidly over her mouth shyly. "I meant to say Alpha Kieran has told me so much about you; forgive my slip of tongue, it's just I am so used to calling him by his name without any formalities when we are alone, but you understand, right?"
When I didn't reply, she shifted from one foot to another as though she was expecting a strong reaction, but continued speaking regardless.
"I simply cannot wait for us to get to know one another," she sighs as if she's in a world of her own, dreaming of a good life for the two of us. " We are going to be such great friends, sisters even," she gushed.
Then I laughed. Out loud, as a matter of fact. I did try to hold it in, but I really couldn't; it's been a while since I saw such terrible acting. Then, intense silence cut through the air like a sharp blade.
It was an uncomfortable one. Kieran's demeanor changed; he almost looked scared; all the while, Alina looked perplexed as to my sudden outburst.
"What is so funny?" she demanded, her voice sharp and slightly nervous.
" Just how sorely mistaken you are. You see, I don't befriend my mate's concubines," I replied as the crowd burst with gasps, but I continued, "And as for sisters -" I leaned in. " It's good to dream, so I won't fault you for that."
"Saphira," Kieran growled, striding to her side, holding her hand protectively and silently reassuring her - a possessive show. She nods and takes a step back while he closes in on me and grabs hold of my forearm tightly, hard enough to leave a bruise, like he didn't want any blood flow in that area; he was trying to scare me. "Stop this at once, Saphira. You are acting like a child. She was just trying to be friends, and you are hurting her feelings. "
But her feelings aren't hurt, not even in the slightest. He was the one who brought another woman to a mating ceremony of all gatherings to mock me by announcing her as his mate. If he brought her in as his concubine, I wouldn't object. It would hurt me, but I still wouldn't object because it was not common for an alpha to have concubines, but it happened if the alpha was not satisfied with his mate and didn't want to reject her for emotional stability in both parties.
This was also done for power. It was rare, but it happened. The Luna could get a lover as well, only after her alpha has brought his concubine in, and if she chooses to have one.
In this situation, neither of these was the case. I glanced pointedly at the same spot he was gripping tightly and shifted my gaze to him. "Careful, Alpha, the last time you held me like that... someone very important to us died," I said sweetly, venom in every syllable, and he let go instantly. Then he mind-linked me, saying, "You had better watch your actions tonight, Saphira, or the consequences will be severe."
Celia growled in my head, "He betrays us and dares threaten us? Rip his throat, Saphira; you know you can do it." I can't say I wasn't considering it, but I replied, " No, I don't want bloodshed this night", and so I blocked her, forcing down my fury in the process; if I didn't, she'd tell me to let her have control, which would be tempting.
Celia could get bloodthirsty when triggered; I sneered inwardly at the sight of Kieran, making my blood boil. " Rot in hell," I responded, looking him straight in the eye, and with that, I brushed past him and faced the gathering.
"My sincere apologies, you had to watch that. Every one of you came here this evening to find your significant other, and we can not halt that because of a family drama. Regardless of what occurred here, you must know that having your mate is a beautiful thing, something you must cherish until your last breath. What happened here would not always happen, so love yourselves so madly you won't want to be apart because aside from the mate bond that we most cannot resist, love is something much more important; we have love, and we have forever...Now, we must proceed with tonight's plans."
I looked at the orchestra that had stopped playing midway due to the conflict earlier; their faces filled with obvious traces of sympathy, but they looked more relieved than before.
"Music." With that, notes floated into the air once more, filling the atmosphere with life. As couples slowly danced together, one could tell with a single glance that these wolves would not leave the same way they came here; they would learn to cherish one another better than they thought possible.
Kieran and Alina walked down the small stairs hand in hand and danced like a newlywed couple. It hurt me, but not as much as it should. His actions these past few months have made pain meant to be unbearable a tad numb, so I was not on the verge of death seeing him with Alina. But I would be lying if I said I didn't feel out of place here, internally debating whether to stay or leave.
Soon after, someone approached me; Celia perked her eyes and stood at attention, studying him. He had short, rich blonde locks, a few stray strands fanning his face and his eyes; his eyes looked like gems, blue sapphires, almost like they glowed.
He was dressed in white and royal blue, with a black cloak and a piercing in his left ear. His face was beautiful, not the way the humans, vampires, or faes were beautiful, and believe me, I have seen a lot of them. He was different in a way I couldn't quite pinpoint.
Is it hot in here? I wondered and glanced around quickly to find the others either dancing, chatting, or mingling with one another. So it was just me? My heart raced faster, and heat crept up my face. All these emotions, for one wolf approaching me? It didn't make sense. He had a wolfish smile on his face. It was not fake, so I welcomed it and relished it.
"May I have this dance, my queen?" He asked, his voice deep, smooth as velvet, his hands outstretched.
He was intriguing, had manners, and was handsome... the perfect distraction from my current dilemma.
"You may." I took his hand, and he led me to the dance floor, his one hand resting on the curve of my waist and the other cradling mine, the heat of his touch sending a strange shiver through me. We danced the waltz, he turned me under the candlelight. Our eyes met, and it felt like we had frozen in time. "Have we met before? You look very familiar."
"My name is Valric Ashfell, Alpha of the Moonstone Pack. You may not recall, but we met a year ago at a council meeting," he said, his voice soft, his eyes holding mine with a tenderness I hadn't expected- and in that gaze, something in my memory stirred.
I remembered now. A meeting a year ago with a neighboring pack to discuss borders and land ownership, the meeting was a literal dog fight, with alphas yelling at the top of their lungs, bringing suggestions, and having their ideas opposed. I gave a suggestion that solved the problem, and I was commended.
After the meeting, at night, Kieran pulled me to a garden and queried me as to why I had to speak on such matters. I didn't understand at the time why he said that, and so I told him it was simply to solve the issue at hand. What that such a problem?
Kieran then proceeded to tell me that he was the Alpha, so therefore, the spotlight must be on him alone, and that if I really wanted to help, I should have told him my idea through a mind link so he could have proposed it instead.
When he left me standing there alone in that garden, all I did was stare plainly at the full moon - a feeble attempt to hide my confusing and growing sadness about what happened. I never liked it when we fought.
Then, I spotted a pair of unfamiliar blue eyes- Valric in a corner, watching me silently, looking like he was deciding whether or not to abduct me then and there...But I could be mistaken; it could all have been in my head.