The consequences
1585 Words
(Aria)
Dawn was breaking over the mountains when Kael and I finally made our way back to the pack house. My legs felt weak, and the new mark on my neck throbbed with every heartbeat. Kael had given me his shirt to wear, and it hung down to my thighs like a dress. The fabric smelled like him, and every breath reminded me of what we'd done.
We hadn't spoken much on the walk back. What was there to say? In one night, I'd gone from being Daniel's rejected mate to being marked as Luna by his father. The pack was going to lose their minds.
"They already know," Kael said quietly as we approached the back entrance. "Every wolf in the territory felt it happen."
My stomach dropped. "All of them?"
"All of them."
Great. So much for easing into this situation. I could already hear voices inside the pack house, angry and confused. Someone was shouting, and it sounded like Daniel.
"Are you ready for this?" Kael asked, his hand on the door handle.
"No," I said honestly. "But I don't have a choice anymore, do I?"
He looked at me then, really looked at me, and for a moment I saw something soft in those storm-gray eyes. "You always have a choice, Aria. Even now. If you want to run, I won't stop you."
"And leave you to deal with this mess alone? I don't think so."
Something like pride crossed his face. "That's my Luna."
The words sent a strange thrill through me, even though everything about this situation was wrong. I wasn't supposed to be his Luna. I was supposed to be planning my future with Daniel, even after he takes over as alpha, not standing here wearing his father's shirt with a fresh mating bite on my neck.
But life rarely went according to plan.
Kael opened the door, and we stepped into the pack house together. The noise hit us immediately. Voices from the common room, footsteps on the stairs, doors slamming. The whole place was awake and alive with activity despite the early hour.
"My office," Kael said, guiding me toward the stairs. "We need to get ahead of this before it gets worse."
We made it halfway up the staircase before Daniel appeared at the top, his face twisted with rage. He'd thrown on jeans and a t-shirt, but his hair was messy and there were scratches on his neck that looked suspiciously like Ashley's nails.
"You've got to be kidding me," he snarled, his eyes moving between his father and me. "Tell me this is some kind of sick joke."
"Daniel," Kael warned, but his son was already storming down the stairs toward us.
"How could you do this?" Daniel's voice cracked on the words. "She was mine. MINE. And you took her?"
"You rejected me," I said, finding my voice. "Remember? You threw me away for Ashley."
"That doesn't give you the right to run straight to my father!"
"Watch your tone," Kael said, and there was no mistaking the alpha command in his voice. Daniel immediately tensed, his wolf recognizing the authority even if he didn't want to submit to it.
"Don't," Daniel spat, fighting the compulsion. "Don't use your alpha voice on me. Not about this."
"Then don't give me a reason to."
The tension between father and son was thick enough to cut. I could feel other pack members gathering, drawn by the raised voices. This was exactly what we didn't need.
"Office. Now," Kael ordered, and this time he wasn't just speaking to Daniel.
We climbed the rest of the stairs in tense silence. Kael's office was on the third floor, a large room with windows overlooking the forest. I'd only been in here a few times before, usually for pack meetings or when Daniel wanted to show off having access to his father's space.
Now I was here as Luna. The thought was still too strange to believe.
Daniel slammed the door behind us and whirled around to face me. "How long?" he demanded.
"How long what?"
"How long have you been screwing my father behind my back?"
The accusation hit like a slap. Before I could respond, Kael was across the room, grabbing Daniel by the shirt and slamming him against the wall.
"You will not speak to your Luna that way," he growled.
"She's not my Luna!" Daniel shouted back. "She's a w***e who can't keep her legs closed!"
Silence followed after what he said. Then something inside me snapped.
Power rolled off me in waves, something I'd never felt before. Every wolf in the building would feel it, would know that their Luna was angry. Daniel's eyes went wide as the full force of my new authority hit him.
"You're right," I said, my voice deadly calm. "I'm not your Luna. I never was, because you never wanted me. You wanted someone you could control, someone who would make you look good, someone who wouldn't challenge you or make you work to keep them happy."
Daniel tried to speak, but I wasn't finished.
"You threw me away like garbage for a quick roll with Ashley. So don't you dare stand there and act like I betrayed you. You betrayed me first."
"That's different," Daniel protested weakly.
"How? How is it different?"
He couldn't answer that, and we all knew it.
The office door burst open without warning. Ashley stumbled in, tears streaming down her face, still wearing one of Daniel's shirts. Behind her came Beta Rowan and two other council members.
"It's true then," Ashley sobbed, looking at me. "You really did it. You seduced both of them."
"Both of them?" Beta Rowan looked confused.
"She was with Daniel, then ran straight to Alpha Kael!" Ashley's voice was getting higher, more hysterical. "She's been planning this the whole time!"
"That's enough," Kael shouted.
"No, it's not enough!" Ashley turned her tear stained face toward him. "Can't you see what she's doing? She's using you to get back at Daniel. She doesn't care about you, she just wants to be Luna now rather than waiting!"
More pack members were crowding into the doorway now, drawn by the commotion. I could see their faces, some shocked, some angry, some just curious. This was turning into exactly the kind of spectacle we'd wanted to avoid.
"Everyone out," Kael commanded, his alpha voice rolling over the room like thunder. "Except council members."
Most of the crowd scattered immediately, but Ashley clung to Daniel's arm. "I'm staying too. I have a right to know what's happening."
"You have no rights here," I said, and again that new power leaked into my voice. "You're not mated to anyone in this pack, you're not council, you're nothing but a home wrecker who got lucky."
Ashley's mouth fell open in shock. A few of the council members looked impressed despite themselves.
"The marking was involuntary," Kael announced to the room. "Thunder took control during a moment of emotional intensity. But it's done now, and Aria is Luna whether we planned it or not."
"This is insane," Daniel said. "You can't just accept this. She's too young, too inexperienced. The pack will never follow her."
"The pack will follow their Luna because I command it," Kael replied coldly. "And if they don't, they're welcome to find another pack."
"You're choosing her over your own son?"
The question felt like a challenge. Kael looked at Daniel for a long moment, and I could see the pain in his eyes. This was his child, the boy he'd raised and hoped would take over the pack someday.
"I'm choosing my Luna," he said finally. "The way any good Alpha should."
Daniel's face went white with rage and hurt. "Fine. FINE. But don't expect me to bow down to her. Don't expect me to call her Luna or show her respect or pretend this is anything other than what it is."
"And what is it?" Kael asked dangerously.
"A mistake. A huge, terrible mistake that's going to destroy this pack."
With that, Daniel turned and stormed out of the office, Ashley trailing behind him like a lost puppy. Several of the council members looked like they wanted to follow.
"Anyone else have objections?" Kael asked.
Beta Rowan cleared his throat. "Alpha, with respect, this is very sudden. The pack needs time to adjust."
"The pack will adjust. They don't have a choice."
"Some of the younger wolves are already talking," another council member said carefully. "They think Daniel was right to reject her. They think she's not strong enough to be Luna."
"Then they can think again," I said, stepping forward. "Or they can leave. I won't beg for respect I haven't earned, but I won't tolerate disrespect either."
The council members exchanged glances. I could tell they weren't sure what to make of me yet, but at least they weren't dismissing me outright.
"There will be challenges," Beta Rowan warned. "Other packs will see this as a sign of weakness. Internal division."
"Let them come," Kael said grimly. "They'll learn different."
As the council members filed out, leaving Kael and me alone in the office, I realized the real fight was just beginning. The pack was split down the middle, Daniel was out for revenge, and I had no idea how to be Luna to pack members who didn't want me.
But I'd figure it out. I had to.
Because like it or not, I was Luna now.
- Writer
