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00:06Hero saves helpless Omega. Omega gives herself to her hero. That was how the old stories always
00:12went. It was the night of my mating ceremony with Alpha Dominic. His beta burst into our chamber.
00:19Alpha! Ms. Lara's father just passed. She's collapsed from grief. The words had barely
00:24landed before Alpha Dominic froze, his lips inches from my neck, the mark unfinished.
00:29He abandoned our mating ceremony without a word, shifted, and disappeared from the pack. He didn't
00:34come back until morning. The sacred bonding wreaths hadn't even been taken down yet when he returned,
00:38and he brought with him a woman in a black lace dress, a stripper from the edge of pack territory.
00:43Lara is the Omega I rescued. Her father just died. She has no one, and there are wolves out there
00:48who
00:48want to force mark her. I want to mark her, bring her into our pack, give her somewhere she belongs.
00:55Sarah, if you can't accept that, I'll send her away and never speak of her again.
00:58He looked at me with those deep, devoted eyes, every word carefully, respectfully placed. Everyone
01:04expected me to lose it, to scream, to shift, to make a scene. Instead, I smiled, slow and easy.
01:11The story of how Alpha rescued a stripper is already legend in this pack. To mark her as nothing more
01:16than a mistress would cheapen everything that story stands for. Why not mark her as your Luma? That would
01:21be a love worth remembering forever. My bonding arrangement with Alpha Dominic had been decreed by
01:27the Lycan King himself. Before we were formally bonded, word had already spread through the pack.
01:31He had once stepped in to protect a rogue Omega named Lara, a stripper being harassed by other wolves.
01:36Lara was the kind of Omega you couldn't look away from. Slender, almost fragile, but with curves that
01:41made every wolf in the room forget what they'd been saying. A rogue, technically, as she danced at the
01:46lowest tavern on the edge of pack territory. And yet wolves came from all over, just to watch her
01:51move from across the room. Someone had wanted more than a look. A wolf had tried to force mark her.
01:56Alpha Dominic had put a stop to it. The story became the kind of thing that had to repeat around
02:00fires.
02:01Hero saves helpless Omega. Omega gives herself to her hero. That was how the old stories always went.
02:07There is no Luna in this pack yet.
02:09But Alpha Dominic had said publicly,
02:11I will not mark her friends. I will not mark a mistress carelessly. Lara deserves better than to
02:17be seen that way. Lycan Luna asked me herself, if I felt wronged by any of this, the arrangement could
02:22be dissolved. My father, my brothers, my mother, all of them had died in the war against the witch clans.
02:30Lycan Luna had taken me in out of gratitude for everything the Calloway family had given.
02:34And when my wolf finally awakened, she had granted me the Alpha title, an honor almost no one in my
02:39position had ever received. She loved me the way she loved her own children. Maybe more. But becoming
02:44the Luna of North Moonpack was a decree from the Lycan King. It couldn't simply be undone. I didn't
02:49want to put her in a difficult position. I knelt before her and said,
02:52Sarah is not troubled by this. I've heard Alpha Dominic is one of the most powerful alphas of his
02:58generation. This is the bonding wise all the Andersterat. This is the kind of bonding Sarah has
03:03always wanted. There's nothing to dissolve. What I hadn't counted on was Lara appearing on the very
03:08night of our ceremony. Alpha Dominic's lips hadn't even reached my neck yet when his beta crashed
03:13through the door. Alpha! Ms. Lara's father just passed. She's collapsed from grief. He yanked back
03:19from me, shredded his ceremonial clothes, restricted mid-moon, and poured through the pack gates as a
03:24massive black wolf. Through the beta link, his alpha command rolled through the air behind him.
03:29Get the pack's best healer. Lara is fragile. Bring Moonstone, blessed by the moon goddess.
03:34Gods know what state she's in. I stood there and stared at the overturned table,
03:39the food scattered across the floor, the doors hanging off their hinges from where he'd shifted
03:43and charged through them. Amanda, of the beta my mother had left me, the one who had been with
03:47our family since before the war. Hey, her eyes went red.
03:51Miss Sarah, the alpha has gone too far. Tonight is your mating ceremony.
03:59He's left an alpha to spend her bonding night alone, all for a stripper. This is nothing short
04:06of a humiliation. The entire pack knew it. The entire werewolf world knew it. But the great alpha
04:12Dominic's heart had always belonged to an Omega who danced in a low-end tavern. Tonight I had lived
04:17it myself. And I understood now that the reality was even worse than the rumors. The moon goddess
04:22blessed bonding candles burned in silence through the whole night. Alpha Dominic never came home.
04:28The next morning I went to pay my respects to alpha Dominic's mother, the former Luna of North
04:32Moon pack, Lady Larian. Dominic was already there, standing in front of his mother with Lara at his
04:38side, dressed head to toe in a black mourning gown. The entire pack was still draped in the sacred
04:42white decorations of a new bonding. Against all of it, her black lace stood out like an open wound.
04:48The dress was the kind other she-wolves rarely wore. Thin, barely there, black chiffon that skimmed her
04:53thighs. She pressed herself behind alpha Dominic's shoulder, all wide, frightened eyes when she saw me,
04:58like a deer that had just caught a predator's scent. Her body swayed like she might fall, and then right
05:03in
05:04front of me, she dropped to her knees with a soft thud. Lara greets the Luna. Yesterday was entirely
05:10Lara's fault. Lara ruined the Luna and the Alpha's bonding night. Please, I punish Lara however you see
05:18fit. Her forehead touched the floor. Alpha Dominic looked at me with an expression pulled tight between
05:24guilt and pleading. Lara's the Omega I rescued. Her father just died. She has still just died, and she
05:33has no one left, and there are wolves already circling who want to force mank her. She has
05:37nowhere to go. I want to, after completing my bond with you, mark her. Let her stay in the pack
05:45as my
05:45sanctioned mistress. Give her a place. If you can't accept that, I'll drive her out of the pack and
05:51never see her again. Lara's tears fell in silence. She looked up at me, all Omega softness and
05:56helplessness. Please, Luna, show mercy. Lara has nowhere left to go. If there's no place for Lara here,
06:07Lara would rather die. Lady Larian watched with a pained, sympathetic expression, then turned to me.
06:14Sarah, you are the Luna of North Moon Pack now. This is your decision to make, but this pack has
06:22always
06:23been known for its kindness and generosities. As it's Luna, I hope you'll lead with an open heart.
06:30Accepting her as a sanctioned mistress costs you nothing. She cannot outrank you. That was Lady
06:35Larian's closing line. Refuse, and I was the villain. Accept, and I was a fool. The story had
06:41been written before I walked into the room. Lara lifted her face from the floor. My lord saved Lara's
06:46life. Lara swore to repay that debt. If Luna fears Lara will compete for the Alpha's attention. She
06:53pressed a hand to her chest. Lara is willing to take suppresses. Lara will never challenge
06:58Luna's position. Alpha Dominic's jaw tightened. Sarah, Lara doesn't scheme. You don't need to be
07:05this hard on her. Then Lara's attending Beta, a silent on the floor beside her, has slammed her
07:10forehead down. Luna, please. My mistress cannot take suppresses. She is already carrying the Alpha's
07:17pup. The room went still. Lady Larian shot upright. Get her off the floor. You never kneel when you're
07:23carried. Dominic pulled Lara up in one motion, his face moving through guilt and protectiveness in the
07:28span of a second. Why didn't you tell me? How long have you been carrying this alone? I didn't want
07:34to make
07:34things harder for you. I already ruined your bonding night. I felt so guilty. I thought if I
07:41just... Her hand moved to her stomach. If I quietly ended it, you'd never have to choose. Lady Larian
07:47turned to me, measured and deliberate. Sarah, even if the pup is born, it remains a lesser heir. It cannot
07:53supersede yours. But it is still Dominic's blood. We cannot let it be cast out. A careful pause. When the
08:00pup arrives, it will call you mother. I looked at all three of them. The rehearsed timing, the tears
08:06landing at exactly the right moment. The pup revealed only after every other move had failed.
08:10I smiled. The story of how Alpha rescued a rogue Omega is already legend in this pack. To mark her
08:18as a mere mistress would cheapen that legend entirely. Dominic relaxed the moment he heard
08:23the first half. If his feelings are everything the pack believes them to be, he should mark her as his
08:29Luna. That would be a love worth howling about for generations. Then the second half reached him
08:37and his expression went hard and cold. Mark her as Luna. Sarah, Lauren, I never... I stepped back.
08:44Never what? Never loved each other? Or just that the pup she's carrying isn't yours? Every wolf in this
08:51pack knows the story. Hero saves Omega. Omega gives herself to her hero. And now there's a pup.
08:56I held his gaze. You said publicly, I will not mark a mistress carelessly. I understand now exactly
09:03what that meant. Not a mistress. Just a rogue lover. Kept on the side. Is that right? The color left
09:09Lara's face. Luna! She whispered. Lara was never that. Lara only... Lara only loves him. Lara never asked for
09:18anything more. Not even a sanctioned mistress? I said pleasantly. That's worse. At least a mistress
09:25has a title. Without one, what does the pup she's carrying enter this world as? A rogue born with no
09:31standing in any pack? She stumbled back, shaking her head. That isn't what Lara meant. I nodded once.
09:37Whatever you meant, I will give you exactly what your love deserves. My lady, the bonding rights were never
09:42completed last night. Alpha Dominic spent his bonding night with Lara. My entire household witnessed it.
09:47Every wolf in this pack can confirm it. Therefore, I, this bond is void. Dominic moved fast,
09:52stepping directly into my path. What do you mean, void? I know last night was wrong,
09:56but Lara's father died. I had no choice. It won't happen again. His voice dropped. We start over.
10:03I'll spend the rest of my life making it up to you, Sarah. Then harder. If you dissolve this bond,
10:08you're throwing the Lyman King's decree into the dirt. Do you understand what that means? I looked up at
10:14him. Dominic, this bonding arrangement was the Lion King's to give. You're the one who buried it on
10:20the very first night by leaving your Luma alone to comfort a rogue Omega. If the Lycan King wants
10:26someone to answer for it, it won't be the Alpha's daughter who was simply left behind.
10:31You want to talk about what I'm supposed to do? Did you think about me even once while you were
10:37deciding what she needed? The color shifted in his face. He knew every word was true. If this reached the
10:44Lycan Council, the humiliation landed entirely on him. Lara rushed forward, voice cracking.
10:48Luna, please. It's all Lara's fault. Lara will leave the pack right now. You'll never have to see
10:57Lara again. Even if those powerful Alphas try to mark me and put me in their pack, I'd rather die
11:03than let them succeed. But I'll never let an Alpha cause me trouble again. She closed the distance and
11:09dropped her voice to where only I could hear. Miss Calloway, he has always chosen me. He always will.
11:16You never stood a chance. Then she turned back, her eyes wide and glistening, voice raised for the
11:22room. Luna, if you leave, the Lycan King will punish the Alpha. Please, if anyone should go, let it be
11:29me.
11:29I raised an eyebrow. You truly want me to stay? Then understand this. If I stay, you will never set
11:38foot in this pack again. Not once. Lara doesn't know what to do. Please, Luna, I tell Lara. Alpha.
11:47She turned to Dominic. Did Lara do something wrong? Lara just wanted to repay you. Lara would be a
11:52servant. Lara would ask for nothing. Just please ask Luna to let Lara stay. She pressed herself
11:58against his arm, a vine finding its wall. Dominic drew her close and looked at me over her head.
12:05Sarah, let her stay. She defers to you in everything. You have my word. He still believed
12:11he was worth bargaining with. I pulled my hand free. Alpha Dominic, my answer stands. The bond is
12:17dissolved. From this day forward wide, your life is your own. It has nothing to do with me.
12:21Lara clutched her black mourning dress and turned as if to leave. Then Lara will go.
12:27You don't have to ask twice. You're not going anywhere. Dominic caught her arm. I'm the Alpha
12:31of this pack. What I just say, Menhir. Then he turned on me. A, and every trace of warmth
12:36vanished from his face. I'm taking one sanctioned mistress. One. What kind of Luna makes a scene
12:41over that? Which pack in this entire kingdom doesn't have secondary arrangements? Lara has had a hard
12:45life. Nothing like yours. You lost your family, yes, but Lyla and Luna took you in. Gave you a title.
12:51Gave you everything. Lara has had no one. I was only protecting her. Do you think everyone has what
12:56you have? A Lycan Luna who loves them? A pack that honors their bloodline? The last word barely left
13:03his mouth before my hand connected with his face. Sharp. Clean. His head turned with it.
13:09Dominic Ashvale. My voice didn't waver. What gives you the right to speak of my family to me?
13:14The Lycan King himself does not raise their names lightly in my presence. What exactly are you?
13:19He had always known I was an orphan with nowhere to go. That was precisely why he'd said it. Because
13:24he believed I had no move left to make. He straightened slowly. Something burning behind
13:28his eyes. You hold a title, Sarah, but it was given to you. You are not Lycan born. If you
13:34walk out of
13:34this pack, what are you walking back to? Do you really think the Lycan King and Luna will go to
13:38war
13:39with North Moon Pack over you? He thought he had me cornered. My father was the Alpha of Iron Moon
13:44Pack.
13:44My mother stood beside him until the Witch Clan war took them both. My brothers fell with their
13:49wolves howling. I was shaped in that bloodline long before Lycan Luna ever took my hand.
13:54An Alpha Blood. A real Alpha Blood. A does not kneel.
13:57Amanda! My voice carried across the room. Pack everything. Lift the Kalawal crest. We're going
14:03home. The room stopped breathing. Iron Moon Pack had been sealed for over a decade. I was
14:07reopening it. Stop this. Dominic's voice cracked like a command. You think you're still the Iron Moon
14:13Alpha's daughter free to do whatever you want? That life is over. Lady Larian stepped between us.
14:18Sarah, I know what kind of she-wolf you are. You have my word. If Dominic ever dishonors you again,
14:24I will not stand beside him. A bonding is sacred. A Lycan decreed bonding most of all.
14:30We cannot simply undo it. Let me arrange for you both to complete the REITs tonight properly,
14:35with no interruptions. I'll see to it myself. And if you truly cannot accept Lara's presence,
14:41she need not be a mistress at all. She can serve in the pack. Nothing more.
14:45They had forgotten what I was.
14:46Even without a bloodline, I carried the Alpha title, granted by the Lycan Luna herself,
14:50something that had never been given to an orphan before. My father's name still carried weight in
14:54every corner of this territory. His brothers in arms, his allies, the wolves who had bled beside him.
15:00None of them had forgotten the Calloways. Did Dominic truly believe that I are the last blood of the
15:05Calloway line? I would simply absorb every humiliation and stay? There's no need.
15:10I met Lady Larian's eyes directly. The bond is dissolved. Alpha Dominic is free to mark Lara,
15:15freely and completely. The pup she carries will be born as the legitimate first heir of North Moon
15:20Pack. That is right and proper. Otherwise, the Alpha's firstborn enters this world as a rogue born
15:25with no standing. What kind of life is that for a pup? The shadow that crossed Dominic's face was
15:30almost satisfying. And in Lara's eyes, just for a moment, something lit up.
15:36Sarah. Dominic's voice dropped into something dangerous.
15:38If you walk through that gate, you will not be walking back through it.
15:41This pack does not open twice for the same wolf.
15:43She stepped back, eyes glistening, voice raised for the room.
15:47Luna, if you leave, the Lycan King will punish the Alpha. Please, if anyone should go,
15:54let it be Lara.
15:54Lara, you truly want me to stay? I said softly. Then know this. If I stay, you never enter this
16:01pack again. Not once.
16:03Lara bit down on her lip. The axe slipped.
16:06Lara doesn't know what to do. Please, Luna, tell Lara.
16:10She turned to Dominic, voice going small.
16:12Alpha, did Lara do something wrong? Lara just wanted to repay you.
16:16Lara would sweep floors. Lara would ask for nothing. Just...
16:20Please ask Luna to let Lara stay close to you.
16:23She pressed herself against his arm like she had always belonged there.
16:27Dominic held her and looked at me over her head.
16:30Sarah, she defers to you in everything. That's my word.
16:33He still believed he was an offer worth taking. I stepped back.
16:37Alpha Dominic, my answer stands. The bond is void.
16:40I turned toward the gate.
16:41From this day forward, live however you choose. It has nothing to do with me.
16:47Iron Moon Pack had been sealed for over a decade.
16:49The day after my mating ceremony, dowry crates loaded on carts, my household walking behind me.
16:54I brought it back to life. Word traveled ahead. Within days, every hall was swept, every hearth
16:59relit. The keep smelled of pine and open air instead of dust and loss.
17:03Lycan Luna's summons arrived before the week was out.
17:05I knelt before her, red-eyed, composed.
17:08My Luna, I cannot bond with Alpha Dominic. His heart was given long before I arrived,
17:13and the Omega he gave it to as she carries his pup.
17:16Amanda knelt beside me and delivered every detail of the bonding night.
17:19Voice raw, tears running openly. Lycan Luna listened. Her expression went very still.
17:25I knew that wolf had a wandering eye, she said at last.
17:28But on the bonding night itself, with a tavern dancer, she exhaled slowly.
17:33I wouldn't have believed it of him.
17:36Sarah, if you walk away from this bond, the pack will whisper.
17:39You know how they treat she-wolves who leave.
17:41I lifted my chin.
17:43My Luna, the one who behaved wrongly was not me.
17:47I'm not afraid of whispers.
17:48My father and brothers were warriors.
17:50My mother stood beside them until the end.
17:53I carry that same blood.
17:56I will hold the Calloway name up myself.
17:58I don't need anyone to hold it for me.
18:01Lyman Luna was quiet for a long moment.
18:04Then something flickered in her eyes.
18:06Something that looked almost like pride.
18:08You are exactly your father's darter, she said.
18:12The Calloway name will stand again.
18:14The Lycan king sent gifts to Iron Moon pack within the week.
18:17The pack's winds shifted overnight.
18:20Invitations arrived.
18:21She-wolves came to the gate.
18:23Allies of my father's old pack.
18:24Wolves who had bled beside my brothers.
18:26They came one after another and stayed.
18:28Lady Harwick, whose mate had fought at my father's side, took both my hands in hers.
18:34Sarah, our families go back too far for distance.
18:37You're home now.
18:39Come to us whenever you need anything.
18:42A sound of elegant contempt.
18:44As for that taverness, for that tavern dancer, don't waste a thought on her.
18:48When the time is right, I'll find you a match that actually deserves the Callum bloodline.
18:54Dominic had assumed I was posturing, that in a few days, once my temper cooled, he could
18:58come to me with the right expression, and I would return quietly to North Moon pack.
19:04Then the Lyoman king's gifts arrived at my door, and he understood I had no intention
19:08of going back.
19:10The dissolution reached the Lycan council.
19:12The Lycan king addressed it in open session, his voice carrying the particular dryness of
19:15a man stating the obvious.
19:16It seems Alpha Dominic finds the match I arranged less to his dyke than a rogue Omega from a
19:20tavern.
19:20Very well, I won't force a wolf to honor what he's already dishonored.
19:23Mark your dancer, consider the matter settled.
19:25One sentence, that was all it took.
19:27The pack understood, the Lycan king was not angry at Sarah Calloway.
19:31He was done with Dominic Ashevale.
19:33Dominic returned to North Moon pack looking like a wolf who had walked into a trap he'd
19:37built with his own hands.
19:38The king's words had closed the only door that might have reopened.
19:41If he bonded now, it would be with Lara.
19:43That was the shape of his future, and every wolf in the territory could see it.
19:47What Alpha family with any standing would accept a rogue tavern dancer as their Luna?
19:52Lara's belly grew.
19:53Dominic ran out of options.
19:55He chose the least bad one and set a date.
19:57Lara was overjoyed.
19:58She had walked into that pack expecting to be a mistress at best, and somehow she was going
20:02to be its Luna.
20:03The bonding day arrived.
20:04The great hall filled with guests.
20:06Many came out of old loyalty to the Ashevale bloodline.
20:09Others came simply because they wanted to witness it themselves.
20:12Lara had commissioned her ceremony gown from the finest atelier in the territory, cut wide,
20:17draped cleverly, so the curve of her belly wouldn't show from a distance.
20:20Ceremony master called the hall to order.
20:22Luna, approach for bonding.
20:25An attendant stepped forward to arrange the ritual offering at Lara's feet.
20:28The girl wore a scented sachet at her hip.
20:30In the warm, packed hall, the fragrance bloomed thick and sharp and drifted straight into Lara's
20:35face as she leaned close.
20:37Lara's stomach turned.
20:38She couldn't hold it back.
20:39A small, involuntary sound escaped, half gasp, half retch.
20:43The attendant lurched upright.
20:44My lady, are you unwell?
20:47The scent hit again.
20:48Lara swayed.
20:49The ceremonial veil slipped.
20:50Her face had gone the color of bone.
20:52She pressed her hand over her mouth.
20:54A. Too late.
20:56She pitched forward and was sick, right there in the center of the hall, in front of every
21:00witness North Moonpac had gathered.
21:03The hall erupted.
21:04Guests stumbled back, hands over their mouths, the neat rows of witnesses dissolving into something
21:09between horror and dark fascination.
21:10The sharper-eyed she-wolves had already drawn their conclusions.
21:15She's carrying.
21:16She was carrying before the last bonding fell through.
21:19No wonder Alpha Calendee dissolved the arrangement.
21:21Who could blame her?
21:22The Alpha of North Moonpac tangled up with a rogue tavern dancer and now marking her as
21:26Luna?
21:27This is what binding ceremonies look like now?
21:29She danced at that border tavern.
21:31How many wolves bought a private show and we're supposed to call her Luna?
21:35We don't even know it's his.
21:36Half the men in this hall have probably tipped her at something.
21:39Lara stood white-faced at the center of it all, one hand pressed to her ribs, searching
21:43for Dominic through her tears.
21:45Alpha!
21:48Lady Larian sat rigid in the front row.
21:50The expression on her face was the particular blankness of a wolf absorbing a humiliation
21:54too large to process in public.
21:55She turned to the nearest attendant, voice flat and cold.
21:58Take the Luna inside.
21:59Now, she is not to remain in this hall.
22:03The Luna who cannot stand through her own ceremony.
22:06She said quieter to herself.
22:07What kind of blood is this bringing into our line?
22:09A tavern stripper!
22:10As our Luna!
22:11Her jaw tightened.
22:12I should have put my foot down the moment Dominic carried her through the gate.
22:14A mystery I could have tolerated.
22:16But this, he threw away the Lycan King's fated match.
22:19For this?
22:20The ceremony ended before it properly began.
22:23Guests dispersed in a wave of polite horror and barely suppressed gossip.
22:26And Dominic Asheville, once the pack's great romantic hero, became its most discussed
22:31cautionary tale.
22:32Lara, for her part, was triumphant by the time the healers cleared her and the private rites
22:36were quietly completed.
22:37She was Luna Asheville.
22:39Not a mistress.
22:40Not a rogue lover.
22:41Luna Asheville.
22:43She had climbed from a border tavern floor to the highest seat in the pack.
22:46She let herself feel every inch of it.
22:49The morning after, she went to pay her respects to Lady Larian.
22:52She found the former Luna deep in easy laughter with a young she-wolf.
22:55Lady Larian's hand wrapped warmly around the girl's.
23:00Cousin.
23:00When Dominic and Lara entered, the girl rose with an unguarded smile and reached for Dominic's
23:04arm.
23:05Lady Larian's expression warmed in a way it never had for Lara.
23:08This is Vivienne, Dominic's cousin.
23:11They ran together as pups before her father took the family east.
23:14Her father has returned to the pack now, and she with him.
23:17Light and easy.
23:18Vivienne tells me she'd rather be here than anywhere else, so I've told her the keep
23:22is her second home.
23:23Her father is the new minister of pack riles.
23:25A meaningful pause.
23:28Vivienne, since Lara is carrying and can't manage the household just now, I'd like you
23:33to oversee it.
23:34You know this pack better than almost anyone.
23:37I trust you completely.
23:38Vivienne smiled at Lara with the ease of a wolf who had never needed to perform warmth
23:42because she simply had it.
23:44Don't mind me, sister.
23:46I practically grew up here.
23:48Let me carry the weight while you're carrying the pup, that's all.
23:53The color left Lara's face.
23:54She understood the message precisely.
23:56She laughed carefully.
23:58Mother, Vivienne comes from a good family.
24:01Wouldn't it be beneath her to manage a household as staff?
24:06Please, you know what I'm asking.
24:09Don't do this.
24:10Oh, I see exactly what you mean.
24:12You're absolutely right.
24:12It would be beneath her.
24:14That's why I'm proposing she come in as a co-mate.
24:17Equal standing.
24:18It would honor her rank properly and give this pack a Lunar who can actually represent us
24:23at formal summits while you recover.
24:25Dominic needs a mate who can stand beside him in public after all.
24:29Lara turned to Dominic.
24:31For the first time since the ceremony, she let him see what was underneath.
24:33You told me your heart was only mine.
24:35It is.
24:36Vivienne is family, nothing more.
24:38This is a formality.
24:39Whatever title she holds in the pack, you are the one I come back to.
24:42Focus on the pup.
24:43Let her handle the work.
24:44Isn't that easier?
24:45You're new to this world.
24:46High pack households have ways you haven't learned yet.
24:48I'll put the household back in your hands.
24:50I promise.
24:50Three days after the bonding ceremony, Vivienne Crane moved into Northmoon Pack as co-mate.
24:56When word reached me at Ironmoon Camp, I laughed.
24:59Dominic had played it cleverly.
25:01Vivedian's father, the new minister of pack rights, was exactly the alliance and alpha
25:04in his position needed.
25:06Lara couldn't hold a formal summit.
25:08Vivedian could.
25:09Now the pack had something new to whisper about.
25:11Two Lunas behind one set of gates, waging a quiet war between them.
25:16Whose room Dominic slept in.
25:18Whose table he sat at longest.
25:20Whose name the pack members said with more weight.
25:22Every morning brought a new skirmish.
25:24Every night reset the board.
25:26Vivienne called Lara a border dancer who didn't know which fork belongs at her own bonding table.
25:30Lara said Vivienne was no better than the omega she looked down on,
25:33crawling after another she-wilves mate with less dignity than the tavern ever required.
25:36Dominic stopped going inside when he came home.
25:40It was like in Luna's commission that brought me back into the same room as Dominic and Lara.
25:44I was hosting the spring charity gathering at Ironmoon Keep, a formal occasion.
25:48And I had dressed accordingly.
25:50Dominic saw me across the hall and went still.
25:52Then his gaze drifted to Lara.
25:54Standing not far off.
25:55Her face carrying the specific grey-yellow exhaustion of a she-wolf deep in a difficult pregnancy.
25:59Her silhouette nothing like what it once was.
26:01And something moved behind his eyes.
26:03He came to find me.
26:05Sarah, are you well?
26:07Careful.
26:08Deliberate.
26:08I've been meaning to come to the keep.
26:11To apologize properly.
26:13I was afraid you wouldn't see me.
26:14To anyone who didn't know better, he looked like a wolf carrying genuine regret.
26:17I stepped back.
26:18He followed.
26:19Sarah.
26:22I had a jewelry suite commissioned at the Silver Quarter.
26:24A full set.
26:26I'd like to send it before your birth moon.
26:28Consider it...
26:29Alpha Dominic.
26:30I smiled pleasantly.
26:31We have no bond and no arrangement.
26:32You are another she-wolf's mate.
26:34If you send jewelry to my keep and someone notices, what exactly do you expect them to think?
26:37I am an unbonded she-wolf with a clean name.
26:39I intend to keep it that way.
26:40Please conduct yourself accordingly.
26:42Lara had already spotted us.
26:44She crossed the room fast, tucking herself against Dominic's arm with the practiced ease of something territorial.
26:50Alpha Calloway.
26:50Her eyes were bright with a very specific kind of pleasure.
26:53But the Lycan King may be arranging another match for you.
26:56I do hope this time you won't run from it.
26:59I looked at her.
27:00At the triumphant expression.
27:01At the careful grip on Dominic's sleeve.
27:04And I smiled.
27:05Luna Ashvale.
27:06Before you worry about my future, perhaps tend to your own.
27:10I kept my voice effortlessly light.
27:12I hear your co-mate made quite an impression at the last council summit.
27:15Her tea ceremoniae.
27:17Exceptional, apparently.
27:19The kind of performance that turns heads.
27:22Your alpha seemed very proud of her.
27:24She's been sleeping in the East Wing for the better part of a month now, hasn't she?
27:28Once she's carrying, the first legitimate air of North Moonpack comes from her.
27:32You and your pup.
27:33I let the pause settle, like a stone dropped into still water.
27:36We have very, very little ground left to stand on.
27:39I turned and walked away before she could answer.
27:42Behind me, I heard Lara's voice rise.
27:43A low and sharp aimed at Dominic.
27:45She had your attention for three minutes.
27:46Are you already regretting-
27:47Shh!
27:47Dominic's tone came back flat and tired.
27:50I marked you, didn't I?
27:52If I wanted her, I wouldn't have brought you to this pack.
27:54Lara stood very still, one hand resting on the swell of her belly,
27:57running the numbers on everything I'd said about Vivian.
28:00She thought about the last summit, Vivian's tea ceremony,
28:03the whole room murmuring in admiration,
28:06Dominic's face lighting up with the specific pride of an alpha made to look good in public.
28:10He had slept in Vivian's wing for most of the following month.
28:14Word had reached her that Vivian was now consulting pack healers about conception rituals.
28:19Lara had to do something.
28:21She had to take the room back.
28:23She looked around the hall, guests sipping tea, low polished conversation, and rose to earth, she announced, to the nearest
28:28cluster of guests.
28:29Just sitting here sipping tea is so dale.
28:32Lara has been working on something new.
28:35Her voice sliding back into that warm, easy register she had carried through years in the tavern.
28:39Give you all something worth remembering.
28:42I'll see you soon.
28:44A look crossed Dominic's face that Lara didn't see.
28:47The males in the room began to clap and call out.
28:50But Asgill, you lucky wolf, Aluna who performs!
28:54Yeah!
28:55We haven't seen her dance since she bonded.
28:58What a treat!
29:00Best offering of the evening, I'd wager.
29:03Lara rose to it.
29:04This A, this was the sound she had grown up with.
29:07The warmth of a room turning toward her.
29:09She had missed it more than she'd ever let herself admit.
29:12She moved to the center of the hall without a veil, without hesitation, and she performed.
29:17She performed beautifully.
29:18The room went quiet.
29:20When she finished, the applause was genuine and full.
29:23I raised my fan to cover my smile and spoke quietly to the nearest attendant.
29:26Luna Ashevale performed magnificently.
29:30Please, offer her a token of appreciation.
29:32I started it.
29:33The room followed, as rooms always follow someone of standing.
29:36A gold pin from one she-wolf.
29:39A bracelet from another.
29:40Silver coins from a lord who used to visit the border tavern on his mate's free evenings.
29:45Small tokens from others, placed on a tray with the easy generosity of an audience rewarding a show they had
29:50enjoyed.
29:51The tray came to Lara piled high.
29:53Her attendant presented it with a bright smile.
29:55Luna Ashevale, awe from the guests in appreciation.
29:58Lara looked at the tray.
29:59At the silver coins, the scattered pin money, the small denomination tokens pressed into the palm of a performer at
30:05the end of a good night.
30:06She looked up at the room.
30:08Dominic's face had gone somewhere past anger, into something colder.
30:11He crossed to her in four strides.
30:13The sound of his hand connecting with her cheek cut through the hall like cracking ice.
30:17You are Luna Ashevale.
30:18He said, low and vicious.
30:19Not a border dancer.
30:21You just performed at a charity gathering and accepted tips in front of every titled wolf in this territory.
30:28Is the pack not providing for you?
30:30Do you need the coin that badly?
30:32Take her out.
30:33He turned to the nearest attendant.
30:35Back to the keep.
30:37Confined to her rooms until she understands what her rank requires of her.
30:41Lara stood frozen, one hand pressed to her face.
30:44Then her voice came back, a high and unraveling.
30:48She made me do this.
30:51Alpha Calloway said if I didn't prove I was worth more than Vivienne, you'd hand the pack to her.
30:57She told me.
30:59I pressed a hand to my mouth in exaggerated shock.
31:03Alpha Dominic Luna Ashevella, I beg your pardon?
31:08What am I supposed to have said?
31:09My voice carried.
31:10The room turned.
31:10I am an unbonded she-wolf hosting a charity event.
31:13I have not spoken privately with Luna Ashevilles today.
31:16I let the bewilderment sit for one precise beat, then let it soften.
31:20You dissolved my bonding arrangement and caused me considerable embarrassment before the Lycan King and Luna.
31:27I have never held that against you.
31:29I ask only that you not damage my name with accusations you cannot support.
31:35You know what you did.
31:36Lara's eyes went red with fury.
31:37You brought me here on purpose.
31:40You made them tip me like I was still on that stage.
31:44I turned to the hall.
31:45My voice was calm and clear.
31:46Every gathering I have hosted this season has been a fundraiser.
31:50The format is always the same.
31:53The format is always the same.
31:53Guests offer a token in response to any talent they enjoy, and every item on that tray goes in the
31:59donor's name towards supplies for the border pack units.
32:02Food, winter gear, healing herbs for the wolves protecting our borders.
32:07I let my gaze move across the room.
32:10Several guests performed before Luna Asheville arrived.
32:14They all wore veils, as is customary for a charitable showcase, to keep the focus on the cause rather than
32:21the performer.
32:22A gentle pause.
32:24Luna Asheville chose not to wear one.
32:26That is entirely her right.
32:28But the tray is the same tray, and the cause is the same cause it has always been.
32:33A murmur of confirmation moved through the crowd.
32:35She arrived late.
32:36We'd already donated twice before she came in.
32:40I didn't realize she hadn't been briefed with the other guests.
32:44Dominic was already steering Lara toward the gate, one hand at her elbow, both of them wanting to be anywhere
32:49else in the territory.
32:50Lady Larian heard the full account before they cleared the pack border.
32:54That wretched creature, she said, to no one in particular.
32:57He had a Lycan appointed alpha, a general's daughter, a royal title, the king's direct favor, and he threw all
33:04of it away for that.
33:06She pressed the back of her hand to her mouth.
33:07Strip her rank.
33:09Give it to Vivina.
33:10One Luna who can actually function is worth more than two useless ones fighting over the same sleeping quarters.
33:18Lara heard what Lady Larian had said before the day was out.
33:20She pressed both hands flat over her belly and walked straight to Dominic.
33:25You promised me the Luna's seat.
33:27You promised this pup would be your first heir.
33:32Now your mother wants to strip my rank and hand it to Viviana?
33:36Her voice was quiet, precise.
33:38Which lie would you like to start with?
33:39If you demote me, I will put my head through that pillar.
33:43Right now, in front of everyone.
33:46Dominic grabbed her.
33:47Stop. Nobody is taking anything from you.
33:49An attendant came running in from the courtyard, breathless and beaming.
33:52Alpha, congratulations.
33:54Luna Vivane has just confirmed a pregnancy.
33:56The healer says she's strong.
33:58My lord, she's asking for you.
34:00Dominic's grip loosened.
34:02Lara, still braced against a resistance that had vanished, had nothing left to push against.
34:06She went sideways and temporarily herself.
34:08The sound was solid and terrible.
34:10She slid down to the floor, blood running from her temple, both hands clutching her abdomen.
34:14The pup.
34:15She gasped.
34:16Something's wrong.
34:18Help.
34:20Lara's labor came too early.
34:21She had hit her head hard enough to drain most of her strength before it began.
34:25The healers kept her conscious, through roots and ritual, but she fought through a full day
34:28and night.
34:29What she finally delivered was a girl.
34:31Small, early, thin as thread, a pup that hadn't been ready to arrive.
34:35Lara passed out.
34:35When she woke, she took one look and screamed.
34:38It's not right.
34:39I was carrying a son.
34:40Where is he?
34:41Someone switch them!
34:43Give me back my son!
34:45It's Vivian.
34:46She raged and wept and accused until the walls of the keep rang with it.
34:49She was absolutely certain.
34:50Give my son back!
34:51Give him back!
34:53Vivian didn't bother to engage.
34:54She was too pleased.
34:55The first legitimate heir of North Moon Pack would come from her now.
34:58That was the only number that mattered.
35:00She celebrated too early.
35:02At the daughter's full moon naming ceremony, the traditional sweets were laid out for the guests.
35:06Vivian, wanting the occasion's good fortune, helped herself to a bowl of honey lotus porridge.
35:10She was back in her rooms before the cramps began.
35:13By the time her attendance reached her, she was doubled over, soaking through her robes,
35:17calling for anyone who would come.
35:18The healers arrived.
35:19Too late to stop what had already started.
35:21The pregnancy, barely two months along, was gone.
35:25The healer examined the remaining porridge and went still.
35:28He asked to speak with Dominic privately.
35:29There is red clover extract in this, at a concentration I have never seen outside of deliberate preparation.
35:35A pause.
35:36There is also something else.
35:38Something that will prevent Luna the Vivian from carrying again.
35:45Vivian's voice, when they brought Lara to her rooms,
35:48Bring her here!
35:49Now!
35:50was the sound of a wolf, with nothing left to lose.
35:53Lara walked in, carrying her daughter.
35:55She did not look frightened.
35:56She looked like someone who had made her decision long before this moment.
36:00Yes.
36:01She said, before anyone asked.
36:02I put it in the porridge.
36:04The red clover, and the other one.
36:07And I would do it again.
36:09She looked at Dominic.
36:10Really looked at him, for the first time in months, with nothing performing behind her eyes.
36:14You claimed me under false pretensions.
36:18You brought me into this pack, under false pretensions.
36:21And three days after our bonding, you tried to hand my rank to your cousin.
36:27Her voice was flat and even.
36:28You lied to me more times than I can count.
36:30I lied to you once.
36:31I think that's fair.
36:32You dishonored me first, Dominic.
36:35Don't act surprised that I stopped pretending to be good.
36:39The minister of pack rights arrived at North Moonpack before sunrise.
36:43He wanted Lara handed over to pack justice.
36:45Formal charges.
36:46Real consequences.
36:48Lara said simply that if anything happened to her, she would tell the Lichen Council everything
36:52she knew about certain private arrangements involving North Moonpack.
36:56Things that had never been made public.
36:58She named nothing specifically.
36:59She didn't need to.
37:01Dominic intervened.
37:02The minister agreed to stand down on conditions.
37:05Lara would be exiled to the pack shrine, the old stone den at the edge of the territory,
37:09used for the disgraced and the penitent.
37:11She would not return to the pack.
37:12She would not raise the daughter she had nearly died to deliver.
37:15The pup would go to Vivian.
37:18Dominic would take no further mates, no mistresses, no arrangements of any kind.
37:23Vivian Crane would hold the Luna's seat of North Moonpack for the rest of her days.
37:27Barren, childless, raising another she-wolf's daughter, despising her for it.
37:31The conditions were accepted.
37:33North Moonpack went quiet after that.
37:34Not the quiet of peace.
37:36The quiet of a place that had used itself up entirely.
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