Children of the Moon

• chapter four •

Today was the day. The last day of my parents leading the pack, and the first for my brothers and best friend to take over. To say I was excited was an understatement.

"I now present to you, Alpha Braxton, Alpha James, Luna Isabelle, and Beta Jacob! May our pack prosper under their authority. Please welcome them!" Applause sounded throughout the pack yard, and the cheering from the back where the rest of the pack sat overpowered the mere clapping of the other alphas and their families. It was deafening.

Braxton, James, Isabelle and Jacob would make the best leaders; they had grown up together and formed a strong team. Well, I supposed, it was two pairs of siblings and everyone knew that a team of siblings worked better than a team of anyone else. They had a connection.

After the ceremony I rushed over to my brothers, Isabelle and Jacob and asked if I could speak with them alone. Finding my parents I also asked them to join us.

"So, none of you except mum and Izzy know this, but at my party I found my mate." I began once everyone had taken a seat in the alpha's office.

While the boys congratulated me, mum and Isabelle turned to each other with sad smiles on their face, knowing where this conversation was most likely going.

"One of the alpha's children then?" Dad asked, I shook my head, "Then who is...unless...no! I not let my daughter be mated to a madman!"

This is how I feared it would go.

"Dad," I began, unsure of how to explain the next bit, "he practically rejected me."

There. I said it. It was out in the open.

This caused him to grow even angrier, something I feared that mum wouldn't be able to control if it worsened.

"How dare he!" He roared, clenching his fists tightly, "You're his mate for God's sake!"

"Dad." I reasoned, "You just said that you don't want me with him, but you're angry that he rejected me. Really?"

This made him sit back in the chair and close his mouth, his teeth clenching tightly. While he didn't like what I had said, he couldn't deny that it wasn't true. I crossed my arms and smiled smugly, proud that I had rendered the former alpha speechless, but then I remembered the real reason for wanting to talk with them, and my victorious smile fell.

"He's all I can think about." I admitted, "He told me that he wasn't good for me," to which dad piped up with a 'true that', which earned a slap from mum and a scowl from me, "and that if I was with him, I wouldn't be happy. I know I can be happy with him. If it means I have to pick up the mess that the pack is in I'll be happy, I can meet new people and fix them."

"Did he officially reject you?" Braxton, who until this point had been silent, piped up. I shook my head in response.

"James interrupted us before he could do anything." I rolled my head around to face James, giving him an amused smile as his mouth opened in realisation.

"So that was why you were all upset then!" His revelation made us all chuckle, as I nodded.

"I know he's pushing me away because of his past, but I want him. I want to help him and I want to be with him. I want him to know that loving someone is not something to be afraid of, not when I was made for him and him for me. Can you take me to him?"

I rushed out my request at the end and watched everyone's reactions. Mum's eyebrows raised in surprise, dad's eyes bugged out, papa's eyebrows furrowed in confusion, James squinted at me, analysing my request, Braxton remained stoic and Isabelle...Isabelle was grinning from ear to ear, bouncing her legs in excitement.

"I'm sorry – you want to what?" Dad asked.

"Lucas I think it's a good idea." Papa interrupted and I turned to him in surprise. "Ma can spend time with him, and if she's not happy, then I'm sure that he won't be opposed to her leaving. He left, after all."

I pointed to Papa, a grin lighting up my face, "Thank you!"

"No problem, Ma," Papa smiled, bringing me in for a one-armed hug and whispering in my ear, "You fix him, okay?"

I nodded in determination. I would fix my mate and we would live together happily.