LEXION
Lex ran his hand through his hair and sighed. To think all he had been looking forward to tonight was a make-out session with some random girl. Now he had a mate who was looking for the slightest reason to run for the hills. A mate who was pregnant, undernourished and scared.
She was an enigma as was her friend and aside from the pull of mates he found her intriguing. Life, he suspected, would never be dull with her. He even surprised himself with his non-reaction to her pregnancy. Most wolves would have resented her unborn child, maybe even demanded she terminate her pregnancy but Lex hadn't even thought about that.
She had actually had the guts to challenge his uncle Devon, one of the most feared Alphas out there. That took guts and had impressed the heck out of him. Not so much his family who thought her impertinent.
He wanted to tear the beating heart out if the SOB who had dared to hurt her, and he promised himself that one day he would, but he couldn't help but be grateful he had let her go. If he hadn't then she wouldn't be his and Lex couldn't imagine a world where she wasn't his.
Lex didn't understand his own emotions or the reasoning behind them. But as he walked away from the infirmary where the two rested comfortably he knew he had to sort it out before getting back. He had, for the first time, been uncivil to an uncle he loved just about as much as his own father not to mention the rest of the Alphas in attendance for his birthday.
The walk from the infirmary that had seemed so long an hour ago now seemed too short. He had no idea what he would say to them but he knew he would not apologize. They had endangered his mate and that was unacceptable. Sorry as he was he intended to let them know he would not stand for that.
They turned to look at him as he entered and for a moment he almost faltered. Until he remembered he was no longer a child. Werewolves lived for centuries and while his age was by necessity considered that of a cub finding his mate removed him from that description. Worse though, the Lunas had decided to join in.
"So my son's mate is a rogue," his mother stated. "And a pregnant rogue at that."
He winced, why did they have to bring his mother into this? Confronted with her he became putty in her hands. Like a clichéd family, he was his mother's son while Leo was daddy's little girl. "She is not a rogue mom."
"Really?" She arced a fine brow at him, her beautiful face as serene as ever. "What pack is she from then dear."
When his mother used the word 'dear' it just meant she had her armoury lined up and you better duck for cover. He knew it was best to pacify her before he was outgunned.
"Did Leo tell you what happened to her?" His mother was a compassionate woman, her sympathy would win her over as Tania's champion and Tania would need her support more than anyone else's.
"Yes, she did. But you are my only son Lex and I want what's best for you." That put paid to the sympathy vote. "Do you even know why she was rejected? She could be quite unsuitable and since she would be Luna after me we have to be rational about this. I applaud your defense of her son but you cannot let your hormonal instinct rule you. Think of the future of the pack"
His heart broke with every word she uttered, he knew her points were valid and so were his. As if the moon goddess had suddenly illuminated them he knew what they were. Yes, he was drawn to her like he had never been drawn to a girl before and her mere touch brought divine pleasure to him, but there were more reasons. Ones that would appeal to his pack.
"Do you know how rare second-chance mates are?"
"We will see to her if you reject her Lex, no one would blame you. And you are an alpha heir, more likely to find another" his mother argued.
"I would blame myself, but that isn't my point." He paused to see he had all their attention. "She is less than two months pregnant, which means she found her second chance mate within two months. When has that ever happened? No one has ever done it in less than a century. What does that tell you? Not only that but you all know second-chance mates are never as powerful as the first yet our family is one of the more powerful bloodlines. We have two packs in the same generation for crying out loud."
He saw them bristle at the thought that he was second best. He loved them but at times they tended to miss things in their love. "All I'm saying is she has to be uncommonly powerful."
"Power is not the only thing in life Lex." His mother admonished.
Lex ran his hand through his hair wondering why he couldn't get through to them. "You want me to spend the next century feeling half alive just because Lunar gave me a mate with a painful past? Is that how you raised me?"
"Lex," his mother's sister chirped in. "We all want what's best for you."
Anger rose up inside him, a living thing like nothing he had ever felt before. He had always been an easygoing guy and couldn't remember the last time he had been angry. Now he felt nothing but anger. Blood rushed to his head and he saw red, his wolf rose and he was sure it showed in his eyes.
"And the best for me is to spend the next century or more living in hell?" Shaking his head at that he turned to walk out.
"Lexion!" His father's voice was a command, for all it was quiet.
He didn't want to listen, but for all his anger this was his father and his Alpha. Biting his teeth he turned to face him. He had been quiet all this time listening, whatever he had to say though Lex would not listen if it had anything to do with abandoning his mate. That he would never do.
"We are not finished here." He stated. "You will not disrespect us by walking out."
Still angry he held his father's gaze, they stared at each other for what felt like ages but Lex resolved not to break contact even when he wanted to cower before his father's displeasure. Today he had become a man and his relatives had to acknowledge they could no longer order his life as if he were a child.
"Your cub has grown teeth, Darius." Uncle Devon stated. His voice not betraying what he thought of that.
His father continued to study him as if he had never seen him before. His hard eyes seemed to be trying to dig into Lex's very soul, to find who he was. It was the most uncomfortable experience of Lex's life.
His father turned to his mother. "We cannot expect our son to give up his mate, it's too much to ask." He faced Lex "But we cannot just trust her with the welfare of the pack when we have no information on her."
"Then ask her," Lex argued.
"We cannot afford to trust she will tell us the truth, even all we need to know." His uncle replied. "The packs will know she was a rogue and if we don't do all we can to find who she is they will never respect or trust her and you know how that will turn out."
He did know how it would turn out. A Luna was the heart of the pack, the one members would die for more readily than even the Alpha. She maintained the well-being of the pack and saw to their personal needs more so than the Alpha whose job was to put the pack above individuals. She interceded between members no matter their rank, in essence the mother of the pack.
Without their trust a Luna was lost, lacked purpose and would not survive for long. Rival packs and rogues targeted the Luna and pack members protected her. If the members did not want her the most expedient way was to allow her death even if it meant the Alpha's anger.
Tania would not live long without the pack's support no matter how wiry she was. He had to allow them to do whatever they deemed necessary otherwise he would undermine her. He had to allow them to use magic on her. Werewolves distrusted magic unless it was used by one of their own. His pack had a magic user and they were rarer still than sworddancers.
"Fine," he ground out.
1508 words.
A bit of world-building here. Pliz tell me what you think of the pack structure so far.