The Wicked Alpha's Star-Crossed Luna

0.3 | TIME TO SHINE

The former alpha of Starry Sky appeared from somewhere behind the betas, his black eyes sharp as they stared daggers into my sister and I. I could feel Carina tremble beside me, but I stood tall and met his glare head-on with one of my own.

I don’t know why Carina was so scared of our grandfather. We never spent any time alone with him, and his visits were few and far between. Perhaps it was his intimidating aura that made her fearful of him; fear of the unknown was second nature, right? And at the end of the day, the only things we knew about our grandfather were learned second-hand.

Our mother couldn’t have any other children after having us, and my father refused to take his predecessor’s advice to employ a breeder for the sake of siring a male alpha heir. Ever since, our grandfather made himself scarce, only appearing at the most high-profile events--which, starting two years ago, meant he would play the caring relative while waiting to see if we would shift. It was unnerving, to say the least.

“Ah, my granddaughters,” he hissed. He reminded me so much like a snake as he slithered through the ranked members until he stood before us. Even middle aged, he still towered over most wolves. “What seems to be the problem?”

I felt Carina shrink back from his piercing gaze, but I held my head high. “There’s no problem, Alpha Rigel. We were just joking around, easing some tension before the ceremony.”

He sneered at my use of his title. By remaining formal where others could hear us, I was blocking his attempts at feigning a relationship with us. “I see. Are you excited for your first shift?”

“We are,” I assured him. “Carina nearly dragged me down the stairs with how eager she was to meet her wolf.”

He nodded thoughtfully, grazing his eyes over my twin briefly before pulling them back to me. “And you, Sarina? What are you looking forward to the most after shifting?”

My left eye twitched. “It’s Serena. Seh-reh-nah. I would think you of all wolves would recognize the name.”

Alpha Rigel’s smirk was wiped from his face. “You little b***h--”

“Father!”

The three of us jumped and turned to face my father, affected by the alpha tone almost as much as the beta and gamma wolves surrounding us. Alpha Sterling marched forward, his sights set on his predecessor as he came to stand behind us. If looks could kill, then our grandfather would be dead.

Carina instantly released my arm and dove at our father, hiding her face against his side. I felt his hand rest on my shoulder, squeezing gently as if to let me know that he was there if I needed him.

“Girls, take your friends and go to your mother.” Our father’s deep timbre was gentle as he spoke to us, his expression softening as he met each of our eyes. “I’ll be right behind you--I just need to have a word with your grandfather.”

“Okay, Daddy!”

“Yes, Dad.”

Tara and Callisto followed as we left the two alphas, betas, and gammas behind, making our way to the back of the stage. It wasn’t long before a tall figure appeared beside me.

“Why didn’t you rat me out to the former alpha?” Ravi grumbled, a wrinkle formed over the bridge of his nose.

I sighed. Most wolves only knew that our grandfather was a strong alpha in his time, the great alpha who led our warriors and protected the royal wolf family from Dark Moon, the evil pack of rogues. Virtually no one outside of our family knew that he was that same authoritarian asshole with us, which is why my parents rarely let him come around. The ranked members might have been clued in for our security, but Carina and I doubted they told their kids.

“Because he doesn’t care about us,” I revealed. “He never has. And speaking your mind doesn’t mean you should be whipped, or whatever crazy s**t you think he would have done.”

Just as Ravi was beginning to look relieved, I tacked on: “But speaking your mind without thinking? Best case scenario, you get hurt.”

Ravi frowned. “What’s the worst case scenario?”

I looked him dead in the eye. “You hurt someone else.”

He opened his mouth as if he were about to ask what I meant, but something about my expression made him pause. He clamped his mouth shut, nodding. “Right. Sorry about what I said, Rena.”

My lips twitched upward. “I forgive you. I know you didn’t really mean it.”

We found our mother backstage, directing omegas and other wolves here and there. Beside her was Nessa, Starry Sky’s Zeta, the position held by the packhouse secretary. If the beta is the alpha’s second, and the gamma is the luna’s second, then the zeta is like the luna’s assistant and unofficial third in command. She couldn’t command others like the beta, gamma, delta, or epsilon wolves, but she still worked hard to carry out her tasks. At the moment, she was going over a checklist, nodding as she confirmed what had already been completed.

“Do we have sheets at the ready?” asked our mother.

“Yes, Luna Celeste.”

“And the list of potential first shifters?”

“On your phone, Luna,” Nessa swiped at her own touchscreen, and one of the pockets of my mother’s royal blue jumpsuit let out a soft ding.

“Oh, thank you! And the robes--?” Mom’s words were cut off as she gasped, taking in our outfits. “Oh, moon goddess! You girls look so beautiful!”

“Thanks, Mom,” we simpered, swapping knowing glances. Our mother said something similar no matter what we wore, but she truly seemed to believe it.

“You look great, too,” Carina told her. We inherited most of our looks from our father, so he and Mom sometimes joked that she had no hand in our creation. Her skin was milky white compared to our tan complexions, and her pearly white hair only had the slightest wave to it, iridescent in the moonbeams. Her wide, kind smiles always seemed to reach her pale sapphire eyes, twinkling like stars.

“Thank you, my darling,” our mother beamed, pulling us both into a snug embrace. “You’re both growing up too fast! Nessa, make time stop or something!”

Nessa giggled. “I’ll put in a call to the High Witch Council right away and request that all of time and space be stopped, Luna.”

We giggled as well. It was rare for Nessa to joke around, but when she did, she went big. Mom waved off her sarcasm and straightened up. “Okay! Go get your robes and find your places, just like we practiced.”

“Yes, Mom.”

“Okay!”

“You got this!” She cheered us on as we ran to the changing tent. “Remember: it’s your time to shine!”

It only took a few moments for Carina, Callisto, and I to change out of our festival outfits and into plain white robes. They were loose, flowy, and androgynous, made of thin fabric so that they would tear away easily upon our first shift. Tara waited outside the tent for us, then escorted us to the stage where the other pre-teen pups were waiting. We found our places among them; Mom had arranged things so we and Callisto were in the front row for all to see. The moon shone down on us, its light uninterrupted by buildings or clouds.

With more than a yard between us, Carina and I couldn’t hold hands like we usually do, so we spent the entirety of our father’s welcome speech having a private conversation via mindlink.

Rena, I don’t feel so good… I turned to look at my sister. She looked paler than normal, and her body was shivering.

I frowned. It was winter, but even without our wolves we had a natural resistance to the cold. It’s going to be okay, Cari. I’ll help you through this. I’ll always help you.

Yeah, but--

“And now,” our father’s voice boomed through the speaker system as he turned to face us, interrupting our thoughts. “We shall watch as the Moon Goddess blesses our pups beneath the Wolf Moon!”

As soon as our father uttered the final syllable of his speech, Callisto groaned and doubled over. His face was contorted in pain, his eyes wide as beads of sweat dribbled down the sides of his face.

And then the howls rang out, piercing the night.