His Reluctant Luna

Alice

"I don't want you to deal with this alone!" I protested.

"I am not alone, Alice. Every Alpha is dealing with this issue. Right now, the biggest danger to us is not the rogues but getting exposed. We can't afford to have information about these human and once-human bodies leak out. It would compromise the security and secrecy of our entire community." Lucian answered the question running through my mind.

"So, those poor people waiting for news would remain ignorant of the demise of their loved ones. They would never know what happened to them?"

"I understand how you feel, Alice. But we are not superheroes. Protecting our pack and the safety of our species is of utmost importance." Lucian insisted.

I nodded, still, this felt wrong.

"What did you do with the bodies?" I asked quietly.

"We brought all of them here. The exhumed bodies will be autopsied. Each one will be examined. Samples and DNA will be taken. This will help us determine if they were all pure humans before they died. We need to find out what sort of experiments is done to them. I have never seen the likes of it in my life. It was as if they were caught mid-shift. The agony on their faces..." He paused and held my gaze.

"After Doc is done with the bodies, we will burn them. There are still so many questions unanswered by the rogues. We don't understand why this person is doing this. I won't rest until we have identified him."

Involuntary tears gathered in my eyes, my heart broke for those who awaited news of their missing loved ones.

"I understand, where you are going," I said in a subdued tone.

He wrapped his arms around me as I cried silently for the dead and the broken ones residing in the infirmary who suffered horribly.

He rubbed his hand slowly up and down my bare back while I hid her face in the crook of his shoulder.

"I'm being silly," I murmured, "but I can't help feeling sad for them."

"You are not silly at all. It's normal to cry when confronted with such a tragedy."

"I should be strong like you. Not a crying mess" I lifted my head and looked at him.

"No, babe, you are strong. Don't ever think otherwise. You can kick ass anytime, you are not weak," he joked.

"You are just saying this to make me happy," I replied.

He sat up, pulling me up beside him. Cupping my face, he wiped off the stray tears.

"Shedding of tears is not a sign of weakness but great strength. That means you are not cold and vicious, you care even for those who are strangers to you, those who are weak, the unfortunate ones who require protection. You are a gentle soul, with a sweet, compassionate and tender heart. But you are also strong and fierce when the situation demands it when injustice is done."

He smiled at me.

We laid, in comforting silence, on the soft green grass. The early morning sun gently warmed our naked bodies.

We discussed other things for some time to lighten the mood. He explained how impressed he was with Zaiden's commitment. I told him about the prophecy.

"That's fascinating!" Lucian commented.

"So as per the prophecy we should have sex on a blue moon right?" he said after a while.

I looked up at his face, surprised. He had his eyes closed.

"That's a very crude way of putting it. But yeah."

"Interesting, Blue moon celebrations is pretty huge in the pack whenever it happens." He smirked.

"Really? What do you do?"

He opened his eyes and looked down at me.

"Nothing different, we have the pack barbecue and the pack run, besides that, the new members are introduced. Human mates are turned. It's supposedly an auspicious day."

Humans could be turned anytime by their werewolf mates, but occasionally it was done following the moon on a full moon night. To make it more special.

"I was unaware that you believed in prophecies," I said looping my arms around his shoulders and laying my head on his wide chest.

"I don't, but as I have already stated, I don't care what sort of kid we are going to have as long as he or she is healthy and happy. Besides, why to leave an opportunity for sex," he grinned.

"As if we are not doing it enough already," I replied, rolling my eyes.

"With you, it's never enough babe," he placed a kiss on my lips.

"But are we going to have the celebrations? Didn't you forbid everything for safety reasons?"

"Yeah, but it's too important to skip. The pack elders won't like it. Even though they cannot defy me. I reckon we do need a break. Things have been really grim."

He continued to hold me and nuzzled my neck.

"That would be nice, let's hope Olivia is ready. Maybe Zaiden can turn her that day as well."

**************

Olivia

My dream was surreal tonight. I was in the forest, running with the wolves. Earlier, the look of those beasts sent me in panic, but I didn't feel so today.

'How is this possible?' I saw the grey wolf running beside me. He had familiar blue eyes. I abruptly stopped running and looked down to see that I had paws instead of feet.

Before I could determine what it meant, my dream switched, and I was chasing whatever was hidden in my mind. After the first few minutes of nothing happening, I began to lose hope. It felt crazy, so I sat down. Off in the distance, though, I caught another glimpse of grey.

'Wait!' I yelled and got up and started running towards it. It reached the bank of a river or a lake in the middle of a beautiful forest.

The lake was deep blue, and it was shaped like a perfectly flat disc of metal. No sound rang out from the shimmering emptiness of space around it. It was lined with pine trees and the whiff of mint wafted up to me. Unruffled by wind or rain, it was still and restful. The only sounds were the bumbling of bees and the heavy echo of a raven cracking.

Confused, I looked out towards the mental forest that my mind had created and again saw a flash of grey. Finally and very timidly, something came out from under the shadows of the trees. I was now staring at a grey wolf.

'Who are you?' I asked.

It howled back to me and I woke up with a start. I was back in my room. The guest bedroom, on the first floor of Alice's home to be precise.

"Good morning," a bright voice greeted me.

It was a girl, her name was Meg, I guess. I had briefly met her earlier. She was one of the omegas here, I think. That's what these people called those working here. I was still not comfortable with their ranking system. Meg pushed aside the thick curtain, flooding the room in bright sunlight. I squinted my eyes, trying to adjust to the sudden blindness.

"Sorry, I wanted to avoid waking you up. Madam Luna asked me to check on you. Would I you like to eat something?" Meg asked cheerily.

"What....what time is it?" I asked confused.

"9 am. Madam said you didn't sleep last night, so she let you rest."

"Oh no! I slept that long. I don't usually do that." I said, scrambling out of the bed.

Meg chuckled, "it's alright, you needed rest. The only person who was desperate to meet you was your mate Zaiden."

"Zaiden is back?" I couldn't keep the excitement from my voice.

"Oh yes, the entire team is back, along with some rescued women. They are all at the infirmary.

I dropped the sheets which I had been trying to fold.

"Can I see them?" I asked.

Meg looked thoughtful for a moment. "I guess you can, once the doctor approvesnoveldrama

it." She paused, then added.

"Hey, would you like to join me for lunch? You might also bump into Zaiden in the dining hall." She said with a twinkle.

"I'd like that very much," I replied, trying not to blush.