Seraphina
The pack has been unusually quiet since Thalia was executed. The palace especially rang with an eerie silence that screamed louder than words did. Thalia was no more and that meant nobody to be the victim. No one to mock and insult. I won't lie that I did not miss it. I missed walking by my friends in beautiful clothes and maids while she scrubbed and washed till her hands bled. I wished to see her dressed in rags on chilly mornings while I was dressed in the most expensive cloak money can buy.
But I don't feel remorse a little bit. She got what she deserves for laying her hands on me. For trying to question my authority. She had no right to refuse to be broken. We broke her, so she must remain that way or she pays the ultimate price for her defiance which is with her life.
However, something bothered me. The love of my life has been cold to me since the night she blazed to death. He wasn't quite himself anymore. I began to feel like I made a mistake for giving that order when he was right beside me but that was the only way I could test his loyalty. That was the only way I could find out if he has lost all feelings for her and is now totally devoted to me.
That evening he made me proud. He stood solidly behind me while I told my father "I want her death". I could feel him go stiff but he didn't say a word. And later that evening he stood beside me and watched her burn alive. I was almost convinced that he felt nothing for her but these past few days have begun to make me doubt that.
I didn't want to dwell on thaila today. Today is my big day. The day I would wear my crown. What rightfully belonged to me. Outside the palace walls, the crowd chanted my name.
Luna Seraphina! Luna Seraphina! Luna Seraphina!
I had imagined this moment since I was old enough to understand what power truly meant. Since the first day my father placed a crown of daisies on my head and told me I was born for greatness. Not Thalia. Me.
And now, the crown was real.
Emeralds shimmered in the sunlight as I stood in front of the mirror. I checked the time for the third time but cane was nowhere to be found. I had to find him.
I walked into his room, my coronation dress rustling softly as I moved. I paused for a moment and watched him. I could sense his tension. He was trying to hide it, but I knew him too well.
"What's the matter, my love? You look tense," I said, wrapping my arms around him from behind. He leaned into my touch for a moment, and I could feel his muscles relax slightly.
"Just a little nervous about the coronation, that's all."
I stopped rubbing his back, my hands freezing in mid-air. I knew him too well to believe that excuse. He was lying, hiding something from me, and I intended to find out what. I turned around to face him, my hands cupping his face. "You're the prince of this pack now. Not an alpha in training anymore. Your sole concern and worry should be the good of this pack."
I watched as he looked down, a sheepish expression crossing his face. I knew my words had struck a chord. He needed me, a strong and powerful Luna like myself, by his side. Not some weak and cursed omega the moon goddess had seen fit to gift him. I smiled softly, my lips brushing against his jawline. "Smile, my love. Today marks the beginning of our legacy."
As he smiled, I took his arm, and we walked out of the room together. I could feel the weight of our responsibilities settling onto our shoulders, but with me by his side, I knew we would face whatever came next together.
When my father held the crown over my head to crown me Luna, I could feel my heart beat with triumph, not nerves.
I didn't feel remorse. I didn't feel grief. Thalia's absence was not a void. It was an opening and I stepped into it beautifully.
"Do you, Seraphina of Greenwood Park, vow to serve this pack with loyalty, wisdom, and honor as their Luna?" the priestess asked, her voice loud and reverent.
My lips curled upward, sweet and solemn, though I felt nothing sacred within. I angled my chin and said, loud and clear, "I do."
The crown was placed on my head, and the cheers echoed louder than any storm I had ever heard. My eyes glittered beneath the emerald weight. I was Luna. Finally. Rightfully. Completely.
And yet—
I glanced sideways.
Cane.
He stood next to me, tall and imposing in his ceremonial gold, every inch the Alpha the people believed in. But his eyes… they felt wrong.
Gone were the sparks that used to light up in them when he looked at me. He used to crave me, worship me, obey me and believe my every word like the perfect prince he was raised to be but now? I had to remind him. I had to hold his hand tighter and kiss his jaw longer. I had to reassure him every day and honestly it was beginning to tire me out.
Something inside him had cracked the day we burned my sister and I couldn't get my cane back. Not fully.
✨
Hours later, the feast was still underway in the Great Hall, but I slipped away, unable to endure another toast or hollow compliment. The palace was full of whispers. Praise and politics in equal measure, but I only cared about one voice.
Mine, and how loud I could make it ring in Cane's head again.
I found him near the river just after the garden. He didn't seem to notice when I walked In which was unlike him. He always noticed. But I walked in just in time to hear him whisper those words.
"Thalia, If you're alive… please… find a way back."
I froze
Thalia is dead. She couldn't be alive. She couldn't be.
I walked back, as silent as I came in. I went straight to my father who has had too much to drink.
"Father," I whispered.
"We need to talk"
He nodded without a word and followed me out of the hall.
"What's the matter sunshine?" He asked.
"Cane thinks thaila is still alive"
"That's impossible. We executed her"
"We did but what if cane is right? What if she comes back?"
"Cane is grieving the death of the weakling he once thought was his mate," he replied coldly. "But he'll get over it. He always does."
"Father he has been… distant."
My father walked closer, his hands clasped behind his back.
"Do not underestimate grief," he said. "It makes men foolish. Even dangerous."
"He knows his place."
"He better," my father warned. "Because the people are watching closely. Not all of them are loyal. The people does not want thaila as their Luna but there are still some elders who believe it's her birthright and her rightful place."
"Lies," I spat. "She's dead now. She can never come back to claim her crown anymore"
"Be that as it may," he said, "truth is rarely what matters. Perception is. And right now, I need you to tighten your grip on Cane. On the people. On everything. I will talk to him as well."
I nodded. "I will."
He turned to leave, but paused at the door.
"Don't let your crown slip, Seraphina. We've killed so that you can earn it. But you'll have to keep it."
I stood alone in silence for a few minutes, thinking about what to do. Then I decided to find cane. This time he was in his room, staring blankly into the air from his balcony.
"You disappeared," I said softly, draping my hands over his shoulders from behind.
He didn't turn.
"I needed air."
I circled him, placing myself in front of him now. His face was unreadable. Cold. There was a time he would've kissed me the moment he saw me. Now, he only stared.
"The night is beautiful," I said, brushing imaginary dust from his collar. "Don't you think?"
"It's quiet."
"Isn't that what peace sounds like?" I smiled, stepping closer, hoping he would meet me halfway.
He didn't. Instead, he looked past me, toward the distant trees and gardens that held memories of her. He was thinking of her again.
"You should be celebrating," I said, a little sharper this time. "You've just been crowned Alpha now. And I'm your Luna. We've made history."
He finally looked at me.
"I wonder what history will say about us."
I didn't like his tone.
I tilted my head. "They'll say we ruled Greenwood. That we led the strongest generation of wolves into the future, restored honor to the royal bloodline and eliminated our enemies. We must show strength."
"They'll say you killed your own sister."
The words hit like a slap, but I didn't flinch. I smiled.
"She was a disgrace, she committed treason." I said simply, stepping forward again. "Pathetic. Weak. Cursed. Do you know how many wolves questioned my father's leadership because of her? You know how people feel about her."
"She was your sister."
"She was a burden." My smile tightened. "Don't pretend you loved her."
His jaw tensed, and I noticed his knuckles tighten against the balcony railing.
"You were the one who rejected her." I said as I took a breath, easing my voice into something sweeter, gentler and more dangerous.
"I did what I had to do. We did. Killing her was for the good of the pack. You think they would've followed a Luna like Thalia?" I laughed. "She couldn't even shift. She was pathetic."
"She was mine."
The words were quiet, but they shook something between us. I stared at him, clenching my fist tighter than I intended.
"Not anymore," I whispered. "I am your mate now, Cane. I'm your Luna. You choose me, not her."
He said nothing. Not a single word.
I stepped closer, and pressed my hand to his chest. I felt his heart beating beneath my palm—steady, stubborn, distant.
"You're slipping away," I said softly, not bothering to hide the truth between us. "You haven't touched me in weeks. You avoid me. Your eyes are haunted, Cane. I don't like it."
He stared at me. "I don't like it either."
"You think the people won't notice? You think my father won't? He's already watching you, Cane. Closely."
That made him blink, just once. I saw the flicker of unease. Good.
"My father gave you this throne," I continued. "He turned his back on his own daughter to do it. Don't make him regret it."
"I didn't ask for this," he said. "I only did what I was told."
"And now you'll do what's expected," I snapped. "You're Alpha. I'm Luna. You will love me, Cane. Even if you have to learn how."
His eyes narrowed. "That's not how love works."
I smiled sweetly. "Then teach yourself quickly. Because if you don't, you won't remember how power works either."
Silence stretched between us. It was heavy and tense.
He turned away from me again.
"I'm tired," he said. "I'll return to the hall later."
"No," I said in a low and final voice. "You'll return now. With me. Arm in arm. Smiling."
When he didn't respond, I reached out and gripped his hand. He let me. But it was like holding a stone.
"You don't have to love me," I whispered. "But you will not embarrass me. Not after everything we've done to get here."
He looked at me then. And for a second, I didn't recognize the man in front of me. He looked like a stranger wearing Cane's face, but it didn't matter. He would fall in line, like he's done since the beginning.