Azura's POV
The silence in my room felt heavy. It wasn't the kind of quiet that makes you feel peaceful; it was thick, like a heavy fog filling up the space. It felt like all the things we weren't saying were pressing against the walls, making it hard to take a deep breath.
I stood by the window, my fingers resting on the cold stone. I stared out at the moon. It was hanging high in the sky now, huge and silver and so far away. It was the same moon that had just watched me during the ceremony, and I wondered if it was still judging me.
My ceremonial cloak was folded neatly on the wooden bench near the bed. I had taken it off slowly, feeling every bit of its weight. Beside it sat the silver chain and the moonstone pendant. I had removed them one piece at a time, my fingers shaking just a little bit from pure exhaustion. My body felt like lead, and my mind was spinning.
The room smelled faintly of old herbs and expensive incense. The smoke from the ceremony was still clinging to my hair and my skin. No matter how many times I breathed in, I could still taste the ritual on the back of my tongue.
I took a slow, deep breath, trying to steady myself. The ceremony was finally over, but the feeling in my chest hadn't gone away. It sat there, heavy and solid.
Behind me, I heard a floorboard creak. Liona shifted her weight. She had been standing there for a long time, her arms crossed tight over her chest. I could feel her watching me, her eyes boring into my back. I knew what she was doing, she was trying to figure out if I was still the same Azura she knew, or if that crown had changed me into someone else.
Finally, she broke the silence. "All right. Tell me the truth."
I turned my head just a little to look at her. She was tilting her head, her eyes sharp and focused.
"Are you okay?" she asked, her voice a mix of worry and confusion. "Or did someone hit your head against the stone altar before we went out there? Because that was... wow."
I almost smiled. The tension in my face loosened just a tiny bit. "I'm fine, Liona," I said, my voice sounding calmer than I felt. "And no, nobody hit my head."
She let out a dry, short laugh. "Could've fooled me."
I turned back to the window. The silence came back, stretching out between us like a rubber band about to snap. I watched the shadows of the trees dancing on the grass outside.
Then, I heard Liona start to pace. At first, her steps were slow and measured on the floorboards behind me. But soon they quickened. I could hear the rustle of her clothes and the frustrated rhythm of her movement, like she couldn't keep the words inside her body anymore.
"You stood there," her voice came, sharp and full of motion. I could almost see her gesturing wildly in my mind's eye. "In front of the whole pack. The Elders. The Alpha. Everyone. And you named me your Second Hand." The pacing stopped dead. Her voice was pointed, aimed right at my back. "Do you even know what that means, Azura? The gravity of it?"
I didn't answer right away. I just let her words hang in the air.
Her boots thudded closer, stopping just behind me. "Do you even know what I'm supposed to do? I'm just... me."
That's when I finally turned from the window to face her fully. I looked her straight in the eyes, my heart steady. "I know exactly what I did, Liona."
She blinked, looking like I'd just splashed cold water in her face. I didn't look away. I took a breath and stepped toward her.
"Everyone in this pack looks at me and sees something they don't want," I said. My voice was quiet, but it didn't shake. "I see it in their eyes. Some of them bow. Some of them give me these fake smiles. But none of them actually mean it. It's all a show."
I met her gaze and held it. "But you... You never changed. You didn't treat me differently even after finding out my ranklessness, and you didn't treat me like a stranger tonight. You're one of the real people I have in this place."
Liona's face softened. The hardness in her expression just melted away. She looked down at her feet, shaking her head slowly. "You're giving me way too much credit, Azura. I'm just a girl from the healing ward."
"No," I said, my voice firm. "I'm not."
She looked back up at me. For a long moment, neither of us said anything. The only sound was the wind whistling against the window. Then, she let out a long, shaky breath.
"Do you know what's funny?" she asked.
I waited.
She stepped even closer, her voice dropping to a whisper. "Nobody in that hall sees you as a ruler yet. They just see a girl in a silver dress." She paused, her eyes searching mine. "But I do. I see it."
I felt something tighten in my chest, not a painful squeeze, but a warm one. Like a knot being tied to keep me grounded.
"Not because you're the Luna," she continued, her voice growing stronger. "And not because the Goddess picked you." She looked me right in the eye. "But because you choose. You stood up there and you made a choice. That's what a leader does."
I swallowed hard. I didn't say anything back. I didn't think I had the words for it. Liona's words felt like a warm blanket being wrapped around my shoulders on a freezing night.
She tilted her head to the side, her eyes narrowing slightly. "Is this about the children?"
I didn't answer right away, but I didn't have to. That silence was all the answer she needed.
"It's about the people that nobody else protects," I said quietly. "The ones the pack likes to forget about."
She nodded slowly, her face very serious. Then, her look changed. She hesitated, biting her lip like she wasn't sure if she should speak. But then, the curiosity won.
"Then why is the pack so angry about you and the Alpha?" she asked. She took a breath. "I mean... don't they know he's your mate? Don't they know you belong to each other?"
I felt like the floor had just vanished beneath my feet. I shook my head slowly, my voice almost gone. "No. They don't know."
Her eyes went wide, almost popping out of her head. "They don't know? Are you serious?"
"No one knows," I whispered.
She just stared at me, looking completely shocked. "But... how? How could he not tell them? That's... that's huge!"
I frowned, my mind suddenly catching on to something. I stepped closer to her, my eyes narrowing. "Wait a minute. How do you know that, Liona? I never told you."
Liona froze. She looked away fast, scratching the back of her neck like a little kid caught sneaking a sweet from the jars. "I... uh... I might have heard something."
I crossed my arms over my chest. "Overheard? From where?"
She winced, looking guilty. "The Alpha... he was talking with my mother." She quickly put her hands up. "I wasn't spying! I swear! I was just... passing by, and the door wasn't shut all the way. I heard enough to know."
I stared at her, my head starting to throb. So Rhydor had told her mother. He could talk to the healer about it, but he couldn't tell the pack? He couldn't even talk to me about it properly?
A sharp, stinging pain shot through my chest. It wasn't even anger anymore… just pure hurt.
Jerk, I cursed him in my head.
I looked down, focusing on a crack in the floorstone so Liona wouldn't see the heat building behind my eyes.
"Even if they don't know... Azura, why does your mate treat you like this? Why is he so cold?"
I didn't look up. I couldn't let her see the tear that was starting to sting my eye. "That is not what's bothering me tonight," I said. I tried to make my voice sound strong and controlled, but inside, I felt like I was breaking under the weight of it all.
Why is he affecting so much nowadays?
Liona didn't push me. She just stood there, quiet and steady, being the friend I needed.
A sharp, loud knock banged on the door. It was so sudden it made my heart jump. There was no warning, and whoever it was didn't even wait for me to say a word.
The door swung open, shattering the quiet between us. Genevieve stepped inside. She looked calm and perfect, as she always did, but her eyes were moving fast, taking in everything. The way I was standing, the look on Liona's face. She gave me a small, gentle smile.
"Azura dear," she said softly. "How are you feeling after everything?"
"I am well," I lied, trying to stand up straight.
Her eyes shifted to Liona, then back to me. "May I have a word with the Luna?" she asked. "In private."
I didn't argue. I just looked at Liona and nodded once. Liona understood. She bowed her head a little and started walking toward the door. Before she left, she glanced back at me, a worried look in her eyes. I gave her a tiny nod to show I was okay.
She left quietly, and the door clicked shut behind her.
Genevieve turned back to me. Her smile didn't reach her eyes this time. She took a slow, deep breath, and suddenly, the room felt like it was closing in on me.
"There is something you must know," she said. Her voice was low and dead serious. "Something... very important."
She paused, her eyes locked on mine.
"Something I think you should know before we proceed."
I stared at her, my heart racing so fast it felt like a bird trapped in a cage. From the look on her face, I already knew I'd hate whatever came next.