로그인~ Iris POV ~If peace had a smell, it would have been this morning.Fresh bread. Polished oak. Rain from last night still clinging to the stone courtyard.Everything felt… normal.Too normal.Alice sat across from me at breakfast.And she smiled.Not the sharp, sarcastic curl of her lips. Not the fake, venom-laced grin.A soft one.“I’m tired of fighting,” she said, buttering her toast. “It’s exhausting.”Duncan looked relieved. Actually relieved.Ky froze beside the window.I didn’t trust it.But I nodded anyway. “Me too.”Alice looked at me then. Really looked at me. Her gaze held something unreadable.“Maybe we can start over.”Start over.Like we weren’t standing on the ashes of something we once were.Duncan cleared his throat. “That would make this week easier.”This week.The mating ceremony.Alice’s eyes flickered for half a second.Then she smiled again.“Of course, Dad.”Dad.The word sounded deliberate.Carefully placed.After breakfast, she even walked beside me through th
~ Duncan POV ~I sat on the edge of my desk, the oak wood cool beneath my palm as I swirled the wine in my glass. The deep crimson liquid caught the firelight, glinting like something alive.I took a slow sip.In a week… I would be mated to Iris.My Luna.My destiny.My daughter’s best friend.My daughter’s ex-girlfriend.The thought landed heavier than the wine in my throat.That stung.I leaned back slightly, staring at the ceiling carved with ancestral wolves and crescent moons. Every Alpha before me had stood in this very office, faced war, betrayal, famine, rebellion. But I doubted any of them had faced this particular irony of fate.My daughter was not okay.Alice tried to act indifferent. Tried to hide behind sarcasm, rebellion, fire. But I knew her. I raised her. I knew the subtle shift in her voice, the extra edge in her laughter, the way her eyes hardened when Iris’ name was mentioned.She was hurting.And yet… I could not turn back.An Alpha cannot rule alone.Not truly.St
~ Iris POV ~The pack house buzzed quietly with preparation. The ceremony had been rescheduled, finally set for the full moon next week. Duncan was back,finally.and with him came the usual tension, the aura of command that made every heartbeat in the estate synchronize with his.Alice had returned to her sharp, watchful self. She moved through the house like a shadow, eyes flicking, calculating, assessing,but this time, she didn’t interfere. At least, not openly.Ky and I had carved out our small corner of the world in the midst of the chaos. We were preparing for the ceremony, but also protecting each other from everything else. From whispers, from old wounds, from the unpredictable tides of the pack. She moved through the rooms with a careful grace, always mindful of me, but free enough to make me laugh, even in these heavy days.And then he appeared.Duncan. Alpha. Dominant. Imposing. And yet, tonight, his presence carried a different energy. One that made the air itself shift,a st
~ Iris POV ~The café smelled of roasted coffee beans and old parchment, and for a moment, it felt like a sanctuary. Soft jazz floated over the quiet clinks of porcelain cups and murmured conversations, a gentle rhythm to the chaos that had consumed my life the past few weeks. I sat tucked into a corner booth, sleeves rolled up, tracing the rim of my mug absentmindedly. My hands shook slightly,more from anticipation than nerves,and I found myself replaying every moment from graduation, from Alice’s sharp words to Ky’s hesitant approach.Thorne arrived quietly, almost silently, sliding into the seat across from me. His presence carried the weight of command, that calm authority that made him Duncan’s most trusted knight. Even in a casual café, he exuded control, and it reminded me how little control I had felt lately.“Luna,” he said softly, using the title I wasn’t ready to own, and I didn’t correct him. Not today.“I need to ask you som
~ Iris POV ~In the taxi, everything feels louder.The engine. The city traffic. My thoughts.I press my forehead against the cool window glass and watch the estate gates disappear behind me.I didn’t look back.If I had, I might not have left.The driver doesn’t speak. Good. I don’t think I could handle polite questions right now.My phone buzzes twice.I don’t check it.I already know who it isn’t.It’s not Duncan.It’s not Ky.And it’s definitely not Alice.I let out a slow breath.Maybe Alice was right.Not about everything.But about one thing.Maybe I shouldn’t be standing at an altar when my heart still fractures at the wrong touch.Maybe the Goddess didn’t mean for this to be simple.Or maybe I’m the one complicating what should be clear.I close my eyes.Alice’s face flashes in
~ Ky POV ~Damn.Damn.Damn.Why did I kiss her?I paced the length of my room for what felt like the hundredth time, running both hands through my hair like that would somehow rewind the last twenty-four hours.I knew better.I knew she was conflicted.I knew the ceremony was still hanging over us.I knew Alice was unstable right now.And I still kissed her.God.This is going to complicate everything.Not just emotionally.Politically.Strategically.Dangerously.A knock slammed against my door.Not polite.Not controlled.Slamming.I froze.Only one person knocks like that.I opened the door…And Iris stood there.Crying.Not silent tears.Not composed sadness.Crying.Her hair was messy, eyes red, breathing uneven like she
~ iris Ky walked down the aisle slowly, her boots quiet against the floor. She stopped at the empty seat two rows ahead of me,then hesitated.Her head tilted slightly.Her eyes met mine again.This time, they widened just a fraction.Recognition.My breath caught.No.It couldn’t be.She smiled.N
~Alice The dorm was quiet. Too quiet. The low hum of the overhead lights, the faint clank of the old radiator, even the distant laughter drifting in from somewhere down the hall,all of it felt muffled, as though the world itself had decided to tread carefully around my thoughts. I sat cross l
~irisThe dorm room was quiet when I finally stepped in, dragging my bag behind me. I thought Alice would be here. My scarf and coat were still wrapped tight, lingering smells of coffee and the only city clinging to me. I dropped my bag near the bed and collapsed onto the edge, pulling my phone ou
~iris One week.That was all it had been,seven days tucked away inside walls that smelled like safety and power. Seven days where fear didn’t follow me into my sleep. Seven days of quiet laughter, lingering looks, and moments I knew I wasn’t supposed to get attached to.But I did.The suitcase at







