Chapter 6

After helping my step-mother with the preparations for the New Moon Ceremony, I retreated back to my room for a few minutes of peace before I would be on display, engaged, and made Alpha-in-Waiting. This afternoon had been one humiliation after the next, and I felt like I had walked into a trap set by Vargur. But why? Aurelia asked, What does he have to gain by creating an Alpha’s enemy? I didn’t have an answer.

I walked to my bed and touched the simple white dress on my bed. Pack tradition was that I wear a plain white dress with a pink ribbon around the waist to show my purity and innocence in preparation to become a wife. It looked frumpy and childish. I had often wrestled with the idea that my virginity was prized; it seemed so old-fashioned, especially since most of the other wolves had lost theirs on their first Mating Moons. Then, I looked to my window, to see dusk creeping at the edges of the light. What a day, I said the Aurelia, then I noticed something that hadn’t been there earlier.

On the table under my window were two matte jet black boxes. Both were long, but one was slim and shorter and the other longer, wider, and thicker. Both were tied with deep purple ribbons- my favorite color. I’m sure the boxes alone cost more than most of my wardrobe. My family had been perfectly comfortable, but our pack was not known for our wealth; we were known for our strength. A note was on top, in a heavy paper that matched the ribbons. I slipped it out from beneath the ribbon and turned it over. It was lightly perfumed, and it played on my senses as I wondered who this could possibly be from.

I slid my finger under the fold in the envelope and pulled out a purple card with a glossy silver S monogram in fancy script. “I said what I said,” my wolf mused and rolled her eyes as I remembered what she had said earlier in the day about the cars parked in front of our packhouse. I tentatively opened the card, and written in the same silver was:

Dear Katla of Iceclaw,

On this, the day of our engagement, I know you must have so many questions. Please know I will answer all of your questions in time. Your father told me you do not know about the importance and symbolism of our ancient alliance, but I hope that in time, you will trust me as your partner and equal. As a token of my devotion and sincerity, I hope you accept these gifts that represent their joining of our packs. I know your pack has its traditions, and I respect those. But, you took my breath away in our passing earlier, and without a moon in the sky this evening, I thought none should be more radiant than you, my future bride.

Your Betrothed,

Damien of Silverburn

“Oooh,” my wolf breathed. She usually didn’t care about material things, but I could feel her arousal.

“Let’s see what’s in the boxes first,” I told her back, still annoyed by today’s humiliations.

I tentatively pulled at the bow in the top box, and it slid to the sides. I gently pulled the cover off the top box, and opened it. Wrapped in delicate, shimmering paper were 50 long stem purple roses, and between them were daisies, my favorite flower. “How?” I wondered aloud.

They were beautiful, each one perfect, each one held a scent far greater than any bouquet of roses I had ever smelled. The smell was intoxicating, sweet, calming, and instantly mood changing. It seemed impossible. I knew some packs had witches and others who could make the impossible possible, and I mused if this is why my father had called our alliance “strategic” without elaboration?

“Why did these all of a sudden put my mind at ease, like everything would be ok?” I thought.

I was sad to put the box aside, but I had become curious about what the bottom box held. In my mind, nothing could be more magnificent than one of those flowers, let alone all of them together.

I slipped the ribbon off of the larger box and slid the lid to reveal more of the delicate shimmering paper. I bit the edge of my lip as I pulled the bodice out of the paper, not entirely sure of what I would find. As I held up the gown and the fabric unfolded, it was breathtakingly beautiful. The delicate lavender shifted between a deeper purple and white depending on the light, and it was the softest silk I had ever felt. It shimmered like stars in the night sky, but not in a way that was tacky. The top was strapless and tight with a deep V cut in the back to the skirt.

The skirt was not skin tight, but would show my curves while leaving a little to the imagination, with a small train gathered at the bottom. It was tasteful and not frumpy like the plain white dress with the childish pink bow on my bed, but it was presumptuous of Alpha Damien to think I would break from tradition. I hated to admit that this was perfect for the ceremony and claiming my pack as Alpha, though.

I noticed several smaller packages wrapped in the same paper. I opened the first package, and a pair of silky white gloves slipped from the paper’s folds. They were long, the sort that go past your elbow. I ran my finger over the silk and noticed that it had a similar iridescent quality as the dress, a shifting of color but much more subtle. I opened one and noticed that both packs’ crests had been monogrammed on the inside of the hem. I was in awe of the thoughtfulness in these details. I had never seen anything like it before. Why would a man who was a stranger to me care, especially since it was an alliance marriage and nothing more?

Still, there was more. The next package contained a pair of heels that matched the lavender of the dress perfectly. The color contrasted perfectly to the dark purple sole. They were taller than I usually wore to events, but not at an uncomfortable height. I slipped my foot into the bed, and it molded to my foot like it was made for me only.

I turned the last box over in my hand. It was in the same matte black texture as the larger boxes, but hinged. I opened the silver clasp on the front of the box, and lifted the lid. Light immediately danced and sparkled off of the large, round cut purple diamond inlaid in a platinum setting. The silver metal snaked around the gem and was filled with smaller clear diamonds that glittered. The details around the neck were intricate forming a dainty collar, but there was an overall simplicity in the design. It had an old-fashioned feel, like it carried weight and history. I had never seen anything like it in my life. I didn’t want to imagine how much it must have cost.

Just then, there was a small knock at the door, and my Omega entered. “Miss, I am here to do your hair before the ceremony. Are you ready?” I snapped the box closed.

“Oh, Claire, yes, please come in,” I said and noticed her eyeing the gown I was laying next to the white frock on my bed.

I sat at my vanity, and Claire’s nimble fingers got to work. Claire had been with me since I was a pup, and I had grown up under her care. My step-mother was kind enough, but Claire was who I trusted. To me, she was not an Omega, she was my family. I had decided long ago that once I was Alpha, Claire would be freed. Whatever she had done to become an Omega, the kindness and concern she had shown me throughout my life, more than compensated for whatever her crime had been.

Before too long, I looked into the mirror and had been transformed. Instead of the traditional soft slick back bun knotted at the nape of my neck, elegant but modest, Claire had swept my wavy blonde hair up into tendrils that cascaded and framed my face. It made my neck look long, pale and elegant, exposing the Iceclaw mark that appeared after my first shifting at the top of my spine.

All wolves had their pack’s mark tattooed on their skin after their first full-moon. It is said that the emblems are a gift from the Moon Goddess herself. Only other wolves could see the marks, as if scent alone didn’t give us away, but it did come in handy for identifying which packs others belonged to at gatherings.

“Claire, it’s … just… wow,” I gasped.

“Miss, something tells me tonight is going to be special,” she said with a knowing wink.

“Claire?” I asked, “If you didn’t have to be here, serving my family, where would you be?” It just dawned on me that in all of our conversations, I had never asked her what else or where else she would rather be.

“Oh, Miss, I had never thought about it. I’ve been happy here with your family. So many Omegas have it worse elsewhere, and you’ve been so kind. Serving the Alpha’s family has brought me joy.” That was the most Omega answer, and I don’t know why I expected that she would tell me otherwise.

“But Claire, certainly you have dreams of your own?”

“Would it matter even if I did?” she honestly asked back. “So, I am happy serving the Alpha for as long as he will have me. And if I am dismissed, I will be happy serving the pack. Freedom and dreams are not something for me to think about, and that is ok. I am here to serve the will of the Alpha and needs of the pack. It’s not always easy work, but I have been treated well.”

“But–”

She cut me off and gave one final thought, “Miss, please don’t worry yourself with the thoughts of the Omegas. It’s not your concern.” And with that, she left me to my thoughts and final preparations for tonight’s event before I could finish my question.

I walked over to the dresses on my bed, taking in each, the elegant and powerful lavender or the simple and traditional white. Which one would I wear to announce my alliance engagement and intention as Alpha-in-Waiting? Traditions or change? And what of the mysterious Alpha of Silverburn and his impressive but far-too-lavish gifts for an alliance union? Why would he assume that I would be willing to break tradition, as ridiculous as that tradition was? I felt confused and frustrated and torn between who I was expected to be and who I wanted to be.

I know my father would put my mind at ease while expecting me to follow tradition, but if I was to be Alpha, shouldn’t I feel comfortable leading my pack to a better future. “And as a she-wolf Alpha, that’s certainly breaking tradition, is it not? Make a statement,” my wolf added. She had always had an independent free-spirit, but she didn’t have to live with the consequences of breaking tradition. I did.