Chapter 1

The dining room were filled with silence, gloom hovering above as the little girl with a birthday hat worn on her head, hung down loosely.

"Mom..." her childlike voice sounded, so low that it seemed barely a whisper.

It was filled with so much sorrow that Aliana flinched, unease growing inside her heart.

Silence...

Aliana pursed her lips, uneasily rubbing the corner of the gold plates lying cold at the table, before she turned her head to look at her daughter.

"Yes, sweetie?" 

Aliana smiled, though it looks too fake if seen by someone she knows, because even if she tried her hardest best to give a truthful happy smile, her still eyes didn’t move, still the same melancholic as before.

Her dark green eyes stared at her daughter in hidden sorrow as the wolf inside her whimpered, an agonized howl escaping right after, affecting her once-steady mood.

Her eyelids twitched, clenching the fork in her hand, looking straight at her daughter's watery eyes.

Ana, her daughter, with a birthday hat topped with a number five, worn on her head, silently looked at her with eyes that were once bright in the morning, gone completely lifeless at this time.

Her pouty lips thinning.

“It’s past my birthday now." Ana paused, her gaze at the piece of cake in front of her was silent but hard, the hat she wore drooping as she lowered her head. “We didn’t get to celebrate my birthday…. at all,” she finished, looking worn out for her age.

A moment of silence enveloped the two of them, gloom hovering above their heads.

Quite suffocating.

“Mommy… does Daddy really have another kid other than me?"

Ana coughed. The blush she had from excitement earlier faded, replaced by its usual color, the paleness from her sickness.

Aliana didn’t answer, just forked a piece from the almost melted icing from the cake, pushing it gently towards her daughter's mouth.

Ana slowly opened her mouth, taking the cake to her mouth and slowly chewed. 

“Mama,” she paused, a little tear appearing from the corner of her eyes.

Aliana's fingers were around the fork, clenched, with veins bulging out from her fair, calloused hand.

“He does right? He really did have another kid other than me?” Her words and her voice all seemed to break Aliana apart, but, with her throat filled with a lump, she forced herself to remain calm. “It’s your birthday today, Ana. Don't bother yourself with ugly things..."

“It’s past my birthday, Mama; it’s not my birthday anymore." Aliana's eyes flickered before she wryly smiled.

That’s right.

It is past her daughter's birthday, and the person they were waiting for still didn’t arrive.

It’s quite laughable, but she felt more pain seeing her once lively daughter falling silent, the familiar sickliness her daughter had once again making its appearance on Ana's face.

“….” 

Aliana tiredly tilted her head, reaching out for her daughter's hand, lowering her eyes, and saying, “I’m sorry, Ana, I’m sorry…” she muttered lowly, blush creeping up to her cheeks, ashamed.

As a mother, that’s all she could say, because the reason she was sorry for… can be used to make them a laughingstock in the pack.

Ana, with the intelligence she inherited from both dominant genes, could guess what she was sorry for.

Ana small pouty mouth pursed, her other free little hand softly banged the table, “Mommy,” she paused, sighing weakly as she stared at her mother who was trying to keep a straight back, still with lowered eyes, “Do you feel Papa Uncle affection?”

Aliana paused, sighing, finally having the nerve to look her daughter's eyes in the face once again. “Even if you hate your dad that much, you can’t—”

“Mommy,” Ana softly cut her off, her head lowered to look at the candle shaped in five. “Divorce Father and marry Papa Uncle instead. I'll be okay..."

“You won’t.”

“Divorcing a fated mate means defying the will of the moon goddess. You're still a child, you don’t know how severe the punishment will be bestowed upon the offspring that two mates had after bonding.” Aliana took a deep breath.

Though Ana just chuckled softly, taking her little hand out of her own.

Aliana becomes uneasily instantly.

“Bestowed mates? Punishment?" Ana snickered, her greyish-green eyes flickering as she bit her lower lip. “Then why did Daddy have another child that’s big as me, with another woman that’s not his mate? Why is there no punishment over the years? He looks so blatant…” Ana stopped herself, exhaling. She tried to calm her heart that suddenly raced faster once again after being agitated.

Aliana's eyes widened in panic as she stood up, hurriedly taking a medicine from the box placed close on the counter before giving it to Ana with a glass of water. “Drink this.”

Ana took the medicine, falling silent as Aliana leaned her head on her chest, breathing a sigh of relief.

Leaning on her chest, Ana opened up, weakly coughing, "Mommy… I’m almost dying. You know that too, right?”

“Don’t worry about the punishment anymore. I'll be okay. Don’t chain yourself to someone who won’t value you even as a mate.”

Her voice was soft, too soft. It made Aliana's thoughts go completely blank at the word of ‘death’ from her daughter's mouth. Her heart clenched as she trembled, forcing herself to not break down.

Ana looked up to her, raising her hand; she touched her cheeks gently. "I'll be okay, Mommy. I promise.”

Just then, as Ana's words fell, the tightly closed door opened, revealing Lancer with a big-packed gift in his hands as he entered the room, an automatic wide smile making its way to his lips after his gaze landed on his daughter.

“Happy birthday, my little sweet Ana! "Lancer greeted his daughter happily, moving closer to where Ana is and about to give Ana the gifts on his hand, when it was unexpectedly flanked away.

“...”

Ana stood up, looking at the discarded dolls, then to her dad—no, to her father, who disappointed her yet again, after multiple promises were made since that day.

Lancer looked at the discarded Barbie doll gift on the floor, looking quite torn by how harshly it was flanked away. He slowly looked over at Ana, his expression turning serious. “You shouldn't throw things—”

“Whose birthday? It's past my birthday,” 

Lancer froze, seeing an odd reaction on his daughter face.

Ana coldly stared back at Lancer, even yanking the birthday hat that she wore on her head. “It’s not my birthday now.”

“Whose birthday are you going to celebrate?”