My Mates

SILVER

The large doors pulled open. The guards dropped to their knees, heads bowed.

"Ignore them, if you want, Princess." Cassian's velvet voice reached through my skin.

We arrived at what I assumed was the throne room. The door shut behind us as an elderly man approached in a grey robe, his white hair reaching to his hip. He turned to me, his eyes lighting up.

"By the Moon Goddess, she looks exactly like the Queen.”

I almost laughed at the thought. The queen of a nation? Me? The girl who had spent her entire life being treated like a burden?.

"Greetings, Princess Silver." He bowed.

"No, please stand. You are older than I am."

"You are our princess." He smiled warmly.

"I am not. You are mistaken, sir."

He turned to Cassian, who gently shook his head. "The princess doesn't believe she is the true heir."

"Then we can do a bloodline test." He turned to me, his wrinkled face bright with joy. "Please have a seat." He gestured to the throne, set high on its pedestal.

"After the bloodline test." They didn't object.

While he left to make arrangements, Cassian stood at the door, hands behind his back, eyes narrowing like he was scouting for attackers.

"I'm fine," I said.

He bowed, not uttering a word.

A few minutes ticked by before the elder returned with a book and a guard carrying a wide bowl of water.

"Princess, you have to drop your blood in this. If it turns red, it proves you are of the bloodline."

I bit down and nodded. He began chanting, then handed me a needle. I pricked myself, let out a soft whimper, and held my finger over the bowl.

A drop fell. I can't be the princess, I told myself. I am a nobody, an overweight wolf nobody wanted. I repeated it until the water rippled, darkened, then swirled into red.

I froze and staggered back. Cassian caught me from behind.

"My princess, are you okay?"

I shoved away from his grip. "This isn't possible. There must be something wrong with your bowl. I can't be your princess, I am—"

"We know this is a lot to take in, and we will wait. But the truth is in front of us. You are the princess we lost all those years ago."

"The King and Queen never stopped looking for you," the elder said, his eyes distant, a weak smile on his lips. "The Queen cried for days. We are so glad you are back."

"I am a princess?"

"Yes, Princess."

"I am your princess?"

"You are more than that. You are the only surviving bloodline of the most powerful Lycan clan. Your wolf isn't ordinary." He smiled. "You are not just our princess. You are the future Luna, the rightful heir to the Lycan empire."

His words struck harder than any punch. A broken laugh escaped my lips, growing louder until it dissolved into tears. I was crying. What kind of princess cried like this?

"My princess, are you in pain? Is your wound infected?" Cassian rushed forward, his gaze soft on mine.

I shook my head. "I'm fine. Just overwhelmed."

"Princess, please take a seat."

I nodded and turned toward the throne. My throne.

I stared down at my hands. The girl they rejected was the Luna. Anger thumped through my veins, and I walked past the throne to the smaller chair beside it instead.

"My princess."

"I haven't earned the right to sit there," I whispered.

"You were born with the right."

"Throne or not," Cassian said, his voice cold and commanding, "you can command this room even from a stool, because you are the ruler. If you say jump, we jump. If you say drop dead, we make our death gruesome for whoever caused it."

I smiled faintly.

"He's right," the elder said. "I'm so glad you are back."

I breathed in the warm air. "I'm happy too."

"Princess, your return is a blessing to us, but—" Worry crossed his features, and panic settled in my chest.

Was he about to say I wasn't fit to rule? That I was too heavy for a crown? I stared at the throne. An hour ago, none of this had existed.

I'm done hiding. I'm done running. If they need a version of me stronger than this one, I will become her.

"There are people who won't consider this good news," he continued. "The Lycan clan is currently ruled by the same people who betrayed your parents."

I jerked up. "The people who killed them?"

"Possibly. No one knows exactly what happened." He said it weakly. "The royal family has been searching for you, not only out of love, but because your existence threatens their power. If you claim your throne, powerful people lose everything. They will come for you once your identity is confirmed. We can't lose you again."

"You won't lose me." I stared at the throne. If the Moon Goddess had brought me home, she had her reasons. This was my reason to live: save my people, avenge my parents.

"They are more dangerous than you think," he said. "To protect you, Princess, you'll be placed under the guard of four powerful Alphas."

"Alphas?"

"Guards won't do. I need you alive."

I opened my mouth to argue, then stopped. He had witnessed the massacre. I understood his fear.

"Fine."

He smiled and turned to Cassian. "Bring in the rest."

I watched Cassian disappear behind the far door, my fingers drumming against the armrest. Alphas.

My stomach twisted at the memory of Kael. Would they be like him? Bound to protect me out of duty, not devotion. A political responsibility instead of a person.

The door opened again, and four towering figures stepped into the throne room. My fingers tightened around the armrest as I watched them approach, each one carrying a presence that made the air feel heavier.

Cassian walked in first. Something about his eyes felt familiar, a flicker of recognition I couldn't place until his name settled into memory. Cassian. The one who had called me Princess, the one whose voice I remembered even though his face had been a blur through the dark.

The second man followed close behind, arms crossed, his dark eyes sweeping the room before landing on me like he was already cataloguing threats. "Ronan," he said, the single word the only introduction he seemed to think he owed anyone.

The third man said nothing at all. He simply studied me, grey eyes steady, as if he could see straight through every wound I'd spent my life hiding. Silence seemed to be its own kind of statement with him.

The fourth broke it. A grin spread across his face, easy and warm, nothing like the others. "Darian," he said, dropping into an exaggerated bow. "Don't let the other three scare you, Princess. I promise I'm the fun one."

A small smile escaped my lips before I could stop it.

The elder stepped forward, pride written across his face. "Princess Silver, these four Alphas are the strongest protectors of the Lycan empire. From this moment, their duty is to keep you safe."

The four men dropped to one knee in unison. "Welcome home, Princess Silver. We swear our loyalty to you."

I stared at them, unable to process it. These powerful Alphas, kneeling before the same girl who had spent her whole life being called worthless.

Lena's voice broke through the silence in my head, trembling with shock.

Silver, they are...

I held my breath.

They are our mates.

My eyes widened, my heart slamming in my chest. They were my mates.