Chapter 1

Leah Pov

"Thomas, Leah!" The priest announced suddenly, and I quickly swallowed the shriek of joy that almost erupted from my mouth. 

I knew it! Had always known it. Thomas was my mate! 

I almost did a happy dance as I stepped out towards the priest for the moon goddess's blessings, expecting Thomas to follow me, but instead, all I heard were shocked murmurs. 

Confused, I glanced back, only to see Thomas step out, a blonde female's hand clasped in his. 

What the heck was going on? 

I looked on in confusion, till Thomas and the female came to stand next to me in front of the priest. 

I recognized the female. She was Lucia Welling, the beautiful and well-respected granddaughter of one of the powerful elders in Dark water pack. She had gotten mated last year, but her mate had died in a rival pack attack a day after their claiming. 

"Your Holiness," Thomas bowed slightly in respect. 

"This is my mate and the new Luna of Darkwater pack" He announced, wrapping an arm around Lucia's slight shoulders. 

What?! 

Was I hearing wrong or something? What did Thomas just say? 

"What of the mate chosen for you by the moon goddess? Are you rejecting the moon goddess's gift, Alpha?" The priest asked him, his expression stern. 

Everyone present for the choosing ceremony went quiet, watching the spectacle in front of them intently as if they didn't want to miss a word or expression. 

As for me, I could only stare at Thomas in shock, with multiple questions running through my mind, making it hard to focus on anything. 

What was he doing? What was the meaning of this? Was he rejecting me, and in front of our pack mates? But we've always known we were mates. We've always had each other's back, so why was this happening now? 

I was so distracted by my loud thoughts, that I almost didn't hear Thomas's answer to the priest's question.

"It's not that I'm rejecting the moon goddess gift, but I can't mate someone who dabbles in the forbidden," Thomas stated plainly, pulling a sharp inhale of shock from me. 

He knew! Oh goddess, he found out. He had found out about my practicing magic, b- but, so what? I used the knowledge of it to get him to where he is today! 

Through my magic, I defeated many of his challengers in the Alpha Challenge even before they fought him.

Because of me, they would suddenly get sick in the middle of the fight or begin to hallucinate and Thomas would defeat them, crowning him the winner. 

I even used my magic on the former Alpha too, when it was time for Thomas to fight him and take the Darkwater pack from him officially. And the Alpha had been nothing but kind to me in his own way ever since my mother's death. It had been like a big betrayal, but I did it for Thomas because I loved him and knew he was my mate, and now this? 

If it wasn't for me and my knowledge of magic, Thomas wouldn't be the Alpha he was today, and he knew it, so why was he using it against me? I stood wondering. 

"What do you mean?" The priest asked, his confusion obvious in his tone. 

"She practices magic, your holiness and you know magic is forbidden. I won't have a mate who has corrupted her soul with magic, rather I choose Lucia. Lucia is the right one for me," Thomas proclaimed. 

"You can't do this to me, Thomas. You can't! After the promises we've made to each other? After all I did for you, sacrificed for you because I believed you were my mate, you want to discard me?" I sobbed frantically, my green eyes wide with shock and disbelief. 

I almost couldn't believe this was happening to me. 

Today wasn't supposed to be like this. It really wasn't supposed to be! Instead, I was supposed to be successfully mated to Thomas and become the pack's Luna. 

But, here he was, rejecting me in front of all our pack members. Humiliating me, as if all the humiliations I have experienced from the pack members right from when I realized my wolf was a very weak omega was enough. 

As if all the insults, and demeanment the Darkwater pack showed me on a daily basis by basically turning me into the pack's servant because of my weakness, wasn't enough. 

"You wouldn't be Alpha without my help Thomas! I made you Alpha!" I shouted, then let out a loud pained gasp at the hard slap Thomas landed on my face at my words, the force of it, throwing me to the ground. 

Thomas hit me. He hit me!

I could think of nothing else, my brain scrambled from the pain and shock of the betrayal. 

Even with the noise in my head, I heard some of the pack members watching the drama ensuing let out pleased gasps as Thomas slapped me. 

I knew they were pleased with the way things turned out. They always thought I was undeserving of being called his mate and never hid their opinion of me from me. 

It was okay when Thomas was just an ordinary werewolf, with a low rank, but now that he was the Alpha, why should he tie himself to a weak worthless omega like me? Lady Lucia was a much better option. She was stronger, beautiful, acted like a lady, and was from a good and strong family. 

I heard them muttering loudly amongst themselves, my weak werewolf ears picking those painful words up, increasing the pain in my heart. 

What did I ever do to this pack for them to despise me so much? Was it a crime to be weak? 

I went into the practice of magic so they would acknowledge me, and see that I could be strong too, even if magic was forbidden. 

I thought if I could make myself useful to them, they would accept me as part of the pack too, and not treat me like a mere servant, not worth noticing. 

But the one who was supposed to accept me wholly, flaws and all, was the first to reject me. 

I swallowed down the knot of pain building in my throat. 

"Don't ever in your miserable life say that again! What power do you have to make me Alpha? With your weakling powerless wolf, that's almost nonexistent?" Thomas laughed harshly, as he looked down on me, where I lay on the ground. 

"I never planned to mate you, I never wanted to. You were the one building castles in the air, by thinking an Alpha would mate you. You are way below my class, a weak powerless omega, without any rank in the pack," He spat in derision. 

"B but, but-" I murmured, the confusion, hurt, and pain coalescing tightly inside me, till it felt like my chest was being ripped open. 

"No but. My decision is final. I reject you Leah Grey as my mate and Luna in front of the moon goddess and the Darkwater pack" 

Immediately he said that, a sharp pain pierced through me, like a sharp ax cleaving me into two. 

I thought the pain and hurt I was feeling before was bad, but the pain that followed as Thomas made his rejection official, was way worse. It was like every nerve ending in my body was screeching in pain, burning everything in its path. 

The pain was worse than it ought to be because my wolf had grown weaker these past weeks. The stronger a wolf, the better the wolf can bear a rejection pain, and my wolf was at its weakest because of my constant use of magic, especially during these past weeks as I helped Thomas win the challenge. 

My wolf was almost non-existent now, like Thomas said and it was all his fault. 

Before I could let out a word to accept the rejection or most certainly curse out Thomas for his betrayal, I dropped to the ground in a dead faint, my body unable to bear the pain anymore.