Unwanted But Mated To Three Alpha Kings

Raven's POV

“Your sister’s Moon Blessing Ceremony will be held today too. In the same venue.”

Mother took my hands in hers and said it as casually as if she were talking about the weather. Her palms were cool.

The words didn't make sense; I just stared at her.

“I’m sorry... what?” I blinked. “But today is my wedding.”

I had spent six months planning this day.

I was Raven Blackwood, eldest daughter of the Blackwood Pack, and today was supposed to be the day I became Luna. The day my mate, Matthew, finally claimed me publicly.

I knew they had always favored her, but this was too much.

How could they take even this from me?

“So you're canceling my wedding?”

“Don’t be dramatic. No one is canceling anything. We’re simply combining the two ceremonies.”

Father snapped, using that gruff tone he always saved for when I was being “difficult.” He folded his arms.

“The moon is in the perfect phase tonight, and the entire pack is already gathered. Your sister deserves to be celebrated too.”

"Combine them?" I asked sharply; I couldn't believe what I was hearing. But how?

Mother squeezed my fingers, her smile tightening. 

"It will save both time and money, and the pack won't have to gather twice. You are the older sister. You should understand."

You are the older sister. You should understand. How many times had I heard those words? When Cassandra wanted my room. When she cried over my training schedule. When Cassandra shoved me down the stairs during training, and Mother made me apologize because “she didn’t mean it.” 

I looked at Cassandra. She was watching me with those wide blue eyes, the picture of innocence. "Thank you so much, sister," she said softly. "Don't worry. Today will still be perfect for you. My ceremony will just be an addition to the celebration."

"Sure," I repeated flatly.

She stepped forward, embracing me. Her sharp jasmine perfume overwhelmed my senses, but I didn’t push her away. "I knew you would understand," she whispered against my ear. "You are the best sister."

I pulled back, smiling at her. "Of course. Whatever is best for the pack."

"Wonderful!" Mother clapped her hands. "Now, let's get you ready. Cassandra, dear, go check on the moon lilies. Make sure they're placed properly at the entrance."

I frowned slightly. "But Mom, the moon lilies are for my bridal walk. They were supposed to line the main aisle."

"Well, yes," Mother said, already turning away. "But since Cassandra's blessing will happen first, we moved them to the main entrance. She'll walk through them for her procession. You'll still have plenty of flowers, Raven. Don't be selfish."

The next hour passed in a blur of activity that felt increasingly wrong. The stylist arrived to arrange my hair, but Mother stopped her, telling her to go to Cassandra's room instead. 

"Your sister needs to look her best for the blessing," Mother explained. "You can do your own hair, can't you, Raven? You've always been so capable."

Capable. Independent. Strong. The words my family used when they wanted to take something from me without guilt.

I sat at my vanity, pinning my dark hair into a twist, when the door opened again. This time it was my mother, holding a velvet case I recognized immediately.

I felt like I couldn’t breathe. "The Luna crown."

It had belonged to my grandmother, and her grandmother before that. A circlet of woven silver shaped like climbing moonflowers, set with sapphires the color of a midnight sky. I had tried it on only once, three months ago, and had dreamed of nothing else since.

She cleared her throat. "The elders feel Cassandra should wear this for her blessing ceremony. As the younger sister receiving the moon's blessing, the symbolism is... appropriate."

“Appropriate?” I asked. “Mom, it’s my wedding today.”

"She'll return it afterward," she added, not quite meeting my eyes. "For your... for the later part of the day."

She set the case on my bed and left before I could respond. I stared at the space where she had stood, my hands frozen in my hair. I blinked back the tears threatening to fall.

“We still have Matthew,” I whispered to myself and my unresponsive wolf. “Even if you haven’t come out, I know you’re somewhere in there. I’ll wait patiently.”

Then Cassandra appeared in my doorway, and I knew something else was wrong.

She was already wearing the crown. It sat nestled in her black hair, the sapphires catching the light, looking like it had been made for her. But it was her expression that stopped my heart. Her lower lip trembled. Her eyes glistened with tears.

"Raven," she said, her voice breaking. "I'm so sorry. I didn't want to ask, but... my dress. The blessing gown. It was damaged during transport. There is a tear in the bodice, and the stain…" She pressed a hand to her mouth, a tear sliding down her cheek.

 "I know it's your wedding day. I know how much the Luna gown means to you. But I have nothing else to wear, and the ceremony starts in an hour, and I just…"

"Cassandra," Mother's voice came from the hallway, sharp with impatience. "What is taking so long?"

My sister dissolved into quiet sobs, clutching the doorframe. "I don't want to take her dress," she cried, loudly making everyone turn to look. "I told you we should find something else. Raven deserves her wedding gown. I can wear something simple. I don't mind being embarrassed in front of the pack…"

"Nonsense." Mother swept into the room; she looked sad and worried. "Raven, give your sister the gown. She needs it more than you do right now. You can wear the backup dress from the fitting room. It's perfectly lovely."

"The backup dress is plain cotton," I said, my voice barely audible. "It's what the seamstress made for measurements. It's not even dyed white properly."

"Well, that's all we have." Mother's tone brooked no argument. "Unless you want your sister to be humiliated on her blessing day? In front of the entire pack? In front of Alpha Matthew?"

The mention of his name sent a fresh lance of pain through me. Matthew. My Matthew. The one person who had chosen me. Who looked at me like I was the only woman in the world. The one thing, I told myself fiercely, that Cassandra could never take.

I stood slowly, my legs numb, and walked to the wardrobe where the Luna gown hung in its protective sheath. The silk shimmered as I lifted it free, the weight of it heavy with every dream I'd stitched into its seams.

Cassandra was still crying as I handed it over. Still saying she didn't want it. But her fingers closed around the dress with a grip that left her knuckles white, and she never loosened her hold, not even when I let go.

"Thank you," she breathed, her tears drying with miraculous speed. "I knew you would understand. You are the best sister." She hugged me, the gown crushed between us, and I smelled jasmine again. "Wait outside the side entrance until my blessing is finished," she whispered. "Then you can come in for your part. We don't want to confuse the guests with two processions."

She swept out, the train of my dress trailing behind her like a comet's tail.

I stood in my underclothes, staring at the closed door. The backup dress was exactly as I remembered…a rough, undyed tunic with no shape, no elegance, no magic befitting my special day.

 I pulled it over my head and looked in the mirror. A stranger looked back. Dark eyes too large in a pale face. My hair looked half undone. A dress that made me look like a servant instead of a bride.

But it didn't matter, I told myself. Because in one hour, I would walk into that hall. I would stand before the pack. And Matthew would be waiting.

He loved me. He had chosen me. And no one…not my mother, not my father, not my perfect, weeping sister…could take that away.

The side entrance was cold and dim, a servants' corridor that smelled like old wax and mold. I waited there for forty minutes, listening to the muffled sounds of celebration from the main hall.

I pressed my ear to the door, my heart beating fast.

"We are gathered under the full moon," the priest said loudly, loud enough that I could hear through the door, to witness a sacred union. Who comes before this pack to pledge their bond"

A murmur of response. Then the priest again, louder.

"We are here to witness the union of Alpha Matthew and our future Luna, Cassandra."

The world stopped. What did I just hear? I could be mistaken, but why did that sound like the marital rites?

I opened the door with my shaky hands. Walking into the bright hall. I shielded my eyes from the light after staying in the dark hall for a long time.

Moon lilies lined the main aisle, their silver petals gleaming. The pack filled every bench; hundreds of faces turned toward the altar in silence. And there, beneath the stained-glass window depicting the first Luna, stood Matthew.

My Matthew.

He was dressed in the black ceremonial suit I had selected for him, his dark hair swept back, his profile sharp and beautiful. He stood at the altar, his hand extended, his face filled with an expression I had thought belonged only to me.

And beside him, holding that outstretched hand, was my sister.

Cassandra wore my Luna wedding gown, the silk clinging to her curves, the train looked like spills of starlight. The crown sat upon her head, sapphires blazing. In her other hand, she clutched my moon lilies, the silver petals framing her tear-stained, radiant face.

She looked every inch the Luna.