Chapter 2: Be Happy for Your Sister

Raven's POV 

I walked down the aisle looking like a zombie; my legs felt unstable. My heart felt like it was about to be carved out, but I needed an explanation.

“Raven,” Matthew called my name, his voice cold and threatening. He stepped in front of Cassandra, his body angled to shield her. My sister. From me.

That felt like another knife to my battered heart. It made this nightmare real.

"What is this?" My voice sounded strange, echoing in the now quiet hall. "Matthew, what have you done?"

“ Do we really need to do this, Raven?” He asked tiredly.

“I need answers." My heart clenched, but I tried my best to stay strong.

"The answer is right in front of you; you never awakened." He said quietly, but it was very loud in the quiet hall. "Your wolf never emerged. You're a wolfless omega, Raven. You cannot become Luna. You cannot give me strong heirs. You cannot even run beside me under the full moon. What kind of mate would you be?"

Each word sliced deeper. I had believed…stupidly, desperately…that love mattered more than the issues I had. How stupid I had been.

"Cassandra," Matthew continued, sounding very caring, something I realized now I have never heard when he spoke to me. "awakened a rare white wolf. The elders confirmed it three nights ago. She is the better choice for this pack and for me."

I turned to my sister. She was crying again, the tears sliding down her cheeks. She gripped Matthew's hand with both of hers, her knuckles white, her hold unbreakable.

"Sister," she sobbed. "I tried to refuse. I swear on the moon, I tried. But Father said this was best for the pack. I never wanted to hurt you. I never wanted to take your place."

She squeezed Matthew's hand tighter.

"Then let go of him," I said. My voice was steady now, steady and cold. "If you never wanted to take my place, let go of his hand and step away from my altar."

Cassandra's lips trembled. She didn't move. "And the dress?" I asked. "The crown? The flowers? If you never wanted to hurt me, why are you wearing everything that belongs to me?"

Before she could answer, my mother stepped forward, placing herself between us like a shield. Her blue eyes flashed with anger…not at the daughter who had stolen a wedding, but at the daughter who dared to ask why.

"Enough," Mother snapped. "Your sister already feels guilty. She is weeping at her own blessing. Why are you making this harder for her? Have you no compassion?"

I looked around the hall, searching for anyone who supported me. But the pack elders were nodding in agreement. I could hear them murmur their agreement with Cassandra.

My own family surrounded her like a fortress, and I stood alone in the center of the aisle, the villain in my own story.

"Matthew only made the right choice for the pack," my father said, his voice booming with authority. He moved to stand beside Matthew, clapping a hand on his future son-in-law's shoulder with obvious pride. 

"Cassandra did not steal your position, Raven. The Luna position has always belonged to the strongest woman. You should be proud of your sister. She will elevate us all."

"Proud?" The word tasted like ash.

"Cassandra has already said she will allow you to stay near her after she becomes Luna," Mother added, her tone softening into something sickly sweet, as if she were offering me a gift. "You will have a place in the pack house. You will not be cast aside. Do not destroy your sister's happiness because of jealousy."

She reached into the pocket of her gown and withdrew a chain of braided silver…the family blessing necklace, passed from Luna to Luna for generations. She held it out to me, her eyes gleaming with challenge.

"Place this around your sister's neck," Mother commanded. "Accept her as the new Luna. Show the pack that you understand what is best for everyone. Show them you are still our daughter."

I stared at the necklace. The silver links caught the candlelight, winking like a hundred tiny eyes. To place it around Cassandra's neck would be to kneel. To surrender. To publicly admit that everything they are saying is right.

"No," I said.

Mother's face twisted with anger. "Raven…"

"No." I stepped back, my hands curling into fists at my sides. "I will not bless this. I will not accept this. And I am not jealous, Mother. Can’t you see that I am being betrayed by my own family"

Cassandra made a small, wounded sound. She released Matthew's hand…finally…and took a step toward me, her arms outstretched in a gesture of reconciliation. "Sister, please…"

She reached for me.

I did not move to take her hand, but she caught my fingers anyway, her grip surprisingly strong. For a moment, her blue eyes locked onto mine, and I saw a cold look on her face.

Then she yanked her own hand backward, hard.

She stumbled backwards, her body twisting as she fell.

The crown tumbled from her head, clattering against the stone. The moon lilies scattered. Her palm hit the edge of the altar step, and a thin line of red appeared across her skin…a small cut, barely more than a scratch, but she cradled it to her chest and wailed as if she had been gutted.

"Cassandra!" It seemed like the entire hall screamed her name at once.

Matthew moved faster than I had ever seen him move. He shoved past me, his shoulder striking my chest with enough force to send me sprawling. I hit the stone floor, my palms scraping raw; it knocked all the air out of my lungs. When I looked up, he was kneeling beside my sister, lifting her bleeding hand to his lips, looking very angry.

"She attacked you," he snarled, looking at me over Cassandra's shoulder. "The wolfless omega attacked the future Luna."

"I didn't touch her," I gasped, pushing myself onto my knees.

“She fell. She pulled her own hand away…”

"Please," Cassandra cried, her voice breaking. She turned her face into Matthew's neck, her body shaking with sobs. "Please, don't punish her. She only did it because she still loves you. She's hurting. She doesn't know what she's doing."

My eyes opened wide the more she spoke; I didn’t even know what to say. She was twisting everything into a lie.

"She cannot stay here," Matthew said, rising to his feet. His eyes found my father, hard and unyielding. "Alpha Blackwood, I demand she be removed from this pack. She is a threat to my mate. A threat to our peace."

I looked at my father.

I looked at the man who had taught me to track in the forest, who had carried me on his shoulders when I was small, who had called me his little raven, his firstborn, his pride. I looked at him, and I waited for him to refuse. To defend me. To remember that I was his blood.

He did not look at me.

He stepped forward, his face carved from stone, and raised his voice so that every member of the Shadow Claw Pack could hear.

"From today," he announced, "Raven is no longer my daughter. She is no longer a member of the Shadow Claw Pack."

No one spoke. No one moved to help me as I staggered to my feet. Cassandra wept louder against Matthew's chest, but through the curtain of her hair, I saw her dry eyes.