I walk into the executive meeting the next day in high spirits. The last time something like this happened, I definitely didn't feel this way and that's because I didn't have Draaven on my side then. Knowing that he's with me now, I genuinely feel like he might be my anchor after all. I could walk into a den of enemies if I have him by my side. When I enter, the council of elders get up to their feet and bow, grudgingly if I may add. A lot of people in this pack seem to have accepted my presence by now but this council might just be toughest. Without saying a word, I can tell that they are still not open to me in any way. I settle into the seat by right of the head chair and wait for Draaven. When he steps in with Luca, we all get up to our feet and bow accordingly too. He has his game face on but that doesn't intimidate me one bit anymore. Instead, it warms my heart to know that the sweet soft part of him is reserved for only me. As he walks past my seat, it comes as a surprise when

“With that, I'd like to pronounce the Luna as the prime suspect in the murder cases of Miss Euli and Mrs. Regina”. The room goes so silent that you can hear a pin drop. I stare into the table in front of me, feeling a mix of embarrassment, frustration and anger. Just when I thought things were beginning to settle, just when I could finally feel a bit of normalcy in this place, loving and being loved and accepted, this just had to happen. “Detective…..”. One of the elders calls, one of the ones who don't really care about me but aren't bent on bringing me down either. “You know you can't really make accusations like that without sufficient evidence. Strange things might have trailed the Luna's prescence but that doesn't necessarily link her to any of these murders. All of the things you listed above are merely circumstantial”. “I'm working on finding sufficient evidence, my Lord. Everything will be ready very soon”. “I….am not the one who killed them”. I say between gritted teeth, s

I don't wait around for the formality of being taken back home in a car. I take to my heels and zip through the woods, just as I had come with Draaven. The culprit…. they've found the culprit. My thoughts are haphazard. To say the least, I'm more than stoked to go see who the person is and hear exactly how they were caught. I wonder what I'm going to do, what my reaction is going to be. This person who has done an immaculate job of framing me so far, whose plans were to see me go down for crimes I didn't commit. Anger pounds through my veins as my feet fly over the earth. Heavens be blessed if I don't unleash on the person. I see the gates of the palace from the horizon and I seen to go even faster than ever. I'm home again. Night has already fallen and there's a bright crescent moon in the eye. I halt in my steps as I take I look up at the sky, at the moon. One day, many yars ago, when I had enjoyed one of the many evenings where my mum told me moonlight stories, she'd whispered to

Even when Edna hadn't denied committing the murders, a part of me had still been very desperate to believe otherwise. I thought to myself ‘But she couldn't possibly hurt a fly. She just simply doesn't have the means to’. I couldn't be more wrong. Being one of the top students of a top secret guild tells me all I need to know, and sadly, it also explains so much. “Was the young lady present with you at every single instance when the murders happened?”. The detective asks. My mind casts back to each time, the first time at the welfare centre with Euli….she had been there. The second time at the dinner with the ladies….she had been there. The meeting though…..when Rio had come for me, she wasn't present. Which begs the question, how the hell exactly did he end up dead? “Yes, yes she was”. I say shortly. A small murmur issues on the table and I see heads bent together as the elders discuss among themselves. This is not looking good at all. “The Luna has confirmed it. This young lady, by

The day of the hearing finally comes and I make my way down to the board room, my heels clicking sharply on the tiles. Empty is an understatement for how life has been without Edna. At random times, it has felt like she's still around. A whiff of her scent here and there, her voice, her laughter…..I keep expecting to see her bent over the tub as she prepares my bathwater every morning. Sitting by the mirror to do my hair and makeup has become hell as I keep expecting to see her take the comb from me and help me with my hair. None of that ever happens. Once more I've lost a piece of my soul, and I'm not sure I'll be healing anytime soon. That's exactly the ideology I use in choosing my outfit today. I'm dressed in black from head to toe, a simple black dress, a black belt and shiny black stilettos. My hair is scraped back into a sleek, tight bun and my face is mostly bare. If it looks like I'm mourning, it's probably because I am. I walk into the board room to see that everyone is alr