The world is ugly as shit right now, so here's another lighthearted/ uplifting chapter that I really enjoyed writing.

Please remember to be kind during times like these.

Also, since this statement pissed off so many people, I'll say it again:

Black lives matter.

"Axel told me I might find you here," I hear Cain's voice behind me. "I didn't know you were so handy."

I finish hammering the nail into the nearly completed fence, wiping sweat off of my brow. "Productively using weapons? Who would have thought," I say sarcastically, grabbing another post and nail.

"Here, let me," Cain offers, reaching for the hammer.

"It's fine," I say, aligning the nail. "I can do it."

"I could have had someone else build this, you didn't have to do it yourself," He mutters lowly.

"And miss out on my excellent workmanship?" I ask. "What a shame that would be," I say, driving the nail into the wood with one hard, precise swing.

"Sara said the pups were excited to see you today," Cain says, talking the hammer from my hand. "Didn't stop talking about it for the rest of the day, I heard."

I shrug noncommittally, handing Cain another nail.

"Maybe you should come back again sometime soon? I'm sure they'd like to see you more."

Sighing, I take the hammer back from Cain as he struggles, bending the nail from the lack of precision in his swings. I use the end of the hammer to pull out the dead nail, and hammer in a new one, finishing the fence.

"It's hard, you know?" I say quietly. Vulnerable, much too vulnerable for comfort. "To see the pups."

Cain pulls me into his arms. "Yes, I know how you feel."

"But..." I slowly say. "It does help. Being around them. Sort of fills the hole in my heart, you know?"

He nods. "You're a good Luna. Would have been a great Alpha."

"You think we'll have a girl?" I ask suddenly.

"Hm?" Cain asks, his thick brows furrowed in confusion.

"If we had a pup," I ask quietly. "Do you think the firstborn would be a girl? I mean, maybe since I kind of fucked up the whole male-Alpha thing, our firstborn would be a girl."

Cain is silent for a moment. "Let's not worry about that, okay? Problem for another day."

"It wouldn't be a problem," I argue, and he freezes. "If we had a girl first. She could be the Alpha."

"Maybe," Cain says slowly, his tone light, not wanting to upset me. "It would take time for Blood Lake to accept a female Alpha. We're still... evolving. Moving away from tradition. Not all wolves would be so accepting."

"Do the females have any issues with males harassing them?" I ask in surprise. I hadn't seen anything, but obviously none of them would be dumb enough to treat a female poorly in my presence. "Like opposing their training?"

Cain frowns. "Not for the most part, I don't think. Gwen mentioned some of the juniors in her weapons class being a little boisterous, but I'm sure it's just typical teenage behavior."

Hmm. We'll see about that.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

"Ares!" Gwen squeals, throwing her arms around me. "I didn't know you were coming today."

"Well, I realized it's been awhile since I've seen the juniors train, and I haven't seen how much better they've gotten under the new Weapons Master," I say with a grin, though it's hidden by my mask.

While I am curious about their progress, I'm really here to see how the males interact with the females, and to make sure none of them are bullying them.

"Perfect, they've been working on using bows and
arrows all week!" Gwen says gleefully. "Only one person has been maimed so far!"

"Pretty good stats," I agree.

"Gather round, my young padawons," Gwen instructs, and the sparing wolves all stop in their tracks, immediately circling in front of us. "The Luna has generously cleared her very busy schedule to watch our training session, so I expect all of you to be on your best behavior. Jack, that means you."
A freckled boy laughs, and some of his nearby friends nudge him with their shoulders.

"Grab a bow and some arrows and run target drills, you know what to do," Gwen instructs with a dismissive wave of her hand. "Don't embarrass me. Jack," She says with a pointed look, and they all laugh.

So far, I don't see anything out of the ordinary. The pups seem comfortable with each other, and respect Gwen as their instructor.

I watch them shoot at the targets for awhile. Most are a decent shot, Gwen is good at her job.

I focus my inspection on a small girl, no older than 14 or 15 years. Whereas the other wolves are joking around with their friends, taking turns with the targets, teasing each other when they miss and bragging when they get a bullseye, the girl is by herself, deeply concentrating on what she's doing.

She loads the arrow, pulling it back as she aims. Her form is good. Perfect, even. Couldn't have done it better myself, and she looks like she's been using a bow for years. I can tell before she releases the bow that it's going to hit the center dead on, but before she releases, she raises her elbow slightly, aiming down. As she lets go, the arrow flies through the air, completely missing the target as it hits the wall below.

Some of the male wolves snicker, and I hear one of them whisper lowly, "This is why we shouldn't have let girls start to train."

My fist clenched, my knuckles white. I walk towards the girl, glaring at the male wolves, who quickly avert their gaze and go back to their own targets.

"What's your name, pup?" I ask quietly, and she jumps.

"Belle, I mean- Isabelle," She corrects, nervously fidgeting with the bow. "Luna," She quickly adds, extending her neck in submission.

"None of that," I say dismissively. "Why'd you throw away the shot, Belle?"

Her eyes widen. "Umm, I-I don't know what you mean, Luna."

"Yes, you do. You were about to hit the mark. Why did you alter the shot?" I interrogate.

Her eyes nervously avoid mine. "It was just a mistake, Luna. Sorry, I'm not a good shot," She apologizes.

"Cut the bullshit," I say lowly. "You're a better shot than all of the people in the room. I'll ask you again, and this time, don't lie to me. Why did you intentionally miss the mark?"

She takes a deep, shaky breath. "It's my Gift," She whispers quietly, so softly that no one else can hear. "I have perfect aim. I can't miss, unless if I try to."

"Why hide it?" I ask in confusion.

Her eyes are cast down. "My mom told me to. Said it would make other wolves jealous, target me. Worried I would rank higher than them. The males..." She says, her voice dropping. "They don't want the competition."

I cock my head to the side. "And what is it you want, Belle?"

"I want to be a warrior," She whispers, ashamed. "My mom says that's too dangerous for girls."

"Do you know what I used to do before I became the Luna?" I ask her.

She nods. "Of course. Everyone knows what a badass Gamma you were. I mean- not that you're not still badass," she quickly says. "But everyone talks about how you were the first female Gamma."

I pull down my mask, and give a small smile. "And you know what I did to the males who questioned my strength?" I ask, and she shakes her head, her eyes aglow with interest. "I gut them like fish," I whisper, and she grins.

"So let the males be afraid of you," I shrug. "The more the cower in your presence, the better. I want you to be a warrior, Belle. But you can't let your fear of greatness stop you."

Belle nods furiously. "Thank you, Luna."

I pull my mask back up. "Everyone get over here," I order, my voice clipped and harsh.

The wolves walk over, their eyes as big as the moon. They haven't seen my rage firsthand, and they're worried they will. Cain is typically the one quick to anger, while I usually observe in silence.

"Who knows what makes a pack strong?" I ask them, and none of them dare to raise a hand. "Don't be shy. Someone answer me: What makes a pack strong?"

"Good warriors?" One boy suggests.

I shake my head. "Strong warriors only matter so much. It means nothing if there's no unity in the pack. Unity is what makes a pack strong. Teamwork. Supporting everyone in the pack. You're only as strong as the weakest wolf. Leaving wolves behind will tear a pack apart faster than rogues ever could," I warn, and they nod, listening intently.

"You," I say, and point at the sexist kid. "What's your name?"

"Seth," He nervously says. "My name is Seth, Luna."

"Seth, go stand against the target," I instruct, and he shakily walks over to the target, but doesn't question the order.

"Seth, do you know Belle?" I ask him. He nods. "Do you trust her?" He nods. "Do you trust her with your life?" He nods again, though I can see the doubt in his eyes.

"Good," I say simply. I grab a plastic water bottle off of the floor, and put it in his head. "Belle, grab your bow and arrows and go behind the line."

Belle nods, but her face is confused as she does as I say.

Ares, what are you doing? Gwen mindlinks me. Don't tell me you're going to have Isabelle hit the water bottle, she'll kill him, she's a terrible shot.

I ignore her. "Belle, you're going to hit the water bottle. If you miss, you and the rest of the pack will be running twenty miles every day at 5:00 a.m. for the next two weeks. I recommend not missing," I suggest. "Seth, do try to stop your shaking. It certainly won't help young Belle, and Alpha Cain won't like any more trips to the infirmary."

Belle breathes in deeply, holding up the bow. "You got this, Belle," One girl quietly says.

"Yeah, you can do it!" Another one cheers her on, and soon they're all giving her words of encouragement, and I see a small smile on Belle's face. Even Seth is encouraging her, and stops shaking.

God, I'm such a genius, I amaze myself sometimes.

Belle releases the arrow, and it perfectly hits the middle of the bottle. Water pours out, completely soaking Seth, which makes me smirk.

All of the wolves gather around Belle, hugging her or giving them pats on the back. Some talk about how relieved they are that they don't have to run the 20 miles and wake up early.

"Look at you," Gwen laughs as she nudges me with her shoulder. "Creating more peace among them than Ghandi could have."

"Yeah well I-" I start to say, before I feel a sharp pain in my chest. "Fuck," I gasp, and the wolves quickly surround me, asking if I'm okay.

"Give her space!" Gwen orders, and they take a few steps back.

I hunch over, clutching at my chest as it feels like I've been stabbed. It feels like a part of my soul has gone missing, and I realize what's happening.

Another wolf has just been killed.