Damir wrapped his arms tightly around me. I knew there was no way he was letting go of me any time soon. The growls from the two Alphas were a significant signal of their desire to get me away from him, but he wasn't budging, and I didn't want him to.

"Men, is there any way we could keep this civil? Alena doesn't want anyone to get hurt." Damir called out. Griffin squinted in our direction, and I squirmed under his gaze.

"Luna Alena, can you sense your mate?"

I bowed my head to my Alpha. "I cannot, Alpha Sebastian. I have no sense of smell outside of my wolf form."

"Make her shift, and the true identity of her mate will become clear." Alpha Calliope called out.

The Prince turned to stare down the female Alpha. "My mate should not have to shift to prove this liar wrong, Calliope."

She ducked her head. "My apologies, Prince Griffin."

I rushed toward Alpha Calliope. "May I speak to you, Alpha Calliope, privately?"

She nodded, and I led her to the side of the clearing, making sure to stand so that she could see the other Alphas, not fearing having my back to them.

"I don't know if I can shift, Alpha. I haven't shifted in at least half of a year, and I wasn't strong or healthy then. My wolf has been all but dormant. She's not well, especially since the passing of my father." Alpha Calliope nodded.

"Luna, you don't have to have a strong wolf to be able to discover which one is your mate. She will know."

I dipped my head. "What if she's not good enough for them? They know my human form is strong enough. They've seen my work today in organizing this and commanding crowds. My wolf, she... I don't think she can do it. She can't be a luna."

Alpha Calliope wrapped her arms around me, holding me to her chest. I was grateful for the shield, so when small sobs wracked my body, they weren't open to the public to see. "Alena, you already are a Luna. You aren't leaving here today without being a Luna. You are going to be great."

I nodded into her chest but was shook out of my feelings and turned to face the open clearing when growls were thrown back and forth. The Alphas had lost their grip on Alpha Caelan, and he ran at Prince Griffin, his fist flying toward Griffin's face.

I screamed in horror but watched as Griffin caught Caelan's fist and threw a punch of his own. Caelan's shoulder flew back at the impact, but he quickly readied himself to fight more. Calliope held me up as we watched the men circle each other.

"Calliope, I don't know if I can watch, but I don't know if I could turn away." Calliope nodded, her chin brushing the top of my head.

"Luna, all is going to be well. Damir, call your warriors to surround Alena." Damir called for the young warriors to circle the new Luna and the female Alpha. They all stood with their backs to the women, Damir joining the circle closest to the Alphas.

"Luna, no matter what happens today, you are going to do great. So tell me, please, what do you believe is the best thing a Luna can do?"

"My favorite thing about Lunas is the way they get to interact with children."

Calliope grinned. "You like children?"

"More than almost anything. I love people in general, but there's just something so sweet and special about children. They're so easy to entertain. When I was younger and had time, I would spend time at the pack daycare, simply reading stories to the children. They loved it, and I'm told they asked for me for days after I would read to them."

"You truly are a born Luna."

"Our Luna couldn't be around to help with the children." I sighed quietly. "Luna Lucy died around the same time my parents did. I was younger, and I needed to keep busy. Playing with the children and keeping them distracted helped keep me distracted as well."

"You are so strong, Luna. I don't speak lightly, and I'm thankful for you being candid. What else do you believe is the best that a Luna can do?"

"Stand up for the truth and what she believes in. Luna Lucy, and many other strong women in my life, have set examples of strength in the face of adversity. You're one of them, Calliope." I tensed, ready for wrath as I forgot to use a title for the Alpha. "I'm sorry, Alpha. I forgot to use your title. It won't happen again."

"Alena, you are a Luna now. Titles are unnecessary. There's even a chance that you're the Luna Princess, and then I would need to call you by your title before you needed to call me by my title. Before anything else, I want to be friends with you."

"Thank you, friend." I hesitated to say the final word but let a large smile on my face match the one on Calliope's. "I really should make sure those two aren't out there killing each other over me." I swiped the tears off my face and moved to stand up.

Calliope helped me to my feet. "Alena, it's probably smartest if you don't get in the middle. Two Alphas fighting isn't the safest situation to put yourself into the middle of." Alena nodded to show she had heard what was said but made her way out of the circle of warriors. The men moved out of her way, and she walked to the middle of the clearing, where the two men were still throwing punches back and forth. Both had bloodied spots on their faces.

"Submit, Caelan. You know the truth." Prince Griffin's voice thundered. His frame was smaller than Caelan's, but he moved much quicker. His fists flew faster and landed harder than Caelan's. Caelan, though, was tough. He had pounds of muscle preventing severe injury, but everyone could tell he was beginning to ache.

"I won't give up on her, Griffin," Caelan responded. Griffin's punches grew quicker and more decisive when he felt the disrespect pouring off of Caelan. Refusing to use a title, even in a fistfight, was dangerous.

I trudged toward the two fighting, and the other Alphas called for me to stand down. I didn't hold back, though. I made my way right up to the men and made my way between them.

What I didn't see, though, was Caelan winding back to throw a punch at Griffin. I watched, as if in slow motion, the punch land on my shoulder. I gasped and staggered into Griffin's arms, his solid grasp on my waist holding me still. I let out a cry at the pain in my shoulder but bit my lip tightly. I couldn't move my shoulder, and I knew that it had dislocated instantly.

"Alpha Sebastian, can you help, please?" Damir and Alpha Sebastian both ran to where I stood between the men. They stared each other down, watching to see what the other person was going to do.

"You two, knock it off," I growled, and both of them looked shocked at my command. I was even shocked. I didn't know I was capable of that at all, and I probably shouldn't have been capable of it. The men listened, though, and watched silently as Damir and Alpha Sebastian pushed my shoulder back into the socket. I let out a small scream and cradled my injured arm.

After the replacement, I shifted my gaze to the two men who had been pummeling each other. "Both of you disgust me." They both seemed shocked at the fact that she spoke so freely to them.

"Alena, know your place." Caelan said deeply, making both Griffin and I growl back.

I squinted my eyes at him, squaring up to his chest. He was a good eight inches taller than me, but I knew I had his full attention. "If you truly believed me to be your mate and your Luna, you would know that it was perfectly fine for me to address you in the way that you did. You would know that it is acceptable for a mate to be upset with her mate when her mate is idiotic."

"And you." I swiveled to face Prince Griffin. "Your Highness, I mean no disrespect, but fistfighting one of your Alphas over something as simple as a mate seems ridiculous to me."

"Alena..." My name rolled off his tongue.

I shook my head, shaking off the feelings that came with it.

Alpha Sebastian sputtered, "Delta Alena."

I shifted my head to my Alpha. "What is it, Sebastian?" I narrowed my eyes at him.

"There's a situation at Frostclaw, and it's bad." Caelan immediately took off toward the car park. "Prince Griffin, it is requested that you are there as well. It's not looking well for the pack, and they need all the assistance they can have." Caelan slowed and turned to face us, seeing what Griffin's choice would be.

"Both of you go and don't act like children while you're gone. We can settle this when you return, once your people are safe." Alpha Violet spoke confidently. The two men left, and the attention turned toward me.

I flopped onto the ground, still cradling my arm. "What a day, and it's barely even noon." I chuckled, leading to a laugh from Damir. "Damir, can you dismiss the warriors and take me inside? I need to rest. Today has been a bit too eventful." I was lifted into a pair of strong arms, and I saw that Damir had lifted me into his arms and was carrying me to the packhouse. We went directly into the Alpha lounge under the guidance of Alpha Sebastian. I was sat down on a couch and soon was surrounded by Alphas.

"I'm sorry to put more pressure on you, Alena, but we need some answers." Alpha Sebastian looked pointedly at me, and I dropped my head.

"I know I should have said something sooner, but I was terrified. I had loved being in my wolf form for so long, but when dad died, I started to sink inside. I still shifted for a couple of years, but I wasn't joyful in it. Last year, I lost my sense of smell. I thought it was just a cold or a phase, but my wolf is sick. She hasn't even pushed to come out in months, and I don't know if she'll be able to come out." I let out a strangled sob. "A true Luna can't have a weak wolf."

"Alena, we're going to have Violet and Calliope take you to the training room and see if we can get your wolf to shift. It's going to be painful; there's almost no doubt there. Is there anything else we need to know?"

Damir spoke up, "her wolf is half-blind." I swiveled my head to him, my eyes narrowing.

"My sight downfalls are not necessary for conversations around my shifting. I will be able to shift well. I can hear perfectly and smell perfect when I'm in wolf form. One of my eyes was harmed in a fight the same day that dad... left us." Alpha Sebastian nodded.

I rose, rolling my shoulder forward and back. I knew there would be a dull ache for a while, but I would survive. "Let's go." They each made eye contact with Alpha Sebastian, their eyes glazing over, then they each grabbed a bag from the corner.

"What's in the bag?" I asked, freezing in my place.

Damir sighed. "One has Alpha Caelan's shirt, and one has Prince Alpha Griffins. Your wolf will know which is her mate's."

I grimaced and walked toward the door. "I guess there's no time like the present." I stepped out and walked towards our pack training ground, ignoring the two powerful female Alphas walking behind me.

~~

A/N:

If you're enjoying this and want to see more of it, please vote or comment! Right now, I can't tell if people are enjoying it or can't stand it, and I would really enjoy some feedback on it! The next chapter is on the way soon! (6/20/2021)