ONE

Sage's Pov

I, Princess Sage of Moonclaw pack, sever all ties with the pack,” I declared sternly, facing all three of them. It was over. I wasn't going to take anymore of this from any of them again.

I took off my crown and tossed it at Eleanor. “You can keep it.”

Thirty minutes ago

It happened so fast. In a blink of an eye Eleanor threw herself down the staircase. What the fuck! I watched her body tumble down the stairs in a flurry of arms and legs. 

"AHHHHHHHH!" She screamed her way down, hitting the ground with a loud thud.

In seconds, Regan and Alistair barged into the living room, and their gaze widened when they saw her on the floor.

“Eleanor!” They yelled, rushing across the room hastily. “Are you okay?” Alistair helped her up while Regan fussed over her to check if she had gotten hurt anywhere.

“What happened to you?” Regan asked her and I turned to leave. I barely took two steps when her next three words made me halt in my tracks.

“She pushed me,” she replied.

Wait, what?

I swirled my head in their direction so fast I almost fell. They were looking up at me, and Eleanor was pointing her finger to me, “Sage pushed me.”

There was a fiery glint in her eyes as my gaze met hers, “She hates me," she sobbed, her voice trembling with each word, “She thinks I'm trying to usurp her place as the princess, and now she's trying to kill me.”

“What?” Regan's eyes flashed red with anger, and Alistair's face darkened in sync. Without another word, the two of them stormed upstairs.

I wasn't shocked or even slightly fazed by this. I was used to this—my beta brothers sticking up for their foster sister and not me, but that didn't mean it still didn't annoy me, especially since they were treating me like an intruder.

“Sage! How dare you harm my sister?” Regan barked and Alistair stood behind him glaring at me.

His sister? I frowned. If she was their sister what exactly did that make me? When will they ever acknowledge me or stand up for me? I'm not some stranger here! I wanted to shout.

“Your sister?” I echoed with a frown. “I'm your biological sister, Regan! And no, I didn't touch her. She's lying!”

“Don't you dare lie to us!” Alistair yelled, stepping forward, and I instinctively stepped back, “And don't you ever refer to yourself as our sister again. I do not regard you as that,” he spat bitterly.

I swallowed hard, feeling a slight tremble in my hand as I clenched it to a fist. “I'm not lying, Alistair. I didn't touch her—”

“SHUT UP! You liar!” He cut me off, “If you didn't touch her. How do you explain her falling down the stairs?”

“Why don't you ask her? I didn't touch her! I swear on the moon goddess!”

“Your swearing doesn't count, you are an abomination. The moon goddess?” He scoffed, lowering his gaze to the collar around my neck. He eyed me with disdain, “Don't make me laugh.”

The stairs creaked as Eleanor climbed up, walking towards us with tears streaming down her face. It was all an act. I knew it and I just wished they could see it too.

“For what you did, Sage. You're going to kneel and apologize to Eleanor,” Alastair said as Eleanor joined us upstairs.

“What??” I blurted, “I told you I didn't touch her.”

“And I told you to stop lying,” Alistair spoke again.

“I can prove it. I can prove that I didn't touch her at all,” I said, and I could have sworn I saw a hint of shock flash on Eleanor’s face but she swallowed it down. “Really? And how do you intend to do that?”

“The cameras,” I replied, pointing to the CCTV cameras at the corner of the room, “Why don't we check it, and see what really happened?”

I led the way to the security room, and they followed me.  “Can you please show my brothers the footage from the staircase?" I asked the security man when I walked in, and he nodded.

He rewinded the footage, and played it, “Zoom in,” I grinned and the man did, showing a clear image of Eleanor as she threw herself down the staircase.

I spun around, facing my brothers with a confident smile,  “I told you—”

Eleanor bursted into tears instantly, “I’m sorry,” she trembled as tears rolled down her cheeks, “She said I wasn't the real one, and it hurt because she's right. She's the long lost princess and I'm just the foster daughter, the Queen took in when she lost Sage…”

“Hey, hey, hey,” Alastair hushed, pulling her into his arms, “It's okay. I understand,” he embraced her warmly, and my jaw dropped. He didn't just believe her crocodile tears, did he?

This wasn't how it was meant to go. I stepped forward, “Alistair—”

He shot me a look, “What?”

“She was lying. I just proved that—”

“So??” Regan interrupted, “You want a fucking accolades for that? You're the reason she almost killed herself, Sage. You should be apologizing for that.”

“What?” I blurted, shocked by his words. That was absurd. 

“You heard me,” he said, “This is all because of you.”

I clenched my fist tightly. I couldn't believe what I was hearing. “She threw herself downstairs, Regan. She's nuts! How can you blame me for that—?”

“How can he not?” Alistair interrupted, “And don't you ever call her nuts. You're nuts!”

I recoiled, rage boiling inside of me. I felt so helpless and it was sickening. How could this happen? I showed them proof so how could they turn a blind eye to it? My visions began to blur as tears welled in my eyes. I blinked them away, refusing to waste my tears on any of them.

It wasn't worth it. They weren't worth it but shit! It hurts like hell. My eyes burned as tears threatened to fall.

Alistair continued,  “Eleanor would have never felt the need to throw herself down the stairs if you hadn't made her feel so out of place here.”

I stared at him in disbelief. “I made her feel out of place?” I echoed, cocking my brows. Was he kidding? I was the one out of place here. Me!

Eleanor had always had a place here since she was a kid. She had owned everything that was mine in my absence for sixteen years.

While I had spent those years scavenging for food in the wild, hiding, and now even though I was right here. She was still living my life, she was still Princess Eleanor of Moonclaw pack while I was the outsider wearing the crown.

I choked back the tears, “Can you hear yourself right now? I'm the one out of place in my own home! This is my home!” I yelled and Regan grabbed me pushing me against the wall.

“Watch your tongue, Sage! We don't want you here. We never have, and we never will,” Regan released me, and they all shuffled out of the room.

Eleanor looked back at me as they headed out with a victorious smile on her face that burned through me. I had lost again, and this time it stung more than ever. I always thought Alistair and Regan would one day come to accept me.

They were my brothers, their affection was something I didn't think I'd have to work so hard for. This was too hard. I slid my back down the wall until I was seated on the ground.

I brought a hand to the collar around my neck. I clutch it tightly, shutting my eyes as tears rolled down my cheeks.

Eight years. I had done everything I could just to be accepted, and loved by them, including wearing this darn collar that suppressed my wolf, Silver.

Silver wolves were one of the rarest forms for a werewolf in our clan. There hadn't been one for over a century since the last one which nearly destroyed the entire clan. Since then, having a silver wolf was seen as a curse, and a harbinger of evil which is why I was nothing more than an abomination to my clan.

Growing up in the wild, and discovering my wolf I had quickly picked up that I had to hide my true identity, pretending to be wolf less instead because If I was ever discovered. I would be killed like all the previous ones. It was the law.

When my family finally found me, they didn't know the kind of wolf I had unlocked, but once they did they put a collar on me to keep my form a secret from everyone else, not for my benefit but for theirs.

When a silver wolf is found in the pack, the family  is usually banished for producing the abomination, and my parents couldn't afford that fate.

Imagine what would happen to my father, the Alpha King and the Luna if everyone found out the princess was a silver wolf. It would be the most dreadful thing, and my father would surely lose his position as the Alpha in the pack which meant everything to him.

They couldn't afford that. My appearance suddenly became a threat to everything they had built and they all hated me for it. It broke my heart, all I wanted in the world was their love and acceptance but I could never get it.

I tightened my fist. Enough was enough. I give up. I could no longer try. I wasn't going to live like this anymore.

I wiped my tears, and rose to my feet, heading out of the room with determination. I wasn't going to settle anymore. The rage simmered inside of me as I stormed downstairs.

“What do you want now?” Regan asked as I came before them.

Without a word I gripped the collar around my neck and ripped it from my neck, tossing it to the ground.

“What do you think you're doing?” Regan questioned, jumping to his feet. “You're not allowed to take that off.”

I ignored him, fixing my gaze on Alistair, “I, Princess Sage of Moonclaw pack, sever all ties with the pack from today.”

I took off my crown and tossed it at Eleanor. “You can keep it—Princess,” I said, mockingly.