Chapter 7

*Cyrus*

"She's late" I mind-linked Dante at the dinner table.  Normally Dante and I would joke about our insatiable appetites. Werewolves had high metabolisms and could eat a lot, but Dante and I, well even for a werewolf, ate a lot.  The Omega who stocked our kitchen in the Golden Moon packhouse learned that my idea of a snack was more of a meal for a small family.  After months of pulling his hair over how much we ate, he finally gave us a separate fridge, which we'd still clear out daily.  Today was different though.  All the food in front of me look delicious,  the pack had done their homework and had a lot of my favourites. Yet, I couldn't find my appetite.  I pushed around a piece of brisket on my plate, not wanting to be rude.    

"Dinner has barely started" Dante replied via mind-link.  My situation had done nothing to dampen his appetite.  I watched as Dante served himself a bit from every dish, meats and sides piled high on his plate.  They had looked appealing before he unceremoniously dumped them into a slop on his plate "You have to try this sausage, it is so good" he spoke, mouth full of food.  

"I don't know if you left any for me judging from the mountain on your plate" I teased.  I reached to grab a sausage when I felt her come into the room.  My head snapped towards her direction, as I forgot about food entirely, and my breath hitched.  She had changed from the white lace dress, swapping it for a pair of well-fitting black dress pants and a tight white blouse with the sleeves rolled up to her elbows.  She looked like an Alpha, confident and in charge.  Blaze purred at her sight.  I'm glad I had worn my nicest dress shirt and slacks to dinner, despite Dante's teasing about me being a himbo instead of an Alpha.  

"I was beginning to think you'd be eaten by a starving animal," teased Beta Ned, as Fiona walked in.  She laughed and the room seem to grow merrier and brighter.  Her smile seems to lift the spirit of the room.  

"It seems the starving animals are in here," she joked looking at Dante's plate.  She turned to me and with a sly smile asked, "don't you feed your Beta, Alpha Astor?" 

"He has a high metabolism, even for a werewolf," I commented.  I noticed she came to dinner alone.  I smiled hoping he had left.  "Where is that. . . friend. . . of yours?" I said cooly "Alpha. . . Dimitri. . . was it?" It might have been petty to purposely use a different name, but Fiona was my mate and I wasn't about to let a lowly Alpha have her.   

"David," she said correcting me. "Unfortunately not, David had to return to his pack to attend to some business.  His pack has a holiday tomorrow and he still has a lot to organise."

"Will you attend the festivities tomorrow Alpha Fin?" Beta Liz asked excitedly. "I hear the Half-Moon pack is going all out this year."

"Well, it's not every day  an Alpha turns 21" Beta Ned said, "seems like yesterday you two were running flattening all the bushes in your mother garden."

"Well, we were banned from sparing in the house," Fiona spoke lightly reminiscing about old times. "Where else were we going to train?"  She laughed. "Tomorrow is going to be quite busy; Alpha Astor has me booked out most of the day, but I will try and make time to visit.  I haven't seen Anna in years."  Liz added that Anna was David's twin sister for my and Dante's benefit.   

"He's a young Alpha," I commented.

"Age isn't a good indicator of leadership, plenty of old Alpha's have lost the plot." Fiona started a bit defensively "Alpha Sion, David's father, decided that David proved his ability to lead and took a step back. Besides, it's not like he's the youngest Alpha to take over a pack."  Clearly, I had touched a nerve.  In a split second, however, Fiona was back to her political smile.  It lacked the warmth I had seen when she was laughing but still was stunning.  

The rest of dinner passed uneventfully.  Mainly discussing what information we needed for the King and the timeline of our stay.  Mostly the King wanted to check that the pack was indeed paying their taxes and how they were supporting themselves financially if their borders were closed.  We had only planned to stay a week, but with Fiona being my mate I was determined to extend our stay as long as I needed.

After dinner, we had a tour of the pack.  It was just before sunset, golden hour.  The lighting only served to highlight Fiona's features.  I found myself lost in watching the passion with which she spoke about her pack.  The love she bore for each member she wore as a badge of honour.   Along the tour, there were a few young wolves that ran up to her, much to the dismay of their mothers trailing behind.  Fiona remained calm and patient with each child that approached.  She would listen to what bug they had caught in the woods or accept a rock that thought was cool.

The pack itself was lovely.  Surrounded by dense forests on each side, which both offered protection and weakness when thinking about pack defences.  The pack was quite easy to walk across, we were in the main square in about 20 minutes.  There were several shops and eateries.  Pack members strolled about carrying out evening chores before the shops closed, or heading out for an evening of fun. I could feel eyes trail us through the pack, which was to be expected. It wasn't every day the King's Alpha showed up.  Soon we came across a large building.  One side had a garden and the other, a well-manicured lawn.

"This is our community centre and garden,"  Fiona explained.  "Community classes and training take place here.  There is also a gym open for any pack member to use." Instead of going inside, we walked through a seemingly endless garden.  We passed rows of various herbs and vegetables, into a circle of hedges with some benches and a water fountain in the middle.  Bright white flowers dotted the hedges, as butterflies moved from flower to flower.  It was a magical place, the air seemed electric.  "I'm not personally much of a gardener, but a few pack members with a green thumb offered to help run the garden and teach everyone the trade." 

"It's lovely," I said looking around.  Dante studied the fountain, while I found the opportunity to stand next to Fiona.  She held out her finger to a butterfly, which gently landed on it.  She smiled at me, as the butterfly explored her finger, its long tube-like mouth looking for pollen. "I always get excited when they land on me," she spoke softly as if her voice would scare it off. 

"Well butterflies are attracted to beautiful things that smell nice" I spoke softly so only she could hear me "So it make sense."  She looked at me, raising an eyebrow.  I winked.

"This garden was created to replicate the garden that Luna Celeste planted when she became Luna, to honour her memory."  Beta Ned said talking to Dante at the fountain.  "She would always say that her favourite place in the pack was here at this fountain."

"Luna Celeste?"  Dante asked.  

"She was the formed Luna," he explained "When she passed, well Alpha Hayden, he..."

"Became crueller than ever," said Fiona harshly cutting in, butterfly fluttering away as she spoke, "Luna Celeste was the only one keeping the pack together."

"How did she pass?" Dante asked.  Tension filled the air and both Beta Ned and Liz looked to Fiona.  They seemed afraid to speak.  

"The former Alpha," Fiona sighed deeply.  When she spoke her voice was heavy and sombre, "Alpha Hayden was a monster. Luna Celeste passed away at the hands of her mate."