The Beta's Justice

Chapter 28

Nova's POV

Today is the day. Everything will either fall into place or fall apart. I pushed off the covers and got out of bed. Grabbing my clothes, I went to the bathroom. I was nervous, but in an excited way. Audrey had everyone's performance planned and scheduled, including my own. Many of the pack would see what I am capable of and, hopefully, it would instill confidence rather than fear.

Going into the dining room, I was met by mom and dad both standing up and each holding something in their hands. “Sweetheart, we are so proud of you,” mom gushed as she handed me a glittering bag.

Dad followed her and handed me a small sparkling bag. “Guys, you didn't have to,” I said as I beamed at them both.

“Maybe not, but you have been working so hard this week and we wanted to do something to cheer you on,” mom said with a broad smile.

“Open them,” dad coaxed as they took a seat at the table that had been filled with all sorts of breakfast foods. Mom had cooked all my favorites and even Leon's.

Before I could open the gifts, curiosity about the assorted food got the best of me. “What's with all this?” I asked as I gestured to the food on the table.

“Oh, that's my fault.” I heard Leon's voice come from behind me, causing a shiver to run down my spine. "I hope you don't mind this early morning visit," he whispered into my ear. I could hear the smile in his voice.

"No, of course not," I responded quietly.

"Okay you two, come sit down. Then Nova can open her gifts so we can start eating." Mom motioned for us to come to the table.

Quickly, I took a seat as I felt my cheeks redden. Leon sat next to me. He was so close, I could feel the heat coming off him. Trying to ignore the feelings that were bubbling up inside me, I opened the presents mom and dad had given me. I started with the bigger bag. I pulled out the tissue paper carefully and then I pulled out a dress. The most beautiful dress I had ever seen. I stood up and pulled the dress completely from the bag. It fell down past my knees. It sparkled like stars, shimmering midnight blue.

"Why are you crying? Do you not like the dress?" Mom asked as she looked at me concerned.

"No, I love it," I whispered as I marvelled at it. "It's beautiful."

"Then why are you crying?" mom worried.

I brought my hand up to my eyes and wiped away the tears that were sliding down my cheeks. "I'm not trying to."

"Go try it on," dad encouraged with a soft smile.

Quickly, I took the opportunity to leave the room. Stepping into my room, I stood in front of the full-length mirror holding the dress in front of myself. "I really am home," I said to myself.

I stepped out of the dress I had put on to slide into the one mom had just given me. Looking myself over in the mirror, I felt elegant, almost like a Luna. Looking for a short while longer, I then went back to the dining room. "You look stunning," Leon told me in awe.

"Thanks," I responded, trying hard not to blush, but failing.

"Open this one," dad said as he pushed the small one toward me.

I pulled out the tissue paper and then a navy blue velvet box. Snapping open the box, I saw a set. Sapphire studs, a simple silver chain with a single Sapphire stone, and a silver chain bracelet with Sapphire stones. It all matched my dress beautifully. "Thank you, dad. It's all so beautiful," I complimented.

"Let me help you," he offered as he stood and came up behind me. He took the necklace and helped me latch it on. Then he took the bracelet and wrapped it around my wrist. He picked up the earrings and then slid them into my hand. "You're on your own with these," he chuckled as he walked back to his seat.

I took out my current earrings, placed them in the box and then I slid the new ones in. "Gorgeous," Leon said with a look in his eyes I didn't recognize.

"Thank you," I blushed harder.

"Okay, we need to eat. So stop ogling one another," dad chuckled as he started to scoop food onto his plate.

My face must have turned the same shade of red as a tomato. I quickly turned my attention to the food and started spooning the food onto my plate. I tried to focus only on the plate of food and ignore how hot I suddenly felt. It was difficult. Leon was so close.

Abruptly, I stood up, causing all eyes to look at me. “I think I should get going. The Luna should never be late for her own event. Early, yes, but late, no,” I blurted as I grabbed my little black purse and slid my phone inside.

It felt almost robotic the way I was walking toward the front door. I could hear Leon chuckling as he pushed his chair out from under him and followed me to the front door. “Let's go together,” he said as he took my hand, trying to get my attention.

“Okay,” I whispered, shyly.

“We'll see you at the festival,” mom called after us.

“Okay,” I responded as we left the house.

Leon opened the passenger side door for me to get in. I slid into the car and he went out around to the driver's side. Getting in, he started the car and we were on the road toward the festival. We arrived a short time later to see Luna Lily already calling out instructions to add the finishing touches to the festival before we began welcoming the rest the pack. I gave Leon a chased kiss and then rushed out of the car to greet Luna Lily.

“Good morning, Luna Lily,” I said with a bow.

“Good morning, future Luna Nova,” she returned the warm greeting. “Today is the day. Are you prepared?”

“As much as I can be,” I responded, suddenly feeling a wave of worry and anxiety wash over me.

“Don't worry. This festival will be the best one this pack has ever seen,” she boasted.

“How can you be sure?”

“It is the first and therefore will be the best,” she smiled at me warmly. “Now, don't worry. All we need to do is make sure everyone knows their roles and then make the rounds. As the Luna your goal is to greet as many wolves and she-wolves as possible. If you can't remember someone's name, do not stress. The pack members will understand,” she encouraged.

“Thank you, Luna Lily,” I said as I breathed a slight sigh of relief.

“Time to get moving,” she said as she started to glide around the festival grounds.

I did my best to keep up with her. She made everything look so easy. She spoke formally yet warmly to everyone. The more I watched her and learned from her, the more I thought she embodied the true essence of a Luna. At times, I worried I wouldn't be able to live up to the example she was setting for me. The clock ticked away and soon the pack members were lining up just outside the fence that wrapped around the training facility yard.

Audrey was inside the training facility going over the special wolves' routines and then sending them out to help at the booths as they finished their final practice. While she did that, I remained at Luna Lily's side greeting pack members and helping to make sure every booth had all they needed, as well as making sure all the work had been distributed somewhat evenly. Everything seemed to be going smoothly. However, the longer I was on my feet the more exhausted I felt.

“Nova,” I felt a tap on my shoulder and turned to see Audrey.

“Yes?”

“Do you have time to come in and practice?” she asked.

I felt like my heart jumped into my throat. I knew I had to put on a performance, but I had been so busy that I hadn't had a chance to practice in the training facility. Now, she wanted me to practice. At this point, I figured I would just wing it. I glanced over at Luna Lily, unsure if I should go and practice. “Go ahead, I will continue the rounds,” she said as she shooed me away.

“Are you sure?” I worried. Now that the day was here and Audrey wanted me to practice, the idea of showcasing my abilities was becoming more nerve-wracking than I ever thought possible.

“Yes, yes. It is better to be prepared, especially with something so important.” Her voice was warm as she encouraged me to go with Audrey.

“I will find you as soon as I am done,” I promised.

“No need. I would prefer you take a break and prepare mentally for the performance,” she told me.

I knew she was being honest with me, however, it felt wrong for me to take a break while she continued walking around the festival to keep it running smoothly. “A Luna must know when to take a break and care for herself. If a Luna is tired and unhealthy, then she cannot care for the pack properly.”

“I will do as you told me,” I relented and bowed before I turned to follow Audrey into the training facility.

Audrey and I walked inside. I looked around in awe. Luna Lily and I had left the decorations inside up to Audrey and she did not disappoint. There was a stage up against the far wall with rows of chairs in front of it spanning all the way back to a few feet in front of the door. There must have been at least a thousand chairs in total. Once I approached the stage, it could be seen that there was a backstage with props and equipment neatly organized. The backstage had been covered with a large curtain. I looked over everything, wondering who had built such an extravagant stage.

Taking in a deep breath, I stepped onto the stage. Then it happened, stage fright. I must have stood there long enough without moving that Audrey felt the need to say something. “Future Luna, are you okay?” she asked as she got up onto the stage to stand next to me.

I wanted to nod. I wanted to be seen as brave and strong. But I shook my head. “Stage fright?” I nodded. “I had that too.” She smiled.

“How did you get over it?”

“I didn't,” she said with a shrug.

I looked over at her confused. “But aren't you going to perform as well?”

“I am,” she smiled.

“How?”

“Mind over matter,” she responded, as though it were the simplest answer in the world.

“No, really,” I tried to get her to tell me the real answer.

“Really. A lot of it is just getting up and doing it,” she told me. “Now what are you planning to do?”

I shrugged, unsure. “I haven't really planned it out,” I admitted.

Her jaw dropped as her eyes nearly bugged out of her head. “Ummm, what?”

“Every time I tried to plan it out, I had work to do,” I told her knowing it sounded more like an excuse than a real reason.

Audrey's POV



What the hell did she just tell me? I thought she was joking. It had to be a joke, right? But it wasn't. “Okay, two options,” I started and then tried to gather my thoughts. Luckily, I had coordinated so many performances that I should be able to do one more no problem. “First, do you plan to perform in human or wolf form?”

She stood there thinking for a good two minutes before responding. “I'm not sure I can do anything in my human form,” she admitted.

“Oh, have you tried?”

“No and I'm not sure how to,” she said as she shifted uncomfortably.

“Well, let's try. Since you can use fire in wolf form, then it would make sense that you could use it in human form. Flying though, I don't believe you could fly in this form since you sprout wings in wolf form to fly.” I looked her over, trying to decide how to get her to at least try. If she had come to me sooner, we could have used the training facility properly, but now we need to be careful with what we do here. There was far too much that could catch fire.

"Come on, just try," I encouraged her as I jumped and went to the far corner of the training facility. "Aim for here," I instructed her.

"But I could damage the building," she worried.

"No, this place is basically damage-proof. You won't damage anything," I promised her.

"Okay," she responded with little to no confidence.

I stepped a few paces away from the corner as she raised her hands. She took in a few deep breaths and fire erupted around her hands. Before she could try to shoot it toward the wall, she screamed and panicked as she tried to put out the fire. I raved over to her, worried she was in pain. "Nov... I mean future Luna are you hurt?" I asked as I jumped on stage and helped her put the fire out.

She looked from me to her hands a few times. "I'm not hurt," she responded in awe.

"Great! Let's try again," I smiled confidently at her as I hopped off the stage and headed toward the corner. "Now, let's give it another try."

I watched as she caused fire to erupt around her hands again. Then she tried to hold out her hands and shoot the fire at the corner. However, when that didn't work, she tried to throw the fire like a baseball. This time, the fire flew from her hand, striking the wall. "Perfect!" I cheered.

"How is that something I can use as a performance?" She asked as she looked down at her hands.

"I was thinking, start simple with something like juggling fire. Then create a ring of fire in front of you. Jump through. As you jump through shift into your wolf form, spread your wings and sore over the crowd," I told her. I watched as she looked at me like I was crazy.

"I can't be that coordinated," she told me.

"Let's give it a try. Pointless to say you can't if you never tried," I encouraged her.

She sighed but didn't fight the idea. It took her about ten tries after she changed into something other than her beautiful midnight blue dress. Finally, she got it. She shifted back behindstage and pulled on her dress again. "I did it," she said as she stepped back onto the stage. She appeared flabbergasted that she had been able to.

"Of course, you did." I smiled. Looking down at my watch, I realized I was behind schedule. "You had better get back out there. The performances will begin soon."

"Thank you," she said as she stepped over to me and took my hands. "Really, thank you. I couldn't have done any of this without you." Her words warmed my heart.

"I'm sure you could have," I brushed off her compliment.

"No, really. I am forever grateful." She tried hard to impress on me how much she appreciated me. This caused my cheeks to redden.

"Thank you. Now get going," I said as I gently pulled my hands from her and then pushed her toward the door.

The door closed and I pulled out my phone and went through my checklist. I had to check on a few more things and then everything would be ready. Going backstage, I double-checked all the costumes and the few props that were necessary along with our safety measures in case someone lost control. "Still checking everything?" I heard Caden question.

"Just doing a final check before we start," I responded.

"Aiden and I have it covered. We will be damage control," he promised.

"I thought you two just wanted to watch," I smiled at him knowingly. I knew as tough as he wanted to act, he still wanted to be part of the performance.

"Aiden is adamant," he quickly responded.

"And I'm sure Aiden is also adamant about joining the performance," I said, trying to keep a straight face.

"Yes," he responded flatly.

"Do you two need the stage to practice?"

He shook his head. "We've had enough practice to last us a lifetime," he grumbled.

Just as he finished speaking, Aiden appeared. "Caden tells me you both are joining the performance," I smiled happily.

"Yes, he really..." he began, but then Caden jabbed him in the stomach with his elbow. "What was that for?!" He growled at his brother.

"Nothing, let's go," he said as he turned on his heels to leave.

"Oh, the performance starts in about thirty minutes. Make sure you are here on time. I will rework the schedule and add your names," I called after him. He waved his hand above his head as he left the facility.

"He really wants to perform, doesn't he?" I asked Aiden.

"He wouldn't shut up about it," complained Aiden. "I would prefer to watch, but he just wants to show off."

"He could perform on his own," I tried to offer a solution.

"He could, but that would be too easy for me," he grumbled. "I'm just doing it to get him to stop annoying me."

"Okay, I'll mark you both on the schedule," I said as I went backstage to grab the clipboard.

Quickly, I made some adjustments and then put it back. "There, all done."

"Well, I had better keep an eye on Caden. I don't really trust him not to be annoyed by someone and try something stupid," he said with a sigh.

"Try to have fun too," I told him.

"I will," he smiled back. I knew as much as he felt like the buffer between his brother and the world, he loved him.

Everything is finally starting. The performance will soon begin and then, if all goes well, the back will not fear the special wolves, but instead become friends or at the very least respect them as pack members.