A pack without a luna
688 Words
The night air was crisp as Seraphina stepped out of the lodge, her breath forming small clouds in the cool wind. The whispers behind her didn’t stop. She didn’t expect them to. They had already made up their minds about her.
A Luna without a mate is a Luna without a future.
That’s what they believed. And the more she resisted, the more they pulled away from her.
She wasn’t blind. The pack was slipping through her fingers. She had been born into this role, trained for it, raised to lead—but none of it mattered. The elders only saw her as a temporary placeholder. A woman waiting for the moment she would “come to her senses” and accept a mate.
Her mother had pleaded with her just days ago. “Sera, I know you want to prove yourself, but the pack is losing faith. You don’t have to love him. You only need to choose someone. Show them you understand what it means to be Luna.”
She had ignored it, like she ignored all of them. But now, standing under the moon’s glow, she felt the weight of it pressing down on her shoulders. How much longer could she hold on before they turned on her completely?
She stepped forward, her bare feet brushing against the damp grass, her mind clouded with frustration. She wasn’t weak. She wasn’t incapable. And yet, the pack didn’t see her as enough.
The sound of rustling footsteps pulled her from her thoughts. She turned sharply, her blue eyes narrowing, her body tensed for a fight. But it wasn’t an enemy lurking in the darkness.
It was Damian.
He stood a few feet away, arms crossed over his broad chest, watching her with unreadable eyes. His black hair was tousled from the wind, and his wolf’s presence lingered beneath his skin, restless and waiting.
She hated the way he looked at her. Like he pitied her.
“You shouldn’t be out here alone,” he said.
Seraphina exhaled sharply. “I’m not afraid.”
“That’s not the point.” Damian stepped closer, his voice lowering. “The pack is restless, Seraphina. They’re talking.”
“They’ve been talking since the moment my father named me Luna,” she shot back. “What else is new?”
Damian hesitated. “This time, it’s different.”
Something in his tone made her pause.
She studied his face carefully. Damian had been one of the few warriors who had ever stood by her side, but even his loyalty had limits.
“They don’t trust you anymore,” he continued, his expression unreadable. “They think you’re leading them into uncertainty. A Luna without a mate is—”
“—a weakness.” Seraphina finished his sentence for him, her voice cold. “I know what they think.”
“And you still refuse to choose someone?”
Her jaw tightened.
She had no answer.
Not because she didn’t want to lead, but because she couldn’t bring herself to do it their way.
“There’s talk of the council taking matters into their own hands,” Damian said, voice softer now.
Seraphina’s stomach twisted. “Meaning?”
“They want to challenge your right to lead. If you refuse to choose a mate, they’ll name a new Alpha and force you to step down.”
Her blood turned to ice.
They wanted to replace her.
Of course they did. They had never truly accepted her in the first place. The only reason they hadn’t acted sooner was because of her father’s name, the legacy he had left behind. But now, that protection was fading, and they were getting bolder.
Seraphina lifted her chin. “Let them try.”
Damian sighed. “Sera—”
She stepped past him, heading back toward the lodge. “I will not submit.”
She didn’t have a plan. She didn’t know what she would do next.
But one thing was certain.
If they wanted to take her throne, they would have to kill her for it.
And she wasn’t going down without a fight.
- Writer
