Fall of the Luna (completed)

Progress

Reena’s POV

                I had two more days before the conference was supposed to have ended and Leyton would expect me to be home. These two days were perfect for my plan. I decided to head to Whistler to find out more about Larsa before deciding if I should let Leyton know or not. Using the excuse of recruiting a pediatrician, I called Larsa to ask if she would have some time for lunch the next day. She didn’t disappoint and was just as helpful as Kayla always was. My heart pounded in anticipation as I drove towards Whistler to spend the night, silently praying to the Moon Goddess that regardless of what has happened, that I’ve found my little sister.

                My alarm went off punctually at 9am and I quickly got out of bed to get ready for my mission today. I wanted to go to the hospital early to check what I can find out about Larsa without alarming her. “Excuse me, how do I get to the pediatric floor?” I decided to try my luck out at the reception. “It’s on the third floor. Head down the hallway then take a left, and you’ll find the elevators,” a middle-age nurse said without looking up from her work. Like in any hospitals, nurses were too busy for small talk. I thanked her and headed to the third floor to try out my next idea and thankfully, this time my idea worked. At the entrance of the pediatric floor was a large noticeboard and one section documented the doctors and nurses working at the station. It was a cute section with a large tree and each doctor or nurse’s photo was framed by an apple. Under each apple was their name and their favorite animal. I scanned the apples and quickly found Larsa. “M.D. Larsa Wald, favorite animal wolf,” I mumbled. Somehow the last name Wald rang a bell but I couldn’t remember where I had heard it before. In the middle of the notice board, I noticed some pictures that were taken at recent events. One photo in particular caught my eye, it was a photo of a small party in the garden. There were children dressed up in costumes of cartoon characters but also children in hospital gowns and they were planting their own tree seedlings in a garden. In the background were cherry blossom trees and one of the adults in the photo was without a doubt Larsa.

                Tears filled my eyes as I remember my first meeting with Kayla and it was at the opening of our Pack’s orphanage. I was invited by the Pack to visit them to check things out before deciding if I wanted to join the Pack and work at the hospital. The moment I arrived, my wolf was excited and I’ve never felt her so happy before. She wouldn’t stop purring and soon I realized why as my eyes locked with those of my mate. Leyton ran over to me and swept me up in his arms while his eyes glowed brightly as they bored into mine. My wolf was going insane and screaming Mate so loudly in my head that I was too shocked to react. It was at the moment that Kayla’s laughter woke both of us from our own trance. I’d never forget the amusement in her laugh and the amount of happiness it held. “Go easy, brother, or you’d pay if you scare the best candidate for our hospital director away,” she teased as she headed towards us. Leyton’s eyes softened and he gruffly apologized for behaving like a caveman before relaxing his hold on me but refusing to let go. My face must have turned red like a tomato but luckily everyone was easy-going and understanding. Leyton and I clung on to each other like monkeys for the rest of the day while we watched Kayla led the pups to a garden attached to the orphanage and showed them the seeds that they could plant there.

                “Hey Reena? Is that you?” A familiar voice brought me back from memory lane and I quickly blinked away the tears before turning around and smiling at Larsa. “Oh wow, you’re really early. It isn’t even 11am yet.” She raised her eyebrows and pretended to be shocked. We laughed and I found myself enjoying how out-going and humorous Larsa was, a stark difference from the soft-spoken and shy Kayla. I mentally scolded myself for thinking like this and explained that I just wanted to have a look around before we went to lunch later. “Well, you’re in luck then! I’ve just finished my rounds but I’ve invited a few of my colleagues to lunch with us and we still have to wait for them. I hope that’s ok with you? I just thought since you’re looking for someone for your hospital, some networking would help.” Larsa winked as she said the last bit. I chuckled and suggested to grab a coffee while we wait for the rest of the colleagues.

Jake’s POV

              Tonight, I planned to take Larsa out on a date. Since we had a fresh start three years ago, Larsa never really had time for me because of her residency. There were times when I’d go an entire week without seeing her because when she was home, it was just to catch up on sleep. It was difficult for my wolf to give her so much space and time but I had sacrificed almost everything to give us this new start. This time I’m going to do it my way, with no influence from my wolf or manipulation from Martha. After the deal with Aldnari, I contemplated releasing the remaining ten warriors who were bound by the blood pact to follow me, even after the fall of our Pack. They were all descendants of the strongest warriors of the founding Alpha of Moon Lake Pack, my ancestor. Each generation of these warrior descendants are sworn to protect the Alpha and at the Initiation Ceremony of the Alpha, these warriors are bounded to us by blood. I knew very well that some of them became disillusioned after we lost our Pack but were bound to follow me till death because of our blood pact, and that was a ticking time bomb reeking of betrayal. Yet, I couldn’t just release them because deep in my heart, I wanted more than just vengeance against those who’ve betrayed me and winning back Larsa. I wanted more. I wanted to rebuilt my Pack and destroy the Gold Moon Pack for destroying my Pack.

                After reading some of Martha’s ancient scrolls, I had discovered why Martha betrayed me Pack. The power that Martha seek was built upon ancient dark magic and it required a sacrifice from the Moon Goddess herself. She believed that Kayla’s wolf was the direct connection to the Moon Goddess herself because she was the white wolf. The only other white wolf to have existed was the first Luna and it was the first Luna’s grandson who had betrayed and killed the High Priestess, so Martha believed that using the blood sacrifice of a descendant of the first Luna, she could gain the favor of the betrayed High Priestess and become more powerful. She predicted that the other elements were gaining more power at the expense of her element because the power of the wolf was dominating that of the witch but she didn’t understand why the wolves had control over the other three elements. Despite some of the questions and doubts that she had, one thing she was sure about, Kayla was the key to obtaining power. My heart was torn between love and power, but tonight, I’m going to focus on winning the heart of my mate.

                “Argh, sorry James, I didn’t mean to keep you waiting but we had an emergency and I couldn’t just leave my patient.” Larsa winced apologetically as she quickly climbed into the passenger seat. I smiled and cupped her face with one hand before planting a kiss on her soft lips. She made no attempt to kiss me back and I had to use all of my self-control to keep my wolf at bay. “Don’t worry about it, Princess,” I said as calmly as I could. “I thought you’d be late and purposely didn’t make any reservations. Let’s just go to the diner near Pemberton Meadows and after dinner, we could go for a walk?” She smiled at me sheepishly and nodded.

                Dinner was pleasant but as usual, I could sense that she didn’t feel comfortable when I tried to be physically more intimate. I didn’t want to push her like I did in the past, especially because I knew that even if she didn’t feel romantic love towards me yet, at least she cares for me like family. That was already a lot more than I could have bargained for after everything that has happened. After dinner, we were strolling alone the Lilloeet River under the bright moon light. It was a full moon tonight and I could see how her beautiful eyes were lit up by the moon. My hand squeezed hers as I stopped in my tracks and pulled her into my embrace with my other arm. “Thank you for not leaving me, Larsa,” I said with real gratefulness in my voice. I looked down to gaze into her eyes and I could tell that she was hesitating. Just as I was about to lean in to kiss her, she broke free of my embrace and ran away from me. “If you can catch me, I’ll let you kiss me,” she teased and giggled as she ran further and further away from me. Her playfulness was turning my wolf on and he growled loudly in my head as we chased after our mate.

                To my horror, she tripped and we saw our mate falling backwards. I tried to reached out to grab her hand but I was just a little too far away and with a loud splash, she fell into the river. “Ah! Help!” Her voice was muffled as she struggled to stay afloat. Panic overcame me and without a second thought, I jumped into the waters after her. When we finally came ashore, another couple nearby had run over to check if we were fine. Larsa was shaking violently from the cold and I thank the couple before scooping her up and running back to the car. I immediately turned on the heating to maximum and took out a picnic blanket from the trunk to wrap around her. “Hey, it’s ok now, you’re safe. I’m going to drive us home and then we can get you all warmed up, ok?” My voice quivered as I tried to maintain my composure. Larsa looked like she was still in shock and didn’t seem to hear me at all. After buckling her in, I drove as fast as I could back home and carried her straight to her bathroom. I gently set her down, still wrapped in the picnic blanket, on the floor while I ran a hot bath.

                Once the bath water was ready, I gently undressed her before putting her into the bathtub. As the warm water washed over her skin, she finally stopped shaking and I heaved a sigh of relief. Her eyes met mine and finally she spoke, “thank you, James, I’m ok, really.” Still worried, I didn’t want to leave her but she insisted that she was fine and I could tell that she didn’t feel comfortable with me there. “Take your time, Larsa, and shout if you need anything. I’m going to make you a hot tea to warm you up.” She smiled at me thankfully and nodded before I left the bathroom reluctantly. 

Larsa's POV

                After James left, I relaxed into the warm bath that he drew for me and tried to process what happened. When I fell into the river, the chilling cold water threw me into panic mode and all of a sudden, waves of devastation and pain overwhelmed me, followed by hurt and hatred. The emotions were so intense that I couldn't stop shaking even when my body had warmed up in the car. It felt like my heart was breaking into a million tiny pieces and my body had given up fighting against it. There was a soft knock on the door before the James came in with a cup of tea for me before leaving again. Warmth filled my heart when I thought of how he didn't hesitate to jump in after me into the cold river. Sipping my tea, I brushed aside those strange feelings and decided it was probably just from the shock of it all.