Chapter 19: The coronation
342 Words
They made Ava wait until dawn.
Tradition, Rowan said. New Alphas must be blessed by moonlight and sun.
Ava stood on the stone altar while the pack watched. Her silver mark was uncovered. It glowed even in daylight.
"Do you accept the weight of this pack?" Rowan asked.
Ava’s eyes swept over them. The ones who laughed. The ones who exiled her. The ones who knelt last night.
"I accept," she said. "But I won’t be like the last Alpha."
Whispers.
"No fear. No exile without cause. No weak wolf left behind," Ava said. "From today, Silver Fang changes."
Rowan placed the Alpha crown on her head. Heavy. Cold. Real.
"Kneel for your Luna," he said.
And they did. All of them.
Even the elders. Even Darius, from the back row, with his head down.
When Ava lifted her hand, the mark flared bright silver. The sky cracked with thunder though there were no clouds.
The Moon Goddess had chosen.
Darius stared at her like he didn’t recognize the girl he rejected. Because he didn’t.
That girl was dead.
This was Alpha Ava Carter.
They made Ava wait until dawn.
Tradition, Rowan said. New Alphas must be blessed by moonlight and sun.
Ava stood on the stone altar while the pack watched. The morning air was cold. Her hands didn’t shake. Three years ago she would have cried here. Not today.
Her silver mark was uncovered. It glowed even in daylight, like moonlight trapped under skin.
"Do you accept the weight of this pack?" Rowan asked. His voice was formal, but his eyes were careful.
Ava’s eyes swept over them. The ones who laughed when she was thrown out. The ones who called her mate-less. The ones who knelt last night.
"I accept," she said. Her voice carried without effort. "But I won’t be like the last Alpha."
Whispers ran through the crowd.
Darius shifted in the back. His fists clenched.
"No fear," Ava said. "No exile without cause. No weak wolf left behind." She paused. "From today, Silver Fang changes
END.
- Writer
