Her Unexpected Luna

Chapter 11

Tasia

Tasia was full of mixed emotions. Anger, jealousy, confusion, even doubt. Of course, it wasn't until now that she could smell a different scent all over her. A scent that made her want to fly into an induced rage. She could hear the sound of Thalia's voice trying to break through her distorted state but she couldn't make out the words she was trying to say. She could feel Thalia's sudden distress even though they hadn't completed the mate bond causing Tasia to close her eyes for a moment to try and stop herself from lashing out. Now she understood why all the males acted crazy and jealous when it came to their mates. That's exactly how Tasia wanted to react right now. Lash out and demand who had taken away her chance at a true fated mate so she could rip out the man's throat and tare him from limb to limb.

On the other hand that would be irresponsible and selfish of her. Thalia must have a good reason as any other to settle down with a chosen mate. Even those thoughts didn't seem to line up with everything she has observed so far. Still, how could they still feel the mate bond?

Tasia was brought back to reality from the sound of sniffles. She immediately looked behind her to see Thalia has pulled her knees up to her chest with her freckled pale arms wrapped tightly around them. Her long tangled Scarlet hair draped over her legs as she wept quietly. A pang of guilt shot through Tasia's chest to see her mate in a position like so, crying on her own.

Turning her whole body around, she gently sat on the bed in front of Thalia's curled-up body as she reached over to take a few locks of her hair to push them back, trying to reveal her covered face. The soft-touch sent that warm feeling through her fingertips and spread throughout her whole body. It was a feeling Tasia couldn't even begin to describe. She could tell Thalia must have felt it too by the way her trembling body began to relax. Thalia slowly lifted her head to reveal her puffy but deep green eyes. The look of pain and regret made Tasia feel guilty for how she reacted without hearing her out.

"I shouldn't have responded like that... I just.. I didn't know what to think. I saw the mark and just thought.. that I lost you before I even had you" Tasia said sincerely. Thalia lifted her head more but refused to make eye contact with Tasia.

"It's not a completed mark." She said. Huh? What does that even mean? Tasia thought it would be best to remain silent and let her finish before jumping to any more conclusions. She could tell Thalia was hesitant before continuing. " The person that Alpha Trevor was referring to is Jasper. His son." Thalia said. Tasia raised an eyebrow. She had a feeling this could be a long and complicated story.

Thalia

How was Thalia supposed to tell Tasia that Jasper tried to force his mark upon her? He simply just got carried away. That's all it was, wasn't it? She hugged herself tighter just thinking about it again as her wolf growled at the thought of Jasper trying to force them to be his.

"Jasper is not my chosen mate, however, let's just say I was prepared to stay with him for the rest of my life. He is...was the only person that I could trust in this world" Thalia said, her voice trailing off thinking about her feelings for him. She now felt different about him. A feeling she can't quite understand where it came from or what it means.

She had wondered if it was because of her fated mate bond making her view differently about how she had originally felt about Jasper. But, how did she feel about Jasper? Of course, she loved him. She had always loved him. Before they ran away when they were kids she had always wished they would have been fated mates. She had thought he loved her too. It was the bond they shared that kept both of them alive all these years. For some reason now, it's beginning to feel like that bond wasn't real.

"Was?" Tasia asked her with another raised eyebrow, bringing her out of her thoughts. Thalia shrugged.

"I think It started to change the moment we met Lauren. She reminds me a lot of my mother" Thalia said before she stopped again. She hadn't mentioned her mother outside her thoughts to anyone in years. Not even Jasper. Tasia must have sensed that it was a sensitive topic by the way she moved her hand down to rest on her forearm that was still wrapped around her legs to give it a reassuring squeeze. "She has this..aura about her..that makes me feel..safe. like I'm a kid again. I haven't felt safe in years" Thalia admitted. "And I think he got jealous." She said.

"Jealous? Over Lauren?" Tasia asked.

Thalia nodded her head as she finally decided to make eye contact with Tasia again. She had seen to be calmer than what she was earlier. The rage and anger had just radiated off her skin, but she never expressed it outwardly.

"I don't think it was over Lauren. I think he was jealous of the immediate bond she and I shared. She seemed...to have understood me more than anyone else ever had. And we had only known each other for a few weeks." Thalia said

"I guess I don't understand why he would be jealous over a ...woman..." she started but made a face at those ironic words. "A motherly figure" she corrected.

"We made a promise to only ever trust each other. Over the past 5 years, we've been to all of the territories except for the south and have not encountered one decent enough person to see us outside of rogues. I don't blame them though. Looking at us from the outside, anyone would be cautious. With all the death and destruction that followed us...I wouldn't trust us neither" Thalia said.

Thalia gazed into Tasias eyes as she studied her. She had just now realized how close they were and how intoxicating her scent was. She couldn't help but wonder how she tasted. She shook her head to push away those thoughts that made her cheeks burn bright red. Thalia continued to tell Tasia the story of everything that had happened when they had met Acacia moon and how Ryan saved their lives and brought them back to the pack. She led up to the events in the hotel room, feeling very nervous and awkward to insinuate the s****l activities between herself and someone who wasn't her fated mate.

Tasia

Tasia kept a calm and supportive composure as she listened to Thalia's story. Granite she didn't like the idea of her mate living the life of a rogue for reasons Thalia hasn't explained yet. That seemed to be more of a touchy subject for her and would leave that for later. It wasn't until Thalia started explaining the events that had occurred earlier today. Tasia could feel the nerves and even a little bit of fear, as she started to talk about what happened in the hotel room. Thalia's eyes welled up with tears as she told her Jasper had tried to force his mark upon her.

Hatred, anger, and wrath boiled in Tasia's blood. She could tell her eyes were black as coal considering Thalia looked away from her and pulled back from her touch. This made her soften her tone a little bit, if Tasia could feel Thalia's emotions already then it was safe to say it was vice versa.

"I don't know why it hasn't healed. It barely pierced the first layer of skin, even if I were human it wouldn't be this noticeable" she said through her tears as they started to fall again.

Tasia instinctively lifted both of her hands to embrace Thalia's face gently. Bringing her face over to look at her. She used both of her thumbs to wipe her tears away as she gazed into her big beautiful green eyes.

"Please... don't think of me as damaged goods" she pleaded in a voice that was almost a whisper. Thalia's stomach tightened at the pain in her words. Without hesitation she pulled Thalia closer to her, wrapping her arms around her body. Thalia seemed shocked at first but uncurled her body so she could nuzzle into Tasia. The overwhelming warmth of their embrace relaxed Thalia's mind and body so fast that it wasn't long before she fell back asleep.

As much as Tasia wanted to let herself fall asleep with her mate in her embrace. She found herself needing more answers from someone other than her distraught mate. Answers that should allow her to blow off a little bit of steam.

Tasia was able to extract herself from Thalia without disturbing her, pulling the blankets up and ensuring she was comfortable. She reached over to tuck her tangled locks of hair behind her ear and studied her as she slept. She had seemed more relaxed than what she did earlier before she woke up the first time. Tasia was mesmerized by her mates features, overlooking the dried mud and blood over her body and her tangled hair. She even seemed to be a little malnourished, but her body looked strong and toned. Tasia could only imagine what she went through in the last 5 years. Most rogues don't last that long if they are by themselves. She hated to admit it, but it's possible Thalia wouldn't have made it this long without Jasper.

Tasia was compelled to lean in closer to her mate to plant a kiss on her forehead until she felt a presence in the room followed by the sound of a clearing throat. She turned her head to see Marcus and Vincent standing in the doorway. She had felt like a deer caught in the headlights. She wasn't sure what to do or say this time. She had always been headstrong and straightforward, especially with Marcus.

"I can't believe the rumors are true," Vincent said in a hushed tone. "Marcus's Luna mated to a female rogue!" He said sarcastically causing Tasia to stare at him with an unamused look. Vincent laughed to himself as Marcus looked away with a hint of embarrassment on his face. He deserved his karma but Tasia couldn't help but feel a little sorry for him.

"How is she?" Marcus asked finally gathering himself together like nothing was bothering him.

"She's okay. Vincent, did you bring any warriors with you? Or your beta or gamma?" Tasia asked as she quickly checked to make sure Thalia was still sleeping peacefully before she made her way over to them. Vincent shook his head with an apologetic look on his face.

"No, they are both mated and I didn't see a reason to bring them or any security." He said. Tasia narrowed her eyes as she thought before she looked back to Vincent to speak. "Yes, I will watch over her. Molly went to lie down anyway, she was feeling a little fatigue." He said, answering her without hesitation before she even had the chance to form the words in her mind. Tasia nodded her head and looked at Marcus. He stepped out of the way extended his hand in the direction of the door to allow her to exit the infirmary before him. She rolled her eyes at him and walked out as she glanced back at Thalia once more before she was out of sight.

Marcus

Marcus had to admit, this is not how he thought this event would turn out. Even if Tasia never took him up on his offer he was almost positive he could get a little taste of what could have been, then moon goddess had the audacity to go and make her a lesbian before he even got the chance to. He pushed those thoughts away for the time being and looked over his shoulder at her as they walked down the hallway towards the exit to the back of the packhouse. He had a feeling she needed somewhere to talk privately, there seemed to be something more to this than what meets the eye.

Once they got outside he studied Tasia as she leaned against the balcony, staring up at the sky. He could tell she had a lot to process at the moment. He wondered if maybe he should leave her alone, he had already put her in a position she was against when they arrived, he was sure she didn't want to confide in him. Not to mention how cruel he had been to her over the years. Tasia seemed like the kind of woman who only confided in herself anyway, Considering how she grew up and everything she went through to get to where she is today, she never had anyone but herself. No one wanted to support the idea of a female Alpha. A female alpha was a Luna, and a Luna is not a Luna without an Alpha.

Marcus used to contribute to those thoughts until he saw her rip through one of the meanest and nastiest Alphas the south ever knew. The moment she shifted into her wolf, he knew he was wrong about her.

"I don't know how to process this" Tasia spoke bringing Marcus out of his thoughts. "I'm conflicted, just a few hours ago I was perfectly fine with never finding my mate. I even had planned to go as far as rejecting him" she said.

This made Marcus look at her with surprised eyes. Higher-ranked pack members are notorious for being obsessed with finding their fated mate. It was not only important to them but for the pack as well. Especially for pack leaders. A fully mated Alpha and Luna share each other's strengths and weaknesses, balancing each other out. Whatever is the Alpha's greatest weakness becomes the Luna's greatest strength and vice versa. That bond strengthens the pack and allows them to create a strong line of heirs who will do the same someday.

The fact that Tasia was willing to go as far as rejecting her fated mate says one thing about Tasia. That she was a true Alpha. She wasn't going to allow anything including a fated bond to be the reason she threw away everything she worked so hard for, and the possibility of her pack falling back to peril once more. Let's be honest, if she were mated to a male, what are the odds that he would agree to take the Luna role. He most likely would have rejected her if she didn't. Her pack would be the laughing stock of all four territories. Not just the south like it currently is.

"That's the irony of the mate bond for us Alphas. It's different for us than it is for regular pack members. Even betas and gammas." Marcus said. Tasia looked up at him with a raised eyebrow.

"I'm trying to decide whether I want to ruin the fact that you just called me Alpha, to ask you how you would know? Or just let it go" she said bluntly. Ouch. He did kind of deserve that.

"When you've gone unmated for as long as I have, and every single person in your life has found their fated mate, you can tell the difference between mate bonds. I've seen the exact moment an Alpha laid eyes on his Luna and they were pulled together like the strongest magnets in the world. And I've also seen the exact moment an omega wolf laid eyes on his fated mate and they slowly came together, took it slower. The same with betas and Gammas. It's faster than an omega bond but slower than an Alpha and Luna's bond. " he said. Tasia stared at him in silence for an awkwardly long time before she finally spoke.

"You are scary observant," she said.