Once Upon Many Times

And We Continue On

Life as it was known has continued on. The royal family, though still grieving, have moved on. Prince Edward had finally met his mate, spending a large amount of time with her as they helped their bond to grow stronger. Prince Stephen has decided to travel throughout the kingdom in search of his own mate, vowing to only come back when he and his Lycan find her. King Ambrose and Queen Amberleigh have continued to travel to other packs under their rule as they have done before, offering any assistance they are able to provide. Their kingdom has resumed their lives, feeling blessed to be able to do so since the incident. All seems to be as it once was.

Life in the Blue Lake Pack has also continued on. Alpha Blake and Adam have returned, with Adam going to the Alpha Academy, where those who are to replace the Alphas, Betas and Gammas go to learn of their roles within their packs, and newer technologies and other aspects to improve the livelihood of all pack members. Adam had slowly started doing some of the duties before he left for the Academy, with the expectation it was to be completed within the next four months. He has spent all his waking hours keeping himself busy, leaving little time to sleep and eat. He leaves no time available to allow him to wallow in despair. Most of his nights have been restless, his dreams filled with either a lost future or the memories of his last days with Brielle. He has been keeping himself awake with many cups of coffee and a few bites during breakfast and dinner.

Alpha Blake realized that his son was still suffering from his traumatic loss. He made himself available for his son to be able to talk out his pain, but Adam didn’t take him on his offer, choosing to instead work through it. Not ideal, but Blake cannot force his son to get help. Rather, he just keeps himself available for the day when Adam finally seeks him out.

“Hey, Dad.”

“Son! What are you doing here?” he asked, surprise in his voice.

“Can’t I just come home for a visit?” Adam asked with a hint of laughter in his voice. A genuine smile splits his face.

Rounding his desk, Alpha Blake walks to his son, grabs him for a hug and pats his back, happiness infused in him. He is taken aback at the sense of peace and happiness he sees in Adam. He is not sure what has taken place to bring this forward, but he is not willing to risk the chance to disrupt it for him. He is just glad to have his son back, his heart soars at no longer seeing the bleakness in Adam’s eyes. He knows about his sleepless nights, about his moments of barely eating, but before him is not the tired and gaunt son of the past. He can sense that something has changed and is eager to find out what it is.

“So, how have you been? How is Alpha training? Anything new we can expect for our pack that will change it for the best? Tell me everything, I would love to hear it all,” he inquired.

Laughing as he takes a seat in front of his father’s massive oak desk, he answers, “All is good. There are new programs to help keep track of our expenses, breaking them down by categories so we will be able to reduce redundancies. There are also new forms of income we can look into and possibly take part in. I’m really excited about it and would like to talk more about it when we have the time. What I really want to talk about is… I found my second-chance mate at the Academy. I wasn’t expecting it, didn’t think I would ever have another chance, and then I found Merri.”

Shocked by the news, Alpha Blake stared at his son. He is able to see something in his expression, a tinge of sadness, yet there is also something else there, maybe a sense of hope.

“Merri, huh? And how do you feel about that?”

Sitting forward, placing his elbows on his knees, Adam looks at his father and sighs a little, and says, “Yeah, it’s shocking to say the least. I loved Brielle, only her. I wasn’t looking for another.” He stood up, pacing the space before him. “I don’t want to betray her. I feel like I am betraying her and it stings. We didn’t get a chance to do anything meaningful, just hung out in the village for a day, but it was the most fun I have ever had. I do get the same tingling sensation as I did with Aria... I mean Brielle. And that does scare me. I felt like she and I were soulmates, so how do I treat this? Do I just go along with this relationship that the Moon Goddess has put together for me?”

Understanding his son’s dilemma, Alpha Blake tries to figure out how to best answer him. He, himself, had not found his second-chance mate after Adam’s mother had died. Ever since Adam became of age, they had both been traveling to different packs in search of a mate for their son, and possibly for himself. Looking at his son, he shakes his head as he says, “I’m sorry Adam, as you know, I haven’t found one myself, though honestly, I have not been actively searching. But as to feeling like you’re betraying Brielle, you have to ask yourself how she would feel if you stayed alone, never to actually move forward, to find love again and have children of your own. She would never want that for you, so don’t do that. Live, love, laugh. How does Merri feel about you? Have you talked about the mate bond and what to do with it?”

With a light chuckle, Adam nods his head and tells his father, “Yeah, we spoke about it, and what we want for our future. I had told her about Brielle and how things had happened to us. She took the time to listen to me and let me vent. It felt good, to be able to talk it out and feel what I was feeling for so long. I actually got some kind of relief from it. I know you have been trying to get me there. I just couldn’t do it. I felt like a failure, that I didn’t get to her in time and save her. That’s what was killing me all this time: I had failed her.”

With a nod, he said, “I am glad that you were able to have someone to talk to and be free, if possible, of this guilt. Don’t allow this to deter you from moving forward. If you think that Merri could be that person for you, then don’t let her go. These chances are hard to come by and I would hate to see you missing out. Take the time to learn more about her, show her the Adam that I know exists.”

Adam took his father’s words of advice and decided that he would give it a chance, this new relationship that he was blessed with. Though his heart still ached, the throbbing was not as painful as before. Every day that he and Merri spent time together, though rocky in the beginning, it had now become easier to bear. They talked about what their hopes and dreams for the future would look like before finding out they were mates. Their paths seemed to align with each other and felt like another nudge for Adam to accept his fate, like the Moon Goddess was trying to ease his heartache in the only way she could and that maybe, just maybe, Brielle was with her, guiding him as well. A smile broke his somewhat stern face, believing in that little bit and finally allowing his heart to take the chance to find love again.

Three Years Later

Adam had successfully completed his Alpha training, had claimed Merri as his mate and Luna of the pack, and had taken over the Alpha role from his father, forging ahead with plans he had been taught at the academy, making it one of the strongest and wealthiest pack within the Kingdom. His father still lives on pack lands, though he had moved out of the packhouse, along with his men, who were his Beta and Gamma, making room for his son’s chosen Beta and Gamma. Each of the older generation had homes built for them where their families reside, while the newer generation made the packhouse their home. Throughout the years, Adam and Merri had welcomed a few pups of their own, one being a young girl whom they had named after the princess, with Adam vowing to protect her with all his heart, body and soul. The tiny treasures helped Adam feel better about life, knowing that life does indeed go on. He no longer has the painful tinge in his heart, not really. He knows his heart is big enough to love more than just the one love he lost; it’s big enough to love all he has as well, something he will not take for granted, for as long as he lives.

The royal family had also moved on. Prince Edward is still under the guiding lead of his father, King Ambrose, as they work together to begin the transition to the handling of the King role. He and his mate have also had a couple of pups themselves, both girls, both the light of their eyes. They are loved and cared for, given all the chances to be happy young princesses in the kingdom, in honor of the lost princess. Prince Edward’s mate is in fact holding a surprise she will be divulging to her mate tonight, and is eagerly awaiting to spring it upon him, news that she knows he’ll be ecstatic to hear: she’s pregnant again. Prince Edward had been truly busy with his work with his father and, though not spitefully, she had felt a little neglected, so he had not noticed how tired she had become lately, or how moody she had occasionally been. The healer she had visited had confirmed her thoughts and had performed tests and determined she would have a son. She had been correct the first two times, so she has faith this, too, is true.

Prince Stephen, after many travels, had finally found his mate in a faraway pack and brought her home to meet his family. All had instantly fallen in love with her as she matched the young prince’s personality evenly. The young prince and his mate have begun talking about their future, their own hopes and dreams to come. Stephen will be taking over the role of the Royal Beta, working in tandem with his brother. He’s excited to have found his mate, to be blessed with finding his other half. Ever since his sister’s death, he had almost obsessively searched for her, wanting to be able to find her and spend as much time with her as possible. He knew from when he saw Adam sitting beside Brielle as she laid on her bed, dying, that they were mates and Adam hadn’t spent any time as he had wanted and Stephen did not want to waste any time.

The King and Queen lived their lives for their remaining children, keeping the peace and tranquility within the palace, duties performed as expected, traveling where due, visiting packs. They had taken time to heal, together, trying to repair the damage their daughter’s death had caused. Their bond, weakened by pain, had begun to feel strengthened by the togetherness their time had brought them. There are times when the pain will sneak in like a thief, trying to tear a little bit of their heart, but the couple work through it, taking away the ability for it to hurt them further. The Queen still holds true the promise Seraphina had told him years ago, that her precious daughter was destined to do what the Moon Goddess had planned for her, that she would fulfill her duties, no matter how many lifetimes it would take to do it. She would reappear, her soul and spirit, to complete her duty and so her heart is gladdened that her daughter, in spirit, would live on, well after she and her mate and their sons have passed. She will finally do what she was born to do, and though she will not be there when it does happen, she hopes, with all she has, that she will succeed.