The Rise of the Luna Queen

Day at the Lake

Ivy POV

The next day, Ivy and Cece made their way from the pack house to the lake, which wasn't far.

The lake was huge. The land on the other side of the lake was barely visible. Members of the pack were swimming, riding jet skis, and all different kinds of boats scattered over the lake's surface. There were mostly pontoon boats, but there were a few small speed boats and row boats.

Cece led the way to a small beach at the end of the pack house property. Ivy had seen this beach in the distance from the window in her room, and she was excited to enjoy it.

"Over here!"

Ivy saw a girl about their age waving her arms towards her, and Cece and Cece waved back excitedly.

"Come on!" Cece said to Ivy, picking up their pace.

The girls walked through the sand, trying not to kick sand onto the other beachgoers.

"Hey guys!"

The brunette girl who had been waving her arms greeted them as they got closer.

"You must be Ivy! I'm Yvette, but everyone calls me Eve."

Eve was beautiful, with long, rich, brown hair and big light blue eyes. She had a small freckle under one of her eyes, which drew more attention to them.

The other two girls who had been sitting on the blanket stood to greet them as well.

"This is Maggie and Stevie." Eve introduced. Maggie had dirty blonde, curly hair pulled up in a messy bun, and Stevie had very short blond hair, but cute like a pixie cut.

They all greeted each other and then joined them on the large blanket in the warm sand.

Ivy had worn her old bathing suit from home. It was sage green one-piece and cut-off jean shorts with brown leather flip-flops. The other girls seemed more fashionable with their bikinis and cute sundresses.

Ivy was feeling a bit self-conscious, but the girls complimented her platinum hair and green eyes.

"I don't think I've ever met anyone with green eyes before," Stevie mentioned.

Ivy hadn't met many wolves, but gold, brown, and blue were the only colors she'd seen.

Not knowing how to respond, Ivy decided to change the subject.

"So this place is amazing. It looks like a vacation spot!" Ivy had gone on a couple of vacations growing up, but never too far from their village.

"Yeah, it's great! We get a lot of people from nearby packs here to enjoy it during the summer," Cece responded.

The four girls enjoyed each other's company and sunbathed for a while until they were interrupted by a group of boys.

"Hey, ladies." A group of three guys, including Jake, walked up to the blanket.

Ivy had been lying in the sun, enjoying its warmth, when the guys walked up.

"You mangy mutts are in our sun, scram!" Eve tried shooing them away, which ended up being an invitation for them to sit.

Along with Jake, there were Travis and Justin. They were all part of a friend circle in school.

They didn't pay much attention to Ivy. Jake seemed to purposefully ignore her presence, even when he was introducing Travis and Justin. Ivy felt like he did not want her around.

"So Ivy, Jake tells us you're an orphan who was raised by Faeries?" Travis asked as Cece tried to hush him.

Ivy felt her stomach tense. Is this what she was going to be known for? For how long would this be her reputation, she wondered.

She just nodded, not knowing what to say. She couldn't blame them. She had only been there a full 24 hours, and they didn't know her yet. As teenagers, that would be the most interesting thing to focus on.

"So what happened to your pack anyway, do you know?" Eve asked, and Cece slapped her shoulder.

"Come on, Eve!"

"It's okay, Cece." Ivy put her hand on Cece's shoulder. "I don't know why it happened, but another pack attacked and burnt it to the ground." Ivy hadn't learned much about it. She hoped that once she settled in, she could ask the Alpha if he even knew the name of the pack.

"So, you don't know anything about them? Ivy might not even be your real name," Justin asked.

She knew Ivy Moss wasn't her name given at birth, Willow had named her. Ivy didn't know who had saved her from the fire or what happened to her family.

With the Fae, this didn't keep her up at night. They were her family, and they were her home. But, now being around other wolves, and strangers, she wondered more than ever.

Ivy just shrugged at her small audience, as they were all staring at her, wanting more information.

"The Fae that raised me couldn't find much information on them. I'm hoping that Alpha James knows something."

"I can ask my dad if you want," Jake offered. This had been the most he had spoken to her since she met him.

She just shook her head.

"Did you ever go there? Like, to explore the ruins?" Stevie asked quietly.

Ivy nodded. She wasn't supposed to, but a few weeks before she left for Cedar Lake, she felt like she had to.

3 Weeks Prior

Ivy and her best friend Rune made it through the forest. Twigs crunched under their feet as the sun came up.

They snuck out just before sun up when she knew her family would be fast asleep. In all the years she lived there, they always stayed up late and woke up late.

"Come on, keep up!" Ivy whispered back to Rune.

"I don't know why you talked me into this or why you won't let me use my magic."

Ivy didn't feel comfortable using magic to do something she wasn't supposed to. It felt like cheating to her.

"Rune, I have to at least see it before I leave. This could be my only chance!" Ivy pleaded.

Rune just nodded.

He was her first friend. They just understood each other. She had made other friends in her life with the Fae, but Rune was her best friend.

They made their way to the short rock wall that marked the beginning of the pack territory. Had there been a pack there, it may have been guarded by soldiers.

Ivy and Rune stepped over the low wall and looked ahead. Ivy wrapped her arm around Runes for comfort.

"I wonder where my family lived when they were alive." She said softly, and Rune began leading her forward.

As they walked, they could see the foundations of structures scattered around, reclaimed by nature.

Some partial walls still stood with vines and branches wrapped around them. If it wasn't so tragic, it might almost be beautiful.

"I'm sorry, Ivy. I wish there was more to answer your questions." Rune frowned, looking down at his friend.

Ivy looked up at his violet eyes and midnight hair and smiled.

"I wish I could know, but it wouldn't change anything. And, honestly, if this hadn't happened, I wouldn't have you or my family."

Willow tried to teach her to look at the positives she had gained from tragedy instead of loss.

"I am going to miss you!" Rune wrapped his arms around Ivy. "I begged my family to let you just stay with us, but we already have a family dog."

Ivy poked his side and laughed.

"Just you wait til I get my wolf, I'm coming back just to bite you!" They both laughed and started making their way back to the village.

"So there was nothing left?" Cece asked, surprised.

Ivy shook her head and shrugged.

"Whoever attacked meant business. All that was left were foundations and some crumbling walls."

Cece moved to put a comforting arm around Ivy.

The truth was, that Ivy missed the Fae and was nervous about being a wolf. She never knew her other life, so she couldn't mourn it. But, she did want answers.