Shadow of the Werebear King

A Chat with a Luna

---POV Rosemarie---

Now, when I finally woke up from a well-deserved nap, I wasn’t expecting this large man to be resting his head on the side of my bed. Wait…. Bed? When did I get a bed? I winced as today’s events rushed through my mind at a rapid pace. That means…. I glanced over at the man again as his breathing slowed for a moment, then continued its rhythmic pace. Right…mate. Th-The prince.

I guess I wasn’t in the forest anymore. That means…. I looked over at my baby, and he yawned before shifting in his fresh swaddling blanket. It looks like the nurses were telling the truth. He looks happy and fed. “He did this not the nurses. Give the man credit.” My spirit hummed.

“We cannot trust him.” I snapped back.

“And why not? We are the ones that decided not to wait for our mate and find some random flea motel to shack up with. We should be lucky he even wants to talk to us. Not to mention the ease you have with lying to him. He will notice Rosemarie! Shoot, I’m sure he already does!” My spirit grumbled.

“Who would have thought our mate was the prince of the werebears?! Lying to him?! I’m protecting us. Once he realizes the mistake he is making, we will be thrown out. He’s just drunk off of the mate bond. Watch, when he wakes up he’ll understand, and he will leave us behind. This may be the gateway to Bodhi Cora, but I’m sure they won’t allow some rogue to be one of their queens. I will not suffer because of others’ prejudice.” I shouted back and she chuckled dryly.

“If you want to go that far, how about this? Who would have thought the prince would even be in a place like this? Did you see how the staff leaned on him for support without even batting an eye?! How about how he told each of them what to do with the children? How calm supposedly our son Arthur looked in his arms?! How he looks now! Damon is nothing like you and your crazy friends think a prince should act so why are you forcing him to be in that stingy box? Rosemarie, you even lied about your child’s name!”

“Ha! So he’s good with kids and volunteers a little. He’s just trying to look nice. Who’s to say he will even allow me to keep Joshua. That will be a dealbreaker for me. He may have kept him company while I was getting assessed, but I will not allow him to hurt my baby or take him away from me. I don’t care if we liked Joshua’s father or not, he’s my son.” I growled. “We’ve come too far to let some entitled person with a crown stop us.”

My bear scoffed. “Entitled person…. Of course, you didn’t hear anything I just said. What is the matter with you? Do you enjoy ignoring me?! We are part of the same whole, but I’m always fighting you! You always do this. How about you do something different for a change, and listen to me? Start talking to him. If he is untrustworthy, we know how to disappear, but for now, the benefit of the doubt seems like the best strategy. He has done nothing to you to deserve such…how do you say…prejudice. Look at the man! He’s literally sleeping on a stool to make sure you are safe.” She hissed, throwing my words right back at me. Whether I liked it or not, I agreed with her, and I was wrong to make such assumptions, no matter how much I believed them. I looked down at his dark black hair and defined features pressed into his toned arms. He seemed exhausted, so I leaned back on the bed and took a deep breath. I can let him sleep a few minutes longer. It wouldn’t be wise to wake a sleeping bear.

A soft knock was heard at the door and I cleared my throat. “Come in.” I called hoarsely.

The petite woman with pixie cut black hair and vibrant brown eyes contrasting her soft caramel skin walked in with a tray of food. Breads and meats mashed together. Oh, I know this one and it looked delicious. “Hi. I wanted to introduce myself. My name is Ayame Oden. I’m um…I’m Damon’s mother and the owner of this shelter.” She glanced over at him, still sleeping soundly, as if a full conversation wasn’t happening right next to him. I furrowed my brow at the woman and gasped, realizing she must be the queen.

“Apologies, my queen.” I whispered, scrambling to bow. Wait…owner? Didn’t someone else tell me that before? I was shocked to see it was true. A queen owns a woman's shelter. I've seen it all.

She giggled lightly and put the tray of food on the plastic brown table with wheels. She rolled it over to me and situated the items over my lap. “Not quite. I’m the Luna of the Tri-Shifter pack. My father is the king and my mom, Rylee, is the queen. Damon’s grandparents. I…decided royalty was a little too much for me, but my eldest decided to take his place as the successor when we confirmed his spirit was, in fact, a bear. It…wasn’t the most pleasant day of our lives, let me tell you.”

I blushed heavily and bit my lip, withholding the urge to eat everything on that plate. “Yet and still….”

“Trust me, we are not that pretentious. I am so happy my son has found you. Within our family, he’s the last one. He’s not the youngest by any means, so there are a few who haven’t come of age yet, but it wasn’t easy for him to watch other people enjoy the splendors of what he cannot have.” She added, and took a seat on the other side of my bed. She glanced at her son again and I furrowed my brow. Once she noticed my confusion she bit her lip and blushed. Waving at the food, she nodded towards me. “Please, eat. Don’t mind me. This is just the first time I’ve seen him so relaxed since he officially took on his role as the heir of the werebear kingdom. There is…a lot of stress that boy is under, but he never forgets to remind me it’s not my fault. That he, along with my mates, will protect me. That my decisions are my own. You know?”

I stared at her while she continued to raddle on. I’m sure there was a point to this. I picked up the perfectly made sandwich and chowed down. Ugh, it was nice not to eat raw food every once in a while. It was…. “Delicious.” I slipped out of my mouth.

She laughed lightly and nodded, but tried to stay quiet. I was thankful for that. She wasn’t wrong, the prince looked exhausted and my son…. I’m sure he is enjoying the nap with a full belly for once in a very long time. “I’m so glad to hear it. I know I may sound like I’m rambling, but I also know that you are all not trustworthy towards men at all. Then, to find out your mate is a prince might have also been quite off-putting. But, trust me if you cannot trust him. My son will be there for you and that little cub over there, so don’t…don’t run from him…. Please? I just want to see my little boy happy again.” She wiped a tear away, and I realized this woman wasn’t being sneaky or pinning for attention. She really wants to see her son happy. She really wants to see him with me?! “I…don’t want to see his heart broken. He should be allowed to have one thing he wants after constantly making sacrifices for everyone else.”

“Ha! Told ya!” My bear huffed before blocking me out.

I nodded and finished off the meal. “I will do my best. I…I don’t know if I can promise you anything. I barely know him, but I will try.”

She stood to her feet and nodded. She’s so small. It’s quite comical that she calls that large man her little boy. Even more so, that she’s a luna, but I can tell from her toned body underneath her dress that she isn’t to be messed with. “That’s all I can ask. Enjoy the sandwiches dear, and please rest. I will give you updates on the others as soon as I can. Everyone is doing the best they can to bring the upmost care. You have all been through enough pain. This place will make it better. At least I hope it will.” She nodded to me before heading out the room.

“Thank you!” I called after her and squeaked, expecting Damon to wake, but he didn’t.

“I guess you were right.” I groaned to my smug bear who was ignoring me now. “I’ll...give him a try.”

“As you should.” She finally answered. To have a mother as nice as her, there’s no way he could be cruel and manipulative. I just want him to love me. I feel like that should be fair. Right?