Falling Under The Lunar Eclipse

The Deal

The building that Jac’s father led her into was for the elders and the alpha of the tribe. It was much larger than the other buildings in the village, so the light was dimmer due to trying to illuminate more space. It was so dim that Jac almost stepped on her great uncle, who stayed in wolf form, as he slept near the door.

“Hey Cantor,” she murmured as she shuffled her way to a couch in the room and plopped on it. Her feet hurt so much from walking all the way to the tribe, that the relief from the couch almost made her not worry so much over the impending conversation with the Alpha she just knew was coming. Better to just get it over with.

“So, what did you want to talk about, Dad?” Jac’s amber eyes met with her father’s and all the concern was flooding on the features of his face. His eyebrows were furrowed, accenting the scars that littered his strong face. Her eyes were drawn to the scars on his forehead that demonstrated the past of previous fighting for his pack. Compared to what he must have been like in his younger days, he looked so tired and old at this moment. There was also a strange yellow haze, she noticed on his pupils.

“We need to talk about your responsibility to this pack. It’s well past your time to take your place as Alpha,” the older man finished. Well, he definitely didn’t beat around the bush, Jac’s wolf thought. 

Involuntarily, Jac let out a groan as she rolled her head back onto the couch to stare at the ceiling and away from the glaring eyes piercing her, “Dad, don’t you like being the alpha? You’re so great at it. All the werewolves here think you’re scary and you keep them in line. They love you.” 

The alpha’s eye twitched at his only daughter’s response. He knew Jacqueline was a free spirit. He also knew she was going into the human cities and spending her weeks there. It was unacceptable, but he couldn’t stop her since she was in line to be the alpha. It would look weak to reprimand her in front of the other werewolves. For how cornered he felt in what he couldn’t control, he felt his anger rising in his chest. ‘She is impossible!’ His thoughts all but screamed.

“Jacqueline, how does it look to the other werewolves when you leave for weeks at a time?! They don’t even think you care about them! How do you ever expect to be the alpha and away all the time? You can’t!” The alpha yelled while his fists curled. He saw the woman’s head whip up to stare at him. Her hand reached to cover the bag next to her, almost out of reflex. His curiosity was drawn immediately to the bag. Why did she just try to shield that bag?

“What is that?” His voice dripped in irritation and curiosity, and he inhaled from across the room and concentrated on the bag. Immediately the smell of a human invaded his nostrils and he grimaced. Jac’s eyes looked concerned now as she tucked the bag closer to her side to try to hide it, and she answered back innocently,” What is what?” 

“Why do you have a bag that smells of humans all over it in our village?” He angrily growled and started advancing towards her. The alpha saw his daughter immediately tense up and completely push the bag behind her. 

“It’s none of your concern. There’s no human here, I just found this bag and I’m trying to return it to its owner,” Jac answered with as little emotion as possible. She didn’t want to tell her dad that this bag meant everything to her. 

“It is not your job to be looking out for humans, Jac! It is your job to be looking out for your pack!” His anger came back again with a vengeance. Always with the humans. . ! His daughter always seemed to be choosing humans over her own family. He went to grab for the bag and immediately his daughter’s sclera in her eyes turned black. Veins started to bulge around the corner of her eyes and the black-haired woman groaned in pain. 

The alpha took a step back and watched with surprise that Jac’s wolf was trying to come out. Did her wolf get upset from him trying to take a human bag? His confusion stumped him to just watch his daughter grab her head with both hands and cover her face. 

‘No, no, NO! Jacqueline, you need to calm down. . !’ Jac thought quickly as she tried to pacify her wolf. 

‘No! He will not get in the way of claiming our mate! If he thinks he can take this bag, I’ll show him what happens when he tries to get in the way of a soul mate!’ Jacqueline angrily growled.

An extremely unpleasant throbbing pulsed around her head as she could feel the will of her wolf trying to drown out her own. In the wolf’s defense, her dad was trying to take the bag, but Jac had to come up with something to make both– her dad and her wolf– pacified. She gritted her teeth and internally begged her wolf to just hear her out. 

‘Please Jacqueline, if you don’t like the idea I’m about to say, I promise I will let you out and you can do whatever you think is necessary to win over our mate. But you have to understand, she’s a human. She’s fragile. She won’t be attracted to a wolf. I don’t even know if she’s attracted to women. Just give me a chance. You may not believe it, but I want her just as much as you’, Jac finished as she felt the pulsing let up just a little. 

Alright. Let’s hear it.

The pulsing died out completely and Jac’s hands let up from her head and she looked up at her dad. The same concerned look was there, but without as much anger now. She was sure he was totally confused as to why her wolf was trying to defend a bag that belonged to a human. Before she could try to explain, her father began to speak once their eyes met.

“Jacqueline. . . The truth is. . . I need you to become the Alpha by the lunar eclipse,” He spoke quietly. She knew immediately that he did not want other wolves to hear this. Werewolves had excellent hearing, and if everyone in the village knew Jac was in trouble with the alpha? She just knew they were trying to eavesdrop. It didn’t matter about her great uncle Cantor, because he never changed from his werewolf form and did not communicate with anyone. He just continued laying near the closed door with soft breathing and ears satilited towards them; that indicated he wasn’t really asleep but listening with his eyes closed. 

“I don’t understand why it has to be the Lunar Eclipse. That’s in a month’s time. There’s something I need to sort out before I become the Alpha, and I promise I’ll step up once it’s all sorted out,” Jac pleaded as the thoughts of that auburn woman floated in the back of her mind. She needed to claim her before she became the alpha, or else she’d never get to leave the village.

The older man looked over his daughter and sighed. He gently took a seat next to her on the worn couch and slumped forward, trying to piece his words together carefully. 

“You see, the pack that killed your mother has started picking up activity again. They just conquered one of our biggest partners in trade during the last full moon. I expect that when the Lunar Eclipse comes, and their powers grow strongest– they will come for our tribe.” He finished quietly, as he rested his hand on Jac’s hand, “I can’t have them taking control, and I need someone strong to defend our pack. Think of Elloy. He’s so young and these werewolves are ruthless.” 

The implications and questions grew in the woman sitting next to him. She was about to ask the obvious question, but just as she opened her mouth to let out a sound, her father answered her thoughts as if he could read them.

“I’m going blind, and I can’t protect our pack anymore.”

Oh my god. A cold shiver swept down Jac’s spine. That would explain that strange gloss in her dad’s eyes she couldn’t help but notice earlier. Did that mean that her pack right now wasn’t safe? Jac’s thoughts immediately went to her favorite little werewolf and the thoughts of Elloy ever getting hurt made her stomach twist. If she became the Alpha– she could absolutely not leave the pack, or that would be an indication to the rest of the werewolf packs that her tribe was vulnerable and ripe for the pickings. 

“I’ll make a deal with you, Dad,” Jac spoke carefully and swallowed what felt like a rock in her throat, “One that I think both you and my wolf can compromise with.” 

“Okay, I’m listening,” The alpha murmured. 

‘Oh, this is so nerve wrecking to say out loud,’ Jac cringed internally.

“Okay here I go,” Jac groaned and turned to her dad to give him her utmost respect and undivided attention; in hopes that the news wouldn’t totally shatter his ego. 

"I found my soulmate today. The Lunar Goddess thought today was a good day to bless me with one, I guess,” as Jac spoke she saw his eyes have a certain glint grow and the crow’s feet became a bit more prominent. Inside though, she knew his happiness wasn’t going to last long. Just as she was about to continue with her carefully picked words, but the Alpha cut her off, “Jacqueline– that is so great! I mean. . . Is it a strong partner for you? I don’t presume it is a male, correct? There are plenty of strong female werewolves. . ! Oh, Jacqueline, this is so wonderful! I would be very proud of any werewolf, even if they are female.” 

Oh no. He definitely can not read my thoughts.

“D-Dad, I’m very grateful that you’d be okay with me having a female partner. . .” She really was happy to know that he would have accepted her with a female. But who knew– worse than coming out of the closet, although Jac didn't make it hard for anyone to figure it out when all the male werewolves who ever tried to earn her hand got beat up when they tried to mate with her– she also had to explain that it was to a species that her pack was banned from interacting with? How to explain that the soulmate bond was to a human? That was a hard one.

“The bag you’re sitting next to belongs to my soul mate,” the woman muttered quietly and then turned her gaze down to the floor.

She didn’t need to know how his face was changing when the reality of what her words meant came crashing down on him.