Ever Cynical

Chapter 53- The Second Alpha

Kieran POV

Everyone congregated in my office after lunch. There were not enough seats, but I held Anais on my lap with Erik at my shoulder, while Vidar and his pregnant queen took the love seat. Riyoko took one chair, but the other was left empty. Mirgadok and a very grumpy Ekezeic stood to the right of my desk, while my officers and their mates stood to the left. I was glad I'd insisted on a large space when remodeling the pack house. Once everyone seemed settled, I looked around the room.

"Alright. First let's have introductions to our new alpha. Everyone, I'm sure you heard when I announced Erik Brightion as our mate, and second alpha to Celtic Moon. Over here on the right, we have our allies, as well as Anais' adopted parents, Demon King Mirgadok, and Basilisk King Ekezeic. They've known Anais the longest." I gestured to Riyoko. "This is the Kitsune Queen Riyoko Hijikata, Anais' best friend. Her son and heir, Rintaro is a very good friend of mine as well, and her daughter, Ritsu is now our Beta female." Ritsu, who was finally behaving like rationally and politely, bowed slightly. I indicated the dragons. "This is Dragon King Vidar Torvalds and his Queen Ingrid Torvalds, also good friends and allies of Anais. To my left, we have our ranked wolf team. Betas Geoffrey Malcolm and Ritsu Hijikata, Deltas Sean Flanery and Helga Mac Craith, and last but certainly not least, Gamma Lugh Lachlan."

"I hope I manage to remember half of that." Erik grinned, looking a little overwhelmed but really trying to do his best. Everyone but Ekezeic laughed. Anais stood and went over to him, poking him in the chest with her finger. An action I highly doubt any but Mirgadok would have attempted. Well, given Erik's reaction earlier, he probably had no fear of the intimidating lizard either.

"Ekezeic, what is going on with you? Did you get a bad reading or something?" She said pointedly, looking him straight in the eye. He shifted on his feet for a moment, then sighed before looking away, his daughter winning the challenge. Interesting.

"No, mein sonne. There is nothing wrong with your bear. I just..." He suddenly began to sob and turned his face into Mirgadok's neck. His mate patted his shoulder. I was more than a little shocked, to say the least. I swear Ekezeic really is the mom here, all joking aside. Mirgadok kissed his mate gently, whispering something I'm sure meant to soothe him before turning his glowing red eyes to Ana.

"Daughter, he is just unhappy that things are changing so quickly. He liked that you relied on him, and now you have such a good support system, he's afraid you have no need for him?" Mirgadok said reluctantly, clear that it was what Ekezeic had wanted to say, but couldn't due to his emotional state.

"I understand, but Ekezeic... You made my mate feel the need to challenge you on my behalf. I know you were teasing Kieran because he's the one that started everyone calling you Mom, but seriously. You can't act like that in front of my newly mated alpha bear and expect him not to react." The Basilisk King nodded into his mate's shoulder, still sniffling.

"I'm sorry." He mumbled. Knowing the man was not one to apologize... well, ever, we all knew that despite it being quiet, he absolutely meant it.

"Water under the bridge, okay?" Erik said compassionately. I winked at him, proud he could let it go. For alphas it was not easy. Respect was very important to our beasts, and any perceived disrespect could go very badly. The last thing I wanted was my bear to have a confrontation with the Basilisk King. Not that I didn't believe in him, I did. But it would devastate our mate to see us fight seriously with her beloved family.

"Are you calling the Werecat Queen?" Riyoko chirped, just as all of their phones pinged except for my team and Anais. "Oh damn, too late." She sighed, then put a finger to her lips. They quickly tapped in response to whatever they had gotten. When they were done, Riyoko looked up. "The remote vote already went out, so you can't try calling her till after a verdict is in. The admins don't fool around with secret votes. It's spelled."

"Well, we shall just have to hope we were quick enough to get them the spot, then. Nobody else has applied so far, anyway." Vidar sighed. He examined his rather tired and pale looking wife. "My queen, are we safe to fly you home?" He asked Ingrid, having accomplished their goal in visiting. They obviously wanted to be home when the baby came. She nodded. "Ana, I'm going to send a few of my warriors to you. They will be your personal guard." He raised a hand as Anais opened her mouth to protest. "I will not accept a no from you, dear friend. We are too far away if there is an emergency, and if something happened to you now that we are all permitted to actually help, well... Let's just say I could not live with myself, and neither could Ingrid." Anais finally nodded in agreement.

They hugged everyone before Vidar shifted outside, carrying Ingrid carefully on his back, opalescent scales gleaming in the sunlight. They waved as they flew off into the distance. I liked Vidar. He was polite and reasonable. His wife was clearly feisty, much like my own mate. Had she not been pregnant, I had no doubt she truly would have kicked Ritsu's ass too, just to make a point.

Riyoko was not far behind the dragons in making her exit, appearing with her luggage and servants as her car pulled up. She hugged her daughter. "I shall send my son to visit soon, my friends. Ritsu-hime, I am asking you to please be the best woman and Beta you can for your new pack. I would stay for your ceremony, but I can't stay away too long. Your father is a wonderful consort, but far too easy on people behaving badly. Goodbye my darlings." She blew a kiss to all of us cheekily before climbing into her black sedan.

I could see where my best friend Rintaro got his better qualities. He was not a soft man like his father, apparently. Ritsu, now that she'd been reformed, was much more like her brother, but much less bold with anyone outside of her mate, given the circumstances. She wasn't trying to press her luck just yet. Perhaps some of that stubbornness would re-emerge once she got comfortable and her initial impression wore off.

Everyone looked at the Demon King and Basilisk King expectantly. Mirgadok laughed sardonically and threw his arm over his mate's shoulders.

"You won't be getting rid of us that easily. We've both got really great seconds. Technically, they could run things without us, they just don't want the title. Trust us to have the two most unambitious yet talented people working for us." Ekezeic just nodded, still feeling a little emotional. He pulled away from his mate and reached for Anais, hugging her. I stood to the side with Erik, our arms around each others' waists. They both needed a moment. He stroked her hair lovingly and sniffed her, a mild glare coming our way I'm sure because of how her scent had changed, but I smirked proudly at his raised brow.

The note of sea salt she'd gained from Erik made her scent even more summery than before.

Once Ekezeic had properly satisfied his motherly instincts and released our queen, I turned to my Beta and his mate.

"Geoff, Ritsu, can you come with us to the office please?" I asked them. My mates followed behind them, and I closed the door. They sat in the two chairs, waiting. "I was going to wait and do a ceremony and all that, but I think it's time to just do it like I brought in Erik." Geoff's eyes widened. I knew what was running through his head as he examined his mate. I giggled, and both of mine smacked the back of my head. "Hey." I pouted. Rude.

"Later." Erik growled huskily, his eyes black, and Geoff burst out laughing. His finger darted between the three of us.

"You guys are seriously perverts." He exclaimed, but Ritsu just blushed. She was clearly an imaginative girl, based on the delicate pink stain tinting her cheeks. I decided to let it pass. Geoff could just find out for himself.

"Anyway, let's get this over with so you guys can do your thing." I went over Ritsu's vows, a mirror of Geoff's, and to which she wholeheartedly agreed. After her vow to Anais, she'd flipped her personality. She was still feisty, but full of humility. Apparently, losing everything had the desired effect. Anais slit my hand with her moon blade shadowing the silver one, then moved to Ritsu's. We grasped hands, and sure enough felt the surge of power. Ritsu's eyes flashed to her kitsune.

"Thank you, your majesties, for bestowing this great honor." Hotaru said before retreating. I hoped in the future we'd get to see more of her beast. She seemed sweet compared to her human counterpart, and I was curious about her combat ability. Rintaro was a fierce combatant along with his red eight-tailed kitsune, Ajin.

"Alright Geoff, she's all yours." I grinned as Geoff pulled his mate aggressively out of the room. I sighed, and Erik laid a hand on my shoulder.

"Babe, if you need me to help you with anything, just let me know, okay?" He said, and I put my hand over his.

"Of course, mo grá." I replied, appreciating the sentiment, though really he had a lot to learn before he could be given tasks. Things were so much more hectic at the moment than I was used to.

"Awww look at you two being all mate-y and cute." Anais cooed, pinching our cheeks.

Erik POV

I could feel my face flushing at Anais' words. I wasn't embarrassed, I was happy. Being with these two, I felt like the empty space in my soul had been filled. I understood why Anais had mentioned to me, in our long talks, that she was afraid of the other shoe dropping. We were so good together, it was scary to feel this happy. Deciding that all I could do was enjoy the moment, and train for future possibilities, I pulled Anais into a tight hug, which was soon joined by Kieran as he stood.

"Hey." He said, kissing our cheeks. "How about we go for a run before Anais can't shift anymore?" He grinned. Anais and I nodded excitedly. We all went walking to an area well within the fifteen-mile perimeter, but far away from the pack buildings before stripping down. Thank you, mood goddess, for giving me what I swear were the two most beautiful wolves ever.

Anais shifted first into her iridescent white wolf with amethyst eyes, while Kieran shifted into his midnight black wolf with golden eyes. I stroked them both proudly, reverently, before shifting into my... now even more massive... Kodiak bear. I only had a couple feet on them at the shoulder, though, given their wolves were clearly bigger than average. Even bigger than the average alpha.

Our beasts contentedly frolicked, chased, and yeah, mated, with wild abandon for hours. When the sun began to set, we returned to our clothing, and rejoined the pack for another of Helga's amazing dinners.

It was idyllic, and I could only hope to feel this happy forever.

Bad guys or not.