Raising the Luna

Inside thoughts

POV Alpha Grimd

Sitting in my office after Ella left, I stare at the door. Our daughter had always been extremely headstrong. I shake my head thinking of all the trouble that she had gotten herself into over the years. From destroying the kitchen thinking she was cooking breakfast as a child to running off and starting fights as a teen. She never seemed to think before her actions. It worried me for her.

Would she really be able to run the pack when she was 18? Being in charge of our small pack was not as easy as some would think. We had so much land to monitor and only 250 wolves to do that. And that number included all of our warriors, omegas, and children. There is so much to balance. We didn't have pack alliances, but we did work with neighboring human towns for supplies and were all under the rule of our Lycan king. Following all the laws and providing for the pack could be a nightmare at times. I don't know if Ella will be ready for what is coming.

Being forced to allow even more people on our land to see the inner workings was very dangerous for us. Most packs were much larger than ours. Other than the mini moon pack, we were the smallest in the country. We had always had our own and been rated the top Luna school as well. Mostly because the Lunas that trainied here with us came out confident and headstrong. Although we trained them in etiquette we also trained them in financials and warrior skills. We prided ourselves in preparing our Lunas for anything and everything that could happen.

*Knock* *KNOCK KNOCK* The sound pulled me away from my worries.

"Enter." I say recognizing the scent of Sand at the door.

The door opens slowly as she walks in and I smile. Her scent of huckleberries and creame hit my nose and I can't help but feel the stress slowly drifting off of me.

"Grimd, dinner at the pack house is going to take a good bit of time, but the Omega crew are diligently working on it. Trubel checked in and he sure has grown into quite the Lycan since our wedding!"

"He has hasn't he. Still a prankster, if I ever saw one" I laugh lightly and wrap my arms around her

Sand was always the calming force to me. She was beautiful with her sandy brown hair and only a couple inches shorter than me. She always seemed to know when I needed her to be close. Our mate bond was strong, but honestly it was more than that. She was just intuitive. She was the most stunning person I had ever met in all my years.

"I know that being told we need to do this prom did not make you happy, but no one would ever know. You are handling this amazing. I'm glad that you invited the Lyan kingdom. It's been so long since we have seen any of them. I bet a lot of the girls here have never seen one."

"Thanks Sand. I thought having them here might also offer us some clout. With a lot of our young ladies getting ready to be old enough to find their wolves, we may need to start getting some alliances in place. Our pack hasn't been growing much and it's not the top pick for people to want to transfer to with us making sure that the witches keep us mostly hidden."

"We are doing very well. We have more money than most other packs, great working relationships with the Human towns and best of all the protection of those we have known for the last 30 years. I think you worry to much."

"Quite possibly."

I slip off into my head again wondering about the future again. When I feel her hand carress my hair.

"Oh Alpha, you are always working. Always thoughtful. You remind me so much of my father. I'm glad that you found me at the Alpha ball so many years ago. I don't know what our pack would of done without you."

I grin at her. Feeling sparks shoot through me. Oh my love. That touch, those soft words.

"I've got to go and make sure that the kitchen is running correctly and check on the school. After the drill today, I'm sure the girls would like to know that they did well. I'm so very proud of our Alpha and our school. Ella will do amazing for us. I'm sure she'll find her mate soon and our pack will grow. She'll be 17 soon and before we know it 18. She can handle this, but you know what it's like to be young and have an imagination that takes you where ever you want to go. Don't worry about it."

"Thank you for your reassurance. I know you are right. You always are, my love."

With that she left and I turned back to the papers on my desk. Thankful to of had that little moment with Luna and the most amazing person on the planet.

42 RSVP's were in, and so we were getting all our vacant buildings cleaned and prepared. They had 3 more days to RSVP and then we would cut off the invitations. We gave a very small window of time for people to accept our invitation as this was an exclusive Luna shcool ane we prided ourselves on making sure that it remaind that way. We sent out invitations after the order came down. So the outside packs had a bit more time to prepare than our girls. They were allotted 2 weeks to consider. We had to have at least 2 weeks to prepare for the event. I also needed to reach out to the witches and ask for some back up during the time that we had extra people in our lands. We allowed a rather powerful coven to rent about 10 acres at the back of the pack nearer to the human town to practice their craft in exchange for keeping up protection spells over all of our land. It was quite a task, but they were in turn left alone by humans and by us.

Our pack once had a thousand members. But a lot of our female wolves found their mates in other packs, some had gone rogue when they didn't want to continue living in 12 foot snow falls. Some had died in past battles. 5 years with no attacks was unheard of, but in the past we fought against smaller packs over our land and rogues who were hungry. A few of the rogues were were able to help and add to the pack. But the years had not been kind to us.

Trubel and the King were working hard recently as the rogue population was growing and no one really knew why. Rogues were werewolves who had given up on the idea of a pack life and had abandoned their packs or criminials that had been banished from their packs for crimes. Some managed to live in human towns, or in the wilderness alone. Most however became crazy. Their wolf form would take over and they would be unable to change back to the human form at all. They tended to form small packs with others and couldn't communicate through anything other than howls and growls. They attacked animals and humans for no reason other than sport. Humans just called them wolves.

The reports of rogues and wolves being close to our land was rather disconcerting. We hadn't seen a wolf in this area in quite some time. And most other animals stayed away from our land. We couldn't even raise our own cattle because they could smell us and would panic. We traded meats with ranchers and stuck to farming when we could as well as trapping and selling the goods that we made.

So much paperwork. I'd much rather be out managing the upcoming dinner and making sure that Ella was actually prepared to take on all the upcoming events. I haven't been able to tell her everything yet, but hopefully she will be able to gain my confidence soon. I won't let her have the pack unprepared and I know that Sand is ready to sit with me on the porch swing and watch grandchildren play in the yard.

With that thought I smile. Still planning for the future.

POV Sand

So much is going on and I am fluttering around the pack checking in with everyone. So many of our pack members are questioning why such a big to do was being put on at our tiny pack. One of the reasons we have been safe is because our pack, our school, and our lands are mostly unknown to others. We have gotten smaller over the years, but we are still a very strong pack. Not strong enough to ever go to war. Setting all of this up we were going to make sure that we looked bigger than we were. This optical illusion was up to me to convey to our incoming guests.

Our pack was extremely hospitable and since we were the only pack to not report a rogue attack in many years, the Lycan King was interested in coming and seeing what defences we had in place. In his stead he sent Trubel to explore and discuss our security measures before coming himself. The Lycan King, Astrin, had never gone to any of the Luna schools, but now he was intent to come here. He was unmated... But had turned down invites from across the States and Canada. Ours was the only one that he had decided to look into. That in itself was an honor. A high honor should he actually attend.

~Of course he will come. Grimd made friends with his Beta, long before he was the Beta. I'm sure Trubel has pushed the issue so he can see us again.~ My wolf Astrid said.

~I'm sure that is part of it. It's been very intimidating, but at least we have the Lycan's for backup should anything go awry. Nothing well... I've planned every moment of the next few weeks...~

~Yes Sand, you have done well. Between you and Grimd, we will fine. On top of that, I'm hoping that our pup will find someone worth spending time with. The Cresent Moon pack that borders our pack is 3 times our size and would be amazing to bond our pack to. Can you imagine the growth that could happen, instead of our slow decline? It's been a long time since we have gone through a mating year without losing pack members to their mated partners packs.~

~I know, Astrid. We feel the pinch each and every passing year. So many empty homes, so many extra patrol shifts. Hard winters with few to help prepare for them. But that is not my main priority... We must get through this and find a way to make our pack look like the strongest. You know that the Alpha to be's will be looking for their mates, but also ways to get past our defences. Grimd handles things beautifully. You and I take care of all the other parts and keep things moving like a well oiled machine.~

"Luna! Pleasure to see you."

"Hello Maya! How is everything going for the pack dinner? I'm sure you heard we have a special guest and many more than usual will be attending. We have 20 wolves out on patrol, but I expect most of the other 230 members will be here tonight to welcome and question our guest."

"We have set up many different dishes. There will be plenty of meat, soup, and of course mead. Don't fret, you trained us yourself many years ago along side your mother. We can handle the food prep. The other Omega's have already began decorating and setting up the dining area."

I walk along sampling the dishes. As usual I am impressed with how wonderful our head cook makes even the simpliest meals taste. The way she seasons and prepares each dish is mouth watering. I've never been more impressed with someones culinary skills as I am with Maya's.

"Thank you Maya. Your service is always impecible."

As I leave the Kitchen I wonder how my darling daughter is doing. It's been an incredibly stressful day for Ella. She has never really been much for the idea of growing the pack. She has always just wanted to be in control of her own life. I know she will come around and realize that she has more control over herself than she realizes. She was born from 2 of the strongest Alpha lines to walk on this planet.

~Or so you think Sand. The moon godess has blessed us with being stronger than most, but we must not get to cocky.~

~Indeed Astrid. All is well in the pack house, all is well in the kitchen... Should we double check the school or should we go for a run before the festivities?~

~Let's run to the lake and back. It's a decent stretch and leaves us time to dress.~

On that note I walk out into the garden, strip down, and howl as I feel my bones cracking and twisting. Howling loudly, I speed off into the forest toward the lake.