Chapter 82: 83: Mom’s Vanity

ARIEL

~Leave the Royal Pack.~

~Tonight.~

It almost feels like someone else just said those words, not me.

But somehow, it has come to this.

And to make it even worse, I just used the exact same icy tone that Xavier used when he banished me from the Crescent Moon Pack.

I feel a guilty tightness rise up in my chest, and my first instinct is to apologize to Natalia and try to take it all back.

But I can’t do that anymore. I’ve done everything I could to help her since she moved in.

Now, she’s pushed me too far. I cross my arms and wait for her fiery response.

After all, this is Natalia we’re talking about. She’s never been one to make it easy and accept ~anything~ without a fight.

But this time, she just sits there.

Silent.

She doesn’t raise a word in her own defense. Instead, she stares down at her hands, trying to anxiously rub the drying blood off of them.

“Aren’t you going to say something?” I ask.

“You really mean that?” she says finally.

“You…you wouldn’t have to become rogue,” I say, trying to sound more compassionate than I feel. “You know I would never do that to you.”

“Oh, what a generous queen ~you~ are,” she says, her words dripping with anger. “Taking my son away from his mother.”

I feel another stab of guilt.

I hadn’t thought about Xavi.

“This won’t be permanent, Natalia. You know Xavi will be taken care of here.”

“So then where am I supposed to go? Home? The entire Crescent Moon Pack hates me after what happened with Xavier.”

“You… You could go to the Scripture Pack,” I say. “They have the best rehab programs in the territory. They could really help you, Nat.”

Natalia rolls her eyes and reaches for the nearly empty bottle of moonshine at her feet.

“You ~do~ need help Natalia,” I continue. “You’re a danger to—”

“I know,” she says quietly, a look of defeat falling over her face. “It’s what’s best for Xavi.”

Moments ago, I was boiling with rage at my sister. But now that I see her so deflated, resigned to leaving Xavi…

I can only feel sad for her.

~Is this really the best thing to do?~

“Natalia—”

“Ariel, don’t. I’m ~not~ going to let Xavi get hurt again.”

She quickly stands up, avoiding my gaze and trying to look away to hide her misty eyes. She stumbles into her bedroom and grabs a coat without another word.

“Natalia, wait! Let me at least get an escort for you,” I say, following her inside.

“You’ve done enough for me, Ariel.”

She disappears into the hallway, leaving me alone in the silent room. I consider going after her to ask her where she’s going, but I decide against it.

I let out a sigh. I started the argument with Natalia because I was furious that she had told the press about my healing powers.

But now that it’s over, somehow ~I~ feel like the bad guy.

Could I have helped her ~without~ sending her away?

I glance at Xavi’s empty wooden crib in the corner of the room. Little toys shaped like different phases of the moon are scattered around.

~No. This was for Xavi’s own good, too.~

~It’s what needed to be done. For the good of the whole pack.~

I take a deep breath, straightening my back, remembering my queenly posture.

My mom is right.

It does make me feel a bit better.

VIVIAN

I stand on the nearly constructed stage, surveying the pack workers as they hoist up the human flag into the sky, and it begins to flutter in the wind right beside the Royal Pack flag.

I have to admit, I feel proud to see it all coming together.

To see it become ~real~.

This is the culmination of all the hard work Alex and I have done these past few weeks.

Draft after draft of agreements, schedules, and security plans.

Endless debates and discussions.

And now, this weekend it’s ~finally~ happening.

The unification ceremony.

~You’re so fucking close, Vivian.~

But when I imagined standing on this stage before I came to the Royal Pack, I never would have guessed who’d be here with me, its paws planted firmly in the back of my mind:

My wolf.

Yesterday—being in the woods with Ariel—letting my wolf come out on her own…

Letting out that howl into the crisp night air.

~That~ was one of the happiest moments of my life.

“Has anyone ever told you you’re a workaholic?” I hear Alex say jokingly, ripping me from my thoughts.

He climbs up on the stage, scoping out the progress we’ve made so far today.

“You’re the first,” I say dryly.

“It’s called ‘taking a break,’” he says, pulling out two beers from a hidden cooler and holding one out to me. “You should try it.”

I shake my head. “The stress is over when the ceremony is over.”

“Come on!” he teases. “I don’t know how they do it in the human capital, but ~here~ you’re allowed to let loose a little.”

I sigh, grabbing the beer as Alex clinks his bottle with mine. He lets out a little howl—the way werewolves say ~cheers~.

I smile, letting out my own AAA-WW-OOOO, a little too loud.

“Wow!” he says, laughing. “That’s pretty damn good for a first try. You’re a natural.”

I smirk, taking a sip.

~If only you knew.~

“If someone would have tried to tell me a month ago that I’d be standing on a stage with a human, about to sign a peace treaty, I would’ve clawed their mouth shut,” he says. “But you’ve made me believe it’s not so crazy after all.”

I smile, sensing the trust and respect in his eyes.

“Just doing my job,” I say, slightly uncomfortably.

I’ve never really been able to take a compliment. Growing up with my dad, I learned to work without getting even a single word of praise.

“Well, you’re the best ambassador we could’ve asked for.”

I put down my beer, feeling my cheeks flush with pride. “Thanks, Your Highness. But I should really get back to work. There’s still tons to do in the garden reception area.”

I turn to walk past him, but he reaches out and grabs my forearm.

“Yes, Your Majesty?” I ask, trying to hide my shock.

“Grab my forearm. Just like I’m doing,” he says seriously. “It’s a handshake of honor between us wolves. A sign of true respect.”

I shake forearms with the king of the werewolves, and he looks at me like a true equal. I can’t help but let a grin blossom across my face.

“My father would be proud of what we accomplished,” he says.

Suddenly, my smile fades. I let go of his arm, unease flooding my chest.

~My father, whatever he’s planning, would be proud too.~

ARIEL

Now that Natalia is gone, the anger I had boiling inside me has completely evaporated.

All that’s left now is an anxious, stewing guilt.

Normally I would shrug it off, but I can’t exactly wander down to train with the warriors now after quitting and act like nothing has happened.

I need to talk to ~someone~.

I can’t bother Alex: he’s been working around the clock on the unification ceremony.

Right now, there’s only one person in the whole palace I can really talk to about Natalia.

My mom.

I timidly knock on the wooden door to her room, feeling slightly awkward. It still seems a bit weird to seek out my mom for advice.

“Mom?” I say quietly, pushing the door open and peeking inside.

My mom sits at a giant wooden vanity at the other end of the room, leafing through the latest issue of ~Wolf’s Digest~.

My dad paces back and forth, cradling Xavi in his arms and making funny faces at him.

Neither of them has noticed me.

I look at Xavi sucking his thumb and giggling in delight at my dad, and sadness comes over me when I think about how he might not see his mom anytime soon.

“Goddess, Peter! Don’t let him suck his thumb while he’s fanging!” my mom says to my dad scoldingly.

I clear my throat, and my mom’s eyes light up as she registers me standing in the doorway. “Ariel! How are you doing, dear?”

After one look at my face, my dad notices how upset I am and rushes over. “What’s wrong, little warrior?”

“I…sent Natalia away,” I say, trying to keep my voice steady.

“What happened?” my dad asks, his face falling.

He’s normally so supportive of me, but in this moment, I can sense his disappointment in my actions.

I can’t bear to make it any worse.

“Dad, I love you with all my heart,” I say. “But do you think I can talk to Mom alone for a little bit?”

My dad looks shocked initially but nods understandingly. “I’ll be outside with Xavi.” He gives me a peck on the cheek and leaves me alone with my mom.

In an instant, my mom has her arms wrapped around me, cooing and stroking my hair, and I just let myself melt into her, my tears flowing out.

“I’m sorry, Mom,” I say, trying to stifle a sob.

“Shhh, Ariel, honey, it’s okay,” she says softly.

“No, Mom, it’s not okay. I sent her away from you, Dad, and Xavi.”

She straightens her arms and looks at me seriously. “Ariel. You have to understand. You made the right choice.”

~What?~

“But…she’s your daughter, too, Mom,” I say, feeling confused.

“Yes, but there are rules, Ariel. Your sister was a danger to the pack, as well as to Xavi,” she says calmly. “And as a queen, you had to make a hard decision. But it was the right one.”

I look down, fuming at how casual my mom sounds.

~The way she’s speaking about her own daughter being exiled…~

~Did she feel the same way when Xavier exiled me?~

Her hand lifts my chin toward her, forcing me to make eye contact.

“Remember what I taught you. Chin up. ~Always.~”

I wipe the tears from my cheeks, searching my mom’s eyes for any sign that she cares about bringing back her own disgraced daughter.

But instead, she’s ~smiling~ at me.

“What about Xavi?” I say, trying to contain my anger. “Don’t you think it will affect him?”

“You don’t have to worry about him. He’s got his grandparents for that. All ~you~ need to do is be strong for Alex. Now more than ever,” she says.

My mom takes my hand and guides me to sit down in front of the mirror at the vanity.

I stare at my own puffy eyes as she runs her fingers through my hair. She grabs a brush and begins to work on my tangles.

It’s something she never did when I was a little girl. As far as I can remember, she had always despised my knotted, untamed hair.

But this just feels ~so~ soothing.

“Look at yourself, Ariel. You look like a true queen now.”

I stare at my reflection in the mirror. I’m wearing a royal gown and glinting moonstone jewelry, and my silky hair cascades down my shoulders.

I almost don’t recognize myself.

“You’ve become what Natalia always dreamed of. So of course she could never be happy for you,” she says.

“I tried to be kind to her,” I say, wiping the tears from my cheeks. “I really did.”

“It doesn’t matter how nice you were. She’ll always be jealous of the strong, beautiful woman you’ve become.”

“Thank you, Mom,” I say, sighing and closing my eyes, feeling her hands passing through my hair.

“You’re welcome, sweetie.”

“I just… I can’t believe she leaked that story to the press about my healing ability,” I say.

Dianne chuckles. “Oh, well, that was ~me~, dear.”

I turn to her, shocked. “Wh-why would you do that?!”

She frowns, looking at me like I just asked the most stupid question she’s ever heard.

“Well, Ariel, after that mess you got yourself into with those lewd tabloid photos, I had to do ~something~ to bring your reputation back into a positive light with the pack.”

“Mom, that wasn’t your secret to tell!” I say, feeling anger rise up within me.

“Honey, tell me: which of the two would you rather be known as? The healer? Or the queen of the strippers?”

I’m at a total loss for words.

“How could you?” I cry, pushing away my mom’s brush and standing up angrily.

“What?” she says. “I just changed the conversation.”

Wow. My mother betraying my trust is one thing…

But it’s the way she acts so casual, as if my life is just Mating Weekend gossip. She always knows how to add salt to the wound.

My mom really can’t even see that she’s done something wrong.

But it isn’t my mom that I’m angry at…

I’m angry at myself.

I completely gave up on Natalia.

I blamed her for something she didn’t do, and I tried to pass her off to the Scripture Pack as if she was some broken object to be repaired.

But no.

That’s my sister.

I made a mistake.

I pull away from my mom and head toward the door.

“Honey, where are you going? I didn’t finish with your hair. You still have knots.”

I glare at her, scruffing up my hair. “Of course that’s what you’re worried about when Natalia’s out there. Fuck the knots.”

Before she can respond, I storm out the door and slam it shut.

I’ll deal with my mother later.

Where I’m going, I don’t need the queen makeover.

My sister is gone, somewhere outside the pack borders by now.

And Goddess willing, I’m going to find her before it’s too late.