KNOX'S P.O.V
I was angry, sad, and guilty... but the thing is, it's not my emotions, it's Zes'. I can't help but frown at the emotions. It's normal for an Alpha to feel like this when they lose a pack member, cause it's their responsibility to protect the pack. Since Zes is the Queen of all werewolves, she can tell when any wolf dies, rogue or not. And since she only became one a couple of days ago, she isn't used to it yet.
'Zes, mi amore, are you okay?' I mind-linked her.
I panicked when I got no response. I quickly informed my dad where I was headed and sped off to Zes's pack.
I followed her scent as soon as I entered her pack. The scent led me to the packhouse, to the office. I could hear Zes and Augustus arguing.
"Zes, I will take care of the things here," Augustus said as calmly as possible.
"I already told you, I am not going to the ball when my pack members were attacked!" Zes growled.
Augustus growled at her tone.
"Knox, you can come in," Zes sighed.
"I think Augustus is right," I told her as I entered.
Zes glared at me. I sighed.
"Zes, the people who are attending the ball are Alphas; they will all feel disrespected if they are stood up to. Yes, since they are Alphas, they will understand why you wouldn't want to come, but some Alphas are not ready to accept a 20-year-old, who is a girl, as their Queen," Augustus visibly cringed as he told her.
"I can command them to, it doesn't matter if they want to or not, "Zes growled.
"Zes, please..." Augustus sighed.
Zes hesitantly nodded at her father. After Zes hugged her dad goodbye, I grabbed her hand and led her to where my car is.
"You look so beautiful, Zes," I say, grabbing her hand and kissing it.
"Thanks, you don't look bad yourself," she smiles.
"Where is my morning kiss?" I grinned at her as we entered my car.
I grinned even more when I felt her emotions shift from anger to joy, not completely, but enough to make her mood better.
"What morning kiss?" She asked.
"Babe~" I drawled.
"Focus on the road, babe," She shook her head.
I let out a huff and grabbed her hand. After exactly two minutes, she slowly removed her hand from mine, only for me to grab it again.
"Babe, let me hold your hand," I groaned as she tried to remove her hand again.
She giggled. I glance at her, she was enjoying this, her eyes held amusement.
"Baby, you are spoiled," She giggled.
I pouted, which I would never do in public, making her laugh.
"Fine, take your hand." I huffed, letting her go.
"Babe!" She gasped wide-eyed before grabbing my hand.
I swear I fought my every urge to smirk, but it fought its way to my face.
~~~~
We were able to reach the ball before the other Alphas arrived. Most of them arrived today morning and stayed in the hotel my dad and Augustus own.
"Guys, you guys have a 'get the fuck out' demeanor, be a bit welcoming," Zes groaned at our friends who had unfriendly expressions painted across their faces.
As soon as I got out of the car, I had a Pokerface on, just like Reece's, James', and Raven's, like we do every time we are around people. Mae has an 'I don't give a fuck' look on, while my dear Zes has a very welcoming demeanor.
"Why do you want us to be nice to people we don't know?"Reece asked.
"Good impression," Zes shrugs. "And because it's nice."
James opened his mouth to say something, but he closed it when he saw my dad coming.
"Dad, do I really have to know the names of all the Alphas?" Zes whined.
"Yes, munchkin. I will only say it once when I greet them, better remember them," My dad shrugged, making Zes pout.
I laughed at her, for which I was rewarded with a glare, but the moment was short-lived as my dad spoke.
"Don't laugh at her son, all of you except Raven have to know the names of all the Alphas as you people are the future Alpha, Beta, and Gamma, but since your Zes's mate, you need to learn their names like her right now itself while the others have time to learn them."
I let out a groan of annoyance.
"But there are 13 packs excluding our packs," James argued.
"And you only need to know the Alphas and the Lunas' names," My dad argued back.
I need to learn 26 names. What a pain. I thought. Sighing, I shook my head. I grinned widely as an idea popped into my head. I glanced at Zes, who was now grinning widely at me. We both turned to our respective Betas.
James eyed me curiously, then glanced at Zes, who was grinning widely at Mae, who was now shaking her head furiously. As he connected the dots, he looked at me wide-eyed and started shaking his head.
'Come on, mahn. Learn these people's names for your best friend, and then when we forget, just mind link their names.' I mind linked him.
'Heck no! I ain't doing that!' His mind linked me as he glared.
I huffed and threw the idea out of my mind. Learning names is such a pain and a waste of my precious time.
Throwing away my thoughts, I stare at Zes. She looks so beautiful. She looked like a Queen. My Queen. Her dress was strapless and her mark was seen. MINE, Ryder growled. When I was busy oogling my mate, I hadn't noticed the first Alpha had entered, who was now flirting with my mate.
A low growl escaped my mouth, making both of them snap their head towards me. My hands instinctively wrapped around Zes's waist.
"Knox, this is Alpha Dominic," Zes introduced.
"Alpha Dominic, this is my mate," She smiled.
"My bad, and this is my Beta." He smiled, motioning to the boy behind him, and held his hand.
I nodded and shook his hand. They walked away.
"Keep Ryder on a check," Zes muttered.
I rolled my eyes and turned to see where the Alpha went. I stifled a laugh when he was flirting with Mae. She glanced towards us, her eyes pleading for help. I turned to Zes, who was biting her cheek to stop herself from laughing.
Alpha Dominic hasn't met his mate yet; he is 21. He became the Alpha of the Orchid pack this year. He is the typical flirt you see in schools. You know the feeling when guests enter your house and you just want them out of your house? Yep, I am experiencing that.
I felt a sudden shift of emotions from happy to nervous. I glanced at Zes, who was fiddling with her fingers.
"What's wrong?" I ask her as I rest my head on her shoulder.
"Nothing," She smiled, a smile which didn't reach her eyes.
"Wh-"
"Alpha Landon, Luna Lucy," My dad greeted, interrupting me.
They were a middle-aged couple. Near Luna Lucy, a boy stood who looked like a mini version of Alpha Landon. They were the Alpha and Luna of the Midnight pack.
"Welcome to the Bloodmoon Pack, Alpha, and Luna." Zes smiled at them.
Luna Lucy smiled while Alpha nodded with a straight face.
"I am Zes, and this is my mate Knox," Zes introduced.
"And who is this little cutie?" Zes asked as I shook my hand with Alpha Landon.
This made Alpha Landon smile.
"Hi, I am Max," Little Landon whispered, hiding behind his mom.
"Hi, my name is Zes," She said, bending a little.
"Her Luna side is showing up, or it might be her being the Queen," Alpha Landon chuckled as Zes was talking with Max.
I know what he meant; her motherly nature is showing up.
I chuckled and agreed.
The couple walked into the ballroom. After that, a few more Alphas entered. After greeting everyone, I was mentally exhausted.
After everyone was seated, Zes climbed up the series of stairs and stood in the center to give the speech.
ZES'S P.O.V
I nervously walked up to the elevated area at the top center to give my speech. I felt all eyes on me as I made my way to the top; it was like they wanted to find a mistake.
As I stood in the front and center, I first looked in every possible direction the audience was. I took a deep breath and began, "Ladies and Gentlemen, I am Zes Xander, the Queen of the Werewolves. Today, I address you for the first time as your Queen."
I gave a glance at Knox and continued. "I thank you all for going through all the trouble to assemble here to meet me. I know you must be wondering how, as a 20-year-old, I can be a formidable Queen. I thought the same thing at first. But, I assure you, I will do my best to be the Queen that you would look up to."
The audience clapped, and I smiled at them. When the applause died down, I continued, "I know about the recent rogue attacks that took place all around the world."
The audience started mumbling and talking among themselves. I cleared my throat to get their attention, and surprisingly, it actually worked. "Fear not. As your Queen, I shall protect all of you. For it is not the subjects who serve the Queen but the Queen who serves her subjects." I finished and gracefully waved at the audience while walking off the stage.
"That was scary," I muttered as Knox draped his arm around me.
"You did great," He said, kissing my forehead.
He chuckled. I put on my mask as the ball was about to begin. My mask was rose gold glittered with a light rink ribbon attached to it.
The others also had their masks on. Knox wore a navy blue mask with gold designs of the moon on it. Charlotte wore a light blue mask, which was designed with light blue and white glitter; it had a white glitter butterfly on the left top of the mask. Reece wore a dark grey mask that had attached light grey carved designs on the top and sides of the mask. Mae wore a simple silver designed mask with stones stuck to it. James wore a Navy green glittery mask. Raven wore a gold mask with tiny gold leaves and flowers attached.
"Dance with me," Knox said.
"Nope," I said while biting my lip from smiling.
"I am quite sure that I didn't ask," He replied, pulling me to the dance floor by my waist.
A piece of slow, yet calm music started playing. I am pretty sure I don't know the name of the piece. I was surprised how my mate didn't step on my dress.
"You look ravishing, my Queen~" Knox grinned.
"You don't look bad yourself," I blushed, not meeting his gaze.
"Still can't take a compliment, can you?" He chuckled.
"You know... I forgot something," I said, wrapping my arms around his neck.
"I am afraid that 'something' must wait, I am not ready to let you off the dance floor," He said, tightening his hold on my waist.
I shook my head, chuckling.
"I also need some time with my mate, you know. I know you are the Queen and all..." he started rambling.
"I love you too," I smiled at him.
"But we never even had a peaceful day... Yeah, I know... Moon Goddess sure likes our misery...-" I cut him with a kiss.
"You sure talk a lot," I chuckled.
"Will I get another kiss if I start rambling again?" He grinned.
"Nope. I will go find another partner," I grinned evilly.
"You are mean, you know?" He asked.
I giggled.
"I said, I love you too, I know I should have said it before! But there was so much on my mind, I barely caught it when you said it. I only realised today, when I was showering-" I said again.
I was cut off with a kiss. He pulled me towards him, with his hands wrapped around my waist. He kept one of his hands on my back, keeping me close, while the other found its way on my neck. I pull apart and rest my forehead against his, my breath hitching when he caresses my mark with his thumb.
"Guess, it's not only me who rambles," He whispers.
"Can I have a dance with the Queen?" A deep voice asked.
I turned to look at the man beside us. I don't remember his name, and surely can't see his face through his mask. He wore a mask that was half plain black, while the other half was gold and designed.
"I love you too," I whispered in Knox's ear.
I accepted the man's hand and walked with him man leaving Knox to stand in shock.
"You remind me of my sister," He said with a sad smile.
"How come?" I asked as I stared into his silver orbs.
"She is the same age as you...She is cheerful and carefree like you...She also has grey eyes. She is really annoying, stubborn, and short-tempered, but I wouldn't change anything about her," He said with a smile as if he was recalling the memory. There was adoration in his silver eyes.
"She sounds like a wonderful person," I smiled as he finished describing her.
"Have you brought her with you?" I asked.
"No...." He said.
"Wh-"
"Can I take over from here?" Knox asked, interrupting me.
The man smiled and stepped away from me. Something about this man was familiar.
RAVEN'S P.O.V
I huff in annoyance as James walks away. We were dancing till James claimed his legs were gonna die. But I wanna dance. Right now, he is sitting next to Mae and eating.
I wanna dance!! I whined in my head. I can hear the music, tempting me to dance.
"Can I have this dance, my lady?" I deep, sexy voice asked.
I turned towards him and accepted his hand. He leads me to the dance floor.
I was enjoying dancing, and my partner was exceptionally good at it.
"You're a good dancer," I grinned.
He chuckled. I studied him for the first time. He had jet black hair, a sharp jawline, blue eyes... looking into his eyes, I felt complete.
"Mate," I whispered.
And he was gone. I clenched my fist and let out a deep sigh. As I felt the frustration leave me, I started thinking. I don't know his name, don't know him, haven't seen him, and there the frustration returned. To make things even worse, Zes was running towards me.
"Our pack is under attack!" As those words left her mouth, hell broke loose.