A ROYAL HIGHSCHOOL DRAMA

9 FEBRUARY, TUESDAY, 2AM

It was late, my shower was long and relaxing, and the lingering scent of Mate when I stepped back into his room was like a balm over my tiredness.

Mate's bed was wide, the sheets were white, I put on the white ceremonial dress and stockings that Ki had put out for me. There was also a pair of white heels and accessories and make up laid out neatly on the dressing table.

The make up was all brand new. And then again, so was everything else, including the shoes which was completely white underneath too.

I considered my options.

OPTION A:

What was my plan again? Suddenly it didn't feel all that urgent: Go look for a very irate mate (if the mating bond was any indication), and confront some ex-girlfriend maybe... And inevitably cheese Mate off for interfering in something he expressedly didn't want me to know about.

Or OPTION B:

I could crawl into that wide inviting bed and sleep in my Mate's scent.

I couldnt really explain, but it was way past midnight, I had a long day, and tbh, I wasn't all that keen on walking in on Mate and his ex-girlfriend. I did feel a bit guilty about this. Did I not love him enough? I imagined based on random gossip and hearsay that I should be jealous? But for some reason, I could not muster it.

We could do OPTION C: ALL OF THE ABOVE too. I'll just get nice and comfy, maybe a short nap, and if she's still here when I woke up, I might have the energy or motivation to bite her head off... Or his, depending on how the situation played out.

Yeah... Yawn.

A familiar knock on the door and Ki's voice asked, "Goddess, are you ready?"

I threw off the covers and padded barefoot to the door. I pulled it open to face him, "Ready for what?"

"Apologies goddess, were you intending to sleep?" Ki asked the moment he saw the rumpled bed behind me.

I nodded, "What else should I be doing?"

Ki smiled very gently, "I am hesitant to remind you now..."

"What?" I asked. Seriously, my betas! "Just say it."

"Your Luna is still very much alone with his ex-girlfriend downstairs." He said.

"But he hasn't cheated on me or anything." I said.

"Well, no, I do not think he intends to either." Ki affirmed.

I nodded, "Then is fine."

Ki's smile looked strained.

I sulked at him and flared a little. I think Harvey had been a bad influence on him.

"Ki... If you don't agree with me, you need to tell me." I told him.

"I will follow you, goddess." Ki told me.

At this point, I should be touched by his loyalty, but really, I wanted to smack him.

"So if I run straight into a really bad idea, you'll come with me?" I asked.

"With all my heart, goddess."

Which only made me want to smack him harder.

My betas were all highly intelligent guys until it came to following me.

"What if I was running to my death?"

"I will protect you at all cost."

"What if it cost your life?"

"Then it was my honor to have run with you, goddess."

I hit him then.

"No! Wrong!" I flared. And then I regretted it.

It was hardwired into their Beta wolves... This indiscriminate idiocy when it came to unwavering loyalty to the alpha. I shouldn't have hit him for it.

"Sorry." I muttered. I know, Alphas shouldn't apologize but I really was. If it helped, I said it as quietly as possible.

"It didn't hurt." He lied.

I nearly hit him again, but I didn't. No. Bad Sam. Even if he let me, it didn't make it right.

Hitting a dog doesn't teach it anything except pain.

I shook my head, "Don't just let me hit you whenever I want. Block or dodge or something."

"A thousand apologies goddess." Ki smiled, but his smile had a hint of genuine humor now.

Grrr... Okay, I got sidetracked... What was it we were talking about - or not talking about... Oh right, "So what is it that you aren't saying, but you're definitely thinking I should do?"

Ki seemed extremely uncomfortable and then he finally said, "Might I be so bold to suggest you make your appearance and extradite your Luna from a sticky situation?"

"Okay," I nodded, "Now say that again, but as if talking to a puppy."

Because IDEK WTH he was talking about, IYKWIM. I'm the kind of person you needed to spell out word for word to. LOL.

[*Answer key below if you need it, IYKYK]

Anyway, Ki turned out to be quite able to explain long drawn and twisty Lorent dramas to puppies. I've summized it below the best I could:

It all started when the young Alpha James was in 8th grade. He was a playful child, particularly gifted in music, and performed on the stage for the first time at a school talent contest. He played on a white baby grand piano and won, not just the top prize, but also a sudden influx of female admirers.

Suddenly the Lorent Academy School Paper (yes, they used to have a printed school paper), used his picture on the front page and touted him as the Prince on the white piano.

He never played the piano in public since.

That same month, he shifted. This was unexpectedly early and also shrouded with dark rumors, BUT he was inaugurated as the future alpha and as such, quickly elevated to royalty.

The students, teachers, even the principal bowed at him when he passed them along the hallways. As with Lorent custom, he had to adhere to a strict dress code and follow a stringent set of etiquette and protocols as befitting the heir to the Lorent Alpha.

Before his Alpha wolf emerged, his playfulness often got him in trouble at home with his Dad. After the Alpha Wolf emerged, it was one fight after another - many of them rather physical in nature. No one outside knew the true extent of it either since both had powerful healing wolves. There were many rumours among the household staff though.

The young Alpha did his best for the first year. Then he went to highschool and all hell broke loose.

By the third year of highschool, he was usually playing truant, almost always in jeans, a t-shirt and leather jacket, rode a motorbike, and had a string of scandals, some of them with young adult ladies - I must bear in mind my Luna was still a minor then. Oh, and that a large percentage of the scandals were false or gross exaggerations.

As opposed to the small percentage that were completely true?

Naturally, as his older and wiser - and sexier beta, Ki took the rap for the young alpha's disgrace.

Ki shrugged at the memory.

Anyway, my Luna had a particular system for girls. There were admirers, whom he largely ignored. Dates, which he took frequently and very publicly largely to annoy his father. And girlfriends - a position fiercely contested for. Only the most beautiful and manipulative girl would win.

To be accepted as the young alpha's girlfriend, you had to be pretty and smart and talented and liked by his large fangirl base. And you had to make sure your competition would not be able to climb up anywhere near enough to push you off the pedestal.

It sounded like a very exciting game. We should play that sometime, in our pool, with those colorful pool noodles and a large floatie. You know, bash each other till you're king of the hill. Oh right, I guess the game had already been invented. It's called "King of the Hill". Haha. I used to love that game. I was very good at it too.

But Ki seemed to feel this was a different type of game than what I was thinking of.

Anyway, Amanda Bradford was the young Alpha's first girlfriend. She lasted from 8th to 9th grade until she was bested by her best friend, Belinda Kristen, who completely destroyed her BFF by leaking some less than wholesome videos (which she was also a part of) and in a twist of fate, became the year-end dance queen next to the young Alpha James. Belinda Bradford thought she was set to stay, but was deftly replaced by Cynthia Emerson, Delta Emerson's daughter. The one downstairs alone with mate.

Cynthia Emerson remained queen of the Lorent highschools until the end of prom night in senior year, when Mate apparently told her that she wasn't needed anymore. No, it wasn't because he had met his mate. He just didn't see any point in meaningless relationships anymore.

Overall, I conclude that my mate was a heartless jerk. But Ki's point was that Cynthia reappearing was bad news. He was certain another scandal was waiting at the door to shake the Alpha family. And Rebel was ill positioned to receive it with his brittle relationship with his father, which according to Ki was just begining to mend.

Should Alpha Lorent perceive Rebel to be returning to his old ways, the hard won trust and cautious relationship between the old alpha and prodigal son would be torn asunder.

Alpha Lorent hated scandals. And Cynthia, the daughter of an influential delta in the pack, who had already turned 18 but has yet to mate, was already a staple in the morning tea menu - in which Ki did not mean the food or drink menu, but the tidbits and morsels of gossip served daily to the Lorent's high society.

Did that mean there existed a Lorent Low Society?

Anyway, Cynthia's appearance tonight was surely a calculated one. There were already whispers in serveral circles about her soul mate really being the Young Alpha James and that is was only a matter of time.

Now with his betrothal to Night Leaf's Alpha Princess and upcoming pack merger in the picture. Rumors abound about who the True Luna was and what would become of Cynthia.

Overall, I really loved the way Ki told stories with all the imagery and language that I would never hear in any other type of conversation because I've never heard of anything else ever that might be "torn asunder" before.

"I don't have to tell you the ramifications of how any perceived relations between your Luna and her would impact your own introduction to the Lorent Pack in the near future." Ki added.

Oh, so this was about PR? I was confused. I thought this was about Mate needing rescuing of some sort.

I blinked. Maybe he did need to tell me "the ramifications" because I saw nothing. I tried, I truly did. But it came out as blank as the stare I wore.

Ki sighed and decided to go with another strategy, "Delta Emerson brought a delectable assortment of gold dusted sweets. The macarons looked particularly tempting and I was quite sure there were fresh strawberries in the cream puffs when I plated them just earlier this evening."

I wasn't sure what macarons were. But suddenly all the lines joined up and the bulbs lit up for me, "If we go crash the sitting room, they would be on the coffee table right?"

"Precisely, goddess." Ki beamed at me.

"I need an excuse to walk in." I said, but I was already heading out. Ki caught up and we continued briskly down the stairs.

"You might like to thank the young Alpha James for the beautiful collection of jewellery and wardrobe he had just bought you." Ki suggested mildly.

I stopped, and looked down at myself, "He bought all this?"

Well, I supposed somebody had to buy them... But new clothes and things just kept appearing since the fire and I just got used to it. I hadn't gone shopping since last month with Savy and the golden birdcage rack in my clam shell bedroom was able to magically produce whatever I needed to wear when I needed it.

"Your Luna hand picked all the key pieces himself." Ki answered. He made it sound like it was significant. But I couldn't figure out the "ramifications" of it yet. Okay, so I was misusing the word. I just wanted to try using it. Hahaha.

I looked at the diamond studded bracelet and remembered the tray of jewelry I picked it out from. My Luna had expensive taste.

I hope whatever investments he was talking to Henry the other time work out brilliantly for him because there was no way I would be able to upkeep his living if he should bankrupt.

Wait, if he were my Luna, shouldn't I be paying for him?

Oh... The RAMIFICATIONS would be on my wallet? Although last I check, I only had a twenty.

I feel like I need to write a feedback to the Moon Goddess. Next time she matches mates, maybe she should pay more attention to practical things like whether I could afford him.

---

*ANSWER KEY for those who prefer things spelled out like English used to be.

IDEK = I don't even know

WTH = What the heck

IYKWIM = If you know what I mean

LOL = Laughing out loud

IYKYK = If you know, you know.

It's all legit. I'm not making them up. Welcome to the future of the written language.