THE PRINCESS IS OUR SECRET WEAPON

21 FEBRUARY, SUNDAY, MORNING

It was already dawn by the time my betas left for their duties. I decided to soak in the bath instead of going to bed. I'm exhausted from the lack of sleep though and part of me wished Alpha Gunter hadn't showed up.

I liked him, or at least my wolf did. I trusted him, or at least my wolf did. Was my wolf too trusting? I bet Ben would say yes.

And there was that too - what happened to the guy who used to tell the others to back off when they tried to tell me what to do? And if I was the alpha, why did I have to plead with my betas to do what I say? And if all three of my betas were so reluctant - could it be as Ben said, a super bad idea? Okay, he didn't use those words. His words were, "You're going to DIE, Sam."

Gee. Thanks.

Arugghhh! Enough! I'm done with this! I spent a whole hour in the tub, my mind swirling round and round... this or that, right or wrong... I'm stumped. No amount of thinking was going to help me figure out the meaning of Mate's prophecy, or Alpha Gunter's motives, or whatever.

Thinking was a waste of time! I should just get out there and do some Alpha action! Yeah, if Alpha Gunter perplexed me again, I should stop trying to understand him. I'll just punch him for annoying me. Yeah.

From now on, this would be my go-to action plan for anything that sounded like it was going to take a lot of inconclusive talking - one punch. Yup. I would be known as the one punch alpha.

To my dismay, my clothes looked rather formal again. As in, full white Lorent ceremony dress in some kind of brocade, the trims were silk and the buttons made of silk and rolled into tight heart shapes.

There was jewellery too. A lot of jewellery... In leaf motifs, each leaf filled with tiny diamond and drawn together in thin gold bands. From the multiple bangles to the delicate hair band. There were even dangly clip on earrings. It was that fancy...

So I knew immediately that going home would not be the next item on the agenda. Oh phooey. I did want to go home. I missed my pack, and I was longing for the weekly breakfast with the alpha. I mean, it's nice that Ben was around, but I was missing Savy and Lizzy quite badly by now. I even missed Sabre.

Wow, I had no idea I was such a homebody. It's like everytime I spend just one night away from my pack, I get homesick.

I noticed my phone was not in its usual place on the dresser. It was where I left it earlier, on the bed. I picked it up and checked my calendar.

Great. Joint Press Conference with Silver Mountain and other key partners because the press had a lot more questions about the alliances that were forming.

I put on my make up. Since I was dressed like a Lorent princess, I went with the doll look. I had to say, I was getting pretty good at dressing up like a moon goddess princess doll type of thing. Practice made perfect. I tried to make it look natural... I even googled a video and followed it. The video used A LOT of make up to look natural.

While putting it on, it felt a little like applying warpaint. When I was done I felt quite accomplished.

Okay! I found my tablet and looked for the documents - yes, Harvey had updated with the supporting notes on the press conference.

Eh? My betas and I were attending the conference without Dad and his betas? Opps. I thought I was just there to look pretty (cos of the Lorent outfit...)

Oh, Bell was going too. {Mate!} Alpha James and Bell would be representing the Lorent Pack.

Actually, we were the only pack who didn't have our elders present.

Who left their Pack's partnership to be represented by their kids? Who? What was Dad thinking?

Plus now I was stressing out. There were four other documents detailing our official alliance with Henry's pack and our internal notes, each document was anywhere between 8 to 67 pages long. I'm not sure when Harvey managed to put them together - it was posted at 2am. Okay...hardworking beta.

But how was I supposed to read and figure out everything in an hour's time? WTH!

"Dad!" I burst out of my room to where Dad and Mum were having breakfast at the dining area of our suite. It was by the balcony, and the sliding doors were opened to the sun rising on a winter morning. Very pretty.

"Oh, good, you're awake." Mum smiled, "Would you like some breakfast? You look very nice. Why are you yelling for your dad so early in the morning?"

I stopped to process everything my Mum was saying. My tummy rumbled. I looked around, where was Ki? Who was making breakfast?

Mum patted the empty seat next to her, "I wasn't sure what you'd like but I ordered pancakes for you."

I nodded and went to sit down. Right, we were at the Langston 2.0. There was room service. Even if there wasn't, since when was I helpless without Ki? Wth... I used to be able to make my own breakfasts. I think I was growing useless with my Betas doing everything for me.

"Dad, why aren't you going to the press conference?" I asked.

"I have a private appointment this morning. The press conference was called at the last minute." Dad said.

Before, I would not have questioned further, but now... Very sus, Dad. Very sus.

Two raps on our suite's front door prevented me from further interrogations. Our betas, all five of them, perfectly suited up in their usual dark blue suits entered and bowed in unison. Even Beta Lucas and Beta Gerald were in the tailored suits - they looked really nice too. I'm not sure where our betas were getting their suits cut, but it really gave them rather striking figures. If the clothes makes the betas, then we've got five first class betas here.

"Good morning Alphas! Luna." Beta Lucas greeted in his usual gruff cheeriness, "Are you ready Alpha? We gotta go."

Dad nodded and stood up from the table.

"Be careful, dear." Mum cautioned.

Dad bent over to drop a kiss on top of her head, "Don't worry darling. This isn't the first time."

And then he straightened, "Gerald, I'll leave everything else here to you. Have someone escort my luna out to the shops."

"Yes, Alpha." Gerald bowed quickly.

So super sus, my dad.

When Dad and Beta Lucas left, Beta Gerald bowed again and excused himself, but not before arranging the time for one of the deltas to come escort Mum to the shops.

"Is there anything we can do for you Luna?" Harvey checked with us.

Mum shook her head, "No, thank you boys. You don't have to worry about us, I'm sure you must be busy."

"Thank you, luna. May we prepare for the press conference here so our Alpha would be available to provide us her input?" Harvey asked.

"Of course. Please make yourselves at home." Mum smiled graciously.

"Alpha, is there anything we can do for you?" Harvey asked.

"Not unless you can tell me where Dad is going." I muttered absent-mindedly, "Or maybe invent a microchip to insert all the documents you sent last night into my head."

"Ah." Harvey actually hesitated and looked at my Mum.

Mum patted my hand, "Did you hear that, Sam? They refer to you as Alpha now."

Actually, it was just Harvey, who nodded a bow and proceeded to set up his laptop with Ben at the coffee table across the room without another word. Either they knew exactly where my Dad was going or they really did have a ton of work. Ki excused himself to my room to help me pack.

"I need to do a little more shopping." Mum continued her chatter, "I would've wanted to bring you. The other lunas have told me that the tailors here made rather lovely gowns. Is there anything you'd like me to help shop for you?"

I had to pause again to figure out everything Mum was saying, and then I realized, Mum always over-talked when she was nervous about something - and she was over-talking a lot today.

I grinned at my Mum. TBH, I didn't quite care what kind of mischief my Dad was up to. He was a grown alpha and it was probably none of my business, but everyone was just acting so suspiciously, I couldn't help but be curious, "Mum, do you know where your mate is going?"

"Do you mean your dad?" Mum asked with forced lightness.

"Do you have more than one mate?" I asked narrowing my eyes at her.

"Ha ha ha, oh Sam! Of course not!" Mum laughed, swatting my shoulder lightly.

I was about to laugh too. It was just a joke, and then I suddenly remembered River's mum and it wasn't quite so funny anymore.

"What's wrong, Sam?" Mum asked.

I shook my head, "Nothing, nothing."

And I ate my pancakes.

"Are you worried about the press conference?" Mum asked, "Don't worry. Your Dad has settled it with Bell and the betas."

"Yeah, Sam. You just have to sit there and look pretty." Ben called over without taking his eyes off his screen, "Luna Bell and Ki will field the questions. Harv and I will feed the right quotations and notes."

"Yes, goddess. Please leave it to us." Ki smiled, as he stepped out of my room.

"Then what do you need me for?" I grumbled, "I might as well go shopping with my mum."'

"It would be good media exposure for the Alpha Princess, goddess." Ki explained, "Your alpha presence is very much required, as is your smile."

"Yeah, Sam. Just keep smiling." Ben nodded at his screen, and then he stopped scrolling and turned around, "Or maybe don't smile. Just look extremely bored. That'll be cooler."

"A smiling Alpha Princess would be a more approachable public image that is consistent with goddess' nature, beta." Ki argued.

"But that's boring." Ben complained, "Oh! I know! Sam - do the wide eyed innocent look."

"What wide eyed innocent look?" I asked.

"Yeah, that's the one." Ben grinned.

Eh? Mum laughed from next to me, but she drank her tea and picked up her phone and pretended she wasn't listening.

I shook my head, "No! What kind of alpha would they take me for?"

"No, Sam, Ki, just listen." Ben got up and came over to me, I drank my orange juice and waited for Ben to pitch whatever idea his genius head obviously brewed.

"Imagine Sam showing up like this, beautiful goddess-like innocent young thing."

I choked on my juice. Mum passed me a napkin. What the hell was wrong with Ben's head?

"Did you not get enough sleep, Ben?" I wiped off the juice and slapped the napkin on the table.

"Will you just listen?" Ben shot back, "Anyway, we will do the talking, she will look pretty, and no one would even guess that the princess is our secret weapon."

"It played on the news... the whole of yesterday." Harvey informed Ben, "She fought Alpha Solomon and defeated him."

"Yes, exactly!" Ben said. Once again skipping the explanations so I was left completely wide eyed and stupid looking.

"Oh. I see what the beta means." Ki beamed, "It is an interesting way to present our Alpha Princess."

Ben nodded and gestured towards me proudly, "Lovely, cute, and helpless on a normal day. But cheese her off and she would completely destroy you."

A smile tugged on Harvey's lips, "You know, I actually like that. Its quite sexy."

"I know right." Ben grinned again.

They sounded like they were talking about a car. I swear. I cast a side glance at mum. WTH were my betas talking about IN FRONT OF MY MUM? But Mum had decided she heard enough, "Oh, would you look at the time!"

She stood up, "The shops would be opening soon, I better get ready."

Harvey stood up immediately so all three of my betas were now standing. They bowed politely as my Mum left for her room. My betas were contradictory like that, bowing to my mum like three little kittens who found their mittens, but really... they were big bad wolves - literally big wolves and I've now decided that they were a bad influence on me.

Mum paused at the door, "Have fun later, Sam."

Wait, you're okay with my betas' dumb sexy secret weapon plan?

And then Mum frowned, "But please, don't start a fight at the press conference. It's terribly unsightly whenever these thing break out among Alpha wolves."

Mum was referring to the news. Sometimes when Alphas are together, at press conferences or live broadcast of certain high council meetings, they break out into fights. Mum sighed, "Just because the world label us as barbarian pack, doesn't mean we need to meet their expectations. In fact, it doesn't matter what they say, we should be above that and let our actions prove our true nature."

So do we fight or not fight? Hahaha. But Mum was gone... and yes, I know, that means she didn't want me to get into a physical brawl at the press conference. Whenever we watched these things on TV, I would laugh. Its fun to watch properly dignified alpha and beta wolves throw each other over the tables. But Mum always regarded it as quite shameful behavior.

"That's not something to cheer for." Mum had told Savy and I quite firmly at one of these times. I was cheering for the old alpha with a cane. He was suddenly able to walk and his cane became quite useful for beating down the younger alphas.

"Grown wolves should know better. And these wolves are leaders of their packs!" Mum said huffily, "You would never catch your Dad fighting on TV like that!"

"Yes. That's true!" Beta Lucas had chipped in, "Always keep the fights off camera!"

Mum gave him a censoring look so Beta Lucas added, "But fighting is wrong."

Hahahahaha. We were wolves. Wolves fought all the time.

Anyway, I was now alone with my three betas again. All three of them looking expectantly at me.

"What?" I flared.