Chapter 21: The Moon Festival

Lotus was here, in the Moon Shine Pack’s territory, for almost four days. The new merged pack was named as Moon Shine pack. Her heat was over as well. She survived this time because of Sheryl and Eva. Eva did not leave her alone for a single moment. She even abandoned her mate for a few days so that she could stay with Lotus.

Lotus was happy to be with her loving family. Her father and her two siblings. Both of them were so lucky to find their mates, she thought. They found and marked the other half of their souls. She felt a slight pain in her heart. She would probably never be able to be with her mate, the other half of her soul. She always dreamt of being loved unconditionally by her mate. But instead, she was married to someone else who never acknowledged her, even marked her forcefully. He kept being with others even after marking her. He did not even bother to check on her. She should hate that person. But she could not. Her wolf was howling in pain as she could not sense him nearby. She also missed him. She missed her annoying pervert asshole man-whore husband! He was protective of her. She felt it so many times. But the moment she thought they were close, he had some special feelings for her. She always ended up finding him holding another woman.

‘He was not for marriage or mate.’, she said to her wolf.

‘Then why did he mark us?’ her wolf said in protest.

‘We saw him kissing another girl even after marking us’, she said. Her wolf was silent this time. She could feel the pain at that time. She was almost unconscious for so long after marking, which left Lotus half dead. When she finally woke up because of the heat, she found that the person who marked her was kissing someone else, holding her very close.

‘He is not our mate’, Lotus said in pain again. Her wolf could not do anything but agree. No mate can do that after marking.

‘Do you think we can still find our mate with his mark? I just want to meet him once. I just want to look into his eyes once. I just want to feel the sparks everyone talks about.’ Lotus asked her wolf again.

‘I don’t know, Lo! But even if we do, he will reject us. Who wants a marked wolf as a mate?’ her wolf said. She was still in pain.

“Lo! Here you are! I was searching for you”, Eva said, walking towards her. Sam was also with her. Lotus smiled at her.

“We need to go shopping! Moon festival is here, Lo! So much to be prepared for!” Sam said in excitement.

“Ok! Ok!” Lotus giggled. Sam gave her a vibe of Adeline. She suddenly remembered that she did not even know what happened between her and Alex. That poor girl. She thought of calling her soon.

Lotus accompanied her sister and sister-in-law to multiple stores. She could describe them in one word – shopaholic! She felt like they were spending too much money on everything.

“Eva! Sam! Aren’t you guys spending too much?” she asked them, raising her eyebrow when they entered the fiftieth store in the town.

“Come on, Lo! Don’t be a spoilsport!” Evalyn said with a smile.

“This is the charm of having a rich mate”, Sam giggled.

“True! Besides the fact, they don’t mind us spending.”, Evalyn said, showing her Lawrence’s credit card.

A rich mate! Mate! Again, this word thought Lotus to herself. She was even married to a rich person, but her relationship was not like that. Her sister and Sam were not even married, but still, their mates were showering them with love that was not written in her fate. Damien even never asked her if she needed anything. She sighed in silence, keeping her false smile on her face. She wondered how Adeline was doing.

After bagging up almost half of the stores from town, they headed back to the packhouse. Lotus could remember that her sister was always a perfectionist when it came to fashion. But she was her opposite, always clueless about what to wear. Evalyn took care of all these matters, and Adeline was there when she was in Blood Stone Pack. Her stay there was tolerable because of Adeline and Ben.

Once they reached the packhouse, Lotus saw everyone was busy decorating the whole area. She remembered how much Ben and Adeline wanted to come to the Moon Festival. She walked towards the drawing room. She saw Jakob and Evalyn sitting there with their mates, and they were looking at the stuff they bought today. Jakob and Lawrence looked happy with their mates.

“And see, this one is for the moon ball.” Sam showed Jakob a beautiful blue dress. Lotus remembered it as one of the most expensive items they have bought today. That was the reason it was special for her, Lotus thought. Jakob’s eyes were sparkling.

“Oh sweetheart, I cannot wait to dance with you in moon ball!”Jakob said, hugging Sam playfully. Sam and Evalyn giggled.

Lawrence suddenly kneels in front of Evalyn. Eva was shocked.

“My sweetest Evalyn. Will you honour me by dancing with me on moon ball?” he said with such passion. Eva’s eyes were showing how happy she felt.

“Yes! Yes! I would love to”, Eva giggled, holding the extended hand of Lawrence. Lawrence stood up and pulled her into his chest.

Moonball! Lotus remembered. There was always a ball, the great moon ball, in the moon festival. People went there with their mates or partners and danced in front of everyone. The first song was for mates who dance to show their love for each other. Then others could also join gradually. Unmatted wolves were also very much excited usually about this ball as this was one of the opportunities to find their mate. Mate! Again! She thought. She wondered what Damien probably was doing! If everything were normal between them, they would probably dance in the moon ball on the first song. She always wanted that. She smiled a little.

“Jakey!” Lotus called for Jakob. She got attention from everyone. “Can I invite someone for the Moon Festival even if the person is not from ancient moon packs?” Lotus asked.

Evalyn looked closely towards Lotus. She saw a small painful smile on her face. Her eyes were dreamy. From the day Lotus came here, she realised how much her sister loved that Demon alpha. She didn't even say a single word against him. What was she thinking? That man hurt her so much! How could she love him after all that?

“Whom do you want to invite, Lotus?” Evalyn said. Her tone was a little harsh. Lotus looked at her with a bit of silence. Then said, “When I was in Blood Stone Pack, I made some friends. I told them once about this festival, and they were eager to come.” Evalyn was relieved.

Jakob looked at Lawrence once, then said, “You can invite anyone if you want, Lo. We are also inviting some other packs as well to build up allies.” Jakob smiled.

“Thanks, Jakey!” Lotus returned the gesture and left. She searched for her phone and called Adeline. Adeline did not pick up. Lotus called again! She started to be worried. She called her again. This time the other person received the call.

“Hello! Ad! How are you doing? Why didn’t you pick-up? I was so worried! Are you alright? Has anything happened? Is everyone fine?” Lotus shot all her questions together.

“Hello Lo! It Alex”, Alex said

Alex! What on earth was he doing with Adeline’s phone?

“What are you doing here? Why are you picking ad’s call? Where is she? If you do something to her, Alex, I swear…” Lotus was shouting this time.

“Hang on, Lo! I didn’t do anything to your friend.” Alex stopped her in between, “It's just that she is taking a shower, and so she asked me to take the call.”

“What are you doing in her room?” Lotus asked again.

“Lo, I am not in her room. She shifted in mine. I am her mate, Lotus. I will never hurt her again.”, Alex said in a soft voice.

So, everything was fine then between them, Lotus thought to herself. At least Adeline was happy. Alex was not a bad person, and Lotus knew that. Lotus smiled to herself.

“Alex! Good to hear that you have accepted her. Thank you, Alex. She deserved to be loved.”, Lotus said in a soft voice.

Lotus was happy to know about her. She knew that Alex could not make it to Moon Shine Pack, and she did not want to separate Adeline. So, she did not say anything about the invitation. The festival started today. Everyone was here in the packhouse. People were talking, dancing around. Some were eating. Everyone was dressed well.

Lotus was wearing a simple light orange knee-length dress picked by her gorgeous sister. Her hair was loosely braided. She was wearing light make-up. She noticed all the elders were there. She walked towards them to greet them. They all welcomed her properly. They all knew how brave she was to get married to that alpha demon at the time of necessity. The mark on her neck was telling the level of torture she had been through though she did not mention a single bad thing about him.

“You look beautiful, Lotus!” Elder lady Bella complimented her.

“Thank you, Lady Bella” Lotus bowed her head a little to show respect.

“We hope you will find your mate soon so that you can have a long and happy life”, the lady said with a smile.

Lotus kept staring at her with vacant eyes. She was marked! How can she have a mate? Lady Bella noticed her condition.

“Even though you have been marked by someone else, it will be gone once your mate marks you.”, the lady smiled a little.

“Is that so? But then also, who will be willing to have a mate who is already marked?”, there was a pain in Lotus’ voice.

“Oh, sweetheart! Don’t think about that. Everyone knows here how brave you have been all these months. You did what was necessary. I can see a true Luna in you”, Lady Bella said, cupping her face. Lotus offered her a smile.

Then Lotus felt someone’s hand on her shoulder. She turned her head to see who it was.

“Lotus!” Benjamin greeted her.

“Benjamin!” Lotus offered him a smile. Since she came here, she was in the packhouse only most of the time. Hence, she did not get to meet all the other pack members. Benjamin was always a great warrior at such a young age. He was always respected by others, not because he was the alpha’s son. He earned it. Everyone knew that he could become a great alpha. Jakob was just a little better because of his strength.

“Lady Bella”, Benjamin greeted the lady bowing his head a little, showing respect. “Will you mind if I borrow Lotus for a moment?” he said again gently. Lotus could see everything that she wanted in her mate. And Damien. He was the opposite. If he were here, wishing to talk to her, he would have probably dragged her away with all his force. Lotus smiled in her thought.

“Sure, my dear”, lady Bella said with a smile.

Lotus started to walk away from the elders and went towards the tables. Benjamin walked beside her. Benjamin chose a table at the corner of the garden. That was quieter than in other areas.

“How are you doing, Lotus?” Benjamin asked.

Benjamin and Lotus were always on good terms. Their packs were neighbours, and Benjamin’s mother was another mother to Lotus. She was always kind and caring in nature. Benjamin got that from his mother in inheritance.

“I am fine, Benjamin. How are you doing?” Lotus asked him in return.

“I am fine, Lotus.”, he smiled a little. Lotus could see something was bothering him terribly. But it seemed like he did not know how to say that.

“Benjamin, is there something you want to say?” Lotus asked him directly.

Benjamin lowered his head and kept silent for a few moments. Then he looked towards Lotus into her eyes and said, “I am sorry, Lotus. I am sorry that you have to suffer so much because of my pack. I am sorry that you had to marry that demon that day, and I couldn’t do anything to save you. I am sorry that you were marked before time by the wrong person.” There was pain and guilt in his voice.

“Benjamin!” Lotus exclaimed.

“Lotus, from now on, I will always protect you. I will never give up again.”, he said with a smile.

“Benjamin, what I did was to save my people. I never regretted my decision in the past, nor will I in the future. You would have done the same thing if I were you. So, don’t blame yourself.”, Lotus said with a smile.

Benjamin returned the gesture and nodded. “So, are you excited about tomorrow?” he asked her again.

“Excited?” Lotus looked at him with surprise.

“Come on! You will be turning sixteen tomorrow. And what a coincidence! Moonball is also tomorrow.”, He said with a chuckle.

Sixteen! Moonball!

‘That means I can find my mate tomorrow!’ I said in surprise to my wolf.

‘I’m scared!’, her wolf said. She should be happy, but she did not know why she wasn’t. There was a strange feeling inside her spine that made her shivered.

“What is the matter, Lotus?”, Benjamin asked looking at her frowned face. It seemed like she was in deep thought.

“No… Nothing”, she shuttered. She could not sit back anymore. “Benjamin, please excuse me. I have some work to do.”, she said absent-mindedly.

“Lotus, will you go to the ball tomorrow? With me?” Benjamin asked.

Lotus froze for a moment. Benjamin was always lovely to him. He even said he would protect her. Is that because he was her mate! Could it be possible?

‘No, he is not, though I wish our mate would be like him, her wolf shouted in her head.

“I would love to”, Lotus said with a smile.