THE PERFECT LUNA

Riannon couldn’t believe her own eyes. The beast stood over her, breathing

heavily. Blood was dripping from his claws and his snout. And for the first time

ever she was afraid of her mate.

“Gideon!” she repeated his name, but there was no response.

A fox charged at him, but he hit it so hard in its jump that the red-furred creature

flew far away and did not move anymore from the moment it landed on the

ground. He probably broke his neck just like that.

“Gideon, it’s me!” Ria tried to explain to him again, but he took a step toward her,

growling.

Two bears attacked them simultaneously and she wasn’t ready for this, distracted

by the whole situation. But she didn’t need to do anything, because the lycan

killed them both in an instant. She took a quick look around, seeing that the

advantage was now on their army’s side. She did not see wolves fighting wolves,

meaning that the traitors did not attack them. Which did not make them any less

traitorous, but it was good enough for now. It would be easier to win this battle

without trying to understand who was a friend and who was a foe.

She also still did not see any leader in the army that attacked them. But she

knew that someone had to command all those beasts.

“Mine!” the lycan growled so loudly that the ground underneath them shook.

Then he took another step towards her. A small smile formed on her lips.

“You do remember me!” she whispered in relief. If anyone could bring him back, it

would be her. And she intended to do just that.

In an instant, Riannon shifted into her wolf, angering the Lycan in front of her. He

did not like the game that she was playing. But she sprinted away from him as

fast as possible.

She deliberately went through the biggest fighting crowd, knowing that he was

following her and that he would destroy every bear and fox on his way. Even in

his state, he knew who his enemies were.

She was throwing herself inside of the bear clusters, usually going for their feet.

The bears were slower than her and she was getting out of their grasp right

before Gideon’s Lycan was finding them. Smelling her scent on them, he was

going feral, ripping his potential rivals apart one by one.

She just hoped that it wasn’t taking too long. She knew she needed him away

from all that, where no one would disturb them.

: From the corner of her eye, Riannon noticed Reid and Savvy’s wolves running

next to her and felt them knocking into her mind. They never used mind link

together before, but technically she was already a member of their pack and

could do it since the moment Gideon left two golden crescents on her neck. So,

she let them in

“I hope you have a plan!” Savvanah was the first to speak, her white wolf with

black ear tips looked fierce as he destroyed one of the foxes in her way.

“We need to get him out of this as fast as possible,” Reid informed her, “The

longer he uses this form, the harder it will be for him to get back.”

“I am on it!” she replied with confidence that brought relief to them both, “Will you

be able to finish up here alone?”

“Yes!” they replied in unison, and she knew that they meant it. “Gideon has

already shredded half of their army to pieces. Just get him to shift back and we

are

“Good!” Ria took up speed and headed for the woods, away from the clearing.

“Then don’t look for us! At least not for the next few hours! Reid, you lead the

army. Savvy...”

“I know,” the white wolf replied, “Don’t worry, we were all trained for this. Do what

you have to do!

Riannon did not say anything else and changed her course. The hugelycan beast

followed her as if his life depended on it. Her silver fur was glowing again, and it

was hard to miss her on the battlefield.

Savanah followed them with her gaze, knowing that her brother was in good

hands. She also knew that even in his feral form, he would never hurt his mate.

They loved each other too much for that. They were how mates were supposed

to be. Perfect. Pure. Sincere. Consumed by each other’s existence, Irrevocably

in love.

So not like her and Zack...

Sawy was fighting, targeting bears mostly. As a lycan it was her duty to remove

the strongest . enemies so that their allies could fight the foxes. But she was

looking for the wolves. Or better say one wolf in particular. The traitor. Her mate.

However, Zack wasn’t there. She was looking everywhere for him, trying to find

that intoxicating scent of his. She needed to kill him. She needed to kill her mate

and free herself. Free herself from all those feelings that were overwhelming her

and from that damn pull that could lead her to her demise.

She refused to be a mate to this man. And since he rejected her rejection... she

had no choice anymore. She would do it even if she would have to scratch her

own heart out.

Riannon was sprinting as fast as she could, knowing that the Lycan followed her.

She knew that he could already get her, but the predator in him loved to play with

his prey. Which at the moment was her.

She stopped when they were far enough from the battle, choosing the clean

grass-covered clearing. He leapt out of the shadows and knocked her off her

feet, towering over her with his eyes glowing. He tucked his nose into her neck,

and she heard a distinctive “MINE” snarl.

Struggling under him, Ria shifted into her human form, and he growled in

approval, not taking his glowing eyes off her.

“Shift!” she told him firmly, but he only inhaled her scent again and then howled

loudly into the air, ignoring her words.

“Shift!” Riannon ordered, and this time she brought his attention back to herself.

He was snarling at her and baring his teeth. Which was a bad sign. But she

wasn’t afraid. Whether it was his third form or one hundredth, he would never

deliberately hurt his mate. Gideon loved her too much. And she trusted him even

now.

So, she took a deep breath and punched the Lycan into his snout as hard as she

could. Since the Moon Goddess blessed her and Onyx, strength wasn’t an issue

anymore. So, her punch did have an impact and she even heard something

cracking.

The lycan growled louder, pressing her harder into the ground in an attempt to

submit her. But she wasn’t giving in to him.

“Shift!” she roared together with her wolf, their voice deeper and scarier than ever

before as it echoed through the woods. The lycan’s claws dug into her skin,

drawing blood. Angry, she reciprocated, leaning closer to his neck and baring her

canines. Not thinking twice, she dug them into his flesh right where her mark was

supposed to be on him. She closed her eyes, knowing that it was the last thing

that she could .

1. All she felt was his weight on her as his blood dripped down her chin. without

you! i can’t lose you... Ever! you promised to always stay with me,

remember!”

“I do,” he replied, and she froze. For a moment, she was afraid to even move. His

hands wrapped tighter around her and she realised that they weren’t covered in

thick fur anymore.

“I will never leave you,” Gideon said out loud and she retracted her canines and

looked at him finally. He was lying on top of her, naked. And there was this soft

knowing smile curling his lips. “Even if you ask is me, I will never leave you,” he

added, and she felt salty liquid burning her eyes.

“I will never ask you such a stupid thing!” she chuckled through tears, not

believing that it was all

over.

arrassn

“Good,” he nodded. “Because I am never going anywhere.”

He lowered his head and licked his blood off her lips, tasting both – it and her.

.”Did you just mark me for the second time?” he arched his brow at her and she

grinned at him without any kind of embarrassment.

“You looked like you needed to be reminded who you belong to!”

“And now I will never forget,” Gideon agreed with ease. “I wonder what will

happen with my crescents now. Will they turn into diamonds or something? Since

gold was already done before...”

She pushed him on the chest lightly.

“That just wouldn’t be practical, would it?” Ria snorted and that was when they

heard hundreds of howls and roars in the distance.

She recognised some. They were warriors from her pack. She heard Ash and

Maya too, knowing that they were all right.

At the same time, Gideon recognised his people. “The battle is over,” he looked

at the love of his life.

“And looks like we won after all,” she said. “Thanks to you. Your lycan really

thinned the lines of bears and foxes.”

“And thanks to you,” he placed a little kiss onto her nose, “If you didn’t bring me

back, our packs would now be fighting me over there.”

Their eyes met again, and they both realised that they hadn’t been this close for

a while already. Those days apart seemed like an eternity.

“I missed you so much,” Gideon brushed the hair off her face, enjoying the

tingling sensations that touching her gave him.

“I missed you too,” she breathed into his lips, making them part with her tongue.

“Don’t play with me, Riannon,” he warned her. “I am barely controlling myself. I

haven’t seen you for so long!”

“Well, what are you waiting for then?” she teased him, “We just won the biggest

battle. We deserve a break!”

That was all the invitation that he needed as he kissed her as an internal growl

escaped him. She was with him again. His at last!

He noticed a few scratches that his Lycan claws left on her and he turned his

neck to reach these areas and lick them thoroughly, most of them healing

instantly now that they were properly mated. Well, maybe partially it was due to

her being blessed by the Moon Goddess. But he loved to think that it was

because of their connection.

He remembered how at the very beginning of their relationship he had to pretend

to heal her to even touch her this way. But those days were long gone. That

wonderful woman who was now moaning under noining more.

“Gideon!” She whimpered when he covered one of her n*****s with his mouth,

sucking and tugging it gently. Knowing that this was just the way she liked it.

Her fingers were caressing him, making every sensation heightened. “Shh,” he

teased her, “I am healing you here. Where does it hurt the most?” Asly smile

formed on her face as one of her brows quirked.

“Everywhere,” she lied without a shade of hesitation or guilt, and he let out a

snarl as he started to devour every inch of her. But soon he realised that he

couldn’t wait anymore, and she was urging him to climb back on top of her too.

So, he hooked one of her legs, spreading her thighs for him and nudged at her

entrance.

“I love you,” he smiled and she slid her palm up to his chest.

“I love you too,” Riannon lifted her head to kiss him and that was when he

inserted his whole length into her roughly, filling her to the brim. This time he

wasn’t gentle with her, but she did not want it either. Instead, she locked her

thighs around his waist and let him pound into her. She wanted to feel him, his

need and desire for her, his love and his passion. She wanted all of it.

She gripped him through each shuddering wave as he kept thrusting, bringing

her wave after wave of immense pleasure that rippled through her body and

made her eyes teary. Riannon cried out her release, biting on his shoulder and

hearing a snarl tearing from his lips.

Gideon took her hands and laced their fingers together, pinning them at both

sides of her as he continued to take his woman time after time, sounds of

approval rumbling through his chest every time he saw her finding her release

until her body felt limp against his. :: Only then he found her lips and stilled,

spilling his seed inside of her womb, claiming her once again as his with an

earth-shuttering growl, “Mine!”

When they walked out of the woods and back to the clearing strewn with bodies,

Riannon frowned. Maya and Reid were already there with new sets of clothes for

them and cars waiting.

But as Riannon and Gideon walked down the field, she tried to take in and

remember everything that she saw. This wasn’t the happy ending that she

desired so much. And their work was far from over.

They had so much to talk about and to discuss. But most importantly, they had to

talk to their people, comfort them and give them hope. This was only the

beginning...

.

***

“I still don’t think that this is necessary,” Gideon folded his hands on his chest as

they were walking to the tent that was placed in the mutually agreed location.

“Of course, it is,”. Ria shrugged as she had heard all that before. She knew that

he was joking and that in reality, even her stubborn mate had to agree that they

needed the alliance with the northern kingdom. Zack’s pack and others named by

Savannah were now officially out of the union. Foxes and bears retreated for the

time being, but they could hardly assume that the war with them was over. It

would be safer for the lycans to work together to ensure the safety of both

kingdoms. Whether Gideon liked it or not (and he did not), they needed King Kai

to join their Union with the werewolves and the werecats.

So, Riannon knew that she would have to make them put their differences aside,

whatever it cost her.

“Gid, long time no see!” a handsome man in his late twenties was waiting for

them inside and he stood up as they walked in. He seemed friendly and, for a

second, she thought that maybe her mate was overthinking it. “You have two

minutes to tell me what you want. I have been waiting for you long enough.

“Told you so,” Gideon whispered to her as they took their seats in front of the

king.

“We are grateful for you giving us some of your precious time,” Riannon gave the

man a dazzling smile. “My name is Riannon Mich...”

*Stormhold,” Gideon interjected and she nodded even though they were not yet

technically married.

“You already know why you are here,” she continued, “There is a certain threat to

all lycans and wolves and we want to make sure that it’s tackled with minimal

losses to our kingdom. The best way to do

it is through an alliance...”

“Yeah, I read your letter.” This time it was Kai who interrupted her. “It was very

well-written and explanatory. But I still don’t see what I am gaining here.”

“Maybe you need some glasses then,” Gideon tried really hard not to snarl.

“Maybe you need some manners,” his opponent snorted.

“If they manage to bring our kingdom down, they will come after yours next,”

Riannon decided to ignore their childish behaviour.

“Theoretically speaking, yes,” Kai agreed.” Or they bring you down and then I

wipe them off the face of the Earth while they are still weak after fighting you.”

“You will be busy,” Gideon smirked, and the northern king arched his brow. “How

so?”

“The white bear clans,” Ria said calmly. She did not mention any of it in her

letters, knowing that this would be one of her main cards to play. “They are in this

too. They have been in all this for a while. And bet that you understand that the

white bears do not need our land or us dead. They need all of that from

you.”

Kai was silent, tapping his fingers slowly over the surface of the desk.

“Even so, I can deal with them on my own. I need more from this alliance,” he

informed them firmly.

“And what the hell do you want this time?” Gideon asked him, clearly annoyed.

“How about the land that historically belongs to the North?” Kai was now deadly

serious.

“That’s a very old story,” the western king was grim as well. “Anything else

maybe?”

“Hmm, I don’t know,” the corners of Kai’s lips tugged into a smile. “There was one

thing that I wanted for quite some time. But you and I both know that you will

never agree. How about Savannah as my future bride?”

“It’s good that you know you are getting her over my dead body!” Gideon snarled.

“Don’t tempt me!” Kai seemed satisfied with his reaction. “Decide for yourself

what it would be. Your sister or the land in question.”

He threw them a folder with a contract on the desk and stood up. “Your two

minutes are up.”

“Go to hell,” Gideon couldn’t help himself, wishing for nothing more than to snap

that man’s neck.

But Riannon placed her palm on top of his and he immediately calmed down,

looking at her with regret in his eyes. .

“We will think about it,” she smiled at the northerner. “When do you want our

answer?”

“By the end of the week,”Kai said and charged for the exit. But he stopped at the

last minute and nodded at her. “It was nice to meet you, Alpha Riannon.”

discussed it for most of the evening. iney went througn each cause, tirea ana

exnaustea by the ena.

“We need him,” Ria pleaded. “What’s so special in this land?!”

“Everything,” Gideon sighed. “This piece of land is the reason no attack from the

northerners was ever a success. They cannot cross our borders there unless we

want them to. It’s essential for our safety from them. This is why he wants it. And

don’t forget that everything can change any minute. We give him a the lands and

he unites with our enemies instead. This is where we will be really screwed.”

She clenched her lips, knowing that he was right. But there had to be something

else that they could do.

“I guess we have no choice then,” Savannah entered the room with a sad smile

on her lips.

“Sawy,” her brother looked perplexed, knowing that she was eavesdropping. But

he couldn’t blame her. They expected Kai to demand something like that. :

“I’ll marry him,” the princess said, and now they all stared at her. Gideon with

disbelief and Riannon with understanding. She would make the same choice if it

was her. Because it wasn’t really a choice.

“No!” the king growled loudly. “I am not letting you to...”

“This is my decision!” Savannah insisted with a tone that did not take prisoners. “I

really appreciate you protecting me for so long. I will never forget this, big

brother. But right now, it’s my time to help you protect our people. This is my

kingdom too. I am a princess and I have my duties. I had my shot at this mate

thing, but you know how it worked out for me. So now I am done with all that. My

knight in shining

armour is not coming. I am my own knight. And this is my quest. I choose this for

myself, Gideon. I want to

marriage is not going to be with my mate, then at least I will have the comfort of

knowing that it helped our people.”

“Sav...” the lycan king wanted to say something, but again Riannon took his

hand and intertwined their fingers together, helping him to calm down. “I am

proud of you,” he smiled at his sister and pulled her into a group hug with his free

hand. “You grew up and became everything our parents wanted you to become.”

“So did you,” she mumbled, squeezed between the two of them and then got out

quickly. “But I have a condition!”

“What is it?” Ria looked surprised.. “I want to see the two of you get married

before I go,” Savannah smirked.

***

Maya had been watching Roxanne screaming for the past twelve hours. And it

wasn’t making her happy at all. She just hoped that the baby would be safe and

healthy. But nothing was going right. The baby was in the wrong position and

Roxy turned out to have hips that were too narrow for childbirth.

“It’s a shifter baby,” Reid hugged his beloved wife, “She is going to make it.” But

Maya wasn’t so sure anymore. She wasn’t even sure what she was doing there.

The siren was swearing and calling her dead lover. Then she was switching it up

a bit to sending curses to all of them and promising that one day she would kill

them all. She had no idea how much everyone in the kingdom and her pack

wanted her dead. And it was only Maya and Riannon who kept her alive because

she was pregnant.

One long piercing shriek and the fox became quiet. But at the next second, they

all heard a baby’s scream and a wave of relief washed over the two Betas.

Maya stood up first and went to the midwife, who was holding the tiny little

creature. The first thing she saw was a few red curls on the baby’s head and she

frowned at that. This was exactly what she was

But when she looked into her eyes, her heart started to beat faster. Those were

Dean’s eyes, her brother’s. And it wasn’t just this rich chestnut colour of them, it

was the sincerity with which this tiny girl looked at her. Dean even saw the best in

someone like Roxanne...

“So?” Reid hugged her from the back and she turned to look at him.

“She is just like him... Maya said, but then she noticed some movement behind

her mate. Luckily, Reid had an even better reaction as a lycan. So, he covered

her with his body and kicked the crazy siren/fox hybrid who tried to attack them

with a stolen scalpel from the midwife’s table on her knees, causing her to fall

down right at the small but sharp weapon she was planning to use against them.

It went into her neck, right where the main artery was, and the midwife screamed.

“Don’t touch it!” Maya warned her, holding the baby tight against her chest. But

Roxy was twitching on the floor, her gaze wandering around the room. “Hate...

you all,” she hissed and then got the scalpel out, causing the blood to gush out.

“Apply pressure!” the midwife screamed and Reid grabbed one of the blankets to

try and help the crazy woman.

But Roxanne grew her claws and dug them into the hand he was applying the

pressure with, causing him to take it back.

She threw away the blanket and stared at the ceiling with a smile of a mad

person, curving her lips.

“Castiel...” she whispered, “I am coming...” Maya hid her face in Reid’s chest

and he kissed her forehead when she looked at him again.

“At least she stayed true to herself,” the Beta female looked at the child and

thought that it was for the best that she had no idea what was going on around

her. “She kept hating everyone until the end and not caring for what she left

behind. How could she abandon her own daughter?”

Reid touched the baby’s hand and she immediately wrapped all her tiny fingers

around his index one.

“She chose not to be a mother,” he said. “But you can choose today to become

one. I will do whatever you decide.”

Maya touched the red curls thoughtfully.

“I made my choice a while ago, Reid,” she smiled at her husband and then at her

new child, “When I didn’t kill Roxy. This baby deserved to live. And since she was

stupid enough to leave it, I have a right to take care of her now.”

“Yes?” there was more than just one word in his question.

“Yes,” there was everything in her answer. “Meet our daughter, Reid. Her name is

Danielle.”

***

“Are you ready?” Gideon asked his beautiful new wife as they stood before the

doors to the main balcony

“No one can be ready for this,” she smiled at him. Once again, he muttered his

thanks to the Moon

“Nonna

Goddess for sending him such a mate.

She was wearing a flowing champagne dress with lines of beads creating regal

elegant patterns over her corset and a matching crown on her head. Her hair was

up in an intricate hairdo as insisted by Savvy. Riannon held her hands together at

the front and seemed like a perfect picture of a flawless queen.

In a few moments, a whole kingdom would be watching them, but right now they

were the only two people in the world. He offered her his hand and she took it,

trusting him as always.

When they finally calmed down, Gideon announced loudly and irrevocably,

“People of the West, meet your Alpha Queen!”

The crowd burst into cheering and clapping, while Riannon stepped forward and

waved at them.

She knew that a lot still had to be done and her work was only starting. But she

also saw that her werewolves were celebrating together with the lycans. It was

the beginning of a new era. Different and better than before.

But most importantly, she knew that she was home... And together with her

mate, she will defend it and make it better. Because together they were the

perfect couple