Chapter 3

Melissa snatched Rosalie's hand and drew her focus away from the audience to the stage. "The coronation ceremony is about to begin." She then walked across to the other side of the stage. "That's Alpha Greyson, and he's just stunning! But why is he looking at us? Do you believe he has a thing for me?" Melissa couldn't stop herself from gushing. Rosalie snorted and said, " You think too highly of yourself. Why would he like us? He is an Alpha and much older than us, but he is nice." While primping her skirt, Rosalie muttered. Alex was indeed glancing in their direction with an amused smile on his face. "He is 19, and doesn't have a mate yet. He is not that old." Melissa whispered. "Shhhh, why would he be intrested in betas like us? It's nothing." Rosalie assured her friend. The fact that she had bumped into him in the forest, that was her personal secret. On a platform that was approximately one foot above the ground, Chris Reynolds kneeled. One of the Four Councilmen stood in front of him, holding an open scroll with an archaic appearance. Chris had a golden goblet in his hand, which he held at eye level. The silvery moonlight from the open round ceiling above him flowed over him, cleansing him with its sanctifying power. The assembly was deafeningly quiet as the council member poured a reddish-golden liquid into a cup in front of them. Rosalie took a whiff of the air but couldn't make out what kind of scent it had. He began to recite the ancient words, "The holy moon keeps a watchful eye on us, defends us, provides for us, and ultimately saves us. When the holy moon chooses her troops, she is also choosing her saviour of peace." His voice was hushed as he continued, "Do thee, Christopher William Reynolds, son of Sullivan William Reynolds, assume thine proper place as the alpha of Silverstone? The sacred moon picks our leader and places thy fate in the blood that flows through thy veins." After a few seconds, Chris's voice became audible: " I, Christopher William Reynolds, swear by the Luna, and by drinking this blessed wine, to be the alpha of the Silver moon Pack." He said this while drinking from the goblet in one go. The members of the Pack howled in their wolf forms, bowing their heads on their front paws, and then rolled over to expose their bellies in a display of submission. The coronation ceremony was brief, but the night was still young because there was still the feast to be enjoyed. *************** Rosalie and Melissa were cramming their faces with the selection of titbits that had been prepared for the gathering. Because their mothers had issued a firm warning to keep out of trouble, they were following through on that directive. Sitting peacefully and enjoying a meal. Melissa said, eyeing Chris wistfully. "I wonder which lucky girl would be his mate. Maybe we should flirt with him? We might bag an alpha!" Melissa chirped. " Melissa, you're so disgusting! We can't flirt with the Alpha." Rosalie admonished her. Because she didn't like anyone flirting with Chris. When she saw Chris with other women, she felt a strange sense of jealousy in her. Right now he was sitting with Lisa, the daughter of Hanlon pack Alpha Richard Dawson; he was also a member of the council, making him an incredibly influential individual. However, Lisa was insufferable. Rosalie dreaded the day she became their next Luna. "He is eighteen already. Do you think they are mates?" Melissa asked. "How would I know? He has not revealed his mate yet. We don't know if he has found out yet, but I hope it's not Lisa." Rosalie whispered conspiratorially. "Of course! That would be a disaster!" Melissa replied. Rosalie saw Chris and Lisa from behind a throng of people, her gaze fixed on them. He frequently hung out with his buddies, participating in hip young adult activities that Rosalie was not permitted to participate in. With him being the new Alpha, all the females lavished him with attention. "Why is it that every time we try to hang out with you, that annoying omega is always there!" Rosalie froze, Lisa was referring to her! Was it that apparent? "Well, there's nothing I can do to make her stop. Besides, you follow me around too and I don't complain." Chris shrugged. "Well, that's not the same, and you know it," she sniffed, then pouted prettily, leaning on Chris's shoulder. "I'm your girl, aren't I? We're supposed to be seen together." Chris let out a low growl, and Lisa looked up surprised as she bit his lower lip. "It is none of your business what my pack members do. You will not speak ill of anyone from my pack again." His blatant snub to Lisa, as well as his defence of her following him around, made Rosalie's heart leap with pride. Chris shrugged and sipped his iced tea, Lisa's face clouded a little at the non-committing gesture, but she smoothed it back out and said, "well I won't approve of it in future when we are mated". "First of all, Lisa, I never implied that we were getting mated, so who follows me about shouldn't be of interest to you..." Chris stated with a twisted expression. Rosalie could have jumped for joy knowing that she did not have to deal with the cruel and obnoxious Lisa for the rest of her life. Realizing that there was no reason to spy around, she decided to leave. She turned around and ran off towards her house, not looking back at the chaos that ensued after Chris's rebuke. Lisa threw a royal tantrum and had to be carried off by her friends. If Rosalie had turned back, she would have seen both of Lisa's friends holding onto her. Chris's friend was rolling on the ground struggling to control his laughter. "Rosalie!" As she ran towards her house, Chris called after her. Rosalie came to a complete stop and turned to face her Alpha. She was taken aback because he had never spoken to her in private before. As he approached her, Chris exclaimed, "You look incredibly gorgeous as always." Rosalie blushed and said thanks, oblivious to the fact that he was beaming at her. When he took her hand, she gasped a little and gazed up at him, wide-eyed. "I have something I need to share with you." He came to a halt and turned aside, freeing her hands. "You're my mate." Her hand went to her mouth as she looked down and gently shook her head. She slumped against the tree, stroking her temples, unable to grasp what had happened. "How? I mean I'm an omega, and you are the Alpha....the council won't allow it." Rosalie said in shock. "When you are eighteen, you'll know; I came to know a few days ago when I scented you. My wolf is aware, but... I was only waiting for the appropriate moment." He laughed nervously as he ran his hand over his sandy brown curls, which popped back into place. "I didn't want to tell you yet, to be honest...... It's going to be difficult." "I wanted to kill everyone one day when I overheard some of the guys talking about how adorable you were getting and how hot you'd be when you were older. That day, I was so close to hurting him!" She said with a shake of her head, "I don't get it; no one has ever told me I'm cute or even shown that they're interested in me. None of your friends, in particular!" "I told them all to stay away from you. To keep them from approaching you whenever they showed interest in you." He smirked briefly before becoming solemn and saying " I don't expect you to return my feelings now, but I am going to wait till you turn eighteen. You will know when you reach eighteen. I don't want you to feel obligated to respond just so you don't hurt my feelings, and I am not a paedophile, so we are not going any further than being friends right now, OK?" She gave him a quick glance before nodding and sighing deeply, attempting to digest everything that had happened. Even though she was fifteen, she knew he was right; she wasn't that immature. She knew exactly what he wanted, and everything he said made sense. "Not even a kiss ?" She asked innocently. He sighed. " Especially not a kiss, because if I started I don't know if I would be able to stop. It will be hard but we will wait till you turn 18." This added information was confusing her and even though she tried she could not seem to keep up with it. She was content to wait and see what her feelings would settle into with this new development. She always had a crush on him. But being mates was completely different. Besides, Alphas only mated with other Alphas or Betas. She was not a Beta yet. She had no idea how the future would unfold.