February First.

I inhaled sharply, my stomach bubbling with nerves as the calendar stared back at me. The day of the meeting came sooner than I expected.

Tomorrow, I would be forced into the death plane and flown four hours to Augustus' home. I begrudged it; the meeting was for me, so why did I have to go to somebody else's pack? Can't they just come to me?

"I thought you wanted to explore the world, Ailia." Piper chirped.

I shot her a glare, turning away from the calendar hung on the wall. "By foot. Not in death-machines."

She laughed. "Planes are safer than cars, you know."

"I will remember that during my half-hour ride to the airstrip." I narrowed my eyes.

Her grin turned bashful. "Oh yeah. Oops."

Huffing, I fell backwards onto my bed. It caused Piper to complain aloud, grumbling that I was messing with the piles of clothes. She was helping me pack. The meeting was tomorrow, but since they often went on too long, we are staying the night in Augustus' pack.

"I don't even want to go back there." I mumbled.

"Why not?" She wondered before noticing the look I gave her. "Oh, your dad."

Sighing, I stared up at the smooth painted ceiling. That was another downside, one that just added anxiety to the pile. Not only did I have to be a luna in front of the entire continental alphas and betas, but I had to do it in front of my father.

The man who probably forgot about me.

The man who I did not remember.

Yet, the man who made my entire life worth living.

In flashbacks of my childhood, it was always my dad. After wolves killed my mother, he raised me the best he could. And yet, here I was, without a memory and a dad. So, what happened? What went wrong?

"Have you spoken to your sister yet?"

I groaned again, squeezing my eyes shut. "No. I keep forgetting. There's always something else!"

"Joys of being a luna." Piper sang.

She was right. Of course she was. It was Piper we were talking about.

"You should find her before dinner." Piper suggested.

"I will just sit with her at dinner." I shrugged.

"In public. Safe." She winked.

I rolled my eyes, helping her finish my packing. We had four outfits planned, two for each day. The ones for the meeting Piper forced me to choose something more 'fitting'. By fitting, she literally meant tight. She wanted me to command the room, to have all eyes on me, despite how badly I said it may end. In the end, I agreed because it would be a big fuck you to the men who hated females, and humans, in charge.

"You sure you got everything you need?" She wondered as we zipped the bag closed.

"Everything but my toothpaste and brush." I chirped.

"Just buy a second set." Piper rolled her eyes.

"Why? I barely go anywhere."

"You're Luna now. Continental Luna, how many packs do you rule, Ailia?"

"Forty." I frowned.

"Right, that's forty packs you have to visit every year. Not all of them are day trips." She pointed out.

I cursed softly. "Every year?"

"Sure do."

Huffing, I glared down at my bag. "I will have to get a second toothbrush."

"Saves forgetting it." She shrugged, laughing. "Now, come on. Dinner and sister is waiting."

We entered the death box with ease, going down to the ground floor. The dining room was bustling with life, five-thirty being peak dining time in the pack house. I did not work today so did not know what they made, but the garlic smell washed over me, followed by tomato and butter, and I knew right away.

"Pasta!" I grinned, gleefully.

I left Piper behind, making a bee-line to the buffet. With too much to choose from, I chose a small portion of one dish, vowing to come back to the others with a soft sigh. Grabbing a slice of garlic bread on my way past, I chewed it as I searched for my sister.

My eyes narrowed with achievement when I spotted her in the centre of the room. She was with Mya, whose plate was piled with pizza of all kinds, and a small dollop of tomato pasta bake. I set my bowl down in front of my sister, who looked up at me with surprise.

"Ailia..." she breathed.

We barely spoke since I came back from the dead. Her words in her bedroom had left some tension between us, tension that I actively avoided. Little siblings were too stressful sometimes. But stubbornness reigned, and neither of us took the first step.

"Bella." I greeted, taking a mouthful of the pasta.

Shit it was hot. My eyes widened, taking in cooling breaths as I chewed to hope it calmed down. Swallowing sharply, I hastily grabbed Mya's drink. Her eyes were amused, unbothered as I gulped down the... what the fuck was this?

Swallowing, I looked up at her with furrowed, disgusted brows. My throat was scratchy as I squawked at her, but she was too amused to care. Totally not cool.

"The fuck is this?" I spluttered.

"Vodka and lemonade." She cocked her head.

"Who drinks vodka at dinnertime?"

"You're looking at her." She mused. "And that was a wolf vodka. You drank like four gulps, which is basically two shots for a human."

I frowned at her, smacking my lips together with distaste. "That's fucking-

"Here, I brought you a normal drink."

Piper's voice floated over my shoulder as she set down a glass of water. I eyed it curiously, but Piper rolled her eyes and sat beside me. I didn't miss how Mya's eyes scanned her, lingering too long on her chest.

Rolling my eyes at the two of them, I took a sip from the icy water and sighed with satisfaction.

"Fucking vodka at five o'clock." I muttered. "I can already feel the headache."

Mya grinned. "Hey, keep drinking by all means. Drunk Ailia is funny."

I mimicked her mockingly, and she laughed, tearing into a piece of pizza with a grin. Bella sat quietly, watching the three of us with wide eyes.

"What's up?" I wondered.

"I have never heard you curse so much." She eventually mumbled.

We laughed, and my sister blushed.

"What you doing over here, anyway?" Mya asked. "I thought you had shit to pack."

"Piper helped me pack." I shook my head.

"Of course she did." Mya grinned, eyes sparkling as she gazed at Piper.

Piper's eyes were hard, not biting into the game Mya was playing. Mya was a flirt, and Piper could be too, but Piper remained stoic.

"I'm here to talk to Bella."

"Why? Is something wrong?" She looked around. "Is it about As-

"No, it is nothing to do with him." I snapped, shooting her down. "Tomorrow. It's about tomorrow."

She blushed, embarrassed. "Sorry."

Clearing my throat, I continued. "Tomorrow I am going to the wolf council, to plead my case for human rights."

"You are?" Her eyes widened, holding my gaze. "Really?"

"Yes."

"What are you going to talk about?" She wondered eagerly.

"A lot of things. It may take a few days, and I wanted to talk to you about some... stuff." I began. "I..."

Was the dining room the right place for this?

"I need to speak with you privately."

"You do?" She frowned.

"I thought I could do it here, but I can't. It's too private, too personal."

"Okay then." She nodded. "My room after dinner."

"Deal."

I was curious why she was so interested, but I think she was even more so. She was practically vibrating in her seat, glancing at me every so often. I ate four small bowls of pasta and four more garlic breads before declaring I was finished.

"Damn, sure you're not eating for two?" Piper teased.

I glared at her. "Damn, sure your teeth can handle another joke?"

Her eyebrows furrowed. "My teeth?"

"Yeah, before I knock 'em out."

Her nose wrinkled, and Mya laughed obnoxiously. Piper nudged me playfully, rising from her seat.

"Do you need me?"

"I got this." I shook my head.

She shrugged, pulling me into a one-armed hug and kissing my cheek. Mya watched with wide eyes before interrupting and doing the same. I laughed at her, wiping her slobbering kiss back over her mouth.

"Hey, if it's kiss Luna time, everyone gets a piece."

I nudged her from me before turning to Arabella. She had taken our dishes away and stood beside me with her arms crossed. Together, we walked to her room quietly, her footfalls louder than mine.

She blushed when we entered her room, and I only realised why when I stepped inside. It was messy. Back to normal Bella.

Rolling my eyes, I found a spot on her bed that wasn't covered with clothes and sat facing the window. Arabella sat beside me, the metal bed creaking under our weight.

Sighing, I stared out at the tall trees. "I don't know how to say this."

"Just say it." She mumbled. "It must be important to be in private."

I turned to her, my heart heavy as I stared into her big brown eyes. She was still so young, and I didn't want to shatter her thoughts. Our sisterly bond was already weathered, tight with tension, and I didn't know how she would take this.

"Remember that woman in the woods?"

She frowned at the random thought. "The woman? Yeah."

"Remember how she said we smelt similar?"

"Yeah..."

"And how everyone says I act wolf, and smell wolf without Asra's touch."

"Yeah..." She frowned at the mention of my mate.

"I couldn't stop thinking about it, Bella. And... it caused me to discover some things." I winced.

"What is it, Ailia? Just spit it out."

"I did a DNA test." I cleared my throat. "We... we aren't related."

Her head cocked, eyes hard as she frowned at me. "What do you mean? You're my sister."

"Not by blood." I whispered. "It turns out I am half werewolf."

Silence. She stared at me, her eyes widening to the point I could see her entire iris. I would've smirked if it wasn't for the context of conversation.

"You... You're sure of it?"

"I am."

"Is... Is that why you get so angry when I diss wolves?"

"Part of it." I shrugged. "We don't know if I have a wolf. But Asra and I met with a witch, who entered my mind. I've been having dreams, you see, ones of my childhood I never remembered, and she helped me try to understand some of them. From that witch, we discovered another has cursed me."

"C-cursed?" She squeaked. "How?"

"My wolf's blood has been weakened and my memories wiped. Some of yours too, we think." I explained. "I have dreams where I am a wolf, Bella, a pretty ginger wolf, and I'm with Dad."

My voice broke at the end, unable to hold her eyes.

"Dad... he..."

"He's still alive, isn't he?"

My eyes snapped to her. "How did you..."

"I always had the thought." She shrugged, staring at her lap. "How was only his body missing?"

I swallowed, nodding. "Yeah. Turns out he faked his death. That party I went to for Augustus' baby? He was there, although I did not recognise him."

"Because of the witch?"

"Yeah." I smiled, happy my sister was so smart to catch on. "He's very much alive, and very much a wolf."

"If he's not my dad..."

I took her hand. "You are not my sister by blood, Bella. But that doesn't' mean anything. Blood does not define you as a person, you do. My dad came into your life as an infant. He raised both of us... It doesn't matter about blood."

"You're right." She mumbled. "I guess... that explains why you are so pale and ginger."

I gasped, nudging her as she giggled. "At least I don't trash my room."

She rolled her eyes, smiling playfully. "Is this what you wanted to tell me?"

She took it well. I was proud of her.

"That, and I will see him again tomorrow." I nodded. "I wanted to tell you, so I could go into this meeting with a clear head."

"Are you scared?"

"Very."

"You don't have to be. I have seen how you act as... as a luna, Ailia. With Asra... you are unstoppable."

"You think so?" I hummed.

"I know it." She shrugged. "I have watched him with you, and... I'm sorry."

My head snapped around so hard I think I cracked it.

"I'm sorry I misjudged him. He... he seems good to you, for you."

"He is good." I mumbled. "But his actions warped your idea of him. They were out of his control."

"I know." She smiled sadly. "I was wrong to judge him without knowing him. I truly thought that's how he was, and I couldn't understand why you slept with him."

I rolled my eyes. "Mate bonds are more than sex."

"I dunno. You always reek of him."

"You can smell it too?" I groaned.

"Just his cologne." Bella shrugged. "And your hair is usually frizzier."

I thought I was safe amongst humans. How wrong I was.

"Fuck sake."

She giggled, taking my hand. "Hey, you got this. Tomorrow will be a breeze. I have seen you as a leader, Ailia. If this is what fate wants you to be, then you're going to rock it."

I had so much more I wanted to tell her. About my bloodline, about Asra, about our father... But I would leave it at that for now. I didn't want to overwhelm her when I would not be here tomorrow to help her feel better.

"I'm glad we had this talk." I told her.

She squeezed my hand back. "Me too, sis."

Grinning, I hugged her, happy to have my little sister back. The sibling bond rippled with freshness, the tension flittering like dust around us. Although irritating, it was going, and I was grateful to be over it.

It was only a matter of time before we fell out over something else, anyway. But that's what family did when you all had your own sense of mind. You fight and bicker about what you believe in, and like before, I would not warp Arabella's mind. They tried so hard to change mine; I would not let it happen to my little sister.