* * *

It hadn't been all that easy to convince Black Crescent to join the ranks of Half Crescent, even if the idea of others had made the she-wolves much more safer in terms of pack status. It didn't occur to Sage the culture shock, and thus she admitted that being brought in was going to be harder for her wolves to co-exist, especially when there was no trust.

And Alpha Andy knew a thing or two about trust.

Instead of living in the pack house or one of the many other cabins, Sage had decided that the use of skins could be used as a tent. It certainly had been a sight to see what all the commotion was about, but Andy had been explained that one of the witches is fluent with the earth and thus...Managed well enough with forming this.

The pack life had been steady, the pups adored their newfound freedom and friends. But Sage knew that this was not permanent, and couldn't waste her time pretending that it was.

While she found herself liking and actually helping the higher-ups in terms of mandating and protecting Half Crescent, it still didn't feel all that right to remain a part of one pack when her heart belonged to another.

In addition to that, she had to be honest with Andy. That the American packs had been at war the last time she had been there back at the end of March.

Now it was the end of August.

Sage had spent the day in solitude when she realized that she missed her pup's first birthday.

The date hadn't meant anything to her before their birth, and yet it meant the world to her now. Her pups were one. The nearing five months away had been damaging to her wolf.
Making no room for Andy to pry his way into her head and express his concern, as it was Severin who had gotten the word out to his worried Alpha.

Having seen Sage fond over her stones, her pups were one—She was twenty-four, and there was no stronger urge than that to keep going.

When she returned from her rude awakening, Andy offered to have the Beta escort her to a surrounding pack. But in relation to that, she didn't know how well Remus' name worked with the packs in Canada. The only thing she could recall was that Mystic Grimm was considered to be both.
Perhaps it was a better call to head to Harlow than to Remus?

The ideas swirled around in her mind, making her unsure of pretty much everything. And that certainly left Maeve in a rude awakening when Sage hardly found herself sleeping beside her or giving a kiss here and there.

Elena said to drop the whole relationship as it was childish to think that she'd get anywhere in being deemed Luna. But goddess have mercy on Black Crescent when they heard Sage being called Luna by a Half Crescent Member.

It caused her body to recoil and almost tinker in rage, the group was simply cooking alongside one another and chopping vegetables from the overgrowing garden when one of the young she-wolves had slipped.

The title did not make Sage comfortable in the least, and to add to the fact that they were here for two weeks and still nothing had changed in her head about formulating a plan.

Andy wasn't lying when he said the journey would be rough, and no part of her could ask the females to do it. She contemplated going off to the humans and just using a phone to try and make some contact that way, but who would she call?
Part of her didn't want to know if Remus was dead or not. A part of her—the majority of her, think he is. And it made the decision even harder, especially considering that Andy would check in on what the plan is.

Today was no different.

He found her scribbling on a spare piece of paper, staring back at the map in question. He had to admit the little bear slayer didn't give up easily.
Though what else did he expect from an Elwood?

"Did you eat yet?" Was usually his go-to in starting a conversation once he realized that she didn't eat until her own people did, yet this time he received a small nod.

"That's not what I heard from the kitchen or Elena."
"I'm not hungry." She deemed, and the male growled in an attempt to settle the matter, but like most times, he forgot that Sage did not see him as an Alpha.

They were at the same level, but it did earn him a smile.

"Female call me Luna yesterday." It certainly stalled the conversation in regards to eating, but damnit, he hadn't thought the rumor would actually reach her yet!

"I wanted to talk to you about that..."
"You have female somewhere, Andy. You wait, and we find them." It was simply put, but that caught him off guard. "'We'? You're going to help me find her?"
"I'm good at time, sometimes I don't know when females come, but yours coming soon." She claimed, and thus it left them in the calming silence of either getting their own work done.

Yet to distract Sage from her own thoughts, she started to sketch Andy as he sat at his desk just a few feet away. It was clear that her eyes would flicker up every now and then, not that he minded—A strong she-wolf was always in the market for someone in her rank.

But it damned him nonetheless, not when his pack members adored her, and the slip of the tongue from Emma ruined his chances to make a better connection with her.

Severin already admitted that Sage's mate was probably dead, and while it did sound harsh, Andy had to think about the well-being of his own pack.

And what his pack wanted was a strong Luna—Sage met those and more.

"Should I be worried on what you're doing over there, Bear Slayer?" The teasing nickname caused her to giggle as she nodded but continued non the less, but his wolf wouldn't settle after knowing that the beautiful she-wolf was doing something sneaky.

He came over in quick strides and tackled her, which was met quickly with them both tumbling to the ground and Sage coming out victorious with her claws digging into his wrists just above his head.

"Not nice...I thought we play on runs." That was certainly true. They did. Andy wanted her comfortable in his pack, hoping to make up for the fact that she was still missing from her pack. Yet here he was in a small predicament.

Especially when Grey had come in with worry. "What happened?!" He called out, but seeing it from his position at the door caused a blush to reign over his face. "S-sir—"
"We talked about knocking, Grey."
"Yes sir, sorry sir!" He hurried out the door, though that didn't stop the strong laugh that followed from the she-wolf sitting on his—

"That was funny. Grey act like a pup sometimes."
"Yeah yeah, he's a catch...Mind letting me go anytime soon, hun?" She perked her lips, rather liking the Alpha underneath her—Which caused her wolf to vibrate with a content rumble.

Who wasn't content, however, was his own wolf. Leaving for a playful roll back and forth until Sage was another giggling mess at how damn adorable the male in front of her was acting. It reminded her of a pup, much like what Grey was turning out to be.

Since Sage was polite, she allowed him the moment of strength—Knowing that putting up a proper fight would show a challenge. But the simple view of her rolling her eyes, it caught Andy right off guard. Yet something he hadn't seen much either, was the tattoo taking up the majority of her shoulder.

"What's this?" She turned to look, confused as to what he meant but then smiled at seeing the tattoos of Cresent Moon. "Mate and I get tattoos."
"Damn, it's nice...How long did it take?" It hadn't taken all that long, and it was even better when she explained that a few of her friends had gotten them as well.

Or that's how Andy explained it.

"Tattoos are kinda taboo...They're not really done."
"I only get it because I saw movie with tattoos. I think it's cool." She explained, and Andy couldn't lie.

"Just surprised, is all. I thought Crescent Moon was on the stricter side."
"Not anymore. Nice." She said, the proud smile starting to rise up a small bit, but not enough to hint anything. The strong conscious of her being an actual Luna still damned her in fear of other packs telling.

She should've used her 'almost' name instead, as she had done in the facility. Sage was too easily trackable.

Andy had no purpose in playing anymore and thus shifted to the side, enjoying the simple company of Sage as they looked to the ceiling. "Old human camp?" She questioned, and he chuckled for a moment.
"Yeah, it's one of those resorts for younger humans to go and spend the summer holiday at. Or that's what I that's what we figured it out to be. It was abandoned when I came here. It was just a few youngsters here by the time we came."
"We?" Andy nodded, trying to think back on the correct dates and times.

"I was with Grey first. He was always under me...Great kid too. Severin came here a few years after. Had a bad run-in with bounty hunters. They were after a few white wolves." Although it had started with a pout in hearing the Beta's backstory, as she knew full well the bounty hunters were the ones to remove his tongue.

The idea of a white wolf being more powerful caused her to chuckle. "Bounty hunters are stupid...But they shot me and Charge before." She claimed, parting her shirt for a moment to showcase the scaring of the bullet wound. Though this certainly caused him to analyze it more thoroughly.

"Goddess, how the hell—"
"Bad Alphas hire bounty hunters. I was in trouble."
"Y-yeah, I guess they would go after high-ranked mated she-wolves...And the war?" She shrugged, it was one of the many things she worried about right beside her pups.

How is the war?

The saddened face overtook Sage once more. Clearly, she was thinking about her mate again and that caused the male to sigh further. "If you want, we can head over to Swift Tail pack. It's easier than trying to cross the border."
"Can't. They know my name then."
"I thought you said Crescent Moon is neutral with the Eastern packs?"
"Yes, but Crescent Moon kills elder Alphas in council. No more council, and they start war."

"CRESCENT MOON STARTED A WAR?! AGAIN?!" Sage huffed. While it was indirect that he didn't know it was her who issued the shift while Remus was unconscious, sporting a bullet wound, it still caused her to grow aggravated.
"See, danger. I trust you right now, but I don't know Swift-Tail. They're not Rogues?" Andy was truthful like he had been in the past. Canada didn't have the same laws as America. It's why Sage was in a bind, all she knew was America's laws, and even then, those were faulty since the fall of the council.

"No, they're a part of the conclave of Canada...But I know they have much more technology out there than we do here, it could give you a phone call." The idea of being in debt to someone lingered, and it met with the harsh realization that she surely did not know what the hell to do.

She missed her pups. She missed the familiar faces of her family. And damn, she wanted a chicken burger with everything on it from Gigi.

Reaching forward, the habit of cuddling had taken into a much larger form as she wrapped her arms around the better half of his own. Her forehead coming to press against his bare skin as she tried to find peace.

Though peace was surely hard to come by.

"Are you feeling any better? I know you have your fancy healers in that real pack of yours, but Bryan knows his shit too." She remained quiet for a moment, realizing that perhaps sharing her headaches wasn't the best idea. It was a weakness, and the last thing she wanted was to be seen as weak.

Though that was the furthest thing Andy had seen her as. Over the last few days, her story trickled out bit by bit, being raised in a cell and learning from second-grade English to now. It was a wonderful survival story, but it was clear that just when she had managed to make something normal for herself, it'd vanished right down back to where she started.

"Head sometimes hurts. I pretend it's pups talking to me. It's okay." She said with a whimsical smile, meaning that she did indeed think it was her pups trying to make contact with her.

"Son or daughter?"
"Both. I had twins. I miss my munchkins." She explained but gave little to no detail on the names like Andy assumed she would. Sage was a very private person and didn't continue in a conversation unless the question pushed further, so when he asked he received an answer.

"Alright, those are pretty cute...Ronan's a strong name. But I thought the state packs always liked to use first letters of the parent's names?"
"I dunno. I just like names, and mate likes names." He could see that it wasn't so much of an issue anymore. That time evolved into bigger and better things.

Not like Canada or Rogue packs cared all that much about formalities. There was hardly any use for last names—Or even birth names as everyone started to go by nicknames. It was clear Grey's name wasn't really Grey at the time he was born, but it's nobody's business but his own.

"I think it'd be better if we went, Sage. The packs here really don't care about America's wars." It was certainly shut down within the instant as she shook her head.

"Trust wrong people could get killed, I promise females to get home...Maybe easier to go to Mystic Grimm."
"Might have to get moving on those plans soon, hun. Once it gets cold and the snow settles in, it'll be harder to travel." That seemed to add to the calculating look she was giving the board. Course, in turn, he reached over to the crumpled-up paper that she had been writing on for the past hour.

Only to find a quick sketch of himself, and goddess forbid him from acting out as brash as he had. He leaned forward without much of a thought to meet her lips, and Sage could hardly deny the sensation of feeling anything but good.

And there the two Alpha's were, on the semi-carpeted floor, swapping salvia as if they were pups in their early years. But something about her had been so addicting that he wrapped his hand to trap her thigh back on over him, just to get the feeling of her separated legs over his own waist.

Clearly, she knew what he was up to, otherwise the spark and glint wouldn't have piqued his interest as much as it had. His wolf had ushered words of claiming her, to mark—But he wouldn't allow for much more than a simple makeout.
Not when he still had to persuade her with taking the position as his Luna.

That if the packs in America really were at war with each other, then there was little chance that there was anything to return to. And if by chance there is, was it really worth seeing the shambles of what she missed?

It was selfish, but Andy hadn't felt anything over-content in his life. He always put others before him and listened to those above him, but the goddess laid this beautiful she-wolf in his lap—Literally.

He'd be a fool not to try, not to give in to the instinct that was fueling their aggressive huffs and tugs at the clothing. However, he knew that he had touched a boundary in trying to take off her bear pelt, which caused him to put his hands up into the air as a sign of surrender.

"Take it off then for me, hun. Let me see you." He ushered, his voice strung more in a wolf tongue than he realized. But with her following his directions, he knew from there that Sage Elwood understood wolf.
A not so common trait in this day and age, especially not for those in the states.

In watching her shed off what was more or less like a second skin to her, Andy sat in pure awe at the female that had been presented to him.

Had it been the goddess herself that blessed him?

He had always wondered what females thought about him—him and his scar. But there were times that Sage would only look at it with interest and the occasional arousal that followed in pursuit.

Yet he never acted on it until now—It was too much.

The scent she was permitting and the act of following along had caused his wolf to downright roll over on his back.
And there was truly no fight left in him.

The few she-wolves he's been with were Rogue and had been born that, Sage was different, and he saw himself in her.
To live on someone else's will and demands, and at times like this, when her eyes showed in more understanding than anything someone could say, Andy wanted to simply sit there and bask in her attention.

But duty called, especially in the eyes of the female's Delta. Who hardly knocked right behind Delta Grey, and the impassive look Sage had given off to Mae destroyed any and all thoughts Andy had in thinking the two females were a couple.

And it certainly felt that way in Mae's eyes as she ran away in a fit of tears.

Sage huffed in pure confusion, and thus Andy chuckled. "She likes you."
"She tries to kiss me in sleep."
"Well, don't say it that way! I'd like to do that too." There wasn't a bias, not entirely. Sage didn't mind the kisses of a female. She received many a day.
But the link she felt with Maeve was not the same as Andy.

Her wolf could certainly agree with that statement.

"You...Wanna go back to my bedroom?" He asked, wondering if Sage even knew the phrase or what it entailed.
"I don't like cocky males." Is all she said, turning to reattach her bearskin, meaning that she was lost for the day. Which caused him to groan as he realized that he did indeed, fuck it up.

"Maybe another time." He said in a light mumble, and Sage smiled to herself. It was strange that this feeling of power was making her wolf suddenly spark up.

But then the realization of being cocky had certainly drifted into her head, it was now her fault in being the very thing she hated.

"I have to say sorry to Maeve." She decided, but Andy's voice had called her back for a moment. "You don't have to say sorry. You're not together with her. She's not wearing your mark."
"I don't mark female. I have mate."
"Yeah, but how far did you and her really go? It can't be that...Oh, well, then maybe a little apology." She wasn't good at saying sorry, not when the words fumbled over one another. Or for the fact that she still didn't know what she was saying sorry for.

"I don't want a Luna or to be Luna...I just want my pups." She whispered, however, Andy tugged the bottom end of her skirt as she started to rise.

"Then be my standing Luna, for now, let the pack think you are, and it'll be easier—Then maybe...Maybe I'll bring you to Crescent Moon." The amount of shock that coursed through her face had been the most expressive she'd turned.

"You take me to Crescent Moon if I be almost Luna?" She questioned, and damnit, he hadn't been at the mercy of a female in a long time, but he put on a face and growled.

"Only if you follow my rules."
"Rules aren't fun." She instantly shot back, and Andy rolled his eyes. Earning him a rather sharp growl, though she did rejoin him back on the floor.

"What rules?"
"Oh, so you're interested, huh?"
"I listen to rules then say yes or no." His laughter was only met with her stoic expression and blinking eyes.

"W-well you'll be Luna, hun. You sit next to me at dinners. You'll help me with meetings...I've only met a few Luna's, and Half Crescent's never had a female high ranked." She bobbed her head along for a moment and then perked her lips.
"And?" Sage beckoned, knowing full well that there was more to it than that.

"You cut ties with Maeve."
"Cut ties..."
"You stop seeing Maeve." Her brows scrunched together quickly, not likely the idea of losing her Beta or even her Delta and Gamma. "I can't see Mae anymore?"
"Not like she wants to, hun it—Well, it looks like she's in love with you."
"I love her too." She shot back, but Andy shook his head.

"You know how you love your mate?... She loves you like that." Understanding washed over her instantly as she frowned, saddened that she couldn't compute the feelings back. And certainly not in the same way as Andy.

"I can't love Maeve like mate. Okay."
"And you sleep in my room."
"No. Next?"
"Uh, that wasn't up for discussion. Crescent Moon's far away. That's a lot of supplies and pack members I need to take—Better yet, I'm leaving the pack for however long it takes."
"I sleep with pups, not your bed."
"Nope. My bed or nothing." Sage stared at the male before rising up to her feet and making her way to the door.

However, just as she pulled the door forward, she turned back towards him and nodded. "Fine...But no touch my stones or bear fur." She cursed in his direction, and he shot an instant smile off toward her.
"I'm looking forward to it, hun!"

His voice carried for more than a few beats, and yet he remained on the floor for another moment or two as he watched the door. He had almost given in. And it was a damn good thing he held out just a while longer, otherwise, he would've had no leverage.

It'd make the trip easier in the long run, and perhaps he could find an easier way back home than risk it both ways. Avoiding Swift Tail might be the best idea. From his knowledge, there weren't many female Alphas.

He didn't need to be an expert to know that Sage was a rare breed.

______

Date: 08/27/2022

Time: 12:31 (Sorry this is late, first week of work kicked my ass)

Words: 3912

Author's Note:

So what are we thinking about Alpha Andy😏😏

I guess the question right now is Andy or Maeve,
but Remus is a fair answer as well.

For anyone wondering, Alpha Andy's character's scarring features from Claikite were kinda influenced by Dwight from the walking dead--Just a little less severe and kinda splattered on.