* * *

Now in some pack cultures, a male would always help the female eat. Whether it is by plating their food, chewing through the tougher meat or simply separating the bigger pieces from the animal carcass. Today, however, Sage fought for her right in holding a spoon, and damnit she was getting pissed.

But she knew this catering was coming deeper within his beast, the primal urge to right the wrongs made. If Lucy had been a former friend, she could've understood. The fact of the matter is, she wasn't.

She was a jealous bitch, and Sage was for certain that nothing was going to be in her way from a corpse, no matter what her family tried to do.

And a part of Sage knew that there would be something else to rectify. That the fight wouldn't go as well as she's planned in her head, but she remained content as Andy didn't leave her side for the rest of the time spent in the infirmary.

And while she didn't want to be rude, he was starting to smell—So she had a grand idea, though fighting the urge to listen to his warning growl was tempting.

"I thought we talked about you telling me if you need to get up, hun?"
"And I thought I told you I'm not listening?" She shot back, pointing off toward the bathroom as she clutched the lower end of her stomach. The small part still offered cramps when she applied too much pressure to her right side, and thankfully Andy took the bait.

"Where are we headed?"
"Bathroom, I think I smell bad." She grumbled, looking at her matted hair, and continued off in that direction. Granted, Andy hadn't thought twice about going and joining her. If anything, he wouldn't have been surprised if she told him to get lost, but remained planted by her side to keep her standing while she cleaned up her knotted hair.

What he did love, however, was her trying to reach his height by scrubbing his hair—Causing her to go up to her tippy toes, and giving him the excuse of holding her by the waist. "I'm sorry about your friend." She whispered, and he chuckled.

"Not much of a friend anymore, is she?"
"No. Not really, but she was a friend. And I'm sorry."
"Don't be. I should've made it clearer to her that I'm not interested in getting back together with her—Not that was ever really with her, to begin with." Sage squinted her eyes for a moment and then smirked.

"Girlfriend?"
"Well, ex, and she wasn't really my girlfriend...Just a girl I'd—Oh forget it, the point is I can't stand the sight of her and won't forgive her for this." Sage nodded along, her eyes drifting to the side as she recalled what happened the last time she was pregnant.

"You said this happened before?" He received another nod, "What happened? How did you know it was your mate's ex?"
"I dunno, I was eating lunch with everyone and my Charge. He made a lot of food, and I remember being hungry because pups were hungry. My tea did not taste good, but I needed to drink it because healer said it would help. Not the right tea, but Blake didn't know...We got a lot of gifts from pack members because I was pregnant." A light smile erupted on Andy's face, it was always a sweet gesture for a pack member to give gifts like that.

But then he realized that'd be the perfect and unsuspecting way to hide said poison among dozens of other gifts. "What happened after?"
"I don't really know. I remember going to the infirmary and mate promising to make it better...Didn't want him to leave so I follow, and he starts yelling at the pack and big pack meeting."
"Did she get in trouble?" She hummed in response.

"I learned before about Crescent Moon's history, and I read about punishments. After we found out who it was, Alpha asked me what I wanted to do—He whipped them."

"What?!" Andy gasped, having not been prepared for something so brutal, but Sage shrugged her shoulders. "Alpha was very mad, I almost died and lost pup. They get whipped and then stay on the pole until we got Council death ticket so they could die. That or they become Rogue, but Blake didn't like that." Andy still felt shocked that had been the outcome, granted he was all for it, but he thought Crescent Moon had changed...

"Alpha said that they didn't use whips for a long time. They're locked away I think..." Sage didn't recall where Remus had uncovered a whip from his father's days as Alpha, nor did she care. Yet seeing Andy thinking along to the previous situation caused him to frown.

"So why is Julian being such a hard ass about it if Crescent Moon settled a punishment like that? What is he doing?"
"I was apart of pack and hurt by pack member. You said we are guests. I'm not in front of pack member because of title. We're on his ground and his rules. Lucy can't do anything, storm will weaken her, and I won't make a show of it. That's not fair for her family. Papa says sometimes there's honor in fighting."
"Not in this case, hun. I'm sure your dad means all well and nice. But sometimes, you have to make an example of them." Sage shook her head, the droplets of the shower running down her face in an unlawful pattern.

"No, that's not true. What example? And to who? Our pack follows us. They're loyal. I don't want Oak Wood scared of us. We stay here for a few more days." It was true, their plane was scheduled for Friday, but besides that, there wasn't much else to do other than wait.

"I don't know why she wants to challenge you, it's obvious you're an Alpha female...I really didn't think she'd stoop this low or hurt you because of me." She shrugged her shoulders and returned to looking directly up towards the shower's head, enjoying the last few minutes of hot water—Only to be engulfed by Andy's clingy nature. He kissed his mark, the new mark, and hummed directly beside her ear.

"I hope pup's okay..." She whispered, her hands coming to wrap around his protective layer over her stomach. "He will be. I know it." Andy said with pure conviction in his voice, but Sage had a doubt that the pup would be male.

"Maybe it's twins again..." She chuckled, and Andy stilled—His heart missed a beat, and his arms firmly squeezed her closer to his form.
"Don't say things like that, my wolf can't handle hearing that kinda good news right now...Not when we have to watch you in the ring." She let her head fall back to his chest and had the chance to look up to meet his gaze.

It followed this pattern easily enough, and by that night, Sage didn't care to stay that they were staying in the infirmary again. She stood by the idea that she'd heal better with Andy by her side and in a normal bedroom, but that meant that she could accept the challenge.

And while Andy wanted to stall, Sage wanted to get it over with.

The night of, Andy hadn't gotten a wink of sleep while she slept soundly underneath his arms. This was just another challenge. Her subconscious brought her the multiple trials and reminders of teachings that Papa Leo and Luke had taught her, right beside Blake and Papa Hayes.

But most importantly, Remus.

All of them held similar mentions, that not everyone was going to like her. And she felt much better in understanding that Julian only acted because of the position he was in, though a part of her knew that even if she did lose, miraculous, then Andy would have the final word on the matter regarding the poison.

The energy in the room had sparked tremendously. Wolves that Sage had never seen before came with cautious looks to said she-wolf that Lucy had poisoned.

And from Grey and Severin could rally into Andy, even Oak Wood's pack members agreed that Lucy was a dead wolf.

Sage ate a hefty portion of breakfast, and spoke with both the Luna and Alpha as if everything was normal. Alpha Julian had to give the guest Luna props for acting more mature than her male, who was still sulking over his plate as though it were his fault.

"Come on, Hera, why don't I braid your hair before the challenge?" Sage thought it was a beautiful gesture, and the guilty smile that rose up on Alanna's face caused her to rise up and follow after her, just not before she settled a kiss on Andy's cheek.

Julian let out another smile, and Andy ignored it, his eyes following after his female in an attempt to calm his wolf. This was the first time she was farther than arm's length since she'd been poisoned.

"You're going to have to get over it eventually. Going back to pack settings is dangerous for she-wolves like hers."
"Yeah? And I'm supposed to say 'please' and 'thank you' because it's fucking polite too, but that's earned. Isn't that what you told me when I first came here?"
"That was years ago. You're an Alpha in your own right now. Not some scronny two-faced Rogue that stumbled half alive in my pack's territory." While the nickname wasn't reserved for Alanna entirely, it felt strange—Andy wasn't looking for another father figure in his life, his record of fatherly relationships had almost gotten him killed. No, Alanna was the perfect match for an adoptive mother. It just didn't go that far into including Julian as well.

"And after this challenge?"
"Some will probably spit and chew more than they can swallow. You know politics better than I do."
"No, I don't. The biggest issue we had was a male tried raping a female." Severin hummed beside his Alpha and nodded along.

"What was his punishment?" Julian asked with curiosity glistening in his eyes, and Severin could only laugh. "Well, we didn't have a bear anymore for punishments, sir...You can guess who filled in that position." Andy grinned down at his plate, the first sign of a normal conversation from Half Crescent since the assassination attempt.

However, without Sage's presence beside him, that was the perfect time for Lucy's parents to make an attempt at Andy to simply lift the charges against their daughter.

Apparently dying or being seen as a traitor wasn't in their image.

"Andy, this is gone on long enough. Our Lucy would never do anything like that!" Julian laughed at the delusional mother's attempt at pleading her daughter's case, but Lucy didn't bother denying the claims.

She was still outside as they spoke, eating her breakfast under the protection of a tent.

"And yet it happened, besides the fact that she challenged my female...How else am I supposed to take it?"
"With forgiveness! You loved our daughter dearly, and you left her! You left all of us for a better life, but did it get any better?" Andy smirked and nodded.

"Yes, it did, ma'am, and if you haven't noticed..." He said while rising to his feet, his hands gripping the wooden table with enough strength to break it—But it let it go. "...It's Alpha Andy now. Your daughter was desperate back then as she is now. She's labeled correctly and will get punished with what she deserves. You're lucky Alpha Julian is merciful. This shit wouldn't fly in my pack." He growled, and Julian offered the same octive.

"Packs have different standards with different numbers." Severin curtly sipped his coffee and shook his head.
"You mean it's more political and more bent on being taken over by another male thinking they could be Alpha?" The question caused everyone to turn silent, which caught Sage and Alanna off guard when they returned side by side.

"You! This is all your fault! You stole our daughter's—" Alanna stood directly in front of the Luna and tilted her head. "Would you like to spend a night in snow as well? Or was your daughter suffering outside not a loud enough of an example? What the hell is happening that we are this rude to guests?! Get out of my sight!" Julian chuckled, and it cost him dearly as Alanna glared at him and remained with Hera in an attempt to talk her through the rules.

But they confused her, right up until the point they caught Lucy and her family standing behind in said circle.

"We can still veto the challenge hun. I won't think any less of you if—"
"I have to. My wolf wants blood, and I'll get blood." She instated, accepting the final kiss on both her temple and lips as she walked further into the circle.

Just on the outskirts, she took a look at the weapons table and frowned. And Julian sighed, obviously, the states wouldn't know how to use these types of weapons, and Lucy knew that.

"I can use any weapon?" She questioned, and Lucy let out a sickening laugh. But Alanna had nodded in encouragement. "These are lighter, easier to manage, and these—"
"I won't use them. I don't know how and won't pretend to know how...Can I use any weapon?" She asked her questions, and Julian looked off toward Andy, and the male certainly knew what was about to happen.

"I suppose that'll be alright. She is a guest, after all." Alanna rolled her eyes and earned a final nod from Sage as she continued off into the circle.

Lucy wasn't the brightest wolf in the pack, at all. She was giving away her moves and strikes by showing off, and it had already checked the boxes for a cocky and arrogant she-wolf. But by whispers, she learned that she was both Hunter and Enforcer. Though it looked to more of a family-given position than anything else, she did have to give her propers.

She definitely posed more of a threat than Kelly.

"Scared to use a knife?" She taunted, and Sage shrugged her shoulders. "I don't need one." Hera returned, which certainly caused Lucy to grip her sword-like weapon further in her grip.

"Start the clock!" Sage turned once more to Andy and winked, which did nothing but jump-start his anxiety—Especially when she turned to see Lucy's sudden advancements. It was hardly that difficult to judge her next attack, and from working with Aurora for a decent few months, it was aiding her now.

While Sage didn't use a weapon, she continued to weave her way up and around, as though the sword was a negative magnet to Sage's figure. Lucy soon turned sloppy in line with her aggravation, and not even one drop of blood had been spilled.

"Fight back! You coward!"
"Coward? Only cowards fight with poison." Sage teased, and that continued with the lack of contact. Until Sage socked one right in Lucy's nose—Making the crowd flinch at how badly it cracked.

The quick tent she made to cover it caused her to hunch over. Was that all she could take?

Sage held up the sword and threw it out of the circle, causing a rather demonic scream to come out of Lucy. "He's mine!" She said with a tackle, the blood starting to cover the likes of everything, both Sage and her bear fur—The snow beside them all.

It took all of Severin and Grey's manpower to hold Andy back. The confusion of all the blood was making him antsy right beside his pacing wolf.

However, Sage held her ground proudly, never allowing her back to touch the floor in submission even once. It wasn't that difficult, not when her element was easily starting to sink through the air with the elevation and amount of water around her.

With Lucy losing blood at an exceeding rate, Sage knew that she was either suicidal or taking one last stand. Revealing a dagger from her boot—An illegal one.

Course the scent was starting to throw Sage into a panic, but the simple phrase of "Cadere." Caused the knife to fall into the snow just as Lucy had dashed towards her.
Which made this part very simple indeed.

What started out as a punch simply called Sage to elect her fingertips to tap quickly and then twist once they were inside. Once accomplished, she gripped and twisted towards both sides before her intent had been settled.

The movement of Lucy had caused her to take two last steps before she fell down to her knees, gasping for air. Most of the wolves hadn't taken the audience off where Sage was pointed off to, and once she did turn towards the majority—Gasps rang into the air.

The mourning yell of a female signified Lucy's mother clutching her heart in retaliation for her daughter losing her own. As that is what Sage had sought to do, the still-beating organ moved violently in her hand.
While Sage had taken a biology class, this was nothing compared to the pictures that interested her about their body and structor.

And sure enough, black fibers lined the inner layers. Suggesting that she would not get the Moon Goddess' mercy for taunting her soul. "You're the coward...And she won't have mercy when you meet her." Sage said all in the combination of squeezing it as tight as she could, translating to Lucy's physical form and curling over shortly after.

"Luna!" The warning yell had come not a moment too soon, especially since Sage was so absorbed in her kill that she nearly didn't duck. Yet she knew the wrath of a mother, and so she disarmed the woman.

Not wanting to harm her, as this was a natural response to greving over a loved one.

So she pushed the mother aside and looked around the given audience—To say Andy was about to lose his mind was a complete understanding. So she ran forward, rubbing her hands in the snow, and came to cup his cheeks.
"It's okay. I'm okay." She cooed up towards him.

Grey and Severin were still struggling to hold him back by his arms, yet in the mess of Sage's body—Lucy's blood coated her. Making his wolf roar and slash in the will to clean her.

"Chief...Chief. Calm down, okay? We're okay. We're—" Neither Beta nor Delta could hold Andy back when Lucy's mother attempted again at Sage. Instead, it was her male that came to her defense.

One snap of the neck is all it took before he turned to look off towards Julian. "Do I need a fucking slip now, Alpha?" It was clear that he was running on pure dominance, and he scooped up his female in his arms and carted her away.

Usually, she would find herself in a wiggle to get out, but here she remained still—Part of her was content in her male's firm hold, but the other part wanted to know why on earth Lucy's mom would try and attack her like that, in front of everyone too...

She heard through the link that Severin and Grey were trying to do to control the situation, but in terms of the argument, it'd seem like their flight was going to be closer than Friday.

"Andy, it's okay. You can put me down now."
"Mate not safe. Must protect mate." Sage's eyes widened once she heard his wolf, and she hugged him tighter in response. "Do you feel a pup?"
"Too early, soon. You'll smell sweet." She hummed fondly in remembering a pup's distinct smell or the smell of her breast milk—As annoying as it was half the time, she wanted it more than anything.

Andy had chosen a secluded place, and didn't hesitate to remove the flask of water from his person and offer it to her. Scrubbing off the blood splatter from her face and hands, but in seeing her bear fur—Sage let out a groan.

"Ethel is going to be mad at me. I got it dirty again." She pouted, trying to see what the water would to the drying blood. This caused Andy to frown as he redirected it to clean her up instead, and once the water had run out, he resorted to using snow.

Once she was finally cleaned, Andy had looked her square in the face—He slammed his lips against her and took her weight towards him. Leaving him to embrace the fresh snow as Sage toppled over him.

"Can't mate outside."
"Why not pumpkin? I'll keep you warm." He said, his grin curling up along with the wrinkles in his face, a soft smile erupted in return. Leaving her lean down and allow the rest of her adrenaline to disperse in a more natural and non-violent way.

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Date: 10/17/22

Time: 8:57 (Look at me, I'm early!)

Words: 3693

Author's Note:

And that is the end of Lucy! Talk about ripping someone's heart out!
Truthfully, I didn't mean for Kelly and Lucy's name to be so similar to one another, but it's what the name generator had given me at the time.

The next chapter will be the last one in this phase. Can you believe we're this far already? I want to say that I started posting this story in July...Wow, does time fly!

And don't worry, we're leaving Oak Wood behind very soon!

Current Updates:

I am working on another werewolf story involving werewolf/human royalty trope.
My goal is to start posting that in the new year. This will not be connected to the LH Universe, and will (Most likely) be a stand-alone.

I do have dozens of other ideas that I wish I had time for, but currently, three WIP is enough.

My Harry Potter fanfic is my guilty pleasure as of right now😂

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Thank you all for the support, votes and comments. I honestly wouldn't have been able to continue writing this story without it!

I hope you have a fantastic week and I will see you Friday!