* * *

"But why can't I tell Jade? I have questions." Sage asked for the umpteenth time that morning and Remus was reduced to a sigh. As his mate's due date was fast approaching, he couldn't have believed that he could feel the stress could build up any more than it had.

And Sage was surely starting to feel his aggravation.

"Sage, I answered that question already."
"But I don't understand."
"Our pack can't speak about it, munchkin. They're unable to even if they wanted. And we told Grey Hallow and Silver Tail because they met with you personally and won't tell."
"Jade and Harlow won't tell."
"We can't be too careful, not after one attempt on you and the pup." It was clear that she was upset, of course she would be. Jade was one of her good friends and she wanted to know more about the process and to hear from a she-wolf who's actually been through it recently.

Sure Mary and Fiona helped where they could, but Remus trusted Sage's instinct when the time comes. He just wished she had more faith in herself to manage, but then again...He wasn't the one giving birth.

"They'll be mad..."
"They won't be happy, no, but it's safer this way."
"I hope so." She whispered back while her mate opened the door for her to the infirmary. And already Kenzie was at the ready to escort her Luna and Alpha to their usual check-up room.

"Alright Luna, how are you feeling?" Sage explained that she was feeling better since the last visit and that the pup wasn't kicking too harshly anymore, just moving around.

Course that prompted Kenzie to feel around her Luna's swollen stomach to see where the pup is situated. And goddess did the Alpha hate when the healer's brows scrunched together in concentration.

As he mistook that as confusion.

"Are you keeping up with the yoga and shifting regularly?" Sage nodded but a stern look from her mate caused her to sigh. "Yoga getting harder."
"It's supposed to, you need to keep these arms and legs active. The pup's not done growing yet." She nodded, though Remus could see she would be adamant to properly listen to the instructions.

But besides that, the pup is healthy—After all the trauma Sage had endured, the pup was diagnosed as fine. And thus the two walked out of the infirmary just as Blake strolled on up to the door.

"Hey, would you look at that, made it just in time." He grinned, leaving the Alpha to roll his eyes and kiss his mate. "Blake's going to tell me if you do that Yoga or not, and he's going to lock up the mozzarella sticks until you get a session in." Sage gasped, but then nodded in agreement.

Jokes on him, she didn't want mozzarella sticks today.

It earned her another kiss before he started walking towards the pack house's entrance, Blake caught her smirk of victory before she started walking off towards the training grounds.

"Oh goddess, Alpha said Yoga not—"
"I want to see Mikey train."
"Ah, see that you could've told me. Really hun, I don't want to have to make you something you don't want to eat."
"I don't want mozzarella sticks." Blake laughed, truly, the Alpha had failed to take that into account.

"Yeah? Then what are you feeling today?"
"Deer and squirrel." It was defiantly the pup pushing its appetite forward, but Blake was brewing up possibilities of what to do with squirrel meat that Sage would like.

"Sounds like we're making stew."
"That's with potatoes?" The two continued to talk as they made their way to the training grounds, but the Luna's name had been called which halted their walk and conversation.

It was Ally.

"Hey! Oh goddess Sage you're glowing. How's the pup?"
"Pup's good, come from training?" The pregnant Luna was living through others and what they did during their workouts, to say she was itching to get back to work was an understatement.

"Um, I'm having my birthday party this weekend, I was hoping you can come?" An adorable smile graced Sage's face as she nodded instantly, and it was clear that it meant the world to Allison.

While Sage felt rather happy that Allison thought to invite her, she was one of the many she-wolves in the pack to really 'hang out' with her when the Elwood brothers couldn't.

However, Allison's friend Noel had found her way over to the group and flashed Blake an award-winning smile, but it dripped with flirtatious intentions that Sage had to force her nose not to twitch in disgust.

"You're welcome to come too, Blake, it's just a small party—"
"She's being modest, you only turn 18 once!" Noel said, much too cheery for Sage's taste but she smiled nevertheless.

Then a thought hit her, perhaps not a thought—But an old remembrance. Luke and Elenor were not the first predicted couple she had foreseen, so when the two she-wolves had left Sage to her thoughts...It was soon disturbed when Noel had turned back to wink at Blake.

How embarrassing, and in front of the Luna no doubt!

So Sage pushed up on her tippy toes, hand on his shoulder and one covering her mouth as she whispered into his ear. "She wants to fuck you."

Blake had no follow-up after that, he had no clue whether to laugh, to cry, or to do a little bit of both. Nothing really came to mind unless he was a stuttering mess.

"Sage, sweetheart, you can't do that to me. My heart can't take it."
"What?" She said, as innocent as possible. Because to her, she truly didn't think what she said was that bad, it's what Mary and Fiona said most of their time visiting.

"I say it wrong?"
"No. And that's the problem."
"Not a problem, because I'm right."
"Yeah? But for that girl's sake, I'm not interested...And females don't fuck males, males fuck females." Sage frowned as she had said it wrong then, but it was soon interrupted by a smile as Julia did not waste a moment to smack Blake upside the head.

"WHAT?!"
"Uh, Beta Julia, g-great weather we're havin—"
"WHAT DO MALES DO?!" Blake had fallen into a track, one filled with quicksand because any movement or thing he tried to say only brought him closer to being suffocated.

Especially when Jules looked like she was ready to choke him.

"Males fuck females."
"Sage...You can't say it like that. That's not a...a polite way to say it."
"Oh, then what is?" She said, and Jules looked off towards Blake for aid and the male simply kept rubbing the back of his head.

"Hey, what was I suppose to say?" Well, he wasn't wrong either.

"Mating, why don't you keep it as mating, not fucki—" Jules attempted, but the Luna interrupted.
"But Noel not his mate, that's why it's fucking."

Blake turned around, hoping that anyone would save him from this horrific conversation. But he was out of luck.

"Uh, how did you two get on this conversation?"
"Noel flirting with Blake," Sage explained, and Blake followed up with Sage had whispered into his ear, which suddenly caused Julia to laugh.

And not just any laugh, but Blake was sure he saw tears forming in her eyes.

"Okay ha ha fucking ha, are you done?"
"Sage called you out for being a man-whore!" It caused the male to gawk, but Sage was all for the new word to her vocabulary.

"It's what she-wolves call males who like to 'mate' around before finding a mate." The explanation earned her a few blinks before she turned to look at her charge.

"Blake's not with a lot of females."
"Please, just let me out of my misery—Hey! I think I see Mikey!" His prayer was answered, especially when Sage's attention had left the conversation on Blake's sex habits, and thus the two were off and away to Luke's training session with the younger years.

And the Luna thought it was utterly adorable.

It was a learning experience as Sage couldn't recall at what age she started defending herself or attacking for the purpose of experiments. And even Blake couldn't help but find it cute.

Especially when Luke put the kids on their ass a few times.

"Luna! You came!" Mikey called out as he rushed over with a water bottle in hand, and she smiled her own greeting with a quick nod.

"Very fast, too fast—Need to slow down." Blake nodded in agreement. "What she means is your too excited kid, have to zero in on the target, breathe—Then do your thing. You have the speed but you need to control it." Michael ate up every word from the Luna and General, and Sage nudged Blake to go and join Luke in teaching.

It was clear the male wanted to help the pups, and Luke didn't mind the extra help. Instead Sage sat by the little tent for the pup's to stay hydrated throughout the day, as they were still getting used to pushing themselves to train like a wolf now.

"Thank you, Luna!" She had gotten that a few times now, where the lil pups came over and downed their given plastic cup of ice water that she offered them. And she provided them an encouraging smile with a bit of advice.

Most of them used it, but they were pups, they had uncontrolled energy. But she too studied them, realizing that her pup was going to be the same energetic and bouncing furball.

However, by the time her pup was their age, they'd be much more in tune with their fur side—At the advantage of being born in fur.

But that caused her to wonder what disadvantages she had not being born in fur?

"Earth to Luna, you there hun?" She blinked and finally allowed Luke's form into her view, but he already knew that she was deep in thought.

"Yeah."
"Pup's are showing off cause you're here."
"Why?"
"They want your attention." She hummed and turned her head back towards the group, and she smirked with a plan.

"Pups tackle Blake?"
"All of them?" She nodded, and Luke shared the same smirk his sister was.

Luna's orders, tackle him to the ground kids!

Blake had not been involved with the link, and the pups weren't very good at keeping a straight face when they welcomed another wolf's voice into their head just yet, so they all stopped moving in sync and paused their spars around him to all take the charging start to tackle him.

And the General was hardly prepared on what to do with a pack of pups tackling him to the ground and making a pile.

Sage started clapping at the sight before her, as she and Luke looked all too smug on this end that Blake huffed in annoyance.

"I hate you both." The entire crowd was a mix of laughter, until one of the many sets of parents had come in yelling at their pup for not listening to Luke and being disrespectful in the Luna's presence.

"Oh, I tell—Told. I told them to tackle Blake." That one sentence relinquished the father's anger and apologized to Sage for speaking out of turn.

With the pups leaving, Luke was free the rest of the day. And at the mention of him going to his parent's house, Sage decided to go off with him—Leaving Blake to share the workload of protecting and entertaining the Luna.

One was a much more difficult task than the other.

"Mom! I brought some visitors!" He shouted out into the house and flinch as he almost forgot the house room of shoes. One that Sage had already been working on, or had until Camilla came into the hall.

"Goddess, dear, no don't bother. I remember my feet couldn't be put back into shoes sometimes. Keep them in." Sage looked thankful, but she also didn't know how to feel about her mom's pampering.

It was almost as nerve-wracking as Remus'.

"How about I make you a wrap, Caleb brought in some fresh deer meat," Blake smirked as he knew the answer to that, but he followed rather shyly into the house.

He hardly ever spoke to Mrs.Elwood, but she shot him a kind smile and invited him to sit down. "Yeah, mom I don't want one of those wraps either."
"I don't see you carrying a pup in your stomach, son, and last time I checked. You have your own cabin—And a kitchen." It shut her eldest up within the second and it was definitely funny in Sage's eyes.

"Blake? A wrap sound good?"
"I'm okay, Mrs.Elwood."
"I could make something else, I don't mind." Blake felt mildly uncomfortable now that his ears turned red. "Blake. You're eating." The male shivered, goddess no wonder the Elwood boys had thick skin. Their parents were horrifying!

It hadn't been all that long until the wraps and fries were placed in front of the hungry wolves, each having more than one on the plate—Though Luke did take note that Sage's plate had extra tomatoes and a side of fries on another plate.

"Take some, I eat big breakfest." Blake shook his head as Luke was about to do just that.
"Careful, she says that then regrets it in five minutes." She had made a face to her charge before catching Luke's eyes and she was reminded of a previous thought.

"Ally invite me to birthday."
"Yeah, Liam told me about the party, Ellie and I are going...Think you can make it?" Sage nodded and Blake said he was attending as well.

"I don't know what to get her for birthday."
"Giftcards are always an idea, that's what Liam said at least. Probably going to do the same." Sage liked that idea but then paused for another bite.

"Lu?"
"What's up, hun?" He said in the midst of reviewing a paper his father wanted him to look at before submission, something about the Council's new training program that they wanted to try out.

But Sage's silence caught either male to turn their attention her way.

"Eighteen is when you can find mate?"
"Yep, remember Kenzie said that at your first appointment with her? We thought you were twenty."
"So Ally can see Liam as her mate?" Luke choked on his wrap, as he couldn't find any reason why he took a bite of it.

And Blake leaned back into his seat.

"Sage your two for two on this 'being blunt', anything else you have wracked up in that big 'ol head of yours?" She perked her lips and then shrugged.

"I remember when I figured it when I first met Ally, but I didn't know what mate means yet. I didn't know Ally wasn't old enough." Luke groaned into the air, having trouble figuring out what to do with this information.

"Welcome to my world, at least there's a match with those two. I'm still waiting."
"Sooooon!" Sage sang and wiggled as she took another bite of tomato and fry.

"What else did she say that was blunt? Cause that was pretty bad."
"Oh, that Noel wants to fuck me...I think that takes the cake." Luke was regretting ever hanging out with the two trouble makers now, especially when Sage's proud smirk still rang.

"That's a nono word."
"Doesn't work anymore." She said narrowing her eyes, and Blake threw up his hands when there had been a small tint in the Luna's eyes as they flashed colors.

"Fine fine. But only with friends. Who taught you that word anyway?"
"Mary." The two males had started laughing, of course the vulgar Luna of America would teach the most innocent of souls how to use curses correctly.

"It okay if you mate with someone not your mate?" It had been an honest question, to Sage she didn't think of another male other than her mate. But that didn't mean that before they met that she hadn't looked at Eli with admiration, though now she understood it as her wolf recognizing her Beta—Or excused it like that for the most part.

"Um...Luke? What do you think about that?" Blake quickly deflected the question which caused Elwood to growl. "You mean before or after they mate?"
"Before."
"Well now it's not that strange for pups to date in high school, I've had a girlfriend before—But that's normal in high school." Sage turned and looked at Blake and expected an answer and he sighed.

"It's a lil different for rogues hun, we don't really recognize us ever having a mate or finding them."
"But you with she-wolf in Grey Hallow."
"Yeah she was sweet, but that's not going anywhere. She's in another pack." It was starting to make sense, but then she asked on them if it's bad to 'fuck' before mate.

"Uh...No?" Blake said, but in the form of a question. Which left Luke alone to answer it.
"It's not bad, but it's good to be honest about it. I told Elenor and Elenor told me." She nodded, and to say that they were relieved was an understatement.

Blake was this close in begging the Alpha to take Sage for the rest of the day, as he wanted to tag out so badly.

Especially when Sage repeated what Blake said, and Luke growled. Sage's sweet voice didn't need to be tainted with those types of curses. "Does Remus know you're swearing?"
"I only swear when the pup really hurts, but I don't know another word other than mate—And it's not mating when it doesn't have mate in-volved." So she didn't mean to curse, she just filled in the blanket the best she could.

"Sex. It's sex, Sage."
"Oh, I think I know that word." Says the pregnant she-wolf.

"I would hope so, that pup didn't magically get place in your tummy otherwise." Blake teased and she giggled as he poked her stomach. She was definitely less defensive after eating her lunch.

"And Blake made a very bad joke about sex, so—"
"LUKE ELWOOD WHAT THE FUCK?!" Sage's mouth turned into an O shape as she only ever heard Camilla yell at Liam and Cameron as they were the younger bunch.

"If you heard the conversation the past five minutes, mom, you really would be yelling at Sage." The Luna realized that perhaps her questions should've come with a warning and Luke's teasing pass of deflecting his mom's anger brought out a very hormonal She-wolf to start crying.

"Oh, my sweet flower it's okay, but you don't ask males for those questions. You ask other she-wolves."
"It wasn't really about s-e-x, Mrs.Elwood, it was about it before meeting a mate." Understanding washed over the mother wolf and she soothed the pregnant female to calm her breaths and tears.

"Sorry. I don't know why I cried."
"Hmm, that sounds familiar. Doesn't it mom?" Luke surely grew a fresher mouth in having moved out with his mate.

And it earned him a smack upside the head. "You might be mated young man, but I'm still your mother!" He muffled his own growl as he knew his mom would just get angrier.

How about you keep Liam being Ally's mate a secret from mom? Otherwise she won't be able to hide it.

Luke said to both wolves beside him, Blake included as he was with Sage for the majority of the day. But Sage enjoyed being at the Elwood house, just a year ago when she was living here—She just about met Remus for the first time...

The thought already brought a smile to her face. Especially when she came home and told Remus how her day went. He was disappointed that she hadn't been keeping up with the Yoga, as he hadn't really asked her to do much else since the pup started to visibly grow.

So he ended up doing it with her before dinner, as he needed to keep up the promise of locking up the mozzarella sticks. And of course, she had to eat them after smelling them throughout the house, so they compromised.

Remus did it too, and he could see why she didn't like it.

"It's good for the pup..." He reminded and it settled her defensive thoughts on the matter.
"...And it's not forever."

______

Date: 08-02-2021 (I'm sorry!)

Time: 12:44

Words: 3486

Mary is starting to influence Sage a little more every day 😂
Also, chapter 15 in the first book shows that Sage did predict Ally is Liam's mate the night after meeting her! 

Get ready for Friday because this next chapter is going to be wild and new characters alert.

Let me know if you have any questions! I'll be more than happy to answer them🤗