Lucy's POV-

Blood. It was everywhere. On my hands, in the lands, on the bodies that surrounded me. Rivers of it rushed through, overtaking everything around me and sweeping away anything that was untouched by the crimson liquid. It was staining everyone and everything in its path as a darkness overtook the world, turning everyone still around into heartless monsters.

"Lucy, baby..." I heard through the hazy dreamscape that was trying to keep me under. "Luce," he said again with a slight shake to my body.

The dream faltered slightly, but I could still see the terrors before me. Darkness was overtaking the light, making it so scarce that almost nothing was left to be seen- only the dark. Suddenly, the darkness overtook, and it was pitch black all around. The thing about one polarity overtaking another is that when one finally wins, there's nothing left to polarize. The darkness was no longer special because it no longer had any light left to shroud. It was pointless without any light left to see in the dark.

"Lucy love, I'm here. You're here with me," his voice said, finally fighting away the rest of my confusing nightmare which left nothing but questions to analyze. The dream felt like a warning. "You're not there; I'm here with you," Kale whispered as he rocked me gently.

I breathed deeply as I felt the calming energy that he was exuding through our new official bond. I felt my whole body relax in response to his reassurances. It was okay. I was okay. I was there... with my mate. The world was not fully dark... yet.

I finally looked up into his hazel eyes and found only softness and tenderness there. He was gently running his hand through my hair while studying me getting my bearings back. His eyes were completely relaxed and open to me. They were full of so much love.

"Hey there, sleepy head," Kale joked with a kiss to my forehead.

"What can I say? Our previous activities really wore me out," I teased with a shrug as I kissed my mark on his skin. I had to push the nightmare away to worry about later because all I wanted to do was relish in the bliss that I had created with my mate.

He shuddered instantly at my kiss.

"Lucine, I suggest you don't do that if you want to leave this room anytime soon," he groaned as his eyes got darker.

I pouted in response, but I knew that we needed to go out of the room to show off our new bond. I just really didn't want to do that... I knew that we needed to, but there were going to be questions, comments, and stares. I didn't want to deal with the real world yet. I was perfectly happy in our own little bliss-filled bubble. However, I knew that we had things to do and The North to defeat. We couldn't exactly do that from our bed.

Kale snickered at my pouting. "Calm down, love... We can continue this later," he reassured as he kissed his own mark on my neck. I sucked in a deep breath at his arousing words.

Before I could get too pulled in by his lips, I got up out of bed. My legs still had a slight shakiness to them, and I was sore in several places. It wasn't too bad, but I was still exhausted, and my body was tired as well.

Kale was quickly behind me, steading me easily. "I got you, Luce," he reassured me. "Just sit, I'll go grab you some shorts from your room. We need to discuss our relationship changes, but we can do that after dinner."

He proceeded to throw on a shirt then went next door to my room. When he came back, he slid on some cotton shorts for me and helped me stand up. He smoothed out my hair gently and put it up in a high ponytail for me as well. When he was done, he kissed the back of my neck lovingly as he moved my long hair over to my other shoulder to be sure that my mark was on full display. It was one of the most gentle and intimate moments that I had ever witnessed from him. He was taking care of me and making me feel so loved.

"I love you," I whispered softly when he was done getting me ready.

"And I love you, my mate. Let's go show them that love," Kale said easily as if this was the most normal thing in the world.

And you know what? Maybe it was... Being mates and loving each other was absolutely so normal and mundane. Throughout the ugly and hateful war, people simply forgot how easy it was to love. It's so mundane to simply love and enjoy your partner, but just because it's mundane doesn't make it any less beautiful and magical. That's what his love and acceptance felt like... magic. It's what all their love and acceptance felt like.

We both walked to dinner slowly. Kale did not once rush me, nor did he try to coddle me and try to carry me. He simply supported me and went as slowly as I needed him to.

It was endearing because he knew that I wouldn't want to be humiliated or thought of as weak due to him having to carry me to dinner. I was strong. I wanted to show that I was strong.

"I'm sorry that we have to walk so slow," I whispered softly.

Kale snorted. "Let me tell you something, Luce... When a girl has trouble simply walking because you fucked her so well, it definitely is not something to apologize for."

I giggled at his inappropriate words.

"I would carry you, but I know that you would not want me to do that. So, this pace is perfectly fine with me. Afterall, it was my fault," he reassured me with a mischievous wink.

Finally, after a few more minutes, we made it to the dining room. Instantly, everyone stopped talking and looked at the two of us. I felt overwhelmed and awkward.

I froze in my spot. Kale simply put a hand on my lower back and kissed my temple. He walked us both slowly to our seats then helped me sit down in the Luna spot carefully.

"I'll go get our dinner," he whispered in my ear. He moved my long ponytail over my opposite shoulder once again and kissed my mark purposefully, making everyone completely aware of our status.

I playfully glared at him for his move.

He laughed and kissed my cheek, "Oh come on, Luce. You couldn't possibly think that I wasn't going to show my beautiful mate off, could you?"

I rolled my eyes at him. "You're lucky that I love you," I playfully replied.

"I so am, Luce!" With those parting words, he went to get our food as pretty much everyone else just stared between the two of us still. They weren't exactly shocked at our bond-completion, but they were interested to say the least.

Kale placed a plate in front of me as he ignored everyone's gazes. Even Sam and Wes were staring at us. I could hear everyone's loud questions through the pack link at each other; they were all thinking loudly.

I cleared my throat awkwardly as I tried to ignore it. However, there was no ignoring the questioning looks at me. I was way too aware.

Finally, I got sick of it. So, I dropped my fork and stood up. "Yes, to answer your questions, Kale and I have completed our mate-bond. Yes, there are other things that need to be discussed as well. So, to discuss the changes in our status and other matters too, there will be a mandatory pack dinner tomorrow night. Thank you, enjoy your meal," I said firmly and then sat back down with a nod.

"What our Luna is saying in a much nicer manner is to quit staring at her!" Kale said with a laugh. "We will explain things tomorrow at dinner. Thank you for your patience," he added as he kissed the top of my head.

Sam laughed finally, cutting the tension in the air easily. I relaxed back into my seat and ate after that. The pack still was intrigued, but they finally turned their gazes away from me and Kale after we addressed them.

I knew that there was much to discuss.

----

As soon as Kale and I made it to the floor that our rooms were located, Kale swept me off my feet and carried me easily in his arms.

"You know that my legs have now mostly recovered, right?" I asked exasperatedly.

"That's wholly beside the point, Luce," he replied with a laugh and a chaste kiss.

He carried me into his room and sat me on the bed with the upmost attention. He then sat down right in front of me and caressed my face with a smile. He just stared at me for a few minutes, making me feel rather anxious.

"What?" I asked bewildered by his attention.

"You are the most beautiful thing that I have ever witnessed. How I could have ever been so stupid as to let my pride and ego get in the way of you, I will never understand," he answered sweetly. He then leaned forward and kissed me with passion. Before I could even savor the feeling of his lips though, he pulled away. "Alright, lets discuss so I can get you into bed with no distractions."

I snorted at him, but obliged his suggestion, "I honestly don't even know where to start."

"Well... let's talk about living arrangements," he said slowly. "The packhouse that was built for Cory and his pack, is finally done. So, they are currently moving out of the third one. I was thinking that we could restructure the living arrangements all together and have our pack members fill out their top three living preferences at the meeting tomorrow," he explained slowly.

"That sounds good. The families with more than one child needs to have top priority to the family homes, and then we'll go from there," I said slowly.

Kale agreed with a nod. "And... I would really like for you to permanently move in here with me? I've already cleaned out some drawers and most of the closet is free for your things," he said shyly.

"Absolutely," I agreed giddily. "I'd love nothing more."

"Now... integrating the pack," he said after a quick peck to my lips. "It is a very daunting task, I won't lie. However, it will be a bit easier than the other packs we've simply absorbed since their Alpha is a part of them and can guide them into integration," he nudged me playfully. "That being said, there will still be power struggles... especially among the warriors."

He saw the worried look on my face and smoothed it out.

"Trust me, Lucy love, it'll be okay. We just need to make everyone and everything feel like pack. We need to be sure that they all feel like this is their home and where they belong. We need to forge an unbreakable and unwavering bond. I believe in us and our pack. Plus, no matter where you go, your pack will follow. It is natural for an Alpha."

His words placated my worry a bit. "Okay, so we'll add them on pack duty and training regimens after tomorrow," I said with a nod.

"Yes, that's a good idea. Also, we shall schedule our pack ritual on Friday night. It will begin at the rise of the moon, and we will do a pack run as the moon it at its peak. It is customary for the Alpha and Luna to lead the way."

"Is... are..." I paused and winced. "Don't you think everyone will be leery of me riding on you? Can they reject me because of my wolf situation?"

"No, Luce... You have an immense gift. Your pack will not forsake you for being a bit different. Just love them Luce. They all will love you in return," Kale answered.

"I do... I love them very much," I agreed with a nod. "After we get everyone settled, we need to start working on more battle strategies. The war is impending, and it will not wait. No matter if we need to unite two packs or not..." I sighed.

"We can do this, Luce. We will win. With you by my side, we can do anything," Kale said softly. He slowly leaned over me and laid me back. "I think that is enough discussions for the day, wouldn't you say?" He said in my ear huskily.

My body reacted immediately to his touch, and I bit my tongue in order not to moan as he kissed my neck.

"Don't be fooled into thinking that I was only going to have you only once today, my little Alpha," Kale's low voice rumbled through his chest, making me shiver in anticipation.

"No, oh no... I want you again and again, my little Luna," he addressed me. "I want you to remember this night, my mate. I want you. Forever."

With those last words, his lips were devouring mine with vigor. I wanted him too. Forever.