After My Mate Made My Sister Luna, I Fought Back

I woke to the sound of my own silence.

Five years. Five years since Axl Morrison had marked me as his mate, standing before the entire Shadowclaw Pack and declaring me his Luna. Five years since he'd endured the Alpha's Trial—a brutal beating from his father that left him bleeding but triumphant—just to claim me.

And now, on our fifth anniversary, I lay curled on a thin mattress in what had once been a closet. The servants' quarters. My new home.

My fingers traced the familiar ache in my throat as I sat up. Not a physical pain, but something deeper—a magical constriction that made my voice box feel like it was wrapped in iron. The Alpha Command had been renewed so many times over the years that it felt permanent, a collar I could never remove.

"Up already, mute?" A voice sneered from the doorway. Tessa, one of the newer Omegas, leaned against the frame with a basket of laundry. "I thought you'd at least sleep in on your special day."

I didn't respond. Couldn't respond. My wolf, Serafina, stirred weakly inside me, a faint whisper where she should be a roar.

"Come on, say something." Tessa stepped closer, her eyes gleaming with malice. "Oh wait, you can't." She opened her mouth wide, mimicking a scream, then clamped her hand over her throat, eyes bulging. "Like this? Is this what it feels like to be you?"

The others joined in, their laughter echoing in the small space as they mimicked my silence, my stillness, my brokenness.

"The Alpha doesn't want broken things," Tessa said, dropping the basket at my feet. "These need washing. By hand. No machines for the pack's embarrassment."

I took the basket without protest, my hands already red and raw from yesterday's work. The pack doctor had once told me that stress could worsen my condition, but what choice did I have?

---

By midday, I'd finished the laundry and moved on to scrubbing the pack house floors. My knees ached against the hard wood, but I kept working. Maybe if I worked hard enough, quiet enough, invisible enough...

A scent caught my attention—Axl's distinctive pine and smoke aroma, mixed with something else. Rose petals. Champagne.

My heart stuttered. Today was our anniversary. Could he...?

I followed the scent trail like a ghost through the pack house, my bare feet silent on the stairs. The Alpha's private suite—a place I hadn't been invited to in years—lay at the end of the hall.

The door was ajar. I pushed it open slowly, hope fluttering in my chest like a dying bird.

Rose petals scattered across the floor, forming a path to the bed. Champagne flutes sat on the nightstand, still holding remnants of golden liquid. And there, among white silk sheets, lay Axl.

With Megan.

My half-sister's red hair spilled across his chest as she traced patterns on his skin. The room reeked of their betrayal—her vanilla perfume mingling with his scent, marking their claim on each other.

Axl's eyes met mine over Megan's shoulder. No surprise. No guilt. Just cold contempt.

"Flora." My name on his lips sounded like an insult. "You're interrupting our celebration."

Megan turned, her lips curved in a triumphant smile. "Oh good, you can see what a real Luna looks like." She pressed herself closer to Axl. "We're celebrating, actually. Five years since you became nothing."

I tried to speak. To scream. To make any sound at all. My throat strained against the magic, muscles bulging with effort.

Axl's eyes flashed red. He stood in one fluid motion, Megan still clinging to his arm like a trophy.

"You want to make noise?" His voice dropped to that dangerous register—the Alpha tone that could command wolves to their deaths. "Silence. You are a broken thing, and broken things make no sound."

The command hit me like a physical blow. I felt it wrap around my throat, squeeze.

"Get on your knees and crawl out." His voice was almost lazy now, bored by my existence. "The true Luna of this pack is right here."

I felt my legs buckle. Not from weakness, but from the supernatural weight of his command. My knees hit the floor hard enough to bruise as my body betrayed me, responding to his will.

Megan's laughter filled the room as I began to crawl, my hands and knees moving of their own accord. The rose petals crushed beneath me, staining my skin with their juice.

"See how well she learns?" Megan's voice followed me out. "Maybe there's hope for her yet."

I crawled past pack members in the hallway, their stares burning into my back. Some whispered. Some laughed. None helped.

And as I crawled, I realized that no amount of work would ever be enough. No silence would ever be quiet enough. No submission would ever be complete enough.

Because I was already nothing. And nothing couldn't fall any further.