The Crown's Entrapment

After the debacle that was her debut as Gilas's Luna and having some lunch with her new subjects, Clara quickly said goodbye as she then made her way to Cordon Castle. It was already a miracle that she even remembered it was happening after she got distracted with Gilas's... everything. She really didn't want it to happen again.

[You know you want the exact opposite of that,] Sheba scoffed.

And of course, her wolf just so happily decided to come back this way. Perhaps she was just being hopeful that she'd have some peace and quiet again, but apparently, that was too much to ask.

[Aren't you tired of acting like this to me though?] Sheba asked, a hint of genuine worry seeping through her wolf's usually teasing tone. [Like it or not, I'm not going away.]

[Unless you want to, of course,] Clara quickly replied. [Don't think that your behavior gives you a pass. Sure, I miss you, but your constant needling can get grating, you know.]

[I'm just doing what's good for your well-being,] Sheba sighed. [Don't fault me for having your best interests in my mind.]

Shaking her head, Clara filed Sheba's words for later as she focused more on the upcoming meeting with her officers from the Midnight Pack that she requested to be present at Cordon Castle for a meeting. With King Darius with her alongside his cousin Calypso, a few murmurs were starting to echo as to what exactly was the purpose of this sudden meeting.

"Is there a problem, Lady Clara?" one of his men asked her as she stood in front of them. "Do we have a job to do?"

"None of the sorts," Clara smiled in resignation. "In fact, depending on how things go, we might even be done before the hour is over."

"Then why is the King here with us?" another one of her men dubiously asked. "Is this some kind of secret mission for us?"

Clara let out a small chuckle. Truly, she would miss her men once she was gone...

"Again, that's not the case," she chuckled. "King Darius is only here for posterity. That, and he will act as the witness for what I'm about to do."

"Lady Clara?"

Letting off one last smile, Clara bowed to her men, a show of respect for all of the years they'd spent serving her.

"As of today, I will no longer be the Alpha of the Midnight Pack," she announced, raising her head to meet the shocked faces of her former men and officers. "Having accepted Gilas's offer to be his Luna, I will have to hand over my duties as Alpha so that I can focus on helping him with his pack. After all, I cannot in good conscience hold onto you all if I'd only neglect you for the Silver Crescent Pack."

As she expected, her men didn't take her resignation well. Some were outraged, but most just looked lost as they were now left leaderless.

"Then who's going to lead us?"

"Nobody can ever replace you, Lady Clara!"

"On the subject of leadership, I've actually decided on a successor," Clara quickly interrupted, taking hold of the crowd's attention before they could spiral any further. "Along with the King's blessing, I've thought long and hard before I decided to go ahead and hand over the reigns to him."

Clara then turned to Calypso and nodded, causing the man to step forward and announce himself

"I am Calypso Grant, Great Justiciar of Cordon," Calypso began, introducing himself to his new pack. "Standing before you now as the new Alpha of the Midnight Pack."

A tense silence settled across the hall, her former men clearly gauging Calypso as their new leader. And as if he knew that he was being tested, he continued.

"If you must know, my mother is from the Midnight pack," he began as he laid out his credentials. "And as my position suggests, I'm more than qualified to be an Alpha of any pack. I'll make sure that the Midnight pack will remain as prosperous as Lady Clara had left it, and I'll even make sure that it reaches greater heights than it had ever gone before."

Clara gave Calypso an approving nod as she clapped. It wasn't much, but it was the best she could ever get from someone that was going to be her replacement. She wanted what was best for her pack, and she wouldn't settle for anything less.

A few seconds passed, and a round of applause echoed from her former officers. Clara looked on as her men slowly came around to accept their new leader, cheers weakly coming out before it became louder and louder with each passing cheer. Eventually, the clear wave of approval coming from the crowd made her smile in relief as she took a step back.

"Is he really that great though?!"

But just before she was sure that all was well, one of her former officers spoke up. Then again, she honestly expected something like this to happen. It was simply in their nature to question their would-be leaders unless they'd proven themselves in their eyes.

"That's right!" another spoke up. "He hasn't even proven himself!"

Clara sighed. Thankfully, it was only a small minority, but this would still be a good opportunity for Calypso to firmly establish his rule as their new Alpha.

That was if he chose to go down that route.

"Is that so? Then tell me how I can prove myself to you all then," Calypso replied, smirking as of he had all but already assured his rule.

"We challenge you to your position as Alpha then!" one of the defiant officers openly challenged. "It's only fair that you show us that you can lead just as strongly as Lady Clara!"

Clara chuckled as she returned to her spot beside Darius. Surprisingly, she didn't feel much despite being beside her former love. There were still some embers left in her, but it wasn't as strong as they once were.

"They're awfully loyal to you, Clara," Darius remarked.

"I've made sure to pay close attention to their needs," Clara replied. "It's only right of me to do so as their leader, and I hope that Calypso will do the same."

It was the least she could do. But if there was anybody that could vouch for someone's worth to rule, it would be her beloved King and first love...

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