Revenge is a Dish For Two 1.1

Otsana Argyros did not have a wolf. She was a shifter, for sure; both of her parents came from lines of Betas and Alphas for as far back as anyone could remember. She looked just like her parents - tall, imposing, and with the hooked nose that had plagued her mother’s side of the family for generations. But she had yet to shift or even to feel the beast inside her. Her senses were heightened, yes, but otherwise, she might as well be a human.

That’s why she shouldn’t have been so surprised that her true mate cheated on her with his “close friend.” But somehow, she was.

It had been something of an extraordinary day all around. For years, Otsana had been researching the pack lore, hoping to become a useful Luna in her knowledge, if not her wolf, and in that way, this day was like any other.

In the pack annals, Otsana strode between shelves, arms packed high with books and scrolls that nearly blocked her view. But she knew these aisles by heart. There was no need to see her feet to know where she was going.

Despite her naturally honey colored skin, she was pale from the days spent in the annals. Her curly, dark brown hair was pinned tightly out of her way in a bun, only a few stray curls popping loose as she stalked between shelves of books. Eventually she came to a halt, scanning the available records with an eagle eye before she spotted what she’d need to complete today’s research: an ancient Alpha’s journal from the time before the Reveal, when shifters and other magical beings had been secret from the human world.

Her amber eyes lit with glee as she shuffled the tattered book atop her pile of prizes. Even in the dim yellow lights of the dreary annals, she had a glow of accomplishment about her. She’d been slogging through book after book from previous Alphas and Betas, looking for any mention of the lost Chalice of Lives. Now she might have all the pieces she needed to find it.

Considering her large stack of books, she laughed to herself. It was still going to be a pretty complicated puzzle. But she was up for the challenge.

Otsana had years of notes cross-referencing mentions of the Chalice and for hours she put that preparation to work. She studied old versions of maps and compared them to modern satellite images. She read boring accounts of inter-pack squabbling and picked them apart to understand the old names for new places. And she put together a narrative. A story of where the Chalice had started and, most importantly, where it had ended up.

It wasn’t a guarantee. But it was a better lead than anyone else had. And even simply investigating the site could lead to new discoveries - and possibly to new leads for the Chalice.

Normally, she only allowed herself a few hours to focus on the Chalice a week. To be the best Luna she could be, wolfless as she was, she’d need to know more about politics and management than about dusty old relics. But this was where her heart truly soared. And if she could say so herself, where she, herself, truly shone.

There was no time for self-congratulation, however. Otsana had to tell Felix, her true mate. He’d stood by her for years, despite her never shifting, despite his calling to one day be Alpha when his father passed on the mantle. He’d always believed in her and now she could deliver on that investment.

She stood with more vigor than she’d intended, knocking her wooden chair to the ground with a loud thump.

“Show some respect!” hissed the Lorekeeper from her desk at the front. The squat, red-haired shifter narrowed her beady eyes at Otsana, “Don’t disrupt our guests.”

Otsana hadn’t even known they’d be having guests to the pack. Much less that they’d want to visit the pack annals. They probably weren’t too important. Felix’s father had been keeping her appraised of most political matters to further her education and he hadn’t mentioned them. She nodded to the Lorekeeper, “I’ll be careful.”

She wouldn’t even be there much longer. It didn’t take long to clean up her clutter and collect her notes. The books could be put on the return cart for the Lorekeeper to reshelve on her way out. With her notes contained in a folder and clutched to her chest, she made haste for the exit.

“Excuse me, miss,” a male voice stopped her. Deep and soft, he had a lilt to his words she didn’t recognize. He was a few inches taller than she was, with a lithe, toned figure she didn’t see often among the bulky wolf shifters in her pack. His mahogany hair was swept back and gelled into place, green eyes sincere as he approached her, “I noticed you know your way around the stacks. Would you be willing to show me where I could find information on… well, plants, basically?”

“Medicinal, decorative, or agricultural plants?” she asked automatically before remembering she had somewhere to be. Shaking her head, Otsana meant to deny the man, but… He was likely one of the guests the Lorekeeper had warned her about. She could spare a minute or two to point him in the right direction.

“...Medicinal,” he answered with a smooth smile. His expression was shuttered now that a smile was on his face. Like a shadow had passed over the moon.

“That way, two rows back on the left,” she pointed down the narrow stacks. “If you need further assistance, the Lorekeeper’s desk is at the front.”

His smile softened, some of the earnest nature of his original approach returning, “I’ll keep that in mind. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” Otsana bobbed a half bow and turned to go. Who’d have thought she’d run into an outside guest in the annals? Simply from an anecdotal view, she’d never heard of guests requesting access to their library before and she spent enough time there that she was certain she’d have noticed.

Well, it was a day of firsts, then. Her pace quickened as she strode across the pack grounds, a small smile breaking the usual somber line of her lips. This was perhaps the first time she could truly prove her worth as the future Luna.

“Felix!” she called as she entered the Alpha’s mansion, waving off the Omega servants who tried to assist her. “It’s alright, I don’t need guiding; is he upstairs?”

The servants exchanged glances before one stepped forward, a ginger woman with round cheeks who nodded, “He’s in his bedroom, miss.”

A flurry of whispering erupted behind her when she strode ahead, but she was used to that. Not many held their tongues long when they learned the Alpha’s son was to be mated with a wolfless shifter. For better or worse.

Still, she practically danced up the familiar marble steps on her way to Felix’s bedroom. She’d spent years here, among the looming statues and painting of Alphas past. Walking beneath the shadow box of hunting trophies from Felix’s great great grandfather, she rapped once, smartly, on Felix’s door and opened it. They were engaged, after all, and had long since left such niceties behind them. True love between true mates.

Or so she’d thought.

The movement stopped for a moment on the bed before Felix was scrambling to clothe himself and the woman hid her face in the sheets.

It felt as if she had frozen. Even as Felix covered up his olive skin and began to speak, familiar hazel eyes alight with fear that shifted, darkening to anger. Even as his volume increased and the woman on the bed peeked over the covers with smug, chocolate eyes. Even as she recognized Charlotte’s perfect, heart-shaped face and wild blonde hair. Even then, she couldn’t bring herself to move. To breathe.

Hadn’t Felix held her in that bed only a few nights ago? Hadn’t he whispered promises against her skin and pressed kisses that were meant to be only hers?

“Maybe you should have thought of what would happen if a wolfless shifter were to become Luna,” he was saying now, at full steam with anger that stormed around him defensively. Like he’d been building up clouds between them only to lash out with lightning. “You could have stepped down and saved us both the time and effort!”

“Then reject me,” Otsana interjected, finally taking a breath only to let it out, feeling colder and emptier than before. She met his gaze, shocked hazel eyes locked on hers, beautiful lips slack. Lips she had kissed yesterday and were puffy with betrayal today. The cold in her twisted painfully, icicles stabbing her from the inside out. “Reject me and make Charlotte your Luna.”

“Don’t be ridiculous, Ottie!” Charlotte cried from the bed, her modest breasts barely hidden by the sheet she clutched close. Her face was pained, sympathetic. As fake as her friendship. “You’re Felix’s true mate. His fated love. I- I can provide him comfort, but… I’ll never be…” She turned away, covering her face and conveniently dropping the sheet in the process. Her breasts heaved as she sobbed, “Oh, Ottie, can you ever forgive us?”

It was a masterful display. Otsana might have believed it were it not for the smug, satisfied look Charlotte had snuck at her while Felix was yelling. Now, however, he was quiet, struck by his lover’s performance. He sat beside her on the bed, stocky frame still only half clothed as he placed a hand on her back and looked at Otsana.

What could he possibly be waiting for- oh. Charlotte’s question. Well. That should have been self-evident.

“No,” she concluded aloud. Turning from the room, her knuckles were white on the folder’s edge. She had nearly handed these over to him. Now, they would be her bargaining chip to gain the role of Lorekeeper. She’d never have to bother with a Luna’s duties again-

A few corridors from Felix’s room, she sank to the floor, leaning heavily on the gilded wall, and let the tears take her. There was such a pulling, empty ache in her chest. She wanted the Felix of yesterday to hold her and tell her it was all a bad dream. She wanted her lover and best friend to be the man she had thought he was. Who had that been, in there, with Charlotte? Not the loyal, patient, kind man she’d loved since they turned 16 and realized they were true mates. And even before, a little. When she’d looked up to him as the Alpha’s son in their classes together. Where did that Felix go? How long had he been gone?

She missed him with an intensity that set her teeth on edge. That made her want to heave and vomit the feelings out onto the marble floor. If it had been him, her Felix, he would have chased after her. He would be holding her now, petting her hair. But it was just her and the crystal chandelier, glinting coldly at her from the soaring silver ceiling. Around her, the eyes of past Alphas glared from dark wooden frames, all black-haired and hazel-eyed like Felix. They shouted his words at her again, You could have stepped down and saved us both the time and effort!

That’s all it had been to him. Time and effort wasted on a wolfless girl who would never be Luna. She clasped her hands over her mouth as she cried, unwilling to make a single sound. The servants would find her, then, and they couldn’t see this. No one could.

She closed her eyes as the sobs silently wracked her frame in the cold stillness of the mansion. Maybe she wouldn’t have been the best Luna. But she’d thought she could be enough for him. Now… she needed to change everything. Rip apart every plan that had centered around Felix and put the pieces back into place around herself. But that- that could wait for later.

For now, Otsana held in her cries for the man she’d loved and wept.

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