Luna of the Cursed Alpha King (Helga and Siegren)

HELGA LET OUT a deep sigh as she rested against the edge of the bathtub, closing her eyes and allowing the warm water to ease her tense muscles. The fact that she and Siegren would be spending the night at the Incarnadine pack house still felt unreal to her. She never imagined that Viola would suggest such a ridiculous idea, and the whole situation from earlier was so bizarre that she couldn't quite make sense of it. In the end, Siegren took the offer because he had some matters to discuss with Aldous and the new Alpha of Incarnadine. "Your Majesty." A familiar voice echoed from behind the bathroom door, causing Helga to open her eyes. She recognized the voice immediately and couldn't help but furrow her brows in response. It was someone she knew all too well.

"Yes?” she answered, her eyes focusing intently on the door.Property of Nô)(velDr(a)ma.Org.

"I'm here to help you with your bathing,” Lorena said, her heart beating faster.

She had no clue that her former friend would be staying in the guest room. She didn't know how she could face her or even make eye contact after betraying her. Despite wanting to delegate the task of tending to the queen to one of the maids, Lorena couldn't do it because Alpha Ezra had specifically chosen her to be Helga's personal attendant while in their pack house.

"It's all right, I don't need assistance," Helga stated as she averted her gaze from the door and looked at the ceiling instead. She already had her hunch that they would assign Lorena as her personal attendant; after all, she was the closest friend she had among the staff and also known for being the most welcoming and detail-oriented. Despite not being a maid, Lorena's knack for making Incarnadine's guests feel at ease during their stay was unmatched.

"Are you certain? Alpha Ezra specifically instructed me to ensure that you have everything you require during your stay. I am more than happy to assist with cleaning your back-" "No thank you," Helga cut her off, "I appreciate the effort, but you know well that I prefer to bathe alone, Ms. Lorena."

"O-okay, please call me if you need anything." Lorena stuttered nervously as she hastily made her way out of the room, closing the door quietly behind her. As soon as the sound of the door clicking shut echoed down the hallway, she let out a deep groan and leaned her head against the cool wall. She was mortified with herself; she should've known better that Helga would recognize her voice, considering how hard she worked and strived to get closer to her when she first arrived at Incarnadine twelve years ago. Though she was just forced by her father to befriend Helga, Lorena had grown to genuinely like her over the years and valued their friendship greatly. All the things she had done for her were genuine acts of kindness, and she treasured their bond.

However, being the Beta's daughter, she was torn between loyalty to her best friend Helga, and securing her position in the pack. It pained her to see her best friend suffer from mistreatment and to have to turn against her in order to secure her own position in the pack. She was aware that kind of betrayal hurt Helga deeply, and even if she were to apologize 

now, it wouldn't erase their past or ease the pain she had endured for the last three months that she was staying at Incarnadine.

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, trying to clear her mind of everything before focusing on the present. Just as she was about to leave, she caught sight of Miranda making her way to the guest room, and merely catching a glimpse of her expression was enough to confirm that she was up to something.

"What brings you here?" Lorena asked, feeling uneasy. She had always known Miranda's true nature, cunning and selfish, but her father's influence forced her to play nice and appease her. Now that Miranda was officially the leader of their pack, this became even more crucial, but if she were to harm Helga who was now the Queen of Verdentia, she had no choice but to knack some sense to their new Luna.

Miranda's face contorted with anger as she seethed, "I'm going to confront that woman and make her pay for what she did."

"Luna, watch what you say. Just because the Alpha King wasn't by the Queen's side right now doesn't mean you can act like you're entitled to be disrespectful to her. She's our special guest, and have you forgotten his majesty's warning earlier at the banquet? That wasn't just applied to Alpha Ezra, but also to anyone who dared disrespect or lay a hand on the Queen," Lorena warned her, her voice holding no politeness despite addressing Miranda by her title.

"Are you trying to lecture me right now?" she frowned, annoyed by Lorena's attitude.

"No, I'm not. I'm just trying to protect our pack because one wrong move can make us all dead—”

"What's going on?" Miranda and Lorena jumped when they heard the icy and menacing voice reverberate through the corridor. It was unmistakably the Alpha King, causing them to quickly turn and bow before him, wishing him a good evening. However, Siegren's expression was nothing but a cold stare as he folded his arms against his chest. "We're only trying to attend to the Queen, but she refused to accept any help or assistance," Lorena replied as she slowly raised her head to meet the Alpha King's piercing red eyes, her legs becoming weak under his intense presence. Instinctively, she looked away and her gaze landed on Miranda, who was trembling in fear as the Alpha King's unwavering stare fell upon her.

"Of course, she would, why would she trust the people who betrayed and mistreated her?" he asked with sarcasm dripping from his words, and Lorena couldn't help but purse her lips, knowing deep down he was right. "You may go; I'll attend to my wife personally and ask for help if needed.”

"Yes, your Majesty. Have a good night," Lorena bowed respectfully before turning around. But Miranda, who was still bowing her head, remained frozen in place. Lorena was about to approach her when the Alpha King shot her a sharp glare. As if controlled by an invisible force, she found herself walking away without another word.

"Do you think I couldn't sense your ill intention of coming where Helga was staying?" Siegren asked, his voice dangerously low as he set his eyes on the necklace she was wearing. He 

wanted to pull it and see for himself how it would alter her appearance, but his thoughts were interrupted when Miranda spoke.

"I-I don't have any bad intent, Your Majesty." Her words came out in a stutter as she struggled to speak under his powerful Alpha King aura. It was clear that he was deliberately using his aura to intimidate her, especially since Lorena had been able to leave without any struggle under his influence. "P-please, spare me. I-I can't breathe."

"Oh, you are?" Siegren takes a step forward, causing Miranda to flinch. She wanted to raise her head, but she couldn't so, her head remained lowered, only able to see his shoes as he continued speaking. “That's great news because honestly, I want you to die at this very moment.”

"That's enough, your Majesty," Helga said as soon as she opened the door, causing Siegren to look at her and watch her take his hand. Her hair was still wet from the bath, and it was obvious that she rushed over because she sensed his murderous aura. "Don't waste your energy on someone like her, let's get some rest."

"All right," He nodded, calming down and releasing his menacing aura which made Miranda gasp for breath before coughing. Once she was free, she slowly lifted her head, only to be met by Helga and Siegren's hostile gazes, warning her not to do anything funny, "You're quite lucky, now leave before I kill you right inside your pack house."