Chapter 98: Luna of the Rising Diamond pack
“Desmond?”
“Hmm?”
“Do you still need to watch me getting measured?” I asked, looking at him in his reflection while he looked so alluring learning at the wall as he had Saoirse in his arms. “Are you finished with your Alpha duties?”
They needed to measure my size because Desmond insisted that I need a new dress to wear to my upcoming Luna ceremony.
Yes, Luna ceremony. Desmond and I sealed our mate bond again. We marked each other again to solidify our mate bond. It meant that I would become his pack member at the same time as the Luna of the Rising Diamond pack.
“Why? Don’t you want me here?” Desmond frowned, looking like he was sulking.
I playfully rolled my eyes. “I am thinking that you are not finished with your tasks.” As soon as they were finished taking my measurement, I walked straight to him and tiptoed so I could kiss him fully on his lips.
In my peripheral vision, Desmond covered Saoirse’s eyes before he removed his hand after we finished kissing. He said that our daughter was so young that she must not have witnessed that we were kissing.
“Ma-ma!” Saoirse reached out to me.
“How’s your day, sweetheart?” I kissed her forehead. “Did you enjoy being with your Papa?” She nodded.
“Da-da play-play Sandy, Heze, Lyn.” I smiled as she meant that Desmond played with her brothers and sister.
“I see. Did you have fun?” Saoirse nodded before she grabbed the feeding bottle bestowed by her father. Sooner, she yawned. “My, my… Look who is sleepy already.”
“Let me.” Desmond took Saoirse from me and gently tapped her back. Together, we went to her chamber where he carefully placed Saoirse there who was already asleep as we arrived there.
I had discussed with Desmond that he should meet Mother since She had been looking forward to meeting Desmond already. At first, he was surprised at that time until I opened the portal to the celestial realm.
“She is not going to punish me, isn’t She?” Desmond asked as he gulped looking at the portal that I opened to our chamber.
Ever since that day we decided to mark each other, I did not stay in the north hall anymore. I was staying in the chamber where we once married and stayed there for five years. Though Desmond and I hadn’t gotten married yet and he had not proposed yet since we both agreed that we should work things first for our family.
But sometimes, I wanted him to propose as I was eager to marry him for the second time but I must not rush things.
“She will not. I assure you.” I offered my hand to him. “It is time that you shall meet my parents, Desmond Verlice. Take responsibility to see them.” I nodded at him, ushering him to accept my hand.
Desmond looked at me intently before he smiled and accepted my hand. “Of course. I am not going back. I will face them.” I heard him gulping.
Entering the portal, we were greeted by the vast field of lavender which was Mother’s favorite place. From afar was the celestial palace, with a full moon and a crescent moon in the starry night sky.
I brought Desmond to the orchid garden which Mother made a favorite place meant for mine.
There, Mother was already waiting.
Desmond immediately bowed his head before my mother. “M-Moon Goddess, I am here to present myself to you as Sicilia’s mate.”
“I am pleased to meet you, Desmond.” There was a slight hostility in her tone which made Desmond lower his head. Then Her head turned at me as She opened Her arms. “Sicilia, my lovely daughter…”
I melted and immediately went inside Her arms. “Mother, I have missed you…” I sighed in contentment that I returned to Her arms again. It felt so peaceful having my mother by my side.
She kept caressing my hair before She spoke. “I am happy that you two decided to work on things again. Then, there is no need to tell Ragriel and Grizel that they should cut the mate bond and avoid meeting the fate of you two.”
“What?” Desmond parroted and looked at Mother in disbelief. “Cut our mate bond? Avoid meeting the fate of us?”
I went by his side and explained to him why that was the case. If I still couldn’t find the peace that I had been wanting to aim for by the time I left him again, Mother would dare to do that if She thought that I was still hurting just by thinking about Desmond.
When Desmond heard my explanation, I thought that he would be mad but instead, he knelt before my mother as I heard his shaky breath.
“Please forgive me, Moon Goddess Lunaria.”
Lunaria was my mother’s name as the Moon Goddess. People were known as the Moon Goddess when they were praying to Her. But her celestial name was Lunaria. It was the same as me having a deity name like Sicilia.
“I have hurt your daughter. I was a jerk. I had acted on accord and did not consult Sicilia.” Desmond gasped. He must have been confused when he couldn’t utter my name as Seraphina.
“In here, you cannot utter my mundane name, Desmond,” I explained. “I go by the name of Sicilia as that is my deity name.”
“I see.” He nodded his head before he returned his gaze back to my mother. “I have received your punishment. I promise myself that I am not going to hurt her again. Please believe me that I have changed, Moon Goddess. Please this time… Don’t take her away from me. I love her. I love your daughter so bad.” Desmond couldn’t help shedding tears. “Please do not fate me to another woman. I only want Sicilia as my mate. She is the only woman I would only love forever.” He placed his forehead on the ground. “I beg you, Moon Goddess. Please forgive me for my foolishness. I will never hurt your daughter anymore…”
I could feel my heart wrenching in pain. Desmond really regretted what he did in the past. That was why he had been exerting so much effort just so he could prove to me that he was not the same Desmond I knew in the past.
I waited for Mother to say anything but we were enveloped with silence. I blocked Mother’s view. “Mother, please… You said that Desmond had changed. Are you not forgiving him?” I asked, worried that She might punish my cinnamon.
“Sicilia, allow me to handle this.” Desmond took my hand and made me pull away from Mother’s view. “I need to pay for the price of hurting you. If She is going to punish me, then I will gladly accept it. But what I am not going to accept is if She is going to part us from each other. I cannot handle that kind of punishment.”
Mother chuckled and forced Desmond to stand up. Then She flew towards him, making Desmond uncomfortable. “Huh… What are you going to do if I do that, human?”
He looked at Her earnestly. “I will fight you even if it means that is futile. I am not going to accept that you are going to do this to us.”
My heart skipped a beat after that. I felt ticklish somehow. Even my wolf urged me now that I should kiss him but I tamed her because now was not the right time to do that.
Mother looked amused, stroking Her chin. “Worry not. I am not going to do that. I just need to hear coming from your mouth that you are not going to hurt my daughter anymore.” She glanced at me. Her expression softened as our eyes met. I smiled upon knowing now that She was just testing Desmond. “But remember that this should be your last chance, Desmond. If for the third time you hurt Sicilia again, I am not going to be merciful. Usually, I only allow a second chance, not a third chance.”
Desmond panicked at what Mother said. “I will not hurt her again! I learned my lesson!” I held his hand when he was anxious again. He felt at ease after that. “As I said, I am not going to hurt her again, Moon Goddess. I swear my name to You.”
What Desmond said made Her pleased. “That is good to hear. If ever you break your promise, I will be after your life. No mercy. Do you understand?” Mother asked in Her cold tone which was enough to send shivers down our spine.
“Yes. I understand.”
“Good.” Nodding in approval, I was surprised when She hugged us. “Welcome to the family then. You may start calling me ‘Mother’ once you marry my daughter again.”
Desmond’s face brightened up. “I will!” He turned at me. “Did you hear that, seraphim? Your mother accepted me now as your mate.” He hugged me and kissed my lips which shocked me. “I love you so much, seraphim!”
I melted and held his face. “I love you more, cinnamon.”
It all came naturally now that everything was settled. Mother already approved Desmond as my mate and had bestowed our mate bond with another chance. In fact, She had bestowed it for a long time. She just needed to see if Desmond would dare to fight Her in case Mother became an antagonist in our lives and would dare to torment him.
Weeks passed by, and the Luna ceremony arrived. The servants helped me to get dressed while Harolyn was watching me with a huge smile on her face.
“How do I look, Harolyn?” I showed her that I was wearing a golden vintage rococo dress paired with a large golden hat.
She eyed me up and down, having her jaw dropped. “You look like a goddess, Mama.” She sounded thrilled.
She and Hezekiah had begun to call me Mama ever since I arrived here. They were enthralled calling me that and I did not mind that they had been treating me as their second mother. They cooperated and they were not hard-headed toward me.
“Thank you, Harolyn. You look like a fairy in your dress.” I complimented her back.
She giggled and curtsied before me. “Thank you, Mama. I am pleased to hear that.”
I offered my hand to her as soon as I was done wearing my galaxy moon necklace. “Shall we, sweetheart? I am certain that your brothers and your sister and even your Papa are waiting for us downstairs.”
Harolyn accepted my hand. “I am excited to see you becoming Luna again, Mama.” She purred before her face saddened. “However, Mother was not that happy when she learned about that. She was furious when the news reached her.”
I sighed as I caressed her hair. “Hazel will be alright. Your mother will be fine after that.” I was quite worried that she had to witness Hazel having to make such disgraceful behavior in front of her twins.
Possibly, Hezekiah had seen his mother acting like that for certain.
“Sometimes, Mother is frightening, Mama. Hezekiah told me that he overheard Mother saying that you took everything from her. Mother is not even Papa’s mate yet Mother is saying that she wants Papa.” Her face looked dejected. “What if she hurts you, Mama?”
I halted her from walking and held her shoulders. “Harolyn, fret not. Your mother will not do that. She will not dare to act on something that would displease your Papa. Your Papa is an Alpha, remember? If she even dares to hurt me, she cannot be with you anymore. Hmm?”
Harolyn nodded. I reassured her that everything would be fine.
We met everyone in the drawing room. Desmond’s jaw dropped upon seeing me.Ccontent © exclusive by Nô/vel(D)ra/ma.Org.
“Wow… Now, I did not want you going outside. I just want to ravish-” I covered his mouth when he was about to say something unpleasant.
“Words, Desmond. Words.” I enlarged my eyes, glaring at him.
I looked at Sander, Harolyn, and Hezekiah. They were confused by our behavior.
“Papa will ravish what?” Sander arched his eyebrow. He looked curious.
I stepped on Desmond’s toe when he groaned and tried to remove my hand that was covering his mouth. He expressed a painful expression as he tried to smile at our children. “N-Nothing. I just want to ravish some dishes later after the ceremony. R-Right, seraphim?”
“Oh! Oh! I saw that there is a chocolate fountain, brother.” Hezekiah jumped in joy.
“Really? Let’s head now!”
I immediately blocked their way by placing my hands on my waist. “No sweets until you are full.” I squinted my eyes at them when their shoulders slumped.
“But Mama…” Both of them frowned.
“No.” I shook my head. I turned my head at Sander and Hezekiah’s butlers. “Do tell me if these two boys are going to eat sweets after the ceremony. If I happen to hear that, we are not going to have a vacation in the villa house. Do you understand me, Franklin, Jeremy, Albert, Shawn?”
Sander and Hezekiah had two butlers. Franklin and Jeremy were Sander’s butlers while Albert and Shawn were Hezekiah’s butlers.
“Yes, Luna. Your wish is our command,” the four said in unison.
“Aww…”
That earned a chuckle from Desmond as he took Saoirse from her nannies. “Mama is so strict about sweets, boys. You don’t want to have some fallen teeth if that happens, right?” They nodded. “Harolyn, your older brothers are quite stubborn. Will it be alright if you will be with them?”
“Yes, Papa.” Harolyn beamed. “I will have Edwin and Kyle guard their butlers in case they tolerate them.” She was talking about the butlers that were assigned to her. She had this pretty, condescending smile looking at her brothers. It was as if she was not going to let them have their happy time.
We gathered in front of the manor where all of the pack members of the Rising Diamond pack were now here. Desmond bestowed Saoirse to her nannies before he had me beside him.
Taking my hand, Desmond whispered to me, “My Luna Marchioness, are you ready?”
“I am, Alpha,” I whispered back to him, causing him to whimper in delight.
His eyes shifted and showed the lust he was feeling right now. “I will certainly have you for tonight.” His devilish grin smeared on his lips added to his masculinity, making my clit tingle. I playfully rolled my eyes after that. “Let’s begin the ceremony for our Luna,” Desmond announced.
“Yes, Alpha,” everyone said in unison.
To begin the Luna ceremony, would be the same as the welcome ceremony for a new pack member. It was a blood pact between the Alpha and the new pack member. That was the traditional way.
However, there was a difference in the Luna ceremony. In the blood pact, our blood that was bound, we had to drink it and emptied the cup.
“I am glad that everyone is here. It was my fault why your former Luna absconded from my pack. I have hurt her…” Desmond held my hand so tight as he exhaled nervously. I squeezed his hand, silently telling him that I was here now. I received a response from him by squeezing my hand back. “Finally, Seraphina returned here and we both started fixing our mate bond. She and I had made a decision that she will return to her duties as the Luna of the Rising Diamond pack.”
Desmond faced me as soon as Harvey and Oakley stepped forward. Harvey was holding a knife that had been used here for the welcoming ceremony that was wrapped around with a red cloth. As for Oakley, he was holding a cup that would be used later.
Desmond took the knife, opening my palm and looking intently into my eyes. “As you become the Luna of my pack, you must fulfill your duty not only to me but to all our pack members. Become their Mother figure and share with us your Luna knowledge to help my pack members and the pack affairs along with me. As our blood binds as one, you will become a part of me and I will become a part of you.”
I flinched when he sliced my palm and did the same thing on his palm. I shivered as I felt the familiar emotion of becoming the mother to all of the members of this pack. Then he infused our hands, clasping them together before he bestowed back the knife to Harvey. He smiled at me after taking the cup from Oakley which had our mixed blood in it.
Desmond was the first one who drank it while I was the one who emptied the cup before I returned it to Oakley.
After that, we faced our pack members, feeling as if I became one of them, becoming their fellow pack member. This time, I was with Desmond representing together that we were now the Alpha and the Luna of the Rising Diamond pack.
“Welcome back, Seraphina Beryl, the Luna of the Rising Diamond pack!”
“Hail to the Alpha! Hail to the Luna!”
“Hail to Luna Seraphina!”
“We missed you, Luna Seraphina!”
The people clapped and cheered for the two of us. Desmond and I faced each other again before we drew closer to each other.
“Please do not abscond from me again, my Luna.” He brought my hands to his lips.
I smiled, purring at his words. “As long as you are not going to do something that would make me abscond again, Alpha Desmond.”
“I won’t. I am here now to earn your trust again.”
“That is good to hear then.”
Looking at each other with pure love and affection, people cheered more when we exchanged a sweet, passionate kiss. It was so pure and full of love that made my heart pound. I was so honored to have him by his side again.
Cinnamon… You are really the spice of my life.
But our kiss was broken when there were a pair of hands tugging us. When we looked down, we got to see Harolyn who was crying in tears.
“What is it, Harolyn? Why are you crying?” Desmond asked, worried as he knelt on one knee to wipe her tears. “Where are your butlers? Where are your brothers as well? Did they make you cry?”
Harolyn shook her head as she wailed in tears. “Papa… Mama…” she hiccuped. “Mother took away Brother Sander. Brother Hezekiah is following them.”
At that moment, we both gasped in unison, horrified. “What?!”