Peaches

XXXIV

As the morning passed, Luna Maria, my mother, Nat, Anna and Jessica all came by to help me prepare for the ceremony. It was a funny sight watching Maria drag her two sons reluctantly out of our bedroom.

As Maria zipped me up, she held my shoulders and whispered "You look beautiful."
"Thank you," I whispered back.
"Come with me dear," she said, guiding me towards the bathroom and away from the prying ears of my family.

"Now dear, I'd much rather your bedroom activity with my sons remain private," she begins to say and I cringe, dying a little inside. Am I really about to have the sex talk with by mates mother. "But seeing as you're about to make the private a little more public." She looks over to my face and sees my twisted expression. She places her hand on my shoulder and says "There's nothing to be ashamed of, it's a beautiful ceremony and your connection with the pack will only strengthen." I take a hard breath in and out to calm myself. "I got you something." She pulls out a small gift bag from under the sinks. Before I can open it, she turns to leave. Taking one last look back, she utters "And dear, I would recommend not wearing underwear. It makes the process easier." She turns away and I shudder at the awkward conversation.

Alone in the quiet bathroom, I reach for the giftbag and open it. I have to cover my mouth to stop myself from gasping and laughing in awkward terror and shock. It's a douche. My future mother in law went into the pack shops and purchased me a douche. Moreover, she put it into a pink giftbag with pink tissue paper and gifted it to me while talking about my sex life.

I try to laugh it off but I know I probably should use it.  Before I can even fully unwrap it, the bathroom door is shoved open and immediately shut. I see a rounded, extremely pregnant Jessica shut the door behind her and look to me. "I hope I'm not interrupting anything," she says with worried eyes gazing between the douche and I.
"Please don't look at it," I say shoving it back into the gift bag and looking into Jessica's eyes. We laugh at the weird circumstance.
"I wanted to talk to you about something," she says her eyes becoming serious.
"Whatsup?" I ask.
She takes a breathe before saying "I love your brother and I am so happy that we are creating a family together. But if we weren't so irresponsible, and he wasn't so handsy, we would've taken the proper precautions to make sure it happened on our terms. We didn't and I don't want you to make the same mistake we did. Once you complete the bond, everything intensifies and you won't even be able to think about protecting yourself from pregnancy. So I'm asking you to do it now. Your mother and Luna Maria, bless them, are not going to tell you this because they want pups and to carry on their bloodline. Even your mates may want the same and you may not have this option later. So I got you something." She pulls out a small jar filled with dried herbs and leafs. "It's contraceptive tea made by a witch friend of mine. I was originally saving it for after I gave birth but I want you to have it." She hands the jar to me and I take it in my hands. I gaze over the jar, the dark purple flowers and the crisp green herbs.
"Thank you Jessica," I say sincerely, looking up at her.
She gives me a curt smile and says "Best keep this between us okay, no one needs to know." She exists the bathroom and I stare at the jar once again.

I never thought about it, I guess that's part of the danger. I am not ready to be a mother. I am only 21!! I guess by Lycan standards that's prime baby making age but I'd been living amongst humans for the last 3 years. I didn't feel ready. I open the jar and grab a glass from the sink, filling it with the herbs. I run the tap till the waters steaming and fill the glass, swiftly downing the contents. After, I hide the jar away hoping no one finds it.

Looking up at myself in the mirror, I can't help but feel sympathy for the pack. They're stuck with me as their Luna, a cold, weak, non-child bearing 21 year old. I hear a whisper of Adam's voice in my head telling me to not think those thoughts once again.

I exit the bathroom and walk through the closet to be greeted by smiling and adoring faces of my family. I look to my mother as tears brim in her eyes. I look to Nat and Anna who look at me with adoration and love. Jessica shoots me a wink as Luna Maria stands beside her, proud.

I turn to look at myself in the mirror. The long white dress, made from a cream-coloured silk, sucked in my waist. The skirt poured out from my hips onto the ground. The design was simple, the top corseted with a sweetheart neckline and the bottom a huge elegant skirt that made it look like a wedding dress. I readjust my wild curls I'd elected to keep loose, much to the protest of my mother, to see pearl earrings dripping from my ears. I smooth down the soft fabric of my dress, still gazing at my own reflection. I looked like a Luna.

I turned back to my mother who was full on snotty sobbing into Anna's chest while Anna looked like she'd seen an alien.
"Are you ready Luna?" Maria asks with a smile playing on her lips.
"Ready as I'll ever be," I reply. I hear a light knock on the door before it's swung open revealing my father in a tux.
"Ready to go?" He asks. I approach him and link my arm in his.
Everyone leaves the room with swift goodbyes and kisses, heading out to take their seats.

My father looks me over and a gut wrenching feeling of disapproval washes over me. To my shock he says "I'm so proud." I look at him with bewilderment.
"Thank you father," I say back. And he begins, guiding me out of the house and towards the future.