The Claim ✔️ *Editing*

12. Mating Ceremony

The ceremony took place in the backyard of the pack house. As soon as we entered the backyard everyone's gazes were directed at us.

Titus pulled us to the small stage directed in the front. One of the elders was waiting on the stage to perform the bonding. Titus moved to the front of the stage. "Good evening everyone."

"Good evening alpha." They all said in unison.

He shifted on his feet. "As you all know I have found my mate."

Ha! Yeah seven years ago... I had to force myself to stay quiet. He turned his head and smirked, as if he heard my unspoken thoughts.

"I have waited seven long years. And I am happy to say, we are here to initiate her as my mate and the Luna of Grey Stone pack." The crowed burst into applause.

Titus left and came to join me. We stood on either sides of the ancient mating bowl. The elder pulled out a knife, causing me to wince. Titus gave his hand to the elder first. The elder placed a cut in the middle of his palm. Blood was now spilling out of his hand, causing my vision to blur slightly.

Okay so I'll be honest, I'm not the best when it comes to blood.

I took a deep breath and focused my attention on Titus. The elder gestured for me to give him my hand. It was now my turn. I took a deep breath then handed him my shaky hand. I gasped when I felt the sharp object come in contact with my skin.

Titus gave me a reassuring smile. The elder brought our hands together then placed it over the bowl. Our blood combined into the bowl.

"Congratulations." The elder said as he dropped our hands. The crowd exploded into a roar of applause.

"Dinner will be served in five minutes. You are all dismissed." Titus announced before the crowed slowly thinned out.

He grabbed my hand then began running his tongue along my cut. Zander and Rachel approached, causing Titus to let out a low growl.

You're not supposed to interfere with a male when he's caring for his female, especially an alpha. But I guess since they were his parents they didn't think much of it.

Zander scoffed. "Calm down son." He finished tending to my wound then turned to face them. As I suspected, when I looked down at my palm the cut was gone.

"Oh I'm so happy." Rachel brought Titus and I into an awkward hug. "Now it's time for you two to get busy, I want grandpups."

I backed away slowly. "Uh... Rachel I just turned seventeen." I gave her an awkward smile.

Rachel shot me a stern look. "Titus isn't getting any younger Brinn!" She said aggressively, causing me to take another step back. "Besides Zander and I mated the day we-" Titus held up his hand. "Okay mom that's enough. Ew!"

Zander and I burst into a fit of laughter. "Dad please take mom away, like now." Zander grabbed his mates arm. "Come on Rachel. Leave them be. They haven't even marked each other yet." I shot Titus a glare. He directed his gaze to the ground, guilt filling him.

Not in our skin side at least...

She rolled her eyes. "Fine." They walked away. Disappearing into the house.

Titus brought my hands in his. "You look beautiful." I could feel my cheeks heating up. "Thanks." I placed a kiss on his cheek.

I pulled away then smiled up at him. "Let's go, everyone's waiting."

He draped his arm over my shoulder then we walked towards the pack house.

***

The dining hall was filled with laughter and chatter when we entered. Everyone was overjoyed. They finally had a Luna.

Titus sat at the head of the table with me on his right. We kept our hands intertwined under the table. I looked over to Alex and she shot me a smile.

Being Luna filled my wolf with a great sense of pride. Titus stood and walked toward the food table. He returned a few minutes later with two plates in his hand. He placed one in front of me. "Thanks." He smiled then sat down.

The dining hall got quiet. Everyone directed their attention towards us. Waiting for Titus's next move. Titus grabbed his fork and knife. He cut a piece of the steak then brought it to my mouth.

A male doesn't usually feed their female until they are fully mated, so this was a shock to everyone. I chewed on the piece of steak then swallowed.

Everyone began eating their food and the room quick filled up with conversations. Titus and I ate in a comfortable silence, he occasionally feeding me bites.

When a yawn escaped my mouth, Titus stood. He reached out his hand and I took it as I stood next to him. We said our goodbyes to everyone then walked towards our house.

Wow, that sounded weird. If you told me a couple of days ago I would be Titus's mate I'd call you crazy.

We were in pursuit of the house when someone spoke. "Alpha" We both turned around.

Standing in front of us was Lily. She walked towards us slowly. "Oh hi Li-

Titus cut me off by pushing me behind him protectively. "What do you need Lily?"

"May I have a word with you?" She asked, keeping her eyes focused on my mate.

"No." He said sternly. I placed my hand over his arm. "Its fine, go ahead."

He sighed then turned to face me. "Go straight home." I nodded.

He turned his attention back to Lily. "We can talk in my office." He gestured for her to walk back into the pack house.

We shared one last glance before I started walking back to the house. I shoved my hands into my vest pockets.

I'm not sure what that was all about, but I'm sure everything is fine.

I pulled out the key Titus gave me and unlocked the front door. I let the warm air of the heater roam over my body. I kicked off my shoes then made my way up the stairs.

Once in our room I slid out of my clothes and threw on an oversized grey t-shirt. I slid into my side of the bed then brought the blankets up to my chin. At several failed attempts, I knew I wasn't getting any sleep until Titus got here.

When the bedroom door opened I visibly relaxed. I closed my eyes and pretended to be asleep. I heard shuffling around the room before Titus slid into bed next to me. "Go to sleep." He pulled me to his chest. Wrapping his arms around my waist. "How'd you know I was awake?"

He placed a kiss on my neck, where I would soon bear his mark. "Your breathing hasn't evened out, but nice try."

He continued placing kisses along my neck. I stilled when his canines came out. He grazed them along my neck slowly. I tried to pull away but he tightened his grip. "Titus no." He pulled away and sighed.

My wolf settled in the back of my head. She was upset I hadn't allowed him to mark me. He finally spoke after what felt like hours. "Sorry, I lost control." I sighed. "It's okay."

"Why don't you want me to mark you?" I turned on my side and stared into his hazel eyes. "I do. It's just a lot has happened today. I don't want to rush it."

His held a straight face but eventually nodded. I placed a kiss on his cheek then settled back into his arms. After a while I let sleep consume me.

***

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Song: Chamber of reflection~Mac Demarco

(Okay so this song is f*cking strange, but I love it. Literally reminds me of something out of an 80's movie)