"I'm Kimberly Brown Hunter. I was a wolf before I met my true mate, Pete," Kimberly said, sitting in front of the council, holding Pete's hand.
After Arya's phone call, Pete braced for the worst. How was he supposed to tell his wife that their children were in trouble because he didn't heed her warning?
As he had predicted, all hell broke loose as soon as he told her. "I had told you not to send them there! You never listen to me. First, we lost Arya, and now, Marcus and Natalie." Kimberly was a crying mess.
It took everything in him to get her to calm down, and persuade her to come with him to Moonsglow pack.
"And all this while, your children were unaware of the existence of our kind, correct?" One of the elders asked.
"Yes, council. They were born without any trace of wolf in them, so I kept all this from them," Kimberly was answering the questions confidently.
"And you are aware that any human who knows about our existence is either killed or put into prison for the rest of their lives?"
"Yes, I'm aware. But I plead with the council to give us one chance; and I swear by everything dear to me, I'll make sure this secret stays that; a secret," Kimberly pleaded.
"I second this. I know them from a young age. They never let me even guess that werewolves exist. I wouldn't have ever found out if I wouldn't have had to come here," Arya said.
"And I'm a human. I never told any living soul about your existence," Pete chimed in.
"Mr Hunter, you are the only exception since you are... were a wolfs mate. But your children are neither wolves nor aware of our existence. They are outsiders. So they will either be killed or jailed for life." Franklin was staring at them.
"Can we at least see them? At least if they are to be punished, they should know why?" Kimberly begged.
"Mrs Hunter, you are no longer a wolf..."
"Forgive me for interrupting council members, but if they can not visit them because they're not wolves, I'm a wolf, so I can visit them, can't I?" Arya said, happy to cut off Kane in mid sentence.
"Luna Arya -" "I've wanted to meet them for three days. Alfa said no. I don't know why. I'm not even allowed to meet my friend Rebecca. Why? If my cousins are going to get punished, at least they have a right to know the full reason why. Don't you all forget that Marcus and Natalie may be humans, but they are related to wolves. They have a right to know about their grandparents and their relationship with this village," Arya cut Kane off again.
"Aria, sit down!" Alfa said through clenched teeth.
Arya realized she had stood up while talking. She immediately sat down and stared into space.
"Luna Aria, you are disrespecting an elder of the council."
"What? Kane is an elder?" Now it was Kimberly who stood up. "And you knew this?" She stared at Arya.
"I just found out a few days ago," Arya said.
"You were right, I'm no longer a wolf. I'm glad that I'm not a wolf since murderes and kidnappers rule this council now. An alfa who destroyed other packs to show dominance is a member of this low class council."
"That's enough!" Kane growl.
Kimberly stared at him with so much hate that he felt her eyes burning through him.
"Did I say something wrong?" Kimberly asked, her voice calm. Her eyes held no fear of what would happen to her or her family.
"Honey, I think you should calm down," Pete said, getting up. "It's no use shouting." Pete wrapped his arm around her.
"How, Pete? How do I calm down? The man who destroyed so many wolf lives is now making decisions for them!"
"Council members, why don't we let them meet their children. That will calm her down, and we will get time to reflect on what the council stands for," Arya said, hoping that they'd agree.
The tension in the room was so thick that one could drown in it. For the first time, an outsider insulted a council member directly at his face.
First, it was Arya, the Luna of the Moonsglow pack, and daughter in law of Kane. Then came Kimberly, a former member of this very pack, now an outsider because she chose love over her wolf.
"Fine. We are taking a break while these two can meet with the prisoners," Franklin said, looking at both Kane and the parents who were desperate to see their children.
Two guards came beside Pete and Kimberly. "Byron and Xavier will take to to your children. You will only be given a few minutes, so make good use of it," Franklin said.
"Can I... " "No," Alfa said sternly. He didn't even let Arya finish her request.
"Elder Kane! Every new Luna that takes oath, every other wolf that we talk to, everyone says you are a monster. Maybe you should step down from the position of an elder," the No Name elder said. Arya still didn't know his name, so she gave him a name. No Name.
"What the hell are you saying?" Kane shouted.
"Elder Kane, this is not the first complaint against you. This is the most direct one. We can not have you in the council. You have to step aside," Franklin said.
"Just because some human insulted me in front of you, instead of punishing her, you're kicking me out?"
"She's not some human!" Arya blurted out before her brain could process what she was doing.
"Alfa Flowerew, why don't you control your Luna and tell her when she should speak and when not to? This is a council problem, not hers!" Franklin said, annoyed.
"Forgive me," Arya mumbled.
Alfa just sat there, saying nothing. Arya couldn't figure out what he was thinking of. He seemed so...blank.
"Next time, know your place, luna Aria. Your outbursts may not only get you into trouble but also your mate!" The eldest elder said.
"Coming back to the point, elder Kane, the council will do a vote. Everyone in favor of elder Kane stepping down, raise your hand," almost every hand shot up, No Name being the first.
"The decision has been made. The elder council revokes your seat in council, Kane Flowerew. You are no longer an elder!" Franklin said.
"This is going into our records. The shortest time an elder spent on the seat."
"Shut it, Moonstone," Kane screamed before barging out.