# At the Crescent Pack
That afternoon, Ethan took Cora walking in the yard of the Crescent Pack.
"I'm going to mark you, Cora. Are you willing?" Ethan asked suddenly.
Cora replied, "Of course I want to. It should be an Alpha's duty to his Lunas".
Ethan then uncovered some of Cora's hair and looked at Cora's neck, then asked, "There are no markings on your neck, are there, Dave--?" Ethan was curious.
"Dave never marked me," Cora replied.
Ethan was a little surprised, "Why? A Luna is supposed to have a mark from her Alpha, a hereditary rule from our ancestors. So that other wolves have no right to imprint the Luna carelessly because she already has one," Ethan explained further.
"I don't know. Maybe Dave wants to use me to take care of the pack so he can relax. Dave doesn't love me. I should have trusted Lucy from the beginning," Cora said again.
Ethan was saddened to hear the suffering after suffering that Cora had experienced during her time as Luna in the Blood Moon Pack. On the other hand, Ethan was happy because he would be the only Alpha to give Cora a mark. He also hugged Cora and calmed her down.
That night, Ethan and Luna decided to go to the Arun Forest to mark Cora. It was the historic place where they first met.
A Crescent moon appears, a good sign and the right time for Cora to shift into Lucy and Ethan to shift into Mike, the wolf in him.
Their fingers and toenails lengthened into claws, and their teeth lengthened into fangs, their eyeballs reddened. They tore at their clothes as their bodies grew larger and larger as wolves.
Mike, the wolf in Ethan, asked the wolf in Cora, "Are you ready, Lucy?"
"I'm ready. It's all for my happiness and Cora's," Lucy said.
The two of them ran towards Arun Forest. It was a beautiful image on a moon night. The Moon Goddes and the universe created a lovely meeting in Arun Forest then. It was an antidote to Ethan and Cora's sadness.
They arrived there. They looked deeply into each other's eyes. Cora nodded to indicate that she was ready. Then Ethan's muzzle approached Cora's neck. Ethan bit the wolf's neck with his fangs. She wolf screamed in pain. It was only natural for a werewolf. As for humans, it was clear that the bite would cause bleeding and severe pain, even death.
Then they both turned back into humans. Yes, now Ethan and Luna were utterly naked. Ethan also gently stroked Cora's cheek as he said, "I am Ethan Caspar, and I mark you, Cora Georgia, as my Luna, and now your blood has flowed in my blood, our hearts are bound, you are my wife, no wolf has the right to disturb you and take you away from me.
Cora smiled through the pain and held the wound on her neck.
"I, Cora Georgia, gladly accept your mark, Ethan Caspar, and will be a good Luna."
The two looked at each other and then kissed.
"This is my first time. Will the blood and pain from this wound stop soon?" asked Cora.
Ethan chuckled, "Remember, Cora, we are werewolves, and a werewolf will heal wounds on its body very quickly, especially if the wound is only due to the marking process," the man explained. Then Ethan hugged his luna's body while licking the blood from Cora's neck.
Miraculously, the bleeding stopped, and the pain diminished.
"Wow, this is amazing. I thought the pain would last for days," Cora said, smiling at Ethan.
Ethan and Cora were aggressive and wild in heat and intimate under the full moon. It was like they were enjoying their honeymoon on the first night of their marriage.
The next day, Cora woke up by slowly opening her eyes. The sunlight from between the tree leaves illuminated her body and Ethan's. She had fallen asleep on Ethan's broad chest.
"Emm morning, my Alpha," Cora said as she rubbed Ethan's face gently.
The man woke up, too, "Hi Cora, My Luna," Ethan said, kissing Cora's forehead.
"Come on, and we must return to the house pack soon. Doesn't the council have a monthly meeting?" Cora asked Ethan.
"Oh yeah, I almost forgot, as well as an announcement to all Crescent Pack members that now, you are officially my Luna."
"Okay, let's hurry up, baby!" Cora slowly got up from her sleeping position and sat down.
"Didn't I hear you wrong? You called me baby?" Ethan asked again.
Cora didn't answer, just smiled, which made Ethan even more worried.
The woman still made him stand up quickly, "Ethan, you are an Alpha, and you must put public needs before your needs," Cora said.
Ethan was a little lazy to get up because he wanted to be alone with Cora. But Cora told him not to be selfish. They shifted back into wolves and headed for the pack.
*
Ethan and Cora arrived at Alpha Ethan's private home. It was across the street from the house pack. They were getting ready to attend the monthly meeting of the Crescent Pack that morning.
An hour later, the Council had gathered in the pack meeting room at the house. They were waiting for Alpha Ethan to arrive. Elder Sofia had just entered the room and sat down in her seat.
"Where is Alpha Ethan?" Elder Sofia asked.
"He should be here soon. This morning I saw the two wolves on their honeymoon," Beta Noah said with a simple smile.
"I almost forgot. It must have been a long first night as the new Alpha and Luna," Elder Sofia agreed.
All the council members nodded in understanding of what Elder Sofia and her son Beta Noah meant.
The door to the meeting room opened, and the people they were talking about had just arrived. Ethan and Cora walked over, holding hands, and sat down. Ethan took his position without further ado, followed by the Council. Then the gavel was banged, a sign that the negotiations would soon begin. Meanwhile, Cora sat down next to Ethan.
"As you know, this morning, we will evaluate our performance in the House Pack and hold the monthly meeting for the next program. At the same time, I will also announce that Cora is now officially my Luna. I marked her," Ethan said.
The man then parted Cora's flowing curls to reveal the mark on her neck. The effect was in the shape of a crescent moon, indicating that she was a Luna of the Crescent Pack.
The Council consisted of Elder Sofia, Beta Noah, Delta, Gamma, and Ceta, the warriors, and several of the house pack administrators. They all applauded Cora's coronation as Luna.
"We are delighted to have you here, Luna Cora. We hope you can help Alpha Ethan get back into the spirit of leading this pack," Elder Sofia said.
Cora bowed respectfully with a smile. "It is an honor to be part of this pack, and I thank you for your concern. I promise to do my best for the Crescent Pack." She continued. Everyone applauded again.
"All right, maybe I'll have a little party tonight to celebrate our new Luna. But let's talk about that later. I have other important things to tell you." Ethan said again.
The man then asked the administrator for a document on the records of the art council's duties and responsibilities in managing the Crescent pack.
"Okay, I see that almost everything is safe," Ethan said as the man saw the last document and opened it, "but it seems that our pack income has decreased. Is there a problem, Beta Noah?" Ethan continued, asking the Beta who had been in charge when Ethan could not manage the pack.
"That's what I want to discuss with you and everyone here," Beta Noah said.
Ethan asked Beta Noah to stand up. He explained the problem.
"Last month, our corn plantation failed because of pests. Apple and watermelon sales are also down because it seems that the fruit stores in town have also switched to new suppliers, and even some of our regular stores now have their plantations," Beta Noah explained.
Ethan sighed. He thought this was a severe problem since their pack's primary source of income was livestock and plantation products.
"What about the cow's milk and goat's milk from our farm?" Ethan asked again.
"If it's safe, the sales are still normal as usual. Only the results of the cattle and goats as the main source of income are stable at this time," Beta Noah said.
Then they all fell silent for a moment. Each of them was thinking of solutions for the decreasing sources of income while the herd's needs were increasing. In addition, many new generations were being born in their pack.
Cora looked at the faces of the people in front of her individually. The woman seemed to know what to do.
Then Cora cleared her throat, "Um, I'm sorry in advance if I'm being presumptuous, but may I have an opinion and contribute to the economic problems of the Crescent Pack?" Cora asked those gathered to listen.
"Of course, if it's a solution, it will be perfect for this pack," Elder Sofia said.
Ethan also nodded and smiled at Cora. He almost forgot that she had been a very influential Luna in the pack.
"I think if we only send livestock and agricultural products to the same city, our customers will be just that, the competition will be tougher, the development of science and technology will be faster, and the merchants will also be smarter about allocating capital in their business. For example, Beta Noah said earlier that there are merchants who have started growing their own apples and watermelons on their plantations," Cora explained at length.
Everyone in the meeting nodded and realized that Luna Cora had a point.
"So, what is your solution?" Ethan asked Cora.
"Why not try to export our agricultural and livestock products overseas?" Cora asked everyone.
"Do you think that would work?" Beta Noah said.
"There's no way we can be sure without a try, Beta Noah!
Cora then told them that it was a strategy designed to fix the problems of the previous Blood Moon Pack, which also experienced the same thing, namely the declining economic system. Still, Dave kicked her out before she had time to express the suggestion. So, according to Cora, applying the strategy to the Crescent Pack is okay this time. It is purely the result of her thinking.
"It's too bad that the Blood Moon pack lost a smart Luna like you," Beta Noah said again.
Cora replied with a smile, "That's okay. Maybe this strategy can be suitable for this pack if you ask where we have capital from because export is a lot of money. We can try to find new investors," Cora explained.
"That's a good idea. It's just that we've tried to find new investors several times. They refused because they think our plantation and livestock products are less attractive to them, even though they are basic needs," Delta said, joining the conversation.
Cora looked into Ethan's eyes for a moment. For some reason, looking into the man's eyes always inspired Cora. While Ethan didn't stop, he smiled in admiration of Cora's ingenious thinking.
"I can rely on my delegation's ability to attract new investors. I have some big investor acquaintances in town who seem to believe my words easily," Cora said again.
Meanwhile, Elder Sofia was observing what Cora had been saying all along. She didn't want to talk much. The middle-aged woman seemed to know and understand that Alpha Ethan's choice of Cora as his Lunas was the most appropriate one. Deep down, the Elder was very proud of Cora's high level of social sensitivity and her resourcefulness in overcoming a problem.
One by one, the meeting members raised their arms in agreement with Cora's suggestion. They also felt that there was nothing wrong with daring to try; at least if they failed, they would have something to regret rather than nothing at all.
"Does anyone know which countries have the potential for us to export apples, watermelons, cow's milk, and goat's milk as well?" asked Cora again.
"I have an acquaintance from college. He's from London. He told me that his father has the biggest grocery store there. What do you think?" Ethan asked back.
"Exactly. Maybe you can go to London to meet your friend and talk about working together to supply his father's grocery needs. We can provide the best quality of our products later, so it can be good news that spreads by word of mouth, then..." Cora said, then stopped.
A warrior watched and asked for permission to speak his mind.
"I'm sorry, Luna Cora. I interrupted you. That's very true. After the news spreads, there will be many shops there that will also want to buy our products, Alpha Ethan! Did you forget? There are a few Scouts from this pack who got scholarships to study in London," said the warrior in charge of training and educating the Scouts.
"Oh ya, I know. Well, tomorrow I will go there to work on that," Ethan explained again.
Finally, all the members of the meeting breathed a sigh of relief. All they needed was courage and confidence.
Ethan also closed the meeting with gratitude, for this time, there was a change in the deliberation after Cora's presence. The discussion presented an extraordinary and robust solution for the future.
After the meeting, Elder Sofia approached Cora and embraced her, "Is it true what I said when you went to the lake alone? The Moon Goddesses sent you as a gift to this pack. I am very grateful to you," she whispered.
"You are welcome. I will always need your guidance, too," Cora hugged Elder Sofia back.
Ethan also invited Cora to go home and rest. The two of them then walked, looking around the area around the house pack.
"Diamonds like you are wasted. Luckily, I found this diamond," Ethan said, praising Cora.
"Don't overdo it, Ethan. I might make a mistake someday," Cora replied.
"Nobody is perfect, but you are too perfect for me, Cora. You are even better than Clara," Ethan said.
Cora shook her head, "No, I don't want you to compare me to Clara. She was the best in her day. Her loyalty to you, her sacrifice, she was no betrayer Ethan.
Ethan stopped walking, took Cora's arm, and kissed her, "I'm sorry, Cora, you're right, Clara, and you are the best woman in your versions of yourself."
Cora smiled at Ethan's words. She said there was no need to eliminate Clara's position in Ethan's heart. After all, Clara also contributed to Ethan's life. Luna Clara left because of destiny, not because of a mistake. Cora's presence filling the void in Ethan's heart was also destiny, not compulsion. According to Cora, Ethan, Clara, and herself are a beautiful plan of the Moon Goddess.