The Triplet Alphas' Curse: Rejected by the Wolfless Luna.

Aire’s expression never changed.

Morrigan’s smile widened. This was what she wanted. And slowly, she was beginning to achieve it.

"Do you surely know who I am?" She pressed, a strange gleam in her eyes, as she taunted, and waited for Aire to reply.

Aire shrugged. "I know exactly who you are."

Morrigan raised a brow, waiting for Aire to say her name, and stop calling her the name of a stupid ten years old child.

Aire moved closer, and leaned her shoulder against the bars. "You’re a coward."

The smile disappeared from Morrigan’s lips at the speed of lightning.

The temperature inside the cage seemed to drop.

Aire continued anyway. "You hid behind a child." She held her gaze. "You manipulated people weaker than you."

Aire chuckled softly. A broken sound of disbelief. "You pretended to be kind." She tilted her head. "You pretended not to have a home and now you’re standing here expecting me to be impressed."

Morrigan stared at her.

Aire smiled. Her smile didn’t reach her eyes. "You aren’t impressive."

Morrigan’s jaw tightened.

Aire saw it, and she enjoyed it. The realization should have horrified her. Once, it would have.

There had been a time when she looked away from people’s weaknesses. A time when she covered them instead of exposing them. A time when she felt guilty for enjoying another person’s discomfort.

That girl was gone.

Now, when she noticed the cracks in someone, she pressed on them. When she found a flaw, she turned it over in her mind and examined it with quiet satisfaction.

And she never apologized for it.

Why should she?

Kindness had never protected her. Not in her world. Not in this realm, and definitely not in whatever other realms existed beyond the horizon.

No one cared how gentle she was. No one cared how much she forgave. No one cared how many times she chose compassion over cruelty.

They would still tear her apart.

Every single one of them.

The lesson had been carved into her flesh so many times that she could no longer ignore it.

Good people bled first.

Kind people suffered longest. Soon, she might die smiling while everyone else walked away with clean hands.

The old Aire would have hated these thoughts. The old Aire would have cried over them, and the old Aire would have fought to remain soft.

After everything that had happened to her, after every humiliation, every loss, every cage, every chain, this felt good.

She wasn’t worrying about making people comfortable. She wasn’t trying to keep the peace.

Morrigan hated every word coming out of her mouth.

Aire galred at her, and scanned her coldly with ooen disgust. "You think you’re powerful." She spat out.

Morrigan’s eyes narrowed. "I am."

Aire snort mockingly. "Remain delusional."

Morrigan took a slow step forward.

Aire shook her head. Her gaze sharpened. "Powerful people don’t hide." She kept speaking, even as Morrigan approached her, to keep herself from being nervous.

Morrigan’s voice became dangerously soft.

"You have no idea who you’re speaking to."

Aire immediately answered. "And you have no idea who you’re speaking to."

Morrigan blinked. Her lashed fluttered rapidly, wondering how the tables turned. She had come here to get into Aire’s head, not the other way round.

Aire pushed away from the bars.

Her silver hair spilled over one shoulder, and blood stained the corner of her mouth. Bruises decorated her skin. Yet somehow she still looked proud.

"I know exactly where I am." Her voice remained calm. "I know exactly what you’ve done."

She pointed directly at Morrigan. "And I know exactly what I’ll do if I ever leave this realm."

Morrigan’s smile returned slowly. She would admit, she does love this part of Aire. A little more push was all she needed to taint Aire’s heart permanently..

"When I leave." Aire spoke.

Morrigan immediately noticed how she used ’when’and not ’if’.

"When I leave," Aire repeated, "I’m going to kill you." She dropped the words with a certain finality.

The words settled between them with certainty. Morrigan stared at her. She kept quiet for a few seconds. Then she laughed abruptly.

She laughed so hard she actually tilted her head back.

Aire remained expressionless.

The laughter continued, and the entire cage seemed too small to contain it.

Finally Morrigan wiped beneath one eye. "You truly believe you’ll leave."

Aire said nothing.

"You truly believe wolves are coming." She pointed at Aire mockingly. "You truly believe you’ll escape."

Still nothing.

Morrigan shook her head. The amusement in her eyes was almost pity.

"You don’t understand where you are."

Aire’s jaw tightened.

Morrigan continued. "In case I haven’t told you before, no one leaves." Her voice hardened. "No prisoner. No slave. No enemy."

Her smile widened. "Not unless we allow it."

Aire’s stomach twisted. Part of her was afraid Morrigan might be right. What if nobody came? What if twenty-four hours became forty days? Then forty days became a year? Then a lifetime?

The worst part was that, sometimes, when the realm grew quiet and the darkness stretched too long, Aire found herself wondering if everyone back home had already given up.

The thought poisoned her.

Aire clenched her jaw, then she smiled softly. "You laugh a lot for someone who needed a child to get close to me."

Morrigan’s amusement vanished.

Aire nodded slowly. "There she is."

Morrigan’s eyes narrowed.

"The real you." Aire pointed lazily at her. "The moment someone reminds you of what you did, you get angry. Tell me why."

Morrigan stared.

When she didn’t speak, Aire continued. "You know what I think?"

"No one cares what you think." Morrigan snapped harshly.

Aire ignored her. "I think you hate me."

Morrigan’s expression remained unchanged.

Aire laughed softly. "Not because I’m weak." She tilted her head. "You hate me because I remind you of something."

The muscles in Morrigan’s jaw tightened.

Aire immediately saw it, and she pressed harder. "You look at me and see everything you stopped being."

Morrigan moved fast.

The bars rattled violently as her hand wrapped around one of them. Dark magic flashed around her fingers.

For one brief second, Aire thought the woman might tear the cage apart just to reach her.

Instead, Morrigan leaned closer. "You know absolutely nothing about me."

Aire smiled sweetly. "I know enough."

Morrigan’s eyes glowed.

Aire didn’t back away.

She couldn’t afford to. Not now. Not after everything she had just said. Fear was already sitting in her stomach but showing it would only feed Morrigan.

So she stood her ground.

Her heartbeat quickened, her hands trembled slightly, and every instinct screamed at her to shut up, yet she stood.

Morrigan suddenly released the bars.

The metal groaned, then she straightened. The fury disappeared so quickly it was almost frightening.

A smile replaced it. Morrigan folded her arms. "Forty days."

Aire frowned.

Morrigan’s smile widened. "That’s how long you have."

Aire stared at her. She felt green. "For what?"

Morrigan smacked her lips together, pleased. "For this." She gestured around the cage. "In forty days, the army moves."

Aire’s stomach tightened.

Morrigan watched her carefully. "We’re going to war."

Aire remained silent.

Morrigan stepped closer again. "The Light Fae."

Aire’s expression didn’t change. Inside, however, her thoughts immediately sharpened.

Information. Finally, this was real information.

Morrigan continued. "The campaign begins in forty days."

Aire lowered her eyes briefly.

Forty days with an army. There would be movement, and movement meant opportunities.

"You should start preparing yourself." Morrigan stretched her hand, and her dark magic softly twirled around Aire’s silver hair. "For your purpose."

Aire immediately backed away.

Morrigan chuckled, and took the magic away. She pointed directly at her. "Whether you like it or not—"

Aire’s expression hardened.

"—you are going to be a weapon."

Aire stared at her. She looked genuinely amused.

Morrigan’s patience visibly thinned.

Aire shook her head. "You people are unbelievable." She muttered thoughtfully.

Morrigan didn’t answer.

Aire smiled coldly.

Morrigan’s eyes narrowed.

Aire stepped closer to the bars. Her smile disappeared. "You still don’t understand."

Morrigan’s expression remained unreadable.

Aire held her gaze. "If I ever become a weapon..." Her voice dropped. "...it won’t be for you."

Morrigan scoffed mockingly as though speaking to a child. "As I said." She turned away.

Aire watched her back. She watched the confidence, the certainty, and the arrogance. Now, she wanted revenge more than she wanted freedom.

Morrigan paused before disappearing. Without looking back, she spoke one final time. "Forty days, Aire."

Dark magic gathered around her feet.

"In forty days, you’ll finally understand who you belong to."

She vanished immediately, and the darkness swallowed her whole.

Silence returned to the cell.

Aire remained standing beside the bars, motionless. Her fingers slowly curled around the bars.

"No." She whispered. The whisper barely reached her own ears.

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