Avenging Luna
Chapter 171: Shift For Your Uncles

Chapter 171: Shift For Your Uncles

Chase POV:

One moment, I was walking alongside Damon, thoughts of Ace and vengeance swirling in my mind, and the next, I was somewhere entirely different—teleported without warning. The room was dimly lit, with the faint metallic tang of fear heavy in the air. My eyes immediately locked onto a group of guards surrounding a small, trembling figure in the corner.

A tiny white furish creature. No it was a wolf pup.

My chest tightened as recognition hit me. Ash?

The little pup looked terrified, his small frame pressed against the wall as if trying to disappear. His wide, golden eyes darted between the guards closing in on him, sharp weapons at the ready. Fury surged through me, hot and uncontrollable.

Without a second thought, I moved. My vampiric speed turned the distance between us into nothing. In an instant, the little furball was in my arms, shaking violently as he buried his head into my chest. He was trembling so hard it felt like his tiny body might shatter.

"What the fuck do you think you were doing?" I growled, spinning to face the guards, my voice a cold, authoritative blade that sliced through the tension in the room. My fangs were partially extended, my temper hanging by a thread.

The guards froze, their weapons lowering slightly as they flinched under the weight of my glare. Before they could stammer out an answer, Damon was on them. His movements were a blur of predatory fury as he grabbed one of them by the collar and hoisted him off the ground like he weighed nothing.

"My brother asked a question," Damon snarled, his tone low and laced with danger.

The guard’s face paled, and he stammered out a response. "I-it’s... the council! They said the wolves were responsible for the king’s death!"

I let out a humorless laugh, the sound cold and sharp. "Are you stupid or has the weight of centuries clouded your judgment?" I demanded, my voice laced with venom. "How on earth could a five-year-old pup kill a full-grown vampire king? Even one who was weakened?"

The guard struggled in Damon’s grip, his eyes darting toward the pup in my arms as if searching for some kind of justification. I shifted Ash slightly, the little wolf letting out a soft whimper that only fueled my anger.

"And as for Leila," I continued, my voice dropping to a deadly calm, "if she was responsible, how could she be in two places at once? She was with me, rolling in my bed, while the king was murdered. Or are you suggesting she somehow mastered the art of time travel while plotting murder?"

The guard opened his mouth, but I cut him off with a snarl. "You’ve traumatized my imprint—the one thing you shouldn’t have done."

The moment the word imprint left my lips, the room shifted. Every guard’s eyes widened in horror. They knew exactly what that meant. They had crossed a line that no amount of groveling could erase.

Damon sneered, his grip on the guard tightening briefly before he let him fall to the ground in a heap. "You heard him," Damon said, his voice dripping with disdain. "Go and arrest whoever sent you to terrorize a child. If they’ve got enough nerve to make orders this stupid, then they can answer for their stupidity in person."

The guards scrambled to their feet, their movements shaky and uncoordinated. Within seconds, they were gone, disappearing with the speed only vampires could manage.

Silence fell over the room, broken only by the soft, shaky breaths of the wolf in my arms. I looked down at Ash, his tiny body still trembling, and something unfamiliar stirred in my chest.

I’d never imagined myself holding a wolf, let alone thinking one was... cute. But there was no denying it. The little furball had somehow wormed his way under my skin in a way I hadn’t anticipated.

"Hey," I murmured softly, my voice a stark contrast to the fury that had just been unleashed. "You’re safe now. No one’s going to hurt you."

Ash’s golden eyes peeked up at me, and for a moment, he seemed to relax, his trembling easing just slightly. Damon stepped closer, his eyes scanning the pup with a mixture of curiosity and concern.

"He shifted," Damon said, his tone low. "That’s not supposed to happen yet, is it?"

I shook my head. "No. It’s too early. Something triggered him—probably fear. Whatever those idiots did..."

Damon’s lips pressed into a thin line. "We’re going to have to deal with the council. This stupidity can’t keep happening."

"Agreed," I said, my voice hardening again. My fingers brushed against Ash’s fur, his warmth grounding me as my mind churned.

The council was becoming more of a problem than they were worth. And with Ace lurking in the shadows, I couldn’t afford distractions—especially not ones that put my family in danger.

One thing was certain: I wasn’t going to let anything happen to Ash or Leila. Not while I was still breathing.

"Hey, Chase," Damon said, his voice low with just a touch of amusement. "We really need to get him to shift back before Mama Wolf gets wind of this. Otherwise... well, let’s just say ’dead vampires’ might be an understatement."

I glanced down at the tiny wolf cradled in my arms. Ash looked up at me with his round, innocent eyes, his little tail wagging like he didn’t have a care in the world. Meanwhile, my world was rapidly spiraling into oh shit territory.

Leila. Oh, Leila. She was going to murder us. Mate or not, she’d rip my heart out and probably stomp on Damon for good measure. The image of her storming in, eyes blazing, fangs bared, ready to eviscerate us for somehow managing to make her baby shift this early, flashed through my mind. A shiver ran down my spine.

"Yeah, no kidding," I muttered, adjusting Ash in my arms. "If she finds out about this..." I trailed off, shaking my head. "We’re toast. No, we’re dust."

Damon smirked, clearly less worried than I was. "Oh, come on. How mad could she—"

"Stop," I interrupted, glaring at him. "Do not finish that sentence. Don’t tempt fate."

He shrugged, though a flicker of worry crossed his face. "Fair point. But seriously, we need to get him to shift back."

"Okay, Ash," I said, lifting him up and holding him at arm’s length like some sacred offering. "Listen, kid, I need you to shift back. Do it for us, for your poor uncles here who want to live to see another moonrise. Please. Pretty please."

Ash tilted his head, wagged his tail again, and let out a soft yap. Not exactly the cooperation I was looking for. Damon snickered.

"Great," I muttered, lowering Ash back down. "He’s not shifting. This is going to go over really well."

"Here, let me try," Damon said, stepping forward with far more confidence than he had any right to have. He scooped Ash out of my arms, cradling him like some prized treasure. "Aw, look at you with your little black-tipped nose," he cooed, rubbing the tiny wolf’s head. "You’re just the cutest thing—yes, you are."

I rolled my eyes so hard I might’ve pulled a muscle. "Damon, you’re supposed to be helping him shift back, not giving him an ego boost. This isn’t a puppy pageant. Shift him back.

"Yeah, yeah, I’ll get to it," Damon said, still petting Ash like he was auditioning for the lead in Vampires Who Love Puppies. "But come on, Chase, look at him. Have you ever seen anything this adorable? I bet even Leila would forgive us if she saw this face."

"Forgive us? For making her baby shift early?" I said with a scoff. "Not likely. She’ll probably frame his cuteness as Exhibit A in our trial before she skins us alive."

Damon sighed dramatically, finally placing Ash down on the floor. The pup looked up at us with those big, round eyes that could probably make a dead vampire heart skip a beat. Great. Even I had to admit the kid was ridiculously cute.

"All right, little guy," Damon said, crouching down to meet Ash’s gaze. "Here’s the deal. You shift back, and we won’t tell your mom about this little... situation. Deal?"

Ash just wagged his tail.

Damon rolled his shoulders, determination etched on his face. "Okay, watch me," he said. Then, to my horror—and utter delight—Damon got down on all fours, mimicking Ash’s posture. "You do like I do," he said, crawling in a slow circle around the pup. "Just focus, little dude. Be the vampire. Feel the shift."

I crossed my arms, smirking. "This is the most dignified thing you’ve ever done, Damon. Truly."

"Shut up, Chase. I’m working here."

With one final dramatic flourish, Damon leapt up from all fours to his feet, striking a triumphant pose. "There! Easy peasy. Now you try, Ash."

For a moment, the little wolf stared up at Damon, his head tilted slightly as if considering. Then, in one swift movement, Ash jumped into the air, landed on all fours again, and puffed out his chest like he’d just accomplished the greatest feat in the history of wolfdom. His tail wagged furiously, and he looked up at us as if expecting applause.

I lost it. The laughter bubbled up uncontrollably, echoing off the walls. "Oh, yeah, Damon. Great job. He totally got it. Look at that! Future shifter prodigy right here."

Damon groaned, rubbing a hand over his face. "Okay, so maybe that wasn’t the best approach..."

"You think?"

Ash, however, looked absolutely pleased with himself. He let out a playful yap and started hopping in circles, clearly thinking this was the best game ever. Meanwhile, Damon muttered something under his breath about "ungrateful siblings" and "retiring from babysitting forever."

"Well," I said, still chuckling, "at least we know he’s got spirit. Now we just have to figure out how to explain to Leila why her pup is still a wolf."

Damon groaned again. "We’re doomed, aren’t we?"

"Yep," I said, scooping the little furball back up, "we might be doomed, but at least he’s cute."

"Cute isn’t going to save us when Leila gets here," Damon muttered.

I grinned. "Maybe not. But it might buy us a few seconds to run."

Damon groaned again, and I couldn’t help but laugh. We were so screwed.

Just then I heard someone coming and the scent alone told us it was mama wolf....