A YEAR LATER ARYA
“Mama!” yelled my son, a toddler as he waddled to me. I waited at the end of the other room to test his walking skills. “Come on, Mateo, you can do it.” “But it’s far!” he exclaimed sadly. I chuckled, finding his pout so adorable. “Haha! Mateo lame, Mama look!” his twin sibling exclaimed as he reached me and I gasped in shock seeing how Darion was. But then, behind him was their third twin, Darina, the only girl among the three as she pushed Darion aside. “I’m here!” I watched as Darina competed with Darion. They had grown up too fast and I was surprised how they learned quickly to talk and walk. “Mama, Darina is fighting me!” “You fight Mateo. I defend him!”
Mateo was behind them as he slumped on the floor and started crying. I watched my triplets as they wreaked their adorable havoc again. Our home would never be home without my triplet's noises. Mateo’s cries, Darion yelling for my attention and Darina competing with Darion. It had been a long ride and what a crazy adventure it was, but look at us now. My triplets were born from the alpha genes of their father’s so they had the added advantage in terms of growth and development compared to the other normal werewolf kids. They were much bigger because they grew faster than normal and for a one-year-old, they could talk to me and even walk ahead. And although they were triplets, they looked the same. They got Kai’s whole appearance but had different attitudes. Mateo, the one who seemed to be a bit slower than his siblings, was the dramatic and sensitive twin, that was why Darion would always pick on him. Darion on the other hand got his father’s competitive side and would always show off to me once he learned something. Darina would come and defend Mateo from Darion, competing with him in strength. I watched them proudly in silence. I couldn’t help but let out a tear and they seemed to notice my tears. It was Mateo, the most sensitive of them all, who came to me and wiped my tears away. “Tears go away. Mama don’t be sad, please.” Darina and Darion noticed it too as they stopped fighting and walked to me. “Mama is crying?” asked Darion, struggling to talk for a bit. They all surrounded and embraced me. I bit my lip trying hard not to sob. Seeing them like this felt so rewarding. “I’m okay, my little ones. I am just happy watching you,”
 I answered them. As soon as they saw my smile, they went back to their energized spirits. Darion huffed to Darina, “You always fight me.” “Because you always pick on Mateo. Don’t pick on him.” “I want to play with Mateo, not you. You’re a girl,” Darion said and that seemed to hurt Darina. She turned to me. “Is being a girl bad, Mama?” I lightly ruffled her hair. “Awe, being a girl is a gift, sweetheart. I named all of you because you are a gift to me.” Darina nodded, still pouting as she sat on the ground. I sighed. “You two, stop fighting. Did you know I also met an enemy back then?” All of them gasped. “Oh, story time, Mama!” I smiled. “Alright. I’ll tell you if you let me wash you all up first. It’s time for bed.” My triplets listened to me as I washed them and tucked them into their beds. This had been our nightly routine. They looked at me eagerly. “Story, Mama!” I cleared my throat, sitting on their bed. “Once upon a time, there was a young rogue girl living in the wild with her father, the leader. Every day, she lived on scraps and tried to survive. Everything was fine for her, but then two twin alphas came to them and kidnapped her!” I paused seeing them gasp. They clearly looked interested so I continued. Darina’s eyes twinkled. “Oh, what is the name of the twins?” “Mother, who’s story is that?” asked Darion who was still processing it. Mateo was just silent and waited for me. “Oh, my friend. She told it to me,” I responded, knowing all too well that story was mine. “Mother, did you regret having father as your mate?” asked Darina.
I shook my head. “No.” “When will we have our own mates, Mama?” asked Mateo. “Someday... when you are all at the right age, all of you will get your own mates during Blood Moon,” I assured them. The door suddenly opened and I heard a deep voice behind me. “What about me? I wonder what happens to that twin in the story?” It was Kai as he smirked at me. “Oh I know. The rogue girl chose the handsome one and they lived happily ever after.” “That story is my favorite.” I gave him a pointed look. “Have you been listening to me the whole time?” I rolled my eyes as he shrugged and I gave him a kiss. “How's work, Alpha Kai?” “Nothing much, Luna Arya.” He winked at me. The triplets were all now at Kai’s feet, happy to see their father. “Papa!” He kneeled to pick them all up and kissed them on the forehead. “How are my little ones doing? Here, I have some- thing for you guys.” He then pulled out three bars of chocolate. I snatched it away before they could get their hands on it. “It’s their bedtime, Kai.” “Awe, c’mon. I had a meeting back in the human realm, that is my souvenir to the kids.” “Mama, please!” They were all looking at me with pleading looks, their eyes like a puppy. I bit my lip, trying to learn to say no to them so they wouldn’t get spoiled. But then Kai was pouting at me, so I gave in. “Fine. Make sure to brush your teeth after.”
 “Yay!” they exclaimed happily and I silently watched as Kai had his bonding time with the pups. It was his only time to see them so I’d let him off the hook, for now. Kai helped me put the kids to sleep and when we left alone, he hugged me from behind and kissed my shoulders. “Aren’t you going to ask for something for you?” “I’m alright, having you safely back home is enough,” I told him. Looking back, it seemed not too bad after all. I had Kai, I had my triplets and I had me. What more could I wish for? I was happy with how things were turning out in my life right now. Never in my life did I imagine getting excited and content like this. Kai didn’t say anything, but his eyes held a heavy emotion. Being the alpha twin’s rogue mate had been a roller- coaster for me, but things had ended well, and I was happy. I was in a position in my life where you could throw anything at me and I would still emerge strong. Because I was Arya. Alpha Kai’s mate. From being the normal rogue to an alpha’s Luna, I could say that life had its way of surprising you. We just have to be prepared to embrace all these changes and emerge stronger than ever. These weaknesses that we saw as a hurdle must be taken as our weapon leading to a path of success. Nobody could change fate, but I did.