Disclaimer: I don't own the Mortal Instruments. If I did, Lucian would be mine and Jace would be locked in my basement away from his fangirls. I do, however own Luna. She is completely mine, so no stealing my puppet.
Being a pack leader had its ups and downs. In one aspect, you have friends, and a family. We were dysfunctional and violent, and all of us turned into huge, monstrous wolves, but we were a family nonetheless. Some of the wolves were just passerby. They stayed because they needed food or a place to stay, or a combination of both. It was understandable. Most lycanthropes felt more comfortable being loners. Personally, I thought these wolves were the most interesting. Most of them knew how to watch and listen to facts and secrets that only a werewolf would be interested in. Like how someone smelled or how they acted around others of their species. (Yes, it has come in handy before, but that's a story for another time.) Some, like Bat, bought a home and stayed there most of the time, but there were others like Freaky Pete who owned bars or small businesses. Pete owned the downtown werewolf bar, the Hunter's Moon, where almost every lycan in the area hung out. Most, however, stayed at the glamoured police station that acted as a headquarters of sorts. It was rundown, and kind of ugly, but if you needed a place to stay, that was it. I am classified under those who had bought property. I own a bookstore, and I live behind it. It's not exactly what you'd call a bachelor pad, but it worked for what I needed it for. A place to stay, and on occasion, have someone stay over. Being an alpha still sucked, though. On the other hand, the pack leader was always a little more separate from the pack. If he or she got to close, they appeared weak. If they were too far away from their pack, they appeared almost dictator-like. It was unfair, but that's how things worked. You either sucked it up and dealt with it, or you left the pack. So, yes, I was part of the pack. However, I was still separate from them. They treated me like a superior, not a friend, or brother. I was used to this. Everyone had always treated me this way. Until her, Luna. She treated me like a father. Which, I have to be honest, I found a bit odd. Other than Clary, I never thought anyone saw me as a father. Unless you counted Simon, but he had a mother and a sister, and since he was a vampire now, he didn't hang around much. It was a shame really. I wanted him to meet Luna. I think he'd like her. Everyone else did.
I'd first met her when she'd first Turned, and a few times after that. Luna was a tall, 17 year old lycanthrope. I had stumbled across her in the park. She was shifting back from her first turn, and a moan of pain had escaped her lips. Taking off my jacket, I had wrapped it around her, and picked her up in my arms, starting the walk back to the old police station the pack was using as its' headquarters. She shifted slightly in my arms, and I automatically looked down. Her eyelids opened to reveal dark violet eyes when she looked up at me. Dark onyx hair framed her violet eyes. Roses are red, violets are blue… my mind whispered. I shook my head to clear it. She needed help, not someone who was daydreaming about lines to poems. She wore a black tank top and her ripped, bleach-splattered skinny jeans were tucked into black high-heel boots. She started to struggle but it ended in her gasping in pain, so I held on to her tighter. "It's alright…" I trailed off. I knew from personal experience how much the first moon of being a wolf hurt. Age helped you though, and eventually you could change at will, with little or no pain at all. "Luna. My name is Luna." She whispered before passing back out. "Luna." I whispered more to myself than her. A small smirk lifted the corner of my mouth. Irony had a serious sense of humor, it appeared. A werewolf named Luna.
After that day I only saw her once or twice, but from what I heard (which was quite a lot) she was getting along with everyone famously. I smiled in spite of myself. According to what I heard from the other wolves, Luna was a bit of an oddball. Unlike Clary, Luna had a more playful side. She knew how to relax and have fun. She cracked jokes at inappropriate moments and talked about modern things like video games and music that didn't make sense to anyone but her and a few of the newer lycans. They all listened to her, though. Every time she spoke, people listened. Even if you didn't know what she was talking about. Everyone loved her. I didn't know her that well, so when she came up to me one day, asking if I could be her father, I was shocked. I'd never really given thought to having kids or adopting. The pack was mostly my family. Besides Amatis, but she doesn't really count. When Valentine forced her to forget me, then divorce her husband because I was her brother; I don't think she every really got over it. Somewhere in her mind, a place still blames me for what happened. A small part, maybe, but still a part. I thought of Clary as my own, but no matter how much I wished it, she was her mother's daughter. The Shadowhunter in her wanted to fight, so she trained with Jace and the Lightwoods at the Institute. I was stuck in shocked silence. Seeing my face, she hurried to explain, "It's just that I never really had a dad and you were the one that helped when I first Turned…" she trailed off. My silence must have stretched for a while because she had bitten her lip, wondering why I hadn't responded, when I suddenly picked her up and spun her in a circle. "I would love to be your father, Luna." I had said.She smiled up at me and I knew that I had made the right choice. Her smile could have given the sun a run for its money the way it lit up. "Thanks Dad." She said with a playful giggle. She hugged me back and I set her down. I smiled again. Luna had grabbed me hand and led me downstairs to announce to everyone the good news. I hadn't felt this happy since I'd found Jocelyn with Clary… but then I had really only been relieved to have found her. Jocelyn didn't want help; she didn't need it much either.
That was about a month ago. Luna had moved what little stuff she had salvaged from her old apartment into my house behind the bookstore. She spent most of her time in the bookstore, reading books, or putting them on shelves. She and Maia helped me a lot when it came to the bookstore. It worked out for all of us; they put the books on shelves, and I paid them in credits so they could buy, or borrow some of them to read. That's where I found her now. She was dressed in denim shorts with a white swirly design on them and a white tank top that said Boys in books are better with black and white Converse. She was standing on the ladder muttering various titles under her breath and then putting the book in its correct place on the shelf. "Hey, Lu." I said. She jumped and almost fell off the ladder. "Luke!" she gasped. I frowned. "I didn't mean to scare you. It's not like I did it on purpose, you know." Jumping down off the ladder, she walked towards me, visibly annoyed. "Next time stomp your feet or cough or something." She sighed and picked up a random book form the box next to her. "Books can be dangerous, you know. The best ones should be labeled: "This could change your life."" Then she snorted and dropped the book back in the box. "If only they created books and movies that accurately described what lycanthropes are. Though, I suppose its better that the mundane don't know about us. You only see lycans in books and really bad movies." I shook my head, smiling. "You ready for lunch?" Nodding, she came over and laid her head on my shoulder. "Thank you, Lucian." She said quietly after a moment. She was the only one in the pack that called me that. To everyone else, I was Luke Garroway. "For what?" I asked turning to look at her. She tilted her head up to look at me, and said, "For being the father I never had." I tightened my grip around her and led her back towards the kitchen. "You're welcome, Lu. You're welcome."