Trap of the King Alpha Triplet

Emily's

POV.

I stared at the triplets like they'd each grown an extra head. "You want to do what now?"

Leo, ever the picture of cool confidence, leaned against my bedroom doorframe. "We have to get out here, moon pie."

I blinked, sure I must have misheard. "Have you all gone completely insane? Now? In case you've forgotten, we're kind of in the middle of trying to stop an evil plot to bind my powers and possibly destroy the supernatural world as we know it." Logan, perched on the edge of my bed, rolled his eyes. "Gee, when you put it like that, it almost sounds serious."

I threw a pillow at him, which he caught effortlessly. Show-off.

"Come on, Em," Luca pleaded, giving me his best puppy dog eyes. And let me tell you, when a werewolf does puppy dog eyes, it's pretty darn effective. "We've been cooped up in this castle for weeks. We're going stir-crazy."

"Plus," Leo added, his expression turning serious, "the closer we get to the full moon ceremony, the more on edge everyone's going to be. This might be our last chance to move around the city freely and maybe pick up some intel." I chewed on my lower lip, considering. They had a point. We had been hitting the books hard, and while we'd made some progress in understanding the prophecy, we were still frustratingly short on concrete evidence of the royal family's involvement with the Rogue Alliance.

"I don't know, guys," I said hesitantly. "What if someone recognizes us?"

Luca's face lit up with a mischievous grin that usually meant trouble. "That's the best part. We're going incognito."

Before I could ask what he meant, he produced a bag seemingly out of nowhere and dumped its contents onto my bed. Out spilled an assortment of clothes, wigs, and what looked suspiciously like magical disguise charms. "Where did you even get all this?" I asked, picking up a blonde wig that was definitely not my style.

"Let's just say I know a guy," Luca said with a wink.

I raised an eyebrow. "Do I want to know?"

"Probably not," Logan and Leo said in unison.

I sighed, looking at their eager faces. It was clear they'd put a lot of thought into this, and if I was being honest with myself, a day away from the castle did sound tempting.

"Fine," I conceded, unable to keep the smile off my face as they whooped in celebration. "But if we get caught, I'm blaming all of you."

"Deal," Leo said, his golden eyes sparkling with excitement. "Now, let's get you dressed, little witch. We've got a city to explore."

An hour later, I barely recognized myself in the mirror. Gone were my usual jeans and t-shirt, replaced by a flowy sundress in a soft lilac color. The blonde wig Luca had brought framed my face in gentle waves, and a pair of color-changing contacts turned my green eyes a striking blue. A simple glamour charm completed the look, subtly altering the shape of my features.

"Wow," I breathed, turning to face the boys. "This is actually pretty impressive."

The triplets had undergone their own transformations. Leo's dark hair was now a sandy blonde, his golden eyes hidden behind brown contacts. Logan sported a shaggy red wig and freckles that made him look boyishly charming. And Luca... well, Luca had somehow managed to make himself look like a punk rocker, complete with a blue mohawk and multiple fake piercings.

"Looking good, little witch," Luca said with an exaggerated wink. "Though I gotta say, I prefer the original model."

I felt my cheeks heat up, remembering our moonlit kisses from the other night. We hadn't really talked about it since then, too caught up in our research and planning. But the memory of their lips on mine, their hands roaming my body... it was enough to make my pulse quicken. Leo must have noticed my flushed face because his eyes darkened, a knowing smirk playing at his lips. "Ready to go, Em?"

I nodded, not trusting my voice. As we made our way through the castle, using secret passages Luca had somehow discovered (again, I decided not to ask how), I couldn't help but feel a thrill of excitement. We were breaking the rules, sneaking out like normal teenagers. It was exhilarating.

We emerged from a hidden door in the castle wall, blinking in the bright sunlight. Lunaris sprawled before us, a glittering metropolis of glass and steel interspersed with ancient stone buildings. The air thrummed with magic and the buzz of supernatural beings going about their daily lives.

"Wow," I breathed, taking it all in. "It's beautiful."

"Just wait till you see it up close," Logan said, offering me his arm with an exaggerated bow. "Shall we, milady?"

I laughed, linking my arm with his. "We shall, good sir."

As we made our way into the heart of the city, I felt like I'd stepped into another world. Werewolves in business suits rushed past, talking on sleek phones. A group of what looked like pixies fluttered past, their wings shimmering in the sunlight. And was that... yes, that was definitely a troll manning a hot dog stand.

"This is incredible," I said, unable to keep the wonder out of my voice. "I've never seen so many different supernatural beings in one place."

"Lunaris is the supernatural melting pot," Leo explained, his hand resting comfortably on the small of my back as he guided me through the crowded streets. "Beings from all over the world come here to trade, study, or just experience city life without having to hide who they are."

We spent the morning exploring, ducking into quirky shops and sampling food from street vendors. I tried moon fruit ice cream, which literally glowed and tasted like starlight. We browsed a bookstore run by a kindly old witch whose cat familiar kept trying to curl up in my bag. And Luca insisted we visit a joke shop that sold things like self-juggling balls and candies that made you speak in rhyme for an hour.

As we were leaving the joke shop, a commotion down the street caught our attention. A crowd had gathered, their voices raised in anger.

"What's going on?" I asked, standing on tiptoe to try and see over the crowd.

Logan's face darkened as he caught sight of something. "Trouble," he growled.

We pushed our way through the crowd, and I gasped at what I saw. A young werewolf boy, probably no older than twelve, was cowering against a wall. Surrounding him were three much larger beings - a vampire with gleaming fangs, a hulking ogre, and what looked like a harpy.

"Please," the boy whimpered, "I didn't mean to bump into you. I'm sorry!"

The vampire sneered, his red eyes glowing with malice. "Sorry isn't good enough, pup. I think we need to teach you a lesson about respecting your elders."

I felt anger boil up inside me. Before I could think better of it, I stepped forward. "Hey! Leave him alone!"

The supernatural bullies turned to face me, their expressions a mix of amusement and annoyance.

The harpy cackled, her feathers rustling menacingly. "Looks like we've got ourselves a little hero."

I felt the triplets tense beside me, ready for a fight. But I wasn't about to let this escalate into a brawl in the middle of the street.

"Look," I said, trying to keep my voice steady, "why don't we all just calm down? The kid apologized. There's no need for this to get ugly."

The ogre took a lumbering step towards me, his breath hot and rancid. "And what are you going to do about it, little girl?"

I felt my magic stir within me, responding to the threat. But before I could do anything, Leo was there, stepping between me and the ogre.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," he said, his voice low and dangerous. Even without his usual appearance, the alpha power in his tone was unmistakable.

The vampire's eyes narrowed. "This doesn't concern you, boy. Walk away while you still can."

Luca laughed, the sound sharp and challenging. "Now where's the fun in that?"

What happened next was almost too fast for me to follow. The harpy lunged at Logan, her talons flashing. But Logan was faster, ducking under her strike and coming up with a right hook that sent her reeling.

The ogre roared, charging at Leo like a freight train. But Leo, with his supernatural reflexes, simply sidestepped, letting the ogre's momentum carry him face-first into a nearby fruit stand.

The vampire, realizing he was outmatched, turned to flee. But Luca was there, grinning like a maniac as he clothes-lined the bloodsucker, sending him sprawling.

In less than a minute, it was over. The three supernatural bullies lay groaning on the ground, thoroughly trounced.

I rushed over to the young werewolf, who was staring at us with wide, awestruck eyes. "Are you okay?" I asked, kneeling down beside him.

He nodded, a tentative smile breaking across his face. "That was amazing! How did you do that?"

I glanced back at the triplets, who were busy zip-tying the bullies' hands (where did they even get zip-ties?). "Let's just say we've had some practice," I said with a wink.

As the local supernatural law enforcement arrived to take statements and haul away the troublemakers, we slipped away, not wanting to draw too much attention to ourselves.

"Well," Luca said as we ducked into a quiet alley, "that was fun. Nothing like a little ass-kicking to work up an appetite. Who's hungry?"

I stared at him incredulously. "We just got into a fight with a vampire, an ogre, and a harpy, and you're thinking about food?"

He shrugged, unrepentant. "Hey, being a badass burns a lot of calories."

I couldn't help but laugh, the adrenaline from the fight still coursing through my veins. "You guys are unbelievable."

Leo's arm slipped around my waist, pulling me close. "You weren't so bad yourself, little witch. Standing up to those goons like that? Pretty brave."

I felt my cheeks heat up at the praise. "I couldn't just stand by and watch them hurt that kid."

"And that," Logan said, pressing a quick kiss to my temple, "is one of the many reasons we love you."

My heart skipped a beat at his casual use of the L-word. We hadn't said it out loud yet, but I could feel it growing between us, as inevitable as the tide.

As we made our way to a nearby café for a late lunch, I couldn't help but feel like we were being watched. I kept catching glimpses of movement out of the corner of my eye, but every time I turned to look, there was nothing there. "Guys," I said quietly as we sat down at an outdoor table, "I think we might have a tail."

The boys tensed, their playful demeanor vanishing in an instant. "Where?" Leo asked, his eyes scanning the crowd.

"I'm not sure," I admitted. "It's just a feeling. Like someone's following us."

Logan nodded, his expression grim. "I've felt it too. Thought I was just being paranoid."

"What do we do?" I asked, suddenly wishing we were back in the safety of the castle.

Luca grinned, but there was a dangerous edge to it. "We spring the trap."

Before I could ask what he meant, he stood up abruptly. "I'm gonna hit the restroom. Be right back."

As he sauntered off, I saw a flicker of movement in the crowd. A figure in a dark cloak, moving in the same direction as Luca.

"There," I hissed, nodding toward the cloaked figure.

Leo and Logan exchanged glances. "Stay here," Leo said, his voice leaving no room for argument. "We'll handle this."

They got up casually, as if simply stretching their legs. But I could see the predatory grace in their movements as they melted into the crowd, following our mysterious tail.

I sat there, my heart pounding, feeling utterly useless. I was about to say screw it and go after them when a familiar voice made me freeze.

"Quite a lovely day, isn't it?"

I turned slowly, coming face to face with none other than Garrett. He was dressed in casual clothes, a far cry from his usual formal attire. But there was something off about him, a tension in his shoulders that hadn't been there before. "Professor Garrett," I said, trying to keep my voice steady. "What a surprise to see you here."