Three figures sneaked out of the Woodland Walker's village as the first light of dawn started to hit the world. Birds chirped around them, dew glowed on the grass below their shoes, and a lone bat circled high in the sky, unnoticed by all of them.
Sheraff led the other three in silence. His mind was still deep in thought and he was in no mood to talk to anyone. He kept trying to force himself to think about who killed his pack members and not his own inadequacies as the alpha, but he wasn't being particularly successful. Levet and Ranfred trooped at the back, occasionally exchanging a quiet word or two.
The sun climbed higher and higher in the sky and the three of them just kept walking. Trekking through the overgrown grass and weeds as the small animals scattered in fear. As noon approached, Sheraff finally stopped.
"Let's stop here for a bit." he said. "We can grab a bite to eat too before we set off again." Levet and Ranfred nodded and set about setting up the camp. Sheraff stared into the clear blue sky, again getting lost in his thoughts.
"You okay?" asked Ranfred coming up behind him. "You've been quiet this whole time."
Sheraff blinked. "Yeah...just lost in thought..."
"Your ability to think is your strength, kid." said Ranfred, lighting up his pipe. "But it is also your weakness. You let it consume you."
Sheraff let out a laugh. "Well, as long as I have you by my side to correct me, old man, I'll be fine." Ranfred grinned and patted him on the back. "Let's pray and eat."
"Pray?" asked Levet as he bent over the roasting rabbit.
"Well, it's you who's cooking. We've gotta pray you don't kill us with your muck." said Ranfred matter of factly.
"Shut the fuck up before I shove this entire rabbit down your throat, old geezer." said Levet.
"Oh, we're the same age, you old coot." said Ranfred. "But your sorry hide still hasn't learned to cook."
"And you can?" challenged Levet. "Your food tastes like fresh cow shit."
"You know the taste because I shoved your face into some back in the day." said Ranfred, blowing a smoke cloud in Levet's face.
"Why, you rotting carcass!" exclaimed Levet stepping up to Ranfred and grabbing him by the front of his shirt. Ranfred raised his fist when he heard Sheraff burst into laughter behind them. Both of them turned around to look at him.
"What're you laughing at?" asked Levet, his hand still raised at Ranfred's face.
"Sun too hot for you, kid?"
Sheraff wiped his eyes and looked at the two old men holding each other by their collars. "Still haven't changed you two, have you?" he asked.
Ranfred grinned in spite of himself and dropped his hands. "Oh, it's this old goat. He always makes my blood boil."
"You haven't got any blood left, you bag of bones." murmured Levet, dropping his hands too. "Now sit down and eat...without complaining. That goes for you too." he added to Sheraff. The alpha grinned and nodded.
* * *
"Will you be able to catch up with them alright?" asked a voice behind Theraff as he was bent over his canvas sheet, rolling it. The silverback turned around to look and saw Wenny standing there in the doorway of his bedroom with her arms crossed, hugging herself as if to get some form of comfort.
Theraff laughed. "You might not know this, but I am fairly strong, you know? I'll be able to handle myself even if I don't reach them in time." Wenny smiled a bit out of politeness, but then relapsed back into worried silence. Theraff stood up and stared into those bright eyes, full of worry and dread...for him! He smiled inwardly in spite of himself.
"I-" stared Theraff but at the same time Wenny looked up and started to speak. "I still don't get why you couldn't leave with the other three." she said, almost accusingly.
Theraff grinned and walked up to her. He put his arms on her shoulder and looked into her eyes. "All four of the toughest wolves leaving at the same time would mean an invitation to trouble if anyone's spying on us. The pack itself would worry."
"But-"
"It's okay." he whispered softly. "I'll be fine. I'll catch up to them by tomorrow night."
Wenny looked worried for a second more, but she closed her eyes and steeled herself. "When do you leave?" she asked, perfectly normally.
Theraff grinned again and let go of her shoulders. "Tomorrow morning." She looked almost crestfallen as soon as his hands were off her but she quickly caught her expression before even Theraff could notice.
"Okay." she nodded slowly.
"Okay." said Theraff.
"I...you..."
Theraff raised his eyebrows. "Yes?"
"Do you want to maybe come to our house to eat dinner?" burst out Wenny. Theraff raised his eyebrows further. Wenny quickly went on. "It's just...just that you always stay in this small little hut all the time, and I thought...I thought we could have a meal together for a change. Feraff's been begging to see his uncle too, and you're leaving soon. So, I thought maybe we could have a meal before-"
"I'd love to." interrupted Theraff quickly before Wenny went into a panic attack. She stopped dead at those words and looked up at his green, twinkling eyes. She blushed a little, smiled, and hurried out.
Later that evening as the sun set, Sheraff's entire house was bursting with a delicious waft of food. Even the people casually passing by were stopping for a second or two just to savor the smell. Theraff, with one hand on the short wooden gate, smiled. Always knew how to cook a meal fit for a king.
In good spirits, he walked up the small porch and walked up to the door. Normally, he'd just barge in, but this time he stopped himself in time. He cleared his throat, straightened his shirt, and knocked.
Almost instantly, it burst open and a kid beamed from inside. "Uncle Therr!" he shouted in glee.
"Feraff!" greeted Theraff, lifting the boy up in the air with enthusiasm. As he looked at the kid, for a moment he thought his nephew looked a little more well-dressed and his hair a little more combed than usual. He forgot the thought as soon as the young werewolf kicked the air and begged to be bounced in the air. Theraff laughed and obliged.
Wennrietta peeked around the kitchen corner with her arms covered in dough, and her hair slightly falling over her eyes. She was wearing a beautiful red dress with a gold brooch in her hair. Her eyes glowing bright with nervousness and happiness at the same time.
Her profile was so stunning to Theraff, that he froze for a second. He caught Wenny's gaze and they both just held it there, stopping time around them. Feraff, whom Theraff had launched into the air started falling down and he screamed as he saw his uncle not catching him. That made both Wenny and Theraff snap out of their fantasies and Theraff swooped in a long arm barely catching Feraff's shirt before he hit the floor.
"You almost dropped me!" accused Feraff, hanging from his shirt like a kitten.
"What're you talking about?" asked Theraff. "I was just testing you to see if you would land on your feet."
"What!?" asked the little boy in disbelief.
"But..." said Theraff, feigning thoughtfulness. "It seems you're not old enough for that."
"I am!" screamed the boy in protest. "Throw me again and I'll land. Please! Please, uncle! Please!"
Theraff laughed and picked the boy up in his arms. He turned to look back at the spot from where Wenny had peeked, and to his disappointment, she'd disappeared.
In a few minutes, Theraff and Feraff were sitting on the table as Wennrietta started to bring out the dishes. Theraff stopped himself from salivating with difficulty; he could almost see the aroma rising from each platter as it was brought out.
As Wennerietta placed a plate in front of Theraff, reaching in over his shoulder, her chest almost brushing his face, he offered to help bring out the rest of the food again, but again, Wennerietta smiled and shook her head. She was thoroughly enjoying serving Theraff...she didn't want him to get up, just wanted to treat him like a king.
Soon enough all the dishes had been served, and Wennerietta sat down on the table across Theraff. Feraff was just staring on in wonder at the food, his eyes almost popping out of his head. The other two at the table however, had eyes only for each other.
Feraff looked up. "Can we eat now, Mom?" he asked pleadingly.
Wennerietta snapped out and gave a smile that illuminated the entire room. "As impatient as always."
"Well, Dad says I take after him." said the boy as his mother poured in some chicken gravy. "Where do you think he is now?" Wennerietta's hand shifted a bit guiltily at the mention of his father, but the boy was too young to catch anything. Theraff wasn't. "How about you stop talking and start digging into this royal feast your mother's prepared for us, eh, sport?" asked Theraff for a wink. "We might have food like nobles, but we don't have to keep up their pretentious manners. Wolf it down, little wolf!" Wennerietta's heart fluttered with gratitude at Theraff's rescue. She looked up at him: he was grinning at Ferraff as the young werewolf attacked his food. She smiled so genuinely, Theraff somehow sensed it. He turned to her and before he could even say anything, Wennerietta read his eyes and shook her head. "It's nothing." she said softly.
For the next hour, barely a word was said between the three. Despite Theraff's remarks about manners being pretentious, he was being hypocritical and was on his best behavior, fit for a royal table. Wennerietta realized that and she glowed inwardly at how much care Theraff was taking just because she was there. Feraff was lost in his own world, munching away at one piquant dish after another. This also made Wennerietta smile; partly because it meant her food had turned out alright, but mostly because it meant that Feraff would be sleepy after such a big meal and would go to bed right away...leaving her alone with Theraff.
And of course, like most mothers, she was right. As Feraff licked clean his umpteenth dish, his eyes started drooping. He let out a big burp and collapsed back on his chair.
Theraff laughed. "You okay, bud?"
"Yes..." muttered Feraff. "I...just ate...like a lot. The food was delicious, Mom."
Wennerietta got up and patted her son's cheek. "It makes me happy to hear you say that, sweetheart." she said. "Now let's get you to bed or you'll fall asleep on the table itself."
"No..." mumbled Feraff. "I...wanna play with...with Uncle. Not...not sleepy."
"Yes, yes." said his mother, picking him up in her arms.
"You...you play with uncle all night instead of me, 'kay...? said Feraff, closing his eyes on his mother's shoulders. A shiver went down Wennerietta's spine at Feraff's words, and she hid the glee in her face by kissing the boy's cheek.
When Wennerietta came back to the table ten minutes later, Theraff wasn't there. For a second her entire world collapsed and she panicked thinking that Theraff had gone back to his house because she'd taken too much time to put Feraff into bed.
"In here." came a voice from the kitchen. Relief came over Wennerietta and she tip toed to the source of the sound. Theraff was standing by the wooden basin, washing dishes. A huge pile of clean plates stood to the side, and Wennerietta felt a pang of despair for having made her king wash dishes.
"You didn't have to do that." she said, softly walking up to Theraff's side.
"No." agreed Theraff. "But I wanted to. You did so much for us...for me...the very least I can do for you is wash these."
"Is that so?" asked Wenny. She was close to Theraff now...very close. Her supple figure was barely half an inch from his huge arms. Theraff felt his heartbeat increase and he also sensed Wenny's increase too.
"Yep." he nodded as he almost shakily put the last dish in the clean bucket.
Wennerietta put her arms around Theraff's large, muscular one. He felt her breasts and his heart rate increased more. She stood on her toes and leaned in to his ear. "Washing dishes isn't all you can do for me though."
Theraff slowly turned around and stared into the brown doe eyes staring up at him. He glanced at the red, quivering lips and swallowed. Her rosy cheeks, her figure in that red dress, her perfect bosom...she was perfect. He felt the tug of arousal and he knew he couldn't stop himself.
Wennerietta just let him scrutinize her entire body. She stood on her toes still, trembling. She wanted him to take charge like he always had all those times before. To pick her up...throw her in bed. She wanted to put her arms around his wide, jaded chest. Wanted to feel the veins on his arms...wanted to feel him...
And he did. They burst into the bedroom before she knew it and she was on her bed and he was on top of her. Theraff was more passionate tonight than she'd ever seen him before. It was almost like he wanted to devour her. She let him do whatever he wanted to her and did whatever he told her to do by pushing and pulling in certain directions.
After what seemed like a long time, Theraff's body finally relaxed and the tension from his muscles dissipated. Wenneritta swallowed strongly, and crawled back up to her pillow beside Theraff. He put his arms around her and kissed her. It was gentle at first and Wennerietta wanted to at least rinse her mouth with a glass of water, but it was apparent Theraff didn't care. That somehow made her more ardent and she zealously returned his kisses. The next few minutes were just spent kissing slobberingly. Then she suddenly felt it again on her naked body. He really is a beast.
Another round of passion took place and it was even better than last time. The entire world and everyone melted away for her. All that remained was the person who was on top of her. She put her arms around his neck and kissed him and he panted.
Finally, again, he stopped. He let out a huge sigh and rolled over off her. Wennerietta let out a huge sigh of exhaustion too and smiled with elation. She looked down her legs and then at Theraff in awe. He turned to her and grinned. That smile made her fall in love with him all over again and she cuddled up to his massive chest. He put his arms around and ran a hand through her hair, almost like a girl would play with her doll. She grinned and kissed his body.
As they held the pose for the next few minutes, the high and passion of the night dissolved a bit. She remembered everything; from her marriage to her son sleeping in the next room. Tears started to form in her eyes. Suddenly, she hated herself. She wanted to leave this skin and just bury herself somewhere far away. She broke down crying. Feeling that heart beat and that bosom...feeling Theraff's hand cuddle her head as he heard her sob...almost like he was expecting that...feeling comforted...made her cry even more.
For a while she cried...just cried. She didn't understand these emotions and didn't want to either. She cried like she'd always cried after she'd sleep with Theraff. She cried because she knew she'd do it again...and then cry again.
After a few minutes, she stopped her sobbing. I can't make Theraff feel guilty. She snuggled in even closer to Theraff's body and wrapped her leg around his huge one. Then she looked up with her tear stained face. "I'm sorry." she said, almost begging.
Theraff looked troubled, but for her he didn't show his own disappointment in himself. "It's...okay-"
"No." said Wenny. "I'm sorry that I was such a coward back then...how I am such a coward." Theraff looked at her a bit confusedly. "I'm sorry." she repeated, tears forming in her eyes again. "I'm sorry I didn't have the courage to stop...to fight...to deny my father when he said I was to marry the alpha. I'm sorry I didn't have the courage to tell him I already loved another..." she looked up into Theraff's green eyes. "I'm sorry I didn't have the courage to tell him I loved you."