This was her second night here and she still didn't feel comfortable. The noises were so different and the sheets didn't have her scent in them. She couldn't find comfort in any familiar smells. No matter how much she tossed and turned, she knew she wasn't going to get any restful sleep again tonight. Every noise made her suspicious of possible intruders.
Lillian huffed and sat up. She took off her nightgown and transformed into a wolf. At least this way she could defend herself against attack. She shook her fur out and climbed back into bed. Curling into a ball, she tucked her nose in her tail. Finally, she felt calm enough to close her eyes and, with any luck, pass out soon.
---
The sun woke her up as did the growls outside her window. She padded over to the windows, opened them, and looked down into the courtyard. There was that familiar gray wolf snarling at a similar sized dark brown wolf. They were attacking each other quite violently. A whine escaped her muzzle as Lillian tried to find something in her room to distract them from harming themselves. A short bark called her attention back to the duo. The gray wolf was looking up at her with his tongue out like a happy pup. The brown wolf was taking the opportunity to lick his fur.
"What activity are you two partaking in so early in the morning?" She asked.
"We were just sparing. Morning is the best time to stretch the body," Claude replied happily, looking like a pup who had just had a treat.
"So it was just sparing? No blood shed?" She asked, looking both of them over.
"There was none. Thank you for your concern, my lady," the new wolf said, bowing to her.
"Hm, carry on then. Please, no shedding of blood," she told them before retreating back into her room.
She returned to her bed and listened to the two wolves spar some more as she tried to return to sleep. She just started to doze off when she heard a knock on her door. Lillian jumped off and pawed at the door handle to open it. Who was calling at this hour?
The prince was there in his human form looking down at her. Lillian was mortified that he could now see her full wolf form. Even in wolf form it was improper for ladies not to wear some sort of jewelry at the very least.
"My prince! I apologize! L-let me get dressed!" She stuttered as she tried to shield herself from his view with the door.
He stepped inside her room and closed the door. He looked her over and smiled a little.
"There is no need. You will be my mate soon so we both will be seeing more of each other," he said as he kneeled before me.
She shifted her weight between her front paws as he came down to her eye level. This was the second time he had her flustered by his actions. What was his ultimate goal in doing this to her?
"I must thank you for your concern about us while sparing. You are very sweet," Claude said softly.
"I was simply making sure you weren't executing someone under my window," she huffed and looked away.
He ran his hands through her light brown fur and smiled at her. She stiffened herself so she wouldn't melt into his touch. She never allowed others to touch her like this but it definitely felt very good and she couldn't hide her wagging tail.
Prince Rawls shifted into his own wolf form and licked her nose. It was more acceptable to display affection in wolf forms than in their human form which was generally considered more sexual. She let him bump his muzzle against hers and rub their noses together. Seeing that she don't reject his advances, he continues and becomes a little bolder. He bumped his body against hers and licked her muzzle some more. For humans the equivalent would be hugging and some kissing on the cheek.
It was an interesting feeling to have affection given to her from another wolf. Lillian inadvertently let out a little whine of delight as he continued to lick her muzzle and snuggled up against her body.
He stopped in his affection and stared at her in delight. She looked away embarrassed by how easy it was to get such an unladylike response from her. He nuzzled his nose against her neck in an attempt to get her to look at him. She turned her gaze back to him and saw his tongue out and his ears alert towards her.
"Do you really accept my proposal?" He asked with excitement in his eyes.
She nodded. "It's not the worst option available to me."
His face fell and he honestly looked wounded. His tail and ears had fallen too making him look so sad.
"You are allowed to reject me and leave," he said with sadness in his voice.
"Are you hard of hearing? It's not the worst option available to me so I accept your proposal," Lillian repeated herself.
"That's not exactly what I was expecting to hear," he replied.
"What were you expecting to hear? Love at first sight? That's only in romance novels," she said with a little chuckle, "you seem to be a very nice gentleman who respects my wishes. I appreciate that."
He didn't reply and continued to stare at her with a look of deep thought.
"Did you want me to fawn over you?" she was confused about what he could want from her.
"No… I'm not sure what I really expected," he said softly before turning back into a human, "I need to get back to my work. I will see you at dinner tonight."
He got up and left her room. After that he left her alone, wondering if she had said something wrong?