"W-wolf!?" Lovino stammered, stepping back. Fear and intrigue coursed through him as he stared into the yellow green eyes.
Antonio let out a chuckle and grinned, his eyes returning to normal, "Yes, wolf. If that's a problem, I'll just be on my way to the treasure and leave you alone."
"No way! I'm not letting you get that treasure all to yourself! Like I said, I know how to handle wolves." Lovino pouted turning his head away and crossing his arms
"Oh, and how is that?" Antonio asked with a smirk, getting closer to Lovino's face. He placed both hands on the wooden wall of the gazebo behind him, trapping Lovino between his arms.
"Like this." Lovino punched Antonio hard in the snout, making a soft crack. Antonio fell to his knees, holding his nose with a whimper.
"Yeah... That'll do it..." He whimpered again, standing up with shaking knees. "So, uh we have an understanding? You activate the clues, I solve them, you don't punch me in the snout and I don't eat your succulent creamy body."
"Creamy?" Lovino asked with grimace
"Very."
"Ok.. I'm going to pretend you never said that, and you're going to tell me what the hell this clue means."
"Oh, yeah it's Jack's Beanstalk." He said with a shrug. "The whole 'Giants in the Sky' thing should have really tipped you off."
"Whatever. Where is it." Lovino asked taking the slipper off, the gold flittering away.
"Pretty far. It's about a three or four day journey. We'll have to stop at the nearest village for supplies."
"Well we can't go back to mine. My family won't let me go if they find out." Lovino said with a sigh.
"We'll go to mine then. Although, it's kind of a wolf village... And well. Unless you're careful, you might... Well, get eaten. Or at least bitten. Most wolves don't take too kindly to Humans in our space."
"Can't you just go in?"
"What? And let you run off with the answer to get the gold yourself? I don't think so brat. You're staying right with me. Besides, I got a sure fire way to make sure they won't attack you. Wolves are all male. We mate with human girls. So we just gotta pass off that you are my very female mate."
"What? Why not just make them believe I'm a wolf?" Lovino asked pouting.
"Lovino. I don't know how many wolves you met in your life but I'm rather small for one." Lovino but his lip looking at Antonio. He was quite a bit taller than he was..."Believe me, you'll be better off pretending to be a woman."
Lovino couldn't believe he was doing this. He folded his arms over his chest, a scowl written across his face. He had been forced into a skirt. He growled at his reflection in the water, before turning to Antonio who could hardly help himself for laughing
"Why do you even have this?" Lovino asked "And why did you have it on your person?"
"A friend left it behind. I was on my way to return it to her a few villages over. But I'm sure she won't mind if I hold onto it for a few more days." He said with a grin. "And you know what. it looks better on you than it ever did on her." He walked around Lovino with a smirk. "Shows off those succulent legs of yours." He brushed his hand on the back of his thighs.
A shiver ran up Lovino's back and he pulled the skirt lower, a dark blush seated across his cheeks.
"Shut up flea bag. What about my hair? And my lack of breasts."
"Easy. Short hair is a fashion after Virginia the great. And your cloak covers your chest and you'll have my coat on you. So as long as you don't get groped you'll be just fine."
"Why do I have to wear your coat?" Lovino asked
"You need my scent on you, so if I can't be right next to you, you won't get hurt or harassed." Antonio took his hand and pulled him down the path. "Now, here's what you'll have to do. You stay quiet. Do not comment on anything, and don't insult anyone." Lovino tugged his hand away from the other pouting. "Don't speak unless you're spoken too. In fact, if I can answer for you, let me. Next, try to stay as close to me as possible. If for some reason I can't stay with you, stay where I put you and if any one asks, you belong to me and I'll be back any second. And don't eat anything anyone offers you unless I tell you it's fine. You got all that?" Antonio asked
"Yeah yeah. Don't talk, don't move, don't eat. What's next, don't breath?"
"Slow even breaths would help."
Lovino smacked Antonio's arm, "Very funny."
"What makes you think I was joking? This is very serious. Erratic behavior, heavy breathing… obvious signs of your nervousness or anger can get them jumping. They could go wild. A wolf or two, I can handle, but if you get a pack after you, there's very little I can do." Antonio said simply, taking his jacket off, and placing it around Lovino's shoulders.
Lovino glared at him, not amused by anything he was having to do just to get a piece of that treasure. He stole one last look at himself before he was dragged away to deal with the wolves for some supplies. Were there even supplies a human could use in such a place? He could only hope so.
Antonio could only grin. Having his scent clinging to Lovino in the way that it was. It only made the young human that much more enticing to him. He shook his head and focused on getting them through the woods while avoiding meeting that man from before and finding his way back to his home. It wasn't nearly as hard as he thought it would be, but it was quite the hike through the trees none the less.
Upon reaching the entrance to the village of wolves, Lovino began to get an idea of just what he was dealing with. Not everyone held a form like Antonio did. No, of course there would be some trotting around in four legged, furry bodies. Almost all eyes were on them as they walked slowly through the village. Lovino swallowed hard and tightened his grip on Antonio's arm. He looked down, deciding to avoid eye contact period. Maybe they would just ignore them.
Unfortunately for him, that wasn't the case. No less than three wolves walked up all sniffing and interested in what Antonio had clinging to him.
They began barraging Antonio with question after question. "Who's this?", "She's cute, where'd you find her?", and "Is she your mate?" to name a few, though some got deep and personal and Lovino had to remind himself that these were very dangerous creatures he was dealing with before he ended up yelling at them for their lack of personal space.
Antonio was able to keep his cool, simply pulling Lovino closer to him while glaring at the other wolves. He gave them a warning smile, coupled with a soft growl. Most of them seemed to get the idea, backing off.
Antonio pulled Lovino into a store buying a backpack, matches, water tin, a pan and a few other things. He quickly paid for them and pulled Lovino out of the store without a word.
"Now, lets get some food. I think I can get us a ride to Golden Locks, which is about a day walk from the Beanstalk. We'll be able to rest and regroup there." Antonio told him "Now this is a pub I frequent. We'll just eat silently, and I'll get us a ride from a buddy of mine. Nice guy, doesn't mind people. He does a lot of the goods transport of the village and his pack."
Lovino nodded, pulling down his skirt again as Antonio pulled him into the pub. It was crowded and smelled bad. Lovino grimaced and tried not to glance around too much in fear one of them would notice he wasn't what he appeared to be. These wolves looked much tougher and meaner than the ones out in the streets, which made him question Antonio a bit.
He jumped when a brutish man stood up and stomped over to them. There was scarring on his face and his bare arms were covered in hair. Lovino swallowed hard, his stomach twisting with nerves as he hesitantly looked upwards at the man.
The man let out a soft rumbling grunt, " 'Scuse me…" he huffed, stepped around them.
Lovino felt relief washing over him, thinking that wolf was about to start a fight, one which Antonio and himself might lose considering that man towered over Antonio a good eight inches at least.
Antonio led him over to a corner and they sat down. Lovino felt immensely uncomfortable in this place. He looked up as a woman walked over. She had thick ropy scars diagonally sweeping across her wrinkled face, her grey hair up in a neat bun
"Can I take your order?" Her voice was gruff and scratchy.
"Two chicken plates." Antonio replied "And water." She gave a hum in response before walking off.
"What happened to her?" Lovino whispered.
"She's the mate of a Greyback, the oldest wolf in these woods. They say he's at least three hundred years old, and knew Snow White but that's just rumor. He's probably only like eighty." Antonio said with a shrug. "That's what happens when your a mate of a wolf, especially bigger and more violent ones."
"What, he like, hit her?"
"Not on purpose. During the full moon, we get... Twitchy. One wrong move and Swat. Scars and cuts. Most of the time we try to make sure we're as far from people we like as possible. We just hunt in the woods and get in fights with each other."
Lovino shrunk in on himself a bit. What had he gotten himself into? Would he end up like the old woman with scars all over his face from Antonio? Antonio seemed much more human than some of theses other wolves...
His thoughts were interrupted by two plates of meat being dropped onto the table in front of him. Antonio grinned helping himself, chewing and gnawing on the meat. Lovino looked at him, his stomach turning. while he seemed more human than these other wolves, he was still a wolf. He looked down at his own plate and poked at the food before hesitantly picking it up to nibble at it. The man found himself not all that hungry, but he did still need to eat something before they left.
Antonio was quick to finish his food. He grabbed up the cloth napkin and cleaned off his hands and face and looked up at Lovino, "Eat up, I have to find my friend before he leaves and we're stuck here or end up walking."
Lovino nodded and quickly swallowed down the food. There was no way he was wanting to stay here for any longer than he had to. He wanted to get out of the skirt and out of danger.
Once he was finished, he looked up at Antonio.
The wolf was glaring off at the people around him, almost daring them to try anything. He got up, "Come on now." he said to Lovino, who nodded and immediately clung to Antonio as they walked across the room. However, instead of leaving like Lovino had hoped, they sat down at another table where a man was enjoying a thick hearty soup.
"I need to talk to you about a favor…" Antonio said softly to him.
"'pends on what it is." He said finishing his soup. "You may be my little brother but that doesn't mean I'm at your beck and call." the wolf looked up with his ice blue eyes.
"I know, but I really need this." Antonio licked his lips, shifting a bit in his seat, "Dimas, I'm leaving for a while and I don't know when I'll be back. Could be a week, could be a few months. I've got most of what I need for this trip for me and my… mate." he said, hoping his brother didn't see straight through his lie. "I only have one thing left I need before I head out of here and it's mom's book."
Dimas raised his brow, "The one she read us as pups?"
"That's the one exactly!" Antonio perked up a bit, "Please tell me you still have it."
The wolf leaned back and crossed his arms, eyes darting between the two, "Why do you need it? Planning pups of your own soon or something? Hard to travel with those little buggers running around your feet."
Antonio and Lovino both went red and Lovino turned, covering his face in both horror and embarrassment. He hated being mistaken for a woman.
"No! No, I just miss her is all. I'm going to be gone and want a piece of home to take with me." only partially true. Antonio needed it because it was important to their particular mission.
"Fine." he said, "I'll get it for you." Dimas dropped some gold on the table to pay for his food before he got up, "Come on."
"Actually, I have to go procure our ride out of here before he leaves. Can you meet me in the market?" Antonio asked.
Dimas turned a glare, "I'm not your errand boy, Antonio."
"Fine, then if you can't bring us the book, you'll take us to where we have to go." Antonio nodded.
"In your dreams. You'll go without either. Now just get out of here before I get mad at you." Dimas muttered, turning to leave the pub.
"Dimas, wait!" Antonio grabbed Lovino's arm and ran after him, "Please just go get the book and bring it to me. I can't leave without it and I really would like to get out of here before our ride leaves."
"If I go get you the book, will you stop begging like a damn pup? It's like you never grew up." He muttered, rubbing the back of his neck.
"Yes~!" Antonio grinned, bouncing lightly.
"Alright, fine, I'll bring you the damn book…" he said, "but you owe me one." he pointed at him as he turned to leave.
Antonio smiled triumphantly before pulling Lovino from the pub, "There, so once he brings me that book, I can show you about the old ancient stories of old. It's the main reason I love history as much as I do. Oh, my mother could read me that book a thousand times and I'd still never tire of the stories. If our clues follow the previous one, the book might actually come in handy while you're activating the clues." he looked around, "Ah, and there's my buddy who'll take us to Golden Locks!" he grinned.
Lovino just grumbled lightly and continued by his side towards the man loading up a cart.
"Hey old friend… I need a favor to ask you…" Antonio smiled sheepishly.
The man looked up, "Gotta make it quick, Toni, I have to be in Bloomberg by morning and you know how far that is. I just hope Betty can keep up. She's getting so old." he patted his mare's side.
"Wait, Bloomberg? I thought you went to the castle this time of year…?" Bloomberg was opposite the way they needed to go.
"I usually do, but someone out there in Bloomberg is paying a lot more for my supplies than in the market out by that old castle. I go where the money goes." he said, "So about that favor?"
"Nevermind, what we needed was a ride to Golden Locks…" Antonio smiled, "But thank you anyway." he watched as his friend hopped up into the cart and drove his horse off down the road. "Now what…?" Antonio said.
"There you are." Dimas said walking up with an old leather bound book. He handed it to Antonio, "Anything else before I'm rid of you for awhile." he teased.
"Actually…" Antonio said, looking at Lovino then to Dimas, "We need a ride."
Dimas grumbled to himself. His baby brother had huge puppy eyes, near impossible to say no to. He strapped the horse up to the cart and looked over as Antonio happily shoved their supplies onto the cart. He glanced at Antonio's supposed mate. There was something off and he'd noticed it from the start, but he wasn't going to bring it up with other's able to hear what they were talking about. He knew she wasn't Antonio's mate. It just wasn't possible for Dimas to be his brother and not notice something so fishy. The 'mate' may have Antonio scent all over her, but it wasn't part of her. The other wolves might be fooled, but Dimas wasn't. If he was taking them anywhere, he was going to find out.
"We're ready." Antonio said, helping Lovino up onto the cart.
"Good. The sooner we get this over with, the sooner I can come back home." Dimas said, hopping up onto the bench. He grabbed up his reins and snapped them. The horses attached quickly began moving, taking the three from the town.
Dimas glanced over at Antonio and the other, "I don't know her name."
"Who?" Antonio blinked, looking over at his brother.
"Your mate." he replied, raising his brow, "The woman sitting beside you."
Antonio's face went red and he chuckled, "Oh, um… her n-name… it's… um… it's…"
Lovino stared in horror as their lie was quickly crumbling right before them. "C-Chiara!" he said, making his voice as soft and sweet as his normal baritone voice could get, "I'm Chiara."
"Uh.. huh…" Dimas said, turning his eyes to the road. An uncomfortable silence fell over them.
It was about an hour later when Dimas turned and looked at them again, "Alright, you're away from the village, tell me what the hell is going on and why you said you're mated but anyone who got a good sniff can tell you aren't."
Lovino looked at Antonio, sweat beading on his brow. Would they be forced to walk if Dimas found out about them?
Antonio licked his lips, "You noticed…? It was because I didn't want her getting hurt while we got supplies. You know how rowdy we get when there's a new person in town, especially one as juicy and succulent as this one. And as far as our travels are, it's trying to get her home. She has a wicked stepmother who went and kicked her out of the house! but she did it while they were traveling, leaving poor Chiara all on her own wandering through the woods. So i decided to be a good little wolf and help her home."
Dimas raised his brow, "That sounds like you pulled that out of every story mom ever told you."
Antonio just went silent. He trusted his brother but he didn't know how the man would react to the truth. It was hard to say and he honestly didn't want to mess around with the chances. Especially when Lovino was terribly important to their little treasure hunt. He was the key to everything and chasing him off or letting him get hurt was not only a terrible idea, it was cringeworthy for the wolf.
"Yeah. Um, I'm a guy." Lovino said before Antonio could even think of another story.