Out of our way! the silver-white wolf growls.
No, Sebastian's wolf answers. I cannot let you leave.
The boy's wolf bears his teeth and stomps the ground, showing an example of the might he wishes he had, trying to make it clear that his demand is not a request; it's a warning.
The silver wolf, however, does not budge.
And that's where they stay, both wolves standing in silent confrontation, the smaller wolf holding his ground when the only two things he can think of doing are running from this place or collapsing from exhaustion. As a lone wolf, he would have probably chosen the latter, given himself up to this apex wolf as his mate in exchange for a comfortable life with no more running, no more hiding, and the prospect of love. His boy had been right – this wolf could make him happy. The boy's wolf hears it in the other wolf's thoughts, which he sends below his spoken words, a subliminal thread carried along with his scent of raw desire, of passion, of promise and protection. Staying here in this secluded compound, on its private stretch of land, is definitely preferable to what awaits them outside the stone façade, but this decision isn't only about him. The ways of wolves are different than the ways of humans.
The smaller wolf might be sure of this larger wolf's intentions towards him.
But what of the human's intentions toward his boy?
It's too big a risk to take for the sake of his own happiness. There are bigger issues involved, important things at stake.
The wolf had sworn to protect his boy. It's a vow that he holds dear.
Bathed in a ray of silvery moonlight, the two wolves are rendered momentarily identical in color, a perfect match, until the larger wolf steps forward, and the smaller wolf steps back, his fur slightly whiter in the shadows than that of his pursuer.
I said, out of our way, wolf! the trapped wolf repeats, desperate to get his boy outside to the fresh air. The wolf feels his boy suffering, long weeks of being forced to lie still in the dark, in the heat, in the stench of rot and death, taking its toll. It hasn't only weakened the boy's body, but his mind and his heart.
They would have lasted only a little while longer in that narrow, metal cage. Now, a few feet from freedom, blocked from their escape, the last of the boy's will has started to wither.
"Come now, my handsome mate," Sebastian taunts from inside the mind of his great silver companion, "don't play coy. You're up and about now. Your strength seems to be returning. Maybe we should get started on your training, hmm? Teach you how to obey and be a good little subservient wolf. Right, Moondancer?"
Stop calling us that! the boy's wolf growls, fur bristling like a bottle brush from his neck down his back, his tail twitching and flicking in anger.
Then give us another name, Sebastian's wolf suggests. For example – my human is called Sebastian, and my name is Cloudwalker.
There's a second of silence, followed by a high-pitched snicker, and even though it's very much at his expense, the large wolf welcomes it.
Cloudwalker? the younger wolf chuckles. And how in the world did you get stuck with that name?
Nu-uh. I gave you information, the silver wolf says evenly. It's your turn.
I'm not playing your game, wolf. You will get nothing from us!
Not from the both of you, the wolf reasons. Just you.
The smaller wolf backs away further, though he has nowhere to go, his rear haunches already pressed against the wall.
What do you mean, just me? he asks. There is no just me. It is both of us, or neither of us.
Yes – the silver wolf steps closer, hoping his mate will change his mind about trying to leave before he has to do something rash - but isn't that a bit unreasonable? Your needs and your human's needs differ.
They do not, the silver-white wolf lies.
But they do, Cloudwalker growls. You cannot lie to me. The wolf inches closer, fully upon the smaller wolf. He runs his muzzle down the smaller wolf's neck and takes a deep sniff. I can smell it on you. You want me. You know you do, precious. And you should. We are one and the same, you and I. You may be at a different point in life than your human, but not to worry. Your human and mine are compatible as well.
You cannot know that. The smaller wolf shakes his head a growls, making as ferocious a false display as he can, but the strength he had left starts to wane. Much more of this stalling and his pent up energy, mostly fueled by a spike of adrenaline, will have been wasted on this conversation.
The boy's wolf suspects that Cloudwalker knows this, hence this lengthy and unnecessary debate when Cloudwalker could just tackle him to the ground and force him to submit. In his current condition, the silver-white wolf couldn't fend him off if he wanted to.
I can know that, Sebastian's wolf insists. I do know it, and you do, too.
Cloudwalker's scent becomes overwhelming. The boy's wolf longs to surrender to him, but he fights, whimpering from the effort.
"It's true," the boy whispers to his wolf, struggling with defeat as the words leave his lips. "He's right. You and he are a match. And his human and I" – the boy sighs in his wolf's head – "we can make it work. I'm sure of it."
It's getting harder and harder for you to resist, Cloudwalker presses, nose to nose with his reluctant mate, knowing that the wolf is in contact with the boy. This silver moon only comes around once every few months, and one this powerful…I don't know if we shall ever see one like it again in our lifetime.
Don't be so dramatic, the small wolf hisses, caught between Cloudwalker's words trying to reign victorious in his head, and his boy's words settling sympathetically in his heart.
It's the truth, and you know it, Cloudwalker continues. Think about what having a mate with a match to your power can do for you. Think of your future. Think of your boy!
The boy's wolf lashes out. Infuriated by Cloudwalker's gall and his assumptions, the smaller wolf pushes against him, barking wildly and nipping him on the muzzle. But that move backfires. The bite has an opposite effect to the one the smaller wolf had wanted. Instead of backing down, Cloudwalker gasps at the seductive sting of his mate's teeth biting into his skin. He breathes deep his scent. Signals in that scent mix, confusion conquering desire, but the desire is there, and it only gets stronger. A bite and his scent may be all the silver wolf gets, and it will never be enough.
I am thinking of my boy! the boy's wolf spits in disgust, knowing that the larger wolf's thoughts have drifted to bonding, mating…and other physical rituals.
No. No you're not, the larger wolf says, his thoughts returning. Because if you were thinking of him, you'd realize that you are in a perfect position to protect him…here, behind our walls. One silver wolf is strong, but a bonded pair – think of how magnanimous we would be together. There isn't a power on all this earth that could touch us, or your human. He would be safe - for the rest of his life, safe. You could be sure of it.
"He's right," the boy says, speaking only to his wolf. "You and I, we need to heal, we need the chance to get stronger…and we both need protecting."
We've done fine on our own so far, the wolf argues, wondering why, if he has his human's blessing to stay, is he still arguing?
Probably because he needs to know that his human won't be giving in just to make his wolf happy. That's not the way their relationship is supposed to work. One isn't supposed to give up everything for the other.
"Until we got captured," the boy counters. "The only way we managed to escape was with this wolf and his human's help. Who knows what would have happened to us if they hadn't come along. You saw the others – the ones who died, the ones who were tortured by their own hunger, the ones who chewed their paws off, insane from thirst."
But…but I know their ways better know. I know their tactics, their traps, their scents. I can keep you safe. I can keep us safe.
"That's too much to put on your shoulders," the boy says. "Besides, they'll be looking for us. And if they got us once, they can get us again. They'll be bettered prepared this time. They'll keep us out of the pens. They'll put us somewhere where no one will ever find us…where Cloudwalker and Sebastian won't ever find us. No. Staying here, becoming this man and this wolf's mate. This is the only way."
The wolf sighs, his resolve thinning, the arguments of the wolf and his boy breaking through. He can withstand one, but not both of them, not when he honestly has nowhere else to run, nowhere else to hide. If they come across the trappers again, he's not one hundred percent certain he'll be able to escape.
Are you…are you certain? the wolf asks. Are you sure you're okay with this?
"Yes," the boy decides, communicating with his wolf in calm, soothing tones, reassuring him that he's okay with his decision, even though he knows it means they're locked to this city, this house, this man and his wolf, for as long as they live. "Bond with this wolf. Accept his protection. Reciprocate his love, if he gives it. But most of all, please…be happy."
The smaller wolf nods to his boy.
I will, he says.
Shaking, weak on his feet, but with his head appropriately bowed, the wolf walks forward from the wall, approaching the wolf that would have him as his mate.
Are you going to run? Cloudwalker asks. Because, I must warn you, if you try to escape, I will be forced to restrain you.
I will not run, the smaller wolf says. I will accept your bond, Cloudwalker. I will be your mate and stay here with you.
The silver wolf sighs, exhaling with such tremendous relief that the smaller wolf can't help but feel flattered. Thank you.
But believe me when I say, the smaller wolf adds, that I have absolutely no intention of mating until my boy is ready. If you or your human try to rush him, then I'll find a way to leave, even though you say it's impossible. Touch him without his permission, and one way or another, I will be gone. Do you understand?
The silver wolf, impatient though he can be, is a much more sensible beast than his human counterpart in many ways. Sebastian tends to get what he wants through charm, money, and his numerous connections. He might not have taken no for an answer had the boy presented him with the same ultimatum. He might have pressed the young boy to mate, might not have understood the harm in it.
But Sebastian's wolf is willing to wait. As long as he eventually gets what he feels already belongs to him, he can wait.
I understand, Cloudwalker agrees, gritting his teeth. He's willing to wait. That doesn't mean he's pleased with it.
"And what about you, little Moondancer?" Sebastian asks, his mind surfacing to grab hold when he hears the boy talk to his wolf, locking on to that ethereal voice tucked deep in this wolf's mind, hiding from the shadow of reality. "How do you feel about bonding with me, and becoming my mate?"
"You've given us little choice," the boys says, speaking to Sebastian clearly since he's determined it will be the last time for a long while. "You are offering us protection, but you have taken away our freedom. You chose to try and force your affections on us instead of giving us time to want them. We are making the decision that is best for us, but it's the only decision we have. My wolf may be bonding with yours, he may even grow to love him, but for the time being, you are still nothing to me."
Those are the boy's final words. He locks himself away inside the mind of his wolf. And the silver-white wolf, on his way to being bonded, with his human's hesitant blessing, does not return to the form of the boy again.