Soft, velvety petals brushed against Lili's fingers as she braided flower stems together. Feli sat beside her in the grass with a braid of his own. They were originally supposed to be picking berries. Somehow that turned into her teaching him how to make crowns out of the wildflowers growing in their little paradise, but he wasn't exactly getting the hang of it. Lili tucked away the loose ends of her crown and admired it in the noonday sun. She had chosen clusters of pink and yellow flowers the size of her pinky nail to braid together. Feli was still struggling with his messy crown of white daisies, but the determined look on his face never wavered.
"Does this look right?" he asked her.
"You're doing just fine," she said with a smile. "Just tuck in this piece in here." She reached over to help the eager boy. The crown didn't actually look that bad once it was done, and Feli wore it with pride.
"I'm making one for Lovi next!" He didn't hesitate to start another one.
Lili just smiled. She carefully plucked a delicate orange flower, fully intending on adding it to her own crown, when she stopped. A chill went down her back like she was being watched. It was a ridiculous thought, but she couldn't shake the feeling. An ominous presence seemed to fill the air around the two, and Lili tried to look around without attracting Feli's attention. She didn't want to scare him unnecessarily if she didn't have to.
She froze. Something growled from the forest behind her. Feli didn't seem to hear it, but Lili heard it as if it were right beside her. She felt it roll through her like thunder through a stormcloud. A quick peek over her shoulder caused her breath to catch. Bright eyes gleamed from the gloom of the underbrush and froze Lili's blood in her veins. Her mouth couldn't seem to move. Her voice came out as an almost inaudible squeak. Feli looked up at her with a smile, but it soon became an expression of concern.
"What is it, Lili?"
"...t-the…the eyes…" she whispered.
"Eyes?" He looked into the forest and laughed. "That's Gilbert!" he exclaimed. "Don't worry about him, he's a lot of fun. Hi Gilbert!"
Gilbert stepped out into the sun and shook his white pelt. His dark lips were pulled back over his sharp fangs in a toothy grin. Or Lili hoped it was a grin. The large wolf's red eyes roamed over the two in the grass before he dropped down on his side with a huff. He flicked his tail lazily to chase away a bumblebee that had strayed too close to his haunch.
"What's up kiddos?" he asked good-naturedly.
"Lili's showing me how to make a crown out of flowers. See?" Feli held up his second braid with all the pride of a new parent.
"Is she?" Gilbert turned his eyes toward the small girl with interest. "Make me one."
"W-what?" she stammered.
"Make me one," he repeated. "Make it look super awesome with a bunch of different flowers."
Lili didn't know what he meant by 'awesome', but she didn't want to disappoint the alpha's brother. It wasn't just because he was Ludwig's brother, although that did have a little to do with it. She wanted very much to be accepted into the pack. If she was going to be with them for the rest of her life, it was in her best interest to be in their good graces. This was as good a way as any. Lili began to gather up the biggest and brightest flowers for Gilbert's crown.
"So how are ya liking it here so far, kid?"
Lili had to pause and think about what he said before realizing Gilbert was talking to her. "O-oh, it's very nice here. Everyone has been very kind…"
The white wolf lifted his head when he heard her voice trail off. "What's the matter?"
"N-nothing...I'm sorry, I…" Lili didn't notice the tears trickling down her face until they began to drip from her chin. "I-I'm sorry. I d-don't mean t-to...I'm sorry." She wiped the tears from her cheeks, but they didn't stop.
Gilbert rose to his feet and moved closer to the crying girl. Wordlessly, he curled around her and brushed the tears from her face with his tail. "Hey, don't cry. You're going to make pasta boy over there worry."
She looked over at Feli, who had an expression of deep concern on his face. "P-pasta boy?" she asked with a hint of amusement.
"Yeah. He loves pasta more than a good chunk of meat. Sometimes we think he's really an imp in disguise."
"Imps eat pasta?" Lili wondered out loud, her tears forgotten.
"The ones that live in houses do," Gilbert explained. "They're real pasta fiends."
"How do you get pasta?"
"We sneak into town sometimes disguised as travelers." He flicked his ears in amusement. "I bet you never even noticed us."
"No, not at all," she admitted with a smile.
"Of course you don't. We're just that sneaky." Gilbert poked her in the ear with his tail. "There, feeling better now?"
Lili wiped the last of the tears from her eyes with a soft laugh. She hadn't expected him to be so kind to her. "Yes, thank you." She made sure to give Feli a reassuring smile. "I just started thinking about my brother, and…"
"What's your brother like?" Feli asked her with a sparkle of interest in his eyes. "Is he like Lovi?"
"A little bit. He's very serious, but also very kind. He's always looking out for me and making sure I'm okay. I wonder if he's doing all right…"
"Sounds like Ludwig," Gilbert said with a small laugh. "He always forgets to take care of himself."
"Lovi too," Feli added.
There was a pause in the conversation. Lili's thoughts wandered to her brother. She really wondered if he was getting enough sleep. He had a tendency to stay up late working on different projects and didn't go to bed until she reminded him.
Gilbert stood and stretched before settling back down in a more comfortable position. "How's that crown coming?"
"Oh! I'm sorry, I got distracted." She started weaving the stems together into the beginning of the crown.
Feli held up his own for them to admire, and then he started working on another one. The talked and laughed until Lili finished a wolf-sized crown for Gilbert. She fitted it over his pointy ears, which he flicked in approval. That same grin he wore when he first arrived appeared on his face. He offered her a ride on his shoulders when the time came to go back to the cave. Lili found it easier to climb on his back than Ludwig's since he wasn't quite as big, but the experience wasn't quite the same. She swayed gently from side to side as they walked through the forest. Feli had assumed his wolf form and trotted happily beside them.
"So, what do you think of my brother?" Gilbert asked her out of the blue.
"Ludwig?"
"Yeah. What's your opinion of him?"
She pondered silently over her relationship with the alpha male. Other than Feli, he had been the first to show her any sort of kindness. She thought of the night before and their thrilling ride through the shadow cloaked forest. He made her feel safe and strong. She wasn't afraid when he was with her. She hardly knew him, and yet she felt like she trusted him with everything, which she had when she jumped from that tree. But how did she really feel about him? She tried very hard not to blush as she thought about his strong arms cradling her as he caught her, his blue eyes searching her face. For what, she didn't know. Maybe he was looking in her for the same thing she was looking for in him.
"He's very kind," Lili began, "and tall. He's also...very strong." Try as she might to stop it, a bright red blush very noticeably colored her cheeks.
"So you like him." Gilbert said it as a statement, not a question.
"Well, I-I wouldn't s-say that...necessarily...I…"
"Aww! Lili and Ludwig!" Feli chanted. "Lili and Ludwig! Lili and Ludwig!"
Lili's blush deepened. "P-please, not so l-loudly…" She lowered her eyes. "I don't even know how he feels about me."
Gilbert turned to stare at her with a mischief filled eye. "There's only one way to figure that out." Lili was afraid of what he was going to say next. "You have to tell him."
"I-I couldn't possibly do a thing like that!"
"Then I guess you'll never know," he said.
"You can do it Lili!" Feli cheered. He wagged his bushy tail. "I believe in you!"
The three of them entered the clearing in front of the cave. Antonio and Elizabeta were the only ones around, and their ears perked when they heard the others approaching. Lili felt fear stab her heart when she saw the glare Elizabeta sent her way, but Gilbert acted like he didn't see it at all. He didn't stop to allow her to get off until they were right in front of the cave entrance. She slid off his shoulders as quickly as she could as to not incur any more wrath than she already had.
Gilbert gave her a reassuring poke with his dark nose. "Don't worry about Lizzie. She'll warm up to you. And don't forget about what I said," he added with a wink. He trotted to join the pale brown wolf leaving Lili alone.
"Come and eat something, Lili!" Feli called. He was sitting next to Antonio, whose friendly green eyes shined welcomingly. "Toni already cooked it for you!"
"C-coming!" Lili replied as she tried to ignore the hostile glare coming from Elizabeta. She joined Feli and Antonio by a small, messy fire that someone must have started in their human form. Feli did his best to lighten the conversation, but it didn't do much to lift the weight in Lili's heart. All she could think about was talking to the pack's intimidating alpha male about her growing feelings. It was not possible for her to deny their existence any longer.
