A/N: Thanks for all of the reviews, favorites, and alerts! I really appreciate them ^^Sheesh, it feels like I haven't posted anything new in months! Also, I would like to give a personal shout out to Original-Botticella for drawing a beautiful picture of Chapter 12! XD I would make it my screensaver if I had my own computer! I would also like to send out a special get well message to Wintersheart1766. I pray that your injuries heal well!

Disclaimer: The normal spot.

Warning(s): Long chappie and… :)

Two Weeks Later…

"Is there something wrong with Genesis?"

"Not that I know of… Why do you ask?" Sephiroth said as he inwardly snickered. He was in his wolf form stretched out by his favorite pond as Genesis, Aeris, and Yuffie were talking amongst each other not too far away from him and Angeal. He watched Angeal approach Genesis and grinned when Genesis turned away from him and focused his attention back on Aeris as she explained which flowers grew best in the green house. He wasn't surprised when Angeal raised a brow before shaking his head and walked over to him. He immediately removed the grin on his face when Angeal sat down next to him. It appeared he and Genesis' plan was working since Angeal was asking him what was wrong with the redhead.

"He doesn't talk to me as much as he used to anymore and it's been that way for the past two weeks… It's like he's purposefully ignoring me."

"I don't think he's doing that…"

"What are you two up to?"

Sephiroth tilted his head at Angeal and inwardly started to panic.

"Huh?"

Angeal smirked.

"I see you grinning and smirking when Genesis turns away from me when you think I'm not looking…"

Sephiroth cursed before growling. He never was good at keeping secrets…not with Angeal and Cloud around…

"I'm not telling you."

"Why?"

"Because it's not my place to say…" Sephiroth smirked. Angeal snorted before he stood up and stretched his hind legs.

"Well in that case…"

Sephiroth gasped when Angeal kicked him into the pond and his fur became drenched in the muddy water. He stared at the grinning Angeal in shock before growling in anger. He was going to kick his ass for messing up his once clean and silky smooth fur that was now caked with mud and dirt.

"One should not keep secrets, Sephiroth…" Angeal said while chuckling as Aeris and Yuffie giggled at him being dirty. He glared at Genesis as he ran up to him with fake concern. Humor was written all over the wolf's face and he found none of it funny since his fur had to pay the price for keeping his attraction to Angeal a secret.

"Are you okay Sephy?" Genesis asked, trying to hold his chuckling in. Sephiroth snorted and stepped out of the pond before shaking himself off, purposefully flinging mud and dirt on Genesis and Angeal.

"If you'll excuse me, I'm going to leave you two alone. I need to take a bath…"

Sephiroth didn't wait for them to respond as he walked towards the castle. He stopped to stare at two giggling females before using his tail to fling mud on them as well. When they looked at him in shock, he tilted his head with a smirk on his face before continuing his way towards the castle. He pushed the door open with his head and walked down the hall that lead to the stairs, leaving muddy paw prints on the carpet that he was sure would make the maids upset.

"Sephiroth?"

He growled and turned to face the smirking blond that was standing not too far behind him. He was hoping that he would've been able to avoid him since he knew the wolf would get a good laugh out of him being dirty.

"One chuckle from you and I will have your face covered with mud Cloud…" Sephiroth growled as he lifted his tail to show that he was serious. Cloud shook his head before smiling.

"Alright I won't laugh, but you need to get upstairs and take a bath before the mud dries up."

Sephiroth rolled his eyes.

"That's what I was trying to do before you stopped me."

"Oh, well let's get going before the maids discover that it was you who left paw prints every where… They hate cleaning them up. "

"No shit…" Sephiroth muttered as he walked up the stairs with a grinning Cloud following after him.

He decided to use Cloud's bathroom since his tub was bigger than his and he sat in it as Cloud turned the water on and purred when the warm water touched his paws. He looked over at Cloud and blushed when he saw him taking off his yukata.

"Wh-what are you doing?"

"You're going to need some help getting all of that mud and dirt off of you."

"That doesn't explain why you're getting undressed!"

"Yes it does. I don't want my clothes to get wet. Besides, you've already seen me naked so there shouldn't be a problem…right?"

Sephiroth snorted at the grin on Cloud's face before moving to rest his head against the tub with his eyes closed as he let his body soak in the warm water. His ear twitched when he heard the water cut off and a small splash and purred in content when he felt Cloud using the soap and sponge to clean his tail.

"I think I should let you clean me more often… This feels more like a massage instead of a bath."

"Of course it would…since you're not doing anything…"

"Exactly."

Cloud chuckled as he moved to clean his back.

"How did you get covered in this much mud anyway?"

"Angeal pushed, no kicked me into the pond because I didn't tell that Genesis was ignoring him on purpose!" Sephiroth said as he growled.

"Ah, so he was up to something… He likes Angeal doesn't he?"

"How did you know!"

"I mean, it was so obvious… He wasn't acting like himself. In fact, he kind of reminded me of you…" Cloud said as he chuckled. Sephiroth growled in embarrassment as he inwardly cursed himself for thinking that no one would find out their plan. If Cloud knew from the beginning, then Angeal knew as well and was acting like he didn't know what was going on…which would explain why he kicked him into the pond.

"Bastards…" Sephiroth muttered as Cloud's chuckles turned into laughs.

"Aww, don't be like that. It's not your fault that you're no good at keeping secrets…"

"Thanks, that makes me feel a whole lot better… If I can't even keep a secret from you and Angeal, then how am I supposed to tell our pup that the Tooth Fairy is real until he or she figures it out on his or her own?"

"…You've been thinking about pups?"

Sephiroth blushed.

"I was just using that as an example! That doesn't mean I've been thinking about…that… It's too early to be thinking such thoughts…"

"Oh…"

There was an awkward silence and Sephiroth sighed. He was being honest about what he said. Granted he knew that Cloud was on a schedule where he had to have heirs by the end of the year in order to keep his title as alpha, but he wasn't ready for that just yet. It was bad enough that they were getting "married" in three weeks after only dating for about a month or so.

"I think we'll be okay with seven…"

Sephiroth furrowed his brows before turning his head to face Cloud, who was now washing his shoulders.

"Seven? Seven what?"

"Pups. Actually now that I think about it, nine will do just fine, too…"

Sephiroth scoffed.

"I draw the line at one."

Cloud gasped before frowning at him.

"What! We can't just have one! He or she will have to have brothers and sisters to play with, Sephiroth!"

"Hn! That's not going to happen, not if I'm the one that has to give birth…"

"You know that you can have more than one pup in a litter, right?"

"…"

"See? You never know… You may have six in your first litter…"

Sephiroth's eyes widened as he ignored the excitement in Cloud's voice He remembered seeing his old neighbor's dog that was pregnant with more than one puppy and gasped. He was not going to be fat just so Cloud could have his umpteen pups at one time! He worked too hard to keep his figure the way it was now and he was not about to let Cloud ruin it.

"Nope! We're only having one and that's final…"

"Hn. We'll see…"

Sephiroth glared at the smile on Cloud's face as he moved his head back to rest on the cool tiles of the floor. Oh they'll see alright…

Cloud inwardly growled as he listened to Hojo and the others talk about postponing the mating ceremony until August since it would be too much of a rush to do all of the planning and preparation in three weeks. It pissed him off because he knew what they were trying to do… By moving the date of the mating ceremony to a later time, it would give him and Sephiroth less time to produce pups by the end of the year, not because they didn't want him to be alpha anymore, it was because they refused to accept Sephiroth as their alpha 'female'.

"Cloud, do not take this decision personal. We're doing this for you and your mate so that we can fully plan a beautiful ceremony that won't look like a rush job." Scarlet tried to explain, but he wasn't having any of it.

"I could give a damn if it looks rushed or not. Sephiroth and I are having the mating ceremony at the end of May and that's final. I'm sure that it won't take Sephiroth two months to pick out flowers, decorations, and a kimono. If you gather up a nice selection for him to choose from, he'll pick them right then and there."

"You don't understand. It will take longer than three weeks to send out invitations to the other packs across the world and to receive word if they will attend or not." Lazard said with a frown on his face. Cloud snorted.

"If they truly want to be here, then they'll make it here before the ceremony. Personally, I could care less if they show up or not since Sephiroth and I would be leaving for Mideel during the reception."

"Cloud, don't fight us on this issue. Besides, there are some concerns that we have about your mate…" Hojo said with a grin on his face.

Cloud narrowed his eyes.

"Like…?"

"Why did it take him this long to transform? If he's a regular wolf humanoid, he should've been able to do so before he showed up here."

"He had no reason to change into a wolf when he was living in Midgar since he lived with the humans, not to mention that he had no one of wolf humanoid blood to teach him how to do so."

"So he was raised by the humans?"

"Yes."

"Well that explains little… How do you know that it was just lack of teaching that made him transform late? It could've easily been that there is something…not right with his genes that can cause late transformations, silver fur, and bright green slitted eyes. Do you really want that to be passed down to your heirs…your pups?"

Cloud glared at Hojo before getting out of his chair to stand up. He wouldn't stand for him belittling his mate when he's not around. Sephiroth was his and he's not replacing him anytime soon just because he's an exotic wolf humanoid. If anything, they should be encouraging him to mate with him instead of choosing someone else.

"I do because they will be beautiful like their mother and will be just as talented and smart as him as well. Just because he looks different doesn't mean shit to me. Whether he's a human or a wolf humanoid that bloomed later than most, he's still the Sephiroth I've grown to love and we're having our ceremony on May 30th, whether the council plans it or not."

Cloud didn't wait for anyone to respond to what he said as he turned to leave the meeting room. He was surprised to find Angeal standing by the door.

"Is something wrong?" Cloud asked with concern.

"Sephiroth has been unable to get out of bed."

Cloud inwardly grinned. It appeared his mate couldn't handle three rounds of sex like he thought he could…

"I'll take care of him. In the meantime, could you tell one of the chefs to make some green tea and onigiri and send it up to my room?"

"Sure. I can do that."

"Thanks… Also, congratulations."

Angeal raised a brow.

"On what?"

"Finding someone that makes you happy."

Cloud laughed when Angeal's cheeks turned pink as he scratched the back of his neck. It was about time that his butler found a mate. Angeal was always busy watching out for him to truly look, so hopefully Genesis will force him to take days off to spend the day with him or just to rest. If anyone deserved that, it was definitely him. After Angeal left to tell the chefs to make the tea and onigiri, he went upstairs to check on his mate. He wasn't surprised when Sephiroth growled when he entered his bedroom.

"You better be here to give me a backrub…" Sephiroth said as he glared at him from the bed. Cloud chuckled as he rolled his eyes playfully.

"It's not my fault that you overestimated yourself…"

"It's not my fault that you're so…big!"

"No it's not, but you still enjoy it, don't you?"

Cloud grinned when Sephiroth's cheeks turned pink before he snorted and placed his head back on the pillow with a loud huff. Cloud walked in the bathroom to grab the scented oil he bought from Bone Village before walking back over to the bed. He removed the bed sheets and chuckled when Sephiroth shivered at the cold oil that hit his back when he poured it on him after he moved Sephiroth's hair to the side. He climbed on top of his mate and sat on the back of his thighs before he started to rub the oil into his back and shoulders.

"That feels good…" Sephiroth purred when he rubbed the area in between his shoulders. Cloud chuckled.

"I'll take that as a thank you…"

"You should…"

Cloud chuckled before he sighed as he continued to give his love a back massage.

"…I have to leave the castle for a week."

"What! What for!"

"Business and hunting…"

Sephiroth growled.

"Why can't someone else do it! The ceremony is in three weeks and its bad enough that we have to make decisions by then, but now we only have two weeks!"

"I know…" Cloud said before he leaned down to kiss the base of Sephiroth's neck, smiling when the silverette let out a sigh of content. They remained silent as Cloud finished giving his mate a massage. After Sephiroth said he felt better, Cloud stopped rubbing his mate's back and climbed off of him to lie in the space next to Sephiroth.

"…When do you leave?"

Cloud turned his head towards Sephiroth and smiled softly when he saw the sadness in Sephiroth's eyes. This would be the first time since they were together that they wouldn't see each other for a while and he couldn't blame him for being upset about that.

"In the morning..."

"…Can I come with you?"

Cloud shook his head no. He thought about bringing him along, but it would be pointless since he wouldn't have time to give him a tour around the town, which would leave Sephiroth stuck in the hotel room. At least if he stayed here he had things to keep him preoccupied. He pulled Sephiroth into his arms and kissed his neck in apology.

"I'll miss you…"

"You better."

Cloud chuckled before he leaned down to kiss his mate as he wrapped his arms tighter around him. He was going to miss this for the next seven days…

"I know that you are not feeling well and all, but you need to choose what flowers you want before we move on to the-"

"Bitch I just said that I don't give a fuck about what color flowers are in the bouquet just as long as they're not purple or pink!" Sephiroth snarled at the female council member as she frowned at him. He didn't mean to call her a bitch on purpose, but he was too damn agitated to stop himself. It had only been four days without Cloud and he already felt like he was falling apart. He felt itchy and hot and nothing he did worked to calm down his body heat or the itchiness, which in return caused him to become more irritable. He knew something was wrong with him when he bit Genesis on his tail for calling him 'Sephy' like he normally did…not to mention that he attracted the attention of all of the male wolves in the pack when he walked into a room.

Sephiroth inwardly growled at that. It was one thing to ask someone to be your mate, it was another to pin someone to the ground and try to have sex with them while asking to be your mate. Though most of the male wolves in the pack were sporting bite marks, scratches, and bruises because of him, they still tried to fuck him. He had to make sure that Cloud's bedroom doors were locked when he was and wasn't in the room in order to ensure that he wouldn't get attacked while he was sleeping. With all of that going on and Scarlet pressuring him to make decisions without letting him think it over for a day, it made him feel like calling the ceremony off.

"Sorry… I didn't mean to call you that…" Sephiroth sighed and rubbed his forehead as he felt another wave of heat coarse throughout his body.

"I accept your apology. Since you clearly aren't in the best state to be making decisions, I'll let you get some rest before we go over what you want the cake to look like."

"Thank you…" Sephiroth said before he walked out of the dining hall and up to Cloud's room, looking around every now and again to make sure that he wasn't being followed by one of the males. He didn't know why, but it felt like he was losing his strength the day before and he knew that if he was jumped by one of the males, he wouldn't have enough strength to fight them off of him. He unlocked Cloud's bedroom and sniffed the room to see if someone was in it. When he didn't find a foreign scent, he locked the doors and climbed onto the bed and curled into the cool bed sheets with a yawn. Cloud's room was the only place in the castle where his body heat and itchiness would calm down some…and replace the itchiness with him craving for sex… When he was about to fall asleep, he heard a knock at the door and growled.

"Sephiroth it's just us. We need to talk to you."

Sephiroth sighed. He got out of the bed and walked over to the door and opened the door for Aeris, Yuffie, and Genesis to come inside.

"Phew! Why do you smell like chocolate and strawberries!" Genesis said as he scrunched up his nose. Sephiroth glared at the redhead before growling.

"If I knew I would tell you…"

"We can answer that for you." Aeris said as she motioned to her and Yuffie with a smile on her face. Sephiroth moved to lie on the bed as Aeris, Yuffie, and Genesis sat in the chairs that surrounded the table not too far away from the bed.

"We've noticed that you haven't been yourself at all these past four days. What's going on Sephiroth?" Yuffie asked with concern.

"I don't know myself. One minute I'm feeling hot, the next I feel itchy, and then I'm feeling hot and itchy. Not to mention that I get angry, irritated, and tired easily, I'm being jumped by most of the male wolves here and now I find out that I smell like chocolate and strawberries!" Sephiroth growled. He growled even more when he saw the smile on Aeris' face.

"It was just like I thought…"

"What is!"

"You're in heat Sephiroth…"

Sephiroth's eyes widened. This must've been what Cloud was warning him about when they were in the cabin…which meant he had to continue to endure the overheating, itchiness, and cravings for another three days until Cloud comes back. Sephiroth sighed.

"How long will my heat last?"

"It's lasts anywhere from a few days to three weeks. But don't worry; I'm sure Cloud will get back in enough time before it gets worse."

"Worse? How can this get worse?"

"Because your body is at the stage where it needs sexual satisfaction, the pheromone your body is releasing will grow stronger in hopes of attracting a male that will be able to fulfill that need. Not to mention that it will make all of the dominant wolves here very aroused…"

Sephiroth growled in annoyance. If what Aeris was saying is true, that meant he couldn't leave the room until Cloud returned. He was not about to become a quick fuck to another pack member just because he smelled good…

"It's going to be a long three days…"

"What is that smell?"

Cloud furrowed his brows at Angeal's words before sniffing the air. He shook himself off when a wave of arousal shot throughout his body.

"Whatever that is, it's definitely coming from inside the castle…" Cloud said with concern as he, Angeal, and his small group of wolves walked towards the castle carrying the kills that would last them until September. When he pushed open the castle doors, he was surprised to find that it was completely quiet. Cloud narrowed his eyes. It wasn't normal for it to be this quiet.

"Something's not right…" Angeal whispered. Cloud tried to sniff to see if anyone was in the castle, but all he could smell was chocolate and strawberries.

"Before we start searching for the pack, let's take of the meat first before it spo-"

Cloud's ears perked up when he heard multiple barks, growls, and whimpers. He told the small group of wolves that traveled with him to handle the meat while he and Angeal searched the castle to find out where the commotion was coming from.

"Maybe it's just me, but it seems like the noise is coming from where the smell is…" Angeal said as he sniffed the stairs.

"I agree." Cloud stated as he ran up the stairs, with Angeal right behind him. His eyes widened when he saw one of the males in his pack licking a bite wound on his leg. Cloud was about to ask him what was going on, but his eyes widened when he heard Genesis yelp. He wasn't surprised when Angeal let out a warning growl before he ran up the second flight of stairs. He was about to follow him, but his eyes widened and he leaned against the wall as the rest of his pack members came flying down the second stairwell while whimpering and limping. Cloud waited until all of the wolves were downstairs before running up the stairs that led to his room in confusion. His eyes widened when he saw Genesis keeping his left paw in the air as Angeal licked it affectionately.

"What happened? Are you alright?" Cloud asked in concern as he walked up to them.

"I'll be alright. If you want to know what's been going on since you two left, I'll give you the short version of the story. Sephiroth went into heat and it made all of the dominant wolves here go insane! I was guarding your bedroom since that's where Sephiroth wanted to stay and I was being attacked by the other pack wolves that became aggressive because of the pheromone Sephiroth was releasing. I was fending them off pretty well until one of them bit me…" Genesis said as he growled in annoyance. Cloud smiled at the fact that Genesis was alright. It was good to know that the redhead could fend off 25 dominant wolves on his own…

"Is it okay if I leave to check on Sephiroth?"

"Sure. I'll be fine since he's here…" Genesis purred as he rubbed his head against Angeal's neck. Cloud nodded his head before he left the couple and made his way over to his bedroom. He pushed the door open and his eyes widened when he heard growls.

"Easy, Aeris and Yuffie! It's just me!" Cloud said while chuckling at the fact that they almost attacked him. If Sephiroth didn't know he had friends then he damn sure better know now… The female wolves stopped growling and sighed in relief.

"I'm glad that it's you and not one of the other males… I was going to claw your eye out…" Yuffie said as she scratched her ear. Cloud laughed lightly as he looked around his room and frowned.

"Where is he?"

"He's in the bathroom. We told him to stay in there until it was safe for him to come out…"

"It was that bad?"

Cloud sighed when Aeris and Yuffie nodded their heads. He inwardly cursed himself for leaving Sephiroth alone to deal with all of this on his own. He wouldn't be surprised if Sephiroth was pissed off with him.

"Thanks for watching over him for me while I was gone…"

"You're welcome Cloud. Now go in there and take care of him. He really needs you…" Aeris said with a smile on her face as she motioned for her and Yuffie to leave. Cloud watched them leave and shut the bedroom door before he walked over to the bathroom and pushed the door open with his head. He sighed in pity when he saw his mate curled up in the corner of the bathroom as he panted, a sure sign that he was in heat. He walked over to him and smiled when Sephiroth looked up at him, eyes telling him everything that he'd been feeling for the past week. He rubbed his head against Sephiroth's neck when he stood up, letting his senses fill with arousal at the smell of chocolate and strawberries that radiated off of his love's body. He let Sephiroth's whimpers guide him to gently bite his neck as climbed on top of him and proceeded to fulfill his love's needs and solidify their bond…

"That was…"

"Beyond incredible?"

Cloud laughed when Sephiroth punched him in his shoulder as they lay on the bathroom tiles. Judging by how quick Sephiroth was able to punch him, his heat must have been subsiding and he was feeling like his old self again.

"I'm glad you're feeling better now."

"You? Hn! That was the worst thing I have ever experienced and I should kick your ass for leaving me to deal with that on my own! I have never been jumped by so many damn wolves before in my life and I damn sure don't want to go through that again!"

"I'm sorry… I didn't know that you would go into heat after I left. Had I known, I wouldn't have left…" Cloud said as he swirled a strand of Sephiroth's hair around his finger.

"I know that…which is why I'm not as angry with you as I should be. And since I'm not, what are you going to do for me as an apology?" Sephiroth said with a grin on his face. Cloud furrowed his brows before he was reminded of something. He looked around the bathroom before he spotted his pants and got off of the floor to go and grab them. He searched through the pockets and smiled when he found what he was looking for. He walked back over to Sephiroth and grinned when Sephiroth furrowed his brows as tried to see what he was holding in his hand.

"I'm not sure if this counts as an apology, but…"

He opened his hand and held out the small jewelry box for Sephiroth to take. Cloud watched as Sephiroth took the box from his hand and stared it curiously before he opened it. He couldn't help but smile when Sephiroth gasped as his eyes grew wide as he held up the 24 karat gold wedding band.

"I've been reading about how humans celebrate mating and I read that they give each other rings before they seal their bond. Because you're still used to human customs, I-"

Cloud inwardly chuckled when Sephiroth pulled him down to his level to kiss him. He wrapped his arms around Sephiroth and pulled him closer to deepen the kiss. His eyes widened when Sephiroth pushed him to lie back on the bathroom floor. Cloud broke the kiss to stare up at the grinning silverette.

"What are you up to?" Cloud asked.

"I'm thanking you for the ring… I'm sure you will enjoy it..."

Cloud's eyes widened when he felt that familiar tight heat surround his cock. Oh he'll be enjoying this alright... He groaned when Sephiroth started to roll his hips against his while moaning. Cloud grabbed his love's hips and thrusted into him, making Sephiroth yell his name as he arched his back. He continued to thrust into Sephiroth as he sat up and kissed his mate's neck as Sephiroth wrapped his arms around his shoulders to use as leverage. Cloud purred into his neck when he struck Sephiroth's sweet spot and caused his mate to yell out his name again. Their lovemaking continued until he snuck a hand in between his and Sephiroth's body to stroke his love in tune with his thrusts. Sephiroth came with a scream of his name as his back arched and he threw his head back. Cloud's eyes widened at the sight of his mate's beauty before he came, hard, inside of his silverette. He rested his head against Sephiroth's shoulder as he regained his breath. He smiled into his mate's shoulder when he felt Sephiroth run his fingers though his hair, a habitual thing he did after they had sex.

"Cloud…"

He lifted his head off of his shoulder and stared into emerald eyes before Sephiroth smiled at him…a smile that he'd never seen before…a smile full of pure happiness. Cloud returned Sephiroth's smile with one of his own and leaned up enough to kiss his mate whom he was now bound to for the rest of his life. And he couldn't be happier…

To Be Continued…

A/N: Once again, thank you guys for reading! And as far as the next two chapters go, they will cause a major shift in the plot! How? You'll just have to wait and find out…^^

R&R

-KTK