A/N: This fic is available on FFN and Ao3.
"She did that? Seriously?" echoed Theo, at a loss. "And you just...let her?"
Shiden nodded, laughing as she took in the astounded faces of her peers. "Yeah, and it's the best thing ever. If ya don't believe me, try it for yourselves."
The group–consisting of Kurena, Anju, Theo, Rito, Yuuto, Michihi, and Shana–was currently on their way outside, where Shiden apparently had "something special" planned for them. When they heard what it was, many of them were understandably skeptical. But she had insisted there was nothing to be concerned about, so the werewolves reluctantly allowed her to lead them to their destination.
There she stood, under a tree, looking uncertain as the company approached her. "Right on time, Your Majesty," Shiden called cheerfully.
Lena did not seem to share her good mood. "Shiden, what's all this about? You said it was important, but you didn't say anything about what you wanted me to do." Her eyebrows rose as she took in the crowd behind her subordinate. "Um, hello everyone," she said, her confusion evident. "What exactly are you doing?"
"Shiden didn't tell you?" Rito asked, concerned.
"I was getting to that," Shiden said dismissively, waving her hand. "And of course it's important, Your Majesty. Call it a morale-boosting exercise."
Oh. That was probably why she'd asked Lena to make time on her day off to come out here. The silver-haired girl sighed at her friend's antics. "Shiden, even if I'm off, I still have work to do. You don't think this can wait?"
Shiden grinned. "No, it can't. I wanna get started before Li'l Reaper gets here." Shin was indeed missing from the group, along with Raiden. Before Lena could ask what she meant, though, she clapped her hands together to draw everyone's attention.
"Okay, first thing's first. Werewolves–transform!"
She lowered herself onto all fours, and a few seconds later a large wolf with deep brown fur and dual-colored eyes stood in her place, tail raised confidently. The others exchanged glances, but followed suit. Soon Lena found herself in a sea of fur of all colors, and she looked around at them in awe. Not because she'd never seen a transformation before, but because seeing so many wolves in one place kind of made her want to…
No, Lena! Now isn't the time for that! They surely wouldn't appreciate it if they heard her thoughts just now. But Lena could have sworn she saw Shiden smirk at her, as if the wolf knew exactly what she was thinking, and approved.
Her suspicions were proven correct when Shiden stepped around the smallest wolf, Rito, and pushed him forward, out of the circle and towards Lena.
"Alright then," Shiden said, her voice echoing clearly even though her mouth did not move. She nudged the bewildered Rito again. "Pet him."
For a long moment, Lena looked from her to the rest of the wolves, who gazed back impassively. "Is this...a joke?" she asked.
"We asked the same thing," the golden Theo said, deadpan. "But she's being serious. Apparently she said you did it to her once, and she kept going on and on about how good it felt. Gave a lot of detail, too. Now she wants us to try it."
Lena's hand went to her mouth. She couldn't help it. The way he said it made it sound like an owner pampering her dog. Which was definitely not what happened. "Shiden!" she cried. "Didn't you tell them the whole story? You were lying injured, and we weren't sure you were going to make it, so you told me to pet you as a 'last request'. I wouldn't have done it otherwise!"
Come to think of it, later on the medics had taken her aside and informed her that Shiden's wounds were only superficial and not life-threatening. And that, as a werewolf with acute knowledge of her own body, she should have known that...
Shiden scratched an ear. "Is that how it went?"
"Yes!"
Lena didn't want any of them to think she saw them as cute house pets or something, only there to entertain their masters and nothing more. But none of the others seemed to think poorly of her for her decision. In fact, they were panting even though it wasn't hot, tongues lolling out as they laughed.
"See?" Shiden asked. "No one's bothered by it. They all came to see for themselves how awesome it is. Can't you humor them just this once, as their superior?"
Lena made a conflicted expression at that, but upon seeing Rito's curious little face, she gave in. "Fine. But I'm not going to make a habit of this, alright? Just this once." She extended a hand to the little chestnut canine before her and said, in the sweet, calming tone she used for TP, "Come here, Rito."
Responding to her voice, Rito stepped closer until he was within reach, and sat. He looked back at Shiden. "Uhm, what am I supposed to do no–"
Then Lena's hand landed on his head, and his mind blanked.
The others watched, wide-eyed, as Lena scratched his head first, then his ears. The little wolf's tail wagged furiously all the while. Lena was beginning to think this wasn't all bad–wolf fur was soft, after all–when she got to his ruff, and Rito's limbs locked up. Before she could ask what was wrong, he promptly fell to the ground, like a puppet whose strings had been cut.
Lena gasped, horrified. She crouched over him as the wolves crowded around. "Rito! Are you alright? Did I hurt you?"
"N-Nah," he said, sounding dazed. "I'm okay. Sorry I worried you. I just zoned out for a second. But I'm good now, really. So..." He nudged Lena's hand.
Lena heard a snicker, and she looked up to see that Shiden hadn't moved from her spot. "Don't sweat it, Rito. That happens the first time around. Probably woulda happened to me, except I was already lying down."
"Yes, and we need to talk about that," said Lena sternly, hands on her hips.
"Later," Shiden said. "C'mon, Rito, let someone else have a turn first. Who's next?"
She looked over the mixed squadron, gauging their reactions. Many of them were now looking at Lena with keen interest. It was Anju who spoke up. "That does look relaxing." The silver-blue wolf bent her head expectantly. "Lena, if you please."
–––––––––
"What are they up to?"
Shin looked at Raiden, who'd asked the question. The two of them had been trotting around the base when Raiden had paused, looking out over a rise. It was adequate exercise, and while neither of them said it aloud, they both felt more at ease as wolves than otherwise. Now Shin came up next to him, his jet-black pelt standing in stark contrast to Raiden's slate-gray one, though they were both Onyxes. Most wolves had lighter undersides, but Shin's fur was solid and had no markings to speak of, a rarity among their kind.
"What do you mean?" he asked, turning to see where Raiden was looking. It was hard to make out, but he thought he saw Lena with a bunch of others from his squad, all fully transformed. He couldn't tell what they were doing, though. "Maybe she's briefing them on something," he suggested.
Raiden huffed. "Coulda invited us, then."
The two of them changed course and headed in the direction of the group. When they got closer, Shin saw that, for some reason, a lot of the wolves were lying in a circle around Lena, dazed and unfocused expressions on their faces. He made to ask what exactly was going on, but just then he locked eyes with Shiden.
Her mouth broke into a crocodile grin, something that should be impossible for a wolf, but werewolves were allowed a wider range of facial expressions than normal animals.
As Shin watched, she walked–no, strutted over to where Lena was sitting, barking as she did, "And if you think that felt good, wait till you try this!" She flopped over–practically into Lena's lap–and rolled until her belly was exposed.
Lena looked dubiously at her, momentarily surprised, but after an encouraging nod, she placed her hands on the she-wolf's stomach and rubbed it.
Shiden's hind leg kicked the air, and her face was one of pure bliss.
Shin heard a low rumbling noise from somewhere, like rolling thunder. It was only when he noticed Raiden shuffling away from him that he realized the sound came from his own chest.
Shiden had the audacity to smirk before calling out. "There you are, Lady-Killer! Wanna get in on this?"
All the other wolves lifted their heads, and Lena jerked her hands up as if caught in a wrongdoing. "Shin! W-When did you get here?"
Shin cleared his throat as he fought to settle his raised hackles. "Just now, actually. What's all this?"
"You guys look so out of it," Raiden snickered, studying his squadmates as he stepped around them.
"Lena's engaging us in some 'morale-boosting'," mumbled Michihi.
"It was pretty awesome," said Shana.
Kurena turned away. "Eh. I didn't think it was all that great."
"Yeah right," came Theo's voice from somewhere in the pile. "You were spacing out so much I could hear your foot thumping from way over here."
"I-It was not!"
Shin looked up at Lena, cocking his head. "...Petting?"
"At their request," she added hastily.
"Looks fun," Raiden yipped, sounding like he was on the verge of laughter.
Shiden stretched lazily. "You should try it. Doesn't get any better than this. Her Majesty's got that 'angel touch', y'know?"
They knew. Lena had spent most of her life without ever knowing the true hardships of war. She never had to work for food or shelter, or wield a weapon as she fought for her life. As a result, her skin–especially that of her hands–was soft, smooth and un-calloused. As far as petting went, hers was the premium treatment.
Shin still wore his usual mask of neutrality, but his tail was lower than it had been before, and one ear was tipped back. Those who didn't know better would call it nervousness, but surely that wasn't right. There was no way the terrifying Reaper would balk at something even a chihuahua wouldn't.
As for Raiden, he pondered for a moment before tossing his head, the wolf version of a shrug. "Sure, why not? Got nothing better to do."
Shin could only watch as his friend strolled over, leaving him alone.
Even as she patted Raiden's head, Lena shyly glanced at him. "You're...you're welcome to try it, Shin, if you'd like," she said. She sounded almost…hopeful? And it was hard to tell, as she was sitting in the shade, but he thought he could see a hint of pink to her pale cheeks.
No. That was definitely just his imagination. Lena was just offering to be courteous to him, as she always was to everyone. There was no deeper meaning to it. And there was something he didn't like about the expectant way the others were looking at him. As if they were sure he couldn't possibly pass up this opportunity, and were just waiting for him to accept. And if he did, would he end up looking the way Rito did now? With that numb face on display for everyone to see?
Shin was pretty sure that if he gave in here, he would do something much worse than that. In fact, he could almost picture it. Just like he can picture her gentle fingers running through his fur. Or better yet, his hair…
He jerked his head, banishing those thoughts as he schooled his face into a blank wolf expression. Completely indifferent. "I think I'll pass," he said flatly.
Lena's small, tentative smile dipped, and she drew her hands into her lap. Looking everywhere but him. "That's perfectly fine. It's not for everyone, after all."
Raiden stared at Shin, utterly unimpressed, and Shiden whined as if she had personally been cheated out of something great. "What? But he didn't even try it!"
But Lena's voice was firm as she stood and brushed down her skirt. "It's not for everyone, Shiden," she repeated. She bowed her head to the sleepy wolves. "I hope you all enjoyed today. It was impromptu and certainly won't be a regular occurrence, but I'm glad you liked it nonetheless."
Before any of them could respond, she walked away.
Shin could feel the stares of the other wolves on him, but he didn't care. He gazed at the place Lena had been just seconds ago, realizing too late that his words had been careless. He sighed and shook out his pelt. "I'm going to finish our walk," he told Raiden on his way past.
Raiden flicked an ear. "Yeah. You do that."
The other members waited until the black wolf had vanished into the distance before groaning in unison.
"He's so hopeless," Shana griped.
Theo rolled his eyes. "Totally and completely."
Anju looked off in the direction Lena had gone. "I hope Lena doesn't take it to heart. You know how Shin can be sometimes."
"But to be fair, I guess it was a little embarrassing," Kurena said, wanting to stick up for her leader.
Shiden seemed to agree. "We were making some pretty stupid faces just now," she allowed. "Guess Li'l Reaper just didn't wanna be seen like that. He was totally thinking it, though. Ah, well," she yawned before standing up. Moments later, she was human again. "If he wants to stand on his pride and miss out, that's on him. Even if I do end up acting like a dog, I'd still go again."
The rest of them quickly chimed in their agreement as they headed back to base, all of them having returned to their human forms. It had felt pretty good. If only Shin had gotten to experience it, at least once.
–––––––––
He found her much later, when the sun was sinking below the horizon. She had returned to the same spot, hands clasped behind her back, looking up at the tree.
Shin paused, took a breath, and called out to her. "Lena."
She jumped, startled out of her thoughts, and whirled to face him. "Oh, Shin! I didn't see you."
"Sorry," he muttered.
"It's fine. I was the one spacing out."
Shin tried to clarify. "No, well, I'm sorry for scaring you, but I meant what happened earlier."
"Oh," was all Lena said. She avoided his gaze, seeming at a loss for words. Then she spoke in a soft voice. "...You don't need to apologize. I'm sorry if I overstepped. Wolves are sensitive, aren't they? And you've lived your life constantly on the alert for so long… Someone touching your fur like that would probably make you uneasy. I should have known that."
While what she said wasn't untrue, Shin still felt he wasn't getting through to her. He didn't come here to watch her berate herself. "It's partly that, but also…" He tried his best to put it into words. "Wolves are animals who value intimacy as a way to bond with each other. Werewolves are no different. We can be plenty affectionate to those we see as our own. I think that's why everyone readily accepted you petting them the way they did. It was their way of trying to bond with you, and it worked. So don't feel bad, Lena."
She smiled faintly at that, which made his heart lift. "I see. That's good to hear."
Shin thought his goal was achieved, but then he saw the downcast look on her face. A moment later he realized why. He'd just said that the squadron had allowed Lena to handle them because they wanted to be closer to her in some way. So the fact that he had been the only one to refuse…
"I don't want you to get the wrong idea," he said quickly. "I wasn't trying to brush you off, or anything like that. I just think, even among werewolves, there are some things that should just stay between the people involved. It's more...special, that way." He gave a small half-smile as Lena's eyes widened slightly.
"So, if you're willing to oblige me…" He crouched down, and Lena soon found herself looking into the deep red eyes of a jet-black wolf. "...I'd like to see what all the fuss is about."
She stood frozen for a moment, unable to process what he said. Then she hurriedly snapped herself out of it and carefully lowered herself onto her knees. Now they were at eye-level. Hesitantly, Lena reached out. Shin studied her, as if searching for something, then closed his eyes.
–––––––––
When he finally came to, he was lying on his side. The sky was dark, and it took him a moment to get his bearings. Lena was nowhere to be found. With his superior night vision, he saw that a note had been left by his head, pinned under a rock to keep from flying away in the wind. Bleary-eyed, he managed to grab it between his teeth and stumble back to the base. Back in his room, and in human form, Shin sat on his bed and unfolded the paper. As soon as he scanned it, his blood ran cold.
Sheesh, and I thought they were out of it before. Lena was starting to think she put you in a coma or something, so I just told her to leave you be and head to bed. Don't freak her out like that, man. But I guess it's not all bad. Finally starting to melt, huh?
P.S. That look on your face was...something else. Be glad it was me who went looking for you and not Shiden. Don't worry, I won't say anything. Lunch is on you though.
– Raiden
Shin immediately tore the paper into pieces and threw it in the trash. He fell onto his bed.
He had definitely dodged some kind of bullet there. But now that he thought about it...what kind of face did he make? Try as he might, he couldn't remember, and that frightened him more than anything else. One thing was certain, though.
He wasn't going to forget the feel of her hands anytime soon.
