Dancing around as the hot bowl of soup singed at my fingertips, playing hot potato with it while trying to keep it from spilling. GAH! My hands are too big and rough for this! I paused. Well, if I can finger my Luna's pussy, I guess I can handle this. Huffing, I made my way to the cabin double time, glad that Dad was distracting the pups.

A quick twist of a knob and foot prying open the door, I slid inside in barely enough time as solid oak swung shut behind me. Taking a deep breath to quiet the urge to curse, I settled for mental cursing instead. As I tiptoed down the partition into my side of the cabin, the savoury scent of the chicken and ramen soup made my stomach growl in anticipation. No, this isn't for you, damn... thing...

My Luna was laying propped up on the bed, a strand of drool hanging from her mouth as she snoozed away the sudden cold she got last night. A cute snot bubble inflating and deflating. Dad and Aiden checked on her this morning and said she should be better today. I was worried how badly she would take being bedbound and maybe isolated when everyone came over for dinner tonight, but thankfully she was already looking so much better than when I woke up in the middle of the night to the heart tightening sounds of her rattling breath. I focused back on the present. Soup!

A dozen slim books, or magazine really, had toppled over messily across the sheets from their presumably neat stack. Dancing gingerly over to the nightstand, I set the bowl down as quiet as I could before sucking on my burnt fingertips. I could not help but smile as I gently moved my Luna's gorgeous hair to the side. Noting the sweat, I grabbed the cool washcloth and dabbed her forehead.

Wanting to be more comfortable, and totally not having anything with being closer to my Luna, I set the rag down and went to orgamizing. Most of the magazines were of manga, I picked out some from Black Butler, Moriarty the Patriot, and a newer one my Luna was interested called Darker than Black. There was also a fashion magazine from Eduard. '50 best tips to spice up your love life!' Tch! Rolling my eyes, I tidied up the pile, pausing when I saw something else.

Her phone.

A quick glance at the nightstand confirmed I was not seeing things. It was on there when I left just a few minutes ago and she was snoozing when I snuck out! The plastic and glass device felt blissfully cool to my pulsing fingers, finagling a moment to remember where the 'power' button was to see a portrait pop up of the two of us. I felt warmth stirring two places in my body as I stated at the crystal-clear portrait of my divinely beautiful caught midlaugh as I kissed her cheek and held her from behind. The red and yellow leaves all around us, her in more layers than me. I narrowed down on one certain section, pride emanating throughout my every fibre as I-

"Alpha?" I blinked, lowering the phone to smile at my sniffling love. She had reached over for one of Dad's handmade handkerchiefs to rub her nose. I set the phone down on the small table, sitting on the edge of the bed to lean against my now giggling Luna as I smooched all over her face. "S-Stop, you'll g-get sick t-too!" I smirked widely.

"Me? Sick? You sure~?" Out of instinct I tilted my head, biting my bottom lip with one of my canines. She flushed pink, so I naturally had to kiss her lips. She let out a cute huff, her scent swirling around all delectable and sweet. My fingers played with hers, intertwining the moment they had the chance to. Without pause I took the rag and wiped away the crust from her upper lip, enjoying her bashful squirms. I loved taking care of her, grateful for the much-needed practice.

"Alphaaaaa! You're doing it again!" Staring into her eyes I saw how shy she was. Putting down the rag, I cupped both her cheeks with my hands. She squirmed a bit but said nothing.

"Doing what~?"

Silence. Rosey silence. Finally, she squeaked out, "l-looking at me all... happy and dorky!

I chortled, rubbing her cheek with my thumb. "Why wouldn't I, with a queen so heavenly esquizkit?" She made no protests when I got onto the bed, she scooted over a bit, and I laid on my side facing her. "So, what does my perfect Luna want to do first?" Twisting as best as I could, I got the bowl of soup safely nestled against my chest and the stack of pillows. One hand holding the full spoon in front of her while my other blindly reached for the magazines.

Her blush was adorable.

Head resting against Alpha's chest, I listened to the strong beats of his heart. Comforted in their steady cadence. He read, yes read, to me. To supplement his learning, Scoutmaster Yoshi and I got him magazines and... easier to read... books about some of the things Yoichi really likes. Cowboys, or well anything Wild West themed really, and nature themed stuff. Okay, well, technically that was for both of us. He was more interested in the conservation side. It made me ponder if he really did have a true future as a ranger or warden. At a real national park mind you! Scoutmaster Aiden tried to get him into some fitness magazines as well, but Alpha was firm about doing those by himself.

I blissfully listened to his stilted speech about a local forest, purring here and there in pride to make sure he knew how happy I was with him. On occasion, helping him with a word he found difficult. His rhythm thrown off for some reason, I didn't know why, as my hand gently rubbed up and down his plumping wolfmeat. I was turning to kiss at his neck when there was a knock at the door.

No. A knock at the non-existent door. Alpha stiffened. Hard. Turning my head, confused at his reaction, I squeaked.

"Ro-Ro?" Kara was standing there, a small smile on her face as she looked around our half of the cabin. Alpha let out a grunt as I accidently squeezed his wolfmeat.

"Ra-Ra? W-... What are you doin?" I shifted, covertly wrangling Yoichi back into his boxers. She tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear as she leaned against the door frame.

"Just seeing where my little brother spends his time sleeping. Seems a bit small for two people?" Her eyebrow quirked up playfully, though I still blushed nonetheless as Yoichi tried to make it seem like there was more space between us. "I'm just teasing you, dork, we've already had that... talk, mhm." I wanted to melt away under the covers, but I just nodded. A small little smirk tugged her lips upwards.

She was about to speak when the door opened and she paused, a loud bubbly voice filling the air. "Kara~!" Ms. Yuri suddenly appeared as her arms wrapped my sister from behind. "It's so good to finally see you! Well, besides facetime!" I watched with wide eyes at Ms. Yuri's blatant familiarity, but my sister just smiled and squirmed her way around to hug back at the overly enthusiastic bubblegum witch. Wha...?

Yoichi snorted at the theatrics, deftly fixing his boxers, moving enough to pull up and buckle his shorts. He tugged on my hand, waking me from whatever the heccers is going on across the room. My feet touched the cold wooden floor, shivering as I stood up and held onto Alpha's hand tight as the world wobbled. I took a breath, holding it in before letting go. By the time I opened my eyes, the dizziness had passed. Thankful the cold was almost completely gone, or I would have missed out on all the fun!

The boys were coming up soon, most of them here from town. Natsumi was driving himself and Hunter from the town next door, Taiga worked a split shift and would be coming between them, and Hiro and his mother were driving up after her latest oncologist appointment. Hiro excitedly told me he would be driving from the doctors to here. While I was happy for him, I may have sent a prayer or three immediately after learning that.

I pat my full tummy, rubbing it. Wishing for a quick digestion so I could stuff myself with Scoutmaster Aiden's yummy food! Alpha's thumb caught my drool, putting it back into my mouth to which I turned three shades scarlet. He just gave his wolfish smirk and guided us past the chattering girls who suspiciously quieted down as we got near the door. "Have fun, boys~" Kara singsonged. Fluttering my lashes at her, we both giggled until Alpha and I stepped out into the crisp autumn air.

Alpha grunted softly, drawing my attention to him then the direction he was intently staring at. Puzzled, I looked into the woods and could not find anything out of the ordinary. Glancing back at him only to see his jaw clenched. I tightened my grip on his hand and moved closer. He moved, his other arm pulling me close as he kissed the top of my head. "Tis nothing, babygurl." My look of doubt led to another wet smooch right in the middle of my forehead. "Promise."

Sus. Huffing, but accepting the situation for what it was, I dutifully followed my Alpha as we made our way down the little hill towards the gathering of Scoutmasters in the middle of the cul-de-sac. While I had met all the new Scoutmasters at least once, it was over the course of the past few months, so I was a bit hazy on a few of their names. A few immediately stood out from the crowd, mostly because I remembered them the most.

First was Scoutmaster Ashley, she was a bubbly woman with ehem, a rather large chest, and a pretty brown braid down one side. It reminds me of those braids from Star Wars! Her face was covered with an absolutely adorable kitty facemask and even through that I could tell she was rather nervous, fritting from one foot to the other. I was happy to learn that she was the new nurse to relieve Aiden of his way too many responsibilities. Her black neckerchief complimented her outfit nicely since her animal was a black cat! She also would be giving out the new drama and theatre badges this upcoming camp! She was also clearly the shortest one in the group.

Scoutmasters Lee, Joseph, and Minato were your typical jocks. They were all in their early twenties and quite fit. If I recall correctly, they were there to help Aiden in the various physical badges as it was a danger to have so many boys with one a single adult to watch over them. Lee and Joseph were built more like Yoshi and Aiden while Minato was more lithe like Naoto. Speaking of, I saw the blue haired Scoutmaster-… Kara giggled, waving her hand at whatever joke Naoto made. My eye twitched. Natsumi came over and scooped me into a big hug, his muscles having more definition if the squeeze was anything to go by. "Hey, Keitaro! I missed you!" I was torn between being a good protective brother and giving Natsumi the affection he deserves. I begrudgingly chose the latter only after he paused and looked down at me confused.

"Hey, dork~!" He gasped, wide smile tugging his lips upwards. Hunter joined in the group hug, his small body wedging between ours so I squeezed him too.

"Hi, Keitaro." I kissed the top of his head, his beret almost falling off before Yoichi caught it. Another high pitch giggle had my jaw clenching. What am I supposed to feel! Someone is hitting on my sister! I reasoned with myself that she held up most of her life taking care of me that the least I could do was not punch Natsumi's older brother. Not that I wanted to. Mostly.

I went back through the list of Scoutmasters with Natsumi and Hunter who were very eager to know their upcoming teachers. Natsumi, in particular, wanting to know which elusive badges he would be able to add to his collection.

Scoutmaster Josh was here to help with archery, which was sooooo cool, his brown dog badge was super cute too! Scoutmaster Chinami was an expert canoer, she won enough awards to even go to the Olympics once! Naturally, she would be there for all water related activities and badges. Another cool edition was a laidback dude that Yoichi seceretly wanted to spend time with. So adorable! Scoutmaster Nikko would be our honorary forest ranger, teaching nature classes while also making sure everything was shipshape in our dear Buddy Woods!

Lastly, was the enigma. While I had spoken to her before, she seemed rather… oddly placed here at Camp Buddy. Not that anything is wrong with her! She was just so… prim and proper! I was briefly taken away when she adjusted her manicured platinum hair. Lady Aelora was a renowned marine biologist, having discovered three different species of sea life not too far from here! While I am glad to have someone so educated be with us, it did make me wonder why she chose Camp Buddy of all places to work! She noticed me staring, her light silver eyes giving me a wink as I blushed and looked away. It was thanks to her that Scoutmaster Chimami even heard of Camp Buddy and applied! I could only guess it had something to do with Mr. Clermont. What was that old saying? 'The rich don't only collect treasures; they collect people too.' Something like that!

These new Scoutmasters would reside in the minty fresh cabins that were just built, or actively being built. Scoutmaster Yoshi had told me that most of them signed on for free room and board in return for help around camp during the off season. I know some of them were helping with the construction as I caught a sweaty, and mostly naked, Yoichi aiding some of them put up one of the cross beams. I did some digging to make sure Mr. Goro was not taking advantage of them like he did before Aiden was promoted.

Speaking of, Ms. Yuri officially became Vice President with Scoutmaster Yoshi as the new Executive Director of Camp Buddy. It seemed sort of silly to have such grandoise titles, but knowing Mr. Goro he had the next ten years planned out with expansions already down on blueprints. After pressing her father, Ms. Yuri had it made official that Yoichi could stay at Camp Buddy as Scoutmaster Yoshi's ward until he turned 20. By that time, he should be eligible to work, if only at Camp Buddy if it came down to it. We stood there and chatted for at least another ten minutes, probably more.

My musing was broken when there was a series of excited honks. Hiro had said he would be bringing a surprise, so I immediately was excited. Politely excusing ourselves, I drug Alpha towards the front entrance with Natsumi and Hunter following in tow. Chugging up in the roundabout was a burnt orange car, an excited Hiro in the... driver's seat?! Alpha grunted, impressed. "Damn." I agreed.

The car made the curve before coming to an abrupt stop. Ms. Akiba made some sort of swear, I am certain as she put her arm in front of Hiro. Guess motherly instinct works even from the passenger seat. I twinged at the thought. "KEITARO! LOOK! I'M DRIIIIIIIIVING!" Hiro shouted from the opening window as his arm furiously cranked the lever.

"Tch! You're parked!" Alpha only got a stuck out tongue in reply before Hiro turned his attention back to me. I gave him a thumbs up and a cheesy grin. He quickly unbuckled his seatbelt, about to jump out before remembering his mom. She fussed as he unbuckled her, giving up while he continued to care for her. I moved forward, opening the car door for her and offering my arm with a warm smile.

"Ms. Akiba, you look beautiful this evening!" Even with her dark baggy eyes, I could tell she was blushing. Hiro flashed me a thankful, yet terse, smile in gratitude.

"You're too kind, Keitaro." I had some trouble getting her up, much more of her weight relied on me than was expected. Surprised when Yoichi came over, somehow gracefully switching him and I out as he easily bore Ms. Abika's weight. "Oh, m-my~! Such a strong," she glanced him up and down, "and handsome lad!" Hiro scrambled around the car, taking in the situation before nodding once.

Admiring the pretty decorations Kara and Ms. Yuri set to while we were chatting with the Scoutmasters, we slowly guided Ms. Akiba straight to the mess hall. Hiro was torn between sticking close to his mother but when he saw how well she was around Yoichi, he joined me up front to hold the double doors open for her. Thankfully, the pups were distracted at the moment when Scoutmaster Yoshi saw the procession come up and he sacrificed a slice of turkey to their ravenous stomachs. The mouthwatering aroma wafted from the open doors, causing many a tummy to rumble in anticipation

Yoichi escorted Ms. Akiba to her spot at the adults table, Kara and Ms. Yuri immediately breaking from their conversation to fawn over the tired woman. "Hina," my sister spoke, "it's so good to see you again! I miss working with you at the hospital!" Ms. Akiba gently pat her hand after Kara started to rub her shoulders.

Ms. Yuri gently steered Hiro away as he kept inching closer to his mother, "hey, it's okay, Hiro. We got her, enjoy your time." A soft kiss on his forehead had his words stuttering before stopping completely with a mumbled 'o-okay.' He moved to join us before I caught him in a mighty bear hug! It was nice to hear his giggles and feel him snuggle back. Through his moment of relaxation, I could feel how tired he was. Alpha even came over and tousled his vibrant orange hair playfully.

The clacking of high heels on wood told me that the rest of the Scoutmasters had shuffled in, the only one brazen enough to wear heels anywhere she went was Lady Aelora. Scoutmaster Aiden came out in his signature apron and oversized mittens carrying yet another hot plate of turkey. "Order up! This is my last delivery! You want anything else? Go cook it!" We all laughed and chuckled at his joke, he just stared at us unamused as his chef alter ego was still in control. A shake of his head and a sigh later he bustled back to the kitchen for a quick change. By the time he came back Scoutmaster Yoshi was already elbow deep in serving some of the dishes as everyone came up in an orderly queue. Wordlessly, he seceded control to Aiden and helped where he could.

Steam rose from the turkey as it was carved, the dribble of the cranberry sauce made me shiver. Alpha snorted at my reaction until something caught his eye and he was enraptured. Wha? Oh. Of course, heh. It seems Scoutmaster Aiden made a batch of sweet potatoes and marshmallows. As we moved up the line, I saw my sister bustling with a tray held high over her head. Her previous waitressing coming in handy as she quickly, and efficiently, unloaded a nice meal in front of Ms. Akiba who's eyes only grew wider with each dish added. I was too far away to hear her, but I knew she was saying it was too much for her to eat. Leftovers~!

We finally got to the part where we could stack the food up on our plates, with the occasional spoonful of whatever being added by Scoutmaster Yoshi. After reaching the dessert section with plates weighing at least five pounds, okay maybe not that much, Yoichi jolted in surprise. He had reached for the scoop of marshmallowy sweet potatoes only to get a solid smack across the knuckles with a cranberry coated wooden spoon. Alpha looked up at Scoutmaster Aiden who did not back down. I was about to tug on Alpha's sleeve when Scoutmaster Aiden broke out into a huge grin and reached under the tablecloth, pulling out a smaller batch of marshamllowy goodness!

Alpha stood there silently while Scoutmaster Aiden gestured again for Yoichi to take the proffered pan. "Alpha…? What's wrong?" Yoichi looked up from the treat to Aiden's eyes, hazel meeting violet. I could tell Alpha's brow was furrowed even from standing slightly behind him.

"For me…?" Aiden snorted, nodding.

"Course, Big Man, I made some extras just for you." My heart got all warm and fuzzy at the exchange. Alpha wordlessly took the pan, staring down at it without blinking. I gently tugged him so the line could move forward again, though he turned his head to nod at Aiden who smiled back before going back to serving. My little fingers were getting too hot to stick around any longer, so I made a mad dash towards our table! Thankfully the coast was clear! The rest of the boys filtered in one at a time, Hiro taking the open seat next to mine on the left. I was about to chomp a nice slice of gravy dipped turkey when Alpha shout out, "Dynamite!" We all turned to see Taiga bent over, hands on his knees as he was catching his breath from running the whole way here from the parking lot.

"Phew! Damn that was a nice jog, the slacks suck running in though." He straightened back up, his black and red fast-food outfit on clear display. He scanned over the line and grinned, "glad I barely missed anything!" He marched his burger butt over to the line where he graciously piled up a plate that rivaled Alpha's. He plopped next to Hunter and across from Hiro. Natsumi and Yoichi were engaged in a conversation across the table while Taiga just took a deep breath and slumped over. "Ugh, I hate splits…" I knew this was not the appropriate time to talk about one of my solutions, so I just reached diagonal and pet his head. Hiro and Hunter giggled. To be fair, Hunter did not have much to giggle about considering he was the only one in a sweater vest! We teased him about it before we all dug in.

The food was devoured at a staggering rate, soon one plate, then two were wiped clean of any sauce or crumbs. Raucous laughter came from the Scoutmasters table. First self-conscience they were laughing at us but a bunch of raised glasses clinking together dispelled that. Good to know they are getting along! Over at the self-dubbed 'adult' table, there was good natured laughter as Scoutmaster Aiden finally sat down with his own plate.

"Keitaro!" Hunter chimed. I turned back to smile at him.

"What's up, cutebutt?" He rolled his eyes, a bit of red pinkening his cheeks.

"Let's do Thankful For's!" Good idea! Nodding excitedly, I pushed my plate forward.

"Hmmmm! I am thankful for so much stuff! I am thankful for finding my Alpha." Yoichi grinned. "I am thankful for Hiro dragging me to Camp Buddy and meeting all of you!" A chorus of 'awws' made me giggle. "I am thankful of all of you being my friends and being a part of my life I never want to let go!" Alpha and Hiro each smooched one of my cheeks which turned cranberry red! The other three laughed at my fortune.

"Me next!" Hiro shouted, looking bashful when a few adults looked our way. He bashfully waved at them before turning back to us, "I am thankful for so much too! I am thankful in meeting you all, and having Keitaro as my bestie, and having Sir Aiden's heccin awesome food, and getting my license, and, and and," he stammered. I rubbed his back, giggling at his eagerness. "I am most thankful for Mr. Clermont and Felix for telling his dad about my mom. Well, okay, I am most thankful that my mom is still doing okay, but I am still very thankful for Mr. Clermont's help!" He plopped down winded. A side hug from me perked him back up though.

Taiga politely coughed, finishing up the last of his food before pushing his plate away. "I will keep it short. I am so thankful for all the nice stuff that happened this year. Most years are shitty. Really. Shitty." Frowning, I really wanted to tell him the news. "I am thankful for Keitaro slapping my head back on straight so I could see what I did have and not lose it like I did everything else. So thank you," he tilted his head at me before downing the rest of his soda. W-Well I didn't do much!

"Hrm, I guess I am next," Hunter mused. "I am thankful for being independent for the first time. My parents were so controlling, but now I am choose what I want to do instead of my life being dictated for me. I am thankful for Natsumi," who wrapped his arm around his blonde haired boyfriend, "and for meeting all of you. If it wasn't for Keitaro, I doubt I could have stood up to my parents." G-Guys!

"I am thankful for a lot too this year," Natsumi began, "for meeting the love of my life," he squeezed Hunter who snuggled close. "And for meeting you Hiro and Keitaro. I am still thankful that you, Keitaro, helped me with my brother. Naoto was a jerk, even if he was trying to be protective, and I let him bully me around too much. Thanks, Keitaro!" I sniffled. Yoichi was about to speak when Natsumi started again, "and I am thankful for getting a new brother." His loving smile directed at Yoichi who spluttered before looking away, arms crossed. Natsumi chuckled, letting the silence fall in place.

I was blinking away the tears too much to really see what was happening, Hiro squeezing my arm against his as he rested his chin on my shoulder. Finally, Alpha grunted and looked back our way. "What? You know this mushy stuff makes me wanna hurl…" We just stared at him in silence. Moments passed. "GAH! Fine! I am so damn thankful it makes me wanna throw up rainbows and shit! I got a fucking family now! I… I…" A small smooch to his cheek had him calming down, or up, whichever as I knew, we all knew, he was not angry. He was depressed, his inner self struggling with coming to terms that we would not walk out on him. He knew that. Truly knew that. "Thank you…"

My heart! Pressing my face against his shoulder, tears dripping down his arm to his scars. He sighed softly, tilting my chin back. "Babygurl, it's okay. I love you. I love all of you…" Bobbing my head, I leaned harder into him. His thumb tracing over my smooth glossy lips. I went back to leaning on him as the everyone shuffled a bit, the mood turning more towards appreciation and remembrance. I screeched like a girl when a pair of large hands clapped down on my shoulders.

"Whoa! Sorry to scare you, Keitaro!" Scoutmaster Yoshi chuckled from behind me. The whole table was snickering at me, glad Yoshi could not see my stink eye aimed at all of those traitors. "I came over to say my own Thankful For, if you wouldn't mind?" We all shook our heads, I just know he grinned. "Good! I won't make it too mushy," no doubt sparing his son, "I just wanted to say I am thankful for having such a loving, caring, and genuinely wonderful person being introduced to all of our lives. If it were not for him, none of us would be here now. I think that is something we can all be thankful for." I wanted to die. In a good way! But still, I felt like I could melt at any moment with the amount of love aimed at me right at this very moment.

Yoshi patted my shoulder, taking a breath and clearing his throat before moving back to his own table. I dabbed at the tears in my eyes with a colourful turkey napkin. Yoichi seemed lost in his own world, even half of his personal marshmallow pan lay untouched. I debated on shaking him out of his reverie, but decided it was best to let him feel what he was feeling. Hiro and I got up to get seconds, this time self-served as Aiden seemed to be a bit more boisterous at his own table. No doubt some ethanolics involved as my dear Alpha would say! I came back to find Natsumi gently squeezing Yoichi's hand and saying something quiet enough I could not hear. Minding my own business, I turned to Taiga.

"Hey, Dynamite~!" His eyebrow arched intrigued. "Uh…" My confident façade quickly crumbing, "is uh… your… uh…" A look of befuddlement crossed his face before it changed to vexation. He nodded. "O-Oh, well, uh… L-Look, I talked with Ms. Yuri- NO! NO! I di-didn't say anything about y-you! J-Just a fr-friend!" I hated the look of betrayal he leveled at me. "A-Anyway, y-you can stay here! Like, here here!" His red gaze unbroken and unchanging. "W-Wowies! I-Is it h-hot in here? N-No… Just me…? G-Great…" I quickly changed tactics. "It's all approved! J-Just move in! Y-You won't ever have to d-deal with… h-her again…" Unsure if mentioning his mother was a mistake or not, my hands were clenched in fists. My nails digging into my palms.

Hiro and Hunter sat there confused, staring between the two of us as the three of us could feel Taiga's anger radiate from him. Fanning myself with one of the clean plates, I looked at him hopeful that at least part of what I said registered with him before he closed me off. Hunter moved slightly closer to Natsumi as the silence only grew and Taiga refused to switch from his feline glare. "When?" I let out a sigh of relief, reaching over for his hand which felt like a raging inferno. I kept it there regardless.

"T-Tonight is fine, y-you can grab your stuff after work or n-now and stay here from now on. Y-You don't h-have to go back th-there anymore…" He pulled his hand away from mine, finally breaking the glare to look at his keys.

"Fine." He stood up and walked towards the door without saying a word to any of us. My own hands were fretting, anxiously playing with the hem of the tablecloth as Taiga slipped out into the night. A ball of vile toxicity swirled around in my tummy. I glanced at Hiro who was completely clueless as to what just happened. I did the right thing! I know I did! He needed help! I don't regret it!

Right?

Right…?