Chapter 2

The nights that preceded a full moon were always a struggle for Gladio. He could feel his senses heightening, preparing for that peak night where every sense and strength would be at its max. It was nothing to worry about though, he had trained to keep control of his senses all of his life. He knew how to keep himself from going full wolf.

But it didn't mean he completely confined himself to nothing. If he wanted to let his inner wolf come out a bit more, he saw no harm since he had his control. With it in mind he left the hotel he was staying at and breathed in deeply.

He could smell all the wonders of the night life around him, the wonders of the night life. From various little critters nearby to the few people who also chose to roam, to the nearby pub that was very active with a mix of different liquors.

Though he could have gone for a late night drink, he brought his attention elsewhere. The thought of a nice walk around the park was what was calling him. With the town being old fashioned, the park in the center of town was really one to write home about. It was simple but beautiful at the same time, a great place for one to walk in the middle of the night.

He trekked his way out there, shoving his hands into his pants pockets. It was fairly quiet on the path that he walked, but soon enough his senses picked up something. He came to a halt and took in a deep breath, figuring out what it was that he was smelling.

There were other werewolves nearby. A pack of werewolves.

Gladio wasn't too sure what a pack was doing opposite the direction of the center of town, but he figured it was none of his business. If it wasn't his family or pack then he had no reason to pry. But what was more concerning was the sounds he was picking up from that direction.

He could hear chuckling, and it was not the type that was used from hearing a joke. It sounded much more intimidating and cold. Right away he felt the faint feeling that something was wrong. Picking up on the scent of the others, he could tell that there were at least three werewolves up ahead, and the chuckling was still constant.

He stayed quiet, trying better to listen into what was being said, still having that uncertain feeling. As he came closer he knew that he could be sensed by the other werewolves, but he was already listening in and there was no going back at this point.

"So come on," one voice said. "What's it going to be? We really don't want to have to wait all night."

"I told you a thousand times before, I am not leaving this town."

Gladio's eyes widened. That was Ignis's voice! "What on Eos is that guy doing with other werewolves?" Gladio slowed his pace to make sure he didn't alert the other werewolves and instead tried to listen into more of the conversation.

"Well we gave you a choice… time after time we tried to give you a chance to leave. But if you aren't going to take our gracious offer then we have no choice," one werewolf growled.

"Yeah, you caused enough trouble for us now you'll have to pay!"

Without caring to hear what would be said next, Gladio raced forward towards the group. He didn't even stop for a moment to consider just what it was he was doing or what he was planning. All he knew was he had to stop whatever was about to start, even if he didn't know the full history as to why it was happening in the first place. Before he knew it, he was standing in front of Ignis, glaring down at the other werewolves. The three others on the other hand were staring at him confused, trying to make sense of it.

Gladio growled at them, baring his fangs. "Back off."

"Whoa whoa dude," one said as he held up his hands. "Have you got your head on wrong or something? You realize the vampire is behind you, right?"

Gladio glanced back to see that Ignis was still standing there, his eyes wide but full of frustration. Without even saying anything to him he went back to looking at the other werewolves. "Doesn't matter. You shouldn't be starting up anything. You really want to be the start of some other long war between races?"

The one werewolf who seemed to be the leader of the group growled. "We don't want to start anything, but it's him who is the issue! So caught up in past events, thinking everything he says is the most important thing! Treating all of us like we are scum!"

"Yeah! The little parasite deserves to die!" the second shouted.

Gladio stood his ground, surprised at the same time that Ignis wasn't saying anything. He was standing there, watching them all quietly. His expression was unwavering, only slightly moving his one good eye between Gladio and the other three.

"He attacked us before!" the third one yelled. "We have a right to get back at him! He deserves well more than only one destroyed eye!"

As much as Gladio knew he should have listened to see if that was the truth, he wasn't having any of it. "I'll ask you again to back off. I won't let any fights break out."

"And who are you to tell us that we can't fight?" the leader scoffed.

"Gladio. Gladiolus Amicitia."

Gladio smiled as he watched the three others' faces pale. "A A-Amicitia? Oh fuck that!"

"No way we're going to deal with you!"

"Let's get out of here! No one said we had to deal with a Amicitia!"

Gladio watched the three scamper off into the night, running as far away as they could. Once they were out of sight, he turned around and was thankful that Ignis still stood there. "Hey, so you alright?"

"And just what the bloody hell was that about?!" Ignis snapped, hissing as he bared his fangs.

"What? I saved you from those guys? Just doing what I could to help."

"I had it under control! I did not need any outsider interference!"

"You were outnumbered by two, I know you think you are hot stuff and all, but you shouldn't get ahead of yourself." Even though he had just said that, Gladio's own thoughts were already too far ahead to stop. Before he could even process what he was saying, he let it leave his lips. "Though it did mean I got to recuse a rather handsome damsel in distress, so I would say it's worth it."

He was shoved to the ground within the blink of the eye. Ignis was on top of him, pinning him down with strength that Gladio had not expected. His right eye was fuming with anger, glowing a vivid red.

"You. Take. That. Back. That is by far the most insulting thing I have ever heard!"

Gladio kept his cool, having been thrown into many situations during his younger years. Not only had he been known for getting into trouble, but his own father made sure Gladio could be prepared for anything. He had to be calm and ready to approach any situation without getting angry right away. The better control over his emotions the better control he would have over his werewolf form.

"What? I was only trying to tease. Besides those runts ran off. You got nothing more to worry about."

"I was handling it myself!"

Even if he knew what he should do, there were still times where he let his cool slip up. He could feel the frustration seeping into his mind. "By being backed into a corner by three werewolves days from a full moon? Yeah, really sounds like you were handling it."

Gladio pushed Ignis off him easily and watched the man fall back to the ground. He winced as he heard Ignis let out a grunt, not actually wanting to hurt him so much. But before he could say anything more, Ignis was back on his feet and lunged at him.

The two tumbled back to the ground, with Gladio trying to keep Ignis from digging his nails into his arm. He had to give Ignis some credit; he was actually persistent in what he was trying to do. But even with that, Gladio wasn't about to let him win.

"I never asked for your help! I do not need any help, especially from a filthy mutt like yourself!"

Growling, Gladio flipped Ignis onto the ground, now being the one looming over the other. "There are a lot of insults I'll take about me being a werewolf, but never, never insinuate that I am a mutt. I am a Amicitia! We are proud purebloods, and I will not let you say such a thing against my family!"

Ignis was still glaring with hate, but slowly a crude smile found its way onto his face. "Oh, is that your trigger? Your family heritage? Well, it seems I have found a weakness in you. Who would have thought words could actually hurt you?"

"When it comes to my family, I do anything to protect it," Gladio growled deeply.

"Family," Ignis scoffed. "What a sweet thing to say. Too bad I don't care."

There was a flash of something and suddenly Gladio felt a strong stinging sensation on his forehead. He stumbled, backing off of Ignis, placing a hand to his forehead. He felt something warm against his palm, and his forehead still felt like it was burning.

He pulled back his hand slowly and saw what he theorized. There was still that strong stinging, even though he was no longer touching the fresh wound. Moving his eyes over to Ignis, his jaw nearly dropped to the floor. He couldn't believe what it was that he was seeing, and it made him feel sick to his stomach. Ignis was standing there, in an offensive position, holding a blade in his hands. With the moonlight shining down on it, he could see the way the light glinted off of it.

"A silver blade?! Why the fuck do you have a silver blade on you?" Gladio shouted.

"To fend off beasts like yourself!" Ignis hissed as he extended his arm, holding the blade out. "I have a right to my own self defense."

Gladio reached up and lightly pressed his fingers to the wound. He flinched upon the pain that it brought once more. Thankfully Ignis had only cut him with the blade rather than stabbing him with it. The silver had burned against his skin, and most likely he would get a scar from it, but he would live at least. But that didn't make it any more reasonable.

"You can't just go attacking werewolves with silver blades! You know it could kill me!"

"Exactly the reason to keep it on hand," Ignis hissed harshly. It looked like he was going to charge and attack again, but suddenly there were two figures, one on each side of Ignis.

Gladio blinked and now saw that it was two people restraining Ignis from moving. He could only assume they two were vampires from their lack of normal scent and their pale complexion. One was blond and the other hair as dark as the night.

"Whoa Ignis! You got to cool it!" the raven haired boy replied.

"Yeah Iggy! You really want to be the start of some big fight or something?"

"I would dare not start such things. It's always his kind that are the cause of all the trouble! Don't try and deny that!"

"Look, we get that werewolves have caused issues before, but you can't go picking fights with every single werewolf that comes along!" the blond added.

Gladio watched as the two other vampires kept their holds on Ignis, and after a little bit of struggling, he finally sighed and lowered his head. The blond took the blade from Ignis and sheathed it, holding on to it after that.

The one with the darker hair let go of Ignis once he saw that he wasn't going to do anything more. His eyes narrowed at Gladio. "What the hell?! You actually managed to injure him!"

"Dude," the blond interjected. "I think Noct and I can both agree you seriously gotta chill for tonight. No more knives for a week."

The one known as Noct moved closer to Gladio, looking a little concerned. "You're not hurt are you? Like you don't think it's too severe?"

"I don't know," Gladio muttered. "I was slashed across my forehead. Can't really see the damage too well."

"Hm…" Noct hummed before looking back at Ignis. "I think he'll have to come back with us, and you'll be the one to tend to the wound since you're the one who caused it."

"But Noct, I was only-"

"Ignis!" Noct snapped suddenly. "I get you hate werewolves. We all know that. But I'm not letting you get away with killing one, regardless of the past."

Ignis opened his mouth to say something else but he closed it a moment later. He glared to Gladio and then to the pavement. "Very well."

Noct looked back to Gladio, offering a sympathetic look. "I'm sorry about Ignis. But let us make it up to you and get that wound looked at."

Gladio narrowed his eyes, trying to sense for anything he could distrust in this guy. But he seemed much more genuine and calmer than Ignis had ever acted. The blond also fit along with that friendly aura.

Going with his gut he decided to give this a chance. Besides it would give him more time to be around Ignis and figure out what his deal was. It was clear he had a strong distaste for werewolves, which was usually seen in older vampires. But the reasons always varied from vampire to vampire for an exact reason they hated the other kind.

Slowly, Gladio followed behind the three vampires, keeping his distance since he could see how rigid Ignis had become. He breathed out slowly, trying to calm himself down from the fight that had just transpired moments ago. It all seemed to blur in his mind how quickly it started and ended. He had to admit though, Ignis was quite the strong fighter and Gladio really did like that in a man. Even if Ignis had tried to kill him, there was part of him that had to congratulate him for making such an attempt.