The Pack

Disclaimer: PLOT IS MINE… the rest, not so much…

Weee! The third chapter! And I want to say thank you to everyone that is reading and enjoying and reviewing this story. The only request I have is that I get at least five reviews for every chapter that way I feel better about updating.

Chapter 3

"M-my help? What could I possibly do?" I asked, completely shocked.

"You are not one of us but you seem to be the right person for us to ask. I can smell it and I can feel it… it's instinct. My gut is telling me that you are the only one we can trust. It has to be… Squall found you in the sacred spot and didn't kill you for being there, why is that? Because his gut told him not to."

"Sacred spot? You mean those four trees?" I asked.

"That place is where the leaders of the pack are born. Sora and Kairi were born there two years ago!" Zack piped in.

"I had no idea…" I said. "I'm sorry if I was disturbing such a special place… it was just so nice to be there. It was always so warm…" I trailed.

"Well now you know…" Riku said and pulled on Sora's tail in an attempt to stop him from running off.

Wait… tail?

"Why does Sora have a tail?" I asked.

"He's royalty… he's going to be the next pack leader… Kairi has one too… they are destined to be king and queen, to put it in human terms." Riku explained.

"This is all so mind boggling! You've been in this forest for generations, without anyone knowing?" I asked.

"No, and that's why we need your help. We've been discovered quite a few times. Only this time, the one who found us plans to reveal us to the world. He's been setting traps everywhere. The more we escape, the more elaborate they become. It's to the point where if one of us gets caught, you can't escape alone. We've tried traveling in pairs, but that only makes us more vulnerable." Xemnas explained.

"How is that?" I asked.

"Who ever knows about us, knows about our disguise too." He said.

"Yeah, so when me and Xiggy are roaming and I get caught, essentially he gets caught too. We need someone who's human to help us out… that way it reduces the discovery of all of us. Right now the guy probably thinks there is only four of us. Me, Xiggy, Riku, and Squall. We've all been caught before." Zack explained.

"So you need me to get you guys out of the traps whenever you get caught, so that you guys won't reveal yourselves anymore." I asked.

"Exactly." Xemnas said.

"I don't see why I can't do it… but I have school and work on the weekends…" I said.

"We don't move much during the morning. It's only later in the afternoon and at night that we are on the move." Xigbar said.

"I think it'll work out then." I said.

"Why do you agree so quickly?" Squall asked.

"To tell you the truth… my life outside of the bakery, really sucks…I'm always alone and there's really no one I can depend on. I feel kind of useless… like I'm wasting my life. If I help you… I'll feel more useful and I won't always be alone." I said with a soft smile.

Squall grunted and his ears twitched a little.

"Yay! Kitty's on our side! We should totally commemorate this moment. Too bad we can't howl, that would completely blow our cover. I'm just so excited right now! We have a new friend! Our pack just grew by one!" Zack yipped excitedly and ran into the bushes.

I cocked my head in confusion.

A larger dark brown wolf hopped out of the bushes and pounced on me.

"Ahhh!" I yelled and tried to push the huge dog off of me.

He started licking my face.

"Th-that tickles!" I giggled and started to pet Zack. Zack moved from on top of me and sat.

Pet me more! Zack's voice rang in my head.

"WAH!" I yelped and looked around.

"Yeah, you'll get used to that. It's strange at first, but after a while it becomes natural." Riku said as he watched Sora and Kairi play wrestle.

"So you can talk to me, in my head?" I asked.

Yep! Was all of their voices at once. I jumped. "That is too weird." I said.

Zack the wolf nudged his wet nose in my cheek. Pet me!

I reached and started to scratch behind his ears.

"HAHAHAHA! ZACK! YOUR TAIL IS WAGGING LIKE SOME COMMON DOG!" Xigbar teased.

Zack snarled at Xigbar. Well, it's not my fault that it feels good to be scratched behind the ears!

"I can pet you too if you want." I said with a smile.

"NO! I won't degrade myself in such a way. I will not be treated like a house dog." Xigbar grumbled.

It didn't sound like his heart was in it though. I walked up to him and noticed his left eye.

It had a large scar on it. I hadn't noticed it before.

Probably because you were scared shitless. Xigbar smirked.

I jumped. "You can read my thoughts!" I yelled.

Yep! Was all of their voices again.

"Okay! No, I absolutely forbid that! You cannot, under any circumstances, read my thoughts! It's a complete invasion of my privacy!" I yelled, very disturbed by the fact.

"We will respect your privacy… everyone, it is now forbidden to read the boy's thoughts." Xemnas demanded.

"Yes." The others replied.

I sighed, feeling better. "Thank you. My name is Cloud by the way." I said.

They nodded.

I turned back to Xigbar. "You shouldn't pick on Zack, you know. I think you'll like it just the same." I smiled.

"No way. The only reason Zack likes it is because he has no pride as a wolf. I do however and I… I…" He trailed off when I started scratching behind his ears.

I smirked.

"HAHAHHAHAHA! WHAT WERE YOU JUST TALKING ABOUT? PRIDE OF A WOLF! YOU'RE EXACTLY THE SAME AS ME! IT FEELS GOOD RIGHT?" Zack laughed loudly.

I patted Xigbar's head twice and turned.

"Ah! Zack! Put on your clothes please!" I yelled and covered my face.

"What? You have one too! Why are you humans so modest? Actually, I think I understand. I mean your bodies are pretty freaky… there's like no hair, and you smell bad…" Zack said and wiggled his fingers and toes. "But the opposable thumb thing is pure genius… I can pick u-"

"Zack! Clothes!" Riku and Xigbar yelled.

"Oh! Sorry, sorry!" Zack said and went back into the bushes.

I tried to erase the blush off my face. How is it that I've never seen the naked body of another male in my entire life, but after meeting these guys, I see two very attractive ones in the span of an hour?

I smacked myself. Did I really just think they were attractive! They're not even human!

"Ummm, are you okay Cloud? You hit yourself pretty hard there…" Riku asked.

I snapped out of it. "Yeah… sorry." I said.

"Awww, he smells embarrassed. It's okay. We won't laugh at you!" Zack said, now fully clothed.

I blushed and scooted away from him a little. "About what you said earlier… do we really smell bad?" I asked.

"You don't… you smell like bread and fruits." Two small voices said.

I looked to see Sora and Kairi looking at me. I smiled. They were so cute!

I patted their heads and said. "Thank you. That makes me feel better." I said.

"It's really the other ones out there that I was talking about. The smells are always too strong. Sometimes they're tolerable, but other times you're forced to hold your nose!" Zack said.

"Your kind cleans with… what is it… soap? And then there's the perfune… or something like that? It's awful…" Riku explained.

"The soaps are not that bad… but the perfune! It kills my brain cells!" Xigbar yelled.

"Perfume…" I corrected.

"Xigbar… you never had any brain cells!" Zack laughed, only to yelp when a fist came down on his head.

I laughed.

"We like you Cloud! Play with us!" Sora and Kairi said, tails wagging in excitement.

"Okay, what game?" I asked.

My eyes widened when the two pounced. "WAH!"

"They want to wrestle with you. That's a great honor. That means they want to be your friend." Riku said.

"I don't want to hurt them though…" I said.

"You won't… they're indestructible, those two… believe me, they'll have more fun if you fight back." Riku said.

I nervously pushed Sora off me and tugged lightly on Kairi's ear.

They giggled and pushed at me. I smiled and got up to run around.

I ran in circles. Sora laughed and caught my leg. Kairi sat for a second feeling dizzy from watching me.

I fell to the ground and laughed. Kairi got up and jumped on me. I pulled on their tails.

"Oh! You play dirty!" They yelled and growled at me.

"Sorry I couldn't help myself-Ah!" I yelped as Sora nipped at my arm.

Kairi nipped my leg. It felt like pinches!

I tried to get up to run again. I couldn't, they had my legs. "Alright! You win!" I laughed.

"Yeah!" They yipped and I petted their heads. They were adorable.

Sora yawned and snuggled against my arm. Kairi did the same against my side and fisted my shirt.

"You actually wore them out… That's like a miracle in itself." Xigbar said.

I smiled and looked at their dozing faces. Sora's ear twitched and his tail wagged for a second.

My stomach growled. I blushed and hid my face with my arm. "Sounds like I'm hungry." I said. "I need to get back."

"Awww! You really have to go Kitty? You should stay with us! We can feed you right?" Zack asked.

"Zack, humans can't stomach raw meat." Riku said.

"Awwwww… that stinks…" Zack sighed.

"Well, on Sundays I get off of work at four. I can come back tomorrow." I said and gently peeled myself away from the sleeping kids.

"Good!" Zack said with a yip.

"Squall." Xemnas said.

Squall looked to Xemnas. "Yes."

"Walk Cloud home. It's getting very dark, he might get lost." Xemnas said.

Squall nodded and got up. "Come." He said and I followed behind him.

It was maybe after ten minutes that Squall stopped walking.

"Is there something wrong?" I asked.

"Walk beside me." He said.

I moved to his right and we walked.

"Why did you stop?" I asked.

"There was a trap… I didn't want you stepping in."

"Oh. Thanks." I said.

"You were good to the pups." He stated.

"Huh?" I asked.

"You bonded well with them, and they took to you quickly."

"What? I'm sure it's-"

"They were comfortable enough to sleep in your presence. For them to become so vulnerable in front of you is a great honor." He said.

"Well, I like them. They're very sweet." I said.

Squall smirked. "You know, for a male, you sure don't act like one."

"What! That's not true! Just because I like kids doesn't make me a girl!" I yelled.

"You acted more like a mother dog playing with her pups than a father." Squall stated.

"Go back. I'll find my way home by myself." I growled.

"What? You're kidding? I bet you can barely see three feet in front of you."

"Go back!" I yelled and pushed him as hard as I could. "I won't have you damage my pride any longer. Go! I don't need your help!" I yelled angrily and stomped off.

Squall didn't follow.

I sighed in relief and decided I would just walk in the direction we were going in. I'd probably reach the end of the park sooner or later.

I growled. "I can't believe that dog called me a girl! I can hold my own in a fight and I support myself. How dare he?"

It was maybe midnight when I finally got out of the forest. Ten minutes later I was home, hunger forgotten.

I walked to my room, got inside, and flopped on my bed. I looked at my shoulders and arms.

They weren't as large as Squall's but they were toned. I'm not some flimsy female. Just because I am good with kids and nicer than most, doesn't make me less of a man…

Does it?

I'll show him! I can do whatever he can!

Except turn into a wolf and eat raw meat…

You just wait Squall! You've challenged me and I will not lose!

I fell asleep with that in mind.

A/N: Hehe! I love Cloud! He thinks he's the seme… silly boy! Not in my stories! GO REVIEW NOW!