I was woken up the next morning by someone pushing my shoulder. I opened my eyes to see Winston in front of me. I looked back at Lilly. She was still asleep, our noses still touching and my leg over her. I carefully but quickly moved away, worried Winston was mad.
"Time to go. We need to find you a den." he quietly said. I nodded and stood up and stretched. We walked outside I could tell he was thinking about something.
"Is something wrong, sir?" I asked. He stopped and smiled at me. "Not really. I saw you and Lilly sleeping this morning." he said. I blushed and hung my head and said "I'm sorry if I upset you, sir. I really like her. We fell asleep last night after watching the stars."
"It's alright. I understand." he said, continuing to walk. I followed him and we eventually got to his and Eve's den. I wasn't sure what we were doing there, but followed him anyway. When we got the entrance, Humphrey was already inside, sitting just inside.
"Okay. I've brought you guys here to talk to you about my daughters. Eve isn't here, so it will be private." he said, sitting down with us. We both looked at each other and instanly knew what he meant.
"We're sorry for upsetting you, sir. If you don't want us around them anymore, we understand." I said, hanging my head. He started chuckling, making us wonder what was going on.
"I didn't bring you here to say that. I was going to say I was happy for you all." he said, shocking us.
"What do you mean?" Humphrey asked.
"Well, I saw how you all were this morning. Both Kate and Lilly had huge smiles on their faces. I knew they were happy with you two. I'm actually glad they picked you two instead of other wolves that would break their hearts. I already know you two won't do that. Humphrey, I've known you since you were born. You always put anyone else ahead of yourself and never did anything to make anyone upset. I really respect that." Winston said, turning to me.
"And you, Cody. You may have just got here yesterday, but I see great intentions in you. I feel I could trust you with anything I ask or anything you do, am I right?" he asked me.
"Yes, sir. I'd never do anything that would cause me to lose a friend or family member. I've been through that already and don't want it to happen ever again." I said.
"I can tell. Now, if you two EVER do ANYTHING that will hurt them, I will tear you limb from limb, got it?" he calmly asked. We were scared from what he said, but nodded.
"Good. Humphrey, you can go back to Salty's den. I'm sure Kate's up by now and wondering where you went. Please, don't mention any of what we talked about to them, okay?" Winston asked.
"Yes, sir." he said, walking out. Winston smiled at him as he walked by and then turned to me. "Come on. Let's go see if their is a good den around here somewhere. I'll talk to Kate and Lilly later and ask them what they think about you guys." he said, walking outside.
I quickly followed him and said "Sir? I have actually already found a den that would work for me. It's across the creek that's near Salty's den. I saw it last night when we...I mean, I went to get some water."
"Oh, well alright then. Made my day a little easier. Mind if I take a look at it?" he asked, smiling.
"Of course. It's this way." I said, walking toward the creek. When we got there I pointed to it. It was small, but large enough for at least 3 wolves. It had about 20 feet of open dirt from the entrance to the creek.
"Wow. Pretty good find. Sure it will work?" he asked, looking at it.
"Yep. I'm sure. I'm going to see if I can get some flowers or anything to grow outside of it. Looks pretty empty right now to me." I said.
"Good idea. Well, I'll be off then. Good job." he said, walking off. I started looking for something to put across the creek so I could get across. Eventuall I found a couple logs that would reach across it. I dragged them back to the creek and put them in position. I walked across it and found some rocks to hold them in place. I put them on either side so the logs wouldn't roll away. I sat back, panting from carrying the rocks.
"Perfect." I said. I walked towards the entrance and looked inside. I didn't smell any other scents inside, so I walked in. It felt a little small, but it would be fine. I laid down to enjoy the rest of the morning. About a half hour later, Lilly comes walking up to the creek. I walk outside and walk over to her.
"Hey." I said, sitting on the bank across from her.
"Oh, hey you. Where did you go this morning? I woke up, but you were gone. So was Humphrey, according to Kate."
Oh, he and your dad helped me find my own den this morning. We found this one behind me." I said, pointing over my back. She looked over and said "Wow. Pretty nice. Sure it's big enough?"
"Yep. Come on over. I made a little bridge with the logs here." I said. She got up and walked over, admiring my handywork.
"Pretty good job with the logs and rocks." she said, smiling as she got across them.
"Thanks. Wanna see the inside?" I asked.
"Sure, I'd love to." she said. We walked inside and she said "A little small, but big enough for a few wolves."
"Yep. It's actually pretty comfy." I said, laying down. She laid down next to me and said "About last night..." I knew she was going to say she wasn't interested.
"It's okay. I understand." I said. She looked at me with confusion on her face and said "Understand what? I didn't even tell you yet."
"You're not interested in going out with me, right?" I asked, sad. Her eyes shot wide open and she said "No! Actually, I'd love to go out with you. I was just going to say I had a lot of fun with you last night. Why would you think that? You already asked me to the howl tonight and I said yes!" My heart rate picked up and I said "Really? You'd like to go out with me?"
"I just said yes, dummy! Did you not hear me?" she asked, giggling.
"That's great! I thought you weren't interested in me." I said, feeling stupid.
"That's crazy. You're the most interesting wolf I've ever met. And the sweetest...and also, a little dorky." she said, smiling. I smiled back and said "Oh, dorky huh? Well, I AM an omega too, so I guess it's just a trait."
"Yeah, maybe. Either that or you're actually blonde under that black fur!" she said, taking off. I laughed and ran after her. I chased her to the edge of the creek and tackled her, making her yelp playfully and we rolled into the creek. We resurfaced and she splashed me, trying to get away. I turned my head to avoid the water and she was climbing out, running off again, laughing. I jumped out and chased her again. When I was close enough, I tackled her again, laughing. She was laughing too and we started rolling around, trying to pin each other.
I suddenly felt a weird feeling in my lower region and jumped off her, running away. "Wait, where are you going?" she yelled, chasing me this time. She got closer and jumped at me, tackling me. I rolled onto my back and she pinned me.
"Why did you run away? Did I hurt you?" she asked. I was shaking and shook my head.
"Then why did you run?" she asked. I gestured with my eyes down my body and she looked down to see my wolfhood sticking out. She jumped off and turned away, blushing, and said "Oh my! I'm sorry about that." I blushed too, much more then normal and got up, tail between my legs.
"No. It's m-my fault. I cou-couldn't control i-it." I said, embarassed and backing away. She turned back around and looked at me backing up.
"Hey, it's nothing to afraid of. It happens. It's normal." she said, walking over to me. I sat down, still blushing madly and said "Well, it's never happened before."
"You mean I c-caused this?" she asked, pointing at me. I laid down to hide myself and quickly nodded, embarassed to tell her, but I didn't want to lie to her. That would've made feel even worse.
"Oh...I guess you ARE pretty attracted to me then, huh?" she asked, giggling and blushing. I turned my head away to avoid looking her in the eyes and nodded again. She came over and laid down next to me.
"Don't worry about it. I won't tell anyone. Just our little secret, m'kay?" she asked, rubbing her head on my neck. I turned back to face her and said "Okay. Still, I'm sorry you had to see that."
"It's okay. Don't worry about it anymore. Why don't we go play until tonight?" she asked, leaning into my side. I rested my head on hers and said "I'm just fine with being here with you." She giggled and said "I am too, but I'm sure everyone's going to be wondering where we are. Some might start getting the wrong idea if we're alone too long, know what I mean?"
"Yeah, didn't think about that. So, what do you wanna do?" I asked. She thought for a moment and said "How about we go give Salty a bad time about him and Janice?" I laughed and said "Okay, now THAT sounds fun!" She laughed and said "Yeah, it'll be fun seeing how nervous he gets."
"Are we plain mean?" I asked, laughing.
"Maybe just a little." she said. We got up and walked back to Salty's den. He was inside, laying down in the cool dirt. He saw us walk up and said "Hey guys. Come on in." We walked inside and sat down with him.
"So, what's up?" he asked, sitting up.
"Just wondering what was going on with you and Janice." I said, smiling. Lilly started laughing and Salty looked at me and said "What uh, what do you mean?"
"You know exactly what I mean. Have you told her yet?" I asked, laughing now. His eyes went wide and he said "N-no, not yet. I was actually planning on asking her to the howl tonight. Shakey's gonna ask Reba." We both stopped laughing and looked at him.
"You're serious, aren't you?" Lilly asked. He nodded and said "I've been wanting to for a while, but never got the nerve. Shakey finally said he is going to ask Reba later this evening, so I decided I'd ask Janice tonight, too."
"Wow, good job, buddy. What about Mooch?" I asked.
"He's already got a date. Her name's Candy, I think." Salty said.
"Nice. Candy is pretty cool. She's real nice." Lilly said. "Well, there's only a few more hours until the howl starts. Better go get ready."
"Okay, I'll see you later." I said, giving her a quick kiss, surprising her. She blushed and giggled as she walked off. When she was out of sight, Salty asked "So, where did you and Humphrey go this morning?"
"Winston wanted to talk to us about Kate and Lilly. He said he's actually happy they chose us instead of some wolves that would break their hearts."
"Wow, that pretty cool. Having the pack leaders permission to date his daughter? Good job." he said. "Thanks. At first I thought he was going to say he didn't want us around them." I said.
"Yeah, that's what I'd think." he said. "Well, we should go get ready. We need to be a Howling Rock before the girls."
"Right. Let's go." I said. We walked out and over to the creek and found a shallow spot to bathe in. We hopped in and started washing our fur, making sure to get all the dirt out. When we were done, almost a half hour later, we got out and shook dry. Salty looked at me and started laughing.
"What?" I asked.
"Some of the fur on top of your head is sticking up." he said, pointing at it. I looked into the water and looked it. It actually looked kinda good.
"I think I'll keep it. Does it look okay?" I asked.
"Yeah, it's actually pretty cool looking." he said.
"Thanks. Let's go find Shakey and Mooch. I'm sure Humphrey will be there by the time we get there." I said. We walked towards the feeding grounds an noticed Can-Do running up to us. "Cody, Winston wants to see you. Now!" he said, turning around and running off. I looked at Salty and he said "Go! I'll find them, don't worry." I nodded and ran off after Can-Do. We ran up the slope leading to Winston and Eve's den. I slowed to a walk when I got to the top and walked inside. Winston was sitting there, waiting for me.
"You wanted to see me, sir?" I asked, panting from running.
"Well, not me exactly." he said. I was about to ask why, but a flash of tan was flying at me, knocking me on my back.
"YOU THINK YOU CAN SLEEP WITH MY DAUGHTER!?" Eve yelled, putting her paws on my throat and pushing down. I started chocking when I heard Lilly yell "Mom! Get off him!" She pushed her mom off and Winston held her back as I got up, coughing and shaking uncontrollably.
"What did he do, mom!?" Lilly yelled, holding onto me.
"HE SLEPT WITH YOU LAST NIGHT!" she yelled, trying to get loose, but Winston was stronger.
"Yes, we did sleep toge- NO! Mom, we did NOT do that!" she yelled, embarassed and blushing. I blushed too, knowing what she meant. Eve seemed to calm down and said "Winston, is this true?"
"Yes. I told you. When I got there this morning, they were just sleeping with each other. I didn't smell anything that would say they did "that". Just like I told you." he said, letting her go. She sat down next to him and looked at me, making me freeze up. Winston leaned over to her and said "You need to aplogize to him." She looked at him and nodded. "Cody, I'm so sorry. When Winston said he saw you two sleeping together, I freaked out. I'm sorry. Can you forgive me?" she asked, sitting in front of me.
I coughed again and jokingly said "Normally, I don't forgive those who try to kill me, but since you're the pack leaders, I guess I can make an exception." Eve looked at me and said "Well, I guess that makes sense. I'll make sure not to let you live next time." I looked at her in shock and gulped, showing I was scared. She leaned towards me and said "I was joking, too." as she pulled me into a hug.
I laughed and hugged her back and said "Thanks. And yeah, I forgive you. And since we're on friendly terms right now, I have something to ask you." She pulled back and asked "What is it?"
"Is it okay with you if I take Lilly to the Howl tonight?" I asked. She looked at me and then at Lilly. Lilly made her pleading puppy dog face and Eve said "Well, I guess so. Lilly seems to be happy with you. But if you try to do anything that would hurt her, I'll tear your wolfhood off and shove it down-" "That's enough, honey. He gets it." Winston said, stopping her. I was sitting there in shock at what she said, making Lilly giggle.
"Okay. Why don't getting ready and I'll meet you at howling rock tonight? I still need to get ready, too." Lilly asked, snapping me out of my shocked state.
"Oh, right. Okay, see you then." I said as I walked back down the slope. Winston came up behind me and said "I'm sorry about all that. She did the same thing to Humphrey about 10 minutes before you got here. She just wanted to make sure you weren't going to do anything that would hurt Lilly."
"It's okay. I understand. If I were Eve and had daughters too, I'd most likely do the same thing." I said, laughing. "But the wolfhood thing might have been a little overkill."
"Yeah. Little too gruesome." Winston said. "Alright. I've got stuff I need to do. Take care."
"You too." I said as he walked back inside. I looked out over the feeding grounds and saw Humphrey sitting with Salty, Shakey and Mooch. I walked down and over to them.
"Hey, guys." I called over. They looked at me and Shakey said "Hey, what's up? You ready for tonight?"
"Yep. Just had an "interesting" talk with Eve." I said.
"Same thing. Did she threaten you with the wolfhood thing, too?" Humphrey asked. I nodded and he said "She's a little crazy, don't you think?"
"Yeah, but don't let her hear you say that." I said, laughing. "Why don't we head to howling rock? It's getting dark now."
"Good idea. I wanna get there before Kate. She's gonna look amazing. Not that she doesn't all the time, but tonight's special." Humphrey said.
"Yep. Oh, I'll be right back. I'm going to get something for Lilly!" I said.
"What is it?" Salty asked.
"A flower that matches her eyes. I saw them on my way over here." I said.
"We'll come with you. Maybe we'll find one for our dates, too." Mooch said. We ran off to a field of flowers, looking for the perfect ones. I found mine, which was white around the border and lavender in the middle.
"Perfect!" I said, holding it in my mouth. "Nice. Meet us at Howling Rock. We'll be there in a few." Shakey said. I ran off with it in my mouth and eventually got to howling rock and sat down at the bottom, waiting. A few minutes later, the guys got there too and sat down to wait. They all had flowers for their dates in their mouths as well.
About 15 minutes later Salty asked "What do you think is keeping them?" I shrugged and said "No idea. Lilly said she'd be here soon." A few minutes later, they all started walking up to where we were. They all looked great, but Lilly blew me away. Her fur was shining. Not just a soft glow, but a SHINE! Like water reflecting light. That good! My jaw dropped open when I saw her. She walked up and sat in front of me and said "Well, how do I look?"
"Ooh ook ahahing..." I said with my mouth still open. She giggled and reached up and shut it. "Now, try again. But this time make sense."
"I don't know if I can, seeing a wolf as beautiful as you. You...look...STUNNING!" I said, smiling. She giggled and said "Well, thanks. You too. Your white is really shining tonight!"
"Thanks. Oh, I got you something." I said, bending down to pick up the flower from the ground.
"Aw...It's beautiful!" she said as I put it on her head. "Not as beautiful as you! Did I mention stunning, yet?" I said, smiling.
"Yep, twice now." she said, giggling.
"You know how beautiful moonlight is shining off water?" I asked. She nodded and I said "You're 100 times better."
"Wow, really?" she asked, blushing. I nodded and said "Really."
"Aw, how sweet! Thank you!" she said, kissing me. We kept kissing for a couple minutes until Salty cleared his throat.
"You two done yet? There's still the howl you know?" he said.
"Oh, right. Ready?" I asked Lilly.
"Oh, yeah. I've been waiting all day for this!" she said.
"Well, ladies first!" I said, stepping off to the side. She giggled and started walking by, grabbing my neck and pulling me next to her. We walked up the hill with our pelts pressed together. About halfway up we heard a wolf say "Wow, Lilly! You're hot!" She hung her head and quietly said "Thanks..." I stopped and said "Hang on. Is this one of the wolves that asked you to the howl so he could show off?" She nodded and I said "Hey. Come over here a second, buddy." The wolf came over and sat down in front of me.
"What is it? Can't you see I'm busy here with this hot girl?" He asked, turning his head to his date. "Yeah, I can see that. Can you see this!?" I yelled. He turned his head and said "See wh-", unable to finish his sentance as I slapped him across his face, leaving deep cuts on his face from his ear to his nose.
He yelped out in pain and fell backward. I got on top of him and said "Do not EVER call Lilly hot again, because she's not. She's beautiful!" Lilly looked at me, shocked at what I did. "What's the difference!?" he yelled, holding his face in pain.
I leaned down and said "Respect!" and I got off him. He stood up and went back to his date and I walked back up to Lilly. We started back up the hill and I said "I'm sorry you had to see that."
"No! That was great! He took me to a howl before and only showed me off to his friends. I've always wanted that to happen to him!" she said, giggling. I smiled and said "It was nothing. Let me know if he ever tries to mess with you ever again."
"I will! Did you really mean what you said, though?" she asked.
"Yes, I did. Very much. A guy who calls a girl "hot" has no respect for her. If he says she's beautiful, like you, then it shows he cares about her." I said. Lilly hugged me and said "That's the best thing I've ever heard. Thank you!" I kissed her cheek and we kept walking up the hill, almost to the top, when Salty, Shakey and Humphrey stopped us with their dates.
"Hey, man. That was awesome of you back there. No one's ever stood up to Carlos before. Mostly everyone is afraid of him." Humphrey said.
"Why's that?" I asked.
"Because he's always making threats at anyone that tries to mess with him. Pretty bad ones, too. But he's never done any of them. I bet now if he does anything again, he'll have to answer to you!" Salty said.
"Wow, really? I didn't even know that!" I said, surprised. "Okay, see you guys later. We've got a howl to get to."
"Alright, later!" Shakey said. They all walked off to different spots to howl while Lilly and I found a small rock for us both to sit on. It over looked the bottom half of the mountain, so you could see mostly everything. If you looked straight out, the moon was right there in front of you, making it really romantic.
"So, do you wanna start or should I?" I asked, nervous. "Let's start at the same time." she said. We lifted out muzzles into the air and let out a howl that SILENCED the mountain. We kept it going for about 5 minutes, perfectly mixing our howls together into a beautiful song. When we finished, we looked into each others eyes while the mountain erupted into clapping and cheering. We were too busy to notice, lost in each other. I knew right then, we were in love. We both leaned into each other and started kissing, making it last for as long as we could, not wanted it to ever end. Eventually, we pulled apart. Lilly had tears in her eyes and leaned her head into my chest and started crying.
"What's the matter?" I asked, rubbing her back.
"Nothing at all. This is the best night of my life!" she said, still crying. I pulled her up so her face was next to mine and I kissed her cheek, making her stop crying and smile.
"Lilly, there's s-something I need t-to tell you." I stammered, nervous. She wiped her eyes and said "W-What is is?"
"Ever since I met you, I've had a crush on you. You're the most beautiful, funny, caring and lovely wolf I've ever met. That crush has grown into much more. What I'm trying to say is...I...I..." I stammered.
"You what?" Lilly asked, getting nervous. I took a deep breath and said "I love you" Her eyes went wide and she said "Oh, Cody! I love you,too!"
She suddenly leaned forward, knocking me on my back and started kissing me again. I put my forelegs around her neck and pulled her down until she was laying on top of me. We started making out, Lilly softly crying in joy. I could feel her heart beating against mine, perfectly in time with each other. We kept at it for about 10 minutes until It started getting cold. We broke the kiss and I looked around. The mountain was empty now. Everyone had left already, even Humphrey and Kate.
We sat up and leaned against each other, resting my head on hers. We were in love. That's the best way to put it. We sat next to each other for most of the night, staring at the stars until I fell Lilly fell asleep. She was softly breathing and smiling as wide as she could. I didn't want to wake her up, so I bent down and got her onto my back. I decided to take her back to her parents den so they wouldn't be upset with me in the morning if we went back to mine.
After about a half hour, I walked up the slope with her on my back. Eve was sitting outside, looking like she was waiting. I froze when I saw her and started shaking.
"She fell asleep. We didn't do anything, I swear!" I quietly said.
"I know, otherwise you'd be dead right now." she said, smiling. "Set her down inside and come back out to see me. I'd like to talk to you for a minute." I nodded and took Lilly in and gently laid her down in the den and walked back outside.
"Let's go somewhere a little further away so we don't wake them up." Eve said, walking down the slope. I followed her, scared, and when we reached the bottom, she sat down. I sat in front of her.
"I'm not mad at you, don't worry." she said, making me breathe a sigh of relief. "Actually, I'm very happy right now."
"About what?" I asked politely.
"Kate told us about what happened with you and Carlos earlier. I must say, I've never heard of an OMEGA standing up to an alpha like that!"
"He's an alpha!?" I asked, shocked.
"Yes, but not good one. He'd rather chase tails all day then actually do anything. My point is, you stood up for my daughter, to an alpha, when she was hurt. To me, that makes YOU an alpha." Eve said. I sighed and said "Technically, I am an alpha."
"What do you mean?"
"When I was still in my old pack, I was supposed to go to alpha school, but I said no. I don't like hurting others and I HATE fighting. That doesn't mean I won't stand up for others, though." I said.
"Well, why didn't you tell us that when we met you?"
"Because I was afraid you'd send me to alpha school." I said.
"We don't send anyone that doesn't want to go." she said.
"So, I don't have to go?" I asked, nervous.
"No, you don't. You've already proved yourself to us. If you ever want to join us on a hunt or anything omega's don't get to do, just ask." Eve said.
"Well, thank you. I should get back to my den now. It'll take while to get there." I said.
"You can stay here if you like. You're probably tired, right?" she asked, making me yawn. She laughed and said "Thought so. Come on." We walked back up the slope and inside. I saw Lilly still asleep where I laid her down. I was about to lay down near the front, but Eve gestured to Lilly, telling me to lay down with her instead.
I smiled and nodded and walked over and gently laid down with her. I scooted closer to her and wrapped my tail around hers. She started purring and smiled, telling me she was happy. I closed my eyes and fell asleep after a couple minutes, extremely happy.