Wolf Moon

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"Delivery for Wayo Panitchayasawad!"

Yo jerked his head up from the lunch box he'd been given by a senior. He'd only taken a bite of it before hearing his name. "That's me."

The delivery guy walked over with two stuffed bags, the logo for the nearby fancy sushi restaurant emblazoned on the sides. "It's already been paid for, sir. Here's your order." He set the bags down by Yo, then left.

Yo stared after the guy, then at the two bags. What the hell...who bought me sushi?? He ignored the stares and whispers from the nosy humans around him, and pulled out the top container in the first bag. It had a sticky note on top.

Enjoy the salmon, Yo. This is only the first of many gifts for my lovely cat.

Pha

Yo's body flooded with a pleased warmth. His cat purred softly at how well their wolf was taking care of them. He opened the container, and the smell of the salmon sushi inside made his mouth water hungrily, and he shoved aside the boxed lunch the seniors had handed out to everyone. Why would he eat that when he had just received a beautiful gift of salmon from the wolf courting him?

"Wow," Nate, the Star for Science - and very much human - settled next to him on the floor and stared in shock at all the sushi. "That's a lot of food. Will you be able to eat it all?"

"I can eat more than this in one sitting," Yo admitted sheepishly. He popped a whole piece in his mouth, eyes sliding shut in happiness as he chewed the delicious sushi. Yum! He loved salmon.

"Did you order it?"

"No. I'm being courted," Yo told her truthfully, eating another piece. Oh, boy, this sushi was sure hitting the spot. Yo could already feel his energy returning. He'd have no problems finishing practice today.

Nate was confused. "Courted? Oh, someone wants to date you?"

Yo blinked at her. Didn't he ever tell her...? "No. Courted as in mated and claimed if I choose to accept them. Remember? I'm a shifter, Nate."

Nate pretended to facepalm. "Right, I forgot. Sorry, Yo."

"Nearly everybody here is human, so don't worry about it," he gave her a kind smile.

"So...salmon sushi," she smiled teasingly. "Does that mean you're being courted by a cat?"

Yo swallowed the mouthful. "No. I'm actually being courted by a wolf. A senior from engineering," he couldn't help the smug tone. It wasn't every cat that caught the attention of an alpha wolf, and a senior at that. It was unheard of for cats and wolves to claim each other as life mates, too, but Yo was going to do his damnedest to make sure that happened for him and Pha.

Which would probably make them the first ever wolf/cat mates.

"How does one go about courting in the shifter communities?" Nate asked, interested.

"For cats such as myself, we state our intention to court first, then if our intent is accepted, we give a weekly gift until the next Snow Moon. That's when we make our final decision and claim the other as a partner, or reject them and look for a new one."

"Wait..." Nate's brow furrowed. "So you're a cat being courted by a wolf? How is that possible?"

"It's kind of rare, but there have been a few matings between species," Yo said casually, his pulse picking up speed at the idea of being claimed by that tall, strong alpha wolf. Yum.

"And can a shifter and human claim each other?"

Yo grimaced slightly, gently shaking his head. "Not totally. Humans don't have the same instincts or characteristics as shifters. They can't perform a full mating bite, but if they manage to break the skin, it counts has half a one."