I'm not at your orders

are you mad, little wolf?

Filip was tidying up the sparkleleaps in the cages, small bright, leaping cicadas with which he used to train young wolves in the forest with the aim of catching them, so that they would learn to maximise their sight and smell. Arya loved this kind of training, for her more of a game, given the excellent receptivity of her senses, such that Filip had taken it upon himself to give her more specific and less usual training for omegas. At that moment Marcus entered the equipment room, early as usual:
-morning Fil-
-are you up for training? -
-not exactly- Marcus looked at the small creatures meekly resting on the table and with no intention of escaping:-You've tamed them well- he said with a small grin:
-Arya says they always come back to you at the end of training-
.-it's a matter of getting them used to it- he turned to his brother and his eye fell on the letter he held in his hand:
-have you come to give me news?

Marcus handed him the letter with a seal of a blade, belonging to the Blue Blade pack, the closest to them. Filip took it indifferently, read a few lines and then placed it on the table:
-same story, isn't it?- Marcus sighed a little, then leaned against the edge of the table:
-they too are alarmed about the alpha of Arwa's pack. He is becoming increasingly wary of outsiders, at this rate he will end up isolating the mountains of the North to every passerby, including us-'Filip did not comment, but paid attention to the half-bent wing of one of his cicadas:
-are you listening?-
-of course... but that's nothing new. I've always suspected that he's an imbecile who was blessed with the boon of being born an alpha, you should know that too- Marcus didn't comment on that, rather he said:
-Tomorrow the alpha of the Blue Blade will come to the pack. We will discuss it better in presence, and...-
-you want me to be there?-
-no...I'd like you to keep Arya at bay- Filip immediately stopped, giving him an astonished look:
-are you mistaking me for a nanny?- Marcus laughed, then said:
-You know it's an exuberant period of her growth, and she's been making a bit of a mess of things at the castle lately. Amalya and I would like to be calm for the reception of our guest, so I would like you to take care of her for a day.-

-with all the staff available you thought of me?-
-you know they can't handle her. You and...-
-and?-
-You and Nori are the only ones who can take care of her - again that name rang in his head and Filip was visibly annoyed:
-then leave her at the botanist's - Marcus immediately retorted
-I thought about it... but he'll be busy with work and I don't want to burden him with this task.- ---and for exclusion you rightly went to your brother - said Filip sarcastically
-and his uncle, - said Marcus - we agree then.-

Filip sighed and then said: - and where am I supposed to keep her for a whole day?-
-Take her to the spring, she'll have fun there- Filip narrowed his eyes towards his brother:
-tell me, you planned this from the beginning, didn't you?- Marcus shrugged and patted his brother:
-come on, you'll have fun too. And thank you- before he left Filip said:
-you owe me a favour Marcus- he mooed in assent and once alone Filip watched his cicadas, undisturbed, wandering about the table, convincing himself that he did indeed have a talent for getting the others to trust him, not knowing if it was partly or entirely due to his alpha nature, but it was certain that he could not always take advantage of it, as occurred just now.

The following day the sky seemed to promise good weather, with pleasant cumulus clouds unravelling in the cerulean blue. The soft light of day seeped through the tall redwoods with the most convoluted trunks and the most opulent foliage, resting among the still waters of the spring, gathered in natural pools connected by small streams. Water lilies and lotus flowers sprouted in those iridescent mirrors, along with ivy disentangling itself from some trunks and among the white marble of an ancient monopterous temple, austere in form but in harmony with the curves of nature, seeming like a pleasant garden in which to escape from one's daily routine. Nori walked among the earthen strips of those limpid pools, listening to his footsteps, the sound of a few birds and the faint splash of water, like a soothing lullaby. The only thing he really appreciated about his birthday was that it was in the flower season and the best time to go to the spring; he watched some ducks float lazily on the water and some swans clean their feathers by bending their long necks, until a faint but distinct noise behind him distracted him from those animals. Along the path, Filip and Arya made their way, the latter in her wolf form: her coat shaded from white to dark grey, formed by a sparse but soft fluff, certainly inheriting both the wolf-like traits of her parents: