I'm not at your orders

apologies

Nori's eyes were lost in the dust hovering in the air of his room, swinging in the emptiness of space. His mind on the other hand did not feel the same tranquillity, full of thoughts coming and going like an ebb of the sea. As despicable as Sayo's behaviour was, he could not forget his words about Awa's pack. He had indeed been born into that pack because of his mother's adultery with another beta and that had inevitably led to him being an unwanted burden to her and simply a bastard to his mate. He had a few memories of his early childhood with his mother, but he rarely dug them out of his mind: he remembered walks through the magnolia-flowered avenues, the small house they were in, the occasional smell of stew coming from the kitchen and his mother: her hair was short, her eyes small and black and her gaze impassive. His relationship with her was almost empty, he could remember no significant episodes experienced with her, not a smile, a caress or a kiss. Nori had realised early on that he had been a burden and for his mother's sake he kept quiet and cried little, certain that this would please her, although it unexpectedly had the opposite effect: his quietness was a cry of guilt for his mother, and she struggled with herself, between hatred and acceptance, only to end up giving in.She knew Sirius, her deceased sister's mate, and had desperately begged him to take the child with him into his pack, as she was on the verge of despair at no longer receiving her mate's love. Nori had learned over time not to hate or mourn his mother, but to move on and leave it all behind, no matter how much those thoughts of her would return from time to time. How could a child take on guilt that was not his own? Nori simply happened to be there, as well as that incident with Sayo.She also thought about Filip's words and how he had reacted. They were vivid in his mind along with his look of contempt and although he did not want to admit it, they had been like a punch in the stomach that almost drove him to tears. He hated Filip and his words for thinking him so submissive and slimy.
It sounded like the comment of a stranger he had never dealt with and who had allowed himself to judge him unfiltered in the moment; yet if that had been the case, he should have simply ignored it and forgotten about it the next day.

At that moment he heard a knock at the door and the voice of Sirius:
-Nori? you didn't fall asleep?- The young man got up and went to open the door, finding the botanist who immediately said:

-oh there you are. Come, I'll show you something- Sirius didn't wait for an answer and started for the study, to the hesitation of Nori who finally followed him.
Sirius positioned himself at his desk, where he placed a pot with a strange plant. It was totally white and covered with a mucous layer giving it a glassy appearance:
-it is Salicis venetus: in addition to emitting continuous mucous secretions, it is a plant that is very susceptible to external contact-
-I thought you didn't have it anymore- said Nori confused:
-oh no, it has always stayed here. Now stroke it-
-do I really have to? - he didn't like the idea: it had long curvy tufts attached to each other like an unhatched bud, and with the mucous layer making it unwilling to be touched
-yes, let's go- Nori reticently caressed its wet and slimy surface, his fingers clinging to that collagen, and then something unexpected happened: the plant's veins shone and slowly its tufts opened like an open coffer, showing thick stamen and pistil with the most iridescent colours of blue, violet and green, as well as the most beautiful Nori had ever seen. He gazed at it in admiration as Sirius said:
-it is very rare to find it. Some have described it as a shy plant that needs only a little affection to unfold its true beauty, and I believe there is no more suitable representation for it. I think it looks like you -
Nori laughed weakly:
-are you in a romantic mood today, Sirius?-
-except that instead of producing mucus to protect yourself from the outside world, you use silence. Even if it's not the most effective means- Nori had a sad smile, but at that moment someone knocked on the study door, interrupting their conversation:

-who could it be at this hour? - Nori headed for the door and once it was open he found himself amazed to see Filip standing there. The beta's eyes travelled swiftly over the figure, not understanding why he was there: