Healing Milton

two

When they arrive home, Aldric continues to carry the sleeping boy up to their apartment, smiling at the packmates who wait eagerly at every edge of the pack house, whining softly at the new addition. Some of those that are shifted try to follow the trio upstairs, but with a soft growl from Cal, they back off and let them quietly make their way to the second story.

Aldric smiles at the protectiveness of his mate already. The boy has barely even made it into the house.

Desperately Aldric wanted to curl up around the pup and cover his sickly scent with his own. Callum no doubt was feeling the same, his wolf eager to make a nest in their closet to perhaps cocoon Milton in, but that was just a little bit ridiculous.

Gently, Aldric places Milton down in the middle of their shared bed, bordering him with both their pillows in case he decides to wriggle around. Not that he would, he was dead to the world.

Taking a deep breath, Cal hums in happiness as his and Aldric's scents from the bed's cover mingle with the boy's, covering the smell of the hospital. He would have preferred to be able to give the boy a bath, but sleep was more important for now.

"Do you think he'll be happy here? With us?"

Aldric moves over to Callum and wraps an arm around his waist to pull him into his chest. He places a gentle kiss on his head, chest rumbling with a soft sort of purr.

"He'll be fine. It may be a bit challenging at first, but we'll figure it out. All three of us."

Callum smiles, easing back into Al's arms as they both stand and watch Milton peacefully sleep for a moment.

"We better go. Let him sleep while we sort some things out. Alpha probably wants to talk to us."

Al hums, giving one last squeeze to his partner before guiding them out of the room and back downstairs to the Alpha's office.

Henry sits at his desk, signing documents with a pair of glasses perched on his nose. He wasn't overly fond of wearing them, it ruined his image of being the big bad wolf but being supernatural didn't mean he was invincible.

Looking up as the wooden doors to his study open up with a soft squeak, Henry smiles at the couple as they shuffle into the room and take their seats at the two blue armchairs, just like this morning.

"How is he?"

Callum shrugs a shoulder, nibbling at his lip once again. "He seems okay. He's asleep. In our room."

Henry smiles at the younger wolf, amused by his nervousness over the situation. He was behaving just like a first-time parent, worrying over a sleeping babe.

Henry picks up a paper and hands it to Aldric, letting the man share it with Cal.

"This is a paper with some of the things the pack have brought together for you to use. If you want all of it, I can have Rick and Matty come and bring it up to your room."

Aldric leans over to grab a pen off of his Alpha's desk and begins to put a little star next to all the items they would need.

"Baby bottles?" Al was confused, Milton wasn't a baby.

Henry sighs, tapping his fingers on the edge of his desk. "I know. I spoke to our practitioner to ask about diet and supplements on your behalf. He suggested trying formula to help Milton get all the nutrients he's been missing out on."

Aldric supposed it made sense. They might as well try and get as much goodness into the boy as possible. If formula was the way to do it, then they'd give it a go. They'd already been told that Milton struggled with motor control, so maybe looking into bottles or some sort of lidded cup wasn't such a bad idea. As long as the boy was comfortable with using them until he could control his muscles better.

The rest of the list has items like a bed, clothes, towels, soaps, and bandages. The kitchen staff have already drawn up some meal ideas that would be easy on his stomach, and some had offered to cook for the three if they needed.

It was sweet that the whole pack wanted to chip in and help out. A bit much maybe, but Aldric and Callum were thankful for their family's resourcefulness. The pup probably wouldn't even get introduced to many of the pack members until a much later date, yet here they all were, volunteering things they thought would make his transition into the pack easier.

Alpha Henry relaxes back into his seat and watches as the two in front of him continue to go over the list, murmuring quietly to themselves as they point out different items on the list and continue to put neat little stars beside them.

***

Having a child in the house had put Callum's wolf in overdrive. Despite having a spare room in their apartment with plenty of blankets and pillows in the built in closet, while Milton slept he couldn't help but go around the pack house collecting the softest blankets to add to the growing nest he'd created around Milton.

Aldric only watched from the bedroom doorway as his mate tucked blankets and pillows around the boy, occasionally letting out soft wolf-ish purrs.

"Honey, I think we have enough blankets, you're going to suffocate the poor thing."

"I know I should stop I just- I can't seem to –"

Aldric moves from the door frame and wraps an arm around Cal, pulling him into his chest. "I know, it's all a bit overwhelming, but some of the boys are putting together a bed for him in the spare room and then you can nest away in there instead."

Callum sighs, sinking to Aldric's warm embrace. "Sorry."

His mate's chest rumbles with a chuckle under his face. "You have nothing to apologise for, my love. It's natural. Your instincts are guiding you."

Both wolves stand in the bedroom for a moment, watching Milton peacefully sleep before Aldric gives Callum one last squeeze.

"Alright. Enough standing and staring, we should go see if our pack mates need any help."

Walking into the spare room, Callum can't help but smile at the dark wood bed sitting to the side of the room. One of their packmates stands beside the bed stuffing pillows into freshly washed pillowcases with little toy cars dotted over blue. Another is busy screwing in the low bed rail for the side of the bed.

"The bed was the only one in storage, it's for toddlers, but we thought it would be alright for the boy since he's still so small." Gloria, the wolf fitting the pillowcases and quilt cover, explains.

Aldric and Callum smile, but Cal can't help but think that maybe the pack are thinking the boy is still a little child and not the teenager he really is.

"It's perfect, thank you everyone." Aldric steps over, gently squeezing Gloria's shoulder in thanks.

They were so grateful for their pack. Despite the pair not being as involved with everyone as of late, they still had their love and support.

"Yeah, thank you guys. I'm- I'm so grateful," Cal clears his throat, emotion welling up behind his eyes, but he wasn't about to break now. "I'll go check up on him, see if he's waking up yet."

Callum ducks out of the room, his shoulders relaxing now that he was away from his pack and could breathe. He loved them all, he really did, but sometimes being showed so much care and not expecting anything back was really overwhelming.

For the past few months Callum had been avoiding, well, everyone. Aldric was with him for most of the day, supporting him as he tried to cope with the curveball life sent both his and Aldric's way. His husband seemed to cope better, but with their bond, Callum could feel the strain, feel how being isolated from their packmates was affecting him.

Shaking his head, Callum moves through the apartment and into his and Aldric's room, peering around the corner first. The boy is still in the middle of the bed, curled up in a ball amongst the blankets Cal had carefully shifted around him.

Walking into the room, Callum smiles and takes a seat on the edge of the bed, watching Milton as he sleeps silently, his arm still strapped to his chest and his little mouth open as he breathes.

"I promise I'll keep you safe." he whispers, reaching out to brush a hair from Milton's face. 

***

Sweet Callum and Aldric, hope they're ready for what comes next!