Mates and Missing Kids

VIII : Eli and Hattie

"Friends show their love in times of trouble,
not in happiness."
-Euripedes

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IAN THORNE

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When we got to the pack house, Aaric met us at the door and led us to the living room. My parents were talking to the Alpha and Jayden was pacing back and forth. Amber was sitting on the couch playing with her pendant. Dev and Blaze were leaning against the wall behind Skye, who was sitting in a chair with a worried expression on her face.

"What's going on?" I asked.

No one answered for a moment, then Dad said, "Two pups have been kidnapped."

I stared at him for a moment. I couldn't believe it.

"We think they were taken by the same people that took the human children," Jayden added. Lance nodded thoughtfully at his father's words.

"That would make sense," Dev said. "It's kind of shocking that they would take a wolf's pup, though. And to take two..." He trailed off, and everyone looked at me. Usually I was the one that said things like that, but I stayed silent.

"Hey, Ian, you okay?" Aaric asked. I was staring blankly at the ground, and I barely heard him. Lance laid a gentle hand on my arm, snapping me out of my daze.

"Who were they?" I croaked out. Everyone looked taken aback by the tears in my eyes.

"Eli and Hattie Barrows," the Alpha replied. A look of understanding crossed Aaric's face, and he immediately started to make his way over to me, but it was too late. I burst into tears and ran out of the room.

"What was that about?" I heard someone ask behind me. I ran up the stairs to my room and locked the door behind me. A pull from within my chest dragged me into my thoughts, where an old friend was waiting.

*Hey, you okay?*

*No, I'm not, Cahir.* I told my wolf.

*Want to talk about it?* he asked, pacing in a circle and laying down. He layed his head on his paws and stared at me expectantly.

*There's not much to say.* I replied, sitting next to him. I ran a hand through his fur and started to relax. *You know how much they mean to me.*

*I know.* he said. *Don't be too hard on yourself. There wasn't anything you could do to prevent this.*

I sighed, and replied, *I wish there was. They don't deserve this.*

My thoughts drifted to the two small pups I had found in the woods just a year before.

I was on patrol and had heard small whimpers coming from just inside the border, so I went to check it out. The two were lying on a bed of leaves, scared out of their minds. As I approached, Eli growled, and stood in front of his little sister. He wasn't going to let anyone near her.

I told him that I meant no harm, putting him at ease. He allowed me to pick Hattie up from where she was laying, and walked beside me as we made our way back to the pack house. I had patched them up and Eli had shifted back into a little boy. Hattie was asleep while Eli told me their story.

The five year old recounted, with haunted eyes, the night their mother bustled them out of the house, only to get dragged back by wolves with red eyes. She told them to run and not look back.

And they did.

They had been on their own for almost a week before I found them. Eli had hugged me, his tiny form trembling, before drifting off to sleep in my lap.

*We'll find them.* Cahir assured me when he sensed what I was thinking. I merely nodded, already drifting back to the real world.

A knock sounded on my door, followed by, "Hey, Ian, can we come in?"

"Sure," I replied, getting off the floor where I had fallen when Cahir wanted to talk to me, and sat on the edge of my bed. Lance stepped through the door, followed by Aaric. I put my head in my hands, when Lance sat next to me. He rubbed my back while I looked up at Aaric with what I expect was a defeated expression.

Aaric was the only one that knew exactly how much I cared for the pups. He knew that I loved them like they were my own. He had been there when I got them situated in their rooms. He had been there when, that night, they came into my room and snuggled up next to me because it was thundering. He was the one that just smiled and said, "Well, looks like our guys' night has been invaded." He was the one that didn't tease me when I almost cried when I dropped them off on their first day of school. He was the one I told all my fears about failing them.

It was times like this when I was reminded just how caring Aaric really was.

Not only had it helped us become such good friends, but it had also gotten him a lot of attention from men and women alike. But every time they approached him, he let them down easy, and never snapped at them, no matter how annoying they were. If someone was sad or sick, he would make sure they were okay before he did anything else. Blaze once called him the mother of the pack, and Aaric just smiled and walked away to visit the people in the coma ward of the hospital.

When he saw the look on my face, Aaric sat down by my side. One of the marks on his arm detached itself and flew over to my desk to grab a tissue. It flew back and handed it to me before reattaching itself on the back of his hand.

"Thanks Aar," I said before wiping away the tears I hadn't even noticed sliding down my face.

"Anytime," he replied.

~~~~~~~~~

Sorry for the delay!

So, how did you like the chapter?

What do you think of Aaric being the 'mother of the pack?'

Stay sparkling, my friends!
-Star