ppgzxrrbz call of the wolves

what a wolf remembers

You know, since it is almost my birthday... I want you to bake the biggest, best-est cake ever!"

Rolling his eyes, Damon smiled as he kept walking, carrying a basket of berries. "I'm starting to regret reminding you of your birthday. It's all you've been talking about for the past few days. Oh, and 'best-est' is not a word."

"I would've remembered it sooner rather than later anyway," his companion replied, sticking his tongue out as he picked berries. He tossed one into his mouth before throwing the rest into Damon's basket.

"Careful with the berries, Vix," Damon stated, taking a few of the small fruits from a nearby tree.

Vix was hardly paying attention while he gathered as many as he could. "I want it to have lots of fruit and other stuff on it," he continued, referring to the cake.

Damon smirked. "The cake-baking won't come till later, you silly."

"Puh-lease?" Vix pressed, turning to Damon and batting his eyes in an innocent manner.

Laughing, Damon gave the boy a noogie. "I don't know..."

"Aw, man! You're messing up my hair," Vix whined.

"What happened to shy Vix?" Damon asked, raising an eyebrow. "What kind of monstrosity have I raised?"

Vix rolled his eyes. "Hey, I'm not that bad. I'm still shy a lot."

"True that," Damon responded, letting the boy go. "Now come along; if you want a cake with lots of fruit, then we have a lot of picking to do."

Vix caught up to his guardian with light jogged steps. "Hey, Damon... I was just wondering, since it's nearly my special day and all..."

"What now? I hope you don't expect me to build you a roller coaster or give you a castle or something," Damon teased.

Vix hesitated, wishing that he was joking. He knew that his request would catch Damon off-guard, and he wasn't sure if he should ask about it, but he was growing desperate. "Well...not exactly."

"Good. Anything but a roller coaster," Damon joked.

"Well, you can relax since it's not that, but it'll still be quite shocking."

Sensing the sudden seriousness in the boy's tone, Damon turned to stare at Vix. "Okay...what is it then...?"

Vix took a deep breath, closing his eyes and trying not to be nervous. "I was just wondering if...if..."

"If...?" Damon pressed.

"—If I could go to the city again after all this time away from it before my birthday!" blurted Vix.

Suddenly, Damon froze and Vix crashed into the man. Taking a step back and rubbing his head, Vix was surprised when he felt hands grab his shoulders. "Are you sure about this?" Damon demanded.

"I-I'm quite sure—" Vix tried to say.

"You know I keep you here to keep you safe," Damon continued.

"Damon, there's nothing so bad in the city that I need to hide for my whole life."

"I'm a little worried, given how tough and cruel the world outside can be. Vix, you and I are a little different. The world might not accept you—"