Packless Monsters

Chapter 2

You must have fallen asleep, because the next thing you were aware of was waking in a strange bed in a strange room, surrounded by a scent that was most definitely not yours. It was male, but smelled like a crisp winter's day and snow, definitely not a scent you usually associated with men, but there was the underlying scent of maleness to it as well.

You snapped awake, sitting bolt upright, the disassociation of the strange scent jarring you all the way awake and spiking your panic. You took in your surroundings in an instant. The room was physically cold, but plushly decorated, most of the decorations were bookshelves, crammed with books and...scrolls?

"Easy, love. You're safe," came a warm male voice from next to you on the bed. You looked over and saw Loki sitting on top of the blankets against the headboard with a book in his hands. You remembered your earlier interactions which this man and relaxed, sitting more comfortably against the pillows, the blankets pooling in your lap. He smiled when you had relaxed. "Are you feeling better?" he asked gently.

You nodded. "I told you I'd be fine after a little rest," you reminded him.

He held up a hand that was wrapped in a bandage. "That did not stop you from biting me," he grumbled. You blanched, horrified.

"Oh gods, I'm sorry!" you moved more swiftly than he was expecting so you could unwind the bandage and check the wound. Werewolves were fast. It was mostly healed already and the teeth imprints were definitely human teeth, not wolf teeth. You breathed a sigh of relief and began rewrapping the bandage for him with practiced movements. Werewolves also tended to get injured a lot, especially the stupid males, so you had a lot of practice bandaging wounds. "I'm so sorry," you repeated, ashamed of what had happened while you were asleep. "That's a poor way to repay someone being nice to me," you grumbled at your wolf, who had obviously been in control and scared. "What happened?" you asked him.

"You do not remember? You were awake," he seemed to soften at that, concerned when he realized you hadn't actually known what you'd done.

You shook your head firmly, needing to correct that assumption quickly. "I wasn't awake. The wolf might have been..." you explained, though not sure he would actually understand unless you told him more about being a werewolf.

He thought over your answer, pondering what he remembered of the experience, and what your words might mean. You doubted he had any more experience than the rest of the outsiders with werewolves. "Look at me, love," he bid you softly. You pulled your gaze from the blankets in your lap and turned to him. He placed his cold fingers under your chin gently and tilted your head up so he could see your eyes. "Your eyes are green now," he commented softly.

"They were blue?" you asked, understanding what he was getting at. He inclined his head and let your chin go. "My wolf's eyes are blue." It was rare among the werewolves, just as it was in the wild. He looked interested, or at least he didn't seem angry. "She must have been scared. Sorry," you said again.

"It's no trouble. I heal fast as well. It happened when I was tying that bandage. The wound had begun to bleed again," he gestured to the one around your arm. "Apparently your wolf does not like being bandaged..." he commented dryly.

"You didn't have to stay-" you blurted quickly, knowing he'd gone out of his way to stay with you so you'd feel safe. You also knew that, despite the fact that he was sitting on the bed with you, nothing more had happened than him putting you to bed and apparently re-bandaging one of your wounds.

He chuckled. "It would have been illogical to leave, seeing as this is my room." You just gaped at him. This was his room?!? He shrugged, amused by your reaction. "It seemed equally illogical to spend the time in one of the spare rooms which are sparse and bare when mine is much more comfortable." You opened your mouth to protest again. "I promised you my protection. I could not do that effectively without staying by your side,"