Werewolf's Humanity

First Impressions, Part 4

"What are you doing swimming in the river at ten at night? It's still too cold this time of year for that!" Night Sky demanded with a growl of concern in her voice. "You come out of there this instant, and don't shift until you're home and dried off!"

Sammy hauled himself up out of the river's edge, shook off as best as he could, and approached his alpha with head hung low. "Sorry," he mumbled.

Night Sky reared up onto her legs and planted a kiss on his muzzle. "No need to apologize, I'm just looking out for you. C'mon, walk me home."

Keenly aware that he was dripping wet, Sammy followed Night Sky through the dark woods towards the house, until she took him by the hand and pulled him up beside her. The forest was spookily quiet, but then it tended to get that way in the vicinity of a werewolf not bothering to hide their presence. But without the excuse to savor the "night life," Sammy realized he needed to think of something to say to fill the quiet, before-

"Okay. Something's on your mind. You gonna tell me what it is?"

-that.

She gave him time to sigh and gather his thoughts. He had, actually, been planning to talk to her, but had been waiting til he could figure out just what to say.

"Night Sky... are there any herbs you could give me... to reduce my sex drive?" Keeping his gaze forward, he babbled on, "Nothing permanent, jus' somethin' I could take t'get rid a' these urges when I don't want 'em..."

He could sense her scrutiny, and it made his face burn.

"Well... technically, yes. There are herbs that can do that." She turned around stepped in front of him. "But why?"

His head drooped and he sighed. There really was no hedging around this. Night Sky was too adept at sniffing out lies, and he was too terrible at telling them. "I don't... want Clara to think I'm sexually interested in her."

"Well, aren't you?"

He shrugged. "I tried talkin' to her tonight. Just welcomin' her to the pack, honest. But I couldn't go five minutes without... gettin' excited. An' I don't want her thinking that's all I care about!"

Night Sky reached up and patted him on the chest. "Sammy. I'll let you in on a little 'secret' that all female werewolves figure out: sex is always on men's mind to one degree or another. It doesn't matter if they're around women or not. Your average, red-blooded, healthy male werewolf will occasionally waft of arousal. Especially one your age. For a woman, it's just part of the background radiation of life. I certainly doubt Clara is going to think any less of you for it."

By now, Sammy's hands had raised up to cradle his face. "Are we really having this conversation?" he moaned.

"Hey, you brought it up."

"I did," he admitted, finally uncovering his face and forcing himself to make eye contact with his foster-mother. "You promise it'll be all right?"

"No one can control their biology, Phoenix. But they can control their behavior. As long as you behave and treat Clara with respect, I don't think she'll be too bothered smelling your interest in her."

Sammy nodded, and they resumed walking back home. "This must be so much simpler for humans," he said.

Night Sky just shrugged. "Ask a bitten. I'd think it's easier for us, since our senses are sharper. I'd hate not to be able to tell when Odysseus wants some."

Sammy had no comment on the sex lives of his alphas.

***

"You're overthinking this whole thing, you know," Liam said the next morning, as Sammy tossed another bale of hay at him up on the loft.