Fall of the Packs: Blood Ties

Chapter Seven

"You're what?"

Aaron stared incredulously at Mercy as she stood in front of him and their parents. She shuffled her paws and looked at the ground. "Um, pregnant," she mumbled.

"Oh, congratulations!" Rachael exclaimed, giving her daughter an affectionate lick. "We're so happy for you!"

"Who's the father?" Cameron asked.

Mercy didn't answer, looking away awkwardly. "Mercy," Aaron said lowly, "please don't tell me it's Seamus."

She hesitated for a few moments, then gave a tiny nod.

"Well, I think that's wonderful," Cameron said, smiling. "Seamus is a fine young dog. Have you told him yet?"

"No," Mercy said, "but, uh, I will. As soon as he gets back."

Aaron sat, dumbfounded. How. When. Why? Why, of all dogs?

He saw Rachael giving him a hard look and he swallowed. "Um, I-- I'm really happy for you, Mercy," he said somewhat stiffly. Truthfully, he was; he'd known that Mercy had always wanted to be a mother one day. But why Seamus?! Sure, he had always behaved like they were going to get together, but Mercy had never done more than be nice to him. Wasn't this rather sudden?

"How long until they're born?" Rachael asked.

"Holly said about another two months," Mercy answered. "She also said there's four of them."

Cameron laughed. "Four! Well, that will certainly liven things up around here. We haven't had that many pups at once since Gaia's litter."

"And now they're all grown up," Rachael nodded. Glancing across the clearing, she barked, "I think we're both needed on a patrol, but we'll be back later. We're really both so happy for you, dear." She gave Mercy another nuzzle and then both she and Cameron left to join their patrol.

Now alone with his sister, Aaron narrowed his eyes. "Mercy, are you okay?"

She blinked at him. "Ah, of course. Why wouldn't I be?"

"I don't know, I guess I just always thought that whenever you would have pups you'd be more excited. You seem almost... scared."

"No, no." Mercy shook her head quickly. "No, I'm not scared. I'm happy about it, really. I'm just... surprised, that's all."

"Yeah, no kidding," Aaron muttered.

Mercy gave him a beseeching look. "Aaron... you're not upset, are you?"

Aaron sighed and then forced a smile. "No, no, I'm not. I'm just a little biased, I guess. I want you to have someone who deserves you. But if this is what makes you happy, then I'm not going to stand in your way."

She smiled and he felt his heart warm up. "Thank you, Aaron," she said, touching her nose to his.

~

"But why?!"

"Aaron, calm yourself," Sortita growled at him. "It's really not as bad as you think it is."

"Yes, it is," Aaron retorted. He was pacing back and forth in front of Sortita in the woods, where he had taken her to talk in private. He needed to get his emotions out to someone. "My sister, my sweet, lovely sister, is giving birth to Seamus's pups!"

Sortita rolled her eyes. "And? You don't own her, Aaron. She's allowed to be mates with whoever she wants."

"Exactly!" Aaron cried. "She could have picked literally anyone, and she chose him?!"

"It's not like she had that many options," Sortita observed.

"Oh, she had options," Aaron snapped. "She could have picked... uh... Hyperion."

Sortita stared at him. "Hyperion? Really?"

"Well, I don't know," Aaron grumbled. He sighed. "I just want her to have someone that she deserves. And she deserves way better than Seamus."

"Seamus is loyal, brave, and a strong defender," Sortita said. "Sounds pretty deserving to me."

"No, he's obnoxious, arrogant, and immature," Aaron growled.

"Sounds like a personal problem."

"...No, it's not."

Sortita stood up, walking closer to him. "Aaron, listen. You and Seamus are the only ones that have an issue with each other. He's always been nice to Mercy. I'm surprised it happened this fast, but I'm not surprised that it happened. You're a protective big brother and it's sweet. But you have to let her make her own decisions."

He sighed. "Fine. But I'm not going to be happy about it."

"Yes, you will. For her."

"...Right. For her."

~

When Aaron and Sortita returned to the clearing, they found it buzzing as the news about Mercy's pregnancy spread. And the big silver spreader himself was bounding around, grinning widely and tail wagging up a storm.

"Sortita! Aaron!" he barked, running up to them. "Did you hear the news?"

"Yes, Seamus, I heard," Aaron replied. "She told me first."

"I knew it would happen," Seamus gloated, ignoring the edge in Aaron's tone. "And she said that there's four of them! Four!"

"That's wonderful, Seamus," Sortita said with a smile. "Aaron and I are both very happy for you. Aren't we?"

Aaron grunted. He cleared his throat before saying, "Sortita, could you give Seamus and me a moment?"

Sortita raised an eyebrow but didn't object. With a nod, she trotted off to find Mercy and Aaron pulled Seamus aside.

"All right, you listen and you listen good," he growled. "This is the last thing I wanted but I'm putting up with it for Mercy. You're going to treat her and those pups well or you're going to answer to me. Got that?"

Seamus looked offended. "Of course. Why wouldn't I?" He paused before adding with a smirk, "You should have more faith in me, now that we're brothers."

"Oh, don't even," Aaron scowled. Seamus snickered and ran off to greet his mother, who had just arrived with the latest hunting patrol. Aaron looked across the clearing where Sortita was talking to Mercy and Tara. She caught his gaze and gave him a hard look. He simply nodded. He knew what she meant.

For her.

Happy September, all! Hope you enjoyed this chapter--sorry that it's a little short--and have a great Labor Day!