The Traitor (The Third Wheel's spin-off)

Chapter Twenty-Six: The Wary Wolf

Picture: Alex's wolf hiding behind the bushes. I can't stop looking at this picture because come on, the big bad wolf looks scared and too cute to eat somebody alive ^^

MALIK'S POV

I wait patiently as Alex goes behind a bush to undress, as if I hadn't seen it all already, as if I hadn't been exploring his hidden cavern with my tongue and fingers, on that blessful day when he had the genius idea to shove a magic sex toy up his ass.

With him out of my sight, I finally let my mask slips, leaning heavily against the nearest tree as I start caressing my thighs up and down, a gesture that I do when I'm feeling stressed - I know folks, I know it looks weird, my brother Killian always makes sure to tease me about it.

Now, don't get me wrong, I don't want to hide from my mate. The thing is, shifting in front of me is a huge step for him, and I don't want to make him feel even more nervous than he already is by showing him my own insecurities.

I am very proud of him, and delighted that he is finally opening to me, but I am also scared. I actually spent an afternoon in my grandmother's Library a few days ago and the books I found about werewolves were the confirmation of what I already feared.

It's very unhealthy and can even be dangerous for a werewolf to only stay in one form. The most dangerous thing for the werewol is to stay in their animal form, as it can lead the wolf to become feral. If such a thing happens, then the possibility for the werewolf to shift back to human is almost non-existant, and it is very likely that the wolf will be killed sooner or later, either by other wolf packs or by human who feel, and rightly so, threatened by their existence.

It doesn't mean that it is no big deal for a werewolf to stay all the time in their human form, though. I haven't been able to find much about it, since in most cases werewolves prefer to be in their animal forms, but the few pages about it emphasized the fact that it is not natural for a werewolf to remain in their human form all the time, and that it can lead to severe depression, physical weakness, schizophrenia and even suicidal attempts.

To say that I'm relieved that my mate will shift in a mere moment would be the biggest understatement of the century, although he did say that for a long time he was forced to remain human, because his wolf wouldn't show up anymore after he betrayed his best friend and was banned from his pack. It wasn't by choice that he stopped shifting.

He also told me that he could sense his wolf again shortly after he arrived on the Island, making me wonder if the returnal of his wolf is linked to the presence of his mate, although we only found out about the mating bond after I bit him. He still didn't shift, though, because he was scared to do so, which is understable for a werewolf living on an Island ruled by vampires.

But things are different now. We are currently in a clearing, in a secluded place and even if someone has the bad idea to come here, well, I am here too, and I would never let anyone hurt my mate.

To sum it up, I am relieved and excited to meet Alex's wolf, but also very concerned - apparently, the longer a werewolf goes without shifting, the more painful the shifting process will be. There is also the fact that I haven't met a werewolf in their animal form since my mum was slaughtered, and I am afraid of my own reactions.

Like I said, I would never hurt Alex physically, but what if I end up hurting him emotionnally by the way I react to his animal appearance?

I don't have time to linger on these depressing thoughts, because a sudden cry of pain has me on my feet in a flash. I am already taking a few steps toward the direction of the cry, before remembering my mate strict orders - whatever happens, I must stay away from him until he decides to come near me. He said I wouldn't be able to do anything to alleviate the pain of the shift anyway, and that I could make things even worst by touching him. He also stressed the fact that he would want to die if I was to see him in that state, when he is no longer a human but not fully a wolf yet.