Mate Mysteries

Chapter 8

I have a feeling nobody got the notification for this chapter :')

- Sian

Krey loved the mud in his claws and the earthy smells. He loved letting his tongue free when he ran, and he enjoyed pressing his nose to the ground as he moved, picking up the many different smells. Krey then stopped and looked at the trees looming above the fence. He longed to go further and run harder routes and smell different animals and different trees. Krey longed for freedom.

Then it hit him.

He really was living his life in fear and so was every other pack in the north. Krey wouldn't leave his Packhouse because he feared the Southern Alpha would be close and watching and ready to pounce. Krey feared for Pip and his mother and his friends and his pack. His entire existence was fear.

Well shit, Krey thought, digging black claws into the dirt. He whined lowly and faced the Packhouse. Pip sat in the distance with a book. Krey had taken him from one trap and placed him in another. He didn't want that life for Pip. He wanted to explore with him, let him meet other packs and experience what it was really like to be in a werewolf's world.

Hiding wasn't normal for wolves, but Krey was paranoid, just like his father. Why was he so paranoid? I need to find that journal.

Krey bounced his way back to Pip. He was going to shift and drag Pip to the office, but Pip was sitting so peacefully on the grass, and he was so lost in his book that he hadn't notice Krey standing next to him. So Krey laid down and nuzzled his head into Pip's thigh.

Krey soon felt Pip's fingers in his fur and smoothing over his ears absentmindedly. Krey enjoyed the motion, and he soon closed his eyes to focus further on his mate's touch.

Pip glanced from his book when Krey started falling asleep. Pip felt it, somehow. When Krey was asleep it was like a part of him went to sleep too. Pip moved around and nestled into Krey. The wolf lay on his side, and Pip rested his back on Krey's side. His mate didn't even stir.

Krey sometimes slept through the night in his wolf form. On cold winter nights, Pip preferred to hug a warm wolf.

Pip had read almost one hundred pages of his book before Krey stretched his four legs. He lifted his head wearily and yawned. A sweet and short howl escaped. Krey's red eyes faced Pip who smiled.

"Nice nap?" Pip asked, rubbing Krey's head enthusiastically.

Krey nodded and sat up. He was taller than Pip when Pip was sitting too. Krey sat proudly as Pip rubbed the fur around his neck. Krey tried to lick Pip's face, but his mate wasn't fond and always dodged him.

"Shall we look for the journal?" Pip asked. He laid back on the grass and watched Krey shift. The more times he watched, the less the sound of bones cracking made his stomach flip. Pip was fascinated by how it happened, though he hated seeing Krey grimace from the unbearable pain.

Still, Pip watched as Krey's grey jumper and black jeans returned. His paws turned to shoes and hands and his fur turned to skin. His features that Pip adored returned, including his brown eyes, defined jaw, the silver tuft of hair among the black, the little scar across the bridge of his nose, and his lips that shaped his hostility or amusement or occasionally genuine happiness.

"Hi," Pip smiled. He loved the way Krey's eyes changed when they looked at him like they were filling to the brim with adoration.

"Hi." Krey kissed his forehead, then laid next to him on the grass. They stared at the blue sky and the few fluffy white clouds floating by. "I guess we should go and look for the journal." Krey was enjoying lying in the sun. He didn't want to disturb the nice afternoon by stressing more.