After The Full Moon - Chapter 3/1
Pairing Jared/Jensen
Summary When Jensen saves the life of a wolf, he doesn't know yet how much his life is going to change. The wolf marks him as his possession and Jensen is able to read every wolf's emotion after that. What he finds out suprises him
Disclaimer Just a fiction of my crazy mind. I meant no harm and I hope I didn't hurt anyone's feelings with the story. I earn no money with this and I swear it was just a pastime that happened to find it's way on the web ;)
Warning AU, werewolf!Jared, biting blood, m/m sex
Chapter 3: Loving - part 1
Eleven months. Jensen looked out of the window of his apartment at the jungle of high buildings, streets and cars. People were milling in front of every shop window, preparing for Christmas time. It appeared so meaningless to Jensen. He watched the hunt for presents that didn’t concern him anymore. He felt trapped in this town, in this world of consumption. He dreamed about deep forests, the blue of the sky peeping through branches, mud under his feet… about hands trailing their way over his body, skin touching skin, bruising kisses… The town was a cage. Gray, cold, and unfriendly.
Eleven months Jensen had been making breakfast and morning coffee himself. His rifle rested in a closet, away from the eyes of everyone… even his own. Eleven months he had been watching the scar from the wolf’s teeth every time he bared his shoulder and looked into a mirror.
He sighed and pressed his forehead against the cool window glass. The conference had gone more than well; both Jensen and Misha were successful and got a nice amount of money to continue their projects. There was an opportunity to go to Siberia for two years to watch the wolf population there… but Jensen turned it down. He didn’t want to cross the ocean and increase the distance between one particular wolf and him.
“Jared…” The name was burning within him like a white flame that could never be extinguished and it didn’t lose a bit of its intensity even after the eleven moths of separation.
Jensen sighed and just wanted to go to the kitchen when knocking on the door sounded. He went to open. Misha was standing there, grinning.
“Merry Christmas,” he said and stepped in.
“Huh?” Jensen asked stupidly, closing the door.
“You haven’t had your morning coffee yet, have you? Make some for me, too,” Misha said, still grinning.
“You’re extremely energetic. Why don’t you make the coffee yourself? You know where it is.”
Misha sighed. “You’re so grumpy when you don’t have your morning dose.”
“Only when I see your face,” Jensen said and followed Misha into the kitchen. “So? Why are you here so damn early?”
“Aww, as friendly as ever,” Misha sniggered. “Since you turned down the offer to do research in Siberia, I have a new offer for you. What do you say about going to Australia with me? The population of dingos…”
“Misha,” Jensen whined in desperation. “I don’t want to go.”
Misha looked sincerely surprised. “Why not? Dingos are interesting.”
“I know. And bears and deer and foxes and jackals and sables and whatever you can come up with IS interesting, I’m not denying it. I still don’t wanna go.”
Misha frowned lightly, watching Jensen for a while. “Jensen,” he addressed him slowly.
Jensen rolled his eyes. “Please, don’t.”
Misha frowned even more. “It’s about the wolf, isn’t it?”
“Please, we already had this conversation…”
Misha didn’t say a word, which wasn’t a good sign. Jensen watched him dig a can with coffee out of one of the cupboards in the kitchen and set to work on their morning dose. When two cups of steaming coffee were put on the table, Misha sat down, giving Jensen a strict look.
“Jensen.”
“Please,” Jensen whined again.
“No. You’ll listen to me. What happened to you, man? This is not you. You love your job. Everything you do, you do it with full concentration. What the fuck happened to you?&rdquo
“Jared,” Jensen said without thinking, and he shrugged indifferently.
“God…” Misha rolled his eyes and sighed. “What was so special about the wolf?”
“He wasn’t a wolf,” Jensen said, frowning.
Misha shook his head. “That’s what you’re repeating every time we get to this point. Will you finally explain what you mean?”
Jensen bit his lip. “You wouldn’t believe me.”
Misha sighed. “That’s what you always say.”
“Because I’m right,” Jensen said tiredly.
“Try me.”
Jensen shook his head. “You would think I’m mental.”
“I already think that. Now tell me one good reason why you should return into that forest and not go to Australia with me or participate in the Siberian project,” Misha said over his cup of coffee.
“Because I don’t want to?” Jensen offered.
“Not good enough.”
Jensen frowned. “What do you wanna hear?”
“The true reason. You know something I don’t, so spit it out.”
Jensen fidgeted in his chair.
“Jensen.”
“Fine, I’ll tell you. But don’t say I didn’t warn you,” Jensen finally gave up.
“Okay, whatever. As long as you don’t tell me that you fell in love with a werewolf or something…” Misha said, sipping from his coffee.
Jensen stayed quiet, looking into his own cup and biting his lip.
Misha put his cup back on the table slowly. “You’re kidding me,” he said, unable to believe.
Jensen sighed, leaning against the backrest. “Do I look like that?”
Misha’s eyebrows shot up. “You wanna tell me that…”
Jensen waved his hand. “Forget that I said something.”
“No, no,” Misha said quickly. “It’s just…. Wow.”
Jensen glared. “You don’t believe me.”
Misha shrugged and gave Jensen an apologetic smile. “Well… It doesn’t sound believable.”
“Yeah, right,” Jensen grunted. “Like anything that is not well-known is just unbelievable.”
“I didn’t say anything like that,” Misha tried to placate Jensen. “As I said, give me a reason. Convince me that you’re not mental and I’m a fool.”
Jensen gave Misha a scrutinizing look. Then he stood up abruptly and went for his laptop.
“There are those records,” he said as he started the computer, “about people changing into animals. Officially, they’re called shapeshifters. There are more groups of people shifting their form. Bears and wolves are the best known, but there are also cats, dogs, hawks…”
“Wait a moment,” Misha interrupted. “You’re telling me that werewolves, werebears, werecats and whatever are… real?”
Jensen glanced at Misha over his laptop. “I’ve seen a werewolf, if that’s what you prefer calling Jared.”
“Jensen…” Misha started, but Jensen pushed his laptop in front of him.
“Here. Links to the websites talking about shapeshifters. Have a good look. A certain part of them is dealing with the topic from the scientific point of view. No myth, pure science.”
Misha frowned slightly and looked at the screen. He clicked on a random link. ”South American Indians, huh?”
Jensen nodded. “They can turn into jaguars. There are also North American natives who turn into mountain lions. And that’s not all. Every continent has its own population of shapeshifters. There are werebears and werewolves in Siberia, werecats, weredogs, and werewolves in Europe. North America…”
“Let me guess. Werewolves and werebears,” Misha said.
Jensen nodded. “Plus mountain werelions. There are even Eskimo tribes who can change into polar werebears and polar werefoxes.”
“Werefoxes,” Misha snorted.
Jared shrugged. “That’s how they’re called.”
Misha nodded. “So… back to your Jared…”
“Werewolf, yeah,” Jensen said, looking at the screen.
“Right,” Misha said.
“Actually, there are memoirs. A man got into a werewolf pack living in the area where Jared’s pack lives now. It was maybe twenty four, twenty five years ago,” Jensen continued.
Misha looked up from the screen. “Could it be the same pack?”
“I guess it is,” Jensen said. “The territory is vast and no other pack is accepted there - just one pack with one alpha.” He clicked the mouse and a new website opened on the screen. There was an article about a man called Gerald Padalecki and a few photos of a handwritten journal or something. “The man was a hunter. According to his records, he was attacked by a bear and was saved by a female werewolf. She took him to her pack and took care of him until he was cured. But… you know… things happen.”
Misha rolled his eyes. “Let me guess again. She fell for him, he fell for her, and they lived happily ever after.”
Jensen chuckled. “Not exactly. Not the last part. He was a human, so he couldn’t be accepted into the pack.”
“What did he do?” Misha asked curiously.
“That’s the most interesting part. Not only you are born as a shapeshifter, but you can also become one,” Jensen said.
“How?”
“Well… I’m not good at anthropology and stuff, but there is this thing called a rite of passage. It’s known even in human tribes. Novices pass from their old life to a new one and they take on a new role in the society.”
Misha nodded. “What does it mean in the world of shapeshifters?” he asked.
Jensen leaned back. “If you want to become a shapeshifter, you need to be like… infected with their DNA.”
“Okay, I’ll kiss a hot werewolf female. And?”
Jensen chuckled. “It’s not so simple. As I said, it’s a rite. The most important part of it is blood mixing. Then saliva exchanging - so yeah, kissing is allowed. The third thing could be a problem if the one changing is a female.” He shrugged.
Misha raised an eyebrow. “Don’t tell me you’re talking about bloody sex and semen.”
Jensen gave him a sheepish smile and shrugged. “That’s why I’m saying it could be a problem for a woman. On the other hand… a guy entering her comes to a contact with her… uhm… let’s say… vaginal secretion. It does the job, too.”
Misha slapped his forehead in a gesture of desperation. “That’s just gross.”
Jensen glanced at him from the screen. “Sex is gross?”
“No, the way you’re talking about it is gross.”
Jensen shrugged and smiled innocently. “Sorry.”
Misha shook his head. “What else do you have for me?”
“I haven’t finished this part yet,” Jensen said and grinned.
Misha whined. “What more?”
“It’s usual that during the rite…”
“You mean animalistic sex.”
Jensen rolled his eyes. “During the rite children are conceived.”
Misha sighed. “Why that doesn’t surprise me?”
“In his memoirs, Gerald writes that his lover got pregnant. She gave birth to a boy,” Jensen continued. “I read somewhere that the vast majority of the children conceived during the rite prefer humans as their future mates.”
Misha shook his head. “Fools.”
Jensen shrugged. “Well, it’s in their blood.”
Misha nodded and gave Jensen a scrutinizing look. “Do you think that Jared…”
“I don’t know,” Jensen cut Misha off. He didn’t want to think about this part. Misha seemed to understand the hint.
“What else Gerald wrote?” he asked instead.
Jensen looked at the screen again. “After he was changed, he had to learn how to live as a werewolf. Like… hunting, communicating… and stuff.”
Misha nodded. “Sounds logical.”
“Yeah…” Jensen nodded. “Gerald’s memoirs end with his mate’s death and him wanting his revenge on her murderers. Hunters.”
Misha frowned. “Hunters.”
Jensen nodded. “Two years after her death the land was declared to be a protected area. Guess who was responsible for that.”
“Dear old Uncle Gerald?” Misha asked.
“Exactly. That’s the last record connected to his name I could find. There’s nothing about his son, though, just in his memoirs, and it’s also only the brief mention of the boy’s birth.”
“Strange…”
Jensen shook his head. “Not so much. He became a father and he still had to learn the things about the life in a pack. That’s pretty much. I don’t think he had much time to write anything. AND,” Jensen emphasized the word in order to hint that there was something more, “he wasn’t allowed to join the pack unless he proved his capability while his son became a member of the pack the moment he was born.”
“Huh… How did he prove it?”
“I don’t know, but he must have passed the test since he wrote that the pack was going to help him hunt down the murderers of his mate.”
Misha nodded. “I hope that the test was nothing too bloody and painful.”
Jensen laughed. “Yeah, maybe.”
“Is that all or is there something more you want to tell me?” Misha asked, watching Jensen, who fidgeted restlessly in his chair.
“There… is one more thing,” he admitted slowly.
“Well? What is it?”
“Mating.”
“Mating. What about it?”
Jensen sighed and closed the page about the memoirs of Gerald Padalecki. Then wrote a few words into the Google browser and when links of multiple websites appeared on the screen, he turned the laptop to Misha.
“Mating. It differs from population to population, but the main idea is the same. Two individuals become mates after they both carry a bound mark. It’s like… wearing a wedding ring in our culture,” he said.
Misha nodded. “I’m even afraid to ask what the mark is.”
“It’s something you always carry with you and you never lose it. It’s a scar. And the odor of the one who marked you,” Jensen replied and fixed his eyes at the screen.
Misha gave Jensen a curious look. Jensen didn’t look at him. He reached for the collar of his T-shirt, pulling it away and revealing the scar the wolf’s teeth had left there. Misha’s eyes widened.
“He bit you?” he cried. “And you never told me?”
Jensen gave him a guilty look. “I couldn’t,” he said quietly. “You would have said you were right and… I didn’t want you to think Jared was really dangerous. He didn’t want to hurt me, he was even sorry for causing me pain… He just wanted me to be his.”
Misha didn’t stop glaring. “And you agreed?”
Jensen gave him a small smile. “Technically I did. When I saved his life.”
“That’s stupid.”
“This is what goes for both werewolves and weredogs. Saving a life creates a connection between the rescuer and the rescued one. No matter how many lives you save, you create a connection between yourself and the ones you saved. This connection is based on gratitude. If it changes into something more, the one you saved is allowed to give you a mark. That mark means that you’re under protection. No other can mark you after that. You can return it or you don’t have to, it depends on your decision. If you do, it means you agree with the bond. If you don’t…” he shrugged.
“What if I were marked, but then I mark someone else?”
“Theoretically speaking, you can do that. But trust me, there’s no chance you’ll feel like doing that.”
“Why not?”
Jensen chuckled. “Because enduring the mixture of feelings of two potential mates would just drive you crazy. The trick is that marking enables you to read the feelings of your wanna-be mate. Sometimes it’s really difficult to find the line between their and your own feelings.”
“That’s what happened to you?” Misha asked with growing interest.
Jensen smiled and nodded. “That’s why I knew he was not going to hurt me. And that’s also how I fell for him.”
“Isn’t that kind of forcing you to feel what he wants you to feel?”
Jensen laughed. “Kinda. But once you find the line, you know whether it’s you being in love or the werewolf’s love for you.” He shrugged.
“Okay, I get it. But you left. What if he finds a new mate?” Misha asked.
“He won’t. He’s already decided for me.”
“But you’re not there.”
“Doesn’t matter. Dogs and wolves are faithful.”
Misha nodded. “What if you found a new mate?”
Jensen shook his head. “I could only be with a human, and that wouldn’t count like a mate in their understanding. Besides, I wear his scent. That’s as if he wrote a big sign HANDS OFF all over me.” He chuckled. “Quite possessive.”
Misha chuckled. “Tell me something. He was growling at me every time I raised my voice at you.”
Jensen grinned. “He was protecting me, you know.”
Misha nodded. “Your fluffy pup scared the hell outta me,” he said and grinned, but then he got serious again. “Well, now I get that it’s impossible for you to find another werewolf mate. But how about Jared? He’s not marked, so I guess HANDS OFF doesn’t apply to him. So… hypothetically speaking… if he saved the life of some other werewolf, wouldn’t it be like agreeing to being marked?”
“I’m sure Jared would be careful enough not to connect his life with some other werewolf like this…” Jensen said slowly.
“Okay, but… you know, shit happens,” Misha continued. “What if he found himself in a situation in which his help would be required?”
Jensen straightened up in his chair slowly, fixing his eyes on the screen. “I… don’t know much about this. Every situation is different…”
“But what IF it happened? And the other werewolf marked him. What then?”
Jensen sighed. “If something like that happened and Jared was marked by some other werewolf… he would have two potential mates. If those two mates met, that would mean fight for life and death, I guess. The winner would get Jared. If it was the other one, it would be up to Jared whether he would mark the werewolf. If it was me…” he shrugged. “Probably I would have to open the scar and give him a new mark. But… it’s just a guess. It would be a special situation and I’m not sure how a pack would deal with it. Werewolves know that if you save a life, you become responsible for it. They have this knowledge since they’re born and they behave according to it. On the other hand, a pack is responsible for its members: mates for mates, parents for children… Alphas have the greatest responsibility.” He shrugged. “I really can’t answer your question. I know very little about it and the only truly reliable sources are Padalecki’s memoirs and the few articles from a guy who was allowed to study the life and customs of a population of werelions in Africa, and those don’t help me much understand werewolves.”
Misha leaned against the backrest and watched Jensen for a long while.
“What?” Jensen asked, feeling uneasy under Misha’s searching look.
“How does he look like?” his friend asked suddenly. “I mean Jared. How does he look like when he’s in his human form?”
A light smile played on Jensen’s lips and his eyes glittered with gentleness. “God, he’s stunning!” he blurted.
Misha giggled. “That sounded so gay.”
Jensen blushed slightly, but he didn’t stop smiling. “He’s tall and muscular. Brown hair and hazel eyes… Misha, his eyes are like… like there was the whole world in them. So deep and breath-taking. You could drown in them. He’s gorgeous.”
Misha laughed. “Now you even became a poet.” He grinned. “You sure you don’t want to go to Australia with me to study dingos? Maybe we’ll meet weredingos,” he said jokingly.
Jensen frowned immediately. “It’s not funny.”
“Fine, no Australian bush, then. Forest suits you better, anyway,” Misha said, still grinning.
“Cut it out, Misha,” Jensen said. He didn’t need Misha to remind him why he felt so depressed ever since he left Jared howling back there in the forest.
Misha stopped grinning and nodded. “You convinced me. You have three days to pack everything you need. I’m taking you back.”
Jensen’s heart skipped a beat and he looked up from his laptop to stare at Misha.
“Back… where?” he asked slowly.
“Back to Jared,” Misha said in a conversational tone.
Jensen shook his head. “Misha, don’t make fun of me. This is too cruel…”
“I’m not joking,” the firm voice interrupted him. “I came here today either to take you to a shrink or to tell you that there is an opportunity for you to return to the area and carry on with your ‘wolf research’.”
Jensen’s heart started beating faster. “God, tell me that I’m not dreaming,” he whispered.
Misha laughed. “You can still call me by my first name,” he smirked, but then the tone of his voice changed from joking into gentle. “It’s not a dream, Jen. You did a good job with your research and it would be too bad if you couldn’t carry on with it.”
The corners of Jensen’s mouth stretched into a smile. “I’m going back?” he asked, still not believing.
“If you want to, then I guess you are.” Misha returned the smile.
Jensen rose up from the chair and hugged Misha gratefully. Misha hugged him back and laughed again. “Merry Christmas, you lovesick fool.”
Jensen sniffed into Misha’s shoulder. “Thank you.”
“There is just one condition,” Misha said suddenly.
Jensen pulled back, giving Misha a careful look. “What condition?”
Misha grinned widely. “I want to see Jared’s human form.”
Jensen laughed. “I can’t guarantee that.”
***
Winter came again and the house remained empty. Jared ran down the snow-covered road and lay down behind a bush growing by the crossroads, watching the main road. He kept doing it ever since Jensen had left.
Jared hoped. He believed that one day Jensen would come back. There surely was just something Jensen needed to do before he came back. Jared clung to that hope as if it was the only thing that kept him going… and probably it was
He was watching the road until late afternoon when the howling of his pack called him back. Neither today did Jensen come back… Jared stood up and trotted back into the forest. Jensen didn’t come today, but maybe he will come tomorrow, he said to himself as he did many times before.
A few young wolves joined him on his way back to the werewolf village. Wooden huts were built in a small circle, and two females and a male were skinning and gutting the newest kill, a deer, in the center of the circle. Jared knew they would bring him the best meat in a short time. Being an alpha surely had its benefits.
He scanned the village with one long look. Everything seemed to be all right. Werewolves either in their wolf or human form were minding their business. Everyone had something to do and no one was trying to pick a fight as it happened between young wolves from time to time.
Jared preferred staying in his wolf form ever since Jensen had left unless he got engaged into an activity that required hands.
There were some children playing behind the huts. When they spotted Jared, they ran to him, yipping happily. Jared liked children, he greeted them with a short howl and a wag of his tail, and when they landed around his neck, biting his ear and trying to climb up on his back, he rolled down in the snow, letting the children fall on him.
Children were born in their human form and they didn’t start transforming until they were at least five and their parents started taking them to the forest and preparing them for their later studies. Children didn’t like transforming and Jared got it very well. He used to hate the pain, too, when he was a pup, but once he learned to ignore the pain, it wasn’t so bad. He even preferred staying in his wolf form more than human. Especially after his father’s death when he was five. He never found out what happened. One day his father left for a hunt and never returned.
With his mother already gone since he was two, it wasn’t an easy life for a child that just started learning important things for his future life. If he didn’t want to end up like an omega, he had to work harder than the kids who still had parents to teach them the basics. A problem of an individual was a problem of the whole pack, so there was always someone who took care of him. Jared never needed to be afraid of staying hungry or cold during the winter or missing anything he needed to learn. But every time it was someone else who showed him how things worked and there were still many things he needed to find out on his own, because parents didn’t have as much patience with him as with their own children.
The young wolf was persistent and ambitious, which was his luck. He often picked fights with other wolves just to test his own abilities. He was observant and eager to get better. His goal was to become the best. He worked hard and when there was no young wolf that could defeat him, he decided that it was time to challenge Alpha - only to find out how foolish it was. Alpha wasn’t the youngest anymore, his age already started being visible, but he was still strong and cunning and had the experience that Jared lacked. Even now Jared was aware that his victory was more about luck and the strong will to protect Jensen. If it hadn’t been for Jensen, he would surely have lost.
Jensen… Jared’s human. The human who reminded Jared the name given to him by his human father. Father who had been changed into a wolf by Jared’s werewolf mother.
Jared didn’t remember much from his early youth. The man in his memories was mostly connected to some strange language he was trying to teach his little son. Jared… It was his favorite word. Jared didn’t know it was a name. Wolves didn’t have names. They didn’t use them so they didn’t need them. Names didn’t matter. Hierarchy was important. Yet his father was trying to give him a name.
He had a name.
He was the only member of the pack who had a name. The name was his legacy. It connected him with the world his father came from… The same world Jensen lived in. Jensen… His future mate. Jared believed that and that was why he went to check on the house again the next day. And the day after. Until the day came when the familiar four-wheeler stopped in front of the cottage.
Jared sniffed the air, hidden behind a tall tree. The smell that the wind blowing towards him brought to him when the door on the passenger’s side opened was unmistakable. Jensen! Jared’s heart made a somersault. He wanted to shoot out from behind the tree to greet Jensen, but another man got out from the four-wheeler.
Jared hesitated. Why Jensen brought anyone with him? Didn’t he come to stay with Jared? Why did he need anyone else there? He lay down and watched the scene
***
“Snow as far as the eye can see,” Misha commented as he stopped the car at the end of the road and looked in the direction of the cottage. The driveway was covered with snowdrifts. He sighed. “We have to shovel the way to the door.”
Jensen beside him chuckled. “Are you afraid of hard labor?”
Misha gave him a sour look. “Haha, funny. Get your ass out and start shoveling.”
Jensen sighed. “Yes, boss.” Before Misha could slap his arm, he got out from the car. He took a deep breath of the cold, wet air and looked around.
Misha got out as well. “What are you doing? I told you to get the shovel and start working.”
“He didn’t come here,” Jensen said, gazing at the sparkly white snow untouched by any animal paws.
Misha sighed. “Maybe he just didn’t come close,” he said and handed Jensen one of the shovels they brought with them. “Here. Get all sweaty and your irresistible smell would surely lure him here.”
Jensen glared, but took the tool and started working.
Misha laughed. “Once we get your things in, we can go for a walk to find your lover.”
Jensen glared even more and threw a snowball at Misha. Misha didn’t manage to dodge, so the ball hit him in the chest. He raised an eyebrow.
“Was that a challenge?”
Jensen looked at him haughtily. “Of course.”
“As you wish.” Misha bent to make a snowball, but by the time he could throw it, another ball flew to him. “Hey!”
Jensen laughed smugly and got a snow shower right into his face.
Misha grinned. “Payback.”
Jensen wiped the melting snow from his face. “That wasn’t fair!”
“What is fair?” Misha teased and took armful of snow.
“No!” Jensen cried and giggled when another snow shower hit him. Neither of them noticed a huge dark brown wolf nearing them in a swift pace. Jensen was just trying to form a snowball when a wave of jealousy hit him and until he had time to react, Misha ended up face down in a snowdrift with the growling wolf on his back.
Jensen couldn’t help a smile spread on his face. “Jared!”
The wolf growled again at the man lying motionlessly under his big front paws in the snow and then looked at Jensen.
“Jared, come to me,” Jensen cooed, but the wolf glared.
Are you serious? This jerk who took you away from me? Jared’s eyes were asking, and he was obviously pissed.
Jensen sighed. “Jay, it’s Misha. He’s my friend. He brought me back. See? I’m back. Come to me, Jared.” He spread his arms in an inviting gesture, but Jared ignored it. He growled once again and pressed harder on Misha’s back, but then he retrieved and jumping in the deep snow he was heading back into the forest.
“Jared!” Jensen knew very well that the wolf heard him, but he was stubbornly pretending he didn’t.
Misha meanwhile got up to his feet. “What the fuck was that?”
Jensen gave him an apologetic look. “I’m sorry. He’s… jealous.”
“Why? He has no reason,” Misha said, glaring after the wolf, who disappeared among the trees.
“You took me away from him last winter, and now you came back with me. He sees a rival in you,” Jensen explained.
“Stupid wolf,” Misha muttered. “If I were gay, probably I would want to fuck you, but it still doesn’t give him any right to throw me into the snow!”
Jensen sighed and took a shovel. “Let’s do this. I’m starting to be cold.”
Misha snorted and set to work.
Jensen scanned the nearby trees. He knew Jared was close, because he could still feel jealousy attacking his consciousness in small waves. He shook his head and started working on the passage to the door together with Misha
*
They had already brought all Jensen’s things in and now they were enjoying hot tea, sitting on the couch, when Jared turned up again. He managed to open the door even in his wolf form and he came to the couch, hopping on it and settling between Jensen and Misha and staring at the other man while he was showing his back to Jensen.
“Jared,” Jensen addressed him softly and touched the thick winter fur coat. He had missed it so much!
Jared growled, not looking away from Misha. He was still pissed, but it was hard to tell whether more at Jensen or at the stranger sitting on the other side of the couch.
Jensen sighed and went to close the door Jared left open.
Misha gulped. “Could you tell him to stop gazing at me? He’s making me nervous.”
“Jared, cut it out. Leave poor Misha alone,” Jensen said as he sat down on the couch again and patted Jared’s back. Jared growled again, but his eyes were still trained on the other man.
“What’s up with him?” Misha stood up, avoiding Jared’s gaze. “I thought he’d be all beside himself when he sees you.”
Jensen sighed. “I told you. He’s jealous.”
“He’s stupid.”
Jensen glared. “He’s not.”
Jared sprawled on the couch, taking over Misha’s place as well, but careful enough not to touch Jensen. When Jensen tried to touch him, he growled again.
Jensen frowned and grabbed Jared’s tail, pulling at it a little. “Stop it!”
Jared glowered at him, a deep growl echoing in the small room.
“Not the welcome you wished for, is it?” Misha said, watching the two on the couch.
“You can’t scare me, Jared. I’m not afraid of you,” Jensen said, glaring at the wolf. Jared returned the glare. “If you wanna stay, behave,” Jensen said strictly.
Jared grunted something in the wolf language. He glared at Misha one more time and then put his head on his front paws, not sparing the two men a single look. Jensen was still holding his tail, but Jared didn’t seem to care anymore.
“Will he be okay now?”
Jensen shrugged. “Unless you try to come too close,” he said matter-of-factly, glancing at Jared. “I’m not sure how he’s going to react to you staying here overnight, though.”
“Jensen, I’m not leaving. I wasn’t kidding when I said I wanted to see him transformed,” Misha said.
Jensen blinked. “But… aren’t you afraid of him? That’s what he’s trying to do here - to scare you off.”
Misha shrugged. “I’m not denying he’s doing a good job so far, but I’m a competitive guy, and I can recognize a challenge when I see it. I won’t make it easy for him, either.”
Jensen suppressed a chuckle. “When you get up in the morning, make me breakfast, bitch.”
“What?”
“Breakfast. It’s what he used to do last winter,” Jensen said with a grin, avoiding mentioning Jared’s name in order to prevent the wolf from suspecting them of planning something. “He needed hands to cut the bread, you know,” he said conspiratorially, glancing at Jared, who was still stubbornly avoiding looking at them.
“Aha,” Misha said and raised an eyebrow, the corners of his mouth twitching. “Do you think it’ll make him change?”
Jensen shrugged. “I don’t know. But I like being pampered. Will you bring it to my bed? He’ll be even more jealous.”
“And he’ll bite my head off. I don’t think I wanna risk it,” Misha said, and Jensen grinned.
“So you’re really afraid of him.”
Misha shrugged. “You would be, too, if the only thing you could see was a big growling wolf.”
“Good point,” Jensen said and pulled Jared’s tail. The wolf growled darkly.
Back to Chapter 2 http://yukiowin.livejournal.com/5675.html
Go to Chapter 3, part 2 http://yukiowin.livejournal.com/6158.html
Summary When Jensen saves the life of a wolf, he doesn't know yet how much his life is going to change. The wolf marks him as his possession and Jensen is able to read every wolf's emotion after that. What he finds out suprises him
Disclaimer Just a fiction of my crazy mind. I meant no harm and I hope I didn't hurt anyone's feelings with the story. I earn no money with this and I swear it was just a pastime that happened to find it's way on the web ;)
Warning AU, werewolf!Jared, biting blood, m/m sex
Chapter 3: Loving - part 1
Eleven months. Jensen looked out of the window of his apartment at the jungle of high buildings, streets and cars. People were milling in front of every shop window, preparing for Christmas time. It appeared so meaningless to Jensen. He watched the hunt for presents that didn’t concern him anymore. He felt trapped in this town, in this world of consumption. He dreamed about deep forests, the blue of the sky peeping through branches, mud under his feet… about hands trailing their way over his body, skin touching skin, bruising kisses… The town was a cage. Gray, cold, and unfriendly.
Eleven months Jensen had been making breakfast and morning coffee himself. His rifle rested in a closet, away from the eyes of everyone… even his own. Eleven months he had been watching the scar from the wolf’s teeth every time he bared his shoulder and looked into a mirror.
He sighed and pressed his forehead against the cool window glass. The conference had gone more than well; both Jensen and Misha were successful and got a nice amount of money to continue their projects. There was an opportunity to go to Siberia for two years to watch the wolf population there… but Jensen turned it down. He didn’t want to cross the ocean and increase the distance between one particular wolf and him.
“Jared…” The name was burning within him like a white flame that could never be extinguished and it didn’t lose a bit of its intensity even after the eleven moths of separation.
Jensen sighed and just wanted to go to the kitchen when knocking on the door sounded. He went to open. Misha was standing there, grinning.
“Merry Christmas,” he said and stepped in.
“Huh?” Jensen asked stupidly, closing the door.
“You haven’t had your morning coffee yet, have you? Make some for me, too,” Misha said, still grinning.
“You’re extremely energetic. Why don’t you make the coffee yourself? You know where it is.”
Misha sighed. “You’re so grumpy when you don’t have your morning dose.”
“Only when I see your face,” Jensen said and followed Misha into the kitchen. “So? Why are you here so damn early?”
“Aww, as friendly as ever,” Misha sniggered. “Since you turned down the offer to do research in Siberia, I have a new offer for you. What do you say about going to Australia with me? The population of dingos…”
“Misha,” Jensen whined in desperation. “I don’t want to go.”
Misha looked sincerely surprised. “Why not? Dingos are interesting.”
“I know. And bears and deer and foxes and jackals and sables and whatever you can come up with IS interesting, I’m not denying it. I still don’t wanna go.”
Misha frowned lightly, watching Jensen for a while. “Jensen,” he addressed him slowly.
Jensen rolled his eyes. “Please, don’t.”
Misha frowned even more. “It’s about the wolf, isn’t it?”
“Please, we already had this conversation…”
Misha didn’t say a word, which wasn’t a good sign. Jensen watched him dig a can with coffee out of one of the cupboards in the kitchen and set to work on their morning dose. When two cups of steaming coffee were put on the table, Misha sat down, giving Jensen a strict look.
“Jensen.”
“Please,” Jensen whined again.
“No. You’ll listen to me. What happened to you, man? This is not you. You love your job. Everything you do, you do it with full concentration. What the fuck happened to you?&rdquo
“Jared,” Jensen said without thinking, and he shrugged indifferently.
“God…” Misha rolled his eyes and sighed. “What was so special about the wolf?”
“He wasn’t a wolf,” Jensen said, frowning.
Misha shook his head. “That’s what you’re repeating every time we get to this point. Will you finally explain what you mean?”
Jensen bit his lip. “You wouldn’t believe me.”
Misha sighed. “That’s what you always say.”
“Because I’m right,” Jensen said tiredly.
“Try me.”
Jensen shook his head. “You would think I’m mental.”
“I already think that. Now tell me one good reason why you should return into that forest and not go to Australia with me or participate in the Siberian project,” Misha said over his cup of coffee.
“Because I don’t want to?” Jensen offered.
“Not good enough.”
Jensen frowned. “What do you wanna hear?”
“The true reason. You know something I don’t, so spit it out.”
Jensen fidgeted in his chair.
“Jensen.”
“Fine, I’ll tell you. But don’t say I didn’t warn you,” Jensen finally gave up.
“Okay, whatever. As long as you don’t tell me that you fell in love with a werewolf or something…” Misha said, sipping from his coffee.
Jensen stayed quiet, looking into his own cup and biting his lip.
Misha put his cup back on the table slowly. “You’re kidding me,” he said, unable to believe.
Jensen sighed, leaning against the backrest. “Do I look like that?”
Misha’s eyebrows shot up. “You wanna tell me that…”
Jensen waved his hand. “Forget that I said something.”
“No, no,” Misha said quickly. “It’s just…. Wow.”
Jensen glared. “You don’t believe me.”
Misha shrugged and gave Jensen an apologetic smile. “Well… It doesn’t sound believable.”
“Yeah, right,” Jensen grunted. “Like anything that is not well-known is just unbelievable.”
“I didn’t say anything like that,” Misha tried to placate Jensen. “As I said, give me a reason. Convince me that you’re not mental and I’m a fool.”
Jensen gave Misha a scrutinizing look. Then he stood up abruptly and went for his laptop.
“There are those records,” he said as he started the computer, “about people changing into animals. Officially, they’re called shapeshifters. There are more groups of people shifting their form. Bears and wolves are the best known, but there are also cats, dogs, hawks…”
“Wait a moment,” Misha interrupted. “You’re telling me that werewolves, werebears, werecats and whatever are… real?”
Jensen glanced at Misha over his laptop. “I’ve seen a werewolf, if that’s what you prefer calling Jared.”
“Jensen…” Misha started, but Jensen pushed his laptop in front of him.
“Here. Links to the websites talking about shapeshifters. Have a good look. A certain part of them is dealing with the topic from the scientific point of view. No myth, pure science.”
Misha frowned slightly and looked at the screen. He clicked on a random link. ”South American Indians, huh?”
Jensen nodded. “They can turn into jaguars. There are also North American natives who turn into mountain lions. And that’s not all. Every continent has its own population of shapeshifters. There are werebears and werewolves in Siberia, werecats, weredogs, and werewolves in Europe. North America…”
“Let me guess. Werewolves and werebears,” Misha said.
Jensen nodded. “Plus mountain werelions. There are even Eskimo tribes who can change into polar werebears and polar werefoxes.”
“Werefoxes,” Misha snorted.
Jared shrugged. “That’s how they’re called.”
Misha nodded. “So… back to your Jared…”
“Werewolf, yeah,” Jensen said, looking at the screen.
“Right,” Misha said.
“Actually, there are memoirs. A man got into a werewolf pack living in the area where Jared’s pack lives now. It was maybe twenty four, twenty five years ago,” Jensen continued.
Misha looked up from the screen. “Could it be the same pack?”
“I guess it is,” Jensen said. “The territory is vast and no other pack is accepted there - just one pack with one alpha.” He clicked the mouse and a new website opened on the screen. There was an article about a man called Gerald Padalecki and a few photos of a handwritten journal or something. “The man was a hunter. According to his records, he was attacked by a bear and was saved by a female werewolf. She took him to her pack and took care of him until he was cured. But… you know… things happen.”
Misha rolled his eyes. “Let me guess again. She fell for him, he fell for her, and they lived happily ever after.”
Jensen chuckled. “Not exactly. Not the last part. He was a human, so he couldn’t be accepted into the pack.”
“What did he do?” Misha asked curiously.
“That’s the most interesting part. Not only you are born as a shapeshifter, but you can also become one,” Jensen said.
“How?”
“Well… I’m not good at anthropology and stuff, but there is this thing called a rite of passage. It’s known even in human tribes. Novices pass from their old life to a new one and they take on a new role in the society.”
Misha nodded. “What does it mean in the world of shapeshifters?” he asked.
Jensen leaned back. “If you want to become a shapeshifter, you need to be like… infected with their DNA.”
“Okay, I’ll kiss a hot werewolf female. And?”
Jensen chuckled. “It’s not so simple. As I said, it’s a rite. The most important part of it is blood mixing. Then saliva exchanging - so yeah, kissing is allowed. The third thing could be a problem if the one changing is a female.” He shrugged.
Misha raised an eyebrow. “Don’t tell me you’re talking about bloody sex and semen.”
Jensen gave him a sheepish smile and shrugged. “That’s why I’m saying it could be a problem for a woman. On the other hand… a guy entering her comes to a contact with her… uhm… let’s say… vaginal secretion. It does the job, too.”
Misha slapped his forehead in a gesture of desperation. “That’s just gross.”
Jensen glanced at him from the screen. “Sex is gross?”
“No, the way you’re talking about it is gross.”
Jensen shrugged and smiled innocently. “Sorry.”
Misha shook his head. “What else do you have for me?”
“I haven’t finished this part yet,” Jensen said and grinned.
Misha whined. “What more?”
“It’s usual that during the rite…”
“You mean animalistic sex.”
Jensen rolled his eyes. “During the rite children are conceived.”
Misha sighed. “Why that doesn’t surprise me?”
“In his memoirs, Gerald writes that his lover got pregnant. She gave birth to a boy,” Jensen continued. “I read somewhere that the vast majority of the children conceived during the rite prefer humans as their future mates.”
Misha shook his head. “Fools.”
Jensen shrugged. “Well, it’s in their blood.”
Misha nodded and gave Jensen a scrutinizing look. “Do you think that Jared…”
“I don’t know,” Jensen cut Misha off. He didn’t want to think about this part. Misha seemed to understand the hint.
“What else Gerald wrote?” he asked instead.
Jensen looked at the screen again. “After he was changed, he had to learn how to live as a werewolf. Like… hunting, communicating… and stuff.”
Misha nodded. “Sounds logical.”
“Yeah…” Jensen nodded. “Gerald’s memoirs end with his mate’s death and him wanting his revenge on her murderers. Hunters.”
Misha frowned. “Hunters.”
Jensen nodded. “Two years after her death the land was declared to be a protected area. Guess who was responsible for that.”
“Dear old Uncle Gerald?” Misha asked.
“Exactly. That’s the last record connected to his name I could find. There’s nothing about his son, though, just in his memoirs, and it’s also only the brief mention of the boy’s birth.”
“Strange…”
Jensen shook his head. “Not so much. He became a father and he still had to learn the things about the life in a pack. That’s pretty much. I don’t think he had much time to write anything. AND,” Jensen emphasized the word in order to hint that there was something more, “he wasn’t allowed to join the pack unless he proved his capability while his son became a member of the pack the moment he was born.”
“Huh… How did he prove it?”
“I don’t know, but he must have passed the test since he wrote that the pack was going to help him hunt down the murderers of his mate.”
Misha nodded. “I hope that the test was nothing too bloody and painful.”
Jensen laughed. “Yeah, maybe.”
“Is that all or is there something more you want to tell me?” Misha asked, watching Jensen, who fidgeted restlessly in his chair.
“There… is one more thing,” he admitted slowly.
“Well? What is it?”
“Mating.”
“Mating. What about it?”
Jensen sighed and closed the page about the memoirs of Gerald Padalecki. Then wrote a few words into the Google browser and when links of multiple websites appeared on the screen, he turned the laptop to Misha.
“Mating. It differs from population to population, but the main idea is the same. Two individuals become mates after they both carry a bound mark. It’s like… wearing a wedding ring in our culture,” he said.
Misha nodded. “I’m even afraid to ask what the mark is.”
“It’s something you always carry with you and you never lose it. It’s a scar. And the odor of the one who marked you,” Jensen replied and fixed his eyes at the screen.
Misha gave Jensen a curious look. Jensen didn’t look at him. He reached for the collar of his T-shirt, pulling it away and revealing the scar the wolf’s teeth had left there. Misha’s eyes widened.
“He bit you?” he cried. “And you never told me?”
Jensen gave him a guilty look. “I couldn’t,” he said quietly. “You would have said you were right and… I didn’t want you to think Jared was really dangerous. He didn’t want to hurt me, he was even sorry for causing me pain… He just wanted me to be his.”
Misha didn’t stop glaring. “And you agreed?”
Jensen gave him a small smile. “Technically I did. When I saved his life.”
“That’s stupid.”
“This is what goes for both werewolves and weredogs. Saving a life creates a connection between the rescuer and the rescued one. No matter how many lives you save, you create a connection between yourself and the ones you saved. This connection is based on gratitude. If it changes into something more, the one you saved is allowed to give you a mark. That mark means that you’re under protection. No other can mark you after that. You can return it or you don’t have to, it depends on your decision. If you do, it means you agree with the bond. If you don’t…” he shrugged.
“What if I were marked, but then I mark someone else?”
“Theoretically speaking, you can do that. But trust me, there’s no chance you’ll feel like doing that.”
“Why not?”
Jensen chuckled. “Because enduring the mixture of feelings of two potential mates would just drive you crazy. The trick is that marking enables you to read the feelings of your wanna-be mate. Sometimes it’s really difficult to find the line between their and your own feelings.”
“That’s what happened to you?” Misha asked with growing interest.
Jensen smiled and nodded. “That’s why I knew he was not going to hurt me. And that’s also how I fell for him.”
“Isn’t that kind of forcing you to feel what he wants you to feel?”
Jensen laughed. “Kinda. But once you find the line, you know whether it’s you being in love or the werewolf’s love for you.” He shrugged.
“Okay, I get it. But you left. What if he finds a new mate?” Misha asked.
“He won’t. He’s already decided for me.”
“But you’re not there.”
“Doesn’t matter. Dogs and wolves are faithful.”
Misha nodded. “What if you found a new mate?”
Jensen shook his head. “I could only be with a human, and that wouldn’t count like a mate in their understanding. Besides, I wear his scent. That’s as if he wrote a big sign HANDS OFF all over me.” He chuckled. “Quite possessive.”
Misha chuckled. “Tell me something. He was growling at me every time I raised my voice at you.”
Jensen grinned. “He was protecting me, you know.”
Misha nodded. “Your fluffy pup scared the hell outta me,” he said and grinned, but then he got serious again. “Well, now I get that it’s impossible for you to find another werewolf mate. But how about Jared? He’s not marked, so I guess HANDS OFF doesn’t apply to him. So… hypothetically speaking… if he saved the life of some other werewolf, wouldn’t it be like agreeing to being marked?”
“I’m sure Jared would be careful enough not to connect his life with some other werewolf like this…” Jensen said slowly.
“Okay, but… you know, shit happens,” Misha continued. “What if he found himself in a situation in which his help would be required?”
Jensen straightened up in his chair slowly, fixing his eyes on the screen. “I… don’t know much about this. Every situation is different…”
“But what IF it happened? And the other werewolf marked him. What then?”
Jensen sighed. “If something like that happened and Jared was marked by some other werewolf… he would have two potential mates. If those two mates met, that would mean fight for life and death, I guess. The winner would get Jared. If it was the other one, it would be up to Jared whether he would mark the werewolf. If it was me…” he shrugged. “Probably I would have to open the scar and give him a new mark. But… it’s just a guess. It would be a special situation and I’m not sure how a pack would deal with it. Werewolves know that if you save a life, you become responsible for it. They have this knowledge since they’re born and they behave according to it. On the other hand, a pack is responsible for its members: mates for mates, parents for children… Alphas have the greatest responsibility.” He shrugged. “I really can’t answer your question. I know very little about it and the only truly reliable sources are Padalecki’s memoirs and the few articles from a guy who was allowed to study the life and customs of a population of werelions in Africa, and those don’t help me much understand werewolves.”
Misha leaned against the backrest and watched Jensen for a long while.
“What?” Jensen asked, feeling uneasy under Misha’s searching look.
“How does he look like?” his friend asked suddenly. “I mean Jared. How does he look like when he’s in his human form?”
A light smile played on Jensen’s lips and his eyes glittered with gentleness. “God, he’s stunning!” he blurted.
Misha giggled. “That sounded so gay.”
Jensen blushed slightly, but he didn’t stop smiling. “He’s tall and muscular. Brown hair and hazel eyes… Misha, his eyes are like… like there was the whole world in them. So deep and breath-taking. You could drown in them. He’s gorgeous.”
Misha laughed. “Now you even became a poet.” He grinned. “You sure you don’t want to go to Australia with me to study dingos? Maybe we’ll meet weredingos,” he said jokingly.
Jensen frowned immediately. “It’s not funny.”
“Fine, no Australian bush, then. Forest suits you better, anyway,” Misha said, still grinning.
“Cut it out, Misha,” Jensen said. He didn’t need Misha to remind him why he felt so depressed ever since he left Jared howling back there in the forest.
Misha stopped grinning and nodded. “You convinced me. You have three days to pack everything you need. I’m taking you back.”
Jensen’s heart skipped a beat and he looked up from his laptop to stare at Misha.
“Back… where?” he asked slowly.
“Back to Jared,” Misha said in a conversational tone.
Jensen shook his head. “Misha, don’t make fun of me. This is too cruel…”
“I’m not joking,” the firm voice interrupted him. “I came here today either to take you to a shrink or to tell you that there is an opportunity for you to return to the area and carry on with your ‘wolf research’.”
Jensen’s heart started beating faster. “God, tell me that I’m not dreaming,” he whispered.
Misha laughed. “You can still call me by my first name,” he smirked, but then the tone of his voice changed from joking into gentle. “It’s not a dream, Jen. You did a good job with your research and it would be too bad if you couldn’t carry on with it.”
The corners of Jensen’s mouth stretched into a smile. “I’m going back?” he asked, still not believing.
“If you want to, then I guess you are.” Misha returned the smile.
Jensen rose up from the chair and hugged Misha gratefully. Misha hugged him back and laughed again. “Merry Christmas, you lovesick fool.”
Jensen sniffed into Misha’s shoulder. “Thank you.”
“There is just one condition,” Misha said suddenly.
Jensen pulled back, giving Misha a careful look. “What condition?”
Misha grinned widely. “I want to see Jared’s human form.”
Jensen laughed. “I can’t guarantee that.”
***
Winter came again and the house remained empty. Jared ran down the snow-covered road and lay down behind a bush growing by the crossroads, watching the main road. He kept doing it ever since Jensen had left.
Jared hoped. He believed that one day Jensen would come back. There surely was just something Jensen needed to do before he came back. Jared clung to that hope as if it was the only thing that kept him going… and probably it was
He was watching the road until late afternoon when the howling of his pack called him back. Neither today did Jensen come back… Jared stood up and trotted back into the forest. Jensen didn’t come today, but maybe he will come tomorrow, he said to himself as he did many times before.
A few young wolves joined him on his way back to the werewolf village. Wooden huts were built in a small circle, and two females and a male were skinning and gutting the newest kill, a deer, in the center of the circle. Jared knew they would bring him the best meat in a short time. Being an alpha surely had its benefits.
He scanned the village with one long look. Everything seemed to be all right. Werewolves either in their wolf or human form were minding their business. Everyone had something to do and no one was trying to pick a fight as it happened between young wolves from time to time.
Jared preferred staying in his wolf form ever since Jensen had left unless he got engaged into an activity that required hands.
There were some children playing behind the huts. When they spotted Jared, they ran to him, yipping happily. Jared liked children, he greeted them with a short howl and a wag of his tail, and when they landed around his neck, biting his ear and trying to climb up on his back, he rolled down in the snow, letting the children fall on him.
Children were born in their human form and they didn’t start transforming until they were at least five and their parents started taking them to the forest and preparing them for their later studies. Children didn’t like transforming and Jared got it very well. He used to hate the pain, too, when he was a pup, but once he learned to ignore the pain, it wasn’t so bad. He even preferred staying in his wolf form more than human. Especially after his father’s death when he was five. He never found out what happened. One day his father left for a hunt and never returned.
With his mother already gone since he was two, it wasn’t an easy life for a child that just started learning important things for his future life. If he didn’t want to end up like an omega, he had to work harder than the kids who still had parents to teach them the basics. A problem of an individual was a problem of the whole pack, so there was always someone who took care of him. Jared never needed to be afraid of staying hungry or cold during the winter or missing anything he needed to learn. But every time it was someone else who showed him how things worked and there were still many things he needed to find out on his own, because parents didn’t have as much patience with him as with their own children.
The young wolf was persistent and ambitious, which was his luck. He often picked fights with other wolves just to test his own abilities. He was observant and eager to get better. His goal was to become the best. He worked hard and when there was no young wolf that could defeat him, he decided that it was time to challenge Alpha - only to find out how foolish it was. Alpha wasn’t the youngest anymore, his age already started being visible, but he was still strong and cunning and had the experience that Jared lacked. Even now Jared was aware that his victory was more about luck and the strong will to protect Jensen. If it hadn’t been for Jensen, he would surely have lost.
Jensen… Jared’s human. The human who reminded Jared the name given to him by his human father. Father who had been changed into a wolf by Jared’s werewolf mother.
Jared didn’t remember much from his early youth. The man in his memories was mostly connected to some strange language he was trying to teach his little son. Jared… It was his favorite word. Jared didn’t know it was a name. Wolves didn’t have names. They didn’t use them so they didn’t need them. Names didn’t matter. Hierarchy was important. Yet his father was trying to give him a name.
He had a name.
He was the only member of the pack who had a name. The name was his legacy. It connected him with the world his father came from… The same world Jensen lived in. Jensen… His future mate. Jared believed that and that was why he went to check on the house again the next day. And the day after. Until the day came when the familiar four-wheeler stopped in front of the cottage.
Jared sniffed the air, hidden behind a tall tree. The smell that the wind blowing towards him brought to him when the door on the passenger’s side opened was unmistakable. Jensen! Jared’s heart made a somersault. He wanted to shoot out from behind the tree to greet Jensen, but another man got out from the four-wheeler.
Jared hesitated. Why Jensen brought anyone with him? Didn’t he come to stay with Jared? Why did he need anyone else there? He lay down and watched the scene
***
“Snow as far as the eye can see,” Misha commented as he stopped the car at the end of the road and looked in the direction of the cottage. The driveway was covered with snowdrifts. He sighed. “We have to shovel the way to the door.”
Jensen beside him chuckled. “Are you afraid of hard labor?”
Misha gave him a sour look. “Haha, funny. Get your ass out and start shoveling.”
Jensen sighed. “Yes, boss.” Before Misha could slap his arm, he got out from the car. He took a deep breath of the cold, wet air and looked around.
Misha got out as well. “What are you doing? I told you to get the shovel and start working.”
“He didn’t come here,” Jensen said, gazing at the sparkly white snow untouched by any animal paws.
Misha sighed. “Maybe he just didn’t come close,” he said and handed Jensen one of the shovels they brought with them. “Here. Get all sweaty and your irresistible smell would surely lure him here.”
Jensen glared, but took the tool and started working.
Misha laughed. “Once we get your things in, we can go for a walk to find your lover.”
Jensen glared even more and threw a snowball at Misha. Misha didn’t manage to dodge, so the ball hit him in the chest. He raised an eyebrow.
“Was that a challenge?”
Jensen looked at him haughtily. “Of course.”
“As you wish.” Misha bent to make a snowball, but by the time he could throw it, another ball flew to him. “Hey!”
Jensen laughed smugly and got a snow shower right into his face.
Misha grinned. “Payback.”
Jensen wiped the melting snow from his face. “That wasn’t fair!”
“What is fair?” Misha teased and took armful of snow.
“No!” Jensen cried and giggled when another snow shower hit him. Neither of them noticed a huge dark brown wolf nearing them in a swift pace. Jensen was just trying to form a snowball when a wave of jealousy hit him and until he had time to react, Misha ended up face down in a snowdrift with the growling wolf on his back.
Jensen couldn’t help a smile spread on his face. “Jared!”
The wolf growled again at the man lying motionlessly under his big front paws in the snow and then looked at Jensen.
“Jared, come to me,” Jensen cooed, but the wolf glared.
Are you serious? This jerk who took you away from me? Jared’s eyes were asking, and he was obviously pissed.
Jensen sighed. “Jay, it’s Misha. He’s my friend. He brought me back. See? I’m back. Come to me, Jared.” He spread his arms in an inviting gesture, but Jared ignored it. He growled once again and pressed harder on Misha’s back, but then he retrieved and jumping in the deep snow he was heading back into the forest.
“Jared!” Jensen knew very well that the wolf heard him, but he was stubbornly pretending he didn’t.
Misha meanwhile got up to his feet. “What the fuck was that?”
Jensen gave him an apologetic look. “I’m sorry. He’s… jealous.”
“Why? He has no reason,” Misha said, glaring after the wolf, who disappeared among the trees.
“You took me away from him last winter, and now you came back with me. He sees a rival in you,” Jensen explained.
“Stupid wolf,” Misha muttered. “If I were gay, probably I would want to fuck you, but it still doesn’t give him any right to throw me into the snow!”
Jensen sighed and took a shovel. “Let’s do this. I’m starting to be cold.”
Misha snorted and set to work.
Jensen scanned the nearby trees. He knew Jared was close, because he could still feel jealousy attacking his consciousness in small waves. He shook his head and started working on the passage to the door together with Misha
*
They had already brought all Jensen’s things in and now they were enjoying hot tea, sitting on the couch, when Jared turned up again. He managed to open the door even in his wolf form and he came to the couch, hopping on it and settling between Jensen and Misha and staring at the other man while he was showing his back to Jensen.
“Jared,” Jensen addressed him softly and touched the thick winter fur coat. He had missed it so much!
Jared growled, not looking away from Misha. He was still pissed, but it was hard to tell whether more at Jensen or at the stranger sitting on the other side of the couch.
Jensen sighed and went to close the door Jared left open.
Misha gulped. “Could you tell him to stop gazing at me? He’s making me nervous.”
“Jared, cut it out. Leave poor Misha alone,” Jensen said as he sat down on the couch again and patted Jared’s back. Jared growled again, but his eyes were still trained on the other man.
“What’s up with him?” Misha stood up, avoiding Jared’s gaze. “I thought he’d be all beside himself when he sees you.”
Jensen sighed. “I told you. He’s jealous.”
“He’s stupid.”
Jensen glared. “He’s not.”
Jared sprawled on the couch, taking over Misha’s place as well, but careful enough not to touch Jensen. When Jensen tried to touch him, he growled again.
Jensen frowned and grabbed Jared’s tail, pulling at it a little. “Stop it!”
Jared glowered at him, a deep growl echoing in the small room.
“Not the welcome you wished for, is it?” Misha said, watching the two on the couch.
“You can’t scare me, Jared. I’m not afraid of you,” Jensen said, glaring at the wolf. Jared returned the glare. “If you wanna stay, behave,” Jensen said strictly.
Jared grunted something in the wolf language. He glared at Misha one more time and then put his head on his front paws, not sparing the two men a single look. Jensen was still holding his tail, but Jared didn’t seem to care anymore.
“Will he be okay now?”
Jensen shrugged. “Unless you try to come too close,” he said matter-of-factly, glancing at Jared. “I’m not sure how he’s going to react to you staying here overnight, though.”
“Jensen, I’m not leaving. I wasn’t kidding when I said I wanted to see him transformed,” Misha said.
Jensen blinked. “But… aren’t you afraid of him? That’s what he’s trying to do here - to scare you off.”
Misha shrugged. “I’m not denying he’s doing a good job so far, but I’m a competitive guy, and I can recognize a challenge when I see it. I won’t make it easy for him, either.”
Jensen suppressed a chuckle. “When you get up in the morning, make me breakfast, bitch.”
“What?”
“Breakfast. It’s what he used to do last winter,” Jensen said with a grin, avoiding mentioning Jared’s name in order to prevent the wolf from suspecting them of planning something. “He needed hands to cut the bread, you know,” he said conspiratorially, glancing at Jared, who was still stubbornly avoiding looking at them.
“Aha,” Misha said and raised an eyebrow, the corners of his mouth twitching. “Do you think it’ll make him change?”
Jensen shrugged. “I don’t know. But I like being pampered. Will you bring it to my bed? He’ll be even more jealous.”
“And he’ll bite my head off. I don’t think I wanna risk it,” Misha said, and Jensen grinned.
“So you’re really afraid of him.”
Misha shrugged. “You would be, too, if the only thing you could see was a big growling wolf.”
“Good point,” Jensen said and pulled Jared’s tail. The wolf growled darkly.
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