Red Riding Hood | BoyxBoy | COMPLETED

Dream Family

Alexander's POV

"You look like father."

What.

Apprehension trickled through the bond. Cassidy smelled concerned. I was particularly preoccupied with all the new and interesting smells that were more vibrant in my wolf form. Especially from the other werewolf.

I approached Colin. He let me but didn't pet my fur like everyone at home did. I huffed and nudged his hand with my nose. The boy just moved his hand away uncertainly. I ducked my head, so his fingers brushed the patch of fur between my ears.

"Um..." he said.

My mate smiled. "He wants you to pet him."

I smiled a big wolfy grin at Cass. He giggled.

Colin scratched at my ear and I thumped my tail. He looked pleased.

"Show me how you do that," he pleaded.

I licked his hand and sat back on my haunches. Shifting back this quickly was a little draining, but I didn't mind it.

Cassidy draped my shirt on my bare shoulders, and I smiled up at him. He kissed my forehead. Colin was already half-naked in his excitement.

"Alright," I began. "The most important thing is to stay calm."

Colin nodded seriously. I taught him to listen to his wolf and what it was saying. He eventually managed a partial shift and Cassidy clapped in encouragement.

"Well done!" I exclaimed. Colin had much better control over his shift than I'd had at his age. To be fair, I was also self-taught, but Colin was definitely doing well on his own merit. And the upcoming full moon probably helped too.

I shifted again. From there, we devolved into play-fighting, which excited my wolf to no end. I'd never had a friend to play to like this before! Even though Colin was half my size, he was crafty and fast, and we ran circles around the clearing. Cassidy watched and laughed in delight, in high spirits from my exuberance flooding the bond. Truly, I was enjoying myself immensely.

We played and chased each other until the scent of another being permeated the clearing. Colin didn't react much, probably familiar with the scent. My wolf didn't and paused to see who had snuck up on us.

It was Princess Seffrin. She watched us with an unreadable expression.

My head tilted in confusion and I sniffed harder. This wasn't the first time Cass and I had met her, so why couldn't I smell anything to identify her?

Colin shifted back and waved cheerfully, his earlier nonchalance having dissolved over the afternoon. "Seff," he called. "Prince Alex is teaching me to control my shift and I almost got it!"

I licked his hand and padded over to Cass who was waiting with my pants. He handed me my clothes when I changed back and smiled when I pressed a quick kiss to his lips.

"Hello," I greeted Seffrin pleasantly.

Her face didn't change but she nodded at me. She was dressed in hunting leathers and a crossbow in one hand.

"What did you get?" Colin asked interestedly.

Seffrin produced a pheasant with an arrow through the neck. I was impressed. It was not my preferred method of hunting, but I was familiar with the way humans hunted. That was a good clean shot.

"Good shot," I congratulated her. Cassidy seconded my comment. She looked smug for second before it disappeared from her inexpressive features.

Seffrin bowed politely, before melting back into the trees. It wasn't long before her strange lack of scent disappeared, and the clearing's natural smells covered it up. Internally, I was a little disappointed. It seemed that Princess Seffrin wasn't as fond of me as her brothers were.

"Don't mind her," Colin said. "Seff is always like that with people she doesn't know."

I hummed thoughtfully. In that case, I just needed to give her some time. Cassidy squeezed my fingers encouragingly.

~

Back in our chambers, Cassidy rubbed my tired muscles with our favourite oil. I grunted in pleasure. Getting to play with another wolf was fun but shifting back and forth repeatedly was exhausting.

We had joined the rest for the evening meal even before taking an early night. Cassidy had offered a massage and I was looking forward to that. The massage was making me hungry though. And as soon as he'd finished, someone brought a tray of food for us. Cass truly planned for everything.

We ate in bed, feeding each other morsels of bread and fruit. Food and Cassidy; I was living my best life.

Cassidy brought a grape to my lips. I ate it, kissing his fingers and he smiled, pressing his face into my shoulder.

"Cass," I said. "I think Seffrin doesn't like me very much."

His eyebrows raised. "What makes you say that?" he asked before accepting the piece of bread.

I scrunched my nose. "I couldn't smell her scent in that clearing earlier. And she makes me feel like a naughty schoolboy when she looks at me."

Cassidy laughed. "You are naughty." He fed me some cheese. "I suppose she did look quite sour earlier." He hummed thoughtfully. "Why can't you smell her?"

"I don't know." I frowned. "It was more like a lack of smell. Like whatever she used was eliminating every scent around her." I gave Cassidy a piece of apple. "I don't think Colin noticed though. I mean, I only realised because the guards back home sometimes wear scent blockers when hunting too."

"She was hunting too, no?" Cassidy took a sip of his wine.

Oh, yeah. I'd been so caught up at her disapproval that I'd failed to read the situation. Colin and I had probably scared all the other animals away with all the noise we were making. Perhaps that's why she was so annoyed at me.

I really wanted them to like me and I told myself it was because I just wanted to be friends, but deep down I just wanted a bigger family. My childhood had been lonely. Fawkes was my best friend, but he had his own lessons and duties even back then. There had been no one that could understand the child wolf prince even if mother and father did their best to give me a good childhood.

"Alex," he murmured, and I startled. He watched me knowingly. "I like them," he said.

I sighed shakily into his hair. "Me too." I closed my eyes to savour his scent. "I've always wanted siblings."

The arm around my waist tightened. "We really have to talk to King Olcan, don't we?"

I didn't say anything for a moment.

He continued. "Whatever happens, I'm here with you."

I kissed him. My sweet mate who had the patience of a saint in putting up with all my messy feelings. "Thank you," I whispered, not wanting to break the moment. He smiled and kissed me breathless again.