The Lone Wolf: A Chaelisa Wolf AU

Chapter Three: Curiosity

"Then, the prince danced with her all throughout the night, and fell in love with the beautiful maiden."

"What is love?" Lisa asked. "I've heard it all the time, but what does it really mean?"

I set my book down next to me and turned to the girl, who was leaning against my chest. It had been weeks since we first met and she still cuddled up to me at any chance she could. I found it to be quite endearing and sweet. It made me feel somewhat special. But I knew why she did it. She was deprived of hugs and any form of physical affection. She just wanted it in some way, and that way happened to be through me.

But her question was truly hard to answer. I mean, there are all sorts of kinds of love. Familial, platonic, romantic, the list goes on and on. I could explain the first two, but that wasn't what Lisa wanted to know. She wanted to know about romance.

I wasn't the right person to ask. I'd never been in a relationship all my life. I'd never been kissed. I'd never even had a crush on someone. People only paid attention to me because I was pretty. At least at first glance. But when guys figured out that I liked to read and had a brain bigger than a blueberry, they turned away. I didn't mind it myself, but others did. Most people said that my beauty was wasted. They told me that if I didn't have such a high IQ, I'd have already found a proper husband. But no man, or woman, for that matter, could tell me how to live my life.

"I'm not completely sure," I said. "It depends on the person."

"What is love to you?" Her ears perked up.

I took a deep breath. "I guess it's when you can't stop thinking about someone. Loving is easy. You love everything they do, no matter how embarrassing it may seem to the other person. You like being around them and hearing their voice. You just want to hold them in your arms and kiss their cheek just because you care for them so much. You want to tell them that they're beautiful and that they're amazing. Because they are. To you, they're the most beautiful thing in the world. And you just want her to know that all the time."

"'Her?'" She raised an eyebrow.

Oh. I bit my tongue a bit realizing what I had said. It was just a slip up, that's all. But what if it wasn't? I'd never liked guys before, but I'd never thought about girls. Maybe I just hadn't met the right guy yet. I could keep telling myself that but I knew it wasn't true. I thought girls were beautiful. They're kindhearted, sweet, smart, and adorable. At least Lisa was.

"Y-Yeah," I said. "Her."

"So you have been in love?" She smiled, intrigued.

"I'm not really sure," I sighed. "It's complicated."

"I thought you said that loving is easy."

"I guess, I-I don't really know." I turned away from her gaze. "For me, it doesn't seem to be."

"But you're pretty." Lisa leaned in closer. "I bet it'd be easy for you to find someone you love."

I shook my head. "Even if I did find a guy or a girl that I liked, they'd probably just call me odd and walk away, like they always do."

"I wouldn't." She gripped my hand. "You have a special gift, Rosé. You're smarter, kinder and more beautiful than all of them. And they're just jealous of that."

"You think so?" I asked.

"I know so." She winked, making me giggle.

"I'm really glad I met you," I said. "I've never really had anyone who understands me before."

"Neither have I," she replied. "I've never had a human friend before."

"I'm honored to be the first." I smiled. "C-Can I ask you something?"

"Sure." She shrugged.

"Can I touch your ear?" I asked.

"I-I guess so," she said.

I beamed at her, then raised my hand to touch her pointy, wolf-like ears. To me, they were truly the most adorable things I had ever seen. I loved the way they perked up when she was excited or intrigued. They seemed to have tufts of the fluffiest fur and felt so nice against my fingertips.

"It's so soft," I said slowly, petting it more. "You're lucky."

She laughed. "I wouldn't use the word 'lucky' for that."

"But it's true!" I tried to persuade her. "Your fur is so soft and cuddly. Like a little puppy."

"Does that make me your puppy now?" she chuckled.

"No, that's not what I meant, I-"

"It's okay, Rosie." She smiled. "I like it. It's cute."

My cheeks started to heat up. "Can I ask you something else?"

"Sure."

"Can I touch your tail?"

"You're really curious, aren't you?" she giggled.

"It just looks so soft! I love cuddly things," I exaggerated.

"Okay, you can touch it," she agreed.

I squealed a bit out of joy and let my hand grace her dark brown, fluffy tail. Why did her wolf features have to be so damn cute? They just made me like her even more. It swished back and forth slightly, a thing that Lisa did when she was happy.

"Can I ask you something?" Lisa said, causing me to look back up at her.

"Sure," I said nonchalantly.

"Why do you like to touch them?" she questioned. "Besides the fact that they're soft."

I sighed. "You want to know a secret?"

She nodded.

"I'm jealous."

"Why are you jealous?" she laughed.

"Do you realize how special you are?" I asked. "You have the strength and courage of a wolf with the kindness and care of a human. It makes you unique in the best way possible. I'd love to be like you."

"As sweet as that is, you wouldn't want to be like me. You're the only one who doesn't think I'm a monster," she said.

"Because you're not." I cupped her cheek lightly. "You're beautiful."

Her eyes gazed into mine, making my heart flutter. They were so mesmerizing and one of a kind, unlike anything I'd ever seen before. On the outer ring, they were dark brown, but on the inside, they were a bright, shimmering gold. I couldn't help but be entranced by their beauty.

My hand lightly touched her temple, then made its way down to her jaw. She looked slightly confused, but I only smiled. I could feel myself leaning in closer to her as my hand began to snake around her waist. Our noses were close to touching and I was close to closing the gap.

Just then, a clap of thunder sounded, making Lisa jump. She began to shiver, the light fur on her arms standing on end. I held her to try and comfort her, but she still seemed scared. She trembled against me, letting out an animal-like whimper. I pulled her in closer to help calm her.

"It's okay," I whispered. "There's nothing to be afraid of."

She whimpered again as a response.

"C'mon, we better get out of here before the storm hits," I said, helping her up.

"Where could we go?" she asked.

"I could take you back to my place," I suggested.

"Your place?" Her eyes widened. "Rosie, I can't go there. Look at me! They'll just point and stare and threaten."

I intertwined my fingers with hers. "Not on my watch. No one will see you, I promise."

She looked hesitant, but then sighed. "Alright. I'll trust you on this."