Mateless and Luna Bound (Self Published)

Chapter 2: A Furry Friend

Authors Note: Charlie is absolutely my favorite character, and one that I have been falling for just as much as Max has. With that being said, welcome to his world, and thank you for reading! If you find any grammatical errors, please leave a comment and I will make sure to edit it. Thanks for all the votes and comments!

-Saturn

Charlie had never been one to avoid animals. This didn't seem to stop him when it came to wild ones as well, apparently.

The butcher didn't seem to mind him buying his scrap. If he had known how cheap he sold it for, he would have bought it sooner. Then again, he never really had the ingredients to cook anything himself.

Charlie sighed at the thought. His feet led him to the forest that surrounded the city. He barely had any time off to do something like this. Even with all the shifts he took, he barely made enough to pay his rent, let alone buy food.

At least the restaurant gave him a free meal every day he worked.

Even with his lack of money, he still wanted to give back to the wolf pack that decided not to eat him the day before. He knew that wolves were aggressive when anything crossed into their territory. And, with how big those wolves were, he didn't think he really stood a chance against them.

The leader of the group even helped him find his way back to the city. How could he not thank them?

He loved all animals, even the wild ones. He loved learning about them. It was also pretty useful to learn about them when you were lost in the woods.

No sudden movements. A calm demeanor. And making himself as small as possible. It was the best way he could show them that he wasn't a threat.

This time, however, he would be stupid if he tried to go to that exact spot again. That was too far in the woods, and he was sure that they wouldn't be as generous as they were the last time.

They were wild.

Even if one of them started acting like a big puppy around him. That was something that still made Charlie smile. Hopefully he'd be able to at least get a glance at him today.

Gila City had an interesting history with wolves. As much as they warned people about them and the dangers of them, no one hunted them. They all just lived in harmony with each other.

It was something Charlie admired about the place. They even put up warning signs by the forest paths that people liked to walk down.

The forest was always so calming to him. He walked by the trees in silence. It was nice to be able to slow down and enjoy beauty for once. Usually he was so busy working and running around that he just couldn't stop and enjoy anything.

He stopped for a bit after walking a ways. They probably wouldn't appreciate him coming back.

He quickly took the package and placed it on the ground. Opening the wrapped meat, he hoped that they would smell it. If he wasted his money though, he wasn't worried. At least he tried.

Charlie heard the sound of sniffing before he saw it. He had barely stood back up and the red wolf was there, coming out into the clearing.

"Hey, Big Guy," he said. Purple eyes peered down at him. Much like last time, they looked cautious, but curious.

"Don't worry," Charlie assured. "You won't have to deal with me on a regular basis. I just thought I'd give you guys a thank you gift. Since you didn't, you know, tear my guts out and all that." It was strange that he was rambling on to an animal. But he did nonetheless. It helped him stay calm. And, he might be fooling himself on this one, but it seemed like it calmed the wolf down as well.