Chapter 5: A Late Night Run

Scott relished the chill of the wind against his bare chest, a smile glued on his face as his bare feet dug into the soil.

“When was the last time you’ve let yourself go like this?” He heard the feminine voice beside him before he felt the hand on his arm.

Selen Golden was Alpha Miles’ Luna. Scott wasn’t one to shy from telling the truth, and truth be told Selen was a Luna, terrible there was a time Scott felt that Selen was too submissive and weak with her role in the pack, subsequently not capable of being his Luna. With her long, wavy brown hair that fell to her shoulders and brown eyes shielded behind the glasses on her face. Then, he saw firsthand how she acted around the rest of the pack. There was no denying his first impression was wrong. Selen was just what they needed in a Luna.

“I’ll be honest, it’s been a while.” He responded with a laugh as he rocked back and forth on his heels. “I’ve been so focused on taking care of Theo and just trying to hide among the humans, I didn’t think Alpha Miles would have wanted me around on nights like these.” He added as he looked back at Miles, the man stood out among the rest of the pack with his flaming red hair.

“You may not have pledged your loyalty to the pack like your Uncle, but you and Theo are still welcome here. It’s good for the both of you to be surrounded by your own kind.” She responded as she heard Theo’s laughter, the boy chasing after the other pups of the pack. “Miles and a few others of the pack are going on a run, will you be joining us?” She’d asked him with a raised brow, the man immediately shifting his attention to his brother as soon as she’d started to strip out of her clothes.

Theo looked happy with the other pups of the pack, and Scott couldn’t remember the last time he’d seen the boy smile so big. ‘Did he ever smile that big around those human students?’ Scott found himself wondering as the smile tugged at his lips. He’d watched the pack long enough to know that Theo thrived around others of his kind, and Selene certainly had a positive influence on him as well.

“Of course, I will, if Miles is willing to let me run with them,” Scott responded he was certainly grateful that Luna Selene and her family owned this large chunk of land.

The nature reserve was their excuse, and it wasn’t entirely a lie. At least this way The Shadow Fang Pack had plenty of territory to claim without having to worry about running into humans.

“You are one of us, even if you haven’t pledged. I would never want to turn away you or your brother for no reason.” Miles had jumped in on the conversation with a smile on his face, Scott immediately turning to greet the man. “We’ll be making our run soon, so try to keep up.” He’d teased before moving back to join the rest of the pack.

Scott spared one last look over to his brother, Theo wrestling around with the other pups with a grin on his face. This, the pack and the pups and the sense of normalcy and home, was exactly what Theo needed. As far as Scott was concerned, Theo blended in seamlessly with the humans but he’d be much safer and much happier with his own kind.

Even Scott couldn’t deny how much he enjoyed being around Miles and his pack, it reminded him of his own family. Scott always had to hide that wolf-shifter part of himself, knew that humans would never understand or accept him, and it always felt so much harder. But not here. Here… Scott could be himself. All of himself.

Stripping out of the last bit of his clothes, Scott could already feel the ripple of the change in his body. His eyes rose to the moon as the growl rumbled deep in his chest, nails sharpening as he dropped to all fours. He could feel his fangs elongating, the growl leaving his throat, and a shake of his head as he stretched out his muscles. Feeling the wind blow against midnight black fur, Scott didn’t bother holding back the howl as he relished in the change.

‘Theo.’ Scott had a natural mind link to his brother, Theo’s head immediately snapping up to meet his brother's eyes followed by the smile on his face. ‘Just wait, once you’re old enough you’ll get to experience this too.’ Scott promised his brother and that just made the boy even more excited.

Scott could feel the eyes of the rest of the pack on him as he turned to face Miles, in his fur Scott was almost as big as Alpha Miles. In moments like these, he was almost certain that the rest of the pack worried that Scott might fight for the Alpha title. In reality, though, Scott had no interest in the Alpha title and he certainly had no interest in making an enemy out of Miles. Silver eyes stared back at blue-grey eyes that clashed against the red fur, a brief stare down before Scott bowed his head to Miles and moved closer to the others.

‘Have fun on your run! You better behave and play nice.” Theo had thought back to Scott and the man’s laughter rumbled deep in his chest as he looked back at his brother. With a nod of his head before running after the rest of the pack, Scott was suddenly reminded of his family run.

‘This is why I don’t run with Alpha Miles and his pack. Memories hurt.’ Scott thought to himself with a shake of his head, hearing the low growls from beside him and nips taken at his arms. Ruben. The wolf-shifter was never far from Scott when he joined the pack on runs like these.

Scott gave the wolf-shifter a low growl as he shifted his weight to shove into Ruben before rushing on ahead to catch up with Miles. Scott didn’t have the same mind link with the rest of the pack, he wasn’t pledged to Alpha Miles or the pack so he was certain that Ruben would pester him later.

Falling in line beside Miles, Scott did his best to lower himself around the Alpha followed by a low growl before drifting away from the rest of the pack. Scott enjoyed the run with the pack, but at the same time, he wanted to drift away for a while.

He wanted to feel the dirt under his paws, the wind whipping through his fur, and the light of the moon illuminating down on him. For at least a moment, Scott wanted to be left alone with his memories and the joy of running in his fur. It wasn’t until his paws hit the stream that he skidded to a halt, breaths coming out in ragged pants as he looked up to the moon.

While he’d never been old enough to run with his father, Scott had lived vicariously through the stories that the Alpha had told him and the promises of the first shift.

‘Forgive me, Father. I never joined another pack after yours. I just hope I’m making you proud, I’m doing my best to take care of Theo.’ Scott thought, hearing the snap of the branches behind him and seeing Adan slink out of the bushes.

He knew from his Uncle’s movements that it was time to meet up with the rest of the pack. Alpha Miles never let Scott stray too far from the rest of the pack during these runs, and it was usually Adan who came looking for Scott. How long had Scott been sitting out here by the water, staring up at the moon and reminiscing about the past?

Scott ran back with the pack, greeted by Theo as he shifted back to his skin and flashed the boy a grin before grabbing his clothes. He knew the pack was comfortable with one another in both skins, the same could be said for Scott, but he also felt more comfortable once he had his clothes. At least around Theo. At least while the boy was still young and stuck with his human skin.

“You should join us in these runs more often.” Miles had stepped in front of Scott with a cocky grin and he couldn’t help but laugh and shake his head.

“Forgive me, Alpha Miles, but I’d rather not. I have my reasons for not joining your pack in any way, shape, or form.” Scott responded and Miles didn’t take his words to heart, the Alpha knew exactly why Scott kept his distance. Miles was certain that if he were in Scott’s shoes, he would have done the same thing.

“As you wish Scott, just do not forget that you and your brother are welcome with the rest of the pack here,” Miles responded before moving back to his Luna’s side.

Scott’s eyes followed his retreating form. Scott was grateful for all the help and comfort he was getting from Miles and the rest of the pack, and yet at the same time, he found himself thinking of Lance.

‘This is the first time Lance popped into my head tonight. I wonder if Alpha Miles could help me with this problem?’ Scott thought as he glanced back at the Alpha, followed by a slight shake of his head. There was no guarantee that the wolf-shifter would be of any help, much less supportive of the situation. ‘This time I’m all on my own for good.’ He thought.

Lance was his problem… no one else’s.