DAD'S NON-NEGOTIABLES

SATURDAY, 5 MARCH, CONTINUED

"Jonah, stop the traffic. Ben get the tables down to the road and order pizza." I decided.

"Pizza, really?" Ben asked. He didn't sound impressed.

"Well, I actually wanted cookies." I said, "Do you think you can order cookies?"

"Of course I can order cookies." Ben looked insulted. And then he asked, "Do you want sandwiches too? It's the same place."

"Isn't the Packhouse Kitchen cooking too?" Lizzy asked, "Do you want to move the buffet out to the road to share?"

Our Packhouse Kitchen usually cooked a full buffet that wolves could get from the dining hall to supplement their picnics. E.g. Chocolate Fudge.

"Yes." I said immediately.

SAM'S PLAN TO INTEGRATE THE NEW WOLVES INTO THE PACK

1. Invite them to a pack picnic (Done)

2. Put A LOT of delicious food right in the center so everyone could share.

"Do you want to move the stage onto the road too?" Ben asked. It was in his usual dry monotone, so I couldn't tell if he were being sarcastic or if he were just asking.

"Yes." I said.

3. Share music.

I mean music and food was what always brought our pack together.

I'm sure Professor Hotstuff might write something more complicated about how we integrated the new wolves into our pack, but this wasn't a history textbook (again, sorry future pups of Moon Bell). This was real life. And in real life, I didn't have that tactical genius to formulate any kind of social integration program.

But I knew how to make friends. Share food, share music... share lives. And this thing that Mum had told me before, I'm not sure why, but it just popped up in my head.

"Sometimes to make a good friend, we need to be a good friend." Mum had often said, "It's not about how you feel. It's about how you make them feel about themselves."

I wanted my wolves to always feel special, to always know how they were the best wolves in the world to me. Because in their own special way, whether it was the Fire Wolf who inserted mini lectures into everyday conversations, the expert lancer who'd much rather be foraging than fighting, the impatient young beta next door who was too smart for his own good, or the cute brats who hadn't quite learned how fun it really was to run together, my life was all that much richer because they were here.

I didn't quite have the words for it then, we were too busy dealing with the adults. It was pretty amazing now that Ben and Jonah had shifted (into rather large and fearsome wolves) how the grown up warriors took orders from them without question.

The questions mostly came from our parents.

"Hooboy, whatcha you pups up to now?" Beta Lucas yelled when the warriors got called up from their family mats to report to the Packhouse front porch.

"Oh Sam!" Mum came over because she felt it had to be my fault, "What's going on?"

"We're moving the buffet and stage to the road." Ben reported dully.

"The... the road?" Beta Lucas sounded properly shocked, "But that's the road!"

"We know what a road is." Ben said dryly.

"Sam... Is this really necessary?" Mum fretted.

Dad came over. Oh boy, now we did it (although we haven't done anything yet.)

"Why is Harvey announcing road closures over the pack link?" Dad wanted to know.

"We're setting up roadblocks, Alpha." Ben explained without explaining anything at all.

"I want to fill up the road with food and music." I explained, but it seemed like my explanation didn't quite cut it either. The adults looked more confused than anything else.

"Oh, Sam." Mum said.

"But it's a road!" Beta Lucas repeated.

"I believe the princess wishes to move the buffet and stage closer to the warriors across the road." Wolfgang explained, "She is troubled that her guests might not all have direct access to them."

"Oh." Mum said. Just "Oh." Not, "Oh, Sam."

"Those are grown warriors." Beta Lucas said, "They know how to cross the road."

Yeah, but... I wasn't sure how to explain about the 16th Street.

"I see." Mum nodded. She looked at the stage, "They wouldn't be able to see from there. But how can you move it right now?"

"It will move, but I'll need Gamma Harry's truck." Ben said.

"Imagine the stage out there on the road!" I just had to convince Dad, "And a huge buffet line right down the middle so everyone can come down to get food and dance together! Come on, Dad! It's gonna be epic!"

I just threw in the word epic hoping a cool word might sway my dad. Maybe he'd think it was a young person thing and agree even if he didn't quite get it.

"Who'd be driving down this road anyway?" I coaxed, "Everyone will be here anyway."

"If we close the roads, there'll be more parking." Ben noted slyly.

"Right! Let's close the road." Beta Lucas said. Parking had always been the issue when it came to pack events.

Dad was wearing his thinking frown, "I suppose there's no harm in it."

But on the mindlink I accidentally caught Dad sending an order to Beta Lucas, {Inform our captains. Have security on standby. Close in the patrols. Keep a discreet check on the alcohol flow among our wolves. Have EVERY warrior know that ANY physical incident will be dealt swiftly and severely with.}

{Yeah man.} Beta Lucas responded, {Last thing we want is a fight to blow up in our faces.}

Yeah, I guess since this picnic was supposed to be to welcome the new wolves... It'll be bad if it ended up in a fight, and young unmated male wolves were quite prone to fighting.

Suddenly my cookie and pizza bridge to the other side felt less epic... Unless it was an epic fail. How could Dad say there's no harm in it?

"Maybe having them mix too much isn't such a good idea." I decided to swallow my pride and be sensible about it. There were women and children among us. Someone might be seriously hurt. And even if it didn't come to blows, I was quite sure I would hear from someone who heard from someone who heard from someone about some kind of almost-fight.

Because the chances of a fight breaking out was pretty likely. What if the great divide was more of a great safety barrier? Or a territorial line to help the young male warrior wolves have their own space?

What if my cookies and pizza bridge started a civil war? Omo.

The more I thought about it, the more I was beginning to think I had just made a terrible mistake.

"Why are you changing your mind?" Dad asked. But his voice was kind.

Huh? I blinked at my Dad. He was smiling, the way he always did to me, like he was looking at his puppy. And then he rested his large hand on my head, "Didn't I say it was okay?"

"But I might be making a mistake!" I sounded upset even to my own ears.

"Even if it is a mistake, there's no harm in it." Dad said, his large hand was warm.

"But that's because you set up all those warriors and stuff!" I accused. How was I supposed to learn about the realities of being the Alpha if he were always putting up safety nets all around me?

And to my surprise, Dad laughed, "It looks like you're really growing up."

He removed his hand from my head, "Just so you know. There is great gain in taking risks, but look before you leap, and always safeguard the non-negotiables."

I blinked at that. I totally did not expect that.

Dad moved to wrap an arm around Mum, "Come on, Luc. Let's go see Harry about moving that stage."

"Yes, Alpha." Beta Lucas followed him and immediately after that, everything moved at once.

{Okay, we got Green Light. Let's move it.} Ben instructed.

{New layout and emergency evacuation plans are online, beta.} Ki reported.

{Thanks Ki. Can you update our SM on the road closures? Also update your PR team.}

{I'm thinking we shift the spotlight to introducing our new wolves. Maybe something a little more playful - perhaps starting an annual listing for top 10 most eligible bachelors?} Ki wondered.

{You're the PR guy.} Harvey answered wryly, {Just keep my name off that list.}

{Understood.} Ki was quick to oblige, {Our minimum age would start at 18, so you may rest your mind at ease.}

{S*** you, Ki.} My usually polite beta replied. Because he was turning 18 next year.

{Warriors are online.} Ben said. Which meant that he had all the warriors linked up and ready for duty.

In moments, the traffic was blocked off with plastic barriers - it was like Winderhill road outside my school all over again.

An assortment of tables from the dining hall were being lined up in the middle of the road, right on the white broken line.

And the entire stage was being dragged off the Packhouse lawn and onto the road. It looked like Gamma Harry's truck wasn't enough. They had Beta Gerald's old tin can truck linked up to the stage too. Beta Lucas was standing on the stage directing the two trucks and half a dozen warriors to maneuver the empty stage to its new location.

Ben checked his screen and then yelled over the mindlink, {Follow the layout. You need to leave a dance floor between the stage and the food, Dad!}

{Yah, yah, I got it.} Beta Lucas brushed off his son's reminder.

The stage got shifted further up the road and the tables were repositioned.

Once the new layout was set, the buffet from inside the packhouse dining hall was brought out with much fanfare.

My warriors decided that they had to advertise loudly what grand dish they were carrying so that everyone would grant them the proper respect and pathway through the maze of picnic mats and out to the road.

I mean, it started with Jax, who yelled, "Make way! Make way! Hot Lansana coming through!"

Everyone scooted aside for him the pass like he was carrying the Alpha on his shoulders.

And then the next guy yelled "Clam chowder, people! It's Popping Hot! Make way for Clam Chowder!"

Because "popping" was apparently a cool thing for a warrior to say nowadays.

And then apple pie, and chocolate fudge (which received applause from the picnicking wolves sitting about) and everything else came out being called so everyone could watch for something they felt would complete their picnic and take note of where it was placed.

Barry came out with an impromptu Wild Salad. Which I think was the stuff we collected today. We collected a lot so it was quite a large platter.

And then Esther, who baked a large chocolate cake, decided that since she wanted to share it, she might as well set it on the table. She sent Hank to place that on the table too.

The wolves cheered when Captain Hank placed the two tiered chocolate marvel on the table.

And then some of the latecomers got confused and thought it was a potluck, so they put their food to share on the table. This led to other families putting their shared trays and dishes on the table too.

The Underground really surprised us all when they decided not to be outdone. They had prepared some wild game to share with us.

Where SOME WILD GAME = 2 open fire roasted gyaara, each the size of a bear. I thought they were wild boar at first, BUT we didn't have wild boar in our woods.

Apparently, the gyaaras had very recently appeared at the edge of the warlock lands, and the Underground had come to train and hunt there with their Luna's permission of course.

Actually, Bell pretty much ordered them to cull down the new wildlife. The Gyaara were overrunning the abandoned land of wild magic. If it were overgrown grass that were the problem, I wouldn't put it past Bell to send the Blue Demon Warriors to mow his new and very large piece of land.

This seriously stoked Gamma Harry, "Roast Gyaara! Very good! I've always wanted to eat that."

"Was there any food you had ever NOT wanted to eat?" Beta Lucas asked.

"No." Gamma Harry grinned agreeably, "I always have a healthy appetite, but eating Gyaara is appreciating our Lycan history."

So now, eating the roast gyaara was a cultural experience too.

Dad went up on stage for the occasion to welcome our new pack members. He thanked them for sharing the roast gyaara with us and also for keeping our borders safe from those same gyaaras.

Then he said he hoped everyone would have a good time getting to know one another better.

That was it. We clapped when he was done. It was time to eat!

Just then the general excited buzz of mealtime was greeted by more good news - the pizza, sandwiches, fried chicken, and cookies were here! Because of the road blockages, our warriors had to go out to receive the delivery.

Naturally, they received a hero's welcome when the came back to pile the food up on the buffet line.

{The delivery guys thought they were getting robbed!} Jax reported.

He had to be joking! But Neil added quite seriously, {Betas, trouble one of you to let them know their order was received.}

Ben groaned, because he would have to call them since he was the one who ordered, {Idiots. What did you guys do?}

{They stopped the vans and told them to hand over their food.} Dave was very amused, {You should've seen it, beta!}

{I think they gave us free extras too!} Jax exclaimed as he opened a few more boxes at the buffet line.

{That's not free!} Neil scolded, {Why did you take that? That's someone else's order!}

Ben proceeded to cuss so I got offline. Hahaha. Omo. Sorry, Ben. I'm just going to pretend I didn't hear all that.

"Hey, Sam." Ben told me aloud, "Let's get you back to your family, I need to go kill somebody."

He was just metaphorically speaking right?