One With The Pack [Werewolf, Literate, Yaoi.]

[!Skittles.and.FunDip!]

♥ C º т y • ђ ª я я i s º η ♥ x x r e l u c t a n t x x

Coty's eyes smile turned into a wide-eyed glance before his ears flattened to the back. He whined low, before the other two barked them out.

Coty frowned, chin low before leaning into Tameron's hair, closing his eyes contently. He was just happy his packmate was bac. He was placed down and he yawned quietly, shaking his head. "...Tam-tam, as happy as I am to see you, and as much as I'd love to fill you in on the same things that've been going on for months before you left for that one week, i'm tired, and going to bed. Love ya!"

Coty turned around and scratched his backside softly, before his other hand rubbed his eyes. He yawned before sliding into his room, closing the door behind him.

He arched his back in a big stretch, pulling his shirt from his back, before stepping out of those sweatpants.

Naked, he crawled down between his sheets, and pulled all three quilts over his shoulders. He loved having a fever for bed. He snuggled deep between the covers, his body transforming into his wolf form. He kept everything but that snout under the covers, eyes closing tightly...curling up in the tightest ball possible as he sank into sleep, dreams about sneaking into Rendez-vous bubbling to the surface.

x x B i T c H • B oY x x • g a m m a •

[Rufus_Shin-Ra]

_________________

ᾳ x ώσℓʄ x σʄ x ʈώσ x ώσяℓɗș

_________________

His sleep had only been somewhat restless, slight flickers of memories playing through his mind, but never delving deep enough to stir him from slumber. In a sense, this was good, since he really wasn't too keen on having a grumpy Liam in the morning due to too much tossing and turning on Lexington's part. Not that Liam couldn't be a grouch in the morning, anyway, but there was no reason to attempt to make things worse.

Somehow, he'd managed to crawl out of bed, relieve himself, and make his way downstairs without disturbing his mate too much. As tired as he still was himself, he wanted to let the alpha get as much sleep as was possible before the house came alive with the romping of rambunctious pups. He was currently digging around in the fridge, mussed hair visible over the top of the door and tail keeping it from closing on him as he worked on prying a package of bacon out from the back.

Today, he decided, he was going to make this whole damn package of bacon, and six eggs. Just for himself and Liam, of course. And maybe some toast. Toast was good, even if it wasn't made of animal. They'd both need the energy, anyway. Last night had been horrible, and they both had work tonight. Late shifts on what would probably be a crowded, rowdy night.

...Coffee. Coffee was definitely in order. Lots and lots of coffee.

Having pulled the bacon and eggs out of the fridge, Lex set them on the counter beside the stove, pushing some other dishes out of the way as he did so. He then snatched the pot out of the coffee maker and emptied the old coffee out of it, rinsed it out, and then set the machine up to brew a new batch.

By the time anyone else came downstairs, Lex would have been happily swaying his sweatpants-covered hips, humming to himself, and revelling in the joy of cooking something that smelled like God's gift to wolves.

_________________

((Alright. Moved it ahead to the next day.))

_________________

ღ ι'ℓℓ εᾳʈ ɤσʋя ʜεᾳяʈ σʋʈ ღ

[Aartsengel_Zerachiel]

_______________

Ƀ϶ŧa ŧơ Ѣ϶
_______________
ღ

Desmond was always one of the first to wake up in the mornings. This morning was no exception. He woke to a strange, yet pleasant warmth beside him that wasn’t normally there. With a soft moan he lifted his head, eyes opening slightly to look around. This wasn’t his room and he was laying next to … a very naked Alec. The memories of the previous night came flooding back, along with one unanswered question. How the hell had Alec managed to get blood on the ceiling?!

Shaking his head in amusement he carefully detangled himself from Alec’s side. A silently as he could he slid out of the room and off to the bathroom to relieve himself, then off to his room to dress for a day off.

The smell of bacon drifted into his room, making his stomach growl as he pulled on a pair of slack and a plain black T-shirt. Running a hand through his hair to tame it as best he could with minimal effort he decided he was ready for the day.

He padded down the hall and into the kitchen, smiling at Lex’s antics. Bacon brought out the best in Lex, even at the worst of times. He should have used some lastnight, it might have saved some trouble. “Morning.” He greeted, voice still thick with sleep. He enjoyed the early parts of the morning like these, where he and Lex could enjoy the peace and quiet before the rest of the pack awoke. Even after the fall-out between Alec and Lex, Desmond had tried to remain just as close to the both of them as he’d always been. Not that his siding with Alec a lot helped most days.

He slid quietly into a chair to patiently wait for the coffee to be done. He was going to need all the energy he could get if he was going to survive his Date, whenever that would be. He also owed Coty breakfast, not that the pup knew this yet, and once he was awake he’d take the boy out somewhere before dropping him off at school.


________________ ϔơu ƈaἦ яuἦ Ѣuŧ ḭἦ ŧh϶ ϶ἦɗ yơu’ḽḽ ơἦḽy dḭ϶ ŧḭя϶ɗ

[XSynfulMeX]

SORIN

A rather loud buzzing sound managed to penetrate his sleep and had him cracking open an eye in confusion. 'What the hell?' The sound soon stopped and the tired male closed his eye and attempted to go back to sleep, but was interrupted yet again by the same annoying sound not ten seconds later. 'Damn.' Groaning and rolling over onto his other side he snatched a pillow and shoved it over his head, if he was lucky it would sufficate him. Jumping a bit when the buzzing sound was soon followed by a loud thump he removed the pillow from his head and glanced over the edge of the bed onto the floor. Eyes landing on a familiar object that was currently vibrating across his floor he wondered who would be calling him at, glancing toward his nightstand where the cell phone had fallen from and his alarm clock sat he saw it was barely eight in the morning. Who would dare disturb him at this ungodly hour? When the cell phone showed no sign of stopping he reached down and picked up the annoying contraption before flipping it open. The number and familiar name was nearly enough to make him jump out of bed and chuck the phone out his bedroom window, but he decided that would take way to much energy, so he pressed the call button and held the phone to his ear. "What do you want Blayce?" A cheerful voice assaulted his ears and had him wincing, anyone who could sound so happy so early was mentally disturbed in his opinion.

"Oh I'm sorry, did I wake you?" Sorin let lose a snarl that he was sure had the person on the other end of the line grinning. "It's my day off, why are you bothering me?" "I know, and you're not spending it hidden away in that gloomy room. Later on tonight I want to go check out a club I've been hearing about, and your going to meet me there." If it had been anyone else bossing him around and planning out his day for him he would have cursed at them, but Blayce was an exception. "If you think I'm going to one of those sleazy clubs you hang out in your delusional." Blayce had been Sorin's best friend since the boys were around fifteen and had moved in together as room mates when they turned eighteen. The pair had almost started dating, but Sorin had refused the idea in fear that it could mess up their friendship, or at least that's what he had told himself. Around three years later they had both decided to go their separate ways, but have still remained very close. Sorin was beginning to seriously regret that decision as his friend continued to badger him. "You never go out anymore, your like a hermit, would spending one night out with your best friend kill you?" Ah yes and there it was, the guilt trip. Though he hated to admit it his friend had a point, he himself couldn't remember the last time he had gone out anywhere that hadn't been somehow work related. His silence was obviously enough of a confirmation to the party on the other end of the line who Sorin was sure was doing a victory dance. "Great! So meet me at the club at around nine, I'll text you the directions."

'Sucker!' His mind screamed at him and it had Sorin scowling. "So what's the name of this club anyway?" "The Rendez something or other." Blayce replied in a dismissive manner. "You don't even know the name of it?" "I got the directions, that's all that matters. You better not stand me up." "Your lack of faith in me is offensive." Truth be told, the idea had briefly crossed his mind, but he didn't have much of a choice in the matter. If he didn't show up Blayce would scour the entire town and drag Sorin there whether he liked it or not, mite as well just get it over with. Once the other male was convinced Sorin would make an appearance he hung up the phone and flopped himself back down onto his bed. After laying there for twenty minutes without being able to fall back asleep Sorin had to face the fact that he was now awake. The idea of getting up before ten was appalling to him, but it seemed he didn't have a choice. Sitting up and kicking the sheets off himself he ran a hand through his waist length hair before sliding his legs off the edge of the bed and standing. Stretching his muscles a bit he went to his dresser and grabbed some clothes before making his way to his bathroom. Emerging a half an hour later dressed, showered and looking somewhat decent he walked out of his bedroom and down the hallway. Glancing around his kitchen he wasn't in any kind of mood to cook anything, so he decided going out to breakfast was his best bet besides starving himself to death. Once his shoes were on he grabbed his jacket and stepped out into the cold morning air.

Sorin hated the cold of winter, much preferring the warmth and green of the summer and spring. Looking around he had to admit the snow looked nice clinging to branches and enveloping everything around him in white. Not feeling up to the task of brushing off his car and waiting for it to warm up he simply began walking down the road to the bus stop. It wasn't his favorite form of transportation, seemingly always cramped no matter the time of day, but he'd bare with it. Hearing his cell beep he pulled it free from his pocket and was met with the promised text from his friend, agreeing to meet Blayce at the club at around nine he was free to do what he wanted with his time until than.

[Mava_Valentine]

"This grumpy grasshopper...

Sheridon Donahue

...mates for life."

Mornings always came too quickly.

For the teen currently curled up in a ball of comforters and sheets, this was the thought that sluggishly floated through his head every time he began his accent into awareness.

Sheridon Donahue, or teasingly referred to as "Don-Don", was not a morning person. On the other hand, he wasn't exactly a night person, either. One would assume, then, that he enjoyed the afternoons most, but those who had at least spoken to him before knew that this was not the case. No, this particular young werewolf, who proceeded to grumble and swat at the air as he regained consciousness, did not much enjoy any time of day. He did enjoy sleeping though, and was quite put out when he realized with a groan that he was awake and that he had to get up. Perhaps this method of thinking, of waking up every day and having the first thought he was aware of about disappointment, was what made him that much grumpier. Then again, it could have been a number of other things.

Regardless of the source of his moodiness, it was there and apparent in his expression as he hoisted himself up to a sitting position. His dark eyes, which gazed bitterly across the room at the door, were unfocused and puffy from a long night's sleep. The previous day, while the other members of the house were out and about doing God knows what, the ebony-haired boy had stayed in his room, opting to play his newest video game and watch a few episodes of a show he had recently become attached to. He had scolded himself for not going out to the gym, but based on the week he had been having, he knew he had needed that mental-health day.

The week had started out fine. Sunday had been a rather pleasant, albeit dreary-weathered day. Nothing too eventful, besides a walk around town and a run-in with some of his friends from school. He even was in a friendly mood that day, not bothered or jealous as much about his peers' larger statures and more intellectual way of speaking. Monday, however, was a disaster.

At school, he had been called down to his counselor's office to be told that he was extremely close to failing two of his classes, one of which was a class required for him to graduate. Fuming, he had stormed through the rest of the day and, near the end of it, accidentally collided with Stacy Warner, one of the more popular girls in the school. Unfortunately, he had done so right next to her current boyfriend, a monster of a teenage guy who instantly began throwing insults his way. He attempted to defend himself and apologize, though not very sincerely, but when the word "f**" escaped the other's lips, he had bristled and attacked. It took four faculty members to break up the fistfight, and by the time they had been pulled apart, Sheridon had attained a bloody nose, a rather large scratch across his right eyebrow and forehead, and a nasty bruise on his stomach. The other boy had fared better, but somehow the smaller boy had managed to knock the wind out of him and give him a slowly blackening eye. The werewolf in question had then wrenched himself from the teacher's grip, growled menacingly across to the other boy, and then ran through the crowded hall and out of the school.

The next day had been, if possible, even worse. He had walked all the way to school only to find out that he had been suspended for a few days for righting on school grounds. After that, he had walked almost all the way back home only to find that another boy, one who commonly hit on him and generally made advances any time he could, had followed him the whole way. He had then had to lead him on a maze of a different path, finally losing him halfway back across town.

So yes, he felt that he had deserved a break from reality for a day. Now, however, he was considering what to do with his time. Figuring it wouldn't hurt to check out how the rest of his pack was doing, he sleepily stood up.

...Only to stumble, trip, and noisily fall to the floor with a loud crashing sound. Uhg, Damn you, yah stupid, piece of- Sheridon picked up the object he had stepped on to lose his balance, an unfortunately-placed sneaker, and gave it a death-glare. Grumbling, he stood back up and walked over to his closet, his brown tail and ears visibly poking out of his clothes and hair and twitching in frustration. He picked out a thin, worn-out hoodie and pulled it on over the tee-shirt he was wearing. He didn't bother with his pants- they were pretty clean, dark green pajama pants that he had only just put on right before nodding off to sleep. Afterwards, he shuffled out of the room and down the hall, searching for some form of life within the pack at this hour of the morning.

Sure enough, as he made his way down to the kitchen, the smell of bacon greeted him and his mood went from extremely ticked off to mildly irked. He made his way into the room and plopped down on one of the chairs near Desmond, taking note of the scent of another pack member mixed with his own. He raised an eyebrow, not all that surprised (I mean, stuff like that happened in this house all the time, albeit not to me- It's nothing new.), and turned to watch Lex continue his task, waiting for his turn to use the stove.

[Koozle]

"I don't need boxes wrapped in string,
Designer love and empty things
Just a chance that maybe we'll find better days."

- Keahi Jones -

"Oh, hey, Boss. You're up."

Keahi paused just outside the door to the kitchen, dressed in a heavy parka, carrying a taped cardboard box in front of him and looking confoundedly surprised to see the Alpha up and about. Small beads of water on the shoulders of his coat and in his hair betrayed the fact that he had been out and about in the cold. He smelled only faintly of smoke, supporting the obvious conclusion: either the wind had cut through the collected layers of scent, or, extremely unlikely, he had not added any new ones yet. Whichever it was, he stood in the hall in his woolen socks and shifted the box so he could peel the mittens that reduced his hands to ineffectual flippers off. The contents of the box made a distressingly loud clank as he did so, but it did not penetrate far enough into the ex-hippie's sense of Zen to really register. He tucked the mittens under his arm, wondering what exactly it was about the kitchen that was throwing him off.

The smell of bacon, for one. Even as a confirmed vegetarian for who-knew-how long, he still had instincts, after all. Whether he would eat it or not, bacon still smelled awesome enough to assert itself in his dead nose. Unfortunately, even the thought of that much grease on a digestive tract thoroughly weaned off of it made his stomach roil and cramp unhappily. He switched automatically to breathing through his mouth to avoid the scent and a possible revolt from his gut. The feeling of being out of balance was not removed along with the tantalizing scent of meat. He frowned slightly, shifting a bleary gaze around the confines of the kitchen.

Lex, at the stove. He was dancing, which would have been unusual, but the alpha was pretty easy to please when it came to food and dancing was not completely out of order when he got to eat something he liked. The clock was still in the same place. So were the chicken-shaped salt and pepper shakers he'd made for the house. The sink was empty - he'd washed his and Tameron's dishes last night and put everything away to keep from tangling up the energy flow of the room. The spider plant he was growing in the kitchen window over the sink was violently healthy. It was practically threatening to spill out of its hanger. He made a mental note to transfer it to a larger one at the first opportunity.

Now he was getting seriously concerned, and it showed in the increasingly perplexed expression creeping up on his face. What was so out of order as to call his attention to it? ...! His kettle had been moved! He usually kept the squat, dented brass pot on the back burner of the stove, covered in a tea cozy shaped like a camel. It was currently on the counter. Had Lex moved it? Keahi thought he probably had, and dismissed his irritation instantly. It could be hard to cook around, after all, and the tea cozy had been set on fire at least three times in the past. He expected to feel eased for having found the disturbance, but he did not. The feeling was still there, coaxing him toward the table.

Obeying his instinct, he glanced toward the table with its multiple place settings. When he spotted Desmond and Sheridon, both of them looking strangely subdued, a light bulb went off in his brain. Of course! He had been so scattered that he had completely overlooked his pack mates. He could have smacked himself in the forehead, but his hands were full. Instead, he fixed the entire kitchen in a megawatt grin, evidently all too pleased to see them all. He had a strict self-enforced policy of never going half-way in his transformations - he was forgetful after all, and had on more than one occasion tried to leave the house with ears and tail showing - but he might as well have been wagging his tail anyway. He sailed into the kitchen and plonked the box down on the table with a disconcertingly heavy thump. The wood groaned in protest over the new weight, and he wisely moved it closer to the centre of the slab to forestall a possible collapse.

"Whoa, Desmond and Sheridon, too? Radical. Lots of folks up this morning! You guys usually don't drag yourselves out of bed until, like, twelve? So this is pretty cool," he informed them. Of course, 'noon' for ordinary people and 'noon' for Keahi were two entirely different concepts. Invariably, the gamma rose with the sun to go through a rigorous routine of yoga and meditation. Not many others in the family, considering the high rate of night jobs, found it very much fun to wake up when it was still dark from the night before.

He shuffled his mittens into the pocket of his parka as he spoke, mostly to get them out from under his arm but also to ensure he did not lose them again. Almost as soon as his hands were free, he ruffled Sheridon's bedhead affectionately and then attacked the tape on the box. Over painful-sounding rips of tape peeling away layers of cardboard, his cheerful, somewhat disjointed chatter announced the rest of them would be dragged into a sociable and properly-awake mood whether they liked it or not.

"So, like, why're you up so early? I mean, not that it's not great or whatever, but like, it's a little odd, you know? Me, I had to take Swiffer - the therapy bunny, you know? that one - back to his owner's, and then I thought, since I was up and the buses were running anyway, I'd stop by the kiln at the university and pick up my latest batch of ceramics. So I did."

The last of the tape gave way, revealing a collection of various plates, bowls, and vases - or at least, the vague shapes of them, muffled by waddings of newspaper. He took out a flat package that, when it was opened, revealed itself to be a surprisingly tasteful plate. Keahi typically favoured bright colours chaotically applied over chunky and rough-hewn dishware, but he had evidently taken pains in making this plate as white and uniform as he could. He set it down and continued rooting through the box, evidently in search of something specific.

"Huh? That's funny, I thought... Must've shifted. Anyway, so I was up there, and like, there's Polish bakery right near campus, so I thought I'd see what they had, and it turns out, my friend, that guy from the holistic cooking class I took, like, forever ago? He works there and he's got this selection of organic-ingredients goods. So I picked up a babka and put it in here to bring home. At least, I thought I did, but I can't seem to..."

He trailed off when he managed to extract a sadly squashed white box. Whatever it might have held would definitely be pulverized; the state of the packaging was not conducive to optimism. Keahi set the crumpled item on the table with absurd care, as though it were an injured puppy that might be made worse by too much handling.

"... so, uhmmm.... yeah? Babka, I think?" he finished lamely, not exactly sure where one could go when one inadvertently destroyed a cake. One hand came up to rub the back of his neck as he considered the options, finally settling on the common bone of contention: work. It had long been held that his job as a professional potter and crafter was not really a job so much as a hobby he happened to pull a pitiful profit from. He had held up staunchly against insistence he get a real job, but, as usual, the right amount of pressure in the right spot made him him cave instantly.

"Uh... well, I got that thing up at the university, you know the one, and the first class was yesterday? Turns out that guy with that dog from around here is in my lecture." He frowned as a sudden, nagging thought reintroduced itself in his brain. He did not want to talk about work. There was something else, something that had been pressing buttons in his head for a while that had nothing to do with the school...

His eyes shot open, suddenly clear and alert.

"Oh! Right, yeah, anyone know where, like, Matt went? The chief's shoes've been missing since last night, and they weren't there when I left this morning or came back, either."

Predictability is a Weakness.

"I need someplace simple where we could live
And something only you can give
And that's faith, and trust, and peace while we're alive."

[Rufus_Shin-Ra]

_________________

ᾳ x ώσℓʄ x σʄ x ʈώσ x ώσяℓɗș

_________________

Lexington had apparently been in a good enough mood to greet each new pack member as they slowly made a small crowd in the kitchen. First, Desmond, looking not too much worse for wear considering the events of last night and the amount of blood that had been flung around like so much confetti. Then Sheridon (who Lex refused to call "Don-Don" on the basis that it sounded like some sort of ******** up candy of mixed French-Japanese heritage) who looked like he'd been in a fight. How recent, Lex wasn't sure, but it looked to be a day old, at least. He wasn't particularly surprised. Fights weren't horribly uncommon, unless you were someone like Keahi, who currently was in the process of bringing the number of kitchen inhabitants to a staggering total of four.

Lex had stopped his dancing, more for the sake of his reputation than out of any real dislike of hip-shaking, and he worked on flipping over the bacon that had now completely permeated the house with its mouthwatering aroma. Eggs were soon added to the pan, the rhythmic tap-crack-sizzle filling the kitchen. As soon as those were well on their way to being edible, Lex turned around and moved away from the stove, settling his hip comfortably against the counter.

"Yeah, I'm up," he acknowledged, giving a nod in Keahi's direction, his arms folding across his chest as a yawn escaped him, revealing pearly canines. "Just one of those things where once I'm up, I'm up. Too much s**t goin' on to get back to sleep."

Not that he could prove it, with the sleepy atmosphere of the house at the moment. It was actually peaceful right now, no one trying to clobber anyone else, no humans to worry about, no work until the evening... It was actually kind of nice.

He watched absentmindedly as Keahi shifted through the contents of the box, which was apparently quite heavy, judging by the loud bang it had made when dropped on the table. This wasn't the first time Keahi had brought pottery home -- far from it, actually -- and so Lex only lifted a single eyebrow when a white plate was retrieved from within. Actually, it looked like a pretty decent plate, given that most of Keahi's other plates looked like they had been melted in a nuclear blast and then graffitied upon. This one was actually plate-shaped and white. An impressive feat, considering the source.

There appeared to be something else that he was looking for, though, which had Lex's curiousity piqued. Keahi had called it a babka, and given that it was from a bakery, Lex could assume that it was probably a baked good. Probably. But it didn't actually seem like he was going to find out anytime soon, as the box that Keahi pulled out looked more like a small car that had plowed into a tree.

The alpha's brows furrowed, and he turned to flip the eggs and bacon. "So... What was this 'babka' supposed to be, exactly?" Despite the fact that he normally complained about this particular pack member's exuberance and well-wishing, he could not bring himself to be annoyed at him this morning. "I'm sure it still tastes the same, even squished, whatever it is." Obviously, Keahi felt bad about ... whatever it was that had been in the box, and Lex actually felt a little pang of empathy-pain run down his spine.

It was promptly ignored in favor of the new topic of conversation. So it looked like Keahi was going to become a contributing member of the household. This was good news. The more of them that contributed, the less load there was overall. "Hey, that's great news, Keahi. How did the class go? ...And no, I haven't seen Matt. Not since before supper last night."

_________________

ღ ι'ℓℓ εᾳʈ ɤσʋя ʜεᾳяʈ σʋʈ ღ

[Aartsengel_Zerachiel]

_______________

Ƀ϶ŧa ŧơ Ѣ϶
_______________
ღ

The moment Sheirdon walked into the kitchen Desmond’s infamous grin flitted across his face for the briefest of moments, hinting as to just how good a mood he was in. He greeted the young man with an overly cheerful “Good morning Sheri!” The name he spoke was deliberate, meant to push buttons as well, and while he never called the boy Don-don, he used the full name outside of teasing. A happy smile was plastered on his face at the same time and he reached over to ruffle the boy’s hair playfully. He loved to get the boy riled up; it was just so damned funny, akin to a Chihuahua really.

Even as he was deliberately trying to rile Sheridon up, he took note of the boy’s appearance. Just like Lex he noted the fading signs of a fight, nothing unusual for the human world. If they boy needed help one of them would have heard about it so he remained content to grin at the boy as ‘happily’ as possible.

His attention was brought back to the door when Keahi had entered. He offered a wave at first, allowing the man time to ramble freely before speaking. Interrupting the hippie did no good. “I’m up no later than I usually am when I haven’t had to work the graveyard shift.” He replied, choosing to ignore the fact that even though he was usually awake he remained in his room until later, enjoying the silence. Well that and Keahi’s sense of “Hippie Time”.

He was amazed and impressed when this latest batch of “dishware” was revealed and looked almost normal. For the most part there was a reason he’d never used the dishes Keahi brought home before, but this he’d be willing to try should it survive. Then again he’d probably have to fight for the use of any regular looking dishes brought home if the others liked it as well.

The mention of baked goods was tempting, though Desmond was a little wary of the fact that Keahi was the one offering it. The man often had rather strange tastes that none of the others shared really. How could you survive off vegetables alone? Meat was just the most amazing thing ever!

Lex had asked his question of what a babka was so he only had to offer sympathy at the smashed cake. “Lex is right. A flat whatever that is probably tastes exactly the same as a regular one.”

“You mean the one whose dog has the same name as his roommate?” He’d met the roommate once, back in the summer when he’d dropped off a recipe for Keahi. He felt sorry for the boy, it must get confusing as to which one was being called, unless he had a nickname of some sort.

The questions about Matt were meant with a snort. “He’s probably run off to do his whole Emo thing in the woods like he always does when someone annoys him.” Desmond replied with a slight sneer. It was no secret he thought that the Beta was far too much of a drama queen for his own good and hated the man’s constant running off. One day it would get them all in trouble.


________________ ϔơu ƈaἦ яuἦ Ѣuŧ ḭἦ ŧh϶ ϶ἦɗ yơu’ḽḽ ơἦḽy dḭ϶ ŧḭя϶ɗ

[oPull_the_Trigger0]

Liam loved sleep.

With that said, when he slept, he slept hard. The Alpha spent, usually, every second of his waking time being busy. And that supported a range of different things. So, the instant his head hit his pillow, he was out.

Waking him wasn't easy either. Not in the normal ways at least. You could whisper his name and shake him as much as you want. the Alpha wouldn't budge. But, if you let out a scream our something like "FIRE!'', he'd probably jump up, transform, and be on all four feet in no time.

So, yes. Sleep was nice. What wasn't nice though was when his mind decided to go against him. When those sweet dreams turned into not-so-sweet nightmares. He could be taking his Sub-Alpha against a tree int he Garden of Eden one minute, then the next the garden would be on fire and he'd be alone only to hear the cries of his pack mates. Cruel, yeah. But their past haunted him. Haunted him with guilt and blame and revenge. Which translates into the subconscious giving your mind things that only a dream can cook up. Whether it could have happened or not, it usually wasn't nice.

This was on of those times.

It had started nice. Weird but nice. One of those dreams where he didn't know why the crack in the sidewalk was having a conversation with him, but it was cool cause discussions with sidewalk cracks about the economy was normal here. And then some lady with a peacock on her shoulder would walk by while whistling 'Somewhere Over the Rainbow'.

In a flash, it had changed. He was in his wolf form and dragging Lexington to safety while the other growled at him to go back. Except this time, one of the Hunters was behind him and before he knew it, Lex was shot right through the chest. He could only watch his mate bleed out in the snow while he turned to his murderer.

The man was covered in the smell of his pack's blood. It stung his nose. Made his eyes sting. But nothing smelt worse than the end of that shotgun as it came back up to him..

"Night night boy...''

WHAM!

Liam shot up from the bed, heart pounding and chest heaving up and down as he gasped for air. His eyes were wild, untamed. The yellow more gold and in a frenzy. He was partly phased. Ears, tail, elongated teeth and nails. ********.. He needed to calm.

His wolven ears twitched to the sounds downstairs. Ripping? A brow perked until he heard the voice of the Gamma. Ah..another box of..well, stuff. That was probably the sound of it being placed upon a surface then before. Leave it to Keahi..

Holy s**t...Was that bacon? Upon that thought, his teeth and nails went to normal, but his mouth literally watered. And in response to that, his stomach growled. One thing about being a werewolf, you have a VERY healthy appetite and you can pack a lot in a meal.

After stretching and yawning and grumbling at the time, Liam managed to get himself from the bedroom and down the stairs, wolf ears flicking at the sound of the other's voices. Turning that corner, he leaned against the frame that led into the kitchen, golden orbs looking to everyone before that charming, so he'd been told, half smirk hit his face.

"Morning guys..''

[!Skittles.and.FunDip!]

♥ C º т y • ђ ª я я i s º η ♥ x x r e l u c t a n t x x

Coty rolled around in the sheets before turning up on his tummy, reaching up to scratch his ear a couple of times, giving out a big yawn. He nosed his way out from underneath his sheets, sniffing and giving another big yawn, tongue stretching outward.

He pawed his way over to his window, and proceeded to transform into his human form. Rubbing his eyes, he stared over toward the front yard that belonged to the beautiful man he met last night, and stretched his human bones once more.

Coty then rubbed his arms and immediately walked over, grabbing his school uniform from the closet. He pulled out the white button-up shirt and sweater to go atop it with the school's emblem on it's breast--along with black slacks, and a pair of shoes that went underneath the slack's lowest hem.

He grabbed his bookbag and put a few things in there; His sketchbook, his pencil box, along with a few other things. After sliding them inside, he bit his lower lip, glancing back up toward that yard, then back over toward the door.

Stepping out of it and walking across the hall quickly, he went to groom himself in the family bathroom. He loved upkeeping his human appearance. Gelling his hair a bit, then brushing through his teeth with some of the grossest taste combinations known to his palette, and the strongest after with some mouthwash. He spit it out and licked over his clean teeth, then turned and walked out of the bathroom. He scooped his backpack from his room door and shut it, walking down the hallway.

Coty's nose turned at bacon as he placed his bookbag down at the door, before heading back to the kitchen. Coty was always slightly quieter in the mornings, even more so than usual. When he'd walked in, he noticed his alpha at the doorway of the kitchen. "...Good morning..Liam.." Coty's head lowered as he looked to the side, still not in great spirits from disappointing his alpha last night. He was also very, very hungry.

Waiting adequately for his turn, he stood, eyes keeping away from everyone else--especially from Desmond's. He looked over Keahi's thing on the table, but remained quiet. He wouldn't speak more than a few words at all to any of them...After what happened yesterday, he didn't really care to.

Coty would eat, go to school, and then begin to plot with Bree. Coty just had to get into the club...Coty was only 17, so he would need a proper ID for it...Maybe a fake driver's license would do? He'd heard some other kids at his school obtained one through another kid...really professional looking stuff...

Hmm...Thoughts swirled in his head before he ate...anxious to get to school.

x x B i T c H • B oY x x • g a m m a •

[Koozle]

"I don't need boxes wrapped in string,
Designer love and empty things
Just a chance that maybe we'll find better days."

- Keahi Jones -

"I guess?" Keahi said, sounding uncertain at both Lex and Desmond's assurances a squashed cake would taste precisely the same as a pristine one. He was not one hundred percent certain if they were being honest or humouring him. Both were in bizarrely good moods considering the hour, attributing to his low-key confusion. He opted to accept that they were truly appreciative of at least the gesture and not bothered by flattened pastry. As a result, he was willing to explain what a babka was supposed to be instead of hurriedly pretending the issue had not come up in the first place.

"A babka's this, like, yeast-risen cake. It's supposed to be really light, and it's traditionally spotted with raisins and covered in a fruit-flavoured glaze," he recited, unintentionally showcasing his ability to latch onto small nuggets of information while completely overlooking larger schemes.

As he spoke, he started unloading and unwrapping the contents of his box. There were several bowls and vases, more plates and serving platters, and even a few serving utensils carved from light wood and stained to a tasteful tan. They were marked departures from his usual work; like the plate, all had been designed with evenness, delicacy, and symmetry in mind. The glazes were uniformly smooth and glossy with none of the crackling he usually liked to apply for texture. Evidently, this set had been made with his more conservative pack mates in mind, rather than his target demographic of equally bohemian conversation piece-seekers.

He paused when Desmond and Lex addressed him on two entirely unrelated concepts at the same time. His eyes practically crossed as his distracted brain dragged him reluctantly to task in the highly-unusual circumstance of actually holding a conversation. As good as his intentions were, his timing was notoriously poor; most of his attempts to talk to family members occurred when said member had either just arrived from work or just woken up. Assaulting a tired brain with his usual brand of mumbo jumbo usually resulted in Keahi effectively monologuing while the other part desperately tried to wriggle away. He was thrown by the sudden change, and not quite sure which thread of thought to follow.

Naturally, he opted to subvert the rules, take a third option, and answer both.

"Yeah, that's the one, Desmond. Class... class was... huh. Like... class was good? I mean, yeah, it was good, the students listened and everything, but the classroom is a total energy sink and I'm pretty sure it's sapping the life energy of anyone who walks into it." He was serious, fiddling with a sleek mug he had just pulled from the box and only just avoided immediately dropping on the floor. His hands curled around the mug in a slightly more secure grip.

Now that he'd answered one half of the conversation, he wasn't so certain he wanted to address the second half. No one else seemed worried Matt had stormed off in a fit of temper. He had not been present for whatever could have provoked the missing beta; for all he knew, it was just a really long jog to blow off steam. Tempers inevitably clashed in their little family, and someone usually ran on their own for a night to work it off and come back with no harm done. Matt was admittedly touchier than most and notorious for blowing up over the smallest incidents. He still did not like the inherently bad energy such callous disinterest bred. A little frown worked at the corners of his mouth.

"Hey, isn't that, like, a really mean thing to say, or something, Desmond? I mean, he's probably got a good reason and all, so uh, it's kinda mean to just act like it's definitely some small thing, and... err..." Keahi trailed off uncertainly, the unmistakable undertone of confrontation in his own point shooing him away from delivering it with convincing vitriol. He was about to return to meekly unloading his dishware when Coty and Liam entered the kitchen, the latter considerably more social than the former. They provided a welcome distraction from what might have escalated into an argument if he ever had the guts to follow through on it.

"Oh, mornin', Top Boss, Coty. Either of you know where Matt went? His shoes're missing from the front hall, you know."

Predictability is a Weakness.

"I need someplace simple where we could live
And something only you can give
And that's faith, and trust, and peace while we're alive."

[Exacerbation]

Alec, in the mean time, hadn't been guilty of much movement. Occasionally, his body had corrected it's position to make sure it was receiving oxygen, but other than that, recuperation had been his number one physical priority.

Alec always had such vivid dreams. This was, perhaps, the result of an overly simplistic mindset in the waking world. That very night, even while the majority of his blood was being pumped and clotted throughout his body in the familiar accelerated healing fashion of their bodies, his mind was abuzz with images that could only be described as slightly bizarre. Much of what he saw was Desmond's face, but interspersed amongst the near indecipherable visions were images of both Todd and Lex. Alec was very rarely contemplative while asleep, but he received some sort of message from seeing Desmond's visage super-imposed over Lex's. Lexington was not his mate, and Alec did not want him to be.

There was the matter of his human life. It was a life he'd been quietly cultivating for months, and he couldn't just disappear. He'd need an escape route. He'd need a way to withdraw from their society without drawing too much suspicion, but how was that possible? His presence was expected at every major party, and whenever he'd tried to sit out such events in the past, he'd always been found by one individual or another. It was amazing, how well he'd been able to fit in. Just by being outside of human culture and looking into it, he'd been able to quite literally step in as an incredibly like-able guy, despite the fact that nobody really knew anything about him.

These were all problems he'd have to deal with, but as Alec woke up, they were curiously enough the last things occupying his mind. Staring up at the strangely shaped bloodstain on the ceiling, he grinned happily and bounded out of bed.

As it turned out, bounding was a bit of a bad idea. His legs gave out immediately and he fell to the floor in a rather comical face-plant, the bulk of his muscular frame procuring a loud thudding sound to let the whole house know that Alec was awake, hungover, and probably mortally wounded.

His date with Desmond was the only thing on his mind as he half-staggered half-crawled his way over to the bathroom to shower. The shower itself was painful, but the majority of his wounds had at least begun to fade, even if the healing process had made them quite tender. Alec would survive for another day, at least.

He knew exactly what he wanted to do for their date. He wanted to go swimming, rock climbing, hiking, and probably finish the evening with some friendly rough-housing at the summit of whichever trail they braved together. He knew that, logically speaking, Desmond would have his own changes to make to the itinerary, but if he were permitted to keep anything, it would certainly be the hike.

Getting out of the shower, he toweled himself off none too gently and decided that it was certainly time to get dressed. He was beginning to smell food, but it could have just as easily been the coppery aftertaste of blood stuck in the back of his throat. Either way, he knew Desmond was probably downstairs.

Getting dressed in a simple pair of gray sweatpants and a white T-shirt, he hopped his way downstairs, and remembered that he was probably in trouble still. Keeping his eyes downcast, he found Desmond's eyes, smiling furtively.

Perhaps the day wouldn't be all bad.

[oPull_the_Trigger0]

Continuing to watch his mate, but not taking his seat, Liam cleared his throat and looked to Keahi as he spoke. He couldn't help but smirk to himself. Keahi was delightfully...air headed at times. Just the way he spoke. It reminded him of the surfer guys who spent a little too much time in the sun. But, on the flip side, Keahi was a breath of fresh air. It was no bullshit or drama with him. If Liam didn't like something Keahi did to the house, he simply took it down or threw it out, no arguements. Not like the pups who whined and groaned and always tested his love and patience. Which was usually not good when Lexington had a say in it.

The golden eyes flickered to Sheridon and Desmond, clearing his throat once the subject of Matt came up. Oh Matt...Matt. Matt. Matt. It felt like a constant power struggle with that one. Sighing softly, Liam shook his head of black hair before shrugging his shoulders upwards. "To be honest, I don't where he went. This isn't the first time that this has happened and it won't be the last. But if he continues to do this, to phase so close to the city, he's going to have to leave. I can't have such carelessness with the pack. It could be..bad for us all."

A few images of the dream came sneaking back, but Liam showed no signs as the thought of what happened to the pack before came flooding back to him. He was worried about Matt, yes, but hell..this had to stop. They all know. Just..no one said it to his face.

Flicking his wolven ears, he raised a black brow and looked up at the ceiling at the thud. Hmm...Now who could that be? Holding back the urge to growl, he only straightened up more before Alec made his way in. Liam was biting the inside of his cheek when the other male came in, seeing the look that him and Desmond shared. Thought Lexington had gotten to say what he needed to say to Alec, he hadn't. He had retired last night from..well, just being done.

"Alec. I need to speak with you.''

It wasn't a request. It was a command. With that, he walked away from the others in the kitchen and into the livingroom.