Wolves and Men

“See, there you go,” Katherine said. “It’s always one way or the other with you. There’s never any middle ground.” She jammed a finger at his chest. “If he can’t work with you, than you need to work with him. We are never going to survive if one of you doesn’t give.”

“And why should I always be the one to give in and ‘be the better man’?!” William protested. “Don’t I deserve to press my rights too every once in a while? Why are you all on his side?!”

“This is not about sides, my friend,” Charles said calmly. “Believe me I know what it must feel like for you. I saw it growing up. The two sides of my country were so blinded by the smallest things they were ready to destroy everything they had worked hard to build because they could not see the pain and destruction their blindness was causing.” Charles looked around the city. “All of this could be gone tomorrow. Would you really want to throw away the chance to save it because you and Nicholas couldn’t agree to at least work together?”

William looked around at his pack mates. He had made peace offering after peace offering to that whiny, spoiled little asshole. He had never been thanked and Nicholas would probably leave him to rot in a hole somewhere if given the chance. He looked around the city. There was something here. He had seen it that first time in the Temple; the unobtrusive and quiet acceptance of faiths, reason, and schools of thought. Wolf and human born had worked together for thousands of years to build this place. Acceptance was something that he would have to set the example for.

He nodded to his pack mates. “Ok, I’ll give him the space he needs. I can’t, and won’t offer any more than that.”

Aceso nodded and Charles gripped his shoulder. “There is no stronger man, than the man who accepts the nature of another.” William nodded his thanks and followed Katherine as she led the way to Nicholas’s room. She led the way up to his room and stepped through the open doorway.

“What the hell are you doing here?” Nicholas’s voice came from inside his room.

William shared a glance with Charles as the man smiled broadly and William rolled his eyes. They both entered the room, following Aceso.

They found Nicholas sitting comfortably at his desk. Katherine had taken a seat on his bed and Aceso leaned up against the wall. As William walked in Nicholas immediately turned away from him to face Katherine instead.

Aceso pushed herself away from the wall to stand upright, “What is this all about between you two, Nicholas?”

The Scout didn’t bother to look at Aceso but rather waved a hand idly in the air. “Ask him. I know you’re going to side with him anyway.”

William felt a rush of heated anger flood his face and shoulders. He wanted to reach out and squeeze the life out of the man child sitting in front of him. Who the hell did he think he was putting everything that happened on him?

Aceso replied calmly, “I don’t take sides. And I asked you what this was all about.” Aceso held a very dangerous look in her golden eyes.

The room temperature dropped a few degrees and Nicholas hesitantly turned around to face the middle of the room and the pack alpha that was standing there. “This guy always gets his way and when he doesn’t, he shifts and beats me up. He shifts because he knows that I’d beat his scrawny ass in a fair fight!”

“Let’s just see then!,” William shouted back and stepped toward the Scout, fighting against the restraining arms of Charles. William had already beat this guy already in both human and werewolf form. Who the hell did he think he was?

“See?! What did I tell you?!” Nicholas laughed at William’s red angered face. “He hates me so much because he knows I’m better than he is and he can’t STAND IT!!” William growled his frustration, and lunged for the man once again.

Aceso howled loudly and the echo reverberated off the smooth obsidian walls. William’s breath came in ragged gasps from the sudden rage fueled strain he had pushed himself to. Nicholas looked more hurt and victimized than anything else.

The pack Alpha looked at both of them. “This ends now,” she spoke in quiet even tones. Her back was razor straight. Her arms were by her sides, but her claws were spread, a sign that she was ready to fight, if need be. “I don’t expect you two to like each other, but I do expect you two to work together for the good of the pack and the City under the Mountain.” She took a step to stand over Nicholas’s chair. “Am I understood, Scout?”

Nicholas looked up at the werewolf and spat, “Fine!” Crossed his arms and turned his head away from her.

Aceso looked over at William, “Am I?” she asked again. William nodded once. “Good, I thought I might have to expel one of you for a moment.”

Nicholas looked up. “You mean I can quit?!” he asked excitedly.

Aceso slowly looked down at him, “Do you really want to know what it’s like NOT being part of a pack?” Nicholas let his eyes drop from her and shook his head. “Good, now where have you been? We were a little worried about you, after what William went through to get here.”

“Well, yeah I’ve had kind of a shitty day,” Nicholas replied glumly as he dropped his eyes to the floor.

Aceso’s ears twitched forward and her tail rose an inch. “Are you alright?”

The Scout sighed, “Yeah, I guess I’ll be alright if I can end up not going insane from not being able to sleep at night…ever.”

Aceso looked over at William who was now leaning against the wall, watching the exchange. “You were actually inside the farm weren’t you?”