Chapter Text
Treats! Treats for the Good Boy
Lupin is dutiful for his master, and acts as a good guardian for the pack. He doesn’t do it for any reward. But for some reason, many of the humans in the pack give him treats!
“Oh look, it’s Lupin! Here take a piece of meat.”
“Lupin! What a good boy, you make our job as soldiers easy! Here, a piece of my unfinished sandwich.”
“Oi, Lupin! Thanks for the other day, here’s a rutber I gathered!”
“Um…I think we need more playtime or walks, cause you’re getting a tummy Lupin.” His master, Lady Rozemyne, laughed as she gave him sweet, sweet belly rubs. “Thankfully it’s summer, so the weather is good. Let’s get you out more.”
Yay! More playtime! I am getting rewarded even more!
“Boof!” Lupin barked, wagging his tail happily. He loved being rewarded for being a very good boy.
An Offering for My Master’s Mate
On occasion, Lupin likes to go to what the humans call the “Knight’s Training Grounds.” It’s where the humans like to play and spar to get stronger. A lot of times, Lupin sees his master’s mate there. Lord Ferdinand is his name.
His master never explicitly said that this human adult male is her mate. But their mana is so similar that it doesn’t even need to be said. Not to mention how strong and rich in mana the human male is. He could be the alpha of the pack, or even a season lord. Though given how he cares for the master, Lupin assumes that his master is the alpha of the pack with the male as the mate instead. That would make Lupin the beta. And Lupin isn’t giving up his position as beta for anyone . It is his pride.
Lupin remembered when he was a pup how his master went into a long sleep. He guarded the door of her hidden den faithfully, only taking breaks for meals or walks. He would sleep by it too. But he would see the human male there, often, helping to check on his master’s health. One day the human male saw him at the door, as usual, and tapped his temples.
“Still here, huh? I suppose wolfnir make good guardians if you stay here so faithfully.” The human male tapped his temples, and then he did the best of things. He patted Lupin on the head. It was awkward as he moved Lupin’s head to and fro, but the pets felt really nice. It was that day that Lupin decided to respect his master’s mate and referred to the male as Lord Ferdinand after that.
Anyway, Lupin was visiting the grounds and he chanced across seeing his master’s mate, Lord Ferdinand. The human male’s pale golden eyes looked at him, and he lightly nodded to acknowledge him before overseeing the adult humans playing. For some reason he looked quite listless, or was it restless?
Mmm… what can I do to help my master’s mate? Lupin thought as he sat nearby as he was trained to. After a while of thinking, it came to him: his master’s mate was a strong hunter for the pack! And not only that, he liked the stones of his enemies. What if he were to get a good stone for him as an offering? Plus it was autumn, so it was the prefect chance to get a fat and mana rich prey!
Excited about his idea, Lupin hopped up and began to bound off to go hunt an offering. He was a good boy, of course, so he was polite and kept it to a trot in the low mana human area that his master called “downtown” so as to not scare them. But once he was back into the wilds he bounded off once more. Awakening his hunting skills, he traveled southwest, passing up the weaker prey in favor of looking for a bigger one. And then…
“Help! It’s a goltze! Aaaah!”
He heard a male human yelling at the same time he sniffed out a big prey. It was a big cat creature! Lupin sprinted forward until he saw a clearing. In it were two low mana humans (one male, one female), one of their carriages, and the big cat creature approaching them to attack.
The female one saw him and screamed. “Oh no!! There is another feybeast! We’re doomed!”
I won’t attack! I don’t attack humans! I am a good boy!
To show his goodness, he charged forward and attacked the cat creature. It was a fierce battle, and he lost a few of the stone things on his collar, but he won. Using his teeth he was able to bite on the big cat he got the stone he was looking for. It was delicious….but he refrained from eating it, curling his tail around it instead.
The two humans trembled, but he sat before them and cocked his head to the side, asking for praise.
“Um… maybe this big fella isn’t as dangerous as we thought?” The human female said, watching him carefully. Then the human male noticed his collar and gasped. “Ah! I remember! There are rumors that Lady Rozemyne rides a big wolfnir in the capital. Maybe this is the one! The rumors must be true! Thank you, pet of Lady Rozemyne!”
I got thanks! Me and my master are getting praised! Lupin barked happily, and the humans gave him an offering of dried meat as thanks. It wasn’t tasty, but just he gesture made him happy.
With the big corpse stone secured by his tail, Lupin raced back to the city and tracked Lord Ferdinand to his dwelling. Another human male with dark green head fur named “Lasfam” noticed him and brought Lord Ferdinand outside.
“What are you doing here?” His master’s mate asked, his brows furrowed.
Lupin dropped the big stone to the ground and nudged it with his nose, presenting his offering. His master’s mate looked surprised as he picked it up. “Is this for me?”
“Boorf!” Lupin barked his assent. Yes! It’s an offering for my master’s mate! May it pick up your spirits!
Lord Ferdinand looked pleased. He healed Lupin's wounds. And then he did the best thing: he gave Lupin pets!
“Very fine,” Lord Ferdinand praised, and Lupin’s tail began to wag. He was so happy to be praised as a very good boy!
Caring for the Core Pack
It is winter, and Lupin senses that his master is away. Like a good boy, he takes it upon himself as her beta to protect the pack. Though a very big pack it is. His master said that all of the people from the land who don’t harbor bad intentions are a part of her pack. Though he considers her blood a part of her core pack. Since she was away, he felt the need as her beta to provide for her core pack in her stead.
He roamed around the commoner forest, which had plenty of game as the other humans didn’t hunt during this season for some reason. It was also plentiful as the humans in the pack had dug up some of the danger-fruit from the soil. He brought down an elk-like creature, then he threw it on his back and ran off to his master’s blood family’s house. He couldn’t sense them by mana, but could by smell. They smelled very similar because of their blood bonds.
The boy cub of the core pack, Kamil, was outside playing in the snow with a girl cub…Renate. Lupin remembered she was called Renate. The girl cub saw him and nearly shrieked, but Kamil ran over to give him pets. Lupin loves pets. As Kamil pet him behind his ear, a good spot, the offering nearly fell off of his back as he wagged his tail.
“Wow, it’s Lupin! Don’t be afraid, Renate, it’s Myne’s dog! He’s a good dog!”
“I heard the rumors, but…”
The boy cub saw what was in his back, and then ran upstairs with excitement. Lupin could hear him with his keen ears. He cocked his head as he listened.
“Mooom! Lupin’s here! And he brought us some meat again!”
“Goodness, really? Gunther, go take the game from him. He can come inside…though I just cleaned up.” The female of the core pack sighed. Lupin tried to clean himself carefully and shook off the snow, using a mat near the door to clean off his paws.
His master’s blood family made the meat as the human pups pet him in all the right places. And later, Lupin ate a deliciously cooked leg of the meat. He didn’t catch it just to be fed good food, though. Lupin was a good boy.
A Chance Encounter
It was early spring, and his master was busy with her duties for the pack. So Lupin took the opportunity to roam farther than what his walks usually allowed. Stretching out his legs and exercising his muscles, he roamed for a few days and found himself near the north edge of his master’s land. By instinct, he knew it was near the area he was born. Lupin didn’t remember much about his mother or his birth pack, but he wasn’t sad about it. He loved his master from the day he met her, and was pleased with the pack he was in.
After hunting some prey, he smelled the most enticing scent. By instinct, he followed.
And then he found the most beautiful female wolfnir he had ever seen.
Her dark blue fur was as glossy as possible without fur-cleansing liquid, and her eyes were as pink as the peak spring moon. Her scent was more delicious than anything he had ever smelled and compelled him forward. But as he was raised to be a good boy, he approached her respectfully.
She looked at him cautiously, Alpha male, who are you?
Female, I am Lupin, the beta of my master’s pack, Lady Rozemyne. He sat down a few paces away, waiting patiently.
The female then admired him. You have a name? How rare. I hardly believe you are a Beta. You are clearly an Alpha by size and mana alone. She circled him, taking in his scent, sensing his mana, and eyeing his coat. Lupin sat up straighter, proud of how well taken care of he was. He wanted to look good for his first encounter with such a beautiful female wolfnir.
After a while, the female nodded. I am pleased. Lupin, strong male, I am in my estrus. I shall allow you to have my first cubs. With your strength, I am sure that they will be strong alphas, and perhaps one shall be a winter lord if they prove dominion over all others.
His tail wagged and his heart thumped. He had found his mate. That day he spent a day mating with such a beautiful female for the first time.
When he woke up she was gone, but he had already memorized her scent. He would find her and see her again someday. And sometime in the autumn, he would be the proud father of cubs. He couldn’t wait to introduce his cubs and mate to his master then.
Unfortunately, Lupin had no idea of knowing that his coupling would set off a rut in him that spring. Or of the neutering that would happen to him thereafter.