Lupine Syndrome 1 x 1

[RoosterMan]

Fritz was quiet upset with himself. After all the years he'd avoided falling down the steep front steps of his cabin, he'd finally managed to cut himself up pretty badly, missing the middle step on his way down to the lake that morning. Watching Ivan, the pack doctor, work busily around him, he begins to blush as he realizes the indignity of the situation he was now in. What if a member of the pack walked in to see their alpha having his "boo-boos" patched u?


Inhailing sharply, he growls at Ivan as he douses the wound on his left knee in rubbing alcohol.


"Sorry there, Fritzi. I know it stings a bit."


Fritz waves a dismissive had at Ivan, but bristles as the door opens. He watches Jesse stalk in, eyes narrowing as he struggles to remember his face.


"Just take a seat by the window, Jesse. I'll be with you as soon as I'm done patching up the alpha."


Fritz's face reddens, but he looks over to Jesse.


"...is it healing at all?"


He seems apathetic enough, knowing the pain a wolf experiences when branded.


"All alphas are branded, as they must know the pain it causes when they brand a new member of the pack."


Normally, an alpha would not tolerate being in the same room as a pack member as low as Jesse, let alone talk to them. However, Fritz was different.

 

[Protocol]

Jesse ducked his head when he caught sight of Ivan tending to Fritz. The alpha. His chest constricted, heart speeding up. Fritz was looking at him, he could see the alpha’s narrowed gaze from the corner of his eye as he scrambled to the window seat. Well, stalked might be a more appropriate word. At 6’4 and a little over two hundred pounds it was hard for Jesse to do much else.


He curled into the seat, trying to make himself smaller, lower. Of course, the only time he was free from quarantine, when he had his brand rebandaged he’d have to run into the alpha.


“...is it healing at all?” Jesse jumped, eyes flickering to the doctor and his alpha. He quickly lowered his eyes and tilted his head to the side, exposing his neck in a sign of submission. The Laurel Mountain pack, didn’t seem to be as strict as Battle Creek, but old habits die hard.


Spreading sweaty fingers down jean clad thighs, Jesse nodded. His stomach twisted at his spineless reaction. He swallowed down a lump, and inhaled sharply. “Yes, thank you.” The brand on his left shoulder didn’t hurt much, the nerves having been destroyed. The skin around the burn was a little tender. The branding process itself had hurt like hell, but it was well worth it. Some temporary pain was worth the companionship and protection offered by having a pack.


"All alphas are branded, as they must know the pain it causes when they brand a new member of the pack." Mismatched eyes flicked up toward the other two werewolves. That sounded oddly honorable and compassionate. Two terms that would not fit the Battle Creek alpha.


Was Fritz’s brand on his shoulder as well? Fritz was different from his birth alpha. He had kind eyes that didn’t demand his complete submission. He had a demeanor that commanded respect without demanding everything that was Jesse, his will, his mind, his soul. Though, with eyes like that, Jesse might just hand himself over anyway.


He blushed realising he’d been ogling the alpha and squeezed his eyes shut, turning back to the window. The pulse in his neck sped up visibly.

 

[RoosterMan]

"All done there, Fritzi. See you later."


Fritz stands as Ivan finishes with the last bandage, rubbing his palms together. Smiling at Ivan, he pats him gently on the shoulder and turns to Jesse.


"Thanks, Ivan. Take good care of Jesse here, alright?"


Placing a hand on the door knob, he looks down at Jesse and smiles kindly.


"I'm glad to hear that it's not too painful anymore. We're having a pack gathering this evening by the lake. You can come, if you feel up to it! Gustov is preparing his famous venison steaks, so there will be a free meal in it for you, at least."

 

[Protocol]

Jesse nodded, a faint smile painting his lips as he watched Fritz leave.


Mismatched eyes lingered on the retreating form, fingers absently lifting to brush over his bandages. The brand was nice, in all honesty. It meant that he belonged somewhere. Sort of. Whether the pack accepted him was still to be seen, but they'd been kind so far. Fritz had seemed kind and it was unlikely that he'd dismiss Jesse for the same reasons as Jesse's birth pack. It would be pretty hypocritical if the other wolf exiled him for liking men.


"Does the pack have gatherings often?" Jesse slipped off the window seat and padded over to Ivan. He hesitated a second before taking his shirt off and sitting down so that Ivan would have access to the bandages. The simple t-shirt was soft as he wrung it between his hands, gaze lowered. "Will...will most of the pack be there?" He could go, he could do this. Really. Meet some other wolves in the pack. Start over. Maybe he could even find another job waiting tables. Five hundred dollars could get him the parts for a decent computer. Then he could work on his art again.


Unfortunately, when he'd been run out of the Battle Creek pack, he'd left everything behind. That included all his charcoals, paints, brushes and his laptop full of digital prints.

 

[RoosterMan]

Ivan works meticulously, carefully removing the bandages in a way that will cause the least pain. Examining the wound briefly, he nods in approval and begins to wrap his shoulder with clean dressings. Pushing his glasses up his nose, he smiles kindly.


"Now that the weather is warm, we will be having them very often. It's fun to go down to the lake, and everyone is very nice. Perhaps you can meet my wife and cub, no?"