Ulrich laid out in the sun as Conor and his mother did some Sunday yard work. He could see Cake up in the bedroom window also enjoying the sparse sun rays. After sending his email, Ulrich hadn't bothered to check back in with them. He needed time on his own for a while. He glanced up to see Mai talking on the phone with someone before going back into the house. Conor sighed and decided to take a break coming over to lay on Pizza.

"You're like a portable pillow I can take anywhere." Conor mumbled as Ulrich huffed making Conor giggle. Ulrich smiled to himself and relaxed beneath him enjoying their nap in the yard. Ulrich frowned as he got to his feet making Conor sit up. He circled the yard once before the scent grew stronger and he recognized the scent of werewolf. He pulled on Conors shirt dragging him out of the back yard and down the road.

"Wait a sec. There is someone at our house." Conor tried to tell him as Ulrich kept going forward. He didn't recognize the car sitting in their driveway, but the pack could easily rent a car if they wanted to. It's not like they were short on cash. Conor gave up trying to encourage Pizza home and followed him down the street. He played with the silver band on his wrist as they walked. He had taken it in hopes that it might lead him to Pizza's original owners, but so far, he was having no luck tracing the simple band. Ulrich liked that Conor wore his silver bracelet. It made him feel like Conor accepted his place in his pack. Ulrich led them to the connivance store where Mike greeted them happily.

"Why hello you two! Looking for a snack?" Mike asked as he hurried around the counter to greet them.

"Not sure actually. There is someone at our house that Pizza doesn't seem interested in meeting." Conor told him as Mike nodded at the happy dog. It was strange really. Why did Pizza suddenly want to leave like that?

"I am sure he really just wanted an Ice cream. It's still early spring, but the weather is nice and warm today. Maybe it's a glimpse of the summer that's to come." Mike told them as he opened a tub of vanilla ice cream and fed it to Ulrich. Ulrich licked Mike happily wagging his body before he dug into the frozen treat.

"Maybe I named him too soon." Conor joked as the old man laughed.

"Just think, you could have had Cake and Ice cream." Mike told him as Conor laughed happily. Ulrich glanced up smiling at the two of them as they joked back and forth about Conors choice in pet names. None of them noticed when a new customer and her dog entered the store.

"Hey, Pizza is good too. This way I get dinner and desert." Conor told him as the old man laughed some more. Conor bent down to clean the ice-cream off Pizza's face so it wouldn't make his fur all sticky.

"Help yourself to an ice cream kid. That mutt didn't save you any." Mike told him as Conor chuckled.

"Did you expect him to?" Conor asked going to find himself an ice cream sandwich. He paused when he noticed a beautiful girl watching him. Her long black hair and deep brown eyes made him swallow a blush. It wasn't until he noticed the dog by her feet that he became nervous. The dog was smaller than Pizza a mixture of browns with yellow eyes. The dog ignored him completely watching the old man and Pizza as they played. Conor tried to ignore them as she watched him carefully pick out an Ice cream.

"Who are you?" She asked him as he looked at her. It was clear she was trying to be quiet; he just wasn't sure why.

"Does it matter? Who are you?" Conor asked just as softly. She blinked at him before she smiled.

"I'm Gabriella, a friend of Ulrich's." She told him as he frowned at her confused. Who the hell was Ulrich and why should he care? She sighed and petted the dog at her knee. "I see. I thought you knew him since you were wearing his bracelet." She told him making Conor's eyes grow wide.

"The vet pulled this off my dog. I was trying to figure out where he came from before we picked him up from the pound." Conor told her as her dog growled.

"Alois." She chided as the dog quieted. "He scared you." Gabriella told him almost apologetically. A second growl had them turning around as Pizza growled at the two Conor was talking to. Conor steadied himself and went over to him petting him quickly.

"It's okay, we were just talking." Conor told him as Pizza frowned. He hadn't been planning on being found out so soon, but he should have guessed. Alois was a wizard when it came to technology. He probably traced the call to the home phone. Stupid idiot. Ulrich growled inwardly. He didn't want to scare Conor any more so turned and left leaving Conor to follow.

"Leaving now?" Mike asked as they walked out of the store.

"Guess so. Thanks for the ice cream. We'll be back." Conor told him with a wave. They walked down the street away from the store at a quick pace. Conor glanced back once to see the brown dog on their heels. "Alois, you shouldn't leave your owner behind. A cute girl like that is bound to get into trouble." Conor told him as Alois simply growled at him. Ulrich paused and turned on him. He didn't want to start a fight with him, but he wasn't going to let Alois scare Conor. Alois sat growling at him as Pizza growled back.

"Alois!" Gabriella called making Ulrich book it. Alois followed him leaving Gabriella and Conor to chase after them. Ulrich led Alois around the neighborhood before hiding in an older couple's garden. They were gone for the weekend visiting grandchildren. He quickly turned into his human form so he could speak with the runt of his old pack. Alois changed just as quickly, slugging him in the jaw before Ulrich could react.

"You're nothing more than a god damn pet! You left us for that?!" Alois screamed at him as he tried to hit him again. Ulrich dogged and kicked him in the butt. Just enough to knock him off balance.

"What are you stupid? The night I ran away I got hit by a truck. I ended up in the vet and then the pound. That boy and his mother just adopted me, and I finally got the cast off my leg yesterday. I have been playing happy pet until I am well enough to leave, nothing more. Why are you here? I thought I made things clear." Ulrich told him as Alois pouted up at him.

"How would I know? It's not like you talked to me. Gabriella called me last night and said she needed a few favors. We both know I would do anything for her. When she asked me to look up this phone number, I didn't ask questions. But when we got to that house... I knew you had called her." Alois told him with a growl.

"I called her because you were right. Why I ran away isn't her fault and she needed to hear it from me. Not read it in an email I sent you. The night of the trial, while you were wrestling with Hass, I asked her if it was worth fighting to be free. She told me it's always worth it, so I ran away. I would never be free under my father. I needed to escape. It wasn't her fault that I did what I always wanted to do." Ulrich told him as they sat it the dirt naked together. Alois nodded even though he still seemed hurt.

"Who's the boy?" Alois asked deciding he didn't want to talk about it anymore.

"Conor? He's my roommate for the time being." Ulrich told him as Alois nodded slowly. Ulrich growled softly as he rubbed his face. "Listen, I will make you a deal. If you swear not to tell anyone where I am staying, I will stay put so you always know where to find me." Ulrich told him as Alois looked up at him.

"You will put up playing a happy pet just so I can find you?" Alois asked him as Ulrich nodded. Alois struggled to hate his friend beside him as he quietly broke down. Ulrich pulled him into his chest as he rocked him softly. Alois held him as he silently released all his anger and pain. "I won't tell anyone other than Gabriella. That I swear." Alois told him.

"Then I will stay. Gabby said she was going to try and make Hades her bitch. When that happens, give me a call so I can be there to watch okay?" Ulrich told him as he laughed. Alois knew Gabriella hatted being called Gabby and that Ulrich was the only one with balls to call her that, if only behind her back. He hadn't realized how much he had wanted to hear Ulrich say those words, I will stay.

"Pizza?! Snowball?!" Conor called making Ulrich grin.

"You like him." Alois told him surprised by Ulrich's reaction. Ulrich frowned at him trying to figure out how he meant the statement.

"He reminds me of you. How could I not?" Ulrich asked with a wink, shifting back into his wolf form. Alois followed his example and together they left their hiding space to join the others. Conor scowled at him as Ulrich wagged his tail happily.

"You shouldn't keep running off like that. What if you get into trouble?" Conor scolded as Ulrich licked his face. "Darn mutt. You smell like vanilla ice cream." Gabriella giggled as she pet Alois head.

"I don't normally see Alois so worked up over another dog. He must like you." Gabriella told Ulrich with a wink. Ulrich sneezed at her before licking Alois and running away. Alois chased him as the other two walked down the street back toward his house.

"Since they seem to get along, would you like to come in for a drink or something?" Conor asked as he frowned at the car still in their driveway.

"That sounds great actually. Thank you." Gabriella told him as they made their way through the front door.

"Mom, I'm home and I brought a friend." Conor called as he paused in the entry way. Pizza barreled in past him with Alois on his tail. Pizza paused to stare at the man in the kitchen with Mai.

"Oh, he's a cutie!" Mai exclaimed as she petted the little dog. Alois pulled away from her, hiding behind Ulrich as he smiled happily.

"Oh, you have no idea." Gabriella told her as she kissed his fluffy brown head. Mai stood as she looked at the girl confused.

"Mom this is Gabriella. We met at the convenience store. Our dogs seemed to get along, so I invited her back. I hope that's okay." Conor told her his mother shook her head.

"I was wondering where you two had run off to. I'm glad you are making friends so quickly. We just moved into the neighborhood." Mai explained to the girl. Pizza wagged his tail happily making Conor cringe and chuckle as it wacked him.

"Well since he has a friend over, I guess I will stop by another time." Mr. Johnsen told them as Mai shook her head.

"Please stay, I would like to discuss more things with you about the school's club system since I hear you are an expert." Mai told him as he smiled and chuckled. Conor went to the kitchen to grab a few drinks. "Since its late why don't you both stay for dinner? We could order Pizza. Snowballs favorite." She said rubbing the dog's head.

"That would be wonderful thanks." Gabriella told her as they followed Conor and Ulrich up the stairs to his room. Mr. Johnsen agreed as well as they went back to the kitchen to talk. Conor sighed as he sat down his drink and moved some seating around.

"I'm still getting set up, so sit wherever you like." Conor told her as Pizza explored the room with Alois. Conor watched him with a frown as the white dog played with the smaller brown one.

"Are you jealous?" Gabriella asked as Conor shook his head. He pulled out a hair thing and pulled back his hair.

"I have just never seen him act like that before. He never gave a damn about other dogs, and I don't know much about him. Though he saved my life once." Conor told her as he sipped his ramune. Gabriella watched him as he watched the two dog's play.

"You know, you are kind of cute when you're not hiding behind your hair." Gabriella told him, giggling as he turned various shades of red. Alois growled softly as she laughed louder. Conor's face paled as he watched the brown dog growl at him. Pizza bit his ear and they got into a small scuffle. Conor wanted to stop them as Gabriella held him back. "They'll be fine. Alois is just jealous cause I called you cute." She told him as Conor frowned at her.

"You're weird." Conor told her flatly as she stared at him in shock. "Hey, Pizza. Have you seen Cake?" Conor asked as he looked around. Pizza paused, sitting on the struggling dog beneath him, to look around the room. Conor wandered into the bathroom as Pizza followed him happily. Alois grumpily stalked over to his girl as she kissed his nose. An odd throaty sound caught their attention and the two of them turned to look at the yellow eyed beast.

Mai and Chet jumped when they heard a loud scream from upstairs. They hurried up into Conor's bedroom to find a terrified girl with a cat on her lap. The cat wasn't pleased with his throne but showed no signs of moving.

"Conor, what is Cake doing on your friend's lap?" Mai asked from the doorway. Conor stood like he was about to attempt to defuse a boom with no tools. Ulrich was holding Alois down, so he didn't hurt his girl or the cat.

"I don't know. He normally doesn't like people." Conor told her as Cake meowed at him. "Hey buddy. You're scaring the pretty girl. why don't we go put you on your throne?" Conor asked trying to lift him off her lap. Cake hissed at him and resettled making Conor frown. He crouched in front of him before turning to look at Pizza. "Why don't you coax him off?" He asked as Ulrich sneezed and looked away. "Scaredy cat." Conor grumbled.

"Doesn't Cake normally avoid the people he doesn't like?" Mai asked walking into the room as Conor shrugged.

"I don't normally have people in my room. Besides, he is kind of acting like when he was with you. The I like you enough to sit here, but not enough to purr." Conor told her as she nodded.

"He's an awfully big cat." Chet said wandering in slowly. Cake narrowed his eyes at the new intruder hissing at him. "Guess I am not liked." Chet told Mai as she shrugged apologetically.

"Cake was a gift from his father. Sometimes I think he got him because they were so similar." Mai grumbled. Cake stood making Gabriella stiffen in fear as the large cat licked her chin. He bounced off her lap and wandered over to the other strange human. Chet backed away slowly as Mai tried to keep the cat at bay. "Sorry to bother you, we just wanted to make sure everything is alright." Mai told them shutting the door, so the cat was locked in. Gabriella crossed the room, the two dogs stood beside her growling softly.

"You smelt it too huh?" Gabriella asked as Alois sneezed.

"Smell what?" Conor asked as he lifted Cake into his arms. Instantly he started purring, melting away into his boy's arms.

"Oh, nothing. I thought I recognized your mom's perfume. That's all. So, Cake and Pizza. Were you hungry when you named them?" she asked as Conor shook his head.

"My dad used to tell me you are what you eat, so when Cake ate my cake and Pizza ate my pizza that's what I named them." Conor told her as she smiled. He seemed different at home in his territory. Ulrich followed them to the bed where they sat down. Cake purred happily as Conor continued to pet him. "So, do you live around here? I know you said you know who used to own this." Conor told her holding out the bracelet. She took it slowly with a sigh.

"Ulrich. He's my cousin that ran away almost a month ago. We have been looking for him ever since. Alois and I go out every weekend trying to find him. This was a family gift. Everyone got one the night he disappeared." Gabriella told him. she moved her hair to show him her earing. It was of the same style and make of the bracelet as if they had been a part of a set.

"Why did he run away? What do you think happened to him?" Conor asked as he frowned at fluffy Cake who had decided to pester Alois now. Cake liked dogs better than he did.

"His father is controlling to the point of micromanagement. He ran away to get away from him and find freedom. He just left us behind though so, it kind of hurts." Gabriella told him as Conor nodded slowly. She handed him back the bracelet with a sigh. "You keep this. Looks better on you than me. Can I ask you something? If you are afraid of dogs, why do you have one?" She asked him as Cake crawled over both of them to curl up with Pizza. Conor pet the dog at his side as he thought about it.

"My mother brought him home against my wishes. My father was killed by dogs, so I know what they are cable of. It's scary knowing that if he wanted to, he could kill me too. But Pizza is great. Very sweet and protective. He doesn't like it when I am scared and tries to ease my fears. One day, when I am stronger, I won't have to rely on him so much." Conor told her as Pizza licked his hand.

"I'm sorry about your dad." Gabriella told him as he smiled at her. She could smell his sorrow even if he wasn't showing it. Someone knocked on the door and it popped open to reveal Mr. Chet Johnsen.

"Hey, your mom just ordered pizza and was wondering if you want to join us downstairs for dinner." Chet asked as Conor got to his feet quickly to catch the angry cat.

"Yeah, I think downstairs will be best." Conor told him as he put Cake in his hammock chair. Chet smiled and left making Conor sigh at the purring kitty in the little swing. "Bastard." Conor grumbled at him as he rubbed his fluffy head with love.

"Do you mind If I use your bathroom first?" Gabriella asked as Conor shook his head.

"Go for it. We will meet you downstairs." Conor told her as he left the room with Pizza following behind him. The four of them laughed over dinner as they talked about dogs. Chet apparently had two of his own dogs that he took for walks every Saturday with other dog loving students.

"It's a great way to get outdoors and meet new people like you. I was hoping you could come this Saturday and give it a try." Chet told Conor as he glanced at his mom.

"You don't have to if you don't want to, but I think it will be a great opportunity for Pizza." His mother told him as Conor smiled at the dirty dog. He seemed messier than usual today.

"Ok. We'll think about it. Thanks for the offer." Conor told him as Chet smiled and nodded.

"Speaking of dogs, I should get home and let them out. Maybe I will bring them over next time." Chet told them as he cleaned up and left. Gabriella helped clean the table as Conor put away leftover food.

"I had fun today. Thanks for letting us hang out." Gabriella told him as Conor smiled.

"Sure. Come over anytime. We enjoyed the company." Conor told them with a smile. He showed them out and waved goodbye. Before taking his red dog upstairs. "Time for a bath my messy friend. Night mom." Conor called down as his mother smiled. Conor was coming out of his shell little by little thanks to that dog. Conor turned on the shower shoving the dog inside the warm water. The shower in his bathroom had been built as a master suite so the shower was large with glass doors to trap him in. Ulrich sneezed as he shook himself out before he heard the door open and close. He turned to look at the naked boy as he moved around him to grab the doggy shampoo. Ulrich paused as he stared nervously at his thin pale hips and delicate legs.

You like him, don't you? Ulrich growled inwardly at Alois question before he realized he was only arguing with himself. Sure, I like him, but not like that. Ulrich told himself as the pale blond boy crouched in front of him, his blue eyes filled with laughter as a thin smile stretched across his lips.

"I didn't realize you could get so messy eating pizza." Conor told him with a small giggle. Ulrich backed away from him quickly as his heart raced in his chest. Conor sat confused as the water washed the soap down his chest. Why? Why was he so drawn in by this boy? Ulrich stepped slowly trying to remain calm as he licked Conor's cheek in apology. He tried to fight the urge to lick more of him, to claim him as his own with his scent. Conor wrapped his arms around him as Ulrich sat patiently. "Let's get out and go to bed, shall we?" Conor asked as he turned off the water and climbed out.

Conor lay sleeping soundly with Cake wrapped around his head. Ulrich hid in the bathroom as he sat on the floor panting heavily. Why was he jacking off to him? Ulrich couldn't think straight as he came to Conor's smiling face. He cleaned up the floor and changed back into his wolf form before crawling back into bed. Conor threw his arm over him in his sleep as Ulrich watched him. No, liked was an understatement. Ulrich fell asleep knowing that he was falling for the boy he planned on eventually leaving.