News spread like wildfire these days. The boy hadn't even been introduced to the pack but already wolves were sniffing around, curious to meet the new addition. It was only after Brandon's Father forbade them from cornering Sean in his quarters, that the pack relented.

Brandon could understand their confusion and curiosity; it was only natural to want to know the new face, especially someone you'd consider as family. To be able to identify their scent so no mistakes in the future can be made.

The higher ranking the wolf, the easier it was to slip up. Protective instincts would surge at the slightest scent that someone new, unknown, was roaming around the pack.

Usually, that was dealt with quickly by presenting the new member to the pack, allowing the pack to take in their scent, mix it with their own.

Still, the young Alpha understood perfectly why his Father forbade the wolves from meeting Sean on their own whim. The poor boy would quickly be considered prey instead of pack, especially with his skittish behavior and fear that permeated the room at the slightest, unexpected sound.

His mind went back to the first time Brandon laid eyes on Sean and even his wolf let out a little growl of anticipation.

If Father hadn't been there, if I hadn't been trained to keep the Beast on a tight leash...

Brandon would've pinned Sean to the floor minutes after their first encounter, without a doubt. And the terrifying part of it was that he had no idea what the Beast would've done to Sean before anyone came to his rescue.

Most likely it would've tackled and pinned Sean to the floor, demanding submission. If Sean had acted anything like he did on their first encounter, his wolf would've shown its dominance relentlessly.

It would've alternated between treating Sean like prey that fought back, or an unruly pack member that needed to be shown their place...

I would've broken Sean beyond repair...

Reaching up, Brandon knocked softly but clearly on the door, hearing Sean gasp and whimper under his breath. As slowly and gently as possible, he opened the door and braced himself, offering Sean a soothing smile while pushing his wolf down.

The motion of the door opening created a wave of air, instantly wafting the rich scent of Sean's bitter fear in Brandon's face. He gritted his teeth against the beast lurching forwards and focused his attention on Sean and his room.

A quick glance showed Brandon that Sean had barely decorated his personal room; there were no family pictures decorating the drawers, nor any personal and prized possessions that stood out.

All he saw where his shoes placed neatly next to the closet, a loose sweater hanging of the back of his chair and a small notebook Sean had securely in his lap.

Clean. Strict. Cold and lonely.

He closed the book as soon as Brandon's attention was drawn to it, fingers trembling as he clicked the pen once before putting both in the drawer of his bedside table. The young Alpha smiled, nodding his head in greeting. "May I come in?"

Sean blinked, almost confused that Brandon, an Alpha, had even asked permission. As if being an Alpha gave Brandon the right to barge into the room, pry his way into Sean's right to privacy.

His toes curled into the bedding, before Sean nodded, pulling his knees against his chest. Hiding against them.

Brandon stepped inside but left the door open, anticipating the fact that if he shut the door behind him, if the young Alpha gave Sean any sense that he was trapped in the room with him, he'd panic.

That panic would be followed by a scent-bomb of acrid fear, undoubtedly overwhelming Brandon in that small, confined room.

Plus, the opened door created the smallest of drafts, allowing Sean's fear to air out without it being too suffocating. If Sean and Brandon were in an airtight room and he started dropping those scent-bombs again...

The wolf shivered at the idea before gentling his smile, since the boy on the bed was already hunching together with slight worry.

Like a frightened little rabbit crouching down, hoping it hadn't been spotted just yet.

He smiled at the idea, found it fitting to imagine the nervous boy in a soft, fluffy onesie with rabbit ears. Brandon had a feeling that, if presented with one, Sean would be eager to wear it, simply for the comfort and warmth it offered.

Shaking the idea away, Brandon diverted the attention of his wolf with a simple, "Hey, how has your night been?"

Sean blinked at the small talk, a slight frown pulling at his eyebrows before he slowly nodded. "G-good. I-I slept okay..."

"That's good to hear. It can be a pain to settle into a new place." Brandon spoke in a soft and reassuring tone, feeling elated when Sean's shoulders relaxed the tiniest bit.

Sean's eyes widened in surprise before they darted back to his hands. Brandon could almost taste the boy's hesitation before he licked his lips and cautiously asked, "Y-you weren't... born here then?"

The young Alpha smiled politely, keeping his distance as Brandon tucked his hands in his pockets. Sean let out the softest relieved sigh, creating a spark of amusement as Brandon realized the boy's attention to his hands hadn't been something he had imagined.

Fear. Fear of male wolves...

"Oh, I'm born and raised here." Brandon grinned before adding at Sean's confused frown, "I did have to stay at the Council for a few months for Alpha training. It was a pain to settle with other hormonal teens." He snickered, shaking his head at the memory.

It had been a pain; being forced to room together with other pubescent Alphas who only just unleashed their inner beast. All of their instincts had been running high and each room had a live in guard to keep an eye out on them.

During the early days there had been a lot of fights between roommates, Alphas trying to establish their dominance, only to get body checked by the guard at the slightest note of aggression.

It had been a quick and efficient lesson to not let the young Alphas' inner beasts rule over them. They were supposed to be in charge and be capable of handling their more baser instincts.

Plus, having your ass handed to you by a powerful Beta in the prime of his life wasn't something easily forgotten.

And that was exactly the purpose of having the guards room with the Alpha's to be. If there was one thing that the young Alphas hated, was to be humiliated in front of others.

To be reminded and shown that they were weak compared to others. Because a weak Alpha wouldn't be able to protect a pack.

A weak Alpha was a worthless Alpha. Nobody in their right mind would follow a weak Alpha.

It had taken some of them a few fights and licking their bruised egos before the young Alphas-to-be managed to settle some form of control over their beasts.

"I-I-I didn't... know t-that A-a-alphas....trained." Sean whispered worriedly, making Brandon shake his head to quickly amend, "Oh not combat training, if that's what you're thinking. We're trained to control ourselves. To control the beast."

The boy blinked, arms slacking around his knees for only a moment before they tightened even more than before.

"A-aren't you... one and the same?" He asked hesitantly, refusing to meet the Alpha's eyes. Brandon smiled warmly before looking at the chair across the room. "May I?"

Sean nodded, though Brandon could clearly see and even smell his hesitation. At the wolf's approach, he seemed to physically cringe back, fighting the urge to push himself into the headboard of his bed. Brandon sat down casually, trying to make him feel more at ease.

"We share the same body, sure, but sometimes it is hard to suppress the instincts that come with being what we are." Brandon leaned forwards slightly, folding his fingers together thoughtfully.

"When the beast first awakens, it fights for control. All it knows once it wakes up, is that an unknown presence is within its territory. The higher ranked we are, the harder and longer it fights. Their instincts and needs clash with ours, never fully merging."

Sean's brow dipped in confusion, his little button nose curling adorably as he thought about it for a moment. "S-so you can e-easily lose control?" Sean squeaked worriedly, making the young Alpha shake his head softly.

"If I were without a pack, perhaps. The Alphas need their packs to balance the beasts' overprotective nature out. By being able to provide for and care for the pack, Alphas mellow out." Brandon explained, smiling as reassuringly as he could.

Leaning back in his seat, Brandon crossed his leg over a knee, sighing slightly. "When the wolf settles down once we've established that our mind is a shared territory, they'll start to look for an actual territory to guard. Items to own. Pack to defend. People to care for."

Brandon gritted his teeth as a small puff of fear that escaped Sean, his heartbeat fluttering away like a panicked bird. Yet he didn't seem to have too much effort with catching the wolf's eyes.

A little nervous twitch played at his lips, fingers finding the edge of his sleeve once more before they started to pluck at the fabric.

"... I.... I don't.... understand." Sean murmured under his breath. Brandon cracked his neck slightly, rolling shoulders against the building tension coming from the wolf.

It wanted out. To protect and nurture. Or to suppress and dominate. He just didn't know what it wanted to do. It could sense that Sean was weaker than it. Weak meant vulnerable and vulnerable pack members needed to be protected.

But, there was also fear. And only prey feared the wolf. It was pacing back and forth, agitated, confused.

Pack or prey? Defend or Hunt? Nurture or Devour?

"Hmmm, how to explain it. Even I had a hard time understanding when my father explained it to me." Sean's eyes widened in surprise and Brandon smiled, chuckling at the instant flush that flooded the boy's cheeks.

A thought popped to mind and the young Alpha grinned, "Think of us Alphas as toddlers. We're acting mostly on instinct and our inner beasts have yet to learn right from wrong."

"The pack for an Alpha is like their family; providing a tether, an anchor to keep the Alphas grounded with their two feet, or four paws, to the floor."

Brandon snickered, shaking his head slightly before feeling a smack against his head. Scowling, the wolf rubbed the back of his head as his dad admonished, "And some Alphas never left those toddler years." He teased with a wink aimed Sean's way.

Sean was hunched on the bed in confusion, eying them both worriedly before he swallowed thickly. "What my son is trying to say, is that the pack teaches the Alpha what they can and can't do."

"If an Alpha is too rough or too dominant, it'll cause fear and distrust in his pack members. Who wants to stay in the care of an Alpha that doesn't care for its pack?" Dad said before shrugging, "So, the pack can chose to leave that Alpha."

Wide eyed, Sean hugged his knees to his chest, almost as if he was hiding. "They can?" He breathed, eyes wide and watching their every move.

Both Alphas nodded, "That's how you can tell how good an Alpha is ; by the size of his pack." Brandon said with a proud look at his father, who seemed unaware of the awe on both the young boys' faces.

"A pack that willingly stays with their Alpha." Dad corrected with a little shrug. "Alphas can't force other wolves to be part of their pack. If they do, they'll soon find themselves on their own, without a pack to love them."

He only smiled warmly at Sean, sitting on the floor to make the boy feel more comfortable, much to Sean's surprise.

"Y-y-you, you, ca-, c-c-cc..."Sean stuttered terribly, pointing weakly at the end of the bed but Brandon's Father simply smiled and shook his head. "Thank you Sean but I want you to feel comfortable. My butt can handle the cold floor for a few moments." He added with a wink.

Sean didn't respond, didn't seem to know how to respond. His fingers picked up on plucking at the fabric again and Brandon's eyes flitted to his closet once more.

A closet where several sweaters were hanging from coat hangers. And all of them showed significant wear and tear around the sleeves.

Plushy, worn but soft fabric. All seemingly a size too big and coated in Sean's unique scent that reminded Brandon of Jasmine tea.

Most likely a nervous habit. Maybe he isn't even consciously doing it.

Sean noticed the young Alpha's gaze to his fingers that were still picking at the fabric. He instantly curled his hands to fists, biting his lip as his entire posture stiffened. A burst of fear and dread filtered through the air, making both Alphas grit their teeth to control their wolves.

"It's okay Sean." Brandon's father whispered soothingly as the boy twitched on his bed, rubbing at his eyes furiously. Brandon's wolf calmed down, recognizing the motion as it had seen plenty of little pups cry in its lifetime.

Prey doesn't cry. He's more like a pup...

All three of them paused at a sound further down the hall and the scent of food being prepared. Brandon grinned, inhaling deeply before shooting a glance out the window, where the sun was beaming down from its highest point.

"Smells like lunch is being prepped." His dad rolled his eyes at Brandon's unnecessary remark, as all of them could clearly smell the scent of baking bread, meats and vegetables.

Sean cleared his throat as he nodded, yawning before he suppressed a shiver. He rubbed his eyes again, unconsciously soothing Brandon's wolf even more as it relaxed, panting happily.

...A cute, little pup.

The Alpha bit back a smirk, for once agreeing with his wolf. Seeing Sean in the slightly oversized sweater was more than just cute. Eyes darting over his form, Brandon could tell the blue fabric had been stretched beyond capacity, time and time again.

An image surged in his mind of Sean curled underneath the sweater, knees tucked under the blue fabric. Stretching the softness as it bulged over his knees, toes probably curling around the edge to keep warm.

Sean shivered again, this time a full body shiver and Brandon frowned, glancing at the windows before looking between his father and himself.

Both of them were just in a shirt, Brandon's was even a sleeveless one. The heating in the packhouse was running like usual, so why was Sean acting as if it was freezing outside?

Humans run cooler than wolves do...

Perhaps. But Brandon had seen enough humans at school to know that wasn't an issue. His eyes followed Sean as he walked to his closet, picking through his clothes as if looking for something specific.

The young Alpha smiled at the slight grin that slipped on Sean's lips before he reached up, standing on his tippy toes to reach a thick, fuzzy and warm looking hoodie.

His wolf puffed out a happy growl as Brandon could imagine Sean drown in the soft and cozy looking fabric. Fluffy and comforted, like a little pup.

As Sean brought the fabric to his face, their eyes clashed, holding onto one another for a second. Instantly that sweet, velvety scent turned bitter and acrid with fear as Brandon gritted his teeth against the sudden change.

"We'll give you a moment to get dressed while we wait outside." His dad smiled comfortingly, pushing off of the ground and breaking their eye contact from one another.

And the look he shot Brandon told the man he was walking on thin ice with his Pack Alpha.