It stinks.

As the moonlight illuminated the room, he moved silently from the bed to the closet, inspecting the different clothes that hung in there.

And more importantly, analyzed each and every scent that clung to them.

The soft, plush clothes exuded a soft Jasmine he recognized but was still growing familiar with. Some worn more than the others, sleeves stretched and plucked at in clear distress.

But there was no indication of that sickly sweet distress that Omegas produced.

Hanging the hoodie back, he turned his attention to the other clothes. These ones sorted, shirts folded seamlessly and stacked in a neat fashion. The former soft sweatpants and dress pants made way for jeans, shorts and the like.

Ozone sparked through the room as the man inhaled the petrichor that clung to the clothes before humming to himself.

No fear or agony either... Weird.

He was unnerved by the scent of an unknown Alpha that lingered on both sets of clothing, yet confused about the lack of the usual bitter scents from their owners.

In fact, he could smell several scents barely mingling. Alphas, Betas, Deltas, Omegas and even a few humans. Though none were as strong as that one particular Alpha scent of sandalwood.

He was anticipating to detect that stench clinging to the Alphas, a combination of bitter and spice that burned the nostrils and alerted anyone with a function nose of their barely veiled malice.

But he found only kindness, curiosity and the slight dampness of worry.

It felt weird to be surrounded by a multitude of scents and not detect a hint of suffering or despair.

A scowl formed on his face, lip curling to reveal large canines that gleamed in the darkness. Eyes nearly glowing in the moonlight as he remembered his awakening.

It had been nighttime as well, filled with scents and sounds he wished to forget.

Waking to a room that stunk of pheromones, pain and Omegan distress, of Beta anger while his body was assaulted by tearing agony, laughter and sneers filling the room as someone, no, something approached the bed while undoing their pants.

He would never forget the stench of those creatures.

Licking his lips as if thirsting for prey, he remembered the chaos that followed as he shifted. The screams of surprise from the Corrupted, followed by their screams of agony as their blood painted the room.

The man didn't need to be a genius to realize what had happened to him. Blood had stained his thighs and just a simple glance at his bared body had shown a slew of scars both fresh and old.

And new injuries still oozing blood. Pulsing pain through his system in sharp, agonizing blasts that had tensed up his muscles as a response.

He had taken great delight hunting those Corrupted down, tearing them limb from limb. Ignoring their pleas for mercy and their feeble excuses, instinctually knowing these monsters were beyond redemption. While he couldn't remember what happened to him or how he even got there, his body told its own story.

And he would seek revenge.

He was pleased to find not a trace of the Alpha's scent in or on the bed, nor in the bathroom. Unlike how it was a short time ago. It had been a shock to awaken once more, only to find himself in an Alpha's lap with his nose buried against the man's skin.

Held in an embrace by an unknown Alpha whilst in a dimly lit room had awakened his instincts with a vengeance.

For a moment, his muscles had stiffened, nostrils flaring to catch the scents around him. Expecting to be naked, to feel injuries throb painfully, to smell the scent of Omegan distress, of terrified slick and Corrupted malice.

Safety. Warmth. Comfort.

Scents he had never encountered before, all clinging to this unknown Alpha, to Brandon as he later introduced himself. An Alpha that didn't act aggressively, submitted when his teeth had latched into Brandon's skin when his instincts reacted before his brain could catch up to his actions.

Not at all what he had suspected. It had shocked him so much, he had felt some unknown entity shove him to the back, pull him into darkness.

Now he felt obligated to inspect every corner of the room, to make sure those other scents were safe.

And he would keep a close watch on that Alpha.

As he moved back to the bed, his eyes landed on a journal, pen still laying on the cover.

Curiosity made him reach for it, a waft of soft jasmine and comforting petrichor waving up to his nose.

As he thumbed through the book, he was surprised to see a mixture of writing. Soft, small scribbles that were elegant and pleasant to read. Bolder strokes, written quickly yet still neat, structured and orderly.

While he read, his confusion and irritation rose, having to reread the journal several times before he took a deep breath and laid it down.

So that's how it is.

It answered several questions, filled in gaps in his memory and left him slowly seething. Gritting his teeth in anger, rage, because how could he not?

They had needed him sooner. And he had been blissfully unaware, hiding in the darkness while there were people who relied on him, needed him.

The man felt extremely guilty for all the suffering they had gone through, knowing he could've put a stop to it. If only he had awakened sooner...

But now that he knew, he had a job to fulfill. A duty that had his sole attention, that he wouldn't trust upon anyone else.

Reaching for the pen, he scribbled down his own message, laying the journal somewhere in sight, away from its original position.

Then, he laid down and slept with a new awareness of their shared situation.

----

"He was out again."

Brandon gaped in surprise, nearly dropping the breakfast he had brought over for Sean and Jamie but managed to catch himself the last second.

Nostrils flaring, he didn't catch a single whiff of that ozone he once smelled. And to his eyes, nothing in the room seemed to be amiss.

But then Jamie pulled up the journal and flicked it open, finger tapping underneath a single sentence.

Quickly abandoning the breakfast tray on the table, Brandon wiped his hands on his shirt before looking at the journal with a curious frown.

"Understood. I'm sorry. I'm here now."

Shivers ran down Brandon's spine as he realized that even at this point, the Lycan might be observing his every move. Analyzing him, scrutinizing him to the last microscopic detail.

Now the new Alter was aware they weren't alone and they had informed the rest of their community they weren't leaving any time soon.

"Can you sense them?" Brandon questioned curiously, frowning when Jamie shook his head and closed the journal.

Jamie pursed his lips, petrichor turning bitter with frustration. "It's... not as easy as you may think. I mean, even though we have DID, we're not experts on the matter either."

Pressing a palm to his chest, Jamie continued "It isn't a constant awareness that I share with the others. I know of several of us but like I said before, new ones can present themselves with or without my knowledge."

Brandon nodded, eyes flitting to the journal as that was created exactly for that purpose. If a new, unknown Alter came out whom didn't share awareness, they could read up on what happened, could leave messages to the others and ask questions.

The young Alpha blinked curiously as a realization popped up before he turned to Jamie. "Not to pry but... how do you and Sean communicate with one another, if not through the journal? Or any of the other Alters I haven't met yet."

At that, Jamie sat down on the bed, a soft hum echoing through the room. "Depends on who's sending the message. Sean and I are pretty connected, so we can simply address each other in our minds, as if we have a mind-link between us."

"Other Alters are more focused on emotions or images. Making whoever is fronting feel hungry or playful, presenting an image of a certain place they want to go to. Stuff like that."

Brandon nodded, storing every tidbit of information in his brain to process later.

He and Jamie continued to talk over their breakfast and even well beyond it. It was interesting to observe Jamie speak about his knowledge, how the Beta wasn't bragging instead happy to share the harmless information.

Petrichor softened, turned soothing and pleasant as Jamie realized Brandon was genuinely interested. It made Brandon smile as Jamie explained things without prompting.

How the Beta seemed elated that someone was listening to him with genuine interest. Not pretending to care or interrupting him whenever he said something.

It annoyed Brandon's Beast, imagining how often Jamie must've been interrupted or punished for speaking up. Such a simple thing, a basic right that was taken away like so many other things.

The right to speak. To be heard. The right of safety and freedom.

All of those things and more, taken without thought. Brandon silently vowed to return those things to Jamie and Sean, to any unknown Alter watching and waiting.

"So, it's pretty normal that you can't really sense the others then?" Brandon inquired, making Jamie nod, eyes sparking with contentment.

"Yeah, even between Sean and myself are quiet moments. Moments where Sean left the light voluntarily and I had to get him up to date about anything that occurred while he was gone. We're not an omniscient presence, constant there in the background." Jamie motioned with his hand to the room and then to himself.

The young Beta smiled slightly, "There are times where some of us are asleep, some are unwilling or unable to join the light and speak for themselves." He sighed, shaking his head "That doesn't diminish their existence or change who they are. I mean, Royal-" He bit his lip, eyes welling up for a moment.

Brandon smiled softly, hesitating before reaching out to gently pat Jamie's shoulder. "It's okay." The young Alpha murmured softly. "You don't need to say anything else if you don't want to."

He already understood the implication of what Jamie was going to say. Royal had been absent, hiding from the light for years. That didn't mean that Royal was dead or stopped existing.

He was still in there, somewhere. Self soothing in the darkness of isolation and the safety it provided.

Which also meant there could be other Alters choosing to remain within their shared headspace. Where it was safe, where nobody could reach them until they chose to present themselves to the world.

It made Brandon realize that the introduction to the pack would be a long time in the making. Nobody but Jamie and his community could decide whether or not they wished to inform the pack of their nature.

For them, it wasn't a matter of wanting to be included or undergoing a simple formality to join the pack.

For Sean, Jamie and the others, it was a matter of safety. A matter of survival among people that could potentially turn on them without so much as a warning.

Of course the pack would most likely assume something. The more interactions Sean and Jamie had with the pack, the more likely it was that both sides would realize something.

Sean and Jamie were already learning that the pack was a safe space. Filled with individuals of different rankings who only had their best interest in mind.

That had already been proven several times by the pack soothing a distressed Sean, while they could've easily lashed out at the Omega for showing signs of perceived weakness.

And in turn, the pack was already realizing there was more to Sean and Jamie than met the eye. One was never seen in the presence of the other and the only ones who constantly interacted with the newcomers, was the Pack Alpha and his sons.

Even wolves who weren't interested in pack politics and traditions would realize something was off.

Knuckles rapped against the door, drawing both Brandon and Jamie's attention as they shared a confused look. "Yes?" Jamie asked curiously, heading to the door and opened it hesitantly.

Both were surprised by a lanky Steve, grinning bashfully as the young alpha scratched through his curls. "Oh hi -and hi Brandon." He grinned as he noticed the Alpha in the room, rocking back on his heels. "I uhm, heard of Gabriel that you guys often go out on a run. And I was curious if I was allowed to come along next time."

Jamie seemed flabbergasted while Brandon bit back an elated grin. Steve's chestnut eyes darted between them before noticing the breakfast at the table.

"Ah shit- I mean- Well...damn. Sorry to interrupt breakfast, I didn't know-" The young Alpha stammered, scratching at his nape sheepishly. "It just, sounded fun to run around with others and I thought I'd come along and ask but I didn't mean to intrude-"

The room filled with soft petrichor, dousing the flaring spice of Steve's natural frankincense scent. While Brandon couldn't fully see Jamie's expression, his nose twitched, easily detecting the warmth and appreciation waving from the Beta.

"Sounds fun." Jamie agreed, making Steve grin widely as his scent flared to life with bursts of citrus and sweetness. Clearly overjoyed that his invitation was accepted.

"Right? I heard some play games as they run, or hide and seek or tag. We can do whatever, I mean, as long as it's okay with you guys." Steve chattered away while nearly vibrating with excitement.

The youngest Alpha glanced back at the dishes waiting at the table before cringing. "Again, sorry. I'll leave you two to breakfast. Enjoy!" he chirped before speeding off, nearly sprinting down the hallway where they heard an excited whoop echo against the walls.

And judging by the way Jamie's smile never waned as they sat down to eat, it seemed that yet another Alpha had proven themselves worthy of being trusted.