---Marcus POV---

Imagine waking up while having an angel in your arms. That's how I woke up in the middle of the night, feeling something nudge at my mind and my wolf purring in content before I felt a wet tongue lap over my nose.

My eyes flew open as my mind woke up instantly at the sight of an unknown and slightly blushing male in my arms. My eyes widened slightly before our eyes locked and I grinned at the slight yip that escaped Zayne's lips.

But damn, he's cute. And goddamn gorgeous too.

The darkness did nothing to diminish his beauty, his brown eyes sparkling as they were focused on me. I could tell he felt uncomfortable in his body after being a wolf for so long, every motion he made was jittery, tense and seemed painful.

Tugging him closer, I rubbed soothing circles over the tense muscles of his back and smiled as he followed my advice, tucking his face against my throat before he promptly fell asleep. I let my fingers wander over his back before reaching up to sift through his dark brown threshes.

A soft sigh escaped me as my fingers traced his form, feeling his ribs and spine clearly under the ever-present muscles. It was both a blessing and a curse of our species; due to our wolves, we would always retain a certain amount of muscles. That's why it was hard to evaluate malnourished individuals, because their muscle mass would mask their fragility.

"No doubt the poor pup doesn't even know how to control his body, not even to mention the pain he'll have to go through in stretching his muscles." I muttered, smiling to myself as I felt him huff and nuzzle against my throat.

Footsteps sounded in the hallway, the gentle scuffing of a foot against the floor alerted me who it was before Mike opened the door after knocking softly and hesitantly peeked inside.

"Hey Marcus, I was wondering if you wanted....is that...Zayne?" He whispered in shock, fingers falling of the handle as he took a few curious steps inside. I nodded and smiled softly, relaxing my arm the tiniest bit so Zayne rolled a bit on his back.

Mike stepped closer, tilting his head as he looked at the young man in my arms, his eyes wide in awe and curiosity. "Whoa...to think that he's that tiny pup..." His eyes flitted over Zayne's features before they saddened, eyes freezing on certain spots of his body.

I followed his gaze and had to bite my tongue to stop the low and threatening snarl as my eyes settled on the milky pale scars that littered his body. Some I could distinguish as bite scars, others from being beaten. Mike gasped as his eyes landed on circular scars on Zayne's elbows, wrists and hips, all from former pressure sores.

"I-I'm getting Alice..." He muttered, paling slightly before he slapped a hand over his mouth and scurried out of the room. I sighed and hushed Zayne as he whimpered in his sleep before I made sure that he was covered when I heard several feet rushing towards us.

Soon enough the room was filled with curious wolves as they all fought to get through the door first, making me roll my eyes, especially when Alice huffed and shifted before pouncing over the pile of wriggling bodies.

She quickly went to the bathroom to change before she was by the bed, checking what was visible of Zayne's body. She gently lifted his arm, flexed his wrists before staring at the collection of scars.

"Most of them will fade after some therapy. Most, but certainly not all of them." She stated solemnly, making me sigh deeply while the rest of the pack finally got in the room and stared at Zayne in awe.

"Let's just see how he's going to react tomorrow. For now he needs to rest and get used to his new body." Lee spoke softly as he stared down at my mate. Several of the pack pouted at that, obviously tempted to wake Zayne up so they could talk to the boy. Well, they'd just have to wait and let my mate sleep.

Zayne slept rather wolfish too; instead of stretching out to his full length, he stayed almost curled up, only stopped by my body laying in his way. When I went to slip out of the bed, a low whimper escaped him and I could clearly feel his wolf getting distressed.

"Looks like you're going to be waiting until your mate gets up huh?" Sebastian drawled, smiling down as Zayne buried his face against my throat and inhaled deeply. I could only grin widely and nod, my eyes softening as I hugged him closer to my body.

"Seems like it."

---Zayne's POV---

I huffed as I slowly became aware of my surroundings and more importantly, the overall soreness of my body. As I moved to push myself up, I had to bite my tongue as pain shot through my muscles and made my limbs tremble continuously.

Looking to my left, I stopped and tilted my head as I saw Marcus asleep, even though the sun was now shining through the windows. My bladder started to protest slightly, so I did my best to shuffle to the side of the bed and managed to flip my weird and rather long hind legs out of the bed.

Seems like I need to get used to using my body again...

Copying what I've seen the rest of the pack do, I pushed myself off the bed and took a step forwards, eyes set on the bathroom door. Only, I didn't take a gracious step forwards.

My knees buckled as soon as they had to carry my full body weight, which wasn't a lot to begin with. As soon as my mind realized what was happening, I had already hit the ground with a harsh slam, bashing my head on the floor before I let out a pained whimper.

"Zayne!"

I could hear Marcus jump off the bed before he hurried by my side as I simply lay there, not even able to push myself up in a sitting position. Marcus' arms slipped around me before he pulled me upright and in his lap, his hand instantly finding the bump on my head as I whimpered and moved my head away.

"Hey, its alright. What happened?"

A blush formed on my cheeks as I looked down at my lap, fingers twitching nervously. "I....I never learned how to....speak." I whispered through our link, expecting him to laugh at my stupidity or point out yet another of my flaws. Instead, his eyes lit up with understanding before he hugged me closer to him.

"We expected as much, especially when we learned you were forced not to shift since you were little. That's why you probably fell; you aren't used to a human body." I blinked, shocked that he pinpointed the problem so easily and made it seem like it was no problem at all.

My shoulders dipped down as I stared at my lap, ashamed before I felt Marcus' fingers brush underneath my chin and tilted my face up gently. "Don't worry Zayne, I'm here to help you get back to your full strength."

Releasing my chin, his hand drifted to my own and my stiff fingers before he gently started to flex them. Pain pulsed through my hand with each motion, but it was bearable so I tried my best to keep my sounds of protest inside.

I did yelp when he stood up suddenly, my arms wrapped awkwardly around his neck as Marcus held me without so much as a sign of straining. Instead, he offered me that unguarded smile before he ventured to the bathroom and softly deposited me on the toilet.

"Your wolf was calling out to me." He offered as an answer at my questioning gaze before I broke eye contact and blushed yet again. Marcus went outside so I could pee in privacy, not before I struggled to untie my newly acquired sweatpants.

I flushed and managed to pull the fabric back up but didn't know how to lay a knot in the strings so it wouldn't drop from my hips. Much to my embarrassment, Marcus had to help me out and I felt like a little kid that needed someone else to dress him.

He only chuckled as I blushed brightly and tried my best to let my cheeks cool down. This never happened when I was still a wolf! With a last soft tug, Marcus stood up and stood beside me before getting a firm hold of my arm.

"We're going to try and walk to the kitchen, at your pace. You need to use your muscles and get used to this body." Marcus added when I shot him a wide-eyed and probably fearful look.

One of his arms wrapped around me to help and keep me steady while he offered the palm of his hand. Reaching out slowly, I watched cautiously for any sign that he would rethink this situation and decide to have a better mate, but I could see the truth in his eyes.

Wobbling on my feet, I grabbed his hand in my own and clung to Marcus' body, shivering when I felt a reassuring growl rumble through his chest. I licked my dry lips and frowned, hesitantly shuffling forwards and expecting to drop on my face again.

Instead, Marcus carried most of my weight, only allowing the bare minimum so I still had to move my legs to get forwards. It was weird to stand so high, although compared to Marcus, I was tiny.

Glancing at him from the corner of my eye, I mentally awed at his height before I focused at the task at hand and slowly but surely shuffled my way down the hall. As soon as we arrived at the living room, I froze though, swallowing and looking at my weird paws...feet.

Why is everyone looking at me?!

Marcus gently stepped forwards while growling softly. It seemed to snap the pack out of their staring match as they all averted their gaze, though I could still feel the occasional glance our way.

By the time we shuffled to the seat, I was exhausted and let out a tiny whine.

Tired.

"Its okay Zayne. I'll get you something to eat and you can stay here and relax." I nodded, clutching at his arm for a moment when he lifted me over the couch and settled me down.

When Marcus disappeared into the kitchen, I could feel the stress and anxiety rising quickly. I've lived in the pack, sure, but it was in a form that I could use to defend myself. Now I was as helpless as a newborn pup.

And to prove my mental musing, my body wavered from side to side before I flopped onto the couch, listening to a few chuckles and coed words aimed my way.

"Being human is so hard...I'd rather go back to being a wolf". I thought to myself as I tried to push myself up on wobbly arms. Thankfully Wyatt had pity with me and sat me back upright before sitting beside me so I wouldn't fall over again.

Wyatt was observing me with a curious smile as I leaned against the couch and warily eyed him. He seemed to open his mouth to say something but I was attacked by a fluffy cotton ball before he could speak up.

Koda was yipping, jumping and letting out playful growls as he bounced all over the couch before he spotted me. I licked my lips nervously, flashing my teeth for a split second as the pup went to pounce. Luckily he could detect my nervousness and relented, though it seemed to be with great reluctance.

He did jump on my lap and balanced his paws on my chest to lick my lips, wanting reassurance and affection. A small huff left my lips before I got the pup in an awkward hug and tiredly lapped at the fluff on his head.

Being a human is awkward as hell!