"Last but not least, this is the prey room." Miguel led Rosa and José inside, glancing at the schedule posted by the door before showing them how to feed the grasshoppers without accidentally letting any escape. "We take turns caring for the animals. These days, I handle a lot of it so I can pull up a chair and rest my leg, but it's still something you'll all be asked to do at some point."

A warm sense of pride and nostalgia washed over Miguel as he gave the new chefs a tour of The Crimson Goat. In the months since he'd been in their position, he had grown from being a complete stranger to all things culinary to a seasoned chef. His heart fluttered as he remembered when Alejandro had given him the same tour he was leading now. So much had changed, yet his Moonbeam still lit up the entire kitchen with his smile.

"Can't say I ever imagined tending to prey," Rosa said. "When do we actually get to cook?"

"You'll be taking turns helping with prep work at the different stations for a while, followed by supervised cooking before we let you handle stuff on your own," Miguel explained. "Rosa, you'll be at the dessert station today. José, you'll be on appetizers."

With their tour complete, Miguel took the pair back to the main kitchen so they could get acquainted with their mentors for the evening. Luis was already out in the dining room setting out silverware under the watchful— and incredibly anxious— eye of one of the senior waitstaff.

And Miguel was in charge of making sure the three new employees behaved themselves and got along with everyone reasonably well.

"I'm starting to understand why Isabella is so stressed all the time," he said as he took his usual place beside Alejandro. He watched the new chefs out of the corner of his eye as he set to work grinding meat for the night's sausages.

"They'll be fine," Alejandro said gently. "First days are always hard, but they're almost never someone's last."

Miguel chuckled nervously. "Not sure if I would have made it through mine without you." Yolanda hadn't exactly been thrilled to have someone so inexperienced in the kitchen, and Ralph's hands-on teaching methods had left his wrists aching. As much as he viewed the kitchen as a second home now, Miguel still remembered how unfamiliar and overwhelming it felt at first.

Judging from José's dilated pupils and trembling hands, their youngest chef was dealing with much worse than first day jitters.

"I'll handle the rest of the prep." Alejandro's hand gave Miguel's a reassuring squeeze. "You've got this!"

Miguel took a deep breath, forcing his spines to lay flat. If he was truly going to lead a pack someday, he'd have to get used to taking charge. A pack's leader had to be as unshakeable as a tree's roots, providing constant support no matter the hardship they faced. Without it, they'd surely fall.

No pressure.

A familiar sight greeted Miguel at the appetizer station. Ralph had taken it upon himself to adjust José's sloppy grip on his knife by forcing his fingers into the correct position. The blade shook in José's hand as his breaths came fast and shallow.

"Is everything okay?" Miguel asked.

José's spines leaped to attention, only to relax slightly when his eyes found Miguel's. "Could you please tell your friend to take his hand off me?"

"Kid, you're going to mangle the meat or your fingers if you keep holding the damn knife like you were trying to," Ralph said, his brows knitted together in annoyance. "Just ask Miguel. He found out the hard way what happens when you let yourself get sloppy."

José's eyes widened as if he was staring down the barrel of a gun.

"Stop scaring him," Miguel hissed, earning an eye roll from Ralph. He held out his hand so José could see the line of pale scales where he'd accidentally cut himself right before he met Alejandro's family. "I just nicked it. But you do need to let Ralph show you the proper technique. It may feel strange now, but it just takes practice, like learning how to do a hunter's crouch."

"Can't he show me without being so close to me?" José's voice trembled worse than his hand. "The last time a human touched me was David."

"That punk who tried to start shit at The Iron Cactus?" Ralph's muscles twitched with agitation as his voice dropped to a growl.

Miguel nodded. "He had one of his tantrums when José was coming back from a hunt."

"One of his—" Ralph swore under his breath. "The fucker laid a hand on him?" He loosened his grip on José's hand, his fingers gently probing the chupacabra's for any sign of injury.

"Smashed a bottle against my face." José pointed at the scar under his eye. "You weren't hurting me. I just—"

"Just got scared." Ralph pursed his lips, nodded. "Alright, we'll do things a little differently. Might not be as fast as the usual way, but it should be alright. Put the knife down carefully, like it's a hatchling."

Once José did as he was told, Ralph picked up the knife and sliced through a duck breast with all the gentle slowness of Miguel and Alejandro cooking breakfast together after a long night out. "Always curl in your claws. Safety comes first, then technique, then speed."

"Curl my claws," José muttered to himself, mimicking Ralph's fingers.

"Yes, exactly. Now, you see how my fingers guide the blade? None of this handle-only shit. To get a good, clean cut, you have to show the blade who's boss."

With José's spines now lying flat as he watched Ralph demonstrate some basic knife work, Miguel turned his attention to the other chupacabra in the kitchen.

She and Yolanda were getting along as well as onions and tear ducts.

"For the last time," Rosa said, her spines bristling, "you are not my pack leader. Quit acting like you are!"

"In this kitchen, you will listen to me! You are here to cook, not to do whatever you please." Yolanda rolled her eyes as Miguel approached. "She tried to eat some of the aspic."

"Because I saw him drinking some of the soup." Rosa bared her teeth. "Do humans not allow everyone to partake of their food?"

"The only reason he gets to do it is because he's packless!"

Miguel cleared his throat. "Mr. Kaminski has been kind enough to let me eat while I work because he knew I'd have a hard time without a pack, but I can stop if it bothers you."

Rosa ducked her head. "Don't. Sorry I didn't think of that. Are you doing alright?"

"My partner treats me wonderfully," Miguel said with a quiet thrum. "We're planning on starting our own pack soon."

Rosa's eyes widened as she caught Alejandro stealing a glance at the two of them. "You and him? But who...?"

"Isabella promised to acknowledge us."

Yolanda snorted at the look on Rosa's face. "Those two are full of surprises. Get used to it."

"Stars, they really are." Rosa shook her head. "So you haven't chosen your pack name yet?"

"No, but we have a few ideas." All of which filled him with more warmth and happiness than he could possibly describe.

Rosa thrummed. "Just say the word, and I'll make sure word gets to Isabella. From what I've heard, you aren't welcome near Saguaro Pack's territory."

Miguel chuckled nervously. "Yeah, it would probably be easier for someone else to deliver the news. Thanks for offering!"

"While I'm glad you two enjoy each other's company, some of us have desserts to prepare," Yolanda said with a huff. "Although I am sorry I didn't explain our rules to you sooner, Rosa. I've been dealing with him for so long that I forgot not all of you are as familiar with how things work around here."

With that dispute resolved, the evening's prep work resumed along with the kitchen's usual chatter. The two new chupacabras, while obviously inexperienced, got along with their human coworkers well enough, and that would only improve once they had more time to adjust. They'd master the recipes, join the chorus of voices acknowledging each ticket, and adapt to all the intricacies of working in a kitchen.

Perhaps they would come to see the rest of the chefs as their pack, just as Miguel had.

The familiar scent of cologne told Miguel that Luis was approaching the pass long before his eyes did. "Mind if I speak with you a minute?" Luis asked quietly. More quietly than Miguel had ever heard him say anything.

Miguel gestured for Luis to follow him and led him into the prey room. Among the mice and chirping insects, nobody would be able to hear their conversation. Besides, his leg needed the rest. He took his usual seat and stretched his tight muscles with a sigh. "Everything alright? Service'll be starting soon, but we've got a little time if you need me to have a word with anyone."

"Folks are skittish, but no more than usual. Thanks for convincing the owner to give me a shot, by the way." Luis fidgeted with his new apron, the fabric tight against his bulky chest. "I'm surprised you want to be around me, to be honest. Heard about what happened. Kind of hard not to considering folks won't shut up about it."

Miguel bit back a swear. "Please tell me they're not giving you a hard time about that."

"Nah. Most of them don't even realize we already knew each other, and the ones that do knew me as a customer long enough to think that was the reason. I do tend to make a strong impression on people." Luis's chuckle was half-hearted. Empty. "Listen, I'm really sorry that stuff fucked you up so bad."

"It's my fault for not following the directions."

"But you were new to that sort of thing, and I'm sure as hell not. I should have made sure you weren't going to get carried away." A hint of Luis's usual humor returned as he said, "Should've known you'd go a bit nuts since kissing is probably the most action you'll ever want. Bet a hug is enough to get you chirping."

"Alejandro does know how to make me happy." Just thinking about him brought a deep thrum rumbling out of Miguel's throat.

"Sure sounds like it! Think I could treat you two to dinner sometime?"

"Definitely wouldn't mind another cup of that pho. Alejandro's been dying to try it, but I'm having the worst time trying to track it down." He hadn't exactly been in the right frame of mind to remember much during his first twenty-four hours without his old pack.

"Surprised you have an appetite for much else considering how much these people feed you." Luis ground his back teeth against each other, thinking. "Feels weird being here. I'd only been planning on doing what I've been doing until Camilla got better, but after she died I just never stopped. Gets lonely out there, you know?"

Miguel had gotten a taste of it, but he couldn't imagine the pain of losing a mate. "I know nothing can replace her, but I'm glad you decided to give The Crimson Goat a chance. Everyone here is like a pack to me."

"They really do care about you, don't they?" Luis's lips curled into a smile, the first real one Miguel had seen from him all night. "I think Camilla would have liked it here, too."