Terry above

Terry POV

I spent the night on the couch in the living room, and because of that, my back isn't the happiest part of my body now. I go down to the bar to feed Doggy; he seems to sulk because I left him alone for the whole night.

"Sorry, Doggy, it's just..." I don't get to finish because I see Pearl standing at the door.

"Terry, Pearl slept well," she says and smiles brightly. "Ivory sleeps; she okay?"

"Yes, I think she is just exhausted."

Doggy comes closer to smell her, he growls a bit, but he's never attacked without a command unless he feels threatened. He sniffs her and doesn't seem happy, but she also seems a little scared of him cause she backs away. I come closer and once again reach my hand to her, and she takes it.

"Don't worry; Doggy won't hurt you. Just be very calm around him. Can you do it?" I say, trying to sound, I have no idea, friendly. She watches me today more alertly.

"Ivory said not trust... will you hurt us... Ivory said other could hurt us. But you helped us... why?" she keeps fidgeting with her fingers, and I don't know why, but she makes me feel touched. I'm a cold-blooded killer, yet something in her makes me want to protect her.

"I won't hurt you, kid. Let's get upstairs and check on your sister," I say, guiding her back. She doesn't let go of my hand.

We come to the bedroom; the second one is sitting and looking around, confused. But the moment she sees us, or probably me, she bares her canines, and her eyes start shifting. I guess she isn't too happy that I'm so close to her sister. Pearl jumps in her direction.

"Ivory, not mad... Terry didn't hurt... Terry gave food."

Ivory snarls, but she seems a bit hesitant about what to do next. Run or accept help? Not that she is in good shape to run. I'm sure she feels better, but the wound so festering couldn't just heal in a couple of hours since, for sure, her wolf has struggled with it for days.

"Hey Ivory, my name is Terry. Your sister was stealing from my dumpsters for the last week; yesterday, she showed me a way to you."

"You are not one of us, and yet you know why?" she asks warily.

"I had some history with werewolves, but I'm not your enemy. And let's be honest; you don't have any other option than to trust me."

Pearl sits next to her sister and starts singing something. Ivory and I just let her do it. I sit on the chair close to her but let her keep her distance.

"Listen, Ivory, you don't know me or trust me, and it's alright. But your wounds need to get healed, and both you and Pearl need to get better before you can decide what to do next. Let's do this that way. I'll ask you a question, and then you will ask me a question. If you don't want or can't answer, don't lie. Just say you can't tell. Can we do it that way?"

She nods, yet her canines are still out, and she trembles slightly. Well, why wouldn't she?

"So Ivory, how old are you and your sister?"

"I'm 12; Pearl is 13. Why did Pearl talk with you?"

"She used to come to my bar to steal food in her wolf form; yesterday, she was spotted by two warriors from the closest pack. I helped her hide, and she asked for my help. It was very bad with you; I guess she didn't know what to do."

"What pack is close to here?" she asks quickly, too quickly, in my opinion.

"Howl Pack," I say, and she relaxes visibly. "How long are you and Pearl alone?"

"Not sure but many, many weeks, it was okay at the beginning. I am good at hunting but not at fighting."

"Was it how you got hurt? Were you in a fight with some rogues?"

She averts her eyes and whimpers a little. Pearl also stopped singing and starts waving her body:

"Big wolf attacked sister... big wolf hurt sister... but we escaped..."

"Why do you know about werewolves?" Ivory ignores Pearl and goes back to our conversation.

"I can't tell you, but If I had wanted to hurt you, I wouldn't have helped in the first place, don't you think?"

What I've said seems logical to her because she accepts my answer.

"Ivory, except for the wound on your thigh, you also have bruised ribs and many cuts. Has your wolf tried healing you?"

"Yes, but she is weak. Before the attack, we didn't eat for a while. He was big too."

I nod; she looks starved and exhausted; it must've taken time.

"Okay, Ivory, do you have anyone? Anyone at all I can, and you want me to notify where you are?"

That makes her look at me with something dark in her eyes. Well, I guess even if they had someone before, they don't have one now. I turn around to Pearl, who is a little teary.

"No, we don't have anyone," Ivory says in a dead voice. "What will you want from us for your help?"

"Nothing, you..." but I'm interrupted almost instantly.

"Then why have you helped?"

That's actually a difficult question to answer. Why have I done it? I was so set on staying away from troubles, and yet I have just invited them into my life. They are the strangers, my sworn enemies no less and no more. If we had met ten years ago, I would kill them both without hesitation and with a hint of remorse.

"It was a long time since I helped anyone; I guess your appearance was so sudden I didn't have enough time to think it through," I say, and to my surprise, she seems pretty happy with my answer. Well, beggars can't be choosers; she has no other way than to trust me.

"Okay, I will bring you your breakfast. It's better if you stay in bed for today." I say, deciding that enough of interrogation for now at least.

But I don't get to have peace and quiet because Pearl comes after me to the kitchen and is dead set to help me. She says she wants pancakes, and to my surprise, she seems more skillful in preparing them than I am. So I guess even though she seems mentally disabled, she was taught how to care for herself. After the pancakes are ready, we take them to Ivory, and Pearl feeds her sister, who doesn't protest but is too weak to eat the whole portion. I put her on another drip and change her bandage; the wound on her leg is still exacerbated and very painful, yet Ivory is reluctant to take any painkillers, and I don't force her.

Pearl seems to trust me unconditionally; Ivory doesn't. She returns to sleep soon after breakfast, and Pearl wants to watch TV, which I allow. It seems very strange to sit in one room with her. Usually, at this time of the day, I read, clean, or fix something in the bar. But today I'm always busy with her because she wants something from me every ten minutes. She wants to draw, she wants another channel, she wants to tell me that she likes Scooby-Doo, she wants to see my dog again, she wants to sing to me, and that's how it goes.

For three hours, I follow her wishes and find it amusing, then Aunty Mae returns. I've managed to call her and explain the situation, but when she enters our flat, Pearl instantly jumps and hides behind me; I feel her hands clutching my shirt; she's trembling.

"Pearl, this is Aunty Mae; she lives here with me and won't hurt you."

Aunty Mae smiles kindly to her, and Pearl, a little timidly, tries to behave.

"Well, for now, nobody can know that they are here," says Mae when I tell her everything I know. "I know Natasha; she will be dead set to find out who had attacked her warriors in additional to hunter's poison."

"I'm sorry; I've promised I would be no trouble," I say, but she shrugs off.

"Terry, you couldn't just leave them in that mud. But you must understand that this must be very serious. It's so rare for two kids to be alone without the pack. We must know more about them."

"Before we get Ivory to trust us, I doubt we can get there. I've tried to talk with Pearl today, but her sister trained her well, and she hasn't said anything worthwhile. "

"Well, for now, don't worry too much; I will take care of the bar today. You stay and watch them."

In the evening, Ivory is finally awakened; I inform her about Aunty Mae, change her bandage again and make her eat. She watches me warily; she is tense and full of distrust; Pearl is totally the opposite as she encourages her to watch TV with her or play with Doggy. I showed her how to pet him earlier, and she is now very excited about him. He seems surprised by all the attention he is getting but accepts it calmly. Because she is now so busy with him, I motion for Ivory to come closer to me. I wish to talk with her without her sister around.

"Ivory, I didn't want to ask this question with Pearl around, but how exactly were you attacked and when?"

She glances in the direction of her sister, making sure we are not heard.

"Almost two weeks ago, I went hunting the rabbit, Pearl was so hungry she didn't wait for me and left the hideout I had left her, so I had to look for her. I guess her scent attracted him; we were lucky he was alone and seemed old. My wolf is huge, but I don't know how to fight; I wasn't trained."

"But before that, you were living in a pack, right? Ivory, please don't lie to me. You were living in the pack recently, and then something happened, and you've run. You don't have to tell me why if you don't want to, but I must know if there is a chance that you were followed or someone is looking for you." I say in a stern voice; she must understand that this is serious.

She wriggles a little in her place as if wondering which answer would be the safest.

"I don't know for sure. I left him bleeding. I don't know if he survived, but if he did, he would be looking for us," something flashes in her eyes, and her hands start trembling.

"Okay, did you have any destination? I mean, can this "he" figure out where you ran?"

"No, we have nobody. I didn't have a plan; I just took Pearl and ran as fast as possible and as far as I could. We were only running for the first couple of weeks, and it was raining a lot, so I doubt his trackers could catch our scent."

I nod and don't comment; I don't let her notice that she just gave me critical information. "His trackers," she said, meaning they are running away from the Alpha.

"What are you talking about?" Pearl suddenly appears so close to us. "Pearl wants to know too; secrets are bad in the family mommy said."

"I don't have secrets, but it's my business, not yours," says Ivory a bit harshly, and Pearl looks taken aback a little.

"You think Pearl stupid... you think Pearl weak because Omega."

Omega? Well, that explains why she is so tiny, and I mistook her for a real wolf, Ivory, on the other hand, is very big.

"Well, don't argue, girls, Pearl, do you want me to read you?" why I actually offered her that? Well, it was the first thing that came to my mind.

Later when I do it, Pearl is almost glued to me, but Ivory also sits beside us, listening. I was always a big fan of books, my mum used to read me a lot, and now somehow, these feelings are returning to me. I feel homely. Strange feeling if you ask me, strange and unexpected but also quite pleasant.

By the time Aunty Mae closes the bar, both girls are sleeping soundly; Aunty waits for me in the living room.

"So, what do you think?" I ask, sitting in front of her.

"First, we must wait for them to get better, I wish I could take them to a pack doctor, but I understand right now it is out of the question. According to Howl Pack, many rogues have walked lately through our town, so if we are careful, there is a chance that Howl Pack won't be digging into this too much. But if they don't have any family, I think it would be worth convincing Natasha to take them in. They can't be alone out there, no matter what. But first, we must know the full story, and I think it will take time."

I nod in understanding. Finding the pack is the best possible solution for them now.

"I must say I'm surprised," Aunty Mae says, and I have no idea what she is referring to.

"You are very good with them; they immediately took to you. I've never expected to see such a soft side of you."

Somehow her words make me feel embarrassed, but I can't deny that today I felt so relaxed like I haven't felt for so many years. 

New Chapter with a bit of delay because of the New Year :)