It’s spring which means courting time

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When Alpha meets Omega

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Chapter 1:

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It’s spring.

 

The evergreen trees no longer have their branches covered in snow and the birds freely sing in the forest canopy, noise carried throughout the forest to sound like an entire chorus.

The forest floor is wet from the melting snow, puddles and squishy muddy ground leaving all sorts of imprints animals leave behind. There’s still a chill in the air, since the sun can’t quite reach through the dense cover of the trees, but the wolves have been itching to escape their pack and go out and explore.

 

The moment the pack leader gives the go-ahead, the younger wolves dash out towards the forest, yipping and snapping at one another as they disappear into the foliage.

Dozens of tracks, both human and animal, are smushed into the muggy earth. It’s slippery, and one can easily lose their footing if they aren’t careful enough.

That’s easier said than done when you only have two legs.

 

Animals are emerging from their dens and already is a food pile forming, consisting of rabbits, squirrels, and field mice, if one’s patient enough to wait by the meadows close to the mountains, further away from the forest.

 

Today, Carlos is in the forest, though he’s usually a frequent visitor to the meadows or the open fields in their territory.

He likes to pick out the wildflowers and bring them back, give them to some of the other pack members, but it’s still too early for the flowers to fully bloom.

He’s content with roaming the forest, sniffing around for prey if anything’s nearby, but he’s a little too occupied right now.

 

Carlos is following a set of tracks on foot, using his nose and sense of direction to pinpoint where exactly he needs to go.

There’s rustling in the bushes, but then one of his pack members will pop out and sprint off with a rabbit in their hands or in their jaws depending on their form, and they’ll head back in the direction of home to drop off their kill.

 

The first week of spring is a bountiful harvest, one of the weeks where the wolves grab as much food as they can and celebrate with big feasts and huge dinners. It’s also the time where the pack members mate or announce the upcoming arrival of children, but Carlos doesn’t participate in those festivities.

 

Not yet, anyways.

 

He’s at the right age for mating, but no pack member has attempted to officially court him so he focuses on the more important things in life:

 

Having fun and enjoying his free time.

 

Carlos’s not the best hunter, but he knows how to use his nose, and he picks up on the scent he’s been following for the past five minutes off the forest trail and into the bushes and trees.

He veers that way, crouches a little bit and make sure he’s upwind to keep this a surprise, but then he steps on a small twig buried in the mud and it snaps.

 

A few seconds pass and Carlos stands still, not moving a muscle. But he was heard and he can hear leaves shuffling to his left.

 

Lunging towards a tree, he grabs hold of it and spins his head around, yelling out a “Gotcha!” as he reaches for his capture: a slender, scruffy brunette boy by the name of Leo.

 

The other boy yelps, twisting away from Carlos and growling playfully. “You cheated!”

 

“I did not!” Carlos argues, aghast, sliding around the tree trunk to stand above his playmate. “I just had to find you, and I did. I played fair and square.”

 

“You still suck at sneaking,” the younger wolf huffs, sticking out his tongue. There's a smudge of dirt across his left cheek and twigs in his hair. “No wonder you can't catch rabbits.”

 

Offended, he shoves Leo over with his foot. “You suck at standing still and hiding your scent.”

 

Leo rolls over onto his back, baring his throat ever so slightly in a reflexive gesture of submission, a smug grin on his face. “At least I can catch food if I have to. You're lucky I gave you part of the deer Kai brought down last week, too!”

 

“You won’t have to catch food anymore when he’s done courting you,” Carlos sniffs, throwing in a sly smile, “and your hunting skills will suck because he’ll kill everything for you.”

 

“You're just jealous.”

 

“ Am not.”

 

In the blink of an eye, Leo pounces with a yip, dragging Carlos down to the forest floor and rolling over top of him.

They scuffle for a minute, just like they always have since they were young pups, until Leo puts his mouth on the back of Carlos’s neck and bites lightly.

 

Carlos squirms, but Leo’s taller and heavier and he can’t shake him off. “What are you doing?” the older omega protests with a whine, successfully elbowing Leo off him, who’s giggling and sniggering.

 

“Putting you in your place,” the younger crows, flopping back against the tree trunk for support. “But now I'm hungry. . . Think it's dinner time yet? I heard we’re getting rabbit stew tonight!”

 

Now Carlos’s clothes are dirty and he grumbles, sitting up now that Leo is off. He blows back his bangs and glances up. “I don’t think it’s dinner time yet, but we can head back. I need to change my clothes now, thanks to you.”

 

“Last one there's a rotten egg!”

 

Leo’s already vaulted over the bushes in the lead and Carlos scrambles to his feet, charging after his friend through the forest.

Leo had to pick the difficult part of the forest to hide in, and while Carlos could walk through it no problem, running through it is a whole different story.

He almost trips multiple times and Leo kicks up sticks to stall him, and it’s obviously Leo who wins when they clear the trees and start their trek back to the pack village.

 

Carlos’s stamina when it comes to running is poor but he follows, other wolves nearby staring at them as they rush by, but they both slow down to a jog when they arrive.

Leo’s won, wants to brag about it as Carlos hunches over with his hands on his knees in an attempt to catch his breath, lungs fighting for every gasp while Leo does a victory dance around the loser.

 

The pack’s head omega, a tall broad shouldered man named Jorge, passes them by and shakes his head at their antics. “Come on, you two,” he chides, “I could use some help cleaning rabbits for dinner. Go get tidied up!”

 

The two let out a mumbled, “Yes Jorge,” before they trudge towards their cave.

 

Their pack is situated right at the base of the mountains, has been for generations.

Big holes have been carved out of part of the mountainside for nests, each one housing the different hierarchies: alpha, beta, and omega.

They live all in one respective to who they are, meaning Leo and Carlos both sleep with each other and all of the other unmated omegas in the pack.

 

However, there are wooden structures scattered about on their land; many resemble cabins and quite a few are rather old, left there by past generations to be used later on.

The important cabins include their mini library full of human and non-human books gathered over the years, the infirmary, storage houses, and a small greenhouse for keeping their plants and herbs alive during the harsh winter months.

 

The other cabins are reserved for mated couples. They’re quaint, with just a bedroom, a tiny kitchen, and maybe a living room depending on the space.

Each one is built by selected members of the pack, though alphas are in charge of doing most of the work, especially if they’re building their own home for their mate.

 

Their leader, Erik, built his and Jorge’s cabin from the ground up all by himself. Of course it’s the largest cabin, and perhaps the most luxurious, but both head wolves are very humble and polite.

They’re soulmates, actually, which rarely ever happens. Erik and Jorge are the lucky ones because wolves never meet their soulmate unless they’re that lucky 5% who do find their soulmate and live that happily ever after story.

Even Carlos feels a little jealous when he sees them together because they’re so perfect.

 

While other packs live right off the fringes of society, maybe working in the human world blending in or socializing with them, this pack is one of the only ones in the area that still lead primitive lives, shielded behind dense forests no man would enter.

They catch their own food, grow their own plants, stitch their own clothes (or sometimes steal from humans, because where else can they get pants or undergarments.) and adhere to most of their old traditions.

 

Everyone is family.

 

And it’s nice.

 

Carlos and Leo enter their cave and greet the other omegas inside laying in their beds. Their beds are about the comfiest things on earth, even better than the mattresses that mated couples sleep on.

 

They consist of loads of animal hides and handwoven blankets and whatever other soft materials they can find.

There used to be a sheep farm a few miles away and their wool would be used for makeshift mattresses, but the farmer kept losing money because all of his wool kept disappearing and he packed up and left a couple years ago.

 

Carlos still has his wool bedding and it’s very comfortable.

 

He and Leo grab a fresh set of clothes before they head out to the river behind their caves.

Everyone bathes in the river because trying to get plumbing to work out here is a nightmare. They’ve managed irrigation systems for their gardens and sinks in the various buildings all on that same line, but anything other than that is a stretch.

 

The water comes from the mountains and there’s an endless supply of crystal clear water almost year round. It’s used for just about everything, too.

 

“You got my clothes all dirty,” Carlos complains as he drops his new clothes on a rock by the riverbed, “and Jorge isn’t going to be very happy when this shows up in the laundry.”

 

“You were the one that didn’t want to wolf out for the hunt,” Leo says as he strips down to nothing, not a hint of shame, “wouldn’t have clothes to get dirty then.”

 

“You tackled me!”

 

Carlos throws a boot at Leo but misses, the younger dodging by slipping into the water. Carlos strips, standing behind the rock for the privacy, before slowly getting into the water to join his friend. “Besides, our coats are shedding and it’s gross. We have clumps all over and it feels weird.”

 

They wade over to a deeper part of the river and Leo leans back to float. “You gotta let your coat shed. You know I’d help groom you if you wanted. Kai helps me get the worst of it out.”

 

“That’s because Kai is courting you,” Carlos states, wrinkling his nose. “I don’t want your tongue on me when I don’t know where it’s been, especially after you’ve hung out with him.”

 

There’s a pause for a moment and Leo looks up at the sky. “Are you mad that I’m courting? You know there’s plenty of wolves that want to court you, Carlos. . .”

 

Carlos purses his lips.

He knows there are wolves who have shown an interest in him, whether it be just by talking to him or offering him the flowers he likes or sharing their meals.

But that’s not his problem, because he hasn’t put much thought into who he might want to mate within this pack.

Gavin is smitten for him, but Carlos’s friend Adrien really likes the beta and Carlos’s not going to hurt his friend over a guy.

 

“I don’t care about being courted,” he mumbles, sinking his toes into the round pebbles on the river’s bottom, “but I didn’t know you’d be courted so fast. He’s almost two years younger than us, I don’t even think he’s had a rut yet—”

 

“I know . I mean, I know we aren’t soulmates, but. . . I really like Kai. I know he’ll be a good alpha, and he wants a family.”

 

Ever since they were little, Leo had dreamed of finding his soulmate, settling down, and having a whole mess of pups.

He loved kids, and couldn’t wait to have pups of his own.

 

“He’s good to you, but I just. . . please don’t get knocked up in the next couple of months. He’s only nineteen. . .”

 

Under the water, Leo kicks at Carlos’s ribs and then dunks himself all the way under the water, re-emerging soaking wet. “You worry too much,” he teases the elder, “my heats aren’t regular yet, and Kai hasn’t had his first rut either. You won’t be an uncle anytime soon.”

 

Carlos whines when Leo kicks him, hands coming down to rub at that spot. “Ew, I don’t want to be an uncle until I’m thirty. Or have pups. I’m older than you and you’re growing up faster than me, stop it.”

 

“Oh shush, I’ve helped you through a heat before. You don’t remember the stuff you say, but I do.”

 

At that, the elder blushes. The omegas help each other during heat, keeps anyone from getting pregnant since they’re separated from the betas and alphas.

 

“D-don’t bring that up, you pervert.”

 

“We’ve all begged for a knot, Carlos, don’t be a prude,” the younger teases, eyes flashing with mischief.

 

Carlos sinks under the water to his nose, mumbling a “whatever” before he covers his mouth and soaks for the rest of the time they’re in the river.

 

When they eventually get out, it’s because Jorge comes by, standing above the river watching the two omegas splash around. “Come on you two, dinner’s going to be cooked soon, but only after we take care of those rabbits.”

 

Leo groans but they both clamber out, and Jorge’s considerate enough to hand them towels since they always seem to forget.

Carlos is happy to take it, doesn’t like being nude, but Leo doesn’t mind bending over without his towel or stepping into his clothes wet.

 

When dressed, they leave the towels out to dry and follow Jorge into the heart of the pack. They have a cabin for the kitchens where they get everything ready, other omegas and a few betas already preparing ingredients for the feast.

 

Carlos feels Leo nudge him in the arm when they see Gavin skinning the rabbits off to the side. And what a coincidence, there’s a spot next to him.

 

His best friend exploits him and pushes him in that direction, and Carlos almost bumps into Gavin’s side. “Sorry,” Carlos apologizes, having to tilt his head back to actually meet Gavin’s eyes.

 

“Hey, Carl, it’s okay,” the beta says with an easy smile, reaching down to hand the omega one of the rabbits that have yet to be skinned. “Wanna help?”

 

Gavin is handsome, tall, broad-shouldered, really an ideal mate for any omega. He’s kind, patient, but not over-bearing in the way some alphas can be.

He’s always been nice to Carlos, but lately it’s intensified. In the last several weeks he’s been offering the omega choice cuts of meat at dinner, which is one of the ways wolves can show their interest.

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TBC