Winter's Howl

"Ike, please don't go!"

It was like two gigantic invisible hands grabbed the beta and pinned him in place. Then they made him face the boy again. Ike could see that the kid's eyes were shiny, like he was about to cry.

"What...what did I do?" the omega whimpered. "Ever since yesterday morning, you've been so distant. It makes me sad. Why do you hate me all of a sudden?"

Ike felt his heart break a little. Without hesitation he almost ran back to Shiloh and hugged him as tightly as he could.

"I can't apologize enough for making you think those things. You didn't do anything, and I don't hate you at all."

The golden child sniffled. "Really?"

"Yes. I'm sorry that I hurt you. I really do have somewhere to be, but tonight, you and I are going to talk about whatever is going on between the two of us."

Shiloh looked Ike right in the eyes.

"Promise?"

The medic took both of his patient's hands in his and immediately a part of him wished he hadn't. God damn it, why did the kid's hands have to be so warm and soft? Why did they have to fit so perfectly in his palm? As distracting as it was, he forced himself to maintain eye contact.

"I swear it."

Finally Shiloh appeared to calm down somewhat. The boy who was made of gold was happily eating when Ike left a minute later.

*****

Once Tim had finished eating lunch with Paine in their tent he bundled up again and walked over to the infirmary. Hesitantly, he spoke loud enough to be heard through the closed entrance.

"Shiloh, are you in there?"

A moment later the tent opened and he saw the blond boy from yesterday. Shiloh wasn't wearing much when Tim had met him, but how he was wearing almost nothing, just a small loincloth.

"Hi Tim! It's so nice to see you again! Wait..." his brow furrowed. "Why are you here at the medic tent?"

"I told Kayleigh I'd brief you more about living in the pack. She said she would let Ike know I was coming."

"Oh, you're the omega he said would help me? That's wonderful!" he hopped up and down a little. "Let me get dressed and I'll be right out."

He closed the entrance again, leaving Tim reeling slightly. He didn't even know it was possible for an omega, especially one so small, to be this bubbly and energetic.

When the boy came back, now dressed a bit more, Tim walked with him to one of the sheds the pack used to store food and supplies. For whatever reason Shiloh held the other omega's hand the whole time. Just like yesterday, his skin was quite warm to the touch.

"Why are we here, Tim?" he asked when they arrived.

"I thought it was somewhere we could be alone. Is that okay with you?"

"Of course."

The two little omegas went inside and found comfortable places on the floor to sit. Tim also got some sticks so he could weave a little basket while he talked. Before he could start the briefing Shiloh asked about it.

"What's with all the twigs?"

"I was just going to weave something."

"Really? Can I try, too?"

"Uh, sure."

The blond boy was quite the fast learner. In about ten minutes he was weaving a basket of his own, though at a slower rate than Tim was.

Tim told his companion about the emergency procedures: what to do in case of forest fires, tornadoes, even attacks from other wolf packs. Shiloh listened carefully, asking several questions along the way.

Once the briefing was done their baskets were only about half finished, so they continued their work. Shiloh was shifting in place for a few minutes before he spoke up.

"Tim, can I ask you kind of a weird question?"

"Like what?"

"Well, as I'm sure you already noticed, my body temperature is really warm. It makes wearing clothes uncomfortable, especially inside. Would you mind if I stripped down?"

That was such an odd request Tim had no idea how to respond at first.

"You can totally say no, I know that that's a lot to ask of you."

The other omega wolf thought it over. There was one man in his heart and one man only. Shiloh saw Tim as a friend, and this was just so the lycan could be more comfortable.

"If you want to."

Shiloh's eyes widened. "Wow, you're the best!"

He took off everything he was wearing and sat down again.

"Why do you think you always feel so hot, Shiloh?"

The naked boy shrugged. "I don't know. In fact, I can't remember very much at all."

"Wait, what?"

Shiloh told Tim about what led to him being in the infirmary. It wasn't that long of a story.

"Have you remembered anything else?"

"No. I know I'm a lycan, I know my name is Shiloh, and I know that I turned twenty a couple days ago, but that's it. Everything else is murky. It's all a little scary, to be honest. I'm in a new place and I don't even know who I am. But it's not all bad. I've already found my best friend."

Tim paused in his motions. Never before had someone he wasn't family with seen him that way. Shiloh...wanted him around?

"Thanks again for letting me be naked. I don't want you to think I'm trying to seduce you or something."

"Don't worry about it. I have a mate, you couldn't seduce me even if you wanted to."

"Wait, you're mated already?"

"Yeah, we met last summer."

"Wow, that's great!"

They worked in cheerful quiet for a few minutes until Shiloh broke the silence again.

"Since you have a mate, do you think you could give me some advice?"

"I can try."

"Well, ever since he patched me up, I've been feeling this...pull towards Ike. I want to make him happy. I want to look at him. I want him to look at me. I've never had these feelings before, or at least I don't think I have. I feel like I'm imprinting on him, the way mates imprint on each other."

There were a lot of similarities to Shiloh's story and the way Tim had met Paine. At first he thought that the imprinting he felt was due to his natural neediness and the fact that Paine saved his life, but it didn't take long for him to know he was feeling something more than that.

"What about Ike? Does he feel the same?"

"I think so, but I don't know for sure. It feels like he's gone out of his way to avoid me. But this morning he said we would talk about it tonight no matter what."

"That's a good sign. I guess the only advice I can give is to just be honest. Tell him how you really feel."

"I will, I promise."

The two omegas continued their conversation until Tim was done with his basket and Shiloh had finished making one a little less even in pattern. Once the smaller boy put his clothes on, they both walked back to the infirmary, holding hands like before.

At the medic tent Shiloh gave Tim a big hug. A moment later Tim hugged him back.

"Thanks for everything, Tim."

"Any time, Shiloh."

Tim had a huge smile on his face when he left for his tent. For the first time ever, he'd made a friend.

*****

Once again, Ike spent a moment standing outside of the medic's tent questioning everything. But he made the promise to talk to the golden omega who had turned his life upside down, so he stepped forward.

When he walked in he saw that Shiloh wasn't wearing the loincloth or moccasins, just Ike's deerskin, which didn't leave all that much to the imagination. This boy seemed to have an exhibitionist streak.

"Hey, Shiloh."

The omega wolf nodded slightly in greeting. He kept looking away like he had that morning.

Ike put down what he was holding and sat next to Shiloh. He could feel the heat radiating from the kid's skin.

"I want to apologize again for avoiding whatever's happening. I was trying to take the easy way out without considering how it would affect you."

The gold wolf sighed quietly.

"I forgive you. I've been really confused about this, too. But I think I know what's going on."

Shiloh raised his head to meet Ike's gaze.

"The two of us are mates. I know it. I've loved you from the moment I first woke up here. You feel the same, right?"

The beta took a deep breath.

"I really have been out of sorts lately. I'm constantly thinking about you, how your healing is coming along, the way you act when I'm there, and at the risk of being too forward," he reached down and put his hand on the omega's thigh. "I can't stop thinking about your body."

Shiloh's face seemed to light up. The boy stood, took off the deerskin, and straddled Ike.

"I'm in love with you, sir. You can do anything you want to me."

The beta was almost shaking with arousal. He tried to resist touching the kid, but then wondered why he was holding back. Shiloh gave him express consent. He exhaled, like he had been holding his breath for hours, and at long last wrapped his arms around the nude boy.

"You are so fucking beautiful, Shiloh," he murmured. "I've never seen anyone as perfect as you."

"I haven't been able to see how perfect you are yet. Please, will you show me?"

Ike let out a moan and began taking his clothes off like his body was moving by itself. When he sat back down Shiloh got on his lap again, grinding his hot little ass against Ike's manhood while they made out hungrily.

"I love you!" the omega squealed.

"I...I love you too!"

The moment Ike said those words it was like a tension inside of him was released and all his inhibitions disintegrated. He began sucking, biting on Shiloh's tongue, and his touch wandered all over the boy's skin. The kid's body heat seemed to raise his lust to a frenzy.

He put one hand on each flawless buttock and stood up, carrying his new mate over to his own bed. He threw the golden child down and began growling.

"Please, Ike...fuck me..."

Hearing Shiloh's sweet little voice say those words was enough to give him pause. Something about this didn't feel right. He put a hand on his forehead, trying to regain his composure.

"Wait...give me a moment..."

Shiloh tilted his head, obviously confused.

"Why did you stop?"

"Because..." He strained himself, trying to put together what to say next. Finally, words formed.

"...because this is moving too fast. I'm caught up in the moment."

He sat down on the bed, gradually starting to feel like himself again.

"I don't know what came over me. Our first time should be more special than this."

The boy put his hand on the man's chest.

"Are you sure?"

The beta took some more deep breaths. "Yeah. I've never been lost in lust like that before, sorry if I was a little rough."

"It's okay, sir. I already said my body was yours to use."

"I know, but we're going to be partners for the rest of our lives, and I want that relationship to be built on mutual respect. You're not just someone I should fuck in my tent on a whim. You're my mate, and I want to take care of you."

Shiloh leaned against him.

"I'm so happy we found each other."

If the omega's body heat made Ike's passion boil over before, now it was melting him like candle wax. Exhaustion seeped into his body and made him yawn.

"Are you getting tired?"

"Yeah," he mumbled. "I didn't sleep very well last night."

"Okay, then let me be the one to take care of you right now. I want to give you the coziest, warmest rest you've ever had."

"That sounds so perfect."

Per his habit before sleep, Ike shifted into his wolf form. As he did, he saw Shiloh cover both of their bodies with a blanket. The boy pulled the wolf close, enveloping him in a pleasant heat.

Ike craned his neck to look at his mate and communicated in a language of ear, lip, and nose movements, one that all lycanthropes could understand but none could explain.

I love you, my beautiful little golden boy.

Shiloh kissed the wolf's forehead.

"I love you, too. Now sleep."

Ike relaxed and let his drowsiness swallow him whole.

*****

There were several reasons why this particular location was selected to be the Romulus pack's settlement generations before. One of them was that not too far away there was a hot spring, which would make getting hot water easy, especially during the winter. An hour or so after sundown Paine noticed that a large number of the betas, all from tents near theirs, were leaving and going in a particular direction.

"Hey, Tim, come out here."

His husband left the tent and looked at what was happening.

"Where are they going?" Paine asked.

The omega wolf saw what some of the lycans were holding and was able to put it together.

"Oh, it must be bath night for this part of the beta encampment."

"Bath night?"

Tim explained that sections of the pack had a certain night every week where they had the hot spring to themselves and could use it to bathe. Most of the lycans had other ways of staying clean, but a hot bathing session was appealing, most of all during cold weather. The alphas and omegas each had their own days, but there were so many betas that they had to be split up into sections to avoid crowding.

"Oh, I get it. Well then," the human grabbed the lycan's hand. "Let's go."

"What? Right now?"

"Right this second. It sounds fun."

Tim was a little frazzled, but nonetheless allowed Paine to take him away.

After a short hike they found twenty or so betas chatting and undressing in a clearing, with the hot spring billowing steam in the cold night closeby.

Luckily, there was some soap and a spare bucket the two could use. Once they bared themselves, Tim much more reluctantly than Paine, they went to the spring and bathed.

Tim had a lot of reservations at first, but before long was happy Paine had this idea. It was warm and casual and very relaxing. Men, women, and children alike enjoyed the hot water, and everyone seemed too preoccupied to look at or judge anybody else around them.

Paine handled Tim's cleaning without much effort, scrubbing his boy until his pale skin glowed in the night. The omega had a lot more trouble when it was his turn. It was difficult for him to pick up the bucket when it was full and he had to stand on his tiptoes to dump the water on Paine, and even then the giant had to stoop a little. But seeing his husband so comfortable, his deep skin glistening with water, made it more than worth the effort. Once they were done cleaning they eased into the spring and soaked for a few minutes. The two mates didn't kiss or touch sexually, they just enjoyed being together.

They were surrounded by lycans, but as far as Tim and Paine were concerned they were alone. That night, they were the only people in the world.

At that moment, nothing existed except for their love.

*****

Ike slowly rose up from a deep, dreamless sleep unlike any he'd ever had. He was so warm and comfortable.

When he opened his eyes, he saw the boy made of gold who had become his mate, already awake.

Good morning, Shiloh.

The omega hugged the wolf.

"Good morning."

Ike changed back to his human form, naked like he had been last night. He held Shiloh in his arms for a few minutes until he heard the morning horn blow.

Wait a minute, he got back to the tent at about eight, and the horn always sounded off at seven in the morning. Did he sleep almost eleven hours? Damn, Shiloh really did work some magic on him.

He looked at the beautiful eyes of his boy. Fuck, even his eyelashes were golden!

Taking care of Shiloh was his new purpose, and last night was almost a disaster. Ike knew what he had to do now.

"The two of us are going to make love today, and be together for tonight's full moon. I want you to tell me exactly how you want this to happen."

The omega squirmed a bit in Ike's grip.

"Well, I am a...virgin, so this is going to be my first time. I hope I'll be good enough."

"Don't you worry about that. How do you want your first lovemaking to be?"

Shiloh was quiet for a moment or two.

"I guess I'd want the two of us to be completely alone. I wouldn't want anyone to interrupt us. And the way you seemed to get more vicious last night..." he averted his gaze. "I thought that was really sexy. I want you to let loose, okay?"

"Baby, I don't want to hurt you."

"I don't mind. Any mark I might get I'll wear with pride."

Ike ran his fingers through his mate's perfect hair.

"Okay then."

He kissed Shiloh's lips and got out of bed.

"I'd better get ready."

*****

Samuel and Morgan were sparring with each other, which they did often. Samuel was the highest ranking alpha in the pack, and the tall alpha female was the only one who could keep up with him in a fight.

It also felt good to let off some steam because the day before a full moon was always a little hectic. That night both Morgan and Samuel would lead a running, where alphas and more powerful betas could hunt, run, and lose themselves in the power the full moon provided. As for the rest of the betas and omegas, they would normally just shelter in place until their forced shift passed.

Samuel sensed a presence at one point and glanced over to see the medic Ike, obviously waiting to talk to him. He paused the session with Morgan.

"Good morning. Do you need something?"

Ike seemed a little anxious.

"I have a request, and I know it's a bit of a tall order."

"What is it?"

"Um...I need to take the day off. It's really important."

The alpha male raised his eyebrows. What brought this on?

"You know that tonight is a full moon. We're going to need you for that."

"I know, and I promise I'll be back before sundown. I just have to do something else today."

The two alphas looked at each other, unsure why Ike, normally quite a direct person, was being so vague.

Given his position Samuel knew that the decision was ultimately his. He did remember Ike taking on several more duties in the past couple days. Perhaps that was in preparation for making this request.

"Well...I suppose that would be fine. But you need to be back here well before the sun sets."

Ike bowed his head a little.

"I will. Thank you so much, Alpha."

He left and the two lycans returned to their sparring.

*****

Ike held his love's hand as he led him through the forest. They were almost at the place where they would mate for the first time.

"Shiloh, close your eyes, we're almost there."

The boy complied and allowed himself to be led into position.

"Okay, you can open your eyes now."

They were in front of a tall cliff overlooking a river. They could see miles of forest in front of them.

"Wow, this is perfect!" the golden boy jumped excitedly, clapping his hands.

"I'm glad you think so. Now we can consecrate our love."

With little effort Ike picked the omega up and carried him over to a spot just close enough to the cliff to have a pretty view, but not close enough to have falling off be a concern.

Shiloh was wearing his only clothing, moccasins, a loincloth and Ike's deerskin. One by one the garments were removed until the beta wolf could see his mate in all his glory: his soft, warm skin, his shining hair and eyes, and his perfect body.

This boy was more dazzling than the sun.

He almost tore off his own clothes, desperate to begin.

Shiloh told him to let it go and have his instincts take over, so he did what felt right and attacked the kid's mouth with his own. Maybe it was because the full moon was almost here, but Ike was feeling particularly wild. His mind got a little cloudy as he lost himself in his mate's beauty.

Soon he knew he'd die if he waited any longer. It was time to mate.

He put his cock, which was the hardest it had ever been, in Shiloh's gorgeous little butt and was surprised to feel it somehow slick. Was that possible? Was this something all mated wolves could do?

He pushed in further and the sensations were enough to bring his thoughts to a halt. Mate now, ask questions later. It's what Shiloh had asked for anyway.

As the minutes passed by Ike began growling and clawing like a feral beast. He had never felt so powerful before, and it was all because of Shiloh. He owed this golden child everything.