Archive of Our Own ^beta

Everything was white and cold. Too cold to do anything

She had fucked up real good this time.

Feeling beyond exhausted, all her strength was used up after facing trolls on the road to her destination, then she had to defeat draugr deathlords in a nordic tomb, and finally she had the luck of facing two dragons while trying to get Krosis’ mask.

After that she was out of potions – because she had completely forgotten to stock up before leaving – out of food - because she thought it would be just a quick trip to grab some shit then leave - and on top of it all she had run out of magicka and her throat hurt from how much she had used her thu’um.

Long story short: she was completely fucked up, practically defenseless on the wilderness of Skyrim of all places.

So, having run out of options, she just found a cave and prayed to Talos, Sithis and any possible listening aedra or daedra to be empty.

Luckily the place seemed cleared out, who exactly answered her prayers was another mystery though.

Having examined each nook and cranny of the place (because why not look for loot while checking for enemies) she settled against the wall of the cave. It was still cold as fuck, but better than being out in the open, with wet snow and chilling wind tossing her around.

She tried to cast a fire spell, but not even a small spark lit up from her hands.

Sighing, she just tried to get comfortable enough to get some sleep and recover a little bit before trying to get to Whiterun and finally back to Jorrvaskar, her cozy bed and the rough bunch she considered her – heh - companions.

After dozing off for what felt like only a few minutes, a loud noise startled her awake and she quickly got up to her feet with her sword in hands, only to find a headless corpse of a cave troll by her feat and to its side a giant, golden eyed beast staring her in a terrifying silent stance.

Frozen right in her place, with her back against the cold stone wall, gripping her sword tight, she could feel all the sore muscles and how she still was in no shape to fight at all. Hell, she couldn’t even stand on her feet without leaning against the wall.

She didn’t dare raise her sword or even make any sudden movement, but she would not go down easily.

Apparently sensing her tension, the werewolf slowly distanced a little bit, then turned and left with a blink of an eye.

She released the breath she didn’t realize she was holding, feeling her heart almost exploding in her chest, she sheathed her sword with a wince, even that simple movement hurt. With a deep sigh, she slowly let herself slide down to the ground again.

The adrenaline crash still hadn’t worn out when she heard sounds at the entrance of the cave.

She almost wanted to punch herself when the werewolf returned. Why didn’t she leave when she had the chance? This time she didn’t even have the energy to get up again.

She would have tensed up if she wasn’t busy enough being shocked.

The beast was actually carrying a bunch of logs and a torch.

What in the name of Oblivion?

Silently, the big furry thing dropped everything by her feet and distanced itself, looking at her expectantly.

There was an awkward silence, the beast looked from her to the bunch of logs and fire, almost inviting her to go for it.

In a tentative motion, she moved a little bit, still trembling in fear and cold. The werewolf didn’t react and she realized if the beast wanted, it would have killed her ages ago, when she was still asleep.

Not missing a beat, because she was actually desperate for any sort of comfort, she finally made a campfire and warmed herself up.

After she could finally feel her feet tingling, she took her time and examined her most unexpected companion.

The werewolf was still patiently sitting and looking at her. Its clever eyes and the way its snout was slightly pointing upwards looked almost human. Like a cheeky pose.

Then something clicked inside her.

Swallowing hard, she whispered, voice still rough from shouting:

- Farkas? Is that you?

She had only seen him once by chance on that first encounter against the Silver Hand and only for some seconds before he turned back, but that was the only reasonable explanation she could come up with.

The werewolf seemed surprised, ears suddenly perked up and body language flinching a little bit.

Was she right?

But then the creature shook its head in a negative motion.

Well, at least now she knew it understood her words.

- Oh – she croaked feeling utterly confused – Do I know you?

By the Gods, what was she doing inside a freezing nameless cave, with almost no means to defend herself, playing guess with a werewolf , who may or may not be actually a friend, not foe at all .

Still interested, the beast nodded affirmatively, now with eyes seeming to glint with amusement, managing to actually annoy her.

She wasn’t stupid, she knew about the Circle and the beast blood after Farkas’ accident, although nobody had explained a thing to her, it was clear to her now that Farkas wasn’t alone with this.

The fact that this wasn’t Farkas (and she had no reason to doubt the creature) and the fact that the only people she knew who maintained their reason while being beast were a restricted part of the Companions narrowed down quite a bit the possibilities.

But what really made her guess the wolf’s identity was its attitude. There was only one person in the Companions who truly acted this way towards her even after months of being part of the group.

- Vilkas? – her voice got actually worse and the whisper cracked up in the end.

The eyes of the wolf widened up a bit, but otherwise there was no other reaction.

Satisfied with herself, she smiled smugly.

Although Vilkas never even glanced a single smile at her, she knew he would never hurt a shield-sister. She relaxed and finally sat down in a more comfortable position, as comfortable as it could get in a cave during a snowstorm, anyway.

Despite the fire, it was still colder than before. She guessed it was because the Moons had already risen and the snow still hadn't stopped falling by the way the wind blew inside the cave.

She braced herself, trying to contain as much heat as she could, but the cold had already seeped inside and through her armor, leaving her a shivering mess.

Flinching in surprise, she felt the fur against her skin and then the heat enveloping her back.

She gaped at Vilkas, surprised that he got this close to her by his own volition.

As a rule he usually kept his distance and only interacted with her not more than necessary, which surprisingly upset her a great deal.

Sure, if it was anybody else, she would just ignore it and live her life. But they exchanged blows briefly when she first got to the Companions. And when you fight someone you do get to know them more intimately than exchanging words.

At that time, she had already felt attracted to him. Not only by the fact he seemed to have muscles and brains, but she saw how his actions spoke louder than his grumpy words.

She knew he could have defeated her at her test using brute, raw strength, but he managed to balance his own skill, not just letting her win by courtesy, neither humiliating her by completely overpowering her.

After that, despite his coldness towards her, she discovered more and more interesting books appearing out of nowhere inside her nightstand after she casually mentioned to Aela that books helped with her trouble sleeping and she actually found them interesting.

At first, she thought Aela was the one giving her the tomes, but then she discovered Vilkas was also a book lover when Farkas let it slip during a casual conversation on the hall.

Then right before she left for a mission, some extra potions would pop up in her room with some supplies, sometimes even a flower. Then again, she thought it was just Tilma looking out for her, because after all, the woman really did know everything that happened inside those walls.

Now, with the way wolf Vilkas was acting, everything seemed to change.

If she was understanding it correctly it almost felt like he was… Courting her, by taking care of her and helping her out.

Goddamn, the man had even gone through the trouble of saving her in a forgotten cave while a snowstorm raged on and a cave troll had managed to sneak on her.

She gulped, trying to gather some courage.

She started by leaning more heavily into his warm body, sighing in relief when her cold skin made contact with the thick fur.

From this angle she couldn’t really see his eyes, but she didn’t miss the way the wolf took a deep breath in when she finally let the weight of her body fully rest against his giant form.

That was beyond good, it was heaven. Better than her bed at the Companions or even the expensive one at Solitude’s inn.

She closed her eyes, feeling the exhaustion win her over and drag her mind back to the realm of dreams.

She woke up with the annoying sound of dripping water echoing through the cave.

Pressing her eyes close, she stuffed her face on her pillow and tried to force herself back to sleep. Mornings definitely weren’t the best of times for her.

Running her hands, she realized that must have been the biggest pillow ever, because she could easily tangle herself with it, hooking her legs around it and pressing her body close to its amazing warmth.

But then she felt the pillow actually moving in steady movements, like breathing motions.

She opened her eyes, feeling the memories crash down on her like a heavy battleaxe.

Looking up, she met bright yellow beast eyes staring back silently.

How long had they been here? How long had he slept with her? How long was she holding him like that?

Gulping, feeling the embarrassment come back, she quickly unhooked her leg and tried to distance herself from him.

But a low growl halted her movements.

Startled, she reflected a little bit, then carefully got back into her previous position.

The beast seemed satisfied and she had to take a moment to remember that this was Vilkas she was dealing with.

It was clear by last night’s events that he maintained part of his humanity, but perhaps the beast part influenced his behavior, making him… Bolder.

She pondered for a second before slowly extending her hand and threading it against the longer fur on his neck.

Closing his eyes, Vilkas leaned against her hand, following the movement with his big head.

By the Gods, that was one of the cutest things she had ever seen in her entire life.

Now she was convinced he didn’t have a complete grasp over his actions, there was no way Vilkas would do this if he was totally conscious of his actions.

Testing waters again, she ran her hand up until she reached his cheek, it was so goddamn fluffy and warm. Incapable of resisting, she stroked his ears and scratched the back of his head.

What she didn’t expect was the fact he would use his arms to envelop her in a tight hug, bringing her impossibly closer than before, her face almost full of fur, while he rested his head on the crook of her neck.

- Vilkas… Can’t… breathe… - she gasped while patting him with mildly panicked smacks.

He loosened the embrace but didn’t let her go, his paws resting gently against her waist.

Then she felt him shifting a little bit, his head moving away, then suddenly something wet and warm was pressed against the uncovered part of her neck.

She felt shivers run down her spine as he scented her deeply. His claws tightening on her waist.

Then in a long, single movement he proceeded to lick her from the base of her neck to her cheek.

It should have felt disgusting, just as when a dog managed to lick your face, but pressed against his strong, hot body, all she felt were the flames of her arousal suddenly spark inside her.

Gasping, she grabbed his fur tighter and wiggled against him, using her hooked leg to make full contact against him.

He growled lowly, his paws slipping under her armor to actually touch her, claws scratching lightly through skin, making goose bumps bloom all over her body.

She shivered against his touch. It was so long since she had been… intimate with someone. All but a young naive lad when she laid down her first man.

She was being generous calling the equally naive boy a “man”. Both so inexperienced and stupid. She wondered how she had managed to maintain that relationship for so long. Her first and only lover of her life before all craziness had happened when she came to Skyrim.

Then Stormcloacks, Imperials, being mistaken for a prisoner and dragons , and when she finally – finally – got a glimpse of actual civilization, when she arrived at the entrance of Whiterun, a freaking giant appeared out of nowhere.

She still remembered the rage filling her as she saw the creature stupidly swinging against crops when she was so close to a decent meal and a proper bed and bath. With all the frustration accumulated, she struck the thing down with furious blows.

When the giant finally fell, she was met with an audience staring at her. Aela came to her, slightly impressed and after meeting the Companions and warming up to (most of) them she felt Jorrvaskr was the closest thing to home after a long time.

Getting shield-siblings, going on adventures, facing death on this hard land felt like such a blessing that she felt she was born to do this.

Which is why she couldn’t help feeling slightly overwhelmed by the current turn of events.

Having discovered her calling was a wonderful thing, but having the man she couldn’t take her eyes off whenever he appeared, wrapped around her, pressed so close and nipping at her neck was so unbelievable that she took a few seconds to wrap her mind around it.

Then he slipped his paws up and took her breasts, squeezing them slowly but roughly.

She arched against his touch, gasping in surprise. The claws bit into her skin just enough to turn pain into pleasure.

She moaned and pressed herself against him, rutting her sex against his warm body, feeling wet and aching under all that troubling armor.

With a shiver running along her body, she half moaned, half whispered:

- Vilkas…

As soon the words left her mouth, everything stopped.

He froze, his hands completely still against her skin, even his breath had alarmingly brought to a halt.

She felt his tension build up and asked him, uncertain:

- What’s wrong?

In a swift, but sudden move the wolf scrambled to its feet and ran from the cave.

She was left on the ground, speechless, disoriented and so, so frustrated.

She waited for a good hour like an idiot, expecting him to come back and at least explain something, but he never came back.

She left the cave feeling a mix of frustration and confusion.

What had gone wrong? Was something she had said or done?

Maybe -  she bitterly thought to herself - the beast got over him and when I called his name he got back to his senses and realized what he was doing and who he was with.

She frowned to herself, feeling sad and humiliated.

Feeling her throat blocked by emotions, she sniffed, but refused to let a single tear fall. Her pride was too great to let herself be beaten up by a man who didn’t want her.

She stopped on the road to Whiterun and turned back. She couldn’t deal with the Companions right now, so she decided to go back to her original goal when she first stepped on Skyrim: Riften and the Thieves Guild.

2 years later.

She sighed. Wearing her Nightingale armor, she quickly hid herself behind some bushes for the sixth time that night.

Why the hell were the roads so busy when it was so late into the night?

The encounter with the vampires was understandable, but a bunch of stormcloack recruits, two battling mages, a dragon and now thalmor justiciars roaming around?

She just wanted to go back to her bed on Whiterun.

After all this time she finally accomplished her initial goal: contact Skyrim’s Thieves Guild and start what would be a wealthy alliance between the Imperial City base and Skyrim’s one.

After she set a courier to her contacts and hopefully, directly to the Gray Fox, her duty was done, because now she was the head of the Thieves Guild.

At the beginning she was expecting to sweet talk Mercer into a friendly connection, but after working her ass off for the ungrateful bastard, being betrayed and doing Nocturnal’s trials she ended up with the sweet position of Guild Master landing right on her lap.

That, on top of the time it took to actually bring the guild back to its feet, took longer than expected.

Of course, she had contacted Kodlak and let him know she was okay, alive and in a whole piece. Every once in a while, the old man wrote her brief letters asking when she’d come back. Aela contacted her occasionally too, and once she even received one from Farkas and Skjor.

But never from Vilkas.

She tried to tell herself she was alright and after all this time, there was no way she hadn’t recovered and at a certain extent she was indeed better, but her heart still ached when she remembered how she felt while waiting for him in that stupid cave.

Now Whiterun was on sight and the moons shone brightly behind some clouds.

She smelled the air. If she didn’t hurry up the rain would catch her outside.

Pressing on, she tried to ignore the ball of emotions twisting inside her guts.

If she wasn’t that nervous, she’d realize she wasn’t alone at the road and the constant presence of something lurking among shadows, after all she should be now more than ever in tune with the subtle hints roaming the darkness.

But with her head drowning in anxiety and excitement to finally return home, she completely missed a pair of golden eyes following her steps from the edge of the forest.

She silently slipped through the guards and managed to enter the city unannounced, completely unaware of the wolf staring hungrily to her contoured silhouette enhanced by the tight armor.

Going back to her stealthy nature at least helped her to exercise her abilities to the point of being completely invisible to distracted – and also attentive – eyes.

The city was quiet and peaceful, with only the occasional patrol guard walking through the streets.

It was easy to make her way to Jorrvaskar and quietly make it to the entrance doors.

But then she was met with quite a sight.

Every single companion was on the Hall, she wasn’t expecting anybody there at this time, even Kodlak was by the fire and before she could utter a single word Aela greeted her and then everybody surrounded her with laughter, drinks and food.

They were having a feast and mead put everyone on high spirits, they even completely ignored her sketchy armor set – clearly sneaky and made for “discreet” errands, both practices seen with a frown by every warrior ever – and shoved her a plate of food and a giant tankard full of mead.

After the initial shock, she quickly warmed up, dropped her hood, quietly munched her food and gulped down her drink. After two years living on honey brew mead and silent companions, she was relieved to have something different and let go for a change.

Nobody asked a single question about her whereabouts and why it took her so long to come back. They laughed, brawled and sang all night till everyone had finally retreated to the living quarters or passed out in the hall.

Lying on bed, head pleasantly buzzing, she realized Vilkas hadn’t appeared all night.

And that felt strangely alright.

But even on the verge of sleep on a comfy bed, she thought to herself how the wolf was a thousand times better than this bed.

Morning came and with it also came a blasting hangover among all of the Companions.

Of course, the integrants of the Circle were the most unaffected. She supposed beast blood must help with this kind of stuff and while a huge headache attacked her senses, she envied them a little bit.

She hadn’t shed out her nightingale armor yet and was in the middle of cleaning her face when she heard a knock on the door.

After grumbling a weak “come in”, she was met with the man plaguing her dreams.

Vilkas stood by the door, face expressionless and demeanor as cool as possible, he eyed her for a moment, probably disapproving of her choice of armor.

- Kodlak wants to see you – he muttered calmly and was about to say something else, but then closed his mouth, he turned around, stomping heavily on the floor.

She wasn’t surprised by his attitude. If anything, she knew he was a master at hiding himself under a calm mask. Even with her ability to read people, Vilkas had always been a mystery to her.

She sighed and thought to herself if he continued to act as if nothing had happened then maybe she could deal with all this again.

She spent breakfast talking to Kodlak.

In other words: she ate while he kept giving her an earful of reprimands. The man was known to meddle his own affairs and never really force anyone to do anything that wasn't their duty, but she supposed even him would get really upset if one of his disappeared one day without a word and only returned years later.

She deserved that, so she kept her silence, listened to him, and nodded in agreement.

After assuring to him that something like this would never happen again, she left the room with a sweet roll in one hand and a head full of plans.

She wanted to come back to action as soon as possible, the Companions were being highly requested now more than ever and even when she was busy with the Thieves’ affairs, rumors reached her every now and then.

Silver hand, werewolves near Whiterun and Companions being asked to come to Riften to deal with wild beasts always caught her attention.

Now, recovering from her hangover, she changed to casual clothes and took her time to greet the townsfolk. She restocked her potions supply, bought appropriate material and brought it to Eorlund to forge decent gear for a warrior.

Although she was very fond of shadows and silence, it had been too long since she had let it all out on the field, face to face against an opponent. And that was something she wouldn’t exchange for anything.

Her style had changed a little bit though, and she politely asked the stern blacksmith to make an extra blade. He was surprised when she came back later, her arms full of dragonhide and dragon bones with a request to make the best light armor he could out of it.

She had been saving those during all these years and she couldn’t wait to see Farkas face when she showed him the result.

The rest of the day was spent chatting with old friends, eating and avoiding the loud Talos-crazyman. She even spent some time at the Kynareth temple helping the priest with some injured people.

The day went by and although she saw Vilkas again many times, everything seemed to be just like it was before the cave. Which meant no interactions whatsoever between them.

While one part of her felt relieved, the other felt somehow disappointed at that and another part felt angry, because what was worse than longing for somebody who clearly felt nothing for you?

She went to bed shrugging off those feelings and with the promise of a new day.

Despite being a competitive, rough bunch, the Companions were friendly and things came back to normal in a short time. Getting requests, defeating thugs, brushing people off and fending citizens from beasts filled her head as months passed by.

She’d say everything was perfect, but as she feared, books started to pop out of nowhere again, more potions and now even her favorite food would be left in her bedroom when she wasn’t present.

It couldn’t be him. It wasn’t logical.

But even so, the emotional, hopeful, stupid part of her jumped of happiness when she came back and found a little gift sitting innocently on her bed.

She really wanted to confront Vilkas, put him against the wall and talk things out. But she was always busy or too tired, or just had other errands to do to make time to find him.

Despite this, life passed by and she was content with the pace of her life.

Not all were roses and flowers though.

The night Aela and Skjor asked her to meet them at the Underforge was also the night Skojr met his end. The truth was that the Silver Hand was getting bolder and stronger, they had anticipated their moves and after a period of relative peace, they finally managed to deal a serious blow to the Companions.

After spending days running around with Aela, seeking revenge and repaying their crime with blood, she finally returned home.

It was the first time she returned to Whiterun after the transformation and she was glad to have spent some time with her shield-sister before coming back to civilization. The beast blood almost overwhelmed her when they were out in the wilderness, but she always managed to tame her inner wolf.

When they weren’t hunting the Silver Hand, they were talking about the beast blood and the thrill of the hunt. She had a ton of questions on the tip of her tongue and Aela patiently explained everything to her.

How everyone dealt differently with their inner wolf, some embraced it and lost their humanity by indulging too much into the Hunt, how others lost their minds trying to suppress it and how some saw it was a curse instead of a blessing.

The restlessness in her sleep was only sated after a long successful hunt, otherwise she’d have more problems than usual dealing with her sleep.

Aela also explained her the dynamics of a pack. She said that although all in The Cirlce had the beast blood, they weren’t a pack at all.

Kodlak and Vilkas were considered alphas, Skjor was a beta and Aela and Farkas omegas. She said alphas took the leading role on packs, focused mainly on challenging and dealing with challengers, omegas on the other hand were the most hunt oriented ones, they fed the pack and cared for the little ones – which were nonexistent among the Companions. And the betas always leaned towards the protection of the pack as a whole, maintaining the balance between conquering and protecting.

Aela was clear in telling her they weren’t a pack specifically because Kodlak refused to take the role, he apparently decided to reject the wolf’s nature. Following his nature, Vilkas – the next alpha in line – also didn’t take up the position and so a pack was never really formed.

Which didn’t make any of them less functional, but still somehow made her feel sad, a room full of lone wolves when they could be the ultimate pack that could really make a difference dealing with the problems of Skyrim. Sure, they already did their part as warriors, but she could only imagine the power of an organized pack of werewolves.

After spending days getting used to her inner wolf, she was coming back for a break.

They were far from finished, but even Aela admitted being exhausted and they separated earlier when she decided to follow one last lead before also heading home.

Whiterun revealed different aspects for her new self, new smells and sounds as she walked around the town.

She could pick on people’s beating hearts if she concentrated a little bit. Her new sensitive senses were assaulted constantly and she was glad when she made it inside Jorrvaskr.

The experience was interesting, but also tiring - if not overwhelming.

She stuffed herself with real food after a couple days living on soup as human and raw meat as wolf.

When Farkas approached her and visibly smelled her, she asked:

- What? Am I stinking? – she asked after a brief, embarrassing moment. She knew some people caught on her new nature by smell and it still bothered her a little bit.

- No, I just imagined you’d turn out… differently – he said while sitting down besides her – How are you feeling?

She pondered for a moment before answering:

- I don’t know, fine I guess – she munched some more, then added – it’s a difficult transition, but I admit it’s also thrilling.

He smiled a little bit and nodded in agreement.

They ate in a peaceful silence and occasionally traded combat tips and stories.

It was only when she retreated to her chambers when she realized how problematic this would be.

The living quarters was an enclosed space and she could easily distinguish all the people inside. How far they were, the sounds they were making and what they were doing.

At the end of the hall she could even hear Kodlak and Vilkas talking. She couldn’t make out all the words, but it definitely felt like she was intruding and spying on them.

She tried to clear her head and made a straight line to her bedroom, trying to ignore everybody else and mind her own business.

When she arrived though, she gasped, completely drowned in smells.

She could clearly scent every place he’d touched and stepped. It was as if he had marked her room, books, potions and many objects distinguished by his presence.

She shivered by the door, at that point she could clearly make out her smell from the others. And although it was her bedroom it didn’t smell like it.

She felt her wolf growl inside, agitated and nervous.

That smell, she knew who it was now. And it made her furious.

Before she knew it, she was storming down the hall, carrying a bunch of stuff in her arms. All stuff he had marked.

She kicked the door open and both men flinched in surprise.

She threw all the contents in her arms on top of Vilkas, not caring one bit if a particularly heavy book fell right on his head.

- Do not dare mark my room again! – she roared, projecting all her rage towards him as a clear message of warning.

Without waiting for a proper answer, she turned and left the room stomping back to the hall and closing the door with a loud bang.

Despite that being a serious threat, the killing intent clear in each of her words and manners, Kodlak seemed more amused than worried. He smiled at Vilkas’ lost expression and said:

- Well, that’s a female alpha for you.

He turned to Kodlak and with his lap still full of objects, asked stupidly:

- A what?

Kodlak actually laughed a little bit. It had been a long time since he’d seen that expression on Vilkas face, he was but a boy last time he emulated that particular brand of cluelessness.

- Lena. Skjor and Aela gave her the blood, and she turned out to be an alpha – Vilkas was still speechless, so the old man went on – if you don’t face her, you’ll never solve anything, boy.

That made him snap out of his daze. He frowned and answered:

- I’m not a boy.

- Then stop acting like one and face her properly. Now clean this mess and leave – with that he got up and left Vilkas to his thoughts.

He eventually did get up, trying to gather all the books he left for her, the potions and even the stupid flowers he couldn’t stop himself from giving her.

He had just left all that mess on his bed when he clearly heard she storming out of the living quarters.

On a whim, he decided to follow her.

She was fast and easy to lose in the crowd and he struggled to keep her in his view, he had to rely on his nose to pick out the smell of anger and distress in the middle of Whiterun’s crowded market.

He knew he shouldn’t have kept courting her, but he didn’t think she would be so upset.

She had just squeezed through the main gates when someone grabbed his left arm.

He turned, ready to lash out at whoever dared to interrupt him, then he saw it was Aela:

- What did you do? – she asked in a stern voice.

- What? – he asked, feeling utterly stupid the second time that day.

- What did you do now to make Lena so upset? – she repeated sighing.

He frowned deeply, sure they were shield-siblings, but that didn’t mean he was spilling anything to her.

- That’s not your business.

She considered him briefly, taking up the nervousness in his scent and let go slowly.

- Watch out, she’s still getting the hang of the beast – she said, while finally turning and leaving.

Right. Beast blood. Alpha.

He dashed out of the city right on her trails while thinking how he would fix this mess without a blood bath.

Aela was the only female, conscious werewolf he had ever faced and he was sure he couldn’t use that experience as a guide to deal with Lena, since first of all Aela was an omega and almost immediately recognized her status and submitted when they first met as beasts.

Lena on the other hand was an alpha and – as she proved earlier – wouldn’t take his alpha shit that easily.

Slowing down, he kept following her scent through the trees and bushes. He’d have to deal carefully with this, he knew she was upset and when two alphas met under such circumstances, violence sparkled easily.

He successfully tracked her all the way to a clearing full of flowers. Right in the middle there was a crouched form.

Before he could react, her ragged, low voice cut right through him:

- What do you want? – she smelled like challenge, anger and defiance.

He gulped down, feeling his inner wolf grow agitated, every instinct told him to respond with equal challenge, but that’s not why he was there.

Clearing his head, he answered, after measuring his words:

- I’m sorry.

But he didn’t expect his words to actually aggravate her nerves.

Before he even had the chance to react, he heard a loud growl and suddenly his back was on the ground, her hand pushing heavily his chest down.

Her eyes glinted in yellow and he knew she was on the verge of yielding to the wolf, and if she did he was sure he wouldn’t be able to fix anything.

- Is that supposed to make me feel better? – she growled, he was overwhelmed with the strong smell of blinding hot anger.

This time the beast inside him growled back and he fought for a couple minutes to regain control of his mind.

- I acted out of the line when I marked your bedroom – her hand increased pressure against him and he continued, feeling strangled and breathless – it won’t happen again.

She inched closer to him and now that he was actively trying to calm down, he felt something beyond her rage, he took in the frustration, bitterness and hurt that seeped out of her.

- Did it amuse you? – she asked, and he realized that despite the pressure, her hand was shaking heavily – marking my place, marking me ?

Her face was distorted with pain and he gulped again, the wolf inside now actually howling inside him in frustration, wanting nothing more than to comfort her.

- It won’t happen again – he repeated, feeling utterly stupid. He didn’t know what else to say in order to reverse his actions.

She growled louder and he could feel the vibrations through his body.

- That’s not going to fix anything! – she shouted and let go of his chest, bringing both hands to cover her face.

She was breathing deeply and he could feel the tremors along her body, either she was on the verge of crying or shifting. He didn’t know what would be worse.

After a tense silence, she looked at him again.

- Why did you leave that day? – she whispered in a terrifying broken voice.

He wasn’t that stupid, he knew exactly what day she was referring to and the fact she asked that confused him as much as brought hope to his heart.

All the anger flew out of her and he could only feel sadness and hurt.

He couldn’t help himself and let out as much comfort as he could while gently caressing her legs.

She shuddered, but otherwise didn’t move at all, still waiting for an answer.

If things were this bad, he supposed it wouldn’t make it worse by telling her.

He breathed in and braced himself.

- That day… I wasn’t myself, not completely – he blinked, feeling more intensely than he wanted, the memory of her soft skin pressed against him, the way she accepted the wolf, the way she smelled and tasted – If I had not stopped… I don’t know what I would have done to you.

He still remembered snapping out of the lust haze, her small body against him and all his wolf wanted was to dominate and mount her.

The thought terrified him. In beast form things got easily out of control and feeling the fear dominate him, he ran away as a coward, leaving her in the cave, alone, but safe.

She put down her hands and stared at him in a confused, doubtful expression.

- You say that as if you care.

He knew his distance and coldness weren’t doing any good to his image, but he had no idea she’d think he didn’t care at all. Her words cut through him like a dagger in his guts and he wondered if that was why she was so upset.

That explained why she thought he was toying with her, he realized in horror.

He got up quickly and in a rush tried to explain himself:

- I left because I cared – she was lying on his lap still, both of them sitting in the woods, but despite the closeness, he kept avoiding her eyes, his gaze roaming her face.

- That doesn’t make sense – she said, confusion still dominating all her features, but then in a flash of anger she asked – are you saying all of this just to make me feel better?

He frowned and actually met her eyes for once.

- Do I look like the type to say things only to appease others?

She considered him for a bit and conceded:

- Fair enough, but that still doesn’t explain your actions.

Now that he was looking at her, he realized they wouldn’t be able to go back to before. Either she would leave again, or he would have to leave. He wouldn’t be able to take her rejection, neither his wolf or him would be able to live under the same roof as her and pretend his mate wasn’t sleeping right in the other room.

Feeling his spike of anxiety, she frowned more deeply, trying to understand what he wasn’t saying.

He sighed, reluctantly breaking eye contact and saying:

- I didn’t want to burden you, the wolf… The beast is trouble enough for one. From day one I knew I wouldn’t be able to keep my hands out of you, not completely. I at least tried to make it bearable and marked your room, having you smell like me made the beast… Less agitated, almost content, it was a safe way to keep things balanced.

He could feel her getting agitated as he continued to explain, by the time he was finished, she was scowling at him.

- By doing that you completely disregarded my opinions. Don’t I have a say in all this?

There was no way Vilkas hadn’t realized how she felt for him in that cave… Right?

He scoffed bitterly and said in a sarcastic tone she knew too well:

- Nobody wants to deal with a werewolf, be it in a battle or out of it, that I’m sure.

She frowned.

- Vilkas, I am a werewolf.

He looked at her with pain in his eyes.

- That doesn’t change anything. Have you never wondered why nobody in the Circle bonded?

She shook her head.

- That’s different, you all grew together, you’re brothers and sisters. I doubt you or Farkas can even think of Aela as a possible mate.

Proving her point, he grimaced just with the mental image.

- See? You can’t rule this out of the table just because it hasn’t happened before.

He frowned and looked in her eyes, as if looking for something.

- What are you saying? Are you seriously considering this ? – he asked, and she assumed this meant him, them or whatever they were.

- I don’t know. Are you? You seem more inclined to just ignore me and go back to how things were before than to even give me a chance to say what I think.

He tightened his grip on her legs, just thinking of going back to pretending made his wolf agitated, made him agitated.

- I didn’t think you’d even give this a second thought. You are always so strong and righteous, I thought you wouldn’t want anything to do with this curse. In fact, I still can’t understand why you accepted the beast blood.

Ah, this is where the problem remains, she realized.

He thought the wolf was a curse, just as Kodlak, he couldn’t accept it and didn’t think he was worthy .

She shook her head, that was enough.

- Vilkas, I didn’t think you were less because part of you is beast. I accepted the wolf because to me it is a blessing, something to be proud of. I know you and Kodlak don’t agree, but I’d be glad if you didn’t assume my feelings or opinions.

He could only stare at her and let the words sink in. How could she accept and cherish something that he himself was struggling so much to only acknowledge?

He gulped, feeling more lost and confused than before.

- I never wanted to rob you from your voice. I just… It was unthinkable that you’d even be able to stand me if I ever revealed the wolf to you.

- Well, the unthinkable happened – she said, feeling impatient already – What do you want to do about it?

There it was again, the challenging attitude. But this time it made him smile and overflow with a warm feeling. She wanted to move forward – with him.

- I want this – he confessed – but I’m afraid I’ll lose myself and hurt you, that if I let the wolf do as it pleases, I won’t be able to bring myself back.

He shuddered, not even wanting to imagine the gruesome results that the loss of control would lead to.

She thought for a bit and said:

- I also don’t think I’m in any condition to control it – then she realized – I almost lost myself a while ago too.

She turned to his chest, brushing her fingers on the big smash on his armor.

- Gods, did I hurt you? I wasn’t thinking straight–

He grabbed her hands and took a moment to soak in her wave of concern and affection, then answered:

- Don’t worry, it takes more than that to bring me down.

She looked at him suspiciously and patted the same place her hand pressed earlier.

He groaned and flinched in pain.

- Don’t try this alpha bullshit on me, Vilkas – she grabbed his armor and pushed it up – take it off, we need to treat it.

He rolled his eyes, but complied.

As soon as his chest was uncovered, it was clear that it bruised pretty badly actually, by the yellows, greens, purples and blacks blooming right where her hand had been.

She gasped and immediately cast a restoration spell on the place.

- I’m so sorry! I didn’t realize I was pressing this hard, I’m sorry – she said, feeling shitty. Wolf or not, losing her temper wasn’t a good excuse to hurting someone.

He chuckled lightly and when she looked at him with inquisitive eyes, he said:

- It’s just ironic this conversation started with me apologizing and now you’re the one doing it.

For the first time she realized what kind of scent Vilkas was letting, and with surprise he was all calm and happiness.

After assuring his wound had healed completely, she spoke again, in a soft, tentative voice:

- I’m not sure I can or if I even want to ignore this – she put her hands on his chest and felt his hands tighten again on her legs – can’t we give this a chance?

He looked at her and could feel how open and vulnerable she was. He tried solving things by himself, which he could see now it was definitely the wrong decision. If they tried this together, perhaps things would be better.

He was afraid, but didn’t want to let go either. His heart skipped a beat and he leaned closer to her, not trusting words to give his answer, he relied on his lips to convey his message.

Moving slowly, he watched her attentively, ready to stop if she gave any indication of hesitance. She was surprised as soon as she realized what he was doing, but soon her expression softened and he melted inside when she closed her eyes, parting her lips.

At first it was only a soft press, a brief peck of lips, then he pressed again and again, until she nipped him, teasing to go further. She parted her lips and they finally met each other.

He explored her lazily, his tongue lapping with hers in a slow dance while his hands roamed from her legs to her waist. Suddenly everything felt real and he felt his chest rumbling, the beast inside him appeased and content, having his mate in his arms.

As they parted for a brief moment seeking air, she surprised him with small playful bites on his lower lip, her hands laced around his neck and this time she was the one doing the exploration.

She relished in his lips, not wasting a single second to take and claim them. She felt her own wolf respond to Vilkas’ low rumbling, feeling the joy and affection overtake her senses. Her hands explored his chest, letting them travel lower, to his belly and then dangerously near his crotch.

His breath hitched when she slowly stroked his happy trail, but otherwise she didn’t dare to go any further, she was already feeling a little bit lightheaded and the beast inside her was growling with possessiveness and lust.

She slowed down a bit to keep herself in check and they fell in a slow, intense kiss. She could feel the butterflies flying in her stomach and how every once in a while, Vilkas shuddered a little bit.

He felt like being slowly undone by her hands and her lips. He knew that alpha couples weren’t uncommon, usually male and female bonded and lead the pack together, but there was always a dominant one, no matter their gender.

In their case, he was happy to submit to her.

He imagined the fight for dominance would be one of their struggles, but they clicked together in place so naturally that he could barely register his wolf practically overflowing with joy from the attention he was receiving from her.

When he opened his eyes again, he was met with a pair of golden ones, staring at him like he was prey, and he felt a delicious shiver run down his spine.

If this was how it felt to be dominated by his mate, he would happily comply.

- I’ve never seen you smile like this – she said, trailing his face with curious fingers. She was oozing affection and attraction. He wanted to drown in her scent, so he hid what must have been a giant stupid smile on her neck and inhaled deeply, hugging her closer.

Still on his lap, she sat a little bit taller than him, so she rested her head against the top of his and they lay there quietly soaking in each other’s scent, letting them mix to the point they couldn’t discern who was who.

Eventually the sun started to set and the wind grew to be too chilling for one’s comfort.

As they made their way back to Whiterun, close enough to let their arms brush more often than not, they started to discuss what they could do to avoid either of them losing to their inner beasts.

By the time they reached the gates they had already agreed on going on hunts together and training their control. Vilkas still wasn’t entirely comfortable accepting his beast side, so she made a mental note to help him with it.

As they entered Jorrvaskar, they met Aela, who was sitting casually by the entrance, probably worrying over them all that time.

They didn’t even open their mouths when she said:

- I see you two have finally worked your differences – she smiled and left, not even giving them a chance to say a thing.

She felt her face lit on fire, but when she looked over Vilkas, she only saw slight annoyance, not a trace of shame or hesitation. Both of them knew there would be no end to the teasing and innuendos.

Since it was impossible to really hide the fact they were together now - because scents - Vilkas just laced their hands and made it to the table.

While they were eating, Farkas walked in. His face scrunched up and he asked in a low voice, away from the other members:

- You two reek of each other. Are you finally one?

She still blushed, but smiled and nodded in an affirmative.

- Does that mean we’ll have an extra room? Can I take it?

Vilkas rolled his eyes and shooed his brother away. After all this time she still couldn’t wrap her mind how different both of them were, despite their physical similarities.

As soon as it seemed they had privacy again, she said:

- As tempting as it sounds, I think it’s better if we live in separate rooms… For now.

Both of them were conscious of the limitations of their grasp of their beastly nature, so Vilkas wasn’t surprised with that. He agreed, feeling only a little bit sad, but resigned to do things the right way now.

After a brief moment of silence, though, he could feel tension slowly growing inside her.

- What’s wrong? – he asked, frowning.

She turned to him and confessed, in a concerned voice:

- I’m a little wary of Kodlak’s reaction…

Vilkas stopped for a moment.

He knew the old man for a long time, the last thing he could imagine was him meddling in their relationship, but also knew there was the whole pack issue going on. He didn’t dismiss her concerns, but said:

- I don’t think he’ll oppose us, he knows he doesn’t get a say on this and I think he trusts you enough not to give wings to Aela’s wishes of a pack.

She pouted a little and said:

- I think we would be a great pack – but then added, in a sterner voice – but I do understand why he doesn’t want to take the path of the beast. It can be very scary to lose control over your own wolf.

Vilkas smiled at his mate’s thoughts. Although she had strong opinions over the matter, she didn’t fail to understand the other side.

He leaned into her, pressing his forehead against hers.

- Don’t worry, I suspect the old man has more faith in you than in any other of us.

She scoffed and said ironically:

- That doesn’t sound ominous at all – but she was smiling warmly at him.

After that they were inseparable, with Companions duties, hunts and training together they spent most of their days together. Sometimes they spent the night reading together in his bed, others they would train in silence, each in their own bubble.

Farkas had a blast teasing his brother till they brawled or Lena put an end to it, otherwise the others were indifferent to their relationship. Kodlak maintained a neutral stance when he was told about them and never uttered a single word about it, despite Lena’s concerns, the man really exceeded himself in taking care of his own business.

As time went by they worked together to tame their beasts. At first, they didn’t trust themselves to both transform, so they took turns for a while.

Vilkas always tried his best to keep his wolf in a tight leash, so there weren’t any accidents when only he transformed, in Lena’s case though, the first time she shifted her wolf promptly jumped Vilkas, scenting and licking him.

That day they had to cancel the hunt, because it took him hours to calm her down and after that she was too embarrassed to face him properly.

The night both of them ran together as beasts there was a strong full moon. Both of them were tense and euphoric, Vilkas way tense and Lena way euphoric.

In the beginning, as soon as they turned, there was this silent moment of recognition. Slowly circling each other, they smelled the air and after some moments measuring each other, Lena jumped him – again – but this time it was a playful move, a mock of power struggle.

Just like two overgrown, deadly puppies, they rolled around for a bit until Vilkas caught the scent of a deer and the hunt began.

That night they ended up losing themselves a little bit, the moons and stars gave space to light and sun, then to darkness again.

Preoccupied, Farkas and Aela went after them on that second night and brought them back to their heads.

After that incident a shield sibling joined them in their hunts for a while, until they all felt it was safe enough to let both of them alone again.

Although Vilkas had more experience dealing with his wolf, most of the times he was  carried away by Lena’s leading, and as the most inexperienced wolf, she easily indulged herself in the hunt and she found that controlling that thrill was the most difficult aspect of the beast, more than the bloodlust or the overwhelming senses.

In the end Aela’s thirst for revenge was finally sated, but her mood didn’t bright up until the season changed again.

The shield-sister kept her thoughts of turning the Circle into a pack to herself, but Lena saw how the Huntress looked at her in approval when she instinctively took the leadership as a werewolf.

The Circle changed and all Jorrvaskr felt it. All of its integrants seemed sharper, more focused and united as a group. Although Lena hadn’t claimed her spot as leader or even showed inclination to form a pack, it got clear with time that she had the gift to take the role.

More often than not, she felt her wolf pulling their group one way when they hunt together. The brothers brawled when they were beasts just as much as when they were men and when the whole thing seemed to be escalating into a full-fledged bloodbath she promptly intervened, scolding them as much as she would as woman.

Kodlak as always, never shared his thoughts on the matter with her, but she felt his attitude slightly change towards her, sometimes he eyed her as if considering something and after a good while going over it, she realized his wolf was acknowledging her wolf as an equal.

When she told Vilkas about it he smiled and shared with her that Kodlak did the same with him and it took him months to realize what the gesture meant. He was younger and his alpha self was blind with pride until the same happened with Farkas and he realized it was just Kodlak’s way to show affection.

It was all looking good, they managed to collect almost all the pieces of Wuuthrad when Aela approached her one night, she and Vilkas had just finished their meal, and said with her patented worried look that Kodlak had discovered everything about their revenge and wanted to have a talk.

That didn’t surprise her at all, she shared a look with Vilkas and by now they were so at ease with themselves that a simple squeeze of her hands and reassuring fingers brushing her hair were enough to calm her nerves a bit.

What nobody expected was Kodlak to reveal that he had his own personal quest going on, looking for ways to be free from his wolf and release his spirit to Sovngard when the time came.

She didn’t agree that the wolf was a curse at all, at this point she and the beast were so connected that it was too painful to imagine life without it. More than a burden, it was company and second nature at the same time.

Still, when the old man asked, she couldn’t find in herself an ounce of opposition. If Kodlak didn’t want Hircine’s endless field of chase and hunt, so be it. The man had the freedom to choose it.

And if she could, she would help him achieve it.

After gathering word about the witches’ cave, she realized this was one of the rare occasions that shadows and silence were way more advantageous than just charging in and slicing up like usually was the case.

Vilkas understood, but that didn’t mean he liked it. Of course, they were fully functional by themselves, occasionally they took a solo job and, although rarely, went on hunts alone. But this quest specifically made him anxious.

Haggravens weren’t creatures to be taken lightly and getting into a cave full of them didn’t help to calm his concerns.

On the night she decided to leave, he kept frowning at her in a silent stare from his sitting position on her bed.

Even when she had fully equipped herself with her carefully stored Nightingale armor, he kept his silence, waves of preoccupation emanating of him.

She finally sighed and turned to him in an exasperated tone:

- By Ysmir! Out with it, just come with me already.

His frown deepened and he countered:

- So I can stomp around and get both of us killed? I don’t think so. We both know you are more prepared for this kind of thing.

- Then enough with the scowl – she said getting close and putting her finger right in the middle of his eyebrows, where his frown formed.

He sighed deeply and laced his arms on her waist, bringing her closer to the point he buried his face on her stomach.

- I have a bad feeling about this. The wolf feels it. I am feeling it – he squeezed her tighter and she hugged him in return.

She knew what he was talking about, she felt it too. The very air felt wrong somehow.

The Circle felt it clearly and even others seemed to notice something was amiss. The city was quieter, even the mad-man had left earlier, skipping his usual evening shout-preaching.

- I know, but I have to do it. For the old man.

She put her hands on his cheeks and gently guided him up, where she kissed him soundly, taking her time to appreciate all of him, his taste, smell and feel.

Sliding her hands, she slowly descended to his neck and shoulders, massaging them with big, lazy circles. She learned Vilkas was a worrier and tended to keep all of his tension inside, so she always found a lot of knots of stress tied tightly on his back and shoulders.

He hummed, groaning softly when she squeezed a particular painful spot, but soon he was a boneless excuse of a man leaning against her. Body spent and happily relaxed under her ministrations.

She kissed him one more time and he knew it was time.

- Wish me good luck.

- You don’t need luck – he said with a huff, but then added – don’t go too far.

Knowing what he was talking about, she nodded and let go, putting her cowl in place and sinking in the darkness.

The night welcomed her with open arms and she slipped through the guards and patrols unnoticed.

Getting to the Witches’ Lair was easy, the hard thing was taking them down unnoticed.

At first, she thought she would only use her skills to sneak on them and strike them with her blade, but after a quick scoop through the place she realized one mistake and she would be cornered on a wall with a bunch of nasty haggravens chasing her with fire in their hands and madness in their eyes.

“The old way it is, then.”

Silent and deadly, she wanted to end this as quickly as possible in the most effective way. Her gut still insisted something was wrong and her wolf kept attention to the small sounds in the cave. It was nerve wracking.

She was glad she had also kept her bow and arrows intact, because they were essential to the execution of her plans. One by one she took them down, not one of them saw her coming and after a couple of hours sweeping through the place, the cave was no longer home of foul witches, only their bodies remained to rot, because their heads were hers to bring back to Kodlak and as a token of a successful solo hunt.

When she started making her way back to Whiterun relief poured through her body, but as close as she got to the city, the bad premonition grew again inside her mind and heart.

The worst part was over... Wasn’t it?

She found herself steadily increasing her pace, giving fuel to her anxiety. By the time she reached the gates, she was almost jogging.

Fewer guards were at the post and she frowned at the realization that she also didn’t encounter the usual night patrol.

Although in a hurry, she still wanted to keep herself out of the light and went back to the shadows and quietly made her way inside.

Then she caught the words “tragedy”, “Companions” and she got up and ran so fast that she almost didn’t hear “fought like a true warrior”.

Her heart took life of its own by the way it was almost jumping out of her chest. Her wolf was caught on whining in fear and growling in anticipation, feeling her blood boil in protectiveness.

Her nose felt it first, but she denied to herself until she actually reached Jorrvaskr doors. Then all life flew out of her body. Bodies in the ground. Blood. Death.

She was at a loss about what to do and only when Aela approached her, she realized she was staring at the dead bodies because she was desperately checking if any of them looked familiar.

Aela’s words went unheard and when she snapped out of it, she bolted inside, ready to fight either to protect or to avenge.

After entering the building though, shock stunned again and if there were any Silver hand lurking around, this was the time they would succeed in striking a surprise attack on her.

Kodlak’s body laid down by the fire. She gasped and felt her wolf’s howl in grief.

She heard him more than saw him with her teared up eyes.

- Where were you? – his voice but a whisper.

His words may seem accusing, but his tone was all pain and grief.

Then his arms were surrounding her, the embrace hard like steel, but still warm and gentle. All she could do was lace her arms around his neck and hug tight, not only to bring comfort to him, but to both of them.

She could feel a storm quietly brewing inside him, through his shaking hands, his dark eyes and the restlessness of his wolf.

With a quiet wavering voice, he told her how it all happened, how utterly shocked they all were and how the old man managed to bring a lot of them down right there in the hall when many of the Companions were still in bed waking up startled by the noise.

When the Silver Hand poured all over inside Jorrvaskr and fight broke all around, they had to make their way through combat and when they did get to him it was too late and nothing could be done to save the old man’s life.

After that one single quiet moment, it all passed in a blur.

Having the storm finally hit its full force, Vilkas left Whiterun enraged to immediately end all of the Silver Hand.

That was the single time she felt her wolf completely guiding her while still in human form, moving her sword on its own accord and setting her body into motion to dodge a blow.

The only things she remembered distinctly about that day were how much grief and bloodlust poured out of Vilkas and how much actual blood stained all of them by the time they were done with the Silver Hand.

Even when the last one of them had fallen, Vilkas stood still, deadly silent while panting, his breath ragged and irregular, even if several minutes had passed after the battle had ended.

She approached him slowly and carefully, she knew he wouldn’t harm her in his right mind, but at that moment he clearly wasn’t completely sane. It was almost palpable in the air how strained his control over his wolf was.

Moving her hand deliberately, she reached his hand and took it in hers. His knuckles were white and undoubtedly bruised by how hard he was gripping his sword.

She took her other hand to his face and brushed her fingers lightly against his cheeks, as if wiping tears, although his expression was hard like steel, with no actual visible sign of sadness.

She kept calmly caressing him until his nerves gave in and his impenetrable shell of cold rage finally broke.

He took in a deep ragged breath in and frowned. She could tell when he realized how real the whole situation was, when tremors started to roam through his body.

He dropped his sword and grabbed her hands as if his life depended on it.

Together they silently made their way back to Whiterun.

The sun was high on the sky by the time they reached the gates. The guards gave their words of condolences, but Vilkas never answered, his steeled expression came back and stayed on even during Kodlak’s funeral.

He said his words, they honored the old man and then everyone scattered, each left to deal with their grief their own way.

Some drank, some worked even harder, some became a little reckless, some just vanished for a while, but Vilkas just went straight back to Jorrvaskr and locked himself in his bedroom.

The first couple of days, she understood and kept her distance, but when days started to turn into weeks, she started to worry for his well-being.

She was spending another night munching her food, thinking what she could possibly do to make things better, when Tina approached her.

The woman caught her lost in thoughts and actually made her jump.

- You know, when he was but a boy, he used to do the same thing when he was upset or hurt. You blinked and before we could even see the bruise, he was locked tight in his bedroom.

She stared at the woman in surprise. Nobody ever told stories about the young Companions. Kodlak was the one who occasionally mentioned their childhood.

- When that happened, not even Farkas could enter the room. Kodlak was the only one who managed to get him out of there – she added with a sad, nostalgic smile.

She blinked at that and nodded to the woman in silent understanding.

- Thank you, Tina – the woman really did know everything that happened inside these walls.

The elder smiled knowingly and left her to her own thoughts again.

As she finished her meal, she grabbed a bowl and headed to Vilkas’ room determined to at least get an answer out of him. He hadn’t uttered a single word since that day at the forge.

She stood in front of his door and was bracing herself for any possible reaction when the door slung wide open, revealing a disheveled Vilkas inside.

He wore normal, non-combat clothes. Which he usually only did to sleep.

But then she noticed the bags under his eyes and how tense his shoulders seemed.

She handed him the bowl of warm soup and stared at him until he reluctantly accepted it.

- May I come in? – she asked cautiously.

He seemed surprised for a moment, but being too tired to argue, he just nodded and let her in.

In heavy movements, he left the soup on his nightstand and threw himself on his bed.

She frowned at his reactions, but was much more relieved as soon as she took in the room. His bedroom wasn’t more of a mess than usual. He always accepted his meals, but she could see now that he was indeed eating by the empty bowl from the previous meal on the top of the same nightstand.

Every once in a while, he left for a couple hours, she assumed he went out to relieve and clean himself. All in all, he was doing an ok job at taking care of himself.

But that still didn’t change the fact the man himself was, visibly a mess. He had lost a lot of weight. And his wolf didn’t even respond to her.

In fact, she couldn’t even sense its constant presence around him.

Sure, it was there, but not really there with them.

It was grieving just as much as Vilkas.

She took a deep breath and crouched beside his bed.

She opened her mouth and tried to say anything to comfort his pain, but after a couple moments thinking, she closed it again. There were no words that could be said to ease him from what he was going through.

Then she decided to say nothing. She nudged him a little bit and lay beside him. Not cuddling, embracing or even touching more than necessary. She just wanted to be there for him.

So she just lay there.

At first, he didn’t seem to be paying enough attention to his surroundings to realize she was still there, he kept his shoulders tense and closed eyes frowning. After what seemed like half an hour though, he stirred in bed and turned to face her.

Her eyes were closed, but she wasn’t really sleeping, rest wasn’t that easy for her. Especially not these days.

She felt the weight of his eyes, but didn’t open hers. She knew if Vilkas wanted any kind of interaction he would reach out.

So she waited.

Meanwhile she focused on his breathing, the rhythm of the beats of his heart, the smells of his bedroom.

Then her memories took over and sadness colored everything blue. She thought of Kodlak. She thought of Skjor. She even thought of Mercer, the Silver Hand and many others she had killed and visited her sometimes on cold, silent nights.

Her wolf recoiled a little bit, as if it was bitten by the sharp memories. She realized the wolf had never experienced something like this before. She had, but the beast hadn’t.

She calmly walked through the sting of her dark thoughts, she showed the beast that that was how it was supposed to be.

Sometimes you just had to step on spikes in order to just find an exit.

She guided her wolf, she felt the grief and the pain, but didn’t stop.

She didn’t visit only the bad memories, the ones that hurt, the ones that made her dread another day, she continued until she reached the good ones. The ones that made her smile, the ones that made her grateful for having met such people, the ones that made her remember why things happened this way.

And while that didn’t exactly erase all the haunting faces, it did make the air much more breathable and her heart lighter in her chest.

She could feel this acceptance flow to her wolf and peace emanate from it.

When she opened her eyes again, Vilkas was still staring at her.

With a pair of golden, intense eyes.

- How did you do that? – he whispered with a deep, unused, hoarse voice.

- How did I do what? – she countered in a soft tone.

- How did you calm your wolf? – he frowned more, and she caught a glimpse of something wild flashing through his eyes.

With a sudden realization, she finally understood Vilkas’ behavior.

- How are you dealing with things? – she asked carefully instead.

His steeled expression came back and he just muttered a short “I’m fine”.

She sighed.

- I worry about you. Do you know how long you’ve been holed up here?

He just answered with an exasperated, tired voice:

- I can’t get out right now.

- Why not? 

He then broke eye contact and whispered in a small voice that didn’t suit his size.

- You know why not.

She caressed his face in a soft motion to get his eyes back on her again.

- Vilkas, I can’t even begin to understand what you’re going through, but you need to stop this.

- Stop what?

He was genuinely confused. Perhaps he hadn’t even realized what he was doing.

- How long has it been since you shifted?

He frowned.

- Since the day the Silver Hand ceased. Why?

- Because you’re slowly shifting right now.

She could see the golden getting brighter and brighter, the way his hair got a little bit longer and how fidgety he was.

- When was the last time you felt your wolf? – She asked before he could say anything to her again.

His expression became pained and lost. The way his wolf hunched on himself, looking vulnerable and young, but also tired and drained, the way only someone who lived through blood could look.

- I don’t know.

His control was slowly, but steadily slipping from his grasp by the way tremors were roaming through his body and how his fingers were gradually becoming claws.

In a swift move, she got up and left the bed. Looking at his form, now coiled and tangled in the sheets, she extended a hand to him, while saying:

- Let’s go. A closed room isn’t what your wolf needs, Vilkas.

For a moment it looked like he was going to argue, but a violent shiver took him all of a sudden and he realized he didn’t really have any longer to get to a safer place.

He grasped her hand and through the fog of the hazy urge to shift and roam free, he could only sense his mate beside him, guiding him through walls, hand clasped on his neck, through the dark of the Underforge, then finally to where they belonged, under the moon.

He took a deep breath in and no longer able to contain it, he let the beast rip through him. The howl that erupted from his chest was long and pained, unleashed and unashamed of its mourn.

Everything trapped inside him, all the things he was running from, broke out and without any real conscious thought, he was running with the wind, loose and lost.

He heard someone yell behind him, but to his wolf words didn’t mean anything, he knew they were supposed to mean something, but like a heavy blanket over his head, they went past him, they were just sounds that didn’t mean anything anymore.

He let his nose guide him and his instincts took over. He ran and ran, chasing the moons until they disappeared behind the ground.

The naked fields turned into tall trees, the smell of city and people became distant and all he could feel were the darting little creatures startling out of the way and hiding.

He still never stopped running, listening to rabbits and herds of deer bolting from him, his scrambled mind could only focus on the crunching beneath his paws and the leaves brushing against his fur as he sprinted as far and as fast as he could.

Light slowly dimmed around him and the moons greeted him again.

Eventually, his stomach grumbled and his mouth watered next time he crossed path with another small creature.

But his wolf didn’t crave the thrill of the hunt.

Like a wounded, scared animal, he bounded through bushes without a care, only focused on finding a safe haven, a place where the hurt wouldn’t be so unbearable, not capable of even thinking of stopping, not feeling safe enough to eat or to rest.

He kept on a frantic search for a safe den, but nowhere seemed far enough, closed enough, warm enough.

It lacked something his beast mind couldn’t place, his nose itched and longed for a scent he couldn’t recall. He didn’t know where he was going, but somewhere deep inside, he knew nowhere he was headed was the right place to be.

For a while the steady pushing pace he maintained was everything he could feel, his paws beating rhythmically and his panting breaths the only sounds around, the clean, cold air of the forest, the only smells.

The moons disappeared and came back repeatedly.

He couldn’t remember why he was running anymore. He knew he was trying to get away from something, but he didn’t know what.

He knew he was looking for something, but no matter how much his brain tried to focus, he couldn’t evoke what it is he craved anymore.

His limbs hurt from exhaustion and his legs trembled, struggling to keep moving. He wasn’t running anymore, a tired stumble was all he could muster right now.

Suddenly, a howl echoed through the air. It was far, far away, but it was startingly familiar and it immediately made him halt all movements and strain to listen again.

After a couple of beats, two other howls called him from the distance. They were just as pleading as the first one.

He tilted his head and tried to place the weird thug of familiarity in his chest.

While he racked his mind, trying to get a hold of memories and scents, that first strong howl resounded again. Much closer this time.

It was close enough to identify the alpha touch on the howl calling him out. And he knew deep inside him that he was being chased, that they were hot on his trail, that if he wanted to get away, he had to move now.

Instead of getting restless and defensive, the beast inside him calmed and settled down.

The howls and now scents got closer and closer, until he could hear their steps and pants getting near his position.

Two werewolves emerged from the bushes. Two omegas, he scented, cautious and strangely friendly, they circled him slowly in a loose motion. They wanted to be close, but didn’t crowd or corner him.

Another wolf, the alpha, he realized, approached, much slower than the other two.

It was a female and her stance wasn’t exactly cautious, but each step she took was deliberate and calculated, she had her bright eyes fixed on him and he faltered for a moment, a bit lost in her intense gaze.

Her scent was the most alluring of them and he tilted his head, trying to remember where and when he had smelled it before. It soothed that itch inside him and made his muscles relax a bit.

The urge to bolt vanished completely inside him and he struggled to remember once again, what he was running from.

While he tried to organize the jumble of thoughts swarming his brain, the alpha stepped closer and he was once more surprised with himself when he didn’t feel not even in the slightest threatened by the proximity.

The wolf didn’t look in the least submissive and while it still failed to raise his own alpha instincts, it finally rubbed him in the wrong way when she tried to come close enough to touch him.

He bared his teeth and flattened his ears on his head, not liking how he was within her range, if she decided to attack him, he wouldn’t be able to dodge it.

A small voice then whispered to him she would never hurt him like that.

He shook his head, confused and a bit disoriented by the awakening of another part of him. Awakening or return?

He whipped his head when he felt a tentative touch on his arm.

A growl erupted out of instinct when he realized the alpha had come even closer than before and was staring impassively at him, now so close that all he could smell was her.

His head became dizzy when he sniffed curiously. Her scent hit him like a blow and he couldn’t help letting out a distressed whine when something inside him jolted alive and brought with it an overwhelming amount of memories of places, people, scents, friends, foods, drinks, family and mate.

Family and mate.

He opened his eyes he didn’t realize he had closed and peered around.

That’s what they were.

He looked at the two omegas and saw what they were, or better, who they really were. A wave of relief washed over them when he acknowledged them again, Farkas and Aela. Shield-siblings. One by blood, other by battle.

He felt something press against his own snout and realized someone else was demanding his attention.

The alpha. His alpha.

Lena.

Mate.

He took a deep breath in and allowed himself to get lost on her while it all slowly came back to him. His life, the Companions, his sword, his armor, Silver, Skjor, blood, fight, Kodlak, death.

But what before suffocated him, now only weighed on his chest, not an agonizing strangling pain, but a bitter sadness.

He realized then it was because he wasn’t alone. Aela had shuffled closer and now stood a few feet away, his brother though, was anxiously pacing next to him.

Lena stepped away and he wanted to protest the lack of contact, but as soon as she gave space, his brother jumped, scenting and playfully biting him.

Aela was more contained and was content to brush closer and lean her back against his side.

Lena huffed and watched them all settle on the grass in a messy pile.

They looked at her expectantly and although she was alpha and probably who they would all be claiming as their alpha, she didn’t hesitate in laying down on top of them all and relaxing.

The Sun shone on top of their heads and he realized he didn’t know for how long he had run.

It must’ve been a while, to ensure puppy pile from the usually stoic and allergic to feelings Companions.

They spent a good portion of the day just lazing around, all still stubbornly stuck on their wolf forms. Together, they guided him to the next river, watched him almost drown himself in water when he felt the thirst hitting again.

Then they remained away from civilization and made their way back home, while occasionally stopping to hunt something to help him replenish his energy and fill his empty stomach.

They walked and then, when he felt rested enough, lightly ran back to Whiterun.

Apparently, while lost on his mad dash, he had gone straight north and when they found him, he was already near Dawnstar, he still had no idea how long he was out, none of them shifted back and while it would’ve bothered him before, now he just felt at ease being a wolf and surrounded only by his kind on their own hides.

Lena calmly led them through the wilderness, just a head in front of them, she was alert and nothing like the overactive wolf from months ago.

Apart from an encounter with a sabre cat and an aggressive, suicidal skeever, the journey back south went smoothly.

The night was deep when they spotted the walls of their city again.

But while the three of them eagerly moved, he stayed behind.

Lena turned and eyed him questioningly, but Aela and Farkas exchanged a knowing glance and proceeded to their own hidden entrance through the Underforge without hesitation.

She approached him and made a thorough check, inspecting him, checking if everything was ok. He basked in the attention and felt slightly amused when she finished and sat back on her haunches, apparently still intrigued by his refusal to go home.

He was wondering how to do this, how to explain what he wanted to convey when he still didn’t feel the need to slip into his other skin.

Then she started shifting back to human form and in a blink, she stood before him on nothing but with what she was born with.

Vilkas was by no means shy, but he wasn’t that much of a crude either, so while he drank on the sight of his beautiful mate in front of him, that wasn’t all he focused on.

She stepped closer and he relished on her touch when she carded her fingers through the long fur on his neck.

- What’s wrong? – she asked with a frown – not keen on going home yet?

He shook his head and lowered himself, to give her better access and deliberately, in a sure movement, bared his throat to her.

She took a sharp breath in and hesitated.

- You don’t have to do that, Vilkas – she said, stepping back a little.

He growled lowly, no real heat behind it, and slipped one of his clawed hands on her waist to stop her from putting more distance between them.

He stubbornly kept his throat bared and his gaze on her. He took steady breaths and tried to emanate only calm and confidence.

She eyed him for a moment and realized he wouldn’t back off, not from this.

- Fine, but if you are baring your throat to me, then I’m baring mine to you – she announced while stepping closer again.

He snorted, but kept still otherwise.

Kodlak never made anyone bare their throat to him, he never claimed anyone either. But instinctively they knew how to declare submission to one another, it wasn’t a thing that could be taught, it was ingrained deep in their wolves.

That’s how it came naturally to him to just tilt his head and keep a relaxed stance while she nuzzled his neck for a couple seconds before he heard her growl, shift and clamp her fangs almost delicately on him.

She increased the pressure of her jaw steadily and he felt the sharp pricks of her teeth through his fur break the skin beneath.

If he could, he would have rolled on his back and melted, because that feeling right there, to let her claim and take, unlocked something warm and deep inside him.

He had to suppress a whine when she unlocked her fangs from his neck and after taking calming breaths, once more shifted to her human form.

Her eyes shone a vibrant yellow and her scent was filled with excitement and satisfaction.

- My turn now – she stated and promptly lifted her chin up, exposing the soft skin of her throat and keeping a smug eye on him.

How she managed to be such a laid back alpha was beyond him, he himself could be considered a tamed alpha, but that’s because his nature, although dominant, wasn’t imposing, he liked his silence, more than he liked people, so it was a given the nature of his beast would lean towards individuality, rather than the need to claim leadership of a pack.

But Lena was different, she always presented the energy, the will and the temper to be their leader. And yet she didn’t. Even now, she had the option to take his submission and not bend to his alpha in exchange, something he wouldn’t fight her for.

Instead, she proposed equality, to both of them to share their alpha status in their pack. Surprising him and making Vilkas relish on how Lena was able to easily lead and submit. She wasn’t chained by anything, not her guild, her position, her wolf, not even by him. And he couldn’t help but be drawn to that freedom glinting in her eyes.

Still a bit crouched, he let himself take a few seconds to just gaze at her, head slightly bent and eyes shining with the light of the Moons. It was an image he wanted to burn on his head.

Lowering himself a bit, he swept his nose on the curve where her neck met her shoulders and scented her deeply.

He shuffled closer and felt a shudder rake her body when he enveloped her in a loose embrace.

Knowing his mate, he chose not to be gentle and gradual about it, like she’d done it, without as much as a brief lick, he sank his fangs deep on her neck in one movement of his jaw.

She gasped and pulled the fur of the back of his neck tightly, but relaxed just as quickly, body sagging against him. A satisfied growl rumbled on his chest and she shivered against him.

When he pulled out, he licked her neck clean, catching every drop of her blood carefully and drinking it like the best wine he ever tasted.

He gripped her tightly, keeping her smaller frame pressed closer to his own.

Soon his licks became lazy and indulgent, the small cuts marking her skin had closed up enough and it was much more an act of affection than necessity now.

Her scent started to change and spice up gradually, he shifted his attention and after lavishing most of her neck, he started to descend and slowly make his way through her body.

She kept a tight grip on his fur, not pulling or pushing, just holding him with a trembly hold.

A moan left her lips when he reached her breasts and brushed his fangs on her nipple.

He could smell her arousal and feel the hunger on her burning eyes too.

But before things could escalate even further, he got up and grabbed her by her waist.

She yelped in surprise, but didn’t protest when he started to swiftly move through the trees.

After a bit of attentive sniffing around, he found the right one and only let her down when things seemed clear.

- A cave. Why am I not surprised? – she asked playfully.

He huffed at her irony, but could tell she was pleased with it.

Contrary to that cold first encounter they had what felt like ages ago, this was a deeper cave, it didn’t have any other rooms and entrances, it was a simple, one way in and out cave that ran in a long line until it opened at the end in a wide height circular room, where somewhere up a hole let light and some small spots of grass grow.

It was deep enough that it was dry and warm enough to feel comfortable even to humans.

While it had traces of a creature at the entrance, the deep parts looked like they were inhabited for a long time.

- Well, it looks like a cozy place to make a den – she said after carefully inspecting every inch of the place and standing right on top of the soft grass, basking on the slight pearly light coming from the outside.

He never understood why she always insisted on checking every place so thoroughly, but he struggled not to preen at her approval.

Approaching her, he hunched his head down to taste the addictive skin of her neck again. She closed her eyes and buried her face on his chest, moaning a bit when he licked the sensitive spot of his bite marks again.

- Vilkas, I want you like this – she whispered in an almost bashful voice – can we...?

He stopped for a moment, taking in her request.

Before he would have said no. He wouldn’t have trusted himself to do it as a wolf.

But now... Now he wore his beast hide with ease. It didn’t weigh his mind, on the contrary, it freed it and it felt no more natural to walk as wolf as it did as man.

He looked at her seriously and nodded his head slowly, the way her scent immediately became sweeter and thicker made him dizzy for a couple of seconds and without a warning, he was tackled to the ground.

He went down without a fight and actually enjoyed the way she sat on top of him, beautiful legs spread and resting by the sides of his waist, her eyes glinting with smug satisfaction and lust.

She roamed her hands through his chest and belly. Her eyes flashed brightly when she leaned down and scented his neck deeply and he wondered if she was trying to fight the shift.

He also let his hands explore her body and let his claws drag lightly from her back to her ass and from her neck to her thighs. She hissed and squirmed, rubbing herself on the lower part of his abdomen.

She smelled so sweet and now he could feel how dripping she was.

A growl boomed from his chest and he swiftly raised from the ground and flipped their positions, he pressed her body down with his weight and drank her gasp when he rubbed his erection against her wet entrance.

The friction made both of them shiver and before he could pick up the pace, he forced himself to still his hips and lower down until he was face to face with her pussy.

The urge to mate was great, but before that, he wanted to taste.

Minding his claws, he carefully spread her legs open for him and promptly buried his nose on her wild curls, making her flinch when he nosed her clit while dragging his snout down.

Her smell was pure and intoxicating, he was lost on it and with a swaying head, he licked a long stripe from her tight asshole to the last of her curls.

That made her legs spasm and her breath became ragged.

He did it again, and again and again. Until she was a shivering mess, dripping so much he just had to take a short lick to catch it from her entrance.

The taste swirled in his mouth and he wanted more.

Trying to get even closer, he tried to bury in her, getting his tongue closer and deeper, breaching in after a couple of licks with the flat of his tongue. Then when he was inside, he had to let a growl from how good she tasted.

With both her legs resting on his back, he licked her thoroughly inside, feeling her warm and twitching on his tongue. When he started to alternate between giving attention to her swollen clit and her now slightly opened up sex, her legs started to shake and her moans became louder.

She urged to not stop, to keep going exactly like that.

So that’s what he did, not faster or stronger, just keeping a leisure, constant pace, and before he knew she clenched rhythmically on his tongue and her legs pushed him closer, getting him to keep fucking her with his mouth while she rode out of her orgasm.

When he flicked a brief touch on her clit again, she flinched and her body spasmed, while she whined and her body seemed trapped between overwhelmed and hungry for more.

And while he would be happy to keep bringing her to completion with his tongue, right now he wanted nothing more than to be finally inside her.

The way she urged him up and away showed that this was a shared wish between them.

As soon as he was full body leaning on her again, she bared the marked side of her neck and he felt something inflate and grow inside his gut, a possessiveness pulled a growl from him and she smiled, knowing and smug, sighing in pleasure when he bent down to lick all over her neck again, tasting the sweet, heavy flavor of lust and affection on her skin and taking in how their scents were mingling.

Inebriated with his mate, he only realized she had flipped her position, now on her fours, when she lowered her head on her arms and curved her spine, ass all but presenting to him.

Something snapped inside him.

Before he could even think of containing himself, his claws flew to her waist, circling it and manhandling her soft, marked body, to him, rubbing his hard member on the top of her ass and repeatedly teasing her entrance, feeling the head of his straining, swollen member, catch and rub deliciously against her twitching, wet pussy.

She gave a growl of her own, impatient and demanding, that made him get on with it.

Wearing the beast hide had its perks, his heightened senses could tell countless things about his mate that his human form would have to touch, ask and feel to confirm.

But he knew, from the way she had opened and stretched to him when he had his tongue on her, to the heavy smell of her sex, that she was more than ready and willing to take him.

So without an ounce of hesitation, he gripped her waist firmly and breached her open, sheathing every inch of his dick inside her in a single thrust in, making her gasp and scream his name, limbs going taut and spine tense.

He paused for a couple of seconds, surrendering himself to her warm and tight embrace, how she quivered and clenched continuously on him, on the sound of her ragged breath and the feel of the trembles running through her body.

He slowly dragged out, growling lowly at the satisfying feel of her grasping body, on the way one hand quickly shot back, trying to stop him to leave.

But he pulled until he could see his head again, then he slammed back on again, with unchecked force, loving the sound she was making, with her moans and her pussy.

Not being able to resist, he settled for a pushing pace immediately, gripping her body, palming her ass to pull to his cock, driving to her with abandon and force, letting his hips roll without a pause.

Without stuttering his brutal rhythm, he pulled her cheeks apart, rumbling in content as he watched his full erected member repeatedly burying inside her to the hilt, making his balls slap against her and how beautifully and obscenely stretched her pussy was, but still she swallowed him whole, greedily and easily, tight and perfect on him.

He wasn’t fucking her, he was mating her.

She couldn’t even manage to moan without stuttering, the force of his thrusts dislodging her body slightly, but being inevitably pulled back to meet the roll of his hips with his huge hands on her ass.

It was overwhelming and addicting, she was drowning on him, feeling his wolf cock drag inside her deeply and force her open every time he plunged mercilessly.

Having him taking her from behind was doing things to her head, she turned to sneak a glance at him and whined at her mate roughly pounding into her body, grasping her hips, body tense and recoiled, eyes intense and glowing.

She wanted more .

At first, only managing weak, aborted movements, she moved her hips in time with his own, instead of letting his wolf do all the work, she responded and before he realized, she was meeting his thrusts with perfectly tilted hips.

Not interrupting himself, he leaned down on her, putting his arms around her body, tangling his claws with her own fingers, dwarfing her soft, glistening body, with his hard, warm one. Her back to his abdomen.

When he comfortably settled on all fours on top of her, he buried his snout on her neck, nipping gently at his own marks and increasing the pace once again.

She gasped as he tapped werewolf strength to bury himself in her with more vigor, relishing the way her thighs trembled against his own, how her moans became louder and louder, how hard she was gripping his clawed hands.

Her spine curved, presenting and tilting herself even further, while her head tilted back, exposing her marked throat completely.

He hunched and curled on top of her and felt the base of his dick swollen up. The rhythm of her hips stuttered every time the knot managed to catch a little.

VIlkas got lost in the intense sensation that burned through him every time it happened and focused on slipping it inside, growling low and long when it finally caught and her whole body flinched, surprised and delighted.

Even then he couldn’t totally pause, he managed to stop his hips from dragging out again, but couldn’t help himself on trying to bury inside even further, making slow, head spinning, circles, feeling her impossibly stretched and tight on him.

She was panting below him, arms trembling for a moment, until they gave out, she was whining non stop now, pussy twitching incessantly on him, she never wanted it to stop, swearing she could feel every single inch of him burning inside her.

When he moved again it was intense and she whimpered a sob from how intense it felt, he slowly dragged in and out again, letting out a small, pleased snarl every time his knot popped inside her. He built his rhythm gradually this time, letting her get used to the stretch and after a couple of minutes he was plunging his knot inside her with abandon.

But it was different this time, she could feel his thrusts were purposeful and directed, he huffed in concentration and when he hit that sweet spot that made her curse, he shifted his legs, and promptly made her lose her head.

He was aiming for that maddening spot and with the brutal pace set, she was a trembling mess in a matter of a couple thrusts, her hips couldn’t keep up anymore, she was overwhelmed with the sheer pleasure of the friction of his member on her, of the burning stretch of his knot.

Then he took on licking his bite marks on her neck and throat again, and when his fangs brushed against the vulnerable skin, she couldn’t hold it anymore. Like a gate flooded open, she whimpered his name and tensed, body doing a full shudder before clamping down on him rhythmically.

He growled as her pussy tightened up and clenched on his knot, he forced his way through a couple of times more until he made a final, sloppy thrust, trying to bury all of himself inside and spilling his seed in her, marking her from the inside, claiming her body and her soul.

With a howl, he couldn’t help the tiny thrusts of his hips as he bred her, using now his arms to circle her waist and bring her body against him, embracing her completely and holding her up, feeling his cock twitch and spurt continually inside, moaning in tad with her as her pussy responded, contracting around him, making both of them spasm and cling even further to each other.

Locked, he growled lowly as he kept spilling inside her, letting his claws roam carefully through her body, not enough to drain blood, but causing red, swollen lines across her chest and stomach.

She relaxed, blissed and thoroughly fucked out as he showered her in attention, petting him gently with one hand, while the other grasped his wandering arm.

When his knot finally went down, she gasped in surprise when he started to shift back, feeling how his cock changed from wolf to man while still inside her.

Human hands now hugged her close from behind and she groaned in pleasure when his now not nearly as deadly fingers groped her body more tightly. Pulling her breasts and teasing her nipples with delicate and precise touches. Mapping her belly and scratching her waist.

She was hot and ready again when his hand slipped down.

His fingers prodded carefully, pads opening her folds and exposing her clit while slowly massaging her in lazy circles.

It still made her body jump at the stimulation and her jaw clench as he started to thrust again. Sloppy, deep and long movements that were nothing like the hard, feverish ones from the wolf.

This time she didn’t have any strength left to meet his own, and she could only whimper as he took her in a warm embrace and made her explode with his fingers. Her thighs trembled and she bit her lip from how good it felt, clenching on his dick while he took her apart and continuingly rubbed her clit on insistent motions, even when she peaked and her muscles relaxed, he didn’t stop.

She sobbed and trembled on his hold, her hips stuttered, burying herself on his dick while being overwhelmed because he wasn’t stopping.

Her mouth was open in a silent scream and she shivered and felt her pussy quivering and fluttering in spasms as he brought her to completion again.

It felt good and intense and she wanted to melt in the way he kept thrusting in her, hot and hard as she tightened on him and wet his cock with her fluids.

She huffed and trashed against him when she realized he still wasn’t stopping .

Tears started to stream on her face, because the pleasure took a hard edge dangerously near pain, but she couldn’t help but grin dreamily at the feeling.

Her mind was being thoroughly taken apart, Vilkas’ fingers moved purposefully now, and his thrusts became erratic.

Having a human mouth now, he whispered filthy words on her ear and she shuddered, loving the roughness of his voice rolling on her and his panted breaths becoming uncontained, lovely, whines.

It didn’t take long and soon she was spiraling down again, with a shout she relished on the way she came on his dick, clenching viciously on him and triggering his own peak as he moaned long and deep as he gripped her tightly and finally stilled his fingers.

With careful movements, he brought both of them to the ground, laying their bodies on their side, spooning her from behind.

She wiggled her hips and liked the way his cock felt inside of her, even as it became softer and he hissed behind her.

When he slipped out, she squirmed as his seed spilled out.

With his face buried on her neck, she let herself be dragged away.

It had taken them a long way, but she realized this wasn’t a simple infatuation, that she wouldn’t wear Mara’s amulet ever again around her neck.

She didn’t need to, because she already had her wolf’s marks there and a warmness settled in her chest when she remembered her own marks on Vilkas.

The act was only possible because he was no longer a man chained to a wolf, he was a not one, but both.

Together, they were free.