Five years later…
POV - Kyas/Chaos/Ethos (Elias' wolf)
Kyas
"I have to go now, Papa." I told him.
He looks at me sadly, Mama holding his hand.
"Would it change anything, Kyas?" He asked.
I returned a sad smile. "No, Papa. But say it anyway."
"Stay with me?" He said, again.
"Someday," I said again. "Wait for me, Papa?"
"Always." He said again.
I stepped out of sight, and was pulled back behind the barrier. I sighed.
'Have a good run with Elias, Chaos. Say hi to Ethose for me. I'm going to sleep.' I said.
'Wuss.' He called me.
I laughed. 'Shut up, you had the night off.'
'Who can sleep with the way you two carry on? You're almost as bad as him and Elias. Almost.' He said, mildly annoyed.
'Yeah, well I only get one twelve hour night a month, gotta make it count.' I countered.
He chuckled, and I was off to sleep.
Chaos
The sun was coming up, so I slipped through the dog doors that had been installed between Alpha and Elias' rooms due to one too many maid complaints about wild animals in the house. I swear that most of that wasn't my fault.
I nudged Elias. Time to get up. He didn't move. I nudged again. Nothing. I rolled my eyes. What happened to rolling out of bed with shoes on ready to run?
I barked, and Elias flinched, but otherwise didn't move. I barked again. Get up! I want to play with Ethos. Ethos is My brother, Elias' wolf. I felt him before Elias did, about three months ago, on our birthday.
Since then, we make Elias take us running in the mornings.
I started growling low... it was a warning...
Elias sat bolt upright. "Ok, ok! I'm up, don't you dare pounce on me Chaos!" He put his hands out to stop me. I licked his face, and barked again, swishing my tail.
Elias groaned. "Goddess, Chaos, the sun isn't even up yet, can't you let me sleep for once?"
I cocked my head. He was sleeping. I woke him up.
"Uh! Not you too, Ethos!" He said. "Ok, fine, fine, I'm getting up."
He swung his legs out of bed and stood up. He was getting tall and strong, and it was because me and Ethos keep our bodies in good shape.
I followed him closely, watching every minute of his morning routine. I think it's stupid. Just get up and go. He started laughing. He was delaying on purpose! I barked at him again and he laughed harder.
"Ok, Chaos," he laughed, "let's go for a run."
He shifted into Ethos, and I greeted my brother wolf. Then we ran out of the room, raced down the stairs and outside. We ran the secondary perimeter of the pack boundary, not allowed to fully patrol until we were full pack members. It was a good run, and then we went inside so Elias could get ready for school.
Ethos
'I want to talk to him, Elias.' I said. 'I want a closer connection to him, to them. I'm amazed he's lasted as long as he has without his pack.'
'He has a pack. He's in our pack.' Elias said.
'Elias, you know that's not what I mean. Connections, Elias. He may be bound, but he's still an alpha, of this pack, same as us. He needs to know them, and they need to know him.' I argue. 'He may not be able to lead this pack, but he's still going to be expected to protect it. He needs to know it. There's a level of belonging that he could have had five years ago, Elias. He could have joined the pack on any full moon, but he gave that up for us.'
'He hasn't said anything about it.' Elias said.
'How long, Elias?' I asked. 'He promised you five years. He promised to wait for me. He did that. How much longer does he have to wait to be a real person in this pack?'
'I don't know.' He answered softly.
'That's cruelty, Elias. He doesn't deserve that. That isn't who we are, its not who I am.' I told him. 'Decide, now, or I'll do it for you.'
'What?' He said, surprised at my ultimatum.
'Elias,' I warned, 'I will snatch that boy straight from Alpha's room, drag him downstairs, and hold him there while I bark the whole damn packhouse awake to see him. On the next full moon, I swear it.'
'Ethos, I just don't want things to change. They are good now, with me and Papa, and me and Kyas. Why can't they just stay the same?' He said.
'Elias!' I said, shocked. 'Because it's not right, that's why. Kyas kept his promise. You will keep yours. Besides that, how much longer do you think it will take Kyas to realize you don't intend to let him live? To understand, you intend that he stay dead indefinitely? You don't think that will change things?'
'But, if he takes Papa away...' Elias said.
'Elias, that's up to Alpha now.' I told him. 'If Alpha does that, you can't lay that at Kyas' feet, and you can't blame that on Kyas. I can't even believe I am having this conversation with you. Where's your honor? Don't you love Kyas? Or do you just not love him more than you love yourself?'
'Ouch, Ethos, that's a low blow.' He said.
'I know it,' I respond angrily, 'and it pains me that I had to follow you down there to slap you with it!'
Elias sighs. 'You're right. I'm not being fair. I just didn't want things to change, they've been nice for a while.'
'Things always change, Elias, that's the way of nature.' I told him. 'Elias, you're always going to have your connection with your brother, the twin bond. But what happens when you want more? A mate? Pups of your own? A life where you are Alpha, separate from him? You would deny him those things too? And deny him connection to a pack? Elias, you'll kill them both. They can't survive without a pack, they are not by nature meant to.'
'I'm sorry, Ethos.' He sighed. 'You're right, I'm being selfish and unfair. The next full moon is the induction ceremony, where all of us that turned 15 and got our wolves will be made full packmates. Let's find out how we can get Kyas into that ceremony.'
'Agreed.' I said. 'I mean it, Elias. Your terms or mine. Kyas comes back from the dead on the next full moon.'
'Thanks Ethos.' He tells me.
'You're welcome. That's why we all need our wolves. To help our humans pull their heads out of their asses.' I laughed.