#Chapter 47 – Home again

“MAMAAAA!” I lurch to my feet out of a straight sleep when I hear my son’s voice calling to me. Edgar next to me shudders awake, though he manages to stay in bed.

“What’s happening?” He murmurs, staring around bleerily.

“They’re back,” I say, pulling a blanket around my shoulders and ducking out the door.

From my vantage on the cabin’s short deck I see three figures walking in from the forest. I squint my eyes, trying to make out details. Disheveled, their t-shirts ripped – mud on their pants and boots – tiny scratches everywhere – and huge smiles on their faces.

I exhale a big breath. They’re okay. They’re happy.

“Boys!” I call, raising a hand to wave to them. At the sound of my voice, the boys start to run to me, though I can tell by their pace that they’re bone tired. I laugh, considering that of course they are after a night running through the woods.

Victor doesn’t pick up the pace, but wanders leisurely behind them, his hands in his pockets. I can see that he is smiling as well.

Ian is the first one up the three steps to the cabin’s porch. He throws his arms around my legs, shortly followed by Alvin, who does the same. “Mama!” Ian says, looking up at me. “It was amaaaaazing!”

I laugh down at them, cossetting their hair, their faces, trying to look at them both at once. “I want to hear all about it!”

“We saw everything, mama!”

“There was a deer!”

“And a lake! A big LAKE all silver in the moonlight!”

I oooh and ahhh as they tell me jumbled details. My eyes follow Victor as he climbs up onto the porch. The boys are still talking as he stops in front of me, leaning against one of the wooden pillars and giving me a smile.

“So, did you have as much fun as they did?” I say, nodding to the boys.

“It was amazing,” he confirms, holding my gaze. “I know they’re going to do their best to tell you every detail but it was…indescribable.”

I smile at him, truly feeling warmth towards this man who has given my children this gift, their first wolf’s moon. “Thank you, Victor. I’m so grateful.”

was about to say the same

Ian says, annoyed to have lost my attention. “Can we have

“Didn’t

nose in horror. “You thought

on my first night out. I must have had eight,

you ate ten squirrels!?” Ian joins Alvin in his revulsion, their

close to

me and running down towards the fire where Betas

call after the boys, laughing. “The fuzzy way they feel when they slide

fair impression of

is long and boring, you’ve got to add a little spice when you can.” I start down

eat any squirrels, right?”

my eyes down like a 40’s movie vixen. “A lady

to help, but the Betas shoo me away, pressing coffee into my hands and promising scrambled eggs.

Victor asks a Beta, accepting his own cup

Beta. “She stayed up late by the fire, snoozing on and off, but she eventually turned in. I imagine she’ll

taking a plate of fruit and

and he looks up at

laughing as a Beta hands me a plate with eggs and toast. I murmur

night with

letting him interrupt me

plans already forming to copy him, spitting out their own drinks. I narrow my

say, laughing and returning my attention to Victor as he mops coffee off of his already-filthy

Victor says, chuckling. “It sounds like you two are getting along, and that’s all that really

mouth full of egg. “A good

my joke. I wink at them, glad for my

Victor confers with the Betas and I overhear him telling them to pack up

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