Chapter Text
It had been so long since he had seen his parents, and Tim was starting to get even more nervous that he wouldn’t be able to physically move from his den if they didn’t come back with food. He was so hungry, but his parents had said he shouldn’t leave the den unless it was for water—and never at night. Tim was just a pup, but his parents said that he could take care of himself—he could be good, he knew he could. Maybe if he could hunt something on his own, his family would come back and stay, or maybe take him with them! His tail wagged a bit at the thought.
Tim had left at around noon, the sun had hung over the trees and made kaleidoscope shadows as the leaves danced in the wind. It was so pretty that Tim allowed himself to pounce on a few of them. It was the lightest he had felt since the last time his mother had groomed his dark tawny fur. The memory had kept him going since they had been gone, but it had been so hard without anyone with him. It was lonely during the day, and at night he was afraid of what might come for him.
He found a few birds, but he must have done something wrong because they flew away before he could catch any of them. It seemed like he was getting better though! His teeth had managed to skim one of them, but the bird was already too high in the air for him to manage. The exhaustion that weighed on his limbs was growing much heavier as the hours passed, but he managed to keep walking until he found an open clearing. It was one of the most beautiful places that Tim had ever seen in his young life. There were beautiful flowers of white, yellow, and pink scattered randomly in the short grass. A distant smell seemed to permeate the air, but Tim couldn’t identify what animal it might have been as his eyes began to droop in the afternoon light.
A small nap wouldn’t hurt, right? He was starting to get a bit dizzy and sleepy. Tim found a prettier patch of flowers and snuggled down into the grass. He let out a small sneeze as the blades of grass tickled his nose and huffed in contentment. The sun warmed the fur of his back, and the scent of flowers permeated the air. It was one of the most beautiful days that he could recall, maybe even better than when his parents would come home from a long trip.
When Tim woke, he was shivering with the cold and it was completely dark; the moon was coming over the trees, but it was just enough to see where he was going. An involuntary whimper tore from his throat as he pulled himself to his paws. His legs wobbled a bit, but he knew he had to get back to his den! What if his parents had come home and found him breaking their rules? They would just leave again, and they might never come back then. The thought made his tail droop, and a mournful keen escaped him. They weren’t around much, but they were all he had. Tim couldn’t even hunt on his own, how was he supposed to live without his family?
A fierce growl snapped Tim from his thoughts, and seemed to come from somewhere in the woods behind him. It was deep and rumbled with a power that Tim had never heard from another wolf before. The unidentified scent from earlier came back to the forefront of his mind, and it was clearly the scent of a wolf as he got another whiff of it. It had been slightly old, but it was probably on the outskirts of a pack’s territory. Tim’s parents had told him stories of what packs did to trespassers and none of them ended well for the offender. A shiver ran up his spine.
This time he managed to choke back a whine as he sprinted in the opposite direction, away from the other creature. Maybe if he could cross the border of this wolf’s territory, he wouldn’t be followed. A long and angry howl echoed off of the clearing, and Tim managed to push himself faster over the uneven terrain. As he cleared the trees, the light began to lessen and his path was darker than ever. While he could see in the dark, it took his eyes some time to adjust and the terrain was completely unfamiliar which put him at a disadvantage.
As he went deeper into the trees, he heard a large form crashing through the woods behind him. Tim tried to glance back and see his hunter; it was a mistake on all accounts. Blazing green eyes burned a hole into his fur, and a sinister white streak was in stark contrast to the obsidian fur that surrounded it. From his small glimpse, he knew there was no way he could outrun or outfight the other wolf; he was so much bigger than Tim that it was almost comical. But he had to try. There was still a considerable distance between him and the other, so maybe he could find a small place to hide?
Tim failed to calculate one aspect, however: he was the unluckiest being that he knew. Immediately as he turned around to look at the path ahead, his foreleg was caught by a fallen log, and his momentum launched him the rest of the way over. He let out a pained yelp as he toppled over, but to his surprise he didn’t slow down.
A ravine.
He kept tumbling and couldn’t tell which way was up or which way was down. Tim only tried to slow his descent once before he realized that it was nearly hopeless. If he hadn’t been dizzy before, he certainly was now, but that became less important as his world came to a sudden stop, pain exploding from his ribs.
Tim hardly had the energy to open his eyes, but when he did, green eyes pierced him from the top of the slope. The ravine was a significant drop for Tim, the pup he was, but the other wolf was unfazed by the distance and closed the gap in four massive bounds. If Tim had been afraid before, that had been nothing compared to the terror that raced through him in that moment.
A pained whimper permeated the air as he tried to shuffle away, but he crumpled before he could take a step. Instead, Tim buried his face in the dirt, not wanting to see what happened next. He shouldn’t have fallen asleep in that clearing, and maybe shouldn’t even have left his den at all, but Tim had been so hungry. He guessed hunger was better than death, but it was too late to fix his mistake now.
Dimly, Tim became aware that he was shaking with pain and fear, but as moments passed he became aware of a calming rumble emanating from the other wolf. Slowly, he raised his tawny head, but didn’t dare to look the other wolf in the eyes. Little by little, the other wolf—a large male he gathered by the scent—creeped forward and nuzzled his fur. Tim flinched away from the cold nose, but stilled once he realized that the wolf was prodding him for injuries. He received an encouraging lick over the ear for his obedience.
As the wolf continued his ministrations, it became clear that the other shifter had no intention of hurting him. Tim let out a whine as the massive wolf nudged his ribs, and wormed his way forward into the thick ebony fur, curling his body into the other’s chest. It was warm and Tim felt safer than he had in a long time. If he wasn’t so tired, he might have taken time to unpack that thought, but his eyes were drooping again, the adrenaline crash taking the remaining energy he possessed. He felt more than heard the wolf’s faint huff, a large head coming around to sniff at his fur protectively. A tongue gently groomed him and nuzzled him every now and again. Tim didn’t know how long this lasted, but he knew he never wanted it to stop, the easy comfort felt foreign but was heavenly nonetheless.
A shift rippled through the larger form leaving Tim to shiver in the absence of found warmth. He could have cried from the loss, but instead let out a mournful little howl. A large hand began to stroke through his pelt and he melted under the light touch.
“I’m sorry I scared you,” A deep baritone voice rumbled, “I heard cries and thought another wolf was hurting a pup on my territory.”
Tim licked his hand in acceptance.
A deep chuckle emanated in the darkness, “What’s a baby like you doing out here alone? You don’t smell like another pack.”
He nipped the other shifter’s hand in annoyance at being called a baby, and sent a scathing glare his way. To his disappointment, the young man seemed to be holding back a grin. Tim could be scary!
“My name is Jason by the way,” He continued, “Would it be okay if I took you back to my den? I can’t leave you here injured, and I don’t know where you’re from.”
Tim considered the offer, but his hesitance must have shown because Jason continued to talk. “You look like you could use a good meal or three, and I will make sure you’re safe while you heal.”
His stomach chose that moment to growl particularly loudly. If he were in his human form, Tim would have blushed, but Jason didn’t seem to mind. After another moment of deliberation, he licked the other’s hand again, his eyes closing as nails gently broke through some dried mud on his fur.
“Okay puppy, I’ll carry you back. I’m going to lift you now, okay?”
Tim appreciated the warning as he was cradled by two hands, and lifted into strong arms. Another whine escaped him as the movements jostled his injuries, and Jason whispered soothing words of comfort, the rumble in his chest soothing Tim to his core. As he nuzzled into Jason’s elbow, Tim drifted to sleep from the steady back-and-forth rhythm of the other’s footsteps.