It’s a Dog’s Life

A Forbidden Spec Side Story

By Terri Botta 2006

Dedicated to my poor Rough Coated Collie, Rose, who unwillingly becomes a pseudo-Smooth Coated Collie every summer. :P

Rating: PG

He sighed. His Alphas were mating again and he’d been relegated to the hall. For all that they were both males, they sure did mate a lot, and they didn’t even have a mating season the way Hounds did. It seemed that any night was a good night to mate, and he was forced out of the sleeping den until they were finished.

Didn’t they know that it was his job to guard them when they were vulnerable? Mating was a distracting business and any number of things could happen while they were otherwise occupied. But they didn’t seem to understand how necessary it was that he stay within reaching distance. His dark Alpha would refuse to mate if he was in the sleeping den and his charge, the light Alpha, would make him leave. He’d whine and grovel, but his pleas were unheeded and he’d slink out to the hall to guard the door. Fat lot of good he’d do out there if something happened inside. So far nothing had been able to get past him, and he always made it a point to clear the sleeping den of anything suspicious before his Alphas woke up every night, but he knew he couldn’t be too careful.

Just the other night a lesser demon had tried to gain access to the daylight den, the den that was most sacred to his Alphas. That was the den they slept in while they were helpless and it was all the more important that he guard that den viciously. The little nasty had crawled up the sacred back stairs to the daylight den, and it was preparing to slink under the crack of the sacred metal door when he’d grabbed it in his powerful jaws and ripped it out.

It had fought back, spitting at him and some of it had landed in his eyes. The move had almost let it get away, but he’d recovered and leaped after it. It ran into the main den and he’d chased it all through the rooms, knocking over furniture and upending a vase of roses his light Alpha had brought his dark Alpha. Oh that had made him angry because he knew he’d get scolded for it. When he finally cornered it again, he nabbed it by the back of the neck so it couldn’t spit on him and rent it into pieces with a shake of his head.

He never ate the demons he killed (what Hound would?!) so he had deposited the body in the garden under a bush. Now that it was dead, it had taken the form of a big rat (He didn’t eat those either. Yuck!) and he knew he’d get praised for ‘ridding the house of vermin.’ Maybe it would even make up for the roses.

He’d tried to right all the things that had been turned over during the hunt, but it had been hard to do since he didn’t have any hands. He’d managed most of it, even managed to upright the vase and put the roses back in even though the thorns had pricked his gums. Then he’d spent the rest of the day guarding the sacred back stairs.

When his beloved Alphas had risen, his dark Alpha had noticed the wet spot on the carpet and almost… almost accused him of soiling in the den! But his light Alpha had come to his defense, pointing out that the wet spot was water from a small crack in the vase. Ooops, he hadn’t noticed that. Then he had vindicated himself by happily showing them the dead rat and they’d showered him with praise and treats. Even his dark Alpha, who was much less affectionate than his light Alpha, had patted him and told him he was ‘such a good dog.’ Ha! If only they knew!

But that was his secret and he knew he’d reveal it only if his Alphas were in peril too great for him to handle in his current form. Maintaining the shapeshift to the lesser dog did take some of his energy. If something big enough threatened where he needed all of his power, then he knew he’d have to shake it off, but until then… he’d let them wonder.

His dark Alpha was just starting to figure out that he could read their thoughts. His light Alpha had figured it out weeks ago, but that was their little joke. They both loved playing with the dark Alpha and it was fun to let him ask stupid questions.

A tendril of energy moving outside caught his attention and he lifted his head from his paws, putting his ears forward. Now that the Mistress had left the area, all manner of imps and demons were sneaking in to wreak havoc. She had known that such a thing would happen once she was gone and had warned him. Sure enough, she wasn’t gone four moonrises before he saw the first batch arrive. They were drawn to pain and despair and without the Mistress to get rid of them, the city was simply too tempting to ignore.

Baring his teeth and growling under his breath he made his way out to the metal cliff that his Alphas called a ‘balcony’ and scouted around for the source of the power. At first all he saw was the neighbor’s cat on the rail of the adjacent balcony, and she hissed at him the way she usually did.

‘You stay on your side, dog,’ she snarled.

‘Yeah, yeah. You’re all bark and no bite, cat.’

‘Hmmph!’ she answered, flicking her tail at him.

She might dislike him but she was useful. Cats still had a bit of the Magic in them so they could sense energy when it was close enough. He hopped up and put his front paws on the separating rail just to heckle her and watch her bristle.

‘So? See anything interesting nearby?’ he questioned as she arched her back and growled.

‘Don’t do that!’

He looked innocent, opening his eyes wide. He’d learned that particular trick from his light Alpha. ‘Do what?’

The cat sighed and relaxed. ‘You are an insolent puppy.’

He sneezed and shook his head, spraying her with saliva. She glared at him and hopped out of range, cleaning herself fastidiously.

‘You!’ she accused.

He just laughed, but the laughter died when he felt the energy again. The cat felt it too because she stopped licking and turned her head.

‘It’s over there,’ she said, cocking her ear towards a dark spot on a balcony across the street.

He nodded, focusing in on the darker spot within the shadows.

‘I’m going inside. You can handle this,’ the cat told him, jumping down from the rail and heading into her home den.

He snorted. Trust a cat to run off when danger hinted. No matter. The thing didn’t feel too powerful anyway.

He listened to the sounds of his Alphas in the sleeping den. They were still mating and vulnerable so he really couldn’t leave to hunt the thing down on his own terms. He would have to wait and let it come to him if it wanted to cause trouble.

Casting it a warning glare, he trotted back into the den and settled by the closed door. While he didn’t like being forced out of the sleeping den at least they had stopped trying to leave him with a human keeper during the day. He’d had no end of trouble escaping her strange den in order to make his way back to his home, and he was so grateful when they finally gave up. Now they let him stay in the main den while they slept during the day and he was able to guard them properly.

He kept his awareness on the thing outside and rested his head on his paws. He could still hear his Alphas in the sleeping den. It sounded like they were almost finished but they usually napped afterwards. He often opened the door and took his place on the bed once they were done, but tonight he thought it best to stay where he was just in case the thing decided to come in.

He didn’t have to wait long before the thing crossed the street and made its way over. His light Alpha’s bright energy attracted all sorts of nasties and there was rarely a night when he wasn’t getting rid of something. Unfortunately for them, he was able to mask his energy so the things usually didn’t know he was there until it was too late.

He let it get as far as the balcony before he moved. He crossed the den in a heartbeat and pinned the thing to the balcony floor with his jaws, but he didn’t kill it. Not just yet. It was never good to bite until he knew what he was dealing with.

It was an imp, all grey bulbous flesh and stink. It groveled pathetically.

‘Oh! Oh please don’t kill me! Please don’t kill me, Illustrious Hound!’

It tasted horrible so he released it, retching.

‘You are trespassing in my territory,’ he said, scraping his tongue on his teeth.

‘Oh! Oh, I did not know this was your place, Great Hound. Please pardon my ignorance!’

He snorted as it prostrated itself at his feet, begging for its life.

‘Why should I let you live?’ he asked.

‘I did not mean any harm, Great Hound. I merely sensed the energy of…’

‘You sensed my Alphas, little toad, and they are under my protection.’

The imp groveled more, squirming piteously.

‘I beg your forgiveness, Illustrious Hound!’

‘Uh huh.’

Even as it was begging he had noticed that it was turning around so its back end was pointed towards his face. He might be young, but he was no fool. Still, it managed to get off a small blast of horrid stink before he ripped it in two.

Sneezing repeatedly shoved the body off the balcony and returned to the den, gagging. There he went down to the outside where his food and water were kept, and drank all the water that was left in his bowl in an attempt to get the awful taste out of his mouth. The water only marginally reduced his discomfort and he whined, scraping at his face. Then he crawled into the back bushes to eat some weeds and spit up some stink that he had accidentally swallowed. He hated killing imps for that reason, although he had gotten better at not getting hit with a full blast.

Hopefully, his light Alpha would take him to the place where he got the soft sweet treats and he could get rid of the terrible flavor there. They went there a lot on their evening walks. Most of the humans who were there all the time knew him and they knew what to bring him even before his light Alpha told them. He was a favorite there and the pretty mortal females would fawn over him and tell him how beautiful he was. If only they knew how radiant his real form was, his coat a brilliant silver, his body sleek and fleet. The form he was in now was large and cumbersome compared to his true Moon Hound body. But they loved him and gave him the soft, gooey, sweet yummies to eat while his Alphas sat with their hands around hot cups of liquid that they never drank.

Grumbling and cursing imps, he made his way back up to the den and listened at the sleeping den door. All was quiet so that meant his Alphas were napping. He stood up on his hind legs and pressed the handle down with his front paw to unlatch the door. Then he pushed the door open with his nose and peered in. His Alphas were snuggled together on the bed, both asleep.

He snuck in quietly and they didn’t even know he was there until he hopped up onto the bed. His light Alpha cracked open one eye and smiled at him.

“Hello, boy. How’s my beautiful dog?”

He panted, smiling as much as he could, then crawled up the bed on his light Alpha’s other side to nose under his hand. His light Alpha grinned and pet him lovingly. He heard his dark Alpha mutter under his breath then saw him roll over and lift up his head to look at him.

“Argus. You opened the door again didn’t you?”

He just kept smiling and panting happily. Of course he’d opened the door. His Alphas had put the straight handles on the doors instead of the round ones just for him.

“No, Louis, he turned himself into steam and flitted through the keyhole,” his light Alpha teased.

His dark Alpha retaliated by smacking his light Alpha with a pillow.

“Brat!”

His light Alpha just laughed and grabbed the pillow in mid-air, throwing it back. He stood up and barked, dancing a bit on the bed as pillows began to fly back and forth. He decided to be naughty and grabbed the top coverings in his mouth, giving them a good yank.

“Argus!” his dark Alpha scolded. “Lestat, he’s going to rip the duvet!”

“He’s going to do nothing of the sort, Louis. He’s just trying to tell us that he wants to go for his walk,” his light Alpha replied, getting one last shot in with the pillow before standing up.

He watched as his light Alpha went to the place where he kept his artificial pelts and started picking out some to wear. Without the artificial pelts, neither of his Alphas had much fur. In fact, other than the fur on their heads, they had almost no fur at all, and they refused to go out of the den without the artificial pelts (although his light Alpha often went about the den without any pelt on.)

He waited eagerly, tail wagging, for both of his Alphas to put on pelts so they could go out. He could still taste the imp’s awful stink in his mouth and he was very eager to eat some gooey treats to get rid of it.

“What’s that around your mouth, Argus?” his dark Alpha asked him, leaning over him and peering carefully at his muzzle.

He stayed very still while his dark Alpha examined something he saw in his fur and tried not to squirm when he scraped something with his sharp nail. His Alphas’ nails were almost as sharp as his own claws, especially his light Alpha’s because he didn’t scrape them down.

“Hmm. Lestat, I think he’s been hunting rats again. There’s a dark stain on his muzzle that smells like blood,” his dark Alpha said.

He cast a glance to his light Alpha and saw him slip a white pelt over his head.

“Well, good for him, Louis. Probably gives him something to do while we’re sleeping.”

His dark Alpha sighed and nodded. “He is a very active dog.”

He prided himself in not snorting at that comment.

“I suppose it’s alright. He doesn’t seem to eat the bodies, but I do still worry that he’ll catch something from one of them.”

He smiled to himself. His dark Alpha loved to fret. It was almost funny.

His light Alpha came over and kissed his dark Alpha swiftly. .:He’ll be fine, Louis. Now get dressed. It’s time for Argus’s walk,:. he heard his light Alpha say mentally.

Since his dark Alpha hadn’t figured out that he could read minds yet, he refrained from barking in agreement. His light Alpha cast him a knowing glance and winked. His dark Alpha stared into his eyes and he knew that he was trying to read his thoughts because he could hear his dark Alpha’s mental wonderings as to whether or not he could understand them. He playfully set back an image of the sweet treat he wanted.

“Beignets. He wants beignets,” his dark Alpha sighed, shaking his head. “All I ever get from him are images of food, Lestat.”

“Then we’ll go to Café du Monde and get him some beignets,” his light Alpha commented.

He looked at his light Alpha and saw him grin at him while his dark Alpha was looking for a pelt to wear. He snorted and covered his eyes with his paws. His light Alpha laughed and came over to pet him, kneeling on one knee.

.:Beautiful. Magnificent. Wonderful dog.:.

He wagged his tail and licked his light Alpha’s chin happily.

When both of his Alphas were ready, he trotted alongside them as they went down the stairs to the outside. As always, his dark Alpha checked his food and water bowls and immediately noticed that his water bowl was empty. His dark Alpha was the much more responsible of the two and consistently made sure that he had ample food and water.

“Hmm. He drank all of his water,” his dark Alpha commented, picking up the empty bowl and filling it from the artificial spring.

“It is getting warmer,” his light Alpha noted.

“Perhaps we should leave him two bowls if he is drinking more during the day.”

He mentally shrugged. That wasn’t necessary. He was perfectly capable of turning on the artificial spring and filling his bowl if he needed more water, but he didn’t mind if they wanted to do it for him. The metal ring that turned to make the water flow was a little uncomfortable to turn with his teeth.

He wuffed happily as his dark Alpha put the bowl down and took a quick drink before rushing to the gate. His light Alpha laughed when he barked and spun around to get them to hurry, then opened the gate for him so he could bound out to the street. His Alphas followed and he ran tight circles around them as they headed towards the sweet treat place until his light Alpha called him to walk beside him. His light Alpha never tethered him as he was supposed to (according to his dark Alpha) so he always stayed by his light Alpha’s side when he was asked.

“You know where we’re going, don’t you boy?” his light Alpha said with a smile.

He barked and leaped up, making his light Alpha laugh again.

“He does love his beignets,” his dark Alpha commented fondly.

“He has good taste,” his light Alpha replied with a flourish.

“I hope his drinking so much doesn’t mean he was overheating. I’d hate us to have to shave him come summer.”

Both he and his light Alpha stopped dead in their tracks and looked at his dark Alpha with twin horrified looks.

“Shave him, Louis?”

“If he becomes too hot,” his dark Alpha answered.

“Shave him, Louis?”

“Only if it becomes necessary.”

There was a tense silence where he looked to each of his Alphas expectantly. He didn’t like it when his Alphas argued. He liked it even less when he still had the awful taste of imp in his mouth and their disagreement was delaying their trip to the sweet treat place.

“It will never be necessary to shave my dog, Louis.”

“I had to shave Mojo when it got too hot.”

“You shaved Mojo?!” his light Alpha almost shrieked.

“Well, no. I didn’t shave him. I took him to a very reputable groomer who bathed him and trimmed down his coat.”

His light Alpha sputtered and he flattened his ears and whined.

“Oh, now look what you’ve done. You’ve upset him!” his light Alpha scolded, kneeling down on one knee next to him and offering comfort.

His dark Alpha looked displeased. “I seriously doubt I have done anything of the sort, Lestat.”

“I cannot believe that you just told me you shaved Mojo. If I hadn’t been immobile when you did it, I would have strangled you,” his light Alpha said, petting him. .:Don’t worry. I’ll never let anyone shave off your magnificent coat!:.

That was good to know since he wasn’t sure how he would manage to hold a shapeshift while his image was being actively changed by someone else.

“I didn’t want to do it, but it became necessary. As he got older, he couldn’t handle the summer heat. If you’d seen him, you would have agreed with me. He would just lay about all the time without the energy to do anything. As soon as he was rid of all the heavy fur, he bounced back. It was either shave him or let him suffer, Lestat,” his dark Alpha explained and he felt his dark Alpha send calming energy across the bond to his light Alpha.

“Hmmph. I still don’t believe it. My Mojo never had a problem with the heat.”

His dark Alpha sighed and looked at his light Alpha sadly. “Your Mojo was a healthy dog in his prime. He grew old and less resilient. I did what I felt was necessary to keep him comfortable in his old age.”

.:And did you ‘keep him comfortable’ until he died on his own or did you do it?:. his light Alpha accused hurtfully.

He winced, knowing his dark Alpha wasn’t going to like that, but he also knew that his dark Alpha was forgiving and would understand that his light Alpha was grieving for his old dog.

.:Do what, Lestat?:.

.:You know what I mean. Did you help him along to The Hereafter or did he go by himself?:.

.:If you’re asking me if I fed on your dog, Lestat, the answer is no. If you’re asking me if I had a veterinarian put him to sleep, the answer is also no. He died quietly in the garden after spending the night beside you.:.

His light Alpha lowered his eyes and submitted to his dark Alpha. He licked his light Alpha’s face in an attempt to comfort him.

.:I’m glad,:. his light Alpha finally said. .:I’m sorry I missed so much of his life.:.

His dark Alpha knelt on one knee and put his hand on his light Alpha’s shoulder. .:That wasn’t your fault, Lestat.:.

His light Alpha looked up at his dark Alpha and he saw a red tear fall from his light Alpha’s eye. When he’d seen the blood tears for the first time, he had thought his Alpha was hurt and had almost panicked, but now he knew that the tears only meant that his light Alpha was sad and not injured.

.:I’m sure it was. I’m sure I invited the beast to hunt me. I was probably irresistible to him because I was so reckless and foolish,:. his light Alpha countered, standing up slowly.

His dark Alpha stood up as well and shook his head. .:You mustn’t think that way, Lestat. You were his victim. You were not responsible for what he did to you.:.

His light Alpha hugged himself, something that was never a good sign. He whined and sidled up next to him, pawing at his leg and nudging him with his nose.

“Argus doesn’t like it when you’re upset,” his dark Alpha said.

His light Alpha looked down at him and smiled softly, petting him. He barked and wagged his tail making his light Alpha chuckle.

“You want your beignets, don’t you?” his light Alpha said.

He barked again and spun around eagerly.

“I think you have your answer,” his dark Alpha mused, taking his light Alpha’s arm and hooking his into it. “Let’s go, Lestat.”

“Yes,” his light Alpha agreed with a sigh, and they began walking down the street again.

He happily led the way, tail high, as they went down the familiar paths, and soon he saw the towering white spires of the place his Alphas called ‘the cathedral.’ It was nothing like the beautiful and wondrous dwellings of the Sidhe from his puppyhood home, but it was lovely nonetheless and his Alphas were very fond of it. It also meant that they were almost at their destination and he began to get excited.

A few moments later he saw the favored place and barked enthusiastically for his Alphas to hurry up. He made sure it was safe then bounded across the street to the metal railing. There was a human female beyond the railing whom he knew very well and she grinned when she saw him.

“Argus!” she greeted and came over to give him a hug.

He whined and wagged his tail, licking at her chin as his Alphas joined them. The human female blushed as she always did when his Alphas were there and stood up.

“Monsieur Sebastian. Monsieur Jean-Luc,” she said, brushing back her hair and smoothing her clothes.

“Clarissa! Cherie! You are looking lovely as always,” his light Alpha said, kissing her on both cheeks.

He saw her lower her eyes as she giggled. His light Alpha loved to flirt with the human females.

“Thank you. You and Monsieur Jean-Luc are looking very well too.”

His light Alpha grinned and preened. “Thank you so much for saying so, cherie. I swear my darling and your fabulous coffee are responsible.”

His dark Alpha sighed softly and rolled his eyes. .:Lestat.:.

.:What? I’m only being nice.:.

.:You’re encouraging her.:.

His light Alpha just sniffed and ignored his dark Alpha.

“Your usual, Monsieur Sebastian?” the human female asked.

“But of course, cherie. Why else would we be here? Our beautiful dog must have his beignets.”

She reached down to pet him again and he grinned up at her, his tongue lolling out, then he barked. She laughed and nodded.

“Okay. Okay. Two black coffees and one order of beignets coming right up.”

He barked again as his light Alpha laughed, then followed them as they chose a table near the back and sat down. He took his usual place under the table, right near his light Alpha’s feet. When the sweet treats arrived, his light Alpha would put the whole plate of them down for him and he would snatch them up.

Sure enough, the human female returned with the hot drinks for his Alphas and the sweet treats for him. His light Alpha thanked her and put the plate on the ground. He was on them before they even touched the smooth stone, and they were down his throat in heartbeats. He barely tasted them, but they took the awful flavor of imp out of his mouth and he gave a little burp when he was done.

He saw his dark Alpha shift and peer under the table at him while he was licking his chops.

“Lestat, he’s already finished them.”

“Hmm?” his light Alpha commented, looking under the table as well. “Oh. So he has.”

“Did they even make it to the patio?”

“Doesn’t look like it.”

“I know he eats them quickly but I think that’s a new record.”

“I would agree. Clarissa, cherie, another order of beignets for Argus if you please,” his light Alpha called.

He thumped his tail happily.

“Lestat do you think that’s wise?”

“Why? What’s wrong with it?”

“They’re horribly fattening. Aren’t you worried about his health?”

“He’s nine months old, Louis. He’s still growing.”

“All the more important to make sure he gets proper nutrition.”

He light Alpha snorted. “With all the research you did finding and choosing the best dog food for him, I doubt an extra order of beignets will do irreparable harm.”

“Not on one night, but cumulatively it could be a problem.”

His light Alpha sighed a long suffering sigh and he sighed with him, crawling on his belly under the table to lick his dark Alpha’s ankle. His dark Alpha jumped a little, but then put a hand under the table to pet him and he licked that too.

“See? He’s begging you for his beignets,” his light Alpha said.

“I suppose one extra order of pastries won’t hurt, but we shouldn’t make a habit of it,” his dark Alpha admitted and he thumped his tail again.

His light Alpha chuckled. “You never could say no to a child.”

“Hmmph. This from the man who bought Claudia everything she wanted for six decades.”

His light Alpha’s mood crashed and they both felt it. He wanted to bite his dark Alpha on the ankle for being so stupid but he doubted that would go over well. Instead he went to his light Alpha’s side and rested his head on his light Alpha’s knee. His light Alpha reached down and fisted his hand in his fur as he whined and wagged his tail.

.:I’m sorry, Lestat,:. his dark Alpha apologized. .:I wasn’t thinking…:.

.:It’s alright, Louis. I know you weren’t trying to be cruel.:.

.:I’m still sorry. I shouldn’t have said that.:.

.:But it’s absolutely true. I did spoil her shamelessly.:.

.:We both did,:. his dark Alpha countered.

They were interrupted by the human female bringing the plate of sweet treats and their conversation halted. Not a bad thing in his mind because he didn’t like how down his light Alpha was going. Any talk at all of his Alphas’ dead daughter brought his light Alpha to some very dark places and it was hard to bring him out of them. It took a good bit of effort from both him and his dark Alpha to get him back up again. He didn’t know all that had happened with the child, but he knew enough to know that some terrible things had occurred.

“Oh my, Argus is hungry tonight, isn’t he,” the human female commented cheerfully.

His light Alpha shook off his sadness enough to smile at her. “He is a growing boy, cherie. They have ravenous appetites.”

“I can tell,” she said, placing the plate down on the ground for him and giving him an ear rub. “Here ya go.”

He licked her hand in thanks and began eating the treats. He ate these ones more slowly because he wasn’t so desperate to get the bad taste out of his mouth. They were delicious as always, all soft and chewy.

“Thank you, Mademoiselle,” his dark Alpha said. “I think that will be all for tonight.”

“I’ll get your check then.”

“Yes, thank you, cherie. As always it is very good to see you looking so bright and happy,” his light Alpha added.

The human female went away and his Alphas quickly dumped their drinks into the big box near the railing. He finished off the treats and was standing next to his light Alpha’s chair when the human female brought the slip of paper. His light Alpha dug into his pocket and pulled out the slips of green paper he always carried.

“Here you are, cherie. Keep the change,” his light Alpha told her, giving her two of the green papers.

“Thank you, Monsieur Sebastian,” she said brightly, smiling. “You have a good night. You too, Monsieur Jean-Luc.”

“Be safe, cherie,” his light Alpha said as they left the area with the railing.

He thought that they might head home but his light Alpha felt restless. Instead of heading back the way that they had come, his light Alpha turned the other way and began walking down the street. He and his dark Alpha followed, not asking questions or trying to interrupt his light Alpha’s wanderings.

“Where to, Lestat?” his dark Alpha asked finally when his light Alpha paused and seemed to be at a loss.

They were close to the river and the big open area that bordered the water. His light Alpha saw where they were and smiled.

“I fancy a bit of a walk. Shall we go through the park?” his light Alpha said, taking his dark Alpha’s arm.

“I have no objections,” his dark Alpha replied.

He barked and led the way as his Alphas turned for the river. He knew the place where they were going and knew that they would let him run there. It was nighttime and no one would be in the park so they would have it all to themselves. He made a quick scan to make sure there weren’t any nasties lurking nearby, then bounded ahead into the large, grassy area.

It was turning out to be a wonderful night with his Alphas. As he ran circles around them, leaping and wagging his tail, his light Alpha laughed and began to play with him. Together they tousled and tumbled on the grass while his dark Alpha watched and shook his head at their antics.

The Mistress hadn’t lied when she had promised that he would be adored, nor had she lied when she had explained how much his light Alpha would need him. He had found his perfect place where he was loved and had purpose. His Alphas gave him everything he needed or wanted, and in turn he fulfilled his duty to his charge by keeping him safe from attacks and helping him when he began to feel disconnected. There really wasn’t anything else a Hound could ask for.

Barking, he knocked his light Alpha down and crouched on his chest, panting happily. His light Alpha looked up at him, his mouth turned up in a grin, and rubbed his ears.

.:I love you, my beautiful dog.:.

He wuffed and licked his light Alpha’s chin, then he jumped to his feet and spun around, leading his Alphas off on a merry chase.

He knew that they would have to go back to the den eventually, but for now they were all happy enough to play in the park. His light alpha chased him while his dark Alpha watched with amusement, and he loved the feel of the wind in his ears.

He was happy. He had his Alphas and his home. His mouth didn’t taste like imp anymore, and he was free to run around until he was tired. He couldn’t imagine anything else he could possibly want from anyone or anything.

Life was good.

FIN