Brothers - 42. Chapter 42

DEVYN

Pale, shaved skin slid under his tongue. Jason lay curled up in bed, cocooned in his bed sheets save for his left leg, and that leg was what Devyn was focused on. He would clean his mate of the invasive smells, replacing them with his own scent.

Twilight broke through Jason’s curtains, shining down on the two brothers. The new moon was over. Devyn could shift again, and would be expected to shift again, but there was no way the wolf would do that without being told.

They were late already, and Devyn wondered why Margaret hadn’t woken them up yet. Was she still asleep? No… she was gone…

The wolf let out a huff, hot air blowing over Jason’s leg as he remembered the previous night. His mother was gone, and he didn’t think he’d see her again. It was a weird thought; Margaret had always been there for him, helping him with school or sports, walking with him during the full moons. All of that was gone now.

But she couldn’t hurt Jason any more. That was really good. So her leaving was good? He wasn’t sure about that.

Jason’s leg moved abruptly, and Devyn attacked it with his tongue. He wasn’t done cleaning it yet. There was a spot underneath that still needed a good bathing.

The neko kicked out suddenly as the wolf’s tongue hit the hollow behind his knee. Devyn continued his assault, his brother wriggling in silent laughter as he cleaned, until finally his brother’s leg smelled properly like his mate. Now he just needed to do the rest of Jason’s body. The tent that bulged the comforter seemed like the perfect place to start.

Legs swung around, Jason sitting up and rubbing idly at the slobber on his leg. He reached over, and Devyn shoved his head into his brother’s hand, moaning softly as he was scratched. This was another benefit of being a wolf. No one ever massaged his ears when he was a human. Except for Dylan, or Brienne, but they were different than most people. He liked them.

Still, there were benefits to being human, he supposed.

Stepping over Jason’s lap, the wolf’s jaws opened. His tongue slapped over Jason’s mouth, and the neko spluttered. Devyn’s tongue flopped into his brother’s mouth briefly, Jason’s tongue pushing back in surprise before the neko pulled away. Jason wiped at his mouth, staring at the wolf accusingly, and Devyn whimpered quietly.

Kissing as a wolf. That was bad, it seemed. But he could still feel Jason’s penis twitching in his underpants. That was good. They couldn’t mate unless Jason wanted to, and his body certainly seemed to like the kiss. Maybe it would work better as a human.

Devyn pawed at his brother’s crotch experimentally, only to have his leg swatted away by the neko. Jason stood up slowly, shambling into the bathroom, and Devyn let out a huff. Fine, his brother needed to pee. Come to think of it, so did he.

The wolf jumped down from the bed and trotted through the bathroom into his own room. Pushing through the wolf door, he hurried downstairs and outside. His tree stood damp in the morning dew, and Devyn wasted no time watering it properly.

Devyn’s ears flicked in alarm as a truck pulled into the drive. He finished quickly before trotting over to the truck as Dylan stepped out.

“Devyn? What are you still doing in your wolf form?” the calico frowned. “Did your mother not wake you today?”

The wolf shook his head, rubbing against the neko’s leg. He hadn’t seen Dylan in what felt like forever. Where had the neko been? Was his father okay? Why was Jordan driving Lysander’s truck? Questions burned in his mind, and Devyn sighed. He needed to be human again.

Trotting back toward the house, Devyn woofed quietly at Dylan. The neko waved to his father before following the wolf. He wiggled the door handle and frowned down at Devyn.

“Locked. Is no one awake?”

Devyn huffed quietly, squeezing through the wolf door. Taking a deep breath, the wolf shifted onto two legs and leaned against the door as his fingers fought with the locks. Finally they flipped, and the wolf dropped back to the ground, body rippling back into the comfort of his fur.

“Boys? It’s time to get up! You’re going to be late for school!”

Richard’s voice rang through the house, a note of panic present. Devyn could hear his father hurrying upstairs as Dylan opened the door. The man paused at the top of the stairs, staring at Devyn in surprise.

“Oh… you’re up… Good morning Dylan.”

“Morning Mr. Farin,” the neko replied.

“Devyn, I’m going to make some spinach omelettes for breakfast, unless you have a better idea,” Richard added, stepping into the kitchen.

Devyn grunted, bounding up the stairs before shifting again. The wolf hated spinach. He needed to get dressed, and fast.

JASON

The neko dug through his bag in dismay. His laptop was in one piece; he hadn’t expected Margaret to do anything with that. But his notebook, all his research, gone, vanished in the night. Jason needed that.

A snort broke through his thoughts, and the neko instinctively dodged the tongue that tried to reach for his still-bare tailhole. Turning, Jason scowled at his brother, wagging a finger at the wolf. Another huff followed, and Devyn’s body shifted, the human wolf stumbling forward.

The two fell back onto Jason’s bed, bodies entwined. A grin spread over Devyn’s face as he closed in on the neko. Suddenly their lips were connected, the wolf’s tongue licking over his brother’s mouth as he tried to break into the cave beyond.

Jason struggled half heartedly, his hands pressing against Devyn’s chest. Their lengths pressed against each other, hard and eager, and the neko surrendered, his hands moving to pull the werewolf into him. Mouth opened barely, the slightest of invitations, and the wolf’s tongue pushed into him, letting Jason taste Devyn.

A sudden knock splashed over the neko like cold water, and he shoved Devyn off of him, trying to recollect himself.

“Jason, are you up?” Richard called through the closed door.

Taking a deep breath, Jason stood up and crossed the room, opening the door just a crack to show that he was awake.

“Okay, good. Devyn should be making breakfast soon. Is he with you? I didn’t see him in his room.”

The neko nodded, licking his lips nervously. It would be bad if Richard realized they were both naked together… but why? Devyn was always naked; it wasn’t like that was an admission of guilt.

His ear flicked back, a silent question, and one Richard seemed to miss.

“Okay, I want you dressed and downstairs in five minutes. We’re running late, I forgot to set the alarm,” the man said. “Can you let Devyn know he needs to hurry up if he wants to make breakfast?”

Another nod, and finally, Richard backed off, letting Jason close the door. The neko turned, watching Devyn crawl out of the room on hand and feet, and he let out a long sigh.

Pulling out his clothes from the orphanage, Jason dressed quickly, trying to will his dick to soften. It didn’t work; all that did was make him think of Devyn laying on top of him, kissing him, humping him…

His shirt fell over his torso, a finger wiggling through a hole in the fabric. Perfect clothes for working in a basement. He just had to figure out a reason to skip school. The trauma of the previous day certainly would count as such a reason.

Grabbing his phone, Jason made his way downstairs, the click of Devyn’s cane following him a moment later. The neko paused at the bottom of the stairs, his fur fluffing out at the sight of Dylan. He hadn’t spoken to the calico since the hospital.

Dylan caught his eye, and glanced away quickly, tail flicking in shame.

“Morning,” he muttered quietly.

Jason’s tail echoed the calico’s nerves. He wanted to know how Lysander was doing, if they had found a healer for him, but the neko was afraid of starting another fight with Devyn’s friend.

“I… I’m sorry…” Dylan said suddenly. “Etul was not your fault. I should not have blamed you for something you had no control over.”

‘I’m sorry too. I shouldn’t have been at the hospital,’ Jason typed warily.

“Did you really save that CeCe’s? I heard the Queen wanted to give you a medal for it,” the calico added, looking up.

Jason shuddered at the memory, the smallest of nods escaping him as Devyn limped past the two.

“Morning Dylan,” the wolf said.

“Morning.”

His brother stepped into the kitchen, the smell of cooking eggs and bacon filling the air a moment later.

‘Is he okay?’ Jason asked, not meeting the calico’s eyes.

“Not really. I mean… he’s coming home tomorrow, but he can’t move his legs, and his arms are a mess. The doctors said he might never regain full bodily functions, but he refuses to look for a healer.”

‘I know how he feels. If I knew what it did to Jerric… I think I’d rather be paralyzed.’

“Breakfast should be ready soon. Devyn’s rescuing the eggs as we speak,” Richard interrupted, stepping into the hall. “Jason… shouldn’t you wear a newer shirt to school?”

The neko shook his head, fingers moving over his phone.

“I told Erith I’d help clean out his basement today.”

“Oh… and you didn’t ask anyone before agreeing to this?”

Jason frowned at Richard, shaking his head.

“Payment for spending the night. I couldn’t ask Margaret.”

Richard sighed quietly, nodding in understanding. It would not have been a pretty discussion for anyone.

“Where is Mrs. Farin?” Dylan asked suddenly.

“She… no longer lives here,” Richard said firmly.

“Oh. Good,” Dylan muttered. “Er, no offence…”

“Some taken,” the human replied. “Jason, if you’re staying home today, I want you to help me run errands, and then I’ll drop you off at the elf’s house and pick you up when you’re done.”

That was it? There was no fight, no arguing, just a simple request? And a reasonable one at that… Jason was astonished at how easy that was.

“Jason?”

The neko startled, looking back at Richard.

“Can you ask him what time you need to be over there?” the man asked.

Jason nodded quickly, swiping through his phone to find Erith’s number. A moment later, the message was sent, and he was heading into the kitchen for breakfast.

Devyn leaned against the stove, his cane resting nearby. The eggs and warm bacon in the skillet sizzled quietly as he pulled them off the stove, and four plates were filled with the food. Jason stepped up to help him carry the plates to the table. The fourth plate confused him, until he saw Dylan peeking into the kitchen.

Setting the plates aside, the neko signed. ‘Would you like to join us?’

“I already ate, but thanks,” Dylan denied. “I’ll just message Brienne and tell her not to wait for us.”

Shrugging, Jason dug into his food, watching Devyn’s plate vanish in seconds. The human wolf was already standing before Jason was even a quarter of the way done.

“Devyn, do you have anything that needs to be picked up from the store?” Richard asked.

“Um… just next moon’s potions… oh, and paprika… and eggs. More fish too, and some beef-”

Richard’s hand raised, motioning toward the werewolf’s phone on the table.

“Go ahead and text them to me, that way it’s easier for us to remember. Jason, you made sure to charge your phone, right? I don’t want you to be without it. I heard what happened on Varya.”

Jason nodded silently, before gulping down the rest of his food. Devyn stared at his phone with a sigh, but began texting. A few minutes later, he tucked it into the backpack at his feet, slung the backpack on his shoulder, grabbed his cane, and stepped toward Jason.

The neko saw the kiss coming from a mile away, turning his head to grab another bite of food right as Devyn’s tongue ran over his cheek. His face burned as he ruffled Devyn’s hair gently.

Satisfied, the werewolf headed toward the door.

“I have practice tonight,” he called back a moment later.

“I know. I’ll be there at six to pick you up,” Richard promised.

The door closed a moment later, and Jason and Richard were left alone at the breakfast table.

“You know, you keep talking about leaving. I don’t think you should do that. It hurts him,” the man said quietly.

Jason sighed silently, typing one handed as he finished his breakfast.

“I’m sorry. It’s been hard the last week.”

“Trust me, I understand. And I’m sorry. I never should have stayed with her as long as I did,” Richard apologised. “Why don’t you finish getting ready for the day? I want to get everything done as soon as I can so I can have a day off tomorrow.”

Jason nodded, heading to wash the dishes. He froze as he remembered what the next day was.

How would his new father react to the Silence?

DEVYN

Heading to school without his brother felt wrong. Devyn felt exposed; part of his pack was gone, and it was not pleasant.

“Am I supposed to tell Brienne about you and Jason?”

Dylan’s voice registered slowly in his mind. Even slower came the realization that he was expected to answer again. Three days as a wolf had been a relief, but now Devyn was human again.

This sucked.

Then he remembered Jason’s kiss that morning.

And suddenly being human sucked a lot less.

“He doesn’t want anyone to know,” the wolf said flatly, walking toward the car park.

The school was empty, all the students in class already, and Devyn took a moment to read the air, his nose sniffling slightly at the sharpness of fall. It didn’t take long to reach the entrance to the school, but Dylan stopped him from entering.

“Um… so… Brienne still wants to go to the Atumnal Dance with Jason-”

A low growl cut off in Devyn’s throat, the wolf closing his eyes against the possessive rage that filled him.

“He’s my mate. She has no right to him.”

“I’ll… um… I’ll tell her that he’s going with someone else then,” Dylan said quickly.

That brought Devyn up short. The wolf frowned, staring at his cane.

“But I can’t dance?”

“So? You don’t go to dance. You go to have fun. Bipedal fun,” Dylan added a moment later, with a frown. “Shit, what day is it on?”

He pulled out his phone, hands searching across the device.

“Urdya, the night before the full moon,” the neko read. “So you can go, right?”

“I can go,” Devyn shrugged. “But I’ve never been to a dance.”

“Oh, I’m sure Jason would help you. He’s probably been to several.”

For some reason, that thought didn’t exactly settle Devyn down. The wolf pushed past Dylan, starting the long walk toward the WolfRoom. Halfway there, he paused, and redirected his steps to the Home Ec room. He could use some jerky.