Brothers - 9. Chapter 9

JASON

The neko was startled awake as the door to the room opened. Jason sat up painfully, his arm stiff and sore. He would be ecstatic when the needle was finally removed from his arm. Until then, the neko resolved to suffer without complaint.
"Hey Jason, how are you feeling?"
Richard stood at the foot of the bed, face covered by a mask. It made it hard for Jason to read the man's emotions, but he seemed nervous.
"Sorry I wasn't here yesterday. I got back as soon as I could. I bet Margaret is not happy it took me this long. You'll put a good word in for me, right?" Richard asked.
The neko snorted as he shook his head in exasperation. Richard chuckled quietly, sitting in a nearby chair.
"Sorry, I couldn't resist. The doctor said you should be free to head home tomorrow. I bet you're happy about that."
Jason nodded quickly, ears flickering with emotion that he had no way of putting into words.
"Oh, I got you something. I doubt they're keeping you up on sweets, huh?"
Richard tossed a small wrapper to the neko, Jason catching it with his free hand. The neko grinned at the offering of chocolate, unwrapping the candy and biting into the corner of the tiny square. Peppermint exploded in his mouth, a gooey filling that set his fur bristling with pleasure. His eyes closed as he savoured the taste, a silent hum of delight in his throat.
"Don't worry, we'll get some more when we get home. Margaret doesn't like chocolate because she says it's bad for werewolves. But we have a growing neko to keep happy," Richard chuckled. "If nothing else, it will be our secret."
Jason smiled, still nibbling at his chocolate. It was heavenly, just as perfect as he remembered from his one taste back when he was… three? Four? The neko couldn't remember. All he could recall was the burning sweetness of the candy.
The burn was well worth it, though. He would deal with the ache in his throat as long as he got to enjoy the flavours dancing in his mouth.
Panting silently as he finished, the neko cleared his throat, a cold dripping filling it. He wasn't sure what that was exactly, but clearing his throat did help some.
"Hey, you okay, buddy?"
Richard stood up as Jason coughed. The neko's mouth was full of ants, and he would have laughed at the sensation if his throat wasn't full of phlegm.
"You… you aren't allergic to chocolate, are you?"
Jason shrugged helplessly. He hadn't felt like this the last time he'd had chocolate. At least, he didn't remember feeling like this.
"Okay, hold on. I'm going to get the doctor."
Jason's ears drooped as he watched Richard hurry from the room. He didn't want to lose out on the chocolate. It wasn't like he was dying. As long as he kept his throat clear, the taste of the candy outweighed this whole experience.

DEVYN

A bell chimed through the school, a soft tone easy enough to hear without being grating on sensitive ears. Devyn was grateful the king had seen fit to change the bells three years ago. Having a loud ringing in your ear for most of the school day was annoying.
Slinging his bag onto his shoulders, the werewolf hurried from the classroom, his mind a bowl of mush. Already he had homework, a paper due on an elven holiday of his choice by the end of the semester, complete with an oral report. He would have to talk in front of everyone.
To make matters worse, Miss Carla had loaded him down with material for Jason, material that was now bending his back at an unnatural angle. The werewolf could barely hobble along. But at least he was heading to his fourth period.
Cane tapping through the halls, Devyn braced himself for the onslaught of students. The school was smaller than the other Astaran pack schools, but there were still a lot of people to push through. He certainly wasn't doing any weaving through the crowd in his current form.
Finally, he was able to break free, pushing into the wolf locker rooms. Letting out a triumphant huff, the werewolf hurried toward his locker, eager to get out of his human skin.
All around the room were wolves in various states of undress. Devyn paid them little mind, opening his locker. He peeled off his clothes, frowning as a small boy fumbled with the locker beside him.
"Oh, hey Blake," the werewolf muttered, shoving his clothes into his locker.
Blake ignored him, a hunch in his shoulders. Stress, fear, and anger, all poured out of the boy. Devyn nearly flinched at the smell even in his human form.
"Hey, relax. You'll get to work off that rage in a bit. What are you here for?"
"Cross-country," Blake said, his voice producing a weak rumble, as though he were trying to match the voice of the werewolf.
Devyn nodded with a grunt of his own. The other wolves were certainly going to outpace him. But running really was the only sport young wolves did. Most of them were too hyper for football.
Blake stared at his open locker blankly, Devyn smelling the fear increasing in the boy. He set a gentle hand on Blake's shoulder.
"Take a breath. You have to be in wolf form for running."
Blake nodded silently, fingers gripping his clothes.
"I'll make sure no one looks at you," Devyn added, standing up.
He turned away as Blake got undressed, making eye contact with one of the football players. The elf shrugged before turning back to his own locker.
Behind him, Devyn heard a whimpering cry; the groans of someone straining.
"I… I can't do it…" Blake said, his locker suddenly slamming shut.
Devyn flinched in surprise. Blake was a mage? How did he get onto the cross-country team? Mages had an unfair advantage, even over wolves. Especially telekinetic mages.
Shaking the confusion from his mind, the wolf turned, nudging Blake onto all fours. The fear in the room skyrocketed with the motion, Devyn's nose wrinkling. His eyes traced a thin scar across the mage’s back, his mind spelling out letters carved into Blake’s back. Whore. Whatever it meant, Devyn doubted it was meant as praise.
"You are a human, not a wolf," he said. "The best you can do is pretend. Pretend hard enough that your body feels it. Growl, bark, chase your tail."
Screwing up his face, Blake let out a high-pitched yip. Several wolves laughing nearby, but a snarl from Devyn silenced them.
"Again. Ignore the others. You can kick their tails later. Try your growl. Tap into your animal rage."
Blake squeaked out a growl, pushing it, straining to keep the growl going. With a pained cry, he started shifting, his body melting into that of a small black wolf.
Devyn followed suit, groaning in relief as he dropped to all fours. He shook out his russet coat, tail raised high in excitement. A quiet yip escaped the wolf, Devyn hurrying out through a wolf door to the track. He could hear claws scrambling behind him, Blake no doubt trying to keep up with him. Letting out an internal sigh, the wolf slowed down a bit, trotting out to the far side of the football pitch. Blake caught up to him, the smaller wolf looking around curiously. It wouldn’t surprise Devyn if this was his first time on an actual track. Most sports were left as optional for students. They only became mandatory for wolves so the wolves had a place to let out their pent-up energy in the middle of the day.
Not that Devyn was complaining. The furthest thing from it. He was grateful to have a good hour a day to just run on all fours. It was the simple things in life that brought joy to the wolf.
Six other wolves joined them at the bleachers, Devyn already taking the time to stretch a bit. He knew Coach Sandolin would have him stretch again, but it gave him a chance to show off for Blake and make sure the new wolf could see what he was supposed to do. He could feel Charlie’s eyes on him, but Devyn brushed off the stare. The grey wolf had always tried to act like his rival, but Devyn never really felt like indulging him. Charlie didn’t even run for the school team.
A short whistle caught their attention, and an elf with a ponytail hurried toward the group of werewolves.
“Okay everyone, we have fifty minutes of work ahead of us,” Sandolin called. “Let’s get our stretches out of the way, and then we’re doing two eight-minute miles. Pace yourself — we’ll be running Wolfbane after.”
Devyn let out a grunt as everyone started stretching out. Wolfbane Hill was said to be the great equalizer between two-legs and wolves, an incline that took strategy to climb, not just speed. The two miles were a lot easier, just eight laps around the track. Of course, chasing the football when it was kicked past him tended to slow Devyn down quite a bit, but he was working on that.

JASON

A quiet tapping pulled Jason away from the TV, the neko beaming at the sight of Devyn in his human skin. The werewolf was leaning on his cane, a heavy bag weighing down on his shoulders. He looked so done with the day, his entire body held up by his cane.
Raising a hand in greeting, Jason chuckled silently as his brother ducked his head to run under the hand. The neko could smell him, the scent of cooked sausages and hot spices covering him in a way that made Jason’s stomach roar after two days of hospital food.
Straightening, the werewolf pulled his bag off, dropping it on the ground with a thump that made Jason wince.
“Mom wanted me to bring you the homework from your classes. It’s really just Miss Carla. There’s a report on some elven thing due at the end of the semester,” the werewolf grunted, dropping into a seat.
Jason’s ear flicked at the news. An elven report? That was going to be a pain and a half for the neko, not least because of the wounds of the Neko Rebellion. He wasn’t one to bring up the past; as an orphan, it was generally not a good idea. But to do a report on a culture that had tried to wipe his culture out at one point… Jason found himself wondering why he had signed up for that class.
“I’m sorry about your wolf,” Devyn added, Jason’s fur puffing in alarm.
What had happened to Elroy? Had Devyn chewed him up?!
“I tried to stop her, but she insisted he needed to get washed,” the werewolf scowled.
Oh.
Jason shrugged slightly. He figured a lot of his things went through the same treatment. It made sense. Besides, Elroy needed a bath anyway. He had gotten a little dirty. It was a relief to know the wolf was getting washed and not being thrown in the garbage. The neko had to admit the fear had crossed his mind. Not that he wanted to think that way about his new mom, but she didn’t really seem to like wolves, despite being one herself.
They sat together in silence, a silence that Jason enjoyed, even after nearly two days of silence. It was nice to have another person in the room, a presence he could latch onto, however fleeting it might be. Just one more night. Just one more night and he’d be free from this place. The neko was starting to think there was such a thing as too much research, and he had certainly hit that point.
It was nice to see Devyn in human form again. Jason knew his brother was more wolf than man, and he was fine with that, but he still enjoyed Devyn’s alternate form, the scraggly red hair giving the pale human an unkempt look. It raised the question of dirt in Jason's mind. He had doubts that the wolf had been showering. Did the dirt from his wolf form transfer to his human form? The knots in his hair straightened when he was a wolf, and Devyn didn't look dirty. Though he was getting some major musk going. The neko could smell him from nearly five feet away.
Well, it wasn't the first time he'd had to wash a dog. Once he was free of this gods-damned prison they called a hospital, he'd help the wolf clean up. Canine fur might only need washing every once in a while, but human hair needed it a lot more than that. He hoped the wolf realised that. Then again, Devyn had just gotten through three days as a wolf. Maybe the neko shouldn't judge him for his smell. It wasn't bad, just intense. Almost in an alluring way?
The neko shook his head hard, not exactly sure how a stench like this could be alluring. But a stirring in his gut, like his body was reacting to the smell, spoke of strange happenings. Dimly, Jason wondered how Margaret would react to…
No, it was unthinkable. He would not think about it. Besides, he had gotten some pretty strong signals from Brienne the other day. There was no reason to think about his brother in that way. Maybe he just needed to take care of his urges. Once he got home, of course. There was no way for the neko to masturbate in a hospital room. Just another reason Jason couldn’t wait to get out of here.