Alpha and Omega 1. Restart

**A/N: Hello, and welcome to a story that's going to be on the mature side. If you are not okay with this then I recommend skipping this one. Other than that, enjoy!**

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One Night Only - TheChriZ1995

Chapter 1: Restart

_There I was, running away from the only place I had ever called home in my life. The need to get away was vital for I had done something entirely wrong to not only myself but also a past friend of mine. Nothing could have truly prepared us for what occurred that night, a night full of compassion and love, yet was thrown aside at first light of a new dawn. I should have seen it coming and heed the warnings that were given, but instead I took a risk by trying to gain what had been lost for months. Something that I held near and dear to my heart, and I came close to doing just that however fate changed again. It seems that perhaps I should have left when I had the chance, before she had the opportunity to play my heart for a second go around._

_In the blur of it all I knew that I was the one to blame, I played with fire and now have to live on with the emotional burn as a scar to my moral. Moving on was going to be hard, but I would manage. I had to, for the good of myself and others around me. This is why I am leaving into the unknown, to start over and forget all the wrong and foolish things I have done in this once beautiful place I called home._

_How did it come to this? Well let's just start from the beginning..._

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A new day arrived in the rather silent region that is Jasper Park, Canada. Clouds rolled by like an ocean with the breeze, giving the once golden sunlight a shade of dull gray. Today looked to be a rather gloomy day as rain appeared to be coming in the distance, however that didn't stop life from continuing on. For the wolves in the valley it was business as usual, the alphas left to go hunt and maintain the territory while others enjoyed doing what they pleased. It was a peaceful time for the newly founded United Pack, food was no longer an issue and fights between once rival wolves were at a low. Not too long ago things were different here, the valley was once split in half between two wolf packs. Getting food was a struggle, boundaries were broken, and fights broke out nearly every day. The situation between the packs was getting worse, and it seemed war was the only outcome, until the leaders came to a new agreement.

It was decided that the packs would be united by the marriage of two wolves, a female from the west, and a male from the east. A political move at its core that would ensure a new peace for generations to come. The plan was set in motion, and when spring arrived the marriage was held and complete without a hitch. Everyone celebrated and over the course of a few weeks things turned back into normal with the addition that there was enough food to go around in the nearly three dozen strong United Pack. With three leaders and a vast territory, this was defiantly one of the largest wolf packs around, and it was for the best. All wolves just wanted peace and be able to live their lives the way they wanted to. To find someone to love, start a family, and simply live life to the fullest. Now they could do just that, and it wasn't only today but for all wolves in the future as time passed by, the United Pack would continue on for many years to come.

Yet in this time of change and peace there are some who are not so happy. It's not the uniting itself that upsets them, but the way it was done. A grey and white wolf named Humphrey is one of these upset wolves, he's an omega of the western pack and feels cheated out of a good life from this marriage. Humphrey isn't a regular omega, he's considered the leader to his omega brethren but that's not what makes him stand out. He's an orphan, abandoned by his parents but was adopted into the Western Pack at only a month old. He grew up self-taught, yet if there's one thing he's learned from others it's that he can achieve anything with enough effort. Reaching for the stars is what he did and enjoyed, breaking the mold and becoming one of the more stand out wolves in the Western Pack. However when it came to love he really did reach for stars, and who could blame him? For he had fallen for the pack leaders alpha daughter, a golden yellow she wolf named Kate who was the most beautiful thing his eyes have ever looked upon.

From a distance it appeared his longing for her wasn't as farfetched as it seems. They both grew up together as pups, from playing and inventing games to exploring the territory, they did it all. The closest of friends but that was it; they couldn't be anything more than friends once they grew up. No it wasn't because one of them changed or they got into a fight, rather it was law that stood in the way. A general law for all wolves is that alphas can't become mates with omegas, for it could cause an imbalance between the ranks. Sure there were the exceptions but for the Western Pack that law was enacted with force, and Humphrey knew this well but it didn't stop him. He knew it was possible for him to get his dream girl, and if he tried hard enough he could make that a reality. Of course his actions didn't go unnoticed; his omega friends knew all too well about his feeling towards the alpha. It was the winter when Kate was away at alpha school that Humphrey realized he was in love with her. Learning this; his friends tried their best to get him to find someone else and not go after her, but he ignored their reasoning. It was in his nature to go for something that was out of reach, and that's exactly what he was going to do.

However once the spring arrived and Kate returned the once strong friendship between them was gone, she almost seemed to be a new wolf. Once again this didn't stop Humphrey, he knew it was only a matter of getting to talk to her one on one to reinstate that friendship, and with time he could get her to love him. It's when he put this plan into motion that things actually turned for the better. During the night while they were away from the rest of the pack they were shot with tranquilizer by a couple of park rangers. The psychedelic night in their eyes faded into black before being replaced by a whole new world laid out before them. Kate and Humphrey had been relocated to the Sawtooth National Wilderness to repopulate the wolf species. You could say this was a dream come true for Humphrey, not because of the reason they were there but the fact that he now has Kate all to himself. Kate however wasn't as excited about being relocated as he was, she kept going on about how she was needed back at home and that they should get back as soon as possible. Humphrey never understood her urgency but was more than willing to help his friend get home, and so the cross-country trip began. From walking to catching rides on trains in the back of motorhomes they worked their way home, and as the time flowed past Humphrey could feel their close friendship start to return. They worked as a team through the whole ordeal, and towards the end they could reflect on it and remember all the good times they shared on this little trip.

As they rode the train straight to Jasper, Humphrey decided to get Kate to howl with him and after some persuading he achieved just that. They sang their voices out into the cool night, something that was forbidden back in their pack but out here was fair game. Humphrey couldn't be more excited after sharing a howl with his secret lover and he decided that before they arrived home he would share his true feelings to her. He had a strong belief that she had to share some of the same feelings towards him; for howling was something you only did with someone you care about and love. However as he was about to confess his love Kate jumped out of the train upon seeing her pack preparing for war against the east. Humphrey was upset by this but ran after her, growing curious as to why their pack would be going to war all of a sudden. That's when he learned something that would tear him apart into a state he had never experienced before. It turned out that the reason Kate needed to get home so fast was because she was getting married. Not for love, but for the good of the packs.

Humphrey could not believe she hid this from him, how could she go and marry a wolf whom she had only met once? Sure it was for the wellbeing of all the wolves but to him marriage was something that brought two lovers together, not two packs. It was from this moment that he spiraled into a state of depression and shock; he could care less about the packs uniting because that wasn't driving him crazy. It was the fact that Kate had lied to him after he did nothing but to try and be her friend again. He felt used, betrayed, and left to rot in depression with no sign of help or second chance. This was when he came to the conclusion of running away, there was nothing left for him here and he surly couldn't bear to see Kate married to someone else. A chance to start over was what he needed, move to a new world and leave the past behind. Though moving on was going to be hard, how can you erase someone you've known for nearly all of your life, it just wasn't normal.

So it was settled he would leave the pack in the morning after, catch the next train out of here and move on. He didn't care where he ended up as long as he was away from this place, a once beautiful place in his mind now tainted by one wolf. However when he went to tell his omega brothers about his decision they quickly shot him with questions. They pleaded for him to stay after learning he was leaving because of Kate, there was no way they could watch a friend take a fall like that. So they decided they would help him get over her and learn to move on, to enjoy life again was what Humphrey wanted the most and his friends promised just that. After all he owed them the chance to help him for he always ignored their warnings about Kate. Now he could see the reasoning and truth behind their words, fully realizing that he had some of the best friends he could ask for in his time of need. Humphrey was going to stay in Jasper, and move on from the broken up mess he currently was, though he wasn't very sure his friends could pull it off.

As the months passed by he had daily get gatherings with his friends who each played a role in helping him feel better and think about positive things. Salty, the tallest and thinnest of the group was what you could consider a coach, keeping Humphrey from moping around his den and pushing him to get out into the world. Shakey was the small one among them, he made Humphrey talk about everything that was causing him to be depressed, allowing him to just let out everything held inside him from anger to sadness. Finally there was Mooch, who helped Humphrey find new goals in life as something to keep him going. At first Humphrey hated having to do all this work and constantly think about the bad that has happened to him but as time went on things changed. His friends worked as a team, isolating Humphrey from most of the pack for two months until he was in a much more stable state. Coaching him on and forcing him to let go of nearly everything that tied him to his bad memories, and one by one they subsided. There was still much work left to do but in the present day Humphrey could see the joy in life again, and he couldn't thank his friends more for their help. It was hard to believe that they could make him move on from the past, he was truly a lucky wolf, a wolf that got a second chance at life in his home pack.

Now here he sits, under the shade of a pine tree, not a care in the world other than just spending another day with his friends. The day may be gloomy but that certainly wouldn't stop them from having their fun. Humphrey could afford to relax this day, he felt good and no longer needed daily coaching or any of the other things his friends told him to do. Gradually the need for these exercises will go down until the point where he would no longer need them. He may feel good now but he knew that it was still going to be a couple months to where he could go freely about the pack and think like a new wolf. In a way he was a new wolf, yeah he had his same mindset and looks but his memories were clean. They were still there in his mind if he thought about them though, that would never go away until the day he passes on. But at least now they're not prominent in his mind upon every hour, instead it's the occasional time where he'll reflect back on that point in time. All that mattered to him was peace of mind, something which his friends spoke of a lot these past few weeks. The act of accepting your past and what happened rather than just forcing them aside to haunt the mind until later.

To Humphrey this was a lot of complex stuff; never did he realize how much work really went into changing the mind. It wasn't his friends that helped with all of it either; he did get some kind words from other wolves around the pack, though he was only straight forward about his true reasons for his depression towards the omegas. If word got about his one love towards Kate he would be ruined, and that's when he would have to run away. Luckily that has never happened, he couldn't even bare to leave such a beautiful place as Jasper. From the sprawling valley with steep walls, to the pointy snowcapped mountains, he admired it all, and even more so now than ever before. In a way you could say that his love for Kate was replaced with a love for nature, he saw the beauty in it much like he once saw the beauty inside Kate. Yet that was in the past, Humphrey could solidly state that he sees Kate now as nothing more than just another pack member. Because even with all the coaching from his friends, time away from her has helped the most with letting go.

A sudden rumble caused Humphrey to slip out of his thoughts and become alert of something approaching his once quiet retreat. As suddenly as the sound arrived he looked over just in time so see a log board come grinding to a halt before him. Inside was none other than his three omega brothers Salty, Shakey, and Mooch who were all smiling from another successful run down the hillside. Humphrey had already been expecting them, they had already made three runs earlier during the time he's sat under the tree to admire the view. He smiled and got up to greet them "Excellent work guys, you're getting the braking thing down well." He stated, walking out beside where they stopped.

"All thanks to you good buddy." Mooch replied, looking at him before they all walk passed him and plopped down under the tree he once laid under.

Humphrey turned around to face them and shook his head "Don't tell me your already tired guys, it's not even mid-day yet." He said finding a spot to sit at next to them, which formed a circle.

"Your one to talk Humphrey, you're not the one who had to push the log up the hill three times." Salty responded.

He just lightly laughed "Alright you got me there. So what's new in the world today?" He asked.

"Other than getting better and making log sledding safer, nothing much." Shakey answered.

"Yeah just another day, what have you been up to Humphrey?" Mooch said before turning the question around on him.

"Oh you know, the usual. Just lying at my favorite spot admiring nature." He replied, extending his foreleg across the distant landscape that was behind him.

"Have you been thinking about what we said the other night?" Salty asked.

Humphrey looked over at him shook his head slightly "Not really, I mean I know I should go for a change of scenery but I'm really not that ready yet." He explained.

A few nights ago Salty had suggested to him that he should go to the next moonlight howl with the rest of the guys. Humphrey however wasn't too keen on the idea, it's been months since he's been to one and the last thing he needed was to find new love. Yet Salty had still insisted he think about it, before leaving him alone for the remainder of the night. After giving it some thought Humphrey still didn't agree. "I know you want me to find love like some of you have but it's going to be a long time until I'm ready for that again." He continued.

"No one ever said you had to find someone to howl with, we just figured you'd enjoy coming with us. To hang out there like we used too." Shakey stated.

"Yeah we just figured you wanted to change things up a bit." Salty added.

Humphrey sighed and slowly shook his head. "Sorry guys but I'll have to take a pass, maybe next month. Even if I did go it would just be Mooch and I hanging out mostly since you two already have girlfriends to howl with." He had a point, Shakey was currently dating Reba who was one of the packs vegetarians and Salty had Tasia, an omega female who was originally from the eastern pack.

"So? That doesn't mean we'll be howling the whole time, I'd be there if you needed me." Salty argued.

"I don't doubt that, but I have made my choice."

"Alright you don't have to go if you don't want too." Salty decided to drop it after that, knowing all too well that once Humphrey said no to something he meant it. He decided to change the subject. "So, anyone have any ideas when the season is so post to begin?"

"Not really, I've hear rumors that it's within the next couple of weeks." Mooch responded.

"Yeah I've heard the same rumors" Shakey added.

Salty smiled "Well that's good to hear; of course we lucked out Shakey because it's our first season and we already have girlfriends." He said, looking at the smallest friend of the group.

Shakey laughed after that, "Indeed we do." He replied.

Humphrey however had no idea what his friends were talking about, what exactly did Salty mean by 'season' and how come everyone besides him understood what he was talking about. "What are you guys talking about, what season, summer?" He asked with a confused look. Of course it was already summer but that's the only reason he could come up with in his head.

All his friends have him a surprised look after he said that, which confused him ever further. "Why mating season of course." Salty answered.

Humphrey's eyes widened after he said that, what the hell was mating season and why had he never heard of it before? He could already understand what it implied, that much was obvious, but at the same time many questions began popping into his head. "What!" He exclaimed jumping up in surprise "There's a whole season dedicated to... _that_?!"

The omegas all exchanged glances before looking back at their shocked friend before them. "Yeah there is, once a year and for us it's our first year." Salty replied casually.

"Weren't you taught about this growing up?" Shakey asked.

"Of course I wasn't, why else would I be freaking out right now?!" He answered.

Salty couldn't help but laugh at how he was reacting, it reminded him of himself when he first learned about it from his father. That's when he remembered the fact that Humphrey didn't have a father around to teach him these things, luckily he was willing to help with that. He got up and proceeded to have a seat right by his side. "Dude, relax and have a seat because you've come to the right place to ask about these sort of questions."

"You guys better not be pulling my leg here..." Humphrey said bitterly before having a seat next to Salty. A sick joke is what this seemed to be to him right now.

"No one's messing around here, mating season is a real thing." Salty answered, suddenly getting serious and wrapping one of his forelegs around Humphrey.

"Right..." He said, still not buying it. "Prove it"

"Well you understand what mating is right?" Mooch asked.

"Of course I understand that, I am a guy after all." He responded. He couldn't believe how his friends were so open about talking about something like this, mating was something only shared between lovers, not exchanged in everyday conversation.

"Good that gets the hard part out of the way" Salty said with a smile "Now have you ever head of the term '_heat_' before?"

"Heat? Yeah, as in something hot right?" Humphrey replied confused as to what that had to do with anything.

Salty wanted to slap his paw on the top of his head after that, Humphrey may be a smart wolf but sometimes he was hard to get through to. "No not that kind of heat, though they are kind of related in his case. You see mating season begins when females come into what's called heat, which causes them to become lustful and begin producing this scent that drives males crazy. It's the female's job to mate during this time for it's the only time during the year they can get pregnant. Now I know what you're thinking, impossible right? No it's all true and it's the reason why all pups are born shorty before winter begins, hence why all of our birth days are in this time frame."

Humphrey had no idea what to think after that, it was all just so sudden and seemed like some weird fantasy. However he was aware of when pups were born which now made him start to believe what was being spoken to him. "Okay I still think you're crazy but you are right about the pup thing." He said after a short silence. "So you're telling me that all females are suddenly driven to mate with their significant other? What if they don't have one or they just ignore the feeling?"

"Well it is possible to ignore it but over time I've heard that that the sensation just gets worse. Until the point where the female will do anything to mate, and I mean _anything_..." Salty continued. "That is unless they take precautions to keep it from getting that bad until the season subsides."

"How long does the season last?" Humphrey asked.

"Anywhere from a few days to a week or more." Shakey responded.

"Wow..."

"Of course this is just what my father has told me, same goes for Shakey and Mooch, but we'll just have to experience it for ourselves now won't we?" Salty said, receiving nods from them both before turning back to Humphrey.

"Now I feel embarrassed for not knowing about this sooner, I mean _wow_, that's just a lot to take in..." Humphrey said with a shake of his head.

"Don't feel bad man, we all had the same reaction as you when we first heard about it." Shakey stated.

"Yeah" Mooch agreed.

"Besides you don't have to actually mate during the season, a majority of couples learn how to deal with it and take certain precautions to simply go through the season without starting a family." Salty added.

However unknown to him this wasn't helping Humphrey any more, he was still freaked out by this, you could even say he was scared by the thought. The last thing he needed was any females chasing after him, especially now. "How come you didn't warn me about this before? I mean you should all know that I want nothing to do with females right now." He asked, looking at each of them as he spoke.

"Well... I'll be honest and say that I overlooked it and only now have I realized how much of a problem it is to you." Salty admitted.

"In the words of my dad, mating season isn't anything too special and it comes to pass as quick as it started." Shakey said.

Humphrey sighed "What am I going to do when the time hits?" He asked, a hint of desperation in his voice.

Salty patted him on the back "You don't have a thing to worry about, you can simply hideout in your den, and you're lucky you chose to live towards the outside of the den area. Tasia and I plan to do the same considering we're not ready for a family for a long time." Salty suggested.

"Good point, a week of solitude on my own will be nice." He then agreed, seeing a good side to this.

"Yeah everything will be fine as long as you stay away from females, which shouldn't be hard since you've said it yourself; you want nothing to do with them." Shakey replied.

He smiled and sighed again. "Well that was an eye opener, I still have some questions but that's more than enough I needed to hear for one day." He said.

"Alright then, I guess we can move on then. I just wanted to real quick ask you guys when you thought the season began in the first place. However when you want to learn more about it feel free to just ask, I'm sure we're all willing to help." Salty said, receiving nods from the others.

"Thanks, you know when this whole depression thing is fully over I'll have to someday repay all of you for your help. I really am thankful to have you guys as friends." Humphrey replied, looking at each of them.

"Oh you don't have to go and do that Humphrey, we're just glad you decided to stay and allow us to help you along with continuing to do our omega job together." Mooch remarked.

"Yeah, friends help each other and we're doing just that." Shakey agreed.

He just smiled after hearing that "Whatever, I'm still doing something for you guys." He stated with a laugh before looking up and noticing the clouds were getting darker. He looked back at his friends before him who also seemed to have the same thing on their mind as he did. "Come on, what do you say we get one more run down the hill before this storm begins?"

The three all immediately agreed and they quickly took hold of the log board and began to push it up the long slope that stood up ahead. It was obvious that rain was on the way and Humphrey did want to get some log boarding in before the day was over, so now seemed like the perfect time. Just like that all the talk about mating season was forgotten and pushed to the side in his mind, a new door had been open to him on the way things worked as a wolf, the bizarre ways. And as the day ended with rain falling he took the time to reflect on it in his den before falling asleep. You'd expect every coming of age wolf to know about something as major as mating, but in his case he only knew the basics, and not the fact that there was only a certain time frame for species repopulation to actually work. This was something he didn't look forward too, and was still skeptic about its truth, but he decided to take his friends words and simply hide the week away in his den. That was the plan at least, only time would tell what happens next...

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**A/N: Whew that was a long first chapter, so seems like Humphrey's recuperating well with staying in Jasper, much to the help from his friends of course. He's achieved being able to move on from Kate along with pulling out of his depression, however there's still work to do, and things aren't necessarily going to be getting any easier. Why's that? Well you'll just have to continue reading. -ChriZ**


	2. Not So Dream Life

Chapter 2: Not So Dream Life

Several days flew by since Humphrey first learned about the upcoming, rather eye opening season, and while he was content with what he was going to do during this time, others weren't so lucky. Elsewhere in the forest lied a golden female wolf in a small clearing beside a pond. This wolfs name was Kate, and currently she had some issues on her mind. Much like Humphrey had his favorite place to think along the valley rim, this clearing was Kate's equivalent. It was a quiet place where the only sound was the breeze moving through the trees. It was the perfect place for a wolf to think and solve their personal problems, because not many others knew about it. However Kate wasn't here to have some quiet time to herself, her mind was in a mild panic after hearing what her mother told her earlier this morning. She had been warned that mating season was coming up soon, and while most females with mates were content or even excited about it, she felt quite the opposite. She was married to the once eastern alpha named Garth, it was their responsibility to end up together in order to unite the packs, but after a couple months she was beginning to regret following through.

They had gotten to know one another better and become friends but that was it, nothing more. She didn't love him, and could tell that he felt the same way, but unlike her he was actually trying to change that. If she gave it more time then maybe she could start to love him, but that was the thing, _time_, something Kate didn't have right now. There was no way Kate was going to start a family with him after this season, maybe in the future when she could learn to love him, but at this time, never. She wanted to be as far away as possible from him during this, and that was what was bothering her right now. There was nowhere for her to go, she couldn't hide in her own den because she shared it with him, and she didn't want to intrude on her parents privacy either. She contemplated leaving to live on her own until it subsided but that was immediately shot down. There were lone wolves out there, and if a random male found her then she would be in a whole mess of trouble, much worse than sticking around Garth.

She let out a sigh of frustration before rolling over on her back to look up at the sky, the sun was there to greet her directly above. Not a cloud was in the sky, meaning that the full force of the newly arrived summer hit the land. It was hot, but at the same time there was a breeze to help make it more bearable. As her eyes wandered around the view before her she realized a place she could go, her sisters den. Lilly lived by herself, and wasn't seeing anyone as far as she knew so she must be in the same predicament as herself. Two sisters hiding out from the season sounded like a suitable plan to her, it would give them both plenty of time to catch up and talk. Upon coming to the conclusion Kate got up on her paws and began to walk in the direction of her sisters den, which wasn't too far from her and Garth's. As she continued to dwell on her current relationship with Garth since the topic was already on her mind. He was a nice guy in her opinion, which made the experience of being forced to be together better. Yet how come she couldn't feel herself falling in love with him? They may have only known each other for a short time but by now she should at least feel some things. It was another struggle placed upon her in her life as an alpha, for her own sake she needed to love him, because it would make living her life worthwhile and not just a sacrifice to the packs.

No matter what she was stuck married to him; she feared wanting to get a divorcee because of what the packs reaction might be. Their marriage served as the bond that kept the east and west together, and if she broke it then surly that would mean the packs would split. At least that's what she thought, it could turn out different but she wouldn't risk it. She hasn't even been straight forward about her feelings with her own parents, ever since the uniting she could sense that she was growing away from them. All she ever tells them is that things are fine between her and Garth, though she did state this morning that she was going to skip the season. Her mother was surprised but understood that she needed more time to be ready for a family of her own. Kate felt on her own lately, it wasn't that she was lonely but more of that she didn't really have people to talk about her problems with other then her sister. Which was why she hoped she could spend time with Lilly, and have the chance to catch up as well as discuss her problems like she's done in the past. That's one good thing about having a sister, a family member who was the same gender and age as herself, meaning she felt comfortable speaking about anything around her.

A short walk later Kate arrived at her sisters den, a rather small hole in the hillside that opened up into a moderate sized crevasse. She called out her sister's name before peering her head inside to see if she was around. Sure enough there she was, the pale white she wolf with a half-eaten squirrel before her. She looked up from her meal with a smile "Hey, come on in sis." She greeted. Kate walked inside before lying down opposite from Lilly "How are you today?"

"I'm doing alright, just came by to visit since there's nothing better to do." Kate replied sharing a smile as well. "How about you?"

"I'm good as well, and glad you came by because I was starting to get a little bored." She answered.

"Yeah same here, so what have you been up too since we last talked?" Kate asked.

"Oh nothing much really, other than going to the moonlight howl the other night." Lilly replied before continuing to finish her meal.

"How did that go?" Kate had skipped it since she wasn't in the mood to go howl with Garth, he may have learned how to howl but that still didn't change her mind.

"Pretty well surprisingly, I found a guy to howl with who was nice."

"Really?" Kate replied with surprise in her voice, this was the first time she heard of her sister actually finding someone to howl with. "Tell me about him!"

Lilly giggled from her sister's sudden excitement "His names Ryun and was originally from the eastern pack, a quiet guy but very kind and quite the charmer." She said.

"Wow I'm happy for you, finally getting out and finding someone." Kate stated. Lilly was always a shy one and Kate knew that well, but recently she has been finding some confidence. "Do you think he's a keeper?"

She smiled with a short sigh "I don't know, I told him we should get together again so we'll see what happens. I'm just going to get to know him better before I make that decision." She replied.

"Well I would hope so, but still, I guess I'm starting to lose that shy little sister I once had" Kate teased with a hint of sadness in her voice, but held a half smile.

Lilly laughed "Oh get over it because I'm starting to like finding this confidence."

"I'm glad, because I haven't seen you this happy in a while."

Kate had a positive point there, after the packs united she noticed that her sister mellowed out and kept to herself. She never understood why and when she tried to ask why she always avoided the question, saying she wasn't feeling too well. She shook it off, figuring it was a phase, because it didn't take long for her to notice she was returning to her old self. Unknown to Kate, her marring of Garth was the reason she fell into a short depression, during the time she was relocated Lilly had spent time with Garth. She introduced him to what the western territory had to offer, while at the same time learning about him. Eventually she began to like him and even taught him how to howl, it was all good times and she thought that just maybe she could have a chance with him. Yet once Kate returned he went through with his duty of marring her, causing Lilly to be thrown into a depression much like Humphrey. However unlike him Lilly wasn't as attached to Garth, she did feel upset about not getting a chance with him but she already knew that she was getting involved with an engaged wolf. So when he married the pain wasn't as bad and she was able to move on after the course of a couple of weeks.

Now she was still friends with Garth, they would talk every once in a while but she couldn't love him like she once did. She accepted that fact, and realized that being friends was just as good. This allowed her to focus on finding new love, a love that wasn't forbidden and could blossom into something beautiful. "Yeah you're right about that." Lilly answered. "So how are things with Garth going?" Lilly already knew that her sister didn't love Garth and was content with her reasons. She wanted to see it work out between them, so occasionally she would push Kate to make a move on him so that their love could grow. However Kate never went with it, she was going to let time do that for her.

"Fine as usual" She replied. "Not much to say other than that, but that is a reason I came to see you today."

Lilly tilted her head slightly "Did something happen between you two?" She asked.

"No not at all, but has mom told you that mating season is coming soon?" Kate replied.

Lilly nodded her head. "Yeah I stopped by her den before I went to the feeding grounds earlier, she filled me in on all the details but I was already aware." She answered "Let me guess, you're worried about Garth?"

Kate nodded, glad that her sister was already on the same page as her. "Yeah I'm nowhere near ready to start a family with him obviously, and I don't want to risk staying around him while I'm in heat. Which is why I wanted to ask and see if I could hideout here with you, since I'm sure you aren't ready for pups either." Kate said. She wasn't trying to make Garth sound bad here, but her being in heat around him could lead to problems over time.

"Well you're right about that, I defiantly am not ready for that. However I was actually thinking about getting to know Ryun better before the heat starts. That way I could spend the season with him here in the den, kind of like a little test. To see if we can manage through it, which could bring us closer." She admitted.

Kate was confused and shocked from her sister's sudden idea of spending the season with a guy. She knew what she was implying but at the same time was thrown off over the fact that her sister was never one to think like that before. "What do you mean by that? I thought you just said you didn't want pups." She asked.

"I don't, and I'll take the precautions to make sure that doesn't happen. I just think that it will bring us closer, turning us into a couple of it works out." Lilly stated.

"Are you sure you want to try something like that Lilly? I mean mom has told us that it's a hard challenge to just ignore heat." Kate argued.

"Yeah, and she also told us on how to keep heat from getting out of control. I want to find love Kate, because I look around and see couples enjoying the feeling of it and I want the feeling for myself. This seems like the perfect opportunity to try, I have someone who's interested so why not speed things up a little, for some excitement?" She said.

It was then that Kate realized that her sister meant what she said, she wanted her to find love but this just seemed so... implied in her opinion. She was taking love slow, but her sister was the opposite right now. All she could do was smile in wonder how her sister could change so much in a short time, this wasn't the first day she has seen her trying something new and different. For the past month she's noticed her getting out more, and her going to the moonlight howl was a fine example. "Alright I can tell that you're set on this, so I guess that means I'll have to find somewhere else to stay." She replied.

"I guess so, sorry sis." Lilly agreed.

"That's okay; you deserve to have a chance at love during this. Just try not to do anything stupid, alright?" Kate stated.

Lilly laughed, a typical response that she would expect from her older sister. In a way she loved having Kate as an older sister, she always looked out for her growing up, but sometimes that could also ruin the fun. "Don't worry I'll be smart through all this, I'll even get mom to give me some tips." She responded.

"That is if she lets you do this..." Kate added.

"Oh I'm sure I can get her to understand, I mean what did she say to you about Garth?" She said with confidence.

"I told her that I plan to not be near him during it, and that I didn't want a family of my own yet. Surprisingly she was kind of disappointed, but understood my reasoning." Kate answered.

"So then I have nothing to worry about, we're adults now Kate. Which means that mom and dad need to come to the terms that we can make decisions for ourselves." Lilly said.

She was surprised to hear that coming from her, she may be an omega but when it came to logic, she was smart. "Good point" She agreed.

"So where will you go now?" Lilly asked focusing back on her sister's dilemma.

She sighed "I don't know, there's no one else I could hide with, and I'm not going to stay with mom and dad." She replied.

"Nowhere to go, don't you know any other alpha females who are single?" Lilly suggested.

Kate thought for a moment about some pack mates she knew but all the ones she could consider friends were already in relationships. "No their all already in relationships, and I am not going to get in the way of that." She responded, slightly disappointed.

Lilly couldn't believe her sisters luck, she thought of suggesting a vacant den but that wouldn't work since the merging of the packs filled them all. She was out of options but still had one idea. "Wow that's a bummer" She stated.

"Tell me about it..." Kate agreed. "I've thought about leaving the pack or heading over to where the east used to live but that's not a good idea to stray far from everyone else."

"Defiantly, you're safer here in the den area." Lilly replied.

"Ugh, why must heat make things so difficult?!" Kate exclaimed out of frustration, putting her paws over her head.

"It's just the way things are Kate, but I'm sure you have someone to trust that isn't family out there, and is hiding from the heat as well. They could be male even, as long as you trust each other for nothing to happen you should be fine." She stated.

"Who Lilly? Who?" Kate asked looking at her.

"I don't know; ask around, maybe you could find someone who has the same problem as you." She responded.

Kate saw the logic behind her words, she did put up a good point of simply asking around but in reality she really wanted someone she could trust. Someone she knew wouldn't take advantage of her and be able to get along with. It was just finding someone that could fit that description, there was no one who came to her mind at the moment, and there were only so many wolves around. If she couldn't find someone then she would have to resort staying with her parents, something she wasn't too fond of for various reasons. "I guess you're right, that seems like the only thing to do." She agreed.

"Try not to worry about it too much, it'll come to you." Lilly said.

She smiled "You know you really sound like mom right now."

"Well I learn from the best." Lilly admitted "Just here to help you out like you have done for me in the past."

"Thanks Lilly, I will think about what you said." She said.

"No worries just come back to me when you find someone." Lilly replied.

"I will" Kate said as she got up and proceeded to leave the den. "See you around sis." She called.

"See you" She could hear Lilly reply as she walked out into the afternoon sun. She was glad she stopped by to chat with her; things may not have turned out as she hoped, but at least now she had things straightened out. To find someone she could spend the week long season with, kind of a bizarre quest when she thought about it. If she just stayed with Garth then things would be simple, but she just couldn't, she would never be able to forgive herself if they lost control together.

The day's end was nearing closer as Kate decided to swing by the feeding grounds to have a meal before the evening rush. Along the way she continued to list wolves she knew and whether or not they would work out as a place to stay. However she was losing hope once she ran out of alphas to choose from, all that was left were omegas. She didn't really know that many and the only person she could even consider a friend was Humphrey, one of the wolves she grew up with as a pup. Though now she rarely sees him anymore since the packs united, and hasn't even spoken to him since then. She began to wonder why that was, why they never spoke anymore, they were good friends before but what changed that? Of course there was the whole reason that alphas in general didn't make friends with omegas, but maybe they just grew apart. She stated to feel bad as the memories of him and her entered her mind, he was always so nice to her and looked after her when they were young. Oh how she wanted to experience those good times again, but they would forever be held in the past.

That's when she began to realize something, maybe she should go pay him a visit to catch up, and surly he would enjoy a visit as much as her after all this time. Yet that wasn't the end of it, the idea of staying at his den crossed her mind and lingered there. Much like how Lilly would be passing the season getting to know someone new, she could use that time to catch up with Humphrey. She smiled quietly to herself as she continued to enjoy the leg of a caribou she was eating. Once she was done she was going to head over to his den and ask him, surly she could convince him to understand. That is if he was still a single wolf, she had no idea about that but she held hope. The plan seemed perfect in her mind as she planned it out, she would take the steps to tone down her heat each day and spend the evenings and night catching up with Humphrey. Perhaps she could rebuild their friendship and afterword's continue to be his friend, it seemed great. She thought back to what Lilly also said about 'someone to trust', she felt that she could trust him to control himself around her. Back in the day he was a very trustful wolf, especially when they both got relocated, so he couldn't have changed that much could he? She would have to find out for herself, and so she began the journey towards his den, which she remembered as a pup.

Meanwhile Humphrey was out enjoying a walk through the eastern side of the territory, this was all fairly new land to him considering it used to belong to the Eastern Pack. However it didn't really offer anything truly special when compared to the west, but it did offer a different view of the valley. One where you could see the western den grounds along the opposite rim. He spent most of the afternoon walking around, which in turn was giving him a good work out. One goal he had come up with during his friends coaching was to work on his figure, not to fully build muscle but to keep himself fit. This was one of the reasons he walked as much as he could; it made him feel good once it was over as well as satisfying his love of nature. Now he made his way homeward, stopping along the way to pick up some food to end off a busy day in his den, alone. However as he approached his den he was surprised to find a wolf peering into the entrance of his makeshift home, and it just wasn't any wolf. _'Kate..._' He thought blandly in his mind as his heart began to pound.

He stayed silent until walking up right next to her and dropping the squirrel hanging from his mouth. "May I help you Kate?" He asked, starting to wonder why she would be looking in his den. This was the first time he had spoken to her in weeks, and his heart was beginning to race thinking it was a bad idea to confront her.

Kate nearly jumped at of her fur in surprise before spinning around to face the wolf she was looking for. "Humphrey! There you are; I was looking for you." She said, holding a small smile.

He raised an eyebrow "You were looking for me?" He asked, putting emphasis on '_you_' and '_me_'. Before letting her answer he picked up his squirrel and proceeded to walk past her and into his den. "Let me guess, your father needs me?" He said though clenched teeth, hoping that she was only here for some simple reason.

Kate followed him inside where he sat down with his meal and stood across from him. "No actually, I came to ask you something." She answered, sitting down as well.

Humphrey was surprised, what could she possibly have to ask him? They have never talked for weeks, but he decided to hear her out. Though he wasn't sure if it was a good idea, considering there was still a hurt side of him that remembers what she had done to him two months prior. "Alright, ask away" He replied, he felt like he shouldn't be nice to her but at the same time his friends had always told him not to hate her, just to stay away from her.

She took a deep breath as she was about to bring up an unusual subject, which she was okay talking to Lilly about but not so much to someone who she hadn't talk to in a while. "Well I'll cut straight to the point; you do know that mating season is coming up soon right?" She asked, rather awkwardly.

He just stared back at her with a surprised and confused look "Uh... yeah I'm aware... why are you bringing this up?" He replied slowly. '_Why_ _on earth would she ask that kind of question to me?_' He thought to himself.

"Well I have sort of a problem, and was wondering if you could help me out with it? She continued.

Whatever it was Humphrey wanted no part in it, especially when it came to subjects like this. Yet wanting to stay kind he continued to hear her out. "I'm listening."

She smiled, glad that he was following along and not freaking out yet. "Okay so, I don't want to start a family with Garth and instead of trying to manage it around him I've decided to just stay away from him for the whole season. The problem is that my sister Lilly has plans of her own which ruin my idea of spending the time with her. I also don't want to stay with my parents for various reasons, I know this is all sudden but I was wondering if I could hideout with you? That is if you are skipping the season as well." She explained.

That was a lot for Humphrey to take in, and at the same time questions were firing through his head. Most of them being why he of all wolves was the one she came to about this, their friendship was over weeks ago yet here she was. Giving an offer that only a friend would accept, but Humphrey already knew his answer. There was no way he was going to help her with her relationship problems. He had no reason to do so no matter what she could say. "No" He quickly responded.

Kate looked at him surprised "What do you mean no, why?" She asked.

"Because I said so, that's why." He said before turning away from her, hopping she would take the hint to just leave however he forgot that he was dealing with Kate here, someone who didn't back down easily.

"You don't have plans do you?" She asked, figuring that was the reason.

"Why do you care? Why should I help you with your problems anyway?" He snapped coldly, looking back at her for a second.

Kate then realized the mistake she made; she couldn't just throw down all her problems like that, especially to Humphrey who could take it the wrong way. She sighed, regretting what she said "Look I'm sorry; I didn't mean it like that. That wasn't even the actual reason I chose to come ask you about this." She explained, hoping she didn't just screw it all up.

"Then what was the real reason?" He asked, still facing the back wall of the den.

"I wanted to take this opportunity to catch up, we were great friends growing up but now we've drifted apart. I want to become friends again, and a week together sounds like a nice idea to do just that. Don't you miss those good times we shared?" She answered.

Humphrey slowly turned around to face Kate wondering if she meant what she said. '_Did she really want to be my friend again after this time?_' The look on her face told him that she meant what she said, but he still couldn't trust her. "So let me get this straight, you want to hideout here in my den while you're in heat, which in turn doubles as a chance for us to catch up?" He asked.

She nodded "Yes, and I will take steps that my mother taught me which will make sure that my heat doesn't become a problem for us." She replied.

Humphrey still was far from being sure; his mind was fighting with him between trusting her and leaving her to deal with her own problems. "How do I know this isn't just a setup, to get me to do something punishable by law?" He asked.

She was taken aback by this "What? Humphrey do I look like the kind of wolf that would want to put you in trouble? I just want to be able to call you my friend again, don't you feel the same?" She replied.

_'Yeah you do like the kind of wolf that wants to hurt me'_ He thought in his head. Yet the more he looked at her the more he could see those amber eyes of hers holding truth, could he still trust her? "I don't know Kate; I don't want to risk it. Though at the same time I would like to catch up and maybe be friends again." He stated. He wasn't sure what was getting into him, part of him didn't want to help her but the other part liked the idea of being her friend. After all his friends told him not to hate her, but they didn't say anything against being her friend. And in his mental state it could bring him peace of mind knowing that he made friends with his secret enemy, something that was in his nature as an omega.

Kate could see that he was uneasy from all of this, so she decided to give him some time to think. "Well promise me you'll think about it, okay?" She replied. She was kind of bummed that he said they might become friends again but at least he was accepting of it after learning the full reason.

"We'll see..." Was all he replied with.

"Alright, I guess I'll be speaking with you later then." She said before getting up and starting to leave his den, content that she will get his answer within the next day or two.

"Yeah..." He said kind of awkwardly before watching her disappear into the outside world. He looked down and proceeded to eat his dinner for the night, however any peace that he would have had was now ruined with Kate's visit. His thoughts were on overdrive trying to take in what she talked to him about. He was walking on a fine line between turning her down and taking the chance of getting to know her again. It was a hard decision and knew he was going to need help; the only problem was how he was going to tell his friends about Kate's visit. A wolf they told him to stay away from, for good reason.

* * *

**A/N: Hmm what will Humphrey pick? Well you'll see in the next chapter! Hope you're enjoying the story so far, cause that's all I have to say right now, haha. –ChriZ**


	3. Decisions

Chapter 3: Decisions

The dawn of a new day approached, sending bright beams of golden light across the plain sky. It looked to be another bright and hot day for those living in the region, but that was to be expected with the summer. No matter the conditions, creatures would still continue to do their daily routines, especially the wolves. Food may still be plentiful but there was always a back stock kept available for when things weren't as easy going. At least now alphas didn't have hunt to everyday; a cycle system was formed where two alpha groups rotated duties every four days. This was a way of keeping constant hunting and patrolling while also giving others some time off to themselves and their families. The omegas however didn't have a system like this, their job was simply done when the time came, which didn't come very often anymore. For wolves like Humphrey, he hasn't even needed to break up a fight in a long time, which allowed for him to focus more on getting his mind back on the right track. However last night he was put into a difficult decision, one that he still had no idea how to answer let alone believe as reality.

Kate, the only enemy he has ever made, came by and asked him if she could spend a week with him. While normally this would be nothing major in the form of requests, it was all changed when the visit would be during mating season. A time where Humphrey wanted to be nowhere near any females, yet her request was making him rethink that decision because of the possibilities it held. No it wasn't because of the obvious fact, but rather she had expressed her idea of taking the time to hide out in his den with him so that they could catch up and become friends again. Something they used to be back in the day, but have since turned stale. Humphrey had no idea what to think now, should he listen to his friends or take the chance at making up with an old friend? This was what kept him up late into the night, until relentlessly his body fell into sleep. However when he woke up this morning he moved right back into the dilemma.

He looked around the walls of his small den for what seemed like hours after he got up. He wanted to go meet up with his friends and tell them about yesterday's encounter, but before then he needed to come up with his decision. His friends were pulling him away from Kate, and it was for the best, but the opportunity was just too good to pass up. He really wanted to be friends with her again even though it would never become anything more than that. Hating someone was against all that he knew as an omega; his job was to maintain peace and happiness of all wolves in the pack. And it was now that he was starting to learn that the same also applied to him. His friends never told him to hate on Kate because of what she did, yet he felt like that was what he was doing. During her visit yesterday the hurt side of him was more alive than it ever had been since the _'incident'_, and now he regretted letting it get to that point. He needed to accept what happened, which he knew well, for it was the real first step to recovery.

Rising to his paws he made his way towards where he usually met up with his friends each day, the feeding grounds. Along the way he continued to think about what to do, and how he was going to explain to his friends that he actually contemplated allowing Kate back into his life. With every step the memories of his time as a pup stuck to him, these were great times in his life, from meeting new friends to the fun that was had. All of it he loved and kept in his memories, and he did want to have that same feeling of joy in the present. Though times have changed, all that was left from those days were his three omega brothers. However now he had the chance to change that, his mind was looping over and over telling him to just give Kate another chance, to let her in as a friend. Never could he love her again, and the thought of that was okay with him. As he approached the feeding grounds he came to his decision, he would allow Kate to stay with him, but would his friends understand his reasoning?

That was to be found out because out of the corner of his eyes he noticed Shakey waving him over from the backside of a rock. He turned and walked over towards him to find Salty, Tasia, and Mooch sitting nearby all having a conversation. "Good morning everyone." Humphrey greeted walking up to the four before having a seat on the dirt.

They all greeted him back "Hey Humphrey, how are you doing?" Salty asked.

"I'm doing alright, had kind of a rough night." He replied, wanting to just get off what was on his chest right away.

Salty and the others all have him questioning looks "Why, what happened?" Salty asked.

"Well I don't mean to get right to it, but Kate paid me a visit during the evening." He answered.

"What!?" Most of them replied with wide eyes, seeming to be just as surprised as he was when it happened. To them they could see no reason for her to visit him to begin with. "Alright dude details, why did she visit you?" Salty asked, making this suddenly sound like some kind of interrogation.

Humphrey chuckled from their reaction before matching the seriousness on his friends face "Okay I know this sounds crazy, and believe me I know it is, but she asked me if she could stay with me in my den during mating season." He explained, before realizing how bad he made that sound. "And no it's not what you think!"

Expecting them to all lash out with questions nothing happened, instead his friends all stood there completely dumbfounded, except for Tasia who giggled at the idea. She was already well aware of Humphrey's issues with the young alpha female, but this was something she had never heard of before. "Are you kidding me?" Salty said after finding the words to speak.

"I'm serious guys, that's what she asked and I was completely against it." Humphrey replied.

"So did you just tell her to leave after that?" Shakey chimed in.

"No I didn't, because I wanted to hear her out." He stated.

"Well why on earth would she come to you with a question like that, shouldn't she be spending it with Garth?" Shakey asked.

"That's exactly why I didn't just tell her to leave, and it turns out it's because she doesn't want to start a family with him. So instead of managing her heat around him in their den she decided to find somewhere else to stay. It turns out that the only place left she could think of was with me in my den, that's when I immediately tell her no." He explained further.

"Of course you would say no, you want nothing to do with her and nothing to do with mating season to begin with. But I bet speaking with her again was really hard on you." Salty responded.

"Yeah it was" He replied.

"At least you got through it without breaking down or anything, which can only mean we have been helping you." Salty stated.

"That much as already known, doesn't take much to see that you guys have helped me out of that." Humphrey said, thinking it was a silly thing to say in his part, but still saw his point.

"Yeah you're right. What's even stranger is that she wanted to be around you while she was in heat." Salty replied.

"Tell me about it" He said with a sighed, out of all this that was the part that scared him the most. Even though he was already set on allowing her to stay with him, the fact that it would be during the season was freaking him out. How could they manage to ignore it?

"So did she just leave after that?" Mooch asked.

Humphrey just shook his head "No, I tried but that's when she stated the real reason she chose to ask me. Turns out that she actually wants to take the time to catch up and become friends again." He stated.

"Really? After two months she finally comes to her senses and realizes the mistake she's made." Salty said with a bit of disgust at the end.

Humphrey noticed what he was thinking but that really wasn't the way Kate made it sound. "Actually it wasn't really like that; she thinks that we just drifted apart. In no way did she make it seem she that I hated her, and I don't."

"Of course you don't, that's not the goal of what we've been helping you with." Mooch answered.

"I know that, which is why I have actually decided to take her up on her request." He stated looking at each of them as they sat before him.

"Woah, woah, woah!" Salty exclaimed while shaking his head. "There is no way we are going to let you become friends with Kate again."

"Yeah Humphrey, and ruin everything we've done in the past weeks. You need to move on from her, not bring her back into your life." Shakey added.

He sighed with an annoyed look in his eyes, he already knew his friend's reaction would be like this but actually hearing it made him still feel upset that they wouldn't allow him to become friends with Kate. Sure they had every reason to stop him, reasons that he knew all too well about, but this was pulling him away from what he knew as an omega. "Guys this is not going to ruin anything, in fact I think it will fix things and make my life easier if I become friends with her again."

"How? How could it be easier letting the one who hurt you back into your life?" Salty asked, making it clear that none of his friends could see what he saw in this.

"Because Kate is my enemy, you've told me not to hate her yet I feel like I do. I don't want that, we're omegas and that's not in our nature to hate and push others away. Her visit has made me realize this, that maybe this is just the chance I need to accept the wrong that has happened in my life, by restoring the friendship with the wolf that broke my heart." He argued, hopping that now his point was put across. Yet no matter what his friend's choice or opinion he would continue to do what he felt right, after all this could bring him the closure he's needed.

"What if it doesn't? She could still be using you just as a place to stay during her heat. After the time passes she would leave you, never to speak to you again, just like last time." Shakey countered.

Humphrey realized the point he made, it was possible Kate could do that to him again. An alpha fooling an omega into thinking they just want to make friends when suddenly everything turns around. The thought that she would even attempt to do it to him again angered him on the spot. However he remembered the look in her eyes when she spoke with him yesterday, and nowhere did he see lies. He wanted to believe her, to believe that she actually wanted to be friends after this was all over. "I don't believe it Shakey, I saw her eyes while she talked to me last night and I could see the truth behind them. She made it seem that she wanted to become friends with me again just as much as I do with her, and I believe her reasoning. You guys may not agree with me but this is what I want, a second chance to set things straight between us." This wasn't about love anymore to Humphrey, that would forever be a tainted barrier between them. Friendship was what this was about.

All of his friends exchanged looks with one another as they processed their friend's predicament. Humphrey seriously hopped that after this they would understand, but so far that still seemed to not be the case. "Alright maybe she's telling the truth, but that still doesn't remove the fact that this will be during mating season. Heat is something you don't mess around with; especially when it comes to someone you once had feelings for. What if things get out of hand and she seduces you, if word gets out about that you will be screwed worse then you already have been." Salty replied.

"She said she would take care of that part by using some tricks her mother taught her that tones down her heat. I have confidence that I can keep myself from letting it get to me, and if she makes a move on me then I'll just tell her to leave, simple as that." He answered.

"So you trust her?" Tasia suddenly asked, the grayish brown she wolf had been listening to the conversation but actually felt that Humphrey should go through with what he wanted.

Humphrey paused for a moment, did he really trust Kate? She may have been truthful yesterday but could he still trust a she wolf in heat? "Yes I guess I do trust her, she already has a mate whom I'm sure she loves so why would she ruin that by getting carried away with an omega? Secondly she wants to be my friend again, so surly that will keep her from ruining that during her stay." He spoke looking over at her. "Besides she must trust me if she came to ask me of all wolves on this pack."

"You know you really should let him do this guys, he's made some good points and has made it obvious that he wants to be her friend again." Tasia reasoned while looking over at the other three.

Humphrey smiled noticing that she had taken his side, though the guys were still on the fence about it. Salty himself didn't want to see Humphrey go through another let down in his life, which was why he was against it among other reasons. Heat wasn't something to mess around with from what he was told, but it was then he realized that if he and Tasia could manage to go through the season together. Then surly Humphrey could do it with Kate, and if he was getting tempted then the bad memories would make away with any of them. "Alright fine, do what you want just as long as you are prepared if anything happens. I don't want to see you fall back into a depression." Salty finally agreed.

Humphrey's smile widened as the rest of his friends followed in agreement, thankful that he didn't have to go against them. While they weren't exactly positive about it, Salty, Shakey, and Mooch all wanted him to be happy and only time will tell if this choice will really make him happy. After the argument was through the group decided to go out and enjoy themselves through games and chatting about whatever came to mind. It helped relieve the tension that had built up during the morning. The hours of leisure flew by and as the evening arrived to give an end to the day. As much as Humphrey wanted to stick with his friends he had one last thing to take care before the night arrived. So he left them to continue playing their game of berry ball and headed into the den grounds to find Kate. He had no idea where to find her so he figured he should try her den first; however he had no idea where that was either.

Instead of going on a long search and asking around he decided to just go to one of the wolves who would surly know of her whereabouts, Winston. Upon arriving at the large and built up den that was known as the leaders den, Humphrey didn't have to look far to find the elder alpha male. He was sitting along the overhang before the den speaking with another wolf. Not wanting to interrupt Humphrey waited at the top of the landing until the other wolf, which he recognized as Hutch, spotted him waiting and signaled Winston. "Oh hello Humphrey, what can I help you with?" He greeted in his low voice.

"I didn't want to interrupt sir." Humphrey replied.

"Nonsense, go ahead." He stated.

"Alright I was just wondering if you knew where Kate was, she said she wanted to speak with me today." Humphrey said.

"Oh she's been out on a patrol this afternoon, but she should be heading back here by now." He replied.

"Thank you sir, I'll keep an eye out for her." Humphrey replied before turning to leave.

"Don't mention it Humphrey, I'll let her know you came by if I see her first." He heard him say as he began to make his way down from the den. Now it was just a matter of waiting until Kate came wandering through the den grounds from her patrol. Turned out Winston was right because not even a few minutes of waiting later he spotted her along with a few other alphas coming up the hill from the valley. Seeing his opportunity he left his spot under a tree to go speak with her, his heart picking up pace the closer he got. It wasn't fear but more of anticipation of the unknown. He wasn't sure what was to come in the approaching week but he hopped it would end in a good way.

Kate looked up ahead and noticed none other than Humphrey walking up towards her, she stopped as he drew closer and started wondering if he had thought about what she said yesterday. She smiled "Hey Humphrey" She greeted.

"Hey Kate" He replied, coming to a stop in front of her as the alphas she was traveling with stopped as well and looked at the two. "Could I speak with you for a minute?"

She nodded "Sure" She replied before turning and starting to walk away, knowing what he wanted to talk about. "You guys go on ahead; I'll join back up with you at the feeding grounds." She called back to the alphas while motioning Humphrey to follow her. He got the message and rushed up to walk alongside her. "So, what's up?" She asked casually as they wandered into the orange burning forest from the sunset.

Humphrey took a breath before answering "Well I've been thinking about what you said yesterday." He started.

She smiled again noticing her assumption was right. "And?" She asked looking at him while they walked.

He exchanged glances with her for a moment before looking back ahead "And I've decided that it is time we became friends again, so yes you can stay with me in my den during the season." He finished.

Kate breathed a sigh of relief as a burden was suddenly lifted from her shoulders; she even wanted to cheer in joy knowing that she now had a place to hide out. But she kept her cool and nodded her head in understanding along with a smile. "Oh thank you Humphrey, you don't know how much this makes things easier." She responded.

He smiled as well before it quickly faded "However, if your heat becomes a problem and you make any moves on me I will kick you out. Alright?" He stated, not trying to sound mean about it. He needed to lay some ground rules, which he actually came up with after giving more thought into what his friends stated today.

Kate was surprised by the sudden assertiveness from Humphrey, which was something she had never seen from him before. She still understood his point and knew that would be the best option for him to do if things got out of paw. Also the fact of being kicked out during heat was something she did not want to happen, so the rule he made worked both ways for them. "I understand" She answered.

His smile returned "Great, then surly this will be the start of a new beginning for us." He replied, coming to a stop.

"Indeed it shall" She agreed, stopping as well.

"Alright, then I'll be seeing you in a few days I presume?" He asked looking at her.

"Yes, when my heat starts I'll move to your den, sound good?" She replied.

"Works for me." He agreed.

"Good, I'll be seeing you in the future then. Have a goodnight Humphrey." She said before walking away, back towards the den grounds.

"Same to you Kate" He replied as he watched her walk away. Feeling happy about himself that he just had a casual conversation with her. At the same time there was nothing in him that burned when the sight of her was before him, perhaps the hurt side of him was gone? He had no idea, but what he did know was that so far, things were looking up for this sort of experiment to work. An experiment of rebuilding a friendship while not letting lust get in the way. He sighed feeling satisfied for the day, then headed in the direction his den while the golden light of the sun began to fade within the tree tops above.

* * *

**A/N: The time has come to rebuild a friendship; will it be a success or a failure? I don't know but you'll find out in the next chapter! -ChriZ**


	4. Starting Over

Chapter 4: Starting Over

The days passed by at their usual pace, the routine was the same for every wolf in the United Pack; live and serve the pack. However like a looming shadow mating season was fast approaching and preparations were already being made on behalf of the leaders to make sure that the season would pass with no issues. Alpha duties were rearranged and altered so that every alpha female could take it easy with a light work load. Heat got its name for a reason and if it was not relieved then females would need to take control of their body temperature. As odd as it seems this was normal for females who had already experienced the sensation of heat, the precautions were already known and they had no trouble controlling something that took over their body like a virus. A virus of fertility and lust you could say.

All young females were educated about what was to come, whether it was from parents, friends, or even the pack meeting that was recently held for all females. To any outsider you would think that the wolves of the pack were preparing to battle some epidemic, but here everything was safe and normal in wolf culture. Females already with mates were considered the lucky ones, for they could use the time with their special one and turn it into something romantic and special. They didn't need to do the things single females did as much, like cooling themselves off with water or going about everything in a smooth and easy way. Overheating was a problem when it came to a females in heat, it could lead to passing out, sickness or even death in extreme cases. This was why alpha duties were practically halted for females. Allowing all the alpha males to work in order to compensate for the lack of wolves, but they still got their time off during this time. For the pack already had a large number of alphas, and food was plentiful.

The season was a time of love, and a chance to make dreams come true, such as dreams of starting a family and experiencing the joys and challenges of it. As odd as all this was, it just happened, nothing could stop it and surely it was spoken of across the pack. However for being so known, when it came down to it everything was kept private among couples and singles. Like a secret that everyone knows about yet is never discussed. While the season was regarded as a romantic time, there were still parts of it that weren't so great. Heat had a bad side to it, for it put out an intoxicating aura that would drive any male crazy with lust. This was just nature's way of making sure that wolves would reproduce at the right time, even if it was right or not in their culture. However this didn't mean that wolves accepted it, they were picky for good reason since that kind contact is only reserved for lovers. Unfortunately with lust meant that females could be taken advantage of by those with sinister ideals. Rape was just something that happened, whether deliberate or from getting too carried away, it was one of the highest crimes next to death punishable by law, and right now was the time of highest risk.

This was why the United Pack organized it so that the males were kept busy while the females rested. Additionally omegas kept look out for any sign of trouble to break up and report to the alphas. Surprisingly this system proved to be very effective and efficient over the years through past generations of leaders. This was a short dozen or so days where the normal routine was turned on its side and changed to something bizarre. Amazing to think that all this happens over mating season; private, romantic, and just plain unusual to those who are only experiencing it for the first time. Yet at the same time it was just another yearly cycle that is just a part of being a wolf. With all this love and temptation in the air it's amazing to think that anyone would pick this time to make friends, for it could lead it to somewhere else not welcomed. The time was to be spent with that one you love or are interested in romantically, not to rebuild a friendly bond that once was.

However this did not stop Kate from proposing the idea to her once puppyhood companion, Humphrey. She wasn't entirely sure that what she was doing was right but at the same time she was confident she could make it work out. As hesitant as he was to accept, let alone think about it, Humphrey approved of it for the sake of regaining what was lost in the past. The plan was set, and now it has begun. A day ago the season had started for Kate and just like she stated, she moved into Humphrey's den until the heat faded off in the next several days. However no one really knew that she was staying with an omega, and with the current season it could be against the old pack law to do so. She didn't care though, he was her last resort and she was thankful that he even accepted it, taking on a challenge of temptation with the reward of friendship. The only wolves that did know of her whereabouts were her sister Lilly, and Garth. Kate felt like they were the only ones who would understand her reasoning for it, and surprisingly they both did. As for her parents, all they expected was that she was with another alpha female. Oddly enough they didn't challenge her to tell them who it was; perhaps they felt she could make her own choices? Whatever it was, things were to go smoothly in her mind for her first season, and maybe by the next season she could learn to love the wolf she was stuck with and have a family. Like the destiny that was forced upon her.

However that was the future and right now it was about her and Humphrey. By the first night together there was an apparent awkwardness hovering in the den, neither of them knew what to talk about. Kate tried to make conversation, which worked, but only for a short while. Humphrey meanwhile was going through a whole wave of thoughts and feelings, and it wasn't entirely due to Kate's presence in relation to his past experiences. Rather it was the fact that he was smelling heat for the first time, and while it wasn't strong he defiantly could detect its scent and its mind controlling ways. It almost made him feel dirty in a way, sitting here with a supposedly aroused alpha female beside him, yet it was replaced when he remembered why she was here. Thankfully for him it would never become over powering with the way Kate left every few hours to wash and cool off in the nearby stream. At any rate the smell was going to play with his mind, and he was going to have to get used to it if this reunion with her was going to work out. He was amused to realize that his friends were right about how strong the scent was, it was nothing like he smelled before. Sweet in a way, but defiantly held strength in naughty intentions, making him fully understand how wolves could get carried away with it.

Eventually they decided to just start with what they had been up to for the past two months, a suitable topic. Kate began with her story and Humphrey was very surprised to hear that she hadn't been enjoying her new life so well. He always thought that marrying Garth was what she wanted, that uniting the packs was just half the reason, but what she told said otherwise. The truth from her was that they didn't love each other, and that they were struggling to even make it work out between them. They were friendly to one another but other than that there was nothing more, just two alphas put together with no bond. Humphrey couldn't believe it as he sat there in darkness on their first night together; she was in her own mess of problems as he was. Kate didn't bother holding details; she already accepted that this was the way her life was meant to be even if it wasn't right in her mind. She grew up in alpha school learning that an alpha does things for the good of their pack, and this was exactly what she did. The more she told her story the more Humphrey felt empathy towards her, his idea of her living the dream life was all a lie. He wasn't the only one thrown into depression from the uniting, and that was something they now had in common.

No longer could he say that he felt anger towards her, as if the knowledge of her current life was enough for him to forgive the fact that she played his heart. None of them won from this, which now made them even. Humphrey was broken over the harsh reality of not being able to be with Kate, while she was torn apart with her new life. The conversation continued until it was Humphrey's turn to share what was new with him, which he realized was a problem. He couldn't just state that because of her his life was turned to misery, that wouldn't be right on his behalf. She had shared enough problems to deal with at the present, and this was to be a pleasant experience for them both at his den. Not a chance to get even or set things straight, after all he still wanted to be her friend when this was over, and maybe sometime in the future he could really tell her the truth. His mind quickly turned into a panic as he attempted to find a reason to explain everything he had been doing with his friends. That's when the idea of finding his family kicked in, which was something he already planned to use if anyone acquainted with Kate ever asked him about his sudden mood swing. Luckily nobody ever did other than his friends and other omegas.

Things switched as Kate listened to what Humphrey had to say, the two of them just laid there on the floor of the den while looking around the cave, occasionally exchanging glances. However what she expected to be typical omega adventures and experiences coming from him turned out to be much more serious. She had always thought Humphrey lived the carefree life, like any regular omega in the pack. Never did they have the worries and responsibilities alphas had, and in a way she was jealous about it. Yet her life was already laid out, her parents wanted her to be an alpha and that's what she did. But she didn't regret it; the thrill of a hunt was more than enough to make her enjoy it, even if some days were hard. Humphrey however had his own new problems like she did, but to her, his were worse. Family was important to her, the ones that accepted you for who you were even if you never saw eye to eye all the time. She always knew Humphrey wasn't born into this pack; his lack of parents was more than enough to make it obvious, but not knowing where you came from was horrible to think about.

Humphrey told her that he began to think more about his parents after the uniting, wanting to know where they were and why he was in Jasper. He talked about his omega brothers and how they came up with this big scheme to help him feel better, which was working. Kate simply listened as he continued, going on about his new love for nature and how it has helped him get out of the pit he was in. At the end she was relieved to learn that he was out of that depression, someone like him shouldn't be tied down like that, no one did. It made her wonder about how to get out of her own problems, or at least manage them. Perhaps she could even get some tips out of Humphrey, something she could ask him when they ran out of topics for conversation. As his story ended they both continued to talk for a short time until rest overcame them. The first half day was over, but several more were on the way.

The next day arrived quickly and at the present it was getting late into the morning. Humphrey was alone in his den waiting for Kate to return from her routine trip to the river. They haven't even been doing this for a full day yet and it was already becoming an interesting experience. This was already a worthwhile decision for Humphrey, because he learned that Kate wasn't doing well in life. As cruel of a thought it sounded it was something new they shared in common, and he couldn't wait to tell his friends what he's learned. Surely the next time he got together with them they would be asking him tons of questions. At the same time he wanted to know how Salty and Shakey were dealing with the smell of heat around them, because they were doing the same thing as him technically. Curious to see if it was affecting them in the same way as he was, because to say that he wasn't getting bad thoughts in his head would be a lie. As much as he pushed away the temptations and thoughts, they still slipped into his mind; at least the smell wasn't getting any stronger to force him beyond that. Not much later of lounging in the den Kate returned from her bath; however she also brought food with her.

"I'm back" She called with a piece of caribou in her jaws before dropping it in the middle of the den. "I figured you must be as hungry as I am so I grabbed this on the way back."

"Thanks, I was getting a little hungry" Humphrey replied, walking up to where she placed it.

They began eating after splitting it in two, shortly after Kate decided to ask the obvious question she had on her mind since she started staying here. "So, how are you handling the smell?" She asked, looking at him.

At first Humphrey was confused but then remembered what she meant "Oh, that." He said realizing and received a nod from her afterword. "Well to say it doesn't affect me is a lie, I'm surprised that the rumors I've heard about it are actually true so far." He laughed a little at the end.

She lightly laughed as well "It's not going to become a problem is it?" She asked.

"If it stays like this, I can manage." He replied casually.

"Good to hear, though I feel a little bad you have to deal with it." She stated.

He shook his head "Don't be, if I can make it through this then I'm sure I can get through anything." He replied with a smile. "But I will say that you leaving every few hours has helped."

"Yeah it helps me as well; you have no idea what it is like to feel what I feel right now. It's like I'm always lying out under the hot sun." She admitted.

"I don't want to know" Humphrey replied while raising one of his fore paws, as much as he was curious he voted against it.

She laughed "Fair enough, at least this current breeze airs things out." She said referring to the draft that rushed in from the entrance of the den. It was a windy day today, and Kate hoped it would stay like this for the remainder of the season.

"Yes, it does." He agreed. It was nice that she already knew all these tricks to keeping the scent down, which she stated earlier that she learned from her mother. Surely she had some other things then just sitting in water, but he didn't feel like learning about it. The more he could keep heat and things related to it off his mind the better, having never experienced it before he wanted to be as cautious as possible. For fear that getting to much in his mind would alter his image of Kate from one of a friend to one of lust and desire. He didn't exactly know much but that wasn't going to change, perhaps he could avoid the sensations it gave better if he knew all about it, but he was not going to risk it.

There was a short pause as they finished their meal before Kate had something else come to her mind. "I was thinking about what you said regarding your parents" She began "Have you ever thought of going to look for them?"

"I have" Humphrey answered. "The thing is I have no idea where they could be, no one here knows anything about where they went after I was left here."

"Not even my father?" She suggested.

"Well he's told me about what they looked like and their names, but he stated that they never talked about where they were headed, just that I would be better off living here." He replied.

Once the previous winter was beginning to warm up Winston took the time to explain what happened to his parents. He was too young to remember when it all actually happened, but now thanks to that talk it helped him fill a big hole in his life. Yet most of it was still a mystery, his lie to Kate that his depression was because of his parents isn't too far off from reality. Did he want to find them? Sure he did, but at the same time what if they didn't accept him? These were things he thought about, why else would he be left here if his parents did care for him. Obviously the fact he was better off wasn't true, for if he was then why haven't they visited him in his two years of life? None of it made sense, and perhaps it never will, which is the reason it brought him sadness. There could be a whole family out there that he would never know about, parents, grandparents, brothers and sisters even. Did they even care or was he the runt left to be forgotten? It made him sick to think they would do that, but he knew it was possible. This was why the things he learns from getting over Kate he also used when it came to his origins. It wasn't as big a problem as Kate was, but it was similar at the least.

"I have my theories, but not all of them are great." He continued. "Perhaps what they told Winston was true, that they wanted me to be safe. However I find it hard to believe when they have never come to visit." He got up and began to pace around the den, not sure if Kate was following along or not. He didn't plan to go deep with it but for some reason he just kept talking.

However she was paying close attention to what the grey wolf before her said, understanding the kind of emotional pain he was in. She thought about what it would be like to never know her parents and sister, wolves she deeply cared about for they were her family, the ones she could trust and speak with. Never knowing them where would she be? Probably having to manage for herself and sharing the feelings Humphrey currently had, a gap in your own life story. That changed her view on him slightly; he had grown up all by himself. Learned how to be a wolf from experience and friends, not passed down from the ones that brought him into this world. As a pup she would have never comprehended this when they were friends, but now she realized it. She felt bad for him, thinking of a way she could help but there was nothing she could do. She held no place in this problem other than being a bystander trying to comfort and understand.

"-Perhaps I was just some accident or wasn't liked by them..." She heard him continue, realizing that while in her thoughts she had missed some of what he said.

"What?!" She blurted out, rising to her paws. "Don't you ever think you're some kind of accident Humphrey! You are a great wolf and an important omega to our pack, you should be proud of that."

Humphrey nearly backed up in surprise at how fast she confronted him; the shocked look on his face took a few moments to wear off. "I appreciate it Kate, but I don't see myself as that at all." He replied, having no intentions of making his talk sound upsetting. Simply he was listing the reasons he thought his parents left him. He has already accepted that his parents were not going to be coming around anytime soon, let alone ever.

"I just hate it when wolves think their worthless. If its one thing alpha school taught me is that all wolves deserve to live so long as their innocent." She explained, starting to pace around like Humphrey previously had. For some reason what he spoke just set something off in her, whether it was him or the fact she just stated.

"Kate I didn't intend it to mean that." He reasoned again.

"Wherever your parents are I'm sure they still love you, and if they don't then they never deserve to know you. You shouldn't let it bring you down, instead embrace it." She continued, ignoring what he argued.

Humphrey was amazed to hear something like that from her; a wolf who he once hated was actually arguing that he was a great wolf. What she spoke he may already know, but the meaning was still there. A smile appeared on his face as he stood there in disbelief, perhaps this really was a new start for them. "Thank you Kate, that.. is great to hear." He replied slowly. "I have embraced it, thanks to the help of my friends coaching like I told you last night."

"No need to thank me, it's now that I realize we both have our problems to deal with." She said, returning the smile.

For a moment he felt that feeling of friendship returning between them. Only the second day in and it was already returning like nothing had changed. "Yes it appears we do." He agreed with a nod of his head.

There was a short moment of silence. "Perhaps you could teach me some tips about accepting things for what they are." Kate suggested; not sure if he would bother to accept.

"I don't see why not, we still got plenty of time." He replied, kind of glad she was interested in learning about the lessons his friends taught him.

"Great" She smiled.

"So now what?" He asked, seeing that was over and done with.

She hummed to herself as she thought of what to talk about, but nothing came to mind. It was mid-day and she thought about going to visit her sister, as long as Humphrey couldn't think of anything else. "Well I got nothing, you?" She responded.

"After all that, I got nothing either." He replied. Once again there they sat with nothing to speak about, at least now there was no awkwardness behind it. That's when Humphrey's omega side kicked in, if there was nothing for omegas to talk about then the next best thing was fun and games. That is if Kate was interested in playing them, he wasn't sure why she wouldn't but alphas were alphas. "How about a game?" He asked.

"Sure I guess; what did you have in mind?" She replied, hoping that it wasn't too strenuous for her current condition.

"I like to call it spot the object" He replied, before getting up and walking to the entrance of the den while motioning for her to follow him.

She got up and followed him. "This isn't anything physically demanding is it?" She asked.

For a second there Humphrey almost replied with an ironic joke that an alpha just asked that kind of question, but then he remembered why she said that. "Not at all" He responded sitting back down, facing the forest view before his den. "You just sit right here and admire the view."

She sat down near his side and raised an eye brow while giving him a look. _'How could this be a game'_ She wondered. "That's it?" She asked.

He couldn't help but laugh at her question. "No of course not!" He answered looking back at her for a moment. "Basically one of us picks an object we see and the other tries to guess it from one basic hint."

She felt kind of silly asking that but she still laughed with him. "Ah I see, you go first then." She replied.

Humphrey smiled to himself before looking around for something rather easy to guess, considering it was her first time playing. Their game started and Kate found herself enjoying it more then she anticipated; round after round went by as time sped up with the difficulty ever increasing. It was nice to be doing something most alphas never did, and that was games. Luckily for Kate that trip to Idaho with this omega helped her remember to have fun every now and then. Only she regrets to say that once her and Humphrey split she forgot this fact again. Humphrey may never see it but he did have an impact on her, not in a romantic way but rather a friendly reminder way. That having fun was just as important in life as serving your pack. She found it interesting how she fell out of touch with him, sure she thought about him every now and then but she never paid him a visit until a few days ago. Perhaps it was merely because she was too caught up with herself between alpha duties and her problems. Either way she kind of regretted it, thinking that she was to blame for breaking their friendship when it wasn't entirely true.

Humphrey meanwhile was enjoying the game they were playing, finding it interesting to have someone other than his omega buddies to challenge. As the day went on he concluded that today was a success, he was learning more about Kate and she was learning more about him. The feeling of friendship was back in his opinion, but there was still work to do, yet at this point it all felt so casual. Going from topic to topic and there was still much to talk about; additionally he could also teach her some games they could play in their down time. He was making the most of this, even if it was never going to end up with them being a couple. It wasn't ever going to be about that no matter how well things were going, and at the same time he did still remember their past. As much as he didn't want to, he did, and it served to quickly remove any thoughts that drifted into his mind when he became aware of her heat. It was like a double edged sword, one side to never develop feelings of romance for her, and the other to remove any temptations. He couldn't wait to see the expressions on his friend's faces when he told them how well everything was going right now, who he planned to go visit tomorrow during some down time, because he had his own questions to ask them as he was sure they already had some for him.

* * *

**A/N: Story is starting to pick up pace here, Humphrey is thinking the friendship is back but there's still more left to be said. Glad to see people are enjoying it so far, hopefully that will continue as the story continues on. Why do I say that? Well let's just say there's going to be a bit of a bump in the road soon… -ChriZ**


	5. Like It Once Was

Chapter 5: Like It Once Was

Humphrey admired the landscape to his left side as he strolled along the rim of the valley. Clouds shadowed overhead, blocking the sunlight every now and then as they passed. Currently he was taking a long hike because it has been a few days since he has done one. Once he completed that he planned to go visit his friend Mooch. Unlike Salty and Shakey, Mooch had no one to spend the season with, meaning he was all on his own in his den. So Humphrey decided to go a pay him a visit considering visiting the others might not be such a wise idea for now. Last thing he wanted to do was to walk in on something he didn't wish to see, or interrupt anything. Plus he was sure Mooch could use the company, as well as to see what he was up too. Looping back around into the den area Humphrey headed to his destination, a den located near his own. Normally walking through the den grounds you would see a majority of the pack out and about. However since the season began it was almost like the place was abandoned with an eerie silence accompanying it, with the only noise being the occasional murmur he heard passing some wolf's den.

As he approached the side of his friends den he stopped for a moment to make sure he was around. "Hey Mooch, you around?" He called.

"Yes, come in." He heard a voice reply, so he rounded the entrance and walked inside to see his friend resting on the ground. "Hey Humphrey, have a seat." Mooch greeted.

"Thanks." Humphrey replied before sitting down across the room from him.

"So what brings you by?" He asked.

"Oh nothing major, just wanted to see how you were doing since I'm sure the rest of the guys are doing their own things." Humphrey answered.

"Oh you know me, just relaxing in my den like I planned." He stated.

"I figured as much" Humphrey replied with a quick smile.

"But the big question is; how are things going with Kate? Haven't gotten carried away have you?" Mooch asked with a wink.

"Come on Mooch, you know that's the last thing I want with her." Humphrey answered, rolling his eyes with a shake of his head.

He laughed "Sure... But seriously, tell me all about it." He said.

"To say the least, things are going better than expected." Humphrey started, ignoring his friends teasing. "In fact I can say I've completely misjudged her because she has her own mess of problems regarding her marriage."

"Really, how so?" He asked.

"She doesn't love Garth, which is why she doesn't want to be around him right now. They've tried to make it work out but she just can't fall for him so far. She's in a depression believe it or not." He continued.

"So she's not doing as well as we thought?" Mooch realized.

Humphrey nodded. "No, she hasn't really admitted it yet but I think she wants out of it." He stated.

"No way..." He replied, surprised.

He nodded again, still finding it amazing. "We'll see what happens because at the same time she understands that it is her duty as an alpha to marry him. Also I can say that things are going back to the way they were when we were friends, I don't want to get ahead of myself but I think it's back." He explained.

"Don't tell me..." Mooch trailed off, not wanting him to say what he thought Humphrey was saying. "You're falling for her." Giving him a knowing glance.

His eyes widened. "What? No!" He exclaimed, wondering why he thought that. "I meant that our friendship is back, that proves she really does want to set things right."

"Oh thank goodness, for a second I thought we lost you again." Mooch replied with a sigh of relief.

Humphrey shook his head before getting serious. "You know all too well that it will take a lot for me to fall for her again, the memories of the past aren't just going to be forgotten." He argued.

"I know, I know." Mooch replied. "But its just..."

"Just what?" He asked.

"Well the guys have all said that they think you'll end up falling for her again. You'll get too carried away, think it's more than friendship, and just like that you'll be heartbroken when it's all over." He admitted.

Humphrey's eyes narrowed as he looked back at his friend. He knew his friends were unsure about all this time he was spending with Kate, but for them to actually think he'll fall for her again at the end of it. He would not believe it could happen, not after the past, and so far he saw Kate as nothing more than a friend. However his friends didn't see that, meaning that he would have to prove to them that it wasn't. "I understand your reasoning, but Mooch you got to believe it's not like that." He replied dryly, looking away for a second. "I have stated that I want to be her friend again, that's it! I'm already well aware that it would never work out anyway."

"I don't doubt it; we just don't want to see you go through that mess all over again. You can do better than her." Mooch replied calmly.

Humphrey sighed. "You're right Mooch, I'm sorry for snapping at you but it kind of upsets me to hear you guys go against me." He admitted.

"I'm sorry too, but we like to lookout for you, since you are our friend after all." Mooch stated.

"I'm glad you guys do." He smiled, getting one from him as well.

"So what else happened?" Mooch asked, changing the subject after a pause.

"Other than that, nothing too special, I told her about my past few months, which I lied a little about and said I was sad about my parents. Afterword we played some games before going to sleep." He concluded.

"Well it does sound like you two are doing well again." Mooch replied.

"Yeah, I'm telling you it's going to be all alright by the end of the season." Humphrey stated.

Mooch nodded. "Seems like, but how are you coping with her heat?" He asked.

That sentence sounded so weird to Humphrey, considering he still had trouble fully remembering that Kate was in heat during all of this. It just wasn't that obvious in context, yeah he smelled the heat but at the same time it didn't really change anything. "Well she's been doing a good job of keeping the smell down, but man even a little whiff makes my mind go to funny places." He answered.

Mooch rolled his eyes at what was suggested. "Okay mister, that's more then I needed to know." He replied with a laugh.

Humphrey chuckled. "To say I haven't thought about it would be a lie, but I'll tell you that it's far from brainwashing me." He explained.

"Good to hear, you need to not get carried away by it for your own good." Mooch said.

"Yes that's something I always remember. You are lucky though because you can sit here and not have deal with the scent." He replied.

Mooch laughed. "I suppose that is true, while all of you deal with the urges I get to sit here and relax with a free mind." He stated, sounding happy with himself.

That was something Humphrey respected about him, all his friends were going out and looking for future mates but Mooch was happy with just himself. He did want to find love, but he also knew that he had plenty of time to do so. In a way Humphrey was the same at the present, love already washed him out when he chased it so now he could take his time getting back into it. He wanted the one, his soul mate, not to waist his time with some other wolf, only for it to end further the road. He once thought Kate was his one, but it turned out that was not true, and now he could settle with being friends. There is someone out there for him, and when the right time came, he would know who it was.

"Yeah, don't need to rub it in" Humphrey said plainly, but he was only joking.

"That's what I intend to do old friend." Mooch teased back.

"Well I should get going and see what Kate's up to." Humphrey said before standing up.

"Aren't you just excited to be around her again." Mooch stated.

"Oh please don't start again..." He replied as he slowly made his way towards the exit.

Mooch laughed. "I'm only kidding, have fun." He said with a smile.

"I will." Humphrey replied looking back at him and stopping. "And when you see the guys please tell them they have nothing to worry about."

"Sure thing" He agreed.

"Thanks brother, see you around." Humphrey said before leaving the den.

"See you later Humphrey." He heard Mooch reply once outside.

Meanwhile back at Humphrey's den Kate had some company of her own, being her sister. Much like Mooch, Lilly was also curious about what happenings were going between Kate and Humphrey. The two sisters chatted away about what each of them was up to and then about their current experience with heat. Comparing the sensation and how they went about controlling it, which was the same. However where Kate had to worry about not getting too focused on Humphrey, Lilly didn't have to think about her and Ryun too much. The season for them was to become more then friends, but that didn't mean going all the way. Kate learned about her sister's current progress with Ryun which was kind of similar to her and Humphrey since they also spent the time learning about one another's history. In a way she was glad Lilly wasn't rushing into it, getting to know the guy first was better than just diving right into the relationship. Once again this was a whole new side to her, where she has seemed to grow out of shy and innocent stage. Lilly was confident from what Kate could tell as she spoke about Ryun, a wolf that did sound special. Perhaps her sister really did find the one, but only time would tell that for now, either way she was happy for Lilly.

"So how does Garth feel about you doing all this?" Lilly asked as she rested before her sister, curious at how her own mate would be okay with such a thing.

"To my surprise he understood, you and him are the only ones that know I'm staying with Humphrey." Kate replied.

The two of them were sprawled out across the den floor, simply enjoying some girl talk. "Really?" Lilly asked, wanting to know more.

"Yeah, I talked to him about skipping the season, which he quickly agreed to. When he asked where I would be staying then I told him about my plan of becoming friends with Humphrey again. At first he was confused but I reminded him that growing up, the two of us were close. After that he understood but stated that I should keep my guard up incase Humphrey tried anything." She continued.

"And has he tried anything?" Lilly asked.

"Of course not!" She answered quickly. "In fact he's stated that if I tired anything _he_ would kick me out."

"Wow, that's good though. It means both of you don't want to mess things up." Lilly replied.

"Yeah, but I have to give him credit because he's been taking it pretty well so far." She stated.

"Well he's always been known as a wolf that puts others before him, doesn't surprise me that he can handle the smell of heat. Of course you have been washing off every so often like me." Lilly agreed.

"Thanks to mom's advice, she has been making this first season seem easy." She said.

"I wouldn't say that yet sis, we still have a ways to go." Lilly argued.

"Good point, but I still hold my opinion." She agreed.

The two females continued to talk until the sound of paw steps could be heard approaching the den. They didn't seem to notice as they were too busy chatting to hear it, but as soon as a gray figure entered the den they both turned to see that Humphrey had returned from his walk. "Hey Humphrey" they both greeted.

Humphrey saw both Kate and her sister Lilly sitting together and smiled. "Oh great, now I have two females in my den..." He stated sarcastically, with a laugh.

They both giggled to themselves. "Try not to sound too excited" Kate teased back.

"After all, we're only here to chat." Lilly added.

Humphrey laughed but quickly decided to change the topic. "So what have you two been talking about?" He asked, sitting down near them.

"Just about how things are going between us so far in the season." Kate answered.

"Cool, yeah I was doing the same with Mooch before I came back here." He replied.

"I take it he was just full of questions?" She asked.

"Kind of yes, but he was surprised that things are going well. Since they all thought this would be a great big disaster for me." He answered.

"Sounds about right." She replied with a laugh, remembering what he stated the previous day about how his friends were against the idea.

"So how have you been Lilly? I heard you found someone to spend the season with." Humphrey asked, looking over at the snow white wolf.

"I've been great, and yes I have as I'm sure my sister has already told you." Lilly responded.

He and Kate nodded. "Yeah she has, hopefully you two are enjoying yourselves." He replied.

"Yes we have." She replied, before sighing. "It's just nice to see you two hanging out together again, and all this time I thought something happened that ruined your friendship."

Kate and Humphrey look at one another before looking back at Lilly. "It's just like old times, though what makes you think something happened?" Humphrey asked.

"Well friends don't just suddenly stop talking to each other without reason." She explained.

"I wouldn't say something happened, more of just drifting apart." Kate answered.

"Oh okay, I had figured it was from getting relocated together." She stated.

Humphrey shook his head. "Not at all, I'd say that trip was a pretty good experience all in all. Wouldn't you agree?" He replied and then looked at Kate.

"Besides all the stress, yeah I enjoyed it." Kate agreed looking back at him.

"You know you still have to tell me all that happened on that trip." Lilly said.

"You never told her?" Humphrey asked Kate.

"I told her some things, but not everything." She replied.

"Well how about we tell her now; I mean we never even took the time to reflect on what happened ourselves." He suggested.

"Sounds good to me, as long as she has time." She agreed, looking back at Lilly.

"Oh I got time, Ryun's busy with his friends and won't be back at my den until later in the afternoon." Lilly answered.

"Okay, let's begin back at the moonlight howl when I met Garth." Kate began.

However Humphrey had something else on his mind. "Actually I think you girls should go wash off in the river before we start." He interrupted. Dealing with the heat of one wolf was easy enough, but now with two in here it was getting stronger. The thick scent was getting to the point he was feeling some things that he should not be feeling right now as he looked at the two females.

"Is it bad?" Kate asked, referring to the smell.

"Yes it is." He answered.

She nodded, getting the message. "Come on sis." She said before quickly leaving the den with Lilly following. Not wanting to cause him anymore strain, respecting his opinion that when he said it was getting bad. She had completely forgotten the fact that with her and Lilly in the den the smell would build up much quicker. Perhaps it wasn't the best idea to stay in his den while she caught up with her sister. At least one of them was paying attention enough to notice when it was becoming too much, and at the same time she could use the cool off. This was all such a weird experience, having to keep track of things that you would never normally. But it was just a part of being a wolf, the ritual of mating season has been around for centuries, and it wasn't going away. Though this current season really made Kate want to push to actually fall in love with Garth so that by the next season it will be much more of a pleasant experience. Not to say that Humphrey's company wasn't good enough, but there were just some things that he could not do to help relieve her heat more, obviously.

A short bath later and the girls returned to Humphrey's den, but learning from the slight mistake Kate suggested that they sit and talk story outside the den. The rest agreed and under the shade the story of Kate and Humphrey's misadventure began. Starting at the moonlight howl where they got tranquilized before going on to tell the real reason as to why they were placed in Idaho. Lilly and a majority of the pack already knew this but nothing more. Kate and Humphrey traded off on speaking; all the while it was pretty entertaining to remember the things they went through. Like how two birds became their guide's home, leading them to do some things wolves would never do, however though all the strange experiences the alpha and the omega made it back home in nick of time.

Lilly was amazed by some of the things they did, from hitching rides on human movers to escaping death numerous times. She thought they were lucky to have already known each other before it happened, better yet that they were already old friends. The whole trip really showed that they could work as a team in tight situations. And as the story began to near its end there was one last thing to cover, something Humphrey tried to forget. The howl he shared with Kate, what his heart desired at the time but now looking back on it he kind of regretted it. Sure there were times friends howled with one another, and as pups they did howl for the fun of it. But Humphrey's intentions were for more than that this time around. Making the whole howl magical yet saddening when he felt that Kate only thought it was all in the moment, and not the start of something special. Of course he didn't know how she actually felt about it, maybe she did enjoy it. Perhaps now he would know since they were bringing it up, but he didn't expect it. There were just some things he would never know when it came to knowing how Kate truly felt through the whole trip.

"You guys howled?" A surprised Lilly asked.

"Yeah I figured was a nice moment to howl as friends, for old time's sake." Humphrey replied. That's how he wanted to think of it, to keep it from bringing him down.

"Wow, to think my own sister would do something so forbidden." She stated with a smile while looking over at the golden she wolf.

"Well I couldn't help myself, he did have a nice howl and the moment was nice. We howled as pups anyway, and technically there's nothing against it when you're not in the pack borders." Kate explained.

"Yup" Humphrey agreed.

"I shouldn't be hard on you though, because where do you think Garth learned how to howl?" She admitted.

Kate's eyes widened. "So you're the teacher he talked about." She responded.

"Guilty as charged, I figured it was a nice thing to do. Surly you must like the fact that he can howl now." Lilly replied.

Kate smiled. "Alright I will admit that I do." She admitted.

"And here I thought he was a total dud still." Humphrey teased.

"Nope, he sounds way better than the night I met him. However we haven't howled much together in a long time." Kate answered. She and Garth never went to moonlight howls except for the time after their marriage. It's easy to think that Kate is against doing anything romantic with him for the time being, but Garth felt just the same. He was just as much stuck in a forced relationship as she was, and they would have to work on making it work out if they were to ever find enjoyment in the debt they paid for their packs.

The three friends continued to chat for a short while until Lilly decided to head back to her den for the night, leaving Kate and Humphrey alone. The rest of the day and night went by casually with the two doing nothing much else other than talking and grabbing some food to eat. A quiet end to what had been a pretty social day for Humphrey. He was enjoying himself, getting to reflect on the trip to Idaho with the wolf that experienced it with him. A highlight in his life that he never wanted to forget, even if it contained some things he regretted. After today he could say with strong reason that his relationship with Kate was back to what it once was, and hopefully it would stay that way. However as he began to drift off to sleep his mind began to wonder more about what Mooch had said earlier. Would he end up falling for her again? That was a question he wasn't sure how to answer, of course his hurt side would keep him from seeing her as more than a friend. To him he was keen to have her as a friend something he told himself over and over at the present, but what he wasn't aware that he was actually afraid to fall for her.

The two months of being pulled out of depression and taking a slight personality change, and he was still afraid of repeating the past. Much like what his friends have been warning him, it's been drilled into his head not to be around her. To leave her in the past, but he chose otherwise, taking the chance of gaining closure. Which he was doing that so far, he felt better in general and some of the things he learned about Kate's current problems changed his view of her. She wasn't doing well at all with her marriage, giving them something in common in the way that they were both depressed and going through changes in their lifestyles. It was perfect timing to start talking again; both of them enjoyed the company during an unusual time. However as Humphrey was content with only pushing away the chance of seeing Kate as more than a friend, things were about to take that turn.

* * *

**A/N: One half-filler chapter down and now it's back to the good stuff. Originally this chapter idea was optional to write but as I began to create this story I realized I needed to add some things before moving on. What's coming next? Well I think a few of us know, but with obvious leads there's still room for some surprises. **


	6. On A Fine Line

Chapter 6: On A Fine Line

Like an hourglass slowly reaching its end, mating season was nearing its final days of holding a grip on the United Pack. Some females were already out of the sensations of heat for they had gone and done the deed of relieving it. However not every female was as fortunate to have a loving mate and wish to start a new future. The single wolves and ones who were skipping the season still had to endure the endless heat flashes and urges for a few more sunrises. Only then could they go back to living their life like they always had. Luckily this day was proving easier than others; 'cause with hot summer days came the towering clouds of a thunderstorm. Showing no mercy for life in the valley as it poured down heavy rain, soaking everything to its core in a matter of hours. This downpour severed to cool down the previously baked land, while also making the sensation of heat more bearable to those who had it.

Nowhere was this more so than within the den belonging to a grey pelted omega, that was being shared with a young alpha female. The old makeshift den was quite warm and dry on the inside thanks to the sticks and hard, dry mud that comprised of its construction. The water from above simply ran along its flanks before pooling on the forest floor. The storm had been raging since mid-day and as evening was coming along there was no sign that it would be passing over anytime soon. Normally the clouds floated on past, taking any rain that fell with them, but today that was not the case. The vivid grey and near black clouds hung suspended over the area known as Jasper Park, soaking the ground clean through and making muddy puddles in various places. Wind was just a calm breeze, which gently rocked the birch and pine trees to and fro, making it seem that the wind was not being as forceful as the rain and thunder. However the occasional gust was enough to make any wolf caught in the open shiver from a cold feeling.

All the members of the United Pack had the day off, since the weather hindered any possibility of hunting and paroling during the afternoon. Thankfully the pack could afford to skip a days' worth of duties, there was plenty of food in the feeding grounds and no threats looming beyond the borders. It was a shady day where wolves could relax and spend time with family and friends. Yet one wolf was out battling the elements for an evening meal. Humphrey decided to go out and grab some caribou meat to share with Kate back in his den. Of course this meant braving the storm, which wasn't too unordinary of a task to begin with but when returning to the small dirt mound he called home his fur was soaked clean through. Clumping together and hugging the outline of his masculine figure, additionally his paws were covered in brown mud from treading through various puddles across the den grounds.

However the wet and cold didn't faze him, his body craved a meal and so did his friend lying in wait within his den. He had always loved the rain, it brought a sweet and pleasant scent to the woods, much like going through a patch flowers only the aroma was everywhere. Additionally the mud also brought fun games to play, but nothing was greater than sitting and watching the sky erupt into flashes of pale violet light. Lightning and thunder, there was just nothing else like it in his opinion. The various patterns always amazed him as they made landfall with a loud eruption of sound and deep rolling rumble. All of it just sent a surge of excitement and adrenalin through his veins while he watched the show, which was what he had been doing for most of the afternoon along with conversing with Kate. She found it amusing how her old omega friend could find such fascination with the ongoing storm, but she had to admit, thunderstorms were amazing to watch.

Currently she lay curled up against the back wall of Humphrey's den, and while she was still deep in the clutches of heat she actually felt cold for once since the season began. The cool damp air was enough to where she didn't need to go wash off at all today, and with a draft in the humid air the erotic scent she produced was also kept tame. So far this was proving to be the easiest day of the season for her, and she enjoyed it, wishing the storm would continue on for a couple more days. However she knew that would not happen; the rain would subside nearly as quickly as it began once it passed over. Until then she laid down and enjoyed the cool feeling along with the sound of rain hitting the roof of the cave with the occasional roar of thunder. It had been several minutes since Humphrey left to go grab them a meal to eat and she was beginning to grow curious as to what was taking him so long to return. Normally it would only take a couple minutes to go out the feeding grounds and come back, but understandably today was not normal.

So she waited patiently for the omega to return, and nearly a minute later there he appeared as nothing more than a dark silhouette backlit by the grey light through the clouds. The sun wasn't even down yet and it was already becoming too dark to clearly see the look on his face as he held a piece of caribou meat. Yet she could easily tell that he was soaked from walking through the rain with the amount of water that dripped from his fur. Humphrey quickly ducked his head and practically dived into his den to finally have shelter from the rain. He may love the rain, but no wolf ever enjoys the feeling of being entirely covered in water, especially on a cool day like this. Kate got up into a sitting position where she once lied and greeted Humphrey as he placed the meat in between them.

"Well I knew it was raining hard, but wow you're really soaked." She commented.

"Yeah tell me about it." He replied before going to the far side of the den and shaking off as much loose water as he could before returning to where Kate sat.

"Thank you for going out and grabbing it though, we both needed a nice meal to end off the day." She replied with a light smile.

"No need to thank me, I'm just as hungry as you are so one of us had to go out into the storm." He stated before using his teeth to split what was once a caribou's side into two pieces. The food didn't look too appetizing considering it was wet and covered in dirt in some places, but it was still a meal.

"Thanks" Kate replied as Humphrey passed her share to her. She had recently begun to notice that he always took great care of his friends, and that applied to her as much as it did to his omega brothers. She admired that about him, remembering her sister's words that stated how he always put others before himself. This was something that had lingered in her mind for the past day or two as they continued to spend time together. The thought of why Humphrey always showed kindness towards her, all the way back to when they were pups. Yet how come it run cold for the past couple months? She had no clue, and her stomachs craving for food pushed her to start eating. All the while her curiosity continued to flow as it focused on wondering just what the cause of their drifting apart was.

The den was silent with nothing more than the sound of the elements and chewing as both wolves ate. While Kate was secretly in deep thought, Humphrey was coming up with a topic they could talk about. Being in the same den for about a week had quickly drained all the obvious things like catching up and reminiscing the past. Recently he had begun speaking to her about some of the things his friends taught him about problem solving, as he promised. Through it he learned more about Kate's current feeling in regards to the present, hearing her near desperation about how she wanted to love Garth but couldn't. It was weird for him to be in this position, offering advice to a wolf he considered an enemy a week ago. Someone he didn't even care to hear about their problems, but now was different, for Kate was his friend again and he only saw her as a wolf in need of outside guidance.

The tips Humphrey shared brought some ease to Kate, for her it felt good to be able to speak out to someone new about her issues. Knowing that anything she said wouldn't cause an outburst or be spread around the pack like a burning fire. It was a good feeling to know that there was a wolf that had shared similar sensations of depression and got out of it. Yet while she was still in the thick of it, she knew that spending this week with Humphrey was having its benefits in more ways than she realized. Because once the season was over and they went back to their usual lives she could still come by and chat with him if she was unsure about something. This week was just the beginning of what she hoped to be a continuing friendship between them, even though it would never quite be the same as when they were pups.

A sudden gust of wind pulled Humphrey out of his thoughts as he let out a shiver. The cold air shook him to his core as if it was the middle of winter, and being damp was not helping. There was nothing he could do other than to just wait for his fur to dry over time, but that would be awhile. He was confident that he could manage, he's been through one winter before which was colder then he felt right now. Realizing he couldn't find anything to talk about with Kate he turned and lied down on his underside while facing the entrance of the den to watch the storm. However Kate had noticed his shiver, "Are you cold?" She asked in a smooth tone.

"Yeah," He slowly replied, not turning away from the entrance. "but I'll be fine, just need to let my fur dry."

"Alright." She responded, looking along his body and seeing that he was right, his fur was still wet enough that it dully reflected the faint light that came in from outside. While she looked and noticed how it clung onto his shape she realized that he had some toned muscles hiding under what was normally covered by thick fur. The sight plagued her mind and spiked her interests; she never knew omegas to be the ones with strong muscles. Usually alphas had toned bodies under their fur but it didn't seem too farfetched that omegas could be too. _Wow, he actually looks strong..._ Her thoughts echoed, all the while her body felt as if it was getting warmer by the second. _He actually looks pretty attractive with his fur like that..._ That's when she realized what was going on with her body. _No! He's my friend, I should not be looking at him like that!_ She yelled in her mind after shaking her head vigorously to return to reality.

She couldn't believe what just happened; did she really just get turned on from looking at Humphrey's figure? It felt that way since her body suddenly felt hot as she wondered why she would start thinking like that. Obviously heat was playing with her mind but that was the first time all week that something like this happened. Now she feared what would have become of herself if she had continued to look at him, was that really all it took to get carried away? She settled on believing that heat was building up from not washing in the stream all day since the day was already cool enough to not need it. It's the only thing she could come up with and decided to just play it safe and brave the weather to go sit in the stream for a minute.

"I'm going to go to the stream and wash off." She stated before rising to her paws.

Humphrey, who had been blind to what went on behind him, turned and looked at her confused. "I thought the storm was keeping you cool enough?" He asked.

"It has but I suddenly feel a lot warmer." She replied while approaching his side.

His confused look stayed for another moment before remembering that it was never any of his business to argue against it. He choose to never hear what Kate had to say about how she felt in heat because he didn't want to have to think about it anymore then he had too. "Okay, be safe." He responded, resting his head back between his paws as she walked past. It was then he understood why she was feeling warm, because as soon as she left the den he got a fresh whiff of her heat. For some reason it was stronger than usual which made him curious, but he quickly shook it off and focused back on outside and his thoughts to ignore the scent.

A few minutes passed until a dripping wet Kate returned into the den, who immediately regretted going out to the stream. It was cold, and even more so now that she had walked back through the rain and wind. Humphrey had an amused smile on his face when he saw her appear. "Wet out there isn't it?" He teased.

She returned the smile as she walked up next to him and proceeded to shake off any loose water on her fur, which turned out to be a lot. "Ah! Hey no fair!" He complained as he was hit with several drops of water, causing him to retort and shield himself.

She laughed. "Sorry, it was just too good to pass up." She replied before moving a few paces to the back of the den and sitting down.

"Yeah well now we're both wet and cold for the rest of the night." He continued.

"I know, but I had to go wash off." She responded as her legs twitched for warmth. She felt very cold now, which did feel a little better than being warm all the time but her shivering would not stop.

"I could tell, left a good whiff in the den after you left." He stated after getting up and facing her.

"How bad?" She asked, curious if her little episode earlier had made it stronger.

"Well more than usual." Was all he replied with before noticing how much she was shivering. "You're shivering more than I have been."

"It's just been awhile since I've felt this cold; I'll be fine in a bit." She admitted, not wanting him to worry about her.

Humphrey however was slightly concerned. "Are you sure, because we could huddle for warmth. No need to catch a cold." He suggested.

She was about to immediately decline his idea but then she realized that would be the best option to get warm quick. "Well, alright." She agreed before laying down flat.

Humphrey smiled since this would no longer mean he would have to sit cold for the rest of the night. Normally he wouldn't consider something like this to her but now seemed okay since huddling was normal for wolves to do in cold weather, and with wet fur it eliminated the warmth it stored. He quietly walked over beside her and laid down in the same position, gently putting pressure against their bodies so that warmth would build up between them.

"Thank you." She said while looking at him.

"You're welcome, even though this helps me as much as it helps you." He answered, looking over at her as well.

She nodded while a silence built between them, and with it came an awkward feeling. As if their touch changed something between them. Humphrey could feel his heart beat pick up a few paces while he looked at the various roots that lined the roof of his den. If he still held feelings towards the wolf beside him then his heart would be racing from the feeling. Yet that was no longer the case, now it just felt kind of awkward to him. Not because of the sudden quiet but the fact that he was sitting so close to her, much like how couples did. He tried not to think about it and went back to doing what he was before, watching the flickering lightning that lit up the land outside his den. However Kate finally broke the everlasting sound of rainfall with the start of a new conversation. She had thought nothing much about the current situation she was in and was already feeling the much needed warmth her body desired. It was during the silence that she decided to ask about what had been on her mind regarding the falling out of their friendship.

"Humphrey can I ask you something?" She quietly asked.

"Yeah?" He asked in response, wondering what was on her mind.

"Why did we just stop talking after we got back from Idaho?" She asked while looking at him.

The question kind of surprised him because he already thought he explained his reasoning to her a few nights prior. "I already told you why I did." He replied, matching her smooth tone.

"I know," She stated. "but that alone can't be the reason. I mean friends don't just stop talking without reason, not to say that your reason is a bad one."

Humphrey began to recognize that this was starting to lead to places he didn't want to venture too yet. He didn't believe Kate was ready to know the truth of his actions, so he decided to turn it around on her. "Well what about you? You're just as guilty." He responded.

She acknowledged his point with a nod. "Yes, I was stuck in my own problems with Garth and my debt to serve the pack, along with alpha duties." She admitted. "However you are a wolf who keeps his friends close, and it struck my curiosity that after the packs united I never saw much of you."

His heart sank; there was no lie he could think of to get around answering that. She spoke the truth; he did keep his friends close and enjoyed spending time with them. Yet to any unknowing wolf his actions of just suddenly ignoring Kate almost seemed alien without truth to back it up. He realized he was trapped with no choice but to come clean, secretly hoping that she could handle it and understand. _Why..._ His thoughts cried. _Why do I have to tell her now?_ He felt scared, not wanting to admit that he once loved the alpha. However this alpha was his friend, and in a perfect world his growling love toward her would be understood. He knew he had to tell her, because lying would only delay the inevitable. As his thoughts ran he just lied there looking blankly into the distance, totally unaware that he had been like that for the past several seconds.

"Humphrey?" Kate called, still waiting for him to reply to her curiosity.

Her words brought him back onto the moment, it just felt so wrong to tell her with the position they were currently in. They had enjoyed the past week together and he didn't want to ruin it with the start of his next breath. "Do you want the truth?" He asked through his breath.

She was taken aback by his question, not knowing what he exactly meant by that. Was he hiding something that she did not know? She became suspicious as his body language indicated that she had hit a soft spot within him. "Y-yes, of course I want the truth." She responded.

With a long breath he hesitated to lock eyes with her and instead looked at dark den wall beyond. "Promise me you won't be mad?" He asked.

She shook her head, wondering why she would become mad. "I promise, just tell me." She replied, not realizing how big of a deal this was for her companion.

"Alright yes, you are right that I keep my friends close and spend most of my time around them. We were friends growing up and now it seems unlike me to suddenly turn my back on you." He began. Kate quietly listened, each sentence drawing her in as she become more aware that she was on to something he had been hiding from her. Finally he met his gaze with her amber eyes, still feeling scared and nervous about what he was saying. Almost enough to make his voice shake, much like it had on the train all those nights ago.

"The truth is Kate; I haven't been very truthful when it came to telling you about my depression." He continued. "My thoughts about my parents and origins are only a fraction of the cause. The rest is because of you, you are the reason I ended our friendship and had to endure a pain like nothing I have ever felt, heartbreak." He paused for a moment and took another breath. Examining her eyes he saw nothing but confusion, something he expected. "When I heard that you were getting married it struck me down. Never did I expect to see you be married to someone else because I..." He stopped again, trying to muster up any extra courage he had left in him. "I loved you. Ever since you left for alpha school I realized that my heart longed for you, my best friend. I didn't let the law hold me down, instead I held faith that things would work out in my favor, but after that trip to Idaho it all came down to how things are now."

Kate's eyes widened in shock as her thoughts ran wild with questions and the need for further reasoning. It was so sudden; never did she expect that, that was his secret. An omega was in love with her, something forbidden by law. She didn't know what to say or if it was okay to say anything, it was like she had forgotten how to speak in a proper manner. "H-Humphrey..." She began but felt too choked up to say more.

"I know this may seem so sudden but this is the truth." He stated, noticing she was lost for words already. Never did he expect to see her like that, a strong and responsible alpha that didn't know what to think of the current situation. "My omega brothers were there to pick up the pieces and help me out after denying that I should attempt to run away and become a lone wolf. This is why I originally said _no_ about you staying with me, I didn't want anything to do with you anymore. However that's when I came to terms that I was going against myself, omegas don't hold grudges, we make peace. So I ended up wanting to be your friend again, to make peace with who I considered an enemy, and to gain closure." He concluded, feeling some relief that it was all off of his chest, but now it was time to hear Kate's thoughts. His fear was still there as a moment of silence took over, thunder roaring in the distance.

Kate still didn't know what to say, her thoughts were erratic at attempting to absorb a truth that hit her like a club. To think that Humphrey blamed her for the break in their friendly relationship, how could it be possible? _He loves me? My puppyhood friend actually loves me?_ Her thoughts raced. _How could I have not noticed it? Does he still hate me?_ So many questions she did not know where to begin other than focusing on what he last said. "I'm your enemy?" She finally asked in an unsure tone, she could see that his ice blue eyes appeared uneasy. A calm night of two friends hanging out had taken a turn towards an unknown ending, traveling on a fine line.

"Yes, I did consider you that." He answered.

"Does that mean you still love me?" Her mind still taking in that very fact. The more she thought about him and his love of her the more it fogged her mind with feelings of regret and astonishment. Normally she would be surprised to hear that coming from him, but it all changed from learning that she had treated him cruel. Even if she didn't deliberately try to hurt him, she had no idea of his feelings toward her and now wished she had known. Not that she loved him as well; love was an odd feeling toward her in reality. Love was something she was cheated out of feeling the right way with her forced marriage; never could she experience it how other wolves did. She was stuck with one wolf, one she could not find a reason to love more than an acquaintance. It was an emotion she has yet to recognize and understand, and it would still be more time until she did know what it felt like when it came to her relationship with Garth.

"No, times have changed. You are my friend again now, and I intend to keep it that way this time around. I no longer feel you as an enemy, just as a wolf who I know I can trust again." Humphrey replied in a near whisper, continuing to feel his nerves hold a grip on his body.

Kate nodded. "I don't know what to say to be honest; all of this is making my head spin." She replied, letting her head fall gently upon her paws.

"I understand; I didn't want to tell you this ever, for fear of what you would have to say." He stated.

"No, I'm glad you did tell me." She responded. Her words caused him to wonder why she felt glad about it.

The conversation seemed to slow down the passage of time as the alpha and omega spoke. Each breath audible as thoughts ran faster than actual spoken words. Humphrey was coming over his fear and now felt his insides being tied up from nervousness, Kate however was in such a mix that her body seemed to ditch any emotion other than anxiety. She feared that her friendship with Humphrey would forever be changed and left with a broken barrier where she felt regret. Never did she intend to cause harm to him, it wasn't on purpose and she had to make sure that he knew that.

"Because now I know why our friendship did break, and it's my entire fault..." She continued.

"No, it's not your fault." Humphrey interrupted.

"But now I feel bad for causing you to hate me, all of that pain I can only imagine how horrible you thought I was." There was no sense in stopping her now and telling her he never hated her. She may have given him the worst pain in his existence but never could his omega heart hold any hatred or anger towards her. However it was these very words she spoke that begun to give him a warm feeling. A feeling that was unknowingly mending some of the darkness in his heart and mind.

"I'm sorry Humphrey; I didn't mean any of it. I never noticed that you loved me but now I feel stupid for not seeing it." She said, getting close to shaking in fear rather than from the cold. As much as he said he no longer felt bad thoughts towards her she felt scared by it, worried that she had gone and messed it all up for them in the long run. In a single speech Humphrey had managed to put her at a loss for words, setting her prior thoughts and opinions about their friendship on its side. Never had she been put into such a state.

"I'm not calling you stupid, yes I originally did think that you had used me but that changed quickly. You never made it really feel that you intended to throw me to the side, it just happened. Whether it was because you were too focused on your own future or some other reason, I learned to move on." He corrected, wanting to set things straight and return to having a calm and peaceful night. As much as he was affected by it all, he didn't want to force her to live on with a feeling of regret. His friends had helped him move on from the broken wolf he once was, and he wanted nothing more than to live a normal life again. Not to settle a score or seek revenge, that was entirely uncalled for in his nature.

Hearing Kate's apology actually caused a hint of a smile to appear on his face, he didn't exactly seek to get one from her but its power still gave him a sense of relief and happiness. Kate eyes however were beginning to water and turn a slight hue of red, she couldn't take it anymore, letting go and breaking down into a fit. Silent at first but a quiet sniffle caused Humphrey to look over at her and notice that she was crying. He was surprised by this, she was a tough wolf but never did he expect her to be taking the truth to this extreme. "Hey there's no need to cry." He gently spoke, however she remained silent still. A force in his body compelled him to lift one of his forelegs and wrap it around her upper torso in his best attempt to hug her for comfort. "Look at me." He said, his head nearly touching hers.

Almost immediately the alphas eyes looked over into his, the amber in them no longer standing out in the dim light. "This is all in the past now, what matters most to me now is that we're friends again." He continued once he had her attention.

"But my life is such a mess now; I'm stuck in a forced marriage that also caused my friend to think I broke their heart on purpose." She replied in a small voice. He realized that it wasn't only his words that caused her to shed tears; she was letting out everything that was pent up as stress from her problems.

"Your life is not a mess," He reasoned. "you are just going through hard times." He felt like he was sounding much in the same way his friends did back in the thick of all his own problems. It was exactly the way he intended to sound, he didn't want to see Kate suffer; he wanted to see her enjoy life and actually make things work out. "You shouldn't feel upset from my problems; I want to help you get your life back together. Now I can see that you need the help more then I realized and if my friends could help me get through my problems then I can do the same for you." He stated.

A smile appeared along her snout after he said that. "I'd like that." She replied.

He smiled as well. "Alright then, once the season is over how about we get to work on that?" He asked. He wasn't sure what was coming over him, it was as if seeing her cry made him jump and focus on her problems. All this talk of simply helping a friend when on the outside it felt like more was going on. A warm feeling still resided in him, replacing the cold that caused him to shiver. He did not know why he still felt this way, perhaps it was Kate's reaction and apology that was doing this to him.

With a slow nod she agreed to his offer, no longer feeling tears run down her nose. Not that you could notice their presence on her already damp fur. One again the sound of rain continued to fill the air as the two became silent and lay in the aftermath of their conversation. However it had weakened, indicating that the storm was nearing its completion as lightning and thunder slowed their appearances. Night had arrived but it was still young, leaving plenty of time to move on from the current emotions and into more pleasant ones. Humphrey wanted to make sure that Kate felt better by the time they went to sleep, so that she would no longer feel guilt about what he had told her.

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**A/N: Ah, even I'm getting feels writing this. So it looks like Humphrey's secret is out, but it has gone better than expected for him. However the reality brought Kate a sense of regret, but it isn't all too bad because he has decided to help her get her life back on track. What will be the outcome? Well that will be addressed in the future because there's more to come on this night. Originally this chapter was going to contain more but I figured it would be better to split it so that it you didn't have to read 10k of words all at once. -ChriZ**


	7. Lost In Lust

Chapter 7: Lost In Lust

**A/N:**** Warning, mature content ahead, don't like don't read. Also just as a heads up this is a **_**very**_** long chapter.**

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Minutes ticked by as the two wolves lay in the same position, huddled for warmth and comfort. Steady breaths could be faintly heard over the sound of rain, while the light from a shielded moon was just enough to where their eyes could make out shapes and colors against the shadows, like a dull twilight. Humphrey was unsure of what to talk about next; the thought of laying here with Kate in his embrace seemed to satisfy him enough. Yet he felt like there were some things left unsaid, things that would lift his friend's spirits. Kate meanwhile was being held in her thoughts much like she had been for the past hour, thinking more now on Humphrey's once love for her, she wasn't sure why her mind focused on it but the thought made her feel upset.

The fact that someone loved her was an interesting thing to take in, and knowing it was her own close friend made it even stronger. She couldn't say she loved him though, for any growing of it had been unknowingly ignored by her focus on other things in life. It was an odd proposition but held light because she did not know the real feeling of love and therefore did not recognize it. Humphrey was a great friend to her, and if fate played a better role; things could have been set in motion for their love to workout. These were all things Kate did not understand in the present, it's just the way things were. However while her mind held thoughts of love and Humphrey; her body was at work doing other things.

Her heat had been building ever since she came into contact with Humphrey, and now it was pushing beyond what had been normal. The affection he had given to comfort her was also contributing, meaning that all these factors were coming together along with her thoughts to give heat the wrong idea. Additionally it didn't help that it was nearing the end of the season, meaning that the itch heat brought would get stronger before finally subsiding as a whole. She could sense the warmth rising but ignored it, thinking it was only coming from their shared body heat. She was too preoccupied with her thoughts to care anymore, and slowly through the silence she began to come up with a strange idea in her head. One that heat was playing a part in much like it had when she looked upon Humphrey's figure earlier in the evening.

A tantalizing scent began to fill the den quickly and Humphrey noticed it well, however to him it didn't seem any stronger than usual. So he went back to his thoughts while gazing outside at the weakening storm. Kate meanwhile was analyzing her idea that had pushed away all of her previous troubles. It was a bizarre one, but at the same time felt so right for her to pursue. Humphrey once loved her, and with this idea she felt like she owed him the chance to experience it with her. The moment was perfect, her alone with him and no one else around to know the dark thoughts that were currently in her mind. She remained silent as she planned her words right, not wanting to ruin the opportunity. A new side of Kate was about to show.

"I feel like I owe you now." She stated plainly, lifting her head and looking at Humphrey.

He raised an eyebrow, slightly thrown off by the randomness of her statement. "What? You don't owe me anything." He responded with a slight chuckle.

"Yes I do." She argued, sounding somewhat serious. "You once loved me right?" Her eyes closely staring into his.

"Y-yes I did," He answered with a confused look. "but now I only see you as a friend." He wasn't sure where she was going with this, yet decided to follow along.

She nodded. "Well I feel that I owe you the chance to experience you're dreams of loving me." She continued in a soft tone, sounding entirely innocent. No longer did she feel the rush of anxiety and fear, instead it was replaced with desire. An eagerness to make up for the trouble that she had caused him.

He eyed her strangely, _What does she mean by that?_ He thought. "I don't understand?" Was all he replied. He's stated many times already that he did not love her still.

A sly smile began to grow on her face as she looked upon her friend, who she now saw as someone more. Someone special, that was compelling her mind to now fill with passion upon his touch. And while he no longer hugged her a fire burned inside of her, heat was rising and now it gave her lower regions an itchy sensation. She was well aware as to what was happening, yet she did not want to stop it. This crazy idea of repaying Humphrey filled her thoughts and now pushed her to go through with it. After the week long endeavor to control it heat had taken control of her body. A simple flick of a switch was all it took, and all of it started with their embrace. However it did not control her like a puppet, her strong willpower kept her entirely aware of the situation. Heat longed to be relieved the proper way, but her heart longed for a chance of redemption. In the matter of a night she had gone from her normal self to being wired with all sorts of new feelings she has not felt at full force. All of it thanks to her pushing on Humphrey to unintentionally let out a major secret.

"What I mean is that any desire you once wanted to express with me, you are welcome to suggest on this night." She explained, hoping that now her message would get through to him.

Humphrey thought more about what she was implying after that, and then finally with a snap it all came together. A new inhale indicated that he had failed to notice her heat growing stronger; the scent starting to tug on his wellbeing. His eyes widened with surprise and fear as he realized Kate was suggesting that he go all the way with her. He couldn't believe it; he did not want to believe it. Never would he mate with her, especially now. He already risked their friendship enough for one night, and if he managed to not break it once then surely this is what it would take. He shot up to on to his legs and backed away from Kate slowly, fear holding a grip as he realized that she was under heats control now. As he looked at her his thoughts ran in circles trying to think of what to do next. He genuinely was not prepared for this moment; he thought he had lost her to the ways of lust.

"No, no!" He repeated as he backed up a few paces.

"What's the matter?" Kate asked, rising to her paws as well while continuing to look at him. A hint of longing held within her eyes that seemed to glow in the dim light. She was actually kind of surprised by his sudden change in behavior.

"Stay away!" He called loudly. "You're being controlled by heat, I can smell it." He sounded almost desperate with his words.

She stood where she once laid but turned so that she could better face him. A close look at him and she could see he looked terrified by her, she didn't intend to push him out of his comfort zone, all she intended to do was to give him a chance to express his emotions to her. "Haven't you ever wanted to nuzzle me?" She suggested, holding calm in her voice to not spook him any further. She wasn't sure if she had blew the opportunity or not but to her tonight was about her friend. Surely he still wanted to express some things with her that only couples would do, feelings locked up deep in his conscience.

He did not answer, but he listened. Of course he wanted to nuzzle her, to share a real kiss with her, but that was what the past him desired. He did not want that anymore, however as he thought more about it and his breathing picked up, the scent of heat trying to take him over. Over and over again his yelled in his head of all this to stop, hoping that he would wake up from what felt like a nightmare. However it was reality whether he decided to believe it or not, and it was only a matter of time until his willpower would give in to lust and desire.

Kate noticed that he was not going to answer and came up with a new idea. It was obvious that he thought she was being entirely consumed by her heat, which was half true. As much as lust and the itch she felt drove her mad she was still in control of her actions and thoughts. She eased her gaze at him and remembered back to the only time they had shared a romantic moment, their howl on the train. "Do you remember back when we howled on the train?" She asked. "And how beautiful it sounded?"

Humphrey began to reminisce about those times in his head after she asked that. The trip they shared to get back home from a faraway place was one of the highlights in his life. He enjoyed every moment of it, especially the howl that they shared. Yes he did regret it now but he could not deny that it was a beautiful moment that made his heart melt. Yet as he thought back on it he no longer felt regret about it, like he had expressed on a previous day, it was strange. "Yes, what about it?" He replied, still holding uncertainty in his voice.

"Did you actually do it because you loved me?" She replied.

He slowly nodded. "Yes, I wanted to see if you felt the same," He answered. "but I see now that it was all in the moment since you don't love me back."

She bit her lip as she understood his point, she didn't love him back. Yet here she stood asking him to love her, for the night. Her body ached to feel love and passion, not from just any wolf, but the one that stood before her. A male she trusted, and wanted to see him take what she offered. "You are right, but I can't say I felt nothing as I howled with you." She replied. "Your howl gave me a rush which pulled for me to join you, and when I did I was hit with a wonderful feeling. It was a magical experience; I don't regret it and you shouldn't either." Unknowingly hitting the nail on its head.

Humphrey was intrigued by her words, wondering if she had actually meant them rather than just saying it. "You mean that?" He asked, starting to regain some of his composure, but he kept his guard up.

"Yes I mean it, would I lie to you?" She answered with a smile.

He paused for a moment before letting out a sigh. "I don't know; it's hard to tell whether you are or not when heat could be pushing you to say what I want to hear." He stated plainly.

She gave him a plain look. "Look at me; do I look like I've lost my mind to the ways of lust?" She asked, taking a step closer to him.

He locked eyes with her and stared deeply into them, immediately he could see that they weren't how they normally looked. The hints that lust and desire were running through her veins was apparent to him. "Yes actually." He replied.

"Humphrey," She said slowly. "I would already have you pinned down by now if I wasn't in control of myself. Yes I am lustful, and the itch I feel inside me is going to drive me mad, but I still know what I'm doing."

He could see that she wasn't lying, and the point she made was true. However that alone wasn't enough to make him be sure, he needed to get her to cool off before things got worse. The smell of her heat and arousal was attacking his nostrils and mind. He was fighting hard to maintain his image of Kate to stay that of a friend, but like a leaky faucet lustful thoughts ran through his head. Looking at her wasn't helping, there was no point hiding that he still found her to be an attractive wolf. Her damp fur clung onto her body like his did, and with it revealed every curve that was normally hidden. He had the hots for her, something that was trying to push its way out of him, which he thought he put to rest long ago. Now was the time he needed to stay strong for both of them, for giving in would lead to future problems. He would not ruin his friendship with her on this night.

Once again he sighed and took a deep breath. "Then we need to get you to the stream so you can cool off." He stated, hoping that she would agree and be able to turn this back into a normal night.

Kate however shook her head. "No, I'm fine." She answered.

"No you're not, you need to cool off and get the lust out of you." He argued back, knowing that he held the right point.

Once again she shook her head, but this time she looked down at her paws and sat down, wrapping her tail around her legs. "I don't know if that's an option anymore, my mother told me that once I got fully heated up, cooling down wouldn't bring it down." She explained.

"Well we have to try," He responded before starting to take a few paces toward the den entrance. "come on."

She sighed. "Humphrey there's only one way to relieve it now." She stated as a fire continued to jab and fill her with sensations she never thought she would feel while looking at her own best friend.

He stopped cold in his tracks, her words pulling him back and causing him to turn and look at her with nerves building. What had he gotten himself into... "No Kate, we can't give in now, not after how well we have been managing it." He replied, slowly choosing what to say next. "Think about it Kate, is this what you really want, to become a mother with someone you don't love?" Even through the stress of trying to stay in control he could still think logically.

She had no idea how to answer that, his words held a great truth. She didn't want to have pups, yet she felt like she wanted to go all the way with him. Everything was a blur to her but she knew what she wanted, what her heart craved. "Yes I want this." She admitted, slowly moving up toward him so that she stood right before him. "I may not love you, but my heart longs for you."

His eyes widened in surprise as he thought he had finally settled the argument, but once again she managed to best him. Her words seeming to melt his insides like they were just the thing he wanted to hear. His mind cried out for him to stay strong and go against what she said, but the sight of her golden fur and smiling face mesmerized him. He was looking right at the wolf he used to love with all his soul, and now she wanted nothing more than for him to have his way with her. He couldn't do it, there was just too much to lose. "You don't long for me, you only feel that way because your heat has changed your view of me." He replied while time slowed down. His heart was racing and his gut felt like it was being contorted. This was his last stand.

She looked around while analyzing his statement before gazing back into his eyes. "Come on Humphrey; trust me when I say that I am okay with this. We tried our best to manage it but now there's no going back, please don't cause me to do something regretful." She explained. There was no hesitation or second thoughts as she looked into his icy eyes; she accepted what was nearly about to happen even if it was wrong on more levels than just the emotional ones. This was something forbidden, yet the thought of it revved her sex drive. The feeling of getting down and dirty with an omega turned her on in an unprecedented way, and the fact that he was her friend made it all the better. Her body craved for his touch more than ever, to the point where she was starting to have trouble maintaining it. Yet she had to stay strong, only with Humphrey's approval would she allow herself to lose control. Her concerns about keeping their friendship intact through this night were just as important to her as it was for him.

Humphrey was nearing his breaking point; there was no more sense in trying to push her away. Perhaps he should have kicked her out when he had the chance, or denied allowing her to stay with him during the season. He would have been better off in the long run because here he is now stuck with a lustful alpha that desired him. However at the same time if it wasn't for this experience with Kate he would not fully understand that she didn't hurt him on purpose. This had brought him peace of mind, something he wanted to have coming out of this. But now he was trapped into something he did not want to face, falling into the ways of heat, being seduced by a former love interest.

He took a breath. "What if this ruins our friendship again..." He quietly stated as a last ditch effort to avoid it all.

"What if it doesn't, if you're okay with it so am I, and I mean that." She argued. Finally the right words to say came to her mind, but she had to give Humphrey credit because he was putting up a strong resistance. She knew he must have been really fighting against the temptations from the scent she was producing, it was so strong that even she could sense it as a further push toward making her want to make love with him. "This is my idea I've come up with earlier so please listen closely." She started even though she knew she already had his attention. She already tried to explain it to him before but this time around she thought of a better way to say it.

He just looked into her eyes as he waited for to go on, curious as to what this idea was that caused her to fall into the state she currently was. "For this night only let's say that we do love each other. That we want this to happen and make the most of it." She explained. "I'm sure that sharing a night like this with me crossed your mind many times." She added with a tease.

"But... how will that work?" He asked, but just as he was going to say more he was stopped by the feeling of her nose pressing against his. Just like that everything changed, the sudden touch made a spark that caused the lust he held in for so long to ignite and take charge. Like the transition from night to day he reached the point where he had no choice but to give in. Closing his eyes he kissed her back, no longer feeling hesitant or afraid. They were in for the ride whether they liked it or not, but at least he was doing it with a wolf he grew to trust again. After several seconds of holding the kiss Kate pulled back and held her gaze into his eyes, a sight she was starting to get used too. Humphrey couldn't believe how good the kiss felt, like it was something he wanted to experience for a long time.

Looking at Kate took his breath away; she was beautiful, her golden pelt glowing in a new light. Everything seemed to shine on its own now, especially his friend, whose face crowded nearly all of his vision. With a snap it no longer felt like they were just standing in a dimly lit den during a thunderstorm, it almost seemed as if the full moon were out, shinning at full power with no obstructions. Time slowed as it felt like they stood there in the aftermath of their kiss for hours on end, but they couldn't stop there. The night was young, and they had only just begun to tame the fires of heat.

"From this moment on I want you to look at me like you did back when you were in love with me." Kate whispered; their noses hovering mere inches apart. "And I'll look at you like you're the wolf of my dreams."

A shiver ran down his spine as he caught the seductive hint in her words. "Yes my angel." He replied smiling.

A smile formed on her face as well, glad that she had finally gotten through to him. Much like how the kiss brought Humphrey to his breaking point, she had let go of all her resistance as well. Letting hormones run wild and feeling a rush of passion with an ever driving push to keep wanting more. However she still held a grip on her thoughts and remembered that it was important to take their time. They had all night to experience pleasure like none of them had ever felt before. Yet that didn't stop her from using her alpha superiority to playfully tackle her lover down and pin them in a non-forceful manner. Her tail wagged side to side as Humphrey now lay below her. The sudden move surprised him but the shocked look on his face faded as he realized she was only doing it to get the process started. The hungry look in her eyes made his body twitch with anticipation, wondering what would happen next.

"You know Humphrey; I have to admit that you are really good at holding stuff in." She commented while looking down at him. This was a side of Kate he had never seen before, the sight of which actually excited him. It seemed only fitting that the alpha in the relationship would take control of him.

"Oh really, and whys that?" He replied, taking what she said earlier by heart and allowed a sensation of love build with his lust. While it wasn't anything like his once true love, it served to already heighten the moment. This was a night from his wildest of dreams, and the passion and love would only last until sunrise. After that it was back to being friends again instead of temporary lovers. A sense of confidence built within him, no longer fearing what was happening.

"Because if you were any regular male then we would have already been going at it nights ago." She answered with a mischievous smirk.

"Well one of us had to stay strong." He replied smoothly.

"Yes, and I will remember that." She agreed before allowing her tail to fall between her legs and rest upon his lower torso. She began to use it to trace small circles, slowly working her way lower along his underside. She could feel her face flush as she thought about what she was doing. This was all new to her, and while lust was carrying her through the experience she grew nervous with anticipation of the unknown. She understood how the process of mating worked thanks to alpha school, but now she was going to do it for real. Luckily she wasn't the only inexperienced one, between them they were only being guided by desire and common sense.

Humphrey could sense where her tail was headed and couldn't stop a grin from stretching across his face. Lower and lower it ventured as he enjoyed the soft feeling of her fur, still slightly damp from being out in the rain. Finally he felt it travel over the rise of his sheath and continue to go back and forth across it. "Well if you keep doing that I might lose something else I've been holding in." He teased, his friskiness getting the better of him.

Kate couldn't help but relinquish a giggle; omegas will be omegas no matter what the situation. She managed to match his playful tone. "Oh that's what I intend to do" Continuing her tail motion.

A tingly feeling began to grow between his legs as he felt his member slip out of its protective casing and out into the open air. His tail slowly wagged side to side across the ground upon feeling the gentle pleasure she was giving him. His cheeks warmed up as he became exposed to her while his nerves held him. So many emotions ran through him simultaneously, none of them being fear though. He wanted this, to do something he never thought of experiencing so soon. The moment felt so right, lying here with a heated female looming above him. He looked back up at Kate after checking to see if the feeling he felt was him being aroused at the work of her tail. Lust was still clear in her eyes, and looking into them was like looking into the reflection of him, she was entirely focused on him.

A spike of pleasure flowed through him as her tail swiped across his newly exposed flesh, the feeling causing him to slightly twitch from the touch and his sensitivity. Kate noticed his sudden movement and looked down beneath her, greeted by the sight of his wolfhood. It intrigued her, having never seen what the reddish male organ looked like in the open. She lifted her head to look back him with satisfied smile before allowing her tail to return to its normal position. "Looks like someone's enjoying themselves." She stated.

"I can't help it, you caused it." He replied.

She let out an amused sigh before leaning down and touched noses with him. Enjoying the feeling of their second kiss she allowed her body to fall gently down onto his, bringing them into full contact. Her desire pushed her to hold the kiss and allowed her tongue to slide out and rub against his lips. The touch surprised Humphrey but instinct told him to open his mouth slightly to allow her tongue passage. He was in total bliss; her body felt warm against him and his member was enjoying the feeling of the fur running along her lower belly. Their tongues touched as the kiss continued, moving around as if they were playfully wrestling. The pleasure he was feeling pushed him to just start the mating process as soon as he could. It felt good and the heat that controlled him was making it hard for him to focus on taking things slow. He wanted to savor every moment, not knowing when he would get a chance to do something so exclusive again. A few minutes passed before the make out session concluded, both parties panting for air and feeling a sense of satisfaction.

"How's that for a kiss?" Kate asked after pulling her head away.

"Amazing..." Was all Humphrey could reply with, still in total bliss, his thoughts entirely fogged.

Humphrey didn't want the pleasure to stop and a force propelled him to start moving his hips in an up and down pattern. This caused his member to begin moving against her body, the feeling instantly becoming wonderful. All the while his tail continued to sway side to side, occasionally hitting against Kate's. She felt what he was doing and couldn't help but giggle by it. "Feel good?" She asked.

"Like you wouldn't imagine." He replied, flashing her a smile.

She laid there and allowed him to continue his motion, seeing no objection in allowing him to keep going. However she began to think of other ways she could pleasure him, something her mind craved to see. This night was about pleasuring one another, and her lust wanted to see her omega lover panting with pleasure. An idea wandered into her head as she thought of a way to pleasure him. All she knew was that mating itself was the best feeling, but she remembered how her tail motion had aroused him. So she figured if that worked then surely her tongue could do the same, the idea of which making her smirk. This may be their first time but by nights end instinct will drive them to learn that there are many ways to pleasure oneself other than the obvious way.

Kate swiftly rose to her paws and stepped to the side of him, looking down at Humphrey and moving her gaze down to his lower region. Humphrey felt disappointed when she got up, the warmth between them subsiding. However it was quickly replaced by a wonder to know what she was doing. "What are you doing?" He asked with curiosity. Watching as she laid back down on the ground perpendicular to him, her head hovering over his lower area but looking back at him.

"Well I have an idea I want to try," She replied. "if you're willing to try it."

His heart raced as he thought of what she had planned. "I'm game to try anything." He replied, giving her a smile.

She nodded. "Alright, tell me if this feels good." She stated.

He watched as she slid her tongue out and proceeded to give the length of his '_wolf_' a long lick. Almost instantly he shuddered as a wave of pleasure hit him. "Oh, yes that feels good." He groaned in response.

She giggled, realizing her assumption had been correct. Not missing a moment she continued to repeat the same lick. The contact left no taste on her tongue but she didn't pay attention to it. Her eyes were locked up on Humphrey face as he lay with his snout towards the roof of the den. She wanted to pleasure him and with a few more licks she could hear a low moan escape his throat, indicating that what she was doing was working. Humphrey wasn't judging her performance though; the feeling was marvelous, wishing for it to never stop. Eventually his mouth hung open and his tongue rolled out to the side as he panted from the joy that ran through him. His heart was racing and his sex drive was going at full steam, ready for the main event. However as much as he wanted to get to mating he forced himself to hold the action back. Much like how Kate wanted to see him pleasure, the opposite was true for him.

After a while of listening to his groans she decided she was ready to move on, giving him one last slow taste before rising into a sitting position. The cries of his pleasure had satisfied her greatly, and the sight of his pale red organ was making the itch in her womanhood intensify. She wanted him so bad, she needed to feel what mating was like and have her itch cured alongside her heat. As she looked at her grey pelted companion she no longer saw him as a friend, instead in the current light he was her lover. Sent to relieve a feeling that had been taking over her body like a virus, to make her feel special. This was everything she had ever wanted for her first time, and while it seemed wrong she did not care. You didn't need to be in love to mate, you just needed to have someone to trust. The feeling may be better if was with your soul mate, but to Kate, on this night only, Humphrey was her soul mate.

The sound of Humphrey's steady panting was the only sound in the den besides the weather. Kate had been left in a trance as she looked at him, but finally she climbed back on top of him and proceeded to give him another kiss. It didn't last long but as the two closed their eyes to savor the moment Humphrey gave a push and rolled them over so that she now rested below him. The kiss ended and he rose to stand on his two fore legs while his hips still gently rested against hers. His groin tingled as he felt heat radiate upon it from her lower regions, his member standing between them. The two looked at each other, breathing heavily. Kate wondered if this was it, the big moment where they would begin mating and there was no turning back. However she had learned that mating happened in a different position, but was quickly discovering how their current one could work just as well. However he had ideas of his own to try.

"Wow, they aren't kidding when they call it heat. You're really warm." He commented.

She giggled in response. "Yeah it feels like I'm sitting under the sun." She replied.

"Well then we better get you cooled down." He stated in a rather seductive tone, causing her to feel a shiver from idea.

As he sat there looking down at her his mind craved to see her be pleasured. The sides have turned for them, and he decided that if she could use her tongue to give him wonderful feelings then maybe he could do the same with her. He smiled at the thought of what was on his mind which caused her to give him a mischievous look in response. She knew he was planning something. "What?" She asked, the seductive hint her voice returning from earlier.

"Oh nothing, just admiring the view." He replied, hiding what he was thinking since he wanted to surprise her. However what he said was true, she looked stunning in the dim silver light, her eyes glowing with full intensity. He couldn't help but blush and look away from her for a slight moment as he remembered this was his friend he was looking at. Someone he would never normally get involved with sexually in the present yet here they were. However tonight their friendship was put on suspension, they had made a pact that stated for this night only; they were lovers. It seemed difficult for them to suddenly see themselves like that, but with a burning desire from the smells of heat it pushed them to see it as reality. All worries were put aside and instead they focused on having the time of their lives, doing something that was only reserved for mates.

Kate blushed from his compliment, even in the clutches of mating season he was still the charmer he usually was, and his strong resistance impressed her. She knew how strong her arousal must be pushing him to get to the mating part, and if he was a different wolf then surely this would be the case. Yet she knew he respected her and probably wanted to make all of this last as much as she did. In reality she couldn't of have picked a better wolf to have her first sexual encounter with. The thought that she was doing this with an omega drove her wild in her lust, as if the fact of how forbidden it was made her long for it.

She wondered how the experience would differ then having it with an alpha, perhaps she had really lucked out. Omegas were frisky and kind spirited, traits she still saw she gazed into Humphrey's icy blue eyes. However the Humphrey she was looking at was not the normal one, lust was in his eyes as much as there were in hers. Both of them would realize that when it came to mating, they changed into something to be desired. Not afraid of taking action and exploring each other's bodies to find hidden pleasures. All of it due to the strong pheromones they smelled and felt.

Humphrey moved in near slow motion as he backed off of her and stepped backward so that he stood looking directly at Kate's lower end with the rest of her body beyond it. The sight of seeing her lying in front of him with her body sprawled out was what any male dreamt in their most erotic of dreams. His body ached as he looked at her and couldn't stop his eyes from locking on the one spot forbidden to look at on normal circumstances. The part that made her a female appeared moist and swollen, a reddish hue being seen on the skin under her fur in the area. His mouth watered as he felt his nose being guided toward it from the aroma that rose from it. It was too irresistible for him to not focus on but he pulled away and moved his gaze up to her face.

She was looking back at him with a wonder to know what he was doing. Her face ran hot when she noticed how focused he became on her lower area, a light feeling of embarrassment coming over her. However it subsided as she knew he was enjoying what he saw. "I think it's my turn to experiment with you." She heard him state, looking back at her.

"What did you have in mind?" She asked, feeling almost despite as she said it. Her body still ached to feel his touch as much as possible and was already missing his embrace.

"Well how about you close your eyes and relax, and then you'll find out." He suggested in a smooth voice, a devious smirk on the side of his muzzle.

She let of a soft sigh as his words seemed to send a shiver down her flank. An omega was commanding her and all she did was nod and rested her head back to face the ceiling. She closed her eyes and waited patiently to feel his touch, her fur standing on end in some places while her anticipation built. She had no idea what he planned but knew that whatever it was she would enjoy it.

"Let me know if this feels good." She heard him say, repeating the same words she used earlier. "Okay." She responded quietly.

Humphrey watched her relax and get comfortable before moving his gaze back down to her vulva. His breathing shook as he lowered his head and brought his nose right up to it. In one breath the smell caused him to push forward and touch it, causing her to twitch in response from the feeling. The grin still appeared on his face and he checked to make sure she still had her eyes closed, sure enough she did. Without wasting a moment he drew his tongue out and licked along the line of her opening. Immediately he felt her body twitch again as he heard her breathing suddenly pick up. "Oh..." He heard her cry out. "Keep doing that."

He took it that she had liked it and followed her command, licking the same spot repeatedly. She felt wet as he ran his tongue along her organ, she was producing liquids from her arousal and he found the taste to be sweet. Kate felt like she was in a beautiful dream as she felt his licks and heavy breaths upon her area. It felt amazing and soon enough her tail began to wag to show her happiness, hitting against his legs as it did so. She imagined that this was what Humphrey must have felt like when she did the equivalent to him, she wouldn't have stopped so soon if this was the case. Her body remained relaxed as she panted from the pleasure his tongue gave her, a moan coming out of her every so often.

Humphrey listened closely to the sounds she made and found himself finding pleasure in what he was doing to her. The taste on his tongue made him keep going along with his lust. As the moments passed by he managed to find the opening that journeyed inside of her. He decided to take a risk to adjust and push against with his licks to see what would happen. Sure enough he felt it move inside and caused the volume of Kate's moans to rise in response. He found the right spot and continued to give her an enjoyable experience. However as a couple minutes passed his jaw muscles began to grow sore he decided to stop and lift his head back up to look at hers. It was obvious to him that she had enjoyed it; for her chest rose and fell quickly as she panted with her tongue flopping to the side of her muzzle. He felt satisfied knowing that he had repaid her the same pleasure she had given him, which was his goal.

It took a few moments for Kate to come back down the surge of bliss she had felt. Her tail froze and she regained some of her posture to look at her lover, still feeling out of breath like she had run across the territory. Humphrey sat down, feeling happy with him yet nervous. He knew that it was time for the main event, with it came the greatest pleasure of all, but he wanted to be sure that he didn't get carried away by his desires. It wasn't all about him on this night; Kate's opinion still mattered greatly to him. There was another pause until she had caught her breath, who then proceeded to get up into a sitting position as well.

"You know, you could have done that to me as a way of taming my heat." She stated.

He gave her an intrigued look. " Really?" He replied. He had no idea that his actions of pleasuring her were common practice with other couples. He only thought he was going out on a limb to try something he desired.

"Yeah, it gives heat the pleasure it needs to subside, but it's only temporary." She answered with a nod.

"Huh, that seems understandable." He commented. "Did it lower it at all now?"

She shook her head. "Nope, there's only one thing to cure it at this stage." She answered. Her mother wasn't afraid to share details all about how heat worked, and while some things freaked her out she was glad to know them. Of course what she had suggested as a way of cooling off heat was something only couples did, for obvious reasons.

"I guess all there's left to do now is the only thing that cures it." He suggested, wondering if she was ready for the next step or not.

She took a deep breath. "Yeah..." She replied but trailed off. Feelings of nervousness growing, she heard rumors through other females that the first time came with a little pain before turning to pleasure. She was sure she could handle it but the thought of it didn't go away. Additionally the fact that she was actually going to mate hadn't fully sunk in yet. This whole time heat had been driving her to keep pushing for more pleasure, but now it was like she was standing back on her own paws. She was in full control of what would happen next, and she was going to go for it. There was no turning back; she was ready to try something entirely new and unique.

"Are you ready?" She head him ask, his eyes seeming to hold concern for her.

She gave him a smile. "I'm more than ready." She replied with a boost of confidence. "But are you ready?"

He let out a smile as well. "Yes." He replied. Together they were held in suspension, in control of themselves even though lust was driving them mad. They were on a ledge, ready to take the leap.

Kate rose to her paws and gracefully walked to the center of the den, making sure that they would have plenty of room to move around. She had turned away from where he sat, her behind pointed at him. She turned her head to look back at him and smiled. "You know what to do right?" She asked in more of a joking matter.

He couldn't help but laugh as he rose up. "I'm a male; of course I know what to do." He replied, rolling his eyes as he caught onto her joke.

She giggled. "Just making sure." She replied with a mischievous look. Her joke had actually released some of the tension between them in light of the current situation. She continued to look at him as her itch was the strongest it had ever been, her body longed for it to be relieved, and she was glad it would be coming soon. She was tired of being in heat, and would be forever thankful that Humphrey agreed to relieve it. It wasn't right to do, but none of them seemed to care anymore. She moved her tail to the side to expose her to him, her heart raced as she watched him prepare to mount her.

Humphrey was feeling the same emotions as he noticed that she was ready for him to begin. He closed his eyes for a second to savor the sight of the beautiful she-wolf that stood before him before moving forward. With one smooth motion he lifted himself up onto her back and into the mating position. His lust still wanting to rush into it, but he still wanted to be sure that Kate was ready. Because once he started he was not sure if he would be able to keep control of himself. "Are you still ready?" He asked, looking down into her eyes once getting comfortable.

She adjusted her stance to better support his weight before giving him a nod. "Yes, take me you frisky omega." She replied with an edge in her voice, giving into the inch of heat that had been driving her mad since their night of pleasure began.

A sly simile appeared on his face with her reply, he never knew her to be such a different wolf when it came to mating, but he liked it. Having her full approval he adjusted his hips to line up their organs, he gave a small thrust forward but missed his mark. She noticed but waited patiently as he prodded around her womanhood a few times until she decided to help guide him. She didn't need him to get despite in an attempt to do it all himself. With a few words of where to go she finally felt his tip push against her opening. Her body ached at the feeling, fully prepared to take more. Humphrey also felt that he was at the right spot, and without a seconds hesitation he started to apply pressure, his member penetrating her and beginning to slowly inch its way deeper. Immediately he felt her heat, warmer than he anticipated but the sensation of warmth kind of felt good. Lust wanted him to go faster, but he held back at how tight she felt.

Kate let out a long and satisfied sigh as she felt his member enter her, she looked directly ahead but had her eyes closed to savor the feeling. So far the sense of having him inside of her was an interesting one, it was like she was being filled, but the pleasure she felt along with it was incredible. However as he reached having all of his length inside she tensed up. Suddenly a pain overcame her, sharp at first before growing steady. With the new feeling she winced and let out a whimper which instantly got Humphrey's attention.

He stopped focusing on the pleasure he was feeling and instead froze any of his movements. "Are you okay?" He asked, worried that he had done something entirely wrong.

She clenched her teeth and dug her claws into the soft earth she stood upon. Not replying to Humphrey's question until the pain subsided more. "I'll be fine..." She replied. "It's just that I've heard a females first time can be painful, and now I know it's true."

"Do we need to stop?" He asked softly, his body telling him to keep going but his mind caring only for her feelings. Surprised that the start of what was so post to be a great experience was bringing her pain.

"No!" She replied quickly, her body not wanting to go back. "Just give me a second; the pain is only my body trying to adjust to mating for the first time." She lifted her head up so that she could look at him.

He nodded and gave one of his ears a lick to help calm her, understanding because once the pain started he felt her muscles clamp down on him. A few moments passed until he could feel the same muscles that griped him start to loosen and give him less resistance to move. She must have been feeling better because sure enough she gave him approval to continue their love making. He felt relieved because he was getting tired of fighting the drive that wanted him to start thrusting his hips. Never has he had to fight against his desires so much, but finally he could now allow his body to take control and start to build up pleasure between him and Kate.

Not entirely sure how to begin he just let his hips move back and forth in a slow and steady motion. He was quickly rewarded by a surge of pleasure which caused his breath to pick up again. Kate enjoyed the feeling as well, relaxing her body further as the pain she once felt was turned into pure pleasure. The rhythm of their love was set and as it continued both of them let out moans between their gasps for air. They were soft and murmured at first but as Humphrey quickened his pace to a more consistent one it only made the experience better. Panting from the exercise and sensations of pleasure he let his tail wag from how delighted he felt. Already this was feeling better then what Kate did to him earlier in their fondling. However as they continued he wanted to try and go faster with his thrust but he wasn't sure if she was prepared. Her moans were louder than his indicating to him that she was enjoying herself as much as he did in this particular moment. In a way he was glad it was raining out, because without it then surely someone could hear her cries.

"Do you want to try going faster?" He asked between his pants.

She moaned before answering him. "Oh… yes please. This is feeling incredible so far."

Instantly he picked up his speed in response, and once again the pleasure rose with it. Kate felt the rise as the liquids her body produced could be felt dripping down her legs and onto the ground. Her itch was gone, subsiding at the feeling of his member within her; it was nice to have it disappear. She could not believe how good mating felt and now really understood why some wolves craved it. There was just no other strong feeling that could quite match it. Her tongue rolled out of her mouth while she panted, not wanting the pleasure to end. However it would not last forever, eventually she knew Humphrey would reach his climax, but as the minutes passed by he was still thrusting against her, showing no signs of weakness. It was odd to think that he was in control of all the pleasure she felt, an omega taking control of an alpha, the opposite of normal. Yet her wild side was enjoying the idea of it.

As time passed by slowly Humphrey could finally feel something building up in his lower area. He knew what it was and knew that it was only a matter of time until he would reach his release point. "I'm getting close." He stated after letting out a grunt of pleasure. He wasn't sure if she had heard him or not since she did not reply but kept going, totally being driven by his lust like a mad wolf. He was in such a loss of control that drool began to drip from his tongue and land upon Kate's back. Suddenly he watched through his blissful vision as she lifted her head to the sky and let out a long and deep moan, almost sounding like a howl. Her body had reached its peak point and she was hit with an immense wave of pleasure, the feeling causing her legs to wobble under the loss of control. To regain her balance she let the front half of her body fall to the ground and create an arc shape.

Her rear remained in the air as Humphrey continued to give her wonderful sensations of passion. However he was not far behind her in hitting his peak. He felt her body clench down against his thrusts, increasing his pleasure until finally he too was hit by a wave of ecstasy. With one final push he put his full length inside her and released, forcing his knot to tie under her tight muscles to lock them together as one. Kate was ready for his climax and moaned at the feeling of them becoming tied, afterword's she continued to lightly express her pleasure as he felt his seed being pumped into her. She was totally lost in the aftermath of her own climax that she failed to notice that Humphrey had collapsed down onto her from his exhaustion. Both of them were gasping for air while they slowly fell down from the huge surge of pleasure that rocked its way through their bodies.

While exhausted and satisfied they may be, the current position they were in was putting a strain on Kate's back. "Could we- get into a better position?" She asked, taking a breath in between.

"Oh, sure" Was all he could answer with, but agreed that he wasn't too comfortable either.

She let her rear fall down to the ground with him following along, then she rolled over on her side to face him and he did the same. Not exactly the proper tying position but it still worked, and this way they could actually face each other. The two companions gazed into each other's eyes as their grasp on reality returned. Both of them felt no regrets, what they just experienced was nothing short of spontaneous. They did not speak another word, still catching their breaths, but a few minutes later Kate broke out of her silent trance.

"Wow, so that's what mating is like." She stated with a long, purr like sigh.

Humphrey couldn't agree more, smiling in response. "Wonderful isn't it?" He asked.

"Yeah." She agreed, her voice sounding tired. "You were amazing too."

He couldn't help but blush, all he did was follow what instinct told him to do, but she still seemed to love every part of it. "Thanks," He replied. "you were pretty amazing yourself. I have never felt anything like what you made me feel."

"Neither have I." She replied, returning his smile.

He then gazed down to their lower areas and tugged very lightly against their knot to see if they were really stuck or not, but there was no budge. He looked back up at Kate. "I guess we're going to be stuck like this for a while." He commented.

"Good," She replied, holding her smile. "I'm enjoying the feeling of us tied as one." Letting out a giggle after her word, her lustful ways still not entirely faded.

He chuckled in response. "You want to know what one good thing is that came out of us mating?" He asked.

She shook her head lightly. "No, what?"

"We're no longer cold." He answered.

She laughed. "Yes that is true." She agreed.

He joined her in the laugh before returning to a calm expression. "So what do you want to do now?" He asked.

She thought for a moment, all her body wanted now was to relax and fall asleep from exhaustion. She may have not done all the work of mating but the experience still took her breath away, and as she relaxed in thought she could sense that the sensation of her heat was dying. She was glad that it was finally over; she had contained the fire that blazed through her these past several days. It might not have been done the way she imagined but the way it was done was amazing. Never would she forget this night of passion, shared only by her friend and temporary lover.

"I have a few ideas." She answered.

"And what's that?" He replied.

She said nothing more and leaned in to kiss him one last time, because until the sun rose he was still the wolf of her dreams in her eyes. He accepted her kiss and press back against her nose; he loved the feeling and found it to be an excellent conclusion to their night. They remained nuzzling each other and licking their faces to show affection, occasionally stopping to talk more about their opinions on the night's experience. Finally their knot began to loosen until Humphrey could pull out of her, feeling kind of upset that the pleasure was over but still remained forever satisfied. They prepared to fall asleep where they lay but instead of taking different sides of the den they remained in the center, Kate curled up against him in a spooning position. They told each other good night before allowing their heavy eye lids to fall and carry them away into the world of their dreams.

So concluded a night full of many surprises and turnarounds, where friendship was changed into a temporary love. Letting go of reality and doing what mother nature pushed them to do no matter how forbidden it was. Lust was their guide, making them lose control and caring only to share a night full of passion and pleasure. To think they were so close to making it through the season without having to go to the extreme they had. It was like they were cheated out of it, accidently stoking the fires of heat and making it burn like an inferno. What occurred on this night would not be forgotten, it as a high point in their lives where they experienced emotions never normally expressed in full intensity. They were friends, but could also be considered mates for doing the deed to achieve that status. However once the golden light of a new day appeared, their pact would be broken and they would go back to being friends like the night had never occurred. Yet with their act of love making came a byproduct, one that was normally welcomed with joy and excitement, but for the two friends, things were about to get complicated.

* * *

**A/N: Well I'm not sure what happened, I set out to write a lemon and it turned into this massive single chapter. I don't know what you think but I would have to say that this could quite possibly be the longest lemon in the A&amp;O archive, and well done too. Not that I'm patting myself on the back or anything, I'm just glad that these rather difficult past two chapters have come together so well.**

**So it appears that Kate and Humphrey could no longer resist the temptation and fell into the ways of lust, good for them, but this didn't occur under normal circumstances. What does the morning hold in store for them? Only the next chapter will tell! -ChriZ**


	8. Regret

Chapter 8: Regret

With the end of a fateful night came a bright and new day; the sun rose over the distant mountain peaks and caused the rain saturated landscape to shine its golden reflection. The sky was a calm blue with several dozen billowy clouds scattered all around. The storm had passed, ending its onslaught of moisture and moving on to somewhere far away. Yet with what appeared to be a sunny day the effects of the rain still remained. Leaves of trees and shrubs held drops of water while dirt on the ground was rich and darkened from water. Mud was nearly everywhere across the den grounds and territory of the United Pack, and puddles filled any depression in the dirt.

One by one wolf's emerged from their dens to be greeted by the new day, some took a look around at the forest and how different it looked from the storm that passed over. Others simply ignored the view, determined to go about their plans for the day. Slowly pack life resumed like it did every morning, but one den located on the far side of the grounds remained silent. Inside laid a grey omega and tan alpha, sleeping peacefully while curled up together. The night's secret activities had worn them out and caused them to sleep in beyond what was normal. Usually they were both awake once the light of the sun began to brighten up the usually shady crevasse, but that was not the case this morning.

Eventually the tan alpha began to stir and shift before lifting her eyelids to see that it was a new day. She lifted her head and let out a yawn while giving her stiff body a stretch. However as she straightened out her back she was met with resistance, something warm was pressed up against her. She stopped her motion and turned her head around to meet the face of a sleeping grey wolf she recognized to be her friendly companion. Immediately she was struck by confusion, wondering why they were sleeping cuddled against each other. It was at that moment of digging into her memory that she remembered why, her mind filled with visual memories of the previous night they shared.

It had been a typical evening for them at the beginning; they conversed and hung out until things took a turn. The rising smell of heat caused their conversation to turn into a fight to maintain self-control, problems friends never faced against each other. The demand of mating season brought them to let go of their week long fight and surrender into becoming free of all the lust and temptation. In a single night two friends turned into lovers and took their passion toward the ultimate level. Neither of them held regret going into it after losing control, for they had agreed on changing their view on one another just for that night alone. They looked and acted toward one another the same way any other couple did, turning the experience from awkward and wrong to something that just felt right.

At the end of it all they were satisfied, overwhelmed from the bliss their bodies felt upon a new touch. Relieving the temptations and desires that brought them there, heat had been subdued the proper way. As the female lay there recalling the previous night she was struck by many emotions, so much that she did not know how to feel in the current moment. She had enjoyed the experience she had with her temporary lover however it was that very wolf that brought her sudden sadness and fear. He was an omega, and she had just broken one of the packs highest laws by seducing him. Alphas and omegas were not permitted to mix, let alone love one another. The law served as a line to keep the two ranks separate and maintain balance between them.

By breaking this law she feared what would be the consequences, she did not want to cause harm to either one of them or ruin a friendship they had only just reinstated. No one needed to know what happened between them, and at the moment there was no reason for anyone to assume anything. However what scared Kate the most was the very real possibility that she would be pregnant, she had no way to explain how she would be without revealing the truth. This was her secret now, and she needed to find a way to keep it that way, but she had no idea how to do that. Fear was consuming her, had she just screwed everything up in her life beyond repair? She longed for everything to go back to normal, for her relationship with her omega friend to go back to what it had been the past week.

However it did not make sense to her, looking at the sleeping omega she could not ignore what they did last night. They experienced something that only wolves deeply in love did, not friends. It was so very wrong and she knew it well, yet why had she allowed for it to happen? She pushed him to mate with her, she was the one to blame between them, but at the same time her heart longed for it to happen without help from her heat. She quickly rose to her paws and began to pace randomly in the den, almost in a near jump. She glanced back at her friend occasionally while continuing to think, every passing moment giving her a greater feeling of regret.

She had been such a fool; they were been so close to the end of the season. A couple more days and they would have been in the clear after successfully maintaining control of themselves. They would have been happy to have it over with and be able to continue some of the promises they had made. She would have had help with her problems in life, but now she could not see the light of it working out. Their pact from last night stated that come sunrise they would go back to being friends, like nothing ever happened. How could she agree to that now? The memories would not leave her and she felt regret and fear when she should have a calm mind. Nothing made sense anymore; she just wanted to run away in search of hope that this was all just the start of a bad dream.

In the mist of her silent worry the omega in the den began to awaken from the sound of her constant pacing around the cave. He groaned lightly before opening his eyes to be greeted by sunlight. Lifting his head to yawn he noticed Kate standing in front of the entrance to his den, looking outside at something out of his view. Confused he wondered what she was up too, "Kate?" He asked in a tired but refreshed voice.

She turned her head to look at who called her name, but instead of answering his question her eyes began to water up. "I'm sorry Humphrey." Was all she replied, then with a sudden leap she ran out of the den.

He immediately shot up to his paws and ran to look outside. "Kate, wait!" He yelled after her, but all he saw was the tan pelt of his friend vanishing into the under growth. His awaking mind wondered what the cause of her sudden outburst and action was. "Why would she run off like that...?" He whispered to himself with a sigh.

Contemplating whether or not to run after her he decided that it would be no use, she was far faster than him and it was obvious she needed to be alone, but why? He visualized the look on her face when she replied to his question, _Was she crying?_ He thought. _Why would she cry? _Then, much like Kate, a little thought brought up memories of last night. How he gave in to his lust and mated with a wolf he swore to never get involved with romantically again. Never should he had been able to get carried away like he did, what happened to the part of him that still felt pain from looking at her? We're his friends really right in assuming that becoming friends with Kate again would only lead to his love returning, and ultimately to his demise?

Questions flew through his head as he went through the same realizations as Kate had minutes earlier. He turned and walked back into his den to think. "I am so screwed..." He stated to no one in particular. With a sudden aggression he slammed one of his fore paws onto the dirt, felling upset with himself. _Why did I give in!_ He yelled in his thoughts. _I needed to stay strong, to fight against any feelings that overcame me. I was doing so well but then she had to go and say the things I wanted to hear…_ It was his fault; he was the only one in control of himself last night before giving in. It was his choice alone to decide whether or not to go all the way with her. Yet her soft words of stating that she wanted it and longed for them to mate was enough for him to let go, and her idea of them changing their view on one another didn't help. He knew he let his old desires take control and make him feel a little love toward her again, something he feared.

He didn't want to fall for Kate again; there was no way it would work out with her being married and having no love for him. Fear and anger were consuming him, with those nights' events the friendship they had would be forever tainted by the memory always in their heads. The agreement they had did state that they wouldn't let it come between them once the sun rose. However the plans flaws made themselves noticed just as bright as the light that shined outside. Could he look at his friend the same as before, like nothing ever happened? At that moment he was not sure, but he did know that they both were at the start of a whole new mess of trouble, one that involved law breaking, and possible banishment on his part. If he had gotten Kate pregnant, he would be ruined.

The very thought of her having his pups sent a chill through his body, much colder than the ones he had last night. The chances were very high, and he knew that well. He didn't want to believe it was true, but understood that it was bound to be reality. Feeling lost as he stayed in his thoughts there was only one thing he could do, he needed help, to speak with someone before he was consumed into fear and regret. Unknown to him Kate was experiencing those very same emotions. Both of them felt they alone were to blame for what happened between them, and both of them felt the fear of the unknown, wanting to know if they were in real life at the present moment. After lying in his den for several minutes, Humphrey got up and headed to the one wolf he knew would be able to talk to, Salty.

Meanwhile toward the near edges of the United territory Kate was running at full speed, not caring where she was going. Her eyes still watered and were clouded with uncertainty. She did not slow down at all since leaving Humphrey's den, she heard his yell for her to return but as much as she wanted to stop and do that she could not. She wanted to be alone, to reflect, breakdown, and think of what to do next. While she ran with no sense of direction the familiar sights of her favorite thinking spot began to appear, as if her paws intentionally brought her here. Realizing where she was she slowed down into a jog as a small pond came into view before her. This was the only place in the territory where she could rest peacefully and think.

However today there would be no peace, chaos erupted into her thoughts and there was no way of relieving it on the horizon. Still not in full control or care of where she was going she planted her paws and braced to stop in the clearing beside the ponds calm waters. However the ground was muddy and her paws gripped nothing as she lost her balance, flying through the air for a short moment before landing hard on her side. She slid to a stop; her once golden coat now covered in a mixture of mud and lose dirt. Recovering from the impact she rolled onto her underside and just stayed on the ground. The slip jolted her awake, she yelled in surprise but once she recovered she lost control of her emotions, letting her head fall onto her extended forelegs. She broke down into a fit, her vision becoming out of focus as tears escaped her reddened eyes.

Crying alone, she felt as if she was staring at a dead end rather than a crossroads. Where she expected to think of possibilities of what to do next; she found nothing. _I'm such a fool…_ She stated in her thoughts, sniffling. _What does Humphrey think of me now?_ She wondered. _He must feel upset at me for causing his loss of control._ Answering her question. _If I hadn't gone and thought of that stupid idea…_

It was that idea she saw as the start of the problems, letting Humphrey think of his past desires toward her, in turn building on to his already apparent lust. His words about his past depression saddened her, making her feel that she owed him, considering she was the cause of their friendship breaking. She shook her head, not caring that she felt like an entire mess as she lay there. Instead she tried to focus on the environment and calm down, however it did nothing like it usually did whenever she came here on difficult days. The sight of towering pine and birch trees would bring her peace while looking up at the distant sky. However they only appeared as fuzzy hues through her tears.

There was no way she was going to gain peace of mind here, she needed to speak with someone, who wasn't Humphrey and could be trustworthy enough to not tell anyone else about her dark secret. As much as the idea of going back and speaking her mind with Humphrey sounded appealing she felt that he must be in his own similar problems. She would speak with him later in the day, there was much to be discussed between them, but first she wanted to talk with another wolf. The only one who came to her mind was her sister; surely she would be there to help her through this sudden, difficult morning. Getting up she walked into the pond to wash off her mud stained fur, her body felt sore, but for the first time in a week she no longer felt heated. She ignored the stiffness she felt and left the clearing after shaking herself dry.

Walking quickly, Humphrey made his way to Salty's den. A location not too far away but felt much farther than usual. His mind was still in a mix of thinking what lies ahead in the coming days, but now he wondered more what his friend would have to say about what occurred. He told them over and over that nothing would happen between him and Kate, but now something did, and he hoped they would be able to help him, like they had before. The familiar site of Salty's den came into view; he wasted no time with introductions and walked right inside, a look on his face clearly stating that he was in a mess of troubles.

Inside he found his friend and Tasia sitting in front of each other, they were talking but as soon as he entered they stopped and looked directly to him. Their faces were bright and cheery but once Salty saw the look on his face he sensed that something was not right. "Hey Humphrey," He greeted. "how are you today?"

Humphrey shook his head and sat down before them. "I feel horrible." He replied plainly, confirming Salty's suspicion.

"What's wrong?" Humphrey heard him ask in response.

He wondered how to come out with the news, he didn't want to blurt it out but he found no other easier way of saying it. "Kate and I mated..." He admitted in a low tone, his head hung low toward the ground.

If he had looked up from the floor he would have seen both Salty's and Tasia's eyes widen. "You... What?!" Salty exclaimed, unable to hold in his surprise, let alone believe his friends sudden confession.

"I gave into her heat, and... we mated." He answered again.

Salty was at a total loss for words, and Tasia only sat and listened, feeling just as surprised. "You can't be serious man! How could you give in, you were so close." He stated.

"Yeah, I thought you two were handling it pretty well." Tasia added.

Humphrey lifted his head to look at them, his eyes full of regret and fear. He said nothing, too held in his thoughts to speak anymore. A few moments passed until Salty recognized that his friend was in serious trouble. Coming down from shell shock he became serious, something he could do well for being an omega. He sighed and shook his head. "Humphrey, I need details if you've come for my help, because right now you sound totally crazy." He said, looking straight at him.

Humphrey nodded and proceeded to lay on the floor to relax slightly before telling them both how he and Kate got carried away. Starting from the evening conversations up toward the moment the night changed into romance. He heavily visualized everything he saw the previous night as he spoke; looking back on it he didn't feel the sense of satisfaction he had when he fell asleep. He finished his story and gazed back and forth between them, wondering who would speak first. "I was an idiot to get carried away, this should have never happened." He concluded.

Salty shook his head slowly, feeling sorry for his friend. "I can't believe it Humphrey." He responded. "All this talk of just becoming friends with her and now look where it's left you."

His change in tone confused Humphrey. "I know what you're going to say, to tell me 'I told you so', right?" He replied.

"Not at all, as much as that is true I don't know what to say." Salty answered. "You've pretty much screwed up any chance of living normally in the pack if she's pregnant from this."

"That's why I've come for help; surely you know something I can do?" Humphrey asked, feeling despite to get some kind of guidance.

"I don't know; this is something you need to discuss with Kate herself." Salty replied.

He sighed. "Come on Salty, you have to know something helpful."

"I'm sorry man, I got nothing right now." Salty answered. "I honestly never expected you to actually mate with her, no matter how much I disapproved of your decision to have her stay with you."

"Great..." He shrugged, knowing that he wasn't going to achieve anything by coming here other than leaving his friends speechless. He looked back down toward the ground.

Salty couldn't just sit there and see his friend in such a broken state, for the second time in his life. He decided that if he couldn't help him then he would remind him of the things he and their other omega brothers taught him. "Look, if it helps at all you should really go talk to Kate, I'm sure she's wondering where you went." He suggested.

Humphrey looked back up to meet his gaze. "I would, but she ran off as soon as I woke up." He replied.

"Why would she do that? I thought she wanted to do the things you did?" Salty asked.

"I'm not sure if she was telling the truth; if that was the case then we would be in my den right now, working something out. I can't help but feel that she has the same sense of regret as me." He replied.

"Doesn't surprise me if she is, both of you have a lot of problems to face now, especially if she's pregnant." Salty sympathized. "However you should still talk to her, you're both still good friends."

"_If_ we're still friends..." He corrected. He wanted to be friends with her but as the day continued and he settled more into this new reality the more he saw their friendship breaking, yet again.

"Keep your hopes up man," Salty stated, extending one of forepaws and resting it on his shoulder. "Remember everything we taught you about getting out of your depression. Keep your hopes up and maybe, just maybe you can save your friendship and make this work out."

Humphrey couldn't help but let a small smile appear on his muzzle from his friend's words. Salty had a strong point, he needed to remember the lessons he learned in the past to help him now, his greatest time of need. He stood on his paws and thanked him, even if he didn't get much out of it; the visit with Salty had helped him a little after all. Now he knew what he needed to do, if he was going to live a happy life he needed to work something out with Kate. _But what?_ He wondered on his way back to his den. With realizing Kate had not returned he knew he had time to think alone and find a way to make things peaceful again. A task that was going to prove more difficult then it seemed.

Elsewhere in the forest a she-wolf was discussing the same troubles. Kate had arrived in Lilly's den to find her alone. She didn't let the thought of Ryun's whereabouts distract what was on her mind. Lilly was surprised to find her sister enter her den with such an abashed look in her eyes. Immediately she knew something was wrong, and it wasn't good. For the second time Kate broke down, bursting into tears after hearing her sister's calm greeting. Lilly had quickly paced over to her and embraced her in a hug, wondering what the cause was to her sadness. That's where she was told the news about her and Humphrey, Lilly was shocked, much in the same way as Salty. She could not believe that they would get carried away to that point, she knew Humphrey to be a trustful wolf, but what caused him to accept mating with Kate?

She soon found out what exactly caused it and still felt surprised by it all. Never had she seen her sister cry so hard, let alone share a great sense of fear. She was an alpha, strong and trained to be ready for any situation, but that was not the case as she looked at Kate now. This experience was so far tearing her apart and leaving her with no sense of direction. Her thoughts were still full of confusion at what to do next, all she wanted to do was to cry, to sulk away all the pain she now felt from her regret. Lilly couldn't take listening to her sobbing any longer, she wanted to talk with her but Kate's fit made her choke on some of her words while she confessed what happened.

"It's okay Kate, everything will be fine, just breath." She stated calmly, doing the best she could to try and hold her sister and comfort her.

Kate however shook her head. "Nothing will be fine Lilly." She replied. "I've messed everything up in my life..." She trailed off, referring to the other things that depressed her prior to this day.

"Don't talk like that, you're a strong wolf, you can get through this." Lilly replied.

"How Lilly? If I'm pregnant what am I going to do, I can't just tell mom and dad who the father is..." She argued, pushing back from their embrace to look at her.

Lilly quickly realized her mistake; she understood her sister was in trouble. Even though she said she could get through this, her words were only to help comfort her with hope, which had failed. She shrugged, unsure how to reply other than to agree with her. No one besides her could find out what Kate and Humphrey did, it was against pack law and the punishment for breaking it wasn't pretty. "I don't know..." She responded, looking down in sorrow for not knowing an answer.

Kate sighed, coming out of her breakdown. "I thought this was what I wanted last night but now I don't know what to think..." She stated.

"It was your heat that made you think that." Lilly stated, knowing that was the only reason since she couldn't have possibly loved Humphrey going into it.

"But it didn't feel like it was from my heat, it came from the heart." Kate replied.

Lilly shook her head. "I guess, but if that was the case then you wouldn't be so upset right now." She replied.

"He must think it's my entire fault." Kate admitted, stating what she had thought earlier by the pond.

"I'm not sure if he does; if you're regretful then he must be too." Lilly reasoned.

Kate seemed to agree. "Maybe, I did kind of run off on him before he got to say anything."

Lilly didn't like the sound of that. "You should not let this separate you two, you're both responsible for what happened and you should face the consequences together, as a team." She argued.

Kate nodded, "You're right sis, we do need to talk it out." She agreed, quickly noticing the truth in her sister's words. The blame of what happened couldn't be placed on her or Humphrey, both of them agreed to do what they did.

Lilly felt glad that she agreed. "Good, then how about after you relax a little you can go and speak with him and set things straight." She replied. She wished there was more she could help her with, after all Kate did come to seek just that from her. However much like Salty, she recognized that there was not much she could do other than help her feel slightly better. This was not her problem to take care of; this was something that Kate and Humphrey had to work out.

Kate nodded. "Thank you sis." She responded before pulling her into another hug. She was still very afraid of what lies ahead of her but at least this conversation with her sister had helped calm the sadness that overcame her.

"Now just lie down and relax, I'm going to get us something to eat since I'm sure you're hungry." Lilly said before turning and heading toward the exit of her den. It felt weird that she was taking care of her alpha sister; usually it had been the other way around growing up. She shook off the feeling and headed outside upon seeing Kate nod in agreement.

Kate was left alone again while she curled up on the ground and waited for her sister to return from the feeding grounds with a meal they could split. Letting out a sigh she went back into her thoughts, which still ran like a torrent, constantly thinking about the mess she was now in. How were Humphrey and her going to find a way to hide their secret? There was nothing she could think of still, and she decided to not worry about it anymore until she left to go confront him.

* * *

**A/N: Well isn't this just an emotional roller coaster, Kate and Humphrey shared something magical the previous night but now they both only feel regret and fear of the unknown. What is going to happen when they try to work something out? Well the result could prove surprising...**


	9. Frantic Choices

Chapter 9: Frantic Choices

"Humphrey?"

Humphrey's ears twitched at the sound of his name being called, a moment later he lifted his head to see Kate standing before him in his den. He had been lying on the floor ever since returning from his visit with Salty, trying to figure out what to do next in his life. Hours passed by quickly and the next thing he knew Kate had returned from wherever she ran off too. His heart pounded at the sight of her, a sympathetic look staring back at him. The time alone to think hadn't really helped in the way he hoped. His friends told him that he and Kate needed to talk everything out, but looking at her all he felt was regret and sadness. He knew he messed up, and he could only hope that his friends were right about talking things out.

"Hey Kate." He replied plainly before rising up to sit.

"You don't look so good..." She commented, trailing off.

"I could say the same about you." He replied, noticing how her fur was a tangled mess in spots.

There was silence after that, Kate sat down and the two wolves faced one another. Yesterday there would have been a friendly bond between them, now it just felt like a wall separated them. Everything felt different for them, their pent up emotions holding them back from acting like normal friends again. With a breath Kate decided to follow what her sister said, they needed to talk things out, not just sit here in the shade from the afternoon sun.

"I'm sorry for running off this morning," She began, watching as his gaze went from looking around the den to focusing on her. "I just wasn't thinking clearly and needed to be alone."

"It's alright, I understand, I needed some time to myself too." He replied.

The conversation felt so awkward, like they were only just meeting each other for the first time. Kate began to hate it and went straight to the point, not wanting to waste any time. Perhaps by the end of the day they could figure something out and move on to pleasant thoughts again. "I take it you regret last night too?" She asked.

He nodded. "Yeah, it's my fault isn't it?"

She sighed. "No Humphrey," She replied with a shake of her head. "I'm just as guilty, if I had stayed in control of myself I could have avoided all of this."

"But if I had stayed in control of myself and resisted you, then none of this would have happened." He argued, still thinking it was his fault.

"Don't keep blaming yourself, this is our problem and ours to solve." She replied back. "I refuse to listen to you if you're just going to blame it all on yourself."

He was surprised by the strong tone in her voice, perhaps it wasn't his entire fault and that she was just as guilty. Yet at the same time he didn't want to see her take the fall with him. "Alright, so we're both at fault," He agreed finally. "but what are we going to do now Kate, I'm scared at what will happen to us if our secret gets out."

She felt a little relieved that he was scared as well, that she wasn't the only one between them who had a mountain of troubles on her mind. "I'm scared too, which is why we need to figure out what to do next." She answered, sharing the same concerns as him.

"Well if you're pregnant then our secret is exposed, I don't know what would happen to us but I know it isn't good since we broke one of the highest laws." He stated.

She nodded. "My parents will be furious with me if they learned you were the father." She replied.

"Then I would be blamed for it." He added, a hint of disgust in his voice. He knew her mother was very protective of her daughters and could only expect her to jump to conclusions.

"No," She snapped. "I will make sure that they know we're both equally guilty, it's not like you gave in easily."

"Still, what will happen to us when they do find out? What will the pack think of us?" He asked.

Kate looked down to her paws, thinking about his questions. What would the pack think of them? Well it wouldn't be anything good for sure, but then what would be their punishment for their actions? She knew the price would be banishment at the worse, but she couldn't see her parents doing that to them. In reality she wasn't sure what would happen, and she shook her head because of it. "I don't know."

"Well what's the punishment for alphas and omegas mating with each other?" He asked again, thinking he already knew the answer but wanted to hear what she thought.

"My only guess is banishment." She replied, sounding slightly uncertain.

He nodded, he had the same answer on his mind. However while the time alone he had today didn't help him find peace of mind it did give him one idea. An idea that he didn't entirely like but it was the only way he could see their problem working. Yet as he was about to express it he was cut off by Kate.

"The only solution I see is to come clean and hope that something works out." She stated, looking up from the ground and into his eyes.

However to Humphrey this was a crazy idea, they shouldn't risk letting the pack find out for fear of the anger it could cause. "No Kate, we can't do that." He replied.

"Why not? If we just tell my parents what happened then maybe they'll understand." She asked.

"That's just crazy; we're two friends that decided to hang out during mating season. It was a foolish idea from the start because at the end of it we would be where we are now." He argued. "It's not like this was all an accident."

Kate sighed. "We were doing so well until last night..." She replied with a sigh at the end.

"Yeah..." He agreed before shaking his head to focus back on his idea. "I have a better idea, but you may not like it." He didn't exactly feel confident about this being a good plan, as indicated by the uncertainty in his eyes.

She rose her head back up to listen. "What is it?" She asked.

He took a breath before starting. "We go our separate ways, you stay here in Jasper and I will take the fall by leaving this place." He explained.

She gasped. "You can't be thinking about running away again, I thought we were in this together!" She replied with an annoyed swish of her tail, a spark of anger on the end of her words.

"We are, Kate just listen and I'll explain." He replied, trying to keep her calm. She exhaled and let her body relax, giving him a nod. "I do not want to see you be hurt from this, I'd rather take the fall and lose it all if it means you can stay here and live a normal life."

"Normal?" She blurted. "Nothing in my life is _normal_ anymore..."

"I understand that, I can say the same thing too." He replied. "There's nothing left for me here in Jasper besides my omega friends, you however have so much more. A family, and friends, I don't think you want to leave them do you?"

He expected her to agree but instead she shook her head. "Humphrey if you're leaving Jasper then I'm coming with you, like I said, were in this together." She stated.

He was surprised to see that she wanted to run away with him, he had to admit the idea did sound nice but she would be losing so much if she left with him. "No." He replied. "You can still have a good life by staying here with the ones you love. To get through the problems on your mind and find enjoyment again."

However instead of her understanding like he hoped she only shook her head again. "If I stay then what about our pups, do you want them to grow up without a father?" She asked, feeling upset that he would think of doing such a thing.

He sighed, she had a good point. She would soon be holding his pups, no one else's. How could he just leave her and let her deal with it on her own? He should stick with her and help her get through it instead of running away, but then the fear of the pack finding out came back to him. "That's for you to decide." He replied before seeing her eyes widen. "Make the pack think their Garth's, or say they're really mine when I'm gone. Who knows, maybe Garth will be open to it and it could bring you together like a proper couple."

"What? You can't be serious!" She exclaimed, the further he went on the more she thought he was crazy. They were talking about the fate of their pups and he expected her to allow them to grow up with a father that wasn't their own blood? She didn't even love Garth more than a companion, how could she ever do that now when her heart was being twisted by Humphrey.

"Think about it," He replied, expecting her outburst and remained speaking in a soft tone. "you're already married to another wolf and if we leave together then you break the bond that keeps the packs together. Surely your parents would send wolves after us to find us, and when they do we'll be in even more trouble than just telling them flat out."

Reluctantly Kate had to agree to his point, she could be sure that her parents would try to come find her. They did it before and they'll do it again. However the thing she over looked was breaking the bond that held the packs together. What would happen when the two wolves that united the packs went separate ways? Surely it wouldn't cause them to split up and become hostile again? Those thoughts seemed to make her open up to his idea, but only slightly. The fate of her children was more important to her then her pack mates, and what she wanted the most was for them to grow up knowing their true father. Not some other wolf that she herself had trouble loving.

"We can't be sure of that." She replied, her tone calming but remaining stern.

"But is it worth the risk?" He asked.

She sighed "I don't know" her paws scraping the dirt from feeling nervous about the outcome of this conversation.

"I'm just trying to think of what's best for us, and I believe that this is it." He stated.

"How is this best for us?" She wondered. "We should be sticking together through this, not pushing each other away."

He couldn't help but agree with her, they should stick together and work things out by themselves. In a normal world that would be no trouble, but in their current situation, there weren't many options. "I know, and believe me I already regret having to do this. I want to be the father of my own pups but doing that here is forbidden..." He trailed off, a wave of realization hitting him.

"Then let me come with you." She suggested, her voice becoming soothing. "We can raise these pups together and maybe learn to make things work out between us. We were friends before this, and perhaps we can become lovers out there in the wilderness." She had moved up to his side so that they were mere inches apart.

He really wanted her to come with him; there wouldn't be much of an issue for them to maybe fall in love over time. They were close friends and could work well as a team, both of them against the world seems like an ideal future, but it was not meant to be. He was certain that she would be better off here in Jasper rather than abandoning everything she had ever known. As much as he would hate himself for doing this, this felt like the right thing to do. He would take the fall and blame if he had to in order for her to continue on a normal life. A selfless act that only an omega could go through with, putting others before him. It seemed logical to him but to Kate she saw no way of how it could be the best decision.

He was abandoning the wolf he spent an entire week with to mend their once broken friendship, a risk in its self but only worked out until this morning. The way they talked now wasn't exactly friendly, it was more like two wolves put together in an unfamiliar situation. Forced to work out the best conclusion that would make them both happy. Kate's idea of going with him would insure their friendship, which could maybe grow into more than that. Humphrey's old self would have no trouble in following through with it, for his old self loved her. But now was different, repairing a broken heart has made him a stronger wolf in some ways, and it was because of that which made him see that the more logical plan was his idea.

"No." He repeated, still resisting her to come with him. "Just think Kate, there's so much to lose if we both leave. If we split then you can keep everything that has been close to you and I can learn to move on and start my life over."

"But Humphrey, that just doesn't seem right!" She argued, clearly not wanting to listen to his crazy thoughts. Feeling a new fear from thinking they were heading for disaster.

"Look at me" He replied, holding out a foreleg as if he were pointing at himself. "Do I look like the wolf you want to spend your life with?" He was not fond where he was going to go with this, but he needed her to see the force behind his plan.

Her amber eyes looked at him from head to paw; she wasn't sure how to answer his question. It was obvious that they should spend their life together, as a consequence to their actions, but was it what she wanted? She could see them working out as a better couple then her and Garth, but what if they really didn't? Today wasn't a day she could think straight and she was sure that he wasn't, but the more he explained the more she found things to agree with. _Perhaps this is the best plan?_ She thought, feeling hopeless at thinking she would allow him to leave her behind and deal with raising their pups by herself.

"I can't answer that." She admitted, hanging her head.

Humphrey saw this as his moment clear her uncertainty, if she couldn't answer if he was the wolf she wanted to love then she deserved someone else. "Kate, you deserve better than me. You're an alpha at the top of your ranks, destined to become a leader. I'm just some omega, at the bottom of this pack. We're opposites; naturally we shouldn't be able to love one another, which is why you should learn to love Garth. Someone equal to you, who knows how to make good decisions, and according to law you should stay with him." He stated.

"But Humphrey how can you say that? You know how Garth and I get along; it would take a miracle for love to grow between us." She replied. Her mind was too clogged for her to take into full account that he had practically tore himself down in order to make her see that she was better off staying.

"And maybe that miracle is raising pups together." He suggested. Their eyes locked and he could see how confused she looked, he couldn't understand what her pain was like right now but he knew he was feeling something similar. While she was scared about their pup's future, he was scared about the pack learning what they did.

By now the sun was beginning to get lower in the sky as the day was nearing its conclusion. Kate seemed to notice that there couldn't be any decisions made today, she knew she wasn't thinking too clearly, and what she was thinking about proved more difficult then she anticipated. She needed some time to think before agreeing to Humphrey's plan, which is if she could agree to it once her thoughts were cleared.

"Honestly I don't think I can agree to your plan today, I feel horrible and I think I need some time alone to think, can I come back and meet you tomorrow?" She asked.

Humphrey paused for a moment before answering. "Alright, we should make a decision once we can think clearly, because I don't feel too well either." He agreed.

"Thanks." She replied and couldn't stop herself from pecking the side of his muzzle with her nose. "I understand you're trying to think of what's best for us but I think there's more we should discuss tomorrow."

He was surprised from her affection but accepted it, after what seemed like a rough day, it helped him see that there wasn't any hostility between them. She wanted to think something out as much as he did and he was glad that she was taking this alright. This day could have been worse in some ways, he could be facing her wrath if she had decided to blame him for last night. However it was not like that, they were being mature about it and accepted what they had done even if it was causing them to suffer right now. _Soon..._ He thought, watching her silently leave his den after saying goodbye. _Soon we'll be able to go back to living our lives Kate._

Originally he wanted to leave the pack tonight, but since Kate was uncertain he decided to wait. He couldn't help but agree that they should think it out more; however as evening turned into night his thoughts changed. He was restless, lying on the den floor, trying to get some early rest. His body felt fatigued from the amount of feelings running through him all day, this was an experience he felt before but this time he felt less helpless. He knew what he wanted to do, it was just a matter of Kate understanding it and realizing that it was for the best. They were destined for disaster, so why stand in its way?

It was during this restless state that Humphrey's fear took over; he needed to get out of Jasper as soon as he could. He didn't want to face the wrath of the pack leaders if their secret got out before he was gone. Also he didn't want to chance Kate coming up with her own ideas when they talked tomorrow. He tried his best to convince her today but wasn't sure how he could tomorrow is she continued to argue against him. It was fear that was driving him now, making him choose to just leave right away instead of waiting. He left his den and soon found himself staring down at the den grounds one last time. Each of the pack's dens were dimly visible in the moonlight, there was no time to say goodbye to his friends, he only hoped they would understand why he left in the days to come. He wanted out, and as quickly as he could.

He was going to miss this place, but now was his time to move on after making foolish choices. He reflected one last time on his choice, did he really need to leave Jasper, was there some other way? He didn't know but he made up his mind, he would leave and abandon everything he cared for. Not out of anger, but out of fear and his wellbeing along with Kate's, even if she didn't agree to it now. He felt so out of touch with himself; that once again he was broken for the second time, and it was caused by the same wolf as before. Yet how could he blame her for it? It was both of their faults rather than hers alone.

"I'm sorry Kate, but know this is for the best..." He said to himself before turning and running off toward the pack's border and eventually into the unknown forest beyond.

Fear is a dangerous emotion sometimes, for it can lead to drastic decisions, and as Humphrey ran he couldn't stop himself from thinking if he was making the right choice. Did he really want to abandon Kate in her time of need? He couldn't answer that honestly, maybe it was the right choice, and if not then they would have to live by it. For as soon as he crossed the border he would begin moving on from this difficult time and learn the ways of a lone wolf. However he still vowed to someday return to see his pups, they deserved to meet there real father even if it wouldn't be accepted. But that wouldn't be for a long time, now all that mattered was to put his plan into action; he just hoped that Kate wouldn't hate him for this.

* * *

**A/N: Interesting twist of events going on here. Humphrey's leaving Jasper and leaving Kate behind? That seems crazy but he feels it's right, yet is it really for his own good, or is he just trying to save himself? It's too soon to know for sure, and while this may seem like the start of a new life for him there is still plenty of unfinished business to take care of…**

**Yes I know I have been slow with updates, however I am going to take my time with this story. I don't keep it at the top of my priorities, and I certainly will not work on it if I don't feel up too it for fear of losing quality. So be patient, because by the end of it I want this to be my best work, something I'm proud of. -ChriZ **


	10. The Meeting

Chapter 10: The Meeting

The air was still as rays of sunlight streamed through the tree tops and onto the forest floor. Another promising day had arrived, but the bright light of early morning came as a nuisance for Humphrey as he slowly paced through the woods. He pulled an all-nighter traveling away from Jasper, only stopping to drink water from any stream he came across. Looking around the forest felt the same as Jasper, a mix of pine and birch with a few rocks sticking out of the grassy earth. However this day he wasn't admiring the beauty of nature, something he usually enjoyed. The fresh cool air and smells of early summer had no effect on him; the events of the past few days have turned him into nothing more than just a plain silhouette full of troubles.

His blue eyes were stained a hue of crimson from lack of sleep and peace from the chaos taking place in his mind, so immense that his head was pounding with the symptoms of a headache. Being too focused on getting away from Jasper he ignored the good idea of finding somewhere to rest until morning, and now that it had arrived he regretted not resting sooner. He felt like he was sick, so many things felt wrong inside him, nothing but problems and he had no idea where to begin solving them. It didn't help that his stomach was starting to growl for a meal and he made the foolish mistake of not at least eating before he left his home. If he planned to become a lone wolf out in these untamed woods then this surly wasn't the way to start.

Eventually as the light of day seemed to only add to his headache he decided to find a shady spot to rest at. He wasn't sure if he could manage to sleep but it was worth a shot if it meant relief to some of the pain he felt. As he searched all he could continue to think about was Kate, wondering how she felt waking up right now and realizing he had abandoned her. _'It was for the best...'_ He reminded himself, it was too late now. Sure he could turn around and head back to her at any moment but he didn't want too no matter how much he thought about her. She had her own problems to deal with just as much as he did, times were hard and in Humphrey's mind this seemed to be the best option for them.

His ears twitched at the sound of rushing water as another stream appeared before him; hugging tightly to the grove where the base of two hills met along the mountainside he chose to follow last night. He continued his search along the banks, checking for a flat spot or even a den like crevasse carved into the dirt. All the while his thoughts shifted to his main objective of coming out here. He considered himself a lone wolf now, and if he was going to be successful at it he needed a plan to survive. So he spent his time of search attempting to come up with a list of goals he needed achieve, such as finding a suitable place to call his new home.

After several minutes passed he finally found a place where he could lie down and try to get some rest before continuing on. Rest would do him well as he could hardly focus on thinking about one thing before he would either lose thought or end up going back to thinking about Kate. There was no way he could go on, he needed to clear his thoughts and focus on sleeping. Falling over on his side he landed with a hard thump and let out a deep breath to relax. It felt good to get off his paws and with a slight feeling of pleasure from it he closed his eyes and silently begged for his mind to let him rest.

_'Why must my life be such a mess at times...'_ He wondered as he listened to the sounds of nature that surrounded him from the rush of water in the nearby stream to the leaves as they rattled in the breeze. It was only a few months ago that he was in this same feeling of helplessness and battling with his emotions. He wanted to reach out for help but at the same time didn't, he wished he could take everything back and return to the beginning of this last week when he and Kate were starting to regrow their friendship. But now here he was, lying beneath a pine tree many miles away from his former home. He had to put the pass behind him and learn to move on from depression for the second time in his life, and this time without the help from his friends.

Surprisingly there was no challenge by his mind to stop him from resting and he slipped into the darkness of sleep within a few minutes. The sounds around him in the world of the living subsided as it was replaced by an eerie silence to coincide with the infinite darkness. Time passed by before he awoke to find himself walking through a dark forest only lit by a half filled moon hanging overhead. His heart began to pound as he wondered what was happening, he tried to stop so he could figure out where he was but it was as if his legs ignored him. He tried again but got the same result, no matter how much thought or effort he put into stopping his body continued to stride on at a steady rate, determined to get to a place that he had no idea about.

Looking around at the forest around him it all felt familiar, like he had been here many times before, it was then that he noticed the outline of howling rock jetting out about the trees beside him. _'I'm back in Jasper?'_ He thought to himself wondering why or how he got back here and wasn't in the place he fell asleep at. Everything was silent around him as he approached the base of the mountain his former pack gathered at every moon. All the while he continued to wonder where he was going, and he was starting to get the idea that he was on his way up to the top of howling rock. He gave up on gaining control of where he was headed as it was becoming more apparent that he was in some sort of dream. Everything around him felt like it was actually there and that he was back in the land he grew up at, except for the fact that there was an everlasting silence which creeped him out. What awaited him at the top of this mountain?

Higher and higher he climbed until at last, the summit was in sight, looking as it normally would on a clear night. The ground flattened out as he finally stopped in front of a smooth rock that gave way to an endless view of the landscape that surrounded Jasper Park. Being here only made him think more about Kate and he wondered if this was his mind at work making him dream about her. However he has seen no sign of her yet, and hoped it would stay that way. It took him a moment of standing there feeling a cool rush of wind blow past before he realized that he finally had control of his legs again. It seemed that this was the place his dream had taken him, but he still wondered what the goal of all this was, why was he here?

If this was a dream about being back home then why wasn't Kate in it? She has practically plagued his mind full of problems for the past few days, so how come this wasn't some dream to make him feel bad about leaving her behind? Suddenly a bright light erupted before where he sat causing him to quickly look away and shut his eyes in surprise. A white light flooded everything around where he sat as if a lightning bolt had struck before him, and much like it the light dissipated a few seconds later. He opened his eyes and was met in the glance of another wolf, dark brown in color that lightened as it reached the underside of their body. Their face was young and lighter in color with a lengthy mane to blend in with the rest of their fur; this wolf appeared to be not much older than him. Humphrey's eyes widened, "Who are you?" He immediately asked.

The wolf sat down on the rock it was perched on just above where he sat. "I have many names, most of which fall along the lines of guardian or overseer..." The wolf replied with a feminine voice as smooth as a flat pond in the morning. "But you may call me by my name, Jade."

Humphrey wasn't sure what she meant by that but he decided to roll with calling her Jade, maybe she knew why he was here. "Alright Jade, do you know why I'm here?" He asked. Her deep green eyes continued to fixate on him as he spoke, making his fur twitch uncomfortably.

"Simple question, you are here because you have had problems in the world of the living and I have been assigned to offer guidance." She replied.

"Guidance? You mean you know about my problems?" He asked, getting a feeling of uncertainty about whatever this wolf was on about.

"Not all of them, they never tell me that much. I only know that you have problems pertaining to a significant other, which once again, is the reason why we are here." She explained without hesitation.

Humphrey however was confused by way she spoke, who was they and better yet who really was this wolf? She seemed to already know about the problems he had currently yet he has never seen her in his life. He shook his head, "Okay backup, what is going on here? You are making no sense at all so could you please explain exactly why I'm here?" He asked.

"Ah yes an explanation, I can sense that I have confused and maybe even frightened you so I will try to make this simple." She replied. "As I've stated before my name is Jade, and I am what you would call a spirit, as I no longer live in the same forest as you do. Try not to think about that too much as it is not important to remember. What is important is that I, like many other wolf spirits, am assigned to offer guidance to any living wolf that is deemed to be going through difficult times. In this instance you are the one that's been chosen and so here I am. Trust me when I say that it's best not to focus on the reasoning's as our time here is limited and should be entirely spent discussing your troubles."

Humphrey took a moment to analyze before responding, "So you're saying that you're the spirit of a wolf who is now dead?" He asked.

"Not dead, just moved on into a new life." She replied.

"Okay then I think I must be going crazy if I'm dreaming about dead wolves whom I've never met." He stated with a sigh _'Great just what I needed.'_

"Think what you wish of me but I have a duty to fulfill and I suggest you take advantage of it. Now, Humphrey," She paused for a moment and took a deep breath. Humphrey seemed unfazed by the fact that she already knew his name, nothing felt real to him right now. "Tell me about this problem you have."

This was defiantly a different experience to Humphrey, he felt so uneasy on the inside, still confused about what exactly was going on. Was he hallucinating all of this as just a dream or was this actually happening, he had to be sure. He understood that time was limited and was told to ignore thinking about the fact that this was a spirit he was speaking too. Yet it just seemed so sudden, like a lot of things lately. Even if what Jade said was true about her being here to act as moral support he still didn't fully believe her.

"If you are who you say you are then prove it." He replied.

"If I do then will you move on and focus on taking advantage of the help I offer you. If you continue to question my authority then I'm sure there are far more important problems I could be attending to besides yours." She replied with a hint of annoyance, yet maintained her smooth tone.

"Sure whatever you say" He answered, ready to find out whether or not this was just another drawn out dream that his mind had created.

"Good" She replied before suddenly getting up and leaping down onto the ground right before him. "For starters I cannot interact physically with the living." She extended one of her forelegs and swiftly swung at him. Humphrey flinched, thinking for a moment that he was going to feel the impact but instead his eyes widened upon seeing it phase straight through his abdomen. A sense of cold accompanied it, as if she were made of ice.

"I can also say that I know all about your traits, you are an omega from the western pack located in a region named Jasper Park which happens to be where we are now." She paused and glanced around the mountain top they were on, "You are an orphan left to grow up without any true parents and you have an interest in making people laugh and have a good time." She continued without waiting for a reply from him. "Now do you believe me?"

Humphrey took a breath and was amazed that everything she said about him was true, even about his parents, which immediately spiked his interests. Did this mean that she knew things about his parents that he did not? "Well that stuff is all accurate, but if you know all this, does this mean you know about my parents?" He asked, he may not entirely trust her but if anyone had any information about his parents he would not resist to ask about it.

"I've met many wolves Humphrey, and your parents could be among them, but I have no reason to share anything about it, as it is not important right now. I know for a fact that this isn't the cause of your problems so could we please get on with this." She answered. "Most wolves jump on the opportunity to discuss ones problems with someone else but you however seem to be one of the few who do not." She added as she climbed back onto of the rock she originally sat on. It seemed with every second that passed she was growing more impatient.

Humphrey wasn't sure what to think about her answer, she neither agreed to it nor denied it. He had a reason to believe her now and her growing annoyance in the way she spoke only indicated more to him that time was valuable right now. This may be a dream, and Jade may just be a fragment of his imagination and not a spirit as she claimed. However he realized that it didn't really matter who she really was, he had a golden opportunity to discuss to someone about his problems. Previously he had his omega brothers to speak with but now that he was a lone wolf he couldn't have that anymore. Maybe he really could gain something out of speaking to her about Kate and all of his issues, it could even give him some strength to survive and focus on getting situated as a lone wolf.

He felt stupid for not just believing her in the first place, he's probably wasted so much time sitting here asking about things that she long before told him to not ask about. It was a waste of time but at least she was still here and hadn't left like she warned. "I'm sorry Jade, you are right that I'm wasting my time asking irrelevant questions." He stated, looking up at her after spending the past few moments looking at the ground.

A feint smile appeared on her face. "Ah I knew you would finally come around, just took longer than I thought." She replied.

"Yeah, it's now that I realize that you might be the only other wolf I get to speak to for the next few months and I should be taking full advantage of what you offer."

"You're right about that, now let's begin." She responded, sitting down. "Tell me all about your problems, no matter how personal. I'm not here to judge what you've done, only to offer advice and guide you in the right direction."

Humphrey took a breath before explaining his current situation regarding him and Kate, feeling uneasy about describing certain aspects of it. However Jade only sat and listened in silence, waiting for him to finish his explanation. He ended on stating that he had decided to leave Jasper and head out into the wilderness to become a lone wolf. Just talking about it wasn't as straight forward as he hoped as the familiar feelings of hurt and depression rushed back to him. There was no escape, but it pushed him on to continue pouring out the details in hope that Jade would give him advice to overcome it.

"...So here I am now, a lone wolf." He concluded.

"Ah young love, now I see why they sent me to you" Jade stated.

"And why's that?" Humphrey asked.

"Because I can relate to you in this instance, for when I was around your age I underwent some of the same things regarding love." She replied.

"Really?" He asked "So this means you truly can help me with this if you've already gone through it."

"I wouldn't say I've gone through everything the same as you have, everyone's life is different, but this at least makes it easier to discuss." She stated.

"Well then what did you go through?" He asked.

"I'm afraid it would be a waste of time explaining what happened in my past life. That's all distant now unlike you, in my opinion you still have a chance to end up with your ideal life if you make the correct choices. So let's focus on she-wolf, Kate right?" She replied, changing the subject back to him.

Humphrey understood and went along with what she asked. "Yeah her name is Kate."

"Alright how long have you known her?"

"For as long as I can remember, we were close friends growing up but now that we're older things aren't as great as they used to be." He answered.

"Have some sort of falling out?"

"You could say that, I don't know if you want me to go over all of that..." He replied, not exactly feeling positive about having to explain everything that went on between him and Kate before now.

"That's up to you, if it portrays to your current problems then feel free to do so."

"Well I will say that the main reason we fell out was because she didn't hold the same feelings for me as I did for her at the time. And showed it in a way that made me think that she lead me on as if she was playing some game with me before going off and marrying another wolf. However I know now that I was wrong." He responded.

"Are you in love with her?" Jade asked.

He took a moment before answering. "I used to be but now I don't know how to feel about her... With everything on my mind right now I don't know how to feel about a lot of things. She was everything to me many moons ago but after she surprised me with her arranged marriage all of that was crushed."

"I see, I'll leave it at 'it's complicated.'" She replied. "But what I want to know is how you ended up together during her heat cycle if you say that you no longer love her, and she's already married."

"Well that much I can explain, to make a long story short Kate hasn't been having the dream life as I once thought with the wolf she settled with. So she came to me asking if she could stay with me in my den during the season as an opportunity to get away from him and to catch up with me since we rarely talked over the past couple months. I agreed as I was already deciding on the idea of at least becoming friends with her instead of going further like I originally hoped." He explained. "Things were going well and I was enjoying spending time with her and eventually learning that the things I assumed about her in the past weren't exactly true. I could say that closure was the biggest thing I gained out of learning that, because it made me feel a fool for thinking that she hurt me on purpose." He was surprised at how words were flowing right though him as if this was a casual conversation.

Jade listened as pieces of the puzzle were slowly coming together, however she shook her head after he finished his explanation. "I will say that you were foolish to think that you could put up with her heat for the whole season. That is the toughest challenge, and I know that for a fact." She stated.

Humphrey sighed "I realize that now, everything was going well during the week and I thought that we could make it, but then we got talking and lost ourselves faster then I think either of us knew it…" He agreed, reflecting back on the night prior, still fresh in his mind.

"Heat can bring any pair of wolves into submission regardless of their relationship; it just depends on how strong they are to push past it. For you to make it as long as you both did I will say that you both have strong wills." She replied in a way that carried sympathy.

"But it wasn't enough, all that effort and now it's ruined. I have to live out my life as a lone wolf as my punishment for what we did because our pack would never accept an alpha and omega couple. Especially when she's already married and serves as the bonds that unites our pack with another. I can't even imagine what the pack will think when they find out she's holding my pups!" He couldn't stop himself from snapping and letting his pent up emotions get the better of him.

"It's alright Humphrey, let it all out. I wouldn't say it's all ruined, you still have a chance to turn this around in my eyes."

"How...?" He asked.

"What made you decide that becoming a lone wolf was the best option for both of you?" She answered.

"I thought it would be best if I took the fall by leaving since I have no family keeping me there."

"And she agreed to this?" She asked.

Humphrey paused, Kate never did agree to his idea of leaving yet his judgment told him that it was the best decision, however looking back on it now he was starting to feel some regret about it. "No not really, last thing she said to me before I left was that we would discuss a plan in the morning but I decided to just get up and leave anyway..." He replied.

She sighed. "Humphrey, Humphrey..." She said with a shake of her head. "You're not thinking logically, where you have ended up is the result of your own selfishness."

"How did being selfish bring me here?" He asked not quite believing her.

"Because you are too afraid to face the truth about your actions with Kate, you regret what you've done and therefore decided to run away from your problems by leaving her behind to deal with the real consequences of your actions." Humphrey was taken aback by the sudden hostility in her words, her smooth and mellow voice gone. "What do you think she's going through right now without you there? She could very well be carrying your pups and yet you've decided to fail your role as a father by ditching her."

Humphrey couldn't help himself from backing away slightly from the sharpness in her eyes that seemed to cut straight through him. Everything she said hit him to the core and all he could think about was Kate and feel a wave of grief crash over him. Jade had opened his eyes to his true situation, which he alone was to blame for being where he is now. He could still be in Jasper and probably already have a plan laid out but he let his fear take control of him. Kate needed him and he had failed her by leaving her side, the image of her having to raise pups who never knew their real father entered his head and it chilled him to the bone. Kate didn't deserve a life like that, she enough life issues as is.

Minutes of silence ticked by as Humphrey became consumed by his own anguish to the point that his eyes began to water. He felt horrible, a complete idiot, and he wanted nothing more than to take it all back and wish he had never listened to himself when he decided to leave Jasper. Jade meanwhile held her eyes closed ever since she snapped at him; however the sound of a choked back breath caused her to open them and see that Humphrey had broken down into tears.

She let out a soft sigh "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to seem so hostile about that, it's just that I can't tolerate wolves that are blind to their own actions sometimes." She said, calmness returning to her voice.

A moment passed before Humphrey looked up at her, his red eyes reflecting in the moonlight. "No it is I who should be sorry and thanking you. You've opened my eyes to all the wrong I've done Jade." He replied softly before sniffling.

"There's no need to thank me yet when we still haven't solved your problem." She replied.

"Yeah but what you just said made me realize that I have been selfish far beyond my normal self." He stated.

"Fear can make us do that Humphrey, some of us let it control everything we do in life but you can consider yourself lucky to get this opportunity right now, to have someone to speak to and point you in the right direction." She responded.

"I'm ready to hear what I need to do. I want to be there for my possible pups and Kate." He replied, regaining his composure and feeling a sense of duty.

Jade smiled a bit at his quick turn around, "What I have to say isn't an order to you, this is your life and it's up to you to go and make the right choices based on the events of this meeting." She stated. "However I would recommend that you go back to Jasper and more importantly back to Kate. If I had this opportunity to go back and fix the problems in my life I know what I would do, and you should be starting to get the idea now. You're an omega and the life of a lone wolf would be hard for you to mold into so you should have never left on that reason alone."

Humphrey already agreed with that, the second he left this dream he would head straight back to his home. However there was still the problem of what to do when he got back, what would he and Kate do to overcome their challenge? "What will I do when I get there? There's no way we can stay there and live a normal life." He asked.

"That is for you to decide, I know you can be an intelligent wolf and come up with amazing things if you put your mind to it, it's something you got from your mother." She answered.

"So you _do_ know my mother?" He asked, his curiosity growing inside him.

"All I can say is that you and she are a lot alike." She replied, but that wasn't enough for him.

"Tell me more about her then if you know her." He asked.

"I'm afraid that is for you to learn at a later time, I can tell that she means a lot to you but understand that there is a time and a place for everything." She replied.

Humphrey couldn't help but wonder what exactly she meant by that, here he was at the edge of learning something about his parents but was told to wait until another time. "I see..." He replied with a sigh.

"Fixing your problems with Kate is what's important right now Humphrey. Learning to set things straight between you two and form a solid relationship before your pups are born if she does become pregnant."

"I understand." He replied, letting go of it and focusing back on his current goal.

"So do you feel you're ready to make the correct choices upon returning to the world of the living?" She asked.

He nodded. "I know what I have to do now, to go and set things straight for not only me but Kate as well." He responded.

"Good because our time together has reached its conclusion." She replied as she looked beyond him causing him to turn around as well and see that the moon was setting, turning golden in color. "Promise me that you will discuss with no one about our meeting, what happened here is for your benefit and only stays between us."

He nodded, returning to face her, "I will, do you think we'll ever see each other again?" He asked. They had only just started to see eye to eye and now their time was over and he didn't feel eager to leave as not everything was laid out before him to fix the wrong he done. But at the same time he knew he could trust himself to make the right choices now that his mind had been cleared.

"Maybe someday our paths will cross again in our dreams, but until then I wish you the best of luck Humphrey. You have a bright future ahead of you so go and make sure that it happens." She replied.

Humphrey couldn't help but smile. "I can't thank you enough for all this Jade, you have shown me something I couldn't see myself and I will never forget about this dream."

Jade returned the smile with a nod of her head, "All part of my duty in this life but you are welcome." Just then her body began to glow, dim at first but quickly growing in intensity. "Goodbye Humphrey, remember that the choice you make today will affect the world you wake up to tomorrow..."

White light consumed every corner of Humphrey's vision as Jade's voice faded into infinity, and then before he knew it he was greeted with the vision of a great pine tree towering above him. The meeting was over and now he lay in the exact spot he fell asleep at only everything around him was stained red like fire due to the setting sun. He had been asleep all through the day which surprised him, his talk with Jade felt like it only lasted the length of a morning but it turns out he was wrong.

He let out a groan before getting up on his paws and stretching, his body felt stiff, especially his legs, but to his astonishment he felt fine otherwise. No more headache, no more depression holding down his moral, what happened in his dreams was not just some dream his mind made up. He really did think that he met with a spirit and seeked the guidance he needed to clear his thoughts. Right now all that mattered was to get up and get going back to Jasper, a sense of purpose burned within his chest. If Kate was pregnant with his pups then he would make sure that he would be there by her side, for the second he sees her again his is going to beg for her forgiveness. As for what to do about the pack finding out, he and Kate had a lot of discussing to do and this time he would be sure not to be absent for it.

* * *

**A/N: A bizarre turn of events for Humphrey, meeting with a spirit whose supposed job is to help the living with grave problems they face. What's the significance behind it? Well that's to discovered later as I believe it's time that Humphrey and Kate get their lives going on the right track.**

**As for the long break between chapters I truly am sorry about the wait, I didn't expect to lose all interest in A&amp;O as my life got busy in other areas but here I am, still alive and breathing. However I did warn you that I would not release another chapter until I held enough motive to finish one, and that's just what I did. Honestly I'm glad I took my time cause this is like the 4****th**** or 5****th**** version of this chapter I have come up with idea wise, and this version suits what I had in mind for the future. Anyway, thanks for reading and being patient, hopefully the next chapter won't take as long to complete! **


	11. Crossroad

Chapter 11: Crossroad

The sun was barely peeking over the mountains when Kate awoke in her den to be greeted by a dim golden light, shining through the treetops just outside. She lied there for a few moments, staring around the den aimlessly before eventually rolling onto her side and scratching out her legs and back, which relieved a stiffness she felt. Her night had gone unusually pleasant; she couldn't remember a single time she awoke in the middle of the night, nor any sort of dream. Her sleep had been deep and quick, to the point where it flew by in the matter of moments. This seemed bizarre to her as she continued to wake up, her mind had been going through such a mix of thoughts and emotions that she was sure that there was going to be no chance of a good night's sleep. However here she was, refreshed and in a neutral state of thought, feeling eager to start her day and see what it held in store.

With this feeling she wasted no time in getting up onto her paws and giving one last good stretch before heading toward the entrance of the den. It was time she went to see Humphrey like she promised to do when she woke up. They had more discussing about their situation to do and she held hope that by the end of the day they would have a solution. Upon exiting her den she took a breath of the fresh mountain air and gazed around at the forest. All was quiet as she strolled through the far side of the den grounds, some wolves were already awake and a few greeted Kate as she passed by. She returned the gesture without slowing down, too focused on her own thoughts to say anything further than 'good morning'.

She could tell that the pack was starting to return to its usual routines now that mating season had come to pass, no more having to overload the alpha males with hunting and patrolling while the females took it easy. It was only a matter of time until she would be assigned into doing duties as well, however maybe not as often as before if it turns out she's pregnant. That got her to thinking about the symptoms which would confirm that theory. They only thing she knew from her mother was that when a female first becomes pregnant she experiences a short nauseous feeling. So far Kate felt fine but knew she should take it easy and be prepared just in case this suddenly happens. However she hoped it wouldn't, that she managed to luck out and nothing happens, though from what her mother told her the chances of that were slim to none.

'_I guess only time will tell..._' She thought to herself, the concept of her carrying pups filled her with a tense feeling. She was far from ready to be a mother; her own life was already unstable enough without parenting thrown into the mix. But it was too late to dwell on the thought of whether or not she was ready, she made that decision two nights ago and now she teetered on the edge of the consequences from it. Sooner or later she would have to face the truth of it and manage to get herself prepared for the day she had more mouths to feed besides her own. This is why she hoped that her and Humphrey would stick together and raise the pups, rather than having to turn to Garth like he suggested.

Everything was just too complicated, and their argument last night helped show that. She was glad that they were both on the same page when it came how they felt about their mating; they blamed themselves for it which made things a little easier. Though they didn't see eye to eye about what to do next, and now that a night has passed Kate was sure Humphrey's thoughts would be clear like hers were at the present. Perhaps he would see the error in his previous idea and move on to thinking of a better one.

Humphrey's den came into view after a couple minutes passed since she left her den. Kate approached slowly, taking a few breaths to ease her thoughts before entering the small crevasse in the ground. "Humphrey?" She called in pleasant tone, feeling glad about getting to see the only other wolf who shared her problems. However the slight smile on her muzzle faded when she entered the den and found it empty without any sign of him. The only thing she sensed was his scent which wafted through her nostrils; it wasn't strong, indicating that he hadn't been here in some time. She grew confused '_Where is he?_' She expected to see him lying there waiting for her to arrive but that turned into a lie. She took one last glance around the den before heading back the way she came.

She felt her heart beat rise slightly and forced herself to take a breath as she stopped before the entrance of his den. '_It's alright; he's bound to be around here somewhere._' She told herself before beginning to ponder the possible places he could be. The most suitable reason she found was the idea that he could be out for a walk through the territory, something she knew he did regularly. '_Perhaps he had a rough night and needed to think._' The concept seemed fitting enough but she decided to head to the den grounds just in case he was there instead.

The morning continued to advance while Kate walked through the center of the packs den grounds and eventually the feeding grounds; however there was no sign of Humphrey's signature grey pelt anywhere. At this time a majority of the pack was awake and active, with a fair amount of them gathered around to have their share from the fresh kill pile. Upon seeing this while Kate approached the feeding grounds she decided that it would be best for her to get a bite to eat herself. She couldn't say that she was hungry but now was a better time considering she had nothing else to do while she waited for Humphrey to show up.

Walking up to the pile of Caribou, squirrels, and other prey she grabbed the best take she could find before having a seat beside a nearby tree. A dull roar filled the air as wolves discussed varying things and enjoyed their meal, Kate however sat by herself. Normally she would look for any alphas she knew hanging around and make conversation but today she felt out of it. Instead she focused on eating and occasionally glancing around at the environment around her. It gave her some more time to think of ideas and solutions, which seemed like it was all she was going to think about from now on until she had success.

"Good morning Kate" A voice greeted.

Kate looked up from her meal to recognize Humphrey's two close friends Salty and Shakey standing before her. "Oh, good morning" She replied kind of awkwardly as she wasn't paying attention the moment prior. "What's going on?" She asked, it wasn't often she spoke with these omegas so there had to be something they wanted to ask of her.

"Oh nothing major, we were just wondering if you've seen Humphrey anywhere?" Salty asked.

She shook her head, "I haven't, and actually I've been looking for him because I didn't find him in his den this morning." She replied, realizing that she wasn't the only one looking for him.

"Yeah we looked there too, do you have any idea where he could be?" He asked. "We wanted to take him out and help cheer him up a bit since I'm sure you're both under a lot of stress."

Kate admired their kind gesture; Humphrey sure did have a tight bond with his friends who seemed to all care for one another. '_If only I had that..._' She wondered, she did have her sister for support but that was it, she didn't have a group of friends that she knew she could turn to. Typically she had her family for that but in this current situation she could only seek help from one of them. However as she was told yesterday, this is something she and Humphrey personally had to deal with. "Well if he's not with you guys then my only guess is that he's out for a walk somewhere." She replied. "I've been looking for him because we agreed to spend time discussing our problem today." She added, thinking they knew all about it already.

"Ah yes, how is that going?" He asked, "If you don't mind me asking?"

She didn't mind at all, but at the same time she knew they were surrounded by a good majority of the packs ears, who could easily eavesdrop on their conversation. "I don't, but try to keep your voice down, the last thing me and Humphrey need is more wolves finding out." She answered, lowering the tone of her voice.

She watched his eyes widen, "Oh right, sorry" He replied quickly upon noticing his mistake and lowered his voice as well.

'_At least they're polite_' she thought to herself, but wondered just how safe their secret was in the paws of Humphrey's friends. "To say the least we've made little progress." She stated.

"That's a shame; I figured you would already have an idea to follow after yesterday." He replied, there was a slight uneasiness in his voice but she ignored it.

"I thought that too but we decided that it would be best to get some rest before getting serious about it." She agreed.

"That's good at least, I'm sure you both will come up with something soon." He stated.

"I hope so" She replied.

There was a short pause before Salty took a breath, "Well that's all we needed to ask, Shakey and I got some other things to take care of, but if we see Humphrey we'll be sure to send him your way." He responded, while Shakey nodded in agreement.

"Oh good, thanks" Kate replied.

"Anytime," He replied with a nod of his head as Shakey turned and started to walk away. Salty however hesitated to follow for a moment, "I just want to see Humphrey get his life on track, these past few months have been hard on him, especially right now. I can't speak for him but I don't think he'll be truly happy until the two of you are together as something more than friends. All the drama he's had has revolved around his relationship with you, and you might not see it but you mean a lot to him even if he says you don't, at least that's what I see. I don't know why I'm telling you this but I rarely speak with you and figured I should let you know that, in hopes that the both of you decide to stick together through this." He explained before turning away and following Shakey out of the den grounds.

Kate said nothing after she heard that, surprised by what she heard. She understood all about the drama she's caused Humphrey but Salty's statement struck a chord within her. The fact that she meant a lot to Humphrey seemed strange to her, with all the problems she's caused him she would expect him to just move on and get over her. Something he did try to do but as of last week gave up on and returned to becoming her friend again. Her mind continued to dwell on the subject as she got up and put the remainder of her meal into the scrap pile before leaving the feeding grounds. She decided to head back to her den and remain there until Humphrey came looking for her, there was still plenty of morning left so she expected to start seeing him later in the day. If not then she would have to start searching for him a second time, something she didn't like the sound of.

The longer they went without speaking the closer they got to her showing signs of whether or not she was pregnant. At that point she feared it would be too late if she had to go see her mother and make sure she was okay, perhaps taken there due to Garth's concern if he found her getting sick. The thought of Garth made her wonder if she should tell him all about what really happened between her and Humphrey. If the two of them decided to leave Jasper it would only be fair that he knew the real reason why considering he was supposed to be her mate by marriage. Garth already did put together that she had spent the season with Humphrey, something he brought up when they discussed last night before falling asleep.

Kate worried what his reaction would be, he seemed easy going and they hadn't grown close but she cheated on him with Humphrey. She knew he's tried to make their fixed marriage work out and the news of this could hinder all effort he's put into that. It has hard to know; he could even go straight to his father or her parents and confront them about it. Though she again believed that he of all wolves needed to know, at least upon the moment she and Humphrey have a plan. The more she thought about a plan the more she felt like leaving was going to be the best option. To brave the chance to start everything anew much like the coming of spring every year.

As she crossed through the den grounds she heard her name called and looked over to her side to see her mother and father approaching. "Good morning Kate" He father said as they stopped before her.

"Good morning, how are you guys this morning?" She replied with a smile, coming to a stop as well.

"Doing well, your mother and I were just on our way to the feeding grounds." He answered. "You're welcome to join us if you like."

"Oh I already had my share for the day; I was on my way back to my den." She replied, it's been a few days since she spoke with her parents but it seemed nothing much had changed with them. If only she was the same way, all she could do was smile and clear her thoughts in hopes of pretending that nothing was wrong.

Winston nodded in response, "That's great dear, I wanted to ask how you are feeling since I haven't seen you around in a while." Her mother chimed in.

"I feel fine mom, I think I can say that my heat is finally gone. I've just been doing what you said and took things easy." Kate replied.

Eve smiled, "Oh good to hear, I came out of mine yesterday." She admitted. "Who did you say you stayed with again?"

"One of my alpha friends who was skipping the season too." Kate quickly replied but to her the question seemed so sudden, '_Oh please don't tell me they figured it out too..._' She wasn't sure how well she would be able to manage to explain her choice in staying with Humphrey, especially when it came to her mother.

"Really? Because your father and I have heard you decided to stay with Humphrey." Eve stated.

Almost immediately her fears were answered, feeling her heart beat flutter she began to debate on what to say in her thoughts. How was it that she felt so broken when speaking to her own parents now? All her life she had no trouble in communicating with them about problems but after she and Garth married things just seemed to get challenging. To the point of now; where it seemed like her parents were the enemy when it came to the problems she faced with Humphrey. It hurt her to an extent, having to lie to the face of her own parents, but at the same time it was for her own protection. She couldn't imagine the consequences she faced if they knew everything; she's never done something so wrong to comprehend one. Doing her best to calm the panic rising in her chest she took a breath before replying to her mother's assumption.

"H-How did you know?" She asked.

"Well I had an assumption judging by how I noticed you heading in the direction of his den during the past week, but it wasn't made clear until I spoke with Garth this morning who confirmed it." Winston replied.

'_Great..._' She thought. Now how could she go and tell Garth about her real problem when he could easily tell her parents about it. Though to his credit she never told him not to tell anyone, but assumed that he would keep it to himself. "Yeah I did choose to stay with him." She admitted.

"Kate what were you thinking, do you realize how foolish that was?" Eve asked in a stern tone.

"I had nowhere else to go mom, all the other females I knew weren't exactly skipping the season so I had to look elsewhere." She replied, her tone rising slightly in response to her mothers.

"Then why didn't you go back and stay with Garth?" Eve asked.

"Eve relax, there's no reason to get upset." Winston stated looking at her before looking back to Kate for her answer.

She sighed "Because I wanted to become friends with Humphrey again, we hadn't really talked much since Garth and I got married so I figured I'd take the chance to catch up." She explained, looking to the ground then back up to her parents.

Winston seemed satisfied by the answer but Eve appeared to have a million questions on her mind. "And he agreed to do this during mating season?"

"Not at first, but yeah after I convinced him that I would do my best to reduce my scent." She replied, growing nervous by the second.

"Did he try anything on you?" Eve asked.

She immediately shook her head, "Not at all, nothing like that happened between us. All we did was talk stories and play games to pass the time, honestly it wasn't as hard as I thought to force through the urges I got." She defended.

Eve gave her a good long look, before sighing. "Kate that still was a huge risk to take, what would you have done if he lost control of himself?"

"It was a risk I was willing to take if it meant I could regain a friend I've had since I was a pup." Kate replied, taking her question as a challenge, to prove that they had nothing to be suspicious about between her and Humphrey. "I would have done all that I could to get away from him if that happened but he never got close to that point, I just kept leaving and washing off in the stream anytime he told the scent was getting strong."

"Well I'm glad to hear that, but it would have been nice to know you were staying with him." Eve replied, appearing to simmer down.

She nodded, "I'm sorry, I just wasn't sure what you guys would think of me doing that." She admitted, deciding that least she could do is come clean about half of the truth she could get away with.

There was a short pause, "Kate you are old enough to make your own decisions now without our input, but I do agree with your mother. You should have done this at some other time rather than during mating season." Winston stated. "You know the rules about alphas and omegas mixing."

Kate was kind of relieved that her parents seemed understanding of it, and it seemed they suspected nothing more. "I know, but the timing just seemed to fit, and believe me dad I understand how foolish it was from the start."

They both smiled after that, "Well I guess that settles that" He replied. "Your fine to be friends with Humphrey since you've known each other for so long, just remember that your duty as an alpha comes first."

"Thanks dad, I will." Kate smiled, glad that her dad was taking it well. Winston always seemed to be the most understanding whenever she did something unwise, rarely getting upset. Her mother on the other paw was different, however Kate was thankful she didn't jump to conclusions and go after Humphrey. She could recall clearly the time when she and Humphrey returned from Idaho and her mother found out the real reason they were taken away. She couldn't stand to see her over react like that, and all Kate could do is wonder what Eve would really do to Humphrey if she learned they actually mated during her heat cycle. She gulped as a few ideas came to mind, none of which were pleasant.

"Just try to keep us in the loop of things, your father and I are busy enough with the pack to always keep an eye on you and your sister." Eve said pleasantly, holding her light smile.

All Kate did was nod, trying to hold her smile. "I understand, have a good day." She replied, hoping to take the opportunity to get away while she still could.

"You too sweetie" Eve replied before starting to head in the direction of the feeding grounds.

"Don't take it too hard with what mom said darling, she was just kind of shocked when I told her about you and Humphrey." Winston stated before following his mate, "Go and enjoy your day too."

"Yes dad" She replied watching them stroll away.

As soon as they were out of earshot she let out a deep breath, a wave of relief flowed through her along with grief. She was glad that the conversation went over better than she expected it, but the whole time she could feel her heart racing and blood running hot. Fearing she may slip up on her words and express that she had something to hide beyond what her parents thought they already knew. At least now she could relax slightly, they knew about who she really stayed with during mating season and seemed to expect nothing more of it. Just a slap on the paw if anything.

She began to resume her walk back to her den, all she wanted to do now was to go curl up on the soft dirt and get away from where she was now. She should feel glad about not having to worry about her parent's curiosity into what she was up to anymore but the conversation she just had was difficult to stand through. Humphrey needed return from wherever he was; she couldn't hang in a state of hopelessness any longer, not knowing what to do next. She would give him until evening to come find her; if not then she would have to look for him again. She respected the idea in her mind that he was somewhere in the territory having some alone time, but he needed to hurry up. Little did Kate know that Humphrey was much farther away than she expected, miles away in some unknown forest that shared the same appearances as Jasper.

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**A/N: Hmm seems like Kate's day is off to an unplanned start, Humphrey going missing and her parents figuring out about her decision to catch up with Humphrey during mating season. However it appears to flow over well with them, which could help get them off her trail while she and Humphrey think of their next moves. Sorry if this chapter seems like it doesn't have much going on, I had a scene I wanted to add on to the end of it but I'm pushing it over to the next chapter so it ties better with the other things that go on in it. **


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