Cohen’s back slammed into the hard-packed Earth, and that combined with the two hundred pounds of muscle on digging into his chest, the wind was completely knocked out of him. He supposed that if he were human a few ribs would have cracked, but because he was a werewolf, his back might be sore for about five minutes. One of the many perks of sharing your soul with a beast.

“You good, man?” Nathan asked, standing up and offering him a hand.

“Yeah,” He grumbled, taking his hand and allowing himself to be pulled up. He actually wasn’t okay at all, but Nathan didn’t need to know that.

“Cohen!” David called out. He was in charge of training for the day, and by the growl in his voice he was not pleased with Cohen’s performance during the spar. It was rare that any of the other wolves his age pinned him, but his head just wasn’t in it today. He bid Nathan a goodbye, and jogged over to the Head Warrior, who was frowning at Cohen like his entire being was an annoyance.

“Where’s your head at, Pup? You’re distracted.” David asked once he was close enough, to which Cohen shrugged. What was he supposed to say? That he had found his mate, but his mate not only had a penis and a pair of balls to match, but they were a witch who was apparently much stronger than his Alpha wolf so he couldn’t even reject them? Oh, and now Axe was going stir crazy because his mate was much too close to the only openly gay teenager in town, and the idea of Isaiah touching Silas made Cohen want to rip the human’s head off. And even further, the idea of himself touching Silas plagued his thoughts constantly, but also made him sick to his stomach and made him want to throw himself off of a cliff.

Obviously, he wasn’t going to voice any of that, instead he said, “I’m just tired.”

David must’ve seen how dead he was on the inside because he was clapping him on the shoulder roughly. “Go rest for today then. Better not miss the run tonight though.”

“We should go see him.” Axe perked up in his mind immediately as he left the training grounds and headed towards their house. Cohen internally rolled his eyes, “Don’t you even fucking think about it.”

“Silas is made for us, Cohen. You haven’t even given him a chance.”

He flinched slightly, hating the aching pain in his chest just from his name. He needed to figure out a way to reject him, and soon. “And I’m never going to, so get fucking used to it.” He growled back, before mentally blocking Axe out.

Cohen was inside at that point, but he didn’t bother to greet any of his family as he made his way upstairs, too peeved to even think about being friendly at the moment. Once he was in his room, he flopped down on his bed, not caring that he was gross from training. He just enjoyed the feeling of the air conditioning on his overly hot skin as he dozed off.

It was dusk when he woke up, and it only took a few moments to realize that he was in his wolf form, and even now, he could feel his control over his body ebbing. Cohen could also feel the pull of the full moon, how it was calling out to both him and Axe. Selene was at the height of her power, and it was something she liked to share with her beastly children.

Axe was already fighting for control, surging forward in their mind, trying to force their body to stand and leave the house. The wolf’s thoughts weren’t verbal at the moment, too addled by the moon to bother with English, but were abstract images and intentions. Judging by the blond witch plaguing his forebrain, it wasn’t hard to figure out his plans for the night.

Panic flitted through him as they stumbled out of the bed, staggering into the desk and knocking off an assortment of half-empty water bottles and cups as they struggled. It was only a matter of minutes before he lost consciousness anyway, giving Axe free reign of their body for the night, but he couldn’t just let him ruin everything without a fight first. “Axe, we can’t just disappear for the night. We’re supposed to go on a run with the pack-“ The stupid wolf blocked him out, throwing up a metaphorical wall between them. Generally speaking, Axe was really laid back for an Alpha wolf. He almost always trusted his judgement, and only intervened when he felt necessary. This was apparently non-negotiable to him, and the last thing Cohen remembered is the wolf nosing his way out of the front door before he sank into darkness.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

The morning after a full moon is always disorienting. Cohen’s body is usually stiff and unbalanced, and he’s sure he resembles a newborn foal stumbling around and trying to figure out how to walk on two legs again. He’s usually pretty achey too, the transition from wolf to human is never that easy, but it’s especially difficult after a full moon, like he’d forced himself into the wrong body, one that wasn’t quite big or furry enough.

So when Cohen regains consciousness, the sunshine filtering through the window and bathing the room in light, he’s a little confused about how relaxed he feels. Even more confusing though, was that someone was in his bed. He could feel their nose on his jugular, nuzzling the scent glands on either side of his neck.

Before he could even think about it, he flipped their positions, pinning the intruder beneath him. Someone was in his territory uninvited, someone who certainly wasn’t his mate, so they didn’t have any business here, and it made him angry. A low, guttural growl was rumbling out of his chest before his brain finally caught up to his instincts, and he recognized the other wolf as Lennon.

Immediately he backed off, climbing off of her like he’d been burned, and backing away until his back hit the far wall. “Fuck, I’m sorry. I’m sorry.” He apologized, voice still a little gruff, watching as her body trembled, head tilted back and exposing her delicate neck. Cohen hadn’t meant to go all Alpha on her, but she’d caught him off guard. Not to mention, that she knows not to enter a wolf’s room without their permission.

Once the tremors came to a stop, and she was sitting up, her eyes watching him warily, did he speak again. “I’m sorry, but why the fuck are you in my room, scenting me while I’m fucking sleeping?” Cohen crossed his arms over his chest, scowling at his best friend. He had tried to keep the edge of authority out of his voice, but Lennon flinched slightly, looking like she might collapse again at any moment.

“Saving your ass.” Her voice was a little shaky, but she managed to glower at him. “You reek of witch and I’m pretty sure you missed the pack run last night.”

Oh. Right. Cohen had been hoping that maybe Axe had listened to him, but judging by how silent the wolf was being, he had paid Silas a visit last night. “Goddess.” He sighed, plopping down on his desk chair, putting his head in his hands. “I am so fucked, Lennon. What am I going to do?”

There was a shuffling, Lennon getting out of the bed, and then she was standing beside him, rubbing her hand over his back. “There’s always our pact.”

“I don’t think… I can’t.” He mumbled. He loved Lennon, but not like that. Even the idea of taking her as his mate made him uneasy, they were seventeen for fucks sake. “You haven’t even met your mate yet.”

“Well… there’s always a mating specialist.” She mused, “We could make a trip out of it.”