I can’t bear to respond, flustered to my core. By the time I can pry my eyes off Sarah’s adorable marshmallow cheeks, Rainn has taken off down the path, leading the little ones with brisk strides. She doesn’t bother looking back despite a few stragglers. But as they keep their eyes trained on me instead, I realize they’re waiting - keeping me looped into the pack. 

“Thank you for waiting, pups! Let’s get going so we don’t miss anything Teacher Rainn says.”

With a gasp, the pups scramble over a massive fallen log, darting after Rainn. I laugh, enamored by their excitement. That alone tells me Rainn’s classes are priceless. Best of all, Sarah lets out a gurgly laugh with me.

“It’s all so exciting, isn’t it, Sarah?” I giggle along with her, rubbing her little back in my palm. My heart races as she gazes into my eyes in pure trust, releasing another wave of flowery, happy baby scent.

We catch up to Rainn, stilling ourselves with the hush of the surrounding pups. They’re honed in on Rainn’s point.

“Can someone tell me what this is?”

“A footprint!” A little voice shouts from the bushes behind Rainn.

She smiles. “Yes! What type of footprint?”

“Deer,” says a chorus of high voices.

“Excellent! Can any of my littles tell me what else they notice? How long ago our deer visited this part of the forest, and where did they go?”

A few pups around 6 to 7 jump eagerly with their hands up, and Rainn laughs. “I know you know, my big loves. Let the little ones respond first.”

The little ones are extra little today, the nearest toddler seemingly just reaching three. She gapes in frozen silence, only glancing between Rainn and I with her eyes.

“Tell me what your nose notices.” Rainn’s lowered voice hushes the group. Our collective silence draws out the sound of the gentle air current, wind billowing our clothes and rustling the leafy overgrowth.

Little pups stoop to sniff the deep deer hoof impression in the fresh mud. Each time another pup rushes over, they smash their own prints in the fresh mud, collectively smearing each other’s backs as they topple over one another. Some return to the bushes and trees, attempting to peek over the tops of everyone’s heads.

One tiny pup in particular wobbles, popping upright too fast. I catch her just in time, but Rainn grants her a beaming smile, widening the little one’s eyes. The toddler sucks her thumb, using her free hand to point behind the group.

Rainn claps rapidly, letting out a sharp giggle. “Yes! Oh, Goddess, yes! You are so good at this, Chels! That’s exactly where the deer went!” 

The little one breaks into a breathy smile, proudness emanating from her form as she claps for herself. It tears my heart from my chest with overwhelming affection, begging me to squeeze her little cheeks.

But as the rest of the pups chime in, discovering together how many hours ago the deer passed through these trees, I slump into myself.

These tiny Lycan children can track scents effortlessly. I don’t even know how to pick out a scent, let alone decipher what portion of the scent would tell me its age. 

I gasp, startled from my thoughts by Sarah’s sudden mouthing of my chest. She wriggles in my arms, her breath speeding into an anxious pant when she realizes I’m not rushing to breastfeed her.

“O-oh, uh–” My cheeks burn hot as Rainn meets my eyes.

“Oops, someone’s hungry!” Rainn opens her arms for Sarah, but not after whipping a breast from her tank top.

My jaw drops, feeling like I’ve been dropped off in another country for the day - not because she’s breastfeeding, but because she’s a teacher feeding a stranger’s child from her body.

But the pups continue to discuss the deer tracks, and Sarah latches on, everyone behaving as if this is completely normal. Sarah suckles away as Rainn holds her one-armed, squatting back down with the rest of the class, but I’m left standing with my head still spinning.

Rainn does a double-take, breaking into a giggle. Oh, yeah. I forgot to mention I gave birth to Sarah about six months ago. All I can do is gape. Rainn adjusts Sarah, stroking her head as Sarah gulps down ravenous drinks. Between us, I’m happy to be a teacher-mom for thousands of kids, and carry pups for those who can’t. Rainn winks. Plus, this way I can get a full night’s sleep.

My brain catches up with what Rainn just disclosed, connecting Sarah’s doe-brown eyes to Rainn’s gorgeous features.

Rainn, I had no idea you were a surrogate!

With a happy nod, Rainn kisses Sarah’s head. And I’m slowly getting myself ready to carry another pup for a new family, hopefully by next year. That little one – climbing the tree with those cute little pin curls – he was the first pup I carried.

My heartstrings strum as I follow Rainn’s nod, finding a toddler with a bright, gummy smile holding hands with who must be his best friend. They rescue a fat worm together, depositing it into the bushes before it can be stepped on. It reminds me of Amy and me; Amy always admired how I could notice all the little details in the world, long before we knew why my brain works like it does. But Noah’s little sister was the one who granted this boy life. The more I look at his sharp features, softened only by round cheeks and an elated smile, the more he looks like a tiny, cheerful Noah.

I’m torn. On one hand, I’m staring into a possible future I’ve always wanted. On the other, I know in my heart that Noah didn’t have the freedom this little one did. I felt it the second we bonded; something dark and brooding, poisoning the depths of Noah’s emotions.

But today’s pups of Greenfield seem different. Rainn not only created this safety for her students, but also brought two of them to life. I look back at her with newfound wonder. Her profile is ignited in the sun’s glow as it peeks through the forest canopy, giving her an added air of royalty.

“Teacher Rainn, you’re the coolest woman I’ve ever met,” I whisper.

She peeks up at me, gaping before she dissolves into blushing laughter. But the pups chime in, patting her arms and tugging on her clothes.

“You are!” One of the older pups shouts.

A little one stands on her toes, pushing through the crowd to mold herself to Rainn’s side. “I-I love you!”

Rainn’s laughter brightens, filling the forest with more open love than I’ve witnessed in another teacher. But I know the feeling well. They really are our daytime kids.

Which is also why my attention zips behind me, pulled by pure instinct. “Where are you all off to?”

“Tracking the deer!” A distant voice cries.

But another head pops out of an even further bush. “Not me! I smell Alpha Noah!”

This gathers everyone’s attention. Before we can stop them, pups spill into the thickets, darting away from us. It ignites a primal fear in my chest, but Rainn calmly pulls herself upright, lifting Sarah over her shoulder to burp her. Her tranquility relaxes my shoulders, especially as she smiles adoringly at her class.

“Alpha Noah, huh? Well, who can tell me how long ago he scouted this section of the forest for his daily check?”

My heart races at the thought, still unable to grasp how my regal mate exists. The first time I saw him shift for a perimeter run, bristling with focus, every bone in my body trusted the territory he protects. I never felt safe in this winding forest growing up, but Noah’s presence changed everything for me.

“Alright, Teacher Luna, here she is.” Rainn plops a milk-drunk Sarah back into my arms. 

Sarah’s eyes droop with satisfaction. I erupt into adoring, silent giggles, overcome with Sarah’s smacking lips. 

But by the time I can sort her wispy hair back into order, I get the sense we’re no longer standing back from the crowd.

I gasp as little noses sniff the air around me, a pile-up of bodies gathering at my feet. “Oh, my– What do we smell, now?”

“We told you. Alpha Noah!” A pup shakes his head as if that’s the most obvious answer in the world.

I sputter out laughter. “I did say goodbye to him recently, so I’m sure I do smell like–”

Words escape me as pups flood my immediate surroundings, sniffing my legs in a voracious wolf pile until I nearly topple over. Rainn steadies me, but the pups’ laughter rises throughout the forest, spurring me into contagious giggles. Self-control lapses from there; we’re all cracking up, excited to share this space together. 

But a scent catches my nose: the sweetest, most endearing hint of cinnamon and sugar I’ve ever smelled.

I lift my head, feeling the eyes on me.

Noah and I lock stares.