---Thorn's POV---

I shot up from the bed when a pained scream echoed through my ear. It buzzed painfully but that didn't matter, nor the lightheaded feeling that threatened to pull me down but right now, all my attention was pulled to Blake as he was biting his lips to stop himself from screaming again.

Bidziil was already hovering over the twisting boy but he glanced at me briefly before focusing back on Blake, who was jerking under his hold. "Calm down Thorn, he's changing but I don't want him to wound himself or anyone else here."

Oh. Blinking the sleep away, I noticed why Bidziil felt he needed to reassure me; even though I hadn't thought about them, the entities were lingering just at the corner of the hallway, flickering with each pained grunt coming from Blake's lips.

I stumbled on my legs when Bidziil slid his arms underneath Blake and pulled him up, walking out the room with me hot on his heels. "Where's Lyra?" I asked when I didn't see her anywhere, feeling my heart starting to race in my chest as fear dug its claws in my heart.

Bidziil shouldered his way past the door before adjusting his hold when Blake growled and jerked his arm away from the touch. "She's fine, mom's looking after her since she woke up several times tonight."

Right, they both were shifting...I sighed and brushed my hand over my face as I followed Bidziil, feeling incredibly useless and weak. Not to mention that I felt like there was something I was forgetting, some form of knowledge resting just out of reach.

A snarl shook me from my musing, just to see black fur sprouting from Blake's shoulders, his hair growing longer while he growled, spun and twisted in Bidziil's hold. My eyes shot up to the sky, where I noticed a small speck circling above us; somehow I just knew that was Alduin.

"Thorn, you better step back and let him connect to his wolf. He won't know who he is nor who we are." Bidziil stated softly, the warning tone underlining the way he eyed me closely, as if daring me to protest.

I simply shivered and sat down on the floor, feeling a shakiness in my limbs that had nothing to do with the sharp nip in the air. My blue eyes were fixed on Blake's shifting golden ones, who stared back at me while his bones snapped and shifted. He whined and that sound was what made me snap.

Before Bidziil could stop me or even shout out a warning, I had crossed the clearing and was now sitting with Blake's furry head on my lap, brushing my fingers soothingly through his fur.

"Thorn!" I looked up to meet Bidziil's fiery eyes bur felt calm and collected, knowing his temper might snap if I said anything wrong. "I need to be here, don't ask me why, I just know. I'm perfectly safe."

But how? How do I know this for sure? I know it as surely as I know I need air to breath... I shook my head to get rid of these confusing thoughts because I'll probably never find out why I am this way. I don't even know what I am anymore.

Did I ever know what I was?

Blake's golden eyes snapped up to my face, as if he felt what I was thinking and let out another whimper. His head filled my lap completely while his body was slowly coming to rest beside me, circling all around me. A low growl rumbled through his chest when Alduin landed a fair distance away.

The dragon merely twisted his head towards Blake, causing him to flinch and slightly roll on his side, showing his smoke-grey belly. I smiled and ruffled through the fur while muttering, "You're not like those wolves on Earth Blake. They'd rip my throat out by now."

Blake whined again while I heard a growl coming from both Bidziil and Alduin but I didn't pay any attention to them. Blake was now crawling to his feet...paws. It was so strange to see the scrawny teenager, who had been fighting for his life as long as I knew him, now standing beside me as a fully-grown and powerful wolf.

He flopped down after a shaky step forwards and I couldn't stop the grin stretching my lips. "Maybe not so fully grown..." I muttered, earning a snort from Blake while Bidziil barked out a laugh.

"No, he might look like an adult but comparing him to the rest of the wolves, he's a mere pup. Blake needs to learn the ways of the wolf but I can't help him with that. I'll need to contact Ye'iitsoh for that."

"Ye'iitsoh?"

"My older brother." Bidziil stated without adding any more specifics as Blake finally stood up and walked around, occasionally tripping over his paws with a surprised yelp. I watched for a few moments longer before I blinked and turned towards the house.

"Lyra-"

Bidziil sighed softly and before I even knew it, he was holding me back to chest, his voice rumbling overhead. "She's fine and has already gone through her own shift...she's a fae. At least a quarter, else she wouldn't have sprouted wings." He added dryly while my head was spinning even more.

Fae? Wings? Bidziil chuckled slightly, making me look up only to see him smirking down at me. "Too much?" His eyes flickered with a teasing light and I scowled before attempting to push him away, which he easily resisted.

"Ugh, you-" I started but Bidziil smiled cockily and nodded, "Yes, I can be too much too, I know." I stared at him, dumbfounded before Alduin and Blake both started laughing at my stunned expression while Bidziil winked at my stunned form. A few seconds later, he had me hauled over his shoulder and was making his way to the house again. I snapped out of it when he sat down at the dining table, where I went to get out of his hold and sit on a chair by myself.

His firm yet gentle hold on my elbows stopped me before I was yanked against his solid chest. I was looking down at his bare chest for a few moments, watching the muscles tense and coil with each breath he took before I looked up again and scowled.

Bidziil simply flicked my nose while saying, "What did I tell you about you struggling against me?" He asked and without waiting for an answer, plopped me right in his lap. One hand circled around and splayed out flat against my stomach, keeping me there while the other one tapping slightly on the table.

I opened my mouth to protest but flinched slightly when he pinched my stomach, making my muscles flex under his hand before I stilled when a woman stepped out of the kitchen with a tray of delicious smelling food.

She looked vaguely familiar, probably the same woman that helped us when Blake and Lyra were both unconscious; I hadn't been paying much attention to my surroundings then, only focusing on the kids.

"Oh, look at you two, you make such a beautiful pair." She gushed whilst setting the tray down and looking at me and Bidziil.

I wanted to tell her that we weren't a couple but the words never left my mouth, they just became distant and unintelligent thoughts as the warmth of Bidziil's body was seeping through my skin, heating me from the inside out. It didn't help at all that his thumb was rubbing against the sensitive skin of my stomach, going lower with each slow swipe until I was sure he was brushing against the seam of my pants.

The rumbling of Bidziil's voice went past me as he replied to his mother, nor could I focus on the fact that his brother came into the room with little Noah in his arms. All my attention was now pulled on Bidziil's other hand, as it had slipped underneath the table and was rubbing on my inner thigh.

A quick glance towards Bidziil informed me he was enjoying this quite a bit, judging by the twinkle in his eyes as he looked at me or the smirk that pulled on his lips. When his mother placed a bowl of soup in front of me, Bidziil leaned forwards under the disguise to look at its contents but instead rubbed his raspy skin of his jaw against the fevered skin of my neck.

---Bidziil's POV---

I smiled when I felt Thorn shiver against me before he took me by surprise when he slumped against my chest, surrendering to me and the feelings I created in his body. It was hard to keep my bursting length hidden from him when he was siting in my lap like this but he was too tempting not to have him close to me.

Ashkii looked at me and rolled his eyes pointedly, knowing what I was up to without having to ask. The smile on both his and mother's lips told me they didn't mind though; in fact, they enjoyed the fact I had found someone who peaked my curiosity and whom I wanted to start something with.

I kept myself composed while asking Mother to give Thorn something light on the stomach yet nutritious while my hand teased his thigh under the cover of the table. Hiding my smile against Thorn's shoulder, I decided to test our boundaries and breathed out against his throat.

My eyes followed the trail of goosebumps as Thorn shivered again before he made a weak attempt to get out of my hold. A chuckle rumbled through my body while I shook my head, puling Thorn a bit closer against me whilst I leaned forwards to get his bowl of soup.

Thorn's attention wavered between my hand softly brushing his thighs and the savory scent of the delicious broth mother had made. His stomach growled sharply before he reached out to the clear soup. Mom walked in and placed several bowls on the table with steamed vegetables, crispy baked breadcrumbs and some cooked pasta to add to our flavor.

Soft footsteps alerted me of Lyra's arrival as she was once again guarded by both the hellhounds, who flanked her as she walked in with a tired smile on her face. Thorn looked up and made to stand before Lyra flung herself to him, her translucent wings fluttering against her skin.

At least she had listened to me when they first sprouted; her wings were big and translucent, probably strong enough to fly after today. All she needed to do now was let the blood flow through them and keep them still wrapped around her shoulders and body.

"Thorn, look! Aren't they neat?  Bidziil said they needed to harden still, they're too soft to use now." The kid started rambling continuously with Thorn smiling and relaxing even more in my hands. I inhaled his scent deeply and smiled at Lyra over his shoulders before the kid left the room, along with Blake in his wolf form.

I used that moment to slip my hand further up, gaining a surprised squeak from Thorn, which turned quickly to a suppressed moan before he slapped at my hand. "What the hell..." He started before throwing a glance at Ashkii, who acted as if he hadn't heard us at all before standing up and cooing to Noah as he left the room.

Thorn spun around to glare at me while I leaned back in my seat and smirked. "I quite like this position." I teased, looking him up and down as he sat there on my lap. His button-up shirt was hanging loosely on his body, since it was mine, his shoulder slightly bare through the neck opening.

My eyes skimmed over the skin there while I bit my lip, wanting to leave a mark on his otherwise flawless skin but Thorn was huffing slightly, pulling my attention to his face with a smile. My little kitten, always the serious one.

"What are you up to?" He frowned as he spoke, glancing warily at me and I couldn't help but grin with satisfaction when his gaze lingered on my chest and abdomen. Hmmm, he sees something he likes...

Thorn shifted his weight slightly before he widened his eyes when he sat back. In the position he was in, straddling my hips, he probably detected my not so small problem. I relaxed in the seat, though my body was on full alert; either Thorn could take this in stride or he could react rather badly and shove me away...or at least try to.

I was surprised though when he shifted his own hips again, just a little bit before he bit his lips as he glanced at me. The contrast of his sharp white teeth against the pale pink of his full lips did me in. I forgot all about the fact that my family was running around in my home, Thorn's adoptive family that was just shifted or Alduin who was leaving after one sniff of us.

My hand reached forwards to clasp around Thorn's neck, rubbing softly against his pale skin before I drew him in and connected our lips. A soft moan escaped him while his hands fisted in my hair as the kiss quickly grew in intensity.

Pushing past his lips, my tongue found his while Thorn shivered in my lap and shuffled closer. I growled when he tugged on my hair before thrusting my hips up, which made both of us freeze until Thorn let out another moan.

One of his hands flitted down my chest as I explored his own chest with my own hands, reaching around him to press him flat against my chest. Before I could bring my hands down to his hips and probably take this in the privacy of our bedroom, I groaned and had to bite my lip while my eyes shot open in the same time.

Thorn was staring down at me with flushed cheeks, his hair messed up and a bright sparkle in his heavy-lidded eyes. My own eyes were probably twice as bright though I had to fight to keep them open, because of the pleasure rushing through my body because of Thorn's hand around my length.

I didn't need to hear him speak because his eyes said enough; he was just as interested in me as I was in him, the bulge in his pants even more proof of that statement. Instead of blushing and backing off, like I had expected him too, he gave me quite a tempting smile before he squeezed me and for a moment, I had to snap my eyes shut and muffle a curse while my hips jerked up.

The next thing I knew, his weight was gone and I snapped my eye open to see him slurping from his bowl of soup while mom came into the dining room with a smile, which quickly turned into a disapproving look.

"Bidziil, for goodness sake, what have I told you about slouching at the table? Sit up and eat your dinner! Show some manners to your guests!" She reprimanded while my lust-clouded mind had some issue getting back on track.

It wasn't too long before I realized that Thorn was a tease, bringing me all up like that before simply jumping off. He was smiling behind his bowl and I saw him shoot several amused glances at me from the corner of his eyes.

I chuckled despite my pulsing and rather painful erection and sat back more comfortably as I pulled a bowl to myself and started to prepare my own food. A grin was slowly making its way to my lips as I realized a few things. Thorn liked to tease huh?

And apparently, he wasn't too shy of our growing relationship... let's see what's gonna happen when its my turn to tease him.

---External POV---

A pair of black eyes filled with gold followed the scene with a soft smile before the man sighed and let the vision fade away. He wouldn't have believed the truth if someone had told it to him yet, there he was, the living and breathing prove that his love wasn't unrequited.

His gasp ran through the quiet room as his tattooed arm flew up to brush over his aching heart, the encounter with Thorn was enough to open up old and barely healed wounds. Tears were dropping to the floor with silent splashes while he was absorbed in his thoughts.

All this time...how long had it been before he felt the sharp spark of hope in his chest? Everything in his life had been nothing but black and grey, a few happy moments left to lighten up the darkness before she came into his life.

For a moment he had believed he could be happy, he had loved her beyond the limitations of his body or even his soul. Everything he was, he had given to her and without his knowledge, she had done the same thing.

But why hadn't she told him?  She hadn't given him any reason to think they were anything but happy before she had vanished without a trace, leaving him to fall back into his endless world that was made of grief, pain and betrayal altered with longing and heartbreak.

With a sigh, he stood up and flexed his muscles, feeling the newly discovered connection with his forbidden love. His jaw tensed before he used his powers to vanish from his realm and reappear in a rather young world, scarred by the abuse of its former inhabitants.

Right now, the man was on a mission and he was going to turn every stone for answers, answers that could lead him back to the past and to the reasons why his love had abandoned him.

And most of all, why she had hidden the existence of their son.