Rainn has me hooked arm in arm, skipping ahead of me. “Run with me, Luna! Noah told me you’re fast!”

Now I understand why Noah told me to wear my hiking boots. Dousing ourselves with mud before we’ve seen a single Lycan child, Rainn and I burst into laughter as we blast through dense thickets, a collection of little leaves gripping our long hair. My mate’s younger sister glances at me over her shoulder, and the brightness in her eyes stirs warmth in my chest. I never had a doting younger sister, but with just that look, I feel like I do.

Rainn pulls me to a stop, crashing into my torso with a hard hug. “Oh, your scent just got sweeter than ever. I love you too, Luna.”

“I– I love you too.” My world spins as I struggle to keep up with Rainn’s affection downpour - all within the past three minutes since we said hello. 

I’m not Luna - not yet, at least - but loving words from pack members like Rainn make me feel like I’ve long-earned the title of the pack’s maternal protector. And even though I’m only part Lycan, instincts well up inside me whenever a pack member huddles up to me. I wish I could hug everyone here, all at once. 

Rainn’s smile widens as she pulls back. “Don’t worry, you don’t have to say a single thing - not when your scent is so honest. I love that about Noah too.”

As she takes off, still gripping my hand, I laugh through my watery eyes. She’s so different from her brother, but so similar at her core: her wolf is ever-present in a curious, unbothered ball of energy.

“Ever since you asked to hang out with me and help out with my class, I’ve been so excited that I couldn’t sleep!” She shakes her head, laughing at herself. “I can’t wait for you to meet everyone. They’ve been asking me all week about you.”

“They have?” I’m smiling, but nerves blast through my core.

I have no idea what Lycans teach their kids in the Greenfield Forest School, but from what Noah and Rainn explained, it’s more of a daycare for homeschooled wolves, many of whom have been expelled from human schools for wolflike behaviors.

My preschool student, Andy, has been on my mind nonstop, now that I’ve recognized a new slew of wolfy misunderstandings in school. As future Luna, I want to make sure Greenfield Pack kids can access free education, but even more so as an educator.

I’m mildly terrified of what I might discover today. I asked Noah about a few standards of human early education, and his eyebrows formed into a deep scrunch.

“They’re wolves,” he said. “They learn some of that, but they need to learn how to hunt, survive, and protect their family and pack, first and foremost. Everything else isn’t as vital for Lycans as it is for humans.”

My chest tensed, protective instincts bubbling to the surface. “But they have human forms too. They need reading, math, and science skills, or else they’ll be even more segregated from human society.”

Noah’s resulting, earth-shattering concern surprised me. My sweet, shy Alpha sat with his head in his hands for over an hour, and I could only pull him out of it by promising him I’d take a look at the curriculum in person - and that I trust him and his pack to know what’s right for their needs.

Today, I only want to observe. My top Alpha mate and his little sister are proud of their Greenfield Forest School, and I wouldn’t dare drag down Rainn’s teaching styles. My degree is in human education, not Lycan. Maybe the pups really do have a passable amount of literacy, numeracy, and science literacy.

Right on cue, a pup bursts from the bushes, stealing Rainn from my grasp with a tackle. I scream, but Rainn laughs, rolling across the forest floor with the child in her arms and popping back up to her feet. The pup nuzzles into her chest, giggling as she vigorously rubs his back.

“My little Alpha! You are getting so good at prowling!” Rainn beams.

The pup screeches through his excitement, squeezing her as hard as his little arms can manage in a display of pure pride and joy.

That’s when Rainn kisses his forehead, over and over. I release a sharp gasp. 

Rainn whips her head around, meeting my eyes with dilated pupils. “What’s wrong?”

I’m too stunned to speak out loud. You kissed him. 

Rainn’s shoulders loosen. She breaks into her usual reassuring smile, setting the Alpha boy down. Of course I kissed him. I’m his daytime mom. And so are you for today!

I want to smile along with her, but my stomach churns. What do their parents think about that?

They expect me to love on them! Wolves need a sense of community to grow up strong, and everyone trusts each other to help raise every pup as their own.

My heart tugs at the thought of Noah being raised like this. Feeling loved from all angles. I’m tempted to melt at the thought, but I can’t shake the human fears I know too well. 

No one’s worried they might fall into the wrong hands?

Rainn laughs. Oh, no. At the first predatory hint in their scent, we handle those wolves with our fangs. No one’s getting to our babies here. Especially not under Noah. 

I wring my hands, still uneasy. I know it’s different for them, but for whatever reason, I’m drowning in culture shock. But if Noah and I have a baby someday, does this mean they’ll grow up feeling safer than I feel now? That they have a better chance in this world? I bite my lip, staving off a giddy smile. It feels too good to be true.

A flood of pups trickles in through the forest, brawling, scrambling up trees, and face-planting into the fresh mud stirred up from last night’s downpour.

“1, 2, 3, eyes on me!” Rainn shouts.

So some things are the same.

Or maybe just this one thing.

Every single wild eye zips to Rainn and me in a millisecond. Their laser focus tempts me to take a step back. The pups might be in a disastrous state of leaves, mud, and scratches, but every pup awaits Rainn’s direction no matter how young - better focused than a crowd of adult human teachers in our board meetings. Survival instincts emanate from them, as well as a gentle, wafting glow of eager curiosity in their scents.

Now that they’re frozen, I do a quick mental check of everyone present, memorizing who I’m accountable for today. The longer I stare, the more pups I spot: tucked behind each other, infants wrapped into their older siblings’ arms, and just the tops of heads and eyes poking through bushes.

Rainn smiles at me before turning back to her class. “I brought someone very special with me today.”

The class’ focus zips to me. They take a collective deep breath, and I feel like it’s the first day of my teaching career all over again, shuffling where I stand as I overthink my nervous smile. All it takes is one little wolf to scream “Luna,” and a deluge of little ones pour onto the path, latching onto my legs and hopping all around me. 

I burst into heavy laughter. “Oh, my goodness! Look at all of you sweet pups!” 

But there’s no true way to express my vibrating excitement, flowing so strongly through my body that it aches. These aren’t just any pups, these are our pack’s pups. 

Greenfield Pack is one huge family. Rainn isn’t the only one to tell me everyone treats each other like their own dearest loved ones, regardless of if they’ve met before.

But carrying the Greenfield family name signifies something even deeper; these little ones are Noah’s. Ours.

I hug them back on instinct, gathering as many squirming bodies into my arms as I can hold. My wolf zooms in rapid circles through our bond. I love them! I love them!

Noah doesn’t mindlink anything - our bond tells me he’s running in wolf form, and therefore full wolf brain - but his wolf certainly notices mine. He’s on the prowl at the perimeter, somewhere to the southwest; our bond tugs my heart toward him like a compass. His heart aches with longing, and I assume it’s because he’s desperate to meet with Rainn and I in an hour, as planned. I have a feeling he’ll show up even sooner.

My heart picks up the pace. What will Noah be like, surrounded by all these pups? Will his playful wolf be in charge, or his steady, quiet pillar of a personality, soothing these pups into tranquility?

“Here you go!” A little voice cries out, depositing a literal infant into my arms.

I gasp. “Oh, my— Who is this?”

“Sarah!” Bright, beaming eyes of an older sibling greet me above a tooth-gapped grin. “She likes your scent.”

My heart flips over itself as baby Sarah burrows her face into my chest, her arms flailing with excitement that she hasn’t figured out how to control just yet.

“Oh, God, she’s so— They’re all so—” Nothing can describe my love for the curious eyes around me. I peek at Rainn, my heart threatening to overflow. 

“Okay, okay!” Rainn laughs, shooing the other pups off me. “We can take turns nuzzling our Luna throughout the day, or else we won’t have enough time to play with her.”

With that, they scurry off, affectionately brushing our sides on their way. Many pups cling to each other instead, nuzzling each other’s faces and glomping into heavy hugs in greeting.

I’ve never seen anything like it. Most of the workweek, I have to stop my human kids from harassing each other too much, not from consensually cuddling too much. My hands shake as I adjust Sarah in my arms, nestling her in a tender cradle when she whines for deeper touch.

Overwhelming instinct takes over, and before I can stop myself, I’m nuzzling into her chubby cheek. I freeze the second I realize what I’m doing, but Sarah explodes into a squealing bundle of happiness, her full gums on display. 

My heart splits open with how fast she expands it. It’s not just her unbearable cuteness, but her warm, delighted scent. There’s a hint of wonder in every fleeting waft of it, but most of all, there’s a deep, hungry love for me as her current caregiver. I can’t slow my rapid breath.

Goddess, I can’t take this, Noah mindlinks. I need to see you in action.