After vaulting out the small window, Finn was walking around the back of the packhouse. "Ah, fuck me," she whispered, as she nearly walked into Tom and Art. She waited for cruel words. Arthur looked deadly serious at Tom, who only nodded and left, saying nothing to his former packmate.
"Just the Ironblood I was looking for," breathing out a sigh of relief, "I wanted to say goodbye. It's time for me to head back."
"Leaving? No, not yet! Come on, I grabbed us these," Arthur held up a six pack of beer that she hadn't noticed he had been carrying. She didn't say anything for some time, debating her options. Finally, she let out a huff of air, smiling at her brother.
"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" She asked him.
Art's eyes lit up as he cast his gaze to the lake and the floating platform near the middle. As children, they would spend all day swimming back and forth. As adults, they'd all swim out and get drunk on the platform. Finn broke into a run. She ran past Anna's home, nearing running into Carter in the process, crying out a quick sorry as she ducked past him. Art was laughing and running behind her, pulling his shirt off and throwing it on the ground. Finn had no issues with wet clothes, she ran into the water and dove in, swimming for the floating platform.
She beat Arthur by a minute, though he had been hindered by the bounty in his arms. She pulled herself out of the water and sat cross legged on the floating dock. He tossed her the beer and she reached in and helped pull him up. He was breathing hard. "It's been a long time since I've swum out here," he said between puffs.
Finn cracked a beer and took a large swig, tossing her brother a can. She smiled.
"We have one problem, I don't think six beers will be enough," she chuckled.
"You could ask Carter to bring some through your bond?" he retorted.
Finn froze. She wasn't sure if their bond had solidified, considering her continued attempts to reject him. She was apprehensive to try. No, she was scared to try.
"I'm sorry, dear one, that was my own selfishness talking. When needed, I'll swim back," he said.
She relaxed at his apology but curiosity filled her. Mating bonds were cemented with sex and marking for werewolves but Finn was a hybrid. She already knew she felt her bond differently than other wolves, she wondered if she could reach him. Fear gripped her guts. Fear of both it working and not. She chugged down her whole beer, hoping the liquid courage would quiet the voices.
"Maybe if I'm drunk enough I'll try," she said finally, cracking open her second beer.
"What's it like? Your bond? Is it like other wolves?" he asked hesitantly. He too was curious.
"I don't think so," she started, "I felt him, when he called me mate. It was a strange sensation, like reading through water. I knew he was right but I don't have a wolf in my head to confirm. It just felt... like home?" She was unsure how to describe it. She was also sure it would bloom and change if they were together, becoming something more similar to normal wolves' bonds. She was currently unwilling to test that theory.
Arthur was about to press the issue but he knew it would be too much. Instead, he turned the conversation to catch her up on the changes in the pack. Finn knew most of what he told her already, having heard it from Anna but she liked hearing him talk. As he drank, he'd become more animated, his hands flying as he excitedly told her of his pack and their exploits. She laughed and smiled, cutting in where requested. She absentmindedly wondered if Carter was the same, getting as excited about things and flinging his hands around. She smiled to herself.
