I lounged on the fluffy cat bed on the windowsill and reached out with a paw to awkwardly flip the page of the book in front of me. My reading skills weren't the best, but this book had lots of pictures of wildlife.

The six people in the Alpha's office remained focused on each other. Well, Sorrin was studiously ignoring me, while being somewhat surprised that I could read. Merric and our Beta sat in chairs by the door, listening intently to the discussion between Alpha Nix, Alpha Raymond, and Raymond's Beta.

It was a trade talk, and a much more productive one than the numerous ones Alpha Nix had spent weeks finalizing with the other pack. I was glad we didn't have to worry about that Alpha for a while. It gave us time to catch up on the rest of the agreements and discussions.

"I'd like to extend my pack border to the Bowden river," Alpha Raymond said, "if that doesn't bother you."

"That will still leave plenty of space between our borders. I have no objections. I believe there is a camp of rogues somewhere around the river, so you might want to see which side they are on."

"Thanks. I wasn't aware that a group was living in that area. I've already contacted the three I know of and offered them incentives to either move or join my pack."

His precautions were wise since his pack wasn't much larger than ours; if word got out that he was kicking rogues out of their homes in no man's land, there was a good chance a number of them would band together and start attacking the border patrols.

The discussion moved onto what types of bugs were causing problems this year and which crops might not do well. This was an average meeting, and as such, it was a struggle to not yawn. I was here since it was easier for me to keep a low profile in the office than it was for people to try to sneak me inside if things started going downhill.

I flipped to another page, this one holding a beautifully detailed painting of an eagle. The pictures and details drew me in, until the dull skidding of chairs sliding back caught my attention.

The Alphas were shaking hands, so the meeting was over. Alpha Nix escorted the entire group out, and soon, I was the only one left.

I waited a few minutes before jumping down onto the footstool, then onto the floor. Both ears perked up at the door before I trotted over to Nix's desk and went under it. It took me just a few moments to swap the order of his slippers, so when he tried to put them on, he would have the wrong slipper on the wrong foot.

For some reason, people found wearing shoes on the wrong feet weird, although I wasn't in human form long enough to know from experience.

With my task done, I trotted into the middle of the office floor and gazed at the closed door. My ear itched, so I sat down and lazily scratched it with my back foot.

To my surprise, the door began to open. Sorrin entered and paused when he saw me.

My tail started wagging as I got to my feet, greeting him as I would any of the other pack members. "Hi, Sorrin."

He took a step along the wall, partially away from me. The aversion flooding his mind made me stop in my tracks as my tail slowed.

"Is something wrong?"

"Father sent me up to grab a folder, so I need to hurry." He quickly went to the desk and grabbed a folder.

My rump plopped on the floor as I tilted my head, trying to make sense of his emotions. "Why are you avoiding me?" Come to think of it, he had been avoiding me the entire two weeks he had been here.

He grimaced. "Everyone acts weird when they come into direct contact with you. I have no idea what your aura does to them, but I don't want you to touch me."

With that, he slipped out of the room and closed the door behind him, leaving me to stare at the door, uncertain if I should be mad or insulted. Most of all, I just felt hurt.

It wasn't too unusual for someone to linger in the forest or not open their door if they wanted to be left alone, but this was something else. Contact increased the effectiveness of my aura considerably, so if I was picked up by someone in a bad mood, it usually calmed them down in under a minute.

Had he never touched a Comforter before? That explanation seemed likely – and it also explained why I had yet to catch him alone until today.

I wasn't sure how long I sat there, staring at the door, but I knew Alpha Nix better than his son did. Once Alpha Raymond and his Beta left, Nix would come back up here with his Beta – and, presumably – his son and Beta-in-training to discuss the meeting details in-depth as part of Sorrin's own learning.

I didn't particularly want to be in the same room as Sorrin right now. Nix would likely find my disappearance unusual, although he might assume that I got bored or had gone to comfort someone.

Lurching to my feet, I ran over to the door and shifted, pulling the door open just enough for my wolf shape to squeeze through. Back on all fours, I trotted up the hallway, leaving the door partially opened behind me.

There was more than one staircase in this place, and for someone my size, there were more hiding places than most pack members knew existed. Shielding my emotions so the Omegas wouldn't come looking for me, I snuck inside the linen closet and managed to squeeze past the first row of blankets. There was more room farther back, and I curled up in the soft material.

My thoughts still chased each other around like wrestling puppies. Sorrin had actually been avoiding me. Considering I saw him several times a day and had been present for some meetings, I hadn't realized just how much my presence bothered him.

Then again, he hadn't had a problem going farther into the room to pick up the folder – he just didn't want me to touch him. He either hadn't been aware that he had been walking through my aura's range of influence, or he didn't care about my ambient aura at its regular level.

I wasn't sure why the thought of touching me troubled him so much, but it was only a matter of time until someone tried to hand me to him. He was the Alpha-in-training, and our pack was accustomed to seeing the Alpha hold me or any other child that happened to be in the family room he visited.

Children were valued in a pack – they were our future, and thus, they were often doted on by the entire pack. I was a permanent puppy that received the same attention. An Alpha who refused to have anything to do with the pack's children ended up distancing himself from both the parents and from the kids who would one day grow into the various roles within the pack.

Sorrin may have been Alpha Nix's only child, but that didn't mean his succession was a guarantee if his father decided he was unfit to lead. Other Alphas would be thrilled for one of their children to be offered such a position.

With a sigh, I concluded that my best course of action would be to simply watch how Sorrin behaved around the other children. If there was a problem, it wouldn't be long before the parents, Luna, or Alpha noticed. Even if he just had an aversion to Comforters, his father would discover it soon enough. Sorrin was probably aware that he didn't have much time to work things out with me – he was just too stubborn to admit it.

I woke up, feeling like I was being stared at. I lifted my head from my paws and looked around from my basket beside the fireplace; the fire had died to mostly coals, but the flickering red light was enough for me to make out Sorrin.

He sat in a chair in the far corner of the room, broodily watching me. From his faintly swirling emotions, he probably wasn't even sure what he was feeling.

Remembering how he reacted last time I had greeted him, I remained in the basket, still curled up, and blinked at him sleepily. "Do you need something, Sorrin?"

After a period of silence, he replied, "No." The quiet word had been reluctantly dragged out of him. I began wondering if he knew why he was here.

The answer was obvious – he was here because of me.

I wasn't sure how to start a conversation with him, and I didn't know enough about him to even know if we had any common ground. He had grown up in a boarding school learning about the decisions an Alpha would have to make. I didn't know anything about that place; then again, that was all he knew.

Perhaps that difference was a good enough starting point.

"If I can ask, what did your teachers tell you about Comforters?" I murmured, keeping my voice low enough that he could pretend to ignore me if he chose.

The quiet darkness seemed to be our mediator.

"Almost nothing," he replied slowly. "We had in-depth instruction on Enforcers, Betas, and Omegas – but Comforters were glossed over. We read more about runts than Comforters."

His frustration at his own lack of knowledge rose, but I carefully kept my aura steady and didn't increase it, letting him work through it himself. My aura did tell me that he wasn't finished yet.

"I even scoured Father's library, but there were only passing references about Comforters, mostly references about you guys having something like an Omega's calming skill, but stronger."

In other words, he knew nothing.

"Very similar, yes. I can also control it, strengthening or weakening it as needed, but I can't turn it off anymore than you can turn your growing Alpha aura off. People sometimes come to me because they want to get their emotions under control or to think with a clear mind."

"I can see how that might be useful if someone's mind is too clouded to think properly," he grudgingly admitted, "but our feelings can also lend us strength if we harness them. We aren't supposed to be emotionless rocks."

Ah. He was likely one of the people who disliked even the thought of someone messing with their mind.

"Even at their greatest strength, my abilities have very little effect on positive emotions like joy or celebration. Excitement, if it's getting out of control, I can suppress. Otherwise, my abilities mostly dim anger, grief, anguish, distress, and feelings like that. I can shift my aura to target certain types to some degree."

"Then it would also interfere with righteous anger against injustice and the swift decisions that can come with it."

"In that scenario, as long as your thoughts are clear and not being affected by pride, then I suggest not petting me until you are done planning." I did my best to keep any snarky tone from my voice, while subtly pointing out that his pride might be a bigger stumbling block than he realized.

He snorted faintly. "I have no desire to so much as touch your fur, let alone pet you."

That stung. I kept my voice detached as I tried to be realistic. "That is your choice, but you know it's going to happen."

"Unfortunately."

"You don't seem to care that you're within my aura's range right now."

His eyebrows furrowed. "It's brushing along the edges of my mind, but I can still feel my emotions."

"Those who purposefully resist my aura are less affected by it."

"You mean we have a choice?" He looked surprised.

"Yes. If I was using my most powerful aura, it would be extremely difficult and take all your focus, but that is more of a last resort thing. My abilities are better at keeping things from escalating as opposed to stopping a brawl."

"Could you?"

"Could I what?"

"Stop fighters if they got into a serious fight."

"If they were pack members, yes, but that is something the Betas and Enforcers are better at handling. It isn't wise for me to go near a fight, and I can only imagine the Alpha or Luna's reaction if a brawl broke out inside the house."

A deep chuckle came from the shadowy lump on the chair. "I wouldn't want to be in their shoes."

"Me neither, but that is a prime example of when the Alpha might come looking for me. Once their punishments have been handed out, he will probably still be irritated – and there is no point in being annoyed at past things that have been dealt with."

That put him right back in the broody mood, although his emotions were more level.

"You said your influence could be suppressed. Does that also apply to direct contact?"

"I don't know. A couple of people have watched horror movies with me on their laps, and if they wanted to jump, they could. Contact makes it stronger, though."

Silence reigned for a long time.

"Can I touch your fur?"

"Sure. I'll keep my aura at its current level."

Sorrin stood up and came over, step by slow step. He didn't want to do this, but he felt compelled to. I remained laying where I was. I knew this was a big thing for him, and I was trying to make it easier.

He went down on one knee beside the low fireplace step. From the way his mind whirled, he was already attempting to resist any hint of influence my aura might be making.

I waited patiently as he tried to convince himself that he was an upcoming Alpha – his control should be strong enough to resist a puppy's mind games. The glow from the fireplace was plenty for me to see the internal struggle reflected on his face.

His hand reached out and barely brushed against my fur as his eyes closed in concentration, immediately feeling the difference. He pulled his hand away for a few seconds, before letting his fingers touch my shoulder as he tested the effects of my aura.

"Thank you." Getting back to his feet, he retreated to his chair. Traces of the tension were still present, but it looked like he had finally figured out that it wasn't as bad as he originally thought. The only downside was that he hadn't tried to not resist my powers while in contact with me – it prevented some of my underlying abilities from making him more at ease with me. Perhaps next time...

"You're welcome."

The occasional crackle of the coals was the only thing breaking the silence.

"What was it like at the boarding school?"

"It was a massive complex with dorm rooms. Mostly men. The classes touched on almost everything an Alpha's duties might entail: writing formal letters, different types of rogues, common plant diseases and ways to control them, training fighters, setting up buildings so the space is efficient, best ways to set up patrols and hidden sentries, managing local resources, and so on."

"Schedules were a big thing, huh?"

"Extremely."

Silence fell yet again, but it was a more comfortable quiet. I could also tell that he was done talking.

He got to his feet. "Have a good night."

"You, too."

His faint footsteps left the room. It was a promising start, but it took me a long time to fall back asleep.