”You are to me.” he answered, whispering in response to her quiet tone. He gently leaned his head on top of hers as she rested against him. He really did think she was incredible. She was very beautiful, smart, funny… fearless and free. How could anyone find her to be anything less?
A tiny smile along with a faint blush appeared on her face and she hugged him tightly with her arm, replying softly, "You're an incredible person Frankie, I'm glad I'm getting to know you." Selina really meant what she said, Frankie was amazing, and besides being handsome, caring, understanding and not scared of her, he was also brilliant and cared about not only the world, but was willing to lean more about it too.
He smiled softly, not minding the strong embrace and actually returned it, holding her closer. ”And I’m very glad to know you too, Selina.” Frankie answered back with equal sincerity as he tried to hold back the impulse to kiss her… probably on the top of her head or her forehead or someplace like that. He doubted that it would be a good idea… And it still felt way too soon to kiss her lips. Though he wouldn't deny how much he wanted to.
She hummed in happiness and just leaned against him, letting her thoughts of seeing the city with him pull her away. As much as she loved the thought of romance sparking between them as they spent time together though, a tug of a question she hadn't asked yet pulled her back to reality and she tipped her head to look up at him. "Do you have a significant other?" Selina asked suddenly, though her voice was calm, and curious.
Frankie blinked in mild surprise at the question as he turned to look at her. ”Uhh… No, actually, not currently.” he said, shaking his head once his mind caught up with the moment. ”I… I had a girlfriend a little recently before I decided to go on this trip but it wasn't working out, so I had to break up with her.” he explained before chuckling softly as he remembered the first sentence he said to her. ”What about you? Do you have… a mate or someone like that?” he asked, blushing faintly.
"No, I don't," She replied with a small laugh, watching the trees as she talked, "Most werewolves can feel the tug of their mate from wherever they live, a perk of being one of my kind. It's like a large game of hot and cold. But I've never felt it, and so I've never even been in a relationship." Selina shrugged, then blinked and glanced back up at him, changing the subject, "Why did you break up? If you don't mind me asking. You don't have to answer if it's personal."
”Wow!” Frankie smiled at her description of having a mate. ”If only it was that easy for us poor humans.” he said, half-joking at his own expense. Though, it really did sound easier. ”It’s not that personal.” he admitted. ”The truth is… Linda was a little controlling and somewhat passive-aggressive. It just wasn't working out. Plus she completely ignored my feelings about nature.” he shrugged nonchalantly, thoroughly over that relationship. ”I don't really remember why we started dating in the first place.”
Selina frowned, shaking her head at the description of Frankie's ex, "She sounds like a not-fun person to be around." Absentmindedly, she once again shifted closer to him as she talked though, keeping her head resting on his shoulder, "Who doesn't like nature too? I'm amazed at how ignorant some humans, and werewolves, are."
”She really wasn't.” he agreed. A lot of the memories he had of Linda were pretty miserable for him. But having someone as fun and kind as Selina next to him was almost enough to distract him from those thoughts, as he gently held her closer. ”Apparently, she didn't. I mean she liked it when I tried giving her flowers but she always wanted the more expensive ornate bouquets. Sometimes it still surprises me how little people care for the important things. Though it's a little confusing to think that werewolves have a similar issue.” he said, raising a brow slightly at her last comment.
"Some of the stuck up ones are exactly like that," She replied, shrugging and rolling her eyes, "They want the best food, best part of dens, attention constantly, and being outside for more than the one night a month they're forced to shift is like torture." Selina wrinkled her nose and laughed lightly, "Some people are far from fine with a werewolf lifestyle."
Frankie bit his tongue to keep from laughing at the idea of a stuck up werewolf. It seemed like such a contradiction in his mind. ”That’s…” he paused to clear his throat, struggling to keep the smile off his face. ”That’s really unfortunate. I mean, I get that one man's cure is another man’s poison but that seems like such a waste of a gift to me.” he explained.
"You can laugh, don't worry, it's a hilarious situation," She said, shrugging and laughing lightly herself, "It is a huge waste of gift. Someone that actually enjoyed staying outdoors would be much better at being a werewolf than half of those stuck up ones are." Selina smiled, glancing up at Frankie and letting her smile grow, "You know, now that I think about it, you'd make an amazing werewolf."
Now that he had her permission, Frankie started chuckling at the situation. It seemed so ridiculous for someone who hated nature to be someone who needed to live with nature. ”Really?” he smiled brightly at her last comment. ”Well, thank you, Selina. I take that as a high compliment.” Honestly, he thought being a werewolf sounded incredible! … Minus the bit about being hunted by the government.
Selina laughed and nodded, nudging him again, "You'd probably be a better werewolf than I am. After all, you'd already know how the human world works, where I'm too curious about it for my own good. As you can tell." She kept her smile up, looking up at the sky as she thought about what her life would be like if Frankie was a werewolf.
”I’m not so sure about that, Beta.” Frankie smiled though his cheeks were a bit rosy from the compliment. ”I may know a lot about the human world but I know very little about being a good werewolf.” he said, nudging her back lightly.
"I mean, you already know the biggest rules, just by being around me and camping in the woods," She replied, laughing lightly and hugging him tightly with her arm again, "You know to stay in the woods, and stay out of sight of humans, you know that you either stay on your pack's land, or unclaimed land, never on any other pack's land. And most importantly, you know that getting to know the pack and trusting them is essential. All I have left to teach you is about shifting, which you don't even have to worry about."
”Really? That's all I'm missing?” Frankie grinned brightly at how easy Selina made it seem. ”Well, I don't want to accidentally insult anyone but I do know how to howl… Or at least, imitate a howl.” he said, blushing softly.
Selina grinned right back at Frankie, a playful look in her eyes, "You'll have to show me this howl of yours later, when it's dark enough out that it won't be out of place. I can even howl with you if I can imitate something other than my own howl. That's how we track each other, and if the pack hears me howl, they'll come running to see whats wrong."
Frankie nodded a little at her comment. ”I think I remember hearing something like that in a documentary. Each wolf has their own… ”signature” when they howl so the pack can know who is calling them.” he said thoughtfully considering it had been a long time since he actually heard that. ”You really want to hear it tonight?” he asked, a little excited by the fact that she might join him.
"Yeah, that's right for both regular wolves and my kind," She confirmed, eagerly nodding, "And yes, I want to hear your howl, why wouldn't I?" Her grin morphed into a happy smile and she nudged him with her arm, "I wouldn't miss the opportunity to both hear you howl and help you make it sound more realistic. Plus I haven't howled in a long time, I need to practice my own skills."
”Even if I don't really know what I'm ”saying” when I howl?” Frankie asked, blushing a little. ”For all I know I can be insulting someone… or just swearing like a sailor.” he smiled at the playful bump. ”I’d be very grateful if you teach me how to make it better and now I'm looking forward to hearing your howl too. I bet it sounds incredible.”
(Hey, just thought I'd let you know; I’m going on a camping trip with my family later today and won't be back until the end of the month. I'll still try to get on and reply when I can, it just won't be very often.)
(You’re all good! Don’t stress about responses, have fun with your fam!)
“Howling doesn’t have specific words in it, it’s more…feelings? Anger, mourning, etc,” Selina said happily, her face flushed, “My howl isn’t anything exciting, but I can teach you how to howl as best you can.” She bumped him again, happy and content with sitting next to him doing something as normal as talking about howls.
(Thank you!)
“That makes sense.” Frankie nodded at her explanation before laughing a little as she bumped him. “Your howl doesn’t have to be exciting to be incredible.” he pointed out, gently brushing some of her hair back over her shoulder. “I can’t wait to learn how to howl like a real wolf from you. Hey, maybe we can scare off a few campers together.” he chuckled, half-joking.
Her face turned even more red as Frankie brushed her hair over her shoulder but she didn't pull away, if anything she almost leaned into the touch. "We could definitely scare off some campers if you wanted, and I really hope you do end up liking my howl. It's not incredible either, especially whatever howl I pull together that my pack won't recognise."