Blood Moon's Tears

Kenji was just about done cleaning the bar when he heard a loud crash come from above him. Making his way to the attic he braced himself to face the intruder but nothing prepared him for what he saw when he turned the lights on.

Lying curled up in a ball was a wolf with brown fur covered in blood. Kenji’s guard lowered, and he exhaled a breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding. He left the attic, descended the stairs, and retrieved a clean cloth and a bowl of water mixed with disinfectant. Returning to the attic, he placed the cloth and bowl next to the wolf before closing the open window.

Kenji spoke, addressing the creature. “If you haven’t died on me I need you to shift back into human form. The quicker we get this over with, the quicker you can heal so you can clean up the mess you’ve made inside here. Also, would it kill you to use the door downstairs like a civilized human being?” He sat down in front of the wolf and wetted the cloth.

With a feeble growl, the wolf transformed into a human, and Kenji did his best to ignore the distinct scent emanating from the woman before him.

“But I’m not human,” Lele responded in a daze.

Kenji studied her eyes, which were no longer the usual colour of the jade jewel but a very bright green instead. Almost fluorescent. Wringing the cloth of the liquid, he made sure to be extra gentle when cleaning her wounds.

“So your heat attracted unwanted attention again huh? What did I tell you about fighting males bigger than you? You can get hurt Lele.” Kenji scolded.

“I didn’t fight anyone but myself.” She answered, raising her arms up so he could get under them.

Perplexed, Kenji inquired, uncomfortable about cleaning her more intimate areas. He handed her the cloth after wringing it out. “What do you mean by that?”

“I found my mate.” She admitted dejectedly.

“That’s a good thing.” He reassured her.

Lele responded dismissively, “Yeah whatever. Of course, you would say that. You’re human. You could still lead a normal life and not have to worry about such trivial things as mates.”

Kenji corrected her, revealing a glimpse of his own identity. “I’ll have you know that I’m half werewolf so yes; even if it is a bit down the line I still have to worry about getting a mate but, I’m quite content with being alone. I’ve lived this long and still haven’t found what you will call a ‘mate’. I’ve just learned to live with the fact that my senses are more heightened than regular humans and I can’t shift into wolf form like regular werewolves so yeah. If you’re jealous I understand. You try to deny that part of yourself, yet here you are—covered in blood, unclothed—in my attic once again, without a care in the world that a man has seen everything you have to offer.” He states taking back the cloth from her once she was finished.

Lele interrupted, her voice filled with gratitude. “You’ve never given me a reason not to trust you. And besides, I keep showing up in your attic, yet you seem unfazed and take care of me every time.”

Kenji sighed, reflecting on the debt he owed. “Maybe now is as good a time as any I guess. I can be wrong but her scent is so similar to Scotts.” He thought to himself.

“I owe a great deal to someone who was close to me. He asked me to help his family if they ever needed it. In return, he assisted me in developing the Blood Moon Drink that I serve at the bar. It helps wolves with strong pheromones and those going through heat. His only complaint was that it tasted bitter. He mentioned that his daughters despise bitterness and prefer sweet-tasting liquids, especially since they don’t like taking medicine in tablet form.” He informs.

Confusion clouded Lele’s face. “So, what does that have to do with me?” she asked.

“You’re a slow one aren’t you?” Kenji sighed and rummaged through a box, tossing an oversized shirt at the naked female before leaving the room. He returned with a glass of red liquid that resembled blood and handed it to her.

“Don’t dwell too much on the appearance. Just drink it,” he urged.

He watches as she furrowed her brows and took a sip of the drink. After a few seconds of silence, tears started rolling down her cheeks like waterworks. Kenji smiled a sense of satisfaction in his expression.

“Do you understand now why what I told you pertains to you? I made sure to make this one the exact same way for you as he instructed. He said that his youngest should never have alcohol. Your dad was an amazing mentor to me so I told myself that I would keep my promise to him if one of his pack members did happen to still be alive. Though I would have preferred someone with a bit of a lighter attitude than yours. You really know how to suck the life from someone that’s trying to be nice to you.”Kenji remarked, taking the cloth and wash bowl with him as he got up.

Lele remained silent, staring down at the glass in her hand, tears continuing to flow until the attic lights switched off.

“I suggest you finish the rest of that before taking a nap. You haven’t told me how you managed to fight yourself, which sounds impossible. But when you’re ready to stop behaving like a spoiled brat who lost her dog and want to talk about it, we can do so over a drink. Just don’t mention it to your father if you happen to meet him before I do. You know where to find me,” Kenji advised before walking away.

After placing a blanket over Lele and collecting his glass Kenji headed back down to the bar area where he noticed a soaked figure of a man standing in front of the main entrance. Kenji glanced at the clock, noting that the time was 5:30 in the morning.

Kenji sighed and addressed the visitor. “Alpha Lyall, that’s the 5th time you’ve done that. I swear all you werewolves are savages that don’t know the first thing about being civilized members of the common human society.” Kenji states making his way over to the bar’s sink to finish cleaning.

Lucian, the soaked figure, was determined to find his mate, and responded with a demand. “I’ll reimburse you for the lock just tell me where she is Kenji.”

“As a bartender, I’ll have you know that I encounter many ‘shes’ in my line of work,” Kenji responded, emphasizing the word ‘she’.

Lucian’s eyes flashed gold as he questioned, “Are you trying to provoke me?”

Kenji let out a sigh as he dried his hands, warning him, while hinting at the consequences.“I’d advise you to keep your wolf at bay, Alpha. Remember, I regularly prepare drinks for every member of your pack. It would be a shame if one were to get a drink that could make them seriously ill or worse. If you want the information you seek, you’d have to do it the proper way since you insist on being here when it’s not working hours.”

Lucian lets out a huff and makes his way to the bar’s counter and takes a seat giving the man behind the counter a death glare. Becoming more impatient as time goes by as he watches him mix the drink he usually orders when he comes in.

“I’m looking for a she-wolf named Lele. Chase said he first met her here. Have you seen her? I wouldn’t lie if I were you. I can smell her scent all over you.” Lucian tries again biting his inner cheek to try and keep his wolf at bay.

Kenji’s gaze met Lucian’s and he decided to be straightforward. “I’ll have to have a death wish to lie about something like that to you Alpha Lyall. The she-wolf in question is upstairs as we speak.” The bartender answers as he watches Lucian’s eyes flicker between his normal colour and the gold his wolf possessed. “I must insist that you drink this first.” He slid a glass of blue liquid across the counter.

Lucian’s eyes narrowed, his pride wounded. “I can control myself just fine. I don’t need any suppressants,” he asserted.

Kenji steps in front of Lucian as he tries to make his way to the attic and hands him the glass he had just refused. “I know you’re a man that shows little to no emotions that don’t consist of anger but reading people is what I do for a living. I made a promise to someone important to me and for our business to remain on good terms I ask that you take this Lucian.” Kenji ordered with an underlying protective tone. “As much as you can control yourself from pouncing on her, who’s to say she wouldn’t smell you as soon as you pass this area? She ignores her wolf instincts when she’s awake and tries her best to not rely on them but as soon as she falls asleep it’s a different story. You reak of pheromones so do us both a favour and take it.”

Kenji raises the glass to Lucian once more and he begrudgingly takes it. As he watches Lucian take the last gulp he notices his eyes return to their normal colour and the overwhelming scent of the Alpha in heat dies down completely. The two then made their way up to the attic. There, Lucian was able to see for himself that Lele was safely curled up in the fetal position on the attic’s floor. Not wanting to spend too long in case Lucian’s presence might alert her he gestures for them to leave now that he gave him his ‘proof of life’. Lucian seemed to be fine with knowing where she was but couldn’t help but feel guilty when he noticed that the foot that wasn’t covered by the blanket had a bite mark on her upper calf. The two made it back downstairs and once seated Lucian asked Kenji for another drink.

“My services come at a price Alpha.” Kenji reminded the man sitting across from him.

Lucian scoffs and hands the bartender a wad of cash. Kenji looks at him suspiciously. Wondering what he was up to.

“How much is it this time?” He inquired pointing the wad of cash he had just received back at the Alpha.

“I want to take her back with me. It’s going to bother me knowing that she doesn’t have a place to stay and doesn’t have someone strong enough to protect her. She’s my mate and I want her safe.” Lucian explains.

“I get what you mean, but I’m offended. You completely disregarded my question and then have the audacity to doubt my strength? Just because I’m half-werewolf?” Kenji retorted, his tone tinged with a hint of annoyance.

“I don’t doubt your strength one bit, but if you’re going to fight me on taking my mate back at least give a good reason why I shouldn’t kill you for her right now?” Lucian challenged.

Kenji paused, taking a moment to gather his thoughts before responding. “Scott Hotaru,” he finally uttered, causing Lucian to shift uncomfortably in his seat.