Darcingtowne Wolves: The Misfits (Book 1)

Chapter Twenty-One: 17 Promenade Avenue

“Everything all right, Penelope?” Professor Oriano said as he shuffled some papers on his desk. “You were a bit quiet today.”

Penny turned, and paused a moment before approaching the desk. “I’m sorry professor, I didn’t mean any disrespect...”

Professor Oriano waved his hand in front of him, waving her apology away as if it was some kind of annoying gnat. “Please, don’t apologize. I was just checking in.”

Penelope’s lips curved up into a small smile. “It’s nothing, really. Just some pack business.”

“Ah, it must be tough being an Alpha so young, and a student as well.” the Professor gave her a knowing look. “I hope you have proper support.”

“I have a Beta, Gamma and Delta...and my father, our first Elder.” Penelope said, shrugging. “My pack is small, and our challenges aren’t so complex.”

“Well, I’m sure with an Elder like Mason on your side you’ll do just fine, regardless of how complex your challenges become.” Professor Oriano said, his smile growing wider as Penelope gave him a surprised look.

“You...you know my father?” she asked, her voice soft and low now.

“I do. Though, admittedly not very well.” the Professor said, laughing light as he rubbed the back of his neck. For some reason, he was blushing a little. “Please give him my best. And tell him thank you for the peanut butter budino.”

Contrary to what he’d originally thought, Tobias found that he actually enjoyed his University classes. Even the classes that were boring still proved an excellent distraction from his mate woes, while also keeping the little Princess occupied. She couldn’t demand that he take her on runs, with the indirect purpose of trying to find his mate, if they were in classes, doing homework, or attending study groups most of the day.

He’d even made a new friend, of sorts. There was a wolf named Ryan who he shared most of his classes with. At first, he was put off by Ryan - a familiar looking wolf that he couldn’t quite place, whose soft, submissive personality was at odds with his bulky size. Tobias had covered for him once when a set of interested she-wolves cornered the shy pre-med student, trying to get him to go to one of their study sessions. After that they started sitting next to each other, Ryan picking a seat in the back corner by the wall, and Tobias taking one of the seats next to him, helping to shield him from some of the unwanted she-wolf attention. Toby had never imagined himself protecting a wolf that was both taller and wider than him, but he felt protective of the younger wolf; almost as if Ryan was a younger brother, or one of his trainees.

So far, most of the conversation they’d made revolved around their classes, and a little bit about their hobbies. Ryan was an unapologetic nerd with a fondness for tabletop gaming. Tobias had never played such games before, but the more the young wolf talked about it the more interested Tobias became. 

Presently, Ryan and Tobias were sitting together on one of the long grass lawns outside the Library. Toby was listening intently as Ryan described a kill he recently scored in one of his games, with a look of rapture on his friendly face. The she-wolves hovering nearby were bored, though they all feigned looks of polite interest.

“And then I landed a critical hit with my divine intervention, and the goddess’s mighty fist slammed down on the enemy, cushing it in one mighty strike.” Ryan said in one long breath. After a moment, he muttered, “The DM described it better than I did just now, but believe me...it was super cool.”

“How often do you guys play?” Toby asked, wondering if Ryan’s group might have room for another player or two. 

“We try to play every Thursday, but you know how things are. It’s been crazy busy since the start of classes. We’re all freshmen this year.” Ryan said with a sigh of longing. “We haven’t played in like, a month now.”

Tobias didn’t really have time to play games regularly, but thought it might be something Chessa would enjoy - and it was another way to keep her occupied. Ryan was an awkward, nerdy, gentle giant and it sounded like his friends were much the same. Chessa would probably be safe rolling dice and eating pizza with them once a week or so, and he could just go to keep an eye on her from time to time.

“Though, I just found out we’re having some kind of party tomorrow.” Ryan said, looking a little disgruntled at the idea of a party. “My Beta has been dying to have a cookout and use the heated pool on our roof. It’s not really my scene, but he says I have to attend and invite a few people. You’re welcome to come, if you’re interested.”

There was a shuffling from the she-wolves milling nearby as they all jostled for position, trying to get closer to Ryan in the hopes of getting an invite to the cookout. Ryan glanced at the girls, which only gave them unfounded hopes.

“Text me the address.” Toby said, smiling. “I’ll see what I can do.”

“Why can’t I go to the party too?” Princess Francesca pouted at Tobias, doing her best to get him to change his mind. But, her puppy dog eyes weren’t going to work on him this time.

It was Saturday afternoon, and Toby was changing into appropriate casual party clothes after returning from a run with Chessa. He was already annoyed at having been made to spend his morning running all over the Bramble in search of his mate’s elusive scent, which he was purposefully trying to block out, and was not in the mood for more of the little Princess’s pouting. He’d had quite enough of that when they returned empty handed from their run.

“Francesca, I told you...Ryan invited me, not me and a plus one. If I show up with some strange girl in tow I don’t think it’ll make a good impression.” Toby replied, exasperated. 

“Can’t you just text him and explain?” Chessa whined now, hitting that annoying pitch that made him cringe and shake his head to try and get the sound out of his ears. “And I’m not strange! I want to have the whole university experience - including parties. That’s not strange, it’s pretty normal.”

“You’re right. You’re not strange for wanting to enjoy yourself.” Toby sighed heavily, feeling a little guilty for not having thought about securing an invitation for Francesca as well. He should have known she’d want to go with him.

He hadn’t even asked Ryan what pack he was with, not that it mattered very much - all the packs in the city were part of the Alliance. Even if Ryan was a member of a pack who was on the outs with the Twilight Promenade at the moment, he doubted anything would come of him attending a packhouse party. Perhaps this was a good opportunity to suss things out prior to introducing Chessa to Ryan and his group of gaming friends. Ryan seemed wholly unaware of inter-alliance politics, and Toby never got any bad vibes from the younger wolf, but that didn’t mean the rest of his packmates were good eggs.

Tobias pulled on a green v-neck t-shirt that brought out the green in his eyes and a pair of dark, relaxed fit jeans as he mulled things over.

“Tell you what. Ryan is really shy around girls. Why don’t you let me go on my own this time, and I’ll suggest taking you with me the next time. Ok? Apparently him and his friends have some kind of weekly game night.” And if his pack ends up being bad news, he could just tell her that Ryan felt uncomfortable about having a girl over. “I can ask if they could use some new players.”

“What kind of games?” Chessa asked, trying not to look too interested. 

Francesca had a fondness for video games that easily dwarfed that of any other male wolf in the pack. Her specialty was fighting games, but she was so much better at them than everyone else that she’d been banned from their tournaments. What made her victories most devastating was that she was a graceful winner, and would tenderly console her foes after brutally owning them. 

“Some kind of roleplay dice game. Apparently, Ryan plays a cleric.” Tobias said, carefully not reacting to the way that Chessa’s eyes sparked. She was definitely interested; maybe even more interested in the gaming nights than in the party.

“Fine, but you better come through for me next time.” Chessa grumbled. “And do something about your hair before you leave. It’s sticking up everywhere, and not in a good way.”

Tobias arrived at 17 Promenade Avenue at a quarter past one. As he rang the bell, which chimed with an odd harmonic, a strange feeling of anticipation washed over him. The place felt familiar, as if he’d been there before. It was right on the park, overlooking the Bramble, while he had passed this brownstone numerous times he was sure he’d never set foot inside of it.

The door swung open, and the young man on the other side of it was definitely not Ryan - though once again, he got that feeling of deja vu from looking at him. He was short for a male wolf, with an svelte athletic build that said he was made for speed, not power. He had sandy brown hair and bright blue eyes that were sharp and clever. 

As he took in the stranger on his doorstep, he lifted an eyebrow and said, “Who the f**k are you?”