Chapter Text
“I’m home!” Knight announces with raised arms as Evie opens the door to her apartment.
“Sweetheart!” Evie exclaimed, rushing in to hug her mate. Knight quickly returned the gesture, wrapping her in a tight hug of their own. “Thank you so much for coming! I missed you so much.”
“I missed you too,” Knight plants a kiss on Evie’s forehead before placing their head on her shoulder. While it had only been a few months since the two had seen each other since the Greene pack had moved to Glenwood, it had felt like years. The hug between the two felt like something torn apart had been made whole again.
The two stayed in each other’s arms for a while longer until they reluctantly loosened their grasps to look at one another. They were both just as the other had remembered, as if no time had passed while they were apart. Yet, both looked as if they had carried a great burden on their shoulders not too long ago. None of that mattered now though. As long as the two were together, they could weather any storm. Plus, compared to what happened with the pack in years past, moving Evie out of her apartment and into the den would be equal to a gentle summer breeze.
The mated pair smiled in each other’s lose grasp until Genevieve eventually broke the silence. “Well, come on in! I’m sure you don’t want to stand out in the hallway after your long drive, speaking of which how was it?” Evie asks leading Knight over to the couch which they happily sit on, even with the missing cushion.
“Other than the length, it wasn’t too bad,” Knight answers, rolling their shoulder that was still sore from being in their car for two days straight. “There were some funny build boards I wish I could’ve taken a picture of though. Did you know there’s a museum dedicated to the possibility that aliens visited the earth during the dinosaur age?”
“What? You’re making that up!” Evie laughs shoving Knight’s shoulder playfully.
“No, it’s true!” Knight insists. “There were like five build boards to go see ‘The Thing’. I was afraid I was going in circles for like 20 minutes.”
“Okay, whatever you say,” Evie giggles. “So, how’s the pack doing? I know we’ve talked just about every day, but is everyone doing okay?”
“Yeah, everyone’s been doing a lot better,” Knight gives a small smile, though a little sadness shines in their eyes. “It was… difficult at first, but everyone managed to get settled in and some members have even been able to move out of the den into their own space now. I’m still at the den, but I think it’s been a good change for everyone.”
“I’m glad to hear that,” Evie smiles. “But what about you? Are you holding up okay?”
“I’ve been good,” Knight says with an earnest smile, though a slight crease in their brow forms. “Though I’ll be a lot better once we’ve moved you out of here. Anyway, how have you been? It looks like you’ve been busy.” They finish their last statement looking around Genevieve’s apartment at all the half-filled moving boxes.
“Well, I know the moving van won’t be here for a few days, but I thought it would be a good idea to go ahead and get a head start packing everything before you got here and so we weren’t rushing at the last minute,” Evie explains. “Though unfortunately it’s hard to stay motivated through it all.”
“No time like the present to continue then,” Knight says standing up and walking over to the nearest box to investigate its contents.
“What! No!” Evie groaned, flopping back on the sofa. “Aren’t you still tired from your drive? We can continue to pack the boxes tomorrow.”
“Or we could work on them now and have less to do tomorrow,” Knight grinned which got them an indignant huff from their mate. “Plus, if we start now, I promise to tell you a funny story.”
“Funny how?” Evie asked with one eyebrow raised.
“Did you hear that Beth accidentally broke into someone’s house?”
“What?”
“And said owner of the house agreed to go on a date with her?”
“Tell me more, now!” Evie immediately shot up from the couch, rushing over to a cackling werewolf.
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“So, this ranger spent all day camping outside a pet adoption event because they were suspicious of… something?” Evie repeated in disbelief. “What even is there to be suspicious of at a dog adoption other than how something can be that adorable?”
“Beats me but they’ve been giving Claire a run for her money,” Knight sighs shaking their head. “Beth’s convinced they have a conspiracy theory board in their house which at this point I’m inclined to agree.”
The pair had been packing up Evie’s items for several hours now and have made quite good progress, though it was slowed by Knight recounting recent incidents involving the pack. Thankfully these ones being more comedic than anything potentially harmful. Thankfully the seer that Beth had pinned against the wall was nice enough (or crazy enough) to not call the police on her. Which begs the question why they didn’t lock their door if they knew she was going to break into their house? Maybe they were crazy.
“Sounds like things have been, uh, eventful for you all,” Evie chuckles.
“It definitely has,” Knight agrees. “And in a good way this time.” They finish their sentence by looking out the window where the curtains are drawn. The sun was just barely shining above the horizon now. With fall soon approaching it was beginning to set sooner and sooner. Though it had been a while since the werewolf had seen the sun set in this part of the world. The last time they had been in this city was when…
Knight quickly shakes their head, as if throwing off the bad thoughts that were trying to lodge onto their mind. That was all behind them and the pack now. Alexander was dead now. He couldn’t hurt anyone no matter how desperately his corpse turned in its grave.
“Sweetheart?” Evie asks, concern seeping into her voice. “Is everything okay?”
“Um, yeah, just thinking about some… things,” Knight gave a meek smile that did little to wash away their mate’s concerns. They hadn’t meant to wear their thoughts so plainly on their face. “Hey are you hungry?” Knight asks desperately trying to change the subject. “If you want, I can go get pizza from Joey’s Pizza. It still exists right?”
“Yeah, it’s still there,” Evie says, cautiously taking a few steps closer to her partner. As if she somehow moved too quickly, they would fall over. “But you don’t have to go I can just order it.”
“I don’t mind going. Pick up is always cheaper than delivery anyway,” Knight shrugs. “I need the fresh air anyway, plus it’ll be good to see the town properly again. I mean once we move you out there’ll be no reason to ever come back, it can be like a final farewell, yeah?”
“Sure,” Evie just nods, seeing that there’s little point trying to dissuade her Knight. “Just be careful out there all right.”
“Of course, I’ll be careful. There and back,” Knight gives Evie a kiss on the cheek. “Does the usual sound good?”
“Sounds perfect,” Evie waves as Knight begins to walk out the door. “See you soon. I love you!”
“Love you too,” with the final farewell, Knight closes the door to the apartment before quickly walking down the hallway. Even though they were hungry, and it was dinner time anyway, they did feel guilty leaving so abruptly. They could feel all the bad thoughts beginning to latch onto them. Knight knew that Genevieve would understand if they explained it to her. Hell, they even originally told her that they could never come back to this place, but their own fear couldn’t overpower their desire to help their mate. They took a steady breath as they began down the stairs of the apartment building. They’d be fine. Just a few more days and the moving van would be here, and they’d be out of this town once again forever. Then no one important could ever be hurt again. Unfortunately for Knight, there was no time like the present for them to be proven wrong.