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Scratching noises filled Greely’s ears as he wrote information about the phantoms on the paper. The other alphas had brought him home after a certain jammer had rescued him from his cage in the phantom realm. Despite the stack of papers filled with written information next to him, Greely hadn’t noticed that his candle had almost melted completely, signaling how late it was in Jamaa. As he continued to be deep in thought, the door to his writer’s room creaked open, breaking his train of thought.
“Staying up as usual, Greely?” A low yet soothing voice commented. The wolf alpha sighed as he turned to see the tiger alpha, Sir Gilbert.
“And I could be asking you the same thing.” Greely replied as he settled his quill down, giving Sir Gilbert his full attention.
“With your new information about the Phantom Fortress being real, I have been planning out how we will approach and defeat it. A good plan takes time.” Sir Gilbert countered as he approached Greely. The two alphas gazed at each other for a few moments before Sir Gilbert suddenly nuzzled against Greely’s cheek. The wolf alpha didn’t respond at first before slowly reciprocating Sir Gilbert’s affection, with fur rubbing against fur. As they finished their display of affection, Sir Gilbert gazed at Greely again, but with worry in his green eyes.
“Besides, this isn’t the first time I’ve stayed up late at night. Ever since your disappearance from the volcano, not knowing about your whereabouts has deprived me of sleep.”
Greely didn’t know how to respond to Sir Gilbert’s words. It took a few minutes of thought before he cleared his throat.
“I apologize for causing that-”
“What? No! You shouldn’t be sorry! I would say it’s my fault for staying up instead of sleeping it off.”
“But why stay up for me? Do I matter that much to you? To the others?” Greely asked. He was met with a now even more worried Sir Gilbert, whose eyebrows are furrowed and his mouth frowning.
“Of course you do! We wouldn’t know much about what the Phantoms were doing without your method, even if it's considered…bizarre.” Sir Gilbert responded with a chuckle, “But even if it wasn’t you, I would still worry about any of the alphas if they have gone missing. However, you have a special place in my heart to make me stay up and worry about you.”
Greely didn’t meet eye contact with Sir Gilbert, yet the tiger alpha could sense the other’s emotion. Disappointment, guilt, and much more could be sensed by those yellow eyes. He settled his paw on one of Greely’s, making the wolf alpha look at him.
“How about the both of us get some sleep? I don’t have to worry about your disappearance anymore.”
The wolf alpha chuckled at his words. Greely turned to his desk to blow out the candle and put everything else away, before turning back to Sir Gilbert. As the two left, Sir Gilbert rested his head on top of Greely’s. The wolf alpha grumbled something, but Sir Gilbert didn’t care. As long as no one else was to see this, Greely wouldn’t do anything, giving him the advantage. Finally, Sir Gilbert could sleep tonight, knowing Greely was safe and sound with him.