Wolf and Hound

Posted on Tue Jul 19th, 2022 @ 8:50pm by Dominique LaFramboise & Jarrod Lask & Frederick Matthews III

Mission: Prequel - Or How We Met
Location: Fred's house

To Nicki's surprise, it hadn't been difficult to find the alphas of the local packs. She had simply let it known that she was in town and would like to speak with them and several invitations had come in almost at once. And in fact, she stood in front of the house of the first alpha- the werewolf.

Calling it a house was like calling Mt. Everest a hill. It was extravagant, but in a way that said, "I wish I were a mansion." She couldn't really put her finger on it, but something about the place felt... pretentious. Or like it wanted one to think it was pretentious.

"Well," said Jarrod, standing just behind and to one side of her. "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

"That something about this house says, 'I have a small dick'?" replied Nicki.

Jarrod chuckled. "That'd be what I'm thinking, yeah," he replied. "I hope it isn't a reflection of the guy inside."

"Me, too," she said. "Anyway, come on. Let's get this over with."

They walked to the door and Nicki pressed the chime. Somehow, she expected to hear the doorbell from Keeping Up Appearances when she pressed it, but no. It was just a standard bell.

Almost immediately the door was opened by a young, well dressed man who couldn't have been long out of high school. Clearly Nikki had been expected. Of course, the invitation had been for the specific day and time. With a vey unpracticed bow, the makeshift valet spoke, "Good afternoon Alpha LaFramboise." He gave a nervous look between them, as if he wasn't sure which one he should be addressing, before settling in on Nikki. "Alpha Matthews will see you on the sun porch. May I ask who your companion is?"

"Jarrod Lask," replied Nicki. "My uh... my Beta, for the time being."

"Ooo, I rate Beta?" muttered Jarrod, sounding tickled.

"By default, dear," she told him.

"Even so," he replied, still pleased.

The low-level wolf supressed amusement at the two. It wouldn't do for the Alpha to get wind of him breaking decorum. "Of course, welcome Beta Lask. If you please follow me?" The last bit came out in a tone of voice that was just shy of seeming like begging them to go along as he led them through what appeared to be a formal living room into the kitchen and finally to a room at the back of the house lined with floor to ceiling windows. A man, presumably Frederick Matthews, was seated on a large leather wingback chair at the far end of the room thumbing through what appeared to be a well-used Bible. Nikki and Jarrod's escort nervously cleared his throat. "Alpha," he began. "Your guests have arrived. Alpha Dominique LaFramboise and her Beta Jarrod Lask."

Frederick set his book down and stood to greet the arrivals. "Ah yes," he said, eyes flickering over both, a look of disdain fleeting through his face before it was schooled into coolness. "I am Frederick Jayne Matthews III, alpha of the Middle Tennessee Werewolf Pack. I bid you welcome," he said, though his tone indicated he really did anything but. "I'm afraid my beta, Mr. Nathaniel Cunningham, is not in attendance. Something about some ridiculous graduation or some such taking place with the younger pack members, as if such minutiae is remotely important." He paused for a moment, clearly thinking of how he wanted to phrase his next statement, though he could do little to hide the condescension in his voice, "How might we assist the Leesh?"

Nicki didn't even bother trying to hide her mild amusement. He was so formal. She couldn't quite tell if it was an act or if this was the real him. Either way, she found it... cute. "Straight to business," she commented. "Okay, then. We will be utterly ecstatic if you simply don't cause trouble. Granted, wolves are usually pretty civilized. It's the jackals you have to watch out for. Speaking of jackals," she added, brow wrinkling slightly. "Are there any jackals in the area?"

The alpha wolf shrugged. "No idea. I only concern myself with the wolves. If any jackals live in middle Tennessee they have not caused any problems that would affect the pack sufficiently to attract my notice. I suppose one might surmise that they are either not present or have managed to exceed your low expectations of their behaviour. Regardless, my pack has not caused any trouble and I have no plans to allow it to. Though, that still doesn't explain why you are here and wished to meet with me."

“Courtesy,” answered Nicki. “Hounds don’t like to just barge into an area and set up shop. We like to let people know we’re here. And that we’ll be recruiting.”

"You decided to... what, have puppies and moved to Nashville to do it?" asked the werewolf rather incredulously. Sure, he supposed. The woman was a bit frumpy and plain but looked like she'd be a good bitch for bearing children in the rest of the physical aspects, but the male, well he just screamed nerdy Untermensch. He shrugged. "Nevermind, not my problem, and unless you plan on making issues for the pack, not my business to be concerned with either. Still, in the interest of mutual courtesy then, the borders of my pack correspond roughly to the 33 counties of middle Tennessee along with Christian and Todd counties in Kentucky. Within that territory, keep out of our business and we'll keep out of yours. If you go east you get the Knoxville, Chatanooga, and 'native' packs. Go west and you'll get the Memphis pack. I'd avoid them if at all possible. They run heavily to coloureds and their vices and are usually on the wrong side of the human law, as one might expect."

So not only was he stupid, he was also racist. Nicki rolled her eyes. “What part of recruiting sounded like breeding?” she asked. “No, we plan on turning adults to hounds. Only the willing ones, of course. We’re not rude, after all.” She left out the ‘unlike some people’ part, but definitely gave him a once over that would convey her meaning well enough. “And I am supremely unconcerned with what the packs in other areas are up to. They’re not my problem.”

"Breeding, turning, whatever you call it, they're still puppies that have to learn both control and their place. Though I'd keep quiet if I were you. The authorities here don't look well on it. One of the few downsides of President Trump's judges restoring our constitution." He paused for a moment but decided to barge ahead. "I was under the impression that you hounds claim all bad behavior by shapeshifters as your problem. Forgive me then, I simply assumed as the nearest ones, you'd be unable to resist sticking your nose into it."

Nicki decided not to point out that even newly turned hounds were very powerful and calling them puppies was like calling a teenaged human a baby; the more they were underestimated, the better. “We have neither the time nor the energy to police the whole state,” she said a bit testily. “I’m only concerned with the immediate vicinity.”

Jarrod, who had stood by silently, for the most part, could sense Nicki starting to bristle. He had no idea whether it was a show or real, but he decided to play it safe and lay one hand on her arm to remind her to stay calm.

Frederick shrugged again. "As you will. I'm hardly going to criticize you for not making other people's problems your own," he said. For any other flaws, he was not, on that issue at least, a hypocrite. "Was there anything else you wished to discuss?" he asked.

“Just one,” Jarrod spoke up for the first time. “Know of any lycans in the police or fire departments? Or what the current climate is like for lycans applying to those positions?” He had two reasons for asking. One, obviously, because he wished to apply and two, because he wanted to figure out how the wolves felt about emergency responders.

"I have no idea," came the immediate reply, though he raked his eyes over the inferior male specimen again. Then again, being a werehound, the supernatural strength would compensate for his disappointing height for a firefighter, but he didn't seem to Frederick to have anything like the kind of proper male authority for a police officer. "I don't concern myself with my pack's jobs beyond them paying their tithes and their employment not drawing the attention of the police or your kind. You'd do better to talk to Cunningham about that, since he seems to think it a good use of his time to help people 'integrate with the community' or some such nonsense. For a man with such good breeding, he really does hold some ideas well below his station. He shouldn't be too hard for you to find, since his business is neither subtle nor moral. Just ask for the fag wolf on 2nd avenue."

Jarrod barely managed to keep from rolling his eyes. That had been a lot more information than he'd been after in more than one way. The guy was racist and it seemed homophobic as well. A real winner if ever there was one. "It all else fails, I can always volunteer," he said evenly. "Thank you. You've been very... illuminating."

Nicki wasn't fast enough to catch the grin, but she did manage to suppress the laugh that threatened to bubble from her throat. "Yes, I believe we've taken up enough of your precious time," agreed Nicki, sarcasm obvious in her voice.

If Frederick picked up the sarcasm he didn't bother to comment. Instead, he waved his hand, "Very well. Rogers will show you out," he said clearly meaning the young wolf that had shown them in.

Said young wolf bowed, though as soon as he led them from the room he muttered, "Would it kill him to learn my actual name."

"Apparently so," sighed Nicki. "How does the pack feel about him? Are they happy with him as Alpha?"

The young wolf cringed. "I wouldn't say we LIKE him, Alpha LaFramboise, or even that we particularly respect him, but we are aware things could be much worse," he said carefully. "So long as we follow his rules, and grovel to his satisfaction during the full moon or when he wants something, he leaves us alone to do what we want otherwise. His poor language aside, he doesn't make us run drugs or work the streets like the Memphis alpha. Alpha Matthews may basically ignore us but he doesn't ABUSE us."

"Well, that's something, I suppose," replied Nicki. "Also, it sounds like we might have to visit that Memphis pack after all."

"Don't get ahead of yourself, Nicks," Jarrod warned. "One step at a time."

"That's why he's my Beta," Nicki told the young wolf. "Keeps me on track. What was your name?" she asked.

The young wolf waited to close the door to the house behind them. "I'm Matt Rigsby. If I might, Alpha, maybe you should go talk to Jim. He's the one we go to with problems that are 'beneath the notice' of Alpha Matthews. His place is called Brolesque," he said before blushing slightly. "But maybe go before they open."

"Brolesque," she repeated with a grin. "Thank you, Mr. Rigsby."

The two Hounds headed down the drive towards Nicki’s waiting Ford as the door to the wannabe manner house swung shut. Once they were out of ear shot, Jarrod said, “so…. Small dick?”

Nicki stifled a laugh. “Micro,” she replied.