Chapter 13

Once my belly was full and I’d finally calmed down, I noticed the fur on the back of my neck was stiff and crusty.

What’s this? What is this!?

Panicking, I tried to scratch it with my hind leg, but the angle was terrible—I couldn’t reach it.
It’s not because my legs are short, okay!?

I flailed and twisted around, only to flop helplessly onto my side.
See!? Not short!

Turning my neck as far as I could, I sniffed at the crusty spot. It smelled faintly of crushed grass, though the scent had already dried and faded.

When did I even get this stuff on me!? I tried scratching again, but Mr. Wolf blocked me with his face, stopping me.

Why? Am I not supposed to take it off?

When I looked up at him, Mr. Wolf leaned in and sniffed the spot himself.
Now that I thought about it—that was where the stray dog had bitten me.
Yesterday it had been hot and throbbing, but now it felt cool and soothing.

Did Mr. Wolf treat my wound?

I tilted my head.
But how…?

Before I could figure it out, another sensation—far more urgent—swept away the question entirely.
I had to pee. Badly.

I dashed into the side tunnel, flailing and squirming forward.
No pushing from behind! That would be very bad!!

With Mr. Wolf following close behind, I stepped outside. Just like last night, a blizzard was raging.
Ugh, at this rate, there’s no way I can even visit the village to check on Mom and Dad.

As that thought crossed my mind, a sudden gust of wind slammed into me—and my body started rolling.

Whaaa—! I’m turning into a snowball!

Mr. Wolf sprinted around and stopped me before I could roll any farther.

Mom, I’m so sorry for being such a handful… I can’t even wander around the den properly, let alone make it to the village.

Once I escaped my snowball crisis, I shook off the snow clinging to my fur and—using Mr. Wolf as a windbreak—finally took care of my about-to-explode business.

Making sure he still had his back turned, I sat down and began grooming myself.

If this were really a mother-and-child relationship, cleaning up afterward would be the mother’s job.
That thought made my brain automatically picture Mr. Wolf as my mom—and my fur instantly stood on end with a shiver.

Still, this wolf always knew exactly when to step in and when to hold back.
He was capable, reliable… no, an ikemen wolf mom!

I’d seen on TV in my past life that parents sometimes spoiled their kids too much.
But this wolf mom? She seemed like the kind who’d pamper you when needed, yet knew when to firmly say no.

If that’s the case… maybe it’s okay for me to let myself be spoiled for a while.

"Whine~"

Quietly, I crept up behind Mr. Wolf and rubbed my head against his big, dependable back, letting out a soft, affectionate sound.

He flinched, glanced back, and looked down at me as I kept nuzzling him—

"Yip!"

Suddenly, his huge tail swung side to side and smacked me away!
The wind caught me again, and I rolled over the snow all over again.

Mr. Wolf panicked and rushed to stop me, his tail now wagging so hard it looked ready to burst.

Mom… were you that happy that I tried to cuddle you?

Seeing him panting, tongue out, tail thrashing with joy, made me smile too.

"Achoo!"

As I wagged my own tail back at him, I sneezed. My whole body trembled—I must’ve gotten too cold from all that wind and snow.

Mr. Wolf nudged me gently, urging me back toward the side tunnel.
As usual, he gave me a careful push from behind to help me inside.
Once we were in, he licked off the droplets of water clinging to my fur, just like always.

The more I snuggled against him, the more his tail wagged—and that made me happy too.

And so, wrapped in his warmth once again, I drifted off to sleep that night.

"……?"

A sharp, overwhelming stench filling the den woke me up.

Still half-asleep, my eyes refused to open as I sniffed the air.

"! …Cough, cough!"

The smell was so strong it made me choke. Sharp, heavy… but familiar.
It was the same grassy scent that had clung to the back of my neck.

Was this… Mr. Wolf?

Feeling lonely, I reached a paw behind me, but my back was empty. He wasn’t there.

Whine…

Letting out a small, pitiful sound, I sleepily searched for him. I spotted his curled-up silhouette at the far end of the den and staggered over on unsteady legs.

His tail greeted me first—big, fluffy, and warm. I nuzzled against it, comforted by the heat it carried. My eyelids started to droop again.

"So, you woke up because of the smell after all. I thought it’d be fine since you didn’t stir yesterday… sorry about that."

As he spoke, he gently patted my head—over and over. The motion was so soothing that I couldn’t even tell anymore if I was awake or drifting back to sleep.

"I wanted to do it outside, but if I turned human and went out naked in this snow, even I’d die. Once it dries, the smell should fade a lot, so… forgive me, okay?"

Heheh~ what a nice voice you’ve got there. Sure, I’ll forgive you—even though I have no idea what you’re talking about.

As my body relaxed, soft snuffling breaths escaped from my nose. Or maybe I was already dreaming again.

"Well, looks like the heat’s gone down from your wound, so this’ll be the last of the medicine. Hard to find these herbs in this kind of snow. Even grinding them like this, if I stay in this form too long, I’ll catch a cold down here in the den…"

I could still hear his voice when suddenly something cool and wet touched the back of my neck. That sensation was the last thing I remembered before slipping completely into sleep.

When morning came, I woke to find Mr. Wolf’s blue eyes staring right at me—and instantly snapped fully awake.

Eek, he saw my sleeping face! I muttered to myself, feeling kind of gross even thinking it.

But the truth was clear: he’d only been watching over me, like a parent watching their sleeping child. Nothing embarrassing about that.

Rubbing my face with my forepaws to wake up, I vaguely recalled having a strange dream last night… though the details were already fading.

Once I finished grooming, I turned to Mr. Wolf and saw breakfast already laid out. He was lying down, showing his usual “I’m not interested” attitude.

I’d never actually seen him eat.

"You’re not gonna eat?" I asked, sniffing at him. He just pushed my nose away with his face, clearly saying, Go on, eat already.

Well then, I won’t hold back!

Normally I’d dive right in, but today I took a deep breath first. If I kept eating like a messy pup, my wolf-mom might think I’d never grow up.

This time, I’d eat neatly and gracefully from the start.

Result:

"Yip! Yip-yip!"

As always, I got thoroughly licked all over.

Next time for sure—I’ll do better! I can be a capable kid, you’ll see, Mom!!

After breakfast, Mr. Wolf gave my backside a gentle nudge, helping me go outside for the toilet.

"Woof!"

Unlike usual, the blizzard had cleared. The world was still blanketed in snow, but sunlight now glimmered gently across it. No need to worry about being blown away today!

Before I knew it, I was leaping and bounding across the untouched snow. When I finally stopped to look back, I saw a dotted trail of pawprints and patches where I’d rolled around.

Something felt… off about my body. I tilted my head.

…I feel strangely refreshed somehow…

Looking closer at my messy trail in the snow, I realized—some spots were kind of… yellow?

"YIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIK!!"

Apparently, I’d been so happy I’d peed from excitement—and sprayed it all over the place!

Nooooooo! I’m still a girl, you know!?
What am I doing!?

I mean, yeah, sure, I’m technically a dog now—so marking territory and all that comes naturally, right!? But there’s a huge difference between doing it on purpose and accidentally sprinkling it everywhere!

Mortified, I thrashed and rolled violently in the snow, squirming all over the place.

N-no, calm down, me! My body might be female, but my mind’s still male!
So there’s nothing to be ashamed of!
…Right!? Probably. I have no idea what’s “okay” for a guy either, but let’s just go with that!

Yeah, I’m not embarrassed!

I told myself that firmly, lifted my head—and met Mr. Wolf’s eyes, who looked… just a bit taken aback.

…Wait. Haven’t I seen this scene before?