Griffin could see when Nathan had taken over again as the bright blue that indicated Axel's presence faded back to be replaced with a light mauve.
"Do you think our eyes would do that if they were different colors?" he thought to Kael.
Kael hmmed as he thought about it. [I'm not sure. I don't think we've ever seen another shifter whose eyes weren't the same color in both forms. Definitely interesting to think about. I wonder if his human eye color will change when the wolf one does.]
Griffin's attention was brought back to Nathan when the boy cleared his throat. "Are you going to kick me out?" he asked tentatively.
"What?" Griffin was shocked. He moved to crouch in front of the wolf. "Why would you think that?"
Nathan lowered his head before peeking up at the man through his lashes. "Well… I don't know. I guess because I lied to you about being a werewolf?" His eyes lowered again, not wanting to see the disappointment he was sure would be in Griffin's eyes.
Griffin crooked a finger under Nathan's chin, gently forcing his gaze back up. "I could never blame you for keeping a secret that I would too if I was in your position." Griffin moved his hand from under the boy's chin to cup his cheek, rubbing a thumb under his eye, wiping away a missed tear. "You're welcome here for as long as you want."
**********
Nathan couldn't help but feel overwhelmed at the look in Griffin's eyes. He wasn't sure what the emotion he saw there was, but he knew he liked it. It made him feel warm and secure about his place here.
"Thank you," he whispered. If there's anything I can do to repay your kindness, please let me know."
Nathan could feel his eyes starting to water again, but this time from joy instead of anguish.
Griffin's thumb continued to rub his cheek soothingly. "Say you'll stay. That's all I want."
[Aww. Sounds like someone likes you,] Axel couldn't help but tease, his voice sounding weary.
"Are you okay? You sound tired," Nathan asked, concerned.
Axel curled into a small ball. [I'm just tired. I haven't taken over for that long before.]
"If you're sure."
[I am,] Axel huffed. [Go talk to your dragon and let me sleep.]
Nathan glanced at said dragon who'd sat there silently, waiting for an answer.
"I'll stay," Nathan started, "but you have to promise that you'll tell me if you need space or want me to leave."
[Like that'll ever happen,] Axel muttered quietly.
Griffin reached for his hands once again. "I doubt we'll ever get to that point, but I promise."
Nathan sighed in relief. "Good. What do we do now?"
"Hmm. Well, there's not really anything that needs to be done today. How about we have some dinner before finishing that book?" Griffin asked as he rose to his feet. "Tomorrow we can work on getting you comfortable moving around on two feet again." He grinned as he said this, remembering how Nathan wasn't able to do much with his human limbs.
Nathan flushed a bright red at the reminder of his weakness from earlier. "I'd like that. A lot."
He watched as Griffin moved over to the fire where the stew pot was hanging before grabbing it bare-handed and carrying it over to the kitchen.
"Doesn't that hurt your hands?" he wondered.
"Not really," Griffin shot him a grin over his shoulder. "Nice thing about being a dragon; you're fireproof. This little bit of heat doesn't even register."
"Wow," Nathan breathed in awe. "Cool. Is there anything that does bother you?"
"The cold," Griffin shivered at the mere thought of it. "I hate snow and ice. Not a fan of the rain either but at least it's warmer than snow. It's why I won't go further north unless I have to."
"Yeah, I don't like the rain much either. But that might be more from just being caught in too many storms and ending up soaked." Nathan considered the thought. "I think I'd be fine with it otherwise. And when you think about it, we met when it was raining."
Griffin grinned at the reminder. "Yeah, we did. Never would have thought I'd see a wolf in one of my traps. I honestly thought you were going to try to eat me, you were so skinny."
"What?! I would never do that!" Nathan exclaimed.
Griffin turned from the counter to get a good look at Nathan. "I can definitely say you've gained some weight since we've met. I hope I was responsible for that."
Nathan wrapped his arms around his torso. "Yeah, you were. I'm lucky if I can catch something every other day. I'm sure you've noticed but I'm not that great at hunting."
"We'll work on that too. For now, let's just eat and get some rest."
They ate in companionable silence, the only sound the spoons scraping against their bowls and the fire crackling away.
As Griffin did the dishes he asked, "I guess we need to figure out the sleeping arrangements."