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dominimoonbeam · 10 months

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The Other Way

To @ejunkiet, my beloved.

A David/Angel slight au. The meet cute in the woods.

The Other Way

Angel hated hiking.

Why had they even agreed to this?

Okay, that was easy to answer. They hadn’t agreed, it had been a team building work thing and it was bullshit! And honestly, they’d been all for it and having a great time right up until they realized they were lost.

At first, they hadn’t exactly admitted to themselves that they were lost but now it was becoming unavoidable. The sun was setting and it was getting cold.

“Oh shit, oh shit,” Angel whispered every time they held their phone up to stare at that no service symbol. Fucked, that’s what they were! Fucked!

A branch broke and something whined.

Angel spun toward it, clutching their phone tightly to their chest and staring into the trees. “Hello?”

Oh, that was great. Real smart.

Another whine.

Angel jumped back a step, eyes feeling like they might pop out of their head any second. “Is someone there?”

Of course, no one was there! That was clearly an animal sound!

But it was a hurt animal sound…

They had to see if it was okay, didn’t they?

No! Of course, they shouldn’t do that! What if it was a bear or something and ate them!

What if it wasn’t a bear and they could help?

What if it was a bear but they still could help?

They had a responsibility to try!

Or did they?

Angel thought this whole situation was definitely the fault of their boss. They should never have been put in the wilderness to make these decisions! They were a city person! And if they saw a lost dog or a cat in a tree or a bird with a broken wing they sure as shit did something about it.

Was this different?

“Oh fuck,” Angel exhaled, pocketed their useless phone, and inched forward through the trees.

They quickly came up on the base of a rocky slope, a ledge of more trees far above, and there, on the ground, was a dog.

Angel hurried closer at that familiar shape pulling at their heartstrings, and then stopped short when they were close enough to realize this was absolutely not a dog.

They’d never seen a wolf before and certainly never imagined they could get this big.

It whined and twitched, legs curling in and scratching at the ground as he tried to get up.

Angel exhaled soothing sounds, inching closer. “Woah, okay… take it easy,” they tried in their gentlest voice.

The big canine jerked, panting, one eye lulling to the side to look at them.

His eyes were so yellow. Angel stopped again, hands out as if they needed to show this wolf with their palms that they meant no harm.

He huffed and tried to get up again, almost managing it before falling down again, one of his front legs clearly broken.

“Hey, take it easy,” Angel said, pulling their backpack of and squatting beside his head. He was big. Really big. Way too big to be normal. Angel pulled out their water bottle. “If I had cell service out here I could google what to do about your leg… For now, here,” they emptied their bag on the ground and then used the waterproof lining to create a bowl out of it, pouring all the water from the bottle in right by the wolf’s snout.

It looked at them again and Angel could have sworn it was scrutinizing them. Were wolves always this expressive? They got the sense he was judging them… But then he huffed and lapped up the water.

Angel smiled, relieved, and sat cross-legged beside him. They tried to pet him, but he rumbled a clear snarl, so they stopped.

They grabbed the candy bars they’d packed for lunch and unwrapped one, holding it out toward the wolf’s muzzle.

It eyed them again and they were definitely sure he was judging them now. “It’s all I have. I didn’t exactly know I’d find you.” They waved the candy close to his mouth.

He snapped at it, taking the whole them in a smooth snatch and twist. Like he knew exactly how a wrapper worked and how to leave it behind in their grip. His teeth were huge! Angel laughed excitedly. “Wow! You’re big!”

The wolf actually snorted and then whined and dropped its head down again, like this had been too much effort right now.

Angel nodded. “You sleep. I’ll keep watch for help.”

The wolf didn’t snort this time but it didn’t try to leave either.

Angel ate a candy bar and tried to think of a way to get them help. Eventually someone should come looking for them… They really were important at their company. They couldn’t see their boss just ditching them out there…

About an hour later it was dark and cold. Angel hugged their knees and watched the stars. “Tomorrow will be better,” they told the wolf, teeth clattering.

It stirred enough to huff, which sounded like a wolfy “yeah right” if ever they’d heard one.

And then the wolf moved a little, whining at the effort but settling it’s head closer to them, against their side. Angel froze for long seconds, expecting it to growl at them for the contact even though he had initiated it. There was no growling, just that deep even breathing of sleep and the warmth radiating off that thick fur. Angel leaned closer and closer, until they were pressed against the side of the wolf’s neck, their cheek to its shoulder and their body pressed in as close as they could get.

When they woke up, it was morning.

The wolf huffed and tried to get up again, almost managed this time and growled angrily when it didn’t.

“You’re getting better!” Angel said when he seemed discouraged.

The wolf bared teeth but didn’t snarl, head on its paws again.

Angel fed it another candy bar.

“We might need more water soon… I think there was a stream… That way?” they said, trying to decide which way they had seen a stream. The wolf looked dubious. Angel put their empty water bottle in their bag. “I bet I can find it…”

He rumbled, clearly uncertain of this plan.

Before Angel could get up, a string of howls echoed far away from the woods on the ridge above. It was so faint, but it was there and the wolf lifted his big head to try to see up the cliffside.

It tried to howl, the sound caught in its throat before it seemed to give up and drop its head again, eyes shut and breathing labored.

That must be his pack.

Angel cupped their hands to their mouth and howled as loud and as best as they could up toward the trees at the top of that ridge.

The wolf’s yellow eyes flung open and his head jerked to the side to stare at them.

Angel did it again and they both waited.

Nothing.

Angel sighed and got up. “Okay. I’m going to go… that way, and look for the stream. I’ll be back.”

The wolf rumbled.

Angel started walking but only got a couple steps.

“It’s the other way, dumbass!” a gruff, strained voice snapped.

Angel jumped, almost falling down in their surprise as they spun back around.

The wolf was gone.

GONE.

There was a man laying on the ground in the same spot, a broken arm to his chest and the side of his face bruised.

“What. The. Fuck!” Angel gasped out.

He rolled his eyes, wincing as he tried to sit up. “You have got to be the stupidest person I have ever met!”

“Excuse you?” Angel snapped, clutching the straps of their bag and marching those few steps back to him. He was a big man. He had been a big wolf. Really? Really!? Yes. “Fuuuuck. I’ve lost my mind.”

“Oh, I think you lost it way before you found me. I can’t believe you tried to pet me.”

“You… You…”

“I could have fucking killed you! What if I’d been an actual wild animal? Are you insane?”

“You were hurt!”

“I could have killed you!”

“But you didn’t!”

They stared at each other.

Angel frowned at the state of him. He looked a lot more banged up as a person than a wolf. “So…You fell?”

“Obviously,” he snapped.

Angel nodded. Of course, he was pissy, his arm was definitely broken. They stood there awkwardly for another second and then took a step back. “Okay, so… I’m going to go look for water and—”

“Wrong. Way.” He ground out.

Angel blinked.

He looked up at them again and then pointed with his good arm in the other direction. “The stream is that way.”

Angel smiled sheepishly and shuffled in that direction. “Okay. Cool. Be right back… What-What was your name again?”

He cringed and laid back down. They weren’t sure if he was in pain physically or if this was his dramatic mental anguish, either way they decided to let him have it. He was clearly having a worse time of things than they were. “I didn’t tell you. Fucking covert… If I die I guess it won’t be my problem anyway…”

Angel waited while he grumbled to himself.

“David.”

Angel smiled. It was a surprisingly normal name for a wolf person. They inched closer, pulled out their last candy bar, and put it next to him. He glared. He really did look a lot the same as he had as a wolf… “In case you get hungry or… you know…”

“In case you get lost again and can’t find me?” His voice pitched in shock as he said it.

Angel shrugged. They were just turning to go when he grabbed their leg. They looked down, marveling at the size of his hand wrapped around their ankle. And then they heard it, that low growling.

“Don’t move,” he said, voice low and just above a whisper.

A wolf stepped from the trees, followed by another to the left.

Angel blinked. “Are they… like you?” they whispered, but felt their stomach dropping in a way that told them they weren’t that lucky. These wolves were smaller than he had been. Three more came into view, lips curled and teeth bared, something about it making tears prick Angel’s eyes. “Oh shit…”

David growled, the sound far from human.

Angel felt like there was a weight on their chest, pressing hard, squeezing tears and air out of them.

He still had his hand around their leg, the squeeze solid but not bruising. His hand slid up, past their knee, to their thigh. He pulled them back, until they were shuffling around his side and he was letting go to push them behind him. He struggled to his feet, one arm still curled to his side.

The wolves snapped, moving closer.

Angel’s back hit the rock wall.

David shifted right in front of them and their mind tried to absorb the image of a man turning into a wolf. He snapped massive jaws and for an instant the wolves flinched back, startled, but he staggered with that broken leg and what looked like broken ribs too. Still he snarled, like yes, he was hurt, but no he wasn’t going to let them get past him.

Angel wasn’t sure if it was a bluff or not. They weren’t sure it mattered.

And then, just when two of the wolves were about to lunge in on him, a third aiming to dart around at Angel, a massive brown wolf surged in from the side, slamming into the one that had been aiming for Angel and snatching one of the others by the neck.

Angel held their breath, unblinking as two wolves descended on that whole pack, breaking up their hope of a meal in a matter of seconds and sending them all running.

David shifted into human again, knees hitting the ground with a grunt of pain.

The brown wolf that had shown up first cast a glance between him and Angel before shifting into a man too, catching David by the shoulders to steady him. “Hang on, big guy. We found you.” He looked at Angel again, smirking. “And you found…”

Angel perked up, scrubbing the tears from their face. “I found him,” they corrected.

The third wolf shifted too, coming over to kneel beside David and get a look at the damage.

“I’m Asher,” the standing one said, smiling.

David groaned. “Don’t introduce yourself! They’re a fucking covert disaster already…”

Angel ignored him, stepping up and offering their hand and their name.

Asher took it with the hand not propping up his friend. “Were you the one howling?”

Angel grinned. “You heard me?” They tapped at David’s back. “See! It worked! I saved you!”

David growled. “You did not.”

“They kind of did…” the third wolf begrudgingly mumbled. “Your arm is broken and so are your ribs. Do you want me to get a healer out here or do you think you can make it back to the road if we carry you?”

“There are healers?” Angel started bouncing but stopped when it made them feel lightheaded.

Asher’s gaze flicked over them curiously. “You’re a hiker?”

“I’m lost,” Angel explained.

David snorted like it was an understatement.

Angel laughed. “Screw you, dude, you’re lucky I got lost. I saved you!”

David groaned. “I don’t care if you throw me over your shoulder, Milo, just get me the fuck out of here.”

The one next to him, Milo, smiled like he was trying not to. “With those ribs, it’s more likely to be bridal style, boss…”

“What about them?” Asher asked, still looking at Angel. Why was he staring like that? It wasn’t a scary stare or a creepy stare…

“Leave them,” David grumped.

Asher smiled. “They’re about to faint…”

David swung around to stare up at Angel.

Angel blinked back, white spots in their vision. “No, I’m not.” The white spots grew and their stomach felt all jellylike.

The last thing they saw was panic on David’s face. “Asher!” he yelled and just as their legs gave out, the other man stepped in and caught them.

#Angel/David #redactedverse #redacted asmr #dominimoonbeam #fanfic #meet cute reimagined #in the wild #cute as hell!#that's right I wrote something sweet!#<3

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