After breakfast, Vander took Alexis and Jupiter to go play, and Perry and I went to the sitting room to speak. Mom and Dad seemed unusually calm about the situation, considering how sudden it all was. I realized that they both understood the significance this had to me. With my track record when it came to prospective mates, they'd been worried that I would continue to shirk commitments and only go after casual romances. Honestly, if it wasn't Perry, it couldn’t be anyone else. I only now consciously understood that was the reason why I couldn't seem to care about any of the people I slept with. As pathetic as it was, I'd been hung up on him this whole time, only now I saw it for it what it was. If Perry was taken away from me this time, maybe I wouldn't even bother trying again.

"I wish there was something more we could do," Mom said. "But for now, we can at least do what we can to provide sanctuary here."

"Joseph would never challenge me," Dad said, speaking of Perry's father. "He's not going to try and force you to come home, unless he's willing to risk ridicule in the community."

"He won't," Perry said. "Mom might've, but my dad has no backbone."

Dad stroked his chin. "What we can try is to make an offer to your husband. He'll come here, or send someone eventually to fetch you. Perhaps he'll be willing to agree to some terms to void your marriage."

After finishing speaking with my parents, Perry and I went back to my bedroom. He sat down on the edge of the bed and I joined him, putting my arm around him.

"I feel good about this," I said. "My parents want to help you."

He nodded, but he didn't look very hopeful.

"What is it?" I asked.

"Gregor may not be in love with me, but he is in love with the power he holds over me and our daughter. That's what he loves more than anything else. The control. Especially the control he has over Jupiter. At least I can see what he's doing. I can resist his manipulation and his mind games, but Jupiter can't. It's warping her, and eventually it'll break her. I wish I could believe that offering him something as an exchange would work, but I just don't think that anything will make him want to give that up."

The rage stewed inside me like boiling water in a pressurized pot. I hated this helpless feeling, but I had to keep it together for Perry. Whatever I felt was nothing compared to what he was going through. This was what he'd been dealing with for thirteen years.

"Arthur... I hate that I've suddenly dragged you and your family into this mess. It isn't fair that I just showed back up in your life and brought all this misery with me."

"It isn't fair that you have to deal with this shit," I said. “Perry, I've been lost this whole time without you, and I didn't even realize it. I will fight to the end. No matter what the outcome."

There was a knock on the bedroom door. It was Vander, and his eyes were wide with eager excitement.

"What is it?" I asked.

"Loch and Tresten are here. And he thinks he might've found a way to help you guys."

Perry and I exchanged a puzzled look and hurried alongside Vander to the sitting room. Mom, Dad, Loch, and Tresten were seated inside, talking quietly while Alexis and Jupiter both sat on the floor with Ian, who was reading a book to them.

Loch stood. "Stephen," he said, "Could you please have the kids entertained for a little while?"

"Certainly, sir," Stephen said, emerging from a corner of the room with two other house staff.

"Daddy will be here," Perry said, smiling at Jupiter, who looked to him for approval. "Go have some fun."

I gave Loch a quick hug. "You've actually found something? So soon? It's not having a bunch of fighters beat the shit out of him, is it? Because I wouldn't object to that."

"Me neither," Perry muttered.

"Close," Loch said, smirking. "I spoke to Master Graffer and some of the other fighter masters at the school this morning, and I was told about 'the rite of challenge.' Apparently, it's actually an old highborn law."

Dad laughed. "The rite of challenge? Like when you fought the Bellock boy, Loch? I thought that was just a Fighting Arts School custom."

"Yes, but there's also an official law regarding it," Loch said. "An ancient one, still in effect, even though it's not really in use anymore."

"Fighting to the death isn't as glorious as it once was," Tresten said.

"So... I have to beat the shit out of him?"

"I mean you could... But the law applies to almost any other measurable challenge where the two people are on equal competitive ground. You submit an official notice of challenge with the terms, and it's distributed amongst the leading members of both party's clans."

"What happens if I lose the challenge?" I asked. "If it's not a fight to the death?"

"Uh, well... I guess, nothing," Loch said. "Apart from any loss of respect and honor in the eyes of the clans."

"Hrm." I looked to Perry. "What do you think about this?" I was skeptical—outside of trained fighters, nobody talked about dueling or challenges unless it had to do with an old story. It was hard for me to imagine something like that being officially recognized by the law these days.

"I don't think Gregor would ever accept a challenge to a fight," Perry said. "He'd know he'd lose."

"It does have to be on equal ground," Loch said.

"If it were an equal challenge, though... And the eyes of the clan were on him... He cares a lot about his status in Elclaw. If he turned down a fair challenge, he'd lose honor amongst the clan, and that might be enough for him to compel him to accept."

"So, what's an equal challenge?" Mom asked, and added in a quiet voice, "Something not too dangerous."

At that moment, it came to me. "A wolf-cycle race. That's it. He's a racer, too. A well-known one in Elclaw. That would be double the shame if he turned down a racing challenge."

Perry's eyes widened. "Hounds of Hell..."

"I think this might be it!" I said.

"A wolf-cycle race," Mom said, sounding faint.

"What do we need to do to start the process?" I asked Loch, a grin plastered on my face. My body thrummed with so much excitement, I was trembling. There was hope.

As the leader of our clan, my brother Christophe was called to come oversee the drafting of the challenge and to put his official endorsement on it. While we were waiting, Perry pulled me aside.

"I don't know how I feel about you doing this," he said. "You'd be risking your safety out on that track for me..."

"I risk my safety every time I race," I told him. "This time will be no different."

"If you get hurt? Or worse? I don't know what I'd do."

"I won't." I took his hands in mine. "Don't worry."

"I hate feeling so useless. This is my battle to fight, and you're doing it for me."

"We're doing it together. You've been fighting for a long time, Perry. Look, I don't believe it was just chance that you found me yesterday. It's obvious we've both been trying to get back to each other this whole time. This is how it's meant to be. We're meant to be. We've been given a real chance. So let's make this work."

He nodded and hugged me tightly. "I love you, Arthur," he said. "I've never stopped loving you all this time." He touched my cheek and drew me into a kiss.

We kissed again, long and sweet. My heart overflowed with love for him, a feeling so incredible and overwhelming in both its foreignness to me and its power. This is how love feels. Remember?

By the end of the day, a copy of it was already submitted to the other ranking members of our clan, and the main, paper copy was en route to Elclaw, along with a digital copy sent directly to Gregor Houndfang and the leaders of the Silver Sun Clan. There'd be no avoiding it—the challenge was out in the world, and would soon be seen and acknowledged by both our clans.

I could win this. I could help Perry and Jupiter.

* * *

The tires of my wolf-cycle tore up a cyclone of dirt and debris as I gunned the engine, ripping up the weeds and overgrowth that littered the Golden Forest Proving Ground. The White Tree track was only open on certain days for practice and training runs, and I wanted to get as much wheel time as I could. The truth was that while I was skilled, I was not a professional racer, and Gregor was. In fact, I'd never even seen him race before. That didn't worry me. I'd beaten top professionals in open races before.

Stephen hired a team to help us set up monitoring electronics so that Perry could act as my pit crew and track guide, watching my runs from a trackside monitor piping in a live feed shot by a drone hovering far above the track. Perry may not have been a racer himself, but he still had extensive knowledge of the sport and of racing technique. It felt amazing to be working as a team with him, like a dream come true. That was really what the past few days had been—a dream come true.

"Watch the upcoming corner," Perry's voice buzzed in the speaker clipped to my ear.

"Copy that," I growled, my voice the graveling tone of a wolf's. I tilted my left front paw while lifting up just ever so slightly with my rear right one, sending my bike arcing around the corner. On the heads-up display projected on the panoramic cockpit window was a map of the track, along with several data readouts. A targeting reticle blinked a warning to me, showing a pothole in the track. With my enhanced senses, I'd detected it far earlier and swerved easily to avoid it.

"Damn track is coming apart," I said.

"Careful out there. Wouldn't want to lose the challenge before Gregor even responds to us."

"Funny," I said, gunning the throttle and pulling into The Walls obstacle. Gravity pulled at me as my bike curved up the slanted track, exploding through vines that hung down the sides. With the size of the wolf-cycle and the speed I was driving, running through the debris felt as soft as the vibration of rain on a windshield. The difficulty with practicing here instead of at White Tree was that we were missing certain obstacles, and others were far less treacherous. For example, The Forest obstacle here only had three rows of pylons, a quick pass-through compared to the hundreds that were at White Tree.

"What kind of racer is Gregor?" I asked.

"Don't talk, concentrate on your driving," Perry said.

"I should probably know these things," I said, following the hairpin zig-zags of the track and narrowly dodging a family of squirrels trying to crack acorns on the asphalt.

"He's... fearless when going into the obstacles. Sharp, with amazing reaction time. Has great ability to read the track and his opponents. Don't underestimate him."

"I don't intend to."

"That said, he's good, but he's not perfect. You definitely have a fair shot... As long as you keep practicing."

I laughed. "Not the most encouraging words."

"His weakness is his pride—and that desire to control. Goad him into making a mistake."

I banked into the last straightway, roaring toward The Forest. A plume of dust rose up in my wake, like the tail of a huge wolf. I entered The Forest, quickly swerving around the pylons, cutting as close to them as I could. I liked to imagine that if I were in human form, I could stick a hand out and graze each one with my fingertips. Of course, if I actually did that I'd lose my arm. They whipped by with a loud FWOOMP sound, and I exited the obstacle and crossed over the weathered checkered finish line. I pulled my bike into the pit, where Perry was waiting for me by the monitors.

"Good run," he said as I stepped out of the bike and padded towards him. He stroked my muzzle, which became my cheeks as I shifted back to human form. "Cleaner than the last three. But still a long way to go. We've got a lot of training to do."

"Fine by me," I said. "But it might help if I had a reward. Something to look forward to after each race."

He gave me an amused look. "Oh, really?"

"Yeah. Got anything you can give me?"

Perry gripped my chin with his thumb and forefinger and pulled me into a kiss. "There's a couple things..."

I felt his other hand slip down between my legs and grab a hold of my package.

"You seem excited," he said, and I grinned.

"Nothing like racing at three hundred miles an hour to get the blood flowing."

He smirked and kissed me again, pushing me back toward the bike until my back slammed against the side of it. Perry grabbed the zipper of my skintight racing suit, and in one quick motion pulled it down from where it started at my neck, all the way down to the bottom of my abs. He pushed it open, revealing my naked torso beneath it, and slipped his hand down my front until it tucked into the suit and met my throbbing hard cock. I wasn't joking—it wasn't unusual for me to get horny as hell when racing. Something about all that danger and speed and the adrenaline pumping through my body made me want to fuck, and watching the action did the same for Perry. In fact, I remembered the way he used to fuck me after we'd spent the day watching races at the track, and it made me even more turned on.

I pushed the racing suit down my waist so that I was fully exposed, and Perry dropped to his knees in front of me. He looked up into my eyes as he grasped the base of my cock and quickly flicked his tongue across the head, drawing out a glimmering strand of precome. Then, without wasting another moment, he opened his mouth and drank me down his throat. I slapped my hand against the side of the bike to steady myself as my knees shook, unsteadied by the incredible pleasure that surged through my body from his mouth.

"Oh, shit," I murmured. "Perry..."

He ran his lips up and down my glistening length, caressing it in all the right spots with his tongue. He went at me with such an obvious hunger, like he'd been starving for me, or like he was trying to make up for all the lost time. My legs were trembling from his attention, and I jerked and nearly slid down the side of the wolf-cycle's engine compartment. With one hand I hit the door release, opening up the inner cockpit of the bike. It was cramped for a fully shifted wolf, but for two puny humans it was just the right size to have some fun. Perry took me out of his mouth, and I helped him to his feet and kissed him, my tongue dancing against his, tasting my flavors leftover there. I grabbed him and lifted him up and he threw his legs around my waist, and I lowered him into the cockpit of the bike as I quickly undressed him. When he was naked, Perry grabbed me by my shoulders and flipped me onto my back so that he was on top.

"You've done enough riding for today," he said. "My turn."

Straddling me, he reached down and pumped my cock with his fist. I tossed my head back and moaned, and then felt the warmth of his entrance push against my crown. He watched as he lowered himself down on me, gritting his teeth as my bare cock breached him, sliding inch by inch into him until he was at the hilt. He sat there, his mouth opened in a silent gasp, his forehead wrinkled in a look of astonished pleasure. I gazed up at him, and we enjoyed a moment just like that, connected and motionless, my cock pulsing deep inside of him.

Then he started to move his hips, drawing them up and down, riding me slowly. He gripped his hands in mine, steadying him as he started to bounce a little faster on my cock. In the position he was in, his cock sat in perfect reach of me, swinging up and down with every jump of his body. I grasped it and stroked him in synchronization with his movements, and he squeezed my hand and moaned loudly and started to fuck me even harder.

"Fuck," he moaned, "That so feels so good, Arthur. Keep doing that. Please keep doing that..."

I obeyed, enjoying the look of ecstasy on his face as he rode me. He was gripping me tightly with his entrance, and every movement of his body sent shockwaves of pleasure through me.

"My turn," I said. "Come here."

I sat up, my cock still buried deep inside of him, and flipped him onto his back so that his head lay beneath the steering column, where my paws would go. I pushed his knees back, and steadying myself with one arm, started to thrust into him while continuing to stroke him with my free hand.

"Arthur..." he gasped between my thrusts. "Can you..."

"Hm?"

"Turn it on? The bike?"

I grinned and stood up, withdrawing out of him. He lay on the floor of the cockpit, panting. In my human form, the instrument panel seemed like it'd been made for a giant, and I guess that was true. Leaving the bike in a neutral gear, I flipped up the ignition cover and slammed my palm onto the switch. The bike shuddered and then roared to life, its engine growling like a thousand angry wolves. The power of the engine thrummed through the cockpit, vibrating everything with its energy. Perry squirmed on the floor, begging me to come back to him with his eyes. I buried myself into him again, pounding him deep and hard. His mouth opened in a moan that was muffled by the sound of the idling engine. I reached up and jammed my fist into the accelerator, revving the engine. The vibrations rocked our bodies, and it felt like they were being focused down to where our bodies met, intensifying the sensation of our lovemaking. Then I saw the words on his lips, impossible to hear over the sound of the revving engine.

I'm going to come!

I was at the finish too, and the engine roared and shook the bike with violent power as I came. I felt Perry tighten around me as his eyes widened with climax, and his cock pulsed and sent an arc of come up and across his own chest. I buried myself deep into him, all the way, my cock throbbing and knotting with my orgasm, filling him up with my raw come. He threw his arms around me and pulled me down to kiss him, our lips colliding desperately together as our tongues met and played.

Slowly, I withdrew from him, both of us gasping for breath. I reached up and hit the kill switch, and the engine came to a grumbling stop. We were left with a void of silence that was filled only by the sound of our breathing.

"I love you," Perry said. "I love you, I love you, I love you."

A sharp ache gripped my heart, hearing him say those words, but I savored it. It meant this was real, and this was rare. I kissed him, never wanting to be apart.

* * *

Jupiter toddled along as fast as her two little legs would carry her. She had her ears and tail shifted out, and today she'd even managed to reveal her wolf's nose. It was cute seeing her running along with her tail wagging and her nose like a little spot of coal in the middle of a pink face. It'd been three days since we'd sent out the challenge, and things had already fallen into a comfortable rhythm in Luna manor. My brothers and their families had stopped in every day, and I could tell my parents were pleased about that.

Over the past few years, everyone else had sort of drifted into their own lives. Loch and Tresten were teaching, and their son was already getting ready to enter pre-academy. Vander and Pell spent a lot of time up north with the bears, working their healing clinic and raising Alexis. Even Christophe, who was still bound to the Luna manor due to his duties as clan leader, spent a lot more time in his own modest home with Mason and Kota. I didn't blame him for wanting to get away. It could be stifling here, and even though he was leader, it was easy to feel not in control of things when living with our parents. Our situation had created an occasion to come visit and lend support. Loch and Tresten were especially supportive. Loch had dueled in a challenge for honor before, and they both understood what it was like to be signed away in an arranged marriage.

We went outside, and Perry and I watched Jupiter run around in the grassy field by the apple orchard that stretched out into the mountains bordering our home. Perry took my hand, and we walked along, enjoying cool breezes that moved the grass like ripples on the surface of a pond. For a moment, I had a vision of what life would've been like if he and I had always been together. Walks like this together every day. Endless moments of happiness at each other's side. How different would my life have been if we had found a way to be together back then? Thinking of all the empty relationships I'd had over the years made me feel slightly sorry for myself, and upset for those who I'd hurt in my wake. I'd been hurting all this time, and just hadn't realized it. I'd only been trying to fill the space he'd left.

I had the sudden realization that I wouldn't have changed anything. The way life had unfolded had still blessed me with experiences I valued, and most importantly, with a deep appreciation for what Perry and I shared. I knew it was special back then, but seeing how I felt about him now, I understood just how important he was. Just what our love meant. Having experienced the void, I could appreciate the meaning in it all. And, I'd also found myself smitten by little Jupiter. Seeing her curiosity and joy as she explored the world had brought me a lot of joy, too. I wanted to protect her. I wanted to show her things that her alpha father had failed to show her, and to heal whatever wounds he might've inadvertently caused. She was still shy with me and most everyone else except for Perry, but she had made fast friends with Alexis, and after just a few days of being together the two girls seemed to have adopted a sibling relationship. Jupiter followed Alexis around, silently watching everything the older girl did, sometimes imitating her. Alexis was boisterous and playful, so it seemed like a positive match.  I couldn't help but find myself thinking of how great an environment this family would be for Jupiter to grow up in.

"Have you heard from your dad?" I asked Perry. "Or your brother, at least?"

"I spoke to Dimitrius on the phone the other day. It sounded like Dad was just glad to get this 'mess' out of his hair."

"I don't want to get ahead of ourselves," I said, "but maybe we should start talking about what might happen after the challenge. Once you and Gregor are separated."

Perry squeezed my hand and smiled at me apologetically. "We still haven't even gotten a response back," he said.

"Yeah, but we will. He can't ignore it. And I was thinking that your brother could join us here sometime. Be a part of things. Especially for afterwards. He's Jupiter's uncle, after all."

"Wow, you are getting ahead of yourself," Perry laughed. He poked my side. "Just what do you think is going to happen, anyway?"

"We're going to get married," I said.

"Are we?" He smirked at me.

"Yes. Do you not want to?"

"Is this a proposal?"

I laughed and threw my arm around his shoulder. "Stop teasing me."

"I'm not teasing you," he said, grinning. "I'm serious."

"Okay, fine." I took his hands and dropped to one knee. "Perichor Windhelm, will you marry me?" and quickly added, "If everything works out?"

Perry laughed, pulled me to my feet, and kissed. "You're damn right I will. And of course Dimitrius will be a part of things."

"What about your father?"

"What about my father?"

"He is your father, and Jupiter's grandfather."

"And Gregor is Jupiter's 'father'. It doesn't change his actions, nor does it entitle him to any right to be a part of Jupiter's life. He's failed us too many times. He's failed me too many times."

I nodded, not wanting to press the subject any further. I knew why Perry felt this way—his mother and father had been directly responsible for the choices that'd led to his unhappiness—but it was still difficult for me to fully understand. I'd been raised with the belief that family—flesh and blood—be always given a certain level of respect, regardless of misunderstandings or differences. This belief conflicted with my thoughts about Gregor, too. He didn't deserve to be a part of Jupiter's life, but he was her flesh and blood. If she did become my daughter, what would I do later in life when she asked about her birth father? Would I want him to have a place in her life, even after the things he'd done?

"Arthur! Daddy! Look!"

Perry and I exchanged a glance, and ran over to where Jupiter was standing in the tall grass. It was the first time she'd ever called to me by my name.

She held up her hands to show us—except they weren't hands, they'd shifted into paws. She giggled as she waved them in the air, and then they popped back into human form. She looked at them, disappointed.

"Aw. I had paws."

"I saw," I said, crouching down. "Can I see your hands?"

She came over to me, leaned against my leg, and placed her hands in my palms. I glanced up at Perry, and he nodded to me in happy acknowledgement. Jupiter had never been this comfortable with me before.

I turned her hands over, looking at both sides. She still had her ears, nose, and tail shifted out, and she looked at me with wide eyes, her tail wagging curiously.

"Close your eyes," I said. "Think about your hands becoming paws again. Picture it in your head. Can you do that?"

"Okay."

She closed her eyes. Almost immediately, she became completely human again. Then, fur pushed from the back of her hands, and her fingers fused to become paws. She opened her eyes and squealed happily. Then she tapped her paws on top of her head and her butt, and frowned, disappointed.

"Aww. I lost the other stuff."

"Yes, but you were able to control the shift. That's a very good sign, Jupiter. You know what it means?"

She shook her head.

"It means that you're almost ready to complete a full shift." I stood up, and Jupiter's paws shifted back to hands. She reached up and took my hand, holding on to three of my fingers. She squeezed her eyes shut, straining, and her ears popped up from the top of her head. She touched them, and looked very pleased with herself.

"She's going to be able to complete her first shift, soon," I told Perry.

"I'm going to need to arrange a ceremony," he said. He looked flustered. "I don't have anyone to perform it..."

"Perry," I said, taking his hand. Jupiter looked up at us, glancing back and forth between us with curious eyes. "We're a team. Okay? It doesn't matter if you're still married to Gregor. In my mind, we're already together. I know my family would be more than happy to perform the ceremony for Jupiter."

I didn't say it out loud, but I knew that eventually, my family would be Jupiter's family. I was sure of it. So, it was more than appropriate for us to do the rites of the first shift for her, to witness the most important first step in any shifter's life—especially when she had no one else.