As Sheldon and Dexter are driving, they can't see anything from the snowstorm, and on unfamiliar grounds, they have no idea what they are doing. Suddenly, they heard a faint scream from the distance. They decided to pull over and look for whoever was screaming. "Dude, what was that? It sounds almost human." Dexter asked nervously. He looked at Sheldon, who was at the wheel. Sheldon shrugged and turned the car off. "I don't know, man. Let's go check it out." They got out of the car and started walking in the direction of the scream. The storm was getting worse by the second, making it hard to see anything. They trudged through the snow, their steps slow and labored. "There's no way we can do this, man. We should just go back to the car and call for help." Dexter shouted, his voice strained from the cold. But Sheldon wouldn't listen. He had a feeling that something was wrong, and he couldn't just leave whoever was out here to die. "We can't leave the person out here to freeze!" Sheldon shouted over the wind. They continued on, their bodies growing numb from the cold. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, they stumbled upon a figure lying in the snow. It was a young man, barely conscious. They kneeled beside him, and they saw the wounds on him; he strangely smelt like smoke.
"Why does he smell like smoke?" Sheldon asked Dexter curiously. He pointed out the burnt-up trees, and they were still smoking. It was assumed that someone had tried to set the forest on fire. Sheldon and Dexter carefully picked up the unconscious man and carried him to their car. They wrapped him in blankets and started the engine to heat up the car. After a few minutes, the man began to stir. He opened his eyes and looked around in confusion. "Where... where am I?" he managed to croak. "You're with us, man. We found you in the woods. You've been hurt pretty badly. We're taking you to our cabin, which we rented out months ago." The man seemed to nod off again, but after a few more minutes, he slowly sat up, wincing in pain. "Th-thank you... I... I don't know where I am. My name is Cedar. I think I was trying to get to Hogsmeade. There was a fire... I was with my brother, and we buried my mom." Tears welled up in Cedar's eyes as he spoke. Sheldon glanced at Dexter, who was looking at Cedar with an understanding expression. "Well, Cedar, we're not from around here either. Our names are Sheldon and Dexter. We were just passing through when we found you. We can take you to a hospital if you'd like."
Cedar shook his head weakly. "No, I don't even know what's a hospital."I just want to go to Hogsmeade. My brother is out there searching for me, and we just started to bond." Cedar has tears in his eyes as he says, "I don't want to lose him too." Sheldon and Dexter exchange glances; they know what it's like to lose someone you care about. They decide to help Cedar as much as they can.
"Do you know what happened or remember anything at all? You hit your head pretty hard." Sheldon asked Cedar gently, concerned about his well-being. Cedar took a deep breath and tried to focus. "I remember... my brother and I were talking about how he killed my mother during a blackout. We searched for her and buried her body, but our father Solar found out. He chased us down and set the forest on fire to lure us out." Sheldon and Dexter exchanged worried glances. They didn't know what to make of this story. But they knew they couldn't leave Cedar alone to face whatever demons he was dealing with. They decided to take him to the nearest town, where they could call for help and get him to safety. As they drove through the storm, Cedar drifted in and out of consciousness, his ravaged body shivering uncontrollably.
"He doesn't look too good; he needs help fast. We need to get out of here before anyone he knows finds us." Sheldon spoke to Dexter, worried about Cedar's well-being. Dexter nodded in agreement, and he drove faster through the storm. They finally arrived at a small town; they needed to find their cabin to ride out the snowstorm that was raging outside. They found their cabin; it was cozy and warm, perfect for hiding from the storm. They laid Cedar down on the couch and wrapped him in blankets, trying to make him as comfortable as possible. Sheldon made some soup for them to eat, hoping it would help warm up Cedar when he woke up.
"We don't talk about what happened to Cedar; there's no way he's one of them. We have researched wolf-shifters for years." Sheldon whispered, trying not to wake up the boy on the couch. "I know, but we should still be careful. We don't want anyone to find us here. And we should call for help as soon as he's awake. I'm sure the authorities can help him better than we can." Dexter replied, his voice low and worried. "We shouldn't bring the authorities into this cause; they may take him away from us or kill him, and we don't want that." Sheldon responded, As they sat there, lost in their own thoughts, Cedar stirred, his eyelids fluttering open. He looked around, confused for a moment, before focusing on Sheldon and Dexter. "Where... where am I?" he managed to croak.
"You're safe, Mate. You're with us. We found you in the woods and brought you here." Sheldon reassured him, moving to sit beside Cedar on the couch. Dexter busied himself making more tea. Cedar looked at them both, his eyes filled with confusion and suspicion. "I don't know you. Why did you bring me here?"
"We saved you; you may not know us personally, but we are here to look after you till you are better." Cedar looked at them both, still unsure. Sheldon could see the fear and suspicion in his eyes, and he decided to try a different approach. "Look, we saved you from the snowstorm. You were hurt and shivering. We brought you here to keep you safe and warm. You don't have to be afraid of us. We won't hurt you." He reached out a hand hesitantly and placed it on Cedar's shoulder. Cedar flinched but didn't push it away. Dexter put down the tea he was making and sat on the other side of Cedar, his voice gentle and reassuring. "We understand that you must be going through a lot right now. You can tell us what's going on if you want to. We're here to help you, Cedar."
Cedar took a deep breath as he opened his mouth to speak. "Our Wolf Pack had a ceremony about who should be the next beta if anything to our current Alpha. My older half-brother Jett took the unlawful claim as beta. It took me years to gain my father's love and attention, but it was never enough. I was deeply hurt and angry that he stole what was mine. I remember storming off so others couldn't see me like that. When I saw my brother breaking down on a rock, he told me he couldn't handle the responsibility, and he was scared. I went to comfort him, and we had a tender moment together. He mentioned to me that he had a blackout and slaughtered my mother during a rage. We panicked and searched for her, and we buried her together before Solar found out, which he did and chased us out, but that's not enough. He set the forest on fire to fully drive us out, and we had to separate because the pack couldn't come to us at once. I remember running through the snowstorm and hid in a log that was too close to a cliff; it broke in half, and I fell into the snow and ice, and I thought I was going to die." He looked up at them with red eyes. "I can't go back to that life, and I don't know what to do. I can't leave my pack, but I can't go back to that. Please help me." He was sobbing now.
Sheldon and Dexter glared at each other with concerned expressions. They were both in shock at what Cedar had revealed, but they had to remain calm and supportive. They had to help him find a way forward. Sheldon put an arm around Cedar's shoulders, offering him a tissue to wipe away his tears. "Cedar, we believe you. And we're here to help you. You don't have to go back to that life if you don't want to. We'll figure something out together." Dexter nodded in agreement.
Cedar smiled despite his tears, grateful for their support. He wiped his nose and took a deep breath to calm himself. "Thank you. Thank you both. I don't know what I'd do without you." They sat together for a while, silently comforting each other. Eventually, Dexter spoke up. "Listen, we need to think about your next steps. We can't just keep you here forever, and you can't go back to your old life. Do you have any family members you could stay with somewhere far from here?"
Cedar thought of it for a second; he doesn't know any human family members. He grew up in a wolf-shifter pack where everybody has a role to play. Sure, he had family back home, but he doesn't know home at all, not after he was framed and banished by his father, Solar. He can't come back from this, and he is nothing more than an outsider. The memory is still fresh in his mind; he remembers his mother's cold, lifeless eyes staring back at him as he held her lifeless body. "I... I don't have any human family, but I guess I can try to find another pack, a new life somewhere else?" he said, his voice barely a whisper.
"You mentioned a brother? What about him? He could take you in." Sheldon asked curiously of Cedar. "No, he's in as much trouble as I am. We're both wanted for the murder of our mother, even if it wasn't our fault. I can't drag him into this mess any further." Cedar replied, shaking his head.
"He's older than you, right? If you two got serrated, then he's out there right now as we speak," Dexter says, trying to make a point, "you could look for him while we look for a pack for you, if you want. Maybe you could find each other again, or at least have someone in the same boat as you." Sheldon nods in agreement, a small smile on his face.
Cedar's eyes brighten at the thought of having two humans in a pack full of wolf-shifters like him. He knows the dark and long history between humans and wolves. Wolf-shifters always prefer to be with their own kind for personal reasons. Humans just smell weird, and he hates the way they live. He doesn't even know what a car or cabin is; all he knows is living in the forest, hunting, and being with his pack. But still, having someone who is his brother and who went through the same things as him might be something he could hold on to.
"We need to search for my brother and bring him here; all of us can form a pack, a new beginning; we can trust each other, and we can live together in peace and protect each other," Cedar smiled, his eyes shining with hope. "I don't know how to find him, but I'll try. I'll do anything to be with him again and start over." Sheldon and Dexter exchanged glances, their expressions softening as they considered what Cedar had said.
"We'll follow you anywhere, Cedar. We'll help you find your brother, and we'll help you both start a new life together. We'll be there for you every step of the way," Dexter said, putting a hand on Cedar's shoulder. Sheldon nodded in agreement, his expression solemn. "But for now, we need to focus on getting you out of here. We'll find a safe place for you to stay while we search for your brother. Don't worry, we'll keep you safe."