The Beauty of the Beast

The Beauty of the Beast
Many Years Later

“How’s your packing going, Bugaboo?” Essence asked, causing Kanon to scrunch her face in embarrassment. She threw up her hands. “Sorry, sorry, I promise I respect that you’re getting older.”

Shaking her head, Kanon chuckled. “It’s going well. Caitlyn and Chip have been really helpful.” She smiled at her friends and Chip’s face turned red.

Poor boy. Essence thought to herself. Kano’s going to have his head the day he asks to marry Kanon.

It didn’t take a rocket scientist to know that they were going to be mates, not to mention Brenda and Ericka had already confirmed it. Still, the idea of Kanon getting married one day made her smile. Chip was a good kid and she could tell that he adored their daughter. She turned her attention to Caitlyn. “It’s nice to see you taking a break from planning your wedding. Jeremy told me how stressed you’ve been trying to get everything ready.”

Caitlyn rubbed her neck bashfully. “I know I’m probably driving him crazy. I just want everything to be perfect.”

Essence gave her a reassuring smile. “It will be. Do you want to know why?”

“Yes.”

“Because you’re marrying a man that’s not only your mate, but who makes you genuinely happy. As long as you remember that, everything else will fall into place. And when all else fails, remember that half the people on your guest list you probably don’t even like, so eff them.” They all shared a laugh, and she reminisced about her own wedding and the fact that for everything that went wrong, three times as much went right. Her thoughts were interrupted by Kanon and Chip’s quarreling.

“I don’t understand why you need these many pairs of shoes,” Chip said, as he picked up a pair of Kanon’s sandals. “You only have two feet, and you don’t even like to go out that much. You brought these six months ago, and you’ve never worn them.”

Kanon glared at him. “Why are you clocking my wallet and my toes? Mind your business. Some of us like to change things up. Not everyone wants to wear the same thing every day.”

“I do not wear the same thing every day!”

“White shirt, black slacks and black shoes. You’re a lab coat away from looking like Professor Utonium.” She sneered. “Matter of fact, I take that back. Your hair definitely confirms you’ve been dabbling in the chemical X.” Stifling their laughs, Essence and Caitlyn listened as the two continued to argue. Standing indignantly, Kanon shouted, “… don’t talk about my leggings! They are practical and functional!”

Chip smiled smugly. “Ahh multipurpose leggings. Now it makes sense why you have so many. Tell me, Mr. Penguin, what’s your next plan to thwart Batman?”

“Oh! Why you—” Sliding her feet against the floor, Kanon placed her fingers to her head like horns. Confused, Chip’s eyes widened as he watched her lunge at him. She tackled him, causing him to fall from the bed hard onto his ass. Pinning him to the floor, she growled. “Take back what you said about my leggings!”

He huffed. “Only if you take back calling me Professor Utonium, you maniac!”

Unable to hold it in anymore, Essence doubled over in laughter. “Oh, my goodness! You two look like Kano and I.” She laughed uncontrollably at the fluster on both of their faces. Gaining her composure, she tried to put on her best motherly attitude. “Now, both of you apologize to one another. Kanon, how many times have I told you it’s not polite to attack people?” she said.

Kanon released Chip and stood. “But mom, you punched Mrs. Adeline last week for saying that Aunt Ani looked like a whale.”

Essence winced. “Okay, first, did not know you heard about that. Second, I regret nothing. I don’t like that Party City wig wearing bit—woman, anyway. You and Chip are friends, so be nice.”

Kanon let out a smirk before helping Chip up. She rubbed her hand up and down her arm. “Sorry for angry bulling you… but not for calling you professor Utonium. I actually think he’s pretty cool.”

He smiled shyly. “I’m sorry for talking about how many shoes you packed. That’s your prerogative and you always look stylish. Also sorry for talking about your leggings. You don’t look like the Penguin when you wear them, you look more like Elastigirl.” He picked up a pair of her black boots. “Especially when you wear these with your red ones.” His face reddened. “Elastigirl is my favorite, by the way.” The two avoided each other’s eyes, and Essence shook her head.

“Hey, I know it’s too early to tell, but do you think they could be mates?” Caitlyn linked.

Essence chuckled. “Absolutely.”



“Ezra!” Kano’s stern voice called out as he beckoned his son into his office. “I wish to speak with you.” Hesitantly, Ezra walked into his father’s office and looked down at his shoes. Kano clasped his hands in front himself. “So, I was out walking around today and I was struck by the most wonderful idea of another thing I wish you to have.” Ezra’s eyes goggled, and Kano shook his head. “No, no, I promise no more football things. I would never want you to harm yourself as you did last time. Actually”—he raised his hand to his chin—“that incident brought upon the revelation. A boy needs something that can aid in protection, and as such, I will be buying you a tank.”

Ezra shook his head frantically, and Kano grinned. “I get it. You’re so much like your mother, always worried about how much things cost. Don’t worry, it was a reasonable purchase—though things we can enjoy together truly have no price point for me.” Hearing his son let out a sigh, Kano nodded. “I’m glad that I have assuaged your worry. Now, do me a favor and let’s not tell your mother about this.” He smirked. “She would never approve of it, and while there is not much your father fears, an angry luna is one of them.”

Ezra nodded his head slowly and exited the office. Running into his mother, his big brown eyes glistened in front of her. She bent down and gave him a hug. “Hey, hey, what’s the matter?” He shook his head, and she rubbed his back. “Tell me, maybe I can help.”

Pulling away from her, he whispered, “Dad wants to buy me a tank. I don’t want a tank. I just… I just…” He sniffled and hugged her again.

Her heart broke in two knowing the words that remained unspoken. “I’ll talk to him,” she said, and Ezra looked at her in horror. She rubbed his little shoulders. “It’s time, okay? I know you’re worried, but I promise everything will be fine.” Giving him a kiss on the cheek, she then smiled at him. “Are you still working on your bookcase?”

He nodded. “Yes, but it’s very hard to make.”

“I could help you.”

He stood quietly, not wanting to hurt her feelings. It wasn’t that he didn’t want her to help, he knew it was something he needed to do on his own. Beyond that, if he did ask for help, he only wanted it to be from one person. Finally, he shook his head while giving her an apologetic look.

“I understand,” she said, giving him a reassuring smile in return. Standing, she fluffed his curly hair. “I’ll leave you to it then.” He hugged her legs before making his way to the courtyard to finish his complicated project.

Letting out a sigh, Essence walked to Kano’s office to have the chat she’d been avoiding. Finding him inside, she knocked gently on the open door. “Hey, can I come in?” she asked, and he stopped what he’d been doing.

“Anytime,” he responded, smiling at her as she entered the room and closed the door.

She chuckled. “You won’t be smiling in a moment.”

“Oh?”

She nodded. “Yeah. So, I think it’s about time that I told you about what Brenda and Ericka said.” She bit the side of her lip. “They know who Kanon’s mate is.” She watched hard lines form on his face, and she shrank. “It’s Chip.” Hearing silence, she prepared herself for the tantrum she knew was about to come.

“I won’t stand for it!” Kano’s voice boomed as he blew steam from his nose, standing.

Twisting her lips, Essence tried her best to stifle her laugh. “Adam… he’s her mate, and he’s a nice boy.”

He pouted. “Yes, yes, I know Chip is wonderful—so are Savina and Tremaine—butitsmybabygirl.” He wailed. “Oh! I don’t want to give her away.”

“Fucking hell, they still have years until that happens. We don’t even know if they will imprint or accept the pairing.”

“They’ve been tied to the hip since she arrived here years ago! He’s her best friend, and vice versa! Inside jokes, Belle! They have inside jokes! That’s full-on kid imprinting if I’ve ever seen some! Of course, they’re going to accept the pairing when it’s time. Brenda and Ericka are never wrong about pairings.”

Essence huffed. “You talk about their closeness as if it’s so terrible. We’re close. Are you saying I’m not your best friend?”

He looked at her as if she were insane. “Essence, we’ve literally grown to snort at the same time when we laugh. Of course you’re my best friend, that’s my point. We’ve been tied at the hip since we met—even when we weren’t physically around one another. Hell, we could run a comedy show with the number of inside jokes that we have.” He cut his eyes. “By the way, thanks for embarrassing me in front of the alphas of Moon Stone and Dark Moon the other day. It’s hard to conduct business after you snort in front of them because you’re laughing at your wife’s link.”

She cackled. “Sorry, but if it makes you feel better, their luna explained that they’re worse than you and Cayden. They can’t go a whole day without the eldest choking the other.”

“Well, if the younger one is anything like Cayden, I fully understand,” he retorted, chuckling. Kano looked at the pictures of Kanon and him on their own day at the fair and thought about the way she’d grown into a beautiful teenager with a heart like her mom. He peered at the few candids of her and Chip and the way they had clearly connected already, and he sighed. “Chip really is a good kid. I guess I am working myself up a bit. There are still many years ahead and ultimately, I would love for Kanon to be with someone who adores her as much as I adore you. If that is to be Chip, I’ll be happy—once I get over my fatherly woes.”

She pulled him to her and kissed him. “Good. Now a second thing, did you or did you not tell Ezra that you were buying him his own tank?”

Kano’s eyes widened. “Who told you that?! Was it Cayden?! I would never give my son something so dang—”

“Ezra told me,” she said, cutting him off while arching her brow.

Kano sighed. “How long shall I sleep in one of the guest rooms for this?”

Chuckling, she took his hand and walked to the couch that sat against the window. She pulled him to her and laid her head on his chest. “Communicate?”

“Okay,” he replied, confused that she wasn’t angry.

“Kano, Ezra doesn’t want tanks, missiles, footballs, soccer balls or any other thing you think is made for little boys. Cayden’s sons may be into those things, but he isn’t.”

He rubbed his face. “I know. I just… I don’t know how to relate to him. It was different with Kanon. She was five, and she took to me with so much fervor, but with Ezra, he just wishes to be with you. I would like us to be closer. I adore him, and I don’t want him to despise me when he gets older because he thinks I don’t wish to be around, when I do, more than anything.”

She nodded. “I understand, but can I offer you some advice? Instead of trying to relate to him on the level that you relate to his cousins, maybe relate to him on his level.” She pointed out the window to a little Ezra whose curly raven hair covered his entire head. They watched as he let out a sigh and threw a plank of wood on the ground. “He’s been out there all morning trying to build his own bookshelf,” she said.

Kano stared at his son and scratched his head. “I don’t understand. We have a massive library, and if he wanted a bookshelf, I would happily purchase him one.”

“Oh, sweet baby Jesus. Thank God you’re sexy because sometimes the light just doesn’t turn on,” she growled. “Who not only filled that enormous library with books, but has read every one of them cover to cover more times than anyone can count?”

“Me.”

“And every morning who sits at the table reading the newspaper, even though the castle has more TVs than anyone could ever watch?”

“M-me…”

“Who built their own personal bookshelf in our room filled with all the books that are off limits because they are ‘just too precious’ for the master library?”

Kano sat stunned. “Fucking hell, me.”

She nodded and pointed again to the window. “Kanon is like me. Rough and tumble and wears her heart on her sleeve. It’s what makes her, her and in so many ways I know it will ultimately make her so much better than I’ll ever be.” She caressed his face. “Adam, the reason you can’t figure out how to relate to Ezra is because you keep trying to see me when really he’s the spitting image of you.” Ezra rubbed his little red face in frustration at the fact his bangs kept getting in his way. Silently, he shifted into his red wolf and huffed again at the bright red streak that laid heavily in the crown of his fur. Kano covered his mouth, and she laid her head on his shoulder. “He wants to be just like you when he grows up,” she said.

“He said that?”

“Every day. He asks me all the time about the things you like because he’s too nervous to ask you. He won’t cut his hair because I made the mistake of mentioning you had hair just like his. He stares at his crimson patch all the time, but the only time I can get him not to feel self-conscious about it is when I remind him that once upon a time, you were the only wolf in Blood Moon that was red all over.”

Kano watched his son bury himself into a ball and silently watch his cousin’s play. “Excuse me,” he said, kissing Essence’s cheek, and quickly darted from the office.


Making his way down the hill of the courtyard, Kano waved to his brother and two nephews briefly. “Ezra!” he called out, and his son hurriedly shifted and stood. He raised his little face, and Kano reached into his pocket and pulled out a simple scrunchie. Saying nothing, he placed Ezra’s hair into a bun on the top of his head. “There. You look just like I did when your mother gave me that.” Ezra’s eyes grew, and Kano nodded with a chuckle. “Yep. My hair would always catch in my soup, too.”

Sitting down, he patted the grass beside him and waited for his son to join him. He sighed. “I’m really sorry, Ezra.” When Ezra’s eyes shot up to him, he shook his head. “No, I’m not upset that you told your mother about the tank. I’m actually quite proud of you for doing so.” He smiled. “You know one of the reasons I love you so? It’s because in all the things I know, you teach me I still know very little.” He nudged his son. “You remind me to be teachable; I wish to be like you when I grow up.” Hearing Ezra laugh made Kano feel ten times better. He pointed to the boards behind them. “Bookshelf?” Ezra nodded. “Hm… maybe I can help you build it? Then we can go to the town nearby and get some of your own, just too precious for the master library, books?”

Ezra’s smile brightened, and he hugged his father. “That sounds like so much fun,” he whispered.

“Yes, it does. Let’s make it our own tradition,” Kano said earnestly. “I know Kanon being gone for the summer with Uncle Rafael and Uncle Gregory will be a lot on you, but I want you to know that it’s okay to step out of your shell on your own a little. It’s scary, but I promise it’s worth it. Allow others to see the amazing person we already know you to be.” Seeing a staffer, Kano beckoned him over and took the book he’d requested from his hands. He handed it to Ezra. “From my own personal library. The Magic Mirror. I’ve always enjoyed it, but it grew to have another reason it’s so special to me.” Ezra looked at him curiously. “It’s the book your mother was reading when she confessed she loved me,” Kano said, smiling.

Ezra gasped and stared down at the book in his hands as if it were magic. “Can I put it on my bookshelf?” he asked quietly as he sat it beside him.

“It would mean a lot to me if you did.” Standing, Kano reached his hand out and when Ezra took it, he shifted. “Well, don’t leave your father by himself,” he said, eyes full of amusement. Ezra shifted and let out a huff as he nipped at his crimson patch. Kano raised his paw and he heard Ezra gasp again at the sight of it’s pad. “Yes, they’re purple. They were pinkish at first, but now they’re just bright purple.” He shrugged. “Doesn’t bother me anymore, though. It’s a part of my red wolf—and let’s be honest, red wolves are pretty badass.”

Ezra looked from his father’s purple paws to the crimson streak that coursed down his back. “Red wolves are pretty badass,” he murmured, his face red.

Kano laughed. “Yes, and make sure that if your mother ever hears you curse, you tell her you learned it from your Uncle Cayden.” Ezra snickered and then leaned against his father. “I love you,” Kano whispered. “We all do, very much.”

Ezra looked up at his father, his little face filled with happiness. Feeling more confident, he watched his cousins playing and let out a deep breath. Racing from Kano, he eagerly joined them in a game of hide and seek.

“That was amazing to watch,” Cayden said as he joined his brother’s side. “I think you both needed that.” He playfully cut his eyes. “He better not lie on me, however.”

Kano shifted and chuckled. “Yes, I think we did—and if he does, you better take one for the team.” He folded his arms to his chest. “How is Ani?” he asked.

“Still pretty pissed at me. She won’t allow me to come near her out of fear she’ll get pregnant again.”

“Well triplets would shock anyone, though if you get her pregnant while she’s pregnant, we may need to have a chat.”

Cayden sneered. “Hell, I prayed for triplets. Don’t tell her that, though.”

“Oh, I’m telling.”

“Then I’ll tell Essence that it was you that accidentally set her wig closet on fire.”

Kano’s eyes turned to the size of plates. “You wouldn’t dare!”

“Oh, but I would. Try me and find out, dear brother.” Cutting their eyes at one another, they squared off, and then both broke out into wide grins. “Fucking hell, I don’t think I’ll ever get used to the way things have turned around here, especially you. I know I don’t say it often but—” Cayden patted his chest and Kano nodded before embracing him in a hug.

“You and me, always,” Kano whispered.

“Indeed. You and me, always.”