"I feel a bit ill," TS said. "I hate boats."

"Then why go on a cruise?" I asked.

"Well, I've got a potion for seasickness that I've been taking. I left it on the ship, because I didn't think I'd be on any bloody boats here." He groaned and added, "Werewolves aren't made for boats." I reached out, feeling a little silly, and half-ruffled his hair, half-pet him. He smiled gratefully. "Thanks."

I nearly had to bite my tongue to keep from asking about Thomas, until TS got back on his feet. Our group started heading back to the lodge, and the two of us were soon far enough behind them that we wouldn't be overheard.

"Thomas said 'soul-pack.' Is that different from the packs you were talking about?" I blurted as soon as it was safe to talk.

"Completely," TS said. "I suppose the biggest difference is that we can feel our soul-packmates' emotions. It's a lot more like what you'll have with your familiar. Soul-packmates are also much, much rarer than a regular packmate. With a packmate, you just need a good friend who, I dunno, goes that extra mile for you one day. A soul-pack bond only forms under extreme circumstances."

"What qualifies as an extreme circumstance?"

"Well, if you saw a vampire slaughter your entire class and then go for your sister, you're almost guaranteed to soul-pack bond to the person who saves her."

"That is extreme," I agreed. "So, you can tell what Thomas is thinking?"

"No, no. Emotions, not thoughts. For example," TS cocked his head thoughtfully, "right now he's in a pretty good mood. Spotted something keen a few minutes ago, but I don't know what. And he's off..." TS pointed. "Somewhere over that way. If I were so inclined I could go right to him."

"Wow."

"Now, that being said, the longer you've been bonded and the closer you are, the stronger the bond is. It's been long enough, and I know him well enough, that I can usually figure out what he's up to based on how he's feeling, even though there's no mindreading involved."

"Can Thomas sense your feelings, too, or is it just one-way, like it is with regular packmates?"

TS was quiet for a moment. He frowned slightly, like he was trying to figure out the best way to explain it. "Soul-pack bonds are only one way," he said finally. "Unless we're talking between werewolves."

I nodded. "So, basically a soul-packmate is a packmate whose emotions you sense?"

"Bit more complex than that, I'm afraid. Remember I said a packmate comes before anyone else? A soul-packmate is more important than that. Just the sense of loyalty alone is so instinctual and deeply ingrained that you make decisions based on the well-being of your soul-packmate without even thinking about it. Half the time, it's entirely unconscious." TS paused and studied me for a moment. "You asked how to be a good packmate. Most packmates aren't good or bad. They're just a close friend you happen to be a bit more attached to. You get lucky and find some good ones. Sometimes you get unlucky and... find a bad one."

"How would someone be a bad packmate? They'd stop keeping in touch?"

TS shook his head. "A bad packmate is the one who realizes that they can use it to their advantage. Sometimes, someone you thought was a friend..." He shrugged. "I imagine that one of the worst realizations a werewolf can have is that they have a packmate who is using them. It would be hard, but eventually they distance themselves until the bond breaks. I said that an insult from a packmate hurts more. With a soul-packmate... Imagine a dog that's abused. Locked outside, beaten, all that awful stuff. He still greets you when you get home. All's forgiven with a pat on the head, right?"

I nodded.

TS sighed. "That's sort of how it is. A werewolf can't really be mad at a soul-packmate. Not for long. We certainly can't hate them or lie to them. It's downright mental, sometimes, but we can't help it. A good soul-packmate is someone who gets all that. They aren't just a friend, but they stay a bit more aware of how the werewolf bonded to them is doing. They make sure they don't jerk us around too much. Having a good soul-packmate is probably the best thing that can happen to a werewolf. But... a bad one..."

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

"Would be even worse than a bad packmate," I said.

"The worst thing that could ever happen to a werewolf," he said softly. "We're so compelled to be loyal to our soul-packmates that we'll end up doing anything they ask, even if we don't want to. We'll give in, in the end." He laughed, almost bitterly. "Told you it's mad. Problem is you can soul-pack bond to a complete stranger. You might end up with someone more than happy to manipulate you."

"How would you bond to a stranger?"

"Tom was a stranger," TS said. "I mean, I'd seen him talking to his mam, so I sort of knew who he was. Didn't actually know him, though. I could be walking down the street and have some random bloke push me out of the way of a car. I'd probably soul-pack bond to him. He could be a total nutter, for all I know, but I wouldn't be able to help it."

"But if you got a bad soul-packmate, couldn't you just let the bond break, like with a bad packmate?"

He shook his head. "Soul-pack bonds don't break. They last until one of you dies. Or both of you."

Something in his voice caught my attention. It reminded me of what Thomas had said about familiars. "If your soul-packmate died... would you?"

TS was quiet for a moment, then sighed. "It's possible." He shuddered. "Bloody hell. I don't even like thinking about it."

"It is a little scary. I'm sort of nervous about knowing that I'll be tied to a familiar like that," I admitted.

"Actually, I meant I don't like thinking about anything happening to my soul-packmate," he said with a weak laugh. "We tend, instinctually that is, to put their well-being before our own. I'm sure that sounds a bit mad, too. If we had to choose between the life of someone else and our soul-packmate, we'd pick our soul-packmate without even really thinking about it. Even if it was our own life on the line. No hesitating."

"That sounds so... hard," I said.

"Sometimes." TS put a hand on my shoulder. "I'm sorry. Our conversations don't seem to ever stick to happy subjects."

"It's okay. I'm the one who keeps asking questions." I tried for a better one. "Do you have any soul-packmates, other than Thomas?"

His reaction was the opposite of what I expected. TS’s shoulders stiffened, and he took a deep breath. "Nobody you know," he practically spat. Then, he picked up his pace, until he had caught up with the rest of the group. Shocked, I followed.

We had taken a shorter path back from the lake and were back at the lodge in just a few minutes. TS hung back, letting the rest of our group go up the stairs and onto the wooden path. I waited with him, until everyone else was almost back to the lodge.

"I'm sorry," he said, before I could say anything. "I, em..."

"It's okay," I said quickly, thinking about everything he had said about packmates. I had a feeling that werewolves were a little sensitive when it came to hurting their packmates feelings. "Don't worry about it."

He nodded. "Okay."

We started walking after the group in the direction of lunch. My stomach rumbled, and I was glad we'd get to eat, soon. The thought of being hungry reminded me of the fact that Thomas hadn't gotten to feed. A fairly good idea struck me. If TS could sense Thomas' emotions, then maybe he'd know if Thomas was hungry. I stopped walking. TS went a couple more steps, stopped, and turned to look at me curiously.

"Alright?" he asked.

"Can... Can I just ask something else?"

"Of course." He looked slightly worried about what I was going to ask. It reminded me that he was compelled to be honest with me. That was going to take a lot of getting used to.

"If you can sense Thomas’ emotions, can you sense..." I wasn't quite sure how to phrase it. As I spoke, the sound of the anguished howl TS had made when Thomas was staked in the stomach echoed in my head. Suddenly, I had a different question. "Can you feel when he's in pain?"

TS nodded.

"Is it... Do you feel it like it's your pain, or do you just know he's hurt?"

"Well..." TS cocked his head and scratched it. "It depends. Our bond is strong enough that I know about every paper cut and stubbed toe. Over time, you learn to sort out what pain is yours and what isn't, and then block it out. That'll make more sense when you have a familiar," he added. "Regular cuts and bruises just sort of register as happening, I hardly notice them. The more serious the injury, and the more unexpected it is, the more it hurts. If Tom were to... get his foot caught in a tree root right now and break his ankle, for example. For a minute, it would feel like my ankle was broken. Then, I'd be able to gather my wits and block it out. I'd still know that he's in pain, but it wouldn't hurt me."

"Wow." That sounded horrible. I swallowed nervously. "Is that how it is with a familiar?"

He nodded. "It'll be worth it, though. You'll see."

"So, can you sense if Thomas is hungry?"

TS looked surprised. "I can. Why?"

"I was wondering if he needed to feed, again, since he didn't last night. Does he need to feed from me?"

His jaw practically dropped. He licked my cheek, then stepped back, shaking his head incredulously. "I don't even know what to say to that. You're..." TS laughed. "You're well amazing, you know that?"

"Thanks."

"Tom's actually going to feed from me, tonight, but... Well, he is pretty hungry. He's certainly not going to ask you, and he'll probably turn you down if you offer, but..." He smiled weakly. "If you're persistent, he'll give in."

"Okay."

“Speaking of being hungry, I'm starving, and Tom's waiting for us."

He strode toward the dining pavilion, and I followed him, wondering if I was about to see his ability to locate his soul-packmate in action. Instead, TS started circling the dining room, looking confused.

"What are you looking for?" I asked.

"Stairs."