Discovery – Part Four by Ladyholder

Reading Time:
11 Minutes

Art by Polaris

Tony leaned back against the driver’s seat of his car and listened to the phone ring as he called his pack.

“Hey, Tony,” Martin said as he picked up.

“Hey, Martin,” Tony said. “We’re waiting on Eileen and Andrew to pick up.”

“What about Mike? Is it good news at least?” Martin asked. He sounded depressed, and Tony reached down into himself and found the pack-bond that he had with Martin and wrapped it up in his love and care. “Thank you, Tony.”

“It’s good news,” Tony assured. There were two more beeps, and his phone confirmed that Eileen and Andrew had picked up. “Everyone here?”

“Yup,” Andrew said.

“I’m here,” Eileen said. “I can’t stay on long; we’ve got a hot case happening.”

“I won’t keep everyone for very long. And just so everyone is aware, Mike is in the air at the moment, so I’ll be letting him know this when he’s able to take calls again,” Tony promised. “Hailey’s had her baby. Jack Nathanial Hotchner arrived at 04:53 AM, with his daddy catching him and his mom breaking my hand. He’s 21 inches long, weighing in at 7lbs, 4 ounces. As soon as he hit Aaron’s hands, Aaron became an Alpha.”

“Where were the nurses?” Eileen asked, confused. “Never mind. Tell Aaron congrats, and please let Hailey know that I’ll take her out for a spa day as soon as she’s willing to go out. I’m glad she’s okay and so’s her baby.”

“I can’t take her out to a spa, but I can certainly send flowers and stuff,” Martin said. “That was great news. And congratulations to Aaron for the new eyewear.”

“Is Aaron still part of our pack?” Andrew asked. “I’m glad his family is okay, too.”

“He is, but it’s going to be at a remove,” Tony said. He suppressed the urge to sigh as he thought of Aaron and the changes that were happening with him. “Aaron is going to be building his own pack, but he’s still part of ours.”

“So, you’ve got a daughter pack, now?” Martin asked.

“Looks like it,” Tony agreed. “I just wanted to let you all know because there will be changes in our bonds.”

“Thank you, Tony,” Martin said. He sounded a bit happier than when he’d gotten on the call, and Tony was going to take the win where he could get it.

Eileen and Andrew made agreeing noises, and Tony touched each of their bonds and pressed his appreciation onto each of them.

“That’s the reason for the call. Let me know if you need me for anything,” Tony said.

“I do,” Martin said. He held his peace as the other two signed off. “Thanks, Tony.”

“What’s up, Martin?” Tony asked. He leaned back against the wall of the hospital and flexed his hand as the last muscle aches from Hailey breaking the fuck out of it faded.

“This is a shitty time to do this, but I promised myself that I’d ask when we talked next,” Martin said before taking a deep breath. “I want to join Jack’s pack.”

“Jack called to let me know that this was coming,” Tony said. That call had been one of the less fun ones he’d ever had, but he couldn’t say that he hadn’t seen it coming. Jack Malone was a good man and took damn good care of his team. He’d folded Martin into his orbit without a hitch, and Martin had thrived under his care. “Does he want me to break the bond I have with you?”

“No, Tony, I don’t,” Jack called from somewhere on the other side of the phone. From the huff Martin let out, he wasn’t expecting Jack to cut in. Tony had no idea why, since Malone was as much of a force of nature as Gibbs was, just with slightly better manners. “He’s been your pack for years, and while I want him in mine, I don’t want him to lose yours. I don’t think it’ll hurt either of us to have a share going on.”

“Let me talk to my regional Alpha about this. I think if I thin down my bond to Martin, yours will become the primary one he has, but I need to make sure so I don’t cause either of you harm,” Tony said after several seconds of thought. “Will that work for you?”

“That’ll work. We’re going to be back in DC in about six weeks,” Malone suggested. “We can meet up with you then.”

“Sounds good, and I’ll send Martin an email of my schedule so you can figure out what works for your team,” Tony said.

“Thank you, Tony,” Martin said gratefully. He sent his own pulse of care down their bond, and Tony smiled at the feeling. “Have a good day.”

“I’m going to eat a big steak and then sleep,” Tony said with a laugh.

“Sounds about like what I did when my kids were born,” Malone called. “Talk to you later, Tony!”

“Bye, Tony,” Martin said quietly.

Tony took a deep breath and shielded his bond with Martin before thumping his head against the headrest of his car. “Damn it.”

That hadn’t been what he’d expected to hear when he’d called Martin, but he couldn’t say that it had been a surprise. He wasn’t going to clutch at his packmates in an effort to keep them close, but he was going to miss them.

He took a deep breath and blew it out slowly before dialing Lee.

“Hey, kid!”

“Hey, Lee,” Tony said. He took another deep breath and tried to figure out what he was going to say. “I need some help.”

“Oh? What’s going on?” Lee asked.

“I’m losing three, no four packmates,” Tony said after several seconds. “Aaron and Hailey have had their baby. The baby’s a little boy, and he’s all sorts of perfect, but as soon as he was born, Aaron became an Alpha. Then, Martin has decided to join the pack of his boss out in Chicago, and I need to know how we can work that so he’s still got some tie to my pack, but his Alpha is his boss, and not me.”

“That’s a lot,” Lee said. “I’m guessing you’re feeling off kilter?”

“Yes,” Tony agreed. “And I hate it. I normally have much better control over my emotions, and it’s starting to piss me off that I feel like I’m 13 again and swinging from one emotion to another! I didn’t do this when I first became an Alpha!”

“Packs can be a major source of emotional stability,” Lee said, voice soothing. “You’ve gotten used to having that well of emotional support, and it’s being taken away. And that’s going to fuck you up for a while.”

“Any idea how I can fix this?” Tony asked. He pinched the bridge of his nose and tried to stave off the emotional headache he was developing. “Also, total aside, I miss getting headaches.”

“Why? Don’t those hurt?” Lee asked. “Anyway. How to fix this? You’re going to have to rebuild your pack. Since Aaron has become an Alpha with his own pack, you’re going to have a much thinner and dimmer bond with him and Hailey. I don’t know if you will ever have a bond with their son.”

“So, I’ll still have a connection, but it won’t be what it was yesterday,” Tony concluded. “Damn it.”

Lee sighed before making an agreeing noise. “I know. It sucks the first time it happens. I can’t say that you get used to it, but it is gratifying to know that I raised a shifter up to the point where they’ve become an Alpha with a pack of their own. Even if it hurts like a bitch when they do it.”

“Okay,” Tony huffed once before he did his best to push that part away. He’d deal with it later, when he wasn’t anywhere near Aaron and his family. “Now. About Martin. Do I just thin down our pack bond? And then let Malone bite him so a bond forms between them?”

“That’s how it’s done,” Lee agreed. “It sucks, but again, this happens in a healthy pack. People move in and out of packs all the time.”

“Right,” Tony said with a sigh. He could feel his emotional upset settling because now he had information. Information meant that he now knew what was happening and what he had to do in the future. “Thanks, Lee.”

“You’re welcome, kid,” Lee said. “Do you want me to look for shifters who might be able to join your pack?”

No. Tony bit back his instinctive reaction and took the time to actually think about what Lee was offering. He was going to need more packmates. But for right now… “No, not right now. My pack is going to have to get used to the changes, and I don’t want to throw anyone in the mix while we’re adjusting.”

“That sounds smart,” Lee said. He paused for several seconds before he cleared his throat. “Let me know if or when that changes. I’ll do my best to help.”

“Thanks, Lee.”

“You’re welcome, kid.”

Tony walked into his condo and dropped his keys into the bowl he had on the credenza before kicking his shoes off. He checked his watch and saw that it was midday, so he pulled his phone out and fired off a text to Mike. If his partner wasn’t in a position to call, that would be the best way to check in with him.

Next up, he called Gibbs. “Hey, Boss.”

“Hey, Tony. How’s it going?” Gibbs said.

“It’s good. Hailey’s had her baby early this morning. Everyone is healthy, and Aaron managed to keep it together through everything. Hailey broke my hand a few times, though,” Tony said. “I’ll be in tomorrow. I’m going to get some sleep.”

Gibbs laughed lightly as he reported what happened to his hand before clearing his throat. “Okay. We’ll see you tomorrow. Get some rest.”

“Thanks, Boss,” Tony said. He let Gibbs end the call and wandered towards his bedroom. He wanted out of his clothes and some time in his fur. He made sure to hang his suit in the bag that would go to the dry cleaner before shifting and padding over to lie in the sun.

When Loki walked over to curl up on his shoulder, Tony blew out a slow breath. The slight weight of his cat was a comfort that he’d never expected to enjoy. Having the cat in his home was a luxury that he wished he could tell his past self about.

But his past self wasn’t a shifter, and he also worked too damn much.

Tony let himself nap for several hours before he rolled to his feet and snorted in amusement when Loki stalked off. When he shifted back into his skin, he made sure to run a hand down his cat’s back before heading for the kitchen. Mike’s trip hadn’t been planned, and he was expected back before the full moon, so he was going to leave the steaks in the freezer; they’d already eaten the salmon, and that left the fajita meat.

He flipped on the stereo and hit play. The music that came out took him a moment to place, but he smiled when he realized that he was listening to the soundtrack for Return of the King. Epic fantasy meets old-fashioned Hollywood epic movie, with an epic side order of epic soundtrack. It was excellent, and he loved it.

Humming along with the music, Tony started assembling the fajitas. He wasn’t going to be able to eat it all, but there would be plenty for dinner, enough for tomorrow’s lunch, and leftovers for a midnight nibble.

Opening the bag with the meat in it, he smiled. His butcher had spiced the meat before he’d left, and the meat smelled great. That done, he set the bag aside and turned his attention to the veggies he wanted. As soon as he had them ready, he set the flat-top griddle on his lovely, lovely stove and set it on to heat.

While that was working on itself, Tony opened a can of black beans and gave them a brief rinse because he was not a fan of the stuff the beans sat in, and it helped the flavor. Into a pot they went with some garlic, onions, and jalapenos, and a small amount of water to lube the way. Once that was started, he flicked a small amount of water on the griddle, and it sizzled, so he started dropping some tortillas on it to warm up.

Thankfully, those took only a few moments to warm up, and Tony dropped them onto a plate lined with a towel and covered them up before dropping the meat onto the griddle. The veggies went on next, and Tony carefully moved everything around, keeping the heat going in a way that allowed the food to cook without burning.

When claws latched onto his thigh, Tony hissed and looked down at Loki. “Cat, this has spices on it, and you hate it. The last time I offered it to you, you left it. And you’re a mooch, and you left this stuff.”

From the way the claws were flexing in his thigh, Loki didn’t believe him.

“Little asshole,” Tony hissed. He firmly ignored the cat and started pulling the fajita mix off the griddle, and dropped it in the bowl before turning the heat off. Once that was done, Tony snagged the hot pad and moved the griddle off the heat so the residue didn’t burn.

“Okay, let’s see what I can find for you,” Tony said, looking down at his cat. “Let go.”

Loki bitched at him softly before he pulled his claws back in, dropped down onto the ground, and started stropping around his ankles. Tony huffed once before he opened the fridge to pull out a small packet of salmon he’d saved from earlier in the week. It took only moments to open that and drop it in Loki’s bowl. “You’re going to want to let that warm up.”

His cat ignored him, grandly. Tony laughed softly as he washed his hands and served himself dinner. Unlike most of his meals that he’d been eating for the last little while, he was the only person in his home. It was weird and a little lonely, but it wasn’t permanent. And that was fine.