Too short...

Noah whined pathetically, once again Brandusa had snatched his book off of him and placed it up on the highest shelf in their room, one that the short Lycan clearly could not reach.

Normally she would've gotten it down for him before running off but today she hadn't and she would not be back for quite some time.

His snowy white ears pinned against his head and his tail tucked itself between his legs as he looked up at it longingly, he had nothing else to do for the rest of the day and he desperately wanted it back.

He grabbed a stool and dragged it to the shelf, standing upon it on his tip toes and he was still unable to get it, his dainty fingers barely brushing the top shelf.

His ears drooped in defeat as he whimpered, it was times like this that he cursed his tiny frame.

He needed Brandusa to get it down for him, he needed someone tall.

His eyes darted over to the bedroom door, Alyosha had just moved in next door, he was taller than Dusa was...

The thought of having to get the man to help him because he was short was embarrassing but he didn't have much of an option.

The Lycan tucked his tail into his pants and shoved on his beanie, padding out of the room reluctantly as he made his way to the door next to his.

Slowly he brought his hand up, tapping on the door softly as his eyes cast down to the ground, this was humiliating.

Alyosha was sprawled out on his large bed with an old book in his hands.

It was written in a language that he couldn't understand but the language was phonetic so it was easy enough to read out loud.

He marvelled at, instead of the meanings he didn't know, the sound of the words that fell from his lips.

When someone knocked on his door, he pushed himself from his bed, still reading the book and padded over to the door, book open and resting on his forearm.

His lips mouthed along with the words written on the page as he opened the door. It took a moment for him to muster up enough willpower to look up and see who it was at the door.

A smile spread across his face and sit up his blue eyes when they settled on Noah. "Noah. What is it you need?"

He had been debating over whether or not he should go and see the boy so soon or to wait a little longer before bugging him. He had chosen to wait a little longer. But that choice meant nothing now the boy was stood right in front of him.

Noah's foot kicked at the ground nervously as his stormy silver eyes peeked up at the man from beneath his hair.

Pink spread across his pale cheeks for the second time in the man's presence, he didn't want to do this but he really wanted that book back, otherwise he would be sitting in the room quietly all day.

"I need your help."

He muttered sheepishly as his hands fiddled with the hem of his sweater.

"My book is on the top shelf and I can reach it."

He spoke the words quickly and softly, he didn't want to have to say them but he was too short to be able to help himself.

His smile spread a little wider as pink dusted over the boy's cheeks.

The boy was so adorable when he blushed.

His help? What did he need his help for? Immediately his mind jumped to the worst possible scenario. Usually when he was called on for help it was because something or someone was threatening them and Alyosha had to sort things out for them with his superior height and strength.

His momentary panic subsided and his lips twitched upwards a little when Noah murmured softly.

His book was on a shelf too high for him to reach? That was...that was absolutely adorable.

Alyosha dropped his hand on top of the boy's head and ruffled his hair with a little smile.

"Where is shelf?"

Noah gripped onto his beanie tightly and tugged it down over his head, ducking away from the man's hand on his head. His ears still hadn't gone away yet and he was embarrassed enough at the moment without having to deal with them too.

"In here."

He muttered, padding into his own room and letting the man in, pointing up to the top of the bookcase.

There was no way he could reach it but evidence that he had tried was there.

Other books and objects had been knocked off the lower shelves in his attempts of retrieving the book himself.

"Brandusa put it up there."

He grumbled softly, he would get his sister back for this.

Alyosha followed the boy through the hall and into his room.

A soft chuckle sounded as his eyes settled on the single book on the highest shelf in the room. Whoever had put it there really didn't want Noah reaching that book. It was cruel.

It was amusing. Especially with the evidence of Noah's struggle to get the book.

"Brandusa is room mate?" he asked conversationally as he glanced down at the boy, a small smirk curling in lips as an idea sprang to mind.

Now could be the time he could see how much he could make the boy blush.

Alyosha bent and wrapped his arms around the boy's waist, hoisting him up so he was just a little taller than the Necromancer and walking them towards the bookcase. "Can you reach book?" he asked, trying to hide the smirk in his voice unsuccessfully.

"She's my adopted sister."

In reality Brandusa had adopted him, or rather, dragged him along everywhere that she went.

Noah yelped loudly as he was hoisted into the air, he hadn't been expecting that and it was evident from how his cheeks darkened from light pink to red.

He hadn't even thought of the book when Alyosha had picked him up, he was too caught up in the shock of it until the man spoke.

"Y..yes."

He stammered as he grabbed the book and hugged it to his chest.
Noah didn't like being picked up that much was evident from the continuous whimper that left his lips, plus his tail was tucked tightly between his legs and his ears were pinned against his snow white hair.

A chuckle almost sounded when Noah whimpered. The sound was so pathetically adorable.

The man strolled towards the nearest bed and sat himself down on it, swinging Noah around in his grip to sit comfortably in his lap. His arms wrapped tightly around the boy's waist again to keep him in place as he set in chin on his shoulder.

"What book?"

Alyosha had loved books since he was a small child. His love of books had gotten him in the trouble he was in today but he couldn't bring himself to stop reading them.

Noah's whimpers stopped as soon as he was set down, though his heart beat slightly faster as he realized that he was perched in the man's lap.

He was fond of the man but he had been in situations like these that had ended badly for him into the past. If his sister came in right now she would assume something similar was happening and she would tear into the man.

He struggled slightly in the man's grip, wriggling about as he tried to pull away. Though he settled down as the man spoke, becoming still and relaxing in his grasp as he held the book up for him to see.

"It's called World War Z, it's a post apocalyptic book about survival and the environmental aftermath of a Zombie plague."

Alyosha's grip didn't tighten around the boy's waist. If he wanted to get free it wouldn't take much effort to escape his grasp.

He had already made the boy go bright red. His efforts had served its purpose.

His lips quirked into a little smile when Noah settled back against his chest.

It seemed the talk of books had calmed him down.

The Necromancer's body shook as Noah described the book. Zombie plague? That... That was ridiculous. Zombies wouldn't go around attacking people. It was crazy. What zombies had the authors of this book seen?

Finally the laugh escaped. He buried his face in Noah's neck to try and muffle the sound.

Noah's gaze turned to the floor as the man laughed, he hadn't said anything funny and he was unsure of what Aloysha found so amusing.

His silver eyes widened slightly as the man buried his face in against his neck, the blush on his cheeks getting darker still, something that seemed impossible given their already red state.

"It's not really a zombie story as much as it is tales of survival in a time where death is inevitably stumbling towards you in an inescapable wave, engulfing everything.

It's about how fragile humans and their society are, how they break and give into disease and yet despite their odds they struggle forward."

The Lycan muttered softly, it was a beautiful and terrifying book, each time he read it, it gave him chills.

"They could have used better muse than zombie," he muttered against the Lycan's neck as he tried to stifle his laughter.

Zombies weren't scary.

If people were a little more open minded and didn't put so much stock in the media version of zombies then they would realise that zombies weren't anything to be scared of.

But he could understand the message in the book. He knew full well how helpless humans were. If they couldn't find an immediate answer to something, they gave in and lost all hope. They just accepted the new things even if it wasn't pleasant.

He had seen that far too many times in his youth.

"They misunderstand all of us, zombies may be harmless but they will never understand that.

Personally I think Vampires get portrayed the worst out of everyone, most of them are quite pleasant, they just have a strange diet is all.

I mean, do I look like a big frightening werewolf like in the movies?"

Noah couldn't look any more docile and innocent if he tried, he showed no likeness to the werewolves they showed on television and in books.

"Humans take idea and use it to scare children."

Someone that has to survive on blood: someone that goes running around eating people if they stay out after dark.

Someone that can transform into a wolf: a mad blood thirsty beast that runs around eating people.

Someone that isn't living but still animated: A creature that needs to feed on living people to survive.

It was ridiculous. It was amusing.

He had thought the same thing as little as five years ago. It was scary how ones opinion could change so quickly when you were also bought into that world. He had learnt to accept things that he never would have accepted in his human life.

Noah let out a small chuckle and nodded.
"Well it works, that's for sure, though there are frightening supernaturals just like their are any other species I suppose."

If that weren't the case then the boy wouldn't have become a Lycan in the first place, that wolf never would've attacked him for no reason other than checking on his animals.

"Oh..thank you for helping me get my book down."

He had forgot to say it earlier due to his immense feelings of embarrassment but he had calmed down now, his red cheeks had even dulled back down to a pale pink.

"I hope you're settling in alright."

"Is that good or bad thing?"

It worked but that put people like Noah in a bad position. He was feared when there was no reason to be feared.

He understood the fact that there were frightening creatures that did conform to the human's descriptions. In every species group, there were always some that were truly evil and scary. The same went for humans.

"Is all right." He smiled down at the boy. He was happy to help him.

Aloysha nodded. "Yes, I am settling in well. As is dog. Ostanki has made home on one of beds in room." The dog had quickly claimed his own bed.

"I suppose it is different for each person, I see it as a bad thing, personally.
People have no reason to fear me any more than they would if I were still human, and if someone was to lash out at me because of what I am then I would not be able to defend myself very well."

That situation had happened before, with his father when he was first turned, he was in no better position to defend himself than he was prior to turning.

He smiled back up at him man, moving his hand to adjust his beanie slightly.

"That's good to hear, I hope your room mate doesn't mind him, if there is a problem you can always bring him over here for a while."

Granted Dusa would hate the smell as much as he would the dog really wasn't that bad, just not so great to look at, but he was well behaved.

"I do not fear you."

He ruffled the boy's hair affectionately.

Noah was nice. He was a boy that he couldn't fear. He was friendly and adorable. How could anyone fear someone like that, no matter what they were?

"I have not seen room mate yet."

He didn't know where he was the night before but he hadn't come back to their room. Perhaps he was just busy with something or found something to amuse himself with.

"Thank you. I will take up offer if needed."

"I'm glad, you have no reason to, my bark is worse than my bite."
He admitted with a small chuckle, Noah had absolutely no bark, so his bite was practically non-existent.

"Maybe he's a Vampire? then you probably wont see him at all if he is out all night and sleeping during the day."

He mused, that would make sense if the man hadn't been in his bed that night, though many of the occupants spent their nights out regardless of species.

"I hope it is not needed, that would mean another case of misunderstood creatures."

At the risk of sounding cheesy, Aloysha had a nasty bark and an even worse bite.

But he had just become friends with the boy. He didn't want him knowing about his past and how dangerous he could be. For now he'd let the boy think he was a nice, calm man.

If he could, he wouldn't let the boy find out about him at all.

"That could be so. But it is day now and still no room mate." He had been lying around in their room reading all morning and the man's room mate hadn't shown his face.

"Misunderstood creature happens a lot with Ostanki." The poor dog was hated by most because of his smell and his look. It was a shame. He was nothing more than a puppy that wanted some attention.

"I'm not surprised, I have to admit I still have reservations about him.

He seems like a good dog but it is hard getting over the fact that he's...slightly decomposed.

Though I'm not use to being around the undead, I'm sure he grows on you, he seems friendly enough."

The German Shepherd had only been friendly with him the day before, like any other dog would but Noah was timid and the dogs appearance was rather frightening.

"In time he will seem less scary."

He had been even more scared of the dog when he started following him around. Terrified, even.

He had done all he could do get rid of him before he realised he wasn't as bad as he had first seemed and actually made for a very friendly pet.

In time Noah would think the same.

And eventually the flesh would rot away completely and the bones that were left behind wouldn't smell. He would the perfect pet, if not a little strange to look at.

"I don't doubt that, it is something new, it takes time to get use to it.

How exactly did you get him? I doubt they sell zombie dogs down at the pet store."

He asked, Aloysha was interesting, he didn't know what he was yet he seemed to have some unexplained powers, if he was born to human parents than their must been some strange explanation for what he was.

"If I ever stay in one place long enough, I'd like to get a pet, seems nice having a constant companion."

"Few month back I was walking through field to get to next town and he started following."

Nothing exciting had happened. He was just walking through a field and Ostanki started following after him like he had to do so.

Aloysha had tried everything to get rid of the dog but nothing he tried ever worked. No matter what he did, the dog had returned to him like a pet that knew who his Master was.

The Russian gave a little nod. "Pet is good."

He loved always having a pet around to keep him company.

A small smile pulled at the corner of his lips.
"That must've been a frightening experience, I can't imagine what I would do if a zombie of any kind randomly started following me around."

He nodded in return, agreeing with the man, pets made for good company, they didn't judge like other people did, they just returned the affection given to them.

"I was thinking of getting a tortoise, they can live hundreds of years if you look after them, I don't think I want a pet that would die after only a few years."

Noah would not live an excessively long life, he knew that, but he had managed to make it past fifty so another fifty shouldn't be too hard.