8. Say My Name

***Rolf's POV***

Looking down at Axel on the ground wasn't something I could brag about last year. We came to the training fields to spar before lunch. I had just gotten done with another one of the hand-to-hand combat sessions with one of the Finrir Elite trainers. And right now I was gloating just a little, and I hold my hand out to help Axel get up.

"OK, you need to explain that move to me, that was pretty good," Axel said as he got up, but bent over with his hands on his hips. "Just give me a moment, that knocked the wind out of me."

"Hollis showed me that one. His training the only reason I was OK with Onyx changing the normal training schedule for me a little this year," I reply while trying to keep the gloating to a minimum.

"You think that the general would be willing to smooth things over with the garrison commander, so I can get in on that course?" Axel grins a little as he doesn't quite mention the blow up with the commander last year.

"If he could have done that he would have already," I laugh at Axel more this time. That commander is going to be shocked when Axel leaves with me back to Capitol City for the leadership course. The orders were classified but only until Axel reports with me next week. I was thankful I got the message from my uncle that I didn't need to spend the full week at the palace as long as I show up for dinner with him and my auntie Thursday evening.

I only have to leave a couple days earlier than I expected. Those days are mostly full of administrative issues and packing anyway. Since my orders are prepped and packing up the barracks room will only take us an evening, I am not too worried about it.

"Seriously though, Hollis just showed me a different way to move while using the same throw that you and I learned as pups. It relies more on core movement, and not going to twist back too early, indicating the hip throw is about to happen," I mime what I am saying as I say it. Axel is still bent over but looking up at me while I do. He stands to full height and stretches his arms above his head.

"Alright bro, lets try that again. I want to see if I can do it," his eyes twinkle a little and I know I didn't hurt him earlier, just took him by surprise.

We face each other again, and he hops from foot to foot waiting for me to attack first this time. I fake to the right just a little a flinch, while setting up to kick from the left at his knee. He hops backwards and I miss. We go back and forth like that for a little while. After all the training this year, we are pretty evenly matched, while he could whoop my tail before that. That is what happens when you focus more on females than training I usually tease him. I go to rush him again, but look behind him to the right when the wind shifts. There is a short female running down the bleachers with a medic bag heading to a group that was sparing a few groups away from us. It was the smell that made me look. It was strange, mostly a smell like chocolate but with hints of that orange and cloves smell that was on the female in town.

"OOOUUFFF, damn man that hurt!" Now I am talking from the ground up at Axel who is smiling down at me.

"What was that from you? I thought you were ready for the hip throw," Axel says as his smile falls when he sees it is taking me a minute to get up.

"I smelled something on that female that distracted me," I groan out while getting off the ground.

"She's is hot, smells like chocolate," Axel's smile returns as he looks over his shoulder toward the medic. "She was the hottie I was talking about Friday evening. But you usually aren't distracted like that in the training ring," he says as he turns back to me.

"You don't smell the oranges and cloves on her too?" I look back over at her, she is cute but in that typical way where she has a good figure. I can't see her face clearly from here, but she has curly brown hair.

"No, just hot chocolate. Lets go say hi to her," Axel says as he winks and starts to walk her way.

I don't know what is going on with the smell, but it makes my wolf roll around in my head like a wolf that is scenting himself in something on the ground. As we are walking up I get a better view of her face. She is pretty, but just classically so, nothing that stands out. Her face is round and her dark eyes are smiling with the rest of her face as she jokes with the cadet she was evaluating. She stands upright from kneeling next to the cadet, and can't be more than 5 feet 4 inches tall. Short for a lycan for sure, when most woman hit at least 5 feet 10 inches. Her head only comes up to the lower part of my chest since I am 6 feet 3 inches, which is still shorter than Axel's 6'6. She looks like a doll compared to him. Speaking of Axel he caught her eye as we got closer.

"It's all good gents, he just needed that bone reset before it started to heal incorrectly," she said, mistaking the reason we were approaching. I sniff again, and there is it, the smell seems subtle compared to the chocolate but orange and cloves. It smells like sitting in front of a fire in late fall drinking a cider full of spices.

"Actually, I wanted to come up and ask if you had a name or if I should just call you mine," Axel flirted to the medic.

She bends over and puts her hands on her knees as she starts laughing. Between the laughs she get out, "Does that ever really work, I mean seriously, who says s**t like that?" She stands back up, wiping tears of laughter from her eyes.

"I am wounded, you think I would say that to anyone but a beauty like you," Axel says as he raises a hand to cover his heart. "How wounded would I have to be to have you check me over," he nods to her medic bag.

"Come on bro, that was even worse," I utter with a laugh. The female medic looks over at me and tilts her head.

"Thank you, at least I am not the only one here that communicates like a normal creature," she responds with gratitude. She continues to look at me with question lacing her eyes, "Have we met before?"

"No, I am sure of it or this meat head would have asked me for your name. I'm Reed," I introduce myself as I reach my hand out toward the 4th year medic. You can tell the occupational specialty and year based on insignia on our uniforms. "And you?"

"Otsana, nice to meet you," she replies as she shakes my hand. Axel reaches his hand out and she looks from that to his face with suspicion. However, she decides to trust the handshake and reaches out for his.

"Otsana is a beautiful name for a beautiful female," Axel says as he raises her hand to his lips for a kiss instead.

"My friends call me Ana, and so can you," she says looking over at me and removing her hand from Axel's grasp. "And you can call me Cadet Greyfur," looking back toward Axel with a flirtatious smile.

"You can make better friends than him for sure," Axel keeps flirting with her even though she doesn't seem to reciprocate.

"I don't know about that, my wolf trusts him a lot more than she trusts you. And I always listen to my wolf," She banters back.

"Well if you are no longer needed here I don't want to take up more of your time. It was great to meet you Ana," I say trying to indicate to Axel that I am going to head out.

Why do we have to leave? Axel links me.

We don't, I figured I would get out of the way since you are having such a great time. I respond.

Axel smiles my way, nodding. "I am not busy right now, if you are done want to head to lunch with me so I can become a friend that calls you Ana?" He asks the pretty medic who looks like she is about to say yes.

"Sorry, I have plans already. I have a friend leaving this week and need to make sure I see them as much as I can before that," she smiles up at Axel again. "But maybe next week we can do that."

"That is too bad, I am leaving next week as well. I guess we are just not meant to be," Axel says as he feigns a hurt heart again. "I hope you are able to spend as much time as you can with her."

"I never said it was a her," Ana says as she winks at Axel.

"I can't believe you would turn me down for some other male," Axel protests.

"I never said it was a he either," she laughs as she responds and I walk away. Axel stays to banter with her for a few more moments before jogging back to our training area.

"I swear Reed, I would settle down for a female that pretty," he says as he gets to me.

"She would eat you up and spit you out. I think you met your match," I respond laughing at the drastic statement from the commitment-phobe.

"One can only hope," Axel murmurs as he picks his bag up to leave with me.