The name

It had been a week.

A week where Keito had been dragged out of his comfort zone by his grandfather all in the name of training. As an emperor who had ruled all the lands, he had seen his fair shares of complex training and many of his current ones followed traditional methods he had trained in before.

However, knowing something was one thing but to follow it was an entirely different process which his body found incapable of doing. Even after a week, he was struggling with the basics.

And Noah was another whole can of worms. The other refused to even make eye contact with him, much less have a heart to heart confrontation. How was he going to make any progress on that front at all with such a situation?

This day followed a similar pattern of sword form practice and sparring on his own. It was a routine his body was adapting to and he could feel his body getting better and adapting.

"That's it for today. Keito, come here" as soon as the voice reached his ears, Keito dropped his stance and hurried toward his grandfather. Kaito felt his eyes once again moving toward Noah who was kneeling at his grandfather's side but a cough did enough to divert his attention to the pair of old, sharp eyes.

"Grandfather" Keito greeted the older one who looked at him with a pair of narrow eyes. They stuck somewhere inside him and he could feel his very soul resist the itch to bow in front of the elder alpha but in the end, he could not suppress the feeling at all.

"You are progressing at a speed I would not have imagined, but I'm proud nonetheless. But mere physical power will not take you far in this world. We, the ones who stand on the top, need something more to achieve it. We need to connect with our inner selves, the animal inside us" the older man said in a slow voice as if he was explaining it all to a child.

But Keito had lived through it all at once and he had already experienced it all but still, he had to pretend that he had no idea what the elder was talking about.

"By animal, you mean the wolf inside us? The one who is said to be the source of all our powers and abilities? The myth?" Kaito made sure he sounded as innocent as he possibly could in such a situation but inside he scoffed at the present world.

They had lost their touch at this age. The presence that had once been so dominant inside the human race now reduced to a mere whisper in fairy tales.

But the old man talked like he knew about it all and that was what Kaito wanted to know. Was there a way to regain what he had lost in the rebirth.

"A myth? It's no mere myth but a power proposed to only those who deem themselves worthy. Your father failed to prove himself so he could not inherit the family line, but - you. You will not fail me as he did, would you Kaito?" his grandfather's eyes were focused on him, the order visible in those dark abysses.

Either succeed or you would lose all credibility.

The weight of the gaze was somehow the same as the weight of the crown he had once worn so proudly on his head but the comparison made him almost sick. Yet, he had to bow in front of the other till he could receive what he was due.

Also, he could not say for sure what would happen to Noah should he fail. Would someone else inherit the position of the 'family head' and 'master' should he not be able to? How would the other be treated then?

No, Kaito could not take the chance right now.

"I see. I believed there was something special about grandfather's aura" Kaito knew his words were all but flatter and the older would likely ignore those, but his act would be noted as being obedient and that was what he wanted.

"Tell me Kaito, are you loyal to me?" the older asked and Kaito really wanted to ask him which century he was living in. Even he had not been this mocking in his rule and he was generally seen as cruel and controlling enough to be rebelled against.

And yet what he forced out was a simple - 'Yes grandfather'

"Good. But you would need to connect to the animal inside you too before you can be of any use to me. You" the older pointed toward the mostly silent fox at his side. "You will be responsible for the journey of awakening for my grandson. Make sure this doesn't end in failure again"

The fox bowed and he knew that was all for today.

The older man stood up and left as soon as he knew his words were heard and the only ones left behind were the fox and the young teen, both not looking at each other.

"So, what are we supposed to do now?" Keito asked, trying to break the ice that had settled over the room as soon as the elder had left.

The fox who was looking down at the floor did not lift his head at all, just his voice reached Kaito's ears.

"We need to get you ready for the journey. The ceremony for the connection is held in the rift valley but we need to purify you before that. We'll be fasting for the next 2 days before we depart" The soft voice tickled his ears and his heart skipped a beat.

Maybe it was the excitement of being able to talk with his friend again or maybe it was some other feeling, Kaitocould not comprehend it at all. Nor did he want to because whatever it was, he was fine with it.

He did not realise that he took too long to reply back and it was only when the omega turned around to walk away did he notice that he had taken too long in his own mind and he could not help but call out to the other in panic.

"W-wait. Tell me your name at least" his voice sounded out of breath but he had exerted no force at all. It was all due to the nerves and emotions he was feeling. He did not know why his heart felt like it would explode any given second, but it did hurt a little.

The fox turned his head toward him, his face twisted in confusion and somehow, somewhere inside it hurt. It hurt bad enough to be felt like a physical force.

"My name? It's been so long that I don't even remember what I was once called" there was wistfulness in that voice and Kaito felt bad for his friend all over.

"Then, can I call you Noah? I-I just read it in a book and I liked the name" and the atmosphere changed, from calm to frosty in a second and the blue eyes that looked back at him were glaring at.

"Don't call me by that name, any name. Please take care of yourself because we will start from tomorrow" and the fox left, the anger evident in every step it took and Kaito realised that he had stepped on a landmine.

The time it took him to realise that he had stepped on a landmine, the other had all but fled the place in a hurry. Kaito willed his body to follow, his hand being sluggish but somehow making contact with the other.

He felt an almost shiver travel down his spine at the contact but held himself in, his control going through a test of its own.

"Please forgive me if I've offended you. It was not my intention" Kaito had to look up at those soft blue eyes and he cursed himself for his young age. There had been a time he had towered over the other, his shadow protecting everyone he cared about.

But now he had been reduced to this and he could not help but look back at his bad fortune at that. Why? Just why was fate doing this to them?

"I'm not offended master, I just have work to look after. I have no name so whatever you want to call me is fine with me. If you want to call me Noah then Noah I will be" the tone was so flat and the look in the eyes so vacant that Kaito almost took a step back.

That had not been his intention at all, to force the other. All he wanted was to have a conversation with the other without the formalities and to finally have a familiar connection. and yet, nothing was going right at all.

"No, that's was not what I was going for. That was not my intention at all" Kaito fumbled over his words, his voice breaking and he knew that he would not be understood fully by the other.

But he had to convey his feelings to the other. he had to clear this air between them before things went even more wrong.

"I understand. Then, I'll go make arrangements for the next three days. there is much to look after" with a bow, the fox left the other standing in the place with an unreadable expression on his face.

the disappointment inside Kaito was immense and if his wolf had been in touch with him, he was sure that it would have been growling with discomfort too. But he was alone right now, his mind and emotions in a wave of confused denial overall.

But soon the discomfort of his body along with the hunger of the fasting made him forget everything else.