Part Five



The loft was silent when they finally returned and found Emmett sleeping on the sofa. Brian kissed Justin deeply and pulled him up the stairs to their bedroom. Once the partitions were in place he began to pull Justin’s clothes from his body, but Justin stopped him briefly.



“What about Emmett?” Justin whispered.



“He’s asleep,” Brian said. “And who the fuck cares anyway? You fucked three men tonight in a room filled with people watching. He could make popcorn and sit beside the bed and I wouldn’t care. I want your ass.” He kissed Justin deeply and restarted his attempts to get him naked. “Do you know how hot it was to watch you fucking those men tonight, knowing that they want you, but that you belong to me? They can have a taste, but only if I say so.”



Justin chuckled lowly and helped Brian remove their clothes until they were both naked. “You are a possessive bastard. I think I like that.”



Brian didn’t answer; he just tossed Justin to the bed and then covered his body with his own. After more than a week of regular fucking, it didn’t take long for Brian to prepare Justin and soon he was plunging deep into his lover with fast and hard strokes that left Justin struggling not to cry out and wake Emmett or Gus.



Brian had one of Justin’s legs resting on his shoulder and the other was wrapped around his waist, pulling him in deeper with every thrust.  It was hot and sweaty and fast and furious and just as they were both teetering on the edge of their release, the unthinkable happened and Gus began to cry.



Brian froze, his cock still deep inside Justin and was torn between finishing and going to see to his son’s needs. “Shit!”



“As you were,” Emmett’s voice called out from the other room. It wasn’t nearly as sleepy as it should have been if he had just woken up. “I’ll get him.”



Brian started to thrust again, slowly this time as both shifters used half an ear to listen to Emmett coo to Gus. “If I thought he was at all serious and wouldn’t kill me, I would have made popcorn,” the dark haired man whispered to the baby as he changed his diaper.



Justin began to laugh and then Brian joined in. It took a little bit of effort to get back to where they had left off, but soon they right back where they had been. Only this time, Justin didn’t worry about waking Gus or disturbing Emmett. When Brian prodded against his prostate over and over again, he began to moan and grunt and babble as noisily as he wanted, and when he finally came, he shouted Brian’s name. Brian was never quite as vocal as Justin liked to be when he was bottoming, but he too allowed himself to voice his pleasure as he finally spilled himself.



It took them a few minutes to recover, but eventually Brian pulled the sheet up over their bodies and called out to Emmett. “You might as well come up here then, you nosey queen.”



“It’s not my fault Gus heard your voices and refused to go back down,” Emmett said as he handed Gus over to Brian. The fussy infant settled down again almost immediately. “See that, he knows his daddy.”



“Not his daddy,” Brian said distractedly. “His pops.”



“Well, papa Brian,” Emmett said around a yawn. “Since you’re both home, I guess I’ll be off.”



“You don’t have to leave,” Justin said. “You can stay on the sofa.”



“And be witness to your morning sex?” Emmett asked with a leer. “As tempting as that is, I think that Brian’s patience would be pushed past breaking if I did. Besides, it’s almost time for me to be up anyway. I’ve got a new job working at a bakery and let me tell you the hours are hell, but the product is delicious.”



“Thanks Emmett,” Brian said as the other man got ready to go.



“Anytime,” Emmett said with a smile. “And I mean that.”



BJBJBJBJBJ



The pattern was set after that. After a long week of work and caring for Gus, the two men spent Friday and Saturday evenings out at Babylon. Usually Emmett watched Gus, but sometimes Debbie would volunteer. She thought of the boy like a grandchild and was happy for a little time with the tyke. Gus was getting better about sleeping through the night as time passed, though he did still have some bad nights.



The move to the new house went as smoothly as Brian had anticipated. Hiring a decorator to furnish the new space and coordinate the transfer of their belongings helped. Justin loved his new studio and Brian found that he enjoyed having an exercise room at home. They had gotten the work on the basement done before the move and now they had a nice media room, an exercise room, a wine cellar and a good sized storage room down there.



In June, Justin took his exams and passed them with flying colors. Now that he had a car of his own, he and Gus spent much of the summer going to various parts of the city where Justin could paint or sketch the cityscape while Gus napped. As August rolled around, however, they still had not found a nanny for Gus and it was starting to concern Brian.



“Well, it needs to be someone you trust,” Justin said as they were packing a bag for Gus so that they could go to the diner for dinner with the gang. “Because obviously neither of us knows any shifters willing to work for us.”



“You think a human could deal with a shifting baby?” Brian asked skeptically.



“No, but I think they can watch a human baby and can be trusted to call you if he shifts,” Justin said.  “I mean, I’ve gotten to know your friends pretty well Brian and I think that most of them would accept our secret and keep it to themselves if we asked.”



“Not all of them,” Brian muttered.



“We only need one,” Justin said. “Or maybe two.”



Brian eyed Justin. “You have something in mind.”



Justin shrugged as pulled out a change of clothes and put it into the diaper bag. “Well, I just thought that Gus knows and likes Emmett. And Emmett, as much as he can be a nosey queen, loves Gus. I think he would keep our secret. And if he knew what to expect, he wouldn’t panic when it happened. Plus, he just quit his job at the bakery and is looking for work.”



“There’s more going through that blond head of yours,” Brian predicted.



“Well, I also thought that Debbie might be trusted to keep the secret,” Justin said. “I mean, she’s been babysitting for a while now and it won’t be long before Gus starts shifting. Once he does, do you really want to tell her that she can’t babysit any more?”



“I’ll think about it,” Brian said as he lifted Gus and put him into his carrier.



Justin grabbed the packed bag and headed down the stairs ahead of Brian. They stopped to click the carrier into the stroller and then they were off to dinner at the Diner. It was a cool evening for early August and that made the walk pleasant. They chatted a little bit about their day and Justin told Brian about picking up his texts from the university bookstore. Brian told Justin about a new account that he had signed that morning.



They found the entire gang waiting for them when they arrived. The first few minutes were spent, predictably, with everyone cooing over Gus. After a while, talk turned to other things and Brian had a chance to sit back and think about what Justin had suggested. He knew that Debbie might be skeptical at first, but if he showed her his other forms she would accept him. He also knew that she would keep the knowledge to herself. She loved him as a surrogate son and something like this wasn’t about to change that.



Emmett on the other hand liked to be the center of gossip, always ready to discuss the tidbits he picked up from his many acquaintances. Yet he had been able to keep certain things to himself, even without Brian having to ask. For instance, he had never once told anyone about the multiple times he had awoken to find Brian and Justin screwing in the next room before they moved from the loft. Now he stayed in the guest room, and there was no way that he could hear them or see them, but back then, their sex life had been pretty open to the man caring for Gus.



Emmett had also never discussed the one time that he and Brian had been out shopping and had run into his mother. It had been an ugly scene and one that had hurt Brian more than he had let on. That was how he had found out that his father was dead, through his mother’s ranting in the middle of the mall. But Emmett had respected Brian’s feelings without ever having to be asked and had never said a word about the incident to anyone. And if they did freak, Brian could always make them forget.



Maybe Justin had the right idea.



It must have been fate—or Justin’s manipulations—that ensured that Emmett and Debbie were the last of the group still lingering after the meal. Debbie was just getting off work and Emmett and Justin were discussing some new movie.



“Emmett, you free to come to the house for a few minutes?” Brian asked. “I’d like a chance to talk with you about something pretty important. You too, Deb.”



Justin smiled at Brian, knowing that Brian had decided to follow his advice. It made him feel more like a trusted Beta than just a fuck buddy when Brian did that. “I have a mixed berry cobbler in the fridge that we can heat up for dessert and serve with ice cream.”



“You don’t have to bribe us to come Sunshine,” Debbie told the blond with a fond smile.



It was settled and soon Brian, Gus and Justin were making the trek back to the house with Emmett and Debbie in tow. The talk was animated, as it must be with Debbie and Emmett involved, and the short walk passed quickly. Justin set to work in the kitchen with Emmett helping get the dessert and coffee together while Debbie followed Brian upstairs to put Gus down in his crib. Before long, however, they were all seated in the living room with their dishes of cobbler and coffee—or just a glass of bourbon in Brian’s case—and waiting for Brian to bring up the reason for the visit.



“Yeah, okay,” Brian finally said as he finished off his glass and got up to pour another. “So there was a reason I asked you both over.”



“We figured that out,” Debbie said dryly.



Brain rolled his lips between his teeth and then gave Debbie a falsely sweet smile. “Always so nice to have your support.” Before anyone else could continue the customary banter, however, Brain retook his seat and got serious. “Justin and I are really grateful to both of you for watching Gus for us. But there’s something you need to know about him, and us, if you’re going to continue to babysit.”



“You sound so ominous,” Emmett said nervously.



Justin smiled at him reassuringly. “It’s nothing bad, just important and very confidential.”



Brian nodded and then turned to Justin. “So, do we show them or tell them.”



Justin chuckled. “Tell them and then show them. No need to cause a panic.”



Brian nodded again and took a swig of his bourbon. “I told you that I left home because my home life sucked. But that was only part of the truth. I left home because the pack that I belonged to wasn’t tolerant of gay people so I left before they could throw me out.”



“Pack?” Debbie asked.



Justin nodded. “I left my pack for the same reason. Brian and I aren’t like most people. We have… gifts.”



“Gifts?’ Emmett said. “Like supernatural powers?”



“You could say that,” Brian said wryly.



“Like what?” Emmett asked excitedly. “Can you move things with your mind? Can you start fires when you’re pissed? Do you see dead people?”



Justin smiled at Emmett’s immediate turn to movie plots. “We can turn into animals.”



There was a moment of silence while the two humans in the room tried to process that information. “You’re shittin’ me,” Debbie finally said.



“Not shitting you,” Brian said. “We’re shape shifters. The legends of werewolves and Native American spirit guides had to come from somewhere. Well, our people are the sources of those legends.”



Justin hurried to explain. “There are several types of shifters. Wolf and feline are the most common. But there are others. Shifters usually form small societies, or packs, of like shifters. In the past it was for protection, but these days it’s more for governing our kind.”



“So you both left your packs because they were a bunch of bigots?” Debbie asked.



“And now we’ve formed our own pack, of sorts,” Brian said. “I’ve never heard of a pack with human members, but that is essentially what we are asking you to become. As a part of the pack, it is your responsibility to protect the pack. Mostly that means keeping it secret from other humans.”



“The reason we’re telling you this now is that Gus is going to start shifting soon,” Justin said. “He won’t have any control over it at first and we need to know that you’ll be able to deal with it if and when that happens.”



Debbie nodded and then turned to Emmett. “Are you buying any of this?”



Emmett shrugged. “They seem sincere, but it’s very far fetched.”



“Now we show them,” Justin told Brian.



“What form?” Brian asked.



“Think non-threatening,” Justin said just before he shifted and a rabbit sat in his place.



Brian laughed and shifted into a hawk and perched on the back of the sofa. It was the least threatening of his forms. Debbie and Emmet shared a look before Emmett cautiously held out a hand to Justin and the rabbit sniffed at him before hopping over so that Emmett and Debbie could both pet him.



“He’s real,” Emmett said with awe.



Justin hopped back to his spot on the sofa and shifted back. “We’re real. And what we’ve told you and shown you is real.”



Brian shifted back and Debbie asked, “So Gus could turn into a hawk?’



“Probably not a hawk,” Brian said. “We won’t know what his first form will be until he actually does change. Justin and I are both Omnis. That means we have the potential to be any animal.”



“Most Omnis only have one form,” Justin said. “But both Brian and I have four forms.”



“What else can you become?” Emmett asked.



“Well, I’m also a lynx, that was what my pack was,” Justin said. “And I can be a coyote or an eagle. Brian’s forms include the hawk you saw as well as a wolf, a mountain lion, or a bear.”



“I’m glad you chose the hawk,” Debbie said faintly. “I’m not sure I would have liked meeting up with those others.”



“Even shifted, I would never hurt you,” Brian told her quietly.



Debbie smiled at him. “I know that.”



“So, we have to watch out for Gus to start shifting?” Emmett asked. “I mean, does that mean we can’t ever take him out in public?”



“Not never,” Brian said. “But it will be better if there aren’t many people around him until he can control when he shifts. Otherwise I won’t be able to do damage control.”



“What sort of damage control?” Emmett asked.



Justin glanced at Brian before saying, “Brian can… help people forget things.”



“Is this something all shifters can do?” Debbie asked.



“No,” Justin said. “In fact most shifters only have the ability to shift. There are some, however, who have special gifts.”



“Do you have one of these special gifts?” Debbie asked.



“He’s an empath,” Brian said. “He can feel what other people are feeling, figure out their intentions, and sometimes he can help ease mental or emotional distress.”



“I had a friend who was a healer,” Justin said. “And there are other gifts, too.”



“If we can’t accept all this and keep your secret, you’ll make us forget, won’t you?” Debbie asked Brian.



“Only if I have to,” Brian said. “I don’t like doing that shit to people.”



“Have you ever done it to either of us before?” Emmett asked.



Brian sighed and drank his bourbon. “Only once. It was just after Gus was born. We discovered that he’s a shifter, so I…”



“Lindsay and Melanie could never have cared for him properly,” Justin explained. “We had to do what was best for him and them.”



“He wasn’t supposed to come live with you,” Debbie said. “But if he’s going to start turning into an animal randomly, I suppose I can understand why you did what you did. How do other shifters deal with the childcare issue? Obviously they can’t send their kids to daycare.”



“Most packs have a couple people willing to care for the young ones until they are old enough to control their changes,” Brian said. “But…”



“How long before he can control it?” Emmett asked.



“It depends,” Justin said. “Most kids don’t start changing until between their first and second birthday. Gus is going to be a powerful shifter, though, and he’s already starting to show signs that he’s ready. Most kids take about a year before they can control their changes, but again, Gus is powerful so he might take less time.”



“Or he might take longer since he’s going to be so young when he starts,” Brian said. “I’d guess that by two he’ll have control enough to be allowed to be with regular people more often.”



“How are you going to take care of him?” Debbie asked. “You can’t send him to daycare and you don’t belong to a pack.”



“Actually, that was another reason we asked Emmett to come tonight,” Brian said.



“Em, we thought that since you aren’t working right now that you might consider becoming Gus’ nanny,” Justin said.



“Me?” Emmett squealed. “I would love to!”



“Good,” Brian said. “Then you can start Monday. Justin can get you familiar with his daytime routines and go over any questions you might have about restrictions or what to do if he changes.”



“What do we do if he changes?” Debbie asked.



“If there are other people around, call me,” Brian said. “And don’t let them run off. I’ll handle everything else. If you’re alone, call either of us, but there’s not really anything anyone can do. When he’s first changing there may be times that he stays in animal form for days.”



The rest of the discussion was set aside after that because Gus woke up for his 11 o’clock feeding and Debbie and Emmet went home.