Work Text:
Comfortember 2023: Day 4
The Heart of the Pack
Prompt: Warmth
Clark sighed in exhaustion as he pushed open the doors to the Manor. It was dark and quiet inside, long past bedtime for the occupants of the stately home.
Stretching out his hearing, Clark found that Alfred, Tim and Damian were all fast asleep in their rooms. He knew Dick was working an overnight shift back in Bludhaven while Jason was out as Batman for the night. No doubt Barbara was still busy on comms down in the cave.
That just left five.
The alpha smiled as his hearing zeroed in on the five slow and steady heartbeats clustered together upstairs. Clark quickly shed his shoes and jacket, leaving them in their respective spots near the door, and made his way silently to his and Bruce’s room. Once inside, he changed out of his work clothes and into a pair of boxer shorts. Bypassing the empty bed, he cautiously eased open the door to the walk-in closet and felt his heart melt at the beautiful sight before him.
The first thing he noted was that it was warm inside the den, a far cry from the cold blistering winds outside. The light was off but with the aid of the moonlight filtering in through the windows he was able to see. Inside the large nest was Bruce, sleeping soundly on his side with only a pair of boxers and Ma Kent’s handmade sweater on. The omega wolf was curled protectively around the small, delicate bodies tucked close to his chest.
Clark stepped closer, remaining as quiet as possible to avoid waking up his sleeping family. Peering closer, he couldn’t stop the soft coo at the tiny twitching ears and adorable sleepy whines. Reaching out, he gently moved a particularly fussy wolf pup with silver and white speckled fur till she was more closely tucked in beside her sister and brothers.
The room was flooded with the scent of pack, and it had Clark’s heart singing in delight as he closed the door. Bruce’s natural scent of rain, lavender and apples was laden with the addition of milk, as it had been for months now. Amongst the heavy blanket of omegamothercalmprotect were the traces of the rest of the pack. Alfred’s scent of camomile and oak, Dick’s woodfire smoke and dark chocolate, Jason’s coffee and old books, Tim’s wildflowers and mint, and Damian’s pepper and nutmeg. Beneath all that were the kits’ scents. At that age they barely smelled of anything more than milk and Bruce and kit. It would be years yet until their own original scents would take root. As Clark did one last check of the kits to make sure they were all settled in, he allowed himself to bask in the combined scents of the nest that screamed homepackfamilysafe!
It had been a tiring day. He had to handle an attack from Luthor, finish up two articles for work and attend a Justice League meeting before he could come home. On top of all that, it had been an extremely cold, snowy day. Don’t get him wrong, it was a productive day, true, and not even a bad one. However, all day all he could think about was getting home to his mate and kits.
Climbing into the nest was a delicate process, one he took very seriously. If he woke Bruce or, heaven forbid, one of the kits then there would be hell to pay. Once he had snuggled down amongst the pillows and blankets without hearing any high-pitched cries or angry growls, he knew he was in the clear. Finally, with his body guarding the entrance to the den, his mate soundly sleeping beside him, and their kits hidden safely between them, he could truly relax and bask in the warmth of the nest, the heart of the pack.