Tucker felt the familiar weight of his wolf's presence, but as Kyle spoke, something shifted within him. His wolf was still there, growling quietly, but it seemed to hesitate now, almost uncertain. Tucker’s fingers twitched as he felt his control slowly return. The wolf had been dominant for a while, but he could feel the boundaries between them solidifying again.

He cleared his throat, the rasp of his own voice slowly replacing the deep, guttural tone the wolf had used. "I don’t need to test you," Tucker said, his words coming out steady, though his gaze flicked briefly to Kyle, a little wary. "The wolf... he likes to stir things up. It’s not about being cocky. It’s just... how he is.", the tension in the air thickening as Tucker’s chest rose and fell with each breath, the fight within him nearly over. He wasn’t sure if Kyle could sense it, but there was something in the way his muscles relaxed that told him the wolf was stepping back for now.

Kyle kept watching Tucker as he regained control of his body from the wolf. A soft smile comes across his face as Tucker says how he doesn't need to test him and explains how his wolf acts sometimes. "I see.." He says thoughtfully before suggestion, "if he ever tries to do that again maybe try to treat him like a child. If he wants to be forceful to get control then threaten him that he won't be able to play once I heal. If he asks nicely then promise him a reward for behaving. I had to do that with my own wolf when I was younger, so I know it works sometimes."

Kyle nodded as Tucker contimplated his suggestion and said he would try it next time his wolf was misbehaving. "Alright," he says before gesturing at the cart, "now you should probably start eating before your food gets cold." With his other hand Kyle was gently stirring his bowl of stew, which had steam lightly coming off of it.

In the back of his mind Kyle wondered why Tucker's wolf seemed a bit different personality wise then Tucker sometimes. He knew the wolf liked to play, since his wolf played around with it a lot, but testing an alpha was a big difference. He hoped that the wolf wouldn't try anything drastic with him, but assumed he wouldn't since he was their alpha and mate.

Tucker gave a small, distracted nod, his eyes flicking over to his bowl of food before he looked back at Kyle, who was stirring his own stew. The warmth of the steam rising from the bowl made the hunger gnawing at his stomach sharper, but he couldn't help but let his thoughts linger on what Kyle had said. The idea of his wolf, always so unpredictable and restless, acting up again... well, it wasn't exactly a surprise. Still, there was something about the way Kyle was watching him, like he could sense that Tucker's wolf was different from the usual.

"Yeah, I'll try it," Tucker muttered, his voice gruff, still a little preoccupied with the internal tug-of-war between him and his wolf. The damn thing was always itching for a challenge.

As Kyle looked at him, Tucker could see the concern hiding behind his easy-going demeanor. He could almost hear the unspoken question—Why's your wolf so... off sometimes? It wasn't an unfamiliar thought for Tucker, especially not from someone like Kyle, who knew how complicated the bond between an alpha and their wolf could be.

Tucker’s gaze shifted toward the cart, where his own bowl sat, still steaming, and with a quiet sigh, he grabbed the spoon. "Alright, alright... no need to keep reminding me," he muttered. As he took the first bite, the warmth of the food spread through him, grounding him, but the nagging feeling in his chest didn’t quite go away.

Kyle was worried. Tucker could feel it—felt the subtle shift in the air whenever they spoke, the way his friend’s eyes kept darting over to him. Yeah, he knew what Kyle was thinking.

His wolf, always a bit wild and unpredictable... Maybe it wasn't quite as simple as Kyle assumed. But Tucker wasn’t about to admit that. Not yet. "You worry too much, Kyle," he said, taking another bite and giving a faint grin. "My wolf knows his place. Doesn’t mean he won’t test you once in a while, but he won’t cross the line."

At least, not with him. But even as the words left his mouth, Tucker knew there was more to it than that. The bond between him and his wolf had always been a bit... volatile. Maybe that’s what Kyle was picking up on. But Tucker wasn’t about to let his own struggles spill over onto his mate. Not yet.

He took another bite, trying to focus on the moment, letting the warmth of the food settle his nerves. It was better to let Kyle relax, even if Tucker was still a little wound up himself. His wolf could wait.

Kyle continued to eat his food as he thought about the situation between Tucker and his wolf. It was a bit strange to see a wolf and their person so different in personalities, but he was confused on why the wolf went from being similar a few days ago to being different now.

His gaze went back to Tucker as he told him that he worried too much, which brought a chuckle from his throat. "I've been told that before," he says as he reaches for his water glass, groaning some as he does, "it seems that when something comes up my mind always seems to latch onto all of the bad possibilities then doesn't leave me alone about them.."
(I'm so sorry for my late and short reply. I got busy and just didn't know what all to type)

Kyle smiled as Tucker agreed with his problem of over thinking things and continued to eat. He paused as Tucker continued to talk though and looked at him curiously. He paid close attention as Tucker explained the events of the past few days and how him and his wolf just recently started to fight for control. Kyle stirred his stew thoughtfully as Tucker continued to talk before something clicked in his head. He looked up from his food and to Tucker as he finished talking.

"I understand that," Kyle says as his mate says that it's exhausting to bicker with his wolf. "Could I.. ask you for a favor," Kyle now says as he gently, though painful for him, sets his stew on the nightstand beside his water.

Once Kyle saw that he had Tucker's full attention he planned out his words carefully before speaking. "I want you to let your wolf speak through you again," he says, "I have a theory I want to test about why you two may not be getting along, but in order to test that I need to speak with him. If at any point, though, he starts to get out of hand, like aggressive or starts to provoke me, I want you to get control back before anything bad happens. Ok?"

As Kyle finished explaining his favor he watched Tucker's face for any signs of concern or for signs that his wolf was in charge yet. Kyle felt his own wolf asking for permission to speak through him, but Kyle told him not yet. Perhaps to test their next theory Kyle would let his wolf speak, or maybe when Tucker was in control again, until then Kyle pushed his wolf to the side.