The Shadow Moon Pack

I woke up to two small bundles of fur barreling into my back. One of them crawled toward my head and began wrestling with my ear, while the other pounced on my twitching tail. I opened my eyes and yawned before standing and stretching.

Sky and Eve tumbled to the ground before getting back up and attacking my tail again. I smiled wolfishly and moved it, watching the two of them. After a while, they got tired of playing with my tail and wrestled each other. So far, Sky was winning their little duel.

I looked around for the other wolves and saw them gathered around Aiden’s nest, looking at me. I cocked my head to the side and stared back at them, wondering what was going on. I felt multiple minds connect with my own as I sat up.

“Alpha,” they said in unison, bowing their heads in acceptance. Oh, I take it he told them then. When they looked back up, I bowed my head slightly while keeping eye contact the entire time.

“So, who’s up for a tour of the territory?” Aiden asked, directing his question at me obviously. I smiled slightly and limped over to him.

“I’ll take Sky out if you want,” Kathrine offered, “We could go down to the river and try to catch something.”

“Alright,” I nodded.

“I’ll show Eve around the rest of the territory,” Robert offered as well, earning another nod from me.

“C’mon Acacia, we’ll go around the border,” Aiden spoke.

I limped out of the cave with him, heading southwest towards the river. It only took us about four hours to get there, but it was a nice work out. Once we got there, we continued on along the border in a clockwise direction.

x x x

Kathrine’s POV

I walked to the river with Sky, his dark brown pelt blending in with the forest around him. The water was high in the river today, running from the falls faster than normal.

The two of us walked to the edge and I told him to look for the shine of fish scales. Being half human, fish are actually pretty tasty to us.

The next thing I know, he was leaping further into the river. I tried to grab him, but I was too slow. All I could do was watch as the water pulled him under with a splash. I heard another splash on the other side of the river, but I couldn’t tear my eyes away from the place he went under. I just got a pup killed…

Another splash was heard from across the river, I saw a grey wolf paddling downstream, flowing with the current. I recognized him as one of the Scar Forest pack members. Rock. That snapped me out of my daze, and I ran alongside the river, looking for that familiar brown pelt. Rock ducked below the water, coming up with a large brown wolf held by the scruff of its neck. I bowed my head sadly, that wolf was too big to be Sky.

The wolves began paddling to the Shadow Moon territory. A strong current pulled them under, but they resurfaced a second later. Well…one of them did anyway, Rock was nowhere to be seen. I walked as far as I dared into the water, helping the young brown wolf when he got close enough.

There was a bundle of brown fur in his mouth, and it was breathing. Sky! I barked in happiness and nuzzled the other wolf that saved him.

We made it to dry ground and the wolf dropped Sky before collapsing himself. I curled up next to the pup, trying to warm him up from the chilly water, while talking to the other wolf.

“Thank you so much!” I said through our recently connected minds.

“No problem,” he replied, panting, “Hey, where’s Rock?” I looked to the wolf sadly.

“He went under and never came back up.”

“He’s…dead?” his voice cracked as he spoke the second word. I nodded my head
solemnly.

I stood up once Sky’s breathing returned to normal, and motioned for the wolf to follow me back to the cave. He saved Sky, I think he deserves to meet the pack and have us formally thank him.