Beauran Book 2 ~ The Return. {Wolf Story}

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*gasp* I would be honored!

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Another Chapter! I sencerely hope you're enjoying it so far.

The Hunting Grounds

The next day, Gaze and Ihaka woke the four pups very early. Twilight grumpily sat up and licked her cold, icy paws as Ihaka nudged Rai beside her. Copaci and Krieger were already awake, going about their business.
When everyone was nice and bright-eyed, (not so much Twilight) Gaze had some news for them.
“We’re going to the hunting grounds!” he said happily. The hunting grounds? Thought Twilight. They had perfectly good meadows already. And forests. And plenty of birds in the trees. Why on earth would they need to go to some ‘hunting grounds’?
“It’s the place I teach pups like you to hunt in the spring. You’ll be going there soon enough yourselves.” Gaze informed them. Copaci nodded in understanding.
“With all this snow, it will be even more challenging.” Said Ihaka.
“But, we already have good meadows! And we get breakfast for you every morning!” protested Rai.
“Rai!” said Ihaka sternly. “This is where all the food is. It’ll be perfect! There will be other wolves there too.” Twilight’s tail uncurled and sank to the ground. Other wolves? She hated being around others she didn’t know. So did Copaci. His face turned from happy to terribly dislike.
“Well, come on!” said Gaze, and he went to the edge of the tree and climbed down into the snow. Twilight reluctantly followed with Rai by her side.
The white snow made the dark morning a little lighter, with the brightness of it. The sun wasn’t up, but the sky was pale greyish-blue. The air around was freezing, and Twilight could see her breath. She could see steam coming off the backs of the others from their body-heat in the freezing air.
Icicles above them dripped with cold water, landing on their heads. All around them were patches of snow and some of the puddles were frozen-over, making a solid layer over the water.
As they passed the stream, they saw large chunks of flat ice sliding down, cracking on the odd stone here and there. It was not completely frozen, but the ice probably came from a pool upstream.
Little rabbits scavenged for little blades of grass appearing out of the snow, and birds warmed themselves by singing pretty tunes that echoed around. Twilight’s feet crunched on frozen pine needles and chunks of hard snow, which froze her paws.

* * *
In a while they were in a rocky, hilly pine forest, with snow covering the rocks everywhere. Twilight had to be careful, because small boulders could be hidden anywhere.
The pack stumbled down a slope, getting their feet wedged in the snow, until they came to a clearing, blanketed a stunning white. Around the clearing were a few wolves, talking to each other and staining the snow red with their prey.
The group went over to a cave. As Twilight looked up she could see the mountains, capped with snow and trees sticking out everywhere. At the top of the cave was a bit of snow and she saw it was from snow sliding down the mountainside.
As the pack approached the cave, Twilight noticed it was more than just that. It was a tunnel. Long and black. It was free of snow though. She couldn’t see any light coming from the other end, so it probably went through the whole mountain.
Gaze and Ihaka led them in, and Twilight suddenly felt a whole lot warmer than outside. There was dirt beneath her paws and it smelled of rock, as well as a hint of meat from prey being dragged through daily.
Soon they were absorbed into the darkness, with no light on either side. Twilight didn’t like the dark much, she felt like she couldn’t breath. But she kept close to Rai, sensing him by her side.
In a moment there was light from ahead, peeping in and reflecting off the stone walls. Twilight squinted as golden morning sun streamed in, and she saw the white of the snow outside, backed by green and brown of the forest.
They emerged into the light, into a forest. It was right by the mountain, and she spotted a meadow ahead. It was large and white, with bits of grass sticking out everywhere. They went through the forest, and she saw deer and horses and other animals in the meadow. Birds chirped happily through the canopy, and they could hear other wolves in the forest around.
Twilight immediately knew she wanted to get out there and hunt and explore. She let her feet push her forward, leaping over and bush and into the snow. Rai happily bounded after her, and they smiled.
This place was perfect. It was slightly hilly, and you could go and hide, and there was a variety of animals. It was surrounded by thick forest, perfect for hunting in. And this was out of Beauran, and in the distance there were large mountains making grey-blue silhouettes in the sky.
But the world was so white! The only colours were basically green, brown, black and white. A lot of white. It was completely changed.
Behind her, Twilight could see the large mountains of Beauran. To someone not living there, it would appear to be a valley. It was so secret. But she wondered how they didn’t get in through the tunnel. Maybe it was guarded.
It didn’t matter. She just wanted to get her meal. She crept ahead and parted with Rai, who went galloping off in the snow. Twilight’s feet crunched on the powdery ice, and her feet sank into it up to her knees. She shuffled through the snow, keeping her eyes open for unsuspecting animals. Yeah right. She wasn’t very sneaky like this.
In a moment she sighted a herd of deer. Maybe she could catch one. She kept going through the snow, trying to keep the wind on her face. She crept along, finding a small slope to hind behind. She waited for the deer.
Soon she saw their heads peeping over the slope, grazing on blades of grass. She tried wriggling down, and they got closer and closer.
She noticed a younger one. Not a fawn, nor an adult. Just a young buck. He had tiny antlers and clumsy legs, shuffling behind his father.
She waited for the stag to move away so she had a clear view of the buck. He came closer and closer towards her, and she waited in a crouch.
Maybe she could chase him into the forest, and catch him there. That would have to do. She waited for him to notice her.
Just as the young buck grabbed a bit of grass and stuffed it into his mouth, Twilight let out a low growl in her throat. The buck looked up quickly, dropping the half-chewed grass. When he noticed her, he spooked.
Twilight leapt up out of the snow, bounding after the terrified buck. He sprayed snow into her face, and she ran with her feet lifted high, chasing him.
In a quick moment she reached the forest, and the buck bounced in, leaping over a log. Twilight just as easily cleared it, and chased him faster. Her legs worked better without the snow holding her down.
As she ran and ran, she came up beside the deer, startling him. He leapt aside, stumbling on a boulder. His legs flew around as he struggled up, and Twilight leapt up. Her front legs went out and clawed the deer’s side. He was up, however, so she kept running.
In a moment they neared a stream, and the deer leapt over it, splashing water up as his back legs missed the ground. He kept running and Twilight jumped the stream too.
The ground was flatter and more snow was lying around. She was so close. The ground was so easy to run on….
She bounded onto a large, thick log. The buck ran around it athletically, and Twilight made the jump. She soared through the air, coming down on the buck’s hind, sending them both down to the snow-covered ground.
As the buck hit the ground he grunted, and Twilight clawed his side again. Bleeding and moaning, the buck tried staggering up, but his legs writhed around. Twilight bit into his neck, sending a roar around the forest, before silence followed, and the buck was lying limply in the bloody snow.
She had just killed a buck! By herself! She was so proud. She decided to drag it back through the forest, she could find her way. But she was quite hungry too. Maybe a little bit of meat.
She ripped at the flesh, biting into the juicy, tender venison. Her white paws became red and her tummy became full.
She was really enjoying her meal, and it warmed her in the cold snowy air. But then there was a sound that made her stop chewing.
Twilight slowly lifted her head and saw a dark shape in the trees. It was big and brown and furry. And it roared.
A grizzly.
The mighty bear loped towards her, scavenging for a nice meal of meat. It wanted her kill. She wanted to run away; a big clumsy bear wouldn’t be able to catch her. But she was a wolf, not a pathetic little fox.
As the bear approached her, she lowered herself behind the furry body of the buck. The bear moaned as it came to the fresh meat, sniffing it and wanting it. With its mighty paws, as big as Twilight’s head, it rolled the body over.
Twilight’s blue eyes met the bear’s brown ones. For a moment there was silence, then it stood on its hind legs and roared.
Twilight snarled and bared her teeth, looking at the monster towering above her. Inside she was absolutely terrified, but she didn’t want her opponent to see that. She snarled and barked at the bear.
“My kill!” she growled. The bear moaned back angrily. It swiped with its paw. Twilight dodged and ran around the back of it, grabbing its hind and biting down. The bear roared in agony.
As it tossed around, the deer’s body was knocked away. Twilight leapt onto the bear’s back, agile and nimble. She clung on, biting the bear’s ear. It thrashed and Twilight almost lost her grip, but she held on.
But the bear was a lot stronger. It thrashed so hard Twilight completely lost her grip, flying off. She was in mid-air for a moment, before hitting a tree and collapsing to the ground.
The world completely vanished, and the bear’s furious roars faded away.

[Kodabomb]

*gasp* I would be honored!

Really? Well, I hope she's described right, and she'll be posted very soon.

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Ok, I hope Twilight is okay.

[Kodabomb]

All things good come when the BLACK FOX is here! Hope you like it!

The Black Fox

Crickets chirped happily around the cold forest. An owl hooted in the tree-top, pretty and mysterious.
Twilight opened her eyes to the welcoming sounds, looking around. It was dark. She looked at the ground and found not the wood of her tree, but grass, wet with frost that melted beneath her.
She was where the bear had thrown her. All alone. She was in the forest at night, and she was quite far from home. Twilight stood and shook herself of the cold water. Yes, there was the tree she hit. And she could see what was left of her buck in the moonlight not far away. The bear had completely stole her meal.
As she came to her senses, she started to panic. What if something got her, a pup alone in the night? What if she went in the complete wrong direction and never got home? She breathed fast and spun around, searching for the right way out of these woods.
Twilight decided to try and listen out for the stream. That would be the way she came. She walked ahead, keeping her ears alert and wary. She crept through the night, listening to the snapping twigs of small animals in the trees.
Trickle, trickle. Yes! That was it! The stream! She heard it right ahead, and she ran towards it.
Upon the surface shone the moon’s reflection, bright and white and glowing. She went up to the stream and bent over it, getting a fresh drink. It quenched her throat, and as she lifted her head again, she noticed two shining yellow bulbs quivering in the water. A reflection.
She looked up quickly to her right, seeing nothing. Then she looked slowly to the left, and almost fell over.
Out of the dark shone two yellow eyes, and the white moon-light shone on the sleek black fur of the animal.
“Ah, Beauranian pup.” Purred the voice. It was a female voice. “What are you doing out here so very late?” Twilight stared.
“Who….. what…...how do you know Beauran?” she stuttered, backing up a little. The voice stood still.
“I am a black fox. I am a loner. I discover.” She said. “Your odd location only keeps out the short-sighted. I am not silly.”
“How would you know I’m Bearanian? I might not be!” said Twilight in bewilderment.
“Oh, but you are! You are not a Shadow wolf, nor a member of the mountain packs, so you are Bearanian.” Replied the Black Fox.
“How do you know I’m not a Shadow?” asked Twilight.
“Because of your scent, pup!” exclaimed the fox.
“And aren’t foxes supposed to keep away from wolves?”
“You are a pup. I can come near you. And besides, I can smell good from bad. You have a good heart.” Sighed the fox.
“What’s your name?” asked Twilight curiously.
“Wahine.” Replied the fox. “Now, let me lead you home.” Twilight nodded. They both leapt over the stream and started through the forest.
“Wahine, why are you alone?” asked Twilight.
“Because foxes do not have packs. We are solitary.” She replied, keeping her yellow eyes on the forest ahead.
“Do you have kits?”
“I did. But they were hunted down by a Shadow wolf.” She replied. Twilight looked at the ground and didn’t say anything. It was silent for a while.
Soon they reached the snow of the meadow. Wahine stepped in, making little footprints as she went. Twilight followed, and shivered with the cold. The powdery snow crunched under her feet.
They crossed the meadow, over the little slopes of snow. There were footprints of all animals around, but they had all gone to their hideouts in the forest now. The moon reflected brightly upon the ice, lighting their way.
In a moment their were in the forest on the other side, and Twilight shook the snow off the underside of her body. As they walked through the thin strip of trees before the mountain, Wahine stopped. She pricked her big, round ears and lifted her nose.
“I sense your fellow pack-members coming.” She whispered. “Farewell, pup!” she said, and she fled through the forest and into the dark. Twilight tried calling after her, but it was no use. She watched her go.
Just as she was about to enter the tunnel, there was a cry from inside.
“Twilight!” yelled a familiar voice.
“Rai?” she replied awkwardly.
“Twilight!” Rai bounded out of the tunnel and knocked her to the ground, sending a pain through her shoulder, but she felt delighted as she saw Rai’s face. “Where have you been? It’s past midnight!” he asked urgently.
“Um, forest?” she replied, getting up.
“Why were you in there? Why didn’t you come back?” she said. Before she could answer, Gaze came through the tunnel.
“Twilight?” he said. “Where were you?”
“I was in the forest! There was a bear, and it knocked me out. Then it ate my kill, and then a black fox called Wahine helped me find my way home.” She replied.
“Well, I’m glad you’re OK. I told the others if I couldn’t find you, we’d have to go to the Shadow Lands.” He said. “Now, come home. Tune’s worried.” Twilight sighed and followed her father back through the tunnel with Rai walking next to her.

* * *
In a few hours they arrived home, exhausted and tired. They slowly climbed into the tree to find a lot less tired Tune waiting for them.
“Twilight!” she cried, rushing up to her. “Oh, I was so worried!” Twilight smiled awkwardly as her mother nuzzled her.
“She was knocked out by a bear in the forest.” Said Gaze, lying down. “But, as you can see, she’s fine.” Tune smiled.
“Well, you should have a rest. Boys, go back to sleep!” she called to the boys lying at the other side, watching them. Twilight went over to her leaf-bed under the branch and curled up, letting Rai lie next to her and warm her up.
In a while, the two of them drifted slowly to sleep.

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Hmm....mysterious...

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I know right! I've got the storyline slanned out, but I'm thinking of just adding her in somewhere. All I know is she's not going to be mentioned just once, oh no!

[Kodabomb]

This is the chapter where we meet.... Merlia! Yes, she's here and she's going to be a major part in the story to come.

The Mountains

Twilight’s dreams were full of bears, owls and Wahine, which didn’t bother her. They were not bad dreams. The bear was kind and gave her deer back, and Wahine came to live it Beauran with them.
She woke slowly and peacefully in the morning, listening to the heavy breathing of the others. She had slept in a little, and the sun was already far up, casting yellow patches on the floor.
She stood up and stretched her legs out, yawning widely. The air was cold and icy as usual, and a fresh layer of snow had fallen in the night. A big pile was in their tree, fallen from the weak branches.
She decided to go and gnaw on a bone for a while. Twilight sniffed about and found one; in a bad spot. It was wedged between Copaci’s paws, he had clearly been chewing it. Twilight wanted it so much… it was covered in meat and split open with marrow on the inside. She crept over and put her paw on it, carefully pulling it towards her.
As the end was just at the tips of Copaci’s claws, she gave a big yank and the bone was hers. She proudly picked it up and pranced away like a puppy. She put it down and started chewing on it, licking up the marrow and scraping off the meat.
As she was occupied chewing it, Rai groaned and rolled over, his ears flopped over his face. He smiled as he saw her, and sat up. With a big yawn that showed off his teeth, he stretched out.
“Morning.” Mumbled Twilight over her bone.
“Hi.” Replied Rai. Twilight scraped the last scrap of meat off and tossed the bone aside.
“What do you want to do today?” she asked him.
“I don’t know.” He replied. They thought for a bit. “I know! We’ll go up into the mountains. Maybe we could take Ginger and Skye!” Twilight considered it.
“Sounds all right! We’ll just wake the boys and we can head off.” She said, standing up. Rai copied and Twilight went over to Krieger and Copaci.
She nudged Krieger in the ribs and he groaned. “I love you!” he howled, before opening his eyes.
“Oh.” He said. Without another word, Krieger began licking his privates. Twilight rolled her eyes. She nudged Copaci and when he didn’t respond, she batted him with her paw. Hard.
“Ooow!” he howled. “Don’t do that!”
“We’re going to the mountains.” Said Twilight flatly.
“Nope. Not going.” Krieger replied.
“Ginger’s coming.” She said, turned around and walking back to Rai.
“OK!” they said together, and they stumbled over to the others.
“We’ll be going to get Ginger and Skye, then we’ll head to the mountains near where we went through to the meadow.” Said Rai, already thinking of their plan.
“Well, let’s go! We won’t be needing anything.” Said Krieger, and they all agreed. One by one, they headed down into the clearing and set of for the forest.

* * *
Half an hour later, after much running and playing, the pups reached a cave in a small hillside. It was large and went down, and they all clambered inside.
Without even going down their hall, they found Gem, Simbas and their pups sitting around chewing bones. Ginger had practically given up on his, and it was lying in front of him. He stared at it, as if waiting for it to leap into the air or something.
When Skye saw the four of them at the bottom of the slope of small boulders that led up to the entrance, she squealed happily. Ginger looked up absently.
“I am so bored!” huffed Skye, approaching Twilight. “I bet I was going to die if I didn’t get outside.”
“You were out just last night, darling.” Said Gem.
“Yes, which is way too long.” Replied Skye. She always sounded so dramatic, which was one reason why Twilight liked her so much.
“Um, Simbas? Is it OK if you go to the mountains today?” asked Copaci.
“Oh, take them.” Replied Gem before Simbas could answer. “Skye’s driving me nuts.” Twilight smiled and went over the boulders, climbing up into the sunlight. Skye followed and she greeted the morning air happily. Twilight giggled.
“Well, come on, pack!” said Copaci. They followed him into the forest.
The terrain turned rocky and hilly in a moment. The trees began to spread out and most of them were pines. It was cold and snow was everywhere. It was thick all through the forest, not just in patches. The pines needles on the branches held layers of snow, and they were all sagging down. A little bit of it slid from a branch and landed on Krieger’s head, making them all giggle with amusement.
Krieger growled and shook it off, spraying Ginger with it. Then they all giggled harder because both of them were snow-heads.
Soon they came to the slope and they went down into the white clearing, finding it full of wolves again. They decided to turn right, where they would begin to go to the west side of Beauran.
They were near a sharp slope upwards, going from flat straight to mountain, and all around was forest. They traipsed through the snow, making their paws cold and wet. But it was fun, and the snow was lovely and deep.
“Hey, let’s make ourselves white!” Skye suddenly said. Twilight giggled and lay down. Skye did the same, and they rolled in the snow, sending their legs flying into the air. The boys stared at them for a moment, then decided to go along with it.
They covered their fur in powdery snow, making themselves wet and white. Twilight staggered up and giggled.
“I’m an arctic wolf!” she cried, running around in circles.
“Me too!” said Skye, copying. Rai, Ginger, Copaci and Krieger stood up and laughed. Ginger tripped as his leg got caught in a hidden hole, and tumbled over. He smacked into Copaci, sending them both falling to the ground. Copaci disappeared in the snow with his black legs sticking out. Skye giggled and fell over, and Twilight just fell anyway.
In a moment they were all rolling about in the snow laughing. Six silly, clumsy pups. And that’s how they liked it.

* * *
A while later when they had got over their silliness, the pack headed off to find a route into the mountain. It was not long when they found it, however. A thin track leading up, surrounded by trees and covered in a thin layer of snow.
The broke into a single-file line and began their climb up the mountain. It was peaceful and charming, with no other wolves around. A pair of little purple butterflies danced across Twilight’s path, twirling around each other. She loved how they did that.
As they went higher, the trees went thinner. Thicker trees, but more spread out. It became slightly harder to keep you footing as the snow was more solid and slippery. Twilight dug her claws into it, and if she felt like she’d slip she pushed down with her back legs. It was helping.
In a while they reached a flatter bit on the mountainside. Like a clearing. Around it were thick pine trees blocking out the view of the valley, which made it feel lovely and cosy. On the far side, in the mountain, was a large, open cave. It went in nice and deep, but it didn’t have a small opening like Skye’s home.
The pack went over to the cave and called into it. “Hello?” said Skye. “Is anybody home?” Nothing replied.
“I guess nobody lives here. We’ll just make ourselves at home.” Said Krieger. He went forward and just as he was about to go in, there was a voice.
“I live here.” Said a female voice. Twilight peered into the darkness.
“Er, hello?” she said.
“Me.” Said the voice. As they waited, a wolf came out. A pup. As big as them. She came out shyly and quietly, making no noise as her claws touched the stone. She was grey with purple spots under her eyes and on her flank, with three purple stripes around her legs. Around her neck was a beautiful onyx stone that beautifully reflected the white of the snow. Her eyes were stunning gold, and she was very pretty. “My name is Merlia.”
“You live here?” said Copaci. “Where’s your mother?”
“I don’t know. I’ve never met her.” Merlia replied quietly.
“Where’s your father?” asked Skye.
“He was here one day, and gone the next. I haven’t seen him since I was a puppy.” She replied, no changing her shy tone.
“Who, who looks after you?” asked Twilight.
“Myself.” She replied. “I feed myself, and make sure I drink, and I barely leave my mountain.” Twilight stared at her.
“So, you’ve never met any other wolves other than your father?” said Krieger.
“Don’t be rude!” scolded Skye. Twilight giggled. “What he means to say is, are you OK up here?” Merlia smiled.
“Yes. I’m friends with the deer, and I only hunt rabbits and squirrels. Hares are my friends too.” Twilight tipped her head. She never actually considered making food into friend.
“Will you be our friend too?” asked Skye, wagging her tail happily.
“Maybe. Can I trust you?” she asked.
“Absolutely!” said Skye, over-the-moon. “You can be our best friend ever!” Twilight giggled again at Skye’s silliness.
“Well, come into my cave.” Said Merlia and she turned and walked into the cave. Twilight followed, and felt suddenly warmer. It was so much better than out in the snow.
The cave was large with a low roof, and it was nice and wide and circular. In the corner was a large skin of a deer.
“Hey, Merlia, I thought you said deer were your friends?” said Twilight, looking at the bed. Merlia followed her gaze.
“Oh, yes. That was from my friend’s fawn that passed away. She allowed me to take her fawn, but I refused, and just took something to remember.” She replied.
“Can you, speak to the deer?” asked Copaci, lying down.
“Oh, no. But they seem to understand me, and I just walk around and play with them. They don’t mind.” She replied. “But if some other wolf threatens them, I herd them to a safe place. They know to run when I bark at them, it means danger.” Twilight began to be fascinated by this pup.
“What about the hares?” asked Ginger.
“Well, I’m not as close to them as I am the deer, but they won’t run from me as they do with other wolves.” Merlia said, lying down too.
“Where exactly do you go with them?” said Copaci curiously.
“Well, not in the valley, just over the mountain outside Beauran.” She replied. “I can show you if you like!”
“Oh, yes please!” exclaimed Skye excitedly.
“Let’s go. You can come and meet my deer.” And with that, Merlia stood and led them out of the cave.

[✖ＨＥＳＴＩＡ]

Yay!

[Kodabomb]