E A R L Y • L I F E
The first memory Anja could recall were the cries and snarls of her parents. She was still just a pup when two-legs attacked her family, not old enough to stand a chance against the attackers and yet not young enough to be oblivious to what was going on. Her parents, Yvessr and Nastasia, defended Anja and her siblings ferociously until they could no more. Anja watched as they fell to the ground and took their last breaths.
After the deaths of the wolves, the men turned to ponder what to do with Anja and her siblings. The four wolf pups sat in a tight circle, hackles raised and their dazzling white puppy fangs shining in the moonlight. Anja stood in front of her siblings - prepared to die for her family just as her parents had done. She crept forward slowly out of her birth den and was met with a loud bang.
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When Anja came to she was surrounded by a gray chain link fence. Where am I? she thought to herself. She began to stand when she noticed the heavy chain around her neck and fell back to the ground. She began to howl, desperate for her siblings - or anyone - to answer her. After a few heartbeats she heard a low grumble from the other side of the fence.
"Hush up pup." the voice said. Anja's ears twitched towards the sound and her eyes searched for the speaker.
"Where are you? Where am I?" Anja whined as she stood again, managing to stay up this time.
"You have a lot to learn, pup." the wolf emerged from it's too small doghouse and Anja stared in astonishment. She had never met a wolf that looked like this one. The wolf was tall and scrawny with the same chain Anja had around her neck. His fur was unkempt and she found herself wondering if he ever groomed himself.
Shortgrass Prairie
Dandelion Seeds [Windswept]