Chase

Chase and his litter-brother, Smoke, were born as lone wolves. Their mother, Quartz, their half-sister, Chestnut, and her mother, Panda, made up their small pack. Their father, Cream, had left them after an argument between his mates, Quartz and Panda. Quartz and Panda shared duties over the three pups, who became quite close.

As lone wolves, they had no pack that they belonged to, traveling freely across the land and steering clear of pack land. Quartz and Panda warned their young pups to never get close to pack wolves, for those wolves were fierce and cruel to intruders.

At two moons old, Chase, Smoke, and Chestnut were adventuring beyond their small camp under the watchful eyes of their mothers, when they came across a small pup all by his lonesome. When no mother returned for him, Panda and Quartz made the decision to adopt him into the pack. The pup, named Streak, explained that he was, according to his mother, old enough to be on his own now, and Streak, after a few miserable days of solitude, had gotten lost nearby, too hungry and tired to care for himself. Streak was taken in by Panda and Quartz, raised alongside Chestnut, Smoke, and Chase.

Chase quickly became good friends with Streak, usually dragging him into trouble along with Chestnut and Smoke. The four pups were extremely close, and Streak was considered their family, despite holding no relations to them.

One night, Chase woke up to an awful howling from outside the camp. He quickly woke up his siblings and they went to investigate, discovering that Panda and Quartz were gone. When the curious pups went farther out, they discovered a small pack of lone wolves had attacked Quartz and Panda, who had led them away from the camp so as not to draw attention to their pups. But now the two she-wolves were surrounded by the lone wolves, back-to-back as the enemies circled them, snarling.

Chase couldn't hold back a small gasp, drawing attention to their hiding place. The lone wolves turned their attention to the pups, eyes lighting up with delight. Quartz leapt on one of the wolves while Panda tackled the other, both she-wolves shouting for the pups to go. Chase took the lead as he and his siblings bolted.

They ran and ran, unaware of where they were going, the lone wolves that Quartz and Panda hadn't dealt with hot on their heels. Chase was vaguely aware of crossing a scent line, but that thought was the least of his worries. He kept running, his energy flagging. His siblings were panting, fur damp with sweat.

Chase spotted a sheltered hollow up ahead. Veering aside, he dove through the bushes and into the hollow, his siblings close behind. The lone wolves erupted through the bushes behind them. Chase skidded to a halt, spinning desperately, but the hollow had steep, rocky walls that prevented pups their age from escaping. The lone wolves closed in on them.

And then a snarl came from behind the lone wolves. A dark brown male wolf stood silhouetted at the edge of the hollow, staring down the lone wolves. He leapt down into the hollow between the wolves and the pups and let out a short, sharp bark of warning.

Almost instantly, the hollow erupted into activity. What Chase had mistaken for tangled brambles at the edges were really dens, and from those dens came wolves. A golden male emerged from one with a silver-blue-white male. From another came a dark gray-blue male, a fiery male, and a blue-white female. From yet another was a cream she-wolf and a blue-white she-wolf. A pale gray she-wolf ducked from a den beneath an arching stone overhang. Three young wolves, not quite adults padded from another den: a pitch-black male, a black-and-white she-wolf, and a ginger-and-black she-wolf with a white mask. A dark gray pup peered curiously from a den alongside a mottled white-and-black pup, a mottled white-and-brown pup, and a dark brown pup.

At the end of the hollow was a huge oak tree, leafless branches stretching to the sky. It's tangled roots formed a dark opening curving back into the earth, shielded by slanting rocks and hanging vines. From this den, two curious pup faces peered out, while a tall, intimidating white-and-black she-wolf stalked out.

The she-wolf glowered at the lone wolves, lips peeling back to reveal deadly-sharp fangs. She took an intimidating stance, paws splayed wide and firmly planted, shoulders low and head lowered, ears flat. The lone wolves cowered under the show of strength from the pack, and at a sharp bark from the she-wolf, they turned and fled.

The she-wolf's hard stance dropped almost instantly. She turned toward Chase, who instinctively shifted in front of his siblings. The she-wolf padded up to them and laid down on her stomach, lowering her head to meet his eyes.

"I am Pepper," she said, her voice a gentle rumble. "I am Alpha of Pack Trueno. It seems you young pups have stumbled into our camp." She cocked her head. "Where are you from, young ones?"

"We don't know," Chestnut spoke up bravely. "Those wolves attacked our mothers and chased us. We were focused running. We have no idea where we went."

Pepper's ears flattened sympathetically. "Ah. I am sorry to say, young ones, that if your mothers tangled with those wolves, there is no hope for them."

"Yes," the brown male who'd summoned the pack agreed. He snapped his teeth. "Those awful loners have been loitering at the edge of our territory for days now. Golden can barely go scouting the pines without them springing on him. We've tried to chase them off, and they certainly want no tussle with us, but they refuse to leave."

Pepper's eyes were gentle as she looked at Chase. "Would you pups like to stay in our pack? It's not safe for you to be lone wolves without someone to care for you, especially with those loners hanging around. They'll return for you the moment they believe you're free of our protection." She looked over Chase's head to meet the eyes of the golden male. "Golden. You're going scouting up north tomorrow. Keep an eye out for any she-wolves up there, would you? Ask if they're missing pups. There's a small chance they may have been able to escape if the loners were more focused on the pups than on them."

The golden male nodded.

Chase glanced at Chestnut, Smoke, and Streak, silently asking their opinion. Their mothers had warned them to steer clear of packs, but these wolves didn't fit the description Quartz and Panda had summoned in Chase's mind. Pepper and her Packmates seemed kind. They'd protected Chase and his siblings when they could have just as easily let the lone wolves kill them. They were offering protection and shelter and food, and to find their mothers, when they owed the pups nothing.

Chestnut nodded, tail wagging hesitantly. Smoke gave a hesitant dip of the head and Streak glanced up at Pepper nervously before nodding. Chase looked up to meet Pepper's kind, warm green eyes. He nodded, and Pepper let her tongue loll.

"Lovely." She looked up at the blue-white she-wolf beside the cream one. "Thorn and Breeze, could you...?"

The blue-white she-wolf dipped her head. "Of course. Breeze and I will take good care of them." She paced forward and swept her tail around Chase and his siblings. "Come, little ones. You'll sleep with our other pups, Leia, Sierra, Zahra, and Akita."

Chase let the she-wolf lead him willingly toward the other pups, still watching curiously. The wolves began to retreat to their own dens. The brown male who'd alerted them leaped back up out of the hollow. He must have been on guard duty. Pepper watched Chase for a minute before she stood and turned toward the oak, slipping back into the den and nudging her pups along ahead of her.

Chase slipped into the den with Chestnut, Smoke, and Streak. The she-wolf pups already in the dens watched them with bright eyes and wagging tails.

"Hi!" the mottled black-and-white one greeted them. "I'm Leia. These are my litter-sisters, Sierra and Zahra." She angled her ears at the other mottled pup and then the brown one. "And this is Akita." She nodded at the gray she-wolf.

Breeze slid into the den behind them, pacing past them and flopping down in a nest at the back of the den. "Here, pups. Time to go back to bed."

Akita flashed Chase and the others and a smile before she bounded across to Breeze, hopping into the nest and curling up in the curve of Breeze's stomach. Leia followed with Sierra and Zahra.

Chase looked up at Thorn as the she-wolf rearranged some moss into a larger nest. "Are they Breeze's pups?"

"Hm?" Thorn looked up curiously and then frowned and shook her head. "No. There are few blood relations in this pack. Every wolf here except for those four pups was in a different pack at one point or another, and something happened to drive them away. Pepper took them in."

Chase padded toward her as she laid down, curling herself around so there was space for the pups in the nest. Chase settled himself against the she-wolf's side, his siblings beside him. "Where did everyone come from?"

"Pepper was in several packs before," Thorn began, her voice low and soft. "Her father kicked her out of her birth pack and she was saved by a lone wolf, raised as such for a time. She joined a pack out on the plains after that, becoming great friends with Shadow, their current Alpha. Pepper and Shadow stayed with Mountain Pack for a time, looking for Shadow's father. Then Pepper lost the pack chasing foxes away, and she became the herbalist for Storm Pack to the north for a time. Those three packs are all our allies now, thanks to Pepper's former relations to them. Fire joined Pepper as her Beta after she first founded this pack. He became her first hunter and they fell in love. Golden joined and became her scout. Then Breeze came and offered her skills as a pupsitter. Pepper and Fire had their pups, Red and Silver, who you saw in Pepper's den. They'll be joining this den soon enough, one they become apprentices."

Thorn yawned. "For a time, that was their pack. Then Golden found Night, an apprentice who'd lost his pack during an attack. Golden brought Night back here. And then Howl, Snow, and Cedar came from packs far away, bringing with them Stalker and Shade, who'd been exiled for a misunderstanding. Stalker and Shade are litter-sisters, and Howl, Snow, and Cedar are all from different packs. But they traveled together to find Pepper. Cedar and Howl became Fire's huntmates and Snow became a scout. Wynter came from a pack near where Howl, Cedar, and Snow are from. She became a chaser for Fire's hunting party. Wolf is our newest adult, aside from me, of course. Wolf came from Wynter's pack. Wynter killed her father and Wolf exposed her. The two get along well enough now, though. Wolf and Howl are former lovers, and they've rekindled their love here. Wolf is our herbalist, and so she shouldn't be able to take a mate or have pups, but Pepper leads her pack differently from others. Here, Wolf can do whatever she wants with her life."

The she-wolf flicked her ears. "I'm their newest adult and pupsitter." She cleared her throat, sounding embarrassed. "I don't have the best backstory. I was quite ambitious in my old pack, and shattered a good friendship because of that. But this pack is a fresh start for me, just like it is for Wolf and Wynter and their relationship. Akita, Leia, Sierra, and Zahra all came from longpaw camps, though they never knew each other before this pack." Thorn yawned again. "And now you're here. It's late, pups. Go to sleep. Golden will search for your mother in the morning, and even if she is not found, do not despair. Pack Trueno will take good care of you, I promise."

Litter-brother: Smoke
Adopted brother: Streak