Burning Sun

Spoiler2023-01-02
Burning Sun is naturally kind-hearted, confident and strong-willed. Despite her many positive traits however, she still is considered an outcast and often spends most of her time isolated from the rest of the pack; This wouldn't be the case if it weren't for her choice of mate, Moon Dancer, his ill-will and negative reputation bled onto her and most wolves only see Burning Sun as a sort of extension to him.
Despite this, she still swears she's happy, she loves Moon dancer and would go through hell for him.

Part of her clinginess and devotion might come from her past. She was born in a tight-knit and prospering pack, they had a large territory with an abundance of prey and a crystal-clear river that ran through the heart of their land, by all means this was paradise to her.
On a particularly harsh winter though, all of this came crashing down when a couple of wolves got infected with canine distemper, what was a couple quickly turned into the majority and the disease ravaged the pack. At the time, this disease was new to them, they didn't know what was the cause nor did they know how to treat the infected; Burning Sun tried to help the infected the most, she'd try nearly every mixture of herbs and any form of cure she knew, but it never worked.
She saw her friends and family slowly wither away, and no matter how hard she tried to cling onto them it was hopeless.

Once the last of the ill had taken their last breath, she was alone.
Those who had not been infected by the disease had abandoned the pack to save their own skin, she loathed them. Her mind was clouded by grief, she refused to leave the campsite.
All of her waking hours were spent chasing scavengers away from her loved ones, she still clung onto the hope that everything would end up being alright, that she'd wake up and be back with bickering with her siblings or fondly telling her friends about her day while snacking on fresh-kill.
Life doesn't discriminate, tragedies are unpredictable just as everything is.

After weeks the smell of rotten flesh had become unbearable and Burning Sun was almost nothing but skin and bones, even the scavengers had stopped coming; So when she saw what looked like to be another wolf approaching she was confused, and concluded that this must be a hallucination from her nutrient-deprived mind.
The hallucination however only walked closer, eventually it was standing next to her. It was real, they were real.
The wolf introduced herself as Owl Fever, her voice was kind and stained with concern and sympathy, Burning Sun was exhausted to the point where she couldn't properly make out what the stranger was saying, but after a while she managed to figure out her intent.
Owl Fever wanted to help, she took Burning Sun away from the campsite and led her to another pack nearby, Burning Sun didn't want to leave her home behind but she felt hopeless for the first time in weeks, the presence of another wolf had awoken her to her morbid reality.

Once she reached this new unfamiliar pack, she was immediately taken to the herbalist, her condition was severe after being starved and isolated for so long. She spent the first few weeks there recovering, and was eventually offered a place in the pack.
After recovery though, she didn't socialize much, it wasn't for the lack of opportunity; The wolves here were just as welcoming and loveable as the ones from her home, rather she felt scared to form attachments and friendships, the idea of going through everything that happened again was terrifying to her.
However when one of her new packmembers fell ill, she reacted the complete opposite of what she was expecting to, she had swore to abandon this place if she ever saw a glimpse of illness again, but instead she felt the need to protect and help this wolf as much as she could. Just like she had done with her previous pack.

The sickly wolf was Moon Dancer, his illness by all means was mild and easily curable yet Burning Sun was showering him with attention and empathy, the herbalist didn't mind as this disease wasn't contagious; if anything they were glad that this experience was boosting the morale of their patient.
By the time Moon Dancer recovered, a bond had already formed between him and Burning Sun, this was great news for both wolves as both of them struggled with socializing. They were glued by the hip, it became rare to see them separated and Burning Sun's confidence and overall happiness was growing day by day.
They became a pair, and even had pups together. However, Moon Dancer's reputation had isolated their family, he was loathed by the pack and she never quite figured out why, she didn't want to ask. Her life felt perfect, even if she was an outcast, even if her mate was perceived as dangerous, even if her son couldn't play with the other pups.

She didn't care, anything was better than spending weeks alone surrounded by rotten reminders of what life was like.
Right?
She couldn't keep avoiding the conflicts that Moon Dancer had however, one day when a argument between Hawk's Flame and him turned violent, she had to step in. These two had always despised each other, Moon Dancer blames him for nearly all misfortunes he has, and Hawk's Flame has accused him of trying to sabotage a hunt more than once.
This time, however, was different; Hawk's Flame was accusing him of trying to kill his newborn daughter, Owl's Dusk.
According to Hawk's Flame, Moon dancer had taken the newborn from her nest and had left her in the forest. Moon Dancer's scent was all over her, and there was no way that a newborn could've crawled all the way to the forest.

Burning Sun couldn't believe what she was hearing, surely this was a misunderstanding, right? Her son was also a newborn, one of the pupsitters must have placed in him with Hawk's Flame daughter thinking they were from the same litter, surely Moon Dancer would've come into the nest to put their son in a different place, that's why his scent is on the den and pup. As for the newborn being in the forest.. That has to be a lie, how would she get there? Hawk's Flame would say anything to get Moon Dancer kicked from the pack.. That has to be it.

Burning Sun's weak reasoning and excuses only aggravated the tension between the two families, but the fighting had stopped for now. After this situation her families' den was placed further away from the main camp, Moon Dancer was too important of a packmember to be kicked out completely and she clung onto that thought for comfort.
Everything will be fine in the end, she just has to stay close to the ones she loves.
No matter what happens, no matter the reason.

Spoilerher story isn't done I just need Moon dancer to die
yeah I love angst, how did you know?