A/N A Wolf's Rain fanfic... If there are any mistakes, please let me know. this chapter is just a teaser. I'll post the rest if it shows promise.
All characters are copywrited by their appropriate creators.
Except for Wynn the white she-wolf.
Camouflaged against the frigid tundra and blizzard that encircled her, a lone she-wolf trudge through the snow and ice, her pearly, alabaster fur swishing against every unforgiving gale. Her eyes rolled listlessly in her skull, promising to freeze shut with every crystalline tear that poured forth. Eyes once so blue and captivating, now lolled upwards, a glassy haze shrouding the radiant youth they once expressed. Her body ached, noticeably swaying with every step she took. Oozing past her partially opened muzzle, blood seeped downwards, painting her throat and chest as droplets dyed the snow beneath her.
She whimpered mournfully, as her body finally succumb to the pain and exhaustion she tried so desperately to hold back. Sagging awkwardly against her hind legs, she tried to steady herself atop her badly mangled fore legs, shaking uncontrollably as she panted. Wrenching her head back she let a single, doleful howl erupt hoarsely from her throat before she collapsed completely; the front of her body thumping heavily against the ground beneath her. Forcing her eyes open, she continued to scan the frosty horizon, her vision blurring with each passing moment.
"I have failed... To lead them to Paradise." She thought mournfully to herself, as she allowed her head to fall with another heavy thump. "Somewhere along the journey, I have failed." Her eyes shut momentarily as delicate white snowflakes began blanketing her numb body.
The soft flapping of wings filled the silent, night air as a raven descended from the sky. Looking upon the fallen; seemingly lifeless form of the she-wolf. The raven; over-come with grief, pecked delicately at her beaten and battered paws. Opening her eyes slightly, the wolf barely acknowledged the raven as a black mist began to envelope the edges of her vision.
The raven looked down upon the she-wolf, standing as if it were frozen in the snow. It let out a single squawk, as the she-wolf's eyes rolled in her head, closing for the last time. Moments had passed by as snow continued blanketing the wolf's lifeless form, her fur still dancing with the wind as if the body it were attached to still breathed life. The raven continued it's mournful vigilance, as if silently hoping the wolf would stir. Yet before it's beady, black eyes the wolf's corpse began to take on a different form. A body once flesh and blood, now began to disintegrate, gray ash dancing away in wistful circles. In seconds, the raven was left alone as the last bit of ash was carried away, leaving behind a wolf-shaped spot in the snow the she-wolf once occupied.
Looking up, the raven only just noticed a tall figure, draped in black lift something that glinted in the distance, before the sound of a gun shot tore through it's slight body, splattering the snow with crimson blood.
Awaking with a start, a young she-wolf's eyes widened with fear, her labored breathes coming in short, sporadic intervals. Calming her quick breathing, she crawled out from underneath the truck she had fallen asleep under, her blue eyes scrutinizing the area in front of her; she couldn't be to careful when she wasn't in disguise.
Timidly making her way to the mouth of the alleyway, she was sent whimpering back underneath the truck when a gun shot ripped through the surprisingly quiet morning, again forcing her heart to quicken with every shuddering breath she took.
Wrinkling her nose; snorting at the way she was behaving, she crawled out from underneath the truck again; stiffening her back and trotting through the alleyway with a temporary nerve; her gusto disappearing quickly with ever step. Another gun shot sounded from the distance, sending the white wolf bolting forward, tail between her legs, skidding into a collection of rubbish filled trash cans that toppled over loudly, the tin rattling as bags of trash tumbled out.
Cowering on an empty stoop, the wolf crouched trembling from magnificently white head to tail. This time she waited a few moments before she was calm enough to disguise herself fully, in case the racket of the trash cans might have alerted any nearby humans. She waited sitting atop the stoop; black hair draping her face she leaned forward making sure she was the only creature in the alleyway. Getting to her feet; the slight tapping of boot heels echoing throughout the alleyway, she stopped to look at the damage she had left behind and giggled to herself, imagining what a sight she must have given any on lookers... And she called herself a wolf.
Making her way to the mouth of the deserted alley she had called home since she arrived in Neon City, the girl tucked her hands into her coat pockets looking up into the sky, noticing the faint orange light that peaked over the building tops. Upon exiting an alley located closely behind two large neon signed buildings, the girl wrinkled her nose as the smell of car exhaust and human stink ravaged her nostrils. The street was full of people shuffling against the cold. The girl sighed heavily as she stepped into the crowd, timidly allowing them to shepherd her forward as well. She hated this city and all the people it sheltered.
She was on her way to Freeze City; for reasons still unknown to her, when the urge to travel had subsided. She still couldn't exactly understand what it was that made her stay in this city; better yet how she ended up there in the first place. But something inside her had told her to stay were she was, as if she'd meet someone she had once made a promise to.
Shrugging off this annoying thought she continued to follow the throng of pedestrians, sometimes bumping into them and receiving a sever back lash of insults. Stepping to the side of a particularly aggressive crowd, the girl sighed again as the sound from the passing traffic and boisterous mob over powered her already sensitive hearing. She was messaging her temples, nursing the headache she was developing when the shouts of a struggle further down the sidewalk caught her attention. Out of pure curiosity the girl headed in the direction of the fight, continuing to rub the side of her head allowing strands of dark hair to fall carelessly over her face. But as she got closer to the scuffle, a horde of curious on-lookers blocked the shouts from her. Standing on her tip toes she barely saw over the heads of the crowd, cursing herself quietly for being so short. Elbowing her way through slightly, she finally came upon the sight of a police officer and a young boy. As she continued to examine the boy however, her heart skipped a beat as she suddenly felt excitement coarse through her body. Not understanding how this strange boy could make her feel anything remotely happy, she watched as the officer continued to verbally abuse the boy who apparently tried to steal some food from a nearby street vender. The boy looked utterly shocked, paralyzed with fear as his large brown eyes swelled with terrified tears. As the crowd began to dissipate the girl knew she had to do something. Without thinking she leaped forward, knocking the police officer into a nearby crowd of on-lookers. She only had time to turn to the boy and silently urge him with her eyes to run, before screams of terror erupted from the crowd surrounding her. Getting to his feet the officer's eyes surveyed the wolf before him, pulling his gun out from it's holster; the crowds' shrieks climbing in volume.
Without any time to look back and make sure the boy had successfully escaped the she-wolf ran forward into on-coming traffic; the crowd parting with agonizingly loud shrieks. The sounds of the officer's gun shot rung out amidst the flurry of noises and pinged off the exterior of a stationed vehicle.
Running as fast as her four paws would carry her, she just had time to turn the corner of an alley before the officer shot his gun again, this time barely skimming her retreating backside. Quickly searching the alleyway, she jumped into an open dumpster and waited with baited breath as the sound of the cop's shouts and footfalls echoed throughout the alley, only he wasn't alone. The wolf could hear the cop, but another very grizzled sounding man now accompanied him.
"Are you sure you saw it come in here!" The husky voice shouted.
"I'm sure I saw it. Thing just tackled me, right there on the street."
"Well, be lucky that's all it did. Come on, Blue!" The man shouted as the growls of a dog echoed eerily against the buildings.
"Come on, Blue! We're gonna loose it."
As the sounds of the officer's and man's retreating footsteps disappeared the she-wolf heaved a sigh of relief, silently thanking the over powering smell of garbage that disguised her hiding place. Slowly climbing out of the dumpster, the girl made sure she was alone before bolting out of the alley and into the busy street from before. Lowering her head and making sure no one had noticed her, she walked as fast as she could; without looking to suspicious, far away from the crowd of people still discussing the events that had just taken place. Cars in the street had stopped, their occupants shouting furiously at one another. She watched with little interest and was greatly relieved to see that the boy had vanished from the mob of fearful pedestrians.
After walking awhile the girl found a nearby back-alley to rest in. Leaning against the wall; hidden behind a large building, the girl let her body slide downwards and landed silently on her backside. She only had a few moments peace before she was on her feet again, ears straining as she sensed the presence of another creature.
Near the entrance of the alleyway, the boy from before was leaning nonchalantly against the wall, his foot resting against the building behind him and his arms folded behind his head. The girl stood there for a second without saying a word; her brain momentarily loosing the ability to string them together. It had been a long time since she had the desire; or courage, to speak to another creature, and she doubted her earlier transformation would garner any praise or admiration from the boy. She was ready for him to shout and scream and tensing slightly readying herself to bolt back into the street. But the boy never shouted, or even showed any signs of fear. Instead he cracked one eye open, his crooked smile slowly disappearing from his face with every passing moment of tense silence.
"Uuh... Hi." He said happily, stepping away from the wall and waving at the girl. "Um, I wanted to thank you for before." He said somewhat timidly. "For saving me... I guess I picked the wrong place to steal from." He said as he chuckled bashfully, crossing his arms behind his head again.
The girl just stared at him transfixed... Who was he and why did she save him and why was he treating her as if she hadn't just assault a police officer? He certainly carried a weird, yet familiar smell about him. "Uuh," She stammered, just as embarrassed as he was. "Your welcome?"
He looked at her with a bewildered expression, his perky demeanor slowly changing to that of confusion. Quickly he smiled again, laughing whole-heatedly. "Well, at least I'm not the only one in this city."
"Only one, what?" The girl questioned.
"Wolf." The boy responded, no longer laughing but looking at the girl with slight curiosity filling his large brown eyes. "Aren't you one, too? I mean, I saw you change back there... Must have scared the pants off that crowd" He said laughing loudly. "Isn't that why you rescued me?" He questioned, no longer laughing.
Suddenly the girl's expression changed. Taking a few steps forward, she observed the boy who no longer looked like a boy. A young wolf with a reddish pelt now stared back at her, tail wagging slightly. The girl's mouth widened with an awkward smile, leaping forward she was overcome with joy that she too wasn't alone in this city; all the while her tail wagging in return.
After playfully circling one another the girl took a step back, grinning and laughing for the first time in awhile. "I'm sorry," She said as she began to blush, rubbing the back of her head. "I don't normally greet people like that. It's just that... I don't know why exactly I stepped in back there. I honestly didn't know you were a wolf as well." Sighing she lowered her head, looking sadly at the ground. "I guess it's been a long time since I met another wolf. Ever since I lost my pack, I've been kind of wandering around without a purpose."
The boy jumped up, scaring the girl out of her momentary depression. "Hey, what a coincidence I lost my pack too! We just came from Freeze City before some old guy and his dog split us up. I was looking for them before that man started shouting at me."
The girl chuckled to herself. "Were you looking for them, in that snack wagon or some-" But she suddenly cut herself off, remembering how the boy had mentioned Freeze City. "Wait! Did you just say you came from Freeze City?"
"Huh?" The boy said, shocked by the girl's sudden change in topic. "Oh yah, that's how I met the others, my pack I mean. I think it was because of the smell of Lunar Flowers or something... Well anyways, the smell isn't there anymore, so Kiba, Hige, Tsume and I left, searching for it... Or at least we were before we got separated." The boy said dully, his smile fading slightly from his face.
The girl was about to ask him about these 'Lunar FLowers' before the boy interrupted her.
"Anyways, I'm Toboe. I guess I should've told you that at the begin." He said as he grinned his goofy, wide smile. "What about you?" He continued, steering her away from her original question.
"Uh, Wynn... My names Wynn." She said, slightly taken aback by the boy's sudden introduction
Toboe took a step forward and put his hand in front of him. "Wynn, huh? Well nice to meet you Wynn, you really saved my skin back there." He mocked as if they had met each other for the first time. Wynn took his hand timidly, her dark eyebrows creasing as she awkwardly shook it.
Stepping back, Toboe put his hands behind his head again, shyly avoiding Wynn's eyes. "I was wandering, if you... uh... wouldn't mind helping me find them. The others I mean... You seem to know this city better then I do." He questioned her, his cheeks reddening with embarrassment.
Wynn looked at his puppy dog eyes, unable to turn him down even if she didn't want to help him. Nodding her head and smiling generously, the boy's features lightened again as he punched the air and grabbed her hand, dragging her out of the alleyway.
"Yah!" He exclaimed. "Hey, I almost forgot to ask you, you wanna come to Paradise with the others and me when we meet up?" Toboe asked her, his eyes brightening.
"Paradise?" Was all Wynn could say before she was yanked onwards by Toboe.
A/N There it is, a fanfic I've been wanting to get off my chest for years. Like I said, this is just a teaser chapter. I will continue to write this, however am debating on posting the rest. If the story has enough reviews and hits, I'll be posting chapter 2 within the next week or so. Message me if you notice any mistakes, no matter how trite they may seem. I'd like to be aware of my flaws.
Good bye for now lovelys; ;).