Rain woke in the den next to Btorai. He sighed, looking towards the entrance. Rain, Btorai, Xena, and Misty couldn't stay in the forest, since the huge redwood fell to the ground from the blizzard.
Rain stood and stretched with a yawn, then went over to the medicine supply storage and began to take out the leaves, stacking them and putting them onto a large leaf from a plant that grew nearby. He laid all the berries neatly next to it and put the poultices onto pieces of bark. Then he took a very thin piece of a sapling and wrapped the leaf at the top.
Xena, Rain's best friend, stirred and blinked at him with deep blue eyes. Rain glanced at her before finishing packing up the medicine. Then he dropped it by the entrance and emerged from the small den.
The snow was a small sprinkle now, almost innocently dropping to the ground. The blizzard the day before still made him shiver as he headed through the thick forest to hunt.
When Rain was trotting back, two rabbits, a crow, and a squirrel swinging from his jaws, Misty and Btorai were already awake.
Btorai trotted up to Rain and picked out the squirrel, while Xena and Misty choose the rabbits. Rain ate the crow quickly, just as everyone else. It was obvious that everyone was suffering from the winter famine.
Rain walked over to the entrance and picked up the leaf of medicine supplies. Xena walked up to him, a look of irritation obvious on her face. "Who ruffled your pelt?" Rain questioned. He was careful about what he said to her- despite the fact that they were closer than Rain was to his mother, Misty, Xena still had a temper.
She snorted. "I hate running away, fleeing instead of fighting." She kicked a rock that flew over the thorn bushes and bounced off the cliff. Rain narrowed his eyes. "We can't exactly fight the weather, Xena. We have no choice, unless you'd rather be crushed by another tree?" Xena grunted and turned, stalking through the forest on the opposite side.
With a sigh, Rain picked up the medicine supplies and followed Xena. Automatically, Misty and Btorai followed him. They followed the forest on the familiar trail until they came to a large field. It was covered in a blanket of snow. The field stretched out flatly until a rocky hill, the Little Butte, interrupted it.
Rain peered closely at a black shape in the white background. Xena was busy prancing around in the deep snow, long forgetting her temper.
Btorai rolled her eyes and trudged through the snow. Misty looked at Rain with an exhausted expression. At first Rain was baffled by the thought that his mother was tired already, but then he remembered that she was at least three years older than he was. Rain nodded and followed Btorai's white pelt through the snow.
Once they reached Xena, the black wolf stopped and the light from her eyes faded as she remembered what they had set out to do. She shook her fur free of the white specks, now turning to liquid, and followed Rain as they set out for the Little Butte.
They reached the hill at sunhigh. Rain set down the medicine and collected the few mouthfuls of moss he could find, then nodded towards Misty. The old wolf sighed and plopped herself onto the nest.
Xena and Btorai bounded up to him at the same time, but at the sight of Btorai Xena slowly turned and walked away. Rain looked at her, feeling guilty. Btorai immediately grabbed his attention as she spoke, "Do you want to go hunting?" She asked, looking up at him. He hesitated before nodding, casting one last glance at Xena before bounding after Btorai in the snow at the bottom of the Little Butte.
Before they had even reached the river, Btorai tackled Rain. He instinctively fought back, but made sure not to hurt her. They rolled down the hill, one on top of the other, before they bounced into a ditch in the snow and were completely covered in a white blanket. Rain looked down at the white wolf he had pinned. "I win." He said smugly.
Btorai smirked and launched him off of her with her back legs. He landed on the thick ice of the river, sliding across to the other bank. Dazed, he stood and shook his head as Btorai jumped at him. Rain slid out of the way and jumped after her skillfully.
Rain suddenly stiffened and sniffed the air. There was something going on...something bad. He looked around, panic rising in his throat. Btorai was bewildered. "Rain? What's wrong?"
"Don't you smell that?" He said, still looking around. He saw something dark skid onto the ice far down the river, and he could barely hear the wail it let out. "It's a pup!" Rain called as he skidded down the ice, maneuvering easily from years of practice as a pup.
Btorai followed him, skidding clumsily on the ice as she made her way to the pup. She gave a resigned sigh and muttered, "What will I do with him?", then made her way gradually and slowly over the ice.
Rain was easily the first one there. Just as he landed on the ice before the pup, the pup fell through. Rain dived through the ice into the freezing water and forced his eyes open. The pup was sinking quickly, his limbs flailing. Rain dove after him, grabbing his scruff and hauling him to the surface. Rain dropped the freezing pup on the edge of the ice hill before slowly getting out. Btorai was warming the pup by licking his fur backwards.
Rain collapsed on the ice, shivering. Btorai picked up the pup, now completely warmed, and lied beside Rain. Rain, exhausted from his swim, fell into a deep sleep.
When he woke up, Rain was on the bank of the river, alone. He stood frantically, looking around in the dying light. He caught Btorai's scent trail and followed it to where his mother, Xena, and the pup were.
Misty stood. "Oh thank Lupus." She embraced him and licked his shoulder. Xena sniffed at him. "Any reason you have this pup?" She scowled. Rain broke away from his mother and glared at Xena.
"We found him on the river. If it wasn't for me the pup would be dead!" He threw his face at Xena. She stood and glared at him before turning and running into the forest.
He growled angrily before turning to Misty. "Where's Btorai?" He asked. Misty was about to speak when Btorai bounded out of the woods, three fat rabbits and four mice in her jaws. She dropped them and bounded up to Rain, licking his cheek. "You're okay!" She said, looking at Rain happily. "I was about to go and get you."
Rain nodded, feeling better now that Btorai was here. "How's the pup?" he asked her. She rolled her eyes, most likely thinking of Xena. "Healthy and sleeping, but Xena wouldn't shut up about the dangers of having an unknown pup around." She scoffed. "If you ask me, it's no wonder she doesn't have a mate yet." Rain growled. "Xena's still my friend, Btorai." He walked over to the pup.
Btorai sighed and went to the pile of fresh kill, pawing at it uselessly. Misty watched everything, blinking, then walking to a spot beside a rock and circled around, before lying down and falling to sleep.
Rain curled around the sleeping pup. He was pitch black, but there was a pure white spot on his forehead and chest. Rain sniffed him. He smelled like the river too, but there was an underlying scent to him that he could barely make out.
Xena walked out of the woods then and stopped at the dip that led to the river. Btorai, only a few feet away, narrowed her eyes at the dark wolf, slight jealousy darkening her deep blue gaze. She hated the fact that Rain stilled enjoyed her presence, and even more so when she found out that he was once her mate...
Rain suddenly realized what the familiar scent was on the pup. He stood carefully so as not to disturb the pup and quickly went to Btorai. "I know where the pup is from."
Xena overheard this and walked over. "Where? Black Rose Pack?" she asked, ignoring Btorai's scowl. "No! Stop with the Black Rose Pack." Rain retorted. "He's from Sapphire Falls Pack."
Btorai cut in. "Who's that?" "It was a pack I lived in with my mother when I was first born." Rain glanced at Misty, who was still asleep. "There was an earthquake that drove the pack apart completely. Those who weren't dead turned to the life of a loner. Me and my mother escaped with my father, Slam, and we lived as loners. I didn't think I'd ever hear of them again."
Xena flicked her ears. "You think they might be back?" Btorai rolled her eyes. "Nooo, that's why the pup smells like the pack." She narrowed her eyes. Xena growled. "I didn't ask you, mutt!"
With that, Btorai lunged at Xena, rolling her down the small slope that led to the place they were staying at. Btorai was on top, but Xena flung her off and leaped at her, snarling. Btorai rolled onto her and kicked her into the river, diving in after her.
Rain sprinted towards them and dove smoothly into the river, grabbing Btorai by the scruff and kicking Xena away from them as he brought her to the bank.
Btorai, now laying on the bank, growled angrily at Rain. "What was that for?!" Xena crawled out of the water and shook out her fur, spraying the water all over Btorai. Rain snapped at Xena. "STOP! Both of you! You're being absolutely ridiculous!" Misty was awake now and staring at the trio from the rise near the den. Rain continued. "Whatever reason you two hate each other, FIX IT!"
Xena sighed and walked away, muttering. This made Rain frustrated. "Why does she always act like this?!" he went to the den, leaving Btorai by the bank, alone.
Rain walked past his mother and into the den, sniffing the pup again. Then he went outside and scented the air. He found the familiar scent and headed in the direction of it.
He traveled a long time, losing the scent every now and then, before he finally reached a small path that led into the forest. He followed it, ducking under tree branches and tall plants.
The path came to a halt in front of a wall made up of leaves. Rain sniffed it. The scent was definitely Sapphire Falls. He broke through the leaves and saw a larger path. He followed it, hearing an increasingly loud sound, before he fell through leaves with a yelp. Rain fell through the air, right into a river of water. The river was coming from a waterfall a few yards away.
Rain swam to a river bank, then followed a path on the stone into a cave hidden behind the falls. Inside, there was a pack of wolves, all doing their own thing, in the enormous cave. A couple looked towards him, jumping up with a growl. This alerted the rest of the pack and they were soon staring at him, some growling, others silent.
Rain realized he may need to fight his way out if things went the wrong way.