Author's Note: Hello again everyone! I started this story way back 2007 and I haven't updated it since 2009. But it's 2015 now and I have finally blown the cobwebs off of it. Thank you to everyone who has continued to review and alert this neglected story for the past number of years!

Would I be alright showing myself to you?

I'm hungry…"

"We know; we can hear your stomach every five steps, Hige!"

Toboe ducked as the older boy made to catch him in a playful headlock. Hige laughed as he missed the pup and scratched under his nose; anything to break up the monotonous rhythm of walking and walking. Kiba and Tsume merely exchanged glances over their heads as a new scent blew in on the breeze. It was the smell of people; lots of people - thousands maybe. Hige immediately raised his head and flashed an excited grin.

"That many humans means it's a city … and a city means food!"

Sharing a happy look with Toboe, the two ran forward and followed the scent of humans. But Tsume reached out just in time and caught Hige by his collar, bringing his advance to an unexpected halt.

"Hey, what gives?!"

The youth looked around as he rubbed his neck where the collar had restricted him, not impressed by the actions of the eldest of their pack. They had been walking for weeks now with only sparse meals in between to stave off hunger in the wintry weather; a city would be a welcome relief from their quest to find Cheza. The imposing white-haired man stepped forward, sniffing the air as he spoke in a serious voice.

"Don't run ahead like that; we can't afford to be jumped."

"Oh, so we'll just crawl along and get there in the next decade, in the time being I'll just die of starvation!"

Toboe had to stifle a giggle as Hige rubbed his neck under his collar again and complained loudly, but he clamped his mouth shut as Tsume glared at him. Kiba merely shook his head, delved his hands deeper into the pockets of his jacket and continued on; senses alert and ready to pick up on any unwanted followers they may have attracted along the way.

The city was smaller than initially thought with no protective dome. It was a satellite hinterland of Orkham's larger Freeze City to the north, most likely used to gather taxes and reap supplies from. But it was filled with bustling bodies as the four entered the outskirts; stalls and shop-fronts stretched the entirety of the main street. Amongst the chitter-chatter, snippets of conversations were heard floating across the breeze; hushed whispers from civilians of this truly run-down city. There were voices of mothers calling to their children to come indoors out of the darkening evening, acquaintances greeting each other across the wide street as the screeching of delighted children in the throes of play echoed around and set smiles upon the faces of the older people who watched the next innocent generation enjoy themselves.

It was almost picturesque as the four boys slowly meandered down the market-front, relaxing little by little with each step. There were police officers filtering calmly through the civilians but not a sign of soldiers or Nobles either; finally a safe place to rest for a little while. But then a loud crash and shout shattered the jovial mood and city-life revealed itself in an instant.

"Thieves, stop!"

Tsume spun towards the source of the voice and got ready to run on sheer instinct; memories of his old life springing to the fore.

"Watch out runt!"

Stepping back against a wall, Hige pulled Toboe with him and tried to look innocent; Kiba and Tsume followed his lead and shrunk into the background. But the police ran straight past the disguised wolves and made for the shopkeeper who had called out in anger. More crashes and a couple of shouts as a group of people dodged the police and sprinted back up the main street, arms laden with the fruits of their work.

The individual at the back of the group glanced over her shoulder and smirked as she saw the men losing ground, knowing her friends to be well ahead of her at this stage. All they needed to do was make it to the next street, split up and rendezvous after they evaded the officers. All of this drama for a few armfuls of bread and meat; better to be feeding the city's own poor than the greedy Nobles!

But then she saw the four individuals standing against the wall by the corner of an alley and slowed to a stop; there was something about them, something not quite human and she knew exactly what it was as her dark blue eyes locked onto the collar around one boy's neck. But then a force knocked her to the ground as one of her pursuers caught up with her.

"Owww, shit!"

Not wasting another second as she skidded along the pavement, the girl sprang back to her feet and hurriedly gathered the majority of her loot. Kicking away the hand that circled her ankle, she started running again and made for the small alleyway by one of those strange guys. She was determined to get back to their base tonight and didn't like the prospect of being arrested and brought before Lord Orkham for stealing his supplies.

Instinct told him what to do as the police man started gaining ground on the crook again. Sticking a foot out to trip the leading officer, Kiba shouldered into Hige and sent him stumbling into the path of the following police with a cry of protest. The thief-girl was gone when he looked for her but a small smile surfaced; she hadn't been a girl at all. Her disguise was good – the best he had seen so far – but something, some feeling had given her true nature away.

"I'm still hungry."

Too tired to reply to Hige's complaint, Toboe merely lagged further behind and felt his own stomach rumble. It took a few yards but the older three slowed to a halt and waited for him to catch up. No one protested the delay or the slowing down of their pack's pace – Toboe was the youngest and smaller than them; his energy levels would suffer first.

Offering the pup a reassuring smile, Kiba noticed Tsume scoping the street and done the same; they really needed to find food somewhere. Dusk had fallen and moonrise was fast on the agenda. Moonlight would help their spirits somewhat, but it could do very little for empty stomachs. It was his fault they were relegated to these small back streets and alleyways; after his deed of tripping the police officer earlier, they had had to make a swift exit from the main street for reasons to avoid becoming embroiled in the store robbery. It hadn't been his best move, but something had told him to help the girl escape and instinct was the only thing he could truly trust.

Letting Tsume take the lead as they turned down another small street, Kiba took the rear behind Toboe, hoping to keep their tag-along pack in one piece. Besides, Tsume knew more about city-life than any of them and the once-gang-leader could surely eke out some form of food in this dingy place.

A blur of movement along a rooftop made Tsume stop in his tracks, Hige waltzing into his back.

"Hey, what the hell?"

"Shut it, Porky! We're being watched ..."

Rubbing his nose, Hige quietened immediately as he caught a scent on the air – it was vaguely familiar but disappeared with the next breeze. Another shadow darted across a rooftop and the four formed a circle, backs against each other to cover for an ambush. That old guy couldn't have found them this fast! Toboe heard the footsteps first and turned towards the faint sound just in time to see someone drop down from one of the high buildings. Calling out in fright, the youngster started back and stumbled before falling onto his backside. Looking up to see Tsume and Kiba standing in front of him, Toboe took the hand offered by Hige.

"Hey, it's a girl!"

The only problem was Hige's attention span; the flirt found a new interest and let Toboe fall back to the ground. Pushing forward between the other two in their pack, he grinned and thrust his hands deep into his pockets. She was pretty as hell with deep red hair and dark eyes; finally a girl!

"Hiya! What's a cutie like you doin' round here?"

Even though he was still on-guard, Tsume couldn't stop himself from groaning; Hige's attempts at flirting were dire in the least; his tail wagged for any girl that walked by. Taking stock of this person who had been trailing them, Kiba realised it was the same girl from earlier that evening; the thief. Tsume wasn't too far behind on recognising her either as he kept a suspicious glare pinned on her.

In no rush to get to the point or explain herself, the stranger took a couple of seconds to study the small group, her eyes travelling up and down their frames; they looked a bit run-down in her opinion. A loud growl of hunger from the one with the yellow hoody and bad pick-up line made her smile and raise a questioning eyebrow.

"Hungry?"

"Yeah we a-"

"Why were you following us?"

Annoyed at Tsume cutting across him, Hige sighed and shook his head; this was why they had no friends. The lovely girl was offering them food and all Tsume could do was question her – food was food! Not caring for his anger-stare, Hige trudged past Tsume and held out a hand, this time pulling Toboe fully to his feet.

It was the tallest of the four, the stern-looking one with short white hair that spoke to her. His eyes looked anything but grateful as she returned his glare, looking up the foot or so that separated their heights. Not missing a beat, she jabbed a finger towards the quiet one – the guy with the scruffy jeans and dark jacket.

"I saw what he did earlier; tripping the police guy. I thought you guys might want something to eat as repayment ... unless you're too proud to accept charity?"

"No, it's food; we accept!"

Tsume rolled his eyes skywards as Hige dove forward and answered on behalf of everyone, gaining a grin from Toboe as he did so. Kiba remained quite indifferent to the entire thing, even though it was his actions warranting this girl to find and repay them.

But that was the thing; she wasn't just a girl.

Letting Hige flounder and follow on the girl's heels, Tsume waited for Toboe to follow Porky before slowly walking after them. Eying the red-haired thief, he felt on-edge; thieves didn't just help out strangers on a whim – they looked after their own and that was that. Aware that Kiba was matching him step-for-step, he spoke lowly.

"There's something about her …"

"She knows what we are, I'm sure of it. I think she's one of us."

Kiba spoke lowly, knowing how stupid it sounded; they should be able to tell another wolf at first sight. But some had been hiding themselves longer amongst humans and were better at evading detection. But Tsume didn't scoff or laugh; instead he nodded his head slowly. He wasn't sure what it was, but there was something about this new person that wasn't completely normal.

Looking over his shoulder to be sure Kiba and Tsume were following behind, Toboe grinned and laughed as Hige nearly tripped over himself to keep up with the girl leading them to food. This was the happiest he had felt since Cheza was taken from them a few weeks ago. It felt nice to have a girl around again; things were boring when it was just guys the entire time.

"So uh, what's your name?"

A few moments of silence passed as she fidgeted with her necklace; a golden chain with a simple tarnished locket. Eying the youngest boy, she thought about not answering, but he was harmless and only wanted to make conversation.

"My name is Karasuke."

A/n- Thanks a million for reading guys and I hope you liked it!