Life In Jasper Park
Chapter One: Puppy Love
It was an ordinary day in Jasper Park. A quartet of wolf pups raced across the terrain. There was Jasper and Justine, the offspring of Humphrey and Kate, then there was Wayne and Rosie, Garth and Lilly's children. They were currently engaged in a friendly game of tag.
"Gotcha!" Wayne declared, patting Jasper on the side.
"Yeah, you got me." Jasper admitted. "Gotta admit, cuz, you rule at this game."
"Well, I wouldn't say I 'rule', exactly..." The humble pup smiled.
"Why not?" Rosie asked. "You do."
"I think so too." Justine pitched in.
"Me too!" Came the voice of a fifth pup.
It was Pepper, the daughter of Humphrey's old friend Salty, who had just come into the field. Roughly two weeks younger then the other pups, she had taken quite a fancy to Wayne.
"Hi, Wayney." She cooed, her eyelids fluttering faster then a hummingbird's wings.
"Hi, Pepper." Wayne cringed.
"Watchya doin'?" Pepper asked coyly.
"Just playing tag." Wayne replied.
"Mind if I play?" Pepper asked, nuzzling against Wayne's side.
"Uhh... You can if everyone else says it's okay." Wayne turned to the others, a look of pleading on his face.
The other three pups looked at each other, sly looks on their faces.
"It's fine with me." Rosie grinned.
"Me too." Jasper snickered.
"The more, the merrier!" Justine smiled.
"Thanks, guys." Wayne grimaced.
"Great!" Pepper cheered. She gave Wayne a light tap on the head. "Catch me if you can, cutie!"
"Like I have a choice." Wayne muttered under his breath, as he reluctantly gave chase.
Pepper was fast, but Wayne was faster. As he closed in on his quarry, she suddenly stopped, and he collided with her. They ended up flat on the ground, Wayne sprawled over Pepper.
"Ooh, Wayne!" Pepper giggled. "Watch those paws, mister!"
"I... I didn't..." Wayne stammered, climbing to his paws.
"Nice one, cuz!" Jasper chuckled.
A howl rang out over the field.
"Aw, that's my mom." Pepper sighed. "I gotta go."
"It was fun hanging out with you." Justine smiled.
"You should drop by again sometime." Rosie agreed.
"I might just do that." Pepper grinned, eyeing Wayne all the while. She nuzzled against his side again. "See ya round, cutie."
Once Pepper left, Wayne breathed a sigh of relief.
"Let me get this straight." Jasper mused. "Having a cute girl fawning all over ya actually bothers you?!"
"It's not that smple." Wayne protested.
"Oh, so you don't think she's cute?" Rosie smirked.
"I didn't say that." Wayne blushed."I just think we're a little young for this sort of thing, don't you?"
"Pepper sure doesn't." Justine smirkingly pointed out.
"I know." Wayne sighed.
The next day, the pups were walking through the forest, when they spotted Pepper walking nearby.
"Oh, no." Wayne winced. "Quick, hide!"
"Hey, Pep!" Rosie called loudly.
"Over there!" Jasper barked.
"Come and join us!" Justine pitched in.
"Traitors." Wayne seethed.
"Hi, guys." Pepper smiled as she padded over. "Hi, Wayney."
"Hi." Wayne said reluctantly.
"Wayne was just saying how much he loved playing with you yesterday." Rosie declared.
"He did?!" Pepper squealed.
"I did?" Wayne glared at Rosie.
"Yep." Jasper sniggered. "It was his idea to find you, and ask you to hang out with us again."
"How sweet." Pepper cooed. "So, what are we playing today?"
"How about a game of pinecone ball?" Justine asked.
"Ooh, my favorite!" Pepper cheered.
Quickly locating a downed pinecone, the pups went out into the field and started playing their game. They were all quite good at it, scoring "goals" by flinging the pinecone through the gap between a pair of rocks.
Pepper got the pinecone, and was met by Wayne.
"You want this?" Pepper smirked. Lying flat on the ground, she held the pinecone between her front paws, and placed her chin atop it. "Come and get it."
Wayne gulped. The only way he could grab the pinecone was by placing his snout dangerously close to hers. As he took the pinecone in his teeth, their noses touched, and Pepper took the opportunity to rub hers against his. As Wayne scrambled to his paws, Pepper stood up straight, looking quite pleased with herself.
As the game went on, Jasper got a little too excited, and accidentally kicked the pinecone over the field and into some bushes.
"Whoops." He said bluntly.
"I'll get it!" Pepper called, dashing after the missing pinecone.
"Your girlfriend's pretty cool, isn't she?" Jasper smirked at Wayne.
"She's not my girlfriend." Wayne insisted.
"Please." Justine grinned. "We saw that little nose rub back there."
"That wasn't..." Wayne spluttered.
"So, when's the wedding?" Rosie giggled.
"What?!" Wayne gasped.
"Hey, chill out, cuz." Jasper snickered. "Your girlfriend'll be back soon, and she'll probably be wanting more nose rubs!"
"That is IT!" Wayne roared, the normally even-minded pup exploding with anger. "Pepper is not my girlfriend! She's an annoying, clingy, dumb girl! In fact, I'd be perfectly happy if I never saw her again!"
The other pups stared at Wayne, dumbstruck by his sudden outburst. Rosie started inclining her head to the left. Turning to that position, Wayne saw Pepper. Dropping the pinecone from her mouth, her eyes started filling with tears.
"Pepper, I..." Wayne started.
Pepper fled before he could say more, sobbing greatly.
"Pepper, wait!" Wayne called, giving chase.
Pepper fled into the forest, twisted through the trees. Wayne was unable to follow her, having not learned to track yet. The young wolf hung his head guiltily.
That night, Wayne continued to wallow in guilty thoughts.
"Something wrong, champ?" Garth asked. "You've barely touched your caribou."
"I did a bad thing today, dad." Wayne admitted.
"What happened, honey?" Lilly joined in.
"Well, Pepper's been acting all mushy around me lately, and everybody was teasing me about it." Wayne declared.
"Oh, really?" Garth asked, casting a glare in Rosie's direction. "Everybody?"
Rosie chuckled nervously.
"So I got mad, and starting yelling out all this horrible stuff about Pepper." Wayne continued. "Turns out she was right behind me, and heard everything."
"Oh, dear." Lilly gasped.
"She ran off right after that." Wayne sighed. "I didn't mean to hurt her feelings. What should I do?"
"It's simple, son." Garth smiled. "You need to find that poor girl and apologise."
"I don't think that'll really help much." Wayne countered. "Pepper probably won't even listen."
"Apologising is always the best thing to do, honey." Lilly smiled. "Now, it's time for bed."
The family of four curled up to sleep. The next morning, Wayne set out to find Pepper, determined to make things right with her. He finally found her walking down a path in the forest.
"Hey, Pepper!" Wayne called.
"Go away." Pepper sniffed.
"Pepper, I'm really about what I said yesterday." Wayne apologised. "I never would have said all that if I knew you were standing there."
"But you meant it, though, didn't you?" Pepper choked back a sob. "And you're right. I am dumb and annoying."
"No." Wayne protested. "You're fun, and nice, and, well, I think you're kinda pretty..."
"You do?!" Pepper gasped, smiling.
"Yeah, I do." Wayne smiled back. "I just think we're a little too young for the whole 'boyfriend, girlfriend' thing. Do you think we could just be friends for now?"
"Friends?" Pepper asked, her face falling slightly. "Well, I guess it's better then nothing... Okay, deal." She held out a paw. "Put 'er there, friend."
Smiling, Wayne bumped paws with Pepper, just as the others came on the scene.
"Oh, there you are!" Rosie called.
"Figured we'd find you here." Jasper smirked. "With your girlfriend."
Wayne made to denounce Jasper's remark, but Pepper beat him to it.
"I'm not his girlfriend." Pepper declared. "For now, at least." She winked at Wayne.
"So, now that we're all friends again, what say we play another game of pinecone ball?" Justine asked. "Our last game was interrupted, in case you forgot."
"I'm game." Jasper smiled.
"Me, too." Rosie grinned.
"And me." Wayne agreed. "Pepper?"
"Oh, I'm in, alright." Pepper chuckled. "Last time, I went easy on you because you're so cute. Don't expect the same mercy this time!"
"Bring it." Wayne smirked.
And so, the pups played their game, and all was once again well in Jasper Park.
To Be Continued...
(Alpha and Omega and all associated characters are the property of Lionsgate Entertainment.)