Warning: Mild almost rape scene, language, violence. You have been warned.

Disclaimer: I do not own Wolf's Rain, only my OC Bri


Chapter 3- New wolves, friend or foe?

She still hadn't caught up to them. "How fast had they walked?" She huffed to herself, annoyed at Tsume's childish behaviour

"He never does change does he?" She smirked to herself and finally managed to pick up a scent. It was Toboe's. She decided to follow it, hoping that she would find Tsume with the pup. She trotted along in her wolf form, her nose sniffing the air. She suddenly found herself looking at the remains of a ruined city with thick wires sticking out from under the ground and from buildings.

She whined, feeling uneasy. It was too quiet for her liking. She jumped in fright as she heard a howl. Turning back into a human, she placed her hand over her thumping heart, running towards the howl. She skidded onto a ledge and found Toboe, standing on another ledge howling. She jumped over to him and placed her arms around his furry body.

"Toboe what happened?" She asked him softly, placing her head on top of his. He morphed back into a human.

"Tsume ran off and I lost him. I don't know where he is"

Bri growled low in her throat, "That dumbass! What's he thinking, leaving you alone.." She trailed off, seeing Toboe's indignant look. She nuzzled his head in apology.

"Well come on, Tsume's acting like a loner so we might as well go back" She stood up and started walking when she heard something whistle through the air. She turned around, shocked at seeing Tsume and blood on the concrete.

"C'mon! Move your asses!" He yelled at them and looked behind him. Bri followed his gaze and saw the robot coming out from its hiding spot. Her mouth fell open in surprise but she snapped it shut and followed the other two.

Tsume was limping heavily, a deep gash on his left thigh. Bri made a move to help him walk but he shooed her away. They moved towards a ledge, the robot in hot pursuit of them. Toboe and Tsume jumped down and Bri was about jump when she felt a stabbing pain in her right shoulder. She cried out in pain and stumbled off the ledge, failing in a heap and heard something crack.

"Great I have the best luck today!" She snarled in annoyance, dragging herself towards Tsume and Toboe.

Toboe helped her get behind the large metal pile that served as their shield, just in time to avoid getting hit by more bullets. Her shoulder throbbed like a bitch and her leg dragged behind her uselessly.

"We have to keep moving otherwise that robot thing is gonna find us again!" She screamed at them over the sounds of bullets being fired.

Suddenly, she was being lifted up by Tsume who carried her bridal style. She protested, saying that Tsume was too injured to carry her but he silenced her off with a glare. She tried to wriggle free from his grasp but his arms were two steel bars, holding her to his chest.

They started running out of the town, in the direction they came from. They ran and ran and finally made it out of the town. Unfortunately the robot kept following them. They made it to a bridge of sorts and started crossing it but the robot shot a missile at the other end, causing the bridge to shatter and plunging the three wolves into darkness.

Bri managed to wriggle out of Tsume's grasp and landed on the ground, biting her tongue to keep her from screaming as she landed on her broken leg. She fell to the ground and tried standing up. She looked around and saw Tsume out cold and Toboe starting to lick Tsume's leg wound. I tried to drag myself over there but I felt weak and I couldn't move my arms.

Tsume came around half an hour later and when he saw Toboe licking his wound he waved his hand into Toboe. "Stop that! Don't ever touch me" He growled and the pup looked slightly hurt at his words.

"Tsume don't act like a dick" Bri groaned out from the left of Toboe. Her head was starting to spin and her body felt like it was on fire.

Tsume glared at her and asked what the robot was doing. Toboe replied that it must've not be after them.

"Woah, you're covered in scars. That one on your chest…man it's really cool!" He exclaimed, a grin on his face. Tsume turned onto his side and the pup looked dejected. Toboe turned towards Bri and said, "I wonder what happened to Kiba and Hige. They must be really worried about us by now"

Bri nodded at the pup and leaned into him, feeling her mind grow hazy. They heard something clanking and sat up, gasping. Tsume made a move to get up but groaned, his gash bleeding heavily.

"Don't be stupid Tsume! You'll get yourself killed. I'll go out and act as a decoy, distracting it so you and Bri can get out"

"Don't do it!" Tsume said and the pup turned back with a small smile. "Don't worry you can trust me" and started running out.

Tsume stood up picked up Bri gently. She tried protesting; saying that she was too heavy for him but Tsume silence her with a glare. The glare didn't stop her at all.

"Tsume! I'm fine! Let me walk!" She protested, struggling against him.

"No Bri you're not fine! You can't even stand up on your own!" He yelled at her, jade eyes flashing. He held her closer to him and limped out, ignoring Bri's fussing over him and her protests. The robot was shooting at Toboe, who was running in the opposite direction. Tsume started limping faster and the robot stopped firing, looking at Tsume and Bri.

"Shit" Tsume said, trying to limp faster. The robot started shooting bullets at them but they all missed and Tsume made it to a space between to rocks. The robot shot a missile in their direction and they were pushed forward by the force of the explosion.

Bri rolled out of Tsume's arms and sat up, trying to stand up and walk over to Tsume to help him get up. Her shoulder was bleeding more heavily, staining her top and jacket. As she made it to Tsume, the robot was standing before them, looking at them with his artificial eyes.

Bri protectively stood in front of Tsume and growled, crouching low and getting into a fighting stance. Tsume yelled at her to get back but she stood defiant, glaring at the robot. She was about to leap when a wolf's howl was heard and a flash of white leapt onto the robot.

Tsume lifted Bri up and chucked her to Hige on the ledge and he caught her and started leaping from ledge to ledge. They all made it to the top and started running but Bri looked back. Kiba wasn't with them yet.

"What about Kiba?" She asked worriedly to Hige.

He looked down at her and said, "Don't worry about him, he'll be fine. First we need to fix you and Tsume up."

They stopped after a while and Hige gently placed Bri on the dirt. "Toboe I need you to hold me down while Hige gets the bullet out of my shoulder" Toboe nodded and placed his hands on her shoulder firmly.

"This is gonna hurt" Hige warned her and Bri laughed before it turned into a hiss of pain. Hige pulled the bullet out of her wound and Bri ripped off some material from the bottom of her shirt. She wrapped it around her wound.

She ripped off another strip of cloth and gave it to Hige, who nodded and gave it to Tsume, who wrapped it around his wound. Bri started examining her leg and cried out with pain.

"Definitely broken, it's gonna take a while to heal. Thank god it's a full moon" She murmured to herself, letting the moonlight bathe her leg in its dying rays. By the time dawn came and Kiba returned her leg was half-healed.

Tsume's wound still made him limp but Toboe helped him walked. Tsume looked at the pup in surprise and Bri couldn't help but giggle. "Why did you save me? I didn't ask for your help. And don't say its because we're friends" He asked Kiba as he walked past him. "It was instinct" Kiba replied simply and helped Bri stand. She thanked him and started walking after the others with Hige.

"What are strange pack we are" She mumbled to Hige and he laughed and nodded. They morphed into their wolf forms and walked onto their next destination.

After two days of limping/running, Bri's leg was finally healed. She whooped in joy and sprinted ahead, glad she could finally use her leg. As they sat and rested Toboe was telling the rest of the group about his dream of Paradise. When he mentioned lunar flowers, Hige gave him a skeptical look.

"Have you even seen a Lunar flower before?"

Toboe looked downwards, " Well no not really...but I dreamt that Granny was there and she took care of us and cooked for us, making all sorts of delicious foods" he explained with a dreamy tone.

"What are you talking about?" Hige asked confused.

"I guess he'll be happy being somebody's pet, even in Paradise" Tsume replied.

Bri slapped Tsume's chest, the sound echoing around them. "Tsume really? Let the pup dream what he wants. He wants familiarity, like the rest of us. Don't go spoiling it for him"

"How else am I supposed to know what Paradise looks like? Kiba hasn't told us anything. Can you at least tell me what colour lunar flowers are?" Toboe whined and Kiba smiled at him before tilting his head upwards.

"We should keep moving" He said and stood up. The rest followed him, Kiba in the front with Tsume next to him, Hige and Bri behind them and Toboe at the very back.

They walked up the hill, their feet sinking in the snow and the wind hitting their faces. Toboe lagged behind and suddenly the others stopped, looking down. Toboe sped up, "What is it?"

"It's the ocean" Kiba answered him and they started walking down. They started walking across the water on the train tracks and a gull crying from above them. Kiba stopped "It's faint, but it's definitely lunar flowers alright"

Toboe gasped in delight. "This is it guys, Paradise is right up ahead" And he started running forwards, followed by Kiba and Hige. Bri looked at Tsume and laughed at his frown, running.

"C'mon Big Bad Wolf! We'll get left behind" She called to him and he growled in annoyance.

"I'll chuck you over the edge, shorty" He started running and caught up to her. They ran side by side along the train tracks and stopped when they joined the rest of the pack. In front of them was a huge building that belonged to a noble and the city surrounded it.

They entered the city and to Bri, it looked no better than Freeze City. This place was a dump and looked deserted.

"You smelled flowers huh? Well all I smell is the stench of old rancid oil" Hige stated. Tsume started walking in front followed by the others.

They walked through the streets, noticing that people stared at them from behind curtains and from alleyways.

They kept walking and suddenly stopped, noticing a group of people sitting around a fire. "No way" Bri whispered. These people were wolves.

"It's a woman" Hige gasped and Bri looked at him affronted. "What am I, chopped meat?" Hige chuckled nervously.

A man in his late 40's stood up, a huge scar running down his cheek. "Where are you boys and girl from?"

"A city to the north" Kiba replied.

"Why are you here?" Asked the man. Obviously the alpha for this group.

"Just passing through" Tsume said stiffly. "You don't expect us to do business here, in a dump like this?"

"Tsume!" Bri hissed at him.

One of the men looked Bri up and down, a lustful gleam in his eyes. Bri noticing this bared her teeth in retaliation.

"Where are you going?" The alpha asked, eyes only on Kiba.

Hige stuttered out a reply but Toboe cut him off. "To Paradise"

The alpha's eyes widened and started laughing quietly before growing louder, his pack joining in. Except for the woman who sat there silently.

"Kiba why are they laughing?" Toboe asked, confused.

"Because they obviously don't know what Paradise is" Kiba replied and the alpha stopped laughing.

"We know all about it"

Hige and Toboe gasped and Bri let her eyes widen a bit. Kiba narrowed his eyes at the alpha. Bri furrowed her brow at the woman. She seemed to be listening to the conversation but she didn't show any reaction.

Bri focused back on the conversation. "Now why don't you all just get lost?" Asked the leader. "You do have somewhere you belong, don't you?"

They walked off, Bri standing next to Tsume, her eyes glaring at the man that still stared at her with lustful eyes. Toboe ushered Kiba away, gently pulling him by the arm.

They walked along the sea and Bri felt grateful that she (hopefully) wouldn't have to see that guy again. Something about him and his eyes gave her the creeps.

Tsume was complaining about the pack giving him the brush off and snapped at Hige when he said something. Toboe stood next to Bri and said, "This city doesn't feel right. There are so many wolves but it's still cold"

"Well maybe they're right, the sooner we get out of this city the better" Tsume said over his shoulder.

"And where do you think we should go exactly? There has to be something here, look how many wolves are in this city. I think we should stay and found out"

"As long as we stay away from that pack. One of them was eyeing me like I was a piece of meat the bastard" Bri growled out and they all looked at her shocked.

"What? You didn't notice that? Seriously?" She said and they all looked away, embarrassed. Except for Tsume. He looked at her with a strange look in his eyes, one that made her belly flutter strangely.

"What?" He shook his head and kept walking. She looked after him confused and Hige wiggled his eyebrows at her. "What?" She asked him but he just shook his head.

"I don't wanna spoil the fun"

"What fun? Will somebody tell me what's going on?" But everybody ignored her and she huffed. She crossed her arms over her chest, feeling cold suddenly as a breeze whipped at her exposed legs.

She was lagging behind the others and she tried to walk faster but she felt like she was being watched. She twisted her neck to look over her shoulder but saw nothing. She shrugged and turned back, not being able to see the group anymore.

"Guys? Where did you go?" She ran forward, trying to see if they were further then she thought but she couldn't see or smell any sign of them. She zipped up her jacket and kept walking, still feeling like she was being watched.

She felt hands close over her arm and yank her into an alleyway. She screamed in surprise and felt somebody holding her to the alley wall, a hand covering her mouth. She tried biting at the hand and when she successfully did it, her captor yelled in pain and let her go. She dodged away from his hands and ran out of the alleyway. She turned to see that her captor was the man that had been eyeing her before.

"Get lost! Leave me the hell alone!" She yelled at him, trying to run but he grabbed her by the hair and yanked her back to him. She yelped in pain and noticing that he was trying to drag her back to the alleyway, she started biting, twisting and kicking. She managed to somehow kick his groin, hard and he fell to the ground, releasing her for the second time.

"Get back here you dirty little bitch!" He yelled at her, running after her. She morphed into a wolf to run faster but he had already morphed and knocked her to the ground, standing over her.

He bit at her ears and when she tried to wriggle away he closed his jaws around her neck and bit, making her whine in pain. He nudged her onto her back and stood over her and forced her to raise her rump in the air.

'Crap, crap, crap. I'm gonna get raped.' Thought Bri over and over again, trying to wriggle away from the male. She lowered her body closer to the ground but he bit her ears again lifted her head by the scruff her neck and threw her head towards the ground, making contact with the concrete.

She howled loudly, frantically hoping that somebody would hear and save her. She hated being small and weak. She tried to buck him off but that only caused him to grow more aroused.

Bri snarled and bucked harder, wriggling harder to get away.

'TSUME! TOBOE! KIBA! HIGE! HELLLLLP!" She howled, desperately hoping they would come. The male, annoyed at her howling got off her and biting her scruff, chucked her at the wall. She struggled to get up and failed a couple of times. The wolf was advancing and she was hurt, disorientated and woozy.

She managed to stand up for a while but quickly fell down, turning into her human form. Two blurs jumped at the male wolf, biting and snapping their jaws at him. Bri tried to focus on who it was but all she could see was a white wolf and a grey wolf. The lone male snapped back and a honey brown wolf joined in the fight. The grey wolf trotted over to Bri and nudged her side.

"….Tsume…" She murmured, skimming her hand through his fur before letting it fall and giving him a weak smile. Tsume reverted back to his human form and picked her up. "Did the bastard do anything to you?" He asked her worriedly, jade eyes scanning her body for any sign of rape.

"If you count throwing me against the wall, pulling my hair, making me hit my head on the concrete and make me feel small and weak, then yes he did do things to me. But nothing else" He still looked worried.

"Bastard…I wish I could kill him" Tsume rumbled and Bri touched his chest softly. "If you do, can you let me have some fun? I wanna kick him in the groin again" She laughed softly then mewled in pain. Her ribs hurt badly.

Her eyes were starting to flutter, her eyelids drooping. Tsume noticed this and growled at her, "Don't fall asleep on me shorty, I'm not your bed"

"I'll make you my bed then" She retorted tiredly and her eyes closed, her breathing becoming slow and deep. Tsume sighed annoyed and brought the sleeping girl closer to his chest.

A memory floated at the back of his head, words from his past. He tried to block it but it started creeping back and he was forced to watch the memory.

A younger Tsume was walking along with his father. This was one of many lessons that Tsume had from his father, teaching him the ways of the pack and how an alpha should act. But Tsume was reluctant about this lesson. Today's lesson was on female alphas.

They stopped in the clearing that Tsume and Bri came to play and Tsume could still smell Bri's scent in the air. He smiled to himself and didn't notice his father smiling knowingly.

They sat down and his father started teaching him about the birds and the bees. Tsume blushed scarlet and his father laughed at his expense. His father hurried through that explanation and started talking about female alphas.

"Female alphas are the female counterparts to the alpha. When you become alpha, you are expected to have a mate as soon as possible and have pups. You know that your mother is the female alpha of this pack right? We'll when you grow up and replace me as alpha, you will choose your mate and mark her as your own"

"Mark her?" Tsume asked, wondering what his father meant.

"Marking means that when you are certain she is the one and you want to continue your relationship with her, you bite her on her neck. Not hard enough to kill, just hard enough to scar. That way, wolves will know that she is yours and they won't touch her"

Tsume nodded in understanding.

"I hope that doesn't happen for a while but knowing how fast you and Bri are growing, it might has well happen tomorrow" His father chuckled and Tsume stared at his father at the mention of Bri.

"What does Bri have to do with this?"

"You play around with her and you bicker with her like any of the other wolves but you care deeply for her. You like her don't you?"

Tsume nodded hesitantly before answering, "Well of course I like her, she's my best friend!"

"Tsume I mean do you like like Bri. As in loving her like" Tsume ducked his head, blushing.

"I-I-I don't k-know. Maybe?" He stuttered

His father chuckled at him and ruffled his short hair before standing up. "We should be getting back now, it's getting late"

Tsume nodded in agreement, his face still quite red. They walked through the village and when they got home, Tsume went up to his room and lay on the bed, thinking about his feelings. For the next couple of weeks he hadn't been able to look at Bri without his face flaming up.

The memory faded and Tsume chuckled at his younger self. He sure was an innocent idiot back then. He found his eyes gazing down at Bri as he walked and felt his mouth go a little bit dry as he watched her. 'She's beautiful' He thought to himself before shaking his head.

No he wasn't allowed to think that about his best friend. He wasn't supposed to act like a lovesick puppy now. That was for Toboe and Hige. Not him. He walked faster to the place they were staying for the night and placed Bri down gently on the blanket. As he covered her with thin blanket, he couldn't help but notice how much she resembled a doll. She looked like she was made of porcelain, her skin appearing white in the moonlight. He shook his head again and went over to the window, yelling at himself in his head.

That stupid memory was making things awkward now. He shouldn't have remembered it. Tsume felt like ripping something to shreds. And what better than the Moss guy that had tried to touch his girl? He stopped with his hand on the doorknob, not knowing how he got there.

"Crap I got it bad" He growled to himself and at the sound of his voice, Bri whimpered in her sleep. He looked at her and she looked frightened as hell.

"Get away from me!" She mumbled over and over again. Tsume realised that she was dreaming about that bastard raping her.

Great, now he had to comfort her. He walked over to her and whispered words of comfort in her ear. She stopped talking and relaxed, her breathing no longer hitched and agitated. He sighed and sat next to her sleeping form, leaning against the wall.

He hated liking his best friend. He hated being in a pack. He wanted to be alone. But he couldn't since Bri was relying on him so much and had already given so much up. She had left her family, her pack, everything for him.

He stayed awake, watching Bri in case she started panicking again. He looked to the other side to see the pup, fast asleep in his wolf form. Tsume hadn't noticed the kid as he walked in.

Kiba and Hige walked in with a few minor scratches. They had beaten up the bastard pretty well and then handed him over to that pack leader. Apparently the pack leader looked surprised at the behaviour of one of his wolves and the woman next to him and told Hige to pass on her apologies to Bri.

Kiba and Hige soon fell asleep but Tsume still couldn't sleep. He had a sort of restlessness about him and he kept fidgeting. By the time the sun started rising, he had finally drifted off to sleep.

Bri woke up early in the morning. Weak sunlight filtered through the window and cracked wall. She started stretching, then winced in pain because of her ribs. She got up and searched through the place for a reflective surface. Luckily, it had a bathroom which had a mirror that had some minor cracks in it.

She raised her torn top and looked at the bruises that covered her sides and back. She poked a finger at one rib and hissed in pain. It didn't hurt that much to breathe now so it was most likely only a couple of bruises. Her scalp hurt as well and she had some cuts to her face. She felt the intense need to wash her skin, hundreds and hundreds of times over until she managed to un-feel those fingers touching her. She shuddered and let her top fall back down. When she looked into the mirror she jumped, noticing Tsume standing in the doorway. She whirled around and gave a nervous smile.

He stepped forward and raised her top again, exposing her midriff. She blushed slightly in embarrassment at having Tsume look at her so intently. She turned her head away, hiding her pink cheeks. Tsume lightly grazed his thumb over her ribs, careful not to push too hard at the bruises.

Tsume's fingers started shaking and she looked at him, alarmed to see rage on his face. "I wish we could kill that bastard" Bri grabbed his fingers and smiled at him. "So do I bad wolf, so do I"

When the others woke up, they saw Bri awake and happier, talking excitedly with Tsume. Kiba and Hige shared a look when they saw Tsume's expression. Hige was about to say something teasingly but he locked eyes with Tsume and the older wolf narrowed his eyes at him.

They walked about the city, seeing glimpses of the other pack but nothing extraordinary. At nightfall they walked towards the grave yard.

"This place gives me the willies" Toboe whined and Bri ruffled his hair, "Guys, I keep hearing something weird"

"Dammit would you stop being afraid of everything?" Tsume snapped at him, walking in front.

As they walked closer to the centre, they heard the sound dirt being shifted. Suddenly, a wolf popped up from a hole in the ground, causing Tobe and Hige to yell out and fall backwards. Bri jumped back and laughed at the old wolf's ear hair.

"Hey gramps what are you doing? You scared the crap out of us" Hige complained from the ground.

"Oh I was only digging a hole for myself" the old man replied, smiling at the group.

"A hole for yourself?" Asked Hige.

"Are you saying you're digging a grave?" Kiba asked, pale blue eyes staring at the man.

"When you get to my age, you begin to recognise the signs of when your time is up"

"You might wanna dig a little faster than" Tsume told the old man.

"Excuse me but do you if there are any Lunar Flowers in this city?" Kiba asked.

The old man's eyes widened owlishly before exclaiming, "oh, oh OH! Apparently, it went on forever! Long, long ago, they bloomed all over this island but then one day they were all dug up and now there isn't a single petal left" He finished sadly.

"Can you tell me what colour Lunar flowers are?" Toboe asked the old man.

"What colour they were? Why, the colour of the moon!"

Tsume snorted, "And what about Paradise? Have you been there?"

"Oh every wolf goes in search, I myself tried to look for it once"

"What did you do?" The pup listened to the old man with wide eyes.

The old man didn't answer but got out of his hole and walked upwards, the group following him.

"Look there's the entrance over there" The old man pointed to a pipe, its opening covered in branches of wood and writing on the top, worn away slightly by age.

"Eugh that reeks! It smells Death warmed over!" Hige exclaimed and Bri sniffed hesitatingly before covering her nose as well.

"I was kinda hoping that it would be a nice place" Toboe murmured, staring at the pipe with Kiba.

Kiba started walking towards the pipe but the old man stopped him.

"There have been many young wolves that set out through there but not one reached Paradise" The old man told him softly.

The old man mumbled something else to Kiba, but a voice came from behind them. "Okay old man,I think you should call it a day, don't forget there's work to do tomorrow" They turned around and saw the alpha male.

The old man thanked the pack leader and walked back towards the entrance of the graveyard.

"Wait! When you and your pack searched for Paradise, was this the path you took?" Kiba asked and the alpha turned to look at him.

"I thought I told you that it doesn't exist"

"Zali" The old man stood next to him. Zali looked at him and turned back to Kiba.

"If you kids disrupt the peace of this pack in any way, I'll show you no mercy. Now get out before dawn. Is that clear?"

He put an arm around the old man and they walked back to the entrance.

The group stared at the pipe, wondering if Paradise was actually at the end of that pipe.

When they made it back to their sleeping place, Tsume asked Kiba if he still believed in Paradise. Bri tried telling him to just let it go, but Tsume has having none of it.

"They said that they've been there and it wasn't that nice"

"Well maybe what they found wasn't Paradise" Kiba replied, staring out the window.

"Where the hell does all that confidence come from?" Tsume snorted, "Anyway, you know it's hopeless and there's absolutely no guarantee that we'll ever reach it. We'd be stupid to keep going"

"Don't say that, besides getting angrier just makes you hungrier" Toboe said, concern and worry in his voice.

Tsume lay back and Bri did the same, both lying next to each other. "Tsume don't worry the pup" She whispered to him in a low voice. He stared at her and she felt like he was looking at her soul. He didn't say anything and started talking to Kiba again.

"Let's just hang around here and just die in the gutter, start digging some holes like that old man"

"It's not confidence, I'm not really sure what it is. But it's always there, screaming inside of me. I just have to know, that's why I've kept on running all this time. I can't imagine not believing in it" Kiba replied, voice soft and weary.

Toboe looked awed at his story and Bri could see Tsume look somewhat impressed with Kiba. Bri smiled and looked at Hige when he started sniffing loudly and stare at the doorway.

The woman came in with a warm smile on her face. "You guys must be starving by now"

"Yes! Yes! We are, we are! It's very kind of you to notice" Hige shouted excitedly. Bri giggled at his behaviour.

Kiba walked away and the pup followed him. Hige started munching on the bread and tried convincing Tsume and Bri to eat. Bri came closer and tore some bread off, eating it slowly. It was stale but still good to eat.

"What about you, are you gonna eat?" the woman asked Tsume but he turned his head.

"Aw c'mon, lighten up and dig in already will ya? I mean face it, we don't know when our next meals gonna be" Hige mumbled from between bites.

Bri tore of some more bread, saving some for Kiba and Toboe. Knowing Hige, he would eat the whole thing in 10 seconds flat.

"Weren't you listening back there? Our little trip is over. We don't have a destination" Tsume snapped and Bri sighed exasperated at Tsume's behaviour.

"Well what do you think, Miss uh" Hige asked the woman.

"My name is Cole"

"Cole huh?" Hige said with a smile.

Tsume grunted at Hige's flirting. Bri giggled and Cole turned to look at her, her expression apologetic.

"I'm sorry about the night before"

Bri shook her head. "Its fine, it would have been worse if he actually did anything. But if he comes near me, I'll rip him to shreds"

Cole laughed and agreed. "Maybe you guys should think about staying around for a while"

Hige smiled, "Well that's tempting isn't it?"

Tsume got up with a grunt and walked out the same way Kiba left just as Toboe got back. "Guys Kiba's gone off on his own and now Tsume's left"

"Let him go. This place has more going for it than I thought" Hige replied, looking up at Cole.

Bri stood up and walked over to Toboe and ruffled his hair. "I'll go after Tsume, pup. You stay here and eat. Make sure Hige doesn't flirt too much with Cole, okay?" She laughed and walked off, following Tsume.

"Wait up!" She called after him and he stopped, turning around. She ran up to him and they started walking together.

"Why did you follow me?" He asked her as they walked along the empty streets.

"Because you'll get yourself in some sort of situation and then nobody will know where you are. Plus, I brought you some bread" She told him, pushing the bread pieces into his hand.

He accepted them and chewed at them, looking at the crescent moon.

"Do you reckon we'll stay here for a little bit longer?" I asked him, putting my hands in pockets.

"I don't know" He answered simply, still staring at the moon.

"Why don't you believe in Paradise Tsume? After all the stories we heard when we were younger, why don't you believe in it?"

"Because that's what Paradise is. It's simply a children's tale told to pups. It doesn't exist"

"But it could! We don't know! We should keep looking for it and help Kiba look for that flower girl. Maybe she'll help us find Paradise…" Bri trailed off, biting her lip.

"If we look for it and it doesn't exist we would have done all that for nothing. Don't be so naïve Bri" He told her, finally looking at her.

"I'm not being naïve! At least we would be with our own kind instead of with some stinking humans! If you don't wanna be here then go back to Freeze City. See if I care" She yelled at him, turning her heel and walking briskly to the abandoned house they had slept in.

Tsume yelled after her, telling her not be an idiot but she ignored him and kept walking. He huffed angrily.

"Fine! Maybe I will go back! But if something happens to you when I'm not here then don't blame it on me!" He yelled at her retreating back.

He walked through the streets, amongst the burning rubbish, muttering angrily. How could she think that this journey would be worth it? Even if they didn't find Paradise, they would've wasted months just to walk into their deaths.

He was walking when he heard somebody ran beside him. It was the runt.

"Where are you going? We can't keep doing this coz before you know it; we'll all get split up from each other"

"Fine by me" Tsume growled and the runt stopped.

"It's not by me" He whispered and Tsume looked at the pup over his shoulder.

Tsume kept walking with Toboe in silence, until they reached the town's train station. Tsume sat on the bench while Toboe sat on a platform and howled before coming over to the bench and curling up into a ball.

Tsume stared at the ceiling, thinking about if he should stay or not. Freeze City didn't have much going for it but it was a sort of home to Tsume. But if Bri wasn't with him, what was the point? He decided to stay, purely for the fact that he didn't want to go back to the stinking city, not because he cared deeply for Bri. Or at least, he tried to convince himself that it wasn't because of Bri.

Announcements came on and in the distance, a train blared its horn. Hige and Bri walked up to the others, Hige talking to Tsume and Toboe while Bri looked at the people in the station.

Bri completely ignored Tsume, which was simple since it seemed like he was ignoring her as well. Toboe and Hige looked confused at their silence.

"Must be a lover's spat" He whispered to Toboe and Toboe looked more confused. Hige laughed and nudged the pup. "You'll get it when you're older"

Bri looked over the rails and gasped. The others joined her and stared at the scene below them. There were at least 6 wolves, tied up to a cart like a bunch of dogs. Wolves and humans alike looked at the scene with indifference.

"What are they doing?" Hige asked but nobody answered him.

A human cracked his whip and the wolves started pulling, straining under the weight of the cart. They pulled the cart upwards, towards the entrance of the train station.

"What the hell is going on down there?" Tsume growled at Zali, who had joined them.

Zali turned to look at Tsume, saying nothing.

The dogs stopped halfway from the entrance, a human saying they should rest the dogs. The wolves panted and ripped up the meat the humans threw at them.

Tsume looked livid at the scene. "Start talking mister" He snarled at Zali.

"The train makes a quick stop. It gives us and the humans a chance to eat. It's the only way we can make a living here. Work for them and they feed us"

"Scratching each other's backs" Hige said softly. "Just like you Tsume and Bri, you two used to do the same thing"

"We might have used them but we were never used by them!" Tsume snapped and Bri growled softly at Hige's words.

"You're opinion doesn't change a damn thing" Zali said.

The wolves started moving again and one grey wolf started lagging.

"Gramps is in serious trouble!" Hige explained and Bri gasped, feeling angry at the humans when they cracked their whips at him.

The old wolf collapsed, not getting up when the humans cracked their whips at him more ferociously. The other wolves stopped, staring at the old wolf. Zali didn't show any emotion on his face at the sight of one of his pack members dying.

Zali whipped his head around to the loading area's entrance and the others turned as well. There stood Kiba, his hair bristling in anger. He morphed into a wolf and ran up the ramp. Zali gasped and jumped down, standing in front of Kiba.

Zali morphed into a wolf and they jumped at each other, Zali trying to hold Kiba down. Men ran to help Zali, forgetting about the dead wolf.

The others simply stared at the scene, dumbfounded. They joined the other pack for the burial of the old wolf, Bri standing closer to Tsume as the bastard Moss was there. Her skin still felt slimy from him. When he looked at her, she bared her teeth at him. She and Tsume were talking now, just like their conversation from the night before hadn't happened.

Kiba was leaning against a gravestone, holding his injured shoulder. "I thought I told you not to interfere" Zali said to him, "We have our own way of doing things here"

"Living like a down and out bunch of strays, clinging to this disgusting place and doing what you do. How can you call that life?!" Kiba yelled at him, anger rolling off him in waves.

"What the hell do you know about it?" Zali yelled back, both wolves narrowing their eyes at each other.

"You're pathetic" Kiba snarled at him.

Zali just turned back. "You kids are still young" He said in a soft tone, staring at the rising sun.

The group turned back, Hige helping Kiba stand up. By the time they made it back to where they were staying, Kiba had passed out. They laid him on the ground and Toboe started putting herbs on Kiba's cuts with Bri.

"This should hopefully help his wounds heal faster" Toboe said and Bri nodded.

"Typical. He never thinks first .Damn Kiba" Hige complained, looking unaffected that his friend was injured.

"He couldn't watch that, without doing something" Toboe said, defending Kiba.

"Still he shouldn't have butted in. Let's just go, get out of here" Tsume said, arms crossed over his chest.

"We can't leave Kiba now" Toboe and Bri said in unison.

"Which is exactly why we should have left here yesterday" Hige said.

"What ever happened to living here, it's got more than we thought?" Tsume asked Hige.

Hige made a sound and turned his head.

Kiba opened his eyes and tried getting up. Toboe held Kiba down. "Wait, you're not going anywhere with these wounds and an empty stomach"

"You sound like his mother pup. But he's right, you can't move until those wounds close over and heal" Bri told Kiba seriously, ignoring Toboe's indignant look at being called a mum.

"Well, we know somebody here who has a stuffed gut" Tsume said, looking pointedly at Hige.

"You guys ate some as well" Hige whined.

"Actually you ate more than the rest of us. Therefore, you have a stuffed gut. Here Kiba, I managed to save you some, you too Toboe" Bri said, sticking her tongue out at Hige and handing Toboe and Kiba some bread.

"It's not much but it's all I could save" She told them apologetically but they shook their heads.

"It's fine" They thanked her and ate some.

"Cole was nice enough to bring us food and you guys turned up your noses. It was rude. Now you're eating it so it's even ruder" Hige told them.

"Did you have a nice time on your little date?" Tsume asked Hige.

"I don't know, there was something 'bout her that seemed lonely" He told them, scratching his cheek.

Kiba and Toboe finished off the bread quickly enough. Kiba struggled with tearing the hard bread so Bri helped him and placed the strips in his mouth. Kiba's cheeks went a little pink in embarrassment at being babied but thanked Bri anyway.

"So what do we do? We gotta do something" The pup asked.

"Ooh like impose on Cole's hospitality for a while?" Hige asked, leaning forward excitedly.

"No like you getting us something to eat. A bite of bread isn't much to sustain us. By yourself"Tsume snapped at the wolf.

"By myself?!" He whined and Tsume glared at him, "Alright I'm going" He said and stood up, putting his hands in his hoodie pocket.

Bri shook her head at their conversation. She looked worriedly at Kiba. "Do you reckon you'll be alright by night?"

"I'll go look for more herbs for his wounds, just in case" Toboe said, running off.

"You should try sleeping a bit more, it'll help" Bri told Kiba gently and he closed his eyes, falling asleep almost straight away.

Tsume looked at them and sighed, annoyed that he had to look after an injured Kiba with Bri. "Why haven't you left yet?" Bri asked him softly and he looked up at her in shock. He thought she had forgotten about it.

"Decided not to. There's nothing left in that city for me" He told her, watching her comb her curls with her fingers.

She winced as she encountered a few knots and tried to untangle them. By the time she finished, her hair was mostly knot free.

"I'm glad you didn't leave" She told him and leaned back against the wall, closing her eyes.

Tsume stared at her, his chest tightening at her words. He harrumphed and leaned back against the wall, waiting for Porky to show up with food.

After a while, Kiba woke up. "You know, we wasted a hell of a lot of time because of you" Tsume told him.

Kiba narrowed his eyes in irritation. Tsume kept talking. "The others have gone off to look for food. What were you up to last night? I know you didn't get all those wounds from the station"

Kiba didn't answer him and Tsume turned his head away. Bri made a noise and turned over. Kiba looked at her. "You love her don't you?" He asked Tsume, voice rough from sleep.

"What did you say?" Tsume asked him, shocked at his words.

"You love her don't you? You care for her deeply."

"I don't love her, she's my friend" Tsume told him.

"If she was just your friend, you wouldn't have left your humans for her"

Tsume looked stumped for a second. "I don't love her. We were best friends when we were pups. I wouldn't leave her alone because she would get killed straight off"

Kiba hummed under his breath and no more was said on the subject. It was all silent until Kiba started talking out of the blue.

"I saw them, when I was younger. I was still just a cub. In the region I was born, they blossomed all over"

"What are you talking about?" Tsume asked him.

"White flowers that only bloomed under a full moon. They were Lunar flowers"

Tsume looked startled, staring at Kiba.

"They were all burnt to ashes" Kiba kept talking.

Tsume stood up and walked closer to Kiba. "What the hell brought this on?"

"A fire raged in our land, burning all the flowers in an instant and all of my friends, whose escape route were cut off were killed. I was the only one who survived. Why me? Why just me? I don't have a pack anymore, the only place for me is Paradise" Kiba told Tsume in a broken voice.

Tsume only stared at Kiba, realising how close their pasts were. They had survived when their packs hadn't (or in Tsume's case, some had).

It was quiet again until they suddenly heard a bang echo from the distance. It was so loud that Bri's olive eyes snapped open in panic. "What was that?" she asked the two males but they didn't have a clue.

Kiba stood up and Bri made a move to help him up but he waved her away.

"What do you think you're doing?" Tsume asked him.

"I'm alright, I can move now" Kiba answered back.

Suddenly, Toboe appeared from behind Tsume. He asked Kiba if he was alright.

"Where's Porky?" Tsume asked Toboe.

"That's just it! He got caught in this really weird trap and then they took him away somewhere!"

Bri and Kiba looked at Toboe in alarm.

"All he has to do is fool the humans that caught him and get away" Tsume said simply.

"But that's just it. He was knocked out by those wolves that we saw, the ones that live here" Tsume gasped, looking annoyed.

"Why the hell would they do something like that?"

Tsume berated the pup by saying that he should have followed them and the pup looked ashamed. Bri walked over and punched Tsume's arm.

"It's okay pup. We'll find out soon enough"

Kiba started walking towards them, limping. "Let's go" He said, placing one hand on the wall.

"Where to?" Tsume asked him.

"The city" And with that, Kiba trudged out the doorway.

The others followed after him, slowing their pace.

"This is taking forever" Tsume said and grabbed Kiba, hauling him over his shoulder.

"Hey! Cut it out" Kiba told him but Tsume didn't listen.

"Hurry" Said Toboe, running alongside Tsume and Bri.

They reached the city and Kiba told Tsume to put him down. He placed Kiba on his feet. Kiba leaned against the wall. They saw a familiar figure walk into an alley.

"That's the lady. The one from yesterday" Toboe said.

"Cole" Bri said, giving them the woman's name.

They ran after Cole and saw Zali's pack, minus Zali himself.

"Well it looks like last night's beating didn't sink in" One wolf said and the other males joined in. Tsume looked at Kiba but Kiba took no notice.

They heard footsteps from behind them and the four of them whirled around.

"Zali" Cole breathed out.

"You mean you ordered this?" Tsume growled at Zali.

"Ordered what?" He asked.

"Don't play dumb!" Tsume growled at him

"Is what we heard true? That you sold out friend to those humans?" Kiba asked him.

"How low will you mongrels sink?" Tsume asked.

"Tsume don't snap" Bri told him, getting the attention of Moss. He leered at her, making her bare her teeth at him.

"What's going on here?" Zali asked his pack.

"Hell if I know" Moss answered, looking away from Bri.

"That guy. I heard him tell the humans to kill him" Toboe shouted and Zali's eyes widened.

"Moss!" Zali growled out.

Kiba ran towards Moss but Zali pushed him back. Zali punched Moss in the jaw.

"This is my pack!" He snarled at Kiba.

"Why the hell did you sell out their friend?" He asked Moss.

Moss stood up, "He's an outsider, that's why"

"Zali, isn't you whose been selling out his friends?" One of the males called out to Zali.

"What?" He asked, shocked.

The man kept talking, "It's the truth and you know it. You don't even do a dog's work"

"Is that how you really feel?" Zali asked, his eyes narrowing. "I always thought as the leader, I had to do what was good for the pack, without letting my personal feelings get in my way. Everything I've done is to protect the pack."

"Yeah well none of us see you as the leader anymore!" Moss yelled at him. He punched Zali in the jaw and the others joined him.

Kiba moved forward but Zali yelled at him to stay out of it. He took in more punches and kicks.

"Stop it! Just stop it!" Cole screamed out, holding her hands to her ears. The men stopped and looked at her.

"Wait, tell me where they took their friend" Zali spoke, voice trembling from pain.

"I don't know. I don't know!" Moss answered him and walked away with the rest of the pack.

Cole ran over towards Zali. She helped him sit up, her face worried.

"You don't have any idea where they might have taken him?" Tsume asked, walking closer towards Zali.

"They had him on the back of an orange truck" Toboe said, standing next to Tsume. Bri looked at the pup fondly. It was amazing how he still liked Tsume even though Tsume always yelled at him.

"If you plan to give up on Paradise and turn back, now might be the time" Zali said to Kiba.

"I don't have anywhere to go back to. The only thing I can do is keep moving forward." Kiba told him.

"Even if Hell's what we are heading too" Tsume interjected, causing Kiba to look at him shocked. Bri let a small smile grace her lips. "You people might not have been able to find Paradise but there's absolutely no doubt in my mind that we will"

The others looked at Tsume, shocked. Even Bri looked a little surprised at his attitude.

Zali got up. Cole protested but he interrupted her. "I can still run". He started running down the alley, the others following him.

They all ran onto the road, spotting an orange truck with Hige trapped in a cage on the back. The truck swerved and fell on its side, causing the cage to fall off.

They all stared at Hige, who stared back at them. "Dammit, do you guys always have to be so rough?" he asked them, sitting up.

"Do you know how lucky you are to be alive?" Toboe scolded him, placing his hands on his hips.

"Don't be such a pansy Hige" Bri said with a smile.

"Come on you can get out of here yourself right?" Tsume asked Hige.

"Yeah but you know, that barbaric stuff really isn't my thing" He said, closing one eye.

Kiba moved towards the cage and started pulling the bars apart, making a hole for Hige to get through.

One of the humans opened the door and started shouting at them but Zali jumped at them, still in his wolf form. He bit down on the human's arm, causing him to drop the gun.

The wolves ran off, Zali leading them to the pipe. The pipe was small, causing the males to crouch down. Bri stood up straight, her head just brushing the ceiling. The walked out of the pipe and into a massive one.

"This is as far as I plan to go. From here on out, you're all on your own" Zali told them.

"You're not coming with us?" Kiba asked. "You're gonna keep living here?"

"I don't know if the place we found really was Paradise but I believe that there are some that can make it and there are some that can't" Zali said. "It's time for you to find out if the real Paradise does exist at the end of this road"

"You know that you don't seem like much of a wolf" Tsume told him

"Tsume" Kiba said warningly.

"You know a wolf protects his own. It's natural for him to have another pack" He continued. Bri stared at him. He was speaking just like how he used to speak, when he was learning about how to be alpha from his father.

"You're right. I really have fallen" Zali said, looking over his shoulder at them.

Kiba started running and the others followed him. Bri stopped in front of Zali.

"Thanks for all your help" She said, smiling.

Zali looked at her. He nodded his head and turned back towards the smaller pipe. Bri ran off, catching up with the others.

They ran all the way out of the pipe and kept running, following Kiba. They would follow him anywhere, Bri was certain.


Wow I can't believe I'm typing this up so fast! :D Hope you liked this chapter, sorry about the almost rape scene but it had to happen... :)

I'm scared Tsume is acting way OOC...I really hope he isn't.

Anyway, remember:

Italics mean quotes taken from the anime

Bold Italicsmean flashbacks/memories

Leave me a review! I wanna know what's on your mind.

-Black :)