Chapter 4:
Jon woke with a start to the sound of someone kicking in the door. Bright light flooded through the opening, inviting a groan and a rub of his eyes, but he found that it hurt far less than earlier that day. Two half-breeds blocked the sudden light, leaning in with a closeness that sparked sharp discomfort in Jon. He cringed away a bit, waking Ghost in the process with his movement.
"Rise and shine, sleepy head!" A she wolf with cherry red hair chirped from above. "Sun's up, prey's up, as we say!" The taller male simply stood hovering, arms crossed.
"Um… who are you?" He mumbled, still warry.
"We're your guides! Here to get you oriented to your new life. River sent us, thinking you would feel more at ease if some pack mates closer to your age showed you around."
"River?"
"Our alpha. He's the one who turned you, remember?"
"Oh." Jon replied dumbly. But what else was there to say on such a simple matter? "Still, though… who are you specifically?"
"Oh yeah! Silly of me. My name's Lilly, and this grump behind me is Thorn." She gave a nod to the nappy headed male behind her. Thorn merely grunted in response.
"Not very talkative…"
Lilly giggled. "No, definitely not. Oh, we brought you something to chew on. It's been almost a whole day, you must be starving."
Lilly lifted something from behind her and offered it to Jon as he sat up. It was a raw hind leg of some kind of mountain goat. The fur had been skinned off it, but the meat was pink and fresh, blood still dripped in a sticky red on the rug and a rank smell reminding Jon of the butcher's plate in the kitchens. In any other case, he would have flinched away. Raw meet was well known for being in no way tasty and incredibly unhealthy. But for some reason, the scent that reached his nose brought on the exact opposite of disgust. Jon's mouth began to water, and his stomach gave a heavy growl, almost matching the deep one that left his throat. He felt pains in his gums, teeth growing sharp and nails tingling as they lengthened. He rushed forward and tugged the leg straight from Lilly's grip, in an action that neither beast flinched at. They simply sat back and watched unperturbed as Jon ripped into the meat with feral intent.
There was no room for caring about manners in Jon's mind, fully consumed with the taste of blood running down his tongue. His stomached warmed, enjoying the feeling of finally having food to take in, and by the time he had ripped down to the bone, Jon set to licking his fingers dry of every stain. At once, self-consciousness set in above base instinct and Jon dropped the bone hastily, eyes flickering to the two Wolf-people watching passively. Lilly giggled.
"What's with that look, new guy?"
Jon merely shuffled nervously. Thorn huffed again, getting Lilly's attention before motioning to the door.
"Ah, yeah!" She grabbed Jon's arm and pulled him to his feet with surprising strength. "C'mon, Snow, we got to get you situated!"
Jon had little time to question as he was dragged forcefully into bright daylight, Thorn following at the tail end of the trio as Lilly stayed clutched tight to Jon's arm. The former Watchman stared wide eyed at where he had been held at least half a day. The compound, as he heard River name it, was situated within a dip in a stone basin, dark rocky cliffs surrounded at all sides creating natural walls. The only visible exit was to the north, a narrow winding slope that dove in and out of pointed rocks towards the surface, easily defendable, Jon noted with approval.
Constructed dens littered both the snowy ground and the cliff face itself, built partly out of stone with mud and wood thatching in the areas exposed to the elements. Half-breeds meandered in and out; walking, running, climbing, jumping; many stopping to interact with one another. Jon noticed that every one, young or old, male or female, acted towards one another as family, with close friendly touches and smiling greetings. He suddenly felt hyper aware of the she-wolf clinging to his arm. But her grip never faltered as she steered the group around the compound.
"From here you can see, the place is a bit disorganized. We like to take advantage of the natural grooves and cuts in the rock to make our homes, so families situate their dens everywhere. But those are just the couples with pups. Most of our young members prefer to stay together, we all camp out within the huge dens, over there on the east wall."
She pointed animatedly towards a huge gaping maw that was once an open cave, now extended into a rounded house. There were benches made of carved logs scattered in loose rings about the front, and from their vantage point Jon could observe quite a few young half-breeds, most around his age some younger or older, mingling throughout the yard before the cave. With a sudden tug, Jon was whisked from observation towards another portion of the camp.
"This important looking den on that cliff up there is River's; it's the alpha den. The big wolf in charge has lived there since we made this camp. It's high up there so the alpha can see the whole camp from his front door. No trouble can escape his watch. River's elite group of betas live in those huts down there, around the base. You might have met them earlier. It's common for them to accompany him everywhere he goes. They're our best fighters."
Like the white knights of the king's guard. The reminder brings back a swamp of feelings and memories he wasn't ready for. A pit of homesickness welled up from within, worse than when he left for the wall. Here… he felt trapped on another world altogether. A low wine left unbidden, and Jon felt Lilly's gaze turn to him in concern.
"What's wrong, Snow?" She prodded gently.
"I… I just… this is all so weird. I've found out today magic creatures from the days of the First Men, and now I'm some kind of wolf beast, and… I feel more lost than when I left for the wall. It's all so… uncertain now."
Lilly whined in sympathy.
"It's got to be hard, leaving all that behind. Twice no less. But don't worry, Snow. You'll find your place. And we're all here to help. You're a pack mate now. That means you always have support!"
With sudden force, Lilly pulled him close and rubbed the side of her face against Jon's jawline. Jon stiffened in fear and surprise at the close contact of a woman. But he felt nothing sensual in the action; the wolf part of his mind reacting with joy and comfort, wanting to reciprocate his pack mate's assurance. He even felt Thorn take a step closer, giving off another whine of his own as a friendly hand was placed on his shoulder. Jon's human experience still kept the discomfort radiating through his body, and he wedged his arms between his body and Lilly, and gently forced her away.
"Th-thank you, but… hey why do you call me Snow?"
Lilly stepped back. "Well, we find human names to be… odd. In the way they work, and how they're pronounced… we prefer to name ourselves and our young after real things. Things in nature. Like Lilly and Thorn! River told us your name was… um… Jon? Jon Snow. So we figured… Snow was a perfect fit."
Jon almost laughed at the humor of this. They had no idea, that the name Snow was not his own, merely a title that emphasized disgraceful origins. Another thought came to mind. Perhaps this was an opportunity. A chance to take back the pain tossed on him for something he could never control. Yes… a true restart. Not like the wall.
"Okay. Snow it is."
