AN: Here's yet another long awaited update. I spent almost the whole weekend working on this chapter. For some reason I keep writing longer and longer chapters; I just keep raising the bar. I spent a lot of time wandering around mindlessly and getting frustrated at trying to come up with ideas. I think it turned out great and I hope you enjoy ^_^
*Fixed grammar and spelling errors. Made small changes to the conservation between Humphrey and Tasha while they were going to bed.*
Tasha and Humphrey have now started their way to towards Caribou Mountain. The end of the day was starting to become more noticeable. The sun was beginning to show signs that it was late afternoon as it hung right above the tree line. The two wolves were walking at a steady pace because they wanted to make as much ground as they could before the night came.
"What! You an Alpha? No, I just don't see you as one" said Tasha as they were just trying to past the time with conversation.
"What's wrong with that. How come you don't see me as one?" questioned Humphrey as he joked with the idea.
"You look nothing like one. You don't even look like you could harm a fly" snickered Tasha.
"Oh really now" smiled Humphrey, "I do too look like an Alpha. See, I got strength" as he flexed his nonexistent muscles, "I'm responsible and take everything seriously" said Humphrey as he tried to make himself stand up tall and proud. "And most of all, I'm adorable" said Humphrey as he sat down and looked at Tasha with a big grin and his head tilted off to the side while trying to hold back his urge to laugh.
"Haha okay you got me convinced, but there is one thing you need to do to prove that that you can be an Alpha" laughed Tasha as she went along with him.
"Oh yeah, if it's a test I'm sure I can pass it" said Humphrey with a look of enthusiasm on his face.
"I'm sure a big and strong Alpha like yourself is faster than a little ol Omega like me. Let's see if you can catch me" said Tasha while laughing and then she took off running.
"Oh it's on Tasha" yelled Humphrey as he chased her through the woods. Tasha was fast but Humphrey was for sure he would be able to catch her. They weaved around trees and bushes until they came upon a large clearing in the trees. They could see for miles and miles into the distance.
"Come on Humphrey, is that all you got. Am I too fast for you?" taunted Tasha while she continued to laugh at the amount of fun she was having. She then glanced back to see how close Humphrey was to her. When she looked back she could not see him. She looked around her but he was not even in sight.
Tasha stopped running and then yelled "Humphrey, where are you? Are you okay?" There was no response. Tasha, now worried, started to run back towards the trees where she ran out of. She went back inside the woods and started to look around but still no sight of Humphrey. She continued to walk in the trees calling for him. Tasha could then hear Humphrey moaning in pain. She quickly zeroed in on his voice and followed it to the source. Tasha was finally able to find Humphrey. He was laying in the ground with his paws on his head.
"Humphrey, are you alright?" questioned Tasha. She was worried that something bad happened.
"Arrrgh... I think I... hit my head... on a... branch" Said Humphrey in-between throbs of pain.
"Why don't you let me take a look at it" said Tasha as she removed his bloody paws from his head. It appears that the blow to his head reopened his wound, causing blood to leak out and down onto his face. Tasha quickly grabbed a leaf from a nearby bush and placed it on his wound and began to press down onto it.
"Owwwww... that fricken hurts!" as he screamed in pain.
"I know it hurts, but we have to stop the bleeding" said Tasha as she continued to press on the leaf. after a few minutes of applying pressure, the bleeding appeared to have stopped. Tasha then lifted her paws off of Humphrey's head and noticed that there was blood all over his fur on his head. Some of it even ran down his face and in-between his eyes. Tasha then lowed her head and began to lick his blood stained fur. This caught Humphrey completely off guard.
"Whoa! What are you doing?" yelled Humphrey as he quickly got up and took a step back.
"Relax, I'm cleaning your fur. I would normally use water, but I don't see any around here" explained Tasha as she looked him right in the eye. Humphrey looked right back at her and noticed that she was really sincere.
"Oh, ok. I'm sorry I freaked there. You just caught me off guard" said Humphrey as he laid back down.
"It's ok, I should have said something before I did that" said Tasha as she walked over to Humphrey and continued to clean him up.
"I didn't pass my test now did I" said Humphrey as he quietly chuckled.
"Nope, I guess you're no Alpha then" laughed Tasha.
While Tasha was cleaning the blood out of his fur. Humphrey was not able to stop thinking about her. Tasha had a very motherly personality. She seemed to really care about him and his well being and would do anything to make him feel better. She was starting to remind him of his own mother. Humphrey has never had anyone show any signs that they cared about him. Yes his friends cared for him but never like this. The way Tasha cared for him was different. It really made him feel like he is loved by another wolf. Humphrey has never felt this way since the death of his mother. It really made him feel warm inside.
"There we go, all cleaned up. How do you feel?" Said Tasha as she raised her head to give him one last check to see if she has missed a spot.
"Much better. Thanks, you're a true a friend" said Humphrey as he got up as well.
Tasha couldn't help but to blush at his comment and she said, "Oh your welcome. You know I want you to feel better."
"Hey, It's starting to get dark. We better find a place to spend the night. Who knows what hangs out around here at night" said Humphrey.
"Your right, we better find a den or some shelter" agreed Tasha.
Both of them continued to walk though the dark looking for a place to spend the night. They searched everywhere but none of them seem to be able to find a place to sleep. As they continued their search Tasha was hearing something.
Tasha quickly stopped and put her paw out in front of Humphrey and said, "Humphrey, did you hear that?" as she began to shiver in fear.
"No, I don't hear anything. It's probably just the sounds of the night. No need to worry" said Humphrey as he tried to comfort her.
"Alright, then" hesitated Tasha.
The two of them cautiously continued to search for a den, but then a voice out from behind them said, "Hey, what are you doing!"
Both Tasha and Humphrey screamed and jumped around while Humphrey pleaded, "Please don't hurt us. We never meant to trespass on your territory. We will be leaving right away."
This wolf appeared to be fairly old and fragile. Her fur was mostly white but seemed to have a very light brownish tint along her back, much like champagne. (if you don't know what that looks like please Google "champagne color") Her fur was somewhat long and appeared to be very neat and well groomed. She also stood in a very tall and proper posture.
The old elderly wolf was somewhat shocked and then she said, "Oh I'm sorry if I scared you dear. You know two young wolves like yourselves should never be out this late at night. This place can be dangerous. Please, come with me to my den where it is safe. You two can spend the night there."
Both Tasha and Humphrey looked at each other unsure how to respond. Then Tasha asked, "How can we trust you?"
Understanding her uncertainty, the aged wolf said, "Oh honey, I'm just too old for that kind of rough housing. Please, let me show you my den. It's much safer then sleeping outside."
The two wolves agreed to follow her to her den. The den was not far; they only had to walk for a few minutes. When they approached the den the entrance was not very big, but once the three of them walked inside the main room was massive. It was overwhelming. There were even tunnels that went through the den which lead to even more rooms.
"Wow, this place is amazing" said Humphrey as he scanned the den in awe.
"Excuse me mam, I don't believe we have caught you name" said Tasha in a polite tone.
"Oh I'm sorry, where are my manners. My name is Opal. I was once the former pack leader of these parts."
"That's a beautiful name. My name is Tasha and this my friend Humphrey."
"Why thank you dear. My mother named me that because she just loved the way my eyes would sparkle different colors depending on the light. Now you two are very cute together; you must be mates now are you" said Opal with confidence.
The two of them blushed a bright pink and then Humphrey said, "Oh no, were not mates, just friends" while they looked at each other and couldn't help a smile.
"Now that's a shame. You two look very nice together" Said Opal. Right after saying that she noticed that something was on Humphrey's head.
"Now what do you got there on your head dear?" asked Opal.
"Oh its nothing" said Humphrey as he tried to hid his wound.
"Nonsense, let me look at it" said Opal as she approached him. She got up close to Humphrey's head and took a close look at it and said, "Oh you kids and your wild teen fashions. I will never understand what goes through your minds."
Humphrey couldn't help a chuckle and said, "It's not for fashion. I hit my head on a rock and this is supposed to help stop it from bleeding."
"Oh honey that will take forever to heal. Come, follow me. I'll take care of that for you" said Opal as she lead them to a room towards the back of the den. When they got there, there was a small hole in the ceiling that let in the bright moon light.
"Now sit right there while I go get a few things" said Opal as she walked to a small hole in side of the room. She returned with a small dented metal bucket with all sorts of plants inside of it. She set the bucket next to Humphrey and she took a closer look at the leaf on his head.
"Tisk tisk tisk, this will never do" said Opal as she grabbed the leaf with her teeth and tore it off of his head.
"OWWW, that hurt. A little warning would be nice" yelled Humphrey in pain.
"Oh quite being a big baby. Now hold still while I put some of this on your wound" said Opal as she grabbed a bunch of leaves with her paw and raised it over his head and squeezed until some the juices of the leaf began to drip on to Humphrey's head.
"Oh and by the way, this might burn a little" said Opal right as Humphrey began to scream in pain.
Tasha was sitting a few feet from them with her paw up to her mouth trying to cover up the fact that she was laughing at them. His reactions towards Opal's treatment was somewhat hysterical.
Opal then asked Tasha, "because you seem to be enjoying the show, why don't you be a dear and grab this a fill it with water."
Still snickering, Tasha agreed and grabbed the bucket and walked out of the den. She then returned shortly after with the water. Humphrey had a very tense look on his face as he tried to block out the pain. Tasha gave the bucket to Opal which she then placed a few shredded up leaves inside it and stirred it up with her paw.
"Now I need you to drink this whole thing. It will help the pain and it should prevent you from getting sick in case your wound got infected" instructed Opal.
"Now, let me show you two to your rooms for the night." Everyone got up and followed Opal to their rooms. The rooms were not huge like the others but they were plenty big. Both of the rooms were very dark as they could barely see in front of them. This made if perfect for sleeping in.
"Now good night everyone and see you in the morning" said Opal
"Good night and thanks for letting us spend the night here" replied both Humphrey and Tasha as they walked into their rooms to sleep. Opal just smiled and nodded her head as she walked towards her room.
An hour or so when by and Tasha was still awake. For some reason she was just not tired. She tossed and turned but couldn't sleep. Tasha was starting to wonder If Humphrey was asleep. She got up and walked over to his room to check in on him. She slowly peaked her head in and whispered, "pssst, Humphrey, you awake."
Humphrey lifted his head and looked up to see who it was. When he saw that it was Tasha he said, "Yea, come on in."
Tasha walked in and laid down across from him. As she was walking in Humphrey asked, "Why are you still up?"
"I just couldn't sleep. Why are you still up?" asked Tasha.
"You try drinking this stuff and then falling asleep. It taste really bitter" said Humphrey as he finished the last of his water with a disgusted look on his face. "So, why are you having a hard time sleeping?" questioned Humphrey.
"I don't know, I keep replaying your reaction towards Opal while she was cleaning up your head" Said Tasha as she began to smile.
"Oh you thought that was funny huh. Remind me next time to bring you here if you ever get hurt" said Humphrey.
"It's just a little leaf juice. How bad can it be?" giggled Tasha.
"I would love to see you go through what I did. I bet you would not thinks it's not so funny anymore" said Humphrey with a smile.
"I bet I could take it like a real wolf, your reaction was just priceless" laughed Tasha.
Both of them laughed, joked, and talked throughout the night until they could no longer stay up and slowly fell asleep.
*Kate and Garth*
Kate and Garth continued to follow the drag marks. The trail went on for what seemed like miles. After almost an hour of following the path, they were lead to a den. Kate's pulse was going up, she was getting excited. She was hoping that this would be the den where Humphrey would be or maybe the den of someone who knew where he went. As they approached the den, Kate peaked inside and saw no one.
"Hello, is anyone in there?" said Kate as she announced her presence. There were no sounds. Both of them slowly walked inside and looked around to see any signs of Humphrey, or anyone for that matter. They searched the den and found nothing.
"It doesn't appear that anyone is here Kate" said Garth.
"Yea, but can you smell that. I can pick up Humphrey's scent and another wolf's. I'm not sure, but I think it's a female" said Kate as she tried her hardest to track down her best friend. Her friend that she cared so much for.
"I did pick up another scent but I can't tell if it's male or female. Well, here's what we can do. The both of us will split up and search the area. We will try to find clues on the direction that he could have went. We will meet up here at nightfall and spend the night here. Then we will start again in the morning" Said Garth as he told Kate his plan.
"Sounds like a good plan" acknowledged Kate.
*Kate*
Kate took of walking and sniffing around looking for any sign of Humphrey, but it was hard to focus. All Kate wanted was this marriage to be over so she could tell Humphrey how she really felt about him. She would replay every possible reaction that he would have once Kate told him how she felt. She missed his warm smile, his playful nature, and how he was not afraid to be himself even around a tough crowd. She liked that about him. He was true and honest and it killed her to let him slip away like that.
As Kate was walking she picked up on a scent. It was the same scent that she had found in the den. She chased that scent as fast as she could. She needed to figure out where it goes. Kate finally found where the scent lead her. It lead her to a small clearing in the trees where the golden rays of the setting sun lit the area. In that clearing she could see something in the dirt. Kate walked up to the patch of dirt and saw what it was. She had never felt so good in such a long time.
When she saw the drawing of herself she knew Humphrey drew it. I looked so much like her. Kate sat down and admired the doodle. This was a sign that Humphrey had missed her too. Kate now knows how Humphrey felt about her. Kate's heart was now filled with happy and uplifting emotions. She knew that Humphrey loved her. Kate could sit there forever as she never wanted this feeling to go away, but she had to.
She had to go back to the den to spend the night. Before Kate left she know she had to destroy the drawing. If she left the drawing and Garth were to see it, he may get suspicious and figure out the real reason on why she wanted to find Humphrey so bad. Kate placed her paw on the drawing and just sat there. She tried to destroy the drawing but she didn't want to, it just didn't seem right. Kate finally forced herself to move her paw side to side. She continued to shuffle the dirt until the drawing was gone. It hurt her but she knew it had to be done. Kate slowly got up and started her way back to the den as the night fall began.
*Garth*
Garth was searching for any sign of Humphrey but he had no luck. The only thing he could think about was Lilly. It was only a day and he was beginning to miss her lovely purple eyes and her beautiful face. It made him feel really good knowing that Lilly was not shy around him. Garth knew that Lilly truly loved him because of this.
As Garth thought about Lilly, he started to think of ways of how he could be with her without starting an all out war. Several ideas came in and out of his head but none of them seemed to be the one that would work. This really frustrated him. He does now know how much longer he will be able to hide his feelings for her around others.
Just as Garth was about to go crazy he noticed two wolves in the distance but didn't recognize them. He wondered if any of them knew anything about Humphrey. Garth approached the two young wolves and asked, "excuse me, have any of you guys heard of a wolf named Humphrey."
Both of the wolves looked up but one of them had a surprised look on his face. Then the wolf said, "Yea I know Humphrey, I'm one of his best friends. The name is Shakey."
"That's great" exclaimed Garth, "have you seen him lately?"
"Why yes I have, I saw him last night in a den about a ten minutes walk that a way. Can I ask why you're looking for him?" said Shakey as he pointed towards the direction of the den him and Kate found earlier.
"Humphrey has gone missing and we fear for his safety and he appears to be emotionally unstable. Did you see anyone else with him by any chance?" asked Garth.
"Yes, It was some small dark grey wolf. She appeared to be his friend. I saw them talking inside the den. It seemed to be rather emotional because I think Humphrey was crying, but I could be wrong. It was dark at the time and me, Reba, and Janice needed to get back our den."
"Thanks Shakey, you were a big help. If you ever see Humphrey or that dark grey wolf please let someone know right away."
Will do and I hope you find him and everything turns out to be all right" said Shakey as he and Reba returned their his den.
"Oh I'm sure Kate is going to be happy to hear that Humphrey is alive and seems to be doing fine... physically that is" thought Garth.
*Back at the Den*
Garth returned to the den to see Kate laying down resting. Kate glanced up and saw that Garth was back. She instantly got up and her tail began to wag as she became excited to hear what Garth had found out.
"Well, did you figure anything out" asked Kate excitedly.
"I was able to find one of his friends, he said his name was Shakey" said Garth
Garth's news was bringing Kate lots of excitement. She knew Shakey was indeed a close friend of Humphrey and was sure he had some helpful information.
"He said that he saw Humphrey in this very cave last night with a dark grey female wolf. He also said that Humphrey was possibly crying. Something may be troubling him but at least he is alive" Said Garth as he tried to focus on the good parts of Shakey's story.
Kate was both relieved and saddened to hear that. Humphrey may be alive and but he is most certainly not well. Something is still hurting him emotionally.
"So Kate, did you find anything?" asked Garth
"No not really, all I really found was the scent of what could be from that dark grey wolf. I think if we follow that we should be going in the right direction" said Kate while hoping that Garth won't somehow see the drawing that she destroyed.
"Well, I think we got a lot done today and think we should get some sleep and take off in the morning" said Garth as he began to lay down and get ready to go to sleep.
"Your right, let's get some shut eye. Good night Garth"
"Good Night Kate"
AN: I know it was long but I think it was worth it. I have a few days off of school coming up later this week and I might update before the weekend, but that is only if I get good reviews. A good review is one that says a little more than "I liked it." please tell me thoughts you had and parts you liked and/or parts you didn't like. Some examples of good reviews are from TheChronichler, Dylano146, and StarswordIsCool.
Also please check out a new Alpha and Omega Fansite. This site is still young and is in need of active members who want to post picture, stories, videos, and comment on others work, ect. Everyone is welcome to join. Please go to my profile page here on FanFiction to find a link to the site. If you become a member, send me a friend request as I will be happy to accept it. Hope to see you all there.
