The leader of the giant creatures barked something that sounded like an order. It circled over the clearing once and landed, using the same stalling method that the cats did. The others did the same with military precision, and the drafts from their huge wings ruffled the fur of Icehawk, Graywind, Longwhisker, and Grouseclaw. Said warriors were sitting calmly, the deputy in front of the others. Silverpaw's eyes grew wide when she got a closer look.
All of them were every bit as big as Icehawk had described. Their long, thick pelts ranged from black, white, and every shade in between to russet red and tawny gold. Most were panting with exhaustion from their long journey, showing off their terrifying fans. And, of course, all of them had wings: the same sort of strong, feathered wings as the cats. The one who appeared to be the leader, the apprentice could see, was a male with fur in a fiery red shade, muscular but young.
This wolf opened his jaws. A thick, distorted voice, like the words were trying to climb through vines in his throat, emerged. "De… dep-yough-t Breehzh K-lahnn?" he forced. Icehawk locked eyes with the wolf, who bristled, but relaxed when the white warrior made a sound almost as horrible. It must be the wolf word for yes, thought Silverpaw, because the wolf rolled onto his back and spread his wings – the red feathers darkened to black at the tips – in an unmistakable gesture of deference. Icehawk opened his wings as well, while touching his nose to the ground. The other warriors copied this position.
"Talk lee-uh-durr w-uhlf cat tyarit-orrhy," choked the red wolf. This string of words wouldn't have made sense to Silverpaw if a cat had spoken them, much less this creature, but Icehawk understood the broken cat-speak. He raised his head from the bow and growled more guttural wolf-speak. Silverpaw wondered if his wolf-speak was as bad as the wolves' cat-speak. Suddenly, a wolf pup, who'd tumbled off her mother's back, squeaked something that had the universal tone of, "I found something!" She yipped like crazy and pointed her tiny muzzle at the very tree where Silverpaw was hiding.
Icehawk made a signal with his wing and tail that meant it's okay at her. She got the message: you can come out. Silverpaw carefully took flight from the edge of the hole and landed a safe distance from the wolves. The leader wolf cocked his head at her and growled, "Cat pup?" Icehawk said something to him to which he replied, "Yes. Pup warhyor. Good."
The mother wolf nudged the excited pup back with her littermates. Her leader made a partial version of his submission gesture, with his wings spreading. One wing alone was three tail-lengths across. He said, "Lee-uh-durr talk moon. A nhonner, dep-yough-t." He barked another order and set off toward the Clan Mountain, his pack dutifully following.
The patrol gathered together again. Dragonpaw remarked, "That… was weird," and then exploded, "You never said they had wings like us! How did you talk to them like that?"
"Well, they have wings," said Longwhisker, who hadn't said much for most of the adventure.
"What did that leader wolf mean by 'a nhonner?" Silverpaw asked nobody in particular.
Grouseclaw said, "He meant, 'an honor.' Wolves have a thing for nobility and such."
Icehawk looked a bit troubled. Graywind asked, "What is it, Icehawk?"
The deputy replied, "Remember last Wolf Moon? The lead wolf was stone-gray, and huge. This russet adolescent was just a pup then. Something must have happened."
"Well, when you and Emberstar talk with him tonight, we'll find out," said Longwhisker.
"Talk with them tonight?! They're not coming to our camp, are they?" shrieked Dragonpaw.
"No. Emberstar and Icehawk will visit their camp. A cat fits in a wolf's den much better that a wolf fits in a cat's," chuckled Grouseclaw to his apprentice.
There you have it, the double upload! The word count by now is 9134 (over 9000! Haha, lame meme reference. I don't even like Dragon Ball Z.)