Chapter 5 - Yosemite

Pamuy's POV

"Because Tony is King's brother!" I snapped.

My niece, Lillian, widened her eyes in shock, "what?" She asked.

I sighed, "you know the history from Alpha School, Lillian." I said, "King was behind the whole revolution in Jasper. He brought the North, East, and West, together to stand against Luna. but what you do not know is that He killed Payton and his family, once they realized the truth about him."

Lillian widened her eyes, "you knew?" She asked, as I stood up and started circling around her, "you knew that Payton and his family were killed and why, yet you did nothing?"

"What was I supposed to do?" I asked, "march my pack into Jasper and conquer like some greedy warlord?"

"Grandmother isn't a greedy warlord." Lillian said.

"I wasn't meaning your grandmother, child." I replied, then sat down with my back to the den's entrance.

"Luna gave you orders during the Jasper Civil War to move into any territory, if they proved to be willing to surrender and/or apologize." Lillian stated, as she turned around to face me, "you knew that Payton and Lisa were willing, yet you defied grandmother's orders."

"By the time I would've gotten there, it would've been too late!" I growled, "Payton and Lisa may have realized their mistakes and became loyal to your grandmother again, but it would've been of no use to move into the territory, because King had Nars eating out of his paw!"

"Why do you hate Tony so much?" Lillian asked, "it can't just be because he's King's brother. You keep telling us that no one can choose their family or who they fall in love with, so I don't truly think you hate Tony, just because he's King's brother."

"That…is a discussion for a later time." I said, then sighed, "you said Kate said she was trying to find Humphrey, because she loves him?"

Lillian nodded, "that's right." she answered.

"Humphrey's an Omega in Jasper West." I muttered, then groaned, "oh, Fenrir, why have I been so stupid?"

"You were trying to protect your nephew." A deep, booming, voice echoed through the den.

I turned around and saw a huge figure standing at the den entrance, the sun was to his back, so I only saw his silhouette. I gulped, "Fenrir?" I asked.

The figure chuckled, then stepped into the den and I saw his face, revealing… "ugh…Vincent!" I exclaimed at the old wolf, who was still chuckling, "don't do that!"

The golden-tan she-wolf, Kate, walked in behind him, as she chuckled as well, "now I know where Humphrey gets his sense of humor from." She said with a smile.

"Why not?" Vincent asked, "you're too easy to fool and if I tried that on Luna, she'd punish me for a month."

"And I'd be there to help her out." I added, "what do you want?"

"I may not be as smart as my mate…" Vincent said, "but I can tell you wish to speak with Kate here."

Kate instantly stopped chuckling and widened her eyes in shock, "you're right, I do." I replied, then motioned for Kate to follow me, "come along."

I noticed Kate gulped, then hesitantly followed me out of the den, leaving Vincent and Lillian behind. We walked to the top of a cliff, where we could see the whole territory and then some. The mountains loomed over the valley, casting a huge shadow and blanketing it in darkness, as the sun set behind the mountains. I motioned for Kate to sit beside me at the top of the cliff and she hesitantly obeyed.

"So…" She said, after sitting down, "what did you want to talk to me about?"

"History." I answered.

Kate raised an eyebrow at me, "history?" She asked.

I nodded, "what would you like to know?" I asked, "ask any question you want?"

"You wouldn't happen to know where Humphrey is, do you?" Kate asked, "Lillian wasn't explicit on details concerning where he went with his sister."

So, she knows about Humphrey's sister. I thought.

"They are going home." I said, "to their parents' pack."

"They live that far away?" Kate asked, "how did Humphrey even end up in Jasper while he was still a pup?"

"How much do you know about my nephew?" I asked, ignoring the question.

"A lot more than I did when I left my pack." Kate answered, "but I don't care what his past was like, I just want him by my side."

"How far are you willing to go?" I asked.

"I will never give up on him." Kate answered.

I smiled, "good." I replied, "but in all seriousness, what would you like to know?"

"Why do you hate me?" Kate asked, taking me off-guard.

"I don't hate you in particular." I said, "we've just haven't had a good history lately with Jasper."

"Why?" Kate asked.

"King" I answered with hatred, "King believes in building an empire to rule all wolves, which is why he submitted to Luna's control, hoping he would one day take over and turn her…what he viewed as her 'empire', into his vision."

"What happened?" Kate asked.

I chuckled, "King underestimated Luna's intelligence." I explained, "right from the beginning, she knew what King was up to and turned his plan against him by preventing him from gaining any actual control. Eventually, King realized this and started the Jasper Civil War, planning to gain control over one of Luna's packs, hopefully crippling her 'empire'."

"King did all that?" Kate asked, surprised.

I nodded, "he also eliminated those who were a threat to his control." I said, "your uncle Payton and aunt Lisa, along with their son, John, included."

"I had a cousin?" Kate asked, then looked down, "Mom and Dad never told me that."

"I'm not surprised." I said, "Winston, Tony, and Nars, all kept the truth from their packs and made Jasper South sound like a myth, anything to do with Luna was forbidden."

There was silence for a few minutes until Kate spoke up again, "so, why are you warming up to me now?" She asked, confused.

"I heard Jasper West and East abolished the Alpha/Omega Mating Laws, then united through your sister's and Tony's son's wedding." I explained, "maybe I was wrong about your parents, but Tony I can never forgive."

"Yeah, Lilly was ecstatic that she was married to the one she loved." Kate replied, making me widen my eyes in shock.

"You said Lilly?" I asked in surprise.

Kate nodded, "yes, she's my sister." She answered, then must've noticed my shocked expression and narrowed her eyes at me, "why?"

I shook my head, "nothing." I lied, then looked over at Kate, "tell me, do you believe Humphrey will return the same feelings that you feel for him?"

"I hope so." Kate answered, "but after…what I did, I'm not sure."

"Always follow your heart, Kate" I said, "it will never lead you astray."

"How am I supposed to-" Kate started, but I cut her off.

"In Luna's packs, there are no restrictions on marriage." I said, "it doesn't matter what rank you both are."

"I've always been taught that Alphas care for the pack and the Omegas sluff around all day, keeping the peace by telling jokes and relieving tension." Kate replied, "then Humphrey taught me that Omegas are more."

I scoffed, "what is with these packs thinking Alphas strong, Omegas weak?" I wondered, "the ranks only determine your position in the pack, your job, beyond that, everyone is equal."

"What would HUmphrey be like as an Alpha?" Kate asked, curiously.

"He would probably be something like his grandfather, Vincent, in a few years." I said, then chuckled, "he doesn't even need to do anything and the enemy would run scared."

We suddenly heard twigs snapping and branches moving from behind us and turned to see Vincent step out of the bushes. I smiled, "stealthy as always, Vincent." I said, "you should work on that."

Vincent chuckled, "who needs stealth when you're just going to scare anyone who comes across you anyway?" He asked, then frowned, "anyway, an Omega just came by and said Luna has disappeared, so I need to head to Jasper South to maintain order."

"Don't derail the train trying to get on." I said with a smile.

"Was that a crack about my weight?" Vincent asked, "muscle weighs more than fat, you know."

"That's why I was being serious." I said, "we don't need to lose our connection to Jasper like we did with Alaska."

"We don't need to lose our connection to Jasper." Vincent mocked, then chuckled, "see you again sometime, Pamuy."

I smiled, then Vincent left, "you lost your connection to Alaska?" Kate asked.

I nodded, "happened a few years ago, but that doesn't matter." I answered, "we can still get there without any issues, our Omegas are more than up to the task."

"I wonder why Luna disappeared?" Kate wondered.

I shrugged, "it's not a big deal." I said, "she probably just left to have some time off, heck, if I was in her place, I'd take some time off as well, being the sole leader of not only one extremely large pack, but four of them?"

I shook my head, "I don't know how she manages it." I added, then chuckled, "I'd be like, 'hasta la vista!', then go on a vacation for some 'me' time."

I sighed, "although, that's probably why I'm not in Luna's Inner Circle." I finished.

"Sole leader?" Kate asked, "isn't Vincent her mate?"

"He is." I answered, "but only Luna has the title of Delta Leader, or Head Delta, and only one is her heir."

"Vincent is only the Delta of Jasper South." I explained.

"Oh." Kate muttered.

I noticed the sun had dropped behind the mountains and we were in complete darkness, "come on." I said, "you can sleep with Lillian tonight before you continue your journey to Yosemite."

"Okay." Kate replied, then we stood up and started heading back to the Alpha den for the night.

Sanny's POV

The train continued chugging along the tracks when I woke up. I lifted my head off of something furry and realized I had moved sometime in the middle of the night and was resting my head on his body. I stood up, letting out a quiet whine, as I stretched, then approached the train car door to see where we were. The scenery was beginning to look familiar, which meant we were getting closer to our destination. I heard a groan behind me and knew Humphrey had also woke up, then I sensed a presence sitting down beside me.

"Morning." He said, "how'd you sleep?"

I smiled, "slept fine." I answered, "especially with knowing I finally found my brother."

"Technically, I found you." Humphrey replied with a smile.

"Ahh, details." I said, "we're almost home, by the way."

"Will Mom and Dad remember me?" Humphrey asked.

I chuckled, "of course they'll remember you, dummy." I said, "they'll recognize your scent and everything will be fine. We'll throw a party for your return, have some fun with the Omegas, then you'll most likely begin your training as an Alpha."

"I still don't think I'm cut out to be an Alpha." Humphrey replied, "I can't handle being up before dawn."

"There's not that much to do, Humphrey." I said, "all you have to do is spend so much time a day, training yourself, after you're Alpha training with Mom and Dad."

"So, no border patrol, no hunting, no nothing?" Humphrey asked.

I smiled, "only lots of exercise." I said, "unless we fall into a war, you can get up at whatever time you please. The Omegas are the ones on a timed schedule."

"How so?" Humphrey asked.

"Alphas are the warriors of the pack." I explained, "they fight in the wars and the only thing they do each day is train, train, and train, but they do occasional search and rescues."

"They don't hunt or patrol borders or scout territory?" Humphrey asked.

I shook my head, "Gammas do the hunting, while Omegas are the scouts, or messengers, and they also patrol the borders." I said, "to Luna, the Omegas are more important in warfare than the Alphas, without them, the Alphas would be useless except for defense, and not even that if they don't know their enemy."

"Huh, interesting." Humphrey replied, "what about peacekeeping?"

"Omicrons." I answered, "Betas are wolves-in-training, they either haven't decided what they'll be yet, or they're simply still in Basic Training, which teaches the pups the foundations of the pack…and a little bit of history."

"Wow." Humphrey muttered, then he suddenly perked his head up and looked at something outside, "what's that?"

I looked at where he was looking and saw a massive gathering of wolves in a field, "huh." I muttered, "we must be closer than I thought, that's the Basic Training Grounds."

"So, we're what? Five minutes away?" Humphrey asked.

"Something like that." I answered.

We sat there in silence for a few minutes, as the train continued chugging along the tracks. I noticed Humphrey seemed a little nervous, as we approached our stop, "you alright?" I asked.

Humphrey shrugged, "I don't remember my parents." He answered, "and now I'm seeing them again after nearly two years, so…I'm a little nervous."

I chuckled, "don't be." I replied, "they'll be happy just to see you again."

The train passed through a mountain range and we could see the Yosemite Pack's territory, "we're here." I said.

Humphrey started hyperventilating, "I can't do this." He muttered. I frowned, then smiled deviously, as I moved behind him.

"What are you-" Humphrey started, but didn't get to finish, because I pushed him out of the train car and he went rolling down a hill. I jumped out of the train as well, then landed at the top of the hill and slid down beside Humphrey.

Humphrey groaned, as he slowly stood up, "what was that for?" He asked, annoyed, "you could've warned me, you know."

I chuckled, "now where's the fun in that?" I asked, "come on, follow me."

I started heading towards the territory, while sensing Humphrey roll his eyes at me, then he started following me. We came up to the pack's territory and an Omega on patrol stopped us.

"Miss Sanny." He greeted me, "all went well, I trust? Where's Miss Lillian?"

"Our sister went to check back in with Aunt Pamuy before heading home." I answered, "she'll be back in a couple days."

The Omega smiled, then looked behind me at Humphrey, "it's an honor to finally meet you, Sir." He said, then lowered his head, as he placed his right paw across his chest.

Humphrey leaned towards my ear, "uhh, what is he doing?" He whispered.

I lightly chuckled, "he's showing you respect." I whispered back, "and you better return the gesture, or he's going to be standing here all day like that."

Humphrey chuckled, "that would be funny." He said.

I smiled, "yes, but it wouldn't be productive." I replied, "now, come on."

Humphrey lowered his head, then raised his right paw and placed it across his chest in a respective manner. The two of them raised their heads and lowered their paws in succession, then the Omega smiled.

"Welcome back, Sir." He said, then continued doing his patrol. After he left, Humphrey and I continued moving further into the territory towards the den area.

"Why did he call me 'Sir'?" Humphrey asked, as we walked.

"You're the next leader of the pack." I explained, "and you're old enough now to take over, so you just need to be trained."

"Well, I'm not Alpha-material." Humphrey replied, "I'm more of an…Omicron, I guess."

I chuckled, "that's fine." I said, then I noticed a look of confusion grow on Humphrey's face, "Dad's an Omicron, but he's trained as an Alpha for war."

"Huh." Humphrey muttered. I noticed we had entered the den area and many wolves were going about, doing their business. The Gammas had returned with enough caribou to feed the whole pack of a hundred for a few days, and the Omicrons were telling jokes and playing pranks.

I heard a grumble beside me and turned towards Humphrey, whose face was a deep red, "something wrong?" I asked.

The grumbling noise erupted again and I chuckled, "oh, I get it." I said.

"Yeah, I haven't eaten anything since I left Jasper." Humphrey replied.

"That's fine." I said, "go get some food, I'll go and let our parents know that…"

I trailed off, because I saw an Omega approach me, "Cody?!" I exclaimed, happily.

Cody smiled, "hey, sweetheart." He said, as he came close to me, then gave me a peck on the cheek, "how was the trip?"

"I-It was…fine." I answered, as a giddy smile crept onto my face, "what are you doing here? I thought you were supposed to be an ambassador in the East."

Cody chuckled, "I was, but your mother sent an Omega to take my place, so she could talk to me about something." He explained, "any idea what it could be?"

I shook my head, "no, I have no idea." I said, "but it's not like her to do something like that, unless it was really important though."

Cody smirked, "well, I'm sure it's nothing, San." He replied, "anyway, I'll see you later."

"Bye." I said, then Cody walked off. I noticed Humphrey was giving me an eyeball.

"What?" I asked, "why are you staring at me like that?"

Humphrey shrugged, "nothing." He answered, "you just never told me you were seeing someone."

I sighed, "that's because Cody and I's relationship is being kept a secret right now." I explained, "we're just not sure how to tell Mom about it."

"Overprotective?" Humphrey asked, then chuckled, "Kate's mother is the same, she started choking me to death when she thought I had mated with Kate…thankfully Kate cleared up that misunderstanding before I did die."

"Overprotective is a bit of an understatement." I said, "Mom would toss a wolf off of a mountain, even if she thought he only touched Lillian or I."

Humphrey chuckled, "I'm starting to be glad Eve only choked me then." He replied.

I smiled, "now go get some food before your stomach eats you." I said with a chuckle, "I'll go talk to our parents."

Humphrey nodded, then he headed to the feeding grounds, while I headed for the Alpha den. I entered the den and found Mom and Dad laying down on their sides towards the back of the den, "Mom? Dad?" I asked, "I'm back."

"Sanny!" Mom said, happily, as she rolled over onto her belly and sat up, then frowned, "did you…find your brother?"

"Carol." Dad said, as he sat up as well, "it's been two years, I don't think-"

"I found him, Mom" I answered, interrupting my father, "or, more accurately, he found me."

"What?!" Dad exclaimed, then quickly stood up, "you found Humphrey?"

I opened my mouth to speak, but I suddenly heard a grunt behind me and something heavy landed with a thud inside the den.

"What is this?!" Dad ordered, then I turned around to see Humphrey on the ground, beaten and bruised, his breathing shallow.

"He was trying to steal some of our caribou." The Alpha, who threw Humphrey into the den, said.

Dad approached Humphrey, who was still barely conscious on the den floor, "who are you?" He asked.

"He's-" I started, but Dad cut me off.

"Quiet, Sanny!" Dad snapped, "I didn't ask you!"

Humphrey groaned, "hungry." He muttered.

"Dad, he's almost passed out." I said, "you can't expect him to-"

"I said, quiet!" Dad snapped, then he turned towards the Alpha, "take him to a prison den, we'll hold a trial for him in the morning."

The Alpha bowed in respect, then dragged Humphrey, who was now unconscious, out of the den. Dad turned back towards me, "you know to never interrupt, San-", he started, but I snapped at him.

"Shut it!" I snapped, "we've waited two years to see him again…and you just ruined your chance!"

I immediately stormed out of the den before Mom or Dad could say anything.

Kate's POV

Pamuy and I returned to the Alpha den to find Lillian waiting for us with a caribou for dinner. "You didn't have to wait for us, Lilly." Pamuy said.

"I was just being courteous." Lillian replied, "and, please, don't call me 'Lilly'."

We dug into the caribou, satisfying our hunger, then dragged the remains to the back of the den for our breakfast in the morning. Lillian fell right to sleep, but I wanted to ask Pamuy another question. "Umm, Pamuy?" I asked, as she laid down, "can I ask you another question?"

"Sure." Pamuy answered, "what is it?"

"Are you married?" I asked.

Pamuy smiled, "yes." she answered, "his name's Iroh."

"Where is he?" I asked.

"He's traveling right now." Pamuy explained, "Luna wanted him to head to Jasper South to speak with her about something, beyond that…I don't know."

"I imagine you were opposed to him traveling to Jasper?" I asked.

Pamuy nodded, "I was." She said, "but Luna's order is absolute, I cannot interfere."

"Luna must have a lot of power." I replied, "how did she become like that?"

"According to rumor, legend, or whatever you want to call it…she was raised by the Red Wolves of the East as a pup." Pamuy explained, "they taught her how to unite the Gray Wolves as a species and made her into what she is today."

"They taught her battle strategy and tactics?" I asked.

"They did, according to legend, but a lot of that was Luna herself." Pamuy said, "the only ones who know are her mate, Vincent, her friend, Skye, and SKye's brother, Shadow, because they're the only ones that are still alive from Luna's time."

"But ultimately, only Luna knows for certain?" I asked.

"Yes." Pamuy answered, "Luna, Vincent, Skye, and Shadow, are also supposedly blessed by Fenrir and Tor themselves to live a long life, but that's most likely just an old folk tale, because there's no proof of that."

"Other than the fact that they're…" I started, then trailed off, "how old are they now?"

"Eight years." Pamuy answered, "I, myself, am four, and most wolves don't even live to my age, let alone twice that."

"That's insane." I replied, then yawned, "well, I'm tired, so I'm going to sleep, good night."

"Night, Kate." Pamuy said, then I rested my head on my paws and closed my eyes, falling asleep.

I woke up in an unknown den. Beside me lay a dark gray wolf, beaten and bruised. I stood up and looked at his face, then gasped. It was Humphrey and he was barely conscious, if at all.

"Oh, Fenrir." I muttered, "what happened to you?"

"K-Kate." Humphrey choked, then passed out.

"Don't worry, Humphrey." I whispered into his ear, "I'm coming."

I woke up with the sun shining in my face, then let out a whine, as I stretched, then sat up. "About time someone's awake." Lillian said.

"Sorry." I replied.

"Ah, don't be." Lillian said with a friendly smile, "if we needed you awake earlier, we would have woken you up. Come have some breakfast."

We pulled out the remains from last night, then dug in for breakfast. Once we were finished, we buried the bones, then headed out of the den.

"Lillian will take you to Yosemite." Pamuy said, while Lillian walked away from the Alpha den, "and when you find Humphrey, make sure he listens to you."

"Why would he not?" I asked, confused.

"Because any wolf, who's had his heartbroken like his was from what you described, would not want anything to do with the heartbreaker." Pamuy explained, "you can call me crazy, but I won't be surprised if Humphrey has to be forced to listen to you."

"He'll listen to me." I replied.

"That kind of optimism instills failure." Pamuy said, "but whenever you're in doubt…"

Pamuy placed a paw on my shoulder, "listen to the wind, it talks. Listen to the silence, it speaks." She said with wisdom in her voice, "but most importantly, listen to your heart, it knows."

I smiled, "thank you, Pamuy." I replied, "I'll make sure to remember that."

Pamuy smiled back, "now get going." She said, "I think Lillian's waiting for you."

I nodded in understanding, then headed in the direction Lillian went off in and indeed found her waiting for me.

"Let me guess…" She said, "Aunt Pamuy gave you some of her advice?"

"Yeah, she said-" I started, but Lillian raised her paw at me.

"Whatever she said…" Lillian said, "…was for your ears only."

"Oh." I replied.

Lillian smiled, "come on." She said, "there's a train that goes directly from Yellowstone to Yosemite, if we can catch it, we'll be in Yosemite in two days."

I nodded, "lead the way." I replied, then followed her into the forest towards the train tracks and eventually…Humphrey.

A/N: That's Chapter 5. Last chapter was the longest in the story so far, but this is even longer, Lol. Chapter 6 shouldn't take too long for me to finish.

Also, I imagine some of you are probably unhappy with me with what happened to Humphrey, but I've seen sooo many fics where Humphrey comes across his parents and it's a happy reunion like that *snaps fingers*, so I decided to change it up just a little bit.

Stay tuned for Chapter 6 - Trouble, and please Favorite, Follow, Review, and all that jazz! I like reading your feedback, even the bad ones, if any. Haven't gotten many, if any, so that's a good sign, Lol.

Till next time,

-Demonwolf102