Disclaimer: I don't own Wolf's Rain or any of its characters.
Warning: shounen-ai.
Author's Note: There is a lot of explaining of the social norms of a normal wolf pack. And to the wolf hierarchy in larger packs they have alpha and beta (and a separate system for females) etc. although they don't label anyone else besides the alpha and beta.
This chapter deals a lot with Toboe's growing strength. Happy reading!
Na
Rakuen Where are You?
Chaputa-go
The sun was just reaching the beginning of its climb into the sweltering heat of the day when Blue spoke; prior to this moment everyone had been walking in a comfortable silence as warming sand sunk beneath their paws and Cheza's feet, "Toboe you did the best acting out of all of us yesterday, where did you learn to do all that, you were so adorably coy."
"Arigatou Blue, I actually learned it in school, I was in the beginning of the year play. My character was much the same as I needed to act last night. The director told me to imagine the principle in his underwear, and I blushed every time," the brown wolf laughed.
Reddish-amber eyes glanced at the youngest wolf, "Maybe I should have gone to school, like my neighbor in that city suggested."
"Don't think too much on it Hige, even with all our mess ups we all did great fooling the hunters. Oh and sorry Tsume, Toboe about that boyfriend thing," added the onyx wolf.
Hige chuckled, "You shouldn't apologize if it wasn't for those two than the boss guy would have never gotten nervous enough to leave."
"I believe he was more nervous about the new knowledge that his subordinates were gay, not to mention the twins thought that what the woman assumed was a child and a pedophile kissing was hot," added in Kiba quietly.
"You got to admit Kiba, that kiss was hot," replied Hige when he received a few sound glares he continued, "What? Come on I even let go of Blue so we could watch, and it wasn't a disappointment."
Gold eyes glared at the light-brown wolf, "Shut up Chubby. We escaped the only way we could, and we did well, especially Toboe. Now this conversation is over."
Silence once more descended upon the group. There way the occasional comment or light conversation between reddish-amber eyes and ice blue orbs. The girl that smelled of hana no tsuki pointed out various things like a bird flying overhead or a snake slithering in the hot sand.
When the sun reached its zenith Kiba pushed Cheza to walk alongside Toboe so she could retrieve some water and a granola bar without the group having to stop. The ever happy red eyes of the old hana no tsuki maiden questioned the youngest wolf on his health and thanked him sincerely for carrying her backpack.
Toboe nodded his head in ascent, for at the moment he was feeling the tingling of dehydration settling into his body. The discomfort of the half full stomach that he was never used to, since before he was starving with the rest of the pack, and until recently he was eating twice a day.
Even though his body was not enjoying the affects of the desert trek, he was not lagging behind; he kept his pace with Tsume, even with the backpack strapped to his back. The dusty wolf was once more very proud of himself and he wanted to tell the others, but he didn't want to hear the snide remarks from the sand colored wolf, and so his mouth stayed shut.
As the last rays of the sun slipped behind a nearby dune painting the yellow sand a fiery red, the wolves all lay in the cooling sand waiting for the illustrious beauty of their kami to make her slow trek across the dark sky. And even if it was the first night they did not curl together to preserve heat, they all knew that this desert was not as hot as the last one they traveled through. This desert was surrounded by lush green trees that helped to cool the area down. But no matter where one was, in the heat of the day in any open area was a hazard to one's health.
The next morning once the moon had left the sky to her brother the sun, the wolves and their alpha female rose to continue the desert trek. That morning Tsume almost offered to take the pack from Howling, but than decided against it, but instead he did not add any weight to the pack. In fact since Cheza ate and drank some of the pack's contents it was becoming lighter.
Traveling in silence for a good portion of the day Toboe seemed fine until the sun became almost unbearable on his dark fur. He had a fleeting thought that he was glad that he didn't have Blue's black coat. The higher the sun rose the more that the brown wolf would fall behind the stormy wolf, once he realized this he would take a few long steps to be even with Tsume once more.
After one particular time when the young wolf could not find the strength to speed up and catch up with his mentor, the sandy wolf trotted up next to him, "Hey Runt, you should give up that backpack before you drag us all behind."
The tone of Hige's voice was that of teasing, and so the youngest and smallest of the pack halted his footfalls growling. When the reddish-amber eyes of the joking wolf laughed Toboe snapped his maul dangerously close to Hige's neck.
The tan wolf jumped back a few paces before preparing to counter the first advances of a fight, between the earthy hues. Before either could attack let alone take another step, grey obscured their vision of each other.
"Toboe is mine," Claw snarled glaring into reddish-amber orbs, "you have no right to tease him Chubby and if you do it one more time I will not stop the ensuing fight, and I know he'll come out the victor."
Noticing the glare from their pack leader the tan wolf stepped down from the fight and watched as the white wolf and the maiden turned to leave, followed by the low growling scarred wolf. Curling back his lips in a final snarl Toboe turned with new vigor to walk beside Tsume.
It wasn't long until the adrenaline rushing through the amber eyed wolf's blood dissipated. His mentor could see that in a few steps the younger of the two would be a step behind. He had had no doubt that at this point Toboe would have seriously hurt Hige if they had fought, although a good portion would be credited to Hige underestimating the runt.
But right now he wanted to help Toboe keep pace with the backpack, and the only thing he could think of would be to distract the young wolf from his fatigue, "Toboe what was that lady that cared for you like?" And so Tsume made in his eyes one of the most horrendous self-sacrifices, making idol chit-chat.
Honey orbs peered into the questioning gold before slowly answering, "Well before Granny was a kind and kept me as a pet, she fed me well and gave those bangles. I loved her as a mother, I really never even thought about the fact that I was a wolf, because I was happy.
"And then now or before the fire at least I was her pseudo-son or –grandson perhaps. She would spend the time I was at school watching cooking shows and cleaning the house, there was always a fresh baked good made and waiting for my return. When I got home, she would help me with my school work. And on weekends we would go to the park or the museum, something different every weekend."
"She sounds… nice," commented the grey wolf.
"She was but I killed her twice," whimpered Howling.
"Now I doubt that Toboe."
The young wolf shook his head, "I got really excited one day and brought my front paws to her shoulders she lost her balance and when she fell she died. And then the second time she had left the stove on after baking the cookies I requested and the apartment burned down."
"They were accidents, besides if neither of those events had occurred we would have never met, or met again," replied Tsume.
Toboe smiled and than after a moment asked, "How about your human gangs you led?"
The day continued as such for the red dusty wolf and the elder storm colored wolf the easy conversation that filled the air between them. All thoughts of hunger and fatigue were forgotten although the group as a whole seemed to slow a bit. Not long after the sun began its decent in the heavens were the wolves surrounded by cooler air and the sweet smell of decaying logs and leaves; they had made it to the other side of the desert.
A bit before dusk the group found a spring fed pond and decided to rest there for awhile before continuing on, everyone automatically retrieving drinks from the cool pool. Thoughts of the up coming hunt were on everyone's mind when Toboe spoke up, "Can I hunt alone tonight for the pack Tsume?" there was a pregnant pause where Tsume looked at Kiba for his thoughts, Toboe continued, "if I am not back by the time the sun sets than I forfeit."
Fang nodded his ascent, followed by Tsume, Hige growled, and Cheza smiled, "This one wishes Toboe much luck."
The reddish-brown wolf stood from his spot by the pond and than slunk into the forest heading up stream. Moving silently and quickly Toboe found many of the smaller game, rabbits and pheasants. Once he was even able to get within claws reach of a grey-brown rabbit, but deciding that he was not in the mood for the fluffy creature, so he continued on.
In the flowing water he could see the fish that were flowing with the current towards the young ookami's pack. Not knowing exactly the best method for fish catching nor the number of fish it would take to feed a pack of six, he thought to look for other prey. Howling also came across the signs of other animals, like deer and bear but no signs of the actual animal.
Deciding that perhaps fish was his best option, Toboe watched the river as he came across a narrow part in the river that was also very shallow. Deciding that this would be a good fish catching area the brown wolf began to edge closer to the water. Concentrating on the current and the few fish that floated by, a sudden splash startled the young brown wolf.
On the other side of the stream was a small brown bear, larger than Toboe but most likely no older than the young wolf. He was surprised to say the least and sniffed the air casually. The scent of the bear was being masked by the rushing water, and the same was working for the bear.
Reassessing the situation, Toboe decided to try bear meat. Leaping across the river, Toboe sunk his teeth at the back of the brown bear's neck, twisting his body so that he was facing the same direction.
Teeth tore through hide and muscle, blood rushed into the wolf's maul. The bear roared, jeering on his hind legs before plummeting forward successfully dislodging the wolf and hurling him in the near by stream.
The young wolf yelped when the air was forced from his lungs on the impact of the rock with his left side. The bear roared again going back on its hind legs watching the soaking wet wolf stand slowly in the shallow water.
The reddish-brown wolf moved forward a bit and the bear pawed the air, falling forward on three legs the bear used its fourth paw to swipe at Toboe. Crouching low the young wolf looked for an opening in the bear's defense. He saw that the raised paw was helpless to defend the side it belonged to.
Backing up a few paces; Toboe than surged forward towards the dangerous side of the bear. A second before the bear's claw made contact he switched his trajectory and moved towards the opposite shoulder. The claw grazed the brown tail the same time the bloodied maul latched onto the right jugular.
Using his momentum Howling was able to propel himself into the side of the bear, bringing his hind legs over the bear's back. With a few good grating shakes of his head and the clenching of his jaw the bear fell towards the wolf onto his side.
Letting ago of the neck to assess the nearly dead prey before him, Toboe watched the bear pull weakly to his feet. Seeing the now exposed left jugular, the dusty wolf moved forward to sink his teeth in once more, but the bear fell away from the teeth and tumbled into the flowing water. Muzzle completely covered by the cold water the bear slowly died watching the snarling wolf guard the death of his kill.
Walking into the river Toboe grabbed the front paw of the bear and began to tug at it in attempts to remove it from the river and return to his pack. When the bear did not budge Toboe looked around at the pink and orange sky, he still had plenty of time. Bending his head once more he tugged on the bear only to move in to the river bank.
With a frustrated growl, Howling sat on his haunches and let out a howl, the message clearly said, "Help!" For a moment the young wolf felt miss leading, but he did need help bring the bear back.
Tsume's head shot up when he heard the distant howl; "Toboe!" the grey wolf was swiftly to his feet and out of the clearing. Kiba and Blue stopped their fire preparations and the remaining three wolves and the maiden dashed into the forest.
"Toboe! Are you all right?" asked Claw once he saw the younger wolf.
Watching the others skid to a stop behind the grey wolf, the brown head lowered, "Gomennasai onegai I didn't mean to worry you I just need help dragging the bear out of the river and back to you guys."
"You killed a bear?" asked Blue, looking at the brown form in the river.
"Actually I think he drowned," replied Toboe, "although I did inflict the wounds that made the bear fall into the river."
Fang smiled, "It was your kill; you just used your resources wisely." With those words the white wolf, tan wolf, and black wolf walked into the river to pull out their meal.
Claw walked up to his young charge and looked him over, "You're wounded."
"Yes when I was thrown against a rock, and when the bear claw caught my tail. Although the second wound barely hurts. I cleaned them off myself while I was waiting for you," said the honey-amber eyes, gold nodded in return.
The bear now lay on dry land the white wolf looked at the youngest, "It is your kill, so where will the meat go?"
"Cheza, remove her portion first, and than you guys can eat before me," replied Toboe lying on the ground.
"A humble wolf, now that is an oddity," commented Hige. The meat was soon divvied up between the wolves, the red-eyed girl's portion was set aside since her pack and the matches were left by the pool. Once everyone had eaten their fill, they packed to continue their journey. It was decided that they would travel like humans just in case the hunters had heard Toboe's howl.
Under the moon's gentle guidance the ragtag group continued on their search for Rakuen. In the silence of the night Toboe could allow his thoughts to wander, as well as his nose. Smelling a new scent, the brown wolf turned towards the source. Looking back at the light brown haired wolf his blue human eyes calm and an arm wrapped around his midnight mate.
Honey eyes turned back towards his mentor about to speak the younger wolf decided against asking the stormy wolf for surely he was not really smelling whatever it was that he smelled at the moment. Turning back to the objects of his questions the amber eyes scanned the form of the tall dark haired female, searching for an infection or anything that would be the cause for the new scent.
Tsume had noticed the wondering eye of his young charge, and when his golden orbs followed the line of sight of the amber eyes he found they were watching and taking in all of Blue. He frowned for a moment but decided to address the issue, dropping his voice so only the wolf beside him would hear he said, "Have you found the female body attractive, Toboe?"
Wide golden-brown eyes turned to the older wolf a blush staining his cheeks, "I… I… ano…" he decided first he would remove the elders thoughts that he found Blue attractive before he informed him of the scent, "I… iie I do not find Blue attractive. Females seem too soft and fragile; I prefer a sense of stability from a future mate. I was actually looking at Blue for any wounds since there is this odd new scent coming from her, and I don't know what it is."
Gold eyes stared into the eyes of the younger wolf before his footfalls halted, he then sniffed the air and whirled on the blue-eyed female and her mate, "You're pregnant!"
Everyone soon stopped walking Kiba rushed to stand next to Tsume also sniffing the air before growling, "We had agreed that a litter would be a bad thing to have on this journey and what do you do Hige you get Blue pregnant"!
"So that scent is their pups?" asked Toboe.
"Yes, Toboe within the first week the scent change is so subtle that no one notices after the first week though the pup or pups have a pronounced scent similar but unique to their parents," answered the scared wolf.
"Shit so it is true," murmured Hige.
Four sets of eyes turned on the tan wolf surprised, "What do you mean Chubby?"!
Reddish-amber eyes looked down at the ground, "I… I'm just not ready for this, o-ke? I can't do this I know nothing of taking care of others. I can't father pups!" The tan wolf was pacing back and forth in a short line, wringing the sleeves of his sweatshirt.
The pale human form of the white wolf surged forward slamming the other light brown haired figure against a nearby tree. Before Hige could react Fang pressed his lips against the elder wolf's lips. Hige in shock just stood their slack jawed as his leader nibbled on his lower lip before swiping his tongue through the shocked mouth. After a moment Kiba tried to coax the earthy wolf to join his dance. And when he got no response he pulled away.
Blue eyes of Fang looked at the sandy wolf, "Remember Hige, we stopped seeking each other out for this. So you could be with Blue and sire pups. You were ready that day when I tried to kiss you and you said kissing a guy was disgusting, but you didn't mind the other things, and than afterwards you said you were going to mate Blue the second you came face to face with her again."
"Tsume I don't understand what is going on," stated Toboe in a quiet voice looking up at the grey wolf with large innocent eyes.
"Kiba just told Chubby to grow a fucking backbone," replied the leather clad figure crossing his arms and smirking.
Toboe fidgeted for a moment, his blush turning a darker shade of crimson before stuttering, "Ano… but aren't Hige and Blue mated?"
"Sometimes a rutting partner is sought," explained the eldest, "See females only want to have sex when they are in heat which happens somewhere between January to April. During these months a male enters his rutting period since he wants to be ready for his mate. In larger packs only the alpha male and female can mate since the pack can only support one litter each year. And this is where a rutting partner comes in, for those who aren't allowed to mate that season. Kiba and Hige had such a relationship, and obviously it continued in this world although it seems Hige did not enjoy all the human male intimacies. Kiba exploited this fact to force Chubby to except the fact that his mate is pregnant."
"But we are a small pack," commented an irate Blue.
Tsume growled, "I have already said we are a rag-tag pack nothing about this is normal! So we met under normal circumstances we were even looking for our own territory, albeit Rakuen, but still. Just look around our alpha female is a human, and the gammas were allowed to mate! I bet I even know the next question, 'why have I stayed out of this whole thing' simple I am only interested in a life mate and not physical pleasure, although part of me thinks I will never find him."
There was a pregnant pause where Kiba returned to Cheza's side. He was feeling guilty. Tsume's whole speech which was mostly for Toboe's benefit, made Kiba see the slighted truth behind his pack. But than again why would he have impeded the mating of Hige and Blue; when he wasn't even sure that he could procure a litter through Cheza. But that didn't mean that he would not make the pink haired girl his life mate after their journey.
Turning to the midnight female, arms crossed her chest and a glare directed at her life mate, "Blue perhaps you should refrain from looking human until you've had the litter, who knows what effect the body change will have."
Immediately blue eyes went wide with worry and the group was instantly looking at the black form of the half-wolf, half-dog. This halted any comments or arguments that were to ensue. The pack now had a pregnant female; the need to find a territory, so she could have her pups in peace, was heightened."
Author's Note: All reviews are welcome.
Na