Chapter 3
Fyra brings me to school the following day. Pups were tumbling about in the massive clearing. Some chatted together in small groups. I had always dreamed of coming to school. But now that I was here, I began to feel a little nervous.
"Well," says Fyra, "a new school. A new start."
"Yep," I reply, trying my best to sound braver than I felt.
"You know what to do," Fyra says, looking me straight in the eyes. "Don't draw attention to yourself. You're smarter, stronger, and faster than all of these pups."
"I'll be like a shadow," I say.
"What do you do if danger is near, and you don't know whether I've been captured or killed?"
"Run as fast as I can, hide, and, if needed, fight."
"That's right," Fyra says.
Then she sighs.
"And," she adds, "be on the watch for signs. Your Flames should be coming any day now. If anything happens, send for me via thought-speak."
She fixed me with a stern gaze.
"Any day Flame," she says seriously, "if you feel hot for no reason whatsoever, if you start glowing, or if smoke starts drifting from your fur, anything all, you send me a message immediately. Got it?"
"I'll be thinking about you at all times," I say.
Fyra smiles and nuzzles me.
"I'll be waiting right here for you at the end of the day," she says. "Go get 'em my little Fireclaw."
I watch her leave before I head into the clearing to join the mass of pups.
Everyone seemed to be in their own little group, so I immediately stood out as an outsider.
I was thinking about what I should do, when a sudden female voice called out, "Hello there!"
I turned to find a smiling, grey-furred pup standing behind me.
"I don't think I've seen you around here before," she says. "You must be new here. My name's Artemis. What's yours?"
"Flame," I replied.
"Nice to meet you Flame," Artemis says. "Where are you from?"
"Hou-," I started to say, but then I caught myself before the word came out. "Santa Barbara, California."
"Wow!" Artemis exclaimed. "That's a long way away!"
"Hi Artemis!" two voices called out.
A tan colored pup and a cream colored pup approached us.
"Hey Kayden! Hey Nuka!" Artemis said cheerfully.
"How're you doing Art?" Nuka asks. "Not still nervous, are you?"
"A little bit," Artemis replied.
"And who's this?" Kayden asked, nodding at me.
"Flame," Artemis said to me. "These are my friends, Kayden and Nuka."
"Nice to meet you both," I say.
"Likewise," says Nuka.
"We were just coming to find you," Kayden said to Artemis. "Class is about to start soon. We're going to be late if we don't hurry."
"Yipes!" Artemis cried. "We better get going then!"
As we headed off, something shoved me from behind, causing me to stagger a bit. Glancing back, I noticed a white-furred wolf glaring at me. Kayden noticed.
"I guess I should fill you in," he whispered to me as we walked. "That's Bolt. He's been a massive jerk to most pups around here. Word is he had a thing for Artemis, but she wanted nothing to do with him."
We soon enter a cave filled with other pups. I took a seat near Artemis, Kayden, and Nuka in the middle row. I was quite happy when Blythe happened to walk in. She smiled at me when she came by our group.
"You know Blythe?" Artemis asks.
"Yeah," I reply, "she greeted me and my mom when we came though here."
"Good morning everyone," Blythe said to the pups. "Before we begin, I have a special announcement. Today, we have a new member among us. Flame, why don't you come up here and introduce yourself to everyone?"
I get up from my seat and start making my way up to the front. I could feel the eyes of everyone on me. I felt a little nervous…which probably explained why I felt I little warm.
As I was passing the second row, I suddenly stumbled over something. Snickers filled the room. Whirling around, I saw that pup, Bolt, tuck his leg back in. I felt more than warm now. I felt hot. I felt mad.
I marched over to him and growled.
"Is there something you want?" I snarled.
"I don't know what you're talking about," he said.
"You shoved me outside, and now you just tripped me," I reply. "I thought you wanted something from me."
Bolt holds my gaze for a few moments. I stare right back at him. I will not look away.
Finally, Bolt sighs and looks away.
"I thought so," I growl.
It was only then that I registered that the entire room had fallen silent. I get up to the front of the room and find that almost every pup was looking at me with shock. I spotted Kayden, Nuka, and Artemis staring at me with their mouths open.
"Hello," I say. "My name is Flame. I come from Santa Barbara. My mother and I were passing through here when Miss Blythe found us and brought us here. I hope to make many friends here. Thank you."
"Thank you Flame," says Blythe. "You may sit down."
I walk slowly back to my spot. I couldn't understand why I was feeling so warm and dizzy.
I managed to sit back down and tried to focus on Blythe. But I was feeling so dizzy, it was rather hard to concentrate. Heck even my paws felt like they were burning.
My paws…
By instinct, I glanced at my front paws…and a gasp caught in my throat.
My front paws were faintly glowing, heat coming off of them.
My first thought was that something had happened to one of the others. But what? If I was still alive, then one of the others couldn't have died. We couldn't be killed out of order. But could something else have happened to one of them?
My paws felt hotter and hotter. Then it dawned on me.
My Flames must be appearing.
I tucked my paws close to my body, praying nobody saw anything. I just had to make to the end of class. I thought about Fyra.
Mom! I thought. Come… I had been trying to say, 'Come get me,' but I was feeling so dizzy, I couldn't concentrate enough to get the full message out. I prayed she would understand.
I watched the clock nervously, counting the seconds before class ended. It felt like an eternity.
When Blythe finally dismissed us, I jumped up and staggered out the door. My head was swimming now and I could hardly think straight. My paws felt like somebody was sticking hot needles into them.
As I was heading down the clearing, I spotted Bolt leaning up against a tree. A wide smirk crossed his face when he spotted me.
"What's up tough guy?" he sneered, shoving me backward.
Normally, I'd be too heavy for him to budge. But I was feeling so dizzy, I lost my balance and staggered backward.
"Leave him alone!" a familiar voice snapped.
I glanced to my right to see Artemis standing in front of Bolt with an angry expression on her face. Kayden and Nuka were on either side of her.
"You can't go for one second without picking on a newcomer, can you?" Kayden snapped.
"Oh, chill out," Bolt grumbled. "We're just horsing around."
"No, you're not," Nuka growled. "You're being a massive jerk!"
Bolt opened his mouth again, but he could tell he was clearly outnumbered.
"This isn't over," he snarled, before he walked off.
Artemis came over to me and pulled me to my paws. When her paws touched mine, I felt a blast of pain in them. I pulled back.
"Flame?" she asked. "Are you alright?"
My only response was a shake of my head. I turned and ran off down the clearing, passing bewildered pups all around me. I could tell I looked like a coward for running from Bolt, but I didn't care. I'd deal with him later.
I ran until I came upon an empty cave that looked dark. I ducked into that cave and took refuge behind a large rock that lay near the entrance. I glanced at my paws. The left one was glowing brightly and smoking. Heat radiated from it. The right one glowed faintly and less smoke arose from it.
I let out a low whimper. So much for staying here.
I heard the sounds of scuffling near the cave entrance. The sound of pawsteps coming near. I closed my eyes, willing whoever it was to please go away.
What would they do if they discovered my paws glowing? We'd definitely have to move again that was for sure.
The steps drew closer to my hiding spot. I held my breath, waiting for the inevitable.
And then, I let out a sigh of relief when I heard the sound of the one voice that I wanted to hear the most.
"Flame? Are you in there? Come on out dear. It's Mommy."