Chapter 2: All a Lie (written on November 20th, 2018)

The pack leader's den was bleak and dreary. The Alpha, Hutch, sat next to his dying chief. His tear-drenched eyes were closed while he clenched his lips. Eve, who lay closely as one could to the male wolf, quivered at the sight of her mate's second-in-command attempting to hold back his weeping. She made sure Winston was covered nose to tail in the most comfortable pelts. Any way to make his final moments peaceful and smooth was worth it to her.

The last few moons had been a nightmare. Ever since Lilly's disappearance, he had fallen into a depression that consumed his life. Lilly was his precious Omega daughter. While Kate was his serious take-charge side, Lilly was his soft playful side. He simply couldn't function knowing she had run off with the Eastern wolf, Garth. Despite reports indicating Garth and his daughter had fallen in love, the fact that she never said goodbye or anything led Winston to believe she was kidnapped. It didn't seem normal for her to disappear, especially with a wolf from another pack. Nonetheless, without her, Winston would spend many moons being constantly stressed which eventually took a toll on his health. Numerous searches. The same answer: "Nowhere to be seen or smelled." He would go weeks stuck in his den, sometimes not eating. His presence in the pack became so dull and almost non-existent that some younger wolves forgot they had a pack leader. In time, a sickness caught up to him, destined to finally end his long reign. Eve was saddened by Lilly too, but she didn't want her mate to go this way. Not this way. It wasn't right for one of the most revered wolves in the Valley.

But by the end of the morning, Winston died a broken wolf surrounded by his closest friends and family, including Kate and Humphrey. The Alpha couple decided to head back home to their young to deliver the news, not just that Winston had passed away, but that their son, Rocky, would succeed him when he graduates Alpha School in the spring. The two pups had grown up so fast, and it was almost that time when they will be ready to be on their own.

When Kate and Humphrey had made it to their den, neither of their two offspring were present, but it was optimal since the couple wanted some time to process what was happening before them.

"I can't believe this is it," said Kate. "It doesn't feel real, but our lives are gonna completely change."

"Tell me about it. And we've been through a lot of shit."

"I just don't know how we're gonna tell the pups. We never really told them how important they are to the pack."

"What makes everyone so sure they are super important?" asked Humphrey. "There isn't anyone else? Why can't they live normal lives?"

"This is serious, honey. Rocky has Winston's blood. He's the only heir whether we like it or not. I'm a she-wolf. It can't be me. Rocky will be the next pack leader, and his sister will be the highest-ranking Omega."

Meanwhile, on a grassy hill nearby, Rocky and his sister, Jenny, were playing tag together by themselves. They ran in circles and leaped in the air trying to touch each other. Although Rocky was sluggish and hard-nosed, he had a tender side that could work with Jenny unceasingly. Rocky had grown a thick, glossy light grey coat and Jenny's white fur shined greater than ever in the plentiful snow. They laughed and joked together as they tumbled through the grass and daisies. Both were oblivious to the greater roles they were about to inherit.

"Tag! You're it!" yelled Jenny.

"Oh, no, you don't!" he replied, chuckling. He pounced a great distance with his jaws open wide. It caught her by surprise that she shrieked out of legitimate terror.

"Owww!"

"Ha! Gotcha', my prey!" Rocky clamped his mouth tightly until Jenny pushed him off.

"Hey, be careful! You were biting my neck!" she barked. She rubbed the area with her paws and saw blood stain them. "Oh, crap, I'm bleeding!" She ran to the nearest pond to check herself out. Luckily, the bites were not life-threatening. "Seriously, Rocky, you gotta chill next time! You're giving me a heart attack over here." Her brother felt ashamed and appalled at what happened.

"Oh, my gosh! I'm so sorry! I guess I got carried away."

"No kidding. It's okay, bro. Come on. It's probably time to go home anyway. I'd like to be there before they come."

"I'm so glad my substitute instructor, Samuel, gave us the day off today. How's Omega School?"

"What Omega School?"

"What?" he replied, confused.

"Exactly." Jenny nodded.

The two wolves jogged their way to their home, which was not far. The area had bigger foliage and vines would hang across the path that led straight to the den. The den itself jutted out of a stony hill covered in pleasing varieties of flowers. As the adolescents moved down the path they could see their parents having a loud conversation.

"Ughhh, this is stupid. If there's anything I regret by turning into an Alpha, it's having to abide by the stupid rules."

"It isn't in our right to make them. It's like the rule against Alphas mating with Omegas. We can't break thousands of years of tradition."

"But Kate, if it wasn't for the 'traditions,' the whole thing with the Northern Pack would've never happened, I wouldn't have had to flip ranks, and we would've had the pups we were supposed to have!"

Kate gasped at what her mate just uttered.

"Humphrey! Don't you dare talk like that! I love you, but you gotta understand that life doesn't always work as we want it to. Yes, things didn't go our way, but we got two beautiful pups, one of which is gonna be pack leader! It's different, but it should be an honor! In my father's death a rebirth. How is all this not enough for you?"

"They were beautiful pups... no doubt... but they aren't ours. They're yours. They look nothing like me. I see pieces of you in them, but no me... and on top of that, even though they are your blood they also have the blood of a disgusting criminal. You want that to be in the pack leader?"

"No... but, like I said, we don't have a choice. Besides, you, me, Matt, and my mom are the only ones who know what happened. We don't have to tell anybody."

"Tell what?!" yelled Rocky. Kate and Humphrey jumped.

"Oh, Rocky, it's just you."

"Of course, it's me! What the heck?! Grandpa Winston's dead?! I'm gonna be the pack leader?! I'M NOT YOUR SON?!"

"Hun, it's not what it looks like," said Kate.

"No, don't backtrack! We heard enough!" yelled Jenny.

"Oh, gosh... oh, gosh..." Humphrey held his head with his paws. This was the last thing he wanted to deal with.

Shocked beyond belief, Rocky sat down against the den wall. Jenny came to comfort him, but he was far from comforting. He realized in a very short amount of time that his whole life was a lie. The wolf he once played with and hugged was not his father. He began to question what fatherhood even was.

"Rocky," Kate cooed. "I know everything that you thought was forwards is backwards... but let me just say we can talk about it."

"There's nothing to fucking talk about!"

"Language," Jenny whispered.

"NO! NO! As Dad said—OH, I'M SORRY—HUMPHREY... basically said, I don't even belong here! He's right! I'm half-Western! How could I be pack leader?! Hell, I'm trespassing in my own home! Sorry for encroaching!" Rocky stormed out the den.

"Son, wait!" said Kate. "What have we done..."

"Just let him go," Humphrey said quietly while trying to suppress his guilt. "He needs time for his mind to regroup." Kate briefly growled at her mate.

"You are not the wolf that I married..."

"I'm sorry, Kate... We should've had a plan to tell them."

"Should've told us from the beginning," Jenny muttered out of her parents' earshot. She knew more than anyone that her brother was hurting tremendously. The truth was more painful than the large puncture wound on her neck. For a minute, she even forgot she had it. The new world she entered was alien, and she was unsure to trust it. All four wolves knew nothing would be the same again. Nothing.