Disclaimer: I do not own Wolf's Rain or any characters from the show/book.
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Chapter One
A light brown and white wolf looked up at the towering figure of a grand mansion on top of a cliff side overlooking Freeze City. The wolf quick became a young woman with dark brown hair when she heard the crunch of dirt and rocks. With the earth barren around the mansion, it was easy to spot the pure white wolf in the moonlight. He paused as he gave her a cold glance before walking towards the tall wrought iron fence that surrounded the mansion.
"I wouldn't do that…" she called out before the wolf tried to leap over the fence. There was a blue flash of light and a slight yip as the force field forced him back to the ground. She walked over to where he laid in the dirt and crouched down, giving him a curious look.
"What are you looking at?" Kiba snapped as he sat up, no longer a wolf but a young man.
"An idiot. Anyone should know a noble has some type of force field around their home." She gave a cheeky grin as he glared at her. "My name's Kaze, you are…?"
"Kiba," he answered as he looked up at the noble's Keep. He had tracked the scent all day, and lost it many times before it led him here. He was sure that the one he searched for, the question was: how was he going to get in?
"It's impossible to get in," Kaze continued as she too looked up at the Keep. "I've been trying for long while."
He looked over to her, suspicious but curious. "Then why are you here?"
She grew flustered, her face turning red as her eyes stayed on the Keep. "I don't know… Waiting for something, I guess." She quickly changed the subject as she glanced over to him. "What about you? What brings you to Darcia's Keep?"
"I came to find her," he whispered, pulling out a scrap of red cloth from his jeans pockets. Throughout the day, he became only more sure that he had to find the one that smelled like Lunar Flowers. She was important, precious even, and he he didn't question why he knew it, he trusted his instincts. They hadn't led him astray yet.
Kaze sniffed slightly, able to smell the Lunar Flower scent of the fabric that matched the light scent coming from the Keep. "You came to find… a flower?" She raised an eyebrow as she gave him a skeptical look. "Yep, you're an idiot alright."
He frowned, barely holding back a defensive snarl. "What do you want, if you're not here for the Lunar Flower?"
"That's top secret," she had a secretive smile as she put a finger to her lips.
Both wolves suddenly tensed when two new scents obscured the light scent of Lunar Flowers when the winds changed direction. For a second, they caught a glimpse of a large blond-brown wolf and a smaller, sleek black wolfdog running up the sloping hillside under the moonlight. A second later, the two new wolves were replaced by a messy, brown haired guy with his hands in a yellow pullover and a very beautiful dark skinned woman dressed in a black overcoat, with a striking red scarf wrapped around her neck casually walking side by side towards Kiba and Kaze.
"Guess we're not the only one's looking for the flower…" Hige started out pleasantly before he got a better look at the other young 'woman'. A large grin spread across his face, "Does your mother know you're out here, Kaze?"
"Tell her, and expect to pay the large tab you owe, Hige!" Kaze growled lightly, crossing her arms defensively as she looked at the mated pair. "Let me guess, you and Blue are here for a flower too."
"It's not just a flower," Kiba snarled slightly. "It's the Lunar Flower Maiden."
"Flower Maiden?" His words seemed to be new to both Hige and Blue, but there was a spark of recognition in their eyes. "We just decided to see if we could find out where the scent came from," Blue answered.
"She was the source of the scream the other night," Kiba said quietly, looking over at Kaze, "Don't tell me you didn't hear her."
Kaze looked away, "Of course I did. Every wolf did. But get real, a flower maiden? That's a child's story!"
"If it is her, we need to help her," Hige interrupted, surprising the others as he looked up at the tall fence. "So, anyone tried jumping the gate?"
Kaze smiled as Kiba refused to meet anyone's eyes. "There's a force field."
"That's easy enough to break." The four were surprised when another wolf in human form stepped out from behind a dead tree, his dark outfit almost melding with the shadows of the tree, leaving just his tanned skin and white hair visible. "The question is, do you want to fight all the guards just to rescue a girl?"
"You can open it?" Kaze demanded as she ran towards him, "You have to let me in!"
"Hey," his harsh command combined with the glare he gave her stopped her in her steps about a yard away from him. "I'm not going to start a fight just because you're that desperate to die."
"I need to get in there," she snarled. "You guys can do whatever you want, chase a fairytale or whatever. Just. Get. Me. In. There!"
"Me, too," Kiba said, walking over to them with a similar look of determination on his face. "I don't care about any guards, I have to find her."
Behind them, Hige and Blue shared a look before Blue nodded, causing Hige to smile back at her. "We're in too!" He shouted as the two rushed to Kiba's side. For some reason, it seemed as natural as the day he and Blue met.
"Um, what's going on?" Everyone froze as a boy appeared over the edge of the steeper side of the cliff face. Not a boy, a gentle scent told the fully-grown wolves, he was a pup, but barely.
"They're planning on committing suicide," Tsume answered him with a slight snap as he looked back at the four. "A bunch of idiots planning to take on an entire squad of a Noble's guards for something that might not even exist."
"You mean, the Lunar Flower?" Toboe smiled when Kiba, Hige, and Blue nodded, while Kaze just rolled her eyes. "Can I come too?"
"The more the merrier!" Hige invited without a second thought, but his invite didn't seem to bother any of the others.
"Your all nuts," Tsume shook his head with a sigh. "But heck, if you're willing to sacrifice yourselves, who am I to stop you?"
He stopped leaning against the dead tree, pushing past Kiba and Kaze towards the gate. He opened a hidden panel on the largest post, revealing a small screen, a holographic keyboard appearing in front of it. It only took a few seconds before the blue force field flickered before dying.
Kaze was off first, her long jacket fluttering in the wind as she jumped over the fence before landing as wolf. Despite lights suddenly coming to life inside the Keep, Kiba closely followed her, as well as Hige and Blue. Toboe, however, whined as he looked up at the tall fence.
"Scared?" Tsume half asked, half teased him.
"No!" Toboe quickly defended, gathering up his courage before leaping. He only reached the top before he half landed, half crashed against the top rail. It was a mad scramble to get enough footing to propel him over the last few feet, and land safely inside the property. Less than a second later, a dark grey wolf landed beside him. "I thought you weren't coming?"
"I got nothing else to do," Tsume said quietly before taking off after the others, Toboe close on his heels.
Inside the Keep was vastly different from the outside. Everything was richly decorated; richly painted landscapes covered the walls and expensive tile that spanned the floor. But the six wolves had little want or time to enjoy the sights. The smell of the Lunar Flower was calling to them, leading the wolves away from the main hallway, where guards were pounding on the tile floor, shouting orders to secure the mansion.
However, Kaze ignored that scent that called to her, and instead broke off from the pack suddenly running down a branching hall. Toboe and Tsume ran past Hige, who had slid to a stop once he noticed the shewolf had disappeared.
"Kaze!"He shouted down the hall. "Where are you going? She's not that way!"
"I'm not after your fairytale!" She yelled over her shoulder as she continued down the hall without slowing down. "I'm here for something else!"
"Hige!" Blue called, pausing at a corner while the other rushed her by, her blue eyes urging him to hurry. Hige looked between the two, before taking his chances and following the others. Kaze was a friend, but the pull of the Flower Maiden was stronger.
"Wolves!" The shout echoed through the hallways. A look back showed three guards closing in on him fast, messing with the guns, about ready to fire. Hige had only a few seconds to quickly dash after Blue down another hallway. They caught a glimpse of Toboe's tail heading down a dimly lit, steep set of stairs. The scent of flowers grew stronger and stronger as a dim green light enveloped the wolves as they reached the basement research laboratory.
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Kaze grinned as she reached her goal, a room where the walls were holographic screens with meaningless information streaming down. Well, meaningless to her, but for someone she knew it was very special. She pulled out the chain that hung from the small choker around her neck from beneath her shirt, which had a small heart shape pendent. Inside wasn't a picture, but a micro-SD card. A quick search of the walls revealed the master computer. She slipped the SD card into the small opening, and she didn't need to do anything before the screens turned a bright white before a loading bar appeared.
She pressed a finger to the elegant X carved on her choker. "The virus is planted."
"A strange girl is being held there." New orders came over the small speaker, inaudible to humans but loud enough for her to hear. "Bring her back."
Kaze sighed, "Yes sir," before removing her finger. It took only another second for the loading screen to disappear. She withdrew the SD card and crushed it beneath her heel before turning into her wolf form. A strange girl? It would be too much of a coincidence if there were another strange girl besides this supposed flower maiden. Now she had to pass by the guards and find the others.
This had better pay off.
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"You came," Cheza's voice, while soft and quiet, drowned out all the other noises in the dimly lit laboratory. She sat chained to a pedestal, her feet placed in a large clear bowl of water, but the five wolves could only see her smile. "This one is happy to see all of you again."
"Cheza," Kiba whispered, memories flooding his and the others' minds. A crash above broke the spell over the wolves. He rushed forward, leaping up to snap the golden chain attached to the collar around her neck. As he gnawed on the hard metal, Tsume and Toboe attacked the chains on her right leg and arm, while Blue and Hige worked together on the chains that bound her left side. With five simultaneous snaps, the Flower Maiden was free. Despite the threat of guards spilling down the staircase any moment, Cheza took the time to caress each wolf, running her fingers through their thick fur, opening up a flood of memories and emotions. She kept smiling peacefully until she faced Kiba, she paused for a moment before almost grinning as she fell to her knees and pressed her face in his shoulder, wrapping her arms around his neck.
"This one's missed you," she whispered as she buried her face in his fur. All too soon, the moment was broken as boots pounded down the stairs.
"Let's get out of here!" Tsume shouted. With the guards rushing down the staircase after them, the only way they could go was deeper into the laboratory. It was almost pitch black, but that worked towards their advantage. They could hear the guards cursing and grumble as they stumbled and crashed over different machinery, even with their special helmets and the small spotlights on their rifles, it was still almost impossible to keep track of the five wolves that blended into the shadows, and flower maiden that under no circumstances was to be injured.
"Hige!" Kaze appeared out of the darkness, holding open a door that blended into the shadows of the walls. She froze as her eyes locked onto to Cheza's, the flower maiden not hesitating to smile at the new wolf, and brushing her fingers across Kaze's arm as she passed, following her wolves through the new corridor. Kaze shook her head, trying to clear her thoughts as she closed the door and flipped the deadbolt lock. There was no such thing as a Flower Maiden, the girl just happened to smell like Lunar Flowers, and had some strange connection to wolves. Even if she wasn't a wolf, or a human…
The hall seemed to be for servants, it was narrow enough that the wolves had to run in single file, and its wall were bleak and barren, not at all like the painted walls in the main hallway. After a few meters, the hall turned into another set of steep stairs, with a door at the top. "You'll want to take a right and head towards a servants' entrance near the back," Kaze said as Blue cautiously opened the door.
"How do you know?" Kiba asked suspiciously.
"I've done a lot of research," Kaze answered with little hesitation. "I told you, I've been trying to get in here for a long time. I have the blueprints for Darcia's Keep practically memorized."
The hallway was once again brightly decorated and lit, which bothered the wolves since it left little place to hide. They could hear and smell the guards all around them, but for some reason, be it luck or sheer coincidence they didn't cross paths. Everything seemed to be the wolves' favor as they followed Kaze's directions.
Until they reached the door. The large black wolf standing at door growled, it's one blue and one yellow eye glaring at the pack. "Cheza's mine."
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Author's notes: Okay, for starters… this chapter totally stinks. I realize I could have done a much better job on it, and I tried to but action scenes are not my forte. If anyone wants to go ahead and add to it, go ahead! (Not that I expect anyone to…)
Note number two: Yes, I use the guys' names, but no, they don't know what each other's names are. Well, except Hige, Blue, and Kaze. And that's explained later.
Number three: Ah, the dreaded OC. Hopefully I won't lose any readers over that. I tried writing the plot without Kaze in there… and I couldn't manage it the way I wanted. So unfortunately, she's staying. But, to warn you guys, more OCs are going to pop up. This is Paradise, or sorta, where there are a lot more wolves running around, more friendly than the ones in the anime or manga. Kaze will be the only one that frequently interacts with the guys and gals (Blue and Cheza).