Summary: When a wolfos mother adopts a keaton pup, controversy arises in the pack. What happens when the keaton later learns of his hidden past? And what happens when he stumbles upon a Kokiri child in the forest? How will all of this affect his future?
Rating: T; the Kokiri and wolfos are going to start getting ugly to each other. Swearing and a little more violence, to be exact.
Flames? No flames, please, although a bit of constructive criticism is nice. But, by all means, am I not refusing the offer of a friendly review! Don't be shy in reviewing; I won't bite!

Disclaimer: I do not own the Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, the Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask, or characters of these games including Link, the Kokiri, keatons, wolfos, Hyrule, Termina, et cetera. This story has been written for the fun of it, not for the sake of money.
I do, however, "own" all the identities and personas of the characters such as Trey, Shadow, White Foot, Twiggy, Blaze, et cetera.

Author's Notes: No excuse can make up for my absence, unfortunately, so I'll just apologize again to you.
This chapter is about one-thousand words longer (it doesn't matter that much though) than the usual chapters I write, but I had to stop due to over-excessive content. In other words, I was planning on putting a lot more than what I wrote here, but if I went ahead and put all those scenes in, the word-count would be way too much. I'm trying to keep a fairly constant rate of content for each chapter, so I thought it would be appropriate to move all those scenes to the next chapter. The rating for this story has gone up a point because I'll be swearing more in the story, and more violence will be added probably.
Oh man, another climatical point is coming up really soon in the story (the one scene I was going to add in this chapter, but had to move it) and I'm getting so excited about it! Hehe…But I can't give anything away, so no asking me, okay? x3

Oh yes, one last thing: since posting review-responses in stories is not allowed anymore, I will not respond to your reviews. However, I do register each and every one in my mind, and am very grateful for your consideration!

-oOoOo-

Wolfos in Sheep's Clothing
-
Chapter Eight: Prepare Yourselves

-oOoOo-

Darkness surrounded the two friends as they stepped through the log tunnel, making Trey feel a little uncomfortable. He shivered a bit for some reason, as if fearing that a monster would spontaneously pop out from the shadows, threatening to eat him. However, Link's aura was the opposite; confident, calm, and competent. The keaton stepped closer to the Kokiri, knowing that he would be alright with his friend, despite what his feelings were. The echoing, dark abyss of the tunnel was seemingly never-ending, and for a brief moment, Trey wondered if they should turn back, but when a thin ray of light was visible at the other end of the log, he realized with a relieved sigh that they were going to be alright.

The thought of what lay beyond the end of the tunnel plagued the keaton's mind for a second as he and the Kokiri stepped ever closer to the streaming, dappled light. Would the Village be a place of horror, full of bloodthirsty Kokiri, or would these elusive creatures be of friendly nature, peaceful and loving? If they were anything like Link, then surely they would be jubilant, worriless creatures. Somewhere in the back of his mind played a fantasy-like image of what the Village would be like—dead plants, withering crops, skeleton like inhabitants—but Trey also realized that this was just imagination, and if this place was anything like what he dreamed of, then Link would be something totally different than what he was.

They reached the end of the tunnel, and Trey shook the thoughts from his mind, preparing himself for anything; attack, embrace, acceptance, rejection.

And then, with a deep inhale and exhale, the keaton bravely plucked up the courage, and stepped after his two-legged friend, anxious.

"So," Link's voice piped up when they had both successfully exited the tunnel, "What do you think?"

The Kokiri Village was indeed quite the opposite of what everyone made it out to be. It, actually, looked a lot like the forest, which calmed Trey's nerves down to a smaller degree. Among the lush grasses and mammoth-sized trees, small yurts with thatched roofs were scattered around, and a tiny, crystal-clear river ran through the Village, the sun reflecting off its surface in a majestic display, making the whole Kokiri Village seem a little brighter and perkier. All in all, it didn't look like a place of malevolent evil, rather, somewhere serene and calming.

Trey tore his eyes off of the new sight for a moment, fixing them on Link's excited face. The keaton issued a couple of short, jubilant barks as his tails swung back and forth, telling the ten year old that he was pleased.

Link grinned broader as he outstretched his hand to pet his friend on the head. "I'm glad you think that, Hazel!" Without warning, Link leapt away from the keaton and off the edge of the ledge they were standing on. The Kokiri waited a moment, looking upwards at Trey, motioning for him to follow. "Come on, boy," He called from below, his grin never leaving his face. "It's alright! Follow me; I wanna show you somethin'!" Hesitantly, Trey followed suit, leaping down each level of ledges just like Link.

The two of them jogged through a small clearing in front of another mammoth log, the tall grasses tickling their skin and brushed past their clothing or fur. "Soon," Link said through a couple of weary-growing pants, "We'll be in the Village. C'mon, it's not much further!" Then, with forced energy, he ran faster, a grin on his face. Trey bolted after him, tongue flopping out excitedly.

A tree limb, limp and decaying, lay in their path, and Link easily jumped over it, but stopped when he had landed on the other side. "Well, well, well," Trey heard a foreigner's voice from where his friend stood. Immediately panicking, the keaton hurried up to catch up with the blonde boy, fearing that maybe this cocky, arrogant toned voice belonged to a threat for the both of them. "Lookie what we got 'ere boys; the cry baby returned from his corner again. Hehehe." There were numerous scoffs that followed this.

"Shut up Mido," Link growled in reply, trying to remain as calm and collected, instead of getting too angry too quickly.

"So what do you do in the forest anyway? Besides cry and run away, I mean."

"Heh. I bet 'e goes an' plays wit' the birdies an' squirrels…Like a girl!" Another voice chimed in, scoffs again tagging along after the statement.

"Nuh-uh, do not!" The boy without a faerie shot back, eyebrows lowering, and his mind wishing that these bullies would leave him be, "Besides, Saria does that kinda stuff, and you like her!"

The leader of the thugs stopped his arrogant guffawing at this, grinding his teeth together in annoyance. "Hey! You leave Saria outta this, cry-baby! Besides, she's a girl; she can do that if she wants!"

"…It's not like Saria would like you anyway," Link continued, smirking as he ignored Mido's protests.

"So what exactly are you implying, smart-ass?" The freckled Kokiri stepped forward, fists clenching and unclenching. "That she wouldn't like me, a pure-blood Kokiri, but like you, a faerie-less-wimp?"

The blonde shot back a reply, defiantly. "Oh, 'pure-blood Kokiri', eh? Nice title, 'cept it doesn't mean anything, you bragging bag of deku nuts!"

And so, to ice the cake on Link's exclamation, Mido had to scoff and add: "Heh. It means that I have parents who both had faeries! Your mum and dad aren't even alive, but I bet they were faerie-less all their lives, just like you!" The assemblage of thugs guffawed with mean spirits at the sight of Link's face, which was now darkening dangerously at the mention of his late parents.

The blonde Kokiri couldn't take it anymore; when someone mentioned his deceased parents, the strong-willed conscience of his would just crumble like soft sand. The other Kokiri never mentioned exactly how his parents happened to die, everyone didn't exactly know the whole story behind his parents' death, only except for the fact that they weren't around anymore. This riddle was only one of the subjects that built itself upon Link's heavy heart, so in a confused state of unknowing, whenever someone mentioned this delicate topic, he would react the one of the only ways he knew how, for most children are naïve in ways of judgement; he would hit his offender.

He did just that.

Clenching his left fist tightly, so tightly that his knuckles turned white, Link threw his fist at Mido's freckled face, who was caught unawares and stumbled backwards. The force of the punch wasn't as strong as it could've been, but the blonde Kokiri was not entirely used to the art of fistfights, especially for someone of his age. Mido, a hint of a snarl growing on his lips, turned his head around slowly, showing his foe his arched eyebrows and developing bruise on his cheek, from where Link's fist connected to, and hissed out a, "Oh, so you wanna play that way, eh?"

Link took a step back, knowing that he might've just made a bad mistake. He was horribly outnumbered, one to four, not to mention his fighting skills hadn't fully developed yet. Still, he stood his ground, forcing himself not to look weak in the eyes of Mido, who had accused him countless times on his helplessness.

"Oi! Let's get 'im!" One of Mido's lackeys shouted, the statement earning numerous growls of approval.

The Kokiri foursome were about to advance on nearly defenceless Link when Trey couldn't take much more of it. He should've intervened earlier in this, instead of hiding behind the log, eavesdropping on the argument.

The keaton landed in front of his blonde friend, his yellow fur sticking straight up to the sky, like tiny needles along his spine. His muscles were heavily tensed up, and his lip drawn as far back as possible, showing rows of gleaming, dagger-like teeth; all in all, a dangerous symbol as a warning to the foe. Mido and his goons immediately stopped their advancement as Trey leapt down in front of them, and the freckled Kokiri leader even stumbled backwards into the arms of his followers, eyes wide and trembling. "Bloody hell!" He yelped, knees beginning to shake under the fearsome, fiery gaze of Trey. "What in Din's holy name is that doing here?"

"Hazel!" Link gasped, feeling slightly relieved at the sight of his friend, whom he thought had deserted him for a moment.

Mido recovered after a moment of shock, the three boys behind him lifting his body back into its rightful position, all of which were still hesitant, and slightly nervous, to be in the presence of the snarling, spitting animal.

"Oh. It-it's just a dog. Heh. Nothing to be worried about." Mido gulped, swallowing his anxiousness of the keaton expertly. His auburn eyes hesitantly went from the threatening animal to Link, who stood behind Trey, a small, confident smile on his lips. "This yours?" Mido spat, pointing a finger at the offending three-tailed creature.

Link nodded, now feeling a little more relaxed in Mido's ready-to-fight spirit. "Yeah, he's my friend. His name is Hazel."

"I told ya 'e talks to the animals," Whispered one of the red-haired Kokiri's followers.

"So you've finally found a friend then, huh? Tch. Whatever." The Kokiri leader crossed his arms, his auburn eyes locking tightly with the undying fire that gleamed and sparked in Trey's hazel pupils. "So? Are you gonna call it off or what?"

Link blinked twice, until he finally understood what Mido was trying to communicate. "Oh, uh, why should I? I bet'cha, if I do, you're just going to take the moment and attack me!"

Mido feigned innocence as he gazed around at his followers, who were also doing the same. "Who? Me? Why, why would I? I mean, my rage is completely gone! Honest to goddess!"

Link still looked sceptical, yet, asked Hazel to back down a little, although not completely.

The red-haired boy crouched down to Trey's height. "Hm, so, why'd ya bring this thing anyway?" He sneered, scanning over the keaton with judgemental eyes.

"I…I wanted to introduce him to the Kokiri! I thought he might like it." Link said, watching Mido carefully, to make sure he didn't try and do anything. "I don't think Hazel's ever been around people before, so I wanted to show him us." He added quickly, as the thought burst into his mind, but he regretted it almost instantly as he said it.

The goons' smirks returned, as Mido rose from the ground, crossing his arms over his chest pompously. "Really? Huh. Ya know, this thing's pretty scrawny for a dog—"

"Keaton!"

"—Whatever. I think I might as well put it out of its misery!" He laughed, delivering a harsh, swift kick to the keaton, who was caught by surprise and flopped backwards, whimpering in unexpected pain.

"Hazel!" Link cried, rushing over to his furry friend's side. He cast his eyes swiftly at Mido, who stood defiantly, arms still folded over his chest. "What the hell was that for? You're such a jerk, you know that? Goddesses!"

When he was least expecting it though, one of Mido's friends had snuck up behind him and now, at this exact point, he had roughly grabbed the back of Link's tunic and dragged him away from the sprawled out animal, who was slowly beginning to rise back on his paws. Without wasting a second, and ignoring Link's surprised and defiant protests as he was dragged away from the scene, the remaining boys advanced on the keaton, and proceeded to deliver kick after kick to the animal, never allowing a moment for retaliation.

The boy without a faerie freed himself from the vice-like grip of the follower of Mido, and instantly rushed over to the group of laughing boys, who were having a jolly good time beating the life out of the poor keaton. Link pushed away the attackers roughly, trying to get to his friend, unknown energy bursting through his veins. "Damn it, get out of my way!"

However, before he could successfully reach the beaten keaton, Mido threw a hard, and unexpected, punch to Link's face, who was sent flopping backwards, unprepared for such an action.

Mido's smirk grew wider. "That was payback for earlier, orphan."

He groaned lightly before composing himself together. "You're cruel." Link spat, simply, as he advanced on to Mido and his group, who were all laughing at the cold-hearted actions they performed. Without warning, the blonde again punched Mido in the face, silencing the wicked jeers that had previously erupted from the foursome. "How dare you treat someone, an animal no less, like that?"

"I'll show you how we treat them!" The red-haired Kokiri leapt at Link, his fists clenched tightly, showing to fear in the fiery sparks of a fight. Of course, like sheep, Mido's lackeys followed him willingly, jumping together to the aid of their powerful leader. Just like Link had predicted, there was strength in numbers, and according to the numbers presented, he was considered weak against the four of them. Half of the group pinned his arms to the ground, despite his struggles, while the other two were busy kicking his ribs among punching him every now and then, just for the heck of it.

Link didn't care all that much about this treatment, although it was painful, for he was used to it, but worried more about his keaton friend, whom he hadn't seen since he was dragged away from him. How he wished he could escape the horrible beatings he received from the bullies and to rush over to Hazel, making sure he was alright. He writhed violently under the bullies, trying with all his might to push them off and to get free, but it was no use, and it drained his energy supply significantly.

"Hey! Just what do you think the four of you are doing?" A feminine voice shouted over the mocking taunts, jeers, and hoots the bullies were issuing, and all of a sudden, all activity stopped. Mido was the first to twirl around, shocked that someone had caught him red handed. He gulped when he saw the owner of the voice, as did the other boys when they saw who it was.

"Oh, uh, h-hiya Saria!" Mido stuttered, fidgeting uncomfortably with his hands, glancing up at the green-haired Kokiri, feeling slightly uncomfortable in her aggravated aura. He gulped. "Um…Wha-what's up?"

"Don't you 'what's up' me, Mido!" She snapped back, her usually friendly tone harsh and serious. "Are you doing just what I think you were doing?"

The foursome shifted around uneasily, not daring to speak a word.

"I knew it! Gah, Mido, you can be such a pain!" Saria cried, exasperatedly. "You four, go home! I'll give you a nice talking to when I return, you understand?"

The boys nodded in solemn understanding, hesitantly following Saria's orders.

Once they had cleared from the scene, Saria sighed, compassionately, as she rushed over to Link's side, ready to help him.

"Goddesses, Link," She whispered, kneeling down onto the ground, just as the blonde was struggling to get up. "I'm sorry they got you again…I always scold Mido for his actions, but he never learns." She sighed softly again, "Are you alright?"

Link had finally managed to sit up; he turned to face his friend, a small, strong-willed smile on his face. "Yeah, I'm used to this kinda stuff,"

"It's not right, though." Saria interjected politely, placing a hand tenderly on his shoulder. "I'm really worried about you, Link."

Link's smile grew slightly, and he absently brushed splotches of dirt off his face. "Thanks, Saria," He said, his words not full of superficial thanks, but rather, true gratitude. "But don't be. Not now,"

Just as Saria was about to ask what he was talking about, he pointed to Trey's bruised body, attempting to stand up at the same time. "They got Hazel, too. I'm worried 'bout him than I am about me." Saria gently pushed Link back to his sitting position, telling him in a silent way to rest, as she rose from the ground and ran over to the keaton.

"Oh my, poor creature," Saria cooed, lifting up one of Trey's paws. She turned her forest green eyes back to Link. "Is this the keaton you met in the forest?"

The blonde nodded. "Yeah, Mido got to him, though…"

Saria stood up, eyes flashing with sympathy, anger, and determination. "This is gotten out of hand! Stay here a minute, I'll be right back with some of my friends. We need to get you and Hazel back to the Village as soon as possible." Link nodded, and watched as his friend bounded away in the direction he and Hazel were headed in, her steps light and fast, hurried.

-oOoOo-

A crackling fire was sparking and dancing invitingly in Saria's cosy home. She had placed a pot over the fire, trying to boil water for tea, while the fire kept the small house nice and warm. Link sat on a chair, next to the bed where Trey laid, his blue eyes staring intently into the spontaneous movements and rhythms of the fire. One of his hands was absently stroking the furry keaton on his head, as if trying to provide comfort for both him and his animal friend.

"Hey," Saria broke the sounds of the crackling fire as she stepped into the house, from the outside. "I just chewed out Mido. He claims he won't harm you again, but I don't think he's entirely honest." She sighed and took a seat on the edge of the bed, also petting the sleeping body of Trey. "How are you doing?"

The blonde smiled, thankful for Saria's concern. "I'm fine, thanks. Just a little sore and bruised, but nothing serious. Hazel still hasn't woken up, but his breathing's fine, so I guess he'll be alright…"

The green-haired Kokiri grinned happily at Link's new-found friendship, but didn't say anything; instead, she politely excused herself from where she was sitting and made her way over to the fireplace, where she took the pot of water down. "I'll just make us some tea, and I'll be right back." She called softly as she disappeared through a curtain of overhanging cloth, which led to a small kitchen in Saria's house.

When she was gone, Link gently hugged Trey's neck, relieved that the animal was going to be okay.

Then, as if Trey could feel Link's loving presence, his eyes fluttered open sleepily. He adjusted to the new light in the yurt from the fireplace, and yawned. His limbs and sides ached with a throbbing soreness, and the juvenile remembered the fight that had occurred some time ago. At this thought, he suddenly realized that the red-haired kid had probably beaten up Link, and he jolted upwards to find his said friend. However, when he heard a distinguishable voice, and felt a familiar aura with him, he relaxed on the bed again.

"Hazel!" Link cried out happily, again hugging the neck of the animal. "I'm so glad you're awake! Are you alright? They didn't hurt you that badly, did they?"

Trey turned his large nougat eyes to his companion, who was none other than his kind Kokiri friend, Link. The keaton grinned happily, swinging his tails back and forth excitedly at the sight of him. He barked enthusiastically and licked Link's face a couple of times, telling the ten year old that he was fine, despite some of the pulsing bruises he felt.

Gingerly, to try and not aggravate any bruises the animal had, Link petted the keaton's head fondly, his jubilant grin never leaving his face. "I was worried about you, Hazel," He started, scratching behind Trey's ears. "Mido can be so cold-hearted…Oh, and I need to thank you for standing up for me back there. It was brave of you, and very courageous. Thanks." The two exchanged smiles of friendship, listening to the crackling and crunching of the fire in the background. "Oh!" Link exclaimed out of the blue, remembering something. "I forgot to tell you; we're in Saria's house. Remember how I told you about Saria? She and some others brought you back here. She made sure you were okay and even made sure you were comfortable! See, I told you she was nice." He chuckled, letting his hands drop back into his lap.

A couple of knocks interrupted the two friends' reunion, and even startled Link a little, as he jumped in his seat. "Hello? Hello, anyone home?" A girl's voice called from outside, the tone innocent and curious. The door to Saria's house was slowly opened, only by a crack, and the two friends could see a pair of eyes looking into the house. A gasp was heard which was followed by small, incoherent chitterings outside. The door was swung open slowly, and when fully open, it was easy to perceive three Kokiri girls standing in the doorway, anxious, excited expressions on all their faces.

"Oh, hello," Link asked, unsure of why these three girls had decided to drop by.

"Um, may we come in?" One of them asked, fidgeting with her hands absently.

Trey and Link both shared blank glances before the blonde Kokiri finally smiled and replied, "Um, sure, I guess. Why? What's wrong?"

Heidi, a blonde with two huge, round, ball-like ponytails, seemed to be the representative for the three beaming girls. "Oh, uh, well, we heard that you stood up to Mido, and so we wanted to come see you…And Hazel, of course."

Link was taken aback a little by this. They actually wanted to see him? Most of the time, the majority of the Kokiri shunned him away, especially when getting into fights with their powerful freckled leader. "You wanted to talk to me? Really?"

Heidi, among the other two girls, nodded their heads, their grins growing. "Oh yes! We heard you defended an animal, and that Mido actually hurt the both of you! Just the idea alone is awful!"

A brunette standing behind Heidi shyly peeked out and grinned wider. "Mido said that you hated all animals and that you would rather see them all dead then to go near one! I guess he was lying, judging by what happened today! You must be very brave to stand up for your friend like that! I wish I was that courageous!"

"Mido told you I hated animals?" A slightly outraged Link asked, disbelieving that Mido would start to now spread rumours about him, as well as physically and mentally beating up on him. "That's the biggest lie I've ever heard! I can't believe he said that!"

"Do you think that if Mido was lying about that, then maybe he's lying about other things too…?" The girls whispered to each other, starting to question the credibility behind their leader's words. Maybe Link wasn't such a bad guy, as they made him out to be, after all.

"Is that him? Is that Hazel?" The brunette asked, pointing to the keaton that was still present in the room, listening to the conversation with intent hearing skills. He seemed a bit tense, though, when he saw these new Kokiri enter the house; his first impression of what the Kokiri were like was not exactly a good one, so he did not know what to expect.

"Yes, this is him!" Trey's friend chuckled, petting the animal on the head.

The girls giggled, "Ooh, he's so cute!"

"May we pet him? Please?"

"Oh yes, may we? He looks so friendly."

Link turned to Trey, who was still mildly tensed up, and then back at the girls. "Um…Al-alright, I guess…Just be careful; he hasn't been around many people before, so I think he's a little scared."

The trio of girls nodded in understanding and went forth to the bed, kneeling on the floor or sitting on the edge of the mattress. Link put his hand on Trey's head, comfortingly, trying to calm the uneasy animal that everything was okay and that these people did not want to see harm come to him, only to give him love and attention.

Tentatively, the went to pet the keaton and scratch behind his ears, although Trey was still nervous and unsure of the actions of these three girls. However, when they did nothing more than chat kindly to his Kokiri friend and give him lots of attention (which, he enjoyed very much.), he realized that these children were not wicked and spiteful, unlike Mido and his gang of bullies. Slowly, he started to ease out of his tension, and became more tranquil, and even when he would see Link laughing and talking with these strangers, he knew that they must not be horrible, evil children, but rather, much-needed friends for little Link.

"You know Link, I have a cat at home," Heidi said. "Maybe you could come over sometime and we could play with her!"

The ten year-old's grin spread across his face. "Really? That'd be great! I like cats!"

Saria re-entered the room through the curtain flap, cups of tea and biscuits balancing on a tray. "Oh, hello everyone. I didn't even hear you enter my house." She laughed, setting the tray down on a small wooden table. "Good thing I made plenty of tea. Link, I must speak to you about something…With Hazel, also. May we go outside?" At Link's slightly baffled expression at what she was talking about, Saria added, "I think it's time for Hazel to go home now."

The three girls looked disappointed with the news, like Link, as they all wished a good-bye to their furry friend, who was now exiting the yurt-like home along with Saria and Link.

"Link," Saria started, walking towards the entrance of the Lost Woods, Link at her side. "I don't think you should bring Hazel back to the Kokiri Village anytime soon."

"Why?"

"Hazel needs to be with his family in the woods…It's not entirely the best thing to keep him away from his own kind too much. Keatons, among other wild creatures, are not meant to be kept as pets; they need to be able to be free in their own home where they feel is the safest. Of course, I'm not saying you are not allowed to visit him. You both love each other very much and you are more than welcome to go and play together and be friends. All I'm saying is you shouldn't try and take him away from his home…Do you know what I mean?"

Link nodded solemnly. "Yes, I see." They all turned to the mammoth log-the entrance to the Lost Woods. "Well Hazel, I guess I'll see you soon." The keaton smiled and went forth to lick Link's and now Saria's hand as well, as a form of a good-bye.

He stepped into the hollowed out tunnel-like log, took one last look at his friends behind him, and sprinted forth, ready to head home.

-oOoOo-

Four days had past since the eventful day in the Village, and Trey had expertly dodged the subject, telling his family and Twiggy that he had just gone off to explore some of the lesser journeyed portions of the forest. Although his white lie had sounded a little bit off, the wolfos still bought it, but such souls like Fish and Autumn could care less if he was being eaten by some hungry ogre under a bridge. Fish, actually, was quite disappointed that Trey had not returned home with nothing more than a few bruises. He had wished for serious injury, or better yet, death.

The fiasco with the bullies had set a major disapproval point in Trey's mind. Although Link meant well to show him his home and to welcome him into the Village as if he were one of the Kokiri, he knew somewhere in the back of his mind, that it wouldn't be quite the same as living with his own (or relatively close) species. He did, though, left the Village on a pleasant note; the sight of his lonely Kokiri friend finally making new acquaintances made his heart feel a little lighter for some reason, and less worried for the safety and emotional mentality Link had. Speaking of Link, the keaton had not yet seen his blonde friend in these past four days, but it was alright in a way. He needed a small break from the confusing, and slightly scary, presence of Kokiri—especially when they were in numbers.

He sat under a tree in the Hideaway, watching with fascination as a brown leaf came flittering down from the tree's branches. Autumn was slowly approaching, it was quite obvious. The once feather-soft green grasses were gradually, bit-by-bit, turning prickly and the leaves in the trees were beginning to change the colours from a simple green to lush and vibrant shades of oranges, reds, and yellows. With a yawn, he rested his head on his paws lazily, enjoying the cool air around him. Twiggy and Sandy passed by him, chatting about something merry and light-hearted; one could tell from the laughs they shared and the smiles they exchanged.

"Hey Twigs," Trey called out, lifting his head a little and forcing himself to look as inviting as possible, "Do you and Sandy want to go hunting with me soon? I bet we can catch a small doe together! What do you say?"

The mud-coloured wolfos and his companion both looked at each other, worriedly. "Uh, well, we'd really like to, but...We're busy." Twiggy stammered a little, looking around him briefly, while Sandy kept her eyes cast away, shyly.

Trey's face fell a little in disappointment. He knew that even his so thought "friends" were hesitant to still be around him, but he didn't want to say anything, instead he just uttered a, "Oh. Um, that's okay. Don't worry 'bout it then." He smiled to reassure his statement, watching with a hidden-sadness in his eyes as the two walked away, backs facing him. The keaton sighed, wishing that he could show Link his home like how the Kokiri had done for him, but knew it would be next to impossible.

That was it. He decided mentally, rising slowly from his leisurely position at the base of the tree. I'm going to see Link again today. I bet he must wonder where I've been, anyway. Although, just as Trey was about to set off in the direction of the exit, a blur of dark grey came whooshing out of the vines, as if in panic. Some wolfos cleared the pathway for this familiar creature, while Trey stood in his spot from afar, wondering what could be the matter.

The grey blur was no other than his adopted father, Shadow. Blaze, Blizzard, and Skunk, who had now witnessed this panic-driven scramble, ran forth to meet the guard halfway. "Shadow," Blaze cried out, his deep voice booming in the Hideaway, gaining all attention of present wolfos. "What on earth is the matter? You look like you've just seen a ghost!"

"I'm…sorry...Blaze," Shadow panted out, flopping in front of his leader, tired from the run. He tried to catch his breath, but it seemed like the news he carried was far more important than his breathing patterns. "I had…come tell you…"

"Yes? Yes? Tell me what, Shadow?"

"Deku…Scrubs…in…Sacred Meadow." He finally huffed out, legs wobbling even as he sat down on the grass.

The two alphas and captain both were taken aback by this at once, disbelieving the news for moments. It seemed as though Blaze couldn't find his tongue to speak, and Blizzard was just her normal, quiet self, so Skunk stepped forward, still incredulous. "A-are you sure, Shadow? It wasn't just a trick of the light or a hunger-induced figment of your imagination? You actually saw the scrubs?"

The deep grey wolfos nodded his head, gasping every now and then, steadily regaining his correct breathing pattern. "Yes, Rocky and I both saw them." He raised his head to look straight in the eye of the alpha male, to insure that his facts were credible. "They came at us—scores of them—and we had to fight them back, but they were too powerful, and we were too outnumbered. We both fled, but Rocky is slower than I, so I made it here first."

As if on cue, a deep red-brown wolfos sprinted through the vines, and right up to where his guard companion sat in front of the leaders. He flopped on the ground, out of breath. His heart was beating rapidly as he sucked in the air feverishly, trying to regain his strength.

"So this isn't some sick prank then." Blizzard summed up at the sight of the weary guard in front of her. She and Skunk turned their heads to look their ultimate leader in the eyes, questioning silently what to do.

The grey wolfos leader sprang onto all four paws, his eyes dancing and sparking with authority. "Right. There is some evil at hand here, for never in three-and-a-half centuries has ever such an attack been recorded. That was the Great War of the Forest. Do you remember, Blizzard?"

The creamy white wolfos nodded solemnly, her ice-like eyes gazing seemingly into the threads of time. "How could I? The tale of that horrible battle has been past down from generation to generation. Deku Scrubs among other horrible creatures roamed the forests, killing and massacring all forest dwellers they laid their eyes on. It was then when the creatures of the woods banded together, and with aid of the Forest Sage, drove out the beings of evil. Such a war of good and evil destroyed nearly half of the entire forest population." When the alpha female usually spoke of such things as death or suffering, something inside her would giggle with sadistic delight, but when she uttered these words, her lips did not twitch into a smile, rather, remained pointed downwards.

"Yes, it was a terrible fate to be sure." Blaze nodded gravely, his face darkening. "That is why we must take extra protection to our people. Here are the new ground rules I am setting: Make sure no wolfos leaves the Hideaway after dark, unless accompanied by three others. When in daylight, they may leave in pairs. Bring extra food whenever we can back here, and bury it in the ground in case we need it later.

"No pups are to wander away outside of the Hideaway walls unless adults are present. I want a roll call for every pack member every evening, starting tomorrow. The guards for the Sacred Meadow must now be doubled; I will not permit any less than that in such an area. Skunk," He snapped, catching the attention of the captain. "When hunting, stay in a large group and stick together. No one wolfos may leave the group at any given time. Understand?"

"Yes sir."

"Rocky, Shadow, help us spread the word around the pack. I want every single wolfos to be alerted of the news. Clear?"

The two guards nodded simultaneously. "Crystal clear, sir."

"Excellent. Report to me if there is any news on the Deku Scrubs. You are free to go." Everyone was dismissed from the meeting instantly, bounding off in separate directions to spread the news of the danger that was beginning to lurk in the woods.

However, Trey had already begun to sneak out of camp before news could reach him. Before he could pass through the vines though, a bratty, obnoxious feminine voice stopped him dead in his tracks. "And just where do you think you're going?"

Trey spun around, defensive. Autumn stood behind him, a smug grin on her face. She had not been warned of the danger yet, so she did not preach to the keaton about the rules her father had just recently set. "Hunting," Trey breathed, beginning to become more relaxed when he saw it was not an alpha; only her. "I'm just going out for a squirrel or two. I'll be back later…around dusk."

Autumn bore her judgemental eyes into Trey's skull, stamping a little while she stood, arrogantly. "Tch. Fine. Just be sure to bring back something for me, okay?"

The keaton nodded slowly, but behind him, he crossed two of his tails, silently chuckling at his cheekiness towards Blaze's daughter. She deserved it, anyway; she could catch her own food. Without any more hesitation, Trey spun around again and sprinted through the vines, leaving the Hideaway as if he were never there.

Autumn huffed, stamped her forepaws, and turning tail, she grumbled a, "I hate keatons."

-oO T.B.C Oo-