Almost everyone from the Huelva's had gathered around. Snowfear resumed his position on the rock. Silence overcame the small oval clearing.
"Tonight," Snowfear began, "I will announce Caralam, Stratus, Silverflash, Galaxy, and Sythenil's positions in the Pack." He paused and thought for a second. "Excluding Sythenil," he said, almost smiling at her. He was proud, but for what? "Galaxy, you will be the Lead Hunter of all of the Huelvas." Barks and howls and cheers exploded the peaceful air. "Stratus, you will be a hunter with Galaxy and join the others who are in the other Huelva's." More noise. "Caralam, you and Silverflash will be Scouters. You may, if permitted to do so, take part in hunts for the pack." I grimaced and wanted to lie down and nap. My ears shattered at the noise. Too much noise. I tucked my ears against my head and looked up at the moon. The rest of the night was the Pack lounging around and talking and discussing.
The night wore on, and I got no sleep. Only when the Sun had risen had the others left with only my Huelva here. I moaned and stretched out in the Sun. The heat crept into my coat and I finally caught a cat-nap.
"Silver, go. Do your Duty. You will find the male," said a voice. It wasn't Lupus, or Bone. It was scathing and scratchy, like it had a mouse stuck in its throat. "Go or Sythenil may find him first. After all, what were the chances of the One being from the Hikaylo Pack? Is that not where Sythenil is supposed to find a mate? Go! NOW!" The voice screeched. I whimpered and ran along the line of the Pack's Territory. I stopped when I saw a handsome black Wolf. I went up to him.
"Hello," I said. He nodded in greeting and came up to me it seemed, to lick my ear, but instead he opened his mouth revealing sharp fangs and burrowed into my neck.
"FOOL!" It hollered. I whined but my body went limp and I couldn't fight back. It transformed into what I imagined Bane to look like. My vision blurred and my throat spilled blood.
"AHH!" I screamed as I stood up, my heart pounding, my legs wobbling feebly. No other Wolves were around. I raced through the Valaan Forest to the Shenandoah River. "Blue Wolf? Oh, Blue Wolf! Where are you…?" I cried, helpless.
"She can't come during Sun Time. Only Moon Sky." I turned around. Sythenil stood on the other side of the creek, sharpening her claws. "So what have those sly—what has our Lord done with a, your, poor soul this time," Sythenil asked, making a strange mocking tone when she said Lord. I bared my teeth and let out a low growl. "Oh, so scary," she said sarcastically. She walked away.
"Always running away when you don't know what to say," I snorted. I looked at the River where the Golden Gates had appeared.
"Trust me," He said.
"Oh, Lupus. Help me! I don't know what I'm supposed to do…." Tears ran down my cheeks as I stood at the bank, crying. Mist rose from the River. I looked in disbelief. It was never misty during the Sun Time. Only near dawn and during night did the mist rise. I stepped forward and the mist revealed the Golden Gates. I yipped and waited for The Blue Wolf. She appeared from the right side of the Gate.
"Back so soon? Come, Silver." I followed her earnestly, my tail wagging, my ears perked forward. "You know where He is." She said with a wink. I looked at her one last time, her bright blue coloring reflecting the light from the sky. I darted off toward the hill where Lupus sat. He was there, standing tall and proud, overlooking the plains and forests of the Land. He sat down as I came up the hill. Before I sat, I gave a quick curtsy.
"Why have you come back?" He asked, almost irritably. His eyes were slightly narrowed and almost dull with annoyance.
"When do I look for him? The male?" I asked, nervous. I shifted my weight to the right, then the left, eyeing Lupus.
"Go back now, and tell Snowfear this: 'Father, I know I must start to scout the area soon, as that is my job.' Hopefully he'll agree and then you start looking for him. Scouts have small dens along the territory line to stay in during your Sleeping Shift. You'll find him. Don't worry. But be careful, Silver. There are other males out there, and Bane himself may disguise himself as a male." Like my dream, I realized. "Then there are others who are just… others. It's alright to befriend them. But DON'T, and I mean DON'T become their mate. No matter what." His voice was stern, and His eyes were steady, their gaze burning into my eyes. "No matter what," He repeated again and vanished in a speck of mist. I stood there for a moment before Bone came to fetch me.
"You must go back now, Silver. To the Mortal World," he said in a friendly tone. I looked at him with grief and uncertainty in my eyes. He led me towards The Blue Wolf. She and I passed through the Golden Gates, and I blinked once and I was at the Shenandoah's banks. The water flowed over my paws in small ripples. I sighed and headed back towards where Snowfear would be watching over the Pack.
"Dad," I said quietly, my paw scraping against the Earth, making tiger stripes in the dirt. He looked at me to continue. "I know I must start to scout the area soon, because that is my job," I tried to recite although I fumbled, "So, um. Could I—start?" I asked, looking up from the ground to his bright blue eyes.
"Yes, but be careful, Silver. Tell me if you see any Wolves. Any. And don't think I won't know if you do hang around with a male. None of that from you or anyone else," his mouth formed a slight snarl. I acknowledged what he said with a wag of my tail and ran through the thickets and trees, weaving in and out.
"About time," I murmured to myself as I reached the border. I started my patrol at a jaunt. No Wolves at all. I stopped near the Northernmost Part of the Shenandoah. As close as our Pack territory got to the beginning of it, that is. I yawned and rested under a Red Beckow Oak. Its large limbs spread out half-way across the river, its leaves were almost the size of my face. I moved toward the river to get a sip. Winter wasn't harsh or long in the Valaan Forest. Only in places like the Zenlet Tundra and where the Bayont Pack was located, in the Northwestern most part where the Siehomlie Forest was. The small snow we got here was likely to be one of the only. I let the water lave at my paws as I stretched out on the sand. The Sun beat warm on my stomach. This wasn't or isn't a bad chore at all. Easy, I thought.
I woke up to a howl. It was still Sun Time, but the moon was creeping over the Bindodo Mountain Range that was to the West. I looked across the River. A large silhouette of a Wolf stood at the opposite bank. An Outsider, I thought to myself. It leapt into the water and swam toward me. I waited. It was a tawny Wolf. A male tawny Wolf. The scent of pines radiated off of his coat. What if he was from the Eastern Woodland Pack? But, I had to follow Lupus's orders. Not Father's. Lupus. Lupus. Lupus. I wagged my tail in greeting.
"What is your name and your business here?" I asked, almost kindly. He looked at me with chocolate colored eyes.
"Mockingjay," he said. He looked at me, tense. He didn't say another word. My eyes widened. Mockingjay? As in one of the sons of Timber? Oh, Lupus. Just tell me his name. Surely it can't be—I remembered my dream. It was definitely a signal. Either from Bane or Lupus, I couldn't tell, but, this male was meant to be from the Hikaylo Pack. Was he not? I began to piece together what the Deal truly was. Bane had agreed to it, because he got my pup in turn. Lupus had agreed to it because a new blood line was created. But Bane told Lupus he couldn't tell me the name of the male because he realized he had the raw end of the deal. But Bane didn't tell Lupus that he couldn't tell me the Pack the male would be from. So Lupus sent me that dream, I concluded.
"Leave," I snarled, my hackles bristling. He backed away. "I'll get the rest of the pack," I growled roughly. "Surely Timber had a reason for kicking you out. To weak, I assume." I had hit his weak spot and Mockingjay headed toward the bank he had come from. I nipped his rump to get him on the move. "He really is a weakling," I muttered. I looked up at the darkening sky and the faded stars before settling under the Oak to sleep. "Thank you, Lupus."