A/N: Chapter 4 rewritten once

I struggled to tear open the outer shell of the trunk, hoping to reveal some kind of shelter where Angel could lay in relative safety.

The more I continued to scratch at the surface of the trunk, the more pointless I felt. There was little to no chance that this old, dried trunk that was half buried could be hollow.

Frustrated, I leaned my weight against it. Seconds later, it caved in without warning.

I groaned as I lay in a mist of sawdust, but I was happy that the idea had worked.

The center of the trunk had much less space than I had thought, but it could still fit a couple of wolves, though it would be a tight squeeze.

I got onto my feet and cleared off the wood fragments to the best of my ability before carefully moving Angel in.

I cringed at the sight of the wound on her leg. I had done my best to clear off the blood, but there was nothing I could do to hide that bite.

Judging by her looks, she had obviously not eaten in a while. As much as I would like to head out for some prey, I had no knowledge of the threats in this place and Angel would be completely vulnerable to those threats. Then I realized that, without any information on what I could be facing, I would vulnerable too, for they could be anything.

With that in my mind, I lay down beside Angel's figure and kept a stern watch on the entrance of our temporary shelter.

XXXXX

Slowly, I became aware of the world again. My last memory was of stealing a carcass and getting pursued, but why did I feel safe?

Then, I picked up a scent. It roused distant memories, and also something recent. I was aware of another being beside me, but what?

I opened my eyes and tried moving, but after sharp pain from my leg, I stopped and unconsciously let out a soft whimper.

I heard movement beside me. But curiously, I didn't feel the slightest bit worried.

"Angel?" a familiar voice prompted.

The voice rang a bell, but I couldn't remember where I had heard it.

"You're awake!" the voice sounded happy.

Careful not to move that injured leg, I turned to face the source of the voice.

His tail wagging hard, and an obvious smile on his face, was Pale Moon.

XXXXX

I couldn't be more overjoyed; a moment before, I had imagined the worst that could happen. One involving plenty of dark dealings, and the other, a rather sudden end…well, it was a relief that none happened.

More pressing problems lay under the surface my happy interior. The main thing was food. Sure, as a fully fledged member of my pack, I had participated in a decent amount of hunts, but I had a feeling that hunting here wouldn't be as easy. Trusting hunches makes you paranoid, but sometimes it pays off well.

Noticing Angel's confused expression, I narrated the events from when I saw her to the present. But I made sure not to mention about anything before meeting her. I didn't think that I was ready for that yet.

"Thanks, for everything," she gave me a weak smile.

That smile hurt. That smile that I had missed for two years.

We both stared at each other, pondering on how to proceed. For a moment, I thought that I felt a deep bond that we shared. Or maybe it was just something aroused from my fantasy that fed on the fairy tales that were told during sleepless nights under the stars.

All the same, the fact that time had changed us was true, no matter how slight. We were practically strangers now. For a weird moment, I had an urge to laugh, to laugh away all the awkwardness and doubt.

But I didn't, and that was a fact.

A/N: Slightly longer than the previous version, a little changes here and there. Despite the change in the details, the general plot should remain the same

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