Chapter 8: Winter Retreat (written on October 31st, 2022)

That night...

Humphrey, Kate, and their pups continued on the old mountain trail when it began snowing hard. After a few hours, each step left a print a few inches deep. The pups were walking side by side, but there wasn't enough warmth to satisfy them. They couldn't stop shivering.

"Humphrey," said Kate. Their progress slowed to a stop

"It's getting too cold, right?"

"Mom, Dad," said Stinky, "might we make it home in time for Christmas?"

"Let's talk," Kate whispered. Humphrey and Kate distanced themselves from the pups, so they could speak in private. "I'm not even sure where we are anymore," Kate admitted

"Maybe we could build a new den."

"Humphrey, by the time we build a tolerable one, we'll freeze to death."

"You have other ideas?"

"It's so cold," said Stinky.

"We're lost, aren't we?" said the youngest. He then had an idea. He hurried to the nearest tree and climbed.

"Runt?! What gives?" said Kate.

"Here we go again," Claudette remarked with a sigh.

"Runt, you get down here right now!" Kate ordered.

At the top, a sparkle from far away drew his eyes to the west. There, a line of shadow came into view.

"Hey, look! I see it! I see it!"

"I don't care what you see!" Kate replied.

"I see the human roads!"

"Really?"

"Really." The pup jumped off the tree and landed safely in a snow dune.

"How far, Runt?"

"Way down the mountain. I'd say ten miles or so."

"If only there was a fast way to get there," said Humphrey. Kate then nudged him with her elbow. The perfect logboard just happened to be nearby. "Oh, no... No, no, no! No, no-no-no-no-no-no-no!"

Five minutes later, a log carrying the wolves slid down the slope. The pups sat in front while their father took the steering position at the back end. "Alright, lean left!" he instructed.

"Now right!" Kate added. One after another they evaded obstacles in their way.

"This is awesome!" said Runt.

"Whoa!" Stinky exclaimed. "I still don't think this is appropriate for an Alpha but..."

"It sure does rock!" Claudette finished.

"Rock!" Humphrey shouted.

"It does!" said Kate.

"No, rock! HOLD ON!"

Bam! Their means of transportation crashed. The wolves were flung forward. During the moment in the air, Humphrey and Kate hugged each other tightly. Next, they landed hard in the powder.

"Is everyone okay?! Is everyone okay?!"

"Guys? Guys?!"

Three smiling heads popped up from the drift near the Omega. "So... where're we headed now, Runt?"

Later...

Following the roads that had been cleared of snow, the wolves came across a sight only familiar to the adults. It was a small gas station.

"Oh, my gosh... It can't be... Kate, bite my paw! Please bite it!"

"What?"

"Bite it," he begged.

"Okay..." The Alpha bit his left forepaw.

"OW! Kate!"

"You said, 'Bite it'."

"I wanted to see if I was still asleep in a bad dream."

"Hey, maybe we can find those cupcake thingies."

"Good thinking, Kate. I'm starving."

The wolves made their way to the pile of trash cans abutting the gift shop. "It was a place just like this where your mother and I survived a mad hunter," Humphrey explained.

"Wasn't it like some big, bad dude?" said Runt.

"Yeah... Well... more or less."

"Is that him?" asked Claudette. The pup pointed a paw at the window of the gift shop's office. Inside, a man in overalls with a thick mustache was decorating a Christmas tree.

"Oh, my gosh, Kate! It's actually him!" Humphrey exclaimed. "It's Max!"

"He looks like a wimp," said Claudette.

"Don't let those chestnut eyes fool you!" Kate warned. "He is a killer!"

"Wait! There it is!" said Runt. The pup noticed the lights of the Christmas tree flashing. "The blinking lights! Awesome! That is what I saw from the top of the mountain!"

Suddenly, the human noticed the wolves outside which spooked Humphrey and Kate.

"Oh, gosh! Everyone behind the dumpster!" the Omega urged.

Max curiously watched the wolves hide behind the trash. He realized the adult wolves he saw were the same two wolves from the gas station farther south. Two and a half years ago, he aimed a shotgun at them, but he didn't intend to kill them as long as they kept their distance. Seeing Humphrey and Kate again was one thing, but seeing their new family definitely made him feel guilty. He then thought about his own family. A painting of him and his wife hugging their two sons was hanging on the wall. His sons were all grown up now, doing their own things but it had been years since he last saw them.

"What's he doing?" asked Kate.

"I... I don't know," said Humphrey.

Max stepped outside and walked straight to his red pickup. A minute passed before he drove off. A peculiarity caught the wolves' eyes. "He left the door open?"

"Let's go see the tree!" said Runt.

"It's really pretty!" said Claudette.

"No... It's a trap," their mother assured.

"He wants us to go in there," Humphrey added.

As usual, the pups ignored their parents. They raced to the opening.

"Runt! Claudette! Stinky!" Humphrey and Kate ran after them. What they saw in the office room shocked them beyond belief.

In front of the tree, Max left three bowls of kibble! The pups dug in.

"Did he—"

"From gunshots to free food," said Kate. "Go figure."

December 18th, 2012

The family spent the night inside the building. The office was warm, and the sparkling tree with the gold star on top was a lovely comfort. After Kate was aroused, she looked back to see the pups sleeping in a cute little pile. She nudged her mate awake.

"Humphrey... here we are... trying to get home again."

"Hmm... I think... we already are."