Wolves of the Falling Stars Book 4: The Return

Chapter 32

Strong Boulder laid at the entrance of the den. A growl vibrated through his body without him realizing. It was raining today, and most of the wolves were kept indoors. He had been sitting here for an hour, watching the way the raindrops dripped from the den's entrance onto the dirt floor.

It wasn't fair. Those were Strong Boulder's first thoughts.

In less than twenty-four hours, his life had drastically changed. Though Strong Boulder always knew his father kept his distance from the family, now he had left for good, and that disgusting half-brother of his who has partially omega stood before him now with the lightning mark that should've been his. And the pack seemed to be rewarding it, worst of all.

Another growl echoed from his body again.

"Stop," Tall Willow murmured as she rested near the back of the den.

"What?" he asked. "You think this is right?! All these wolves being accepted and embraced when they have broken many pack rules?"

"Of course not! But I can't sleep with you growling like that," Tall Willow complained. "Just don't pay attention to them. You'll be a better wolf than our half-brother."

"Don't even call him that," Strong Boulder growled. "I'm not related to him."

"Suit yourself," Tall Willow grumbled before shutting her eyes again.

Strong Boulder sat up and felt wind carry the rain's mist into his face. He let out a deep sigh and hung his head.

"Why did he do it?" Strong Boulder asked. "Why did he leave the family?"

"He wasn't much of it to begin with," Tall Willow replied.

"Still. We're his pups, and he just...abandoned us," Strong Boulder said. He had seen Feather Wings go into the den holding all the new members not too long ago. He watched him go in there time and time again, far more often than he had ever visited Strong Boulder and his sister.

He thought back to the night everything had happened, where presumably after Feather Wings had broken things off with their mother, Shining River gathered them and explained the situation.

"Your father is no longer my mate. Stay away from him, that omega, and their pup. They insult this pack, and I'm sure once the alphas die, they'll all be exiled," she complained before huffing and walking away. It was easy to infer that he had left her, not the other way around as Shining River liked to present it.

In a way, Strong Boulder felt for his mother. He knew that she loved Feather Wings, but he had never sensed that same love back from his father. He envied the way he saw Feather Wings and Gentle Breeze smile and laugh at each other. Rarely had he ever seen his parents interact that way. Mostly, Feather Wings only seemed to put up with Shining River.

Strong Boulder tilted his head as he saw Maple Leaf approach. She was walking quickly to avoid being soaked by the pelting rain. He backed up some as she entered into their den.

"Oh, good, some of you are awake," she said. Quiet Ocean and her siblings, who had been sound asleep at this point, were slowly stirring.

"What is it?" Strong Boulder asked. "Are those wolves all leaving?"

Maple Leaf appeared to ignore him. "I came here to announce that Golden Flower will be returning to the den tomorrow to resume her training."

"Is that all?" Tall Willow asked with a yawn.

"And...Black Berry, Rock Path, and Stormy Sky will also be joining I expect you all to clear a space for them to sleep."

"Does this mean all of them are starting to integrate into the pack?" Strong Boulder asked her.

"Yes," Maple Leaf said.

"Well, where's that omega going to go?" Strong Boulder growled. 

"Gentle Breeze will return to the omega den for the time being since that was her former residence," Maple Leaf answered simply.

"So then shouldn't Stormy Sky join her?"

"Stormy Sky has done nothing to suggest he deserves an omega ranking. Clear a spot, and he will join you all tomorrow. And I expect you treat both him and Golden Flower and her siblings well," Maple Leaf said before heading back out.

Strong Boulder growled. "She's only saying that about Golden Flower and her brothers because they're related."

"This den is getting so cramped," Tall Willow complained.

The next evening, Strong Boulder lingered in the back of the crowd as Stormy Sky, Black Berry, and Rock Path were all initiated into the pack and given their respective trainers. Nothing aggravated Strong Boulder more than when Stormy Sky and the others followed him back to the den.

"We left a nice spot for you, Stormy Sky," he said smearing the leftover mud from the rain all over the clearing.

Stormy Sky narrowed his eyes. "How welcoming."

That was the beginning of their rivalry. 

The next day, Strong Boulder went to training as he always did. While he was mostly focused on his own training, with so many wolves practicing, their paths were bound to cross. In the distance, he could see Stormy Sky training with Golden Sun. They were mostly practicing battle moves, and so Strong Boulder kept his focus, expecting to see Stormy Sky fail, but his half-brother moved with skill, as if he had been practicing already. The moves he was mastering had taken Strong Boulder weeks, and this was only Stormy Sky's first day. Though at one point he stumbled, Strong Boulder was digging his claws into the earth, trying not to let it eat away at him.

He was even more frustrated to see Stormy Sky bring home a rabbit that afternoon.

As they headed back to the den, Strong Boulder marched up to his half-brother, trying to ignore the lightning strike on his chest even if that's where his gaze automatically fell.

"What's your problem?" Strong Boulder growled.

Stormy Sky blinked at him, confused.

"My problem?"

"Why are you so good at those skills? You were raised by an omega. She wasn't able to teach any of that to you, I'm sure," Strong Boulder said.

"Well, Black Berry and Rock Path were teaching me, and their parents were passing their skills onto them. I'm not a beginner, you know. I probably started training around the same time, if not earlier, than you," Stormy Sky explained.

"Well, stop it," Strong Boulder growled.

"Stop what? Being better than you?" Stormy Sky asked with a smirk. "I can teach you if you want."

"I missed when you didn't talk back," Strong Boulder growled.

"Honestly, grow up. I knew I wasn't going to let you talk to me like again that after it happened the first time. You're all bark and no bite."

"Want to try me?" Strong Boulder said, revealing his teeth.

"Enough," came a voice to the side of them. It was Golden Flower, intervening just as she had done the first time Strong Boulder had confronted his brother.

"Like you have any right saying something," Strong Boulder said.

"Oh, grow up, Strong Boulder. Run away to your mother with your tail between your legs like you always do," she growled.

"You really want to talk to me like that, dog?" He turned to Stormy Sky now. "She'll be a full wolf soon unfortunately, and then you won't have her to protect you."

"I think I'll handle myself just fine," Stormy Sky said.

"We'll see," Strong Boulder said before turning away and heading back into the den. He wasn't so sure how he and Stormy Sky wouldn't kill each other before this battle.