Taming the Wolf (A Hobbit Fanfic)

Chapter 35

The journey back seemed to be much shorter than before. It felt as if she was being carried by the wind, as she ventured through the frozen woodland. There was not a sign of the small feathered dragons. The only thing that betrayed their presence was their small clawed footprints in the snow. But there was no trace of them to be seen or heard. And it made her wonder whether they were part of a test as well.
And while climbing the steep rocky wall did prove to be a challenge, Frêllian found she had enough energy left to continue her climb down without a break. She could feel the energy from the stone soar through her body, giving her the strenght she needed to carry on. Strenght she hadn't possessed before, now allowed her to carry on to meet Canwrîf again. She could pick up his scent already as the foot of the mountain came closer and closer with each and every step.
Lüna had already risen from her slumber and stood high and proud in the night sky as Frêllian finally made it back at their makeshift camp.
Following her nose, Frêllian found the light brown fur of her beta as he lay underneath a hangover. The ferian had been asleep, but woke up the moment she got closer. His initial reaction was to growl at the intruder, but upon noticing who stood before him, Canwrîf immediately apologised.
'My lady, you have returned at last.'
As Frêllian stopped in front of him, she shifted back to her human form. Her brows knitted in a frown as she gazed upon the ferian.
'At last,' she wondered out loud. 'My dear friend, I have only been away for two days.'
But Canwrîf shook his head in reply, before shifting himself. His deep green eyes tired looking as he stated she had been away for two weeks.
'I had wanted to leave today, as promised.'
Surprised to have discovered she had been away for two weeks, Frêllian quickly figured time had passed differently on the other side of the mountain. She had witnessed the magic that resided with the ancient wolves firsthand, but not once did she wonder whether or not there was more magic protecting the ever white landscapes. Not once did she even wonder why the ancient wolves had still been alive after millennia. She had been so sure that the direwolves she would encounter would be descendants of the proud pack that once roamed Middle Earth.
While she had been shocked when they identified themselves as the wolves of her ancestor's pack, she hadn't wondered how that could have been true. She just believed them. And why would she not? They were so sincere and wise, just as she had imagined them to be. Albeit much older. Yet direwolves did not grow as old as ferien did. They lacked the immortal soul of Selèna and only possessed a mortal one instead. It was that union between a mortal direwolves and an immortal moonspirit that gave ferien their long lifespan. So, had she then perhaps made it all up? Had the cold caused her to hallucinate? That couldn't be right, could it?
'I don't mean to pry, but I have noticed a different scent on you.' His voice snapped Frêllian out of her thoughts. 'It was the reason I had thought you to be a threat at first.'
That's right, she had the stone! The wolf who had brought it to her had a different scent on him as well while carrying it. Of course she would do so too. It was now that she was once again reminded by the small piece of rock she held in her left hand. The cocoon from whence Selèna had come.
'I have spoken to our ancestors,' she told her beta while holding out her hand. 'The pack of Dêrus.'
'That's impossible! They had died ages ago. You could not have possibly seen them!'
'And yet I did. Do not ask me how it was possible, but I have spoken to them and they granted me their blessing.' His jaw tightened upon hearing this, but he remained silent. 'And a gift as proof.'
And with that, Frêllian held out her hand, showing the ferian the piece of Selèna's cocoon. She watched as his eyes grew wide and his expression changed from tense to pure shock.
'It cannot be,' he whispered in disbelief. 'But how can it not be, when the scent is so strong? It smells like us, like home. Is it truly what I think it is?'
'It is all that Selèna has left us. Now come, my friend. We must return to Imladris, for there are things to discuss.'
And with that, Frêllian shifted with Canwrîf following suit. There would indeed be things to discuss and she wanted to do so as soon as possible. First she would inform her alpha pack. Then she would send out messages to the other packs. And of course she needed to send out a raven to her father.
She was coming home!