Warriors but Wolves: Into the Wild

Chapter 5

A/N: Hello everyone! I have decided to return to working on this story. I don't really have a plan for an update schedule as of right now. I'll just update when I can, as I am very busy with personal projects of my own, schoolwork, and my music programs as well.

     "Hey, Firepaw, wake up!" Ravenpaw's bark broke into Firepaw's dream. He had been chasing a rabbit through dense undergrowth.

"Training begins at sunrise. Dustpaw and Sandpaw are already up," Ravenpaw added urgently.

Firepaw stretched sleepily, then remembered: today was his first day of training. He leaped to his paws. His drowsiness evaporated as excitement surged through his veins.

Ravenpaw was giving himself a hasty wash. Between licks, he said, "I've just spoken to Mooseheart. Graypaw won't be training with us till his wound is better. He'll probably stay at Bluefur's den for another day or two. Sandpaw and Dustpaw are on hunting duty. So Mooseheart thought you and I could train with him and Bearclaw this morning. We'd better hurry, though," he added. "They'll be waiting!"

Ravenpaw led Firepaw quickly through the gorse entrance of the camp and up the side of the rock-strewn valley. As they climbed over the crest of the ravine, a cool breeze ruffled their fur. Fat, white clouds raced across the blue sky overhead. Firepaw felt fierce joy well up inside him as he followed Ravenpaw down a tree-shaded slope and into a sandy hollow.

Bearclaw and Mooseheart were indeed waiting, sitting a few tail-lengths apart on the sun-warmed sand.

"In the future, I expect you both to be punctual," growled Bearclaw.

"Don't be too severe, Bearclaw; it was a busy day yesterday. I expect they were tired," yipped Mooseheart gently. "You have not yet been assigned a mentor, Firepaw," he went on. "For now, Bearclaw and I will share your training."

Firepaw nodded enthusiastically, his tail wagging, unable to disguise his delight at having not one, but two seasoned and respected warriors as his mentors.

"Come," barked Bearclaw impatiently. "Today we are going to show you the edges of our territory, so that you know where you will be hunting and what boundaries you need to protect. Ravenpaw, it won't do you any harm to remind yourself of the Pack's outer limits."

Without another word, Bearclaw leaped up and bounded out of the sandy hollow. Mooseheart nodded to Ravenpaw and they took off with equal speed. Firepaw scrambled after them, his paws slipping on the soft sand.

The trees were thick in this part of the forest, birch and ash trees overshadowed by mighty oaks. The ground was carpeted with crisp dead leaves that rustled beneath their paws. Bearclaw stopped to rub his scent on a thick clump of ferns. The other wolves stopped beside him.

"There is a Twoleg path here," murmured Mooseheart. "Use your nose, Firepaw. Can you smell anything?"

Firepaw sniffed. There was the faint scent of a Twoleg, and the stronger smell of a dog. Inwardly, he reflected how foolish it was for a Twoleg to be so near to a pack of wild wolves. "A Twoleg has walked their dog along here, but they are gone now," he yipped.

"Good," huffed Mooseheart. "Do you think it is safe to cross?"

Firepaw sniffed again. The odors were weak and seemed overlaid with fresher forest smells. "Yes," he replied.

Bearclaw nodded, and the four canines stalked out from beneath the ferns and crossed the sharp stones of the narrow Twoleg path.

The trees beyond were pine. They grew tall and straight, row after row. It was easy to walk silently here. The ground was thick with layers of dead needles, which prickled against Firepaw's pads but felt spongy underneath. There was no undergrowth here to hide in, and Firepaw sensed tension in the other wolves as they stalked unprotected between the tree trunks.