The Wolves of Aringod: Boundaries

Chapter Four | The Howl of Patriots

Chapter Four

The Howl of Patriots

After about a few minutes of walking, Faleon abruptly stopped. Aleanu stopped as well, sniffing the air for any scent of danger. No harm seemed to surround them.

"Why are we stopping?" Aleanu asked. "Are we stopping to rest or something?"

"No," Faleon said, looking around in the undergrowth. "Not yet."

Not yet? What could possibly be holding this wolf back? For a wolf who was on a quest, Faleon didn't seem like he had much motivation in gaining this so-called "justice" thing.

Abruptly, Faleon jerked back his head and howled. Suprisingly, his howl sounded familiar to Aleanu. She knew that she had never once known or seen Faleon until today, and that wolves could have similar howls, but Faleon's howl was unique. And it was beautiful. It started out as a low rumble, but quickly escalated into a proud outburst.

Faleon only howled for a mere second, but it seemed longer to Aleanu. But nonetheless, Faleon started to seem a bit more serious.

And that was when Aleanu started to hear a faint rustling. Before she knew what was happening, a chorus of howls surrounded the two wolves, and slowly, a small group of wolves took up the space of the howls. Aleanu wasn't used to crowds, especially ones that had stronger wolves in them. Faleon seemed to notice her fear, so he quickly explained.

"You already know that I am on a quest for justice," he began. "But I didn't want to alarm you by telling you that we weren't alone."

"Not alarm me?" Aleanu yelled, anger boiling up inside of her. "This is why I don't trust anyone! Because no one ever tells me everything!"

"Aleanu," Faleon said, slowly mumbling through his teeth. "This is more important than you realize. You know better than any wolf that-"

"What do I know that prevented me from hearing the truth?" Aleanu interrupted, her anger traveling up to form a growl. Her voice began to grow louder. "Why can't I be trusted with this knowledge?"

Faleon looked as though he would attack at any moment. His eyes were glued on Aleanu, daring her to make a move. "I know that you're missing some claws," he growled. "That was the fault of my father, Scroug. And if you want me to help you, you need to cooperate."

"Scroug?" Aleanu asked. The very name made her wince. "You mean to tell me that your father nearly killed me?"

"No. I mean yes. I mean," Faleon paused briefly, only to angrily look at Aleanu and continue yelling. "My father is the alpha male of my former pack, the ShadowClaw pack. Or, as it's formally known as..."

"The ShadowClaw Alliance," Aleanu said, quickly weakening her anger. All aggression she had seemed to subside into something else. Regret. Pain. A single tear crept its way onto Aleanu's cheek. It was the pain. Her claw was throbbing. Her throat was burning. Her eyes were filled with liquid crystals of sorrow. Regret.

Faleon paused in his anger. The wolves surrounding the two of them seemed to briefly relax. Faleon slowly approached Aleanu, careful not to anger her. "My father is a horrible wolf. And I plan to overthrow him and start a new begining. I know what pain you're feeling..."

"You never will know what pain I feel."

"Don't you mean the pain you're feeling?"

"No. I always feel pain. Now, I'm expressing how I feel inside on the outside."

Faleon got closer to Aleanu. "I will stop my father's rule. We all will." Faleon looked at the wolves that surrounded them. "We all will."

And then, he howled that perfect howl of his, which was then followed by many other patriotic others. And Aleanu smiled. For only a second.

No, Aleanu thought. No.