Shadow of the Moon

Chapter 2

Shadow and Moon were walking for miles. They were both tired and hungry. Shadow couldn't take it anymore. She stopped at her tracks and laid down. Moon didn't want to stop. Afraid that predators will try to kill them if they stopped. Moon nudged Shadow to get up but she refused.

" Moon stop it, I need to rest." Moon rolled his eyes. He then decided to rest as well. As they were resting Moon kept a lookout to see if there was any predators. The wind started to pick up. Moon sniffed the air hoping there was some prey nearby. Suddenly Moon got a scent of a mother bear not that far away from where they were. He quickly got up and told Shadow that they had to move now. Shadow moved quickly to her feet. She looked at him.

" what do we do?"

Moon tried to think quickly. They did not have much time. Moon then started to trot fast with Shadow close behind him. The mother bear was already on their scent following their trail. Moon and Shadow started to run fast trying to get away from the bear but then it started to rain. The rain made it hard for Shadow and Moon see where they were going. The bear started to get closer to them, it was a lot bigger than the wolves. Moon and Shadow tried to stay together but the rain started to become a storm. It slowed them down as the rain kept falling on the ground. Shadow kept going, pushing her way through the pouring rain. Moon was struggling to keep up with his sister. Shadow was so focused on getting away from the bear that she didn't noticed that her brother wasn't beside her.

Suddenly Shadow heard a scream like what prey would do when the predator gave the death blow. Shadow shuddered from the noise. Her instincts told her something was really wrong. She turned around and noticed that her brother was not behind her. She panicked and ran back to where the scream was heard. She ran as fast as she could and then she saw the horror that will forever haunt her. A couple of pawsteps away there laid her brother, mauled to death. He laid in his own pool of blood as his body made no movement. When the bear left from the sight ,Shadow carefully came down slowly and quietly not knowing if the bear will come back. As Shadow was close enough she can see where the bear killed him. Shadow didn't know what to do, she sat there with her brother and mourned. First her mother was dead and now Moon. She then regretted leaving the den. She cried over and over again until she could do no more. She looked up to the sky and said softly.

" Why does this have to happen!" She then looked down at her paws and thought to herself.' This is all my fault, I should've listened to Fang. Because of me Moon is dead!' As the night came around Shadow buried her dead brother and moved on, hoping to find a pack to belong in.

Finally Shadow found an empty den to sleep for the night. Shadow tried to fall asleep but couldn't.The images that she saw today was bloody and gory. They wouldn't go away from her mind. She then decided to think of happy thoughts like being with her mother. As she found peace in her thoughts she slowly fell asleep.

Once morning came Shadow was reminded that she still hasn't eaten yet. She came out of the den and looked around to see if it was safe to come outside. Shadow then stepped outside into to the cold wet ground. Her fur to build to keep her dry.She decided to continue the same path as she was walking originally. After a few hours of walking she smelled fresh meat. Shadow got very excited and ran towards the meat. When she came to the location of scent she saw the meat laying on the ground. She looked around hoping there wasn't others nearby. She walked towards the piece of meat. Shadow didn't realize that the piece of meat was in a cage. It was covered by tree branches and leaves. When she took a step in the cage it snapped behind her. She yelped loudly as she was started by the noise. She looked around and realized she was in a human trap. She remembered her mother telling her about humans and what they do to wolves. They hated wolves and will kill them just like they did with her mother. Shadow didn't like this at all she tried desperately to get out quickly enough before the humans came. It was no use, the cage was out of metal. She tried biting, chewing and pawing the bars but it wasn't helping. She then heard footsteps coming near her. She backed into the end of the cage .She laid low with her ear back and her tail tucked between her legs. The humans came to the cage, thinking they got a rabbit or something. To their surprise they caught a wolf but it was not their intention to. They picked up the cage so they can get a better look at the wolf. Shadow snarled and growled at them to stay away from her. The humans admired her and one of them said

" I don't know how this wolf pup got there but we need to take her in, she is too young to be by herself." They all agree on that decision . As they carried her into their house Shadow was still wearier of them. One of the men said to the others.

" I am going to take care of her since I study wolves myself. I will also examine her for any diseases and infections. My wife will love her." The man that was taking care of her brought her inside his home and opened the cage and went in the kitchen to tell his wife about the wolf. Shadow waited until the man was completely gone. She slowly walked out of the cage and started to sniff everything and explore her surroundings. She's never been inside a human's home before. Shadow then heard voices coming out of one of the rooms. They grew louder as the humans came to the living room where Shadow was. The man came with another human. It was a female. Shadow figured it was his mate. She looked very happy to see Shadow and said in a sweet voice.

" Oh James! She is adorable. " she then kneeled down near Shadow and tried to pet her

. Shadow backed away and showed her teeth. She hated the stench of humans and would never have let a human touch her . The man stopped his wife before she could touch Shadow.

" Kate, let her get use to us and the house." Kate stood up and keep looking at Shadow with loving eyes. James went to the kitchen again and came back with a plate of meat. Kate also followed her husband and came with a bowl of water for Shadow. They both put the food and water nearby Shadow and left the house for a bit. Shadow poked her head out from under the table where she backed up. She walked toward the food and quickly devour the meat. She drank the water as well. When she was satisfied with her meal she jumped up onto the couch and curled up to go to sleep. " Maybe humans aren't bad after all." She said to herself.

The Sun started to rise, making Shadow wake up. She opened her eyes slowly and yawned. She got up to her paws and shook any dirt that was on her fur. She jumped down from the couch gracefully and walk to the kitchen where her food was. She looked down at her food bowl and saw cut up pieces of raw pork, beef and chicken. She licked her lips hungrily and chowed down her meal. After eating her food she saw another bowl filled with water. She tasted the water first. It was icy cold, just the way she likes it. She drank the icy water and move on. She decided to look around her new home. She didn't hear the humans in the house which made her relax. She walked to every room and sniffed every inch of the room. When she was done she went to the next room and so on. Shadow then came across something that she'd never seen before . It was stairs but she didn't know that. She thought to herself.

" Hmmm, I wonder what is up there?" She put her paw on the first step and push herself up. Soon she learned how to climb the stairs. There was a lot of them but Shadow was determined to know what was up there. As she arrived at the top she carefully walked around the second floor of the house. Shadow sat down and listened if there was other humans or animals. Shadow then caught a scent of an animal nearby her. She couched lowly to the ground and started to move closer to the scent. She turned a corner and saw a shadow of something. She got herself ready to pounce on the animal. The animal knew she was there but it stood its ground. Shadow jumped from her hiding place and pounce at the intruder. She grabbed it by the neck trying to kill it. The intruder tried to get her off its body. Shadow was stronger and pinned it to the ground. She look at the animal and growled saying.

" This is my home and territory, get out!" The intruder was a dog. He was the pet of humans who lived in the house. Shadow did not know that he is a pet. Suddenly the door opened from downstairs. James and Kate came back from work and they heard their pet dog whimpering. They ran upstairs and saw Shadow pinning their dog. Kate quickly tried to get Shadow off of him. Shadow saw her coming for her and ran far away from her. Kate picked up her dog which was named Max. Max was a Jack Russell Terrier. Kate was scared for Max and looked at James and said in an angry voice.

" I don't like that wolf pup, She tried to kill Max!" James calmly replied to her.

" Kate it ok, she probably territorial, she is a wild animal. This is all new for her, remember?" Kate still didn't care and she walk downstairs with Max. James decided to look for Shadow. She was hiding under the bed. James sat down on the floor and softly talked to Shadow. Shadow started to relax in his presence and slowly came out from under the bed. James pulled out from his pocket a small piece of a dog treat and had it in the palm of his hand. Shadow got interested in the treat and came closer to James until her ate the treat right out of his hand. James was pleased by this and Shadow started to trust him and soon let James touch her.