One Step At A Time

Chapter One

The wolf growled as the man muttered 'mutt' under his breath. The wolf pounced at the side of his kennel. But to his luck the cage only rattled. He so badly wanted to escape. Craved it but he was too weak, too malnourished, too small to even try. He looked like a four to five month old pup to his displeasure. This was because of the amount of food he was allowed which stunted his growth.

The man who had bought him walked away with a snicker. Sadly this was all the wolf had ever known. Since he was a small pup he could only ever remember the abusive hands of man kind.

The man was his new owner. Who wasnt nearly as bad as his last owner. But the wolf still despised him. He wanted freedom. He wanted to feel the breeze in his fur which had started to itch to an uncomfortable level. He didn't want to be some man's prize. He didn't want to be a trophy to show off. He wanted to be alone, with himself and the forest.

The mans wife walked into the garage. Which cut off his train of thought. She walked to the corner farthest from the garage door. The corner his cage was in. He was glad that he wasn't put outside in the freezing cold like his previous owners had done to him.

He immediately noticed the bowls in her hands. His stomach growled as this was going to be the only time this week he would eat. She crouched in front of his kennel which had him growling at her and pushing as far back into the kennel as possible.

He would never admit it but he was terrified of her, of the man, of all humans. He never wanted to see one again. As she opened the cage door to put the bowls in he squished as far back as he could. She tried to comfort him with a smile but knew better than to try to touch the wild wolf.

Once the bowls were placed in the kennel she quickly closed the door and walked away. He didn't move for the food until he was sure she was out of the garage. He knew better by now not to eat in front of anyone. No matter who it was.

When she closed the door behind her he dived for the bowls. The shredded chicken mixed with beef was quickly scarfed down the poor wolfs throat. Next was the water. When the wolf was content. Not full. He wished he was. But he can't remember a single time he has ever been full. He walked to the back of the small cage and curled up in a ball.

He knew he would need his strength for the following day. Tomorrow was training and he didn't look forward to it. The thought of training had the tight collar around his neck irritating the already itchy skin.

As he heard the door creak open he didn't bother to lift his tired head. The clank of the door and the scraping of the bowls on the floor of the kennel roused him. But he didn't bother to look his nose knew it was the women removing the bowls from the kennel.

He awoke when the cage started to rattle back and forth. The noise gave him a headache but he didn't really care anymore. The sun was shinning through the open garage door but he didn't bother gathering any hope. The door to his cage was opened and he saw the man with the heavy chain leash.

When the man reached down to grab his collar he growled and backed up. The man only smirked. That left the wolf feeling uneasy. But he pushed through. This was his chance. When he leaned forward again, the wolf bit hard onto the mans hand. The man clenched his jaw in pain and dropped the leash.

The wolf took the chance and bolted between the mans legs and out of the garage. Just the snippet he first got of the wind was enough to make his small body run faster. When he saw the tall trees just past the wood fence he yelped in joy.

As quick as he could he jumped up the fence and almost got his hind legs over when he felt something small shim over his upper leg. He immediately knew it was a tranquilizer dart and bolted the rest of his body over the fence.

The moment his paws hit the floor he darted past the trees. He so badly wanted to enjoy the breeze and freedom he felt. But the viscous snarls of the hounds behind him kept him running. Soon heavy footsteps were following the hounds.

He ran through a river in hopes to throw off his scent. It seemed to work but he couldn't tell through his panic. He never slowed his pace even though his small body could only handle so much. At some point he could no longer hear the man or his hounds so he slowed to a trot.

The wolf enjoyed the forest for the first time in his life. He somehow felt connected to it. He knew immediately this was his habitat. This is where he belonged.

When he felt he was far enough, he came to a stop and layed down. He needed a few minutes of rest before he could continue. His eyes soon fell heavy with sleep.

A snapping twig had him jumping up from his sleep. He frantically looked around but couldn't see anything. He sniffed the ground and smelt something sweet, something edible. He followed the scent to a rabbit drinking by a small stream. He found this to be a good way to practice hunting.

When he was close enough, instinct took over and he lunged for the rabbit. He caught it a lot easier than he thought he would. He quickly snapped the rabbits neck before laying by the stream to enjoy his meal.

When he finshed the rabbit and felt satisfied. He took a few minutes to drink some water from the stream before heading off. He knew he needed to leave the area as quickly as possible.

He started his long journey only stopping at night fall to hunt something and sleep. Traveling a way the whole day. His wolf was still small and he felt vulnerable because of it.

When he knew he was far enough into the forest and far enough from any human settlements did he settle down. He knew he needed to make a permanent home but he wanted to find the best spot. He noticed during this search that some of his fur had started to fall off. The itching became worse but he could only bite at it.

He found a small hill with a stream just close enough to hear. He knew with the stream came animals. With that he started digging a hole into the small hill. It took a day and a half but he finished his den. He crawled into the den and felt isolated. The den was big enough for him to walk around. He could also lay down in the back and be a good three and a half feet from the entrance.

But something was missing. He realized it was a pack. He had never had one or even thought of having one. But now that he could enjoy his freedom he wanted a pack to hunt with. He realized it would be unlikely for any pack he came across to accept him, mainly because he looked like a pup. It wasnt likely for him to be accepted.

He decided he didn't need a pack. He'd been by himself all this time and could handle being by himself for the rest of his life. With that thought he curled up in the back of his den and fell asleep.