Hidden by the Mountain

Chapter 3, Many Benefits of Friendship

Chapter 3

Many Benefits of Friendship

            Another three moons had passed far too quickly as Salena and Kamatz continued to live together and hunt together. Kamatz had told Salena how to kill healthy game like mature bucks. He also taught her how to protect their prey from other predators. Together they killed a total of one grizzly bear, three coyotes, two foxes, and several wolves from the other five packs Salena told him about.

            Now he was trying to teach her how to climb up trees to make a quick escape. He slowly leaped halfway up and clung tightly to the bark, showing her how to do it an easier way than racing up the tree in two seconds. He pulled himself with his forepaws while his hind paws latched into place until he reached the first branch where he simply jumped onto the next and the next.

            Kamatz jumped down from a branch near the top that was beginning to snap under his weight. As he landed down next to Salena, the white and silver she-wolf launched into the tree. As her claws clung to the bark, her tail whipped from side to side in fright.

            “Kamatz! I can’t move!” The white male wolf jumped into the tree and gripped her scruff in his teeth. He slowly lowered her onto the ground and shook his head. “I can’t do it,” Salena said, barely sad, “It’s not like its essential. I’m fine not being able to.”

            Now that Kamatz thought about it, he did kind of beg her to try. “You hungry?” Kamatz asked her.

            “Might as well hunt, I’ll be getting hungry soon,” She replied. They padded over to the hunting grounds and took down a bull. “Want to bring it to the den?” Kamatz asked her.

            As if in reply she grabbed it by the neck and began tugging it to the mountain not to far away. Kamatz grabbed a leg and helped her bring it back. A few minutes later they had killed a fox and managed to bring the carcass to their small cave. Soon they scraped it bare. Only bones still remained of the once-healthy caribou.

            Kamatz kicked the bones over the edge of the mountain for the crows to pick at and settled down next to Salena. He breathed in her welcome scent of the forest that was now rid of the smell of pack wolves. He looked into her fiery amber eyes and forced out the question, “Salena, would you like to be my mate?”

            The white and silver wolf licked his muzzle affectionately, “Of course.” Kamatz touched her ear with his nose and curled close to her to warm them both from the cold nights of the middle of fall. . As the bitter winds whistled around the mouth of the cave, little of the ice-cold breeze made it into the cave to touch the wolves’ skin.

            As Kamatz was about to fall asleep, he heard a noise coming from outside the den. He slowly got up so he wouldn’t disturb Salena’s sleep, and rushed outside into the cold wind. He climbed to the top of the mountain and looked into the clearing where the Moonlight Shadows pack lived.

            Down in the valley were eight large grizzly bears that were easily knocking wolves away with a single swipe of their paws. “Salena!” Kamatz yelled as he flew back into the cave. Immediately the she-wolf was up on her paws and looking every which way for the slightest hint of danger.

            “Bears are attacking the Moonlight Shadows pack!”  Kamatz yelled to her as they raced out of the cave. She followed him with no reluctance as they slid down the mountain and attacked a bear that was coming to reinforce its fellow bears.

            Salena launched into its side and tugged off bits of its fur while Kamatz plunged straight into its neck. He knew a bear couldn’t be brought down with a simple bite to the neck, it had too much fur to protect it, but the force of Kamatz’s leap into it sent the bear flying to the ground. Together the two wolves managed to shred off most of its fur and get a good grip on its sides with their teeth and blood poured out of the open wound.