(ON HOLD) An Ember of Hope

Prolouge

A wolf wandered about the forest, searching for prey. Suddenly, her swollen belly convulsed and she cringed at the cramp.

"Looks like the pups are coming." She growled to herself in pain. She staggered back into camp and towards the pack's healer.

He looked at her coldly as she spoke. "I will never forgive you. Don't do it, please." He stared back blankly. "I listen to Alpha, not you." He pointed to his den with his muzzle.

*later that night*

The she-wolf laid curled around her only pup. The healer had said that Alpha would allow her to keep her pup, a she-wolf just like herself. This of course, was a lie.

As she dreamt, a wolf came into the den. "Here is the pup, Alpha." The healer grumbled, still half asleep. He went over and picked the pup up by the scruff. She yelped slightly as she was jolted awake.

"It's healthy, a strong addition to the pack." Alpha replied in a gruff voice. His voice contained no emotion, he wanted this pup to grow up as a fighter. As for the mother, she was a minor detail.

The drowsy pup was placed back at her mother's belly. "How do we get rid of her?" He nodded to the mother as he stepped back from the nest.

"Tomorrow, take her to the border to pick herbs, then throw her into the river. She will drown, for the current is stronger than any wolf." The Alpha wolf turned away and went to his den.

The wolf glared at the pup. "You'd better be worth the trouble. I'm not allowed to kill, but I will for you." He whispered a prayer to the Pack of Strength, the ancestors that all the packs worshipped.

*next morning*

The healer wolf walked into the den. "Wake up, she-wolf." He smiled. Calling a wolf by their gender showed utter disrespect. "Get up now! Or be punished!"

The mother wolf woke up and growled. She stood up and glanced at her pup. "I must take care of her, I cannot go with you." She started to sit back down.

"Another nurser will take care of her" he told her gruffly. "You are coming with me to pick herbs." He led the way out of camp. Her packmates stared at her in disgust, some with smirks planted on their muzzles. Alpha had told everyone what was to happen to the mother wolf, and that the pup would be given a new mother.

At the river, the healer lagged behind slightly. He tensed as the she-wolf went down to the bank and stiffed for herbs. "Thank you, for convincing Alpha to let me keep her." She told him.

Flint growled. "You will never see her again!" He barked and charged at her. The mother wolf looked up shocked. Before she had a chance to react, she was toppled over by the wolf. Then he grabbed her by the scruff and threw her into the river.

Her head surfaced momentarily, and it was then that she changed inside. Her once loving eyes hardened, and her heart cracked into a million pieces. She gazed back at him, who was smiling. "You all will pay!" She yowled to him as her head went under. This time, she didn't come back up.