RemiBarnes
Jaxel was born beneath bright lights and raised behind closed doors, his life dictated by ribbons, routines, and rigid standards. As a brown and white poodle bred for the show ring, he was everything a champion was supposed to be-elegant, obedient, and admired. But inside, he was suffocating.
To the humans who paraded him, Jaxel was a prize. To the other dogs trapped in the same world, he was too proud, too distant. But no one saw the truth: Jaxel hated it all. The combs, the cameras, the clapping. He longed not for applause but for the open world beyond the glass-mud instead of grooming tables, chaos instead of choreography.
Then came the stories.
Whispers passed through the pens when the humans weren't listening-rumors of a pack of outcast dogs who had escaped the cages of human control. Misunderstood and feared, they roamed free in the wilderness, living by their own rules, answering to no one. To most, they were a warning. To Jaxel, they were a beacon.
With each passing day, the call of that freedom burned brighter. And one day, Jaxel runs-not just from the shows, but from the identity that was forced upon him.
Now a stray in an unfamiliar world, Jaxel must survive the streets, avoid being dragged back, and follow the trail toward the pack he's never met-but always believed in. Hunted by humans, distrusted by other dogs, and battling the perfection he was bred to uphold, Jaxel begins to learn what it means to live wild, live scarred, and live true.