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5 Paragraph story for Kane

"Leliana...I'm not so sure this is a good idea."
"Oh come on, this is a test isn't it? I can handle a challenge!" Leliana replied confidently.
"I don't deny that you can handle challenge dear, but the desert can be very dangerous even for the most weathered scouts. It's not a place you want to get lost in." Diane tried to reason.
The younger female wasn't having any of it, scouting the Riparian Woodland like Diane intended paled in comparison to the fun and scenic routes they could take in the desert. Besides, they already lived in a forest, she was tired of trees as far as the eye could see. The open air would be good for both of them, surely.
"Please Di, let me show you what I can do… I wanna prove I'm worthy for the job." Leliana pleaded.
Diane couldn't deny that Leliana was a talented stalker, her nose was such a useful tool that could be utilised in scouting, but this was a huge risk. One could scarcely forget the trouble Leliana would get herself into as a pup. Though curiosity was often something to be nurtured in the young, it sometimes felt like Leliana had far too much of it. Still, she could see how badly the young one wanted to prove herself. This could turn into one hell of a learning curve, but Diane couldn't resist those puppydog eyes.
"Alright… but we absolutely must stick together."

———

The first half hour of the trip went off surprisingly without a hitch, Leliana with her nose in the air led them safely through the blistering desert. Both wolves would make mental notes of certain rocks, sand dunes and small bodies of water, stopping every so often to mark their trail. Diane was impressed with Leliana's skills, and the two shared a lot of laughter together as they ventured further. They had to stop and recover for a few minutes when they witnessed a coyote get spooked by a lizard and almost run head first into a cactus. All seemed to be going well, perhaps almost too well. At midday, in the shade of multiple large rock formations, Leliana noticed some claw marks on the side of one of them and stopped in her tracks.
"Hey, look at that!" She exclaimed, motioning towards the marks with her paw.
Diane looked and cocked her head, feeling suddenly uneasy. "That seems odd…"
Before she could stop her, Leliana had already bounded over to the rock formation and sniffed the marks.
"Leliana no!" Diane yelped, watching in horror as the sand around Leliana's feet began to give way. She pounced and tried to grab the young one by the scruff, but her weight made the ground collapse completely and two wolves plummeted down into a deep hole next to the rock.

Thankfully for them, the sand that had given way cushioned their fall, but Diane had to pull Leliana out of a pile that had landed on top of her. There was not much room between the wall of the rock and the wall of sand that had not yet given way, and the two wolves had to move very carefully to not disturb any more sand. Leliana was shaking, her tail between her legs, and she looked worriedly at Diane.
"W-what just happened?" She asked.
"I think we stepped on a sand trap…" Diane replied, knowing she needed to keep calm for the sake of them both. They looked up, they could still see the sky and the hole wasn't hugely deep. But it was still too deep for them to jump safely out of.
"C-could we climb out?" Leliana asked, her ears pinned back.
"I… I don't know… I'm not sure this sand would hold. It could bury us both if we tried." Diane replied, poking the sand very gently and watching a small stream of it collect at her feet. Leliana was beginning to panic.
"What do we do? What if we never get out? What if-"
"Sweetheart, I need you to relax, alright? It'll all be okay, we'll get out of this somehow. I promise." Though even Diane wasn't so sure about that.

———

Jasmine paced back and forth, from one tree and back again. Her beloved Diane had taken Leliana out before midday, and night was beginning to fall. Though she was a level headed and capable leader, even this was beginning to worry her. They definitely should have been back by now, scouts were never out longer than two hours at most per trip. Everyone else in the pack was beginning to feel nervous too, picking up on Jasmine's anxious energy. The leaders' footprints in the mud now blended into each other, as if Jasmine had actually worn trenches into the ground with her pacing. Then she stopped quite suddenly, something seeming to click in her mind.
"I'm going to look for them." She announced to the concerned group that had gathered beside her. Diana and Leliana were either lost or stuck, because there was no way they'd be dead. Jasmine believed that wholeheartedly, Diane wouldn't let that happen. "Keep an eye out, protect the pack in my absence." She added, addressing her scouts.
They looked at one another and nodded, swearing they would. Without another word, Jasmine took off towards the desert. The leader knew she needed to keep a level head, so she followed the traces of Diane and Leliana's scents very carefully. She had to be sure to stay on their trail, because getting lost too would defeat the entire point of a rescue mission. Luckily, her nose was not needed for long. Two howls sounded from a few miles off, unmistakably the wolves she was looking for. Jasmine howled in reply and took off towards the noise.

When she eventually came to the rocky formations she found herself confused at first. That was until she realised that the howls were coming from a hole in the ground. Jasmine tread extremely lightly towards it, and strained her neck to look in instead of getting too close to the edge. Her gaze was met with two very tired wolves looking back at her.
"Oh thank goodness." Diane and Jasmine sighed in accidental unison.
"What happened?" Jasmine asked, watching Leliana get teary eyed.
"A sand trap. An easy mistake to make." Diane replied, looking pointedly in Leliana's direction, her words obviously weighted with previous unknown conversation. "Do you think if Leliana stood on my back you could pull her out from there?"
Jasmine nodded, but Leliana's head snapped up "What? No! I'm not leaving you down here! You should get on my back!"
Diane stared at her sternly "My dear, I'm afraid this isn't an argument. Come on now, on my back."
Leliana looked up at Jasmine, who nodded again and said "Do as she says kiddo, don't worry, We aren't leaving her here. No way."
The youngest wolf looked between Diane and Jasmine helplessly, realising she had no choice. With a sigh, she hoisted herself up onto Diane's back, and they both stood up shakily. Jasmine reached in and grabbed Leliana by the scruff, roughly hauling her up and out before they lost their balance and she lost her grip. The movement caused part of the sand wall to collapse into the hole, and Diane had to back up quickly to avoid it. By a stroke of luck however, the sand had formed a perfect slope up to the surface. "Well that solves that problem." Jasmine chuckled, as with relief she and Leliana watched Diane carefully ascend into the open air. Jasmine and Diane embraced, licking one another behind the ears.
"C'mon." Jasmine smiled, looking from Diane to Leliana "Let's get you two home."

Alaska had rushed back as soon as he heard. He thought she'd been getting better, she'd seemed so alert when he'd spoken to her before his walk. He'd ventured out under the stars to clear his head, basking in the dim light cast by the full moon. It had been so peaceful, so calming. But then the panicked voice of a packmate reached his ears, they'd sprinted all the way here to tell him that Tala was dying. His heart had dropped, and he left his packmate in the dust without a response. No, that couldn't be true! Anything but this… How could he claim to be a healer if he couldn't save her? The scene that greeted him back at their den made this nightmare a reality, most of the pack was gathered outside with their head hung low. One murmured to him that Alaska had done all he could. Tala was splayed out at the back of their den, her chest barely rising and falling, each breath rattled horribly. Her eyes kept fluttering closed, but then she noticed Alaska at her side. She smiled as he leant down to nuzzle her, and closed her eyes for the final time. Alaska could do nothing but sob into her fur, his legs giving way as he cried out over the loss of his beloved.

———

A month had passed since Tala's death, and the full moon loomed in the sky once again. Alaska's grief was still raw, his mourning still fresh. Its pale face mocked him, never would a full moon come without pain for Alaska now. Yet the moon seemed to harness an odd sort of magic, and something within the male told him that Tala was out there somewhere and the moon was the key to reuniting with her once more. He'd ventured away from the pack at sunset, and had been walking for several hours now. Something peculiar was beginning to happen to him however, his body itched and no amount of scratching could quell it. He was quite sure he didn't have fleas, nor did he have mange. What strange tricks was the moon playing on him? Was it the poor lighting, or was his fur tinged with blue? When the night was over he got his answer, his fur had definitely changed colour. Tala did not make an appearance, and so Alaska's heart experienced another sting of failure.

The routine continued the next month, when the moon reared its pallid face once again. Once again Alaska's body was ablaze with an insatiable itch, much worse than before. His journey took him high and low, but his plight was hopeless this time around, for he became too distracted by the itch. He almost rubbed his skin raw on tree bark and rocks, but still it would not leave him. He would bite angrily at his legs, drawing blood and achieving nothing. The frustration was enough to bring him to the verge of tears, and seeing the sunrise after hours of this torture made them fall. He had failed once again, and when he looked down at his body, the red bloody skin was now covered in blue scales. Alaska cursed the moon, returning home defeated once more.

By the third full moon, Alaska was beginning to think there was something it wanted him to do. What must he give up to get Tala back? He ventured out just like before, and once again he began to itch. Alaska looked up at the moon and spoke,
"What do you want from me? What am I doing wrong?"
But of course the moon was silent, it stared endlessly, giving no answers.
"What kind of cruel joke are you playing?" Alaska yelled, hating the moon and all that it represented to him. Under its light he suffered, under its light he lost.
Yet still he ventured on fruitlessly, searching for Tala and finding nothing but the dark and its overpowering loneliness. When the sun rose, tendrils had sprouted from his skin, remarkably like those upon the creatures said to dwell in the land of dreams. Any sane wolf would have given up at this point, but Alaska had resigned himself to his fate, and knew that he'd never stop.

Though the fourth month brought the full moon back again, this night it was shrouded by dark clouds. The weight of depression sat heavily on Alaska's shoulders, and unlike the previous moons, he did not itch. His shoulders ached, the base of his tail ached. His journey was a blur to him this night, for he walked pre programmed, the routine had now set in and he did not stray from his previous paths. His head hung low as his spirits, and when morning came he found that feathers had sprouted from his shoulders and his tail. What was he becoming in search of Tala? When would it end? Alaska had no answers, yet each month the moon would beckon him with the hope that one day he would see her again.