I had grown up in a human settlement. My mother was a husky, though my father was a wolf- that made some of the humans uneasy. My life wasn't hard, I was fed pretty well by the humans who did take care of me. As I grew I realised something was missing, that's when I heard the voice. What voice? I wouldn't be able to tell you. 'The wild is free' was all it said. I knew in my gut that I had to listen to it though. I left the human settlement into the wilds, hunting the small prey I could catch to sustain me on my travels. I attempted at joining the wolves; I was easily turned away and chased off due to the obvious domestic blood. "Wolf packs are strong because they are wolves, not dogs" I once heard from a wolf who nearly bit my tail off. That's a load of dung for sure. I've survived this long, even with some humans helping me out a bit for the first year. I travelled and hunted since I left and I've done perfectly well on my own. I have had enough. If no wolf pack will take me because of my domestic bloodline, I will have a strong wolf pack started by a domestic bloodline. Wolfdogs are just as strong as wolves, and I'm going to make sure that it's known.

I travelled for a bit more, deciding to go from settlement to settlement until I found some wolfdogs willing to join. I finally found one- a male named Daer, and I immediately knew that he was the one to start the pack with. Unfortunately we couldn't find more- not by the time I'd started my heat at least. I was fertile, he was fertile, we decided that the forest we stumbled upon was lush with prey for us to hunt and use to feed a litter of pups, so we stayed and had them. There wasn't a pack nearby, so we could claim a small area for our own and just keep vigilant.

During my carry after settling however i started having strange dreams. I was in our home- but not. Everything wasn't like it was; fungi and spores everywhere, glowing flowers- it was almost scary. I saw animals that were both from the real world and not, but they had glow and dust and fungi- I wasn't going to mess with that, not pregnant. I then met someone who told me it was the dreamlands, a place to go while asleep. I learned a lot, and I was thankful. I still kept my distance from the dreamland animals when I could, but also helped out and tried to find things, having been told that items in the dreamlands carried to the waking world.

Thankfully I had my pups with no issue and gave birth to a litter of 2- a beautiful grey female, which was a bit surprising, and a black-pelted male. I named the female Nela, and the male Hyran. It was fairly calm while I cared for and weaned the pups… Then came the illness.

It was something I ate- maybe it wasn't the best of quality, having affected my bowels. I didn't know what to do, and neither did Daer. We both realised that maybe we should've thought this through a bit more before having pups, since illness is common both in and out of the settlement, but I had heat, which isn't something easily ignored.

Then there was the bear. I didn't expect to see a bear, and I nearly shot up to fight it myself out of pure instinct had it been aggressive. She had a wolf as a companion though, and seeing as they weren't being aggressive to me, my pups, or my mate, it was easy enough to calm down. The wolf introduced himself to be Kile, a travelling herbalist. The Bear didn't introduce herself, but gave a nod in acknowledgement while still cautious, I heard him out for what he had to say.

"The spirits, which I have no doubt you have seen in the dreamlands, have led us here. They tell of your ailment, your new pups, and your desire to start a pack. This is not an easy feat for one with such small numbers and no wild blood that is used to the dangers of the wilds." He spoke, and I snarled. I was really to rip him a new one when he calmly looked at me and apologised for offending me, but he stated that having domestic blood meant that it might be easier to contract illnesses that would come to our family. With a huff I calmed myself, curling around my pups as he sniffed me over and diagnosed me, leaving to acquire herbs for a remedy I did not know existed.

He came back and I drank a disgusting liquid, but it made me feel instantly better, and I thanked him. He looked at my pups, and over at the bear again who nodded. Turning to me he spoke, "your grey pup- she has been chosen as the next herbalist. If you allow me to stay and train her when she is old enough, I will stay and treat any ailments. When it is time for her to take over, I will take my leave. Bear will always be around to teach her more in the future- but once she can take over I will be on my way." It puzzled me as to why he spoke of the bear's name now, which was apparently just Bear, but I didn't question it. All I knew is he was referring to my pup- and I didn't know how to take it. It seemed important to have an herbalist; as I didn't know anything about herbs and spirits and whatnot, but I knew that he would keep my family healthy. I looked at Daer, who didn't seem to be impressed or displeased, and hesitantly agreed. He would only be here until Nela took over, which was a year. What would happen between that time was a mystery however, I just hoped it would be in our favour.

One more mouth to feed wasn't that hard, and I weaned Nela and Hyran without trouble. That's when things got interesting. Five more wolves had joined just before the weaning, but were making their dues. I don't know why I allowed them to stay- maybe because I wanted a bigger pack, maybe because I thought it would be a load off my shoulders. They were black and white marked wolves, three adults and two pups. None of them were related, seemingly a band of travellers trying to find a place; maybe that's why I let them stay. Their names were Yumi, Akane, Milo, Tirre, and Litto.

Milo took to scouting, finding better paths in the woods and expanding the territory to accommodate for what was now an eight-wolf pack not including pups. Yumi and Akane took to the hunting and they were decently good at it, bringing in enough game to get a stockpile to last us a while hopefully. Tirr and Litto were old enough to train, but unfortunately everyone had been too busy, so they ended up staying at the den, telling stories of their travels to the pups and Daer, who stayed to watch them. Eventually nothing was solid in their placement, Yumi and Litto decided that maybe for this pack it wasn't the right place, and said their farewells before leaving. Akane, Milo, and Tirre stayed; feeling as this was the right fit for them.

It was once again time for Kile to work his magic- Milo coming back with a nasty wound from a fight that he said he won. I feel like with the look of it, the thing he tangled with took one swipe and he turned tail, running back here. I would rather him alone than not however, I've come somewhat attached to the wolves that I now call packmates. Milo would have a scar-but no big issues in the future thankfully. Tirre inevitably went into her first heat, and Akane soon after. I may lead the pack, but I know one thing by now is that danger lurks around every tree, every shadow. Illness, weather, animals; the pack needs new blood to survive. They were in heat and Daer is the leading male. He has the right to breed whoever he pleases within the pack when it comes to making new lines. Inbreeding was seen at my home settlement and it didn't look good, so these wolves made it easier to avoid that. I realised that my dream of a full wolfdog-blooded pack was unrealistic a while ago, so I was just happy to lead a pack and have the possibility to make it strong.

I once again got sick of the same illness as before come late summer, and I started to question whether it was time to move the pack, but it seemed to be just me so it was fine for now. Kile was kind enough to heal me, as one would while being the pack herbalist. I'm just glad that he had a remedy, despite how gross they were. He has shown to be trustworthy, so I have no doubts when it comes to him healing my pack for now.

Early autumn came, and the heat started to dwindle slowly. The leaves on the trees were shifting colors and I knew that winter was coming. Hopefully The pups would come before winter hit, but there was no guarantee, and Akane developed a cough as well, which wasn't a good sign for the coming seasons. Kile stated that we didn't have the necessary herbs to treat it, and would have to wait and see if it went away within the next few days on its own. He spoke about how it was contagious, so we made a separate den to quarantine her, though Kile would check up on her to see if it got better or worse. It was a good idea to have a den for the sick I'm realising, it helped limit the spread of illness, and it helped Kile- and eventually Nela, do their work without everyone else in the way.

While Hyran and Nela were training before becoming official apprentices, Hyran had an accident, which resulted in his ear getting torn, and he was upset about it for a good while, but Kile was able to heal it, however it did scar. It's unfortunate but I'm thankful it wasn't worse. Lessons are learned the hard way in the wilds I suppose, and it makes it better in the future to know more and become stronger- for the sake of the pack.

Akane's cough did not recede by the time she gave birth, so Kile thought it best to ask the bear for a cure, hopefully, to stop it in time for her to birth the pups. It worked, and she gave birth to 5 pups; 3 females and a male. Tirre also gave birth to 2 pups, a male and a female. This was a good thing for the pack. Despite having more mouths to feed, this also meant that when they grew they would be able to provide for the pack. They just had to make it through the winter.

Nela and Hyran hit the age where they could apprentice, and Kile took Nela under his wing. She seems to enjoy it, so I am happy that it's working out and we have a new herbalist when the time comes. We have more mouths to feed, with the pack growing so big now, but that means once they grow of age they can help feed the pack. My small family is growing fast within the first year, and I don't know what the future holds- especially since it's not even winter. Things always seem to happen quickly, so I have to be careful about the course of action through the winter. It will be the most difficult time.

The cough has spread through the den, and I have made the decision to completely quarantine the healing den. It's unfortunate that Tirre must suffer from the fact that one of her pups caught it, along with the possibility the other may do the same. The only ones allowed in the den now are Tirre and her pups, and Kile who does routine checkups between his foraging in order to try and find enough herbs for medicines. Hunting is put on a pause since we have enough food in store for now until the sickness hopefully goes away, as I do not want Akane to contract it once more and infect the rest of the pack. It will be tough, but I believe we will prevail.

Gram, one of Akane's pups, had been slain by coyotes early in the morning without anyone noticing that he had wandered off. Daer, my mate and pupsitter, had been appropriately punished for his negligence and he now bears a scar on his nose. Pups are the future of this pack, and for one to die is horrible. We are all mourning, Akane especially, and it's important for her to mourn, but The rest of the pack is making sure that she is taken care of appropriately, and Daer is keeping his distance, Akane definitely doesn't want to see him- for good reason. I only hope this doesn't happen again.

Neil finally caught the cough, and I didn't expect anything less. It's unfortunate, but it seems to be under control for now. Kile said that he would keep an eye since it's affecting their energy, and definitely don't look like they are having a fun time. I would say to gather a serum but we don't have the herbs, and the bear isn't in the area at the moment. Kile can't afford to go out and look for the bear, having to train Nela, forage for herbs, and make medicines with the herbs we already have in stock for later use takes up his time, and the rest of the pack has other work to do or pups to care for. I will keep my eye out while making my rounds during the day but haven't seen anything as of yet. The air is definitely cooling, and the rest of the pack can tell, making everyone tense with the mixture of the current illness, the possibility of worse illness in the coming season, and the possibility of food scarcity when the creatures make their way to places to hibernate or find their own food in other areas. The most we can hope for is that with the aging of the pups they will survive the winter and bring up the pack morale as well as easily fill the food pile for the spring and seasons beyond.

During my exploration, I was approached by a wolf, black of pelt with cream markings and yellow eyes. She told me her name was Sara, and that she heard of Wild Souls from the bear. She was looking for a place to call home, and Wild Souls sounded like it. With the tension in the pack, I was unsure if they would like another mouth to feed, but I knew that it was four more paws that could work. With the promise that she would earn her keep she was allowed to stay with the pack, and it took some time for them to get used to her and her to them, but it ever so slowly worked out, and I believe a hunting party is in order. Winter started, and the pups weaned. This hopefully means they will be strong enough to last the winter, and by the looks of it that hopefully will go through even with Tirre's pup, who still has a cough. Because they are old enough to train, Kile had advised me on finally putting an end to their cough, to which I agree. He has gone to look for the bear, and hopefully, he will be back in time for Linne and Neil to train and not fall behind the others.

Neil decided it was a good idea to play with coyote pups, Heaven knows where he found the pup, and he got his ear torn. One more pup with a torn ear I guess seems to be a trend. It's healed up nicely despite the scar, but as long as it's not deadly that's all I care about. The health of my pack comes before punishment, though he definitely got a bark from his mom about it. The decision I made at the start of winter wasn't the best, nor the worst of choices. We didn't find the necessary herbs for a lot of ailments that plagued the pack in the past, and the prey that was available was more accessible within the flat lands of the prairie, so I decided we moved. Maybe we could've waited until spring, but I wanted our hunters to have as easy access as possible, and no one seemed to mind. We had enough herbs gathered from the forest we once called home, and now it would hopefully be easier to find different herbs to make medicines in our new home.

We moved steadily, and a new face showed up; a she-wolf by the name of Apache. She had noticed our coats within the flat plains and told us about how she was of domestic blood as well, obvious by her steel-blue eyes. She admitted she wasn't black-of-coat originally but mutated to be all black except her eyes. This I found strange, a mutation that wasn't deadly or crippling. It didn't offset the others, so I allowed her to join, her stature showed strength, and the pack needed it. Being wolfblood also meant that we can keep the domestic lineage moving; since Daer and I were the only ones who had domestic blood in us aside from the pups Daer sired throughout the year. Of course, she went into heat right away, and Daer took advantage of it on instinct. We are looking forward to more pups within the pack, and I'm surprised how big we have grown within a year, and winter isn't even done yet.

This year brought yet another pup death, this time it was Moli, the pup who was training under Milo to be a scout. She had been so excited to scout, seemingly too funny, always laughing at the fact her name was similar to Milo's but spelled differently. Dear was once again punished, as she was under his care much like Gram was, but as my mate, he is the designated pupsitter. I will have to think carefully and see about maybe appointing another one if he cant watch over them all and our numbers are big enough to have more than one.

When I went through my second heat it was in the winter, which means I knew spring would be when my pups would come, making it easier on my heart to know they would be strong. It would make my pack bigger, stronger, and it almost made me excited. It would continue to make my hope of a strong pack possible. This winter has brought a lot of events, much more than the rest of the seasons. I'm curious if that'll be the case for the years to come.

The end of winter came and Apache gave birth to four healthy pups, three ashen and one willow. The ashen pups consisted of two males named Mir and Larim, and a female named Ael. Last was a willow-colored male she named Sam. She seemed excited by it, stating that Larim's coat was what her own mother said to have expected her to be, but she turned out fully black in mutation instead. Sam, the willow-colored male inherited her blue eyes, whereas the rest had inherited brown or orange eyes like their father; Daer