As you walk, you ponder the interaction. Did you overreact? Surely not. It was definitely their fault for crowding you like they did! You're normally a very nice wolf! You nod to yourself as you weave through the plants and stones along your way. Crack!
You stop. Was that your paw? You eye the ground around you, but know you wouldn't be so foolish. Someone is following you.
You eye the forest around you, ears twisting and turning every which way, but there's nothing. They were stupid enough to make a sound, but not stupid enough to continue and mark their position. You decide it's best to continue. Perhaps they'll slip up again. Then you'll have them for sure.
You walk for a good 20 minutes, and start to believe you had imagined the whole thing. There aren't any sounds or sights out of the ordinary, and besides, you're almost home now!
As you reach the edge of your own packs territory, you hear a fluttering above you. You look up to see a small white bird landing on the branch above you. She whistles a small tune and the forest silences. You hadn't realized before now, but a consistent white noise had been following you since the very beginning. The sound had been drowned out, as it was so quiet and still the entire trip.
"Who's there?" You whisper. "You can't follow me here. My pack will protect me!" You weren't fully sure how your pack would react to unwanted guests, but you did know that if they hurt you, there would be hell to pay.
"Well? Show yourself!"
The smallest wolf- who had been called Narny- scurries out from behind a tree, looking around frantically.
"Ok you've got me! But I'll have you know I'm not alone!"
"That's right!" The small bird cheeps from the tree above. "I'm here too! I'll peck your eyes i will!"
You sigh. "Why are you following me!"
The small cross eyed wolf stops her pacing and sits down. "Well you seemed mighty mean, i thought i should check to see if your pack was close by. It would be good to warn my leader about, and I don't get to help out very much."
You sneer at the stranger, and turn to walk to your den. This omega was clearly no threat. It was doubtful that she could even see.
"I can go home" Narny barked. "If you could just tell me your packs intentions here!"
She sat in silence waiting for a response.
"She's gone Narny" Louie croaked. "She just walked away. Very rude!"
Narny pouted. "Oh."
"Don't worry! We're so far from home, i don't think they'd even be able to find us from here. Let's just get out of here. We could still be home in time for dinner if we run!" She cheeped again.
Narny nodded and smiled. "I do like a good run!"
The two run home for supper and share a nice conversation along the way.
You reach your home and begin telling another wolf about the encounter. They scold you for your rude manners, and for being so far from the territory. What were you doing out there anyways? Well, nevermind that. You're home safe! You head home and curl up in the spot you normally sleep. It's a bit early, but the day has been stressful. You're sure you deserve the rest. The wolves nearby are caught up in another conversation, and you decide you'll tell the story of your trip tomorrow. The sun sets, and you fall into your dreams.
"HEY!" A sharp voice barks. "Wake up!"
You jump awake with a start. "Huh??"
As your eyes come into focus, you see it's one of your packmates. He looks at you curiously, and barks again. "There's strangers at the border, don't you wanna see?"
Strangers? Oh no. You remain silent in your tiredness, but nod at him and stand. He leads you to the far edge of the territory, the same place you entered from yesterday. Oh no. The crowd is massive. The entire pack must be here to watch the drama unfold. You duck your head in and out of the mass of wolves, but can't get a peek at who's talking. Finally, you find a spot behind a shorter wolf, and manage to see what's going on. There's a wolf from your own pack, one of high standing. They're talking to 2 large wolves, a black one, and an orange one. They don't look aggressive, but there's a tension in their eyes. Your packmates closest to the situation look anxious.
After a short while of talking, your frontline packmate turns to the crowd. "These wolves claim they faced an attempted attack from one of our own. Does anyone know what they're speaking of?"
The crowd is silent, and you feel grateful that you didn't tell your story the night before.
The black wolf steps forward. "It matters not who visited our territory last night."
You roll your eyes. You weren't IN their territory.
The orange wolf scans the crowd. She clearly knows who she's looking for, so you duck down and resort to listening.
"If you are to hunt" the black wolf booms "hunt to the East. If we see you near our territory again we will assume it is an act of war."
The winds shift, and it becomes clear that the two wolves are not alone.
"Am I understood?" He growls. You peek out again, and see that his hackles are now raised. The crowd collectively nods, and the wolves whisper to each other. You look around, and your eyes lock with the orange wolf. Her lips pull up into a small snarl, and she glares at you. You duck down, almost flat to the ground, and a set of paws walks up next to you. "What is it? What are they saying?" A small pup asks. "Are they gonna hurt us?"
You ignore the pup, and he walks back to his mother.
"Heed our warning" the black wolf yells. "We will leave you now."
