For One so Small, You Seem so Strong

Shadow looked up and saw Janus sitting quietly on the flat boulder, looking out at the sunrise. Knowing not to disturb his friend, the black wolf lowered his head onto his paws and tried to fall back asleep. But sleep did not come easy in their forest. Hunters prowled the trees, waiting for any chance to take a wolf’s life. The wolves lived by a beautiful lake, but the sight was often disturbed by gunshot and yelps of terror. Shadow’s pack was one of the few groups of wolves left in those parts.

            Janus, now having stood up and walked over to Shadow, whispered,

“Shadow, they’re here. Their scent is all around. We must move quickly to escape them.”

Shadow rose his strong head immediately. He knew by just the tone in Janus’ voice that it was serious—and danger was near.

            “ The hunters? They’ve discovered us? But how—” the black wolf was cut off.

            “Dogs. Hounds. They sniff us out for the humans. Now get Jack and Silver. I’ll get Star, Lizzie, Indigo, and Bernard. Follow me!” Janus said and leaped away towards his sleeping mate and pups while Shadow ran off to the Omega wolf, Jack, and Janus’ eldest daughter Silver. They were curled up beside each other at the mouth of Janus’ cave.

            “Jack! Silver! Wake up! The hunters are here—we need to flee! Come on!”, he growled urgently. The two younger wolves snapped their heads up, their eyes wide and nervous.

            “Shadow—the hunters? They’ve found us? But—” Silver said, and was interrupted by Janus’ friend who said,

            “No time to explain. We need to get out of here! Follow your father, Silver. Jack, stick with me in case the pups fall behind!”

            Both Silver and Jack scrambled to their feet and hurried after their pack mate. When Janus, who was waiting with Star and their pups, saw that all three of them were alright, he raced off into the brush. Not wanting to be left behind, Indigo, the black pup, sprinted ahead towards his father. Lizzie and Bernard were fast runners and did not have to worry. But Jack and Shadow were in the rear in case they faltered. Silver ran beside her mother Star, both female wolves determined to escape the dreaded guns of the hunters.

            “Come on!” Janus yelled gruffly over his shoulder.

The pack ran from the unseen danger until they reached the opposite side of the lake. It was a mile wide, meaning they had run over a mile from their den. Shadow and Star nosed at the pups to make sure they were alright.

            “Mom! Stop! I’m fine, I’m fine!” Bernard said, protesting against his mother’s licks. Indigo welcomed them; he loved the gentle feeling of safety it gave him. Lizzie just stood out of the way, looking too proud to need any caring. But Shadow knew that inside Lizzie was just like the other pups. He admired Lizzie’s strong spirit, along with her fearlessness. In Bernard he liked the loyalty and curiousness. Indigo had a quiet air, along with a caring disposition. Timid and sometimes insecure, Shadow found that Indy, as the pack called him, was often teased and tricked by his siblings. And so, Shadow had become the black pup’s guardian, shielding him from pranks of the higher degree, unable to predict many of the little tricks Lizzie and Bernard played.

            After the little ones were checked, Star made her way to Silver and Jack, eventually getting to Shadow after Janus.

            “Shadow? Are you okay?” she asked softly. Shadow smiled and said,

“Yes. I’m alright. You know I’m alright.”

Star grinned and said, “ Yes I do. But I have to make sure. You’ve always hidden something or the other from me, you know. I know you, Shadow.”

The large black wolf thought for a moment. Star saw herself as mother to the pack, not just her pups. Her caring nature struck gold in Shadow’s heart, but Janus loved Star and he was Alpha male. No one could question his orders, and Shadow knew Star loved Janus immensely. He knew she loved himself as only a brother. But that was enough for Shadow. He saw nature’s beauty and spirit in her amber eyes. Although known as stern and gruff in manner, Shadow knew Star saw beneath that. She loved all wolves in the pack, but some in different ways. Jack was like a son to her, while Bernard and Indigo actually were her sons, but the light russet-and-brown she-wolf was close to all of them just the same.

            “ Of course you do. And you can believe me when I say I’m fine.” Shadow said. Star then gave him a quick lick on the ear and turned back to Janus. The black wolf strolled over to a shady spot and slid down onto his paws, laying down and resting after a long morning of running. Sighing, he told Janus that he admired his quick thinking. The pack leader smiled his thanks and sat down.

            “Now we are faced with a problem. Where are we to stay? The hounds will surely track us by nightfall. We need a plan.” Janus said, addressing his pack.

Shadow’s ears pricked. Janus usually had a solution for everything. What faltered his mind now? Shadow decided to stay out of the conversation. He’d done enough with the pack for one day. His normal rituals of laying low and only advising his loyal friend had been interrupted this morning. Shadow’s presence was more often felt than heard. He was a trustworthy and wise wolf, but preferred to keep to his solitary ways. All the same, he was an active member of the pack. Looking up, he could see the glaring sun shining down on his friends.

It’s so beautiful. But… all of it could change soon. Today, even. This could be destroyed. My friends…they could be… Shadow thought sadly. He knew as well as any wolf that life in the forest was hard, but humans posed another threat. Bigger, and stronger. They thought they could control everything, and that killing wolves would solve their problems. But the wolves had to eat, and cattle were easy prey. Shadow’s pack could barley survive on what they could find, and settling for rabbits and hares didn’t do much good. But the real problem was the humans were hunting Shadow and his friends for nothing—they hadn’t killed any cattle or other domestic animal. Janus did not believe in it; he called it an atrocious and unfair practice to take cattle. Janus knew that the humans ate the cattle, and he didn’t want to take their life away. So the humans had the wrong wolves. Of course, no wolf deserved to be hunted. They didn’t know any better, as far as the humans knew. But Janus, Shadow, Star, and all the rest of the pack had more reason not to be stalked and finished off. Except, that was exactly the opposite of what the humans thought, and that was exactly what they’d do to Shadow’s friends unless someone stepped up and took the lead against the humans. And Shadow had a strong feeling that wolf would be none other than Indigo.