Autumn Chapter 2

Autumn

6 Months Later... 

Autumn's white paws were soaked to the bone with melted snow and ice, but she wouldn't give up until she found her hidden brothers. They were playing hide and hunt, and this time, it was Autumn's turn to find her brothers. She dominated at this game, rubbing her victory into her brother's faces.

  Autumn pricked her ears and heard her brothers' voices behind a bush. She peered around the branches and saw the two playing Alpha without her! She thought that they were playing hide and hunt. This happened all the time. They avoided their sister like she was a pile of dung! They were the only ones she could play with. Fawn and Koda were expecting pups but it seemed like they were taking an eternity to be born. 

  She snuck around to the back of the rock that Lightning sat on, giving orders to Chip. She got into the crouch that Red had taught her and when Lightning began itching his cheek with his hind leg, she jumped up and knocked her brother off the rock. He squealed and landed on top of Chip, who also squealed. Autumn took her place on the rock and laughed at her dumb brothers. 

  "You're a lot dumber than I thought!" She was licking her paws to warm them up when her brothers started clawing at the rock and jumping at her. She swatted at Lightning and when he fell, she pounced past her unsuspecting brothers. Autumn ran as fast as she could back to camp before her brothers tattled on her. Fawn was walking out of camp at the moment and Autumn hid behind her. 

  "What are you-" Fawn began. But when she heard Autumn's brother racing around the corner, she layed down, keeping the she-pup hidden with her growing belly. "Woah boys, where are you going so fast?" She held out a paw to stop them. 

  "We need to find Autumn!" Chip explained. 

  "Yeah, and when we do we're gonna tattle on her!" 

  They raced past and Autumn came out of hiding; first she pounced on Lightning, then grabbed Chip's tail in her jaws. When both of her brothers were down, she raced into the den where Lilly and Red had been napping together earlier. She crashed into the wall of the den, disturbing Koda, who had been taking a nap. Red and Lilly weren't there. 

  Autumn poked her head out of the den and saw that Chip and Lightning and found her parents by Moon's den! 

  "Uh huh! And then she bit my tail!" Chip whined dramatically. 

  Lightning was scanning the clearing, looking for Autumn. She ducked back into the safety of the den and scrambled over Koda's dark grey pelt and hid between her nest and the wall of the den.

  "Can you keep it down over there?" Koda's stomach swelled with pups; her voice dull with exhaustion. Chip and Lightning scampered into the den, screaming. 

  "If you're in here, Autumn, we're gonna rip you pelt off!" 

  "Yeah! Pile of dung!" Her brothers scampered over Koda, but she stood up and shook them off, she growled at Autumn and forced her out of hiding. When her brothers say her, they scampered into Koda's nest to get me. She growled and barked loudly at the noisy pups. They padded out of her nest, but she chased them forcefully out into the clearing. 

  Lilly and Red sat in front of the den entrance, annoyed looks on their faces. The pups skid to a stop in front of their parents. Koda huffed and returned to her nest. 

  "Perhaps you pups are too big to be kept in camp all the time?" Red asked them. 

  "No, no!" Chip protested rather loudly; he had trouble hunting and fighting. And he had told Autumn one night that he was afraid he would be exiled. 

  River must have heard; he appeared out of his den and trotted over to the large pups. "Lilly, Red. It is time for the pups to be trained. Koda is expecting her litter of pups soon, and Fawn will give birth soon enough. It is time for the pups to move to another den. I will hold the ceremony after Dream, Weasel and Bear return from their hunting patrol." As soon as the Alpha came, he left. Fawn trotted over to him and they lazed in the spring sunlight together. 

  Lilly turned to the pups. "River is right, it's time for you to be trained; here in the den you only get under Koda's paws." She tried to pull the pups under her stomach but they were much too big for that. 

  It all happened so fast, Autumn wasn't sure what to make of all this. She only nodded and padded away with her brothers. Red guided them to the youth's den. It had been empty all winter, and the only nests were falling apart. 

  "You can make yourselves useful and repair these nests. Make sure to clean out the den of brambles and things that will snag in your fur." Red left. 

  The pups stared into the messy den, unsure of where to start. 

  "Autumn," Chip began, "how about you do the nests and Lightning and I will do the rest?" 

  "Fat chance, Chip! The nests need more work than the rest of the den and I'm not too dumb to be pulled into one of your tricks." The pups each chose a nest and began working. 

  Soon enough, the hunting party returned, bringing news of a drowned bull elk. River began the ceremony at once. 

  Lightning, Chip and Autumn were asked to step up to the Alpha's stone. Fawn leaped down, landing in front of the three. 

  She began the ceremony with Chip. He was given Moon as his teacher. He was going to be a healer wolf; Fawn said that Moon saw a side in Chip that would make him a wonderful addition in the healing den. Moon padded up confidently to the youth and stood by Chip. 

  Then it was Lightning's turn. "Lightning will be taught by Geyser; they are both competitive and liked to push the limits as far as they possibly can." Fawn told the pack. Geyser trotted up to his student and sat by his side; the males' eyes sparked with mischief. 

  Finally, it was her turn. Autumn's paws quivered with anticipation, her ears twitched with excitement. "Autumn, Weasel will be your teacher. You both are small and fast; determined to do your best." Fawn signaled with her tail for the lithe white female to step up to Autumn and await further orders. 

  Fawn climbed back to the top of the Alpha rock and the pack howled in celebration of Lilly and Red's successful litter. The parents stepped up to their children and touched noses, as if saying farewell. The three were no longer pups, and they would never share a nest with their father or suckle from their mother again. They were students now. 

  River halted the howling and began making preparations for The Howl, which was only a few days away. "All the new students and their teachers will go. But we need a couple volunteers to stay behind." Bear, Red, Canyon and Otter chose to stay behind. Fawn was determined to make the trip, despite her weight, size and River's begging for her to stay in camp. 

  She ignored him and directed the teachers to show their students the Dark Pack's territory. 

  The six got ready to set out. Thus ending the last chapter of the siblings' lives.