Chapter One

The first Chapter to my major book,Wind Singers

Wind Singers

Chapter 1

 

The silver moon rose at its highest. It made the female wolf's white pelt glisten. A breeze stirred in the night sky. A grey male sat beside her.

"Star, look," the grey-furred one said, astonishment stifled in his voice.

"What's wrong, Silver?" The one called Star turned to look at her newborn daughter, absentmindedly regarding Silver.

"Star..."

"What's wrong with her? This is all my fault," Star whimpered silently.

"It doesn't matter what she looks like," Silver reassured her, though he wasn't sure himself. He turned and nodded towards the daughter.

"Yes, it does. I wouldn't mind, but...the pack would never accept her," Star explained, a yelp caught in her throat.

"Stop worrying. I'm the Beta," Silver said, "I'll find a way."

♦☼♦

A light grey furred wolf looked up at the birds swirling above her.

"Wind!" scolded the alpha female, Cloud. "Don't just stand there, catch them," Cloud barked, frustrated with the pup. Wind glanced at Cloud, and then at her mother. Star just turned her head away shamefully, not bearing to look into her pup's eyes.

"Why?" Wind replied quietly. It was an indirect question, as she did not look at either Cloud or Star.

"'Why?' Is your daughter serious?" Cloud growled. Wind flattened her ears and lowered her eyes, upset to have disappointed the alpha female.

"Why kill such a majestic animal?" Wind explained, now staring at the sky with appreciation. The birds tweeted as though they approved of her noble words. Cloud sighed with annoyance, and with one hard glare the birds became silent, and Wind's ambition fell.

"Okay, then how about that squirrel?" Cloud became anxious, and Star knew why.

"Yes..." It came slowly, but at least she agreed. Wind got into stalking position. The next moment, Wind was on top of the squirrel with her fangs pierced for the exposed neck.

"Just truly amazing. You worship any living creature off the ground, but satisfyingly will kill an animal that touches the barren Earth," Cloud scoffed. Star perked her ears up.

"You are a great hunter. I shall not place you as a gaurd. You shall be--" Cloud stopped, as though regretting her choice. "On offense."

Cloud regained her senses, gulped, and said, “You, Wind, a hunter."

Hunters were the ones that caught the main supply of food. They were greatly respected and never sassed with. They were serious business.

The guards patrolled the main part of their territory. Though they were important, the pack found them less important than hunters, and you could often give an unsure, ugly glance towards a guard.

Wind was lowly respected because of her interesting looks. She was larger than the others that were a year as well, and she was already the size of an adult. She had an unnatural colored marking beneath both of her eyes. Wind's eyes were silver-blue and her markings' violet. Her coat was a mixture of silver and brown, which is rare and almost never heard of, as most wolves have grey, black, or white fur. Wind's behavior was strange, too. Every sunrise she'd run to the highest point in the territory and watch the birds and listen to the wind. Then at night she'd sit outside howling to the moon, keeping her den mates up all night. She would wait until the alpha female stopped and everyone had gone to sleep, which Cloud found quite annoying. Her love for birds and flying animals was quite awkward, as well.

Wind's tail stood straight up in the air as soon as Cloud finished. Her eyes gleamed and her heart began to pump more rapidly.

"Did you hear that, Mother? I'm a Hunter! Wait till Father finds out!" Wind squealed with joy. She was bursting with pride and couldn't keep it in. Her silvery brown coat began to shake as Wind jumped around Cloud, who immediately knew she made a mistake.

"Oh yes, darling, terrific," Star said absentmindedly, trying to sound excited. Wind didn't mind or hear her at all.

♦☼♦

“I made it, I made it!” Wind sang with joy. She pranced around, crunching the autumn leaves on the ground with her heavy paws. Nearby a scampering sound came. Wind looked to see what it was. An auburn squirrel raced off just as she turned. Wind guessed it was out of fright. She had been making a lot of noise...

“I was hunting that, you know!” a dark grey wolf growled impatiently, shaking her head vigorously, as if trying to get rid of the thought of Wind in her head.

“Oh Sorry Rock, it’s just that I’m so excited because I'm the new--" Wind was cut off.

"Yeah, a hunter, everybody knows. You probably got the job out of pity. It will be the first hunter that’s lowly respected.” Wind’s ears pinned back, her pride trampled.

“Curse you, Rock,” Wind snarled. “Why? Why does everyone treat me like dung? What have I ever done to anyone?” Wind asked, filled with rage and fury. Rock rolled her eyes.

 “Come,” she said more calmly. Wind didn’t flinch. Rock padded up to her and opened her mouth wide, showing her fangs, and yanked her by the ears all the way to their destination: the nearby Stream below the canyon.

“Look in the water,” Rock commanded. Wind looked in uneasily. She didn’t see any strange difference.  What she saw was a small brown fish swimming with a group of large silver fish beside him. The silver fish looked steady, swimming in sync with each other, but the brown fish sped this way and that anxiously. He’s just like me! She thought silently to herself.

Rock sighed, irritated. She drank some water from the pond but didn’t swallow. Rock faced towards Wind. Wind’s head was cocked in confusion. Rock spit out the stream water straight into her face. Dried mud, that was now wet, slowly slipped off of her face from below her eyes.

“Look again,” Rock exclaimed. Wind looked down into the rippling water. Two markings, one below each eye, glowed the color of violet, on her own reflection.

“No!” Wind shrieked.

“This is why you were never allowed to swim,” Rock explained, now realizing how hard it must be for the youngest member in the pack. Wind still couldn’t believe it. She kept on leaning in closer and closer to the water. The next moment there was a big splash that made Rock soaking wet. Neither Rock nor Wind knew how to swim.

“Help!” Wind gurgled, half under the water. Rock didn’t know what to do other than to howl for help from her pack mates. It was her only chance.

“Help! Over by the canyons!” Rock howled in panic and worry. She knew they’d be able to locate her easily; after all, wolves have extraordinary sense of smell, especially if pure-bred. But just in case, a location was good, too. Wind was sinking fast.

Rock’s eyes darted to find something to pull Wind up with. Where were the pack members? Darting around anxiously, Rock finally found a pack mate.

“Star! Thank goodness you are here! I knew you’d come for us!” Rock sighed with heavy relief. Star looked at Rock then Wind. Her eyes glittered with amusement.

“I was just thirsty. I wasn't coming here for..." Star paused, "her." There was a low chuckle as Star turned away from her daughter.

“ You have to do something!” Rock cried. Rock had always disliked Wind, but with envy and jealousy. Wind got special care; Wind, even though regarded with disrespect, was even acknowledged. Wind had a family -- Rock didn't. Even though, Wind was still Rock’s pack mate, and Rock would still help her.

“IT wouldn’t matter, she’s gonna die from the other packs disapproval,” Star said reluctantly. Rock growled and snarled, showing her white fangs.

“She’s still your pack mate and your daughter,” Rock barked.

“Wind’s not what I wanted,” Star replied, a little bit more cross. She didn't notice the last glimmer of Wind's eyes: sadness. Hope. Rock narrowed her eyes and intensely looked into Star’s thoughtful gaze.

Star turned to leave the soon-to-be death scene. Rock looked around, wondering if she should say it. It was winding in her throat just to guess. But what if she had guessed wrong? Star would hate her. Rock caught Wind's slow glance. She had made up her mind. Wind was on her way of death, too weak to even struggle.

“Maybe I’m not what you wanted either, Mom,” Rock whispered. Rock wanted to hear the words, 'You are right.' She wanted to save Wind. Rock had guessed a while back, just out of the blue, that Star would be her real mother. Silver would be her father. Everyone who had known Rock from birth always said her mother had abandoned her. Rock always replied she remembered nothing of it, but she kept this to herself: she had seen who she now knew to be Star leave her in the woods and howl.

Star stopped dead and pricked her ears back. She spun around.

“What did you say?" Star said lowly.

"I said," Rock answered more bravely, "that maybe I'm not what you wanted either, Mom." Rock knew now that she was correct. She wanted to just get up and hug Star...but then she remembered Wind was in trouble. She'd better make this short.

"Oh. You can't be. Suneye...” Star gasped. Rock didn't reply. Star took a step for her, but she took a step back. Immediately, Rock regretted it. All she wanted was a family. Finally she had found her mother, but was rejecting her. "You can't be Suneye," Star repeated. Suneye? Was that Rock's birth name? "I didn't even tell Silver."

A low growl confirmed it. Just at that moment, Cloud, Silver, and the rest of the pack stumbled down the side of the cliff and jumped down to the ground. They ran up to the stream in line. Cloud held her mate, Eagle's, tail. Eagle grabbed Wind’s scruff and carefully pulled her to shore. This is the first time the Alpha Male had made contact with the young omega.

Wind gasped and sputtered out water.

“Are you alright?” Silver asked worriedly.

“Yes, I’m fine, and thank you, Eagle,” Wind muttered. She safely dipped her head to show respect to the alpha male. Eagle’s tail twitched with annoyance and reassurance.

Star’s fur rose to an end. She looked two times as big with her white fur puffed out. It seemed as if she wanted her daughter to die in that stream. With one last angry glare, Star sprinted off without even greeting her mate. But had anyone looked back for Star, they would've noticed she was crying. She had found her long lost, supposedly dead, daughter. Suneye.

 

Author's Note

The Second Chapter is taking awhile-writer's block 0.o

Reviews

[Coyote Poetry]

The life of animals are difficult to write about. You create a very strong story. I like the story of being accepted or be left to be killed. I like the conversation and the ending. A very good beginning.
Coyote