Things in Taviora were getting kind of hectic. There was news of the hunt that would bring a large amount of wolves together that I didn’t know. Being more of a loner I wanted nothing to do with the huge group of strangers so I left the forest and began to move towards the free land. Though I was not yet a year old, I had been growing fast. My large paws were proof of the size I would grow to one day, but for now they were just awkward as the rest of my body tried to catch up. At first, I had been moving towards the fields but the sight of a large herd of elk drew me away. There was no way I could hunt them yet but I was still curious about the large beasts. Mom and Dad never let me get close to the animals at home but here I was free to do as I wished. I couldn’t know that winter was the time of love in most animals and the huge buck was grumpy.

I had remained at a safe distance from the herd for most of the trek, my scent downwind just like Mom had taught me, they had no idea I was here. But it wasn’t until one of the does happened to turn around and see me that things turned almost deadly. She let out a loud bugle call and the buck lowered his horns. The sight of an elk chasing a wolf would be considered comical to some, but to me it was downright horrifying. My small paws carried me like a rocket over the snow until I reached the trees. Here it was harder for the massive creature to follow me, not that I knew that, and it soon gave up. But that didn’t stop me from running. Adrenaline pumped through my veins and it wasn’t until I had all but crashed into another wolf that I finally slowed down.

It had been hard to see the darker wolf in the shade of the woodland and my clumsy paws easily tripped over him, sending me head over tail to the ground. Luckily the soft snow cushioned my fall and a spray of white stopped me from hitting a tree. Panting heavily, the I stood up, shook the snow from my fur, and gazed behind me. Seeing all was safe, I turned to the stranger I had tripped over and gave a small puppy grin. Being cute usually kept me out of trouble. One of the many benefits of being a pup.”Sorry about that. I was… um…hunting and didn’t see you there. I hope I didn’t hurt you or anything.”