City of IF

[Novelest_Ninjagirl]

Prologue
The little girl watched, horrified, as her village was killed in front of her. The rain fell down in great sloshes, but it wasn’t enough to put out the flames the bandits had set. Her mother looked down at her and murmured.

“Lunette, run, run as far as you can. Find someone to take care of you. I love you little one.”

And with that, her mother disappeared into the flash of the flames and the strike of steel against bone. The rain stopped as she ran, her feet flying over the rocks. Her hand reached up and rubbed her birthmark. It was small, the size of a quarter, and lie just behind her left ear. It was the image of a howling wolf.

The little girl, Lunette, had been born at the stroke of midnight, with the full moon at its highest point, of the first day of the year 5 years ago.

Her hair fell in matted waves, and her eyes were wide in fright. Clutched to her chest was a package as large as her chest, something given to her by her mother. Lunette didn’t know it then, but that small package would save her life, and become the very tool her survival depended on.

As her feet flew over the rocks, she rushed into a small glade, and looked up to see the cool eyes of a pack of wolves. Her feet moved forward.

Chapter One
Lunette stood on the top of the hill, motionless. Her eyes watched and tracked the deer, easily picking out the sick and wounded. She slid into a crouch soundlessly, and then jumped. With smooth and quick movements, she began to, with the help of two wolves at her side, cut a few of the sick and old away from the rest of the herd. Then the rest of the hunting party appeared, seemingly out of nowhere.

Within moments the pack had a fresh kill, and everyone except Lunette was eating his or her fill. She stood back, dagger out, eyes scanning to make sure no other animals came to attempt taking their kill.

“Lunette, all is well. Come, even if you can’t eat raw meat like us, you can gather and cut away your own pieces. “

Turning, Lunette nodded at the tawny wolf. As usual, when the wolf had spoken, Lunette had felt a slight tingling in the place of her black birthmark.

“Yes Tala, I know. I merely-“

“Are being to worried. Come, eat.”

With a sigh, Lunette nodded, and walked over to sit next to her good friend. As Tala ate, Lunette cut of strips of meat to eat later on. Some she would stew, others she would dry for jerky. Looking around, Lunette couldn’t help but notice how different each wolf was from another.

There was Lione; a yellowish male whom everyone joked was part cat. Tala, her tawny colored friend, who started said joke. Hervan, a pitch black male, with a single white streak over his eye, who had recently joined the pack and still wasn’t completely trusted by anyone other then Tala. Reveris, a black and white female whom had come to this pack after her own was killed.

Then there was Laev. He was the alpha male of the pack, and the least trusting and harshest wolf any of the pack had ever known. He was the strongest though, which made him alpha. His fur was pitch black, much like Hervan’s, but it was his eyes that set him apart. They were both pitch black, deeper even then his fur.. Lunette herself was slightly scared of him, always worried he would suddenly decide she, a human, would no longer be allowed in his pack, the Moonstone pack.

“Lunette, you’re spacing off again.”

“Huh? Oh, sorry Tala. “

“No worries, how do you think we did?”

“You were reckless.”

Tala and Lunette looked over at Laev, the one who had spoken.

“Lunette, you Tala and Reveris took an unnecessary chance when you attacked. Don’t let it happen again.”

Everyone stood up, and then Lunette pulled out a rough cloth, about the size of a normal table. She and the wolves piled as much meat as they could, and folded it so none would fall out or get dirty. After that, they all dragged it back to the glade hidden within the hills.

Laev and the others walked into the den, bringing food for their families. Laevs mate was Reva, who was pure white. Their pups were Luckis, Ruckis, and Cuckis, whom were all white and black. Lione’s mate was Fephe, a deep brown wolf. They had no pups yet, and were the beta’s, due to Fephe being Reva’s sister. Hervan, Tala, and Reveris each had no mate, nor pups.

Lunette watched as the pups all tried to get the adults to wrestle with them, before going back to wrestling with each other. Despite what others might expect, she felt perfectly at home here. Reva looked over at her and gave a slight smile, the one a mother gives her child. I may be human, but I’m one of this pack. Nothing Laev says can ever change that.
Lunette rolled onto her back and stared up at the sky, watching the clouds roll by. Everything seemed so peaceful here. It was hard to believe her village had been destroyed under the same sky as the one she saw now. Her well-trained eyes easily picked out shapes in the clouds, both happy and sad.

~*~*~

Zane sighed and looked down at his sweet little aunt. She was babbling on about forest safety when she herself hadn’t even been in the forest. Not once. With a smile, he patted her purplish gray hair, and turned to walk away.

“Aunt Lola, I’ll be fine. I’m just traveling through the forest to look at the remains of that old village, I’ll be perfectly safe.”

“Well, an aunt’s allowed to worry. And since your mother died, I’ve had to worry her share to!”

Zane rolled his eyes with a good humored smile at his aunt’s twisted sense of logic, and then turned and walked down the steps, waving to his aunt. As he started down the path, his pack lying lightly on his back, he couldn’t help but be slightly grateful that he was away from his overbearing aunt.

He was actually going to see his hometown, but sadly, the place he had spoken of and the place he was going were one and the same. Briefly he had a little flash of memory. A little girl with a bright smile and flashing eyes danced through his mind.

He’d always thought he was seeing his sister, but he recently had learned he didn’t have a sister. So who could that little girl be? He didn’t really remember anything before living with his aunt, but then he’d only been 6 when the village had been attacked.

He only remembered flashes, and that bugged him the most. Maybe if he went to the town, he’d remember more. Maybe he’d see his mother’s face, and not just the face of that little girl. He ran a hand through his shaggy brown-black hair. Who was that little girl? A friend of mine maybe? That makes the most sense, but then why can’t I for the love of me remember her name?

He sighed and looked down at his feet, a bit surprised to already see forest undergrowth beneath them. He saw a flash of fur and looked up to see a tawny colored tail disappear into the bushes.

“Oh well.”

He looked down at his sketchpad. He’d always been able to put images to paper with a skill, but they had to stay still for him to do it. He’d meant to draw pictures of his village, or anything he remembered, but now he felt his usual longing to sit in front of an animal and draw them.

To draw every feature, every whisker of every animal, every smooth stroke bringing another life. To do that was his dream. Standing, he kept walking. He’d do it, but first he’d have to find out more of what had happened the first six years of his life.

His aunt had always told him that he’d been visiting away from his parents for the first time, with her, when the town was attacked. He’d asked her what the name of the town was, and she’d been too tearful to say. He couldn’t help but wonder why. Was it possible it had something to do with someone who died there? Maybe even the little girl from his memory?


He bursts out laughing at himself as he sat down to fix a snack.

“I’m relating everything I’m thinking about to a little girl I may have imag-“

His words fell away when he saw that bear cub stand in front of him. He set down the food and picked up his sketchpad, all with slow movements, and began to draw.
~*~*~

Lunette sat on top of the cave, her legs dangling over the mouth of it. The cave had served as the den for her pack for a long time. The winters were never too harsh, the summers never to hot, and there was a river within sight of the cave. Heck, even a wounded wolf could easily make it to the stream from the cave.

That was the only reason her pack didn’t migrate. Or so she had thought. Leaning back to lay on the sun-warmed stone, she recalled what she had overheard Laev and Reva talking about. They had been arguing about her again, and Laev had shouted ‘ I’m tired of not traveling like normal wolves for her safety! So what if another human sees her!’ And Reva had countered ‘ How would she explain being able to talk to wolves! Say it’s a gift of her birthmark! No one would believe that, and then they might do harmful things to her!’

The argument had lasted a long while, and now she just wanted to get away. I will, not forever, but I do need a break. Tala went for a walk; maybe I’ll try to find her. Leaning over so that the wolves watching the three pups could see her, she called out,

“I’m going for a walk, be back later!”

And so she was off. Darting through the trees with the speed and agility of a wolf, she briefly wondered what it would be like to fly through the trees like a squirrel. She was stopped dead by the smell of blood. Human blood.

Rushing forward, she noticed a man lying on the ground with claw marks and gashes all over his body. His clothes lay in tatters, but she noticed his pack lay fine on it’s top over a bit. The man had been attacked by a bear. She noticed the blood soaked pad and wondered briefly, until she saw what piece of the picture hadn’t been covered. A bear cub.


DP, what should Lunette do?

Current DP options:

she should try and get him help

She attempts to help the weak man who can't do anything for himself, due to loss of blood

Hate him, he's a human in her land.

She drags him back to the pack for lunch. After she examines his stuff.

((edit: redid this using spell check, should be better now. ))

[Liana]

brava! brava! i love it. though you may want to explain how she got the dagger. perhaps it was hers from when she lived in the village?

[Novelest_Ninjagirl]

oh, that'll be explained later on. if i were you though i'd look very carefully at the last line of the second to last paragraph of the prologue

[Kalanna Rai]

Hum, she should try and get him help of course...

I've read similar stories Noni, but this has a spin on it...I'll be awaiting futher installments.

[Novelest_Ninjagirl]

yay! kk Thankies.

[Midnight]

I enjoyed reading this story and I think that Lunette should help him and probably have the guy too weak to do anything much since he had just been attacked and most likely losing a lot of blood. I can't wait for the next installment though.

[Masterweaver]

KILL HIM!

Okay, that's an exaggeration, but at least hate him. He's a human in your lands, wolfsoul. What would a wolf do?

[Novelest_Ninjagirl]

nice thankies! I wouldn't of thought of MW's plan, but she will end up saving him most likely. BUt, that doesn't mean she has to like it. . .

[Syranore]

What would a wolf do? Drag him back to the pack for lunch. After she examines his stuff.

[Novelest_Ninjagirl]

I thought wolves didn't eat humans

[Masterweaver]

That's not true. Wolves refuse to eat humans only because they are superior pack predators that could potentially retaliate. A wounded man, and a hungry wolf...

[Novelest_Ninjagirl]

oh, okay then. Thanks for clearing that up!

[scissorkitty]

I think she hates him- but also helps him. I think she'd hate humans because they destroyed her village, and because she's scared of what they would do with her wolf-talking. I think she'd be curious, because she hasn't had contact with humans in years, and that her speech out loud might be very rusty and .. she's probably going to be quite awkward in what she'd say.

I disagree that the wolves would want to eat the stranger- they just ate yummy meat, and wouldn't want something *tainted* with man.

I wonder if Zane has an ability too? If he's able to draw so realistically.. what if he wasn't attacked by the bear cub, but by the bear cub he drew? As in- what if his drawings are able to come to life?

anyway. just wondering. can't wait to read what happens next!

[Cyberworm]

Caught up! :grin:

Nice story, though the names are even more confusing than those I've had in my SG! :lol:

Sorry, I had to do that. ;)

Really, it's a good story, I hope to see more of it. :D

Oh, and you've said twice that those two wolves were black. Some redundancy in the descriptions of the alpha male and the other blackie. :)

[Novelest_Ninjagirl]

Oh! sorry guys, I don't have this document on my comptuer, so I kinda spaced on it. I'm alredy working on the second chappie, it'll be here soon!

[DeadManWalking]

Is the poll supposed to have two of each option?

[Novelest_Ninjagirl]

No, I'm just gonna add it up later. I actually closed the poll, but a glitch reopend it.

[DeadManWalking]

oh....

Then does my vote count?

[Novelest_Ninjagirl]

Chapter 2

Lunette felt fury drum through her. A human! In her land, there was a human on her packs territory. How dare he! Still, much as she would have wished it wouldn't, her good sense and responsibility made her realize he didn't deserve to die. She stood there, staring at the man who's blood was quickly departing.

"He may be a human, but you are too, Lunette, you have to help him."

For a moment, Lunette thought that was her own thought. Then she looked at her side and saw Tala staring at the man with her kind amber eyes. After a moment of hesitation, Lunette nodded, her brief anger fading.

"Help me, would you?"

With the help of Tala, Lunette managed to put pressure on the wounds and stop the bleeding. Using her hunting cloth, the square cloth used to carry meat, she managed to drag him to their den. Laying him near the stream, she used an extra piece of dried doe skin to wash away the dried blood and she wash his wounds, she had him calmed quickly.

It was then Laev walked up, and growled. The alpha knew, and knew well, that the human was severely wounded, but he didn't care. Lunette had brought a human to their only home. Why, oh why did he let Reva talk him into keeping her so many years ago?

"Lunette!"

"Huh- Hello Laev."

"Why is there a human in our home!"

"He's wounded. I was just-"

"You were just endangering the entire pack!"

"I was helping out another! I was just being-"

"You were being rash! And reckless!"

Laev turned away and paced, shaking his head, a white scar that slashed across his eyes shining when he moved it quickly. His thoughts were turmoil. Reva, his mate, loved this human as her own. Yet, she was threatening his own pups. Finally he stopped, then turned to Lunette, impressed, despite his feelings, at her calmness.

"Nurse him to health. Then, when he awakens, I want you to see if he will take you with him to where the humans live."

"Humans? You mean- Other then all the bandits that wandered in. ."

"Yes, there are human. . . .settlements nearby. Reva loved you Nonetheless, and kept you. You are by far old enough to go off on your own now."

With that, he turned and walked into the cave. Lunette was left staring after him, nearly following him to ask him things, questions about what he knew. Yet a groan of pain brought her attention to the man again. Turning, she began to wipe his forehead with a cool cloth.
~*~*~
Zane flickered his eyes opened. Blurry, everything was far to blurry. He violently moved his head side to side and heard soft cluckings, a human voice. His gaze shot to directly above him. His eyes couldn't make much out, yet . . .blonde! He saw wisps of blonde hair, and a pair of blue smears that might've been eyes. Then he was out cold again, with only vaguely feeling the cool cloth wipe his forehead.

As Lunette tended tot he strange man, she wondered about what would happen. Laev won't let me stay after this, and not even Reva will be able to help me this time. I'll be banished unless- never. I would never rat out Tala. She may have been the one who came up with this idea, but she's still my best friend. I'd never tell on her. I'm human, not wolf, I should survive. She won't, wolves need to live in packs. Lunette turned when she heard the padding of footsteps.

"Tala?"

"Lunette. . .Laev has said, you're- I mean- is it- can it-"

"It's true Tala, if you're trying to ask me if it's true I am being kicked out of the pack."

"How can he do that! You're the very reason we've survived this long!"

"No, Tala, I'm not. Teamwork, teamwork is the key to a pack of wolves survival. I'm a human, I'll survive on my own. "

"But- I know!"

"You're not coming with me Tala. I won't endanger you in such a way."

Silence reined for a few rather tense moments, so tense you could cut through the tension with a knife, then Tala questioned, albeit hesitantly,

"Lunette, do you want to leave?"

Startled, Lunette spun her head over to face her tawny colored friend. The young wolf was sitting, and her face was set in a stubborn 'I'm not going to cry' expression, yet her eyes held the greatest sadness. Lunettes features softened. She couldn't lie to her only friend, she just couldn't.

"In a way, I guess I do. Some part of me has always known. . .I'm not a wolf, I can't convince myself, or anyone else, I am. Leaving. . .leaving may make things better. "

Lunette paused, then glanced down at the strangers pained face. She would miss her pack, they were all she could remember. Glancing down, she fingered her dagger. Always with her, since birth, her dagger had beautiful.

The hilt was heavy, so she guess it was some sturdy metal, though it was wrapped in rough, green dyed leather. Small yet thick strands of strings slightly darker then the leather wound around it in random, or at least seemingly random, patterns, webs, that were supposed to be vines.

There were five gems inlaid into t he hilt. On the far right side was a ruby, she guessed, the far left held a sapphire. Directly in the middle of these gems, and a little bit higher then either on of them, was a foggy white gem, like the kind you might find on the inside of a geode. at the very bottom of the handle resides a dark green emerald gem. in the direct middle of the hilt was a pure clear gem, completely see through.
Fire, water, air, earth, spirit. The five elements, all in my dagger. My dagger, the only thing I have left of my mother. Glancing up, she smiled lightly at Tala, who still watched her. Knowing she would most likely never see her friend after she left, Lunette decided she, and only she, would know the truth, the only things she could remember about her past.

"Tala, remember how I told you I just woke up with this dagger, and ran to the pack?"

"No one believed you, were they right not to?"

"Yes, my mother gave this to me mere moments before rushing me off into he forest, telling me to be safe. That's all I remember."

"Your mother giving you a dagger?"

"Yes, that and flames, lots of flames."

They would have spoken more, but at that moment, the stranger began to shift violently. It seemed the young man was coming to. Lunette watched him carefully, one wrong move and he'd be dead. Either from the bear attack, or from any wrong action towards her pack. Leaving or no, she'd still, and forever will, guard them.

~*~*~
Zanes eyes flickered open, and she watched the world undergo a cleaning session. Fuzzy, blurry, ah, now the world is visible. Glancing around, he gaze caught first on a wolf. Not seeing the girl yet, he couldn't have known she was weighing his every action. Reaching out, Zane felt a sharp pain in his arm.
Much as he tried to move, everything stung. It was just when he began to shift violently, nearly reopening his wounds, that he felt soft small hands with long fingers push him into the ground. His gaze fell on a gorgeous face, on framed by falling tendrils of lovely blonde hair. Already his fingers itched for a pen and paper.
"I am Lunette, you are safe. "
After much swallowing an trying to wet his mouth, Zane finally got out a weak,
"Hello. I'm. . Zane. "
"You were attacked by a worried Mama bear, came between her and her cub. Dumb move, human."
He was about to make some retort when two things happened. First, he realized she was right, that had been a seriously stupid move. Second, his vision was beginning to get black around the edges. Meekly, he told Lunette of the problem.

He watched her as she got him to drink some water. She nursed him well, until he was in no danger of passing out, then even helped prop him up using a tree and his pack. It was when she had leaned by him to get him some water, and absent mindedly brushed some hair back from her left ear, that he was her birthmark.

"A howling wolf, how cool."

"I don't hea-oh. My birthmark. "

"That's a birthmark? Looks more like a burn."

"It's been there as long as I can remember."

For a few moments, He sat and she worked in utter silence. Then, after seeing the darkness cross her eyes, he wondered. Not believing it his right to question her about it, he waited a few more moments. At that time, curiosity got the better of him, causing him to ask,

"What's wrong? You seem. . .depressed."

"I. . . ." She sighed, and turned her head away.

"I live, and have been raised, with these wolves. It's all I know. That's changed completely. "

"What are you talking-"

"By bringing you here to help you, I've committed a horrible crime. Revealing a wolf den to the humans. Very dangerous, and very forbidden."

DP: how does Zane react to this sudden burst of information?

[DeadManWalking]

turmoil and sapphire

Don't worry, i had to look it up.

he doesn't really have any options besides helping her.

I mean, she probably saved his life, and she broke a huge law to help him.

He has to help her, however she may need it.

(although it never actually says she was banished, I'm assuming that's the punishment)

[Novelest_Ninjagirl]

K, thanks, I'll edit those in in a moment.

Thankies! I'm pretty suer that could be read between the lines. Thankies very much for that! *hugs*for being hte first to reply!

[Adalia]

He must be feeling pretty guilty for being the reason of her banishment. Obviously, he should return the favor she's given, and help her out. Take her to some human settlement, or something. That's all I got. :D

[SerriaFox]

If he grasp her ability to talk to the wolves, and I think he would fairly quickly (I think being raise by wolves for years, would make it very transparent to any human how well she can talk to them, especially when they respond to her), I believe he would try to negotiate with the pack leader. How well the negotiation would go I don't know.

It would be obvious to me that he would need at least a few days at the wolf den to heal.

After that to the burned village or back to his aunts house I know not which.

[Novelest_Ninjagirl]

thankies! A few more and I have a poll! Keep the posts coming people, keep them coming!

[Novelest_Ninjagirl]

Come on people, I only need a few more! Post, please!

[Novelest_Ninjagirl]

Polling! So vote you silly peoples! PLEASE!

[Novelest_Ninjagirl]

it's still polling people!

*huggles DMW and Fox, cause they actually voted*

[Christalnightshade]

oops two ties! :D

[Novelest_Ninjagirl]

well dangit. I'd already started writing the next chapter when taking her to the human settlement was ahead. Dangit. Oh well, I'll do both.