Forest's Journey
Chapter 7

“Yes, we’re here.” came back the reply.

Forest and his companions let out a relieved breath, and bolted forward to greet Violet.

“I’m so glad you’re all ok!” Violet exclaimed.

“Are any of you seriously hurt?” asked Thorn.

“Most of us are fine, but Rye obtained several bruises and Bush got a few deep claw marks along his flank.” Flower replied.

“We would get some cobwebs and marigold on your wounds to stop the bleeding and to stop a potential infection, but it’s dark, and marigold is rare in human towns. It’ll be nearly impossible to replace some now.” Violet said sadly.

“It’s alright. Our wounds aren’t serious. We can wait until tomorrow.” assured Flower.

“Did the pups behave?” asked Leaf.

“Yes, they were very good. Followed Violet and I the whole way without complaining or wandering off.” answered Thorn.

“Such brave and courageous pups.” Bush said proudly.

“We were very brave! We ran away from the bad guys and survived!” added Grasson, pushing his chest out proudly.

“Yes, you were all very brave. Well done!” congratulated Grass.

“Tomorrow we need to send a patrol out to collect marigold and cobwebs, a patrol to replace drinking water and a hunting patrol before we set off. We can’t travel while injured, thirsty and hungry.” decided Forest.

The wolves agreed. They camped at a grassy, flat spot beneath a large tree, where they would get plenty of shelter. They were asleep within minutes of being settled down.

The next morning, Forest assigned Thorn and Flower to collect the herbs, Grass to replace water, and Bush and Violet to stay behind to look after the pups while the others went on a hunting patrol. They were successful in hunting, and hunted down many rats, mice and pigeons. When they arrived back at camp, Thorn and Flower had already begun applying chewed up marigold and cobwebs on Bush and Grass’s wounds.

“Welcome back, guys. I found fresh, clean water in a large pool at the back of a human home.” informed Grass.

“Were there any humans in the house?” asked Bush.

“I checked thoroughly, and I couldn’t see any. They must’ve gone out.” answered Grass.

“That’s great!” exclaimed Rye.

“Can we go there now? We’re really thirsty.” begged Forestson.

“We’ll go after we finish our prey.” Forest promised.

“Why?” whined Forestson.

“We all have to go drink water, but we can’t do that because we can’t leave our prey unattended. If we finish eating first, we wouldn’t have to attend to anything, and we can all go to the pool. When we’re making decisions, we have to think about everyone in the group.” explained Forest.

Forestson nodded, and went back to his mother.

“You’re really good at teaching pups. You’ll make a great father, Forest.” complimented Leaf.

“Thanks.” Forest replied, smiling fondly as he gazed at little Forestson.

The wolves hurriedly gulped up their prey, and Grass took the lead as he led the group to the human house he talked about. They ran down the narrow alley and arrived at a small gate which they could, though with some difficulty, jump over. Forest, Bush, Leaf, Grass and Flower carried their adopted pups over. They rushed over to the pool and took large, hungry gulps of water. Suddenly, they heard a scream, the angry voice of a human, the loud bark of a dog, and then quick human and dog footsteps rushing towards them. Leafson jumped in fright and fell into the pond. He paddled desperately in the water, trying to stay afloat.

“Everyone, take the pups and leave. Thorn, you can take Forestson. I’m going to help Leaf get Leafson out of the water. I’ll meet you guys back at camp.” Forest ordered urgently.

The wolves followed his command and hurried out of the human property. The dog attempted to follow them but it couldn’t jump over the fence. Leaf bent over the pool and picked up Leafson up by the scruff.

Meanwhile, Forest was trying to distract the human so Leaf could save her adopted son. The human hit him with a stick. The scared whine of Leafson told Forest that he had been rescued, and turning around to make sure Leaf was following him, he bolted towards the fence. The dog ran to him and barked aggressively.

“Get out of my territory!” it barked.

Forest easily defeated it with a swipe to its face. He ran to the fence and cleared it with one impressive jump, Leaf not far behind. They hit the ground running, rushing to the place where they had made camp. Forest didn’t stop to breathe until he had reached the camp, where his companions were all waiting.

“I thought you said the place was human-free!” exclaimed Leaf when she had finally caught her breath.

“There weren’t any when I was there! They must’ve come back or something.” replied Grass.

Everyone noticed that Leafson was shivering violently, both from the cold and shock. Leaf pushed him towards Violet, but Violet gestured for Leaf to calm him down instead. Leaf understood her intention. If Leafson was to get used to Leaf being his mother, he would have to learn to trust and feel comfortable around her. Leaf licked Leafson’s fur to dry and warm him up, and murmured soothing words to his ear to calm him down. Soon, he relaxed, and fell into a peaceful slumber. Leaf smiled with joy and pride.

“Did everyone get enough water to drink?” Forest asked.

“Yes.” the wolves chorused.

“Good, let’s get going then. There aren’t that many hours of sunlight left.” Forest suggested.

The wolves agreed, and together, they set off north.