Still the Night -Kill the Lights- (open)

[::Fox::]

ShAdE

Wolves were supposed to live in packs. It was just the way things were, they hunted, lived and thrived by each other's actions. That wasn't a problem really until you needed space from talkative sisters, edgy parents, snarling omegas and a pair of cranky brothers. Such things were normal in a pack, but sometimes one just needed room from all the noise, even the most tolerant of members. Roughly nine months in age, Shade had already proven to be highly tolerant of his high-strung siblings and the tension between his alphess mother and Sage, the pack's omega. Shade didn't know why Sage was so low in the pack, he only knew that she hated it with a burning passion. Tonight, as the sun had gone down however, snarling had erupted between Sage and Breeze. Unlike most other nights, their agreement had gone on longer than usual and not even Shade's father, Sky, would step in. Shade didn't know what the fight was about but he knew he needed some quiet. That was why the young wolf was now jogging through the undergrowth, free of his siblings and parents, weaving through the unfamiliar trees as quietly as a shadow. He knew he'd crossed out of the pack land about half a mile back but, was unbothered by it. He knew his way home. Since the forest fire just after his birth there had been a struggle to find good game in the park. Shade was banking on no one blaming him for going out so far if he simply said it was to hunt, bring home a bit of game to appease his unhappy mother.

Slinking through the shadows, Shade paused as an old scent of deer tickled his nose. Standing in the moonlight's gloom, Shade's fur made him disappear in the blue-black shadows. His coat was a rough smudged mix of dark grey and black, highlighted with white from his underside. He looked the most like his mother, favoring her grey fur over his father's more brownish-tawny. He had no blue eyes though like his mother, nor his father's bright polished amber. Shade's eyes were dark like his coat, a muddy shade of amber-brown, amber only in high light and brown all other times. He wasn't bad looking either, growing into his father's height and his mother's sturdy frame. Shade had long legs and a deep chest, well built shoulders, a handsome head and well defined features as though he'd been cut from ash-colored stone.

Dismissing the old deer trail, Shade padded off into the undergrowth. Under his paws, the ground was crunchy with falling leaves splashed with gold, red and earthy brown. Autumn was what it was called supposedly, sometimes called fall as well. He had once asked his packmate Autumn if she was named for the season and she'd said she was, because her fur was redder than everyone else's. Shade always thought it was neat how wolves so easily took to nature, each name reflecting something about them that attached him to the earth and forest they lived in. Shade had stealth in shadows, Rain having her stormy scent. Wren was as flighty and vocal as the bird she was named for. Blaze always confused Shade. Blaze wasn't red-furred like Autumn or like fire so Shade wasn't sure why Blaze was named as he was. Maybe it was his aggression or something but, Shade always thought it was rather silly. Maybe it was because Blaze wasn't named for something about him that tied him to the earth that made Blaze so much more rebellious, he wasn't grounded like a good wolf. Or Shade was just being silly and reading too much into things.

Shrugging to himself, Shade loped out of the trees. He found himself standing on a high ridge overlooking a meadow filled with gently rolling hills. This place had been left untouched by the unusual wildfire that Shade barely remembered. Unlike the park, this place wasn't struggling to bring back life as winter crept close to steal it away again. Breeze promised the park would heal within a few years and animals would return by spring in the next year. Shade wanted to believe his mother, seeing as she'd never steered him wrong before. Sky, Autumn, Wren, Rain and Robin all had faith that the park would recover. Shade didn't want to be sitting on the outside with Sage, grumbling and complaining. Seeing this untouched place, trees tall old and healthy as they began to hibernate, seeing the swaying tall grass in the meadow below and the obvious signs of recent deer activity, Shade felt doubt stir in his chest. Would their home recover? Was Breeze right or should they find a new place?

Sitting back on his haunches, the young wolf let his muddy brown eyes sweep the Crescent Ridge and meadow beyond. The deer would be heading deeper into the forest for now but in a few hours, he hoped they'd come to graze on the meadow, feeling safe in the darkness even with a young predator watching. Shade had never hunted big game. The adults took care of that, even Sage got to help. Autumn used to stay behind with Shade and his siblings but now, even she went to hunt, going far out of the pack land to find game. Shade would sit with his siblings until dawn waiting for their parents to return with a meal. Maybe if they lived here, Shade and his siblings would get to hunt with their parents? Or Breeze would keep them at the den even then until they reached the proper age. There was no way of knowing.

[nightmare]

Sure the junkyard was great. For a dog. Yeah the Morg pack was awesome, For a dog. But Sin was not a dog. At least thats what he let himself believe. Sin was 100% wolf in his mind, his reality seemed true in his young imagination. Anything could happen if you thought it up. Sin liked who he was, he loved to hunt, or at least pretend to. You could call him a dreamer. The one who knows it all, has got all the right information, but nothing ever happens to him. His sisters, and brothers, they were not as optimistic as him. They all had there dreams, yes, but none of them believed it enough for t to seem true. Sin liked to think of himself as, special, or different from the bunch, thats why he wanted to go on his little adventure alone.

Escaping the junkyard would have been difficult for any dog, but Sin, didn't want to be a dog, therefore, it was quite easy for him. Plus everyone was a little distracted by all the new stuff going around, with Dusk, Sins dad, as the new alpha. He slipped out right under his nose. He wouldn't have to worry about his mother noticing. The one dog that he was afraid of being caught by was Zytka. She was a wolf to, just like him. Well, thats how he put it. She was his trainer, and almost everyone thought she was crazy. Sin though she was the best thing that ever happened to the pack.

Slipping through the fence, Sin was out. He felt a pang of freedom, but he didn't stick around long, knowing someone might notice him. Sin was only a few months old. He was pretty big, length wise. He was tall, not buff, at least not yet. He didn't look like his mom, or his dad. He looked like a strange mix of the two, like someone took them and mashed them together. He had his mothers glorious eyes though, a pale blue that stood out from his dark coat. His coat was good camouflage under the darkness, so he slunk into the night shadows, and made his way to.... well he didn't know yet, but it would be good.

He ended up making his way to the forest. It was dark, and Sin had never been out on his own before, yet he did not feel scared. Maybe it was the wolf in him, he thought to himself. Wolves don't fear the forest, so why should I? And so the young pup walked straight into that forest, without so much as a thought of doubt. He stuck his nose to the ground, and took in all the new scents. It smelt nothing like the forever stench of garbage in the junkyard. Sin hated it there, there were no trees, no ponds, just garbage. Sin needed to run free, in the wild, like the wolves. He laughed to himself and lifted his head. He gave out a howl, although, to anyone else it would sound like a dog being hit by a car, to Sin, it sounded like a real wolf Howl, of coarse he had never actually heard a real howl. Zytka had told him storied of how and why the wolves howled, so he gathered his own information, and composed what he thought it sounded like.

In reality, the only thing Sin was accomplishing was bringing every predator in the area to his exact location. He wouldn't Be able to fight them off, he was still so young. He dint think that though. Wolves were born fighters, so, Sin had nothing to worry about. He trotted happily about in the forest, the crescent ridge was close to here. He followed a worn down path to were it looked out over the meadow. Even in the dark, it looked beautiful. Sin gave out another terrible howl. Hopefully he would learn in time how to howl better, because this was driving his parents crazy. The rest of the pack often complained how loud and obnoxious he was, and his parents would come scold him lightly. Sin didn't realize someone else was in the forest with him. Someone who could easily be quite dangerous.

[::Fox::]

As the minutes ticked by, Shade continued to sit still and silent on the high point of the ridge, half hidden in shadows and half lit by moonlight. Like his mother, the young male had no problem sitting still in one place for long periods of time. He liked delving deep into his thoughts, contemplating things quietly like his mother often did when she was stressed or trying to make an important decision. Shade had no desire for his mother's stressful job of leading the pack but found refuge from his noisy siblings in still silence, even if it was only his own. The meadow below the Crescent Ridge was the perfect place to zone out, safe as he was in his wolf-ish appearance and keen senses. Shade never felt afraid, on his own or with his pack. They might be rough and loud but his pack was secure, sturdy, there for one another even if they didn't always get along. On his own, Shade learned to trust his own power, know his weaknesses and strengths, connect with the natural world he lived in.

Mother always told her pups that dogs were traitors because they turned their back on nature and what was natural, that they were no longer wolves and hadn't been for thousands of generations. She called dogs blood traitors because they had turned away from what was natural, turning to humans for their survival instead of making it through on their own or with a pack. Shade thought it was odd, to turn to a weak, two-legged, furless creature for protection and food. Surely humans would make good food and could offer little protection? Shade had also heard the stories about the worst blood traitors, the ones that claimed to be "packs" in the filthy human city. Apparently the dog packs thought they were as strong and independent as a true wolf pack. Shade could only scoff at this idea. There was no way a blood traitor dog pack could be as strong and independent when they still used human things to survive. Tolerant as he was, Shade was still a wolf, geared to reject human and dog things and cling to the age old faith of his wild kind.

Just as Shade was contemplating going back to the packland, a horrible wailing made the young male jump. Triangular ears laid back against the male's head as he ducked his head a little, hackles rising. It sounded like something was dying down on the meadow near the trees, wailing its last pitiful cry. Sitting up as the wailing came to a halt, Shade sniffed the night breeze. He expected there to be blood-scent or sickness-scent, something to suggest a dying thing nearby to scavenge from. To his surprise, Shade found no such scents. There was nothing to suggest anything dying on the meadow.

Quietly getting up, Shade crept forward on the ridge and laid down, belly pressed to the earth. Muddy brown eyes scanned the land below, sweeping the shadowy treeline and low hills of the meadow. His eyes fell on a dark-furred thing, small and harmless looking, padding along the trees just outside of the shadows with one side to the meadow padding toward the ridge. Even from this distance, Shade could faintly pick out bright blue eyes on the little animal and ears. It obviously had four legs and when it passed into a bit of moonlight, the young wolf saw it more clearly. Breathing in deeper this time, Shade tasted the wind.

Acidic smells assaulted the male's nose making him wrinkle his handsome muzzle in disgust. Sharp ears laid back as he tasted grimy, gritty smells that were an insult to his young palate. Raised on the fresh scents of rain, sharp pines, sweet grass and heavy prey scents, the acid scents were like a kick in the stomach. How could something that stunk so much survive out here? Surely something would kill it? Maybe it was like the black and white skunk Shade and his sisters had found? Maybe it got stinkier when it died? By the scent alone, Shade doubted it would taste good. Still, if it kept going it would find him and Shade doubted it would be good. The thing looked small but what if it was venomous or something weird like that? It looked kind of like a wolf but the smell was not wolf, did that mean it wasn't a threat? Nothing in the park threatened a wolf, Shade had come to learn that quickly. Things could kill wolves like the snakes with rattles on their tails or the grumpy bears but only if you made them mad. Surely such a small thing couldn't be a threat to a wolf when a wolf wasn't even challenged by bigger creatures?

Maybe it was friendly? From the dreadful wailing it made, Shade doubted it spoke wolfish but Shade had seen his mother communicate with other animals once. By posture alone he'd seen his mother communicate to something that she wasn't a threat, that the pack wasn't hungry and had no desire to hunt, mostly with deer or big mountain sheep. She didn't do it often since the pack was seldom not hungry but maybe the posture thing would work with this weird wolf-thing? Was it a dog? Shade had never seen one but if it was, maybe it would understand a little bit of wolfish or the posture thing? Maybe Shade could get it to go away and stop stinking up the ridge and scaring prey with its wailing?

Sitting up, perched on the very crest of the hill, Shade sat up straight like he saw his mother and father do. It was a posture of dominance that Shade seldom used but, since there was no one around ranked above him, he let himself do it. The moonlight leaked onto his fur, highlighting the white of his throat, chest, underbelly and legs, soaking into the ashy colors on his face, back, sides and upper head. Turning his head skyward, Shade let out a low, deep howl. Considering his young age, the sound was decently powerful and assured, rumbling from deep in his chest and rising to a clear note as if it were reaching for the moon itself.

[nightmare]

Oblivious, the young husky, Aussie mix pranced his way through the fallen sticks and leaves of the forest ground. He was having to much fun to notice any other creatures near. His tongue lolled out in a happy grin. He felt free, and truly wild now, without his pack breathing down his neck. Sin loved his family, but he needed space from the cramped junkyard. Now that he was here, he didn't even want to think about going back. It was so nice out here, so much room to run, and not a piece of trash in sight. The air smelt so different, he was dizzy from all the new sent. It made his head spin.

Sorting the scents in to categories seemed to help a little. There were plants, animals he knew, and animals he didn't know, and then there were scents of the strangest things, he coolant tell what they were, it was all so new. his pale blue eyes blazed with curiosity, and excitement. He glanced up at the sky for a moment, and noticed that the curious light haze was no longer there, and that he could see straight to the stars. He laughed.
"Wow" he gasped a little. Even in the dark, the place almost lit up with the stars and moon. It was exhilarating.

A sound rustled to his right, and his head whipped over. A small fat creature sat at the base of a tree. It looked like a normal junkyard rat, but it had a fluffy tail, and seemed to be able to clime up and down trees super fast. Sin tilted his head at the strange animal.
"What is that?" he asked out loud. The creature did not answer, instead it turned and took off. Sin raced to get up and Chase it. He didn't get far, when the creature booked it up the tree. Sin stood on his hind legs, and placed his front paws on the trunk of the tree. Sin was only a dog, so he could no climb the tree. He watched after the animal, which seemed to laugh at him once it was out of reach. Sin grumbled and hopped down.

A deep powerful sound pierced the air, and left Sin breathless. He turned toward where that beautiful sound had come from, slowly, afraid of what he may find. To his surprise, he found something canine looking. It was sitting, a few meters away from him, watching him. Sin's jaw dropped a little, and his head tilted again. What was it. It didn't seem to be any danger, and maybe it was just another dog who wanted a friend. Sin slowly walked over to the creature, head down, taking in its look of dominance. Sin would be strong when he got older, but for now, it was best to play it safe.

He approached the creature, giving it a wide berth. It looked dog like, sort of like a husky, but its smell was all wrong, and it was somehow very very different. Somehow. The sound it had made was beautiful, and Sin knew, from the stories Zytka had told him, that it had been a howl. A really good howl, Sin knew he would need to practice more. A thought jumped into his mind before he could greet the creature. What if it was a wolf? He was both excited and scared. Wolves were said to be dangerous, but Zytka had told him they could be nice as well. He wanted to greet the canine, so he lowered his ears and tail.

"Hello? Are you a wolf?" Sin didn't know there was a language barrier, but he hoped the canine would get his message. He loved to make new friends, and just think, a wolf as a friend. Sin would have a cow. And what would his mother think? Oh yes, his mother, he had almost forgotten about her. She would defiantly not approve, nor would his father. Zytka, on the other hand, just might. And she would be the only dog he would even think about telling. Sin patiently waited for the strangers answer. Impatient he may be, but he did not want to anger the brute.

[::Fox::]

When Shade's howl came to a stop, he swept the meadow below the ridge again for the weird blue-eyed canine. He felt almost certain it was a dog, a blood traitor like his mother had told him about. What would his siblings think when they found out he'd found one? Would they laugh or would they say he should kill it? Shade had never killed anything yet, that was a right of passage. He and his siblings would take turns killing small game like rabbits, squirrels and other rodents for their first kill depending on which one of them proved to be the most dominant. Shade wouldn't be surprised if it was Rain, she had bossy tendencies but she was a good sister. It could just as easily be Blaze but that wasn't the problem right now. The dog wasn't on his territory so would his mother frown on him attacking it? Should he attack it? What if it fought back? It smelled so young and looked so small that Shade doubted it could fight him seeing as he was several months its senior and obviously more developed from his rougher life.

Before Shade could really make up his mind, the dark thing was bounding toward him. There was wonder in its odd blue eyes, a wonder Shade did not understand. As far as juvenile wolves went, Shade guessed he was fair looking, not overly big or painfully skinny or runty. He was far from his father's calm majesty or Robin's quiet composure. He had none of his mother's mystique or Autumn's sweet charm. Sage...well he didn't want to be like Sage, grumpy and hard to live with. Still the thing, he guessed it was a pup, looked at him as if he were a majestic stag or powerful fully grown wolf. Shade tensed when the dog met his eyes, a low growl of warning rumbling in his chest. Meeting eyes with a stranger was a challenge. Almost at once the pup dropped its body lower and its head. Maybe there was some sense in the thing?

it barked something to him that made Shade's ears twitched. The words were familiar, in fact he understood them, but the accent was...unusual. The pup barked instead of growled the way wolves did. Was it because he was a dog and humans didn't like growling? Either way it sounded like the pup was...playing because wolves mostly barked when they played, the voice was weak and paled to the voice of another wolf. Shade hesitated in answering, remembering his mother's words about blood traitors. Should he even talk to it? Should he just kill it and show his mother he'd made his first kill early? He could kill it and not tell anyone, they couldn't be mad if he killed a dog right?

"I am a wolf," Shade said at last, his words carrying a growling edge common among wolves when they spoke. "You shouldn't be here. You don't belong, the pack will hunt you. We don't like blood traitors."

Shade hoped the weird dog thing understood him. If it didn't, Shade would have to physically drive it away. They weren't in wolf pack territory necessarily but, they were pretty close. A mile or so back and they would be crossing pack boundaries. If this pup wondered this far, it would go farther. Shade could remember Autumn and his mother teaching him and his siblings how far they could go from the den, showing them the boundaries and enforcing them with sharp nips, rough tumbles and scolding. If this dog didn't understand him, maybe Shade could teach it like his parents did? Wolves didn't put much value in words after all, actions and posture meant more. In a hunt they decided if the pack ate or starved, in play it decided who won and who lost, in everyday life it decided rank. Standing up, Shade braced himself to have to run the pup off. Yes, action would be better than words, especially since the pup probably wouldn't understand him. It was probably too stupid, dumbed by humans and its silly ideas of what a pack was.

[nightmare]

Sin forgot what Zytka had said about how wolves talk different then dogs. Even Zytka herself had the faintest of accents, from all her time with the wolves back in the day. yet he didn't find it surprising that he had to look and listen closely to figure out what exactly the brute was saying. His body language was straight forward, but instead of barks, growls came from his mouth.

Sin's ears perked up. He just so happened to be sitting in front of a wolf. A real live wolf! Sin could hardly contain himself. This wolf was everything Sin wanted to be and more. He wondered where the wolf's pack was, or if he had a pack at all. Didn't all wolves have packs? Did they always stay together? If so where were the others? Sin didn't know if he could handle a bunch of wolves all at once, one was more than enough.

The wolf showed signs of dominance, and repaid him with the utmost respect. This was as if he were talking to a king. Sin was never this good at following the proper respect actions at home. He often challenged other dogs, but being so young, he would often loose. Sin did not want to upset the wolf, because he knew he could be quite dangerous.

The wolf spoke up again, telling shade that he shouldn't be here. He caught that part, and something about being hunted, and blood tracks? Blood tricks? Blood Tr-ate-owrs?
"whats a blood Tr-ate-ower?" Sin asked innocently, not able to get the whole word. Even if he did understand it, he still had no idea what a traitor really was. Sin had only ever hared they were bad. Sin wasn't bad, was he? Well he did run away, but he didn't turn his back on his home, he would go back, right?

Sin tilted his head in question at the wolf. Did he think sin was bad? Sin whined a little, and flattened his ears again. He didn't want the wolf to think he was bad, he wanted him to like him. Maybe even become friends. It was a long shot, and even Sin knew that, but he could still hope.
"My Name is Sin. Whats yours?" He had totally forgotten about salutations. If his mother had taught him anything, it was how to meet new dogs. And how to be polite. So Sin bowed his head at his small introduction, and hoped the Wolf would at least tell Sin his name.

The wolf sat still, Sin could do that to, he was about the only on in his litter who could do so this well. He had Patience, sometimes, and he was good at finding things to occupy his time. Sin looked at the wolf, his blue eyes blazing, yearning for an answer to all the questions he had about wolves. He wish he had a friend back home, one he could tell all about meeting this magnificent wolf. Who needed a dog friend when you had a wolf?

[::Fox::]

Shade's muddy brown eyes narrowed slightly at the blue-eyed whelp. Was it stupid? No, not stupid, young, very young. Shade could remember being so young but never had he been so foolish. How could this...this dog not know what a disgrace it was to canine kind? Did it simply too haughty to accept such a bad reputation or did it honestly not know? Shade couldn't tell. The pup looked almost wolfish but its fur was too short and too brown for any wolf Shade had ever seen, the eyes far too pale. Not many wolves had blue eyes into adulthood. His mother and one of his sisters were lucky enough to have such eyes, alluring and beautiful. This pup didn't have eyes like that. They were flat, seemingly without intelligence, glazed like blue-white ice on a frozen lake. Did that make this thing stupid or was it just different eyes? If his mother was right, there should be wolf in this dog somewhere, shouldn't there? Watching the pup, Shade had trouble finding it, struggling with his own youth to answer questions he'd never dared ask of his mother.

At one time, perhaps dogs had known they were traitors and over time, perhaps not left humans because they knew wolves would hurt them. Wolves never forgot betrayals, the dogs must know that on a subconscious level, right? What they may have forgotten had to be remembered by some lonely part of their blood, whispering to them to stay with the humans and fear the howl of a wolf. This pup, oddly, didn't seem to share that instinctive fear. It both unnerved and intriged Shade.

The pup's odd barking voice made Shade's ears twitch. How could something so loud survive? How could humans tolerate it?

Getting up, Shade shook out his ashy fur. He wasn't big by any standard but easily towered over the younger dog. Shade was no runt and from his litter he was the largest but, he would never grow as large as his father, not with all the deer in the park to feed him. Because he could, Shade took advantage of his size, circling the pup the way his father sometimes did when he or one of his siblings were in trouble. Sometimes mother did it too but, more often than not the sign they were in trouble with her was a stony, brooding silence like a storm on the horizon that would not break until Breeze saw fit. In many ways, his father's physical intimidation and scoldings were easier to tolerate than his mother's sharp silence.

"You don't need my name," Shade growled gruffly, breathing in. He couldn't smell much beyond the whelp's acidic city scent. How would he know if someone came to look for him?

Turning back to the pup, Sin, Shade wondered what kind of name that was for any animal? Sin was not a word in wolvish. Their names came from natural things that tied them to the earth on which they lived, a physical bond that kept them grounded and certain. Wolves lived on instinct and did not believe in sin so, they had no word for anything like it. The name was odd and Shade had to wonder if other dogs had such unnatural names. Was it common? Was it a word to the dogs? Did it mean something and if so, what? The young wolf didn't dare ask. His mother would be mad...wouldn't she?

"Just go home, dogs don't survive here," Shade ordered as firmly as he could.

The order had no true bite to it however, tempered by Shade's own curiosity and a touch of uncertainty. Should he let it go or kill it? Would his mother and father care? What would his siblings think? He had questions for the dog too. Why did it stink? Why was it's name Sin? What did 'sin' mean, if anything? What was an obviously young pup doing so far from the smelly city without a human?

Shade bit his tongue to keep the questions from rising from his throat. He would be in trouble as it was for running off and leaving the pack to sqabble amongst themselves. Breeze and Sky would scold him and Autumn would shake her head. Blaze would roll his eyes and Wren and Rain would snicker at his misfortune. No need to dig himself a deeper grave and be caught talking to a dog. That could get him banished if it made his mother angry enough. Questions weren't worth that. At least, Shade didn't think they were.

"You stink like the city, make too much noise, you'll get killed here. Go back to your mother, let her keep you safe," Shade said finally, slightly less roughly, taking a step back from the dog pup.

He knew his mother loved him and would protect him at all costs, all of his siblings if she had to. Sky would as well. They might be rough to him sometimes but Shade knew it was only to teach him before he learned too late and lost his life. Mistakes in the wild could be deadly and his parents wanted to make sure he and all of his siblings survived. When Shade was younger, he had thought his parents were just mean but, now he understood that wasn't true. He'd been twice as old as the dog pup before him when he'd been allowed to roam even a little away from the den. This pup would get killed if it stayed away from its mother and the city that was its only protection. Let the humans watch over it, dogs obviously had no other protection. They could look like wolves but Shade could see the weakness in the youngster's body.

[nightmare]

Well obviously the wolf didn't like Sin much, he could Tell. Wouldn't give him his name, did he know no manors at all? What had his mother taught him? Sin looked at the brute, a mischievous glare raising in his blue eyes. He didn't like taking no as an answer. But he let the brute finish. Sin was, however, polite. Although not to just anyone. He loved bugging his sisters, and the omegas of the pack, just teasing. That was allowed right?

Sin was quite confused as to what the brute meant by 'dogs don't survive here' Why not? He survived here right? So why couldn't Sin, or any other dog by that matter? Just because the brute was a wolf, didn't make him Jesus, he wasn't better than anyone else. Sin raised an eyebrow at him. Why would he think himself a god? He was canine, just like Sin.

He shook off the thought, and was about to put in, when the brute came at hi with another negative thing about dogs. Stink like the city? Sin smelt himself, and thought, i don't stink, i smell just fine. He didn't know what the wolf was smelling, but surly it could not have been him. Sin didn't want to go back to his mother, not right now at least. He was having a great time here, feeling free, and meeting wolves. Why on earth would he go home?

Sin tried to think up a quick and snappy comeback, but nothing came to him. Instead he moved on to another thing that was bothering him.
"Why don't i need your name? I sure do need it, to know who I'm talking to. And you never did answer my first question, wolf." He said, not showing any signs of fear. Sin was born without fear, he just didn't seem to get scared, or worried. "You can survive here, then so can I, your no different than me, in so many ways." he pointed out.

He didn't want to disrespect the wolf verbally, like he had to him. No Sin would not stoop to his lever of meanness. He did, however, stop lowering his ears, and moved into a more relaxed sit. He would not show respect to someone who would not give him there name. That was just the rules. Sin was starting to get impatient with this wolf.

Sins brows ruffled. "Why are you being so mean wolf? I'm not a treat am I?" He said the last words with a smirk of teeth. A risky move, but thats what Sin did best. How do you think he got here, taking risks of coarse. He pawed at the ground a little, he was still a pup, and hated siting still, as much as he did it so well. There were so many new sights and smells out here that he wanted to explore. But first he wanted to get the wolfs name.

[::Fox::]

The pup was making Shade mad. He was tolerant. As tolerant as wolves got with dogs. Most would have killed the pup without the kindness of warning him to leave. Shade knew for a fact his mother would have brought the dead pup home for them to play with, rip its fur off to line their den once it stopped stinking of the acid-humans. Okay, maybe it wouldn't go that far but still, the pup was way out of line and it was making Shade edgy. Most wolves were naturally aggressive on some level. They respected unspoken rules, like the one that said dogs and wolves were not the same and never would be since dogs had given up their wolf blood to be human slaves and live in the human filth. It was horrible to hear a whelp claiming wolves and dogs weren't any different, that he could survive, demanding Shade's name when it wasn't his place. This whelp, no matter how strong or whatever it might grow to be as compared to dogs, it would never have the rank to demand anything of a wolf, Shade was certain of that. No wolf would ever give a dog something it demanded.

Rising to his paws, the ashy grey male snarled low in his chest, pulling his lips back to show his much more superior fangs. The whelp probably only had his milk fangs, not even proper teeth yet, still suckling from his mother. Ears forward, Shade let his hackles rise. The young wolf took a threatening step toward the smaller pup, snarling low in his chest. It should be enough to terrify the pup, warn it that it was stepping in dangerous territory.

"We are not the same!" Shade snarled sharply, tail rising with his aggression. "You are a weak, filthy, disgusting dog, a slave to humans that lives in their garbage. You stink like their city and make too much noise. You talk back to better creatures and are just as stupid as my mother always said dogs are. You are disrespectful and foolish, wandering at night without your mother when you're too young to fight even a mouse, you demand the name of someone above you where you have no right to demand anything and you don't heed a wolf's warning. My family would have killed you if they saw you, be grateful I'm not doing the same. Go away whelp. This is wild land, not for dogs, not for the shameful that are too weak to survive without humans."

Anger flowed through Shade, burning in his belly. He felt the sting of disrespect from the pup and knew his siblings would laugh at him. A weak dog pup had talked back to him. How would he ever be able to demand respect from anyone? Sage would laugh until she died and his parents would duck their heads in shame if they found out. Shade constantly felt that sting. Rain, Wren and Blaze were all the strong and brash, not like him. He liked quite contemplation but he knew the wolf ways. Respect was a given to older wolves unless a younger wolf fought an older wolf to get their respect. Sometimes respect didn't mean winning the fight but the fight had to be fought. This pup was talking back to him. Shade had all rights to attack it, kill it because it was a dog or beat it down until it knew its place. His legs wouldn't move and his jaws wouldn't part to do so though. Yes, yes, his siblings would laugh. Autumn, Sky, Sage, Breeze, they would all laugh.

Shade was sick of being laughed at or left out by his family. He'd prove he was a strong wolf. He'd send this pup packing or take it back to his mother with a broken neck. Breeze might not approve of him leaving but, she'd be glad he'd removed a threat. So close to the park, Shade couldn't let the pup go much farther. It ran the risk of other dogs following the pup and taking what little prey there was. Shade was here partially to look for big game, tell his mother and bring the pack here to hunt. Breeze had told them not to leave the boundry like the hunters did but Shade knew he had to find something. It would be a good enough excuse if his mother got angry for him going off alone.

Now though, it was getting personal. The pup was tromping all over his wolven pride, daring to compare wolves and dogs, calling them the same. At one time, they might have been, thousands of years ago, but that wasn't so anymore. Dog blood was diluted and weak, full of diseases and instincts to serve that weren't natural. Herding, guarding, guiding, all for filthy humans. No, those instincts weren't natural. Those things were done for the pack, humans were not a pack, and still blood traitors had gone to them and were now dogs. Even the stray ones were weak, depending on abandoned human places to live.