The Lone Wolf

Chapter 2: This is No Forest

Luna awoke bright eyed and bushy tailed the next morning, quite literally. She knew the proper duty to her father was to follow her dream, so that day she was leaving for the city of New York. It was right outside the forest. She yawned, and squinted at the beautiful sunrise before her. The pack was still asleep, so she thought it would be a good time. She went into everywolf's individual caves, and gave them a quiet, quick kiss on the snout before she left. But she woke up Khepri, on purpose, and told her to tell the others once they awoke. Khepri began to sob. "No!" she cried, hugging Luna. "My sister can't leave our pack!" Luna felt Khepri's pain. She had felt the same way when father had died. "I will return before winter," lied Luna. She felt she would never return. Khepri nodded. "You must go then." she said firmly, brushing away her tears. "But you will have to disguise your ears and tail, and fangs. Tuck your tail into your belt loops like a belt, and always wear a hat. You'll be well off, my good sister. Bon voyage!" And Khepri kissed Luna's cheek, and went back to sleep sobbing quietly. Luna left her, and gave a quick prayer for Adagio as she set off for the edge of the forest. Luna stepped from the cold, safe borders of the dark forest which she knew so well, onto the cold, hard street of New York. She tilted her head, scurried across the street, and hid in a perfectly styled shrub. There were few of these in New York. She spied on the streets. Luna was baffled at the cars, of which she had watched from afar but looked curious up close. She gawked at at particular girl, who's hair was perfectly straight and shiny, who's skin glowed like the sun, who wore a tank-top, flip-flops, and teeny shorts that made Luna gag when she looked at them. She carried a cute purse, and what was that shiny stuff on her lips? Luna stared at this woman's mysteriously shiny mouth with puzzlement, and then looked to her right. There was a boy there, with blond, spiky hair, who looked very muscular, with a tee shirt that was almost see-through underneath his shiny, leather jacket. He wore khaki shorts, and black sneakers. Luna drooled. The couple were talking. On another end of the street, there was a dog. It was a stray, and Luna couldn't quite make out what it was but-oh! It was a husky! A poor, little husky who had lost his pack. The husky saw her in the shrub and started to make his way over, seeing her ears and wondering. The husky howled, and she howled back, as the People stared. "Is that something that you do here?" she asked the husky, who shook his head. "Nope," she said. "I'm Alexis. I left my pack with my dad, so I'm a city pup now, but I got no owner." Luna scratched him behind the ear. "I left my pack because I wanted to live in the city, too" she said blankly. Alexis looked shocked. "Wow, that's great! Amazing! Would you please be my owner then? I'm hungry and I need a place to live." "Do you think you could teach me how stuff works around here?" Alexis nodded. "Do you want to fit in here as a dog or a human?" "A human." "Then we had better get started." Alexis stared at Luna, and then at the girl walking with her boyfriend. "We've got a lot of work to do. TO THE HAIR SALON!" "HUH?"

Five minutes later, Luna was stuffed in a tall, spinning chair, and wrapped in a claustrophobic-feeling cape, and having her hair brushed and trimmed by a dude she had never seen before in her life. "What...is...happening????" she asked him, wrinkling up her nose. The guy forced a smile. "Hi, I'm Robert, and I'm a hair stylist. And well, you...um, need a little..uh...help with your hair. No?" Luna stared at him. "No." she said. Robert kept a forced smile up with much difficulty and told her, "You'd look good in a mid-length cut. We need to trim your 5 mile long split-ends and get rid of all these tangles and-" he sniffed the air and . "OH! Ew. We'll give you a nice hair wash." Robert coughed. Luna picked up a tangled lock of hair, and looked questioningly at Alexis, who sat like a good dog in the corner. The good little husky nodded, and made a scissor movement with his teeth. Luna gave him a glance that said, "OOOOOH. OKAY!" and she asked him if they could give her a trim. Alexis barked(which translated as "You should ask for a good paint on all your nails, a manicure, a pedicure, and a facial, too!"). Luna had no idea what any of these things were, so she blindly asked for them, and two beautiful women who worked at the store clapped happily, and whisked her away. Luna now had shiny, mid-length locks that were crimped and curled to perfection. Her hair was so poofy and curly that her small ears disappeared underneath her hair. As the two women, Shelby and Sydney, worked their magic, Alexis sat happily being rubbed and fed by a passing man on the streets(who, very luckily, was a dog lover). Alexis barked a particular bark at Luna once more(This bark translated as, "Ask for a shopping expedition. Tell them you need at least 20 outfits and 13 pairs of shoes!"). So Luna did. Sydney and Shelby squealed in unison and brought the beautified but shocked Luna down an escalator to the shopping part of the mall.