The Guardians of the Woods [#JustWriteIt]

Chapter Nine: "I don't want to be a Guardian, and that's final!"

*Art is not mine, it's from Deviant Art. I think the artist is Katie Hofgard so check out her fantastic art (if she has anymore)!*

    I, Cole, and Milu had said our farewells and left the Bear Lands. It was time to find 'the wolf that clings on to the tree with all her might,' and continue the prophecy.

    We were walking for a while until we ran into Jordan and Katie again. Cole started to make a weak growl, but I nudged him to quiet him down. I told him that they were Government, and he eased up.

    "Wow, who knew we'd bump into you twice in the same week, Milu!" Jordan laughed, wagging his tail.

    "Yeah, I guess we must be having the same destinations." Milu shrugged. "What are you doing this time?"

    "Border patrol. Viviana and Sabeen are on the other side," Katie explained.

    "Are you two together because you're mates?" Cole asked curiously.

     I held my breath and kicked his paw before he said anything else. Jordan and Katie blushed, and Milu sighed as he rolled his eyes.

    "W-we're not mates; we're just friends..." Jordan mumbled, his tail tucking.

    "O-oh! Wow, um, s-sorry, sorry!" Cole panicked, realizing his mistake.

    "Cole, just because a male and female are together doesn't mean they're mates, alright?" I slowly explained to Cole, and he nodded.

    "We'll just be on our way..." Milu hesitatingly said to the wolves. They nodded and let us walk past.

    We arrived at a wolf pack, and we weren't kindly greeted. Two male wolves as black as Cole were snarling when they saw us. Teeth bared, hackles raised, ears flattened, ready to attack. Milu stood boldly so that his necklace would be seen. The wolves relaxed but didn't show the same happiness as Jordan and Katie had when I first met them. They seemed angry that Milu had come, but knew that they couldn't attack him.

    As we walked past them, one snapped at Cole. He yelped and shuffled closer to me, terrified. These seem worse than the bears. I wanted to get this dangerous encounter out of my mind, so I looked around to see what the wolf territory was like. It had magnificent pine trees all over, even larger than the ones in the Bear Lands. The grass still seemed green and healthy, and it was very populated with insects.

    Milu led us to a large tree. It looked like a large amount of dirt was dug so you could enter under the tree. "Camila? Are you in there?" he asked.

    A small, brown wolf came out of the hole and looked up at Milu. "Oh, hello, Milu. Are you here to find the Guardian? We haven't noticed anybody with the abilities, sorry. You're free to look, though," she said in a sweet, young voice.

    Milu looked at me. "Any ideas on how we can find them? There are a lot more wolves than bears," he questioned.

    I thought for a minute. "Well, Cole's part was related to his name. With c-o-a-l. So, how 'bout we figure out what the wolves name would be?" I suggested.

    Milu nodded. "Well, what clings onto trees?"

    "Moss? Bugs?" Cole guessed.

    "Leaves?" I shrugged.

   "Yes, that would work. Either bugs or leaves. Camila, are there any pups with names relating to bugs or leaves?" Milu asked, turning to Camila.

    "Only adults like Dragonfly and Ladybird. No leaf names. There're plant names if you want. Like Poppy, Willow, and Daisy," she said.

    "What connects with leaves? They're, uh, green?" I said.

    "Not all the time, Teofilo. They turn red and brown in autumn." Milu explained.

    Camila gasped. "Wait, we have a pup named Autumn!"

    I gasped as well. "Yeah, the leaves cling onto the tree with all their might during fall!"

~*~*~

    We found Autumn. She was just a regular wolf, not royal or anything. Camila found her battle training with her siblings. 

    It was odd, the wolves we passed by seemed a lot nicer than the guards from before. They smiled and wagged their tails, greeting us. What was up with the guards? Maybe it was just a hard day's work. It is pretty hot, being in Summer with a black coat.

    "Yep, she's the one," I said, nodding.

    Milu approached Autumn and whispered something into her ear. She blinked and walked up to me. We were about the same height, so I didn't need to look up like I do with Milu or look down like I do with Cole.

    "Are you sure? Is it me, and not someone else?" she asked, sounding worried. Why wasn't she happy?

    "Yeah. Your long, silver fur is the same one as from my dream. That means you're gonna be a Guardian." I smiled.

    Autumn frowned. "Well, what if I don't want to be a Guardian?" she asked, her tail tucking.

    I, Cole, and Milu looked at each other in confusion. What? It's such an honor, though! I looked back at Autumn. "Why not? You should be, the prophecy says you'll be the next Wolf Guardian. You'll get to travel with us, protect whole kingdoms, and be special!" I explained.

    She started to growl. "The prophecy isn't my Leader, so why should I listen to it? I don't want to leave my family, I don't want to risk my life protecting kingdoms, and I don't want to be treated differently. I don't want to be a Guardian, and that's final!"