Wolves of the Falling Stars Book 2: Dog of the Wolf Pack

Prologue

Maple Leaf crouched inside the wide alpha den, heaving as pain spread through her entire body. The sun was setting on a beautiful spring day, creating shards of sunlight and darkness from the entrance of the den.

Moon's Shine stood by Maple Leaf's side as she howled in pain.

"It'll be all right," Maple Leaf's best friend promised her. Maple Leaf nodded weakly, though her eyes had gone blurry due to the pain.

"Lay down," Moon's Shine instructed.

Maple Leaf awkwardly lowered her swollen stomach to the ground. She was in no way comfortable, but soon enough, she hoped to be. Sharp pain soared through her until she heard quiet whimpering.

"The first pup is born!" Moon's Shine exclaimed excitedly.

"What...what is it?" Maple Leaf asked. The pain was not over yet.

Moon's Shine shoved the pup toward her mother. "A girl," she explained.

Maple Leaf smiled, glancing down at the amber colored pup nursing from her stomach. 

Suddenly, Maple Leaf let out another cry of pain, and just like that, a second pup was born.

"A boy!" Moon's Shine announced. 

The pain began to subside, and Maple Leaf knew she was done. Maple Leaf herself had been in such a large litter. It was almost crazy to think she only had two pups.

Then again, she was lean and didn't always have food available. Her body could not hold so many pups. She grinned, glad she'd only have to keep her eye on two little munchkins.

The boy, unlike his sister, was a dark black, like his father, with spots of tan around his eyes, chest, and paws.

"Get Raven's Wing," Maple Leaf told Moon's Shine. She had made her mate leave the den before giving birth, not wanting the den insanely crowded.

There was already a crowd outside, waiting to see the new pups. They were the first dogs born within the pack, changing the number of dogs from two to four.

Raven's Wing headed inside, letting out a gentle grin as he caught sight of his mate. He then glanced down at his pups and his smile grew.

"A girl and a boy," Maple Leaf told him.

"They're beautiful," Raven's Wing announced.

"I still don't know what to name them. Wolf names, of course."

Raven's Wing pointed his paw toward the male. "Why don't we call him Copper Rock?" he asked.

Maple Leaf nodded, then glanced down at her daughter who looked so much like her. Would she be just like Maple Leaf, a true wolf of the pack?

"We can call her Hazel Branch," she decided.

"Hazel Branch and Copper Rock. Two new members of the Pack of the Falling Stars," Raven's Wing thought.

"The pack will want to see them soon," Maple Leaf told him.

"Let them wait a bit. I'm sure they'll be popular around here."

"In a good or bad way?" Maple Leaf asked.

"What do you mean?"

Maple Leaf sighed, listening to the tiny whimpers of her squirming pups.

"It's no secret that still not everyone is thrilled with the decision of us to be alphas. I don't know how happy they'll be about two new dogs being in the pack as well."

"But we'll raise them as wolves," Raven's Wing told her.

"We were both raised as house pets, and that's not what we wanted. What's to say that they want a different life as well?" Maple Leaf thought. "And what about when they're older with mates and--"

"We can discuss this later. You worry too much," Raven's Wing told her, licking her forehead. "Be thankful for the time we have with them right now. They'll be strong wolves soon."

Maple Leaf smiled, though her stomach still filled with worry as she glanced down at the two new pups she had brought into his world.