The Den Itself

“Must. Get. Out. Of. Here” the dusty she wolf sucked in short gasping breath, her lungs burning with each breath of air that she struggled to gulp down. She knew she was in pack territory, and she knew that she had to get out of there. It was only an accident that she was there, she’d been chasing a hare for she was starving, a pathetic excuse to be trespassing she knew but the need for food had been consuming her for days. The prospective meal had gotten away unfortunately and only then had she noticed the scent of other wolves lingering in the air. The rouge had panicked, broken into a run which she kept up now and sought an escape from the realm of others.

Her light paws still thudded frantically on the ground; her pads were cut now on jagged terrain in her carelessness and tender from all the running – But Scout continued on at break-neck speed. Her mind was long since lost to panic and she sprinted senselessly, regardless of where she was going or the toll it was taking on her malnourished physique.

She really wasn’t looking where she was going, so much so that she only noticed her surroundings when the forest opened up in front of her to reveal a clearing where a hollow hill protruded outwards. Two wolves were there conversing, one just awakening from slumber at that and it was the best Scout could do not to crash straight into them. Her legs braced to halt her and her paws shuffled over the earth until she came to an unbalanced stop barely a meter away from them, scuttling backwards fearfully before freezing on the spot. Her breaths rapid as she fought to regain control over the fear that ran through her veins “I-I……” she began to stammer fearfully before giving up on words and simply standing shaking with her muzzle parted in shock

Scout remained frozen in senseless fear, her frame tense as she expected some sort of blow from the two wolves she had intruded upon, her clumsy entrance something that most she knew would not tolerate and something her previous pack would have 'disciplined' her for. Her stature changing into her normal posture, with ears pinned back though still darting frantically in fright of every noise and her tail curled around her rear leg, if ever the she wolf was to appear small it was now in her shivering form.

It was the femme that spoke first, bursting into life from her slumbers and glaring at the male who had awoken her. It was next she turned her attention on to Scout, and her strong and muscular physique was enough to intimidate the weaker of the two "Hey, watch where you're going! You're gonna squash us flat like leaves when you carry on like that, bowling everything over like nobody's business." The dusty hued lupa only moved to close her shock parted mawl and swallow nervously, she knew now that she had to speak, but first had to glare at the ground to build her confidence. The earth beneath her paws was stable and unmoving, much more reassuring than looking up to see the fiery eyed fem's expression

The steely grey wolf spoke shakily, her stutter prominent though she tried to keep her voice even around the two fellow canines "I-I'm sorry. P-please forgive me" Scout paused, she didn't know this strangers name so what was she meant to refer to her by, she gulped down another wash of fright and hastily added "Ma'am"

"Not as if you could squash us, considering how thin you are." Scout looked at her own side to see what it was the others would judge her on to see her own dull coat draped on a frame that didn't seem to fit her, her ribs protruding outwards. "It's really that bad, huh?" she grunted to herself, her internal thoughts eerily more calm than those she spoke aloud.

Her skull reverted back around to look in front of her, her muzzle opening as she was about to ask a question before she quickly stole it back "Don't speak unless spoken to!" she hissed to herself irritably, it seemed time alone had let her slip into bad habits that her own birth pack had done their best to rid her of. "They'd be disappointed at you" She forced herself to look and wait for the she wolf to speak again, she'd probably be told to get going and nothing more.

The iron pelted she wolf looked up again with curious amber optics to see another wolf add their voice to the conversation, it was the male this time though and with words that surprised the quaking rouge. "Let's all keep our cool." the multi-hued lupe addressed the mottled fem calmingly , and Scout tilted her head in confusion at the gesture "Is he sticking up for me?" she wondered in shock, looking to the male intrigued as to his reasoning. But surely it was Scout that was in the wrong, it was her own clumsy behaviour that had threatened to bowl over the two other canines.

"Chin up kiddo." Scout paused again, yet further confused. "Me? kiddo?" she queried internally before allowing the tiniest of smiles to show, only the slightest though, a tiny tug at the edge of her mawl at what she though to be a nice comment. It was kind in the she wolfs point of view to be referred to than younger than her actual age. She was small by anyone's standard, and she wouldn't be surprised is there were juveniles out there bigger than her, her derma was misleading as well so it would be easy to misjudge how many summers the dusty pigmented wolf had seen.

"My name's Askem." She nodded and took the information in "Askem... Askem... Ask who?" she repeated until his name was firmly imbedded in her memory, after all she didn't want to forget such a thing and make a fool out of herself. The silence that followed though implied that the female wolves who congregated at the den were expected to speak of their names to. Something that the timid rouge was hesitant to do.

"My... name?" she let the thought muse through her brain, what was she meant to say? 'Scout' was the moniker that she went by presently, a nickname though and nothing more, just like the previous nickname of runt. She preferred the former rather then the latter as you can probably guess. But her real designation? If her parents had ever bothered giving her one it was long lost in the depth of her memory, but she had to give an answer didn't she, if she told the story well enough maybe these two wolves would believe that a word assigned to the wannabe lookout was actually her real name instead of just a title originally given to taunt her with an out of reach stature.

She spoke now with her answer and seeing as it was a single word that took no skills to reiterate her voice was calm "Scout" she quickly realised how out of context that would seem, to some it would look as if she was stating a rank instead of the required answer "T-That's my name" she confirmed, nervous wisps entering her voice again

Light weight paws shuffled across the earth, the autumnal carpet rustling slightly as delicate pads brushed against the leafy masses. The soil beneath the decomposing loam was sodden with recent rainfall, that still clung to fallen greenery in droplets, making the floor alive with dazzling hues of amber and russet as the world slowly donned its fall time mask. The air was still humid with moisture from rain and unexpected heat that bore down directly through the naked canopy. The likes of which making the dusty pelted she-wolf restless but sluggish in her movements, her frame swaying as she looked around the den site nervously and her breathing still a little laboured from her run, her sides raising and deflating with long steady movements as she subconsciously fought of the effect of over-exertion.

The mottled fem was next to part her muzzle and enlighten the small group to her name, Palao. But with introductions out of the way Scout felt she knew none of the wolves any better, why were they even still standing there waiting for the silence to be broken "I should have left here by now, I could have run..." Amber orbs flicked skittishly, there were places to run and the she wolf was fast enough to escape, but something kept her glued to the spot. This group, maybe she would be accepted by them to some degree. The rouge had lost hope some time ago that she would be wanted within a pack, but she knew how to work and at the chance of food and safety she would give up her freedom all over again and put herself through life as an Omega just for the basic means to live by. Maybe, just maybe this pack had a place to be filled by a small little wolf who would work hard with little in return, it was possible.

At least the tension had been cleared though, to some extent. The female who had snapped at her had muttered a few inaudible words with a nod of her apex, a gesture that led Scout to believe she was forgiven. There was though only more reason for the ashen fem as two more wolves entered the clearing with an air of confidence that none of the others carried, they held a presence there like they truly belonged, like they had power. "Are they the leaders?" she queried worriedly wondering what there presence now meant. The female of the two talked first, to Askem, with a tone of mockery humour, the two apparently had a history and for the first time Scout could piece together who all the congregation were. The two wolves who had just joined them led the pack while Askem was one of the pack members, but that left Palao who in theory must be a rouge much like the petit fem.

Silence still wrapped its way around the den, an aura of awkwardness radiating from Scout as the need to speak once again weighed her down. But now more wolves had joined the gathering crowd she felt it even harder to address them, her words had been shaky before but now she saw several eyes that could bore into her soul should she trip over her words, she already looked like a shivering fool and her mind was blocking off the possibility of her adding to her humility. She didn't want to speak now, let alone not able to be physically able to stammer out her words.

Words were spoken softly, sweet tones meant to sooth and reassure. It was the calico she wolf who talked to her and asked of her name again, and it was now she must reply. But the fem was not finished yet, she made her own introductions to the group, calling herself Jennezia or Jenna for short, but Scout knew she would be using the leaders full name out of respect. She also talked of how the immediate vicinities were a den, more precisely their den, referring to themselves as a pack.

Now that the quiet took over again two question hung in the air, one as to why the congregation held so many rouges and what their intentions were and the second as to names. Scout needed to speak now, she truly had to. So why couldn't she? Her nuzzle parted but no sound was made, instead only silence ran across her tongue. She closed her mawl quickly to stop her from standing gawping before she tried again. Nothing. "When did it get this bad!" she hissed to herself, both irritated at her own lack of words and saddened by it. Why was it that she couldn't simply express herself, was she afraid of what the others would think. Too many times had she been scolded for speaking her mind, been humiliated for having her own opinion or cursed at for answering back, but now had it gotten so far that she feared to speak at all. It was one of the lessons from her birth pack she wished to forget, she couldn't agree with it. "Speak, Just speak." she commanded herself, with her small amount of will hitting her hard. "M-my name in S-Scout, I'm l-looking for a pack that w-will accept me"