SEVEN Dangerous Bonds NightPack “No one’s ever done anything like this before,” commented Ivy as they cut through the thick underbrush. “I’ve always been the outsider of my pack.” Crescent shivered. Oh star-wolf, why do we have SO MUCH in common? “Yeah,” Crescent wavered. “My mom abandoned me at the TreeBorder. Bracken adopted me.” “Oh.” Ivy shrugged. “Is that why you shuddered when I said ‘females are much more responsible than males’? “Yeah.” Crescent looked away. “I don’t know who my parents are,” offered Ivy in consolation. “We’ve got more in common than you think.” Crescent bit his tongue. A small robin fluttered by, mottled brown but temptingly plump. Crescent looked over at Ivy, whose mouth was watering. The robin swerved eastward, fading into the treetops. “Let’s catch it!” Ivy was ecstatic and ravenous. “It went east,” pointed out Crescent. “That’s a bit too close to NightPack camp.” Ivy growled fiercely. “O-kay then,” Crescent grumbled. Of all the places to chase a robin with your enemy, go to the place where you might be found out! *** “Steady your paws,” Crescent instructed. “They are steadied!” complained Ivy. They were sitting at the border, less than fifty meters from Alpha Blackrose’s den. The robin was nearby, tweeting an innocent song. “And please,” begged Crescent, “Be quiet. If someone finds out…” Ivy made a slitting movement across her next and nodded. The robin hopped closer. Ivy pounced. “I got him I got him I got him!” Ivy squealed. Crescent looked away. “I’ve never made anyone this happy before.” Ivy drifted her paws over his. “Well, now you have.” “Oh. You better get back to the Outer Realm.” Ivy’s face fell. “Well, bye,” she whispered. Crescent frowned. Aren’t you going to take her- “I’ll take you back to the forest,” he promised. “You might not know the way.” “Thanks!” Ivy grinned. “Friends?” She held out her hand. Crescent gulped. Every wolf instinct told him to back off, but this coyote trusted him. Ivy didn’t underestimate him. He had been tortured all his life because he wasn’t good enough. Why destroy the one chance to prove his loyalty? “Sure.” He shook it. He guided Ivy back to the forest, walking slowly and trying to tell himself that she would be gone forever. “Goodbye,” she whispered. And like that, she was gone. Only a small green ivy leaf took her place. Crescent looked down at his palm. An angry red rash was forming on his paw. I’d better get this ivy treated before it gets worse- both of them.
Song is Love Story by Taylor Swift... Sorry, no actual romance yet.
