The Glass Wolf's Fall

+*~~~*+ A pair of raging wolf eyes were directed at Ferin, she looked away from her beta in submission. She didn't want to start a fight with her. "Do you realize what you have done?!" The beta, Cinder, piped up stepping closer to them. Ferin tucked in her tail, backing up a bit. Cinder got up close and personal to her face, growling. "Now we might go into a battle over your mistake!" She yelled, Cinder's jaw snapping like she might bite Ferin. Her rust-colored paw came down on Ferin's nose, claws out. The alpha came in just as this happened.  "Alpha Smolder!" The beta looked over and dipped her head in respect. Ferin's nose was bleeding, she was shaking slightly. All Cinder got in return was an acknowledging stare. Smolder noticed the blood running down Ferin's nose, sighing. "Ferin, you have two options," he stated, "Either take a position as an omega... Which will bring shame to your family, and make you a chew toy or..." The alpha took a moment to think out his next words, "Or leave in exile and find your way to other places..." he finished.  Ferin thought for a moment if she were an omega, she would become a chew toy. But if she left, she would never see her family again... What would be best? "I'll leave..." she said after a while of thought, her voice cut through the silence. She was on the brink of tears as she lowered her head. "Smart choice," Smolder remarked, a small bit sadness hinted in his eyes. Cinder smirked a bit, glad Ferin would be gone soon. "I'll give you an hour to say your goodbyes." Ferin nodded, dismissing herself to find her family members. Ferin was greeted with sad blue eyes, "I told you this would happen if you kept it up." her mother said with a sorrowful tone. "You were right." Ferin sniffled. Her little brother walked in, still oblivious to what was coming.  "Hi sis!" he squeaked, smiling. He could feel the emotions radiating off the two. "What's wrong guys?" he pouted. Their mother walked over to the young pup, whispering into his ear. Her brother's jaw dropped, a tear rolled down his furry cheek. Ferin moved in to hug the sad pup. "You're leaving?" he choked out. Ferin nodded as she looked into his eyes, tears falling from her as well. "But you can't leave! How could the alpha do this?" he broke down.  Both Ferin's mom and she wrapped their tails around the sobbing pup. "I had two options.  I didn't want to be a chew toy." she croaked, shaking again. "That would be worse than never seeing us again?" his sadness was being covered by anger now. She averted her gaze. His anger quickly faded, he didn't want to fight his only sister and have that be their last conversation. "I'll find you again someday sissy," he promised, going back to sobbing.  Ferin wanted to comfort him, but she had done enough damage. She stroked his head, her heart heavy with guilt and his impossible promise. "I'll always be with you in your heart..." she gave him a small reassuring smile. "It's not the same..." he mumbled through his choked out sobs. They spent the rest of the hour talking, crying, hugging, and just being a loving family. When a random wolf came in, the three of them looked over. Ferin knew it was time. "I'll miss you Ferin." the pup had calmed at this point but hugged her leg for a bit. She gave a curt nod to her mom and the wolf. Ferin walked out slowly, the outside light blinding her momentarily, she looked towards them. All the wolves in the camp had their eyes on her. It was quite disturbing, no one moved, no one spoke, they just stared. Her family walked out as Ferin began her journey out of the territory. It had been a few days, she had more small wounds than she was willing to count, she had just encountered a pack wolf, somehow she had won the fight. Although they left her muzzle and nose once again bloody.  She was just composing herself when another wolf had leaped out of the foliage yelling that Ferin was trespassing. She snapped her head towards him. He quickly attacked, swiping at her nose. Ferin let out a shocked whimper, she picked up her feet and darted off. The unknown wolf pursued her, beginning to catch up. She found herself on a dusty trail so she started kicking up dust to throw them off. It worked, and by the time she had gotten to a clearing, that wolf was still eating it. Ferin huffed, she was out of breath from her long run. She stopped finally, listening to the sounds around her. She thought she was out of the woods until a different wolf jumped out of the brush. They lunged for her, she quickly dodged. She wished she could've smelled them coming, but the blood on her nose had dried. The wolf kept persisting, so she dashed away once again. She was slowly losing them, it took what felt like hours for the wolf to finally give up.  Ferin took sharp breaths, she found a pond nearby and walked over to it. She lapped up some water. The cool refreshing taste on her tongue felt nice. Ferin's mind was a whirlwind, she couldn't believe she was finally out of her pack. She sighed, dipping her nose into the water, the blood was washed away. Instantly she was hit with a flurry of different smells, she took them all in for a moment. Ferin thought she could faintly smell another pack's scent markers, she made a note of this and walked off in search of a den. It was her fourth day in this new environment, she had kept herself well-fed so far. Ferin had found a small den just big enough for her to hide, it was hidden under a tree. The roots were mostly hollowed out. She finished up her rabbit from last night, sniffing the air before leaving for water. She could feel the eyes of another wolf on her back, but since they weren't doing anything, she ignored them.  Time passed, nothing happened. The day went on and eventually, the wolf left Ferin alone. More time passed, now her 15th day in this place. Ferin walked a grassy path down to the stream, she felt the wolf's eyes on her again, but they hid their scent too well. Ferin's tail lashed in anticipation. She heard their paw steps get further away. Tired, she padded to her hiding spot and laid down. Ferin started reminiscing about the events prior to her situation. She watched some petals and dandelion seeds flow by in the wind through the entrance. She closed her eyes, imagining her brother's extremely fluffy face. His winter blue eyes and crooked grin made her heartache, feeling she had made a huge mistake. Ferin had no idea how wrong and extremely right she would be at the same time. But it was way too late to turn back and return to her pack and expect to be accepted back immediately. A few hours had come and passed, the sky was covered in millions of immeasurable amounts stars. Ferin climbed out of her den to admire it all. Crickets chirped all around her, a few birds still sang their beautiful songs of which only they could understand. Another calm breeze slightly messed with her fur and the plants surrounding her. She breathed in deeply, taking in the tranquility all around her. Ferin opened her eyes once more, gleaming up to the moon. She looked pretty under its pale glow, almost enchanting really. Eventually, she made her way back to her den, laying down and letting sleep consume her. +*~~~*+ Four legs stalked away after a while of waiting for the trespasser to return, grumbling angrily at the she-wolf's inconsistency. He made his way through the large forested area to find a hidden castle unknown to those who weren't loyal. He walked past the gate, greeting the guards with a small nod. "Good luck up there, the queen's in a real bad mood..." One chimed in for fair warning. The others agreed quietly, remembering the horrors of this morning. "I'll make it out alive," he smirked, hoping The queen's attitude had changed since the guards last saw her. He walked down the long halls, his padded feet barely making any noise as he continued. The wolf glanced around at the architecture, The ceiling was littered with big triangular arches, and decorative little details were carved into the porcelain walls resembling fire. He passed up a few paintings of the royal wolves, they were quite old portraits. The carpet he walked on was also the color of blood, how beautifully crafted could one place be?  He finally reached the throne room after his thoughts had ended. He carefully opened the large wooden doors, it took a lot of effort considering their size. He walked in, to see a few guards staring at him, ready to grab their weapons least he makes a wrong move.  The queen was yammering on about dragons, "Oh, don't you ever wonder how the dragons went extinct when they had been so powerful?" she asked to no one in particular. "Perhaps it was those venomous snakes down north..." he answered. The queen looked up, setting down the skull she held in her paws. "Welcome back Tide!" the queen sat up straighter, "What's your news on the she-wolf?" She waited patiently, wearing a small fake smile. "Still extremely inconsistent," Tide started with a huff. She nodded, "How dreadful." she then stated in her exaggerated queen-ly voice. "She's been doing nothing but staying in our territory." he tried not to growl in the queen's presence. She thought for a moment, "When was the last time that border was marked?" her voice commanded him to look at her. Her eyes were shady. "About a month ago?" Tide answered, getting a pit in his stomach when he saw the queen's look.  "Why hasn't it been marked since then?" her fur bristled slightly. Her claws were extremely sharp and she looked ready to kill. The guards looked over and their ears went down. "I-I don't know." Tide went into a submissive stance. "Go mark it then!" She used her alpha voice, waves of her dangerous aura hitting everyone like a freight train. "Now!" she finished, Tide and a few other wolves made a run for the door. They sprinted through the many halls and corridors, eventually making their way out of the castle. The two wolves left Tide's side, making their way to other places in need of marking. +*~~~*+ Ferin woke up to the sounds of chirping, it was just before sunrise. Why do the birds feel the need to be up so early? She thought, groaning. She got up quickly, sniffing around for something to kill. Ferin looked around, she hadn't smelled anything other than birds. She saw one she thought she might be able to catch. So she stalked closer, staying out its line of sight. She pounced, swiftly catching it in her jaws. It moved around frantically, twittering loudly. She bit down, ending its helpless cries. That's when she finally noticed the scent, or more accurately the stench. It smelled of ebony and a 'lethal' amount of ammonia. How hadn't she noticed? Ferin scarfed down her bird quickly before she padded over to the few trees the stench covered. Ferin gagged, her eyes were starting to water. Was this wolf sick or dying when they marked this place? Ferin didn't know; but, she certainly didn't care for it. She walked away, not wanting to even be near those trees anymore. Ferin retreated to the pond, watching some fish swim around before she drank some water. When it started to sink in deeper, an overwhelming sadness washed over her and started to drown her when she finished. She lay down, covering her face with her paws, it's been so lonely out here. Ferin tucked her tail close to her body along with the rest of her limbs. She began thinking about everything, it all hurt, her wrong choices and mistakes that got her here in the first place, she relived everything in her mind like a dream. Ferin's eyes were tearing up, but they wouldn't fall again. Eventually, she fell asleep. Her slumber was filled with nightmares, only once did she have a good dream. +*~~~*+ "Your majesty..." Tide bowed his head. "Tonight's the night, Tide," she stated, her voice was flat and her face void of any emotion, "bring her here." she finished. He nodded quietly, dismissing himself from the room. The queen willingly let him leave without another word. He stalked out quietly. He listened in for her paw steps as he got closer to his destination.  When he heard none, he cautiously entered the area. Tide found her asleep by the pond, so he chose to quickly grab her by the scruff like a pup. Her eyes opened immediately, she tried to scramble away but he held on tighter. She whimpered, extremely hurt by this. He started to drag her back when she found a way to escape his jaws. She snarled and began to circle Tide when she escaped. He growled loudly, his beta status coming off in waves. This only seemed to anger her further, so she lunged for Tide's throat. He swiftly moved out of the way. He quickly rushed up and bit into her shoulder before leaping away. She whined a bit before she sprinted towards Tide, she slid under his belly and raked her claws. But before she could kick, he sprung up and bit her literal neck, but didn't snap it. She yielded, not wanting to die.  Tide then proceeded to ram her into a tree. She was knocked out pretty fast, no wonder she was a rouge. Tide had barely even broken a sweat, "Well that was easy," he remarked. He started to drag her once again, knowing there was nothing she could do to stop him. Tide finally made it to the opening of the castle, he set the she-wolf down to knock on the large wooden doors. The guards opened up, hiding their shock at seeing the unconscious female. They looked Tide In the eyes, taking the she-wolf in their jaws and dragging her away. Two new guards showed up to replace the originals. Tide washed the blood off of his teeth and muzzle, then presented himself to the queen to give her the news. She was delighted everything had gone over so well, any normal being would find her behavior sickening. Tide padded away back to his quarters of the castle, entering and sleeping peacefully. +*~~~*+ Ferin opened her eyes groggily, feeling a sharp pain in her neck when she tried to raise it. She glanced around, to find herself in a large dungeon, it could fit a fully grown dragon! She began to panic, sitting up despite the pain. She whimpered, although she hadn't meant to express her pain. Ferin looked through the bars to see a pair of red glowing eyes staring straight back at her. She flinched, feeling intimidated. "That's gotta hurt." their voice was nonchalant as if this was an entirely different situation than the one this was. Ferin's ears went back as she spoke out, "Wh-why am I here?" it was almost a whisper. He shrugged. He held a smirk as he stared at her. +*~~~*+