Pride And Prejudice...
#1 of The Blazewood Pack Saga
Pride and Prejudice... The black-furred wolf screeched to a halt in a clearing, sniffing the air. He'd been after the cheetah for well over an hour now, and the sun was getting low in the sky. He sat a moment, his well-muscled chest heaving as he panted in the chilled air. The green mountains of Vermont were no place to be running a prolonged chase.... especially when what you were chasing was a cat whose native land was Africa. Thornpaw sat down, listening for a rustle that would give his prey away. His mind wandered back to the pack-meet that had set him on his current path.... ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thornpaw sat at his place near the fire built by the other loup-garou. He was neither the largest or strongest of the pack, nor the most clever or intelligent. He bore no mark that would distinguish him as the alpha of this pack; it was not his way. Some pack leaders had judged him as weak for this; other, wiser ones believed that it only made him stronger. Thornpaw, of course, knew little of this. The pack had been at peace within itself and with its surroundings for some time. The skills of the pack's Theurge had brought them to the clearing they now inhabited, a small area where, for some reason, trees refused to grow. The hunters in the pack had found the area plentiful in game. So they had settled here, away from the human dominated cities, maintaining little contact with the humans themselves, for if they found out what the group was... The meet had gone on very smoothly, the stories told by the one bard of the pack here, as usual, drawing a large audience. Summerwind's smooth baritone had a power that was the envy of many of his calling, and Thornpaw once again thanked his luck for the red-furred young wolf that had chosen this pack as his own. For more reasons than one... Thornpaw's gaze shifted from the crowd gathered around Summerwind to the trio of wolves who now approached him. Not Grayheart again... was the thought that echoed through Thornpaw's mind as he watched the large black furred warrior and his two followers approach. Spineless lackeys is more like it. The grey-furred wolf stopped perhaps five feet away from Thornpaw. His whole posture was just shy of outright challenging towards the smaller alpha. "Greetings, old one." The sinuous voice placed just a slight emphasis on 'old'. Thornpaw's eyes narrowed. "Greetings, Grayheart. What brings you to me this time? And I am not so old as to not recognize insolence when I hear it..." Grayheart grinned. "No insolence intended, old one. Age is not something to be feared... except when proving one's mettle in a battle or chase..." The feral grin that accompanied these words was one of such arrogance that Thornpaw longed to swipe it off the more muscular wolf's long muzzle, but knew that he could not, for in open combat, the huge grey-furred warrior would definitely win, and if Thornpaw struck first, it would be an honor fight between the two of them. "Get to your point, pup." Thornpaw could imply inadequacy just as easily as Grayheart. "Of course. For the past few months, there has been a creature intruding on our space, hunting our game. You have done nothing to stop it." Grayheart's sharp blue eyes were trained on Thornpaw's face, and the alpha could see that the warrior was trying to provoke a reaction. "The loss of a deer or two is hardly worth bothering with..." Thornpaw began. "... especially when you're too old to do anything about it?" Grayheart's words, well timed, fell into a sudden silence, created as Summerwind noticed the quarrel and paused in his storytelling. The rest of the pack turned and growled, almost as one, at the arrogant young warrior. They were quelled by a glance from Thornpaw. "I am older than you, yes, but I still retain my place in the pack." Thornpaw stood and stretched, feigning nonchalance. Grayheart snarled. "That place I challenge. You are too old, and the pack needs a new leader, one who will actually DO something instead of sitting around like a sloth!" Summerwind smoothly broke in, setting down the harp he had had in his lap. "In a fight between the two of you, you would win, Grayheart. You've been pushing Thornpaw for some time now, hoping he will give you an excuse to fight him. If you challenge him in such a way, then none of the pack will follow you." The rest of the wolves growled assent. "I do not propose to challenge him 'in such a way'." Grayheart spat the younger wolf's words back at him. "Let him prove himself by hunting down the intruder and bringing us a token of his victory in THAT battle." Summerwind opened his mouth to speak again, but Thornpaw had had enough of the arrogant warrior. His teeth clicked as he snapped, "Challenge accepted. If I kill the intruder, you are to be exiled from the pack, for I will not tolerate one who has the audacity and sheer stupidity to challenge me in this way. If I do not kill him, we will commence the traditional battle challenge." Grayheart grinned. "Then so it shall be. Shall we set the time limit at full nightfall?" Thornpaw growled assent, and Grayheart turned and walked away, flanked closely by his conspirators. Summerwind looked to Thornpaw. "Please reconsider... the intruder he speaks of is a cheetah. Catching him at all will be difficult, but also defeating him in battle?" Thornpaw shook his head. "He made his challenge clear. I'm not so old I can't outfight a cat." His words carried a small amount of humored scorn. But he sobered quickly, sighing. "If I fail, and lose the battle as well, make sure Grayheart does not take the rest of the pack with him on his path of corruption." Summerwind, still troubled, nodded. Thornpaw swept the assembly with his gaze. "Do not worry so... I'll return in fine health." With that, he turned and left the clearing, heading out into the woods. Several hours later, as Thornpaw lay asleep, the cheetah snuck up on him, cracking a twig and waking the wolf. The chase was on. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A nut bounced off his head, and broke Thornpaw from his reverie. Seeking the source of the offending missile, he caught a glimpse of spotted fur before the cheetah bounded away through the treetops. Thornpaw immediately resumed the chase. The cheetah quickly descended from the treetops, without losing any of his speed... How can he do that? Thornpaw thought as he followed in the cat's wake. Then he dismissed it as unimportant. All that mattered was catching the feline so he could resume his rule in the pack and get Grayheart out of his fur once and for all. The chase wore on. The wolf's advantages on home turf and in the forest kept him on a fairly even level with the cheetah, who was completely out of his environment. Thornpaw knew the entire forest like the back of his paw. He soon realized his chance. A tree, soon to come on this path, had a low lying branch. As the cheetah approached it, Thornpaw let out a quick bark. The cheetah glanced back over his shoulder... and ran straight into the low tree branch. The feline went flying head over heels. Hurdling the branch easily, Thornpaw ran up to the now-unconscious cheetah, admiring the muscular lines of the spotted feline body even as he knew the cat was his enemy. His perspective on his prey suddenly changed. This is no it. Definitely a he. His first thought was to end it quickly... but his own sense of honor wouldn't let him kill the cheetah so easily. (Though he knew it not, this was one of the reasons he was so highly respected by his pack and others.) After a moment of concentrating, he began to shift. His snout shortened slightly, and he came up off all fours to stand erect. His hind legs became rounder and longer. His front legs shortened significantly, and his forepaws became human-like hands with sharp claws forming at his fingertips. His chest became flatter, and much wider. Soon he stood 9'2", and weighed close to 600 pounds, though he didn't know the exact number, as he had never stood on a scale in this form. He balanced easily on his hind legs, tapping his chin absently with one claw as he peered down at the cheetah from his new height. First he wanted to find out what an African cat was doing in the middle of Vermont. What'd he do, escape from the zoo or something? Hmm... Thornpaw's thoughts were interrupted as the cheetah opened his eyes and started to get up. The wolf quickly grabbed the cat by his tail so as to prevent him from running. The cheetah's head turned, and he saw what held him. His eyes grew wide a moment, then closed... and the cheetah changed. It's fur shortened slightly, and it's hind legs became rounded. The front legs shortened slightly, and the paws separated into hands. Thornpaw found himself holding the tail of a werecheetah. And a very well-endowed one too... stop that, focus on what you're doing. The cheetah didn't try to escape. It had, by now, figured that the wolf would catch it on this terrain. It turned fully to look at Thornpaw, it's face showing uncertainty. Thornpaw could well guess what was on the feline's mind. 'Why didn't he kill me?'... We'll get there. The cheetah opened its muzzle, shut it, opened it again, and managed one word: "Hi." Thornpaw growled in response. The cheetah paled beneath his fur. "I guess you're going to kill me now, right?" The cheetah looked very scared, and smelled the same. I HATE that smell. Thornpaw had long since mastered the trick of partially shifting his vocal cords so he could speak in any form. "If you answer my questions, I MIGHT let you go." The cheetah gulped and nodded. "Anything... don't kill me." "First off... what the HELL is an African cheetah doing out here in Vermont?" "I don't suppose looking for Cheetos would work?" The cheetah quipped, his eyes dancing with humor. Thornpaw was in no mood for it, however, and growled, making the cheetah wince. "All right, all right... Can I at least have my tail back?" Thornpaw shrugged and let go. He knew now that he could catch the feline if he ran. "Thanks. I used to live on the African plains with the rest of my clan. We were the largest and most prosperous cheetah clan on the plains. I guess that's why the daemons singled us out. "Some friends and I were out hunting during a big meeting. We'd been given the honor of supplying dinner for the gathering. We had just managed to bring down some gazelles and were dragging the corpses back to the rest of the clan when we heard screams. We left the gazelles where they were and ran back to our home. When we got there, it was in complete chaos. The creatures had closed in on the clan, and they were fighting for their lives. "I could barely begin to describe these creatures to you if I tried... if you looked directly at them, you'd find that your eyes wouldn't focus on them... a brief impression of a sharp pointed tail and black horns was all I got before my friends and I charged in. We shouldn't have... we should have known there were too many of them. After taking down one of the daemons... more by luck than anything else... I was injured by another, and ran. That was after I saw my littermates were all dead." The cheetah fell silent. Thornpaw gazed at him. Despite his firm intention to remain aloof, the story touched him. He knew what it was like to have those you cared for taken from you. His own parents had been killed by a pair of human 'werewolf hunters' armed with silver bullets. They had known only of his parents, and so had brought only three bullets... and had missed once in the short scuffle. Thornpaw had gone into a blind rage... When he had calmed enough to finally kill them, hours had passed... The cheetah continued, bringing Thornpaw back to the present. "I lived on my own for a while, bringing down what I could. Eventually I found a wallet near a human corpse... took the money in it and bought passage away from the place where I lived. I ended up here." Thornpaw sighed. He already knew he couldn't kill the feline. His own morals told him the poor cheetah had been through enough. But how could he keep his pack unless he killed him? Ah... an idea. He looked at the cheetah. "All right. I don't want to kill you. I'm going to tell YOU of MY situation. If you can find a way I can stay within my pack without killing you, I'll let you live. And what's your name? I don't want to have to call you 'cat' all the time." Thornpaw quickly outlined the problem for the cheetah. "I'm Fleetstrike..." The feline listened intently, with a thoughtful look on its face. "Why not simply kill Grayheart?" "I'm not strong enough to best him in combat." "So don't kill him in combat. Just kill him." Thornpaw growled. "You mean sneak around? No." "Too honorable for that, huh?" The cheetah thought another moment, then snapped his fingers. "Why don't I kill him? I could do it fairly easily, and it would be my life I'm fighting for." Thornpaw considered, then nodded. "And I know just how we can do it." ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The sun was setting, lighting the sky with the brilliant and subtle shadows of purple and orange that only nature could produce. Summerwind sighed, watching the sky with an expression akin to nervousness. Why isn't he back yet? A lone feline out of place should be no match for a werewolf on its home turf... His gaze was brought back from the beauty in the sky by the approach of Grayheart. The large warrior ambled up, his two conspirators a ways behind, fighting over some scrap of meat they had found. "So, it appears Thornpaw WAS too feeble to take down the intruder after all..." The red-furred Summerwind was too alert to the other's maneuverings. He shook his head. "Watch your tongue, Grayheart, lest you find it parting company from your muzzle." "Watch your own, singer, lest you find it unable to caress the alpha's balls anymore." Grayheart grinned viciously as Summerwind paled. "Oh, yes, I know about that. You really should hide yourselves more carefully next time. Lucky for you that I was the only one to hear you moaning like a bitch!" Summerwind regained some of his composure. "What do you want, then? You would not have tipped your paw unless there was something you wanted from me." The grey-furred wolf laughed. "Of course. It's fairly simple. If Thornpaw DOES come back by night, victorious in his hunt, we will fight. I'll win, of course, but the rest of the pack may not follow me. But if the pack's most 'beloved storyteller' supports me..." His tone made it clear he thought that storytelling was no mark of true manhood. "Well, then, I think they'd follow, don't you?" Summerwind hesitated, looking into Grayheart's eyes. He knew the warrior would do it. If he didn't comply, the rest of the pack would know about his nighttime 'walks' with Thornpaw. Finally, he let his head fall. "As you wish." But already he was formulating a plan... "That's better." Grayheart and Summerwind both turned to look at the sudden commotion on the other edge of the clearing. "Ah... It appears he was successful after all..." The evil wolf (for that was how Summerwind now thought of him) shot the bard a grin, then trotted toward the gathering crowd. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thornpaw returned to the camp. He hardly noticed the cheering crowd that welcomed him back. The somewhat grim expression on his face quieted those around him, and a path opened up in the crowd, giving him a clear view of Grayheart. The warrior wasted no time in setting about the matter. "Welcome back, old one." And now the emphasis was one that none of the wolves gathered could miss. "There is none more glad than I to see you have returned in good health." A snicker was heard from his two followers, who were immediately growled at and silenced. "Do you have the token?" Thornpaw's gaze swept the full pack, settled briefly on a very nervous looking Summerwind... What is he so on edge about? Ah, well... and came back to rest on Grayheart. "No, I do not have the token." Startled murmurs broke out from the assembly, quickly hushed by another sweep of Thornpaw's gaze. Grayheart's grin widened. "Then we will battle." Absolute silence fell, as all eyes turned to Thornpaw. The black-furred wolf smiled slightly. "Aye... there will be a battle... but not between you and I. I am too old, and a champion has volunteered to take my place." There were murmurs and exchanged glances among the pack. Grayheart blinked in surprise, then narrowed his eyes. There was no single wolf in the pack who could defeat him in combat. "Then bring forth your champion." "Indeed. I present Fleetstrike as my champion." All the wolves exchanged glances, for none knew of the wolf named Fleetstrike. Grayheart laughed. "He's gone mad! There is no 'Fleetstrike' here!" A new voice raised behind Grayheart. "Well of course there is." So silently had the cheetah approached that none of the wolves, save Thornpaw, had heard him approach. Shock registered on the faces of most of the wolves. Summerwind's relief was also plainly visible. Grayheart turned to face the new threat.... and laughed. "A CAT? You have to be kidding. I do not accept the challenge." Thornpaw chuckled. "You forfeit the field, Grayheart?" An open howl of laughter was heard from somewhere in the pack, but was quickly silenced by the quelling look the gray-furred wolf directed there. He sneered at Thornpaw. "I do NOT forfeit. I can take on anyone present, be he wolf or feline." "Then the battle will commence. Form the arena." The crowd was so stunned that they did not respond immediately to Thornpaw's command. Summerwind repeated it in a bellow: "Form the arena!", and they launched into action. They formed an even circle around the central fire, all of them in full lupine form, enclosing Grayheart and Fleetstrike within their ranks. There would be no leaving the arena until one of the two combatants was dead. Thornpaw nodded. "Let the battle begin." The two combatants began a circle, keeping the fire between them. The cheetah and wolf, both in their half human forms, appeared to be evenly matched. The one had strength, the other speed. The two locked eyes across the fire, the wolf's gaze venomously triumphant, the cheetah's coolly analyzing. The circling lasted several minutes before Fleetstrike was distracted by Summerwind moving quietly behind the circle... It was then that Grayheart launched himself over the fire and tackled the feline, bearing him to the ground under his weight. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Summerwind trotted behind the circle, making his way around it to where Thornpaw sat at one end, watching anxiously. Nudging the black-furred alpha with his nose, he gestured with a paw to come with him, and quickly moved away from the circle. Curious about what could cause his friend's distress, he quickly backed out of the circle, the space he left behind quickly closed in by the other wolves. After they were a suitable distance away, Summerwind turned to Thornpaw. "Grayheart knows about us fooling around a few nights ago." Thornpaw sucked in a breath between his teeth. "He's using it to try to blackmail me into supporting him, should he win the contest. What do we do?" Thornpaw gazed at Summerwind, his mind working. "Tell me.... did you enjoy it? What we did that night?" Summerwind hesitated, then nodded. "All right. Here's the plan..." ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Fleetstrike saw the two wolves leave off by themselves out of the corner of his eye as he threw Grayheart off of him and sprang back to his feet, but had no time to think about it in depth as the wolf came at him again. This time, when the gray wolf charged, the cheetah dodged swiftly to the side and backhanded him in the back of the head, which sent Grayheart sprawling. "Aw, poor mutt, down on the ground eating dirt in front of all his friends..." Fleetstrike laughed as Grayheart roared, whirling and launching himself at the feline once again in one clean motion. This time he was tripped easily and sent sprawling. The werecat saw Summerwind and Thornpaw returning to the arena... What are they doing? The two wolves started circling the arena, their jaws working as they went. Several of the observing wolves tossed startled glances back at them, but one by one, each nodded their heads. Fleetstrike's observation was interrupted by Grayheart once again. The wolf had gotten to his feet and circled back behind the feline. Lucky for the cat that he had brought his attention back to the fight. He whirled just in time to avoid another frantic rush.... but got clawed across the chest by the wolf in passing. "Yeow!" He put a paw-hand to his chest, analyzing the damage. It was only a graze, but it stung like hell. OK, he's not as stupid as I thought.... He'll still lose it. The cat's mindset changed. He was through toying with the large warrior. Playing for keeps now. Though he didn't know it, that was the thought in Grayheart's mind too. The large wolf stopped, watching the cheetah for a moment before his lips curled upwards in a grin. He brought his hands together sharply, in a seemingly purposeless manner. The cheetah felt his muscles bunch involuntarily as he was thrown violently backwards by what felt like a thunderclap, tumbling to a halt some ten feet back. Grayheart closed the distance quickly, but Fleetstrike was quick to recover, and rolled out from under the wolf as he tried a jumping pounce. Fleetstrike quickly regained his feet, shaking his head rapidly to clear it. What the hell was THAT? I'm going to have to take him out quickly. The cheetah quickly kicked Grayheart in the small of his back as the wolf tried to regain his feet, sending him stumbling off balance. He quickly followed up, slashing downwards... right through Grayheart's Achilles tendons. The grey wolf fell to his knees, crippled by the slash through the back of his legs. He swiped out to the side with his arms, catching Fleetstrike unready and knocking him off balance. His eyes were wild and pain-filled as he looked around the gathered pack, most of who were sneering. "So... " he gasped. "Not only... does the pack... want a foolish cat to win.... They also... want to follow... a faggot alpha!" He speared Thornpaw with his icy gaze. Fleetstrike, who had regained his feet and was bearing down on Grayheart, hesitated. Thornpaw smiled slightly... and not one of the pack reacted. "They already know, Grayheart. And they all still accept me over you." The grey wolf's expression of vicious triumph faded as he scanned the crowd. No faces showed pity towards him at all. The only two who were not sneering at him were his two conspirators, who wore anxious looks, and constantly glanced over their shoulder at the watchful presence of Summerwind. "I see.... a bunch of gay wolves... You'll all die! I am not alone!" The greywolf began trying to crawl away, using his claws to dig into the dirt... and was stopped by Fleetstrike's hand grabbing the scruff of his neck and holding him powerless with an easy grip. "Whoever your friends are, then, let them show themselves now...." Fleetstrike dragged the crippled wolf towards the center of the arena, straining somewhat to keep the wolf from injuring him as he was moved. He paused near the center. "It seems you -are- alone. For which I, at least, am rather grateful." With a quick motion, the cheetah pushed him into the campfire. The flames leaped, and Grayheart screamed as his fur caught fire, burning inward. His struggles to escape the dancing flames were useless; he couldn't even walk to get away from them. Fleetstrike backed away from the fire, then turned and looked around the pack while Grayheart screamed. When the screams finally died out, and the air was filled with the stench of burning fur and flesh, he raised his voice. "Are there any more challenges to the alpha?" All of the wolves turned to their alpha. One by one, as before when showing their understanding of Thornpaw's revelation about himself and Summerwind, the wolves quietly nodded acquiescence to his leadership. Then Thornpaw spoke, in a very quiet, but still powerful voice. "Is there a challenge to accepting Fleetstrike as a part of the pack?" The wolves then turned to the cheetah and repeated the nods. Summerwind spoke. "We accept you, Fleetstrike, as part of the pack, and as the alpha's champion. We are in your debt for your destruction of the traitorous Grayheart. It is the least we can do." The rest of the pack quietly dispersed, leaving the trio alone. Summerwind released Grayheart's two followers, who scampered off, their tails between their legs. When they were alone, Fleetstrike turned to Thornpaw with a questioning look. "Is what Grayheart said true? Are you...?" Thornpaw nodded. "Summerwind and I both." The redfurred wolf also nodded. The cheetah looked thoughtful a moment. Thornpaw held his breath, uncertain what Fleetstrike's reaction to the revelation would be... and sighed in relief when the cheetah grinned. "And here I thought I was the only one around here who thought like that!" "I was afraid to ask you when we first met..." Thornpaw glanced at Summerwind, who chuckled, nodded, and quickly departed, his green eyes sparking with mirth and udnerstanding. "But now that I don't have to hide it anymore... Perhaps we can enjoy each other..." He paused, and Fleetstrike grinned. "...'s company." The cheetah nodded. "I think I'm going to like being part of a wolf pack..." The two wandered off into the woods together, a huge smile on both of their faces. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Well, this was my first try at a romance between two males... I've written another story, entitled 'And Something Else Besides', which picks up right where this one left off and is much more... explicit. ;) As usual, comments are welcome. Y'know where to find me. ;) [email protected]