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C** hapter Two: "Samandra Fireheart, the Loyal"**

"Never should you underestimate the power, capability nor bravery of any child in this world. For they are the future. At times, they can be stronger than anything ever imagined. That much I learned very quickly during my first official trip through the Winter Fang territories... and witnessed what the pups proudly endure there each day." - Archived Record of Norlinth

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Several Hours Earlier, Before Klare's Return...

Since she'd been born twelve years ago in the iciest parts of northern Norlinth during one the worst known snowstorms, it was common knowledge today that the hardy if not fiery red pelted wolfess, Samandra Fireheart, was meant to do great things during her lifetime.

Amongst the other children whom had survived the harshness of the north thus far, to both her parents' relief along with distress at times, Samandra had always been special in the eyes of everybody. Never had she failed at doing something better than the supposedly brave boys in the Winter Fang clans. Never had she missed being in the center of the spotlight of some important event. Never had she cowardly run from danger, not even when she was in serious trouble after some fooling around at moments and had had to embarrassingly confess her sins before the angry yet amused eyes of both of her role models in life; Princess Klare as well as Elder Agatha.

Yet, despite her rather usual tendencies of landing herself in trouble with the princess as well as the head elder of her people, Samandra had been and still was unquestionably a very good inspiration for her clans if not fellow children. Perhaps that was because of her strong body as well as determined set of mind like her father? Maybe it was due to her graceful appearance along with crimson fur like her mother?

How about how adorable she always acted or tried to act whenever in a tight situation that involved her having to learn a lesson? The way she tried to squirm, squeeze, get out of being in trouble? Ha ha.

Either way, who could really tell anymore these days, eh?

Regardless, seeing as she was a secret favorite child of Klare and was also something of a very much appreciated apprentice to Agatha, what was certain about little Samandra Fireheart was that she would one day make a very good role model for all of Norlinth in the future. How she would be such a model would be quite the mystery until found out, of course. Still, some Winter Fangs had already guessed she would make a finer than fine, bold mother/wife for one lucky or maybe unlucky male.

Others stated she would become the next princess or close to it.

The rest speculated she would eventually get around to looking into the prophetic fires like the rest of Agatha's holy elders and aid in the efforts of seeing sister Serylda's plans for the all of the wolves of the northern realms.

One way or the other, at the moment, Samandra was no mother nor warrior nor holy elder of the Winter Fangs. Although she walked by their tents every day now within the growing camp of Vallan, she was no ally of the rallying ursine of Garn nor was she on talking terms with the berserkers who followed Oken around.

No, although indeed a bit mature for her age, although looked upon with great expectations by everyone, Samandra was Samandra; a youth who did not yet know the laws, responsibilities nor true uncertainties of the world around her. Instead, followed by her childhood friends, she was a child; the child presently climbing away from the camp of Vallan up the rough, rocky, western faces of the nearby Glacial Mountains.

With the icy, biting winds of Norlinth smacking straight into her face, with her crimson fur whipping around her narrow, smiling face, climbing Samandra had been leading a group of five other children - her best friends - around the bustling Winter Fang camps below almost all morning. Now, with the sun nearly in the middle of the clear, baby blue sky, seeing as most of her people had awoken and didn't like her nor her pals getting in their way, the red headed wolfess was determined now to find someplace new for her companions to play. A place that wouldn't be hindered by depressing adults.

During the course of the latest hour, Samandra had come up with the presently progressing, brilliant yet uncertain plan of venturing outside of the camp limits and out into the open plains at the base of the Glacial Mountains. Mind, it was a plain fact that children - even though Winter Fang or other - were not to go anywhere outside the camp of Vallan without supervision from a grown up. For there were many dangers to those so young.

Yet, with the way everyone had been so busy during the last two weeks, considering the fact that none of the adults plainly took well to being disturbed by kids, why did Samandra or her companions have to have someone grouchy watching over them when out in the open? Why did they or any of the other kids in Vallan have to fear out here in the wilderness? They were old enough to look out for themselves. What could possibly go wrong?

Plenty. Plenty could go wrong.

Nevertheless, as for the friends in question who resolutely followed Samandra, she knew very well that they were old enough to take care of themselves. Having noticed the constant praise she received from her fellow Winter Fang people, Samandra too felt practically like an adult already. Plus, together, up to this very day where they scaled up the mountain's face to find somewhere to play, Samandra as well as her trailing childhood buddies had survived the worse snowstorms, starvation along with worse.

Today, herself and her pals would brave the supposedly scary, frigid wilderness... and come back into the camps late afternoon without a scratch on them. That and they wouldn't be noticed by anyone, hah! The would be true northerners!

"Sam? Samandra?" Another wolfess of Samandra's age with ebony black fur, her access hair tied back into a sloppy ponytail and with her sapphire eyes, called from further down the snowy hill's face. She was helping a younger pup with the same ebony colored hair as her get back onto his feet and out of the snow. It was this little male she focused on as she spoke again, "My little brother Antony is having trouble keeping up with us. Can't we slow down a little bit? We have plenty of sunlight left, you know."

"Oh, c'mon, Astrid!" Samandra laughed back over her shoulder, looking back with amusement with her emerald eyes to watch the ebony haired she-wolf, Astrid, aid her said little brother, Antony, in scaling the hill they all were stomping upwards through, "You think you're going to be a Winter Fang with that kind of attitude? Leave your burden of a little brother behind like I suggested earlier. He's only slowing us down. Sooner or later, the direwolves will catch up to us. When that happens, it'll make him move faster for sure and keep up."

Samandra sneered next, joking wickedly with a twinkle in her eyes that made little Antony flinch, "And if it doesn't make him speed up, him being caught by our feral kin will give the rest of us more time to escape."

All of the children laughed at the mention of direwolves coming for Astrid's struggling, eight year old brother whom was named Antony. Actually, next moment, funnily enough, he seemed to start moving faster at the mention of such possible dangers as wolves tracking him down. Well, ahem, he tried to go faster... before, even though being held by his older sister, he fell face first into the snow and renewed the reason for everyone to laugh at him.

Naturally, as it'd been to their parents before them, the idea of leaving a Winter Fang child such as stumbling Antony for the wolves was simply an age old, sick joke to the current group of childhood friends. It was known by all of the children currently climbing up the mountain that leading Samandra wouldn't leave anyone behind for any reason; especially for dead.

Not when she ever so much wanted to be like Klare one day, anyway. Not when she had a such a respectful reputation to keep.

And as if seeing the opportunity, the chance, for her to act heroic before everyone else's eyes, as if thinking she could be like the wolf princess at the moment, Samandra actually jogged back downhill to Astrid. There, the crimson wolf helped little Antony back onto his feet, then gave him something of a piggyback ride while resuming the lead ahead of her friends; plowing on with boundless energy, even while carrying someone.

"You're too slow, Antony. No matter how hard you try, the wolves are still catching up to us." Samandra purposefully, excitedly along with shrilly exclaimed while running past her observing companions uphill through the snow. She was starting something here. A game of sorts. Something to draw the attention off the little ebony wolf pup. "Come on, everyone! Quick, we have to get to safety or we're going to be wolf meat. I think I just saw them coming up the hill for us. Let's go, let's go!"

In turn, as she predicted they would do due to her antics, riled up by her imagined wolves tracking them all down, the rest of the Winter Fang kids rapidly ran to catch up with their inspiring, red furred leader. Finally, somewhat tired out from having carried laughing Antony upon her back for the last ten minutes, Samandra slowed her running into a walk which ended when she reached the crest of the hill herself and her friends had been climbing for the last hour.

In turn to having finished climbing, letting loose a sigh of relief, clutching her heart as if badly wounded, Samandra collapsed into the snowy hilltop where Antony rolled off of her onto the ground. Here was the perfect place to play, truth be told. This area was open to them. Open to play in.

Open... Too open, with no real cover, where anyone or anything could see them.

"Oh no, the dire wolves were a trap made by the Frostlon! Those goats have run us into enemy territory!" Samandra cried out while face down in the snow banks, making her companions hesitate in following her any further, "Look out, I've been shot! The foxnen are coming with their bows and arrows. Get behind some cover! Find some rocks, all of you. Save... your... selves."

"No, get up." Antony whined in actual fear, looking around at the open surroundings as if really expecting Samandra's imagined, infamous frostlon goat knights or foxnen archers to actually show themselves from the rocks close by, "Get up, Sammy. You can't be hurt. The foxes and - and - and goats aren't going to get you. We'll get away."

As Antony was slurring his words with baby talk, as he was very much being afraid of what downed yet laughing Samandra was saying with imaginary enemies having them all surrounded, the rest of the rallied gang got around to dragging their supposedly injured leader to some rocks where there was proper cover from the theoretically coming projectiles of the cowardly foxnen bow wielders.

Once behind the said rocks and out of the way of imagined volleys of arrows, a bear of Astrid's age named Brack, with bark, brown hair as well as gray eyes, declared proudly, "Fear not, you guys! I will avenge you, Samandra! I will take many a foe's head this day in your honor!"

"I'm not dead, Brack." Samandra giggled while supposedly lying wounded in Astrid's lap, brushing her bright hair out of her brilliant eyes in the meantime, "I'm still alive, you know. One arrow from a fox coward wouldn't be enough to kill Klare. It wouldn't be enough to take me down either."

"But you're going to die, right?" Brack wondered next, giving Samandra an awkward look since she'd stumped his heroic charge against the imagined enemies in her name, "I mean, you got shot by an arrow and then you were attacked by the direwolves of the frostlon and then - Oh, whatever! Get ready frostlon! Get ready foxnen! I have the ursine of Garn and the berserkers of Oken behind me! You won't get away from us!"

And with that, as Samandra laughed with Astrid and the rest of the excited children, the ursine youth ran from behind the rocks out into the open, sunlit, empty plain of the mountain where he slashed, thrust along with punched at imaginative enemies with his imagined axe and shield. Next, inspired by his heroism, in the name of their fallen leader, the rest of Samandra's gang - followed by a determined Antony who kept falling over his own feet - took off to join the bear in fighting off imagined southern foxes as well as goats.

Soon enough, not wanting to miss out on the fun, ignoring if they were injured or not, Samandra and Astrid ran out into the open also to join their friends in the sunlit plain where the imaginative battle was raging all around them. There, for hours on end, the children fought bravely, fell back to the rocks to avoid more arrows, defeated many an enemy, died good deaths, made their ancestors proud... and like the kids they were, they were ignorant the entire time of how truly terrible the war of the north would be in the near future.

For no matter how hard they tried nowadays, due to their innocence of many things, the children could not understand just what the battles to come to their parents would cost them during the approaching days. They could not understand that the coming days would be longer than long and the endless whiteness of the snows of Norlinth would be tinted crimson soon enough.