POV - Chaos
I awoke the next morning to Alpha stretching beside me. He was surprised when he touched my fur and looked over.
"Well, hello, Blaze, what are you doing in here?" He said.
I looked at him and tilted my head, and he laughed.
He got up and dressed and opened his door to find Elias standing outside his doorway.
"Have you seen Blaze, Papa?" He asked. "I can't find him."
"You can relax, son. Someone accidentally let him in my room last night instead of yours, so he was with me all night." Alpha answered.
Alpha whistled, and I came running, barreling into Elias, knocking him down so I could wash his face. He laughed and ruffled my fur.
I was excited to see Elias, nicely rested from being able to let Kyas take over the night before, I had a bunch of energy, and took off down the hallway, then came back to them at full speed, stopping just short, and doing it again.
They laughed, and then Alpha suggested that Elias take me outside to burn off the energy, so we did, racing down the stairs and outside. We played 'chase me' for a few minutes until I got a bit tired and then went back to the packhouse for breakfast. I got three boiled eggs. It's not as good as fish, but better than starving.
I pulled the "I'm not begging" begging trick again and got rewarded with apple slices again. I was toying with the second when Kyas shouted in my mind, causing me to jump.
'Apples!' He shouted.
'What? What about apples? They're tasty.' I thought back.
'No, Chaos, remember? They gave us apples at breakfast yesterday! The binding conditions! That's why we were able to shift. We had apples on the morning of the full moon!' He said excitedly. He was happy he had figured it out.
'You're right,' I said back, also pleased that he had remembered. Now we knew what to do to make sure we could shift on the next full moon.
The meal concluded, and the pack again went their separate ways. I expected Elias to head out the door with me again, but he gave me a regretful smile instead.
'Sorry, Blaze, I have school today." He said.
I didn't feel sadness from him, though, so this school thing must not be hard to do. I tilted my head at him, curious about it.
I stuck to him like glue as he left the packhouse and made his way to a building we had not explored the day before, tucked away in the trees along a dirt path.
They wouldn't let me in the building, but I could hear Elias' voice talking through an open window and reared up to place my paws on the window sill and see inside.
They were all sitting at small tables, listening to an older shifter. There were scribbles on the wall. I couldn't understand it, but it looked like Elias did.
I hopped down, disappointed that I couldn't share this with him, but satisfied that he wasn't in any danger here. As I went back around to the front, to find a spot to wait, I saw a small girl hurry up to the building and slip inside. Before the door closed, I saw her slip into the first room. I hurried around to that window. The girl had sat at the back of the classroom, kept her head down, clearly hoping not to be noticed.
"Nice of you to join us, Ember." The adult said. "Let's try to be on time tomorrow, yes?"
"Yes, Miss McCay." Ember responded in a voice barely above a whisper, ducking farther down in her seat.
"Class," Miss McCay said, "let's review again, for Ember's benefit."
She used a stick to point to large scribbles on the wall. The students all said "A" in chorus. The next was "B", then "C".
I was facinated, as was Kyas, paying attention behind the barrier. The scribbles all had names! I spent the whole day watching Ember's class, learning with them. Finally, I heard a bell ring, and kids came pouring out of the school. Elias came next to last, with his head down.
"Sorry, Blaze, I can't go home yet. I got detention for shooting a spitball at Adam, and Daphne caught me and told on me. I have to write sentences for an hour." He said. Then, he turned back into the building.
The doors had been propped open to let the children out, so I started to follow him, but only halfway down the hall, he turned back.
"No, Blaze. No. No dogs allowed. Out." He ordered. "I'll get in more trouble if I bring my dog to detention."
I stopped, backed up a step, and watched where he went. I sighed and resigned to waiting outside longer. As I passed the first room, I saw Miss McCay grab Ember's arm as she attempted to leave the room.
"Stupid girl! First, you show up late and make me restart my lesson, and then you take food from other kids at lunch! I won't have thieves in my class, girl!" she screamed at the child.
"But, I didn't, Miss McCay! They gave those to me, they didn't want them!" Ember cried.
"Don't lie to me, girl, I better not catch you doing it again. Get out of my classroom, and you better be on time tomorrow." She said and shoved Ember toward the door, making her stumble.
As Ember scurried out, Miss McCay caught sight of me.
"A mutt!" she yelled. " A mutt in my school! Get out, you filthy cur, and I better not find out who you belong to, I'll put them in detention for a week!"
I ran, passing the little girl on the path. She yelped in surprise, and I stopped. I turned around and went back to her, stopping a few feet away, putting my head down, showing I was not a threat.
She hesitated and then closed the distance between us, touching my fur.
"You're so soft." She said. "I'm Ember, I'm six."
I reached up and licked her face, wiping away tears. She was still taller than me on all fours. She giggled and then continued walking. I decided to walk with her. It was better than doing nothing while waiting for Elias.
She turned off the main path and walked along a winding track, barely wide enough for a vehicle and completely overgrown. She put her small hand on my back as I trotted easily beside her.
The path led to a dilapidated house squatting in the center of a small clearing in the trees, littered with trash and junk things all around it. As we approached the house, a woman met her at the door.
"You're late, Ember." the woman stated, then pointed at me. "And what is THAT?"
"Sorry, Grandma. This is my new friend, his collar says his name is Blaze." Ember responded.
"Well, don't get attached. He can't stay. We can't afford another mouth to feed. You better get to cooking dinner before your parents get home unless you want another beating like last time." Grandma said.
"Don't worry, Grandma, Blaze isn't mine, he doesn't want to stay, I think he's a new puppy to someone at school. He just walked me home." Ember said.
Grandma leaned forward. "Get. In. The. House. Ember. You have work to do." She said in a mean voice.
Ember tensed and ran away from me, into the house. I understood now. Ember must be a pack slave. I wondered why they let her go to school. Cedar River never let us go. I didn't know what Grandma meant, but I guessed it was this pack's word for master.
Grandma looked at me, and squinted her eyes. "I don't know who you are, but I know what you are. If you want to be her friend, you better stay away from here. You stop on that path, and don't come closer again. You do, and there's a shotgun shell with your name on it Chaos, and your human part too if I ever learn his name. Don't expect anything from Ember. She belongs to us, and doesn't have time for you. Go. Home."
I was shocked! She knew my name! And she knew I was a shifter and understood her. She must be a witch like Alma! I turned around and headed back to the path, looking back several times until Grandma went back in the house.
I headed back to the school to meet Elias.