Chapter 13

None of it was making any sense. Leaf was trying to get Craterday to move, Coil was looking out trying to remember what this place was. Craterday was distant, his eyes looked as if he was nowhere close. I had no clue what to do, I couldn't help no one so I simply sat down and watched to see what would happen.
"Coil, you must remember what this place is. He looks like he'll claw our pelts off at any moment." Leaf was still trying to get him to move.
"That's right! It was so overgrown I didn't recognize this place! This is where Craterday's pack died as some put it." Coil claimed, so was he seeing the whole battle?
"What could we do?" I had to ask considering I was doing nothing to help.
"Try moving him, push him, drag him, heck yell in his ears. Try to snap him out of it." Me and Leaf both tried pushing, that didn't work. So we tried dragging him, but it still didn't work. His paws were locked to the ground. Well we had no choice but to yell in his ears.
"Craterday snap out of it!" Leaf yells, and it kinda worked. He twitched his ear in acknowledgement and shook his head.
"What?" He asked rather calmly. Like he didn't even know what happened but there was still a distant look in his eyes.
"You were in that battle weren't you?" Coil asks.
Craterday shrugs. "Don't know and don’t want to talk about it."
"How can you not want to talk about it? You know maybe we could help if we knew more about the battle and what happened." I told him and Leaf nodded.
"And didn't you say that you can see the past through a spell?" She adds to what I said. Coil looks down and Craterday looks at him and seems to remember what he was looking down about.
"Nope, the spell can only go back two New Moons." He claimed and I nodded. Leaf looked disappointed. Did her opinion on fighting change when we went here? Or is she just too excited to care? Coil could've at least said some good news about that spell.
"Come on, let's keep going." Craterday tells us and let's Coil lead. Though he told us to go he stayed back a bit before running back to us. I don't recall seeing him so down. That place must mean much to him more than we'll ever know.

We found a place to make camp and like Coil said it was a decent place too. There was brush all around and in the middle there was enough room for us all to have places to rest. There were even places where rabbits could easily get into the place to escape from predators chasing it.
"Alright, it's getting late and I know we would all rather have bedding but the ground will have to do for now." Coil tells us once we got there. I wasn't tired much but the rest on my paws felt good. Leaf curled up to Craterday and I laid down by Coil. Craterday kept fidgeting around. I could tell he was still awake but I didn't know how to help.
Leaf was asleep fast, same with Coil. Craterday had eventually stood up and paced around. Something was clearly bothering him. I went over to him and just watched him for a while. He didn't slow down at all and paid little mind to me.
"Are you good? You've been pacing for a while." I finally asked him what was going on. He stops and looks at me, distance still in his eyes.
"Honestly no, I just saw the battle as if I was just someone watching and not able to help. I'm far from good." He tells me though I could tell he didn't want to. Not that I could blame him, he had an extreme hate of Go Getters.
"Can I help in any way?" I didn't think I could help but I felt I had to try and see if I could. I mean even if I can't I tried right?
"I guess you could, if you're willing anyway." He looks at me and I have never seen what almost looked like pleading in his eyes. I nodded and he seemed to brighten but not enough to take away the distance within him. "Come with me, I didn't want to leave again without anyone knowing but I wanted to go back to that place and look for something." His voice had lightened up and he sounded a bit more happy.
I had followed him back to the place where he stopped before and resaw the battle he was in. He looked around that overgrown place. Much if the fallen logs were hardly visible. Moss and grass had formed over top of them. Ferns were by every standing tree, some herbs Leaf and Craterday had been scattered around this place as well. Many plants must have grown over top this place for this time as he looked around he seemed to see what the rest of them saw in this place, overgrown plants.
"Come on, I think I can remember where we departed from the Alpha." He sounded calm about this. It had taken me a while before it snapped I'm my head, we were looking for a dead wolf's bones.
"Wait, you brought me out here to look for you old Alpha's bones? Really?" I had to ask and I couldn't help but flinch back at the gaze of anger, shock, and sadness that flashed at me. Was he really going to look for his bones?
"Not exactly," he walked over to a fallen tree and started to sniff around the plants there. "I mean kinda, more of to see if Left and Neako took the bones as trophies. For say anyway." He continued his look and I sat there watching. I think it confronted him to know that someone was there with him than not.
"Well, let me know if you find anything. I might as well go hunting near here while I wait." He nodded and flicked his ear showing that he heard but he continued his search not looking up once.

It wasn't hard to find any prey. I found two rabbits with a simple hunting tactic. You crouch, sneek, then pounce.
I started back to Craterday and he was sitting down, there were no bones. "Did you find anything?" I had turned my head in confusion not understanding the look in his eyes.
"Well yes, I mean no? I don't know. I remember coming back here and barring him here. Then he had nothing missing, besides blood but something seems off here." Now I understand the look. He was confused but sure that he was still here.
"Well, how about we bring these back to Leaf and Coil? You both agreed to train us today. " I reminded him. Nodding he grabbed the other rabbit and headed off. I followed without hesitation almost forgetting the other rabbit. We made our way to the brush where we were staying.
Coil was stretching and Leaf was jumping about, well more of looking as if she would. "Great your back, nice hunting both of you." By time we had gotten back that look in Craterday's eyes had vanished.
"Stem did the hunting, I was," he had paused as if to think of what to say ''looking for something." I knew he wasn't going to clarify and so did the other two. He'd say it when he was ready. Nothing the two of them give us about their past seem to match anything. Neither had mentioned anything about the Assassin's, barring the Alpha of Craterday's old pack, or how they met. What is their real past with one another?
"Ok, let's hurry and eat. I can't wait to learn more on how to use a sword, let alone how animals can use them!" Leaf was existed clearly. She grabbed a rabbit and beckoned for Craterday to come by her. Coil did the same for me. We seemed to be like this no matter the problem, unless we were split like with the Assassin's.
"Well how about we train them in pares?" Coil asked Craterday after a bit of quiet eating. "You work with Leaf and I with Stem. Besides you'd be best with a questioning wolf." His eyes glimmered with laughter as he eyed Leaf.
"Sounds good to me." Craterday and Leaf had finished their rabbit and he was standing up. "Meet back here after High Noon?" Coil and I dip our heads and the two of them walk away.
"How shall we start our training session?" I asked Coil. I knew some Go Getters were taught to use swords but not me. I was never even shown how to stand on my hind paw. Coil didn't seem too excited to teach this but I don't think he had much of a choice. If we got into a fight anywhere and Leaf and I didn't know how to fight the two of them would be on their own. Not that it would be much of a large deal to them but I'd personally feel that I was useless. I hated feeling useless.
"Well probably the same way Craterday's teaching Leaf. Start with how to stand on your hind paws then once you're good at it show you the basics of a sword." He started to stand and once he was he looked around. "What was Craterday looking for?" Obviously the fact I was with Craterday didn't fly over his head.
"Well he said something about making sure Lert and Neako did get a hold of his old alfas bones. Oh, and how something seemed off." I told him not understanding the reason for Craterday's search though he had told me.
"Ok then, come on. We should start." Coil leads me not too far from where we made camp. It was a place with many trees around it. There was no clearing really, but some of the grass had been pushed down as if something or someone was here constantly. By the trees there were berry bushes. Some blackberries and other redberries, there was hardly a gap between them. In a few spots they were all too close that a rabbit would have trouble getting through. "Stand next to that tree." With his tail he points to one of the trees with a thicker trunk.
"I don't see how that'll help me learn to stand." I comment but still go to the tree he pointed to.
"You'll see why it helps soon enough. Now lean your front paws on the trunk." By doing this my hind paws became the only thing touching the ground. My hindpaws became my balance as well as my tail. "Great, now start to walk around the trunk. Move your front paws sideways as if you were walking sideways. Do the same for your back paws. Keep your tail still unless you start to lean too far one way. Use your tail as extra momentum to pull yourself back the other way. When doing this the rest of your body must work with your tail. Also don't put too much momentum that way or you'll fall over the other way."
Nodding I did what he told me. I fell my first time simply because I wasn't used to the idea of my hind paws caring all my weight. "Well, I'll tell you this is harder than learning how to make a portal." Coil gives a weak smile before shaking his head and gesturing back to the trunk. Once again I start to move around the tree. I felt myself beginning to lean the opposite way I was trying to go. I tried to do as he told me but I put too much momentum and fell anyway. Coil stayed where he was probably because if I had help I'd never learn. Well as the saying goes 'the third time a charm' it worked. I easily made it around the trunk.
Coil gestured to have me come away from the trunk but to stay on my hindpaws. Slowly I took my first step away from the tree. Almost falling I use my tail to rebalance myself. I was soon able to walk pretty good when I let myself back to four paws.
"Well done. Now we'll start with the main question: 'how do you hold a sword when you have no hands like a human?' The answer is actually quite simple." Coil draws his sword "Deus absconsa tua." He says quietly. Around the wood part of the sword there was this clear leather. Like the same territorial colored leather but you could see right through it. Coil puts his paw through it and back though it.
"So that's how you throw the daggers and swords. Is it the same as the bow and arrows? How do you keep it on your paws when your paw goes through it?" So many questions started coming to my mind and I only stopped because Coil started to look overwhelmed.
"Yes it's very much the same except with the arrow you just hold it between your teeth or your claws can stay in the wood on it holding it in place. Only when the weapon is about to be thrown is it like this. When you are only using it the leather stays solid." Coil stands on his hind paws and shows me the difference. After a bit he goes to throw it, once he has complet momentum behind it and it is right about to be thrown the leather becomes clear through at once.
I felt the sun beat down on my pelt and I looked up. Realizing it was High Noon I turned to Coil, " It's High Noon. Craterday and Leaf are probably wondering what's keeping us."
Coil nods and puts his sword away saying, " tegat commissa" He started to lead us back to the camp. On the way we got some prey and entered. As I was thinking, Craterday and Leaf were waiting for us. Leaf was looking more worried unlike Craterday. "Sorry I lost track of time. You get a chance to hunt?" Leaf nods her head and points to the fur left from two rabbits.
" I see you all got a chance to go hunting as well. Craterday said that if we skinned the rabbits we'd have a nice bedding." Leaf explains. How do you skin a rabbit to be so clean? I mean there's not much blood or miss cuts on it.
"Great, we'll eat then what?" Coil asks as Craterday seems to look more antsy about something.
"Well, I was just thinking maybe we could," Craterday's voice started to die. Shaking his head he continued what he was saying, "We could see how well the two of them fight. You know as well as I do that the way you fight depends on how you would fight with a sword. Different fighting techniques result in different ways to use the sword." Coil nods his head.
"True, after we get done with these rabbits we'll watch you to fight. You'll fight one another just to help us place how to teach you to properly use the sword. This way it'll benefit you more than your enemy." Leaf nodes excitedly, though she's never fought. Unless Craterday gave her a few pointers about it. I knew she used to help hunt in Winter but fight? Never seen her do it. Nodding I lay down and start to eat the rabbit. It was filling me but there was this hole that would never leave. I'm a Go Getter, not a loner like Craterday and Coil. No one knows their past, nothing they say makes sense, and Leaf seems to enjoy it but will I ever feel the same?
Finishing the rabbit in a few bites I stand up as does Leaf. Both of us get in a fighting stance. It was strange to be fighting my friend but I knew that it would benefit us all. Keeping my claws in I lunge at Leaf. I attacked her head on and using my hind paws I tripped her front ones. Falling on her face I pinned my paws on her throat. If we weren't friends or practising she could be dead by now.
"Ok you win! Get your paws off my throat!'' Leaf yowls out from under me. Smiling with satisfaction I take a step back allowing her to get up.
Without warning Leaf lunges at me, pushing my side with all her paws she uses me as a jump off. Falling to my side I tried to get back up only to realize that she managed to pin all my paws and head at the same time. Getting off me Leaf stands back to watch me get up. " Are you ok? I didn't hurt you too much did I?" Concern shown in her eyes but as I looked deeper into her eyes I could see that she was pleased with herself at pinning me. Unable to answer I nod my head and get up. From the fright I had when she lunged at me I was out of breath. Not only that I knew she had knocked it out of me.
"Well that was unexpected, Leaf I wasn't expecting you to be the one to fight well like that!" Coil complements her and she very well deserved it.
"Same" I manage to say.
"Well Craterday showed me how to do a couple of movies." I looked over to Craterday and I thought I saw almost embarrassment. "I wouldn't have even done it if none of you told me and I watched you all do stuff. Besides, coming definitely changed my opinion on fighting." She admits. I was right! Her opinion on fighting did change!
"Well you did a great job, both of you did. Now we can help you with the sword parts much more. In the basics anyway. As you go your fighting technique changes to match you more so will your sword fighting." Coil starts to explain with a sideways glance at Craterday to make sure he got it right, I'd assume. "We can only teach you so much the rest you'll have to find out on your own. We'll start the training that way tomorrow. I think learning how you stand on your hind paws and learning to fight was enough for now." Waving me over he crouches by a rabbit.
"What?" I had no clue why he had me come over that was until I realized that Craterday and Leaf had started to make our nests. They had lined part of our bedding with the rabbit fur and got some soft ferns to lie on as well. Turning to face the two wolves who looked pleased at our surprise, "Where you guys seriously that bord?" I traded them.
"I mean why else would we skin the rabbits?" Craterday answered back in a sarcastic voice but had a hint of laughter behind it. Leaf had a smile across her face. I do believe that we are much better friends than what we're letting on.

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