Chapter One: Darius

Darius could smell it on the wind.

The scent of the rabbit filled the air and Darius padded the ground softly as he stalked through the Oldwood. Coming to a stop and sniffing the damp forest floor, Darius came to the conclusion the rabbit had changed direction, so he turned on his hind legs following the trail into the brush. Leaves and branches clawed at his fur, causing an itch that bothered him with every step.

Birds sang and scattered among the treetops as Darius strode through the Oldwood. Deer froze when they saw him lope past; Darius stopped a few times when he spotted the deer, panting as he thought about chasing the deer instead. But every time he stopped the deer scattered, just like the birds.

Soon enough he lost the trail, and Darius came to a stop by a large boulder. He paced the ground, sniffing and perking up his ears to listen. Howling came from his pack-mates as they called for him, and Darius listened closely before darting off towards the howls.

Darius arrived to see two smaller wolves, both their coats a handsome blonde with streaks of white trailing to their bellies. When they spotted him, the larger and thicker of the two growled low, speaking to Darius in the tongue only wolves could understand. Darius growled back his response.

Two darker wolves emerged from the thicket, shaking their manes and snorting at Darius, but growling at the two blonde wolves. The bigger blonde wolf growled harshly, and they sped off barking for the rest to follow.

They spread out as they ran, coming to run along a river. The smell of rabbit was getting denser and more potent as they ran, and each and every wolf began to drool in anticipation for the kill except Darius. Eventually, the lead wolf howled in excitement; the rabbit was spotted. Darius scanned ahead as they ran, and he spotted it too, his natural instinct to kill pumping adrenaline into his blood. The rabbit saw the group approach and bolted away. The lead blonde wolf yapped in delight, getting responses from every other wolf beside Darius.

The hunt was finally nearing its conclusion.

Racing through the fresh air of the Oldwood, Darius and the others formed a net, the chorus of their footfalls echoing in the silent forest. A squeak alerted Darius to the rabbit's new change in direction, so he shot off after it. He didn't get to it first. The two black wolves cut off its path in a clearing. They both leaped at the rabbit, but the little critter was too swift and it dodged out of the way leaving the two black wolves to crash into each other. Darius zoomed past them after the rabbit.

Darius chased the rabbit past the clearing, back into the misty Oldwood, and eventually to the edge. The land began to slope up, and in the distance, Darius could make out the Northern Mountains looming over the Oldwood. He closed the gap between them quickly, but not before the bigger, blonde wolf leaped out from behind a massive tree, swiping at it and tripping it up. The rabbit crashed into the ground, scrambling to stand back up, but Darius was quicker, and nabbed it in his mouth, snapping his jaw shut and killing the rabbit.

Darius kept the rabbit in his mouth until it stopped twitching, and then dropped it on the forest floor. He glanced at the blonde wolf, who gave him a growl of approval, and so Darius backed away panting and resting his legs. The other black wolves arrived shortly after, eyeing the kill and yapping in frustration.

Darius shifted back to his human form first, naked and cold. A soft breeze passed over him, and he shivered as he sat down and leaned his back against a tree, his skin rubbing against the hard bark. The blonde wolf shifted next, revealing a handsome, blonde-haired human with dazzling blue eyes. The human stood and grinned at Darius, not shy about his nakedness in the least.

"Another wonderful kill, Darius!" The blonde-haired human said. "What is that? Five today?"

Darius fidgeted, blocking his privates from view. "Six. I caught one this morning before you called for a hunt."

The human chuckled joyfully, letting his toned body and ripped muscles soak in the cold air. "That sounds like you. You realize it's technically forbidden to hunt on your own? My father deemed it so when he became Alpha."

Darius grunted. "Remus, your father can go kiss his own ass."

Remus waved off his comment. "Yes, yes, I know he did it specifically so he can get back at you, but it's not like he'd actually waste hunters trying to catch you out here alone. The Oldwood is much too large to focus on one single shifter."

Darius smiled wickedly. "Whatever you say, Remus."

The other two black wolves shifted to their human forms, both glaring at Darius.

"Don't speak to Remus that way!" One growled.

"You shall give the Alpha's son the respect he deserves!" The other hissed.

Darius bared his fangs, his body tensing. "Or what? You two mutts will show me my place, is that it?"

Both the shifters began to yap at him, but Remus stepped in the middle, raising arms to calm both sides. "Alright, alright! Let's all calm down here. You can all talk to me however you like. I'm not above anyone here." Remus eyed the two black wolves, and they backed down, neither willing to look Darius' way anymore. Remus shrugged apologetically at Darius, and Darius nodded in thanks.

Remus pointed at the kill. "How about you two take the rabbit back to the pile and bring it back to Gray Creek? I want to wander the forest awhile with Darius and my sister."

One of the other two shifters tried to protest, but Remus smiled, slyly baring his fangs just like Darius did. "Please, I insist! I'm sure you both would rather be back at Gray Creek than close to the Northern Mountains right now. We all know how you two think the Mountains are haunted."

The two scowled deeply, but slowly nodded and turned to leave. One quickly grabbed the rabbit, slung it over his shoulder, and followed the other. Both glared daggers at Darius one last time before departing, their naked human forms disappearing into the brush.

Remus sighed when they were gone. "You'd think they would have gotten over their hate for you by now."

Darius stared off into the forest. "They won't change anytime soon."

"Not if the lone wolf keeps on acting like a lone wolf."

Darius frowned at Remus. "I can't just change my nature, Remus. This is who I am. I'm sorry if the idea of hunting in packs doesn't please me."

"But you hunted in a pack today." Remus came and plopped down beside Darius. "You hunted with us."

"That's different."

"How?"

"Besides the fact I actually like you guys? You don't glare at me like the others do, and neither does Nyssa."

Remus chuckled. "Nyssa doesn't just like you, Dare, she wants you. If you catch my meaning…"

Darius rolled his eyes. "You almost sound happy that your sister wants me."

Remus grabbed both of Darius' shoulders. "Of course I am! I'd love to call you brother if only you'd claim her."

"Please, Remus, let's not talk about me mounting your sister."

Just as Darius finished speaking, the smaller of the blonde wolves appeared from behind a tree. In its mouth were two deerskin bags. The wolf stared at them...or, it only stared at Darius.

"Speak of the devil," Remus whispered under his breath. He stood and waved the wolf over. "Sister! What took you so long? I was beginning to worry."

Nyssa hesitated, but eventually, she took two big strides and dropped the bags, but then suddenly retreated behind the tree. They both watched as Nyssa's blonde tail vanished behind the tree, and listened as she shifted back into her human form. A minute later, Nyssa reemerged from behind the tree, clad in a deerskin tunic that matched her revealed her midriff and wearing deerskin pants that covered her legs. She stepped forward, her beautiful fair skin glowing through the misty air, and her blonde hair hanging to the side. Lithe and graceful, she stepped forward slowly, swinging her curvaceous hips and pursing her lips, meeting Darius' dark green eyes with her own vibrant blue gaze.

"What?" She said, placing her hands on her hips. "Is there something on my face?"

Darius found himself staring for longer than he intended, and so he glanced away. "It's nothing. The clothes suit you, is all."

Out of the corner of his eye, he could see a smile form across Nyssa's lips.

Remus stepped up to her, grabbing her shoulders much like he did to Darius, his own smile growing bigger than Nyssa's. "Sister! Wonderful hunt today. I swear you're getting better and better at tracking."

Nyssa brushed off his arms. "Put on some damn clothes, Remus! Until you do, refrain from getting too close to me."

Remus laughed and locked his arm around her neck, keeping her from moving, ruffling her hair with his free hand as she struggled to break from his arm lock.

Nyssa clawed at him. "Remus! Let go, idiot! You're not funny!"

"Oh please, I'm the funniest one here! Don't you agree, Darius?"

Darius grinned as he watched the siblings tussle, keeping quiet as the two fell to the ground and wrestled, growling at each other. Standing and walking over to the pair of bags, Darius rummaged around in one, pulling out a tunic and pair of pants. He quickly pulled them on; the tunic was a little tight, his six-pack clearly coming through, but Darius didn't mind. He noticed a quiet in the air and turned to spy Remus and Nyssa sitting cross-legged on the ground watching him. Nysaa blushed when Darius meet her gaze, but Remus whistled.

"I might just have as big a crush on you as Nyssa does if you look that good in a tunic, Dare."

Nyssa punched his arm, prompting Remus to giggle like a child.

Darius picked up the second bag and tossed it at Remus, the thing smacking into Remus' face. "Come on, let's get back to Gray Creek already."

Remus sighed but opened the bag. Nyssa jumped up and walked to Darius' side. The two left before Remus could finish putting on his clothes.

"You know, we could ditch Remus and go frolic in the mist somewhere," Nyssa cooed. She leaned closer to Darius as they walked. "Just the two of us."

Darius shook his head. "Could you imagine how Ulrick would react if he found us together? I'm pretty sure he'd send a pack after my head."

Nyssa frowned in that childish way of hers. "My father won't be Alpha forever. Remus will replace him."

"But not anytime soon."

"Oh, come on! I'll beg you if I need to. Just spend some time with me? Remus won't tell! I'll make it worth your while…"

Nyssa reached down to his pants with her hand, but Darius snatched her wrist. He glared at her, causing her to whimper. "Nyssa, please. There's nothing to gain from getting involved with me. You should stay away from me from now on."

Nyssa pouted and crossed her arms, glancing away.

Darius rolled his eyes once again. Nyssa was beautiful, but Darius couldn't shake the idea that she was like a younger sister to him. Claiming her...it just didn't feel right.

Remus caught up to them, bounding through the trees, carrying the two deerskin bags, now empty and lifeless. "Hey! Don't leave without me, it's dangerous to be out here alone."

Darius expected Nyssa to respond, but when he realized she was still pouting, he turned his head back. "Maybe you should learn to dress quicker then. It's a nice skill to have in life."

"The tunic was too tight. Nyssa, why'd you bring such tight clothes?"

Nyssa snapped her head back. "I just brought the first clothes I saw. I didn't really pay attention to anyone's outfit, except for mine."

"It's because you wanted to catch Darius' eye, right?"

Remus laughed, getting Darius to grin and Nyssa to scowl again.

"Seriously, though," Remus continued. "There's been a lot of rumors of Changelings stalking the Oldwood."

"Just stories from little pups that want attention from the warriors and hunters," Darius said.

"No, the rumors have come from the hunters. Two or three reported directly to my father that they came across Changelings  hidden throughout the forest; one even said he fought one."

Nyssa, finally getting over Darius' rejection, lifted her head and glanced between the two. "Do you think there could be some out here right now? Watching us?"

An eerie silence came over the group, and the hairs on Darius' body stood up. Nyssa walked closer to Darius, looking out at the empty forest all around them.

Darius grunted. "They're rumors, nothing more. We've been without war with the Pride for so long that others don't know what to do with their lives, so they make up stories and sightings. Have there been any bodies found?"

Remus shook his head. "No Changeling bodies."

"Then we have nothing to worry about." Darius increased his pace. "Come on, let's get back to Gray Creek."

The other two nodded, and the trio raced back to their home, leaving the quiet, misty forest behind them.