A forest in Northern Canada

Starting point: Morning after official war announcement, everyone is waking. These first posts take place in the last few days of winter.

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Silver woke suddenly, a sound of growling coming from her. She lifted her head, looking at the rising sun. She shook her head in attempt to get away from the memory of the nightmare. With a sigh, she stood and stretched her long limbs, hearing the occasional pop from the bones beneath her fur. Straightening herself out, she walked out of her den, her shoulders rolling under her fur. When she stepped out into the bright winter sun she closed her eyes, pulling her head back a bit. She opened her eyes to slit, trying to fend off the glare of light from the white snow beneath her feet. With a sigh she continued walking, making sure to make no noise. Once, her claws clicked against the packed snow under her feet. She stopped, her body becoming rigid. She hoped no one could be woken by the sounds that could stir her from slumber.

Aurora had just woken up from her side of the border. With news of the new war, she riped off an extra piece of meat from her special stash than usual and headed on her way out. She needed all of the energy she needed. Trotting through the forest, she looked for a good place to hide to watch on-comers pass by. Looking around, satisfyed, she spotted a bulky tree that fit her needs perfectly - tall, dark, with lots of leaves and braches for her to hide behind. It should only be expected that she needed a lot of cover because of her snow white furr. "You can do this, Aura." A deep breath was taken into her lungs and she jumped. Her body soared high in the air, her vocal point and focus on a tree branch sturdy enough for her weight. With the grace of a swan, Miss. Cresent landed swiftly on the branch of her choice. A wolfish grin appeared on her face.

"That was easy." The sun was just starting to rise, the rays warming her face and limbs as she jumped from one branch to the next until she got to her perfect spot. She thought of the Alphas of her pack, the Dark Fangs. She could imagine the male waking up with a sly grin on his face. Oh, how she wished to see him again.

Winter Dawn awoke to his name sake, low in the sky a glowing orb rose. Light filling the grey, dull air. Early winter frost dripped from tree branches, a taster of the white season yet to come. Dawn lifted his head, drawing in a long breath. The crisp, evergreen flavoured wind filled his nostrils and rustled his fur. He rose to his feet, stretching his paws far before him, bowing his head and staining his spine. His jaws opened wide in a silent waking yawn and his yellowed canines bared. His jaw snapped shut and he relaxed into a less strenuous position. He looked around, his amber eyes surveying the rest of his sleeping pack. Today was their first day at war, yet so many of them seemed to sleep so comfortably. He had not suffered such peace. His night was plagued of thoughts of meaningless battle and spilt blood before sleep overcame him. He was the champion of the Dark Fangs, yet he abhorred meaningless war fueled by greed for territory. Which was all that was known to him; a border dispute escalating into a full blown between them and their neighbors. He would fight, and fight with all the skill he could muster. Yet he would fight for the pack; Protecting his own and not to conquer their foes.

Winter padded away from his sleeping patch. Heading to the split rock; An outcrop composed of twin peaks of weathered stone. It was a little way outside the camp, the preordained place for the hunters to gather. He was one of the earliest risers and the wind whistled around the lonely peaks as he approached. The hunters would be waking soon and join him for the morning hunt, war or not the pack needed to eat.

Xeo awoke silently next to Timber, the warm glow of the sun softly bringing him out of his slumber. From his side, he rolled onto his stomach quietly, bringing his paw up to his face and rubbing across his eyes and muzzle, shaking his head afterwards. Xeo looked down at Timber and gently licked behind her ear, before standing and stretching out his body, letting his muscles ease themselves into comfort. He let his eyes scan the area after stepping out of his den, looking around at the rest of the sleeping pack. Xeo then looked at the sky, a clear blue sheet of pure ice painted with white swirls and blotches. It must have been late morning, the perfect time to wake the rest of the pack and begin the working day of hunting and patrol.

Walking away slowly, Xeo headed up to the nearby peak, perching himself up it and looking out over the vast land. Any other day, and this would have been such an amazing sight to see, yet today, all Xeo saw was a battlefield, one that would cause much bloodshed. Suddenly standing tall, Xeo lifted his head high and howled incredibly loud, a stern look fixed upon his face as he awoke his pack, letting them all know their jobs were important with one simple form of communication. He let the howl continue for a few more seconds, before stopping, and hearing the echo of his powerful signal. Before too long, Xeo heard returning howls from many places and knew the day had truely begun for the Dark Fangs. Taking one last look over the land, he turned slowly and made his way back.

Traxan awoke to cold water droplets, dripping on to his muzzle from the cave ceiling. He didn't get much sleep last night, only about three hours, as he was up late tending to a young pup who had a large gash on his stomach from falling off of a tall tree and landing on a sharp rock. They got the wound cleaned, and it had started to close up, but the pup would need to stay for a couple days for it to fully heal. He got up, stretched, and walked over to the infermary, where the pup was laying on a soft bed of caribou fur. The pup lifted his head up just enough to see Traxan, and whined. "It hurts.." he moaned. Traxan chuckled. "You'll be fine. I've seen much worse little guy. Just chew on these, they'll numb the pain a bit, but do not swallow them, alright?" Traxan said, as he pointed to small pile of medicinal herbs. The pup nodded and put his head down. He walked out of the cave, deciding to take a quick stroll through the forest. He walked slowly, taking in the Pine scented winter air. "This is about as calm as it's going to get today." he thought. He had heard of the official announcement of war last night from one of the elder healers, as Traxan wasn't there for the announcement.

As usual, Fang was awake early wandering here and there. Of course he stayed near the den, sensing that the adults seemed... more tense nowadays. The young pup tilted his head from side to side, watching as a bird sat on a tree branch. "Hey hey, come down here and play with me." the pup barked jumping up and down. Though on his fifth jump, he lost his balance, making him tumble backwards. Fang sneezed in surprise before getting back. "Didnt see that one coming." he whined before shaking his fur. His ears perked as the other wolves started to wake up, doing their usual things. When he heard the familiar howl, the pup tried his best to imitate it. Although it was rather very short, and high pitched, the pup felt proud of himself.