Spider and Fox

There was something to be said about the wind traveling through the trees on a warm spring afternoon. It was relaxing, listening to the leaves rustle softly and the birds chirp as they flew through the air. But, what settled the brokenness inside his soul was the childish laughter drifting from the clearing. 

Inu rested with his back against the trunk of the tree that was his seat. It wasn’t any larger than its brethren surrounding the cottage, but it gave him the best view of the yard and the hole in the wall the inhabitants used for an entranceway.

As he watched, Naruto chased after a wolf pup, being chased by another in return. The way he laughed and the pure joy lighting up his features reminded the ANBU so much of his parents that it almost hurt. They were playing tag from the looks of it, milk teeth snapping after flapping clothes, bare feet sinking into the ground as the blond tried to evade. And still, that bright laughter rang through the air.  

He hadn’t had the chance to get the brothers into new clothes yet. They were wary of anyone not on four legs, and if a sack of garments were to show up on their doorstep, they’d ignore it. Or possibly burn it. Pakkun said they did much the same to the scrolls the pug had brought them. 

That was another duck in the pond. 

All they’d seen was the outside influence of a human, and sought out protection from their Den Mother instead. Inu wasn’t sure which was worse. Their paranoia about humanity or that their caretakers had been so horrid as to cause it in the first place. 

“On second thought,” his lips twisted into a grimace. The latter had caused the former or at least been a part of it. Now, he was stuck picking up the pieces with only Pakkun to help. Well…

With grace, Mama Wolf appeared from the shadows of the treeline across the clearing. The she-wolf had rapidly improved over the last few months, going from skin and bones to the powerful, lithe, and agile predator that she was. 

Still, Inu heaved a quiet huff, leaning back as he crossed his arms. His allies were all four-legged, and while they were valuable allies, he had no idea how to begin the task of reincorporating the boys back into the village. They were too wary for him to come out of hiding, let alone go near villagers who would want nothing more than to harm them. As he turned the problem over, his eyes wandered back to the yard where Naruto now sat with the wolf pups, resting after their game. They were all white, much like their mother, but whereas the she-wolf had eyes resembling a harvest moon, her pups were much different. A pup with white gold fur was lying across Naruto’s lap, licking his chin and cheek excitedly. 

Kirum was what Pakkun called him. As loud and brash as the blond, they got along like a house on fire most days. His sibling lay nearby, not as enthusiastic to be in Naruto’s lap. If Inu was correct, that would be Themo, a pup with blood-red eyes. But that begged the question, where were the other two?

As if summoned, a head of red hair appeared from behind the other side of the cottage. When Gumo stepped out of his hiding spot, having had all the experience of a child mimicking an adult, Inu sat up. The redhead slowly snuck up on his brother, entirely occupied by the happy puppy in his lap, and with a loud yell, jumped into the fray. What was two brothers and a pup quickly turned into a full-on dog pile as Themo jumped into the mix. And then…Inu spotted her first.

The third pup was sneaking across the roof of the cottage. Diapha, she with soul blue eyes. How valid those words were, Inu didn’t know, but Pakkun was never one for lies or exaggerations, especially on duty. To his amusement, he watched her stalk the thatch roof until she resided over the dog pile, which she proceeded to jump into with much haste.

If Kirum was loud and brash, Diapha was louder and even more brazen. As proven by the twenty-foot fall she’d taken to join the fight. Compared to Gumo’s shy and quiet personality, it shouldn’t have worked. But even as the ANBU watched, the redhead smiled brighter and laughed louder when the blue-eyed wolf tackled him into a hug. 

All the while, Mama Wolf watched over it, pridehappycontent evident in her posture. Inu exhaled, leaning back in his perch. He was worried, yes, but those worries were tomorrow’s problem. Today, he was more then content to let the boys be. 

XxX

There was another hole in his shirt, this one large enough for him to put his fist through. A frown teased Naruto’s lips as he played with the torn fabric. 

“I didn’t mean to.” A cold nose nudged his elbow, and he glanced over, ice-blue eyes meeting eyes that resembled bark. And he pulled his lips back in a tight smile, patting the wolf on the head. “It’s not your fault, Kirum.”

The pup whined, “But it is. Your fur wouldn’t have gotten destroyed if I played not so hard.” 

“You? Gentle?” it came as a snort from the other side of the fire. Boy and wolf looked up, meeting red eyes that gleamed in the firelight. There, Themo lay beside their Den Mother, enduring a tongue bath. 

Naruto stuck his tongue at the wolf. “We can be gentle if we want.” 

“Yeah,” Kirum yipped, wiggling into the blond’s lap, “we know how to be gentle. We just don’t want to be.”

His admission wasn’t helping their case if Themo’s eyeroll was anything to go by but that was okay. Naruto found he didn’t mind one way or the other. If anything, these words were said in jest, never with the venom the villagers used around him. 

That toxicity which he and Gumo had gone without since the cotton— snow Mama Kōri called it—fell from the sky and covered the ground waist deep. They’d traded hateful glares for tongue baths and harsh words for teasing, playful taunts. 

Grinning, the blond wrapped his arms around Kirum, hugging the pup tightly. “That’s okay, we’ll get him back tomorrow.”

Kirum leaned his head back, catching the boy across the cheek with his tongue, and Naruto fell back with a giggle, hastily wiping away the drool with the back of his hand. 

“That might be, but we do need clothes.” At the soft voice, Naruto stopped laughing, looking across the other side of the fire where his brother lay with Diapha sprawled over his back, dead asleep. Gumo poked at the fire, cyan eyes rising to meet his blue. “These are getting too holey to hold together, and we have no way to fix them. We weren’t able to take the Matron’s sewing kit before we left.”

Not that it would’ve helped much. Besides the little bit Gumo had learned by watching the Matron repair some of the other children’s clothing, they were at a loss. Mama Kōri couldn’t help them either. She didn’t have the fingers to show them how to repair the numerous holes that formed by the day. 

He sighed, hand curling in Kirum’s scruff. “We’re going to have to go back there, aren’t we?”

Gumo’s eyes held the same fear and hesitance that curled in his stomach, threatening to sour the meal they’d eaten earlier. 

A short chuff listen drew their attention to their Den Mother. Themo laid out of her reach, white fur thoroughly clean, and Mama Kōri rested with her front paws crossed, orange—such pretty orange—eyes on them. “Any wolf knows to navigate the dangers laid before them. If this orphan den is a danger to you, then plan your hunt accordingly.”

Naruto bowed his head in acceptance of her words. Gumo did the same before  asking, “What if we hunt other parts of the village? Surely, there’ll be someone or another who’s left their clothes out to dry overnight. We could take those.”

“Won’t the humans miss their furs?” Kirum asked, ears perked with his attention. 

The Den Mother shook her head. “Unlike wolves, humans have more than one fur. They would not notice if one went missing.” She paused before hesitanceglee slipped into the shape of her shoulders. “It is about time you three went on your first hunt.”

Kirum and Themo sat up, Diapha jumping out of her dead sleep and stepping on Gumo’s head. The glare he tried to give her through his unruly hair had Naruto grinning as well when the pup looked wholly unapologetic.

Finally, Mama Kōri rose to sit on her haunches with a long sigh. Those orange eyes cast around the fire at the lot of them. Naruto swallowed under her scrutiny. This, whatever was coming next, was something important for the wolves. That was something they’d learned over the past few months. The Den Mother could be laid back and soft spoken but when she set her head a certain way, when her eyes bore into theirs like staring at the sun, they were to pay attention. 

“This hunt, while not out for your first blood, will be an important one.” she began, “We are wolves, not to be seen or heard until a time of our choosing. You know this, correct?”

“Yes, Den Mother,” came the collective reply and the she-wolf nodded, stern in the twitch of her ears and tilt of her head. 

“You will be entering another pack’s territory, possibly traveling through several. If you are seen or heard, the alarm will sound, and someone will get hurt.” Naruto stifled a shudder traveling down his spine. Pup teeth were terrible enough on clothing, but he’d seen what they could do to a hunk of meat. If they were caught, there would be big problems for both sides. 

A yelp drew the blond from his thoughts to find Diapha sitting on the floor in a ball of fur. Gumo was standing up, shoulders almost matching their Den Mother’s in intencity. “We’re not going to let happen,” his soft voice rang over the fire, it matched only by the flickering in his eyes. 

Naruto grinned, jumping up as well, and threw a fist in the air. “Yeah! We’re going be like Shinobi, so quiet no one will know we’re even there at all.”

XxX

Some hours later, the blond found himself eating his words. With a sore nose and a bruised bum, ice blue eyes glared up at the cause of his pain and embarrassment. Black eyes stared back, concernworry visible in the light of the lantern overhead. 

Naruto opened his mouth, ready to get loud before he remembered his Den Mother’s words and instead growled out, “Watch where you’re going.”

“Wouldn’t need to if you did,” the retort was almost instantaneous and the pale skinned kid-had to be his age-shoved hands into pockets. “Only people who did something wrong are running this late at night.”

“Or running away from something,” his mind argued, memories of shattered beer bottles, yelling and terror rising unbidden from the depths. Naruto couldn’t suppress the flinch at those, and he scooted back, looking for his packmates. Gumo had been right behind him with Kirum close by. Diapha and Themo had gone ahead to scout an escape route and would be coming back any time now.

 Where were they?

“Ruto!”

As if to answer his question, something flashed in the lantern light before the black-haired child was squished under Kirum’s weight. The kid gave a cry of surprise as he fell and Naruto could only stare as the wolf perched precariously on his back. 

“Are you okay?”

He blinked, blinked again, then nodded, “Yeah.”After a moment, Naruto searched the area. “Where’s Gumo?” With that he was on his feet, checking the knot of their loot bag. It was his brother who suggested tying it across his chest so it wouldn’t be lost if something happened. Something like this. 

“Ran on ahead to get the others,” Kirum lifted a paw, almost appraising the black-haired child underneath him, “he smells like you.” It wasn’t so much a question as a statement and Naruto paused.

“How do you mean?”

To his amusement, Kirum leaned down, dragging his nose over the kid’s neck that sent a visible shudder through him. The brown-eyed wolf shook, a floppy ear falling to the side trythinkunsure. “I don’t know. He just does.”

“You wouldn’t know smell if it smacked you in the nose.” At the muttered retort, Naruto snorted. That sounded like something Themo would say. Which was highly amusing…A lantern lit off in the back of his mind and he grinned. 

Almost immediately, Kirum’s ears folded back dread, “No, whatever you’re thinking just no.” He whined and Naruto waved it off.

“Come on, it’s not that bad. Off of him.”

Bark brown eyes fell half-lidded with disbelief but the wolf did as requested, pointedly stepping off the kid’s back. “Whatever comes of this, you’re dealing with Den Mother.”

Nothing new there, they both knew. Where one got into trouble, the other wasn’t far behind. They’d shared punishments and lectures a plenty since Kirum and his siblings were big enough to leave the den. 

The kid got up, wiping dirt off himself and Naruto extended a hand to him. “I’m Naruto, that’s Kirum.”

For a moment, black eyes merely stared at the proferred appendage. Not like it was going to harm him, not like the villagers did, but as if he didn’t know what to make of it. Then he grabbed it. 

“Sasuke,” he said softly, and the wild, wicked grin returned to the blond’s features.

“My pack and I are playing ninja, want to come?” 

A moment’s hesitation was all it took before his new friend was nodding.