Dodge and I stare down at the human. He looks a lot less terrified, and more confused at what we're doing.

"So... how are you going to get it back to camp?" Dodge asks.

"I don't know. I bet we can get him to walk, but we can't let him carry the gun, and we've still got the fish to carry." I answer, puzzled.

"Well, whatever you decide to do, hurry up with it. If we don't leave soon, we'll be walking in the dark." Dodge replies, looking up at the sky. The sun is soon to set.

        I pace around the human, thinking.

"Well, I've seen humans carry things before. Why don't we have him carry some of the fish, and you get the rest? I'll carry the gun." I suggest.

"I really doubt you can get that thing to carry something for you. Their whole thing is having us carry things for them. As long as I don't have to put that gun in my teeth again." He shrugs, tonguing the bloody hole in his gums that the gun had made. 

        I walk over to the bushes, picking up the fish that I had carried here. I bring it over to the human, who is still sitting on the ground. I stand in front of him for a moment, holding out the fish. Confused, he doesn't take them. I realize that he doesn't understand what I want. He's never been told to carry fish by a wolf before. 

        I drop the fish into his lap, and grab his sleeve in my teeth and pull it over to the fish. He's holding them now, but he isn't standing up or walking. I bark at him, frustrated, but he doesn't understand. I grab his jacket, walking backwards. He's pulled to his feet, instinctively grabbing the fish so they don't fall to the ground. 

"What did you say about not me not being able to do it?" I ask in a jokingly patronizing tone.

"Hey, you just got him to stand up. I'll be surprised if you can actually get him to walk where you want." Dodge replies, shaking his head.

"He got you to walk where he wanted, why shouldn't we be able to do the same to him?" I point out.

        Dodge growls.

"Alright, I'll admit that was a bit insulting. Think of it as revenge. Could you grab the fish and walk in front? You can lead the way back, and I'll keep him in line." I suggest. 

"If you insist." He answers, trotting off into the bushes to retrieve the rest of the fish. 

        As Dodge gets the fish, I walk around the human, standing behind him and pushing him in the direction of camp. The husky returns, walking in front of the human to lead him in the direction of camp. The human is hesitant to walk at first, not entirely understanding what to do. After nudging him several times, he begins to get the idea that he should just follow Dodge.

        The human tries to put the fish down a few times, but growling at him scares him into picking them up again. Once we're close to reaching the territory, the human begins to grow visibly tired. 

"Hey, Dodge, let's stop for a moment. The human looks exhausted, I don't think he has the same amount of stamina we do." I say, addressing Dodge. 

        He stops, and the human nearly walks into him. He also stops walking, turning to look at me in confusion. I soon realize that I'll have to figure out how to tell him that he can sit down and take a break. Maybe if he sees us sit, he'll do the same even if he's on edge. I sit down in the snow, and motion for Dodge to do the same.

"Oh, come on. We don't need coddle it." Dodge grumbles, sitting down.

"What use is he to us if he's dead? I don't know how humans work, we might kill him by accident!" I reply.

        The human stares down at us for a moment, perhaps considering what to do. He sits down tentatively, as far away from us as possible. We let him rest for a few minutes before continuing on our trek. Getting him back into walking is much easier than it was earlier. After a while, we're very close to reaching camp. This is when I stop in realization.

"We can't just bring him into camp without alerting anyone." I say to Dodge.

"We can't just bring him into camp at all. He's a human!" Dodge retorts.

        I roll my eyes.

"Can you take the fish to camp and bring Alpha Granite here? I'll keep an eye on the human."

        Dodge grumbles audibly, but grabs the rest of the fish from the human's arms, snarling at him, and pads towards the camp. I settle down, chewing a mouthful of snow while I wait. Even the human sits down, looking at me with confused, intelligent eyes. After having the chance to be so up close with a human, I begin to realize that they may not be as savage, cruel, and evil as we think. He might even be as intelligent as a wolf. Maybe I should give him a name. It seems odd to just call him 'the human.' After all, I don't call strange wolves 'the wolf.' 

"You look like a Tik. I'll call you Tik, how does that sound?" I suggest.

        Tik doesn't reply, but simply furrows his eyebrows in confusion. When a crunching noise comes from the bushes, we both turn out heads to look towards it. Dodge and Granite break through the thin branches, showering snow onto their pelts.

"What is this, Cadmium?" Granite asks, clearly seething.

        I take a step in front of Tik.

"It's not as bad as it looks. He's not as aggressive as the other humans. And he has a gun. We can use his skills to our advantage." I explain.

"It's still a human. How long have you even been with this thing? How do you know it isn't just plotting to kill all of us?" Granite questions.

"He isn't a threat without his gun, which we have. He can't kill all of us without that!" I argue.

"Cadmium. What's gotten into you, siding with the enemy like this? You are a valued member of the Pack, but if I must cast you out as a traitor, I will! We cannot afford this!" Alpha Granite growls, pale teeth flashing dangerously.

"I'm no traitor, Alpha. I would rip his throat out if it would help the Pack. I've done it before! But I truly believe that he will be able to help us." I say defiantly. 

"This is absurd. You cannot keep bringing in strays and expect the Pack to house them like this!" 

        Dodge's black ears flick upwards, and an offended look crosses his face. 

"But look at what happened when we brought the dogs in. It ended well. There's no reason to believe that bringing the human in would be any different. If the dogs could do it, so could the human." I say, motioning to Dodge with my paw. 

"Dogs and humans are not as similar as dogs and wolves. The language barrier enough would be a major problem." Alpha points out.

"We can still communicate. We were able to have him walk to the camp on his own, and carry some of the fish for us. We can't speak directly to him, but we can still make him understand. We need a leg up in this fight, and he could be exactly what we need." 

"That's enough. You are questioning my orders to my face, and I won't stand for this. If you do not kill the human immediately, I will have to cast you out of the Pack." Alpha Granite says icily. 

        His words slap me in the face like an avalanche. I can't believe I've gone so far. Everything I've done, I've done for my Pack. What would I do without them? I turn to Tik, padding towards him. A low growl rumbles in my throat, and I back him into a tree. The fear has returned to his 

eyes, and he shudders, despite the layers of fur and fabric that cover him.

        I stare into his dark brown eyes. They're nearly black, glittering with tears that threaten to run down his cheeks. He hasn't done anything to us, and yet, I have to do this. But why? To demonstrate loyalty? I could just destroy this opportunity in an instant, by snapping Tik's innocent neck with my powerful jaws. 

        I try to bring myself to do it, but I just can't. The human is guilty of nothing but being what he is. Just like Dodge was in the beginning. Tik could be the key to winning this. I love my Pack with every fiber of my being. Which is why I can't kill this human. Why I won't kill this human.

        I turn my head away, backing off. I face Alpha and Dodge once again.

"I won't do it. For the good of the Pack, and for that of an innocent human, I will not do it." I say solemnly, shaking my head.

"Then I have no choice. I didn't want to do this, Cadmium, after all you've done, but I must. You are hereby banished from the Whitetail Valley Pack for treason."

        The words echo in my mind, over and over. None of it feels real. My legs nearly buckle beneath me.

"I... I will accept this banishment. But I will never stop fighting for the Whitetail Valley Pack. I will always be there for you. Don't forget that." I choke.

        I turn away from Alpha Granite and Dodge, head hanging low 

"Don't do this, Cadmium. Please." Dodge pleads, ears folded back.

        I look back at him for a moment, tail hanging low with sorrow. Without saying a word, I turn away once again.