"Come out."
Seth nudged her out of the den.
"Father,"
Autumnfur began,
"What about the punishment?"
"Forget about that, Autumnfur. You have training."
Seth's emotions changed. He looked like a wolf who had a wonderful life, loving for his family if you first met him. But it was temporary for what Autumnfur was about to say:
"Daddy, I have something to tell you."
There were two things going on at the same time.
"Sigh,..."
The demon-like wolf shifted his head back at her.
"What?"
"Dad, w-... what's it like... beyond the sticker bushes? I have never venture past them... and why are they there?"
There was silence. The trees have stopped swaying in the breeze, causing the background noise to disappear.
This was a question that Seth could not answer for her- at least he didn't want to answer.
"Well,"
Seth didn't know where to start. Did she want to leave there little habitat and explore? She has come of age for that behavior. Did she simply not like it here anymore?
What Seth was trying to do was hide the outside from Autumnfur. He didn't want her to leave, he needed her to keep clear of all contact with civilization.
"... it's just more forest."
That was his final answer. Hopefully he got Autumnfur good, so maybe she would stop wondering. Autumnfur just tipped her head up a bit, giving her father that off look. The morning sun rays glistened in her pupils as it rose above the evergreen treetops.
"More forest? That's it?"
Autumfur replied. Seth had the light glisten in his dark eyes also. He played along to what he had said.
"Yes, darling. There is nothing else but forest here, dark, dangerous forest... your sister went beyond the thorns, and was never found again. Remember what I told you?"
He quickly explained that to her, wanting to get Autumnfur to forget about it and move on. Seth wanted to get on with the training.
"But father,"
Autumnfur began again. Seth was now annoyed from it, every day hearing, 'But father, but daddy,' this and that and 'blah blah blah'.
"Autumnfur! Listen up. There is NOTHING but danger beyond here... maybe... maybe, if your old enough I could take you to see it... No, don't even think about it. Let's move on; case closed."
If Seth was to ever show Autumnfur what it was like on the other side of the thorn bushes, he would want it to scare Autumnfur enough so she would stop wondering about it. But, the truth was that there was nothing dangerous about the forest at all. Yes, there were other packs of wolves, but over all wolves were the kings of the Timeless Timberland
"Autumnfur, what is so important about it that you want to know?"
Seth had completely turned his whole body around and faced her. Autumnfur's amulet suddenly shifted from a weary yellow to lighted blue shade, showing she was deep in thought. Stuttering, she managed to speak.
"Well, I, I have been... well... hearing things at night... distanced far away, I don't know what."
Seth heard this, and cocked his head.
"What do you mean...? Sounds? Voices...? If that's the case, we have a problem."
He joked, but neither laughed.
"It sounds like... other wolves. Other voices, other tones from other directions."
What Autumnfur was hearing were howls. She heard the howls of packs at night from a far. Seth had no reply to this, he didn't want to tell Autumnfur of others outside the sticker wall of bushes. He wanted to make sure she knew they were the only ones in this world, other than the great oaks and lemmings that gave them life. He was itching to get on with the training, it was getting awkward as Autumnfur's eyes and amulet turned into a greenish color, saying she was fine.
"That's nothing, really. It's just the wind in the night."
Seth exclaimed turning around.
"Let's go."
She stayed put.
"Father, what are you hiding from me?"
He stopped dead in his tracks. Seth's yellow eyes widened, unseen from Autumnfur.
"W- what do you mean? Hiding?"
Seth knew at this age of a wolf she was going to become curious about things.
Autumnfur also didn't have a clue about what it was. But she KNEW there was something... something that her father knew, and she didn't. There must have been others... if not, then how were they there?
"Father, I'm not clueless. Your hiding something... just tell me please, what is on the other side?"
Those few words hung in his massive head.
"Stop talking Autumnfur..."
He snapped, not even looking back at her.
"What is on the other side?"
Autumnfur's amulet was suddenly turning a tinted red color, Seth didn't know what to do... they just stood still.