Ivory Snow

The Innkeeper and half a dozen other males were loaded up and waiting when Adam arrived at the Inn. The Innkeeper gave him a look that was both knowing, and what looked a little like disappointment.

Having never seen that look on him before, or knowing what he did wrong, Adam wasn’t sure.

“Glad you could join us, Adam!” One of the other travelers greeted him with a wave. “Please tell me that brother of yours packed you something for the road?”

Everyone around laughed. The Innkeeper smacked him upside the head as he climbed aboard his horse.

“You have a mate, and she packed you food. Stop mooching off of others. What he brought is to sell.”

The other wolf gave a dramatic groan that sounded more like a whimper.

Once everyone was seated on their horses, two in the one wagon that was being brought, the Innkeeper addressed the group.

“We all know taxes are getting higher and wolves are getting desperate. I overheard a few things while the Royal nut bag was here.” The males chuckled lightly at the Innkeeper’s term. “Taxes are going to go up again, traveling is going to be even harder… And…” The Innkeeper looked Adam’s way. “She’s talking about installing a draft for any male wolf old enough to shift. The war with the Duke is heating up. This is our last chance to sneak in and out of there. With our numbers, we just might be able to avoid any trouble on the highway. We stick together. We are a pack. We do this together. Everyone clear?”

“Yes, sir,” was repeated by everyone with various inflections in their tones. Some were serious and some were mocking. The ones mocking obviously had never seen any real danger and thought he was being dramatic.

Adam thought more on what the Innkeeper had said about the draft. That would pull in three of his brothers now, including himself.

Eric was only thirteen, there was no way he would be able to care for the farm and the younger two.

He also had a feeling that the Queen would use him and his brothers for more than just fighting. She took too much of an interest in him and his younger brothers. How stupid of him to mention there were more of him around.

The group started off just after the sun rose. After a few hours, they pulled over near a stream to water their horses and stretch their legs. Having missed breakfast, Adam opened the travel sack. He smiled and shook his head.

Ivory said she would pack a few things for him to eat along the way. Only, this looked more like the one he would be selling from.

She had provided him with a variety of sandwiches, eggs, and meat. She’d sent extra bread, turnovers, a few apples, and carrots. On top of the bag was a small note.

Please be careful, my love.

PS. Share what you have with others you meet on the road. They are not all as lucky as us.

She was a Luna and Queen indeed. Ivory always thought of others before herself.

Adam silently fed his horse one of the apples, petting his neck absently. She may not have meant this as a reminder, but that was how he saw it. Ivory was meant for so much more than what he could give her.

Adam debated on sharing his food with the others in his group. He wasn’t sure if she meant them. From the looks of some of them, they did have less. However, they had brought enough food for the journey. So, he decided to wait and see what happened.

Just after midday, the group stopped for another break. Adam sat further away from the group this time, preferring to stay near the water’s edge with his horse, letting his fingers drag on the top of the water. He needed a break from the other males already. If one of his brothers tried to talk like those males, he would have had them mucking the barn for a month. By themselves.

His mind wandered to the past as he played with the water. He was glad that he had not been there to see what Ivory looked like, all covered in seaweed. Though it would have been quite the sight to see the dolphins pushing her toward the pier. The images of her in the wagon, bloodied, water gushing out of her, and then later crying in her sleep, still gave him nightmares.

Adam was brought out of his thoughts when he heard the sounds of small feet approaching. When he turned around, he saw three pairs of eyes peeking through the bushes.

He smiled gently and waved. “Hello there.”

Two of the pups gasped and started backing away.

“Don’t go. I won’t hurt you. We’ve been traveling all day, so we are resting.” The one still there continued to watch him carefully. “I have six younger brothers. I am used to them always being around. Why don’t you come sit with me?”

The bravest one stepped through the branches. His clothes were all in tatters, and he was skinny beyond belief.

Adam slowly pulled his sack out, trying not to startle the pup, and lifted up three of the sandwiches.

“My brother apparently thinks I am an elephant and not a wolf. He made me too much food. Would you share with me, so I don’t have to hurt his feelings?”

The first pup was soon joined by the other two again, a male and a female. They all had brown hair, which helped hide a good portion of the dirt. Except for the twigs and leaves.

Adam stood up and set the food further away from him on a large flat stone. Then he sat back down, letting them have space.

The first male kept one eye on Adam, and one eye on the food. As he got closer, he sped up. As soon as the food was in his hands, all three of them ran for the forest again.

Adam sighed. How close had he and his brothers come to being like them?

They had certainly been dirty enough.

They had even gone without a meal often enough.

But they never had reached the point of begging, wearing rags, or being more bone than fat.

“You have certainly been matched well with your Snow.”

Adam scoffed. The Innkeeper was such a nosey old wolf. “We are not matched at all. I will make sure the way is safe, then I will get her to her blood family. When she does shift, she will find her true match and forget all about me.”

“Awe. So, you don’t think you are worthy enough to be her mate.” He said, lowering himself down on the ground next to Adam. “I had a feeling that was the case. For the record, I believe you are wrong.”

“And what do you know of it? I am nothing but her temporary protector. That is all I can be.”

“When I was a pup, there was this female. She was my very best friend. We did everything together. For a time, I thought for sure she would be my mate. My parents had always been of the opinion that we could recognize our mates even before we shifted. There would be some subtle way for us to tell. Subtle enough, that most wolves missed it. If our mates are truly part of our soul, then why wouldn’t we feel some connection to them before our wolf emerged?”

The Innkeeper sighed, a sad and forlorn sound.

“My friend shifted nearly a year before I did. One day, I was to meet her at the bookstore, but my father held me back. He wanted to talk to me about the possibility of an apprenticeship. I turned him down, not wanting to leave her for a year. He refused to let me leave for nearly an hour, trying to convince me that it was the right thing to do for the Inn. By the time I arrived at the bookstore, my whole life had changed. The very future I had planned. Because sitting right there on the footsteps was another male wolf. I was across the street when she walked out and nearly fell on him. He caught her of course, dropping the wood in his hands. I knew this male, I had seen him in the market, spoken to him a few times. He was a farmer, rarely ever coming to town. She was the opposite. She had rarely left the village. Had I not seen it happen with my own eyes, I doubt I would have ever believed it.”

Even after all these years, Adam could still hear the sadness and pain that moment must have given the older male.

“I have never been able to forget that look of awe and wonder on her face. I went right back home, right back to my father, and told him I would go to the castle as he wished. I was gone for a year. When I returned, she already had her first pup. She was still happier than I had ever seen her.”

After a silent moment, Adam asked a question in a whisper. Only it wasn’t really a question. He was feeling both his pain and the Innkeeper’s. He was imagining watching Ivory find her mate, someone besides him. How that would tear him apart.

“So, your parent’s theory was wrong then. We cannot sense our mates before the shift.”

The Innkeeper cleared his throat. “Oddly enough, I still believe it is possible. I think it just depends on the wolf.” He turned and looked at Adam. “Do you know why it takes our wolf to recognize our mates, Adam?”

“It’s their scent. We cannot smell it without our wolf.”

The Innkeeper tipped his head from side to side. “Yes and no. That is part of it, of course. Their scent smacks us upside the head and knocks us over to get our attention. The main reason our wolves can sense it is because they are more in tune with Mother Nature than our human side is. Our wolves are part of nature. The stronger the wolf, the more in touch the human is with nature. Which, I believe, can affect when and how they recognize their mate. A wolf strong enough to manifest before the typical time, maybe?”

Adam scrunched his eyes together, not sure that he was understanding what the Innkeeper was saying.

“I believe there are times when Mother Nature decides to step in. Think of the story I heard at your house the other day. The story about the dolphins.” The Innkeeper looked around them, making sure no one was close. “Say Mother Nature saw someone about to ruin her carefully laid plans. Say there was a wolf she had been watching over, even touched her in a way to set her apart from all others. Would Mother Nature just sit back and let an evil wolf mess everything up? Or would she use her powers to save that female? Like throwing up waves and pushing her out of harm’s way. Or using dolphins to carry that precious cargo to the one wolf Mother Nature could entrust her with above all others.”

Adam suddenly found it difficult to breathe. He desperately wanted to believe the words he was hearing, but the logical side of him would not allow it.

“Think about it, Adam. Mother Nature has played a role in supporting your family from the beginning. What was the first thing you felt when you saw her?”

Adam thought the question was rhetorical. Then decided it probably wasn’t, considering the expectant look on the other male’s face.

“I felt protective of her. We all did. That’s why my brothers pulled her out of that water. That’s why we kept her in our home. If anything, Mother Nature knew we were capable of that much.”

The Innkeeper sighed. “Adam, she is yours and one day you will see that. I just hope it’s before you pass her off onto another. Do not let your fear keep you from doing what you know you were born to do.”

Adam looked down at the ground again. Those were nearly the same words he had said to Ivory. He was vaguely aware of standing with the Innkeeper and preparing his things to leave again.

Adam noticed the pups were still close by, so he pulled out a handful of the treats Ivory had packed him and left them sitting on the stone.

Well after nightfall, the group set up camp in a dense forest on the side of the Duke’s city. They had had to take a long way around, as the Queen’s soldiers were close to having the city completely surrounded.

As they laid out their blankets to sleep, without a fire so as not to alert the soldiers of their presence, Adam heard one of the males whispering frantically to the Innkeeper.

“Are you sure it’s safe? Shouldn’t we try to get into the city tonight?”

Another spoke up. “Maybe we should head home at first light. By the looks of it, the Queen is ready to tie the noose, we could get stuck in there with them. And then what? Our families would be left on their own. They would starve like all those we saw on the road.”

“Calm, my friends. If we try to enter the city in the dark, the soldiers will certainly hear us. My contact will meet us in the morning and help us get in and then out again. All will be well. And the Queen doesn’t yet have the forces to take the city, that’s why she wants to use a draft.” The Innkeeper’s voice was steady and calm. But it wasn’t enough to soothe the fears of the others.

“What about the soldiers fighting the rogues? Why doesn’t she just use them?”

There was a scoff from a few feet away. “There is no fight with the rogues. I trade with them every week. They have more peace than we do!”

“Silence! This is not the time to argue.” Adam spoke up, tired and worn from the journey. “We knew there would be trouble. We knew there would be danger nearby. We decided to come anyway. If you lot keep arguing, you will get us all killed now and not even have a chance to get home, period. Now get some sleep. Your exhaustion is feeding your fears.”

There were indecipherable murmurs, but the camp otherwise quieted down for the night.

Adam noticed the Innkeeper beaming at him again. He made sure the older wolf saw him roll his eyes at him before lying down. All he had done was tell them to shut up, nothing more.

Before dawn, they were once again packed up and ready to go. As scared as they were the night before, they were now alert and ready to move. Proving Adam correct, their exhaustion had fed into their fears.

In a single file line, the wagon at the end, the group followed the Innkeeper and Adam down the hill side. Adam didn’t know how it happened, but for some reason they had put him in lead with the Innkeeper. It must have had something to do with the fact that they all knew he had been raising his brothers by himself. He obviously knew how to wrangle a bunch of hot-headed males into submission.

They approached a gate, hidden by the trees. Once you saw it, you knew it was there. But if you didn’t know where to look for it, you would miss it.

Adam paid careful attention, wanting to be able to come back when he was ready to give them Ivory. Even though he wasn’t sure he would ever be ready for that.

The Innkeeper knocked on the door, three long slow knocks, followed by five fast ones, and then two staccato knocks a second in between.

The gate opened wide, and they walked into a dark tunnel large enough for their group to ride their horses without hitting their heads, and the wagon to be pulled without hitting the walls.

Standing at the end, waiting to greet them, was a young male, roughly the same age as Adam. The Innkeeper dismounted his horse and shook hands with the strange male. Adam belatedly realized that this was the Innkeepers contact.

The older male waved to Adam, gesturing for him to join them.

“Adam, I’d like you to meet Jack.” Adam shook Jack’s hand. “Jack here is the Duke’s oldest pup.” The Innkeeper added in a very low whisper, low enough that only the three of them heard.

Jack gave the old male an incredulous look, wondering why he was telling this new male who he was. Even the Duke didn’t know that Jack worked with the underground to bring supplies in. Still, he hadn’t been expecting Adam to react to his name with such interest. Which also piqued Jack’s curiosity.

“Adam here is the wolf I was telling you about, raising six brothers on his own, and shifted early to do it.”

Jack’s eyes widened. He had heard many stories about Adam. He never really understood why the Innkeeper had such an interest in him. Until now. There was a presence about him.

Something in him called to Jack’s wolf.

“It’s nice to meet you, Adam. I hope we get a chance to sit down and talk while you are here.”

Adam nodded, wondering why he had heard about him. And what he had heard. Surely the Innkeeper had not told him that Adam had his cousin.

“Yes, sir. I would like that very much.” Adam had just been introduced to one of the few people he might be able to trust with the one he cared most for, and he found that he was dreading that conversation more than any other.

The group all walked with their horses toward the city’s Inn. They had a stable attached, so they left their horses and wagon there.

Jack only stayed with them long enough to lead them out of the tunnel. He was gone before anyone could put him with their group.

Over the next few days, Adam sold all he had.

While the others continued selling their wares at the market, Adam strolled around the city. He saw people with various styles in clothes. Males in dark pants like his own. And males wearing colorful robes.

The females wore a variety of colors, all in dresses.

Adam laughed quietly to himself, imagining the look on Ivory’s face when she realizes she has to start wearing dresses again. She never did make that dress out of the material Charles bought her years ago.

As he strolled through the streets, he listened carefully to the conversations of others. The people were happy, but there was still fear in their voices and their eyes.

They spoke often of the Duke fighting back, trying to take the crown back. Some spoke with hope and others with dismay. Some agreed with his actions, while others did not.

Not once did he hear anyone speak negatively about the Duke’s character.

The day before they were set to leave, Jack appeared in the Saloon below the Inn they were staying at. He spotted Adam and walked over, a drink in his hand.

“Mind if I join you? It’s nice to see another wolf around my own age in here.”

Adam nodded. “Please do. This is the farthest I have ever been from home before. The farthest from my brothers. My wolf is anxious to get back and check on them.”

Actually, his wolf hadn’t mentioned them once. Ivory on the other hand, he hadn’t shut up about.

Jack nodded and took a sip of his drink. “I have a younger brother. I love him dearly, but I am certain I would have abandoned him on the side of the road if he had been left in my care alone.”

Adam guffawed and nearly choked on the drink he had just been taking. “There have been more than a few times I wanted to push them over the edge of the pier while fishing. Wait, I think I did do that a few times. The pups were too stubborn to stay down though.”

Jack laughed hard and then ended it with sigh. “I’ve never had much patience with pups. Even when I was one. My cousin on the other hand, now she was made for it. The last time we saw her, Mark followed her everywhere. She didn’t mind in the slightest. I excused it away as she was lonely at first, being an only child and stuck in that large castle with only adults to talk to. Over the years, I’ve thought back and realized that it was just part of who she was. I miss her every day. We didn’t get to spend much time together as pups, but I still loved her.”

Adam was surprised in the direction their conversation had turned. Here was his opportunity, laid before him on a golden platter. And yet, it took everything he had to open his mouth.

“If she had survived, what would be different? She had been only a pup. The Queen still would have taken the crown.”

Jack shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe we would have been able to rally the people around her. Or maybe she would have just been able to live a happy life with people who loved her.”

She already has that. And she is safer with us. Adam’s wolf moped.

“And your father. What kind of wolf is he? I’ll be honest, I never paid much attention to anything going on outside of our farm or village before recent events.”

Jack looked like no one had ever asked him that question before. Adam had to give him credit that he was at least taking a moment to consider his answer.

“My father mourns the death of his brother. He never wanted to rule but he loves this kingdom. He will do what is necessary to see it overcome this trial and thrive once again.”

“And what if that means someone else is more fit for the throne? Would he willingly step aside?”

Jack shrugged. “No one can know the mind of another. I am positive that my father would happily step back and support that person.” His face turned to stone. “That person is not Ava. She is not fit to be Queen.”

Adam smirked. “I agree wholeheartedly. I’ve had the unfortunate pleasure of meeting her recently. It didn’t take long for me to know what she really is, an evil and spiteful woman. Do you think she had a hand in killing her own sister?”

Jack didn’t hesitate to answer this time. “Without a doubt. And one day, I will repay her that favor.”

They both took a drink, steadying themselves and their wolves.

“If I were to tell your father that I had something in my possession that could help turn the tide. Something I found and hold most precious, something I believed with my every being that Mother Nature entrusted to me for protection. Would he try to force it from me? Would he care for it as I have?”

Jack was confused by this question. “Whether it would turn the tide or not, my father is an honorable wolf. He would never let harm come to something so precious.”

Adam nodded and stood up. “A day may be coming when you will see me again. If that is the case, know that I am entrusting that precious cargo to you. If any harm were to happen to it, the retribution would be swift.”

Jack stood up and raised his hand to him, Adam accepted the shake and they both held firm.

“If that day comes. You have my word. Your treasure will be mine.”

Adam smirked as he walked off. “It should, as it once belonged to you as well.”

Jack had no idea what that meant. He had not lost any treasure that he knew of. He hoped to one day find out. He liked Adam, he felt he was a wolf he could trust.

Adam returned to his room and began to gather his things.

The next morning, their group slipped into the tunnel and were outside the city walls before the sun came up. Their loads were lighter, as everyone had sold most everything they brought.

There was an air of both enthusiasm and urgency about them. They didn’t stop until midday, keeping it short, and then they were back on the road.

They didn’t even stop once night fell.

After a week and half on the road, they were all ready to be safe in their own beds once again.

As they passed each other’s homes, they waved their farewells. Adam was on his own for the last leg of his journey. The moon was high, making the hour late, when he arrived home.

Adam led his horse to his stable and filled the buckets with water and food. Then quietly went inside. The house was just as quiet as when he left. He paused outside Ivory’s door and listened to her breathing and her heart, something about it sounded heavier. It was as though she was calling to him in her sleep. He fought the pull and moved on to his room.

He had missed her too much. If he were to see her now, there would be no holding back. Not when a more permanent separation was on the horizon.

Not for the first time, Adam went over the words from the Innkeeper. Wishing that she was his true mate somehow.

If that were the case, he would follow her to the ends of the earth.