10A/N. Hello, everybody! I'm back with the first chapter for Hardships of Survival! The first chapter, surprisingly, got 4 reviews, 3 favorites, and 3 follows. I don't think that's ever happened to me in a quite a while, so I thank you guys/gals for that. Just in mind, this is now the real story, ok. This is what the summary is pointing towards, this is where Kate and Humphrey's separation will begin. Maybe not in this chapter, but it will happen very soon. Anyway, this isn't going to be like a 40 chapter FanFiction, I'm going to end it when it's supposed to end. Anyway, I hope you guys/gals enjoy the first chapter in this crazy, crazy adventure...
HumphreyKate4ever: "PERFECT 10 out of 10 KEEP GOING PS WHERE IS Kate?"
Response: Haha thanks for the review man. I've never had a review with as much excitement as your's, I love it! 10 out of 10, eh? I'll try and make it an 11 out of 10! :D Hmmm... where is Kate, you ask. I don't know... Where is Kate?
Troy Groomes: "awesome chapter and introduction. I wonder if Runt is mated (married to either Magril, Daria or Princess)?
Response: Thanks for the feedback! I'll try and make it even better as I progress further into the story. Well, if Runt has pups, of course, he's mated. Jeez, Troy, come on now. Lol
Chapter 1: After the Howl
Humphrey's P.O.V.
Kate and I just got done rubbing noses; it was truly something that seemed magical. Never in my life would I ever think that Kate, the girl of my dreams, would actually marry somebody like me. None of the females in the pack had eyes for me. All I ever did was wolf around with my friends, make corny jokes, and just ruin moments for everyone. On my appearance, I was skinny, weaker than the bark of a dead tree, and my fur was a complete mess. It's very shaggy and I never cared to straighten it. That's why today just seemed like it was a dream. Kate actually refused to marry Garth because she fell in love with me... It just doesn't seem right. How could it be real? That was a question that I asked myself while Kate and I were rubbing noses.
A couple of seconds later, Kate's sister Lilly pounced onto Garth and rubbed noses with him, leaving the audience cheering in happiness. The packs have been united. It seems that that's what everybody wanted. Like it's the only thing they wanted. I never heard anybody else talk about anything else other than the day when the packs would be united. Now was the day that when all the wolves went back to normal. Marcel and Paddy made their acquaintance when they flew in and suggested to everybody to start playing golf. Everybody had perplexed looks on their faces. They were all questioning inside their heads what golf was, it was plain as day. Kate and I were probably the only two wolves in the world who knew what golf actually was. We just shared looks and smiled, happy to be finally allowed to be together for the rest of our lives.
Marcel yelled out "Fore!" and hit the ball straight towards the middle of the valley. It landed in the footprints the stampede of caribou left behind. "Well, that was a pretty good shot wasn't it, Paddy?" Marcel asked as he put his wooden drive back into Paddy's 'bucket' made of leaves full of other sticks. I always wondered what those weird sticks were; Marcel and Paddy seem to use them a lot, like every day. All they ever did was just hit, or at least try to, a rock into a small hole in the ground. It just never made any sense to me, and I bet it doesn't make any sense to Kate either. Whatever, it's not a big deal, it's not like they destroy everything with it.
Paddy put Marcel's stick back into the bucket and said, "Indeed it was a stupendous shot, but definitely not as good as the one where we caught Kate and Humphrey in QUITE a good time." Marcel and Paddy stared at each other and giggled. Kate and I looked at each other and smiled while rolling our eyes simultaneously. I looked over to my right and noticed that Kate's mother was staring at me angrily, baring her teeth. My heart rate increased and I started to step back.
Kate didn't even notice until a couple of seconds later. She noticed me stepping backward with my petrified expression, so she decided to ask, "Humphrey? What's wrong?" She had such a concerned expression that it made my heart melt. It's finally nice to notice that someone actually cared about me that much. I haven't seen that amount of care since the day my mother died. I remember the day just like it was yesterday. Mom was showing me the borders so that I didn't just casually stray a bit off territory; especially the Northern Pack because anyone who has ever strayed into their borders, they never came back. We were just walking around until there was a sudden sound of rustling. It was coming from bushes that were about a couple of feet in front of us. Being the curious, little pup I was, I wanted to find out what was making the noise. As I approached the bush, I noticed a metal, cylinder object coming out of it. Mom shouted for me to run and pushed me out of the way. There was a loud *bang* that followed shortly afterward. I saw my mother just laying there with a pool of blood surrounding her. A large figure arose from the bush, casting a shadow that surrounded my whole body. That was when I started to run back to my den with tears streaming down my face.
I didn't even notice Kate was concerned about me because I was still fixated on my fear coming from Eve's cold, angry countenance. Kate tapped my shoulder, trying to get my attention. It ended up working as I diverted my attention towards her, but I was still watching Eve approach me slowly, teeth showing, claws out. My heart rate increased even more. Kate looked into my eyes, probably noticing that I kept looking at her then back at her mother. She followed my trajectory and noticed her Mom slowly moving towards me. "MOM! Humphrey and I didn't repopulate! Marcel and Paddy were just kidding!" Kate shot Marcel and Paddy a glare that told them 'say anything else and you're dead.' I remember that morning. I was asleep, then Kate and I rolled over to a position where it looked like we were rubbing noses, then as immature as they are, Marcel and Paddy come out of nowhere and automatically assume that we were kissing. That sort of pissed me off but I didn't show it. I don't think anybody would want to see the angry side of me.
Marcel and Paddy immediately flew away after they saw Kate's fury in her eyes. To me, her eyes look the same as usual, but maybe to others instead of seeing a pupil, they see a fire. Eve got up, dusted herself off, and said, "Oh, okay! Sorry, Humphrey." She had this expression where it looked like she was still concerned but was still disappointed with herself. I've never seen an expression like that in a long time.
That expression reminded me of- "Hey, Humphrey! That's my dog!" Salty yelled as he and my other friends ran at me. "WOLF PILE!" Salty pounced on me as well as Shakey and Mooch. I started to laugh, missing all the times where we would do this at the most random of times. I looked up at the big crowd surrounding me; they all seemed to love the comedy, surprisingly. Kate was sitting right in front of me, laughing as she laid down to meet her eyes with mine and kissed me. This day can't get any better, can it? We broke the kiss and I just couldn't get over how I actually married the girl I was after all my life. All of a sudden, she got up, started laughing and jumped on top of the wolf pile.
The crowd surrounding us started laughing even more as Lilly got on top of the wolf pile. "Okay, guys, you're crushing me..." I managed to speak out between my big gasps for air. I was getting crushed, but I was having fun while getting crushed. It's something that most people will find scary, maybe even depressing, but not me.
"Oh, let me join in on the fun!" Garth yelled out as he started charging to the wolf pile. I started to panic, trying to squeeze myself out but to no avail. Garth was getting closer.
"No, no, no, no. Let me out. Let me out. Let me out!" I managed to yell before Garth jumped to the top of the pile.
(Time Skip)
'Barf is getting on my last nerve...' I thought to myself as I took a sip of water from the lake. I've seen Paddy swimming around in here with his eyes closed a couple of times but I never knew why. I always presumed that this was the place he comes to think since that was how he was. As I took another sip I heard a twig snap from behind me. My heart started racing. I've never been told what to do in this sort of situation since I never really had a father figure or a role model of some sorts. Maybe acting all big and strong would scare the creeper away? NO! How can a wolf like me look all big and strong? The only thing that shows resemblance to me is a small twig. I sniffed the air but couldn't pick up any scent. I could see the grass swaying back and forth right in front of me. Wait, there's no wind... All of a sudden, something with a color of a tannish yellow pounced on me and sent me into the water. I landed on my back in the water, causing me to wince at the time of impact. I got out of the water with a paw on my back. I looked down at my paw and noticed a little bit of blood staining my fur. 'Must've landed on a rock or something' I thought to myself as I looked around for the thing that pounced on me.
I heard some laughing coming from inside a bush about two yards to my right. I recognized that laugh immediately. It was Kate. I started to laugh along with her. "Alright, Kate. I know it's you. You can come out now." I said as I watched her emerge from the bush. Of course, she looked beautiful like she always does. It's like a natural talent for her. "Wow..." I slipped out as I struggled to get up with an injured leg.
Kate smiled and said, "'Wow,' what?" I got some feeling telling me that she knows that what I was thinking when I spit the word out.
I smirked and said, "You are so beautiful." Kate blushed and looked down at the water and started drinking. I started to move towards her, planning to pounce her to get even with all the times she pounced me back when we were just pups. Right when I was about to pounce her, she looked up at me. Being the stupid Omega I was, I looked away from her immediately and starting to whistle a song. 'Very smooth, Humphrey.' I thought to myself as I looked towards her. Kate had a 'really?' expression on her face. "Aw, come on was it that obvious?" I'll admit, I was pretty salty at the moment.
"Did you really think that I wasn't going to hear you walking through the water?" Kate asked as if she was talking to a kid who was making up such an unbelievable story. I facepalmed myself and started to chuckle, which got a chuckle out of Kate as well. We just started laughing simultaneously, just as if we were kids again. I walked up to her and kissed her, which Kate gladly accepted.
I broke the kiss and backed away from, getting another good look at her. I smiled and asked, "Kate. What did I do to deserve you?" Kate blushed again and moved towards me. I smiled as I knew what was coming to me, but it didn't turn out as I expected. Kate pushed me on the ground and go on top of me. "Kate, what are you-.." Kate interrupted me by kissing me. I gladly accepted her kiss and closed my eyes. I wanted to savor this moment, keep this memory locked up in an inescapable chest. I broke the kiss and said, "Kate, shouldn't we go somewhere more private?"
"Oh just shut up," Kate said as she kissed me again. I was pretty surprised by her behavior at the moment, but I didn't really care. In the middle of our romantic moment, there was a drop of water that landed just to the right of me. I opened my eyes and looked to my right, trying to figure out what it was.
-Crack!-
Kate immediately jumped off of me and checked her surroundings. I always loved the Alpha instinct in her and to be honest, it could be scary sometimes. Rain started to pour onto us as we were looking around us. "Aww, I thought this was about to get exciting..." Kate said, chuckling right after. I looked at her and chuckled myself. "We should probably get out of the rain."
"Wow, thanks Captain Obvious," I said as I shook myself off. "Race you to the den." I immediately took off, sprinting as fast as I could towards our den.
Unsurprisingly, Kate ended up beating me to the den even though I had like a ten-second head-start. And of course, Kate rubbed it in my face, making me chuckle a little and shake my head. Seriously though, how can an untrained Omega beat a strictly-trained Alpha in a race? It's basically impossible. But hey, Omegas seek to have fun, when they lose. Kate always talked about how Alphas never "had time" to have fun when she was a pup, while the Omegas were constantly having fun. Maybe it's just because Alphas were the ones doing all of the work and keeping everyone alive.
Kate and I entered the den whilst talking about the little race we had. "Kate, come on you don't have to rub it in my face that much."
"Aw, I'm sorry, Humphrey, am I upsetting you after I just whooped your ass in a race when you had a ten-second head-start? Oh, I'm so sorry, Humphrey, next time I'll make sure to give you a twenty-second head-start." Kate said cockily.
"Oh, you're gonna be like that, huh?"
Kate laughed and added, "Yeah, what are you gonna do about it?"
"You really wanna know?"
"What? What are you gonna do?" Kate said in between laughs.
"I'm this close, Kate," I said to Kate with a little gap made with my paw.
"Show me then."
We were pretty talking in unison at this point. I smirked and pounced on her while both of us were laughing. While being on top of her, I leaned down and kissed her, which she gladly accepted. Kate put her paw on my face and brought me closer, deepening the kiss. In the midst of us kissing, the sounds coming from outside faded away as if we were getting further away from it. There was another sound of thunder, but it didn't surprise us then. Our love was towards each other was too powerful.
Kate broke the kiss and got up. I looked at her in shock; I didn't think she would break up the kiss so soon. I looked at her and got a feeling that something was bothering her, so I asked, "Kate. What's wrong?"
"Humphrey, I know we just got married today but I was wondering if you wanted to start a family..."
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, Kate, slow down. Did you just say that you wanted to start a family?" Kate nodded as a response. "Kate, I mean..." I sighed and put my paw on my face to try and make more sense od this. "Kate, look, I'm not saying that I never want to start a family, but Kate it's just too soon..."
Kate frowned and looked at the ground. "Yeah, I guess..."
"Kate, I'm sorry but..." I sighed. "It's just too soon."
"Humphrey, there's nothing to apologize for. You're right." Kate chuckled. "It's too soon."
I walked over to her, put my paw on her face, and turned her towards me. I smiled when my eyes met hers; she smiled too. We kissed. I don't know how but this kiss just seems more significant over the others. I don't know but there was just something about it that made it special. Sure, it doesn't beat our wedding but wow... Kate broke the kiss and yawned.
"Wow, I mean you could have had a more polite explanation as to why you broke the kiss," I said as I got up and stretched out my legs.
Kate laughed and said, "Oh shut up you goofball."
"Goofball? That's a first." I said, chuckling immediately after. Kate laughed too, embarrassed by her response. I walked over to the back of the cave, circled around twice, and laid down. I patted down a spot right next to me, which made Kate lay down right next to me.
Kate leaned on me as she slowly fell asleep. 'Wow, that was fast,' I thought to myself as I continued to look out of the den. 'Humphrey, you're now married to an Alpha, you're going to be the leader of the pack soon, and you got people depending on you. You'll need to step up your game.' I laid my head down in between my paws and closed my eyes, making me fall asleep almost instantly.
A/N. Aaaand that will conclude the chapter! Hopefully, you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it. Anyway, I know you guys/gals are asking why I was gone for so long. Well, it's going to sound ridiculous, but I got addicted to Fortnite. Yeah... I let that game get the best of me. I've also been dealing with school. I have a college level class and, well it's no joke. It's always the same cliché excuse, huh? School, my girlfriend, family... I know. Hurts to say it but sometimes I just don't even wanna write. I don't even know why... Anyway, I'm back for now and I'm ready to write. I hope you guys/gals read more! Review, favorite, follow, or all of the above. Any of which is highly appreciated! :)