Softly the cold wind blew through the small town, bringing with it a howling noise that forebode of wolves and jackals. The wind tumbled and blew across the small town, chilling all who would walk by the blustery breeze. Everywhere the wind went, it seemed to echo the same sad, pained howl, that will usually accompany death.
This cold wind did not phase the young Sunset Shimmer, who was asleep in her bedroom with the blankets wrapped warm around her body. She was unaffected by the wind or the foreboding feeling that it had brought with it. Instead, her dreams were of friends and quizzes to ace. A sly smile came across her face as she dreamed of taking down another quiz monster. Thrusting her arms in the air, she let out a cheer in her sleep as she danced in victory in her head. Quickly, she tossed in her bed to demand another ice cream from her dream friends. Her victory in her mind was cut short, by a long mournful howl from the outside. Shooting up in bed, the teen wiped the sleep from her eyes and began to look around in confusion for the source of the sound. Curiosity piqued, she walked across the floor to the window and peered out. Seeing nothing, her first thought was to walk away from the window and go back to bed. But another howl quickly put her off the idea. With a roll of her blue eyes in exasperation, she went to her closet to throw on a shirt and underwear and began to walk outside. A bat at her side, she began to make her way down the cobblestone path that led from her home, “Who’s out there? I should warn you, I have a bat and know how to hit with it!”
Looking around, the teenager could see nothing but the empty space between her house and the car. With a sigh of annoyance, she turned to walk back into her home to go and sleep her dreams once more. She had not ventured much farther than back to the door, when a howl once again caught her attention. Letting loose a frustrated growl, Sunset turned her head to look back in the direction of the howl, only to see nothing. Before she could turn back to the door, the corner of her eye caught the sight of a small red splotch. With her curiosity renewed, she walked towards the small red pool.
After taking a few steps to the small red pool, she saw that the red liquid was a few shades darker than her own red hair. Kneeling down beside the pool, Sunny ran a finger along the vicious liquid and pulled it up to her face, “Blood? Is someone injured?” she asked herself as she stood back up to her full height. Looking closely from the pool of blood, she saw that it led a distinct trail from the pool and into the bushes near her house. Following it, she walked the trail into the bushes and pushed the greenery away to reveal a wolf laying on its side as the blood pooled around its back, “Oh my gosh, the poor thing,” Sunset whispered as she put a hand to her mouth. Kneeling to look at the hole in its side, she shook her head, “Someone probably shot it, thinking it was there to cause trouble. Why would someone kill a creature like this?” She thought to herself as she stood up to go get a shovel. That was when a whine and howl caught her ear. Turning to the sound, she looked over the side of the wolf’s corpse and let out a gasp.
At the wolf’s side was a little cub, about three months old. It was occasionally nudging its dead mother and letting out little mournful howls. There was an understanding sigh as Sunset could feel her heart melt at the sight, “You poor little thing. I’m so sorry,” she said, reaching out to try and pull the pup away from its dead mother. Unfortunately, the little pup barked and snarled at the intruder. Quickly, the redhead pulled her hand back, “Whoa, easy little fella. I’m not going to hurt you, honest. I bet I know how you feel,” she said, kneeling down to the little pup as it growled menacingly at her. She let out a igh and looked away from the growling canine, “Lost something important, now you are alone and want to prove yourself to the world. So, you’ll do anything, take on anything, and fight anything just to prove yourself to be the best there is. Even if it means pushing away someone who could be your friend, you just want to prove that you are the superior being. I’ve been there, it’s a lonely journey trust me. You just end up with lackeys and not real friends. Being feared isn’t the best way to go living, kid.” Sunny said softly as she stood up. Turning away, she began to walk back into her house.
Making her way to the kitchen, she opened the fridge to pull out some steak, “For once, I am glad to be living alone.” She said to herself, pulling out the meat and walking outside. Making her way to the spot where the wolf corpse laid, she saw the little pup ha now laid on its belly and began to whimper some more. Giving her head a little shake as the pup began to growl once more at her, she muttered, “It's hard to be a brave wolf when you are starving and whimpering little fella.” And then she laid the plate with meat in front of the growling little puppy. The wolf cub stopped growling for a moment and went to the meat. At first, it approached the offered food with caution, before taking the opportunity to give the food a quick sniff. After investigating the food, it sat on it’s hind legs and nodded at the offered meal.
Sunset took a step back and put her hand to her chest, “Well, I am so glad that you found my food so appealing. Please, your highness, let me know if I should peel you a grape or give thee a royal milk bath.” As she said this, the wolf gave a little growl of dissatisfaction at her comment. In response, Sunset put on a gentle smile and said, “I’m kidding little guy.” And then she stood up and began to walk back to her house. Stopping a few steps, she looked over her shoulder at the little pup and watched it as it ate the rest of its meal. She let out a happy giggle as the wolf gave out a contented yawn and fell asleep next to its empty plate. She then turned back to her house and went to bed.
The next day, at lunch time, Sunset sat next to her friend who was already into her meal, “Hey, Applejack, I need a favor.”
The southern girl turned up from her meal, her blonde hair peeking out from the Stetson that she wore on top of her head, “Well sure, sugarcube. What can I do ya for?” she asked, her southern drawl giving a sense of ease to the favor.
“I need help moving a body,” Sunset said, causing Applejack to spit out her drink.
“What?!” Applejac shouted, having to push her hat back into place after her exclamation. “Look, hun, I am your friend and all. But, putting away dead bodies is straight out! I don’t even want to know why you ended up killing somebody.”
“It’s not that!” Sunset said, shaking her hands defensively. “It’s a wolf that I found outside my house. See, last night, I heard a wolf howl, and when I went to investigate, I found its body behind some of the bushes. When I looked over, I found its cub nuzzling its body and howling.”
“What happened to the cub?” Applejack asked.
Sunset smiled as she poked around in her spaghetti, “I fed it. It’s probably asleep in the bushes right now, or at the very least playing around in the bush.”
“Wait, you fed the little fella?” Applejac asked, and as Sunset nodded in response, she asked, “Why? Why didn’t you just call the animal shelter on it?”
“Well,” Sunset said with a sigh, looking back from her food and into space in thought, “I kind of felt sorry for the thing. It just lost its mother, it was stuck now in a world it didn’t want, and it felt like he had something to prove. He wanted to show the world what it could do, but what it really needed…was a friend.”
“I see, “ Applejack commented, nodding as Sunset continued to talk.
“Wolves are so misunderstood, you know,” Sunset said, resting her head onto her hands. “ People just let their imaginations run away with them, letting the stories they were told about wolves take them over and judge them. For all the glory that a lon wolf gets, people forget that the wolf is only really powerful when there is a pack of them. They are stronger and better when they are together.”
Applejack smiled softly as she watched her friend look on in thought, her green eyes looking on in sympathy, “I think I get it now. You see a little of yourself in that thing.”
“I was a demon in this school, Applejack,” Sunset replied, letting loose a sigh as she did so. “I tormented people, made them scared of me, and put this place under my thumb. Why?! Because I wanted to prove that I was the best, that I was the most powerful girl in this school and deserved to lead everyone because I was better than what my mother thought I was, and I was the only one deserving of power. If it wasn’t for Twilight, I might’ve still been that monster and you would’ve still hated me.”
Applejack patted Sunset’s shoulder, “Yeah, I know, and Twilight helped you to see something better. And I’m glad she did, because I got to see what a great gal you are.”
“Yeah, and can you believe that there are still some people here who see me as a demon, in spite of the things I have done for them lately? They still think I am some sort of monster that will destroy their lives!”
“Who’s still insulting Sunny?” asked a raspy voice.
Applejack shook her head at the newcomer, “No one is, she’s just telling me about why she is caring for a wolf pup.”
Rainbow Dash, sat down next to Sunset and ran a hand through her hair to mess it up, “You’re taking care of a wolf cub? That is so cool! Shame Fluttershy isn’t here, she would go gaga over this kind of thing.”
“Yeah,” sighed Sunset,”Shame she went on that trip.”
“She took the others with her, you know! I mean, they get to go to an awesome zoo together and we’re stuck here all week!” Rainbow said, leaning back into her seat and laying her elbow onto the back of the seat.
As Rainbow began to complain about her missing three friends, Applejack took the time to ignore her and turn to Sunset, “So, how about I come by after school and I help you move the body.”
“Thanks AJ,” smiled Sunset as Rainbow Dash continued to complain.
“I mean, they get invited to go across the country, go to an awesome zoo and park, while we get stuck here! What, we aren’t allowed to have fun? For crying out…”
A few hours later, Sunset and her friend finished burying the dead wolf in the back of her house. Panting and wiping the sweat off of her brow, Abigail asked, “So, where’s the little cub?”
“I saw him earlier wandering the grounds,” said Sunset, panting. She then took a drink of lemonade before saying, “I think he’s trying to stake out his territory.”
Applejack chuckled as she heard movement behind one of the bushes. Walking over to the noise, she found the little cub walking around and pacing menacingly. Looking at it with affection, she reached down to try and pet him, only to pull back when he started to bark and yip at her. Shrugging, she put her fist onto her hip, “Well, will you look at that. No bigger than a minute and he’s ready to fight me to the death.”
Sunset smiled and chuckled at this, “Yeah, I know. He was kind of like that towards me. Still is.”
Applejack put her hand onto Sunset’s shoulder, “Give it time, he’ll warm up to ya.”
There was a peaceful look in her eyes as she sighed and said softly, “Yeah, it takes a while to build up friendship and a trust.” She then turned her head to watch as the little pup began to run around in the bushes.
Over the course of the week, she continued to watch the pup. Feeding it and watching walk around her yard became another part of her morning routine, making sure that the little cub was safe in her yard. Occasionally, she would try to get near it and play with the little thing, only to get a growl and bark in return. This would usually be responded with a roll of the eyes and shrug of the shoulders. She knew that he would be a little aggressive no matter what she would try, so taking it in stride, Sunset continued to watch the little cub be a little cub.
One day, just before the school day was done, she went to her library to do research on wolves. There was a smile on her face as she did research, feeling the most at home in a world where she could research and study. There was a warm feeling that came to her as she continued to look up wolves and cubs, happy to be in a place where her past didn’t come back to her. Her investigations were interrupted, though, when she heard some people talking. Turning around she looked at the source, “I am sorry, but did you say something.”
A burly teen chuckled, “I said, ‘kind of funny, one bitch looking up some other bitches.”
“Yeah,” the other teen smirked, giving out a laugh. “I mean, how often does that happen.”
“Oh, get over yourself,” Sunny said, getting out of the chair. “Are you still hounding me?”
“Well, you made life a living hell for my brother for a year, so yeah,” the burly teen said, “I am.”
“Hey, I only just came to this school, but I heard stories,” said the other.
“
They are only stories, and yeah, I was, but I’ve changed. What do I got to do to prove that?” she demanded.
“Go back in time, and stop yourself from being a bitch. Look, I don’t care what things you did for this school, once a monster always a monster,” he grumbled as he walked away, his friend following.
Sunset, for her part, stopped herself from chasing the two down and beating them. Instead, she sighed and walked back to her computer, whispering to herself, “Not worth it.” Then she looked back at her computer at the amount of wolf deaths that have occurred, “So misunderstood.”
The next day was a far happier one for Sunset, for she knew that her friends were coming home that day. There was a smile on her lips as she got out of bed, dressed, and down the stairs with a plate of meat for her cub. There was a part of her that was happy that her friend fauna would be coming and could help her check out her cub. On the other hand, she let out a sigh for fear that the soft spoken friend would tell her to get rid of it or call animal services. She tried to clear her head of the negative thoughts as she walked outside, hearing a painful howl as she stepped outside. Her eyes opened in horror, she dropped the plate and ran towards the sound. As she ran, she began to fear the worst of what was happening to her friend.
As she neared the source of the sound, her fears were sadly confirmed as she saw the cub with its leg in a trap and four guys standing in front of it, “See, told ya that son of a bitch was playing out here.”
“Yeah, Barbell, we got it,” said one of the boys. “Mite small though, what to do with it?”
Another one laughed, and aimed his gun, “Same thing we’d do with any other wild killer, shoot it!”
The cub whimpered and laid down, ready to die. But looked up when he heard a grunt and a shout. The little cub panted as it saw Sunset holding the firearm up with a scowl in her face, “Back away from my friend.”
“Sunset!? What the hel-“
“Isn’t it obvious,” said one of the men, cracking his knuckles. “The little skank cares for the pup. Well, I have been meaning to make her pay properly for her stunts back at school. Might as well do it now.”
Sunset looked at the four men with determined eyes, ready to fight. A snarl escaped her lips as the one on her right threw the first punch, only to be caught by a feminine hand, “Now seems to me, four against one ain't fair odds. Now, two to four? Those I like,” Applejack said, taking the fist and pulling him into a throw.
Sunset ducked under one fist, uppercutting her opponent and driving her elbow into his groin, “I had them Applejack.”
“Sunset, haven’t you learned yet?” Applejack asked, a smile gracing her lips.
“A friend is always there for one another,” Rainbow said, tripping one of the men before he could make a move on Applejack. Turning to look at her three friends, the sports gal gave a thumbs up and then turned to look at the last man. Gulping, the man looked to his three friends and turned to run away. Rainbow let out a confident chuckle, yelling out, “Yeah, that’s what you get!” with a quick turn from the fleeing bullies, the athlete smirked, “See, this is why my full name is Rainbow Bully-beater Dash! Because I kick butt!”
Applejack gave a roll of the eyes at her friend’s boasting, “You ok, Sunny?”
“You didn’t have to help,” Sunset said, a soft smile on her lips. “I had them.”
“it’s not so much having to help, sugarcube,” Applejack smiled, “it’s wanting to.”
“Yeah,” Sunsetnodded in understanding when her eyes shot up, “Oh my gosh, the cub!” Turning behind her, she saw the cub whimpering with its hind leg caught in a trap. With a gasp in horror, Sunset knelt down and began to pull apart the trap. As she did, she could hear footsteps behind her as her two friends ran off. The little cub gave a whimper as it looked to her, “Don’t worry, they won’t leave. .. They never will.”
True to her word, Rainbow came back with a phone, “Ok, Fluttershy has a room waiting for the little tyke, and Applejack is going to take us back in her truck.”
Sunny smiled as she pulled the cub free and wrapped him up in her leather jacket, “Great, I’ll head there right now.” She then looked at the whimpering cub in her arms, “See? What did I tell you, friends will never leave you, never leave.” She whispered the last few words to herself as she made her way to the truck.
It took only a few minutes to reach the vet where Flora worked part time, but the waiting in the room for news on the cub seemed to take hours. After a few minutes of waiting, Fluttershy came out with a smile on her face, “Well, you don’t have to worry, the cub will be fine. The trap only bruised her leg and scared her.”
“Her?” Sunny asked, “I thought it was a boy.”
“No, it’s a girl, trust me,” Fluttershy said. “And, it's not one-hundred percent wolf, it’s a wolf-dog.”
“How can you tell? It looks so wolf-like,” Sunny said, watching as Fauna put away her gloves.
Fluttershy smiled, “Well, it's hard to tell with a ninety-percent wolf like him, but he’s got the soft snout of a dog..”
“Well, thanks for the check up Fauna,” she smiled. Sunny then sighed, “So…what do you think I should with her?”
“Well, you could keep her or you could let her go. Wolf-dogs are hard to train and to keep, so I would be careful. OH, but um,’ Fauna then blushed as she looked away, her long hair covering her right eye, “If you want to to keep it, then that is ok too.”
A long and depressed sigh escaped Sunny’s lips as she nodded in confirmation of her friend’s answer and turned to walk into the room to pick the cub up, “Yeah, I know.”
Sunny stood in front of her door and sighed, “Ok, little guy. I know how hard it is to train and keep wolves or wolf-dogs. And I know you probably want to be free, so, go on and leave,” she said, looking down at the cub. With a sigh, she closed the door and went into the house. However a scratching at the door alerted her. Walking over to the door, she opened it and saw the cub sitting there whimpering, “What? I thought you would le-“
She stopped asking when she looked into the eyes of the young pup, the same eyes she herself had not too long ago. The eyes of a girl who needed someone to help her be better than she was, to see the world through new eyes, and to grow past her own selfishness. In the eyes of the pup, she saw someone who wanted and needed, a friend. Sighing softly, she said, “Ok, Flare. You can come in…hmmmm, that sounds like a good name. Flare. You like that name?” a playful yip was her response as the puppy ran into her house.
A cold and mournful wind blew through the small town, but for two occupant that rested in the house, there was only the warm feeling of each other.
Author's Note
I submitted this little story to my creative writing class as a test to see what would happen if I let some students help edit my story and offer suggestions about how to fix it. It was a fun a little experiment to try and I came to appreciate how smart and well written all of you are. This is the first of two such stories.
