Hyde woke with the dawn; as his kind had since birth.

Things now were different though, normally he would have a pack, albeit a small one.

Their warmth was missing.

His instinct was to find others–but instinct no longer ruled him the way it used to–and not the way it ruled the lives of his parents. Hyde perceived the matter of things more clearly.

Hyde was born of a specific species that had not existed very long, not as species measure things. In fact it could be said he was still in a malleable state in certain ways. True magic beasts; the ones born that way, they competed in an echelon of their own, which meant a stronger affinity but also a degree of rigidity.

It also meant that lesser quality sustenance would not do; that it could in fact corrupt. This ensured a thriving ecosystem underneath, since only a starving magic beast would resort to hunting their kind for sustenance.

All over Elderwood such simpler creatures grew up like weeds, evolving slowly but surely, all while competing for resources in the more mundane landscapes. The most successful generations could develop quickly, carving out their niche and slowly growing in some direction to suit their magic environment.

Mosswolves came from a region riddled with mundane volcanoes that clashed with bogs and marshes only occasionally bordered by gnarly forests.

The sacks of brackish liquid on their backs served to nourish the evolving mosses intertwining with their naturally bristling fur–bristling to ensure the moss underneath could get plenty of sun.

The development of the liquid leaking from the glands–which consisted of a bromine mix and allowed them to turn thermophilic for extended durations–was what had kept the mosswolves alive when their ancestors were first driven from the forests into the richer but more hostile volcanic areas squeezed between the coast and the Cloven realms.

Not that their oppressors would leave them alone there for long.

Many generations later Hyde and his even more evolved kind were driven in turn into Doc Forrest since apparently the Cloven had now invented some use for their lands.

The result being their forced migration into these lesser lands–having the pack mutilated by the Skills of the only worthy prey–and then later the need to feed on these lesser beasts, corrupting their development and causing a chain reaction to mutate their appearance in a sideways transmogrification; the natural progression of desperate times calling for desperate measures being taken too far… But Hyde knew he had the agency–and determination–to never do the same, even for his children.

He would live or die as an example.

Of course Hyde did not know the details of this, he just felt such matters deeply and knew what he was. An awakened beast of a proud lineage–on a journey to Spirithood.

----------------------------------------

Once Roldy had finally figured out what he was doing wrong in his relationship with his new pup he had been over the moon.

[Bond of the Forest] had allowed him to sense some of what the beast was thinking, but the distance between them was hard to interpret, leading the young [Druid] to make the precarious interpretation that his slaying of its parents and then putting their bodies to such use must be to blame.

Now it was clear that the unexpected sight had bothered Hyde, but that he ultimately preferred that all the hard work they had put into their bodies not go to waste.

Wolves were practical creatures and saw no use nor prestige in being eaten by maggots to feed the plants. Others were more fit to serve such a purpose; it was why the world was divided into prey and predator.

This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

Such basic communication was finally happening, and since it was Roldy's first magic creature to truly connect with him, he was finally starting to feel like a real [Druid].

But that didn't mean he would stop being himself.

Today had been slowly approaching the sleeping Hyde in the pre-dawn light.

One step at a time, slowly but surely over the course of half an hour–he was finally close enough–he poked the single leaf on the end of a stick into the sleeping wolf's snout. Now I just need to hold it for 10 seconds.

----------------------------------------

As Hyde slowly reacted to the suddenly looming presence he knew it must be his [Druid], or possibly his brother, of the fellowship; his nose would have alerted him earlier to anyone else.

Rather than wake up and react reflexively Hyde had managed to remain still; enough to figure out exactly what prank was being pulled.

He absolutely did not want to give Roldy the satisfaction of jumping up in fright like some toddler.

Of course that proved his undoing.

By the time Hyde realised the leaf being held against his nose was that of the tickle elm the bastard was already laughing and gaining volume with every second. The tickle grew in intensity at the speed of Hyde's waking mind, and he opened his eyes in a panic that almost made Harold fall over.

But just as he was about to rush up to a tree and drag his snout back and forth across it to get rid of the spreading tickle from the original pinprick; Roldy finally stopped laughing and stepped in for the save. "Come on, let me get it for you silly,"

The satisfying scratch that finally rid him of the ticklish particles was a Spirit send, and it even got his leg going, making Harold start laughing again; which hardly made it easy to forget him being the one responsible for causing the tickle in the first place.

When Hyde was finally feeling ready to withdraw his snout; his damning eyes said only one thing: Dick

Roldy still wore a huge smile. "Oh, don't be like that–I'm sure you'll get your revenge one day, it's all in good fun–I will be vigilant though, so don't be clumsy about it just because you don't have hands; that's no excuse!"

Hyde actually rolled his eyes, making Harold laugh once again. "Anyway, I came to get you because Livia apparently had you in mind for some scheme she's cooking up, you interested?"

The mosswolf had actually been figuring it was time to start contributing a bit more bluntly, he’d mostly been looking cute so far.

What with all the good food they kept procuring for him and all, even if it was no food from home; they had still helped him to establish quite the baseline, especially with all his hunting on top.

He conveyed his agreement and the two stepped to it, ready for another day in Doc Forrest.

"You know, I’m sure Livia probably picked it for some reason, no doubt something from home; but I really like Roldy. Roldy and Hyde, it has a ring to it, you know?"

The mosswolf seemingly ignored the young [Druid] as he loped ahead, but their growing bond conveyed his true feelings.

Agreement.