William dodged around the trees as he followed his alpha. He had no idea where she was going but he knew what was happening to his body and he knew that they had to find a dry place for the night to rest and get warm again. William wasn’t sure about the limitations of healers, but he didn’t want to put all of his faith in the fact the Aceso or Achelois could heal them from the life threatening ailment of hypothermia.
Aceso seemed to be moving faster now once she was inside the forest. The pine needles underneath gave them a little bit of a cushion from the mud that the ground had become but not much. Soon William’s fur was coated with flecks of it. Between the wind, rain, and now mud, he felt dirty as well as cold and wet. He allowed himself the luxury to imagine what a nice hot shower would feel like.
Aceso led them into a copse of trees. The trees did an amazing job of blocking the worst of the wind. William wiped off the mud that accumulated on his fur as best he could with the help of the freezing rain, then he huddled against one of the tree trunks to get out of the worst of it. With his coat more or less free of mud, and him being out of most of the wind and rain, he allowed himself to shake himself dry. He felt a little ridiculous doing it but maybe dogs had the right idea. He sprayed the tree with the moisture that had collected on his body. When he was done, he was mostly dry, still damp but at least no more standing water could be absorbed through his fur and rob him of more of his precious body heat.
He looked over to see that the others had followed his lead and had taken meager shelter under the trees as well. The others looked miserable. Katherine looked subdued and Nicolas looked ill. Standing out here under trees was a temporary solution. If the storm got worse the trees would offer very little protection.
Aceso barked into the night. It was odd hearing that and knowing exactly what she wanted to say. William and the rest of the pack moved away from their guardian trees and followed Aceso through the thick forest. Aceso was driven to find something, and she moved with the determination of someone who knew that something was there just not where it was. William knew that she was searching for a permanent shelter that could house all six of them. The storm blurred their vision and William had to trust that Aceso could find whatever she was looking for.
Aceso dove out of sight. She was there one minute and the next she wasn’t. William didn’t even have time to slow down before he felt the ground suddenly gone beneath his feet. He fell crashing through the darkness on his face. He raised himself up only to be pushed back down again by another unknown body that fell on top of him. He felt crushed as more weight was added to his back. He could visualize the four members of his pack falling on top of him like some kind of comedic slap stick scene. William grunted and pushed against the wet earth below him lifting himself up and the pile of werewolves that had accumulated on top of him. Startled sounds greeted his efforts and soon he was free from the weight that had been pressing on him.
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William left the pile behind as he explored these new surroundings. He could see but the cave, or wherever they were, was dim even to his eyes. He walked into the space away from the entrance and found Aceso sitting against one of the earthen walls. The ceiling was low and William couldn’t walk comfortably even on all fours. This place was dry and warm, and he was grateful for both.
The rest of the pack made their way in. Nothing was said and no words could express how happy some of them seemed to be out of that cold driving wind and rain. William didn’t even try to stay awake he lied down against the warm earth and almost instantly fell asleep.
He woke up slowly as if he had been dreaming. He couldn’t remember the dream but images of moon lit wolves running ahead of a storm filled his mind. He jerked himself awake and almost hit his head against the low ceiling. There was light coming from the tunnel entrance into the den and William could see clearly inside the shelter that Aceso had found for them.
The place was a lot smaller than he had originally supposed. Nicolas was pressed up against him and Charles was between his feet and one of the walls. The enclosed space had become very warm with their combined body heat. It wasn’t a stifling heat but not something that he would want to stay inside of for very long.
He gently raised himself up and pressing himself against the ceiling, he moved with pronounced care around Nicolas and Katherine. He nudged Charles on the way out but the black werewolf only looked at him, then closed his eyes and rolled over. William smiled to himself as he moved into the entrance of the shelter.
William smelled at the air. He couldn’t detect any scents of prey or human. He raised his head out of the small cave entrance and looked around. The storm had stopped but the sun gave little warmth. The trees still dripped with the rainfall from last night. Amazingly though he could see no deep tracks leading to their shelter. He got out of the den. The tunnel was a dug-out hole that had a rock overhang that sat upon a small rise. This had done an amazing job of keeping the rainwater out of the den, and keeping the den well hidden.
William felt very exposed. He felt like something was very close. He wasn’t afraid of what it might be. But the thought of being caught, of being discovered and jeopardizing the City under the Mountain was not something that he was ready to do. He ducked back inside the den and walked back around to his empty spot on the floor. The warmth of the den was reassuring and as he lay back down, he let the comforting darkness of sleep overtake him again.