Sleeping peacefully, Anaya would be awakened by the sound of voices, which brought her to look out in front of her and spot the woman from that night. There was the man too, and this time there was a young boy with them with red hair and red eyes. 'H-How long have they been staring at me???' She stared at the woman who was the closest to her, and it was almost like a staring competition was going on between the two.
"It is strange how this baby has not cried yet. Do you think she got hit on the head?" The woman worried.
"Mother, why did you bring such a bug here?" The little wolf boy asked this time and actually pinched Anaya on the cheek. It was really hard, so she could not help but cry.
"Uwwaahhh!!!" Anaya actually cried for the first time, and it was indeed a painful pinch on the cheek that no one had ever done before since she was born there.
"Cadmus! That is not what you do to your baby sister! She is very fragile. Human babies are much more fragile than beast babies." Cadmus's mother carried Anaya in her arms while gently soothing the infant's back with her hand.
The older wolf man would stare at the woman, "Junica, you know that the elders disapprove of a human child here. Raising a human in a beast's land is... it will bring many to be against it. Do you know that this can be dangerous?"
"Zaki, she is just a child. A baby, in fact. I cannot let her be left out to starve and die."
Anaya would stop crying and now listen closely, staring at them but knowing that she would need their help in order to survive in this world. She knew their names now, but it was going to be hard to find her family since it was clear that both beasts and humans did not seem to want to live in peace.
"It is not our problem. Jun, I know that we recently lost ours, but we cannot take in a human child and raise them in a beast's clan. For years, humans have always seen beasts as nothing more than monsters. What makes you think that she will not grow up and end up getting the pack killed?" It was harsh, but he spoke his mind and truth about it.
"I will not abandon her! She was found and happened to be lucky to live from falling down the waterfall. What if her mother shielded her during the fall from the waterfall? It is a miracle that this child is alive. I will not abandon her no matter how much you insist that I do!" Junica would argue back with her mate, and it was clear that she was not going to lose in this.
Cadmus went up closer to the little baby, being more gentle now. He went along to almost poke her before Anaya held his finger. There was a moment of silence...
'This is what they must mean by having a baby sister!' Cadmus was almost enchanted by this little baby, "Father! Can we please keep her!?" His heart was full of love and determination for a baby sister now. He was an eight-year-old boy who wanted a baby sister.
"Cadmus we ca-" Zaki was about to deny it until he had been cut off.
"Yes, you will have a baby sister. I saw a little stitching, and it seemed like her name was Ana." Junica was not going to argue with her mate of a husband any further. She was going to start caring for the little infant.
Zaki looked at his mate, knowing that it was his loss. If she had made up her mind, then there was nothing that he could say to change it. He had to inform the elders that there was no way that they could get rid of the human baby. The good thing was that he was the alpha of their pack, while the elders were there only to assist. No one can go against his orders.
'I have to win these people's hearts! I have to survive! This world will come to an end if I do not stop the Infection from spreading further. That anaconda had so much strength and grew so large because of that Infection that it came into contact with.' Anaya had to hurry and grow up and did not want to waste any chance of surviving.
"Mother! Can I play with Ana when she gets much older!?" Cadmus was really excited. This wolf boy did not seem to mind having a human for a sister. All that mattered to him was that he had a baby sister to care for.
"Of course, my son. Your sister is a part of the pack. You have a sister to protect from the day that we found her, and the day she takes her first step, the day she gets married." Junica told them.
'You beings really do not know. I am still a goddess. It is forbidden to allow a god or goddess to fall in love with a mortal being. It is against the laws.' Anaya knew very well that she could not fall in love or be with a mortal. Just then...
Grrrrrrggg
Anaya held her stomach and blushed red, and she was hungry now. 'This is just shameful! How can the goddess of this world show such signs of hunger at this time?!' She went on to babble, wishing that she was just left to die now.
"Oh, she must be hungry now." Junica giggled. "I have to feed your baby sister right now." She went on to the bedroom that she shared with Zaki and had herself feed their new daughter.
'I guess I have to do this until I can leave this pack. It is true that no human should be in a beast's pack.' Anaya knew that it was going to be some time before she could get herself on her feet.
***
Brut held his mourning wife in his arms, knowing just how saddened she was about losing their daughter. Their only child, she was their miracle, and now they had lost her. "Remi, I will see if I can have some men with me to find her. I will find our daughter no matter what." Brut wasn't going to stop looking for their daughter. Yet, he knew that it was going to be hard to get or gather men to help find his daughter.
Remi hugged her husband tightly, "Please, I do not want to lose you too. Please." Remi felt like she was going to shatter and crumble if she lost her husband. It seems like she has already come to the conclusion that their daughter is gone since the waterfall is so steep down.
Not wanting to hurt his wife even more, he did not urge on with the fear that she would lose her mind if he persisted that he would go on to look for their daughter.
***
Anaya was almost a year old now, barely walking around the forest and trying to catch the little bugs there out of boredom while Arok watched. However, every time she approached the bugs, they would move away and hide, making it difficult for her to catch them.
While she was preoccupied with trying to catch a small butterfly, a little wolf boy who was a bit bigger than her would sneak behind her and push her to the ground. It was one of the pups who belonged to a hunter-wolf. “Why do we have to keep a human like you around? You only stink and are a danger to us more than the animals for food.”
'That damn pup always does this whenever the adults are not paying attention. Always thinking that he can pick on me.' Anaya did not like this kid or the other hunter since he acted the same as his son. They said that the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. Arok just hung onto Anaya in the back of the head.
“We should just toss you back into the river where you came from. Maybe that’s why your parents tossed you away. May-”
The boy was cut off when Camdus kicked him down with his arms crossed. “Who said that you could bully my sister?” He stood over the young wolf, who was much smaller than the eight-year-old Camdus.
Camdus was a good big brother. ‘I didn’t think that he would show up and beat the kid down.’ Anaya did not even bother helping or assisting since she was still a baby, but it was better to watch and enjoy the show.
“No one! Your sister is nothing more than an outsider! I’m going to tell my dad! You’re going to get into big trouble!” The little bully said.
“I think it will be you who gets into trouble for messing with the tribe’s princess.” Camdus did not care and kicked the kid to hit the others, who only stood and watched. Camdus went to carry his baby sister. “Ana! How are you?! Older brother came in time to save you!” Camdus sparkled like the stars, which made Anaya want to run—grabbing a daisy and holding it in her small hands.
‘If I could run, then I would right now.’ Anaya told herself. ‘Just endure it. I have to be patient with my creation.’ She sighed and clung to her older brother.
“You are such a quiet one! We need you to talk more!” Camdus carried his baby sister into their home and stumbled upon his parents acting all lovey-dovey. “Get a room.”
‘Something that I agree with once with you.’ Anaya actually agreed and looked away from Zaki and Junica, who were sweet and mushy.
“My babies are back!” Junica smiled and ran to hug her two.
“Mama.” Anaya held the daisy to Junica with a smile that sparkled on her face.
Junica smiled and took the daisy, giving a kiss to the baby, "I will put this into a jar." She felt complete with their little family even though she knew that the other wolves did not like her daughter.
“How are you two?” Zaki finally got used to his daughter, giving her a kiss on the head. Camdus receives another kiss on the head while looking at both of his children.
“Good! I beat up a bully who bullied my baby sister! He got it coming to him! No one gets away with bullying my baby sister!” Camdus announced with a little growl that escaped him. “That’s right! No one ever bullies your sister!” Zaki carried both children into his arms with a smile. “Shall we eat dinner?”
Anaya did not understand why they would keep raising her when she was nothing more than a human child who would leave one day. This pack was not her home; she had to seek out and find a way to save the world from the darkness. She wanted her powers to save and protect these beings that made her heart mushy and soft.
'I'm starting to worry. Will it take long before the Infection spreads and destroys everything?’ That ran through her head while she wished that it would not. Junica was there and saw how her daughter was so quiet that she grew worried. She prepared some soft food for Anaya since she was slowly growing those teeth.
“Is she not hungry?” Junica took Anaya into her arms, sometimes wondering why their little daughter acted so strangely.
Zaki and Cadmus would join, watching the little girl who was just in a frozen trance. The little girl was clearly lost in her own world and mind, unable to think of things when she was an adult.
'What will happen if I am too late? What if it corrupts this world to the core already?’ Anaya grew afraid but was brought back when Camdus pinched her cheek—painfully! “Uwwaahhh!!!!” She really did hate the pinch in the cheek. ‘I will get you back, you bully!!!’
“There, she is all better,” Camdus said and ate away again while both adults were shocked to see him just do that to his baby sister.
“You can’t do that to your baby sister!” Zaki said.
“Hey, it fixed her to cry and act her age,” Camdus said so boldly.
‘This little brat!’ Zaki and Anaya both thought at the same time with a glare at Camdus, who gave no care.
Junica laughed; she was just happy to see that her family was happy now. “Ana, don’t grow up too fast and stay by our side for a long time.” She smiled, hugging her daughter so much closer.
Anaya felt her heartache; hearing that from Junica, it was as if she knew that she could not stay with them forever, and she had a duty out there rather than in the pack. ‘I’m sorry, Mom.’ Arok slept on a branch, knowing fairly well that neither of them could live in peace like these people. That night was full of laughter and smiles with the crickets that kept on with their music of the night.
***
(Camdus)
