-The Jungle Guardians-

"I..I suppose so. I'm going for a walk then." replied Anubis hotly, turning to walk away. Serenity nodded, saying,
"I'm going to stay here, I'm so exhausted! Plus I'll make use of that lovely den over there." They both laughed, and parted ways. Ren padded over to the tree and curled up within it, on Anubis' side, so that Talla's scent remained there.

Anubis, however, walked along the small path to the spring and lay next to Talla's grave, staring into the water. He sighed.
"Everything's different." he whispered.
"Things change." replied a voice, startling the male wolf. He stood up sharply and twisted his head around, looking for the owner of the voice. Finally, after a long moment of silence, he stopped by the bank, feeling like he was being watched, and glanced into the water. His own reflection stood there, and suddenly another stood beside it. Talla. Anubis turned to look behind him and saw nothing. He was getting spooked now. As he stood there, staring into the water, Talla's reflection smiled, blue eyes crinkling.
"Things change" she repeated, and her picture started to fade.
"No!" cried the male, but as his reflection became soliatary, he dashed the water with a paw, angry.
"What is that supposed to mean?" he whined, looking towards the heavens.

"Ah don't worry! We can spend more time together tomorrow..and maybe I won't be the only alpha around here anymore." She looked at him mysteriously and licked his cheek. Then she turned and galloped away like a pup

Taka stood there, shocked, him, an alpha!? He sat down heavily, from Omega to Alpha, it was a huge jump. Taka, after a while, stood and made his way back to the pack, on the way he spotted Anubis. Taka walked up behind him, "He..my, what happened to you, you look like you've seen a ghost" he said, smiling good-naturedly.

Anubis bristled at the voice, his emotions toying with him, he briskly whisked around and glared at Taka.
"Everything's fine, except for our alpha being misplaced at the moment." The male wolf stalked off, not even looking behind him to bade farewell to his sister.

Fireheart returned to the main den and walked up to her normal spot. She lay down at the top and yawned.

Taka lost his temper and growled, he leaped at Anubis, grabbing his scruff and wrestling him to the ground, he snarled, showing his, now, blood-stained teeth.

Anubis, caught by surprise, went down but immediatly rose back up, growling ferociously. He was the best warrior in the pack, and no omega was going to take him down without a fight.
"Step down," he warned gruffly, his emerald eyes hardening to reflect their jewel like appearence, "Now."

Taka stood defiantly snarling, he would not back down. "Come on then!" he growled, standing ready.

Anubis looked past Taka to Talla's grave, sitting there innocently, and then to the water, of which he could still here her voice ringing like ripples. The male wolf sighed.
"I refuse to fight an omega," he replied smoothly, his anger dashed to ashes by Talla's voice, "Especially one as idiotic as you." He turned away once more, knowing he needed to check in with Fireheart.

Taka laughed, "COWARD!" he shouted behind him, "I'm not an Omega anymore"he added, grinning and licking his top lip.

Anubis halted and took his time slowly turning to face Taka, his orbs like emerald flames.
"Then what are you?" he growled through clenched fangs, fearing the answer.


Serenity awoke, happy-go-lucky, and saw Fireheart perched in her usual position. Ren bounded up to the alpha and smiled.
"Hey, where've you been?" she asked, giving the female a grin and an eyebrow wiggle.

"Well lets just say i'm higher in the food chain than you!" Taka snarled, baring his teeth. He looked Anubis straight in the eye, emerald meeting emerald.

Fireheart smiled at Ren, "Hi! I was just out exploring and talking to taka!" Fireheart then stood, hearing many growls and yells. She ran out of the den and towards Taka and Anubis, "HEY HEY HEY! Knock it off!"

Anubis turned to look at Fireheart, his face the epitome of death glares and appallingness [?]. Serenity, whom had bounded after the alpha, was actually a bit frightened of this new Anubis, she'd never seen him like this. It was a phaze reserved for battle.
"Tell me..." he said slowly, teeth still clenched, almost whispering, "Tell me it isn't true. This.... this wolf is not your mate."

Firehearts ears went back, she loved Taka dearly and that must have been why she had totally forgotten about what the others might think of him being alpha. She had a feeling he would be good for the job but she had terribly forgotten Anubis's and Taka's rivalry...she sighed and then stood tall, "Only if he accepts...." She managed to say in a gruff alpha-like voice

The male wolf's heart seemed to break. He loved Fireheart like a sister, and loved his pack more than anything now that his only other family had died, but Taka was another story. There was something in the wolf that Anubis didn't like, and the way Taka had bragged about his power before he'd even had it was proof. Anubis' eyes widened and then narrowed in bitter fury. He looked down.
"Then we are no longer friends, Fireheart, but enemies," his voice rose from a gruff undertone to crystal clear words. "I am leaving the pack....alone if that may be so."
"Not alone. I go with Anubis," piped up Serenity, stepping to stand beside him. He looked at her worredly, and then accepted her judement with slight thrill. The only thing he would miss dearly was his sister's grave, but Taka could not keep him from visitng it in the dead of night.
"This isn't finished," he growled to Taka, before loping away to find his own territory and raise an enemy pack that would rule the whole forest.

[no, he's not evil...he'll come around, i'm sure : P]

Fireheart turned away and walked up to her ledge, she could see across the entire valley at the top of it and she watched Anubis and Ren run away. She looked down at her paws and started to sob slightly, she hated herself and wasn't going to come down for a long time. It was her private ledge and she allowed no one to come up there, everyone in the pack knew that

The heat the moment had gone and Taka stood alone in the rapidly fading light. The brown wolf lay down, paws over his eyes, he growled and cut into his scalp with his sharp claws, warm blood meandured down his face. "Why do I always mess everything up!" he snarled. *I need to talk to Fireheart before I lose her* he thought, standing he wiped the blood from his maw and made his way towards Fireheart's ledge. "Fireheart?" Taka called into the darkness.

Fireheart turned to see Taka, "Yes?"

"I..I'm sorry, I didn't think" he said sadly, dipping his head, "hurting you is the last thing I wanted" Taka continued, taking a careful step forward.

Fireheart got up and liked Taka, "It wasn't you who made me sad..its Anubis..."

"Where are we going?" asked Ren. The shewolf could only see Anubis ahead of her, a lighter gray form, in the quickly darkening night, and he did not answer her, just kept padding along. After a long while, when Serenity had almost lost sight of him, he stopped, and she bumped into him.
"Sorry," she whispered, sitting down and sighing from exhaustion.
"'s alright," he replied lowly, sniffing the air. "We'll stay here for the night and continue on the morrow. It's too dark to move, and right now we're in no-man's land. Tomorrow we'll head for the hills and begin our territory on the other side of the cliffs -Talla and I went on an expedition there before, and I know it well. We'll use the surrounding valley to catch loners on their way to the watering hole and hope they'll help our cause."
"Uhh, Anubis?"
"Yeah, Ren?" he replied, slumping downward onto the ground and curling up.
"What exactly is our cause?" She mocked him, leaning her back against his for shared warmth. He did not answer, and feigned sleep. The she wolf sighed, and followed suit.

Fireheart turned around and glanced over her land, she looked down and sighed. But she still waited for her loves answer

Taka just sat, silent for a moment, "do...do you really think he'll start a war between this pack and his own? I can't see Talla wanting that, I thought he wanted to do what she thought would be the right thing to do" he said, pondering.

"No..I'm pretty sure Anubis would never do something like that.." Fireheart tried to have a confident expression, but deep down she did have a fear that something like that would happen...