BLUE’S MUSCLES WERE ACHING and her eyes were heavy by the time they finally reached Jenny’s pack. She stopped to eat a couple of lizards the pack had for a late night dinner, and went straight to bed.
“Psssst.” A voice echoed in the dark, early morning hours. Blue shifted uncomfortably.
“Pssssssst,” the sharp voice hissed.
Blue opened one eye and saw Raven. “Will you never leave me alone?” she asked, half-joking.
Raven wasn’t playing. “Training.”
Blue slowly raised her head and yawned. “Why so early?”
She dutifully followed Raven with no more protests, keeping quiet as to not wake the other pack members. She was rather surprised when she saw Jenny sitting on a rocky ledge.
Jenny was staring deeply at the moon with a puzzled expression on her face. Her concentration broke when she saw the other two.
“Oh hello, Raven and Blue.”
Raven dipped his head in respect. “Hello Jenny,” he said quietly. “What are you doing up this early?”
Jenny frowned. “Same question for you.”
Raven dipped his head again, and quickly responded, “More training.”
Jenny nodded her approval. She looked back at the moon. “I’m deciding whether this strange blood moon is a bad omen.”
Blue cocked her head to the side, and was taken aback by the reddish moon still visible in the morning sky.
“Well, you keep doing what you’re doing,” Raven muttered, turning to walk out of camp.
Blue followed behind, and soon they were padding along on soft marsh grass.
“Okay, Blue, let’s go. Pretend I’m one of Robo’s guards,” Raven said, taking his fighting stance once again.
Blue narrowed her eyes and said, “Got it.”
No longer a beginner, Blue slowly circled him, studying his body and looking for weaknesses. This time, she realized his back legs weren’t firmly braced.
Raven was sick of waiting, and lunged toward her, jaws snapping. Blue quickly veered out of the way. Raven regained his balance and lunged again. This time, Blue swirled around and clamped her jaws onto his back leg, tripping him. He was back on his feet within seconds.
Blue narrowed her eyes in anger. She was almost out of breath, and she knew that if she didn’t have a strategy and didn’t get her anger under control, she was going to lose again. She closed her eyes momentarily to compose herself; and then noticed a weakness. Raven was tall, even for a Great Dane, but also thin. If she slid correctly, she could possibly go under him and attack him from underneath. If he was a foe, it could be deadly: a direct bite to the stomach.
Blue smirked and ran toward him. Just as Raven prepared to strike, she slid to the wet ground, using the mud and sand to help propel her under him. It worked perfectly, and she gave him a small nip on the stomach.
There was only one problem: she continued to slide past him and into the rocky bank.
“Blue!” Raven’s panicked voice echoed in her ears. Blue attempted to get up—but no luck.
“Oh, thank Dog!” Raven yelped. “Don’t try to move,” he said.
Blue groaned, and again tried to rise to her feet.
“Here we go again,” Raven said. “You just ignored everything I said.”
He saw there was no stopping her. After a few false starts, it was clear that Blue was going to be okay. They started the journey back to the pack in silence.
Raven spent most of the walk back thinking about whether Blue—who kept making progress, but not fast enough—really could be the Chosen One. Blue, still aching and unnerved from her most recent injury, spent the time hoping she was not.
Once back with the pack, Blue rested from her head wound. Ash visited her often, chatting with her, and encouraging Blue to stop fretting and to relax.
“Healing the soul,” she said, warmly, “is just as important as healing the body.”
After some time, Jenny gathered Raven and Blue together. “Enough training. You need to meet your destiny—and it’s not staying with us,” she said, simply. “It’s time to leave.”
Jenny assigned a scout to walk with them to the edge of the pack’s territory.
The morning they left, Blue and Raven said their goodbyes to Ash and Rover. Rover licked them both with enthusiasm, his wounds healed and his heart firmly tied to his new mother. Jenny and the rest of her pack waited for them on the rocky marshland. They gave the travelers a formal salute, howling in unison in thanks for a much-needed victory.
Blue looked at the sky. It was a clear, sunny morning. She hoped it meant good fortune.