Ferox dipped his head and said a hasty, "Goodbye," then turned and ran all the way back to his pack, hoping that he'd be able to catch some sleep with whatever was left of the night, but he knew he wouldn't have the time. Outside of camp, he stopped to roll in a patch of sweet-smelling herbs to hide Laika's scent, then hurried into camp. Nobody was up yet, but it wouldn't be long before his Beta pair awoke. Sure enough, after only a minute or two, Slate emerged from his den, looking alert and ready for the days work. Ferox dipped his head in greeting, and Slate responded with a a shallow bow, no words exchanged between them. Most of the pack was up just after the sun rose, and Ferox began organizing the day's patrols.

Ferox had been right; his wolves had seen his anxiety at the Gathering. They challenged his authority constantly as he tried to organize patrols, casting rebellious glances at him, questioning his orders, and even downright disobeying him. Try as he might, Ferox could not control them. After nearly an hour of struggling, the patrols were finally off, and mentors began the instructing of their trainees. Once he was alone, Ferox wearily sank to the ground and closed his eyes, taking deep breaths to try and calm down. Almost immediately, he felt someone gently lick the top of his head and looked up sharply. Then he lowered his gaze respectfully. "Hello, Elder," he mumbled, greeting Oak.

Oak stood silently for a moment, then nudged Ferox, encouraging him to get to his paws. Ferox grudgingly did so, and Oak led Ferox out of camp and into a secluded part of the woods. "Ferox, is everything alright?" he asked. Ferox stared at him. "No, everything's not alright," he snapped. Then he took a step back and lowered his head. "I'm sorry, Elder," he apologized. Oak sighed and sat down, and Ferox followed his lead. "I know it's hard," he said, his voice strangely soothing. "All new Alphas struggle. Even Obsidian had a hard time at first." Ferox shook his head as he looked up at the Elder. "They're not like me," he said, his voice catching. "Do you not remember what happened- what happened with Shale? The pack isn't going to forget—or forgive—what happened to him! I was doomed from the start! Why did you pick me, knowing that I would fail?!" Ferox' voice rose in volume and anger again, and once again, he backed down, apologizing to Oak. The Elder regarded Ferox for a moment, then shook his head. "We chose you because we did not think you'd give up easily," he said. "We knew what had happened, and we knew it would be difficult, but we believed that you would succeed." Ferox looked up again. "It doesn't matter what you believe," he spat. "The rest of the pack believes I'm a failure, and I'm beginning to believe it myself!"

Ferox turned and ran into the surrounding trees, running nearly to the edge of the territory bordering the unclaimed lands, where he stopped, panting heavily. He growled, and the earth began shifting beneath his paws. He gave a loud, furious howl, and jagged spikes of stone ripped through the grass, erupting from beneath the ground, sending dust and debris flying. Ferox' howl faded, and he looked around, his anger suddenly replaced by shame. This was the first time he had ever let his emotions get the better of him, and as he stared around at the spikes jutting from the ground, he sank to the ground, taking a deep breath. He focused, and the stones slowly sank back beneath the ground, the only sign that they had been there was the loosed patch of disturbed dirt. Ferox waited for a moment, his head bowed, then stood up. "This will never happen again," he vowed to himself, then turned and slowly made his way back to amp.

Once all the morning patrols had been sent out, Ferox volunteered himself to help care for the Elders. He spent the entire morning cleaning out their den with the assistance of Granite, Slate's trainee, who Slate had assigned to the task of taking care of the Elders the night before. As Ferox and Granite were hauling old moss out to the edge of camp, the hunting patrol returned with its catch. "Why don't you go get the Elders and tell them that the hunters have brought back some prey," he said to Granite. "I can finish this." Granite gladly complied, running back to the Elders den while Ferox took the old moss out of camp and buried it.

Ferox returned to find the Elders emerging from their den, and he dipped his head respectfully before backing away to let the pack eat. Once everyone had taken their food, Ferox selected a small rabbit from what was left and carried it to a large, flat-topped rock sticking up from the ground that was reserved for the Alpha and whoever else he invited to join him. So far, Ferox hadn't invited anyone but Slate and his mate, but they had both declined. Ferox sat and ate quietly, watching the others socialize. Rosemary's rowdy pups were playing around their mother's paws, and Ferox watched them closely. 'They'll need mentors before too much longer,' he thought.

Throughout the day, wolves came and went about their business, and in a moment of free time, Ferox padded over to Rosemary. She noticed him and dipped her head. "Hello, Alpha," she said. "What is it?" Ferox looked over at her pups, who were wrestling not to far off. "Your pups are nearly old enough to become trainees, correct?" he asked. Rosemary nodded. "They've been looking forward to it for weeks now," she said. "They've been bugging their father about it nonstop for the last two days." Ferox nodded and looked back at Rosemary. "I'll find find them mentors," he said. Rosemary looked a little apprehensive as she asked, "Will you be taking one?" Ferox gave an inward sigh. "No, I won't," he said slowly. Rosemary looked relieved, then quickly covered up the expression.

Ferox turned and walked away, returning to the flat-topped rock. He hated reminders of what happened to Shale. He felt horrible about it already, but the fact that Rosemary didn't want him to mentor a pup made it so much worse. He wanted his wolves to trust him, but their full trust was something he could never obtain. He gave a sigh and glanced up at the sun. It was getting closer to evening, the shadows beginning to lengthen as the sun began its descent. Ferox suddenly brightened up a little. Tonight he could talk to Laika! He knew he could be punished severely for meeting with a wolf from another pack, but he really enjoyed talking to her.

An hour or two before sunset, Ferox began organizing the evening patrols. "Slate, pick for wolves and go to the border along the unclaimed lands," he instructed. "Ferrum, take four more and patrol the Ignis Lupi border. Steel, Crystal, Clay, you're with me." The group Ferox had picked showed some resistance, with Steel sitting down where he was and saying, "Why can't you send someone else?" It wasn't that he was lazy, he just didn't feel like taking orders from a wolf only a third his age. Ferox glared at him. "Because you're available, now let's go!" he replied. Steel shook his head. Ferox hesitated for a moment. He still wasn't used to having the higher rank, and his instincts told him that Steel was the dominant one here. Then he bared his teeth. No way am I letting this arrogant windbag get the better of me, he thought. He padded up to Steel, who gave him a smirk. Without warning, Ferox lashed out with a paw, slamming it into Steel's ear. Steel yelped, reeling back, then stood up. "I said, Get. Up." Ferox growled. Steel obeyed, but gave Ferox a dangerous look. I'll have to watch that one, Ferox thought grimly. The patrols were quick, but thorough, and they soon returned to camp. Ferox sat down in the entrance of his den, waiting for his wolves to disperse to their dens so he could sneak out.

(Lol yeah ^^)