Howl of Ikkizia Book one Stars

Prolouge

It was pitch black in the Ikkazian forest. Wind tussled the branches of huge snarling trees and nothing moved, except a small spotted figure. A flat ear picked up for a split second, then dropped. The she-dog lowered her belly to the leaf-strewn ground and slid along it, tasting the air for danger. A big, gray husky sat in a clearing, waiting for her. As soon as he caught her scent, he walked towards her. Picking herself up off the ground, she licked the husky's muzzle in greeting and he licked her back.
"Hatzi, we're here alone now. Tell me, what is the meaning for this," the husky asked, settling down and fixing his wolflike blue eyes on her.
Hatzi sighed, and then started to talk, "Alot's been happening Khut."
The husky looked at her, as though absorbing her words, and nodded for her to go on. "Khut, I'm expecting a litter of puppies soon."
Now Khut's eyes widened. "You haven't told Azti yet?"
Hatzi shook her head. "No, I haven't. I just feel so bad for him, I know that he loves me, and I feel sorry I never told him, but oh Khut if I told him!"
The she-dog burried her face in Khut's deep gray chest and began to cry. The husky licked her soft brown ears. "It's alright. It's not like our love is wrong. We're from the same pack, it's alright for us to be together."
Shaking with tears, she looked at Khut. "But if the pack knew, so would Azti, he would be so hurt, so crushed!"
Burrying her muzzle back into the gray chest, Khut nodded and said softly "I know. When will they be born, Hatzi?"
"In seven sunrises, I think," she replied, still sniffling with tears.
"Alright. You should tell the healer in two sunrises, most pregnant females do unless they're caught early," murmured Khut. "And I'll be with you, so you won't have to go alone."
Hatzi nodded, eyes still red and swollen. "Let's go home," she sniffed, getting up to leave. And the wolf-gray husky and the white spotted she-dog padded away into the night, leaving the pitch black forest silent once more.