This is based on the manga mostly… which means the characters survive in the end… I will still have the fight with Darcia… but it won't be anything like in the show. I do not own any of the original characters of Wolf's Rain… nor the story line… no matter how much I want to…

"FATHER!" Aki howled, limping heavily trying to reach the pack before time ran out. Tsume looked back, the familiar face drifting over him. 'Aki…' he thought, turning on his haunches. In front of her ran the two whelps she saved from the crazed pack. Brothers. The elder of the two looked back at her, "C'mon Aki… we're almost there," he said, encouragingly. Aki limped faster, blood dripping from her fur. Her vision blurred and she felt weaker, the ground shifted beneath her. Everything was fading; the last word she heard was her father's gruff cry, "AKI!"

"Anyone who has ever heard it when the land was covered with a blanket of snow and elusively lighted by shimmering moonlight, will never forget the strange, trembling wolf cry." Unknown

A Pup by the Name of Autumn

A young pup with grey fur walked stiffly through a small forest. Her amber eyes full of loneliness. She was alone, her mother made sure of that. She was told that if the pack new that she was alive… they would kill her because of who her father was. Yet… she didn't even know who her father was. She was given the name Aki, which was the name her mother told she was born with. How did she survive? Her mother left her among a nearby group of humans when she was born. But, disaster took hold of the human family, and Aki was alone once more. The human's death exposed Aki to her wild side… even though she had only been with the humans for a month or so. She contemplated about what had happened to her over the last little while. The death of a human friend, who seemed to understand her perfectly… he was an orphan, like herself. His death pained her more than her mother chasing her away, even if it was for her own safety.

Voices could be heard ahead of her, all of them male. She lifted her head, if they were humans, she would not fear them… if they were wolves, she would greet them. A scent blew past her; it was flowery, sweet, relaxing. Like a sort of ecstasy. It made her tail wag. More scents, all wolves. All stopped as they met, Aki, standing still watching them. The one with the sweet scent approached her.

"This one… will lead you home," she whispered, her voice mystical, "this one… wishes to know young pup's name."

"Aki…" Aki responded without thinking. She looked past the flowery scented girl at the wolves. The white one, obviously the leader, approached her as well.

"Where are you from?" he asked.

"East," Aki said, catching an older grey wolf's attention. He had an x'd scar on his chest.

"What's up Tsume?" A reddish furred wolf asked, noticing the grey wolf's expression.

"Nothing," Tsume growled, 'my old pack was in the east…' he thought. Something was strangely familiar about that pup.

The reddish furred wolf padded forward, "so, Aki, are you going to Paradise too?" he asked.

Aki tilted her head, "Paradise…?" she asked.

"Yeah… you can't tell me you've never heard of it," he said.

Aki shook her head, "never have…"

"Oh… I'm Toboe by the way… and that's Kiba… Tsume and Hige," Toboe said, pointing out each of the wolves.

Aki looked carefully over each wolf, Tsume seemed a little familiar… but surely she'd remember a wolf as scaring looking as him.

"Well… are we going or what?" Tsume asked, growling and shoving past Hige.

Kiba looked down the path that Aki had just walked down, and began leading the pack down it.

"Here, Aki, you can walk with me," Toboe said, taking up the rear.

Aki smiled up at him, "thanks."

"Just so you know kid… if you fall behind we're going to leave you behind," Tsume growled back at her.

Aki stuck her tongue out at the back of his head, which made Toboe snigger. "Toboe… why are you going to Paradise?" she asked.

"I guess for the same reason all wolves seek it… true freedom," Toboe said.

"True freedom?" Aki asked.

"A world without humans to hunt us," Hige explained, dropping back along side them.

"Oh…" Aki said, "is that what that lady…"

"Cheza," Toboe clarified.

"Right… Cheza, meant when she said she'd lead me home?" Aki asked.

"I dunno… maybe she meant that Paradise is in the east… you said that's where you're from," Hige said.

"I am from the east… but I can't go back," Aki said.

"Why not?" Toboe asked.

"The pack will kill me… or at least that's what my mama said," Aki said.

"Why would they do that?" Toboe asked.

"Because… of who my father is…" Aki said.

"Who's your father?" Hige asked.

"I… don't know…" Aki said, a little sad, her ears flattened.

"Come on… we're falling behind," Hige said, beginning to run to catch up with Tsume, Kiba and Cheza.

Toboe and Aki also ran forward.

Kiba stopped at a cliff, after taking a turn off of the path Aki had taken. He looked back at her then at Tsume, a small sly smile on his face. Hige and Toboe may not be able to smell it… or see it, but he could… and that's why… he had to make them see… what he saw.

As Hige, Toboe and Aki caught up, they saw a wasteland before them. "We have to travel across that?" Aki asked.

Kiba just nodded, "if you get too tired… just say so," he said, putting his plan into action as he lead the pack down the steep slope. "Be careful about the slope," he called back.

Aki blinked, was he just being nice to her… or did he see something that he liked about her and decided to take her in. She didn't know… but it made her feel good, to know that someone cared about her… made her feel good.

"This one will help Aki as well," Cheza said, smiling at her.

Aki wagged her tail, the smile making her feel as if she were high. She careful stepped down the slope, slipping every so often, but not falling. She looked at the land ahead of her, finding the land before her. It reminded her of the blissful summer, hot and sticky… humid, which would eventually lead into autumn. The beautiful autumn, where the moon was at it's peak. Autumn… her namesake… Aki, which meant Autumn.

Spring comes with flowers, autumn with the moon, summer with the breeze, winter with snow. When idle concerns don't fill your thoughts, that's your best season.
-- Wu-Men