The forest was quiet save for the faint rustle of leaves and the ripple of water. The Houndour had went for a drink away from her pack's spot, she knelt at the lake, lapping at its surface until her thirst was quenched. When she returned to the trail where her pack should have been, only silence greeted her. No barks. No howls.

Her ears twitched, tail low, as she padded deeper into the trees, calling out with a sharp bark, nothing answered. Her distress increased. The scent trail was muddled, fading. She pressed on, restless, until the underbrush thinned into a narrow dirt path.

A human stood there. A trainer.

Her hackles rose. She immediately got defensive, baring teeth, a growl, warning him not to step closer. Without her pack, she was more vulnerable so she had to protect herself.

“Stay back.”

She snapped the words like a bark, eyes fixed on him, every muscle taut, warning him that one step closer would be a mistake.