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Gwynifar's trip to Durotan was uneventful (for a change). She was settled at Razor Hill and given a bunk in the barracks there. Soon the orcs had her on a regular schedule, and she found that she liked being with them much better than at Silvermoon. For one thing, they didn't think it as important that she learn everything her former teachers taught, such as Silvermoon's history, or long poetry. Instead, she spent almost all her waking hours outdoors, learning archery, tracking, and survival skills. She thrived under this regimen, and her old tricks became a thing of the past.
One day her trainer had her go out and follow an animal track, telling her to report anything she learned along the way. She was carefully picking her way thru some bushes when suddenly, she ran into a young orc. Literally. After they disentangled themselves from each other and the bush, the two youngsters just stood and looked at each other for a minute. Gwyn saw an orc about her age, with a hatchet strapped to his waist and a bow and quiver on his back. She grinned disarmingly at him. "Heya, you're another hunter, aren't you? I'm Gwyn, who are you?" The orc blinked at her. "Uh, Treng. I'm still in training. Did they have you tracking this boar too?" "A boar? Is that what I've been following?" she asked, then laughed. "Shows how much I know, doesn't it? Hey, do you think they'd mind if we went together?" "Um, probably not. Which way were you going?" And just like that, the two young hunters became fast friends.
They spent that day together, and when they returned to give their report their trainers said nothing about them working together, so they did the same the next day, and the day after that. Soon it was apparent that they were becoming inseparable.
The orc trainers were quite happy with the friendship between Treng and Gwynifar. Although her training was keeping her nicely busy, Gwyn was still full of energy and mischief, and Treng had a calming influence on her. He often kept her out of trouble, by either talking her out of some prank, or watching her back while they were out on a training mission.
Finally the two youngsters reached the point when their trainers agreed they were ready for animal companions. After they got the announcement, Treng began wondering what kind of animal he would like. Gwyn, however, knew which one she wanted. The only problem was where to find it. She had seen older, experienced hunters in Orgrimmar, some of which had big wolves at their sides. As soon as Gwyn saw one, she was in love. She screwed up her courage enough to ask one hunter where she got her wolf. "Alterac Mountains, but I think that's a bit beyond your experience right now," the tauren hunter replied. Seeing Gwyn's crestfallen expression, the hunter took pity on her. "There are some near the human city of Stormwind," she said. "It's a long trip for someone your age, but if you really want a wolf, that's probably your best bet." Gwyn thanked her profusely, then went to find Treng.
When he heard what she had to say, Treng's jaw dropped. "But, Stormwind? That's so far away. It could take a week to get there," he said disbelievingly. But Gwyn was determined, and Treng couldn't talk her out of this idea. Soon enough, they set out, taking the Zeppelin to the base camp of Grom'gul in Stranglethorn Vale.
The journey that followed consisted mostly of running from one hiding place to the next, trying to avoid the savage animals that lived in the dense jungle. They passed out of the jungle into a dark forest, which they quickly found out was haunted by ghosts, savage black worgs, and strange wolf-men. At last they reached the edge of Elwynn Forest, home to the humans, very shaken by their experiences. But Gwyn soon forgot the hair-raising escapes they had gone thru, because almost as soon as they entered the cheery-looking woods, they saw wolves. Quite a large pack of them, actually. Gwyn and Treng watched them from a distance, then Gwyn turned away with a sigh. "None of these seem quite... right," she said to Treng. So they pushed on farther.
They had wandered pretty far, close to a large logging camp by all appearances, when they started hearing yips and squeaks. They looked at each other. "Sounds like just two of them," Gwyn said. They crept up behind a large tree and peered around the sides.
Not far from where they hid, two large wolf puppies were play-fighting. They were obviously young, but looked old enough that they had probably just left their home pack. Treng and Gwyn looked at each other, and they both broke out in huge grins. "Perfect," Gwyn whispered.
Their trainers had told them that if they wished an animal to bond to them, they had to approach it openly, without the stealth they would use if just hunting. Gwyn and Treng stepped out from behind the tree and cautiously walked toward the wolves. The larger one saw them first and gave a startled yip, alerting its sibling. The two animals trotted over to the young hunters, hackles raised and growls coming from their throats. Gwyn and Treng stopped moving. Without speaking, they each picked a puppy and started the soft chant that would calm the animal and let it bond to them, if it was willing.
The larger pup, which Gwyn had chosen for her own, was the first to submit, coming to a halt and ceasing to growl. As his brother also stopped his threats, the big wolf came cautiously up to Gwyn and sniffed her hand, then began to wag his tail. Gwyn slowly reached closer and stroked one ear, then sat on the ground as the big pup came right next to her. He suddenly flopped down on the ground, nearly bowling her over, and rolled on his back, tail still wagging. Gwyn laughed and scratched his chest, then looked over to see Treng with the smaller wolf in his arms, getting a thorough face-washing. He looked at her and laughed back, then grunted as his pup body-slammed him.
They played with their new friends for almost an hour, then gave them both a good feeding from their supplies. It didn't take long to settle on names, with Gwyn deciding on calling hers Haiden, and Treng naming his Derk. Finally, with both pups happy and tired, Gwyn and Treng stood up and looked at each other again. "Now," said Treng. "How do we get home?"
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