Golden Flower thought it would have been a beautiful evening if it were not for the fact that tensions were high among the pack. Looking up at the sky, Golden Flower saw that the moon was nearly fully rounded. If Flint kept his word, that meant the battle would be occurring any day.

"Don't worry," someone said next to Golden Flower. She glanced to her side, seeing her mother walking up towards her. "This is an evening of celebration. Today you get to become a full member of the pack."

Golden Flower smiled weakly. "Thanks." She wished she could be more enthusiastic. This had been her dream come true, and yet, she couldn't help but wonder if she'd live to see a few more days beyond this evening.

"Your brothers are jealous that they still have more training to go," her mother explained.

"I'm not particularly happy about the reason I'm becoming an official member before them," Golden Flower admitted. Though she and her mother had had this discussion before, sometimes, especially on nights like these, Golden Flower was still filled with immense guilt for abandoning her family.

"It's all in the past. We're reunited now. Now go on," she said, nudging Golden Flower forward with her snout, even though Golden Flower far outsized her mother at this point. "Everyone's waiting for you."

Golden Flower met the alphas on the large boulder near the edge of the dens. They greeted their granddaughter happily, a sight Golden Flower wouldn't have expected only a little while ago. As the wolves gathered below, Golden Flower sought familiar faces. Her parents, her brothers, Copper Rock, and Stormy Sky, whose punishment had ended a few days earlier.

"Today, we celebrate Golden Flower as an official member of the Pack of the Falling Stars," Raven's Wing announced.

"She has proven herself worthy as a strong and capable member of this pack," Maple Leaf continued.

From there, Golden Flower took a few oaths to protect the pack and listened as howls rang into the night sky. For a moment, her worries disappeared, and she felt filled with joy. She was even happier to see her parents smiling up at her, as she had never imagined them being present for this moment. She only hoped that soon, with the help of Copper Rock, Feather Wings, and the others, there might be no more biases in the pack.

As the howls quieted down, the alphas continued to speak.

"This is a good moment to remind everyone that we must be hypervigilant. The battle could occur at any time now. We'll be sending out extra patrols around the forest for any signs of them," Maple Leaf explained.

With those words, the ceremony ended, and the crowds began to disperse. Golden Flower met her parents and brothers first, where her mother and father showered her in affectionate licks and nuzzles.

"We're so proud of you," her father said.

Golden Flower smiled up at him and her mother. "Thanks. I love you both."

"You'll have to teach us how to become official members faster," Black Berry said.

Golden Flower giggled. "I'll try my best, but I doubt you two will be as skilled as me," she teased.

"Sorry to interrupt," Copper Rock said, pushing his way into their circle.

"Thank you so much for teaching her," Hazel Branch said to her brother. "I really owe a lot to you. You kept her safe."

"Yes, thanks so much," Golden Flower said. "Your teachings won't go to waste, I promise."

"I'm not worried," Copper Rock said. 

As Copper Rock and Hazel Branch continued to chat, Golden Flower quietly dispersed from her family when she noticed Stormy Sky standing in the distance, awkwardly lingering.

"Hey!" she said, trying to calm her tail from wagging so much.

"Hi," he said. "Congratulations!"

"Thanks! It's good your punishment ended," she said.

"Yeah. Strong Boulder has kept to himself, at least. The den will be more boring without you, though," he said.

"You'll be a full member soon enough," Golden Flower assured him. She glanced around, noticing most of the other wolves had begun to retire to the dens for the evening. "I better get some sleep, but I'll talk to you tomorrow."

Stormy Sky nodded, said good-night, and headed off.

That evening, Golden Flower slept near her parents in the regular den. It was strange sleeping in a new place with so many other wolves, yet she was comforted by the quiet sounds of her parents' breaths that she had heard when she was a pup back in their little den far away from the pack. Slowly, she drifted off to sleep, looking forward to the day ahead.

It was barely dawn when alarm sounded. Golden Flower was shaken awake by her mother, who had a panicked expression on her face.

"Is it time?" Golden Flower asked.

"Yes. The rogues are on their way. A pack member on patrol just alerted us," she said.

Golden Flower's drowsiness wore off quickly. Though she tried to put on a brave face, she was visibly shaking, enough so that her father had to calm her down and assure her all would be well while her mother ran off to make sure Golden Flower's brothers were awake.

"Just remember your training," Copper Rock told her as they stepped out of the dens. "It'll all be okay."

Golden Flower nodded, though she couldn't stop her limbs from shaking. Sure, she had completed her training just the day before, but was she really ready for an all-out battle? She glanced around, trying to see her friends from training, but there were so many wolves scattered about that it was impossible to keep track of everyone.

The bushes began to give way to a large crowd of wolves, much larger than Golden Flower had ever seen. She gulped.

"We are asking you one more time to reconsider," Flint announced. "Hand over the territory to us, and you have nothing to fear."

"This is our pack, and we'll be defending it," Raven's Wing sneered.

"That was what I was afraid you would say. I'm afraid I have no choice, then. Pack of Rogues, attack!"

Immediately, the pack descended into chaos. Golden Flower lost track of her father and Copper Rock almost immediately and was being pushed around by a swarm of wolves, both in her pack and not.

Suddenly, her body was slammed into the ground by a rogue. She glanced up and twisted her body, narrowly avoiding a bite to her ear. With all her strength, she pushed the wolf on top of her off and managed to get a bite into the rogue's flank before running off.

Golden Flower had no intention of killing, but she wasn't sure she could run off and avoid confrontation forever, especially with so many rogues swarming in the area.

"Got you!" one large, brown wolf cried as she latched his teeth onto her tail.

Golden Flower let out a yelp and twisted herself out of his hold. Adrenaline finally began pumping through her veins, and she kicked his legs in such a way that his legs gave out from under him. 

"You little--"

She silenced him with a clawstrike to his eye. He let out a howl of pain, but it was enough for him to be distracted and her to escape. She hoped she had at least blinded him.

Golden Flower headed back into the crowd, at least trying to find someone she knew. Suddenly, she heard her mother give a terrible scream. Golden Flower's heart raced, and she rushed to where she heard the sound, afraid her mother had gotten injured.

She found her mother standing with no injuries, yet she was standing over a wolf. Golden Flower paused, afraid it was her father or one of her brothers, yet when she crept closer, she found Copper Rock bleeding out. His blood was already beginning to stain her mother's paws.

"Copper Rock!" Golden Flower exclaimed, rushing to his side. She glanced up at her mother. "We need to get him help!"

"It's too late for him," her mother said through tears.

"Hazel Branch? Is that you?" he asked weakly, still semi-conscious.

"I'm here, brother," she said, crouching down near him. "I'm so sorry."

"I-I'm sorry," he said weakly. "I should've supported you. You shouldn't have had to run away."

"Thank you for watching out for Golden Flower," she said quietly. "You kept her safe."

"Copper Rock, don't go," Golden Flower managed to get out through tears. 

"It's up to you and Feather Wings now," he said to her. "Promise me?"

She nodded. "I promise."

Hazel Branch glanced at her in confusion, but there was no time to explain, not with so much chaos occurring around them. Copper Rock's breaths had become more shaky and shallow, and eventually, his chest stopped moving and his eyes glazed over.

"Copper Rock," Hazel Branch lamented. Golden Flower had never seen her mother so distraught. Suddenly, she was met with the reality that her mother had probably reacted this way when she thought Golden Flower was dead.

"Come on, Mom. Let's bring his body to one of the dens and get back to fighting," Golden Flower said.