Hoo's Home

      She was daddy’s little princess. She wasn’t spoiled by any means, but Hozhooji (affectionately called “Little Hoo” by her family) was most certainly top dog in her family. She loved hunting with her dad, Nino. Together they could take down anything, elk didn’t stand a chance against this dynamic duo. Hoo’s mom, Ke, was the alpha female and leader of the pack, gracefully and tactfully leading the family and keeping harmony with all. Oh sure, they had clashes with rival packs over territory, but everything always worked out fine. The family was safe and secure in their cavern snuggled deep inside Yellowstone Park. Hozhooji stretched and yawned in the deep orange glow of sunset. She looked out over the valley and watched a family of elk grazing peacefully near the river. Hoo was not hunting, they had feasted well on a carcass Ke had supplied earlier that day. Hoo just enjoyed watching the other animals prattle along in their lives. All animals intrigued her; curious little critters scurrying up trees and loud singers soaring in the skies. She especially enjoyed watching the hairless creatures who visited the park in little packs of their own, bustling around on two legs. How did they manage to get around as well as they did (though clumsy and not elegant whatsoever) on just two stubby legs?

           “AWOOO-OOO!” Little Hoo turned to see her younger sister Joy calling into the evening sky. Joy paused and listened, her black hair shining in the downing sun. She called again and listened. A soft howling reply came from nearby. Joy wagged her tail and trotted off toward the answering call to welcome back her twin sister Gracie. Hoo watched her younger sisters in the distance, licking each other tenderly and wagging their long tails. She loved her sisters dearly, but sometimes those two liked to exclude Hoo in their adventures. Hoo was proud of them, they were strong and beautiful, though not nearly as much as Hoo herself. Some day they would leave and find a new pack of their own, raising their own magnificent pups. Hoo was next in line to be alpha female of her pack, after her sweet mother. Hoo took pride in her family and strove to defend them and keep them well fed.

           Hoo stepped into the family’s cavern and greeted her mother and father, licking them and nuzzling them gently. Ke was expecting, her belly was just starting to swell. Hoo laid down next to Ke, sniffing and licking her mother’s gray face. She stared into Ke’s huge gorgeous brown eyes. She was lost in those loving eyes; Hoo began to remember her grandfather, Ke’s father, he had those same eyes. He told Hoo stories when she was a young pup, scampering over him and chomping on his gray ears. Her favorite story was of how long ago, humans came to the wolf territory far in the north. They searched eagerly for the strongest wolves, capturing them, then journeying with them south to the park. The humans freed the wolves, hoping they would help them in a battle with the elk that had overtaken and were destroying their park. The mighty wolves became the defenders and protectors of the park, watching the humans but never harming them. Hoo loved that story, she was honored to be a defender of the park and help the awkward two-legged humans with the scrumptious elk. Hoo drifted off to sleep, dreaming of the little humans strolling along in her park.

           The next day, Hoo and her parents arose earlier and set out to patrol the land. They played and licked each other as they journeyed. Nino nuzzled his mate from time to time. They were content and marched on. As the day grew older, Hoo and her parents had unknowingly wandered outside of the park boarders. How can animals tell where humans lay arbitrary boarders? The trio trotted on merrily, Hoo watched her parents admiringly and kept a protective eye on her pregnant mother. They stopped by a cool babbling creek for a drink. Hoo shoved her thick furry face into the cool wetness, lapping eagerly and enjoying the refreshness on her face. A dragonfly hoovered above the creek, its four wings batting crazily near Hoo’s soggy face. “BANG!” the sky screamed, echoing around the trees. Hoo leapt with alarm. Thunder? No, there was no storms brewing. Her heart pounded deep in her chest, adrenaline filling her system. The sky screamed again, “BANG!” Hoo ran quickly back towards the path they had come, fleeing the ear-splitting boom. The air vibrated with the defending noise. Hoo’s throat dried as her heart pounded; her legs aching and longing to go faster. Something was wrong. She ran further, panicking at the sudden change and fleeing in terror. She spotted a crevice in the hill ahead and ducked inside. She looked timidly out of the crevice, her eyes searching the horizon for the source of the calamity and desperately seeking her parents. Nothing. She waited. Nothing. Hoo panted heavily, her legs twitched from fear and running. She sat in the dark crevice and waited.

           The moon edged into the purple evening sky; birds flew quickly back to their nests for the night. In the far distance, Hoo heard a wolf call, but not her parents. A stranger from a rival pack. Hoo crept out of the crevice, quietly searching the area for any trace of her parents. Nothing. Hoo sniffed and found the path the trio had taken earlier that day, leading them away from the safety of their park. She quietly followed the scent, lonely and afraid, into the darkness.

           As she neared the boarder of her family’s territory, Hoo called for her parents. “Awooo!” She listened eagerly. No reply. “AWOO!” Desperately she pleaded for an answer that did not come. Please, she thought, please answer. “AWOOOO-OOOO!” Hoo heard leaves rustling next to her. Please be them. She waited. Joy bounded out of the woods towards Hoo, wagging her tail and hurrying eagerly to her sister’s side. Overwhelming delight flooded through Hoo as she turned to nuzzle her ebony sister, finally family! She just placed the tip of her nose in her sister’s warm fur when Gracie grabbed her from behind. Joy snarled and snapped at Hoo’s throat. Startled, Hoo stumbled. Gracie lept on her back and tore at her, biting deep into her flesh. Joy still clamped onto Hoo’s strong neck as Hoo desperately fought to regain her balance. While she was gone with her parents, the two twins had decided to team up and run Hoo from the pack, securing their place and dominance within the pack. In her misery and loneliness on her journey home, the grief-stricken Hoo had weakened and did not have her usual strength. She easily could have taken on her two sisters at any other time, but in her time of desolation and despair, she could not defend herself. Hoo flung Joy from her throat and ran. She ran hard back down the long, lonely path she had just trekked. Fleeing from the only family she had left.

           Many days had past, dark and miserable. Hozhooji called desperately for her parents, careful and fearful of summoning her betraying sisters to her. She crept on, miserably meandering through the park, ever nearing the edge of the invisible boundary of safety. Homeless and alone, she crawled on, hopeful to rescue her lost parents along the way.

           One evening Hoo rested atop a hill, hiding beneath the trees and smelling the freshness of the clear air surrounding her. She watched a human child, playing and stumbling in a small patch of green grass. Hoo loved watching humans walk; funny two-legged creatures, how clumsy! Hoo rested her head on her front paws, watching the child twirl and giggle. She was regaining her strength, soon she would return home, with or without her parents. She would reclaim her role and fill-in as alfa female until her mother returned, if she did indeed return. She would protect her park and her family, yes, even her treacherous twin sisters Joy and Gracie. She would continue to help the humans with their war on the park-destroying elk, patrolling the land and picking off some delectable elk. Hoo would be the guardian, the defender of all the land. The child giggled, squealed with delight and scurried towards the door of the house where two men stepped out. “Hey baby!” one man patted the child on the head.

           Hoo smiled as the child giggled and a small dog ran from the house into the child’s waiting arms, licking the tiny human’s round face and wagging its tail. How neat! The humans have a wolf pack too! Hoo slowly wagged her tail as she gleefully watched the family. Suddenly the small dog stopped wagging its tail and gave an alarmed bark. The child froze and gazed around it. Alert at the tension, Hoo raised her head to search from the cause of the alarm. The two men looked toward the hill. “Kill every damn one of them stinking demons you can find!” he called as he snatched up the child and hurried onto the wooden porch.

Oh no! Don’t attack the little human family! Who is it? Where’s the intruder? Hoo searched desperately around the area, her eyes shifting frantically around the house. The second man stepped around and looked up the hill towards the trees where Hoo now stood as she searched for the disturbance. Light reflected off of a long metal pole that the second man held in both hands and raised to his face. The sky screamed, “BANG!”

Heart pounding, Hoo fled, racing away from the human pack and into the woods. Oh no! Not again! Hoo felt the loneliness of losing her parents when the sky screamed all over again. She panted heavily, her heart thumping in her chest, trying to burst from her ribcage. She ran. The poor humans! Had the Bang taken them also? She began to slow as her vision blurred. Her side throbbed horribly. She stopped and stumbled against a tree, yelping as she hit the ground. Hoo looked at her aching side. Redness oozed and bubbled down her side, cascading over her and matting her thick gray fur. She licked the wound hopelessly, dizziness overtaking her. She thought of Nino and Ke and the Bang that had separated them. It had found her. The scream had taken her parents and had now claimed her. She licked faintly at the gushing hole, her head swirling and reeling, trying not to vomit on herself. She longed to be home with her sisters and her parents, back in the safety of her park with its invisible boarders. As the darkness around her deepened, Hozhooji realized that she would never return home.

Author’s Note: Hozhooji is a Navajo word meaning “living the loving way” or the blessing way ceremony. Ke is a Navajo word for harmony. These are definitions to the best of my knowledge from my internet searches.