Moonspear and at the time i didn’t know just how hard the wind could blow

The boy swung along with Arcturus to the easier portion of the path, doing his very best to speed up. The other pups were already way ahead of the group and they were younger than him! That stung his newly developing ego a little. If only he hadn't gone with Sanguinus, maybe he would be able to race them up the hill, overcome them with his long legs, laugh and cheer alongside them, made a friend or two ...

If only, if only.

Dragomir became immediately self-conscious when Arcturus fell back and commented on his gait. Without even realizing it, the juvenile began compensating in exactly the manner the Beta had warned him not to. He tried futilely to make his stride regular, to erase the hitch when his leg pained him. If he could only create the illusion of fluidity, then no one would notice that he was weak on that leg, but that was easier said than done. It took no time at all for the ache to transfer from his leg into his hips. Not long after that he gave up, transitioning back to the stiff limp he'd adopted with an exasperated sigh.

Every day, he repeated, puffing his cheeks out when a sharp wave of pain crawled up toward his pelvis. He wanted to keep going and pretend none of this was bothering him, but Arcturus was right: he would only do more damage. Vercingetorix would not want him to harm himself further trying to accomplish something beyond his reach. That thought shattered his resolve and his eyes filled with unwanted tears. I think I need to stop, he gasped, wincing and slowing down.