Horizon Ridge folded up dollar bills

So this was it. Kennedy felt strange here, even after he had gone through the routine of meeting Akhlut and being officially accepted into Horizon Ridge. Still, he felt out of sorts. It was to be expected, of course, considering he had spent 100% of his life in the pack he had been born into. He felt like a small child all over again, trying to get his footing while feeling like a stranger even to himself. Nevertheless, he had made his choice, so he was not about to go back on it. Kennedy knew that he would have to suck it up and learn to live on his own--without his brother lingering over him every step of the way.

It wasn't that he disliked his brother exactly. It was just that the guy had always one-upped him on everything that they did. Ulysses, Kennedy's littermate and rival, had been a shining example of everything good, and the newly-titled Xi had always felt a gnawing jealousy toward his closest relative. It had chewed at him for over four years now, and he had become worn down. So, in the middle of one cold December evening, Kennedy had up and left his birth pack without a single goodbye. Nobody would miss him.

He did not expect things to be so much different in Horizon Ridge, but the fact that it lacked a Ulysses made it feel quieter and easier to handle. Shuffling his feet forward, Kennedy began his way around the perimeter of his new home, in some kind of effort to familiarize himself with the place.