//------------------------------//
// Night of the Wolf (Wolfwalkers/Secret of Kells) 
// Story: Sunset's Isekai 
// by Wanderer D 
//------------------------------//


Sunset's Isekai
Night of the Wolf (Wolfwalkers/Secret of Kells)
By Wanderer D







Robyn Goodfellowe had not anticipated where life would take her in the end. Before, she had wanted to be a brave hunter, just like her father. But after moving to Kilkenny and exploring the forest in search of wolves to kill, life had taken certain twists that definitely led them off-path. Or at least off-path from what her father had wanted for both of them.

And now… well, life had been very different since. No longer were they bound by the choking demands of the Lord Protector; the almost desperate, fearful destruction of things misunderstood because of some questionable godly duty. She knew from her life in England that the Lord Protector was but one such man among many, that the 'pagan' and 'superstitious' things they hated, not only did they justify it with religion, but they had a certain sadistic twist to how they performed their supposed duties. Unlike the Saints of old, there was no conversing with these 'men of God', for they would declare war before seeking peace, and would see her dead rather than free. 

She pondered those thoughts as she flipped the pages of one of her books… one of the few she had been able to get out of Kilkenny with the help of the old woodcutter, Sean Og after the terrified townsfolk had closed the gates and elevated the bridge lest the wolves attack, and certainly one book that the Lord Protector would have happily burned away along with the forest if he could have.

A chirp made her look up to her to her friend, the hawk Merlyn, who took flight as a large shadow fell across from her. Large, white fangs almost flashed in contrast with the deep black fur of the creature, while it's long red tongue licked its chops as if readying itself to pounce on its meal.

"Okay, seriously. Stop slobbering all over my book!" Robyn half-giggled, half-growled, pushing the snout of the wolf panting next to her with her hand. That the canine was almost three times her size and weight didn't bother her, nor did the fact that there were easily another twenty to thirty wolves around as well, or even the fact that her small hand and arm would be little more than a snack if the wolf took offense. 

Not too long ago, the sight of that would have stopped her father's heart in fright. But now all he did was chuckle and shake his head as he continued building the entrance to their new home: a large cave that went deep into the mountains, and opened up on the other side to a stunning view of the sea, with cliffs far down below (but not so far that the daring man hadn't figured out a way to fish).

Outside the cave was a valley that had formed naturally into the base of the mountain, with plenty of flora and fauna, and trees and sheer rock. It was currently being painted on by Moll and Mebh with ink made out of local plants. Speaking of which…

She put down the book and ran over to the pair. "Hey! You started without me! How am I supposed to learn all of this?"

"Well," Mebh drawled, the shorter girl's long, red hair was brushed to the side as she strutted over to lean heavily on Robyn's shoulder. It never ceased to amaze her just how strong the younger girl was. "Ye looked sooo interested in your book there, that I figured ye didn't want to learn at all."

"Mebh," Moll sighed, the motherly wolfwalker smiling gently at both of them. "Don't tease Robyn. Isn't that why ye sent Fionn over to 'er?"

"Oh." Robyn crossed her arms and smirked at her pack-sister. "So that's why he was slobbering over my book?"

"Ha. It's not my fault that ye don't understand what he's sayin'." Mebh grinned, suddenly yanking Robyn towards her and throwing an arm over her shoulder in companionable merriment (incidentally forcing Robyn to lean down a little in order to not carry the weight of the younger girl). "But! He got the job done, right? Come 'ere, Robyn, let's work on these runes. I'll show ye everythin' ye need to know!"

"Well then, children," Moll said, amusement clear in her voice as she started walking over towards Robyn's dad, "I'll leave ye two to it. I still need dear Bill to help me explore the caves."

"Alright, Mammy!" Mebh sing-sang as she took Robyn's hand and dragged her (giggling) towards the sheer rock where she had started drawing the runes with her. "Okay, townie, let me explain the secret and mysterious art of wolf magic to ye…"

As she listened to Mebh's explanation and followed the instructions, Robyn allowed herself to feel the joy of what was happening around her. About having a new sister, mother, and a pack. About them being alive and well, about them not being surrounded by walls or conceived notions of propriety or her place in the world.

She allowed herself a smile as she spied her dad standing next to Moll, very clearly smitten by the ginger-haired wolfwalker. They made an odd pair, him a tall, broad-shouldered and usually stoic man, now awkwardly rubbing the back of his head and shyly smiling at Moll, stout and proud, wild and intense with an inner wisdom that was almost palpable. They looked like they couldn't make up their mind between taking a stroll holding hands, or amiably arguing about the need for a door.

Robyn giggled.

"They look happy," Mebh said.

"Yeah. They do."

"Glad yer paying attention to them instead of the lesson."

"Oh!" Robyn turned back to Mebh, who shook her head with fake disappointment, crossing her arms, closing her eyes, turning away from her and snorting with disdain.

"How am I ever to make a real wolfwalker out of ye?" the redhead asked. She made a big show of rolling her eyes in frustration at Robyn's clear lack of understanding.

Robyn giggled again and turned to the paintings. "Okay, I'm sorry Mebh, really. Teach me?"

Mebh peeked at her from over her shoulder before grinning again. "Aw, I could never stay mad at ye." She punched Robyn on the shoulder and hopped over to the drawings. "Here, let's try again."

They worked on the spirals, the leaves, the runes, the depictions of wolves, hands and pawprints, each leaving behind a trail of golden energy as they were completed and became part of their new home, the wolf-magic permeating the story Mebh was telling and drawing with Robyn.

They worked on their drawings for most of the day, sometimes alone, sometimes with the pack around them, and even one time with her dad and Moll who were whispering and talking to each other as she taught him the meaning of her art. Eventually, as light started to fade from the sky, Moll called them over.

"Girls, it's time to go into the cave. We've hidden the valley away from prying eyes with our magic, and your father has made comfortable beds for us all," Moll's eyes shone as her smile grew. "I think the pack really wants to explore the area, what do ye think?"

Robyn and Mebh glanced at each other and grinned, running into the cave. It was spacious and could house the pack easily, especially through winter, with other, smaller caves providing smaller dens for the wolves or even them, if they chose to have some space… unlikely as it wasn't in the pack's nature to do so. Except for Moll and her dad, occasionally.

The pack waited eagerly outside as they lay down to sleep… and to run with the wolves. 





"I see," Sunset said, giving Ori a small clay bowl filled with water. "So no worlds with their own Ori. Got it. Not that that sort of request really limits your options, to be fair."

Ori giggled and sipped the water as Sunset gave the request some thought. "I usually try to not get involved with how worlds turn out, but… how about a world in danger of losing its magic? They could use someone like you, to stop that from happening."

Ori's ear twitched. He looked up at her, blinking curiously.

Sunset rubbed her arm. "Look, I just think… there's so many worlds where their future is still being molded, and magic disappearing from them is… well, a tragedy." She poured herself some water and drank it down. "What do you think? It'll be different from your own world, but you could do a lot of good, and besides, you can always come back here."

"I think that's a marvelous idea," Rarity said from the table she was sitting at, sipping her tea. "But we need to make sure it is not just a world with magic, but also plenty of spiritual energy." She hummed to herself. "I think I know just the area…"

Sunset and Ori glanced at each other, then back at Rarity. "Okay," the former said, "out with it, what's your angle?"

"Moi? I would nev—"

"Rarity, we've known each other for how many centuries?"

"Dear, that would be telling my age." Rarity paused. "In a way. Somewhat." She waved a dainty hand dismissively. "And a lady never tells!"

"Well, regardless, I know you don't suggest things like these for no reason," Sunset countered, crossing her arms.

"Fine," Rarity said with an accompanying sigh, "I just worry that while Ori might be good for a world, that world might not be good for him. He is a tremendously powerful being in his own right, especially after staying so long with us, but he is also in essence pure spirit. He needs a world not just with magic, but with an intrinsic, nurturing spirit. Too powerful, and he'd be overwhelmed, too weak and he'd essentially starve unless he came back."

Sunset raised her hands and nodded. "Alright, I can't argue that point."

Rarity smiled. "In that case, I believe we can step outside and see what we find," she said, drinking the rest of her tea and standing up. She led the other two to the door, opening it into a clearing with several rune-inscribed standing stones, softly humming with spiritual and magical energy.

Sunset glanced behind, noticing that she and the others had stepped outside one of the bigger standing stones, one of three that seemed to have the most mystical energies converging on them, in fact. Mist slowly converged around them, but she frowned, concentrating rather on one of the other large ones, which emanated a familiar vibe. She walked up to it, raising a hand to touch it…

"Stop!"

The childish voice accomplished its purpose. Sunset turned around quickly, peering into the mist and noticing the several shadows that ran around the stone circle, panting and growling, while out of the dark mass, a snow-white wolf with emerald green eyes, accompanied by another grey wolf with cyan-blue eyes stepped into the circle, warily keeping their sight on her and Rarity.

"Oh my," her partner said, as Ori jumped on her shoulder to look curiously at the wolves. "A fae."

The white wolf glanced at her just as mist passed between them, clearing a second later to reveal a young girl with long white hair, dressed in simple, gray clothes. "You two are not welcome here," she said. "This place is dangerous to visitors…" she trailed off, seeming to finally notice Ori, who jumped down and approached her. All things forgotten, the girl crouched down with a huge smile on her face. "Oooh! Look at you! Aren't you the cutest spirit!"

The gray wolf whined, making her look up. "Oh. Right." She took a deep breath before Ori made a crooning sound. She deflated a little. "I guess ye can't be too bad if yer traveling with a spirit. Who and what are ye then?"

Without waiting for an answer, she jumped fast as lightning into the mist, emerging a second later at the top of one of the standing rocks. "I am Aisling! And this is my—" she glanced at the wolf "—our forest! Now," she pointed at them. "I know yer not human, so identify yourselves!"

Rarity and Sunset exchanged glances.

"This is Ori," Sunset said, introducing their spirit friend first. "He's a forest spirit from a world far away. He's searching for a new home, so we brought him here."

Aisling rolled her eyes. "Well, of course he is! That's why I asked ye to identify yerselves."

"Ah." Sunset shook her head, figuring it was best to try and get along with Ori's future neighbor. "The name's Sunset Shimmer, originally a unicorn, but I've been a bunch of other things."

Aisling tilted her head. "Ye really don't look like one, so I'll just assume ye look like a bunch of other things." She turned to face Rarity and locked eyes with her. After a few seconds, she shuddered and looked away. "I think that'll do."

"Thank you dear," Rarity said, smiling and visibly ignoring Sunset's raised eyebrow. "And who is your little friend?"

"Oh, this one?" Aisling shrugged. "She's apparently a bird." When the wolf barked with what was clearly annoyance, the fae released a long-suffering sigh. "Fine, fine, ye mangy mutt. This 'ere is my new friend and neighbor, Robyn."

"Nice to meet you," Sunset said, nodding at the wolf, who simply gave her a dubious glance before whining at Aisling.

"Oh, yeah! Step away from the stone there, ye don't want to be touchin' it, or you'll be taken away."

"Taken away?" Sunset studied the stone. "Where?"

"Who knows?" Aisling answered. "Gates open only for a few nights every couple o' centuries, but whoever goes through, never comes back."

At that, the wolf whined again and moved towards one of the rocks, barking at it pitifully, but Aisling was next to her in an instant. "I've told ye, if ye go through, yer not comin' back, and your family will be stuck together away from each other."

The wolf backed away a little, turning away for just a moment… just long enough for Aisling to drop her guard before she dashed past her and jumped into and through the surface of the stone, followed by a hawk that didn't even hesitate in its flight.

"No! Ye silly wolf! Dumb hawk!" Aisling gasped, stopping just shy of touching the surface herself. "She's gonna get herself killed!"

Sunset glanced at Rarity, who sighed and walked over. "I know what you want to do, here Sunset, give me your hand."

Doing as she was instructed, Sunset yelped when Rarity bit her, ripping her hand away from her friend's grasp. "What was that for?!"

"Now now, if you're here you're playing by the rules," Rarity said. She turned Sunset around to face the stone. "And don't worry, I've already arranged the right wardrobe for you."

"What do yo—" she didn't finish her sentence before Rarity had pushed her through the portal, leaving her with Ori and Aisling in the now quiet circle of stones.

"Ah knew ye'd be the one." Aisling shook her head. "So what now?"

"We let Sunset help your friend Robyn," Rarity replied. "In the meantime, why don't you tell me what is going on exactly, young one?"


To Be Continued