It is surprising that White Fang never runs away from the Indian camp, even though he is not accepted in the camp, and even though he is in constant fights against overwhelming odds. He hangs tenaciously onto his position in the camp and to Gray Beaver, although Gray Beaver will never be the "perfect master" that Weedon Scott will prove to be. By defending himself, White Fang becomes, in London's words, "hated by man and dog." White Fang steals food wherever and whenever possible; he slyly attacks other dogs when they are off guard, and, ultimately, he becomes the terror of the camp, as well as the scapegoat of the camp. He is blamed for all of the camp's hardships — particularly by the women.
Being part wild, White Fang is always able to outrun the other dogs, and, therefore, he is able to escape any injury that might be inflicted by the other dogs. According to London, White Fang is "hated by his kind and by mankind . . . his development was rapid and one-sided." Throughout his growth, though, he proves that he can learn to obey the strong and oppress the weak. Consequently, he obeys Gray Beaver, whom he sees as a god, and he attacks anything that is weaker or smaller than he is.
One fall, sometime after Kiche's leaving, the Indians break camp in order to go on a hunting expedition, but White Fang deliberately decides to stay behind. So, as Gray Beaver and his family are leaving, White Fang hides in a dense thicket and refuses to answer the call of his master's voice. Each time he hears Gray Beaver's voice calling him, he trembles with fear, but he refuses to answer. After the Indians have left, White Fang relishes in his new-found freedom, and he romps and plays in the forest. By nightfall, however, he becomes aware of a loneliness and of a "lurking of danger unseen and unguessed." Furthermore, he is cold and hungry, and it is then that he realizes that there is no one to feed him, and that there is no place to steal food from, nor even a comfortable place to sleep. Suddenly, his hunger, his loneliness, and his fear make him realize his mistake. A panic seizes him, and he immediately begins to search for Gray Beaver's camp. He runs downstream in the direction which the Indians took, and he would never have found Gray Beaver had it not been for the fact that Gray Beaver and his family were camping separately from the other Indians, intent on tracking down a moose. Night has already fallen when White Fang discovers Gray Beaver's camp, and he crawls timidly on his belly into the camp, fully expecting to be beaten by Gray Breaver. White Fang trembles, waiting for his beating, and he is surprised when Gray Beaver brings some fresh meat to him from the moose which Gray Beaver has just killed. With this act, White Fang fully acknowledges that Gray Beaver is his master — "the god to whom he had given himself, and upon whom he was now dependent."
