Years ago, in the sacred land named the Jerio Land, lived numerous tribes of beasts. Some beasts were legends that were believed to have ceased to exist, while some were already known by the human kind. Your first impression would be that those beasts would look as they appear to be, right? Like a dragon would look as all people imagined it. But apparently, that wouldn't appear as it would be. In reality, those beasts that we speak of are no different from humans, only that they can morph to their own beast blood and gain its abilities.

All tribes tend to have a knack for collecting treasure, mostly Lost Preciouses. And so, to protect their treasures, each tribe built their own 'safe' and hid their treasures there. The safe depends on the tribe, for it could be a cave or in a volcano. One of those beast tribes is a wolf tribe, called as 'MoonLight'. Their safe was located somewhere hidden deep in the Forest of Trickery, where only they can sniff out where their safe is. The MoonLight tribe were known in Jerio for their silver white fur, and that they were stealthy, diligent thieves. They steal various Lost Preciouses from other tribes, and from breakers and collectors as well. The only treasure that they had that was truly theirs was a Lost Precious passed down from generation to generation in the tribe itself. The Lost Precious's name was only known in the tribe, and that treasure was hidden in the deepest part of their safe.

But then, an incident happened that came to the loss of their most prized possession. A couple of breakers or collectors managed to get their hands on the Lost Precious, making their way in the Forest of Trickery and through the safe's camouflage. It was said that a young wolflet in the tribe was the cause of the incident, assuming that he was being followed by the intruders through the forest and into the safe. This case was then told to never be spoken of, as ordered by the Alpha of the tribe. The Lost Precious was then unknown by the upcoming wolflets, and was only known by the adults and elders of this time. And so, the MoonLight tribe's Lost Precious has been forgotten for the next couple of years, and for more years to come.

"Toboe, listen up!"

"Eh? Wha...?"

I stiffened up as I snapped my head towards the old man in front of me, trying to ignore the grove of trees in the distance. I smiled nervously at the old geezer, seeing as he was getting pissed off from my constant daydreaming.

"Did you hear what I just said, Toboe?" the geezer asked angrily, gritting his teeth as if to show that he was getting pissed off.

"Uh... um..." I muttered nervously, rubbing the back of my head as I looked to the side. "Err..."

A vein popped on the geezer's head, glaring at me with his narrow, dark gray eyes. He then hit my head with his staff, making me squat and hold my head in pain.

"Youch!" I reacted.

"You ungrateful little brat! You should listen to your elders, you know!" he huffed, crossing his arms as I kept my stance. "Why did the Alpha choose you to do this mission anyway? You're just a kid!"

"Like I would know." I muttered under my breath, making the geezer turn to me as I stood up.

"What's that you say?"

"No, nothing."

"Anyway, since you weren't listening before, I'll repeat it again. Just remember that if you don't listen now, I won't repeat myself."

"Yeah, yeah."

"You insolent brat! Sigh, just listen... Eleven years ago, our tribe, the MoonLight tribe, lost our most important treasure. I'm sure you've already known of this from the Alpha himself, but that treasure was a Lost Precious, passed down for generations to come. I do not know the reason why the Alpha exempted you from knowing about this information, for this incident was told to never be spoken of ever again. And now, the Alpha has given you the task of retrieving the Lost Precious from the thieves, which were the humans who call themselves 'breakers' and 'collectors'. Many of the elders, including myself, the Beta, objected for you to take up this important mission, but the Alpha completely insisted on you being the one."

I actually listened to what old man Shinku was saying, probably because I was getting excited about my so called mission. I tried bottling up my excitement, since I didn't want to suddenly show up my ears and tail at this time.

"The Alpha would seem to be quite reckless to send you off with this important mission, but I guess him, being the Alpha, sees something inside you that would level you worthy of leaving this matter in your hands." he continued, sighing. "You may be an expert thief and has some experience in some battles, but you're still just a kid. I still doubt your skills and that they're not enough for you to face the humans yet."

I stared at Shinku for a while, and then held up his staff in my hands.

"What're you talkin' 'bout, Jii-tan?" I voiced out, closing my right eye as I waved the geezer's staff around. "You're just gettin' senile, that's all."

"What the! You imbecile!" Shinku barked, pointing at me as he flailed his arms. "Give me back my staff!"

"Alright, here."

I handed the sturdy looking, but old staff to the geezer, then prepared to take some serious hits from him. But he didn't budge a bit, just standing there with an unusual smile on his face. I shot a confused look at him, wondering what was wrong with him. Maybe he really was getting senile after all?

"Ah... Sorry about that, Toboe," he suddenly muttered out, showing the smile he always wears. "It's just that... You're still young and I don't want you to embark on such a dangerous mission... But it seems I can't treat you like a child forever, isn't that right?"

I just nodded slowly, staring at the old man's worried and concerned eyes.

"Oh, well. I guess the Alpha saw your adolescence, and he wishes for you to become strong."

I went silent, looking down at my feet. Shinku, the old man who has been the one constantly hitting me, was actually worried about me. I can't blame him though, since he's been like a grampa to me, and I guess for him, he also sees me as his grandson. I gritted my teeth, and then clenched my hand to a fist as I placed it in front of my chest.

"I'll be back..." I muttered, showing my grin. "I'll definitely back, and I'll have the Lost Precious with me! So, you don't have to worry, Jii-tan! I promise you that! And I keep my promises!"

"Toboe..."

The old man chuckled as I continued grinning, the sun's light illuminating the cave we were outside of.

"You better keep you promise then, Toboe. Even though you didn't promise, you should still bring back the Lost Precious, since it's an order from the Alpha," the geezer chuckled as he straightened his pose, tapping his staff lightly on the ground. "so, you better get going then. The sun's already up."

"Heh, I know that, Jii-tan," I grinned, turning to the grove of trees as I started walking towards it. "You don't have to remind me. I'm not senile like you."

I then revealed my silver white ears and tail, leaping on the branch of a tree. I looked back at Shinku, who was still smiling at me as he waved lightly.

"Say goodbye to Alpha and the others for me, Jii-tan!" I grinned, showing my fangs as I waved at him. "And please stay alive till I get back!"

"You don't have to say that, you idiot!" he grinned, waving back at me. "I'm still not that old, you know!"

"Hehe!"

We exchanged grins, and then I turned to the forest and started leaping from tree to tree. And the last thing I heard from old man Shinku was:

"I look forward for your return, Toboe Riku."

Thank you for reading. Please review, for this is my first FF here (though not really my first ever fanfic). Even though it's quite short, please tolerate it for this time! Arigatou gozaimasu! ^_^