Chapter 2

A Painful Memory

A/N: The scene in italics is Hawnu's memory of when she lost two of her cubs.

As the sun began to rise, Lightning stood up and stretched. He walked over to Logan, and nudged him, whispering, "Logan, come son. It's time to go." The wolf stood up, groggy and mumbled to himself as he followed his father out of the cave.

They continued walking and after a while, Lightning looked at Logan and said "Son, you know about my duties to the king." Logan nodded and his father continued, "It is a responsibility that has been passed down from father to son in our family for generations.

They reached a hill overlooking the kingdom. "For many years, I have been the protector of this kingdom." Lightning continued. "But one day, my time will be done, and you will be the next protector." Logan looked at his father, confused.

"Me?" Lightning nodded and Logan looked down at the small kingdom. "Father…I don't think I can…"

His father smiled and placed a paw ontop of his. "Son, you can do it."

Logan sighed. "Shouldn't one of my younger brothers do it?"

Lightning shook his head, no. "It is tradition. If the current protector has more than one male cub, the oldest takes on the responsibility when his fathers' time has passed." He noticed a worried look on the cubs' face and reassured him, "And you will meet Cavan's son, Ciaran. He is next in line to be king."

Logan looked at his father and he went on to explain, "When the son of the king and the son of the protector become friends, an alliance is formed. We are obliged to protect the royal family and their people."

"Does the king have any enemies Father?" the young wolf asked. Lightning nodded and stood up. "Yes…one."

Logan gulped and asked, "Who is it?"

Lightning replied with a hint of anger in his voice, "Caeth."

Logan then noticed a hint of hurt on his father's face. "Father, is something wrong?" The wolf regained his composure and explained to his son that Caeth was not only Cavan's enemy, but his as well.

When Logan asked why, his father said, "I will explain later. We must head back home." The two turned around and headed back to their cave.

Back inside the cave, Hawnu was busy nursing the two youngest cubs; Star and Patch. Blaze and the other cubs were outside playing. Kaze's ears perked up and she turned around to see her father and older brother. "Father! Logan!" she howled, running toward them. Lightning smiled and nuzzled his daugher's face. Logan walked into the cave and approached his mother.

Star and Patch finished sucking and ran off to play with each other, pouncing. Hawnu chuckled as the two rolled around and then started to chase each other. She turned around and saw Logan looking at her. "Hello son."

"Hey Mother." Logan replied. The mother wolf stood up and walked over to him.

"Is everything alright?" she asked.

"Mother?"

"Yes?" Hawnu replied and Logan took a deep breath before proceeding to ask his question.

"Why are Caeth and Father enemies?"

His mother sighed and turned away. "He did something terrible, something that your father and I have never forgotten…" Logan walked up to her.

"What did he do?"

She turned around and looked at him with tears in her eyes, "You and Blaze had two other littermates…"

Tears gathered in Logan's eyes. "What happened to them?"

"The four of you were playing in the forest and Caeth had sent his dogs to sniff out the area. They found the four of you and chased you, cornering you. Lightning and I tried to protect you but…"The tears that had gathered in her eyes feel down her face as she recalled that heart-breaking moment.

Hawnu and Lightning heard the distress howls of their cubs and knew something was wrong. They raced towards them and saw one of the dogs had grabbed Moon by his neck and was biting down hard. Tears rolled down Hawnu's face as she heard the bones in her son's neck break and blood began to run down his throat. Stardust spotted her mother and bolted from her hiding spot, but was grabbed by another dog. He shook her a few times, then threw her against a tree. The young cub let out a yelp as she slammed into the tree and fell to the ground.

"NOOOOO." Hawnu cried as she dashed out from the bushes and attacked the dogs. Lightning rushed in behind her and tackled the dog who was hurting Moon, causing the cub to fall to the ground. The two dogs fought hard, but soon realized that they were fighting two angry parents and with tails between their legs, they ran off.

Panting, Hawnu rushed over to Moon and laid down beside him. She gently nudged the young male with her snout, but he didn't move. Lightning approached Stardust and with one look, he knew his daughter was gone. His ears dropped to his muzzle as he gently picked her up and carried her to her mother laying her by her brother. Heartbroken, Hawnu nuzzled her two cubs and began to cry. A noise a few inches from Lightning made his ears perk up. He walked over to a bush and saw Logan and Blaze were still alive. They ran over to their mother who nuzzled them as a tear ran down her face. "At least I didn't lose you two…." She whispered.

"You and Blaze were the only ones we were able to save…" Logan's heart was filled with both grief and anger.

"Mother…" he said with a hint of iron in his voice. Hawnu turned around, looked him and he placed a paw on top of hers. "Caeth will pay for what he did to our family…I will make sure of that…"

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