Disclaimer: I don't own Wolf's Rain. –sighs wistfully-

Before the Red Moon

Tsume was prowling near the door of their prison, pacing back and forth with his expression set in a concentrated frown. It was always ten paces, back and forth…his heart seemed as if it was constantly being held by an icy claw, and unbidden, unwanted thoughts kept swirling through the gray wolf's head, making him grim.

Was there a chance in hell that Toboe was alive? No, he would have felt it if he was dead…right? Right now, he wasn't sure weather to thank Hige for shoving the pup out of that tiny hole or hate him for sending him off to who the hell knows where. As if echoing his thoughts, he heard a depressed Getsuei mutter, "There's not a chance in hell that the pup is alive. Knowing him for just a few days made it clear to me that he was a weakling."

All three wolves of the pack—Kiba, Hige and Tsume, whose face contorted into a snarl bristled, his ears flicking upwards, his tail bristling. "Say that again," he spat, trying to keep his hackles from rising. How dare this stupid…this pathetic excuse for a dog criticize a pack member? But for all his annoying literal ways, was he actually right?

Getsuei growled at him, undaunted. "It's hard to be positive while we're starving in this hole, Tsume!" he barked, his face a mixture of sorrow, anger and pity for the situation. "I hate this!" it was practically a cry. "Do you honestly believe that someone as young and inexperienced as him could have survived? Remember when we came along and saved yours and his necks from death the first time? You saw it, Sheshkemana would have killed him were it not for us. And yet, it seems like we've only postponed death."

He sank back onto the ground in a skulk, his tail curled around his paws. Hige flattened his ears and stood up. "Dammit, don't you have any faith in other wolves?" he demanded angrily. "The runt's not dead. He's our only chance right now, and who knows, maybe he met up with that pretty girl." He added, trying to half-forcefully, half-jokingly restore a lighter mood. Mixed emotions made it hard to do that.

Kiba hadn't said anything yet, but he had a slightly pensive look in his sea-blue eyes. Turning his face to Marel, he asked the supposedly sleeping wolf, "Marel. What's our most likely future?"

The dark wolfess smiled the tiniest bit and opened her blind eyes. "I was wondering when one of you were going to ask me that." She said, heaving herself to her paws.

Tsume's jaw dropped, as did Hige's and Getsuei's. "What?" Hige exploded. "You have some idea of what's gonna happen, and you didn't say anything?"

Tsume elbowed him. "Quiet, Porky," he snapped. "If we start bickering again, she'll just go back to sleep." Getsuei, as if trying to prove this point faced Marel with wide green eyes, standing straight and still, as was Kiba.

Marel yawned, and stretched. Tsume had the feeling she was deliberately trying to annoy them, or at least see how far their patience would stretch. Silence hung heavy in the still, damp air, as if trying to make up for the hell of sound earlier—guns, snarls and the cries of Maron's lacky, Kem as he was killed at the guns of his own. After what seemed like an eternity, Marel sat down again and curled her tail around her paws.

"Toboe is not dead," she said decisively. Tsume felt the strain on his heart and mind lessen considerably, and he almost let out a sigh of relief, but caught himself at the last second.

"He had met up with Ren, and right now, they will most likely devise a plan to come and rescue us. I don't know the details!" she snapped as Hige opened his mouth. "All I know is that our most likely future is that we will be rescued at the full moon."

"That's in less than three days," Kiba said, looking up at the ceiling, getting his usual, misty-ish look when he was thinking about something that the others wouldn't understand.

"How the hell do you know?" wondered Tsume, trying to contain his respite.

Kiba shook his head. "I dunno…I can feel it, that's all." Shrugging, he addressed the others. "We shouldn't try to make a move yet…Marel, what are the chances that we will be rescued in two days?"

Marel closed one eye and cocked her head. "Out of ten?" she asked, flicking her tail.

Kiba nodded, and Marel sighed. "Our very best chances for getting rescued…are four out of ten."

"Hey, Ren?" Toboe asked, looking out the window. The moon was almost full, he could tell that, even thought it was mostly hidden behind a thick shroud of dark gray clouds. His wounds had not been bad, he just had a bad bruise around his neck, but his bullet scrapes and other bumps were minor and had healed quickly. His strength had also returned, but with it, increasing worries for his friends. He was even wondering about the obstinate and pessimistic Getsuei. About the cream and gray wolf…he wasn't a bad wolf. He was bitter, and sad, because he had been worse off than Tsume from what Hige had told him when he and Kiba had found him. And that was saying something…besides, Toboe had a thing for reading people, and was pretty sure that Getsuei's heart was true…but his goodness was probably hidden behind a veil of acrimony. His heart was aching…

Marel was someone who had kind of freaked him out, so weird, with her blind eyes and her additiude. She wasn't a bad wolf either, just a little too creepy for Toboe to want to talk to…

He found himself missing Kiba, Hige and Tsume. They were family to him, and even though they would pick on him, that was okay, because they…well…Toboe thought back to how Sheshkemena was interrogating him, and Tsume had been fighting fang and claw to help him…and it was not the first time. He would never say anything, but was it friendship or merely loyalty to a wolflike way of life that made him like that? He himself had always wanted Tsume's approval. There was something inside Tsume that needed friendship. And Toboe had wanted to provide that.

But he was worried. For all he knew, Shehskemana went down there to take her anger out on them. She hadn't stopped searching for him either, he could constantly hear the guards patrolling the keep.

"What, Toboe?" Ren wondered as she came up to him. "Is something wrong?" Toboe nodded. "Yeah…" he said quietly. "What about…Tsume and the others. We have to get them our of there, or Sheshkemana'll kill them!" his voice had started to rise in panic. "We have to do something, Ren?"

The blond wolf pursed her lips. "Toboe, you barely escaped my mother with your life yesterday. Are you serious in wanting to try and get them out of there that quick? It's risky at best, and well…I'm not even sure they trust me yet."

"They'll trust you," Toboe said earnestly, his eyes wide. He didn't care about the risk yet. Something deep down inside told him something bad was going to happen, a shadowy threat with red eyes, hiding in the corners of his mind, taunting him with a tapping tail and a vicious leer. "Trust me. Something bad's gonna happen, I know it!"

Ren was obviously worried as she processed this, and Toboe waited with baited breath for her answer.

"…All right. We'll go and get them tomorrow. Right now, we have to think of a plan."

In Sheshkemana's throne room, the Noble had started to grow impatient. It was obvious that those wolves wouldn't crack without…persuasion, and she was unable to find the pup. Oh, when she got her hands on him he would die so slow…!

But that must wait. For now, the next morning, there would only be three wolves in that cell. Gesturing for a guard, she leaned over and whispered something in his ear. He stood to attention as soon as she finished, and said curtly, "Yes milady." With that, he signaled for a huge, armored trooper to come with him, and then strode out the door.

A/N: Ha, I can't blame my teachers this time, the servers kept going down on this stupid site. –growls- But I must say that I am very sorry for making you guys wait so long…WHAAAHH! I just saw the last four eppies of Wolf's Rain and I was crying so hard I could hardly see the screen. And as for Toboe dying off? Do you honestly believe that I'd kill him off, Kristen? -thwaks- Not after seeing…-gulps- Those last eppies…-sniffs- Thanks for you loyal reviews—Lonegrey, my faithful, Kristen, my trusty, Tweak the whose comments always make me laugh and Saberwolf!