A/N: Apologize for the delay. Computer got ill. So did my grandmother. Garth, Humphrey, Winston, and Lilly are © of Lionsgate. Today's chapter: Where have Lilly and her family disappeared to? Will they find Luna? First?

Where am I? was the first thought that came to Luna when she blinked awake. She put a paw to her head. That hurts. It really hurts… she noticed.

She looked around. She was in an unfamiliar cave. It had a darker lighting than the ones at her home. She tried to sit up, but her legs simply gave way and she fell onto her belly.

A wolf appeared in the cave entrance. The sunrise outlined his frame. She snarled at the wolf who was a handsome gray male with lighter gray forming a stripe from his nose and disappearing somewhere at the top of his head. He just grinned and walked towards her.

"Don't come any closer. Or…or I'll rip you paws off and—"

"No need for hostility," the male interrupted. "Would I ever harm anything so lovely?"

The wolf had halted in the middle of the cave. Luna prayed it was enough distance to hide her blush. She looked away from him.

"What's your name charming?"

"Luna," Luna answered softly.

"I like that name," the wolf replied, flicking his tail.

"What's yours?" Luna asked, pricking her ears and trying to sound more friendly.

"My friends call me Logan."

"Are you a Northern wolf?" Luna tried to hide panic. The name sounded familiar to her, but it certainly wasn't the name of any wolf she had ever seen in her pack.

"What's wrong with Northern wolves?" Logan tilted his head.

"They attacked my family. I hate them. Their leader is such a cruel and selfish Alpha wolf. I think he wants to start a war or something."

"Sounds awful. No, I'm a lone wolf," Logan assured. "I saw you lying in a river just down the mountain. "You looked badly injured. You must feel lucky I came when I did."

"I do," Luna responded, flattening her ears with a little embarrassment. She suddenly tensed. "Where's my brother? He was with me in that river."

"Calm down. I was going to go back for him. But this white wolf and red male came and took him before I could. Are they friends of yours?"

Luna sighed with my relief. "More than that. They're my parents."

"So he's safe?"

Luna nodded.

"That's a weight off your shoulders."

Luna looked at him. "More like the other way around. You see, he's older than me and he's an Alpha so he feels as though he has to be my personal guard or something. I mean…I love him for that, but I just want to be able to prove I can do things for myself too, you know?"

Logan nodded. "Boy, do I," he nodded. He shook his head and looked at her in confusion. "Wait…you're an Omega?"

Luna nodded a yes.

"And he's an Alpha? Well, that's not very fair, is it?"

"No…it's not," bad memories came flooding back to Luna. "I know. But I had one Alpha and one Omega parent. Only one of us could be one of each."

"And they chose you to be the Omega? That's a crime!"

"Oh, but you should meet my brother. He's very strong and athletic. And he's a whole lot better at all the fancy flips and leaps than I am."

"Well judging from those wounds you had yesterday, I think you at least put up a good fight."

Luna growled playfully. Logan pretended to whimper and shrink backwards. It made Luna giggle. "Are you an Omega too?" she asked with a tilted head.

Logan stood up and turned his back to her. Luna noticed his head was hanging low. "Er…no. Just a lone wolf."

"Surely you had a pack once? Where did your parents come from?"

Logan turned his head to look at her again. "That…that doesn't matter! Eat up," he added, picking up a dead bird in his jaws. "I caught it myself. And do you have any idea how hard that is on your own?"

Luna shook her head and bit into the duck. She immediately spat it out.

"What? You don't like duck?" Logan asked with a bit of offense in his voice.

Luna looked over the duck. She realized it was a female. She sighed with relief. "No…it tastes good. It's just…I'm uncomfortable eating ducks since my aunt and uncle are friends with one."

"Friends with a duck?"

"Mh-hmm. And a goose. Have you ever heard of a game called golf?"

Logan shook his head. "Isn't it that game where humans hit small balls with metal sticks?"

"Something like that. It's just something birds play. I think they're trying to teach us how to play…"

"Is it something you like playing? Would you want to give it a go right now?" Logan offered.

Luna shook her head quickly and held up a paw. "Oh! No thanks…however, my uncle invented this game with his friends," she began. She tried to sit up, but it was a little difficult. "They call it log-sledding. It's quite fun. You should try it sometime."

"I'll keep that in mind," Logan grinned. He noticed Luna's legs shaking to keep her up. "You should probably lie back down. I think your legs are trying to say they're too tired."

"I'm fine!" Luna snapped. She cleared her throat. "I mean…I don't feel tired. How long was I out?"

"Hard to say…" Logan tried to think. "I think it was from when you hit your head on so many rocks."

"Rocks? I only hit my head on one…"

"I couldn't agree less. I saw the whole thing. First, you were running away from those wolves with that male—your brother, right?"

Luna nodded.

"Then, you slipped and fell into the river. The rain was making it flood, so there were more rapids than usual. You brother followed you, though I don't remember how. I saw your parents running beside the river, shouting. But the river was faster. You and you littermate were swept into the foaming parts of the river. You hit your head on this huge rock and I think it made the rest feel numb. But you definitely got hit with some more. So did your bro. Finally, the water calmed down and the two of you were swept onto the shallower parts. You were barely conscious. You brother was really weak. I went straight for you…well because of the ladies first rule, of course! I went back for your brother, but your parents were already dragging him away with them…"

Luna was listening intently. "You're a very good narrator," she murmured.

"Thanks. Sorry, I always monologue like that," Logan rolled his eyes at himself. "My point is, you probably didn't feel so many hits because the first one was worst and made your head feel numb. Brain is in the head you know. Memories are in the brain."

"Yeah…I get it," Luna said, feeling a little foolish. Memories of the day before made her head hurt more. And she felt bad just leaving her parents and brother (even though it wasn't her fault!) To change the subject, Luna bit down into some more duck.

She pricked her ears. "Where's your part? This bird isn't enough to feed the both of us!" she exclaimed.

Logan dipped his head modestly. "Well…the health of you is more important than me…someone would miss you more if you starved to death out here!"

"Where am I anyway?"

"The mountains. Lucky for you, you're still in Jasper Park. Your family can't be far."

Luna sighed with relief. "Well…I don't exactly know this part of Jasper too well. I'll need a guide…"

"You're looking at a perfectly good one."

"Fine by me. But my guide will need food to keep his strengths up…" she hinted.

"Are you always this good at conning people?"

"Annoying isn't it?"

"Very." Logan sighed with defeat. "C'mon," he said after a short while. "You win, pack wolf."

Luna couldn't help but smirk. "I always win…"

Garth blinked awake. Sunlight poured through the roof of his den and into his face. He felt Lilly's gentle breathing rhythm beside him. For a moment, the events of the previous day seemed like some sort of a bad dream. But his son proved Garth wrong.

The three wolves had slept in a den that Garth had made last night. Garth had made a space for about four wolves with a protective barrier circling around it made of tree roots and brambles (the roots were still connected to the old tree). Troy was sitting tall, looking down at his father.

"Where's Luna?" he demanded. Since he had such a wild ride last night, he didn't remember much.

Garth gave a tired sigh and sat up carefully, so as not to wake Lilly. Last night was so stressful for the worried mother, he didn't want her to miss a wink of sleep.

"I don't know," he confessed. "But I'm sure-"

Garth was cut off as his son pushed a piece of the tree's roots away and walked out. Garth stood and followed, forgetting to be careful about disturbing Lilly.

"Troy, wait!" Garth called.

Troy didn't stop walking. He looked over his shoulder. "For what? Luna's an Omega. Nobody taught her how to survive on her own! She needs us now. No time for waiting."

Garth broke into a run to stand in front of the younger Alpha. "Troy, I'm not going to disagree with you. But at least remember your mother."

"No need."

The two males looked behind Troy to see Lilly trotting up. "I remembered myself," she woofed. She even padded ahead of them. "Where are we anyways Garth?"

Garth looked around. "Hmm…I can't tell. If we're lucky, Eastern territory or even outside of Jasper. We wouldn't want to be in Northern territory right now."

Troy shook his head.

Lilly took a deep sniff. She pricked her ears. "Someone's coming," she whispered.

Before they could do anything, a pair of bushes near the family began to rustle and shake violently. Lilly tensed and Garth ran up to stand in front of her, snarling at the newcomers. Troy stood behind his father and mother.

The bush's branches parted and revealed Winston.

"Dad!" Lilly exclaimed. She nosed Garth aside with her nose to look at him better.

"Lilly! Garth!" Winston gasped. Humphrey appeared beside him, followed by some former Eastern wolves.

"What're you all doing here?" Troy asked.

"We're a search party," Humphrey explained. "We've been looking all over for the four of you."

"Is Luna with you?" Lilly demanded.

"Um…no," replied a confused Humphrey. "That's kinda the idea of a search party. To search for her and you."

"We assumed you were with Luna," Winston put in.

"She's not. And if she's not here, then I must go find her," Lilly announced and turned tail and raced through the forest.

"I will join her," Troy said in the same tone. He followed his mother.

Garth watched them go and turned to the other wolves with a sigh. "You know what they say. A family that goes missing together searches together."

And he followed his family.

"After them! They're about to go into Northern Pack territory," Winston ordered the wolves behind him. They darted past him while his older bones made him run more slowly behind.

Lilly sped through the forest at top speed. She was vaguely aware of her mate and son behind her.

It's nice that they're loyal, she thought. But Dad needs to learn that I'm a grown wolf. He can't boss me around anymore! He of all wolves should know that nothing will stop a wolf from helping their pup. Nothing.

Luna giggled as she chased a squirrel around in the snow. She knew it was mean, but could she help it if she was having fun? She and Logan had traveled down the mountain in search of prey. Luna didn't want to hunt because she wasn't the best at it, but Logan had figured out a way for her distracting behavior to be helpful. It fled from her and tripped right into Logan's claws. He gave it a swift bite to the throat to finish it off.

"And you say you're not a good hunter," Logan scoffed at her. "This is the fattest squirrel I've seen all winter. You really have an eagle's eye if I say so myself."

Luna blushed. "Gee…thanks! Really. We do make a great team don't we?" Great, she thought. I sound like Uncle Humphrey now….

She shook her head and pawed some snow aside to reveal the duck from earlier she had buried. She pulled it out and crouched to begin eating. Logan took a bite out of the squirrel.

"Happy now?" he asked after swallowing one bite. "I'm eating."

"Yes I am," replied Luna, flicking her fluffy red tail.

Logan grinned with amusement and went back to eating. The two ate in silence. Logan looked rather nervous. He swallowed loudly and sat up.

"So…" he shuffled his paws awkwardly. "Luna? If we don't find your pack…I mean-that is if you want the lone wolf life…I do get sort of lonely-this lone wolf business…well-would you even consider…?"

Luna gasped.

"Hey, if I don't look like a good adventurer partner, that's fine," Logan said, startled.

"No! I mean, Northern Pack wolves!" Luna pointed with a paw behind Logan and then raced in that direction.

Logan was surprised for a moment then shook it out of his fur and followed her. Omegas were fast runners!

The pair ran from the mountain range and towards what Luna had apparently seen. Once they were in thick forest, they both skidded to a halt to see Luna's parents and brother arguing with a group of Northern wolves.

"Oh no," they both said at the same time.

"Give us back our daughter," Garth growled at a brown wolf.

"We know you have her prisoner," Troy spat.

"And what would we want with one of your flea-bitten rats?" one of the enemy wolves hissed.

Luna walked into the light. "They don't have me. I was too hard for them to catch," she said calmly.

The Northern wolves growled at her. "Are you calling us slow?" the brown one demanded.

"No. Just that you run like a turtle," Luna retorted coolly.

Lilly laughed.

The Northern wolves snarled and took a threatening step towards her. Luna finally noticed Humphrey and his patrol. They all blocked the Northerners way.

"Don't even think about it," Humphrey snarled.

Luna was nearly tackled to the ground as three wolves slid to a halt in front of her and buried her in nuzzles and welcoming licks.

"Where were you?" Troy asked.

"Why would you run off?" Lilly asked.

"What was it like on your own?" Hayden asked.

"Did that gray Northerner hurt you?" Lilly questioned.

"Did you feel kidnapped?" Hayden's eyes widened.

"Did he starve you?" Troy tilted his head.

"Did he mistreat you?" Lilly growled.

Luna's head was spinning. "Enough!" she squeaked. "My head will fall off if I have to look at all of you at once!"

Her cousin, mother, and brother all apologized.

"But where were you?" Troy repeated.

"Do you have any idea how worried I was?" Lilly's eye widened. Her fur had fallen over the other one again.

"I know. But I was fine. I was safe with my friend," Luna gestured with a paw to Logan who was right beside her. Or so she thought. When Luna looked, she noticed no one there. Where had Logan gone?

Lilly looked around. "…your friend…who?"

Luna looked for Logan with puzzlement. "…no one," she finally said after a while.

"Are you feeling alright?" Troy fretted.

"I'm fine!" Luna said.

Garth walked up to them. "Okay, that's enough of having Luna under trial. We should go home before these Northerners snap again," he added with a suspicious glance over his shoulder at the snarling wolves.

"Okay," Lilly agreed softly.

The wolves began to walk back to their own territory. Luna looked over her shoulder one last time. Where was Logan?

After the wolves arrived home life returned to normal. The Alphas hunted and brought the food to their families. The Omegas went log-sledding with Humphrey as the ring leader. The wolves around Troy's age were talking about Alpha School. The Omegas around Luna's age were begging them to shut up already.

Speaking of Luna and Troy, Garth was bringing in dinner to his family. It was near the end of sunset, so he was awfully late. "You'd think with spring here, the caribou would be easier to find," he commented.

"Maybe they're all hiding cause they found out there was one more mouth we needed to feed," Luna joked about herself. Troy chuckled.

Lilly let out an amused 'hmm' and began to eat. Her family joined in. After a lot of silence, Luna asked, "Um, dad? Mom? What would you say if I was friends with a lone wolf?"

Garth spit out his un-chewed meat. Luna was surprised. Partially because it landed on her. "What…what? Is something wrong with being friends with a lone wolf?"

"Well…are you?"

Luna hesitated. It seemed like her dad didn't approve of lone wolves. "I…um…I was just hypothetically speaking."

"Lone wolves are untrustworthy, sweetie," Lilly said. "They've been known to be liars and con-wolves. Some would only be your friend for easy food."

"But he knew how to hunt!" Luna clamped her jaws shut. "I…I mean…what if they knew how to hunt?"

Troy didn't get why his sister was talking about this. But he couldn't help but come to her defense. "Wasn't Uncle Humphrey a lone wolf once?"

"That was for hardly three minutes," Garth shook his head.

"Luna, it's nice that you want to be friends with everyone," Lilly paused to blow her hair out of her left eye. "But…lone wolves just aren't the best people to be around. Trust us."

Luna looked at her paws. "I do."

Troy noticed she said it with a slightly depressed tone. It made him concerned.

Luna ate with anxiety gnawing at her belly. She had lied to her parents! Technically…

Luna twitched her tail-tip. The idea that her family didn't want her to be friends with Logan just tempted her to rebel all the more. She liked hanging out with him and let's face it…he was cute! What if she liked him? I like a guy my parents don't approve of? Shame on me!

Luna whimpered.

"What's the matter Loony?" Lilly tilted her snowy head.

"Bad meat," Luna mumbled. "Bad me…"

Logan walked through the forest with a head set low. He felt guilty about mysteriously leaving Luna. But he couldn't let the Northern wolves see him! They'd have his pelt and use it for a rug in their leader, Seth's cave.

Speak of the devil, two of Seth's closest friends walked out of the bushes, growling.

"Hey, loser," one of them smirked. It was Hawk.

Logan rolled his eyes. "What do you want?"

"You spent the night in your little cave, did you?" the other one questioned.

"So what if I did?"

"You know we were going to attack the United pack! Your pack needed your fighting skills! And now, you've made your brother upset. What kind of an Alpha are you?"

"What are you going to do about it?"

"We're going to take you to your big bro."

Logan tried to hide the fact he had tensed. "Anyone but Seth."

Dun, dun, dun!