love to learn more about you as well…” Rallan said enthusiastically, quickly rising to his paws, “And sure, I’ll tell you what I can about myself…”

“Great, Rallan!” Serenity replied, quickly jumping to her feet and smiling at Rallan, “Shall we be off then?”

Serenity walked out the den, the gray, white, and slightly brown male following beside her. The two meandered out into the forest, smiling at the beautiful spring scene before them. After a couple of minutes, Rallan spoke first and broke the silence.

“So Serenity, tell me about yourself…” Rallan stated, looking to her, “Do you have any family who live nearby or any family at all?” Serenity sighed softly and slowly shook her head.

“No… I had family, but that was a long time ago… A long, long time ago…” Serenity answered softly, almost sadly, “I’m two years old now… And it was almost two years ago that I lost my entire family… My brothers and I were playing outside our den as our parents watched us… Hunters came by and killed them all… I only managed to get away because I hid in some bushes and they over-looked me…”

“Oh Serenity… I’m so sorry…” Rallan apologized quickly, “I didn’t mean to bring back any painful memories… I didn’t know… I’m sorry…” Serenity chuckled softly and shook her head.

“No, it’s not your fault… You didn’t know, and that’s why you asked… You were curious. You didn’t know I’d been hurt by my past… It’s alright…” Serenity replied softly, “And what about you, Rallan? You seem strong and chivalrous… Who taught you to be that way?” Rallan’s ears slowly lowered against his head as images of Typhoon ran through his mind.

“My father did…” Rallan answered slowly and softly, “He taught me pretty much everything I know… He made me the way I am today… But he died suddenly, shortly after my training was finished…”

“Oh… How did he die?”

“He was murdered…” Rallan said blandly, “Or so the wolf that killed him was convicted of… I don’t know if it was really murder or if it was killed all in self-defense… But our court and pack chose not to listen to him and exiled him, as plain and simple as that…”

“Oh Rallan… I’m so sorry for you… Is that why you don’t like to talk about your family and your past?” Serenity asked, showing sympathy, but inside she was dying to get as much information on Rallan as physically possible.

“Yeah… That’s the reason… More or less…” Rallan replied, looking down at the ground and looking like he was about to start crying. Serenity sat down beside him and gently placed a paw on his shoulder.

“It’s alright… It wasn’t your fault, Rallan… Sometimes these things just happen to others…” Serenity said softly. Yeah, like it’s gonna happen to you soon… she thought to herself, holding in a cruel grin.

“I know… I know…” Rallan replied in a near-whisper, “But I still feel like I was to blame for all of this…” Because, in essence, I am to blame for this… he thought sadly to himself, but wasn’t about to tell Serenity the true story of what had happened. Serenity could see something was killing Rallan inside and was determined to find out what it was- but in due time. She leaned over and licked his cheek softly.

“Don’t worry about it… It’s done and over… Nothing you can do can change the past… Nothing…” she spoke quietly, nuzzling him once more, “Now, let’s not dwell on this matter… Ask me anything you wish…” Rallan was silent for a minute as he thought of a question to ask of her. After a moment, he came up with one and decided to ask it.

“Why was that brute of a wolf your mate?” Rallan asked, looking back into Serenity’s green eyes, “I thought you were supposed to be mates for love… You apparently don’t love him very much at all, so why were you two mates? And why precisely did he beat you last night that caused you to run away?”

Damn… Serenity thought to herself, not showing any traces of her irritation, How the Hell am I supposed to answer that? Alright Serenity, you’re good at weaving stories… Time to work your magic once again… She sighed softly and looked away before looking back into Rallan’s brown eyes, keeping up the appearance of an innocent, abused female.

“Because he kidnapped me and held me against my will… He said he’d kill me if I told anyone, called for help, or ever ran away from him…” Serenity falsely explained, “And he beat me last night because he demanded that I bear him pups… When I refused, he started to attack me… I got away and ran as fast as I possibly could… That’s when I ran into you… And we ran back to my old den…”

“Wait, wouldn’t he know where you are if he kidnapped you?” Rallan asked suddenly, beginning to worry a little. Serenity smiled slightly and shook her head.

“No, he jumped me when I was out hunting… He never knew where my den was and he never will know…” Serenity explained, “Come on, let’s keep walking and talking…” She stood up and began to walk off. She glanced back at him over her shoulder and grinned. “Coming?”

“Right behind you, milady…” Rallan replied, standing again and running up to her side as their walk continued.

            From the safety of the dark shadows, NightPelt and SwiftDeath watched as Serenity and Rallan spoke to one another. Every action; every movement they made, the two wolves watched, eyes alert and senses high. Though they couldn’t hear what the two were talking about, the motions Rallan made gave them some sort of clue as to the conversation.

Soon, Rallan and Serenity continued on their way. SwiftDeath growled softly once they were out of earshot and shook his head furiously. He then turned to NightPelt, eyes gleaming with a murderous spark.

“I don’t get this plan at all, Night!” SwiftDeath snarled angrily, growing impatient, “Why don’t we all just jump the bastard now or when he’s asleep?! Why do we have to do all this surveillance stuff?!”

“Because SwiftDeath, my friend, knowing your enemy is just the first step to defeating him…” NightPelt explained calmly, looking back to him, “Believe me, I enjoy killing just as much as you do, but after watching what this wolf can do, rushing head-first into combat doesn’t seem like the best strategy… If we know what hurts him emotionally, then we can exploit it against him and reduce his guard. That’s when we’ll strike- and kill him…”

NightPelt and SwiftDeath exchanged evil looks and grins. They then proceeded to follow Rallan and Serenity, eager to learn all they could about the next wolf to lose his life.

Chapter 2

            Two months passed much faster than Rallan could have expected. Throughout the eight weeks, he and Serenity grew more trust-worthy of one another and were soon close friends. He had no reason to suspect any treachery from her, especially since she’d been kind to him and very friendly as well. As for Serenity, she met up with NightPelt and SwiftDeath every three days and relayed information to them.

They now sat out in a clearing beneath the stars, the warm May air calm around the two of them. Rallan glanced over at Serenity and the two locked gazes, both smiling at one another. After a few moments, Serenity got up and sat as close to Rallan as she could get, smiling widely at him.

“Serenity… I think it’s time I told you the truth about something…” Rallan said softly, ready to admit the truth about his father and his past to her, “But I’m afraid that you’ll hate me for it…” Serenity nuzzled Rallan again, still smiling sweetly at him.

“Rallan, I don’t care what it is… I won’t hate you for anything…” she replied in a whisper, “Go on… You can tell me anything… Anything…” Rallan took a deep breath and swallowed his pride for a bit.

“There’s a reason I’m so afraid of my past… and it’s not just because my father was murdered…” he explained softly, “And I’m only telling you because I trust you… Serenity, I murdered my father…” Serenity was shocked, completely taken back.

“Y-you murdered your father?” she asked, now genuinely nervous for the first time in a while, “Why did you kill him?”

“That’s just the point though: I didn’t intend to!” Rallan protested quickly, “I saw him attacking my brother and then he murdered my brother… I attacked him in an attempt to save my brother, but it was far too late… and I accidentally ended up killing him… I was put on trial and I would have been executed had one person not voted Innocent for me… So instead I was exiled and that’s why I’m out here… Alone like this… And that’s what hurts me the most, even to this day…”

Serenity stared at Rallan for a few moments, then sighed softly. She nuzzled him gently and reassuringly, but inside she was bouncing up and down with joy. She’d found out the greatest source of weakness inside of him and now it was time to exploit it against him. She placed a paw on top of one of his and smiled at him. Time to finish my act and destroy and guard he may have left… she thought to herself.

“Rallan, I’m not going to hate you or judge you on that… You did what you thought was right and it was a noble effort…” Serenity replied, “And if anyone will, I forgive you for what you’ve done…” Rallan was shocked by these last few words.

“Y-you can forgive my past? Just like that?” he asked, obviously confused, “Why Serenity? How can you just forgive me like that?”

“Because I love you, Rallan…” Serenity lied, her words sounding so true though, “After these past two months, I can