Nothing... It was just a nightmare.

Luna woke with a start, she was in safe in her cot, practically drenched in sweat, and shaking like a leaf, her parents must have noticed because they had checked on her within thirty seconds of her eyes opening. She told her parents of the horrible vision, of what befell the tribe, what she herself had visited upon them all because her mind was weak against the darkness that lay imprisoned deep within that cave.

The days passed, and nothing happened, but Luna remained vigilant all the same, she could not afford to have that grizzly premonition become reality. "Over my dead body." Luna muttered under her breath her teeth grit not in anger, but fear, fear for her brothers and sisters in the tribe. The moon grew more and more with each passing day, and with it, the burning need within her very core steadily grew more intense. it was the same for all the women of the tribe who were of age.

Luna found herself approached by the men more and more as time went on, they only served to irritate her however. "Enough, all of you! when the time to seek a mate is upon me I will choose one among you all for myself, now please leave me be!" Luna said with an annoyed huff as she spun on a heel and dashed into the forest opposite the direction of the cave, she had taken to exploring this way to avoid falling prey to the dark voices that whispered in her mind trying to lead her astray for their own freedom and gruesome .

She heard footsteps padding behind her and reared around with a snarl, "I said!-" She paused having seen young Gabriel was the one who had followed her. He was still a few winters away from his time yet, but even Luna could see that he would be a fetching young man when he was finally old enough to take a mate for himself. "Hello, Gabriel... Did you need something?" She asked as she stood before him patiently, as his tail began to wag in a sort of staggered, fidgeting motion.

Luna found it endearing, and couldn't help but smile warmly, some things remain with you always, even as you grow older. Gabriel looked Luna square in the eyes as he steeled himself and spoke. "Luna, I... I know I'm not of age yet, but Y-You're so beautiful..." He paused, "So... Would you consider... B-Being my mate?" he practically blurted out the question, it took courage to approach someone you liked no matter your age, and for his courage Luna's smile remained.

Though her smile remained, her gaze hardened only a little. "Gabriel... You know our laws. I'm flattered that you'd approach me but it can't happen, I'm sorry." She said knowingly, before planting a light kiss on top of his head directly between his ears. She had done this with him ever since he was a youngling, and she had been a part of his life almost constantly, it honestly didn't surprise her that he wanted her as his mate, but it simply could not be.

Gabriel's ears drooped and he looked disheartened but he nodded, and turned back toward camp. Luna felt a pang of guilt rip through her, were the laws of the tribe different she would have happily been his. "But the law is the law..." Luna thought to herself as she too turned away and continued to explore.

Gabriel returned to camp and immediately headed for his family's hut, his mother, Amaryllis greeted him warmly. "So, how did your proposal go?" She asked, and Gabriel looked over at her with a defeated expression on his features. "She turned me down... Said I'm still too young." He said, fixing the far wall of the hut with a glare. "The law is the law, my son, but take heart... Your time will come." Amaryllis said knowingly.

With lightning reflexes befitting a Taxabi such as she, Amaryllis pulled her son into a loving embrace and sat him down across from her. "It's time you were told something... We are not actual blood members of this tribe..." She started, making Gabriel's eyes widen. "I was still young when I was first introduced to the Parker Tribe, Your father was the Younger brother of Chief Kazan, but He had exotic tastes in women despite having many in the tribe who would gladly become his." She paused letting Gabriel take in this information. "The Chieftain of the Tribe is my brother through my marriage to your father, and as such, we are members of the Parker Tribe." She paused again, looking her son in the eyes as she dropped a huge revelation upon his lap "You were four winters old at the time, but you were so small at the time that I told him you were only two winters old, I did this both to protect you, and so that you would have time to integrate before you were given any major tasks as a member of the Tribe..." She looked at her son with a warm smile. "That was fourteen winters ago now, You are indeed of age, and so is Luna." She said, giving him a kiss on the head as Luna had done. "You can't give up on the one you wish to be with, go get her."

It was about this time that Luna had returned from her exploration and was called over to the family hut by her Father, Kazan "I saw Gabriel follow you into the forest, my daughter..." He started to say, but was cut off by Luna much to his amusement, she was every bit like her mother when she was her age. "I turned him down, Father... The law is the law, He's only sixteen winters in age." She stated, but couldn't place this pang of guilt that still continued to stab at her heart. "Actually... " Kazan paused, "Gabriel is the same age as you..." He stated to Luna with a deadpan expression.

Luna looked at him with a single eyebrow cocked higher than the other as she took in this new information. "The Tribe has had its occasional ups and downs, and my late brother, your uncle, chose Amaryllis to be his mate despite the protest of much of our people, myself included." He said with a hint of grief lacing his tone. "Amaryllis may not be a Matogami, but she is of the Parker Tribe by rite of marriage, as is Gabriel. he has expressed his interest, but It falls upon you to decide if you want to become his or not."

He looked to the east, where Amaryllis' hut would be. "I'd imagine Amaryllis is telling Gabriel much the same as I am revealing to you, now... You two have always been inseparable when you were younglings... There is no one in this tribe I would rather see my daughter with than him." Kazan stated with a warm smile. "Go... He's already outside waiting for you I'm sure." he said as Luna stood up attempting to process the information.