Goodnight Moon and Goodnight You

The old male watched his daughter, head on his paws. He loved how she watched the world around them, always the most curious one out of his kids. The storm that had been further out drew closer, he could feel it on his skin and he could smell the rain getting closer. It seemed a long while had passed, and hour at most.

Soon enough, the rain would come to greet them. Falling from the heavens, a place he wasn't sure existed but if it did, it would be where he ended up soon enough. As the light rain touched his coat, he shivered, bones beginning to ache as it soaked his skin. Everything seemed calm...even with the sound of thunder around them. Ears twitched, the male keeping aware of his surroundings. What he did fail to detect, however, was the approaching enemy that had spotted his daughter. It came from a direction where the wind was blowing it's scent away from them.

Even then, he felt something was wrong...something felt...off. But what? Slowly, he looked around to see if there was anything that might be making him feel this way, but with his partial blindness, he was having difficulties. It wasn't until he heard an unfamiliar sound, the faintest of growls that he figured it out. He relied on his hearing then, pin pointing the source. There...was another creature out here. Almost immediately he would stand, hackles rising as he began to move.

He moved as fast as his old bones would allow, and it seemed that he wouldn't make it in time. The mountain lion leaped at the same moment a round of thunder rumbled the air, and he could see Ashelia had turned around to see what was coming at her. With adrenaline coursing through him, he forgot the pain in his body, a vicious snarl ripping free from the depths of his body as he slammed headlong into the Lions side, both of them tumbling to the ground with a heavy thud.

He scrambled to his feet as fast as he could, the mountain lion doing the same. Without taking his eyes off of his opponent, he stepped back a pace. "Run Ashe!" He did not turn to see if she had obeyed, for at that moment the lion had leapt at him, the male barely dodging enough to escape it. He felt claws drag at his back, pulling him down to his side. Searing pain crawled it's way across his spine, but he ignored it as he sought to make an attack of his own. Without hesitation, he turned and clamped his jaws down as hard as he could over the Lions forepaw, crushing down with as much force as he could until he heard the joint break. The lion roared with pain and frustration, swiping at Leon's face with the other paw and sending him tumbling across the ground.

Blood welled from the lacerations on the side of his head, but it would not keep him down. He rose once more, facing off against the lion as it charged in for another attack. Bracing himself, the lion leapt once more and Leon charged at him. Jaws snapped open, the wolf aiming a savage bite at the Lions throat. He managed to gain purchase, and he held on for dear life even when both landed heavily on the ground and rolled about in a frenzy of flying fur. Even while the lion clawed at his body, Leon refused to let go. The scent of blood and the stench of the lion filled his nose, and he knew that if he didn't end this soon, it could be all over for him.

"Leave my daughter...alone!" He hissed between fur and flesh. Little did he know that they were getting closer to the edge of the cliff, and he didn't realize it until his rump became exposed to the cold air below. With a final ditch effort, Leon rolled onto his back, exposing his underside. He knew it to be a certain death sentence, but he needed to do it. Claws cut down his rib cage, slicing across his abdomen. With the remainder of his strength, he brought his hind legs up and under the Lions belly, aiming a hard kick while simultaneously releasing his grip on its throat. Time seemed to slow down as the lion was sent flying over the edge. But not before it tried to grip Leon with its unbroken paw, claws finding purchase on his back as soon as he had rolled onto his belly. With a cry of pain, Leon was dragged down the side of the cliff. Everything seemed to go in slow motion now.

The rain pelting him. The wind rushing by. The world around him spinning. If this were under any other circumstance, he would have thought that maybe this was what flying felt like. Without the pain and panic and the knowledge that death was about to come. Somewhere around him, he could hear the mountain lion screaming. The waves below them crashing against the rocks.

And then...silence.

It was over.

He landed on a ledge far below the top of the cliff, the breath being driven from his body which now lied broken and bloodied. Eyes remained closed, his body still.

Ashe...