"Cheetara, would you be so kind as to tell us the Code of Thundera?" Jaga requested of the cheetah. "Cheetara?" He asked again when the cub did not respond. "Cheetara Clan Duma." His voice resounded through the room.

The cheetah quickly snatched herself from the daydream she was in, "Yes Lord Jaga?"

"Did you not hear the question?"

"No Lord Jaga." She answered softly.

"Tygra, would you be so kind as to enlighten your friend."

The tiger stood, "Truth, Honor, Justice, and Loyalty is the answer Lord Jaga." He glanced over his shoulder at Cheetara and was surprised to see a look of betrayal on her face.

"And the meaning of each?"

"Truth: To never knowingly lie to a fellow Thundaercat. Honor: To uphold the code at all costs. Justice: To protect those unable to protect themselves. Loyalty: To never betray the Lord, a fellow Thundercat, or the Code."

Jaga nodded his approval and motioned the tiger to sit. "Now young Cheetara, I suggest that you learn the code and its meaning by tomorrow. I will expect you to stand before the class and recite them."

"Yes Lord Jaga." She whispered

"What? I did not hear your response."

"Yes, Lord Jaga." She said in a voice that echoed off the walls.

"Very well," He glanced at the timepiece. "That is enough for today. Noble Barlo is awaiting you in the exercise room." He chuckled at the groans the cubs emitted as they filed out of the small lecture room. "Cheetara, a moment." The young cheetah turned and faced the jaguar. "Care to tell me what is bothering you?"

"Nothing Lord Jaga." She answered simply

He raised an eyebrow at her tone, "It’s not like you not to pay attention in lecture. Something must be bothering you."

"I’m just tired. I didn’t sleep well last night. May I go? I’ll be late for Noble Barlo’s lessons."

Jaga sighed. "Very well." Cheetara gave the noble a graceful bow and exited the room. Jaga made a mental note to talk to Seyan about the cub’s moods.

"Now as you know, this hold can be broken by…" Barlo turned from his demonstration as he heard the door slid open. "So Cheetara decided to join us did she?"

"Forgive me, Noble Barlo. Lord Jaga kept me after lecture." She answered as she bowed. "It won’t happen again."

He looked the cheetah over and noticed the tired look in her face and the dark marks under her eyes. "Perhaps you should skip combat today. You look as if you need the rest."

"I’m fine, thank you." She went and took a seat on the mat away from Tygra and Panthro. The older panther regarded her a moment longer before returning to the lesson.

"What’s up with her today?" Panthro asked his friend in a whisper.

Tygra shrugged, "I don’t know. She’s been acting weird all week. Probably some girl thing." He glanced at the cheetah

"Alright, each of you choose a sparring partner and practice the holds we went over." Barlo’s voice brought the boys back to attention.

"So do you want to work with her today or should I?" Panthro querried.

"Go ahead, I want to work with Asia." He said to the panther as he wandered over to the young tigress.

Cheetara watched as all the others broke into their sparring teams and, seeing Tygra team up with Asia, walked over to Panthro. "I guess you’re stuck with me."

The panther glanced down at his young friend "Come on Swifty, "She cracked a slight smile at the use of her nickname. "Let’s see what you got."

The small cheetah took a defensive stance and waited for the panther to make his move. She watched as he shifted the weight on his feet and was ready to move when he charged. She was, however, too slow and found herself staring up into his face. "Are you alright?" Panthro asked, the concern evident in his eyes.

She heard someone laugh, "Hey, look the runt can fly." More laughter echoed in the room.

She felt the tears welling up in her eyes even as Barlo growled a warning to Cain. "Cheetara," Barlo said gently as he helped her sit up. "I think you’ve had enough for today." She didn’t respond. Her eyes had locked onto Tygra standing next to Asia. He was laughing. She felt her anger burn. "He’s laughing at me." The tears welled up again, "They were right. I am a nobody." She broke away from Barlo’s grip and with one last look at the tiger, ran from the room.

He felt her eyes lock on to his face and in that moment felt a wave of guilt wash over him. He averted his eyes so he wouldn’t have to see the hurt in hers. He watched as she dashed from the room "How could I do that to her?" He was pulled out of his thoughts by the sounds of more laughter.

"Tygra," Asia laughed, "I don’t know how you can be friends with her. But I guess she is good for a laugh."

He glared at the young tigress and wondered what he had even seen in her. "She’s a better friend then you." He snarled back and quickly walked away from the tigress.

Seyan turned as the door opened and gave a small sigh of relief when the missing cub walked into the house. "Cheetara, where have you been? You were supposed to be home three hours ago."

The young cheetah walked past her foster mother without a word and headed up the stairs to her room. Seyan heard the girl’s footsteps acrossthe ceiling and the click of a door closing. "Tygra," She turned to her son sitting at the computer terminal. "Did something happen to Cheetara today?" She watched as the young tiger winced slightly. "Tygra what happened today?"

"Where to you want me to start?" He asked. He was, however, saved by the sound of the door chime. "I’ll get it." He bounded over to the door. "Lord Jaga, Uncle..Umm, I mean Noble Barlo."

"Tygra, go upstairs. We’ll continue our conversation later." Seyan waited until the cub was out of hearing. "I take it this has to do with Cheetara." She said as she led them into the sitting room.

"Then you’ve noticed the change in her?" Jaga asked.

Seyan nodded, "If you mean the fact that she is withdrawn, depressed, not eating or sleeping, then yes. I’ve noticed."

Barlo shook his head, "No, it’s getting worse. Today she came late to practice and ran out not long after that. Her moods are getting harder to judge and her concentration is starting to slip."

"I take it [that] she is having the same problems in lecture, Lord Jaga?" He nodded. "Well I can tell you that physically she is a healthy nine season old cub."

"I hear a but in there." Barlo observed.

The healer nodded. "I’ve had to start giving her sedatives at night again. The nightmares are back, and the effect on her is stronger then before." She glanced up as Tyben entered the home.

He took one look at those gathered in the room, "Who did what this time?" He asked. But the small smile on his face quickly disappeared when he noted his mate’s expression. "What’s wrong? Is Tygra or Cheetara hurt?" his expression changed to one of concern.

"No, Tygra is fine." Seyan glanced up at her mate. " Lord Jaga and Barlo are here about Cheetara. Apparently she is having problems controlling her moods in lecture and combat class. She motioned her mate to take a seat. "She may be starting to deal with her psychological wounds."

"I thought she was completely recovered." Barlo commented

"Physically, yes. Mentally, no. She never mourned her parents’ death. She never came to terms with her claustrophobia or her fear of the dark. She still sleeps with the light Tygra gave her. She still has a fear of being left alone. I found her in her room last night almost comatose in fear. She said she could hear‘them’ and wanted me to stop the voices."

Tyben’s head shot up at his mate’s words. "Seyan, remember what the elder told us about Cheetara’s clan?"

"The ‘curse’." Barlo whispered.

Jaga nodded as he absorbed the information, "Healer, have you given the cub a brain scan yet?"

"No, I was too concerned about her claustrophobia. The machine doesn’t offer much in the way of space."

"I understand your concern healer, but I think it would be best for the cub if we find out if her abilities are becoming active." He paused, his eyes becoming distant. "I have seen what happens to the young ones that have no training. It is one of the reasons the cheetahs forbid the breeding of the larden."

"I could sedate her a little and Tyben can stay in the room during the scan." The healer spoke more to herself then the others. "Very well, tomorrow. Thank you for your concern Lord Jaga, Barlo."

Tygra stood outside her door. He could hear her sobs through thewalls and felt a twinge of guilt at the fact that he may have caused some of those tears. He softly knocked on the door and after waiting a few moments but receiving no response, quietly opened it. He saw her curled on her bed, the small lamp he had given her the only illumination in the room and her stuffed saber tooth clutched in her embrace. "Cheetara?" No response, "Cheetara?" He called softly again.

"Go away." Her voice cracked, "Leave me alone." She pulled the blanket higher.

He took another step into the room. "I just want to talk."

She sat up and glared at him, her amber eyes almost black from anger and crying. "I said leave me alone!" she grabbed the closest thing to her and threw it at him. Tygra jumped back and heard the sound of glass break as it hit the wall.

He glanced down and saw the picture frame lying on the carpet, its glass splintered into several pieces now. He took note of the photo that had been within the glass. It was Cheetara, Panthro and himself. His father had taken it not long after the cheetah had come to live with them. It had been his naming day gift to her that first year. He reached down and carefully picked the remains of the frame and photo up. He glanced back up at Cheetara who had resumed her position under the blanket, and for the first time, the tiger felt himself growing angry at her.

"Fine. You want to be that way about it, I’ll leave. You can leave anytime you want. I never wanted you to live here anyway." He slammed her door shut as he left and stormed into his own room, tossing the frame and photo remains in his trash. He stood in the center of his room for a moment, his mind replaying what he had just done. He glanced back at his own closed door. "Oh no." He slowly sank down to the carpet. "I’m sorry Cheetara." He whispered as the tears slowly flowed down his face.

The tigress stood at the bottom of the steps. She had heard the exchange between the two cubs and felt her heart break at the words that had been spoken. She quietly made her way up the stairs and could hear the sobs of the two friends withinthe hallway. She slowly opened the door to the young cheetah’s room and saw her curled under her blankets, her breathing slowing from the frantic sobs to that of sleep. She smiled sadly and pulled the door shut. She made her way to her son’s room and could still hear his sobs from within. "Tygra?" She spoke as she knocked on the door.

"Please leave me alone." The boy’s muffled voice said.

Seyan sighed, "When you feel like talking, I’ll be downstairs."

Tygra listened as his mother’s footsteps faded. He glanced over at the trashcan that he had tossed the photo into. He reached over and pulled the now crumbled photo out. "I’ll apologize in the morning and I’ll make it up to her." He crawled into his bed feeling a little better now that he had decided what to do.

She was running. The air around her was filled with smoke, ash, and the stench of fear and death. All around her, she could hear the screams of others as they ran through the inferno that was Thundera City. Ahead of her she couldsee the outlines of hundreds of ships through the smoke-filled air. She heard someone calling her name and turned in the direction she thought it came from. She saw a shadow standing at the edge of the field frantically waving toher. She began running to the shadow, but it seemed that the faster she ran, the farther away the shadow moved. "Wait. Please wait." She cried out. The shadow motioned. "Please don’t leave me." She put more effort into her dash.The ground quaked. She ran. The shadow moved to a ship, motioning to her. "Please wait!" She screamed. The air grew heavy with heat. She ran. The shadow’s face became clear to her. The ground cracked apart. She ran. "Don’tleave me. You promised you wouldn’t leave me!" She cried. The shadow backed into the ship, still motioning to her. She ran. The ground quaked. She fell. The shadow called her name. She reached out her fingers. "Please youpromised!" Her amber eyes filled with tears of fear. The door closed, the ship started to lift off. "Please! Don't leave me alone!" she screamed. "Tygra!"

"Cheetara," Seyan shook the cub, "Cheetara wake up."

Her eyes flew open and she found herself within the safe and familiar confines of her room, her mind still clinging to the vivid images of the nightmare. "He left me." She cried as she clung to her foster mother. "He left me."

The tigress gently rocked the frantic cheetah "Who left you?" She asked, trying to make sense of the cub’s ramblings.

"He left me. He promised he wouldn’t." She kept repeating. "Why did he leave me?"

"Shhhh, no one is leaving you." The tigress spoke in a soft voice as she gathered the crying cub into her arms and began humming softly.

The cheetah’s grip slowly loosened as the calming lullaby pierced her terror-filled mind. Seyan gently lifted the cub and walked over to the small rocking chair she had placed in the room for such occasions and, wrapping the girl ina soft blanket, she continued her soft serenade.

Cheetara snuggled into the warmth of her foster mother and allowed the feeling of security to wash over her as the nightmare images deserted her mind. "Someone else used to hold me like this." Her amber eyes glanced up at the tigress’s soft face as she tried to remember that face that now eluded her. She slowly closed her eyes as the quiet voice lulled her into sleep.

A soft laugh, a gentle smile. A face that was familiar yet not. Loving hands lifting a crying cub. A gentle rocking. A tender touch filled with love. The faint sent of a familiar fragrance. The faraway sound of singing.

The images shifted:

A small wagon up on a bumpy road. Two familiar voices answering a question. A young cub cuddled upon a warm lap surrounded by love. A full moon within the night sky, a spot of red upon it. The sound of laughter and a feeling of family.

The image shifted:

Clutched within familiar arms while running. Frightened shouts piercing the still night. A feeling of flying and then crashing upon the hard ground. A frantic call, the loving arms reaching for her. A voice filled with love tellingher to be brave. . A dark cave, the familiar face glancing at her, fear within his eyes. A cry of fear at being left alone. A shiny object slipped into her hands. An outstretched hand grasping for something out of reach. Afrantic scream begging, pleading with the face.

She was plunged into the darkness….