AN: This story is a sequel to A Mother's Love (Sky Kings #1) and I recommend that you read that first if you haven't already.

Miracle of miracles it didn't take me all of eternity and a decade to get this up! (Yes I read those reviews about how abysmal my updating is. I SEE YOU.)

I won't make promises I may not be able to keep but I will promise that I will see this story through to completion!

Warning: This chapter does contain descriptions and talk of monsters hunting and killing for food so if that kind of thing bothers you then you have been warned.

Chapter 1: Six Month Marker

The tropical jungle hummed with life. Creatures both large and small calling to one another or sounding a warning for others to stay away. So far Alistair had managed to stay unseen as she crept through the thick foliage. Not an easy task with two six month old rathalos in tow. Both of them had a pretty good amount of growing to do yet before they reached their adult stage but even now they could easily look her straight in the eyes or even glance over her head when they rose up as in Ginouji's case. He was clearly going to be bigger then his brother and it was starting to show more and more.

Despite their rapidly growing size, however, they were both able to move with near perfect stealth even through such a dense jungle as this one. Now more then ever Alistair could see that all the training she had been doing with them was paying off. Everything she had been working so hard to teach was showing through right now. Light footsteps through the jungle, shifting position or carefully adjusting their wings and other limbs so that the foliage they had rubbed up against wouldn't snap back and alert the prey they were tracking. Communication was soft or made through body language when possible to avoid causing too much noise.

At the three month mark, Alistair had taken them out and started sending them after larger prey then just fish and crustaceans. They were needing more and more food to keep them going so it was only fair that their training be adjusted as well. First kelbi, then at four months she had started taking them up against mosswine, slow placid herbivores that did little in the way of self defense. At five months they went up against their first bullfango and got a taste of how much an angry herbivore could fight back. Both Ginouji and Akairo had come away with some nasty bruises but it hurt their confidence and pride more so then their bodies. It had taken some coaxing to get them to go back out again and when they had they had been soundly beaten again when they both got angry and frustrated rather then scared. But once they finally did take down their first few bullfango there was no stopping them. That hunt had taught them to respect the prey they were taking down but also had shown them that they could fight against other monsters and win if they kept their training in mind, worked together and didn't allow their anger or frustration to get the better of them.

Now you guys are six months old, Alistair thought, pausing to look to her left and right to make sure Akairo and Ginouji were in position. Both of them bobbed their heads in acknowledgment when they saw her looking their way, silently signaling that they were paying attention to her and waiting on her cue to go. Time to move up again, she considered creeping forward a few steps and gently pushing a bush out of her line of sight.

All morning they had been following a herd of aptonoth. There were little to no small babies which was what Alistair wanted. She wanted Ginouji and Akairo to go after one of the juveniles which was a bit bigger then they were but not so large that they didn't stand a chance of taking it down. She had her eyes on one juvenile that was a rather nice size. The fact that it wandered around alone instead of sticking close to one of the larger members was a good sign that it was alone. Technically speaking it was old enough to fend for itself but it should still be sticking as close as possible to its mother at that age. The fact that it wasn't meant that the parent was likely dead. It may be cruel but it meant that there was less of a chance that one of the other adults would stick around to protect a juvenile that wasn't their own. It also mean less of a chance that Ginouji or Akairo would be trampled.

Unlike their previous failures whenever they had moved up to a different monster on the food chain, Alistair had a feeling they were going to succeed the first time with this hunt. Both of them had really been paying attention and their play had faded away into more focused fighting. Alistair had even caught them practicing different moves against each other or with each other working together. It was a good thing they listened and loved her so much because their level of understanding frankly scared her a bit at times, it was rising a lot more sharply then she initially expected.

Time to do this, Alistair thought raising a hand up and waiting as both Akairo and Ginouji immediately glanced over her way. This lesson today was about patience and observation. There were plenty of ways a hunt could fail and when they did fail they went hungry. That more then anything else had torn at Alistair's heart, seeing her babies looking at her or whining with hunger after two days of not catching anything substantial. She had cried over it in bed more then a few times at the sight but if they wanted to survive then they needed tough love. They might leave one day or even just head farther out and take up a territory in the surrounding jungle. Alistair wasn't going to put them at a disadvantage because she couldn't do what was necessary to teach them when they were younger. They needed to understand that she couldn't do everything for them.

You understand now don't you? A failed hunt doesn't just mean you don't eat, if you did something stupid or weren't paying attention and got hurt then it could affect your chances for next time. You've done that several times before but you know better now don't you? You're smarter then that now aren't you? Alistair thought pointing her hand straight at the juvenile aptonoth that was grazing on some berry bushes at the edge of the herd.

Ginouji and Akairo chuffed in understanding and made a few signals to each other before starting to move. Ginouji headed straight for the edge of the foliage they were hiding in, ready to burst out at any moment. Meanwhile, Akairo moved behind her getting as close to the aptonoth as he thought possible, ultimately settling just 20 feet away. He was far closer then Alistair had expected him to go. There was no wind blowing and she couldn't help but notice that he was standing right in a patch of swamp cabbage. It was at the stage yet were it hadn't started letting of the noxious smell it was famous for but it still provided a strong enough vegetable smell that it masked his scent.

A few more seconds passed with only the sounds of jungle life around them before Ginouji burst from cover with as loud a cry as he could manage. Their voices had deepened a good bit but it still wasn't quite the powerful and frightening roar of an adult. That would have to wait until they were at least a year or two old. Still it was more then enough to panic the herd. The clearing they were in had a large space between the trees leading back towards the river over to the left. As expected the aptonoth turned headed straight that way instead of crashing through the jungle.

The juvenile aponoth immediately moved to go after them but pulled up with a sharp frantic cry when Akairo came roaring out of the forest and skidded to a stop right in front of it. Honking in alarm it backed up in fear before snorting and lowering its head to charge instead. Akairo easily jumped aside and ducked in to bite at one of its front legs biting down enough to cause injury but Alistair was pleased to see that he didn't try and hold on. At one point a couple months ago Akairo would have held on for dear life even though doing so would put him in a terrible position where he could easily be tossed aside or stepped on.

Now Akairo got his bite in and jumped back again as the aptonoth swung around and tried to get in another headbutt. When he danced back out of range again the young aptonoth tried to go in the direction the rest of the herd had gone but they had already gotten to the river and were crashing through the water as fast as they could go. Satisfied that they were going to keep going, Ginouji turned around and came back to provide support for his brother. Now he stood there blocking the only clear exit out of the clearing, glancing back twice to ensure that none of the heard head turned back around.

The aptonoth snorted and shifted its weight back and forth taking a glance over at the jungle edge. Going through the forest would slow it down and leave a visible trail for them to follow. Its only choice was to chase them off here.

Alistair saw the moment it realized this and tensed up in reflex as it ducked its head and charged Ginouji head on trying to shove past him if possible. This time when Ginouji moved aside the apotonoth didn't miss a beat and followed his movements while swinging their tail back and forth to try and warn off Akairo as well. It snorted and painfully lifted the leg Akairo had bitten in order to get some weight off it.

Now what are you going to do? Alistair wondered watching them with one hand on her switch ax. The only time she would intervene was if she thought they were in very serious danger. This time when the aptonoth charged Ginouji held his ground and his sides puffed out as he sucked in a breath before belching it out in a visible cloud gas before jumping backwards and coughing up fiery embers. It wasn't much and it was a laughable excuse for fire but it was more then enough to ignite the gasses Ginouji had just belched out. The small embers and gas erupted into a far bigger explosion of fire then Alistair was expecting, Ginouji too judging from the way he startled backwards in surprise. This was the first time Alistair had seen this particular trick but it would explain the mysterious burn scars on the grass that had been cropping up in the back yard of Rain's house that no one could figure out.

However, it did produce the desired effect and the aptonoth skidded to a stop as fire swirled in their face and licked against their scales. Bleating in panic it scrambled to turn around away from the fire, but Akairo was already there only this time instead of using his teeth he whipped his tail around and drove his own tail spikes straight into the aptonoth's injured leg. Already off balance it now went crashing to the ground on its side. Without hesitation Ginouji recovered from his surprise and dove in latching his teeth onto the aptonoth's throat while Akairo went for the back of the neck.

It was only now that Alistair grimaced and looked away. Yes she hunted and often killed monsters for a living and yes she knew that carnivores like rathalos needed meat in order to survive and stay healthy but watching an animal get its throat opened up and bleed to death or its spine broken was really something she could do without seeing.

And even that is a lot faster and nicer then what many would do to their prey, Alistair thought with a shudder at the memories of prey she had seen taken down and feasted upon while still alive. The first time she caught Akairo and Ginouji toying with their prey in such away and teasing the petrified creature rather then killing it straight off she had been furious. No monster she raised was going to play with their food like that. It was too cruel. Not every hunt could go smoothly but once they had their prey down or dead Alistair had taken the time to show them where to bite it in order to kill it the fastest and with the least pain. Seeing a monster linger in death like that had always bothered her.

Alistair wasn't sure if it would even mean anything to them beyond a way to get more food without getting hurt but to her surprise they had started following it. Not just during those moments when she was actively watching them the way they did with some of her lessons (much to her frustration) but even when she was positive that they didn't know they were being watched. She doubted they understood why she asked them to do things that way but then again maybe they did.

Looking back she saw that the aptonoth was now most definitely dead and Akairo and Ginouji had started to feast. Once they ate their fill she would carve up the rest of the monster, wrap it up so it would last on the trip back town and then when they were there she would put it in the new underground storage system Rain had set up especially for occasions like this. It had cost a lot of money and Alistair had insisted that it wasn't necessary but Rain just shrugged it off with the explanation that she needed something to spend her money on anyway. Alistair wasn't sure how it worked just that it had vents and was surprisingly cold down there and didn't require electricity aside from a light that turned on and off so she could see while she was down there.

Must be nice being that rich that you can just throw money at stuff like that, Alistair thought bemused as she relaxed and went back to grab the bags she had set down a little ways back. Even with sunset happening so late it was still going to be full dark by the time they got back home. Might as well settle down and wait for both rathalos to eat their fill. This meal would easily last them at least through tomorrow. Plus the rest of the carcass would feed them for another day or so after that. She always made sure to save what she could and feed them as much as they wanted from it in the days after a successful hunt to help positively reinforce that this was theirs.

Walking back Alistair dropped the bags at the foot of a tree and after checking that there were no small creatures or insects who might come buzzing angrily at her, she sat down with her back to the trunk and settled in to wait until Akairo and Ginouji were finished.

The second they came within sight of Rain's house Jasper the crimson qurupeco was racing over to greet them. He circled them all excitedly a few times and looked at the bundles of wrapped meat that both rathalos were carrying on their backs and sides. He still bore a scar on his beak from when he had gotten too close one time and Akairo and Ginouji had beat him soundly. Of course they only beat Jasper because he was surprised and off guard but even so he hadn't done that again.

"Welcome back mighty hunter! Flame wings have good hunt yes yes? Not get hurt?"Jasper asked curiously. Alistair laughed and rubbed his lower jaw.

"Yes we had a very good hunt. They took down a spike tail all on their own. Never even got hit," Alistair said as Jasper hummed happily at her attention. Technically he was wild born and still considered a wild monster but he also clearly preferred being around people, although he was very particular about who he actually spoke around.

"Flame wings do very good! Learn more, learn better," Jasper said with a sage nod before turning to address both rathalos, "Listen to mother always. She knows best, will make you big powerful flame wings. No one will be able to stop you!" he said and both of them growled and snorted in response. She caught their signals for train, fight which they used with each other when they wanted to practice, along with why which they used when they didn't understand something and needed Alistair to show them again or explain it better.

"Jasper not teach fighting and hunting. Mother better for that. Mother know best. I eat fish. Easy catch when know how. I teach you people talk and how to fly. Getting closer and closer. Start teach gliding soon," Jasper responded with firm assurance.

Once again Alistair found herself wondering how much her rathalos understood about what was going on around them. Clearly they understood human speech but then again why shouldn't they when it was all they had ever known growing up?

Still I want to talk to Skye about it. We're supposed to go by the research center tomorrow for their monthly checkup and the wyvern expert she's been communicating with has finally arrived after finishing up their latest task farther south. Maybe they will be able to tell me more about whether this is normal and what to expect going forward. I also want to find out how fast they should be growing and when they'll reach their adult stage, the information I have know is pretty old and fairly limited in scope, Alistair thought with a yawn. She still needed to put the meat in storage, put her weapon and armor away and take a shower to get herself clean before she could go to bed.

The local flock of halk that had hung around Ginouji and Akairo when they were babies was still around all these months later. Both rathalos were particular about keeping their scales clean and it hadn't taken long at all for the halk to figure out that helping to give the two rathalos a bath by scrubbing at their scales with the sponges Alistair left in a basket nearby made them more inclined to share or give the halk meat scraps in return the next time they ate.

Tonight though it looked like both of them just wanted to get to bed. With their size now they had to sleep outside and Alistair was not ashamed to admit that she may have begged Rain to set up a special covered area on the ground for them to sleep in. It provided protection from both the sun and rain. She had tried setting up cushions for them inside but they had quickly made it clear they didn't want them by tossing them aside. They preferred the soft sand or a simple monster hide blanket stretched out underneath them and yes, Ginouji still kept the black blanket he carried around as a hatchling with him when he slept. It had been quite an adjustment for them at first since they had been used to sleeping with her all the time, but now they clearly loved it and stayed in there almost every night with Raiden who had also grown too big to be kept inside the house. None of them were inclined to wander very far yet but Jasper was there pretty much every night to settle down and ensure that they didn't decide to explore too far.

"All right let's take care of this so I can go to bed and get some rest," Alistair said as they walked up to the house. As soon as the packs of meat were taken off their backs both rathalos nuzzled her affectionately before yawning and heading off to go to bed. Once the meat was stored away underground where it was cool enough to keep them from spoiling she closed and closed the doors, double checking the lock.

For a moment Alistair hesitated before giving into temptation. A bath and cleaning up could wait until tomorrow. She had been trudging through the jungle since before the sun came up tracking the aptonoth all across creation, eating dried fruit and smoked meat, she stank just as much as her rathalos did after a kill and she just wanted to sleep. Clean up could wait until tomorrow morning.

"Okay guys make some room for me," Alistair muttered to herself as she walked past Jasper who had curled up and gone back to sleep again with his head resting back between his wings. Seiva was on the bank and snorted as she passed by but didn't wake up. A glowing circle was the only evidence of where Shurika was sleeping underwater deeper out in the water. It took a second before Alistair realized she was looking around trying to find Raiden and Amai.

That's right she took him out on a quest trying to track down a duramboros that's been moving through the area. The researchers just want to know where its heading and if it plans to stay or is just passing through. Amai is using this as a chance to teach Raiden how to track better, Alistair remembered suddenly. They had left this morning even earlier then she had in fact. It would likely be at least another two days or so before they got back.

Alistair felt a warm glow of pride for the young hunter. Amai had really been working hard and her own training with Raiden was coming along very well. Amai may be young but she clearly knew what she was doing. Raiden was going to grow up into an intelligent and loyal zinogre; one she could rely on through anything. He was still a puppy and certainly still acted like it, but he loved being trained. Training meant he was spending time with Amai and if he got better at it then it meant a greater chance that he would get to come along on Amai's next Guild quest. There was nothing Raiden loved more then being out there helping her to hunt, track or capture monsters. Even if he still had a lot to learn and a long ways to go.

Approaching the hut where Ginouji and Akairo were sleeping, Alistair took off her armor until she was down to the tank top and shorts she wore underneath it all. Carefully her switch ax against the wall next to her armor she stretched and enjoyed the feeling of having all of that weight off her again. Heading through the large open doorway she hummed a greeting and got two replies back in return.

Smiling, Alistair went over and got down on the open space between Ginouji and Akairo who made happy noises at having their mother join them for the night. She didn't do this frequently because she always woke up incredibly sore the next morning, especially after a hunt, but for tonight she didn't care. Besides when Akairo shuffled closer and opened his wing to extend over her while Ginouji pressed his head up against her stomach she knew that all of this effort and work was worth it.

Closing her eyes, Alistair put an arm behind her head got comfortable between them to sleep for the night.

AN: I'm going to try and keep chapters down to about 4,000 words or so. Age markers like with this chapter will be followed by a few chapters all set during that time. They may cover a few days or a week or more. Then I'll move on to the next age marker and do the same thing, showing how Ginouji, Akairo and Raiden are doing growing up and with their training as well as showing how things are going for Alistair, Rain and Amai.

Thank you for reading and I hope to have the next chapter posted soon!