Raising Beast Cubs to Find a Husband-Chapter 103: (Xmas Special) The Tree of Stars

Day six of the Solstice.

The blizzard had finally broken, leaving the world covered in a blanket of pristine, sparkling white.

It was the perfect day for a field trip.

Grand Duke Bastion had sent a message at dawn: "The sky is clear. The forest is awake. Bring the cubs. It is time to hunt the Stars."

Primrose wasn’t entirely sure what "hunting stars" meant, but knowing the West Wing, it probably involved high-level magic and a risk of frostbite.

The caravan of carriages arrived at the Obsidian Estate. The gates opened, revealing a winter wonderland. The vast fields were untouched sheets of snow, and the dark pine forest beyond looked like a scene from a holiday card.

Waiting by the entrance, bundled in a thick coat of black fur and gold trim, was Grand Duke Bastion. Beside him, bouncing on her toes, was Lady Ellia.

The carriage doors opened.

"Release the hounds!" Jax yelled.

"And the cats! And the fish!" Finn added.

The Daycare Delegation poured out.

"ELLIA!" Clover screamed, hopping through the snow. The snow was deeper than she was, so she looked like a little lavender submarine surfacing and diving.

"CLOVER!" Ellia shouted back.

She didn’t care about royal protocol. She ran forward and tackled the bunny into a hug.

Luna ran out after her, holding two scarves. "Clover! Wait! You forgot your mittens! You will freeze your ears off!"

Luna tried to be the responsible one, but seeing Ellia, she dropped the scarves and joined the hug. "Group hug!"

Vali joined the pile-on. "I am cold but happy!"

Arjun walked over, trying to be cool, but his tail was wagging. "Hello, Ellia. I brought you a snowball. It is in my pocket."

"It’s going to melt, silly," Ellia giggled, poking him.

Orion stood by the carriage, looking at the snow with suspicion. He poked it with a gloved finger.

"Analysis," Orion droned. "Frozen precipitation. Temperature is Sub-zero. Why are we here?"

"We are here for tradition," Caspian said, stepping out. He took a deep breath of the crisp air. "And because Primrose said we need fresh air."

The group gathered around Bastion. He looked regal, but his eyes were warm as he watched Ellia play with the cubs.

"Welcome," Bastion smiled. "Today, we do not hunt for meat. We hunt for the Tree of Stars."

"Is it made of stars?" Jasper asked, pulling out a notepad. "That would imply a nuclear fusion reaction."

"Metaphorically," Bastion corrected gently. "Deep in the Blackwood Forest, there grows a rare type of pine. During the Solstice, these trees absorb the ambient mana of the earth. If you find one and touch it with a heart full of joy... it glows."

"Whoa," Finn whispered. "Magic flashlight trees."

"Exactly," Bastion nodded. "We need one for the Great Hall. But the trees are shy. They hide from those who are angry or greedy."

He looked pointedly at General Rajah and Lord Rurik.

"So no fighting," Bastion warned. "If you fight, the trees will stay dark."

"I am full of joy," Rurik grunted, crossing his arms. "I am a delight."

"You are a menace," Cassian sighed.

"Let the hunt begin!" Primrose cheered.

---

They split into teams.

Rurik and Vali charged into the forest first. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

"Come out, tree!" Rurik roared at a random pine. "Show me your lights! I am joyful! LOOK AT MY SMILE!"

He bared his teeth in a terrifying grin that looked like he was about to eat the bark.

The tree did not glow. In fact, it seemed to droop slightly in fear.

"Dad," Vali whispered. "I think you scared it."

"It is a coward tree!" Rurik huffed. "We find a braver one!"

---

Cassian and Jasper took a more scientific approach. Cassian had deployed several small floating drones that were scanning the forest for mana signatures.

"Readings indicate a high concentration of sap in sector 4," Jasper reported.

"Excellent," Cassian nodded. "We shall triangulate the luminescence. Joy is simply a biochemical reaction. We can simulate it."

They walked past a beautiful pine. Cassian tried to "simulate joy" by offering a polite, stiff smile.

The tree remained dark.

"Inefficient vegetable," Cassian muttered.

---

Duke Lucien and Silas did not run. They slid into the darkest part of the woods, moving silently over the snow.

"We do not hunt with noise," Lucien whispered, his voice like velvet. "We hunt with presence."

Silas nodded, his violet eyes scanning the gloom. He walked up to a tall, twisted pine that looked suitably gothic.

"This one looks lonely," Silas noted.

Lucien placed a gloved hand on the bark. He didn’t smile. He just projected an aura of intense, brooding calmness.

The tree didn’t glow gold. It glowed a faint, spooky purple for a second, then went dark again.

"It is not a Tree of Stars," Silas concluded. "It is a Tree of Angst."

"We will take a branch," Lucien decided. "It matches the curtains."

---

Jax and Finn were not looking for trees. they were looking for an angle.

"Okay," Finn whispered, pulling a shiny chocolate wrapper from his pocket. "The Duke said the trees like joy. Candy is joy. Therefore, the tree wants candy."

He approached a sapling.

"Psst. Hey. Tree," Finn whispered. "I have a limited edition chocolate wrapper. It’s shiny. You glow for me, I give you the wrapper. Deal?"

The tree did nothing.

"It’s playing hard to get," Jax noted, flipping his coin. "Maybe it wants cash."

"You can’t bribe nature, Jax," Finn sighed. "Nature has no pockets."

"Everything has a price, kid," Jax grinned. "We just haven’t found the tree’s currency yet."

---

Rajah and Arjun moved through the snow in silence. They were hunting.

"Stealth is key," Rajah whispered. "We sneak up on the tree. We catch it being happy."

"Yes, Father," Arjun nodded.

They crept up on a small sapling. They pounced.

The tree did not glow. It just got covered in snow.

"Perhaps," Rajah mused, brushing snow off his whiskers, "we are overthinking this."

---

Caspian and Orion were walking hand-in-hand. Caspian was fascinated by the snow.

"Look, Orion," Caspian said, catching a snowflake. "Each one is unique. It is like the coral of the sky."

"It is wet," Orion complained. "Father, my toes are numb."

"I will carry you," Caspian said. He lifted Orion onto his shoulders.

They weren’t looking for a tree. They were just walking. Caspian was humming a tune—a sea shanty he had adapted to a hum.

As they passed a large, gnarled pine, a single branch flickered with a faint, blue light.

"Father," Orion pointed. "Bioluminescence."

Caspian stopped. He touched the branch. "Hello, tree."

The branch glowed brighter. It sensed the King’s genuine curiosity and his love for his son.

"We found one!" Caspian shouted. "Rajah! I win!"

The moment he shouted "I win" (competition/pride), the light vanished.

"Oh," Caspian frowned. "It is sensitive."

---

Eventually, everyone converged in a clearing deep in the woods. No one had secured a glowing tree yet. The Warlords were frustrated. The cubs were cold.

"Maybe there are no stars this year," Ellia said sadly, kicking the snow.

"Don’t say that," Clover said, offering Ellia her paw. "We have the Safety Rock. And we have... us!"

"Group hug!" Vali demanded again.

The cubs gathered in the center of the clearing. Ellia, Arjun, Vali, Jasper, Silas, Orion, Clover, Luna, Finn, and Jax.

They huddled together for warmth.

"I’m glad you’re back, Ellia," Silas whispered from his scarf.

"Me too," Arjun agreed. "The daycare was boring without you."

"We missed you," Orion stated. "Your presence increases the fun variable by 200%."

Luna chuckled, adjusting Clover’s hat.

Ellia smiled. A real, bright, beaming smile.

"I missed you guys too!"

She laughed, the sound ringing like a bell in the silent forest.

VMMMMM.

It started as a hum. Then, a soft golden light.

The massive pine tree in the center of the clearing—the one they were standing under—began to glow.

It started at the roots, golden light pulsing up the trunk like a heartbeat. It spread to the branches, illuminating the needles until the entire tree shone with a warm, radiant light that turned the snow around them into diamonds.

"The Tree of Stars," Bastion whispered, stepping forward.

It was breathtaking. It wasn’t magic forced by a spell. It was magic fueled by the pure, uncomplicated friendship of ten children.

The Warlords stood back, silenced by the beauty.

"Okay," Rurik admitted softly. "That is better than wrestling."

"It is... aesthetically pleasing," Cassian conceded, putting away his scanner.

General Rajah looked at the tree, then at the cubs. He saw the way the light reflected in their eyes. For a moment, the weight of the engagement, the politics, and the war faded.

"It is light," Rajah murmured.

---

They didn’t cut the tree down.

"It is too beautiful to kill," Caspian ruled. "We shall decorate it here."

They spent the next hour hanging dried oranges, birdseed ornaments, and ice crystals on the living tree.

As the sun began to set, painting the sky in hues of purple and orange, Bastion’s servants arrived with a sled carrying a massive cauldron of hot apple cider.

Primrose stood back, holding a warm mug, watching the scene.

Bastion walked up to her. He looked different than he had at the Ball. Less like a statue, more like a father.

"Tutor Primrose," Bastion said softly.

"Grand Duke," she smiled.

He looked at Ellia, who was currently trying to teach Orion how to make a snow angel.

"A month ago," Bastion said, his voice thick with emotion, "this forest was silent. Ellia would not leave her room. I thought... I thought I had lost her to the silence."

He turned to Primrose and bowed his head—a gesture of immense respect from a High Lord.

"You brought the light back, Primrose. You didn’t just find a tree. You saved my daughter."

Primrose felt tears prick her eyes.

"She saved herself, Bastion," she said. "I just gave her some friends."

"And for that," Bastion said, raising his mug, "The West Wing is forever in your debt."

She looked over at Caspian. He was standing near the glowing tree, snow falling on his hair. He caught her eye and smiled—a soft, private smile that warmed her more than the cider.

The Tree of Stars glowed behind him, a beacon in the winter night.

The Solstice was halfway over. The clock was ticking. But in this moment, under the golden light of the magic tree, they were infinite.