Hello. This is a poem that I wrote for English class as part of my poetry final. Okay, maybe this doesn't really belong here, but I don't see the harm. Besides, maybe you can give me some advice on how to make it better. Please review. Enjoy!

---------------------------------------------

The Lion by Jagabor

-

The lion stood proudly

over his kill,

An elderly zebra,

That he'd caught on a hill.

-

He should not have gone out,

He knew as he ate.

He should have staid in,

But he just could not wait.

-

For sleeping and eating,

was this young lion's perk.

Stalking and hunting,

was lioness work.

-

This fact was well-know,

but when the females take hours,

a lion must rely

on his true hunting-powers.

-

That is why he ventured,

to this vast, endless, plain

and now he stood proudly,

over the zebra he'd slain.

-

A spotted hyena,

and her hungering crew

approached the young lion

to see what he'd slew.

-

Drool dripped from their jaws

like leaks in a cave

to show the young lion

that his meal they did crave.

-

The lion crouched low

And prepared to attack

As he turned his attention

To the hyena-pack

-

With a magnificent roar,

the lion declared

to the hyenas around him

"This meal won't be shared!"

-

But hyenas are soldiers,

As is their renown.

Their calls, cries, and cackles,

showed they wouldn't back down.

-

The lion roared once more.

He roared very proudly.

He roared to show strength.

He roared very loudly.

-

But it was all in vain.

The hyenas, so crude,

quickly lunged forward

and swiped the lion's food.

-

The hyenas ran off

with their stolen feast

and looked back at the lion,

the so-called "king of beasts."

-

The lion stared wide-eyed

at the deviant thieves,

and rampaged strait at them,

past bushes and sheaves.

-

The lead-hyena then cackled

and with a large grin,

took down the great lion,

with the help of her kin.

-

The lion reeled backward,

with a painful roar,

and fell with a thud,

on the savannah floor.

-

The hyenas back off

After unleashing their wrath.

They looked at the lion

And began to laugh.

-

The lion's eyes widened.

"How can this be?

Theses accursed hyenas

Are laughing at me!"

-

They were indeed laughing

at the lion, so conceited,

who lay on the ground

worn out and defeated.

-

The young lion lied still

as if bound by a shackle.

For it seemed the whole world

Joined the hyena's cackle.

-

The trees laughed at the lion,

as did the grass.

Their laughs turned the lion,

into a shivering mass.

-

The young lion let out

a frustrated cry.

the dirt laughed at him

with the clouds in the sky.

-

As his pride became shattered

The young lion wailed

"The world laughs at me!

For I've miserably failed!"

-

"Have you nothing better to do?

Oh, clouds in the sky?

The fight was not fair!

So why laugh at me? Why?"

-

The sounds of six roars, which

echoed brutality

brought the young lion

back to reality.

-

Six lionesses from his pride

had come to his aid

and bared their sharp fangs

at the hyena brigade.

-

The hyenas stared wide-eyed

ending their laugh.

For they were now being challenged.

This was no time to chaff.

-

The hyena leader

then quickly dispatched

her group in all directions,

for they were clearly out-matched.

-

As the hyenas scrambled

with nerves made of glass,

they grabbed the dead zebra

and ran through the grass.

-

The hyenas were gone,

The lionesses knew.

for those hyenas, fearless cowards,

bit off more than they could chew.

-

The young lion quickly

got to his feet.

His zebra was gone.

Now what would he eat?

-

The sly, spry hyenas,

beat him to the punch.

Fortunately, the lionesses

brought the lion's lunch.

-

They dropped two zebras before him,

which they'd found on the plain.

A gift for the lion,

for he had the mane.

-

Upon seeing this

the lion was thrilled.

(Although, he could have had it sooner,

had he not been strong-willed.)

-

The lion ate before the lionesses,

a noticeable quirk

that he'd gained all the spoils,

but did none of the work.

-

The lionesses cared not,

and they never did.

For them, eating first,

The laws of nature forbid.

-

The lion stood proudly

after eating his meal.

With his pride behind him,

He now had nerves of steel.

-

The bright sun shined on the lion

who let out a proud roar.

He had lost the battle,

but had not lost the war.

-

The lion thought of the hyenas,

who had stolen his chow,

before addressing the world.

"Who's laughing now?"

------------------------------------------

What do you all think? Your input will be greatly appreciated. Please review.