Giddyfangurl206-Don't die on me… just kidding. Thanks for the reviews.
PrincessLuckyCML-Suspense. That's like the best thing in a story!
Jen-Thanks for the praise!
Kurama-san444-Yeah, I have sort of a fascination with creating long lost children for Nightwing (see my story Total Eclipse)
TTHPfan- I'm not gonna kill her off… yet. MWAHAHAHA! Just kidding of course. Not really sure what I'm going to do with Tigress yet.
Twilight785- Thanks. I think I'll keep the mother/daughter thing going as long as I can.
Now on with the show!
Bear
"Hyena, how has it been since I left?" Tigress asked that night, knitting a sweater for Venus to wear in the bitter cold.
Hyena sighed. "Bad, Tigress." Tigress cocked her head in curiosity. "Slade replaced you with a woman named Mamba. She's pretty but deadly and traitorous. Uses poison darts."
Tigress nodded. "I remember her. We grew up near each other."
Hyena gasped. "Well she's a vicious wench."
"She was when I knew her. But that was a long time ago…"
"Tell me more, Tigress. Pleeeeaaassse!" He begged.
"Fine. I grew up in France. One day when I was 6, my daddy brought me to Jump City. I was so excited. The US! He and my family all came for a much needed holiday. My father had to close a business deal. Me and my older sister Kalli needed a break from school. So it was spring break Jump City style. The day after we got here Black Thursday struck. The stock markets crashed. Jump City was a disaster zone. We couldn't get out. The government shut down the airports. We could drive out. The roads were closed and blocked. My father was desperate. So we tried to boat out. My dad built this raft out of tires and we went into Jump City harbor and pushed off. We were going to paddle to somewhere up shore. So anyway, we are out of sight of Jump City in the ocean and a storm strikes. The waves crush our raft. I miraculously floated ashore in Jump City, unconscious. The rest of my family did not."
"Y-Your whole family died?"
"Yes. I was placed in the Jump City Foster Care System. A death trap. No one would foster us because people could barely feed their own kids. In the orphanage I met Mamba. We were friends as girls, but as we grew up we separated. Her family, who were missionaries, had been visiting from Venezuela. They abandoned her on Black Tuesday. She had learned the art of poison darts. I had been trained with the sai since birth. Anyway, as we grew up, we became pretty and we competed for boys. I usually won. She hate my guts. Then we both tried out for D.S.F…"
"And the rest is history." Hyena finished.
"Exactly."
"Well we better get Venus to bed--" Hyena was cut off by the sound of a falling door. The doors impacted caused dust to rise, and when it cleared, none other than the great Bear stood before them.
"Did I miss the party?" he asked. He fired off a couple rounds, riddling the loft with bullets.
"Hyena get Venus into the your bedroom!" Tigress cried, grabbing her sai.
Bear saw Hyena try to usher Venus into the hiding place. He fired shot after shot and the dresser, forcing Hyena and Venus to run for cover from the splintering dresser. Tigress attacked him brutally, with all her strength and focus. She was strong but Bear's bullets caught her foot and she fell. Bear continued into the bedroom to find Hyena shielding Venus. He smacked Hyena's face with the large gun, rendering him unconscious. He walked slowly to Venus, raising the gun until the cold end of the barrel rested on the girl forehead. Venus cried softly, her little body shaking with fear.
Out of nowhere, Tigress rushed and hugged her daughter close to her. Her red hair was crusting with gunpowder and her face smeared with dirt. She hugged her daughter close, sheilding herand looked up at Bear.
"Please don't kill her," she whimpered pleadingly.
Bear gasped. He had seen this image once before.
Flashback
Soldiers burst into the small farmhouse. They tipped over drawers. The farm's owner was seized by three of the intruders.
"What is going on here?" he yelled.
The sergeant leader sauntered up to him. "You are being arrested by the command of the lord Slade."
The farmer spat. "I am nothing but a peaceful farmer!" he shouted. More men rushed in to restrain the angry man, who was big. His brown flared at the sergeant.
"Well, you were seen consorting with Fred McGee, who we believe to be the leader of a revolt. All persons tied to him are to be thrown in jail.
"I was buying grain from him!" Suddenly two soldiers dragged up his writhing wife.
"Let go of me!" she cried. She held their son Demetrius, who was balling and whose large eyes were filled with terror. She obviously very pregnant, as her stomach peaked out behind her dirty nightgown.
"No! Stop! I'll go to prison! Just don't hurt them!" He cried pleadingly. The sergeant smiled evilly.
"That is where you are mistaken. You are tied McGee, they are tied to you." The farmer's eyes widened in horror. "That means they are indirectly tied with McGee. They go to prison too."
"Why you son of a bitch!" The farmer cried, furious and pulling against the soldiers restraint.
The sergeant grew angry. "Kill the wife and kid." He muttered to a soldier. His wife kneeled on the ground, clutching Demetrius as close as her pregnant belly would allow.
"NO!" screamed the farmer as the soldier leveled a gun to their heads. Two shots rang out through the farm as the farmer watched his wife, son and unborn child be murdered. Shock gripped him, and then rage. An unspeakable rage. He became processed by a sudden strength. He killed every soldier on his land with his bare hands. The strength of a bear. And then he cried with the blood of others dripping down his hands.
End Flashback
Bear gasped. His wife had laid like this right before she was murdered. He put down the weapon, sobs racking his body. He lowered himself to where Tigress and Venus sat, and Tigress cradled him and let him cry.
Slade was livid. Two of his assassins had failed to kill Tigress. When Bear did return for 3 days, he knew. He threw things off his desk, throwing a tantrum in front of the remaining D.S.F.
"Traitors! Traitors!" he screamed. He took a breath and started to calm down. "Raven and Mamba will go next. And girls if you fail to return, I will have Wolf murder you slowly and painfully. Now leave all of you!"
As they walking out the office door, he collapsed to the ground. Damn it, Slade thought, this sickness is taking a toll on me. He pulled myself back into chair and pulled out a desk drawer, from which he conjured up some scotch. He drank a bit, wondering he was losing his edge. No one could no; if Slade the Strong became weak, his empire would crumble.
Hyena woke up with a start, not sure where he was. Tigress. Now he remembered. Bear had knocked him out last night. He pulled himself slowly, marveling at how much his head ached. Bear was standing over him.
"Don't you hurt them!" Hyena growled, not knowing the fight had ceased.
"Cool it, Rocky. I am now in the same boat you are." He gestured to a cooking pot macaroni and cheese. "Nanny." Hyena laughed.
"You couldn't do it either." It wasn't a much a question, because Hyena already knew the answer.
"Would you like to play jump rope?" Venus was instantly there, clutching 2 jump ropes. Hyena smiled. Taking that as a yes she thrust the jump rope into his hand.
"Look how many I can do!" she shouted joyfully. She very agile for someone so young and pulled off criss-crosses without much effort.
"A, my name is Ali, my daddy's name is Alan, we live in Austria and we bring back apples. B, my name is Betty, my daddy's name is Ben, we live in the Bahamas and we bring back bread. C, my name is Connie, my daddy's name is Carl, we live in Cincinnati and bring back cats. D, my name….."
The part about daddy got Hyena thinking. He wandered into the kitchen where Bear was watching his cooking food.
"Who is Venus's father?" Hyena asked. Bear gave him a warning look. "If Tigress wants to tell you she will." Bear said carefully.
Hyena sensed Bear's nervousness about the subject. "Are you?"
Bear gave him a glare that would have frightened even Wolf. "No."
"Is it Slade?"
"Hell no."
Hyena thought on who else could Tigress possibly be close to. "Is it Wolf?"
Bear paused.
"Oh my God it is! How do you…. Whywould you… That's just gross."
"You know, I have no qualms about hitting you upside the head with this pot."
Hyena chuckled nervously. "It's getting dark. We better get Venus in my room, just in case."
Suddenly two quiet whiz noises punctured the air. Hyena looked around. And then he saw them. Right near where his head had just been was a dagger and poison dart.
"Bear I think we have company." Hyena growled.
Ooohhhhhh! Cliffie! But not really; if you have half a brain you know who it is. That's it for now. Remember 5 reviews is the golden ticket! So anyway, this about the time my summer gets pretty insane. I might not be able to update for awhile. Sorry. I'll try hard to.