And the next chapter is finally up - things begin to tie around Scar, and Blanché; she just wants to be there... hope you like it! Please do review, as always... Atrice
Part 11 – the Dilemma
Scar sat on the pedestal, trying to calm down. He looked over the hyenas – for whom he was the leader, their superior – and tried to think thoughts that would make sense. He was the leader… Scar was the king here! Not yet in the Pridelands, but here in the Shadowlands, he was the closest thing to a king they had. He jumped with a startle as someone suddenly poked him on the back. He let out a relieved sigh when he saw Duchess.
"Are you alright?" Duchess said with a caring voice and sat down next to him. He didn't seem alright to her, not at all. Something was wrong – she hoped he hadn't reconsidered his feelings for her. She had decided not to care about anyone else or their opinion on the matter; Duchess had experienced too many strange things in her life to let that happen.
"I don't know really… I feel I don't know anything anymore." Scar said with a sigh, feeling a longing to cry again. But not here, not in their presence.
"Scar, you are the future king of the Pridelands, and you are the leader here… And the inhabitants here love you, don't forget that. I… I love you." Duchess said the last with a whisper, and he turned his head to look at her.
"You have no idea what that means to me, right now. But I am thinking about returning to the Pridelands." Scar said with a sigh, and left the pedestal – Duchess knew he wanted her to follow him, he was in that mood.
"Is that what you really want?" Duchess asked while they walked towards his chamber.
"I don't know… all I know is that I went out to find a queen – and I found you. But now there is a dilemma... and you have to meet it." Scar said and the hyena walked a bit slower behind him. What did he mean by that? A problem she would meet? Duchess had a feeling about what it was, but didn't dare to guess.
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Blanché looked down into the green flow of liquid in the chamber. She thought she saw a pair of green eyes stare back at her, and they didn't show happiness.
"You should return home…" she felt the fluid whisper, but it was quiet. Blanché didn't know what to do either. Perhaps Scar just needed to calm down, then he would treat her with kindness? He seemed like the type of lion, who could be really kind. The eyes stared at her with darkness in them. They didn't want her here. She shook her head – eyes in the liquids? She must be going crazy! Then she heard a sound outside the chamber, and Scar stood in the entrance. He didn't start speaking to her though, but to the hyena next to him.
"Duchess, this is Blanché… she followed me from the Skylands." Scar said and didn't look at any of them. The two females though, they caught each others eyes.
"But I thought you… wanted to be with me?" Duchess whispered to Scar, who nodded.
"If we are together, I shall never have cubs… no immortality, no future for my line. So you see, I don't know anything anymore." Scar explained to his fellow leader. Blanché tried to hear what they said, but they spoke in low voices.
"What are you going to do with me?" Blanché stood up and asked, finally able to catch Scars eyes. He had green eyes… deep, green eyes – like those she saw just before. But these eyes, she loved.
"I am going to let you stay. But you will not tell me anything about what to do, alright?" Scar said. Just as Blanché was about to answer, they heard someone else in the corridor.
"Royals! We have an intrud…" the hyena Al stopped in the entrance too, when he saw the light pelted lioness stand there. Duchess looked at him with a roll of her eyes.
"What were you saying?" she said with a smile.
"There's a lioness, asking for Scar!" Al stood and tripped for a moment; "Who's she?" he then asked, and both Scar and Duchess looked at each other with a grin.
"Another intruder – we allowed her to stay. Come… let's go see the other one." Duchess said, as calm as ever. Scar nodded and waved his head so that Blanché would follow too. She could see the irony of the situation; a hyena coming up, telling about another intruder – just as they were talking to one too. She walked behind the two leaders, and thought they made a strange couple; yet they seemed to match. What if the voice had spoken the truth – that she should return home?