He felt him tense, and released a slow, soothing purr. " It's alright, I won't drop you." said Master Swoop. He took off with Theo clenched in his teeth. It was calming and Theo relaxed. Master Swoop was a mother to him and he felt safe with him. " I should be able to tell when he's in the room." said Theo. " You can't because he's hiding it. When I went to train him, I knew he was there right away. His animal spirit is like flashing a neon sign in your eyes. It blares and he's learned to hide that. That's why you can't sense him." said Master Swoop.
He ran for a little bit before stopping. He laid down and set Theo between his paws. He started licking him in long, slow, strokes. Theo relaxed during his bath and fell asleep. Master Swoop wondered how Theo could still train under RJ when in constant fear. He nosed Theo and realized he had fallen asleep. His cub was fully relaxed. He gently grabbed Theo and pulled him back so he was against his chest and on his paws. He laid his head down on his cub and fell asleep.
He was awoken an hour later by a distressed yowl. He woke up and stood. He knew that shouldn't have been possible as Theo should have been on his paws. He listened and heard the yowl again. He zeroed in on it and took off. He felt a steady wave of fear coming off of Theo and sighed. He'd had another nightmare which consisted of RJ cornering him and demanding answers. They were happening every time he came to visit.
He found Theo and stopped a few feet away. " Theo, it's me." said Master Swoop. Theo tensed and curled into a ball. " No, no, no." whispered Theo. He was yowling and it broke Master Swoop's heart.
" I'm sorry." said Theo. Master Swoop felt him shift back and did the same. Theo crawled over to his mother and Master Swoop opened his arms. Theo curled into his chest and his mother enfolded him into his arms. " Your OK. It was just a nightmare." said Master Swoop. " I'm sorry." said Theo. " Oh Sweetheart no, it was not your fault. Your allowed to have nightmares." said Master Swoop. " It shouldn't be effecting me like this. I shouldn't be this afraid of him. The only time I'm afraid is if he's suddenly there. He could be sitting there for hours and I'd never know it. I hate feeling like this." said Theo.
He choked on a sob and cried. Master Swoop started purring and Theo slowly relaxed. " Mommy I need you." whispered Theo. He froze as he realized what he said. " Relax, I'm not mad." said Master Swoop. " Your not?" asked Theo. " No. take it easy Cub." said Master Swoop. Theo relaxed as he felt his mother purr. His hands clenched in his shirt and he snuggled into his arms. " Do you want to sleep?" asked Master Swoop. " Yes." said Theo. Master Swoop went to stand and Theo's hands tightened in his shirt. " Don't leave me please." said Theo.
" Relax, I'm just moving you to the patio." said Master Swoop. He picked him up like a baby and Theo's arms wrapped around his neck. He slowly rose off the ground and Theo tensed. " I'm not going to drop you. Relax." said Master Swoop.
He floated over to his patio and touched down. He walked to the glass door and stepped inside. The nice thing about his patio was that it was heated, wooden floors and all. He went over to his swing and sat down. As the welcoming heat surrounded Theo, he relaxed and fell asleep in his mother's arms. Master Swoop rocked Theo back and forth. He wondered why he was so afraid of him levitating. It didn't make sense. He figured something happened to make him this scared. Little did he know, just how right he was.
He fell asleep, but not before whispering, " I'm right here and I'm not going anywhere." in Theo's ear. Master Swoop woke up an hour later. He blinked his eyes and stretched as much as he was able with his baby on top of him. He felt Theo purring in his sleep and smiled. He was glad Theo had finally fallen asleep without, a nightmare this time.
( A.N. Master Swoop is called a she, when is his lioness form. Though it only occurs in the last few chapters.)