3
"Man!" Leanne sighed as she stretched her arms up over her head, "I'm more stuffed than the Thanksgiving turkey." She patted her slightly protruding belly, "That was some good food." Lion-O smiled.
"Glad you liked it." He said, they walked back into Lion-O's room, where Snarf quickly scurried through their feet to jump up on the bed, walking around in a quick circle before laying down, closing his green eyes, and sighing happily as he got ready to sleep. Lion-O chuckled lightly, "Looks like Snarf's ready for bed."
"Me too." Leanne said, she turned to Lion-O, "You got anything I could sleep in?" Lion-O put his hand (paw?) to his chin in thought.
"I think I might have something." He said, he went over to a dresser in the room, going through different drawers until he found what he was looking for. "How's this?" He pulled out what looked like a large, white shirt, "It's a little old, but I think it might work." Leanne took the shirt from him. She brought it to her face, sniffing it, then rubbed the material through her fingers.
"Doesn't stink, good texture," She smiled at Lion-O, "This'll work just fine." She walked over to a corner of the room, and then turned around to Lion-O. She moved her finger around in a circle, a gesture for him to turn around, "Do you mind?"
"Oh! Sorry." Lion turned around so she could have some privacy to change out of her clothes. Leanne changed out of her clothes and into the old shirt, wincing slightly when she felt some pain on her back. She frowned as she put her hand to a scar on her back, feeling the remnants of the dark memory attached to it. "How does it fit?" Lion-O's voice pulled her out of her memory, and she shook her head to rid herself of it.
"It fits great." She said, turning to him. He looked at her over his shoulder, and smiled when she smiled at him, "Nice and loose. What's this thing made of?"
"Just cotton." Lion-O said with a shrug. Leanne looked at the old shirt, which went down to her lower thighs, in slight surprise. She didn't know Thundera had cotton.
"That explains why it's so comfy." She said, she picked up her clothes in a small bundle, "Where can I put these?"
"Anywhere is fine." Lion-O said as he went to get ready for bed, shedding some of his clothes. Leanne blushed when she saw his back and, even through the fur, she saw the muscles on his back. She turned away.
"So, um…" She said, trying to overcome the sudden embarrassment she felt, "Where do I sleep?" Lion-O looked at her, seeing only her back turned to him, then around the room.
"…I guess we can just share the bed." He said, "It's only for one night, anyway."
"Oh. Okay." Leanne said, although, inside, she was getting nervous. She had never really shared a bed with a guy before, even if he was half-cat. She tried to get the suggestive thoughts out of her mind by shaking her head, and re-thinking the situation. It could just be like sleeping with a big, talking cat, so that's how she decided to see it. Just sleeping with a cat.
She crawled in under the sheets, and smiled pleasantly at how clean and fresh they smelled. She put the sheet to her nose and took a big whiff of the scent. Lion-O saw this and raised an amused eyebrow.
"Are you smelling the sheets?" He asked, Leanne blushed when she realized she had been caught and pulled the sheets up over her head.
"Goodnight, Lion-O." She said, Lion-O moved into the bed beside her, "Wait!" He jumped up when she suddenly sat up, picked up a pillow, and stuck it in between them, "There. Okay, goodnight." She moved so she was lying on her side, her back facing Lion-O.
"What's this for?" Lion-O asked, pointing at the pillow she put down.
"It's a barrier." Leanne said, "You stay on your side, and I stay on mine. Kay?"
"Okay…" Lion-O said slowly, "Goodnight."
"Goodnight." Leanne said. She sighed happily as she snuggled into the incredibly soft bed, covered by clean sheets. It was only minutes later that she drifted off to sleep.
Leanne looked around confusedly, she was standing in complete darkness. She covered her eyes as a blinding purple light suddenly cut through the blackness. She squinted and her eyes adjusted to see an old, wrinkly, scaly figure of a man with round, red eyes and covered in old bandages that reminded her of mummy wrappings.
"Who are you?" She asked him. The lizard only laughed in a rough, raspy voice. Leanne felt her blood turn to ice at the sound of his voice. "What do you want?"
"What I want," The lizard said, setting his red, glaring eyes at her, "Is your power!" The wrappings that surrounded his limbs shot out and attached to her, wrapping around her wrists and ankles. Leanne looked at the old bandages with wide, fearful eyes, and tried to tear them, but they would not break. She screamed as she suddenly felt the bandages begin to burn in searing pain, as if a thousand tiny needles were piercing her skin. More of the bandages shot out and wrapped around the bend of her elbows, and around her neck. She kept struggling, but the more she moved, the more they hurt. The lizard man only laughed, his mouth opening to show his rows of incredibly sharp teeth.
She cried out, "No! Let me go!"
"Leanne," She heard a voice far off in the distance, but she thought it was just her imagination.
"Stop it!" Leanne shouted at the lizard man, she slowly felt herself being drained of energy from where the wrappings were. One of them snapped around her shoulder, making it shake.
"Leanne!" There was the strange voice, "Leanne, wake up!"
Leanne jolted awake in a cold sweat, looking around for the lizard man.
"Leanne," She looked over to see Lion-O's blue eyes looking back at her. "Are you okay?" Leanne looked at him, and put a hand over her racing heart.
"I-I think so…" She said, she took in a deep breath to calm herself and leaned back against the pillows on the bed.
"You looked like you were having a nightmare." Lion-O said, sitting down next to her on the bed. Snarf let out a small, sad noise and crawled into Leanne's lap, showing her that he had been worried, too.
"I was." Leanne said, petting Snarf gently as he curled up in her lap, "Thanks for waking me up."
"No problem." Lion-O said, "What was your nightmare about?" Leanne shuddered at the memory of the angry, old lizard man.
"I'd rather not talk about it…" She mumbled, looking away. Lion-O nodded in understanding. She looked at him, and realized he was already in his day clothes. She looked out the window to see the sun had risen high in the sky, "What time is it?"
"About ten in the morning." Lion-O said, "At the time, you seemed like you were really enjoying your sleep, so I thought I should just let you keep resting."
"Thanks…" She said, she got Snarf out of her lap, something he wasn't very happy about, and got out of the bed. She went over to where her clothes were and picked them up. She sniffed her shirt and grimaced at the foul odor, "I need to wash these…"
"I could tell one of the servants to wash them if you want." Lion-O said, Leanne looked back at him.
"You can do that?" She asked in surprise. Lion-O let out a small chuckle.
"You've never been around royalty, have you?" He asked, Leanne shook her head.
"Nuh-uh." She said. Lion-O went over to the door and called for someone, and almost instantly, a young maid came in, curtseying to him.
"Yes, sir?" She asked him, Lion-O held out his hand for Leanne's clothes.
"Could you take these and wash them for her?" He asked. She took the clothes and did a quick curtsey again.
"Yes, sir." She said, she looked over at Leanne, her eyes going over the form that resided in Lion-O's old shirt, then turned and left.
"That was… odd." Leanne said, she looked over at Lion-O, "So, just call out, and you get someone to help you?" Lion-O nodded.
"Our palace employs almost two hundred servants," Lion-O said, "And just a little under four hundred soldiers." Leanne looked at him with wide eyes.
"Wow…" She said, Lion-O shrugged, "No, don't shrug like it's nothing! That's freaking huge! This is normal for you?" Lion-O nodded.
"That's how it's been since I was a cub." He said, "Now, do you want some breakfast?"
"Yeah." Leanne said, following Lion-O, "But, what about my clothes?"
"They should be here by the time we're done." Lion-O said, "Come on."
Leanne, who was in her newly washed clothes from yesterday, strolled casually around the castle by herself. Her grey eyes wandered around the walls, looking at elegant tapestries, and ancient looking artifacts that she assumed had some kind of historic value to the royal family. She heard an unusual sound, and she whirled her head around to see the source, but only saw a flash of gold run past her. She spun slightly when it bumped into her, and she grabbed her head as she tried to balance herself. When she was able to see clearly again, she looked down and saw the scroll from yesterday in front of her. She scowled and picked it up, glaring at her family tree. Particularly the name Alphonse Redoric.
"Where did you get that?" Leanne jumped when she heard someone's voice and looked to see Tygra standing behind her with a frown on his face. She frowned back, rolling up the scroll as she turned to face him.
"From Jaga," She said, "It's my family tree."
"And, what, he just let you have it?" Tygra asked, his eyes narrowing in suspicion. Leanne glared at him.
"I didn't steal it, if that's what you're asking." She said, keeping the scroll behind her back. "And this is my legitimate family tree. It has my Nana's name on it at the bottom."
"How do I know that's really your grandmother?" Tygra asked.
"Who else could she be?" Leanne asked loudly, her voice escalating with her temper, "You know, believe it or not, just because I'm not a cat, doesn't mean I'm some kind of low-life out to ruin everything you have!"
"Well, what else should I believe?" Tygra growled back just as loudly, "You just showed up out of nowhere, claiming to be from some separate world and you just decide to stay here?"
"I am from another world!" Leanne snapped, her voice almost screeching, "Because in my world, cats don't talk and they're definitely not this ignorant and stubborn!"
"What did you say?!" Tygra snarled.
"Is there a problem?" The two looked over to see Jaga had come over to them. The two of them instantly straightened themselves out for the elderly cat, making it seem like they had never been shouting their lungs out at each other.
"No, Jaga." Tygra said calmly, "There's no problem. Do you need something?"
"Yes, I must borrow Leanne for the day." Jaga said, coming over to her and putting his paw on her shoulder, "I believe it's time we start teaching you to properly use the jewel given to you."
"More like stolen from your grandmother…" Tygra muttered. Leanne glared at him.
"I'm warning you, Stripes!" She snarled, "You piss me off and you're road kill!" Tygra bared his fangs as he glared at her. She didn't back down to his intimidation, baring her own stepped in between the two.
"Tygra, these lessons are best taught when Leanne is able to concentrate." Jaga said, "And that seems to be a difficult task if you are here. I must ask you to leave." Tygra looked up at Jaga, then down at Leanne, who sneered at him.
"Very well, Jaga." He said, he narrowed his eyes at Leanne, "I've got my eye on you." He turned and left.
"Yeah, that's right!" Leanne said to his back, "Run away like the scaredy cat you are!" She blew a wet raspberry at him. Jaga made her stop by putting his hand on her shoulder.
"That's enough." He said, "We must begin as soon as possible. Follow me." Leanne did as he said and followed him out into a courtyard, where she saw the same robed individual from yesterday waiting for them. Jaga stopped and turned to Leanne, "Now then, tell me what you know of the jewel's power."
"Nothing." Leanne said, "I know freaking nothing about a necklace I didn't even see until yesterday." Jaga nodded.
"Then I suppose we must start with the basics." He said, "Sit down." Leanne sat, legs crossed on the ground as Jaga sat across from her. The one in the robe stayed standing, not doing anything. Leanne looked at them suspiciously, but Jaga turned her attention back to him, "Now, the Jewel of Omens, as it is so known, is powered by the flow of energy in its wielder." He pointed to the jewel on her necklace, "In order to use this power properly, you must put the proper amount of energy into it. Too little, and you will not be powerful enough, too much, and you could lose control." Leanne nodded her head in understanding, "Now, in order to access this power, it requires a certain state of mind. Are you prepared to learn it?"
"Sure." Leanne said, Jaga nodded and turned to the person in the robes, gesturing them to come forward with a clawed finger. They went over to them, pulling out a little seed from inside their robes and placed it in Jaga's hands, along with a small cup of water, a tiny scrap of paper, and what looked like a matchstick. Jaga placed them all in a line in front of Leanne.
"Now, I want you to close your eyes," Jaga said, he pointed to the seed on the ground, "And imagine this seed growing into a sprout."
"Seriously?" Leanne asked, looking at the seed doubtfully.
"Yes, try it." Jaga said, Leanne sighed and closed her eyes.
"This won't work." She said.
"We won't know unless you try." Jaga said. Leanne concentrated as she thought of the seed opening up, and a little sprout coming from it as it rooted itself into the earth. "You mustn't be so tense. Relax. Take a deep breath in, and out." Leanne did as the old cat asked of her, taking a deep breath and relaxing a little bit. She kept concentrating on the seed, but she didn't hear anything other than Jaga's thoughtful hum. "Leanne, I want you to remember something for me."
"What?" Leanne asked, peeking one eye open at the old cat.
"I want you to remember a secret." Jaga said, "Something you don't want anyone to know." Leanne's eyes shot open, scowling at the cat man.
"I'm not telling you anything." She said.
"You don't have to." Jaga said calmly, "You must only think of it. It will help you gain control. Now close your eyes." Leanne sighed.
"This is stupid…" She mumbled. She closed her eyes and remembered the only secret she couldn't bear to tell anyone. If she told them, they'd want to know the reasons behind it. Why was that scar on her back? Who gave it to her? Why did they do it? She couldn't tell anyone the why, what, who, or how. They simply wouldn't understand…
"Leanne, open your eyes." She did as Jaga asked, cutting her memory short as she opened her eyes. She was surprised to see the seed he had held before had now sprouted, and he held it in his hands, "You did very well, but it seems earth is not your element." He put the sprout down and pointed to the cup of water. "Now, I want you to imagine a whirlpool in this cup, but this time, keep your eyes open."
"Okay…" Leanne said, she stared at the cup, seeing how it began to swirl wildly in the cup in her mind's eye, but nothing happened. Jaga hummed thoughtfully again.
"Try and remember something else." He said.
"You want to know another secret?" Leanne asked with a scowl.
"No, I simply want you to remember a time of peace." Jaga said.
"Peace?" Leanne asked.
"A time where things were calm and serene." Jaga explained.
"I don't need a definition." Leanne snapped. Although the way he explained it did help her a little bit. She closed her eyes, thinking of a peaceful time. She had friends who liked to go free-running with her, most of them were guys who preferred to call it 'parkour' just to make it sound like they knew some kind of fancy martial art. One night, after they had gone over some of downtown Nashville, being careful to keep away from any police who could charge them with trespassing, they headed to a small park, just to have some fun. After a half-hour of playing around, she and a couple of them lay down on the grass and just stared up at the night sky, pointing out any planes they could see that weren't blinded by the lights of the city. It was quiet and the night was cool. It was a good time for all of them.
"Well done." Jaga said, his voice pulling her out of the memory again. She looked to see the water swirling in the cup at a steady pace. "Did you remember something again?" Leanne looked at him and nodded. "Water is not your best element, either." He held up the matchstick, "Here, light the match without touching it."
"Look, as cool as it is to be doing all this stuff," Leanne said, "What's the point of it all?"
"To help us know which element you work with best." Jaga said, "Now, light the match without touching it." Leanne sighed and stared at the match. She narrowed her eyes as she saw it lighting aflame in her mind's eye. Nothing happened.
"What do I need to remember to get this to work?" She asked him.
"Think of something that excited you." Jaga said, "A moment in time where your heart was pounding."
That was easy enough. Leanne remembered when she was helping a friend to be introduced to free-running. They were starting off simple, a climb up a fire escape, a dash across a flat rooftop and onto a lower-standing building. Her friend, after getting ready, cried 'go!' and they both dashed off towards the fire escape. Leanne reached it first and started jumping up platform to platform, her friend mimicking her movements, doing the same. When they reached the top of the building, Leanne ran along the roof and jumped off, landing safely on the other building. She cheered her friend to encourage him to do the same, and when he did, he succeeded in the landing.
Suddenly, the match lit up, a little fire burning on the top of the match.
"I remembered something that time, too." Leanne said, saving Jaga the trouble of asking a question. He nodded, blew out the match, and held up the piece of paper.
"Now, then," He began, "Make sure this paper never touches the ground."
"Can I touch it this time?" Leanne asked, Jaga shook his head. He held up the paper and dropped it. Leanne wracked her brains as she tried to figure out how to make it stay up. She thought of how convenient it would be if a gust of wind would keep it afloat, then, just before the paper hit the ground, the paper began to hover as a small, tiny whirlwind formed underneath the paper, making it stay. She jumped a little as she felt something, she wasn't sure what it was, but it was definitely something. She felt like she was free-running again, against her mother's wishes, but she wasn't moving, and there was no adrenaline. There was just that… feeling. The feeling she got only when free-running. The only word she could use to ever describe it was… the feeling of freedom.
"Did you remember again?" Jaga asked, Leanne shook her head, "Then it seems your element is air." He stood up, and Leanne followed, "This element is the hardest to catch, yet easiest to control. Which is convenient for us."
"So, I can control wind?" Leanne asked with an excited smile, Jaga nodded. Leanne pumped her fist into the air, "Awesome!" Jaga chuckled at her enthusiasm.
"Now, then, shall we begin our lesson?" Jaga asked, he turned to the robed person and nodded once. They shed the robe instantly, revealing that they were a female cat woman. She had blonde hair, with random brown spots on her head, and cheetah pattern fur on her arms, her eyes, a piercing amber gold, stared at her as she smiled, putting one hand on her hip. "This is Cheetara, one of my clerics. She will help you with the remainder of your lesson." Leanne looked up at him.
"Where are you going, then?" She asked him.
"I have other business to attend to at the moment." He said, he nodded at Cheetara, who nodded back, "Cheetara will help you to test your strength."
"Sounds like fun." Leanne said with a sarcastic drawl, looking over at Cheetara.
"Don't worry." She said, pulling out a long staff, "I go easy on novices." Leanne sent her a playful glare.
"Oh, you're going to regret saying that." She said, if there was anything Leanne loved/hated it was a challenge.
"Will I?" She asked, quirking an eyebrow at her. She spun her staff impressively as she got into a battle stance. Leanne did the same. At the same moment, both girls ran at each other.
Leanne fell onto her behind, panting harshly. She wiped away some of the sweat on her forehead as she looked over at where Cheetara leaned against her staff, catching her breath.
"You caught onto that fast." Cheetara said, recalling how Leanne had used the air to knock her down multiple times.
"Thanks." Leanne panted, leaning back on her hands, "You're pretty fast."
"Something you learn as a cleric." Cheetara said offhandedly, she stood up straight, "So, I heard you beat prince Tygra." Leanne shrugged.
"I wouldn't say I beat him, exactly." Leanne said, "I just got lucky."
"Pretty good luck." Cheetara said. Leanne shrugged.
"Whatever." She said, she stood up, "So, are we done for today?"
"I suppose so." Cheetara said, she walked over to her and held out her hand, "Same time tomorrow?"
"Why not?" Leanne said, taking her hand and shaking it. Something caught Cheetara's eye and she looked up at something behind Leanne.
"Looks like you've got a visitor." She said, releasing Leanne's hand.
"Huh?" Leanne asked, turning around, hearing someone call her name.
"Leanne!" She saw Lion-O running towards her, carrying something on his arm. Leanne smiled and waved to him as he ran over, "Hey."
"Hi." Leanne greeted back, Snarf, who rested on Lion-O's shoulder, let out a little mewl in greeting. Leanne laughed, reaching up and petting Snarf's head, "Hi to you, too, Snarf."
"What are you doing out here by yourself?" Lion-O asked.
"I'm not alone," Leanne said, she turned around, "I'm…" She trailed off, seeing Cheetara was gone, "Well, I was training with someone."
"Training for what?" Lion-O asked, Leanne smiled.
"This!" She turned around and raised her hand, making a small whirlwind that lifted up some leaves nearby and spun them around. Lion-O looked at it with a smile, "Isn't it awesome?"
"Yeah, it is." Lion-O said, facing her again, "Can you train me to predict where the wind will blow?" Leanne puffed out her cheeks in anger and raised her hand so a gust of wind with about the power of a hairdryer would blow in his face.
"No, stupid, I control the wind." She said pointedly, "Is that not amazing?" She jumped up and down excitedly like a child would.
"Yeah, it is." Lion-O said, "Must be the power of the jewel." Leanne looked down at the jewel, then away slightly.
"Yeah, must be…" She looked slightly disheartened by something. Lion-O noticed it, but decided not to say anything.
"Anyway," He said, he held out a cloak, "I'm going into town to get some technology. Want to come with me?" Leanne picked up the cloak, then looked back at Lion-O.
"I thought you guys believed technology was a myth?" She said.
"We do, but that doesn't mean you can't go out and find it." Lion-O said, "So, do you want to come with me or not?"
"Heck yeah, I wanna come." Leanne said, putting the cloak he had given her around her shoulders.
"And when we're done, you can watch my coming-of-age ceremony." Lion-O said, putting on his own cloak and walking away. Leanne followed him, with Snarf close behind.
"What coming-of-age ceremony?" She asked.
"It's something every future king has to go through." Lion-O explained, "To help us master the sword of omens."
"Oh. Cool." Leanne said, following Lion-O out of the castle and into the busy streets of the Thundera.