Awesome! I got a hold of some internet on the ship! So you guys can read the next chapter sooner than you thought! Hooray! ^_^
11
Panthro sat in the driver's seat of the Thunder Tank as he waited for Tygra to finish hooking up the Book of Omens to his navigational system.
"By the time you get the Book of Omens rigged up, Mumm-Ra will have conquered the planet!" Panthro said, getting impatient with Tygra's constant drilling.
"Never…" Tygra grunted, drilling something in, "Rush…" Another drilling sound, "Genius…" A third drilling sound. Panthro sighed exasperatedly, putting his hand to his head and shaking it. After a moment, Tygra pulled himself up from underneath the tank and moved into the seat next to Panthro's. "There." He turned to him, "Fire it up!" Panthro did so, pulling back on the two levers that acted as the tank's steering wheel to power it up. Everything seemed to work perfectly, the tank's electronic systems up and running, and the book displaying where to find the nearest stone. But something short-circuited, and the tank was shut down, the Book of Omens smoking from its sudden misuse of instillation. A loud popping sound came from behind them, and the two looked back to see the engine had given out again. Tygra grimaced, looking at the smoking book, "We're gonna be here a while."
A very feminine sounding grunt caught the two cats' attention as Cheetara walked over to the tank, stretching her arms up above her head.
"Good morning." She greeted, running her hand through her blonde hair.
"Morning." Tygra greeted, "You slept in a little later than usual." Cheetara grimaced, reaching into a particularly unruly part of her hair and pulling out a twig.
"I slept on a very uncomfortable piece of land." She said, she looked up at the two men as they began working on the tank again. She looked around, her gaze finding WilyKat and WilyKit playing with Snarf, but she couldn't see the last two people of their group. She jumped up onto the hood of the tank in front of Panthro and above the place where Tygra was working, "Where's Lion-O?"
"He went out on a walk." Panthro said.
"And Leanne?" Cheetara asked.
"Where else would she be?" Tygra grunted out as he pulled out some screws from the tank. He bopped his head against the tank as he came up, letting out an "Ow!" He held the spot he had bumped with a scowl, "She's with Lion-O." He held up the screws and Panthro let him drop them into his hand.
Cheetara hummed thoughtfully, swinging her legs over into the inside of the tank while she still sat on its hood, "Those two are awfully close, aren't they?"
"Close?" Tygra scoffed, "Leanne hangs off him like a disease. She's barely left his side since she came here." He slid back under the tank, "May God help any man cursed with the Leanne*." Cheetara frowned, not exactly fond of the way he compared the relationship Leanne and Lion-O shared.
"It's more like a cub following its parent." Panthro said, making the description seem a bit more fitting for his and Cheetara's young friend. Cheetara nodded in agreement. She turned her head when WilyKat and WilyKit popped up on the tank, Snarf just beside them.
"Leanne's like his pet!" WilyKat said with a grin, "She never stops following him."
"I think Snarf might have some competition for Lion-O's attention." WilyKit said, petting the little creature's head. He mewed unhappily at the thought of being left behind by Lion-O.
"Now that, I don't doubt." Cheetara said with a grin, she looked back over at Panthro, "You don't think they could get closer do you?"
"Closer how?" Panthro asked, his tone similar to a father talking about his daughter dating a boy he didn't like.
"Oh, you know." Cheetara said, "Those two have stuck together since they came here. I wouldn't be surprised if their little friendship was taken to a new level."
"I'd be surprised if it wasn't." Tygra said, coming back up. He pointed his wrench at Cheetara's face, "I give them a week before they start swapping spit."
The Wilykittens' heads tilted to the side, a questioning look on their faces. "What do you mean by 'swapping spit'?" WilyKat asked. Tygra was about to open his mouth to answer, but Cheetara put her hand over his mouth.
"It's another term for kissing." She said, she sent Tygra a look, "Just kissing." Tygra moved her hand away from his mouth.
"I wasn't going to tell them exactly what that meant." He said.
"I don't like that." Panthro said, crossing his arms, "Leanne doesn't seem to be all that experienced with those of the opposite sex. She's almost… naïve."
"And Lion-O's not?" Cheetara asked, "He seems pretty innocent to me."
"While I got more girls than he did," Tygra began, "Lion-O does know his way around a girl or two. I'll say that much for him."
"And what if he takes it too far?" Panthro asked, taking on that fatherly tone again.
"Lion-O? Pfft, he wouldn't do something like that." He said, "The likelihood of that happening is equivalent to the chances of Leanne killing Lion-O with his own sword."
"…You are such a jerk!" All heads turned to the sound of the voice and they saw Leanne stomping through the foliage around their camp, Lion-O not far behind her, "You're a selfish, stubborn excuse for a man!"
"Oh, I'm selfish? I'm stubborn?" Lion-O growled angrily as he came up behind her, "Look who's talking! You're only thinking of yourself, and you refuse to see reason!"
"I'm seeing every reason here!" Leanne shot back, "You're the one who's gone blind!"
"No, you're only looking to benefit yourself!" Lion-O said, "You need to start thinking of ways to benefit our home!"
"Hey! News flash, Lion-O: THIS ISN'T MY HOME!" Leanne shouted in his face, "Or are you so thick skulled that you had forgotten that? Why should I care what happens to your little planet? I couldn't care less! In fact, I don't care at all!"
"Leanne, do you hear yourself right now?!" Lion-O shouted at her, both of them oblivious to the wide eyed stares they were getting from the others.
"Yes, I do! And I'm telling you what you need to hear!" Leanne snapped, poking her finger in his chest.
"No, I'm telling you what you need to hear!" Lion-O snapped back, smacking her hand away, "You need to start expanding your thinking outside of your own gain! You may not be from here, but you're here now, and you have to help us!"
"I have to help you?" Leanne asked him mockingly, "I have to? I don't have to do anything! I can do whatever I want!"
"No you can't!" Lion-O snarled, "I'm the king now! You have to listen to me, whether you like it or not!"
"You have no kingdom!" Leanne said, "The only subjects you have are all the other cats that are left, and anyone who cares! Which, may I remind you, is something I don't do!"
"Leanne, you're acting like a child!" Lion-O snapped.
"And you're acting like a dictator!" Leanne snapped in return.
"Enough!" Lion-O shouted, he pointed his finger in Leanne's face, "We are never discussing this again. That's an order." Leanne stared at him with wide eyes for a moment, in complete shock of his words, then her eyes narrowed into a glare.
"I don't have to obey your orders." She growled, then she stomped away over to her bag and slung it over her shoulder. She turned to where Lion-O hadn't moved, "I quit!"
"What do you mean you quit?" Lion-O asked her.
"I mean, I'm done!" Leanne shouted as she started walking away, "Good luck with your life, because I don't care enough to be in it anymore!" Lion-O looked at her incredulously, then ran after her, grabbing her wrist to stop her.
"You can't leave!" He snarled.
"Watch me." Leanne growled, yanking her arm out of his grasp. Lion-O grit his teeth angrily, and he was about to yell at her again, but she spoke before he could, "You know what, Lion-O? You can take that Sword of Omens and GO F**K YOURSELF WITH IT!" Cheetara instantly covered Kat and Kit's ears.
"What did she just say?" WilyKat asked, his mouth gaping at this new word to enter his mind.
"I'm done!" Leanne snapped, she started walking away again. Lion-O looked after her incredulously, unable to believe that she had just spoken that way to him. When he regained his senses, he growled, clenching his fists.
"Fine! We don't need you anyway!" He shouted at her.
"Fine!" Leanne shouted back.
"Fine!"
"Fine!"
"Fine!"
"FINE!" Leanne used her powers to lift herself up off the ground and fly away from the camp as quickly as she could. Everyone looked after her with wide eyes, and then they looked at Lion-O, who had started walking back to the camp.
"Lion-O, are you nuts?" Tygra asked him, "You can't just let her go!"
"She won't last out there on her own." Lion-O said, looking up at him, "She'll be back before dusk."
Tygra looked uneasily at the sun setting on the horizon. He looked down the pathway Leanne had taken that morning, and saw no one walking it. It was completely empty. He looked over at where Lion-O was setting up the fire.
"Lion-O, it's dusk," Tygra said, "And Leanne still isn't back yet."
"She'll be back before it gets dark." Lion-O assured, "She won't be able to make it out here on her own. She'll come back."
"It's been hours Lion-O." Cheetara said, "She could be miles from here by now."
"She'll come back." Lion-O said firmly, preparing the fire, "She will."
Night had fallen, and everyone kept glancing down the pathway that Leanne had taken, there was no sign of her at all. Lion-O kept looking more than anyone, guilt suddenly filling him as he realized he may have actually sent her away with his words.
"Way to go, genius." Panthro said, smacking the back of his head, "You chased her away!"
"It's not like I meant to!" Lion-O said, rubbing the spot Panthro had hit.
"Does this mean Leanne's not coming back?" WilyKit asked sadly, looking up at Cheetara.
"Hopefully, no." She said, "It's hard to tell if she's coming back or not." Lion-O looked back down the pathway, his eyes widening and spirits lifting when he saw a form in the distance.
"There she is!" He exclaimed, pointing to the dark silhouette as it moved. Everyone jumped up, ready to welcome back their friend, but were disappointed to see it was only a small creature, one of Snarf's size, with two, bowl-shaped ears, and big yellow eyes. Lion-O's face fell at the sight, and turned his attention back to his small amount of food, "She'll be back by morning…"
Three days later…
Leanne groaned when the sunlight hit her eyes. She pulled up the sheets of the bed she had been given to try and block the light from her. She waited a few minutes under the covers, and after some thinking, decided it was time she got up. She probably wasn't going to go back to sleep again, anyway. She tossed the covers away from her and swung her legs over the side of the bed. She stretched her arms up high with a small grunt, and released a breath when she dropped them. She stood up from the bed and looked around the small room she was in.
After her little spat with Lion-O, Leanne had left and came upon this town. At first, she was intimidated by the wall surrounding the small place, which was made entirely of broken swords, but she had gone in, nonetheless. She walked around the town aimlessly, soon finding that the town was made for sword fighters of all kinds. She would pass by different competitions that tested the strength of the blades, and the skill of their owners. She had gone to a small restaurant to find some food, but was incredibly disappointed when she found out that they refused to take the Thunderian shillings she had for money. She tried to explain to the owner of the place that it was the only money she had, and that she had no skill with any blade. The owner said he couldn't make any exceptions for her, and she was instantly saddened.
She had collapsed on the nearest seat, putting her elbows on her knees and holding her head in her hands.
"What am I supposed to do for money…?" She asked quietly, frowning when her stomach growled loudly. The owner, a big, burly dog of a man who was well into his years, looked her up and down as she tried to think.
"Are you by yourself?" He asked, Leanne nodded, not moving her head from her hands, "You have no one with you?" Leanne nodded again, "But you're so young."
"Yeah," Leanne looked from her hands, but didn't meet the owner's eyes. She stared ahead of her blankly, "I had something of a fight with one of my friends, and I left."
"And you can't apologize for it?" The owner asked, pulling up a chair beside her.
"He's the one who should be apologizing!" Leanne snapped, she instantly realized how she sounded and turned to him, "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said it like that." The owner waved it off.
"Don't worry about it." He said, Leanne said nothing as she turned back to her front. "So… you really have nowhere to go? What about your home?"
"It's… It's really far from here." Leanne said evasively, not wanting to explain earth to the dog man. She sighed and stood up, "Well, maybe I'll get some better luck in the next town." She turned to him, "Could you point me in that general direction?"
"The nearest town from here is a week's travel by carriage." The owner said, "Two weeks if you're walking."
"Crap…" Leanne cursed quietly. She bit down on her lip, trying to figure out a way to get some supplies for herself, or at the very least some money.
"You know…" The owner began, standing up from his seat and going over to her, "We could use some extra hands around here. Why don't you work here for a bit until you're able to get yourself out of here?"
"Seriously?" Leanne asked in surprise, "Thank you so much! Ah… but…" She paused, thinking of where she could find a place to sleep, "I guess I could just camp out again…"
"Don't bother." The owner said, "You can stay with me and my wife. You can sleep in my son's old bedroom."
"Oh, I don't want to be any trouble." Leanne said, again, the owner waved it off.
"It won't be any trouble." He said, "You'll just be staying with us while you work." He smiled at her, "Think you can do that?" Leanne nodded vigorously.
"Y-Yeah! Definitely!" She said quickly, a smile growing on her face, "Thank you so much!"
After that, she had been working at their restaurant as a waitress, staying in the old bedroom. Leanne could tell that he had been interested in swords for a good while, with pictures of different blades hanging on the walls, and a few real swords hanging about in various containers through the room and hidden in a closet. She had borrowed the owner's wife's clothes so she wouldn't look quite so strange in her clothes from Thundera. She donned a white collared shirt and a long navy skirt. The hole in the back that had been for the wife's tail had been sewn up (Leanne was very grateful to her for doing it). She walked out of the room and downstairs to where the owner, a bulldog man named Fidon, and his wife, a blue-eyed husky dog woman named Mishka, were already serving customers.
"Sorry I slept in." Leanne said as she picked up an apron from the wall and started tying it around her waist.
"Your shift doesn't start for another half hour." Fidon said with a laugh. Leanne looked up at him.
"I intended to be a little earlier today." She said with a smile. Fidon said nothing as he handed her a notepad and pencil.
"You got tables 3, 4, 5, and 7 today." He said, "Mishka's got the rest." Leanne nodded and headed out to see who was waiting at her tables.
Lion-O walked along the path Leanne had taken a few days ago. The only reason he and the others hadn't left camp was because the Thunder Tank still had yet to be properly fixed up with the Book of Omens. That, and they were waiting for Leanne. If she didn't show herself by the end of the week, either saying she was sorry, or demanding an apology, they would leave without her.
Snarf walked beside Lion-O's feet as they went to the nearest town. He looked up at the front gate, seeing how the wall surrounding the town was made of broken sword blades, and at the top of the gate rested a skull with two swords going through it.
"I've heard stories about towns like this." Lion-O said, looking up at the gate, "Just never seen one before." A crow sounded loudly, and Snarf squealed, grabbing onto Lion-O's leg in fear. He smiled down at the creature, "Don't worry, Snarf. We'll get what we need for the tank and leave."
"Think you could lend a hand, friend?" Lion-O jumped slightly when he heard the voice, and looked around for whoever had spoken, but saw no one, "Up here." He looked up, and saw a rabbit man had gotten the back of his shirt snagged onto a blade on the wall, "I seem to have snagged myself. Again." Lion-O looked at him strangely, noticing how his body swayed like a willow tree branch in the breeze.
"What are y—" Lion-O caught himself from asking the question, "Uh… Who are you?"
"Just a Drifter, I suppose." He replied, his tone content and slightly lazy. Lion-O jumped up onto the wall, careful not to cut himself on any of the blades, and grabbed the rabbit, pulling him off the wall and tossing him into the air. He watched as he floated around like a piece of paper, landing on a fence in a comfortable position. Lion-O came down and he smiled at him, "Thanks for the assist."
"Maybe you can return the favor." Lion-O said, "I'm looking for supplies."
"Well, find them somewhere else." The Drifter said, Lion-O's eyes widened at his response, "This is a swordsman's town, Stranger, and they duel for keeps." He lay back on the fence, "Leave, before it's too late." He turned over on his side, away from Lion-O, then turned his head to look at him while he spoke, "Or don't. I don't care." He turned back on his side, relaxing.
"I can handle myself all right." Lion-O said, pulling out his sword while it was still miniaturized.
The Drifter chuckled, "This town loves guys like you." He turned back to face Lion-O again, "Swaggering around with your fancy sword, thinking you can't lose." He still had that content smile on his face as he spoke to Lion-O, "But you will." Lion-O's confident grin fell slightly as he looked at the Drifter, "They all do."
"This is more than a fancy sword." Lion-O said, his grin back on his face, "It's the Sword of Omens, and with it, I never lose."
"Just like I said," The Drifter began with his smile, "Take my advice and blow on out of here." He shrugged, "Or don't. I don't care." A gust of wind came and blew the Drifter up into the air and over the wall, into the town somewhere. Lion-O looked after his flight path with a quirked eyebrow. He looked down at Snarf.
"He was… strange." He said. Snarf mewed in agreement, following Lion-O into the town.
Leanne wasn't surprised to see a particular customer at one of the tables. She wasn't sure of his name, all she knew was that he came to the restaurant every day, and ordered the same thing every time: Just a glass of water, and a plate of carrots, their cheapest vegetables. Leanne thought it was funny that his diet consisted mostly of carrots, and he was a rabbit. He was a dirty-looking man, with long, brown hair and a pair of drooping ears. He always had a stalk from a willow tree hanging out of his mouth, and his clothes, while filthy, never smelled terrible.
"Hello Drifter." She said, calling him by his preferred name. He smiled up at her, "Want the usual again?"
"If you don't mind, Missy." He said, he never called her by her name, mostly because she had never told him, but he had never asked her. He didn't even know Fidon's and Mishka's names. He never bothered to ask, he just called Mishka 'Ma'am' and Fidon 'Sir', and because she was so young, he called Leanne 'Missy'. Leanne nodded and jotted down the order to give to the restaurant's cook, a rather overweight warthog man named Buso who had a slight twang to his voice that made him sound a little bit country.
"Gotcha." She said, she walked over to the other tables, taking the other customers' orders before she headed into the kitchen to give them to Buso and take out any orders that needed to be taken out. Feeling the eyes of her customers as she walked away from them.
Despite all of the leering eyes that followed her wherever she went, Leanne was actually quite comfortable in this swordsman's town. There were species of all different kinds here, some of them didn't even look like animals at all, but more like something out of a fairy tale, or a mythology book. So, when people looked at her, it wasn't because she was the only human on Third Earth, it was because she was female. While she hated the leers, and the occasional wolf-whistles she got, Leanne was amazed that the people in this town were so comfortable with her appearance. She didn't feel the need to hide away from them, like she sometimes felt around the cats in Thundera. In fact, some of the people here resembled human beings, so she never really worried about it.
Buso snorted in distaste when he saw the Drifter's order, "Is he back again?"
"It's not that bad, is it?" Leanne asked, "I mean, you hardly have to put any effort into making his food."
"I know that," Buso said, looking at her, "It's one of the reasons I don't like him. He makes me think that I don't need to put any effort into the other dishes I make."
"Buso, you put all of your effort into everything." Leanne said, "I don't think one guy is going to change that at all."
"I s'pose yer right." He said, handing her the glass of water and the plate of carrots, "Still don't like the guy, tho'." Leanne took the plate from him.
"Well, I guess every man is entitled to his own opinion." She relented, walking away.
"Yer darn right I do!" Buso shouted behind her, Leanne chuckled slightly, knowing from his tone that he meant nothing cruel by his words. She walked over to where the Drifter was and put the plate down in front of him. Something caught her eye and she looked up and froze.
Just across the way, buying some supplies from a local vendor, was Lion-O, with Snarf by his side.
Lion-O smiled at the vendor in thanks and handed him the money needed to pay for it. The vendor looked over the piece of money.
"A Thunderian shilling, eh?" He said, looking over the coin, "I'm afraid we don't deal with antiques." He tossed the coin back to Lion-O, who caught it.
"Thunderian coins were once the most prized in the land." Lion-O said.
"And now they're relics of a fallen empire." The vendor replied.
"So what am I gonna do for money?" Lion-O asked, pocketing the coin.
"What everyone else here does," The vendor said, he pointed to something in the distance, "Sword competition." Lion-O looked to see a huge square pillar of stone with multiple scratches from different blades. He pulled out his sword and smirked at the vendor.
"Wanna bet they've never seen a sword like this?" He asked him. The vendor only shrugged in response.
Lion-O went over to the crowds, watching as different contestants came forward with their swords.
One young jackal came up, pulling out a sword that was as big as he was, "The Great Olakat, its blade forged in the lava pits of Mount Tiramabu. Witness its awesome power!" He said, then he slashed the stone, leaving a large crack in it. The crowd around the sword cheered for him as a man came up and measured the length of the cut by a tattoo on his arm, which looked suspiciously like a ruler. When he was done, he smiled and gestured to the jackal, saying they had a new leader in the competition.
"Nice, but nothing compares to my sword!" A pig said, coming up with a skinny, wavy blade, "The Gods themselves fear its edge! Behold!" He ran at the stone and tried to slash it like the jackal before him. Instead of cutting through the stone, the sword shattered, not strong enough to break it. The crowd laughed at his defeat and he slumped his shoulders in disappointment, carrying his broken blade with him. Lion-O looked interestedly at the next person to come up, wielding a very unusual sword.
"The wind, the trees, the morning dew on a delicate orchid, they all tremble before my beauty of the Blade of Kurokai." He said, his sword was a strange one, a black blade that had a design that resembled something like a group of waves. When each 'wave' of the blade rose up, the edge was sharpest there, and the rest of it smoothed slightly onto the next 'wave'. He ran at the stone and slashed his sword through it, leaving a very deep cut. The man measured the cut and wrote its depth down in a small notebook.
"Is there no one else who will accept the challenge?" He asked, looking into the crowd. Lion-O stepped through the people and came forward.
"I accept." He said, walking up to the man. Whispers surrounded him as he went up to him, all of them curious about this new competitor whom none of them had seen before.
"Do you have anything to say?" The man asked Lion-O, wondering if he wanted to brag about his sword like the others had.
"Only to the other competitors." Lion-O said before he turned to the crowd and loudly declared, "You're all vying for second place!" The crowd laughed at his confidence, thinking he was sure to lose. Lion-O pulled out his sword, lengthening it and he walked towards the huge stone, unaware of the pair of silver eyes watching him among the crowd. He slashed at the stone, and then sheathed his sword. The crowd began to laugh again at his attempt, thinking he had done nothing to the boulder. The laughter began to die when they heard a cracking noise and saw one huge, long line going up the length of the boulder. Once it reached the top, the boulder split in two, and fell to the ground on either side. The crowd cheered loudly for Lion-O, knowing he had won. Leanne, not wanting to give Lion-O a chance to see her, ran from the crowd and went back to the restaurant.
Lion-O turned to the man in charge of the competition, "Where do I get my money?" The man smiled as he held up a bag of money to him, and Lion-O gladly took it.
Fidon looked at Leanne oddly as she apologized to another customer for spilling the food on him. She sighed as she walked back to Buso, about to request that he make the dish again, but Fidon stopped her by putting his hand on her shoulder.
"Why don't you take a break?" He asked, "You seem a bit out of it today, Leanne."
"Yeah, sorry…" Leanne murmured, looking away. Fidon looked at her curiously, then turned to where Buso was working.
"Buso, make table 5's order again." He said, he kept his hand on Leanne's shoulder as he directed her away from where Buso had begun cursing wildly in frustration. Fidon directed her up the stairs to the bedroom he had given her. She sat down on the bed, and he pulled up a chair from his son's desk and sat across from her. "Leanne, are you all right?"
"…Not really." Leanne answered truthfully, not wanting to lie to the man who had done so much for her in such a short time.
"Want to talk about it?" He asked, "Or, should I go get Mishka?" Leanne shook her head.
"No, it's not a girl problem." She said with a small smile, looking up at him. The smile disappeared as she began to think about what she had seen, "It's just… I saw someone in town today…"
"Who was it?" Fidon asked.
"It was the guy I had a fight with." Leanne said, "He was in town, and he competed in that boulder cutting competition."
"Is that a bad thing?" Fidon asked, Leanne reached up, tucking some of her dark hair behind her ear.
"Well… yes and no." Leanne said, "I'm glad to see him again, y'know, glad to see that he's doing okay… And I want to talk to him about what happened, but I'm not so sure he wants to see me. Does that make sense?" Fidon nodded.
"Yes, it does." He said, "You're worried that if you approach him, you two will start arguing again." Leanne nodded.
"I want to talk to him," Leanne said, "But he can't know that it's me talking to him." Fidon put his hand to his chin in thought. His eyes lit up, and he smirked when an idea came to his mind.
"I think I know a way we can fix that." He said, Leanne looked at him curiously.
Leanne turned around, looking at herself in the mirror. "Oh, wow…" Fidon had given her a makeover of sorts. Instead of her normal clothes, she was dressed in Fidon's son's clothes. She wore a loose, grey shirt and loose grey pants over a black, tight-fitting bodysuit that went to her wrists, ankles, and covered half of her neck. She wore a large, dark blue scarf around her neck and around her face and around her head, hiding everything but her eyes from view. "I don't even look like me anymore!"
"Exactly." Fidon said, "As far as everyone's concerned, you're my son, come home for a visit." Leanne moved the scarf from her face, smiling up at Fidon.
"Thank you so much." She said.
"And for authenticity's sake," Fidon pulled out one of the blades lying around the room, "Take a sword with you, but don't accept any challenges." Leanne nodded, taking the sword from him.
"Got it." She said, she moved the scarf up to cover her face, "Thank you, again, Fidon."
"Not a problem." Fidon replied, Leanne walked around him to head out, "Oh, and Leanne, one more thing." Leanne stopped at the doorway, looking back at Fidon, "My son has a nickname. He's known as the Silent Swordsman."
"Why do they call him that?" Leanne asked.
"Because he was born mute." Fidon said, Leanne's jaw dropped, even though Fidon couldn't see it past the scarf. He walked past her through the doorway, "Don't worry. I'm sure you'll find a way to talk to your friend."
"How am I supposed to do that if I can't talk?!" Leanne shouted down at him. Fidon didn't reply and Leanne groaned, hitting her head against the wall.
Lion-O dropped some money into the hand of the vendor. "Now that should cover it." The vendor went over the money and nodded, saying it was enough.
"An impressive victory." A voice said, Lion-O looked back to see a man with a long, thin, curling moustache and sharp red eyes. On his back was a holder for a large amount of swords if different kinds, along with two others at his waist, "Allow me to introduce myself, I am the Duelist. You, my friend, have something I desire."
"Sorry, Snarf's not for sale." Lion-O said with a grin. Snarf yowled and hid behind Lion-O's legs, trying to hide from the Duelist. He opened his eyes, however, when he smelled something familiar, and looked around, finding exactly what his nose had sniffed out, and ran towards the scarfed person as they walked through the crowds of town people. Neither Lion-O nor the Duelist saw Snarf run off, and they didn't see how the scarfed person knelt down and started petting Snarf, smiling beneath their scarf as they picked up the little creature, rubbing his belly as they cradled him.
"Your sword against my best blade, winner takes all." The Duelist proposed, pointing to the gauntlet that rested on Lion-O's waist.
"Not interested." Lion-O said, "I already proved I've got the best sword in town."
"Indeed," The Duelist said, "The Sword of Omens is legendary, even in these parts. But it's not your blade that needs to prove itself. It's you."
"I said no." Lion-O replied.
"A wise decision." The Duelist returned, "Perhaps if the last owner of that sword shared your cowardice, he'd still be alive." Lion-O growled low in his throat.
"You're on." He glared at the Duelist, "Might as well hand over your best sword right now."
"The town square. High noon." The Duelist said, then he walked away, Lion-O glaring at his back.
"You sure got guts." The vendor said, getting Lion-O's attention, "The Duelist is a legend in these parts. Those swords on his back? Trophies from all those who have fought him and lost. He is without conscience or morals, and he will not stop until his thirst is slaked. Now, he wants your sword, and it will be his."
"Whiskers…" Lion-O cursed under his breath, "Snarf, let's go." He looked around for his pet, but found he wasn't anywhere, "Snarf?" He heard a familiar mew and saw Snarf in the arms of a stranger who was tickling his belly. The person came over to Lion-O, their face hidden by a scarf that covered almost all of their head and most of their body above their shoulders, the only thing he could see on the man's face was his eyes.
"Ezio!" The vendor said happily when he saw him, "When did you get back in town? It's been ages!" The man only nodded in response, "How were things outside of the town?" The man nodded once, and the vendor smiled, "Glad to hear it." The man put Snarf down, but instead of him going over to Lion-O, like he expected the little creature to do, he stayed at the man's side by his feet, purring happily. The vendor got Lion-O's attention by lightly hitting his shoulder, "This is another one of our legends around here. The Silent Swordsman, Ezio." Lion-O looked the man up and down, seeing he was small of stature, and only carried one sword.
He looked back up at the man's oddly familiar, silvery eyes, and asked, "You can fight with a sword?" The man raised his hands, trying to speak with them, but he paused, unable to answer.
"He's decent enough." The vendor said.
"Maybe you can help me." Lion-O said to him, "Know anything about fighting the Duelist?" Before Leanne could try and come up with an excuse to say no and try to explain it without talking, the vendor spoke up.
"Of course he does." He said, "Ezio left town because he lost to the Duelist two years ago. He knows how he fights, he can help you out," He turned to Leanne, "Can't you, Ezio?" Leanne looked between the two of them, and shook her head. She had no previous knowledge of sword fighting, and definitely didn't know anything about the Duelist (Whoever that was), and walked away. Snarf tried to follow her, but she waved him away, sending him back to Lion-O.
Leanne sat against the wall of an old, unused blacksmith's forgery somewhere along the sharp wall of the town, her head in her hands as she tried to figure out what to do.
I can't be this Silent Swordsman forever. She thought to herself, Lion-O will find out eventually. She lifted up her head, I wonder what he'll say when he finds out… will he apologize? Or will he tell me to say sorry? Either way, I'll be happy. I just want to go back to the others.
She looked up to the sky as she remembered the argument they shared.
Leanne smiled when she finished drawing one of the rune circles she had seen in her grandmother's notes in the dirt. Lion-O looked over her shoulder curiously and she looked up at him.
"See? This is what I was talking about." She said, standing up from her crouching position, "Apparently, Alphonse Redoric wasn't the only person in my family to practice magic. My Nana was, too! And if she found a way to Thundera without the Jewel of Omens, then I bet you she found a way out without it, and I can, too."
"So?" Lion-O asked, wondering where all of this was going. Leanne looked at him incredulously.
"Are you serious?" She asked him, "Lion-O, these circles are my way home!" Leanne pointed to the circle she had made in the ground, "I can find a way back to my world. Do you know how big of a breakthrough this is?" She smiled at him as she looked down at the circle, "The only question now is how do I use these circles, and which one is the right one…?"
Lion-O shifted his weight from one foot to another in discomfort, "Is it really so bad here?" Leanne looked up at him.
"Huh?"
"Is Third Earth so terrible?" Lion-O asked, Leanne's eyes widened when she realized what he was asking.
"Lion-O, it's not that I don't like it here." Leanne said, "It's just… I want to go home."
"But why?" Lion-O asked.
Leanne looked at him incredulously, "Lion-O, it's my home. Can you honestly tell me that, if it hadn't been destroyed, you would go back to Thundera right now?"
"Well, there are things that—" Leanne cut him off.
"It's a simple question Lion-O. Yes or no?" She asked him. Lion-O sighed.
"Yes." He said.
"That's how it is for me." Leanne said, "I want to go back home, Lion-O. To my family, and to my friends. I mean, do you have any idea what it's like for a human to suddenly start walking around in a place where humans aren't supposed to be? I don't belong here, Lion-O!"
"But the Jewel brought you here for a reason!" Lion-O pointed out.
"That was by total accident!" Leanne said, "If I had never bothered to go through the stuff in my attic, I never would have found it, and I never would have been brought here!"
"But you're here now!" Lion-O said, "Leanne, Jaga said that the Jewel of Omens would send you home once you finish whatever task you were supposed to do, and right now, that's helping us to beat Mumm-Ra! Are you trying to get out of this mission?"
"How do you know beating Mumm-Ra is what I'm supposed to do?!" Leanne snapped, getting aggravated, "What if I was supposed to stop that invasion from happening?! What if I was supposed to stop Thundera from being taken over and destroyed?! What if I can't go home now, because all of that happened?!"
"Then you accept it, and help us anyway!" Lion-O snapped, Leanne narrowed her eyes at him angrily.
"Lion-O, you're asking me to leave behind everything I know, everything I love," She began, "To risk my life to beat some mummified lizard who could kill me in an instant?!"
"To an extent, yes!" Lion-O said, Leanne gaped at him angrily.
"I can't believe you!" She said, she started stomping off back to the camp, "You are such a jerk!"
Leanne jumped up when she heard footsteps and saw Lion-O and Snarf coming over to where she was. Lion-O caught sight of her, but didn't really react to her. He just ignored her as he got out his sword, and started practicing his swings. Leanne watched him do so, leaning against the wall of the forgery, crossing her arms comfortably and putting all of her weight on one leg while she crossed the other one across the ankle she was putting her weight on. After a minute of straight practice, he looked over at where Leanne was watching him.
"What?" He demanded, Leanne looked up at him curiously from behind her scarf, "Why are you staring at me like that?" Leanne, knowing she had to be mute, didn't say anything to him. "Am I doing something wrong? Is that why you're staring?" Leanne had noticed his swings were a bit off than they were normally. So, she got up from where she had leaned against the wall, and walked over to where Lion-O was. She went to his side, and pulled out Ezio's sword and held it in front of her. She looked at Lion-O, silently telling him to do the same with his sword. Lion-O understood and took the same position she had. Once he did, Leanne sheathed Ezio's sword and looked Lion-O up and down, putting a hand over her covered chin, looking for where the off-ness in his swings was coming from. She went over to where his arms were, and moved his elbows so they would be tucked in towards him. Then, she kicked his legs so they would be a little closer together. She stepped back and made a waving gesture, telling him to start swinging again. Lion-O did so, and smiled, feeling a difference, "Oh, I see." He looked back at her, "Thanks for that Ezio." Leanne said nothing, only nodding once at him.
Lion-O began swinging again, and after a moment, Snarf let out a small, worried mewl.
"Run?" Lion-O asked him, "I'm no coward, Snarf." He went back to swinging, "Besides, someone needs to teach that guy a lesson." He held up his sword with a grin, "He may be tough, but nothing the Duelist has in his scabbard can beat the Sword of Omens."
"There's that ego kicking in again." A familiar voice said, Leanne and Lion-O looked up to see the Drifter snagged onto a blade on the wall again, "Mind helping me down?"
"Drifter…" Lion-O said, looking up at him, "I know what you're gonna tell me, I shouldn't have accepted his challenge."
"Why would I care what you do?" The Drifter asked, "You're the one who's going to lose his sword, not me."
"I can swing steel a lot better than you think." Lion-O said, holding up his sword and swinging it a couple times.
"You could've fooled me with those moves." The Drifter said, "Even with your little friend helping you out." Leanne crossed her arms across her chest, lifting an eyebrow at the Drifter. The Drifter reached up and pulled the reed from the willow tree out of his mouth, "You couldn't even split this reed."
"You're crazy!" Lion-O said, "Did you see what this sword did to that boulder?"
The Drifter chuckled, "If I only had your spirit." He put the reed back in his mouth, "But the fight left me long ago. How about I give you three swings?"
"I'll do it in one." Lion-O said, holding up one finger on his gauntleted hand. He was about to climb up to get the Drifter down, but Leanne beat him to it. She picked up a staff and had it hook onto the back of the scarf that had him stuck up on the wall and put him down in front of Lion-O. He stood still as he waited for Lion-O to swing at him, and his eyes opened to see him charge at him with the sword. When he swung his blade, the Drifter jumped up and avoided the swing, floating around in the air like he normally did.
"That's one." He said when he landed, "Could've warned me first, but you're impatient, I can tell." Lion-O growled and charged at him again, the Drifter jumped up in the air and over Lion-O's head and behind his shoulder, "Two. There is such a thing as trying too hard. That's why I prefer not trying at all." Lion-O tensed up at the sound of his voice and turned around swinging at him again, and again, and again, and again, until he had almost brought his sword down on Snarf who, if he hadn't jumped into Leanne's arms, would have been split in half. "Well, that was more than three, but I don't care." He smiled that same smile he always did, "I made my point."
"There was a point?" Lion-O asked, panting from all of his effort.
"Willows are weak," The Drifter said, his fingers just brushing the reed in his mouth, "Yet they bind other wood. Just some advice, take it or leave it." He reached up and put his fingers on the reed, but didn't pull it out, "A weakness can be turned into a strength. A lesson you won't understand until it's too late." He sighed, "You're just like he was."
"The Duelist?" Lion-O asked.
"No, the original owner of the sword the Duelist now uses. The Sword of Hatanzou." The Drifter began, "Forged by a man who some called the greatest sword maker of all time." Leanne couldn't help but notice how the Drifter's eyes seemed distant, as if he was reminiscing, "The sword maker lived a lonely life, devoted only to one thing: his craft. But this particular blade was more than a sword, it was a work of art. His most prized possession, and proudest achievement. The Sword of Hatanzou. Like you, he felt a sense of oneness with the weapon. With it, he was unstoppable. He thought." The Drifter leaned back against a nearby fence, making himself comfortable. "Word spread of the legendary blade, one day, the Duelist appeared, and challenged the sword maker to a fight. The sword maker accepted the challenge. In his hubris*, the sword maker believed the strength of his sword would overcome his weakness as a warrior. He was mistaken, and it cost him the one thing he valued most. To know that his work of art, his masterpiece, would be in the hands of a villain like the Duelist crushed him. He never made another sword, while the Duelist went on to become the greatest swordsman to ever walk the land."
"Whatever became of the sword maker?" Lion-O asked.
"Who knows?" The Drifter said with a shrug, "Some say he just drifts around, blowing wherever the wind takes him. A shell of the man he once was." Leanne's eyes widened when she realized who the Drifter was talking about.
"You…" Lion-O said, coming to the same realization, "I'm fighting against a sword you forged!" He furrowed his eyebrows, both in anger at the Duelist from the story, and in frustration of not knowing how to improve his fighting against the blade. "I need your help. How can I beat the Sword of Hatanzou?" Leanne was incredibly surprised when she saw the usual smile the Drifter wore was now gone, as if it had never been on his face at all. When his silence only made Lion-O angrier, he demanded, "How can I beat it?!"
"You can't." The Drifter said firmly, "Understand?" He pushed himself up from the fence, "Nobody can…" Leanne looked after him sadly. It was the first time she had ever heard anything about the Drifter's past, and to think that he had such a story following him… She could only imagine the weight he felt on his shoulders when, if ever, he saw the Duelist battle another man with his sword. Lion-O sighed, he looked up at a nearby clock, which said he had another hour before his match with the Duelist.
"I guess… the only thing I can do," Lion-O said, turning to Leanne and Snarf, who she still held in her arms, "Is practice, and hope I can beat him." Leanne shrugged, not able to give him a valid answer. "You fought the Duelist right?" Leanne jumped at the sudden question, "How does he fight? What's his technique?" Leanne turned her eyes away from him worriedly, unable to answer while in her disguise. She didn't want Lion-O to tell someone Fidon's mute son talked and rouse suspicion. "Well?" She glanced up at him, then back at the ground, "Aren't you going to answer me?" Snarf let out a small mew, looking up at Leanne, wondering why she didn't speak. He suddenly jumped out of his arms when Lion-O stomped up to her, and she trailed back in surprise at his sudden anger, "Say something!" Leanne shook her head, "Oh, so you won't tell me?" Leanne shook her head vigorously, waving her hands. Lion-O looked at her oddly, "You will tell me?" Leanne stopped shaking her head, but shook it slowly again, her eyes downcast. She would tell Lion-O if she could but she didn't know anything about how the Duelist fought. Lion-O looked at both of her silvery eyes, once again reminded of how familiar they looked, then stepped back, his mouth slightly agape. "You… You can't speak, can you?" Leanne nodded, looking up at him. "Sorry, I didn't know." Leanne waved him off, silently telling him it was okay. Lion-O nodded and went back to practicing. Leanne sat herself down on the ground, watching him.
"You know," He began after a moment of practicing, "You look a lot like someone I know." Leanne froze up, thinking she had been caught, but was surprised when Lion-O chuckled bitterly, "But she's not you." He looked over at her, "You have the same eyes, did you know that?" Leanne didn't say anything, as he kept swinging his sword, "But she wouldn't be here… After what happened, she would be long gone from this town."
Not really… Leanne thought, remembering the two week walk from one town to the next. Lion-O stopped swinging his sword, his eyes focused on the ground, a bitter smile on his face.
"We had this really big fight a few days ago…" He said, "She got really angry at me, and looking back, I can see why." He walked over and sat next to Leanne, "She said I was being selfish and stubborn, and she was right." He looked over at her, "She wanted to go back home, to everything she knew and loved, and I said she couldn't. And… do you want to know why I said that?" Leanne didn't respond, waiting to see if he wanted an answer, or if he would just tell her. Lion-O, showing a shy side of him she hadn't seen before, looked down at his hands in his lap, "I didn't want her to leave… not so quickly, anyway. I accept the fact that she has to go back home one day, but… for right now… I just want her here. With me." Leanne blushed a deep red underneath the scarf, "Is that so wrong?" Leanne turned her attention to her own hands in her lap, shaking her head. Lion-O nodded once, looking in front of him. "If I ever find her again, I'll do whatever I can to get her to come back." Leanne's blush deepened, amazed at how much Lion-O cared about her. They sat together in silence for a moment, neither of them saying anything to the other, Lion-O, because he had nothing else to say, and Leanne, because she was too embarrassed to say anything.
After that silent moment, Lion-O stood back up, putting his sword in its sheath, "I should get going. It's almost noon." He smiled at Leanne, "Thanks for listening, Ezio. I feel like I got a lot off my chest." Leanne nodded and Lion-O walked off, Snarf following him. After a moment, Leanne did the same and got up, following Lion-O to the town square, where the Duelist waited.
Just as Lion-O approached the Duelist, a loud whistle went off from a nearby factory, announcing that it was noon. The Duelist looked up at Lion-O with his sharp, red eyes.
"Punctual," He said with a smirk, "I like that." Lion-O pulled out his sword and held it at the ready. Leanne climbed up some stairs to watch the fight from above, and was surprised to see the Drifter was already there. He nodded once in greeting to her, and she nodded back. "Whenever you're ready."
"Whenever you are." Lion-O responded.
"Fine. Draw." The Duelist said, Lion-O ran at the Duelist, and he avoided the strike by jumping into the air. Leanne glared at the Duelist when she saw him draw two swords and bring them down on Lion-O, who quickly rolled out of the way. The Drifter saw how she gripped onto the railing of the building in her anger towards him.
"What is it about this cat that's got you so worked up, Missy?" The Drifter asked, Leanne froze, her eyes wide. She turned to the Drifter, who looked as though he still expected an answer.
"How did you know it was me?" She asked quietly.
"I've met the Silent Swordsman," The Drifter said, "He's slightly taller than you, and he uses much more hand gestures than nods of the head." Leanne sighed.
"Figures there'd be some flaw." She muttered.
"Hey, not many people notice that kind of stuff." The Drifter said, "You're fine." Leanne didn't meet his eyes, "Again, I'm curious, what is it that's got you so concerned over some cat?"
"Lion-O isn't some cat." Leanne said, looking back at him, "He's the Lord of the ThunderCats, and a dear friend of mine." She blushed slightly and looked away, remembering what Lion-O had said earlier, "A… very dear friend." They heard the sound of metal clanging and looked to see the Duelist had backed Lion-O up into a wall. With a swing of his sword, the Duelist sent the Sword of Omens into the ceiling of the building, and held his other blade to his throat. Lion-O didn't move, knowing he had been beaten. The Duelist reached up and took the sword from the ceiling, and as he walked away with it, he slid the sword into his scabbard. Lion-O collapsed to the ground, watching as the Duelist walked away. Leanne instantly ran down the stairs and to Lion-O's side, helping him to stand.
Once he was up, Lion-O slumped his shoulders sadly. Leanne tried to comfort him by offering him her own sword (Even though it technically wasn't hers to offer), but Lion-O turned it down and walked away, Snarf just behind him, mewing worriedly. Leanne followed him as well, wanting to comfort him after his defeat. She glanced back at the building, and saw that the Drifter had disappeared. Not caring enough to think on it, Leanne followed after Lion-O into the town.
Lion-O sat down on the stairs of Fidon's restaurant. When he and Mishka saw Leanne, she acknowledged them both with a nod and a wave hello, and they nodded back. Lion-O sat down, his arms resting on his knees. If he hadn't been so depressed, Leanne would have thought that his drooping ears were quite cute.
"What have I done?" Lion-O asked, putting his head in his hands and gripping at his red hair, "Without the Sword of Omens, our mission is doomed." Leanne patted his shoulder comfortingly, and was startled when he suddenly stood up, a determined fire in his eyes, "I've got to win it back!" Leanne stood up only a second after him, trying to reason with him without talking to him, but she quickly made hand gestures that, unfortunately, only made sense to her.
What she tried to tell Lion-O was "But you don't have a sword! Not to mention you already lost to this guy! Can't we just steal it back or something? That would be a lot easier, and a lot less painful." Lion-O only looked at her strangely, and when she realized he didn't understand, she let out a long sigh and dropped her hands and slumping her shoulders as if to say, "Forget it."
"Can you believe it?" A familiar voice said, they both turned to see Drifter had gotten snagged onto a wooden fence, "Stuck again." He looked over at them, "Could you help me down? Or, maybe you should just leave me up here. Either way, I don't care." Lion-O went over to him and pulled him off the fence, putting him on a pile of wood near it. The Drifter laid on it comfortably, his eyes closed as Lion-O stood over him, Leanne coming up to his side.
"I need you to make me a sword." Lion-O said.
"So, my warnings were just a breeze blowing through your ears?" The Drifter asked him, "I didn't think you'd listen, but if you expect me to help, you haven't been paying attention."
"We both lost something precious." Lion-O said, "But we can get it back!" The Drifter opened one eye to look at Lion-O, then sighed, shutting his eye.
"Sounds like too much work." He said.
"Fine." Lion-O said, "Then I'll do it myself." Leanne looked at him in surprise as he walked away. She looked between him and the Drifter, who looked at her curiously.
"Not going to go after your dear friend?" He asked her, Leanne gave him a look. She glanced around to make sure no one nearby was listening, then leaned in.
"Lion-O doesn't know anything about sword making!" She hissed to him, "He's going to hurt himself if he tries to make a sword to get his back from the Duelist."
"Why should I care what happens to either of you?" The Drifter said, "I don't even know your name, Missy." Leanne huffed in frustration and stood back up, "You should probably go after him, make sure he doesn't burn himself on the sword oven, or crush one of his fingers with a mallet."
"I will." Leanne said, she walked away from the Drifter and followed Lion-O to wherever he was going.
She found him in the forgery he had been practicing by earlier. He had already heated up some metal, and was pounding away at it with a mallet. He didn't seem to acknowledge her presence until she came up and touched his shoulder. "Oh, Ezio, good." He gestured to the oven he was using, "Can you make sure the fire stays burning? I don't want it to go out." Leanne, although hesitant, did as he asked and shoveled some coals into the pit of the fireplace. After a few minutes of working, the door to the place was opened up by the Drifter who saw what Lion-O was doing, and started chuckling amusedly.
"What do you think you're doing?" He asked him.
"You may be content to flop around, feeling sorry for yourself, but I'm not!" Lion-O said, still pounding away at the heated metal, "I'll make one hundred more swords if I have to! I'm going to defeat him!"
"Not that I care," The Drifter began, "But you're doing it all wrong, you need to—"
"Thanks, but I can handle it." Lion-O interrupted. The grin on the Drifter's face grew as he watched Lion-O still try to make a sword.
"You don't give up easily, do you?" He asked, he walked in and grabbed one of the tools, then came over to where he was working, "Here, let me show you." He clamped the tool down on the unheated metal, and began explaining how it was important that the metal didn't move when you were forging it. Only a second later was he escorting Lion-O, Leanne, and Snarf out and shut the door behind them so he could work privately. Lion-O and Leanne shared a glance, both of them silently questioning the other. Leanne only shrugged, unsure of what to say. Lion-O didn't respond to her either.
A half hour later, Lion-O was pacing impatiently outside the forgery. He opened the door and looked inside to see the Drifter was still working.
"Done yet?" He asked, the Drifter paused in his work to look over his shoulder at him.
"No." He replied, Lion-O shut the door, letting him continue to work. He sighed and looked over at Leanne, who looked back at him from where she was sitting, leaning against another abandoned building as she waited for the Drifter to be finished. He came over to her and motioned for her to scoot over and give him some space to sit down.
"So…" Lion-O began awkwardly, looking over at her, "Do you want to play a game, Ezio?" She raised an eyebrow at him, "It's a game a friend of mine taught me a while ago. It's called 'Icebreaker'. It's just a game where I ask you questions and you ask me one in return." Leanne nodded, wanting to do something to pass the time. "Alright, since I can speak, I'll start." Leanne didn't protest to it as he got more comfortable. "How old are you?" Leanne looked around her, picked up a stick, and wrote 17 in the ground. "Oh, so am I." Lion-O looked back up at her, "What do you want to ask me?" Leanne shook her head and gestured with her hand for him to go again, "Oh… Um, where are you from?" Leanne pointed to the ground beneath them, "Oh, right. You're from this town. I had forgotten." Leanne nodded, she poked Lion-O's shoulder. Lion-O rubbed the spot she had poked and looked at her questioningly. She made another gesture with her hand, telling him she wanted to know where he was from, even though she already knew, "I'm from Thundera." He puffed out his chest, "I am the Lord of the ThunderCats." Leanne put her hand over her scarfed mouth to keep from laughing at how ridiculous he looked from his pride. Her laughter came out as little, repeating hisses, and Lion-O's chest deflated. "What? I am!" His whining tone only made Leanne laugh a little harder, holding her stomach to keep from guffawing. Lion-O pouted childishly, and he fought the urge to cross his arms over his chest. No need to actually look like a child in front of Ezio.
After another half hour later, Lion-O got up from where he had been trying to nap and went over to the forgery, opening the door to see the Drifter was still working.
"How about now?" He asked.
"No!" The Drifter said, Lion-O closed the door and walked back over to Leanne, shoulders slumped and lip pouting. He heard Leanne snicker at his appearance and he shoved her lightly as he sat back down beside her.
"Oh, shut up." He said. Leanne leaned back against the wall, closing her eyes to try and nap like Snarf was already doing. Lion-O followed her example and leaned back, closing his eyes.
After another hour, Lion-O walked up to the door, but didn't open it. "How much longer?" He asked through the door, "Is it ready?"
"No!" The Drifter snapped, opening the door, then slamming it shut. Lion-O sighed, he stole a glance back at where Ezio and Snarf were napping, then sat down by the door of the forgery, still waiting.
Finally, after another hour, the doors to the forgery opened and the Drifter looked over at Lion-O, "It is done. That is, if you still want it." Lion-O immediately jumped up and went in to see what the sword looked like. He picked it up and marveled over it. The blade, while thin, had enough sharpness in it to slice through anything as easily as it would a stick of butter.
"It's perfect." He said, he swung the sword a few times, getting used to its light weight, "He doesn't stand a chance." He rested the blade on his shoulder and walked out of the forgery, Leanne and Snarf following behind him.
"Lion-O," The Drifter called out, getting his attention, "A strong sword doesn't make you strong. Remember, willows are weak, and yet—"
"They bind other wood." Lion-O finished, "Yeah, I know, I know." He waved to him as he walked away, heading to Fidon's restaurant to find the Duelist.
It wasn't hard to spot him. He was showing off his aim and agility with a blade by cutting up lemon slices and having them shoot out into his, and a couple other customers' tea. As he shot out another one, Lion-O used his sword to cut it into four pieces. The Duelist looked up at him and Lion-O held out the blade to his face.
"You might recognize the craftsmanship." He said, the Duelist glanced over the sword.
"Impossible. It's a fake." The Duelist said confidently, "He hasn't made a sword in years."
"I came out of retirement." The Drifter said, coming through the doors of the restaurant and grinning at the Duelist, "I didn't have much else to do today, anyway." The Duelist glared at him.
"I challenge you to a rematch." Lion-O said, "But this time, for all your swords."
"That's quite a request from someone who only has a single sword to offer in return." The Duelist said, "In addition to your blade, you must also put up your life." Leanne took in a sharp breath through her nose. She was about to blow her cover as the Silent Swordsman and tell Lion-O to back off, but he spoke before she had a chance.
"Deal." Leanne sighed, putting her head in her hand.
Lion-O, you can be a real idiot sometimes.
Lion-O and the Duelist met in the town square again, and this time, it looked like every warrior in the town had come to see the fight. The Duelist challenging someone was nothing new, but someone challenging the Duelist was something worth seeing. Leanne and the Drifter watched among the crowd, waiting to see what would happen.
Lion-O and the Duelist charged at each other, their blades meeting with a loud clang. The Duelist began swiping at Lion-O, who expertly blocked each of his strikes with his sword, stepping back a bit with each strike. The Duelist gave a particularly hard blow that almost knocked the sword out of Lion-O's hands, but he kept a firm grip on the blade's hilt. The Duelist brought up his sword to try and cut Lion-O, but he avoided the strike by leaning back. His lean caused him to fall back on the ground and the Duelist tried to stab him from above, Lion-O rolled out of the way and quickly got back on his feet and ran at the Duelist again. The crowd watched, mesmerized by the flurry of sword fighting, and cheering loudly for Lion-O. Lion-O ran at the Duelist again, their blades connected for a moment, then they both jumped back, panting from all the effort they had been putting into their battle.
"You can't beat me." The Duelist said with a smirk.
"Then why do you look so scared?" Lion-O asked mirroring his smirk. The Duelist scowled and held out both his swords, jabbing them both in multiple directions at a speed that was too fast for Leanne's eyes to calculate exactly. Lion-O charged at him and their blades connected again, the Duelist's two swords making an X and Lion-O's swords meeting his in the middle. Their blades quivered with the strength they were putting into them, and suddenly, Lion-O's sword broke, the top half of it coming off and falling to the ground. Lion-O backed away from the Duelist, who grinned maliciously.
"The sword is lost, and victory is still mine." He said, stepping towards Lion-O, who kept backing away. Leanne was about to go and help him, but the Drifter stopped her by holding out his hand.
"Willows are weak, Lion-O!" He shouted, Lion-O's eyes flashed when he understood what the Drifter was telling him. The Duelist's sword came at Lion-O, and he dodged the strike. The Duelist growled and tried to strike him again, but Lion-O calmly avoided each one. When once was about to come too close for comfort, Lion-O jumped up into the air and over the Duelist.
"I understand now." He said from behind him. The Duelist tensed and looked back at Lion-O, he jabbed his sword at him in all different directions and Leanne watched in amazement as he avoided every blow with ease. "Power alone is rigid." He bent back to avoid another blow, "But if you can bend with the wind," He got up and the Duelist swiped at him again, "You'll never break!" Lion-O used his broken sword to knock the Sword of Hatanzou from the Duelist's hand. When he looked back at where the sword landed in shock, Lion-O knocked the other blade from his grasp, and then cut the scabbard from his back. The Duelist looked at Lion-O, who held the broken sword to his face, and he knelt down, acknowledging his defeat.
The crowd was silent for a moment, then erupted into deafening cheers. The Duelist had finally met defeat, and all of his swords were lost. Lion-O looked over at where Leanne was applauding Lion-O, standing next to the Drifter, who smiled at him.
"You knew that sword would break." Lion-O said, coming over to him.
"It took years to make the Sword of Hatanzou," The Drifter said with a grin, "I made that piece of junk in an afternoon!" He poked the middle of Lion-O's chest, "You already had what you needed to win in here." Lion-O smiled at him. As he and the Drifter spoke, neither of them noticed the Duelist was standing up, and he had pulled out a knife from his pocket. Leanne saw it, and when he started running towards Lion-O with it, she pushed the cat out of the way, taking her scarf from around her head and using it to catch the knife before it went through Lion-O's body. With an impressive flurry, she wrapped the scarf around the blade, spun around, and pulled the knife from his hands and having it fall to the ground just before she dropped the scarf over the Duelist's head.
"You've had your last battle." She said with a grin, "Now get out of here!" The crowd laughed at the display, and in his humiliation, the Duelist got up and ran from the crowd, who jeered at him as he left. Leanne smiled to herself, putting her hands on her hips in something like a victory pose. With his pride so damaged, she figured, he would never have the guts to be a sword collecting duelist again. Lion-O looked at the back of the person who was revealed behind the scarf, still unable to see their face.
"Ezio…?" He questioned quietly. Leanne inwardly sighed, knowing there was no way out of this, and she turned around to face him.
"Actually, it's Leanne." She said, smiling at him. Lion-O's eyes widened at the sight of her, and he stood still. Leanne giggled at the look on his face and walked up to him, "I know it's weird that I'm here right now, but—" She was cut off when Lion-O embraced her tightly, one hand around her waist, the other behind her head. Confusedly, she reached up and wrapped her arms around his waist, returning the hug. "I'm sorry about before. I didn't mean it… Well, I did mean some of it, I'll admit that, but not all of it."
"I'm sorry, too." Lion-O said, still holding her close, "You were right, I was being stubborn, and a jerk." He pulled back, his hands on her shoulders, "If you want to go home, I won't stop you. Just promise me you'll wait a little bit before you go?" Leanne laughed a little.
"What? Did you think the second our mission was over, I'd be gone?" She joked, she patted Lion-O's cheek, "I'm not going anywhere for a while." She stepped back, and Lion-O released her shoulders from his hands.
"Why didn't you tell me you were Ezio?" He asked her, Leanne shrugged, looking down at the ground.
"Well… I thought that, if you saw me again, you'd get mad at me." She said, sounding a little like a child and looking a little bit like one as she clasped her hands together behind her back and kept her gaze on the ground embarrassedly. Lion-O smiled softly at her.
"I wasn't going to get mad." He said, "I was going to apologize." She looked up at him.
"Yeah, I know that now." She said, she grinned slyly at him, "And a few other things as well…" Lion-O looked at her confusedly, then his eyes widened when he realized everything he had said to 'Ezio'. He had told 'him' some things that he never expected Leanne to hear in their icebreaker game.
"If you say anything to the others, so help me…" Lion-O threatened, Leanne laughed.
"Relax, I'm not gonna say anything." She assured, Lion-O sighed in relief, "I'll just hang it over your head to get what I want from now on." Lion-O's relief quickly turned to nervousness.
"You better not!" He said, Leanne giggled, sticking her tongue out at him playfully.
"Who's gonna stop me?" She teased. Lion-O grinned playfully and started swiping at her. Leanne squealed and avoided his grasp as he started to chase her around like a child chasing after another one in a game of tag. The Drifter watched the two of them with an amused smile, thinking what a good pair the two of them made as Lion-O caught Leanne and began to give her a noogie, letting her go when she voiced her protests against it.
Leanne, now dressed back in her normal attire, stood beside Lion-O, holding half of the supplies he had bought. Before them stood the Drifter, who carried the scabbard of swords on his back.
"Thank you," Lion-O said, "For everything."
"No, thank you." The Drifter said, smiling a genuine, happy smile that Leanne had never seen on him before, "I haven't felt this alive in years. I finally have a purpose again." He turned to show them the scabbard on his back, "Returning these swords to their rightful owners." Lion-O smiled at him, as did Leanne.
"Best of luck, Drifter." She said. He nodded at her.
"Best of luck to you, too, Missy." He said, he waved at the two of them as he began to walk westward, just as the sun was beginning to set. Leanne and Lion-O waved at his back for a little while, and then they started down the path that would lead them back to camp, carrying the supplies.
"So, is everything still okay back with the others?" Leanne asked Lion-O as they walked, her carrying the smaller amount of supplies, while Lion-O carried the larger half.
"Not exactly." Lion-O said with a wry smile, "Everyone's really mad at me for chasing you away, so they've been on my back about it ever since you left. Even Tygra."
"Tygra?" Leanne asked with a surprised smile, "Nuh-uh." Lion-O nodded, Leanne's eyebrows rose to her hairline, "Wow. And here I thought he didn't care." Lion-O chuckled.
"I think he just misses fighting with you." He said, Leanne laughed.
"Yeah, probably." She laughed. The two of them kept laughing for a minute, then they stopped. They kept walking in silence, but it wasn't in any way awkward. In fact, it was quite comfortable for the both of them. Leanne glanced up at Lion-O, who was smiling contentedly, "Hey, Lion-O?"
"Hmm?" Lion-O turned to her, and was surprised when Leanne leaned up and kissed his cheek.
"Thanks." She said, she shrugged, "For… y'know… everything." Leanne continued walking down the path, while Lion-O remained still, stunned by the sudden show of affection. He reached up and touched the spot she had kissed. Leanne looked back at him, Snarf just behind her, and laughed, "Are you coming or aren't you?" Lion-O jumped and quickly went after her.
"Yeah, yeah, I'm coming!" He said, quickly coming up by her side with a smile. She smiled back at him, then they turned their gaze to the road in front of them. Lion-O could still remember the warmth of her lips touching his skin. The moment, though fleeting, would stay in his memory for years to come.
Leanne walked behind Lion-O as they came closer to camp, thinking it would be interesting for everyone to see her after they had spoken to Lion-O.
Panthro looked up from his tank when he saw him approaching and said, "What, in the name of Thundera, took you so blasted long?"
"I was… um…" Lion-O wasn't really sure how to explain his whole adventure to the others.
"Off enjoying the breeze while we do all the hard work!" Tygra growled at him. Lion-O shrugged with a smile.
"Something like that." He said. Panthro looked over the supplies Lion-O had brought in, and scowled when he noticed something was missing.
"I thought I told you we needed more steel to fix that hole in the bottom of the tank floor!" He said. Leanne came out from behind Lion-O, holding up the container for the steel.
"Don't worry, Panthro, I got it." She said. Everyone was stunned by her sudden appearance, jaws agape. Leanne smiled at them, and it only took a second for them to react.
The Wilykittens were first, running over to her and shouting, "LEANNE!" happily. Leanne laughed and put the supplies down before she held out her arms, and was tackled to the ground by the twins' hug. She laughed as they cuddled up to her.
"We missed you!" WilyKit said, holding tightly to her waist as they sat up.
"Where did you go?" WilyKat asked. Leanne reached up and ruffled his hair.
"Just to a little town." She said, "Nowhere special." She looked up when a hand was offered to her, and saw Cheetara and Panthro smiling at her. She took Cheetara's hand and stood up.
"Glad to have you back." Cheetara said.
"Glad to be back." Leanne replied. She let out a squeal as Panthro reached out and mussed her hair with his big hand.
"You had us worried, kid." He said, with a smile. Leanne swatted his hand away with a smile of her own. She looked over at Tygra as he came up to her.
"I heard you missed me." She said in a teasing voice.
Tygra snorted, "Please, it was much quieter without you here." Cheetara smacked his shoulder with a scowl. Leanne only laughed.
"You're a bad liar." She teased, and she began to sing out, "I know you missed me. You missed me~!"
"Did not." Tygra said.
"You really are a bad liar." Panthro said, Tygra gaped at him, "You've been in a bad mood ever since she left."
"Panthro!" Tygra growled embarrassedly.
"Ah-ha! I knew it!" Leanne said, pointing at him. Tygra scowled and pushed her hand away. Everyone laughed as he stormed off to get back to work on the tank. Once the laughter had died, Leanne sighed contentedly, "It's good to be home."
*I sort of got this line from Much Ado About Nothing by Shakespeare, it's a good little story. If you see the movie, it's got an all-star cast in it.
**This is a term they use in tragedy plays. It means a sort of foolish pride that makes you think "These rules don't apply to me, I can do what I want." Just for those of you who didn't know.
Thanks for reading!