"Uh, Clover? Tell again me why we're doing this? I already know to hunt and kill and stuff."
"Because you need more strategies under your belt. Your way has worked so far but what if you run into a group of enemies that are more bold and organized? You need to prepared for that. Now, show me what you got!"
Clover had woken Dr. S up at the crack of dawn to begin his training. So there they were, Clover bouncing from foot to foot, holding his fists up in a fighting stance, looking over her mock opponent through narrowed eyes. Dr. S narrowed his, wriggled his body, then lunged forward. Clover was easily able to dodge away to the side then in a flash, pounce unto his bowed head and bite down hard.
"Ow, that hurts!" Dr. S cried out, springing up his head and almost throwing Clover off but she griped tight unto his hood and stayed in place.
"You wanna know what really hurts? A pack of fossa swarming all over you and biting down all at once! Now that is real pain!" Clover pointed out in a harsh, no nonsense manner.
"Well they've been a little too scared to try that." Dr. S pointed out in a sassy one.
"Not yet! If you're standing between them and food, then eventually fear over starving to death will override fear of you! Now, shake. Me. Off!" Clover barked and Dr. S began to slither around in circles, bucking and wiggling his body like a wet noodle but try as he might, Clover held on.
"Is that all you got? Come on! What are you, a pretty pony taking me on a nice relaxing stroll? Buck me off already!" Clover goaded him and Dr. S shook his body even more like he was dancing along to an intensely high energy beat but still couldn't shake her off.
While this was going on, Maurice was on the sidelines. Mort then came onto the scene with King Julien and Nurse Phantom in tow.
"Found them! They were sleeping on the trampolines." Mort told him.
"The trampolines?" Maurice asked King Julien.
"Yeah, we were tramping last night and I guess we fell asleep." King Julien said, rubbing his eyes and let out a yawn.
"Why were you two tramping late at night and together for that matter?" Maurice had witnessed Nurse Phantom asking King Julien to hang out together like old times on a couple occasions but his majesty had always turned those offers down, always mentioning in some fashion how 'gross' the other lemur was now. So they didn't tend to spend time together anymore unless it was for medical or wacky scheme reasons. Or they just happen to run into each other, as had been the case a few times as of late.
"Couldn't sleep with...everything. Ran into this guy who was awake too and was already tramping." King Julien recounted, nodding his head towards Nurse Phantom. "We ended up talking and by and by, he invited me to jump with him, so I did." And Julien had to admit to himself that he had a good time. He had enjoyed hanging out with Nurse Phantom again despite him being all gross now and he was also grateful towards him for giving him hope that the peoples won't hate Clover forever.
"Oh oh and guess what? This guy here doesn't think Clover's a heartless traitor anymore!" King Julien enthusiastically pointed out Nurse Phantom, who gave a shy smile.
"Really? That's great! What changed your mind?" Maurice asked Nurse Phantom, ecstatic to know Clover had another ally on her side.
"Just Clover's behavior yesterday. Admitting she made a mistake and trying to make up for it, making sure she doesn't slack off when it comes to everyone's safely again. Did you hear about her and Dr. S's talk after he scared away the fossa?" Nurse Phantom asked Maurice, who nodded. Yes, both King Julien and Clover had given him a brief recap. Nurse Phantom went on with, "She was so angry when she thought that he was treating guarding the kingdom like a game and everyone's lives like toys and I mean really angry not just at him but for us, for everyone's sakes and she seemed so genuine as she spoke and I believe she was and if that's true then she really does care and that got me thinking about other things as well."
"Maurice, you said something like Clover and Sage's love made us all stupid, that we were all so focused on their wedding that everything else was just brushed aside. That we focused on flowers and cake and you even mentioned the stupid Sage robot Julie asked for. Just something about that robot, that we put so much time and effort into something so ridiculous but not with keeping ourselves safe and you know, alive. And like Julie said, we were worried about the fossa at first but then it was all like 'good enough'." Nurse Phantom said those words in a mockingly dopey fashion, then went back to speaking normally, "and that was the end of that. Just whoosh, Mary Ann and the fossa and the possibility that we don't have things under control after all, just out of sight, out of mind! We were all really stupid and didn't mean for everything horrible to happen afterwards and I believe now that it was the same for Clover too."
"Well, I'm glad someone has been listening. Thank you, Nurse Phantom." Maurice said then added, first facing Nurse Phantom then King Julien. "Oh dear Frank, that robot! Your majesty, what were you thinking?"
"I...I was thinking that I didn't want Clover to be sad." King Julien said defensively, crossing his arms.
"More like you didn't want your butt whooped after she found out you lost her fiance." Maurice grumbled, earning him a glare from Julien. "…Who was perfectly fine. Had dug himself out, just didn't bother to tell anyone." An edge had creeped into Maurice's words and they got edgier as he went on. "I mean, I understand not wanting to stay buried alive but he could have easily just told us that he dug himself out right away and then he could have gone on to pick his fish friend no problem! Would have saved us a whole heap of trouble and Clover crying over his not dead body!" Maurice ranted, remembering his friend's tears when the robot Sage blew up and when she thought that the real Sage had suffocated to death in an unmarked grave. And then they found the real Sage very much alive and sitting in the back without telling anyone he was there or where he had gone or even fazed that his actions had caused his lover to believe that he had died.
"...Yeah. Yeah, he did that. Clover cried because of him and I know it was an accident but an accident he could have prevented like nothing but he didn't and Clover was heart broken and did he ever apologize to her? Cause I never heard one! Did you guys?" Julien asked of Maurice and Mort. He too was starting to get mad.
"I think he said sorry but it sounded more like the kind of sorry you say when you take the last cookie from the cookie jar, not when you caused your fiance to believe you're dead because you couldn't bother to tell anyone where you ran off to!" Mort offered angrily, going on to rant, "But apparently Clover didn't care! She was just so happy that he was okay that she just completely brushed it aside and they went on to get married like nothing happened and we all watched them happily do it like a bunch of idiots!"
"We did, didn't we? We just smiled and cheered even after what he had made Clover go through. Why? Why did we do that?" Maurice asked of his friends and Nurse Phantom, desperately wanting to know just what in the hell they all had been thinking.
"Cause that's when love was making us all a bunch of idiots! None of us was their right minds back then." Mort pointed out angrily.
"I'll say. I know she loves him but wouldn't it have be more like Clover to have been furious at him for being so careless and postpone the wedding until he gave a real apology?" Maurice pointed out.
"Or just cancel the wedding all together and dump that jerk." Julien grumbled to himself.
"What did you say?" Mort asked, having heard him speak but not the words. Meanwhile, Maurice and Nurse Phantom had picked up the words thanks to their sharp ears and they looked over at Julien in shock. Seeing their expressions made Julien realize that what he had thought had stayed in his head, he had said out loud instead.
"Uh...n-nothing. Forget it." Julien told them, not doing a good job of hiding how nervous he was now.
"Your majesty..." Maurice started to say.
"I said forget it!" King Julien yelled so loud that it caught Clover's attention, pulling her eyes away from Dr. S and towards him. With her distracted, Dr. S once again bowed then whipped his upper body straight up, flinging Clover off. She screamed during her brief flight until she landed hard unto the ground, body bouncing and rolling a short distance in the dirt until she came to rest on her side amid a freshly kicked up cloud of dust.
"Got ya!" Dr. S shouted in triumphant, grinning wide with pride. He then did a victory dance, moving like a wiggling worm.
"Clover?" Mort asked with slight concern as he and the others walked over to Clover, who was lying still with her eyes closed. No response.
"Clover?" Julien asked with growing concern, nudging her side with his foot. Still no response.
"Clover!" Maurice shouted in great concern. Still not a stirring from her.
"Dr. S, come over here!" Nurse Phantom shouted over to Dr. S, who stopped his dancing and looked over to the concerned group surrounding Clover's still form. He slithered over and Nurse Phantom went on to tell him anxiously, "I think she's hurt."
"Clover?" Dr. S asked as he hovered over her. Nothing.
He got closer.
"Clover?"
He got even closer until they were face to face.
"Clover?"
Suddenly one of her eyes popped wide open, her leg shooting out and socking Dr. S right in the throat. While he reeled back and went into a choking fit, Clover spring back onto her feet quick as a flash, then proceeded to deliver a round of kicks one right after the other to Dr. S's head. After a great many and one last extra hard kick, Dr. S fell backwards unto the ground, tongue out, eyes swirling.
"I've got to admit, good job on using that distraction to your advantage but maybe next time, don't fall for the old fake injury trick." Clover told him with a smirk.
King Julien started to howl with laughter.
"What's so funny?" Maurice demanded, angry at the dirty trick.
"Fa-faking an injury t-to sneak attack a guy. That's so Clo-Clover!" King Julien managed to say between giggles before once again howling.
"Oldest trick in the book. He-he's got to learn." Clover tried to say with a straight face but found herself grinning ear to ear and soon laughter was erupting from her as well.
"Ya both crazy!" Maurice said but found that he couldn't be but so angry. As maddening as it could be, he had missed this. He had missed his two friends get all getty over insane and sometimes mean spirited antics like two overgrown children. And especially with all they had gone through lately and still were, Maurice smiled in sprite of himself at the sight of the two of them being so happy and free from their troubles, if only for a short time.
Nurse Phantom went on over to Dr. S and asked, "You okay?"
"I'll live." Dr. S answered, not hiding how bone bushed exhausted he was.
When King Julien's laugher had died down, he remembered the fantastic news he had for Clover and said to her enthusiastically, "Clover! While you're not training, Nurse Phantom has something to tell you!" He looked over at Nurse Phantom, who gave Clover a bashful smile. Seeing her wary reaction, Julien quickly added, "It's good news, I promise!"
"Is it important cause we've not done with training?" Clover nodded her head towards Dr. S, who was picking himself up.
"Didn't you say we'd take a break so you could have breakfast? We could do that now." Dr. S suggested, hoping she would take the hint and he could rest his beaten body.
"Yes, I did. Alright, we can get some food and then you can tell me this news." Clover said to Nurse Phantom, still a little leery.
"Great! Let's go!" King Julien happily grabbed them both by the paw and lead them off with Maurice and Mort on their heels.
So all five lemurs ended up sitting around a picnic table together sipping freshly made mango smoothies as Nurse Phantom told Clover about not hating her anymore and his reasons why. One of them being how stupid everyone had been paying attention to frivolous and ridiculous things instead of their own safety, including Frankensage. Nurse Phantom didn't go on to talk about the real Sage's actions that day but it popped up in Clover's mind all the same. Her blood began to boil at the memory and she griped her coconut cup ever so tighter.
"Tell her the best part." King Julien told Nurse Phantom, excited and impatient. Clover couldn't help but be amused by her friend's enthusiasm and her blood cooled down and she loosed her grip.
"I'm getting there." Nurse Phantom told him, amused as well. Then he closed off, with his temper more mild then Julien's, "Anyways, I said to Julie that if I changed my mind about you, then it was possible for other lemurs to do the same."
"That there's hope that the peoples won't hate you forever! It's that fantastic!?" King Julien added with bravo.
"I...thank you, Nurse Phantom." Clover didn't know what else to say, so taken aback by this change in attitude. She didn't want King Julien to get his hopes up too high and have them dashed but Nurse Phantom wasn't wrong either. The two of them had never been friends or even friendly acquaintances and yet he was, willing to give her another chance. If he could change his mind then why not other lemurs? She couldn't help but feel a tad hopeful and a little more grateful and so she gave him a small sincere smile. "So, anything else you wish to tell me?" She asked Nurse Phantom and King Julien, not wanting to get too emotional. They looked at each other.
"I don't think so?" Nurse Phantom couldn't recall anything significant coming up after that.
"Yeah, I don't think we talked about anything important while we were tramping." King Julien said to Clover, shrugging his shoulders.
"Wait, tramping? Like the trampolines and we? You two jumped on trampolines together?" Clover asked Julien, surprised. It was no secret how his majesty was repulsed by his old friend's newest physical appearance and didn't wish for them to hang together anymore because of it.
"He invited me to join him after we talked about you and I said yes. I was too excited to sleep anyways and also he made me feel better about you and everything and it's not just that even." King Julien told Clover, then faced Nurse Phantom and said to him with sincere warmth. "You've been helping me and everyone out so much lately. Convincing Dr. S on the plan, patching up and listening to the peoples, calling me out on being a stubborn idiot, even willing to give your own life for your fellow peoples. You've been looking out after everyone and that's real cool of you, man. Thank you for that, for everything."
"I...it was nothing, really." Nurse Phantom said, sniffling and blinking his misty eyes and giving a warm smile. King Julien gave him a warm smile back.
Mort looked back and forth between them, that old familiar feeling of possessiveness towards his King Julien creeping in and he piped in with, "Okay, okay, enough of this sappy stuff." He turned to Clover. "While we've got ya here, Clover, there's some things I wanna know. Like for starters, what's it's like being a queen now?"
"Oh yeah, how's royal life treaten you, Clo-Clo?" King Julien added. He had wondered the same thing but though not that much as of late.
So Clover told them that she still couldn't believe she was a queen now. With how things were run in her kingdom, she didn't always feel like one. Sage didn't want servants, which Clover was more then fine with, as she didn't like the idea of becoming a spoiled and lazy royal who didn't do anything for themselves.
"And what's so bad about that?" Was King Julien's comment, which earned him an amused smirk and short chuckle from Clover.
She went to say that Sage didn't even have special sleeping quarters, sharing the same tent at night with his people. Clover however did have her own private yurt (having to explain that it was a kind of round tent) because some of the mountain lemurs passed copious amounts of gas in their sleep and the smell made Clover feel like throwing up breakfast, lunch, and dinner and never eating or even looking at food ever again.
There were of course day to day duties, some royal degrees and orders but the best part for Clover was over seeing her kingdom's army. The mountain lemur training regimen for fighting had been...lacking under Sage's rule, their king wanting to replace some of his people's more violent activities with more peaceful ones. When Clover had proposed bringing said violent activities back, there weren't many objections. Though no longer conquerors, the mountain lemurs were still very much warriors at heart and many accepted their queen's plan with red hot blood pulping furiously in joyful anticipation.
Almost all of the objections were from lemurs who didn't mind the training regimen being revived, they just didn't to take part in it and Clover respected their decision. Then one lemur brought up Sage's original trimming down of said regimen and asked what his opinion was. Clover's response was that she hadn't told him yet but no matter what he said, she would go through with it anyways and that he'd have to get over it.
"He didn't like the idea of bringing the more violent parts back, saying the kingdom didn't need to practice them anymore. I told him that he didn't know what the future could being and anyways, everyone was looking forward to having them back. He said that he was worried that 'too much violence could lead the people back down a dark path'." Clover tired to imitate her husband's voice in a mocking manners. "I told him that our people were still warriors that had urges that needed to come out one way or another, might as well be in a controlled environment surrounded by lemurs capable of stopping them if anything went too far. He then started off on one of his sayings and by then I just told him to get over it! End of discussion!" Clover sliced through the air like drawing a line through the sand. She then crossed her arms and finished with, "Training's been in full swing ever since." It was then that she noticed the looks of discomfort on everyone else's faces. Realizing how harshly she was talking about her husband, Clover struggled to come up with another topic, any other topic, when she felt a gentle nudge against her side.
It was Shadow the hawk, who had joined them while Clover had been recounting everything. She had wedged herself between Clover and King Julien, shoving him off his seat. Julien then ordered Mort to leave his place on Clover's other side but when Julien went to sit there, the hawk switched over and shoved Julien off that side. After several failed attempts, Julien ended up sitting next to Maurice and Mort was allowed back in his seat next to Clover.
"You and Shadow seem close." Maurice commented, noticing the tenderness come over Clover's face as she looked upon her avian companion. He had also noticed her discomfort when seeing all of theirs after her venting about Sage and didn't believe it was a good idea to press the matter. Not at the moment anyways. So he decided to try and steer the conversation unto a more pleasant track, which Clover was more then happy to travel down.
"Yeah, would you believe that she once belonged to Koto." This got her a round of shocked expressions and a gasp from Mort. "Yeah, that Koto. Anyways, after he died, she belonged to no one. Other mountain lemurs tried to claim her as their own but she wouldn't let them come near her, let alone ride her. She stayed with them, stayed friends with the other hawks but kept her distance from the lemurs. And then I arrive and suddenly she's all over me. Nuzzling me and even allowing me to get unto her back and ride her. According to Sage, she heard about me protecting Koto from him and in gratitude, had chosen me as her new owner. So yeah, I have a hawk now." Clover recounted, affectionately scratching the side of Shadow's head, the large bird's eyes closed in content as she leaned into her owner's touch.
"Awww, that's sweet. Uh, did Sage mention too just what her deal is with me?" King Julien asked, insulted that Shadow was fine with Mort sitting next to Clover but not him.
"She also heard about you crushing Koto to death with his statue." Clover told him. Yes, Shadow had also told about how King Julien leaned against the large stone statue Koto had built in his likeness, accidentally knocking it over and unto the real Koto, killing him.
"I...don't know what you're talking about." King Julien turned away, crossed his arms and turned his nose up at the notion.
He remembered that day well. Sage standing over Koto, ready to strike the killing blow, when Clover had stepped in between the two brothers, pleading with Sage to stop. She said something along the lines of you didn't have to be aggressive to be strong or macho muscles to be resilient and listening to your heart. She also reasoned that Koto was a warrior who wanted to die fighting instead of a living loser who'd lost everything and that Sage shouldn't give him what he wants. Sage had listened, dropped his weapon and he and Clover hugged. Thinking back on it, a wave of fresh admiration for his friend came over Julien. Dear Frank, she was amazing.
"Same old Julien." Clover thought to herself, amused. She knew that it had been an accident. An accident that had worked out for everyone. Right before being crushed to death, Clover remembered seeing for a brief moment Koto standing with sword held high before her and Sage. If it wasn't for King Julien, she or Sage or even both of them might have died that day instead. They got lucky, really lucky.
After finishing their food, Nurse Phantom left the group to go open up the hospital for the day and Shadow flew off, probably to go hunt for her own breakfast. Everyone else went off in search of Dr. S.
They found him and after some moaning and groaning from the snake doctor, he and Clover were once again squared off against each other. Dr. S put in an honest effort in the fight but Clover wiped the floor with him all the same. His muscles screamed at him, saying that their break wasn't nearly long enough. His splitting head demanded to know just what he was thinking agreeing to this torture. All while his heart reminded him that he was doing this for Nurse Phantom, his dearest friend who cared for his fellow citizens much more then he had ever realized. And this is what kept Dr. S going, taking his beating like a champ, giving it his all to soak in Clover's painful lesson, even getting in a few hits time to time.
King Julien, Maurice, Mort and several other lemurs watched all this from the sidelines, the king looked about at his subjects and wishing that he could read their minds. Desperately wondering if seeing Clover training Dr. S was helping to convince anyone that she truly did care if they lived or died. Then again, sometimes hurt feelings could make one blind to what's right in front of them. Sometimes it took someone else pointing it out for one to look past said hurt feelings to see what was really there. This gave King Julien an idea.
"Gee Maurice, it sure is nice of Clover to train Dr. S, isn't it? So considerate and so very, very sorry for not doing anything sooner." Julien said a little on the loud side and like he was reading off a script. Maurice thought that he sounded ridiculous but played along.
"It sure is. It's great that she's looking after us so." He answered in the same manner.
"She sure knows when to admit she made a mistake and do everything she can to make up for it." Mort added.
Julien looked over at his subjects and saw a lot of eye rolling and scowls. He pouted and crossed arms.
"Be patient your majesty. It's gonna take more then one training session but hopefully, people will see in time that Clover really does care about them. I mean, Nurse Phantom already has." Maurice tried to reassure him, to which Julien let out a sigh. He knew his friend was right, he just wished that his people could see Clover like he did.
He went back to watching her. Noticing things like the spark in her brilliant green eyes that shone like two tiny suns were housed within. The calculated smirk playing across her lips as she dodged and leaped with grace and landed blow by blow with sturdy fists and strong arms.
Julien wanted to be wrapped in those arms again, the group hug from the previous day ending all too soon. He wanted one for himself and to be able to hug her back. To feel safe and secure in these arms. To share body warmth, feel her fur against his own, her heart beating along with his own. Looking deep into those brilliant green eyes.
Eyes that reminded Julien of the jungle. Closed off, mysterious, and one misstep could land one into a whole heap of trouble and at the same time teeming with energy and life within. Wild, unpredictable, with the possibility of surprises around every corner. And also like the jungle, one could find themselves lost in those eyes.
"King Julien?"
"Huh?" King Julien was pulled out of this thoughts by the sound of Mort's voice. He looked down and saw that Mort was staring at him with curiosity. He asked an annoyed, "What?"
"What ya thinking about?" Mort asked innocently, paying no mind to the irradiated response. Julien found that he didn't want to share his thoughts about Clover.
"N-nothing." Was Julien's answer, avoiding Mort's eyes.
"Oh come on, it must have been something really nice. You looked so happy." Mort pointed out.
"It wasn't...that nice." Julien continued to look off to the side and started rubbing the back of his neck.
"Really? Cause it sure looked like it. You were all smiley and relaxed and your eyes were..." Mort pondered for a moment, searching for the right words. "Hmmm, how to describe them...soft? Yeah, your eyes were soft."
"It isn't anything important, so let's drop already, okay?" Julien demanded, growing more irritated by the second. By then, Mort had noticed his friend's manner, which farther peaked his curiously. He must find out what was troubling his King Julien.
"Why don't you want to talk about it?" Mort pressed on.
"Why do you want to talk about it?" Julien fired back, the volume in his voice was raising and the lemurs who hadn't been staring at his goofy grin before were looking his way now with Maurice among them, he himself watching with growing concern.
"Why are you being so defensive?"
"I'm not being defensive!"
"Huh?" Clover looked up from where she had once again slammed Dr. S to the ground and saw King Julien glaring at Mort with the assembled crowd looking on. She left the dazed doctor lying on the ground to watch the stars swirling around his head and walked over. "What's going on?" She demanded to know.
"King Julien's bout ready to bit Mort's head off, man. He's pissed off." Butterfish told her.
"Cause that nosy little trash goblin won't mind his own business!" Julien piped in.
"He was thinking about something and he looked really happy and I just wanted to know what it was. Is that a crime?" Mort first explained to Clover, then at the last sentence, turned to Julien and angrily asked.
"It's annoying when you say you don't want to talk about something and yet, somebody continues to pester me about it!" Julien snapped at Mort. He then closed his eyes, letting out a tired sigh, and rubbing his forehead with his fingers.
"Hey, you okay?" Clover asked in concern. When Julien reopened his eyes and removed his paws from his face, she noticed for the first time the dark circles around his eyes. Julien groaned and then let out a yawn.
"Your majesty, how much sleep did you get last night?" Maurice asked, recalling Julien and Nurse Phantom recalling their late night trampoline jumping and the fact that Mort had found the two of them sleeping on said trampolines.
"Uh...I don't know. Nurse Phantom and I...it was late when we started tramping...I have no idea." King Julien knew the two of them had jumped for a decent amount of time and that they must have fallen asleep at some point but couldn't put a time to it.
"I'm gonna take that as you didn't get enough. You're probably irritable because you're tired, your majesty. Why don't you go lie down for a bit?" Maurice suggested.
"Maurice is right, your majesty. Go take a nap." Clover agreed.
"...A nap does sound nice." Julien said, the adrenaline that had been pumping through his body from the prospect of helping Clover was wearing off and he now noticed himself feeling sluggish. So he started off towards his hut (looking forward to catching some sleep without all of his house guests present) when a thought struck him and stopped him in his tracks. He then turned around, rushed over and collided into a very confused Clover where he wrapped his arms around her and gave a gentle squeeze.
"King Julien?" Clover asked, stunned.
"I just realized I didn't get my own hug from my friend who I missed so, so much." Julien said to her low and tender with his voice straining, overwhelmed by the sheer joy of seeing her again. This caused Clover to be overwhelmed by affection towards him and she returned the hug in kind. They stayed like that for some moments, no words, just the two of them relishing the welcomed feel of a friend until Clover said softly, "I missed you too."
…
After King Julien left, Clover and Dr. S continued to duel for a little longer, then Clover told him that the fighting portion of their lessons was over for the day and that they would take a break before getting into other matters of security. So the snake doctor went off to lick his wounds, the crowd parted ways and soon it was just Clover and Maurice left.
Maurice took a deep breath and approached Clover, who was wiping the dirt and grime off herself with a damp towel. "Clover? There's-there's something I need to tell you." He said nervously, fidgeting his paws.
"Sure Maurice. What is it?" Clover asked, curious, wrapping the towel round the back of her neck.
"When King Julien first agreed to you coming back if Dr. S fails, I didn't fight him on like I should have. I mean, I asked him if he really wanted to go through with it but that was nothing and when it was all said and done, I stood by and let him sign that damn contract! All because I was so tired of all the crazy schemes and everyone getting hurt but I was so sure Dr. S would fail and that meant you would get hurt and I did nothing about it besides a weak 'are you sure about this' and I'm sorry! I'm sorry, Clover." Maurice admitted, shaking his head in shame, which griped his heart tightly in it's clenched fist, claws digging deep and bringing forth blood pouring out in his remorseful words.
"Maurice..." Clover was stunned by this confession and truth by told, she was hurt by her friend's inaction but she also couldn't be but so angry at him either. Not when the lives of everyone in the kingdom had been at stake. Innocent lives that had been in danger in the first place because of her inaction. "It's okay, Maurice..."
"No, it's not! I should have fought for you! I should have argued for a better plan, one that wouldn't involve tearing you away from Sage and your happily ever after!" Maurice argued.
"Did you even have a plan in mind at the time?" Clover asked.
"...No." Maurice admitted.
"And I'm guessing you don't have one now, do you?" Clover pressed on.
"King Julien, Mort, and I have been trying to come up with one but haven't thought of anything that wouldn't be farther risking everybody's lives or...as appealing to the people as seeing you suffer." Maurice felt dirty saying that last part, even though he was repeating other's feelings and not his own. He let out a tired sigh and said wearily, "I should have done more."
"You were looking out for the people and I can't hold that against you." Clover lay a reassuring paw on his shoulder and argued gently and with conviction, "Yes, I love Sage and being the mountain lemur's queen but you, King Julien, Mort, everyone, your lives matter far more then my happiness."
"Of course our lives matter and we deserve safety and happiness but so do you, Clover! You deserve to be happy too." Maurice said with conviction. Clover didn't respond, instead looking off to the side and wearing an expression that Maurice couldn't read. "You're a good person whether you believe it or not."
Clover sighed, slid the towel off her neck and let it drop to the ground. "You're too sweet for your good, you know that right?" She said affectionately, then turned back to face him. "And I've missed that terribly." She spread out her arms in invitation. "King Julien's not the only one who deserves his own hug, you know."
Maurice closed the gap between them and they embraced. They silently enjoyed the welcomed feel of a friend until Maurice said softly, "I missed you too."
….
As King Julien headed towards his hut, he mulled over his reaction towards Mort. The annoying little hang nail asked stupid and annoying questions all the time but his latest one had been innocent enough, definitely not worth getting defensive over. Julien had only been watching Clover training Dr. S and imagining hugging her and that wasn't worth hiding, right? No need to get all snappy and secretive over just admiring a friend's mad fighting skills and wanting a decent hug after not seeing each other for weeks, right? It had to be exhaustion getting to him like Clover and Maurice said. He just needed a good nap and then he would stop acting all weird and saying crazy things like instead of going through with the wedding, Clover should have dumped Sage's not sorry butt for being an inconsiderate jerk who had made her cry and giving the lamest apology for it.
Julien shook his head furiously, telling himself to take it down like twenty notches. Just because he himself hadn't heard one, didn't mean that Sage never gave Clover a decent apology later on, right? Maybe the gravity of Sage's stunt finally hit Clover after the reception and she had sat Sage and told him how much his actions had hurt her. Then realizing how much of a jerk he had truly been, Sage could have gone to give a sincere heartfelt apology to her. It was possible, right? Sage had shown time and again to be incredibly dense at times and Julien suddenly remembered that he hadn't even realized he was at his own wedding at first. So it was entirely possible that he didn't realize how much hurt he had caused and it couldn't have helped that nobody, not even Clover, had called him out on it because that was when love was making everybody stupid. It might have even made Sage extra stupid. Yeah, that was totally possible.
Then again, it was also possible that Clover had never received a decent apology for that day because even after love was no longer making him extra stupid and dense, (if it had at all) Sage had realized how he had hurt her but didn't care. Julien thought for a moment to just ask Clover about all this but hesitated. What if he didn't like her answer? What would he do then? What would he say to her?
.
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Sage had his flaws but he loved Clover and she loved him. Although Julien wasn't feeling the love as she had been venting about her husband earlier. Then again, even the happiest couples got mad at each other from time to time and didn't always agree on stuff and even though he didn't agree with it, Clover hadn't said anything about Sage trying to stop her more violent training regimen. So maybe he knew how much it meant to her and respected her enough to not try and stop it and if that was true, then he must respect her feelings and must have apologized, right?
.
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Dear Frank, he needed a nap.