Welcome back, everyone! I hope you enjoy today's chapter! As a note, I went back and made edits throughout chapter 38 and added a one-thousand word scene at the end.
Elsewhere…
On a small, portable stage, a Wolo man in a rugged coat and a wide-brimmed hat called out to a small village, peddling his wares. "Friends, do you ever wake up in the morning feeling flat, like you have no energy whatsoever? Well, I hold in my hand a bottle of Ponzi's miracle elixir! Guaranteed to put the spring back in your step and the pink back on your cheeks!"
"Hogwash!" cried one of the onlookers.
"Ma'am?"
"I gave some of your miracle elixir to my daughter. It put the pink on her cheeks alright." The small girl with her stepped forward and lowered her hands, revealing a full, light pink-colored beard.
All around, the Wolo gasped in shock.
"Oh! I can explain that."
He wasn't given the chance. "I bought some for my nervous disposition." A plump Wolo man said. "Now, I'm as calm as a Spring day." No more than a brief pause after saying these words, he abruptly screamed and his eyes bulged, pulsing with purple stripes and colors, steam pouring out of his ears and his tongue lolling out of his mouth uncontrollably. Just as soon as it began, it ended. "Except when I do that." The plump Wolo screamed again.
Dissent and indistinct chattering spread through the crowd like wildfire.
The Wolo on the stage turned to the giant caterpillar behind him. "Lucy, get ready. I do believe we may have run out our welcome." He then turned to address the angry crowd, even as they threw fruit at him. "You know, hold on, friends. Let's not be hasty." He turned and began closing the display of alchemical elixirs behind him. "In my defense, let me just say…" He shoved the folded down trunk into his cart and shouted, "NOW OUTTA MY WAY!"
And run out he did, with his giant caterpillar taking off with a trail of dust left in its wake.
Lion-O leaned back in his seat, watching the screens. The desert was pretty, in a way. Its lands seemed to stretch on forever, to the horizon and beyond. Shrubbery dotted its vast landscape, pillars of stone towered, casting long shadows in the midday sun. Endless blue skies he could lose himself staring into.
Once, he would have called it a barren wasteland without anything of interest. But it wasn't really a wasteland, was it?
"What's that?" Pumyra's voice interrupted his contemplation.
He turned his gaze down towards the front-most screen.
"Looks like someone's cart broke." Panthro observed gruffly.
"We should stop to help them," Lion-O said, standing from his chair.
He needn't have worried about saying anything; Panthro was already slowing the Thundertank to a rumbling stop. He popped open the cockpit hatch and asked, "Need a hand?"
The individual- Lion-O wasn't really sure what he was- stared at them in surprise for a moment, while they all climbed out of the Thundertank. "And who can I thank for coming to a poor Wolo's rescue?" His gaze flicked over to Leopara before Lion-O could respond, and he exclaimed, "Oh-oh!"
Her face was still incredibly swollen, despite Pumyra's best efforts to wash off the nectar of the flower.
Lion-O cringed on the inside while Leopara crossed her arms and slightly tilted her head. "Never seen a head that big…" When Leopara, to the best of her ability, scowled at him, the Wolo quickly added, "Worry not," he reached inside his long jacket and withdrew a thick glass bottle filled with purple liquid, "-it's nothing Ponzi's miracle elixir won't take care of. Guaranteed to make all your problems disappear."
Lion-O reached forward to grab the elixir. Maybe it could cure Leopara? "I definitely have a few problems that could use disappearing." He glanced at her.
Leopara was looking away, arms still crossed. A sure sign of displeasure, then.
"I'll take it." he reached into the pockets of his trousers to collect some shillings and let them slip from his grasp into the Wolo's open hand.
Panthro already had the wagon propped up and was halfway finished reattaching the wheel by the time the Wolo turned around. "There, that should hold." He stood and wiped the sweat from his brow.
"Thank you, my feline friends. Now if you'll excuse me," he said, hopping into the driver's seat, "-I must be on my way. Somewhere out there is a town filled with poor, tired souls in dire need of rejuvenation. He grabbed the pole from beside it and cast out the leaf on it like a fishing pole. "Onward, Lucy!"
The giant caterpillar trilled and quickly sped away, chasing a leaf she would never catch.
Several moments passed.
"There goes one strange life form." Panthro said.
Lion-O turned his attention curiously to the bottle in his hand. With a tug and a squeak as cork rubbed against glass, he opened the bottle and looked at Leopara.
She looked back at him as flatly as she could with her face so swollen her eyes were like small, golden dots. "Absolutely not."
"It might work."
"Or, it's a scam." Leopara dropped her arms to her side and began walking back to the Thundertank.
Somewhat disheartened but curious, Lion-O brought the bottle closer and took a sniff. It was acrid and smelled like… rotting, wet leaves. He gagged and pulled the bottle away. "Or not."
BANG. The ground shuddered under their feet.
Lion-O whipped his head around, looking for the source. He didn't hear the screech or explosion of lizard missiles, so what…?
The earth shook again, this time with the loud clatter of stones as one of the nearby rock formations burst. The ground crackled and trembled. Lion-O looked behind him to see Leopara frozen in her tracks. Looming in a cloud of dust that blotted out the sun was a massive, hulking figure with glowing, bright red eyes. It took another step forward, screeching and roaring all at once.
"What is that thing?" Cheetara exclaimed.
"Sy-Sycor-" Leopara stuttered.
Mumm-Ra's voice boomed as the creature stepped out of the dust cloud it had stirred. The creature was giant, taller than many of the earthen pillars surrounding the cats. Its face was sharp and angular, covered completely in bone and framed by two jutting horns. Its mouth was a massive maw lined with giant, sharp teeth. The rest of what Lion-o could see of its distinct, bipedal body was a red underbelly and black hide, with the bone plates on its face growing down the length of its spine. It had two short arms tucked close to its chest, hulking hind legs, and a massive tail that thunk-ed and thudd-ed behind it.
"I am the last thing you'll see before you're torn to pieces!"
"Mumm-Ra."
He opened his slavering jaws- and roared. It was a high-pitched, dominating screech that seemed to shake the air itself. Lion-O saw Leopara's hands fly up to cover her ears and could faintly, just barely, hear her groaning in pain.
And with that, before any of them could gather their wits to act, Mumm-Ra's massive form spun in a circle and smashed that thick tail into one of the pillars, shattering it with ease and sending the debris flying at them.
Lion-O leapt forward to tackle Leopara out of the way. Behind him, he heard the clattering of the chains on Panthro's nun-chucks and the whistle as Cheetara sped out of the way. With Leopara in his arms, he rolled them towards the Thundertank, just in time for Snowmeow, who had been content to lie in the open cockpit while they helped the Wolo, leapt out and onto the Thundertank's roof with a ferocious roar.
Lion-O hurried to scramble to his feet and pull Leopara up. Leopara was quick to dart around the tank, taking shelter from the next barrage of stone that was hurled at them by Mumm-Ra's new tail. Lion-O braced himself with the barrier of the Spirit Stone.
This was a bad time to be exhausted of her magic. In fact, it was like a waking nightmare for Leopara.
Mumm-Ra was in the body of Sycorax of all nearly-prehistoric massive monsters to choose, and he was personally hunting them down in broad daylight.
And there she was, no magic, no way to defend herself, and her face was so swollen she could barely see past her cheeks.
The Great Sky Cat was not smiling upon her this day. Was it punishment for using the Sword of Plun-Darr? …was that how Mumm-Ra had found them already?
Why did I use that sword!?
A spray of pebbles and dust showered her as the barrage smashed against the sturdy exterior of the Thundertank with a THUNK THUNK, CRASH! All around her, the others were finding ways to evade or deflect the stones hurled towards them. Lion-O reached out, again, and pulled her behind him.
He was the only one who knew she couldn't even conjure a barrier right now.
Leopara didn't hesitate to run alongside him, taking advantage of the Spirit Stone's barrier to get as far away from Sycorax as possible. She caught a glimpse of Panthro making a mad dash and dive for the Thundertank, closing the cockpit behind him as he tucked and rolled inside, just as another boulder slammed into the tank. Tygra, Cheetara, and Pumyra used their agility to dodge the boulders. Tygra and Pumyra fired barrage after barrage at the monster, beams and bullets both ricocheting harmlessly off Sycorax's thick hide. Cheetara couldn't get in close to even try to counter.
And then, Mumm-Ra swung around, swinging his tail at them. Leopara lept away with a shout. The force of the impact shook the ground even harder than each step Sycorax took, sending her stumbling to the ground.
Just then, a volley of the Thundertank's missiles rocketed towards Mumm-Ra, smashing into his hide. Boom boom boom boom! The sound of explosions and Sycorax's screeching rocked the air- she covered her ears again, vainly hoping to protect her eardrums- and filled it with dark smoke. As the sound died down, she scrambled to her feet and ran towards the nearest rocky outcropping, wanting to get out of his sight while it was obscured.
And then, Sycorax roared again, sending out rippling shock-waves that nearly blew her over before she ducked behind the stone, and still managed to pull at her braid even while she was taking cover.
And, naturally, it blew away the smoke.
She didn't dare look. Sycorax was infamously impervious to harm.
"Those missiles didn't even leave a scratch." Tygra exclaimed.
"It was fun. I will not tire, I will not break, and I will not stop until you are destroyed." Mumm-Ra's voice boomed.
The Thundertank's engine revved as it tore across the distance. Peeking around the corner, Leopara saw Sycorax's tail bat the tank away like a plaything, and then smash into the ground near the stunned Pumyra and Cheetara. They shouted as they were flung with broken rock and debris. Tygra lashed his whip at Sycorax, catching one of his talons. Sycorax flung him away like an inconsequential gnat.
"Could really use some heeeelp here, Leopa-" Tygra's voice grew even quieter as he flew in an arc, before finally landing some distance behind Sycorax. Leopara cringed. Did he land on his feet? Was he okay?
"What are you doing?" Pumyra demanded, poised to fire another barrage of bullets. She had to yell to be heard over the ruckus of Sycorax slamming his tail into the ground repeatedly near Lion-O and the Roaring of Snowmeow as he viciously clung to one of Sycorax's legs, trying in vain to bite through his thick hide.
"I don't have any magic!" Leopara shouted. "I'm still exhausted from the mines!"
No sooner than she said this, Sycorax's giant head whipped around in her direction.
She was spotted.
Sycorax swooped down, in one talon catching Lion-O, in the other he lunged towards her. She tried to leap away, but was pinned. As Sycorax withdrew, he wrapped his talons around her and lifted her, holding up both her and Lion-O.
"You have taken your last breath, Lord of the Thundercats." Mumm-Ra gloated, squeezing Lion-O. He turned his vibrant red eyes on Leopara. "And you have hindered me for the last time, Sorceress of the King." He crooned mockingly. "Your trick before will not save you now."
The talon-ed hand began squeezing her as well. She groaned and squirmed, struggling in vain but hoping maybe, just maybe, she could slip out-
The most horrid, wafting stench, carried by wispy blue vapor, filled the air. Mumm-Ra, himself, groaned and strained, before his hands fell lax. With no warning, she slipped out of his grasp, tumbling towards the hard, compact earth below with a scream. Still, she was a cat, and she landed on her feet. Not one to look too closely at a gift, she began sprinting after Lion-O, away from Sycorax.
They stopped when they heard a giant thud! behind them. Sycorax had… collapsed, seemingly asleep.
"How did you do that?" Cheetara asked.
"It wasn't me." Lion-O said. "It was Ponzi's miracle elixir."
Panthro strode slowly forward. Snowmeow crowded Leopara, putting himself between her and the sleeping monster, all of his fur fluffed out and baring his fangs as he growled at it. "You mean if it wasn't for that crackpot's potion, we'd all be dead?" For good measure, he knocked on Sycorax's nose with the back of his hand.
Sycorax's sleeping form let out a quiet, rumbling growl.
Cheetara looked up apprehensively. "Something tells me the effects are only temporary."
"Then we better get our paws on more of that elixir of that elixir before this thing wakes up." Tygra replied.
Leopara couldn't agree more.
Finding the Wolo again was disastrous. Lion-O would admit that waving his sword to try and signal Ponzi was not the best idea. And, in his defense, he would have to say- they were being hunted by a giant monster that wasn't even scratched by the Thundertank's missiles or by a blast from the Eye of Thundera. He wasn't exactly… thinking about what a giant tank tearing across the desert with him waving his sword would look like.
He was thinking about the giant monster that was hunting them.
But that wasn't the disaster. The disaster was that, during the misunderstanding, Ponzi's wagon went off the side of the road into the ditch, tipped, and all of his elixir bottles shattered.
After loading up Ponzi's wagon in the cargo bay, they set off again, deeper into the desert to put as much distance between them and the sleeping monster as possible. They had no idea when it would wake up, and they had to buy as much time as possible. They wouldn't reach the Cara-Cara tree until the next day, so once it was dark, they set up camp.
The cargo bay doors were open while Panthro studiously worked on repairing the wagon- again. While the others lingered near the fire, Lion-O couldn't help but hang back. He watched Leopara, letting thoughts slowly turn over in his head. What did Mumm-Ra mean when he said her 'trick from before' wouldn't save her this time? She'd been so troubled since Mount Plun-Darr… what really happened to her there?
If only she would open up and let him in…
No sooner than he had this thought than he heard Ponzi's voice from behind him. "You like her, don't you?"
Lion-O whipped around, surprised that the Wolo and his giant caterpillar had managed to sneak up behind him.
"No. I mean, yes! But… that's not the problem." Lion-O sighed, looking over his shoulder at her. She was still sitting there, hunched over and staring intensely at the fire. Her face wasn't swollen anymore, but he didn't think she had even noticed. It'd been normal since Ponzi's miracle elixir saved them from Mumm-Ra.
"Then you need to tell her how you feel." Ponzi said. Behind him, Lucy chirped.
Lion-O sighed. "I wish it were that simple. Leopara's…" He paused. What was a good word to describe her? When she was stressed, she stayed stressed. And she tried to be completely dependent on herself while supporting everyone else, too. "...a worrier. She worries about everything."
"Lucy, our affection challenged friend needs our help." Lucy squealed with what Lion-O could only interpret as joy. Ponzi reached into his jacket and withdrew a bottle with a green liquid inside. "'Ponzi's Potion of Relaxation.' Guaranteed to calm even the most tumultuous of minds."
A bit cautiously, Lion-O took the bottle and glanced over the bottle, then looked over at Leopara. Snowmeow had joined her, laying his head on the log beside her.
Well… it was worth a shot, right? Ponzi's miracle elixir worked, so maybe his potion of relaxation would as well?
"Thanks, Ponzi."
Ponzi grinned. "Go get her."
Lion-O nodded. Mustering his courage, he began his approach. On his way, he picked up a cup from the log closest to him and poured the potion into it. He swallowed hard and crossed the last few feet to her. "Leopara?"
She all but startled out of her fur. Her head whipped up to look at him with startled golden eyes. "Oh. Sorry, I was just… lost in thought."
Lion-O chuckled. He couldn't help the bit of nervousness that crept into his voice. "I noticed. I, uh," he rubbed the back of his head, "-I brought you something to drink. It'll help you relax."
"Oh… thank you, but I'm not thirsty right now." Leopara said.
Out of the darkness, Tygra's hand shot out and swiped the cup. "Well, I am. You don't mind, do you?" His brother didn't wait for a response. While Lion-O stared at him in shock, he downed the entire cup- all of the potion- and then wiped his lips with the back of his hand. "Thanks." He handed Lion-O back the empty cup, and walked off into the night just as quickly as he had appeared. Lion-O stared at the empty cup, completely stunned.
Whiskers. Why did these things always go wrong? He tried giving her flowers, and it squirted nectar all over her. He tried to give her something to drink to help relax, and his brother stole the cup right out of his hands and drank it.
Oh no.
Lion-O turned his head to track Tygra's movement. His brother stopped abruptly not even five feet away and jolted. Oh no.
"Are you feeling okay, Tygra?" he asked, cringing inside.
Tygra pivoted to face him. "I don't tell you enough, but…" He strode towards Lion-O with purpose, "-you're the bestest little brother," and threw his arms around Lion-O, "-a big brother ever had."
"Oh, what did I just do?"
"Oh my gosh!" Tygra exclaimed in his ear. He pushed Lion-O out of the way and ran towards a shrub. Lion-O watched, thankful Leopara couldn't sense what he was feeling because he didn't even know what he was feeling yet. His brother scooped up a tiny caterpillar or inchworm or… something, and cradled it in his hands. "Aw! He's so cute." he crooned. He turned to show the wiggling bug to them. "Isn't he adorable?"
Panthro considered him with a dismayed expression. "What is wrong with you?"
"Why, nothing, you silly goose."
"Did you just call Panthro a silly goose?"
Tygra didn't answer, instead returning to Lion-O's side and clamping a hand on his far shoulder. Lion-O raised a hand to bury his face in. "It's hopeless."
And it was, indeed, hopeless, because once Tygra had been detached from Lion-O's side and led away by Cheetara, Leopara crossed her arms and fixed him with a hard stare. "What was that?"
Lion-O sighed and plopped on the log next to her. "'Ponzi's Potion of Relaxation.'" he admitted. No point in trying to beat around the bush, he could tell she was upset already.
"You tried giving me a potion?" she asked incredulously. "Why would you do that?"
Lion-O rubbed the back of his neck. "I never know what you're thinking when you're stressed like this. You bottle everything up and… I just wanted to help."
He expected her to say something fairly immediately. Instead she was quiet. The fire crackled in front of them and Panthro's wrenches clicnk-ed and clang-ed from the cargo bay, and those were the only sounds he heard for a minute. He finally risked looking at Leopara.
She was staring into the fire again. As if his gaze had stirred her, she looked down at her lap. "I… used the Sword of Plun-Darr when I was in the mines with Pumyra."
With those words, Lion-O's thoughts came to a screeching halt and his blood turned to ice.
"What?"
"When the mountain came down on Cheetara and I… I was already exhausted. I don't think I could have kept my barrier up to protect Cheetara or I if there hadn't been a surge of magic from the sword. It felt… eager to be used." Lion-O watched her wring her hands together. She continued on, "I didn't want to risk you or the Sword of Omens, so… I used the Sword of Plun-Darr's magic when I went back into the mines. I didn't know what else to do."
Lion-O took a moment to process that. His first reaction was shock, then… anger? "What were you thinking?" the words tumbled out of his mouth before he could register them. And they kept tumbling out, "That sword was evil, Leopara."
Leopara stared silently into the flames of the fire. Lion-O did as well for a few heartbeats, each one pounding in his ears as his heart picked up speed.
"Well, my gambit didn't pay off anyways. Mumm-Ra found us and took the sword and… we nearly died."
"Is that what Mumm-Ra meant when he said your trick wouldn't save you?"
Leopara, for the first time since her admission, turned her gaze towards him. She spoke slowly, at first, "Do you remember in the mountains, when we were being overwhelmed by the TigerClan demons and…"
Apprehension dawned. "You conjured daylight." It's the only thing demons are vulnerable to. "But how?"
Leopara whipped her gaze back to the fire. If he didn't know better, he would think her skin was flushed red under her pale fur. "Um. Honestly?"
"Honestly," he confirmed without hesitation.
She began wringing her hands again. Slowly, she tore her eyes away from the fire. She met his gaze and in a quiet voice, barely more than a whisper, she confessed, "I thought of you."
Those words, "I thought of you," echoed in Lion-O's head. His heart pounded louder and louder, thump-thump, thump-thump. He stared at her in shock and surprise. All earlier feelings of anger, feelings he hadn't even had the opportunity to sort through, let alone understand, melded away. Thump-thump. His mouth felt dry all of a sudden, and suddenly he was acutely aware of how clammy his palms were, all slick with a nervous sweat.
"You," he paused, having to moisten his mouth. Thump-thump. It felt like cotton, "-you thought of me?"
Leopara nodded, turning her gaze down. Maybe it was just the fire, but he felt like there was heat pulsing through him from head to toe, warming him from the inside out. Thump-thump. "You're what I think of when I feel hopeless. My light in the dark, like a ray of sun turning night into day. You don't realise how amazing you are. You're so determined and… focused, I wish I had a little bit of that."
Thump-thump.
He had to know. Did that mean what he hoped it meant?
"Leopara."
She turned her gaze back up. Their eyes met and- Lion-O was transfixed. It felt like he was being pulled in- he was leaning towards her, and she towards him. They met in the middle, kissing each other softly, without anything between them. Just him, just her, lit by the flickering, warm glow of the fire.
Snowmeow grunted at them, a chuffed sound. Leopara leaned back, just an inch or so from the kiss, to let out a breathy chuckle. And then, she leaned back in.
Just him, just her, and apparently the nearly one-thousand pound felyne.
Thank you so much for reading today's chapter! A special thank you to The Night Whisperer, Heart of the Demons, and Frankannestein! Your reviews mean so much to me. Hopefully, I'll have the last Recipe for Disaster chapter next week :D