Reborn as a Side Character in the Beastworld

Chapter Forty-two

 *I am taking some artistic liberties with Shuu's back story.

The Ape King had been furious, but Shuu did as he had been advised by Bailey and made sure every twig of the tree had burnt to ash. He knew that it was unlikely the Ape King was ignorant of the tree's deadliness, but he wasn't willing to leave any parts behind that the king might make use of later. He respected his father the Wolf King and the Ape King but knew how calculating they could be. On more than one occasion the ape had let his amicable mask slip in front of Shuu and it made him wary of the other's ambitions.

Unfortunately, doing so cost him. He was seized by other di-striped wolves and taken down to the cave where they kept criminals. The Wolf King and Ape King awaited him there.

"Shuu. I'm disappointed. For your failure to escort the fox female properly, allowing her to drink too much nectar and giving her the tools to cause a dangerous fire, you will be punished." Said the Ape King who held a leather scourge. The whip's thongs had jagged animal bones knotted in them and Shuu knew the feeling of those biting edges. This wasn't the first time he had been punished and it wouldn't likely be the last.

Shuu was a good soldier and a filial son. But he had terrible luck. He was used to being punished regularly for not being as strong or as quick as his brother. When Rosa came of age and was choosing mates, she was about to pick him and his brother, but Shuu had forgotten that the female hated rabbit meat and was punished for presenting it to her. His brother had rectified the situation with a wild boar and was chosen as her first mate. He had been punished when he failed to find Winston the same night the fox female was brought to the city. He was punished regularly for various things but instead of it teaching him to follow orders more closely, it taught him how to lie more easily.

He didn't mind the punishments. He could heal the wounds after a week. But he didn't like seeing other beasts on the receiving end. So, he would lie to take blame. He would lie to avoid punishments altogether. And he would lie so his father would stop trying to make Shuu, Bart. After so many punishments, the wounds stopped healing all the way and faint scars marred the skin on his back. So, he started to wear pelts that covered them.

He knew today would add more scars and he knew that what he was being punished for wasn't what the Ape King had stated. He knew he was being punished for disposing of the tree completely. But it didn't matter. He had done what he had felt to be right.

"You know what to do." Said his father.

Shuu stripped off his clothes and took the leather strap hanging from the cell's ceiling crossbeam. He looped the strap around his wrists, so they strained high above his head with his back facing the two kings.

His father no longer whipped him. When he realized his son took the punishment without flinching, he stopped considering it effective. But the Ape King had found a twisted pleasure in the sound of the leather smacking against skin and watching the knotted pieces rip and tear red lines across its canvas.

And so, like many times before, Shuu was punished. He did not scream, groan or flinch. He simply endured until he was barely conscious, and the leather rope was the only thing holding him up. When the Ape King exhausted himself, it ended and Shuu dragged his beaten body to his den just outside the Wolf King's territory. Just like all the other times, he planned to arrive home and sleep for the next three days as he healed. But Shuu forgot one thing.

He no longer lived alone.

When a fevered and bloodied Shuu arrived home the next morning, Oliver panicked. The young wolf had never seen his savior so injured before. He had lived with Shuu for over a month and this older wolf had taken care of him better than his real family ever had. He had given him a place to stay, food to eat and even helped him with his recovery. Oliver felt he owed Shuu his life so when he thought the older wolf might be losing his, he wasted no time in rushing him to a healer.