A Tale of Jaguars

A Bombshell

"I don't care what the pact says, and I don't care how much my father had to give up! I'm not going back to Thundera!"

Lion-O said with determination. The cleric was seething in anger. Stupid, little good for nothing, cub. Why the fates had punished them with such an irresponsible heir? Why couldn't prince Tygra have been a lion? He would have made an excellent king, instead of being stuck at his brother's side.

"Prince Lion-O, this is not open to discussion! You'd be returning home with me, as your father wish you to!"

"No! I'm staying here with Tygra!"

Lion-O cursed his own stupidity. He shouldn't have opened the door to the cleric. He should have hid in his bed until the puma had abandoned the palace! They had been discussing for half an hour, and the cleric didn't want to understand that Lion-O was not going anywhere with him.

The puma growled in frustration and disgust.

"Prince Tygra would be better without you, don't you see it? He'd be glad to be rid of a nuisance that only causes him troubles!"

"That's a lie! Tygra needs me!"

"What would he need you for? Don't you realize that you're only a burden for him? He can't take his rightful place in Thundera because of you, and it's also for your cause that he has to endure this exile and the indignity to submit to the jaguar prince! To spare you!"

Lion-O froze. He gaped at the cleric and clenched his fists anxiously.

"No. That's not true. This is all because of a stupid war. Because we lost…"

"Your father was given a choice that wasn't real. He had to leave Tygra to the beasts because he's not allowed to renounce to his heir. Tygra's duty is to protect you, and I'm sure that he had had to tolerate many things here just to ensure your safety! You're too young to take care of yourself, and you're too young to be considered a proper mate. Your father and brother did their best to protect you, and you have the obligation to return to Thundera to do your duty, so your brother's sacrifice would not be in vain."

Lion-O clenched his teeth. Old insecurities were waking up again. His brother was the better son. He was only a burden for him. Grune's words resonated in his ears.

'Tygra is the best choice for the crown; he just lacks the right lineage. Unfortunately, we're stuck with you.'

"Pick up your pet, and let's go. I'm sure prince Tygra would be relieved to find out that you took your obligations seriously for once."

Lion-O sniffed. He actually gave a step to follow the cleric, and he scratched mechanically his left arm. And then he stopped, remembering his brother doing the exact same movement. He remembered Bengali asking him if Tygra had used to scratch his arms constantly. He recalled his brother's arms, bandaged from wrist to shoulder, and his dull eyes from the first month in Ix-Maal. Finally, he remembered the morning, just two days ago, when Bengali had been only too happy to see his disgruntled self after spending the night in a storage compartment. Jareid, all but shoving him inside his room, and Tygra on the bed. Tygra hugging him, thanking him for being there. And Bengali freaking out when he had discovered what Tygra had done to his arm, while Jareid swore that he hadn't noticed the moment the tiger had done it.

"No." He said quietly. Yabin, who had already turned his back on him, turned around again.

"What are you saying?"

"I'm not going."

"You selfish brat…"

"I don't care what you think! Tygra needs me! I promised I'd stay with him, and I'm doing that!"