The Last Lioness: As A Juvenile

Part 8

All the commotion had woken up the cubs so Fuerte cradled them until they fell back asleep. "I need to clear my head." I said quietly before wandering off into the night. I didnt know where I was going and frankly I didn't care. I felt hurt. I just wanted answers but at the same time I didnt want to see him let alone speak to him. I heard rustling in a nearby bush, my ears perked and I focused but I couldnt see past the thick leaves, so I went for a closer look.

          I peered through the small gaps before getting pushed onto my back. "Aunty San Aunty San!" Rani shouted while pawing all over me. Raski appeared from behind the bush too, they were so big now. I felt proud. "Where is Amadia?" It felt like I hadn't seem any of them in so long. Rani's face had a sad expression painted across it. "It was time for us to go, she has taught us all we know and we are now fending for ourselves." I got to my paws and shook the dirt off of me. "Well, I must say you both have grown into fine leopardess'.

          They both chuckled and I smiled at them. "How are your cubs, Aunty San?" Rani asked. "Ah, they are all fine thankyou, Rani. Learning very quick, like the both of you did." There was a brief silence before Raski broke the ice. "Sancha there is something I need to tell you..Rapido is back in the savannah." I nodded. "He turned up not too long ago." I sighed under my breath and Rani smiled sympathetically. "How'd it go?" She asked. "I told him to leave." She licked my ear and told me she was proud of me for doing it as it must of been hard.

          "I wish you two the best and just know, whats mine is yours. Stop by any time." They nodded before we departed and I was alone once more. I walked a little further before deciding to turn back, when I turned toward where the cubs and Fuerte were I saw him again. He was stood a few foot behind me. "I told you to leave Rapido." I walked past him, not making any eye contact. "Just please, hear me out." He trotted to my side as I kept walking. "You have until I get to that acacia tree," I said, which was about 30 seconds from where we were.

          "Alright, in brief, I was captured by the poachers and the last thing I remember is seeing Fuerte standing above me. When I woke up I was in a large cage of some sort, except it was outside and had grass and trees and rocks. After what seemed like decades they let me go, but look they put this on me." I stopped walking and turned to look at him, he had a radio collar on. "You're being tracked Rapido. That's a radio collar, your loction will appear on whatever human device they have."

          He started breathing faster, clearly distressed. "Well, get it off of me!" I stared at him and huffed. "Only if you promise to take it far away from me and my cubs." He nodded and I bit onto it, ripping through the thin plastic and dropping it to his paws. "There. Now leave." I headed back toward my den when he ran in front of me in an attempt to stop me. "Wait, please. San I never abandoned you, I love you now like I did then, please. Give me another chance can we just start over?"

          I felt rage flood my body and my face get red hot. "You expect me to just drop everything and come back to you? Granted, it wasn't your fault that you got captured and relocated for months but I have a family now. I am not abandoning them for the likes of you." I spat. I saw his face relax and tears form in his eyes. "You can stay until morning. Then you head on your way and don't turn back." He nodded and we walked together back to the den.

          When we arrived Fuerte looked very confused. "He's staying until morning, then leaving." He nodded and we all went to sleep. The following morning I woke to see no sight of Fuerte, Rapido or the cubs. Panic and fear filled my body. I leapt to my paws and started looking around frantically. "Owww!" I heard a little voice shout from just around the corner. I run around the den site only to see the three cubs, all fine accompanied by...Rapido?!

          None of them had seen me watching from near a thistle bush as they all tussled around in the dry grass, laughing and play fighting. Maybe I was wrong...Maybe Rapido meant no harm at all. They were all pouncing on him as he laughed and so did they. Athena noticed me standing and watching them playing. "Momma!!" She shouted as she bounded toward me, the other two following her. They all started jumping at my paws as Rapido also made his way over.

          "I see you're still here Rapido." He nodded and smiled at the cubs. "Play time is over now, cubs. I have to go soon." I gazed at him. How I haven't seen this caring side of him since I was younger. All three let out loud moans. "No!! Please can he stay just a little longer Mum! Please!" I sighed and nodded. "I took the collar down to the other side of the savannah while you were all sleeping." I smiled at him and then at the cubs. He was treating them like a father and he had only known them for one morning.

          "Where is Fuerte?" I asked as the cubs started wrestling in the grass again. "He went to mark, he told me to tell you he should be home by the afternoon." I nodded and lied down in the shade. "You can stay for a while, if you wish. Sometimes they can be a handful, especially when Fuerte isn't here." He chuckled and nodded. "I'd love too. They're little angels." I laughed in his face at his comment. "Pffft! Little angels! They are so naughty. Always fighting and hurting one another!" Just as I said that, Jefe tugged on Athena's tail, making her let out a scream. "See what I mean!"

          He laughed and nodded. "Maybe you are right." I stared at him thinking deeply. Why did he come back? He sighed. "Because I thought I could start things from where I left off." I frowned at him. "I know that's what you were thinking. Why. Why did I bother returning here. It's because I still love you Sancha and I always will, even if that love isn't returned back to me. I looked at the three cubs bounding around the grass, stalking one another and play fighting.

          "Rapido these cubs are as much yours as they are Fuertes'." He frowned at me. "There is something about these cubs that don't add up." I said, lowering my voice. "They all act like you, talk like you, I mean Nova had dreams of you and me and Fuerte never mentioned you once around her." He stared at me, still puzzled. "You are connected to these cubs in a way that I do not understand yet." He shook his head at me. "I'm not so sure about that Sancha it sounds preposterous." I nodded In agreement. "I know but think, why else would Nova know of and all about you?"

          "I don't know..." He said while staring at her intently. "Wait...check her front right paw pad." I furrowed my brow at him. "Excuse me?" "Now!" He snarled. I called her over and asked her to show me her paw. As she lifted it up, there was a marking on her little brown paw pad. A white circle. It was perfectly round and ice white. I looked at Rapido, clearly confused by everything. He lifted up his leg and surely enough, he had the same marking on the same paw.

          "What does this mean Rapido?" I questioned him. "Okay, maybe I never told you the entire story about my pride.." I motioned him to go on and he sighed. "When I was younger I was born into a pride, but not just any pride. It was the largest of prides in Spain. We lived in a special reserve, on the outskirts of a busy town. There was so many of us, my parents, aunties, uncles, cousins, grand parents. We were known as the Orgullo de las estrellas, meaning the Pride of the stars.

          "Oh my gosh..." I gasped as he nodded. "I was told of tales about that pride when I was a young cub! How they struck against evil and saved many others throughout their rein!!" "And you never told me you were one of them!?" He looked up at the sky before returning his gaze back to me. "I thought you might've thought of me differently." I sighed and looked him square in the eyes.

          "Rapido, when I met you, you were a strong, sweet spirit. Nothing would have changed my thoughts about you as you came across to me so pure and kind." He smiled before talking again. "My whole pride has that mark," He said motioning to his paw. "And if Nova has it too, it means something..Im not sure what but I have a feeling that we will find out soon enough."

          My heart started to pound so loud through my chest I could faintly hear it. My baby, one of four, was about to be dragged into something she shouldn't have to experience. She was the strongest of the three, in spirit that is. She was willing and had good intentions. I just didn't want her to get hurt.