The Rainy Season

The knight of Living Falls was in rare form, pacing through the tunnels of his mark with his ears back, muzzle scrunched in anger. As he approached the waterfall, he growled to himself about nothing in particular, just trying to vent out the hot steam inside his skull. His paws found the worn path in the stone floor that lead to the pool outside the dens. Out of all the the marks, Living Falls was least populated, which made it easy to find time to relax alone. Lately the knight had almost taken up residency at the life tree, with all the work that needed to be done. Now, away from the hustle and bustle, he let his emotions run wild.

The brown cat's eyes fell upon his reflection in the pool. The ripples from the waterfall distorted the image, and for a moment he didn't see himself, but his father. He shut his eyes tight, stiffly lying down, muzzle and paws resting in the water. He let his mind drift, trying to sort out his thoughts, as well as the complicated emotions he felt poisoning his calm, leader's shell.

But as thoughts of plotting princes and enemy lions flew from his head, black-winged memories landed on his mind's eye...

Naasir was little, no more than a month old. His mother had told him to rest, that they had a big journey tomorrow and he needed to be a big strong male at his best. But the little leopard was too excited to sleep. He silently crept out of the den, around the sleeping form of his mother. As he stepped out into the night, a flash of gold caught his eye. He excitedly lowered his body to the brush, then stalked toward the gleam.

As he neared the two glowing dots, though, they rose, and revealed a massive figure. A male lion stood, gazing with contempt at the cub's now cowering body. Naasir's hair stood on end, the little tufts sticking up like a mohawk down his neck. He tried to back up, return to the safety of his mother's spotted pelt. But he was caught, the male had seen him. It's strong figure made his way confidently toward him. He stopped just short of the cub's muzzle, then spoke.

"So you must be Lilu's little runt. Not much for looks, but you got my colors, at least." The stranger's voice was annoyingly confident, and arrogant. "I'll bet she keep's you nice and safe, huh? No real learning experience, not hard learned lessons. Shame, I could teach you everything about being wild, free. But that shivering little scrap of hide would see you turn soft and tame" He spat the last word, then seemed about to continue. Just then a soft voice interrupted his rant, and Naasir sighed in relief.

"Enough, Bartrem. Naasir, go back to the den." Her words were worried, and slightly angry. The little cub ran back to his den, then turned to ask his mother about the scary lion. But Lilu wasn't there. She was speaking to the male, and their voices were rising. Suddenly flames erupted, and snarls shattered the calm night...

"Mother!" the knight jolted awake, only to find himself safely back by the pool. He took a few laps from the water, gulping the cool drink.

A few drops of liquid landed on his nose, and he looked up at the sky. Clouds had gathered in the atmosphere, bringing back the rainy season. He shook off the water irritably. The brown and silver lion lifted his lithe body, then roared for the members of his mark. With the return of the rains, the caves would no longer be safe to sleep in. They would have to find a temporary place to make their den's, 'till the monsoons stopped.

((Silly me, I start writing about the rains, and it turns into an obnoxiously long backstory monologue Anyone in Living Falls who has an idea of where to move the dens, please reply! I'm kind of at a loss for what to do))