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![TLK: Cornered [Screenshot Redraw]](https://images-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca887773594c2.wixmp.com/f/741014d0-1cf4-4cd0-b1d0-3386b70be7ab/ddtftis-d20666ec-66cc-4052-913e-1dad5611b238.png/v1/crop/w_184,h_184,x_36,y_0,scl_0.17037037037037,q_70,strp/tlk__cornered__screenshot_redraw__by_silver_wolf_17_ddtftis-92s-2x.jpg?token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJzdWIiOiJ1cm46YXBwOjdlMGQxODg5ODIyNjQzNzNhNWYwZDQxNWVhMGQyNmUwIiwiaXNzIjoidXJuOmFwcDo3ZTBkMTg4OTgyMjY0MzczYTVmMGQ0MTVlYTBkMjZlMCIsIm9iaiI6W1t7ImhlaWdodCI6Ijw9MTA4MCIsInBhdGgiOiJcL2ZcLzc0MTAxNGQwLTFjZjQtNGNkMC1iMWQwLTMzODZiNzBiZTdhYlwvZGR0ZnRpcy1kMjA2NjZlYy02NmNjLTQwNTItOTEzZS0xZGFkNTYxMWIyMzgucG5nIiwid2lkdGgiOiI8PTE5MjAifV1dLCJhdWQiOlsidXJuOnNlcnZpY2U6aW1hZ2Uub3BlcmF0aW9ucyJdfQ.zP2eSztICQJZOClryBniFhlRekIRUV4seCv0jVUnbU0)
![TLK: Cornered [Screenshot Redraw]](https://images-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca887773594c2.wixmp.com/f/741014d0-1cf4-4cd0-b1d0-3386b70be7ab/ddtftis-d20666ec-66cc-4052-913e-1dad5611b238.png/v1/crop/w_92,h_92,x_18,y_0,scl_0.085185185185185,q_70,strp/tlk__cornered__screenshot_redraw__by_silver_wolf_17_ddtftis-92s.jpg?token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJzdWIiOiJ1cm46YXBwOjdlMGQxODg5ODIyNjQzNzNhNWYwZDQxNWVhMGQyNmUwIiwiaXNzIjoidXJuOmFwcDo3ZTBkMTg4OTgyMjY0MzczYTVmMGQ0MTVlYTBkMjZlMCIsIm9iaiI6W1t7ImhlaWdodCI6Ijw9MTA4MCIsInBhdGgiOiJcL2ZcLzc0MTAxNGQwLTFjZjQtNGNkMC1iMWQwLTMzODZiNzBiZTdhYlwvZGR0ZnRpcy1kMjA2NjZlYy02NmNjLTQwNTItOTEzZS0xZGFkNTYxMWIyMzgucG5nIiwid2lkdGgiOiI8PTE5MjAifV1dLCJhdWQiOlsidXJuOnNlcnZpY2U6aW1hZ2Uub3BlcmF0aW9ucyJdfQ.zP2eSztICQJZOClryBniFhlRekIRUV4seCv0jVUnbU0)
Description
“I like it. It looks kind of like a lion’s face, roaring.”
“It does?” Shauku looked down at the pawprint, brow furrowed. He couldn’t see what his brother was seeing.
Mufasa pointed it out. “See, this indent here is his mouth, and the toes are like his mane, blowing back in the wind.”
It took a lot of imagination to get that out of it, but if you squinted and turned your head and thought about it real hard, you could see it. You’d probably be able to see it even better if they played around with the lines, maybe smudged them up a bit or smeared them here or there. “Hey, thanks! It does!”
Smiling proudly, Mufasa felt he had made a significant contribution to the whole thing, and he was glad Shauku had shown him and asked his opinion. He might have thought the choice of colour was lacking (Shauku had chosen an understated greyish-brown colour, whereas Tumai and Dhambi had picked orange and both Wema and Ondoa had opted for a bright blue), and he supposed Shauku had a point that those other two colours would have either clashed with his fur or been hard to see, but overall he liked the idea and thought it neat. He half-wished he could be a Guard, just to be able to have one, but he felt that this might not fly with his father – Agano was always going on about a King needing to have dignity and be above frivolous pursuits, and somehow, Mufasa just knew the mark would fall into the category of ‘frivolous’. But it really wasn’t fair, since the Guard were supposed to be aiding him to rule, one day, right? Why weren’t they held to the same standards as himself? Things should go both ways, just a bit, Mufasa decided, and maybe if Shauku was around more, their father could see that and he’d change his mind.
“Shauku, I just had a thought: you and the others will be sort of like my protectors, right?”
“Yeah, and for the kingdom. Like we’re going to defend everything.”
“That’s a big responsibility, and shouldn’t maybe dad be making sure you learn the laws and everything, like I’m doing? So you know if anyone breaks them?”
Now that he mentioned it, Shauku had to agree that his brother had a point. “I guess so.” But Agano never asked him to come along when he took Mufasa out training. Not ever. “I guess you could teach me this stuff.”
“I might make a muddle of it. I tend to zone out when he starts droning on and on and on. You know me, and dad’s so boring,” Mufasa pressed – he needed Shauku to actually be there, so Agano could be swayed. This didn’t work if he just passed on information, and then Mufasa would never get a mark of his own. “I think you should ask if you can come along with us. I’m sure he won’t mind.”
Shauku gave Mufasa a look. “He doesn’t like me much. You should ask him, not me.”
“He let you have the Guards, and he agreed to let you keep our friends and not chase them off when they’re older. That’s more than he does for me – I never get what I ask him for.”
Another point for Mufasa. Mufasa was held to seriously different standards, and Agano always did blather on about how his heir needed to be above petty wants, tantrums, and asking for anything. Self-reliant and strong, not whining and begging for things. In that light, Shauku could admit that maybe he would be the better one to go to the King for this request. “Ok, I’ll ask him, then.”
Mufasa grinned widely and gave his brother a friendly shove. “He’ll definitely say yes, you’ll see!”
***
That evening, his courage still bolstered by his brother’s words and the successful return of Wema to the Guards (he really couldn’t resist the new markings!), Shauku hesitantly approached Agano as the lions began to bed down for the evening.
“Uh, Dad?”
The King glanced at him without interest at first, but his gaze sharpened as he spotted the pawprint on the cub’s left shoulder. “What is that thing on your leg?”
Withering scorn and a curl of his lip made Shauku flinch, and sudden doubt filled him. Mufasa had made it sound like such a good idea, and he’d agreed, but now, at the moment of truth and faced with Agano, the little Prince felt maybe it would have been better not to even have put himself into the other lion’s attentions. Hoping to avoid any more unpleasantness, Shauku avoided the question posed to him and pushed on before his spirit could desert him any further. “Well, we were thinking… that is, I thought that… that maybe… I mean… well, the Guard should be learning to, um… guard the King?” The last few words came out as a squeak and trailed off into a question rather than a statement. Agano just looked at him, and Shauku found he couldn’t keep his tongue still. “I thought… I mean we… that I should… I mean as the other Prince!... I could… you know… um… come with you and Mufasa sometimes?” He shuffled his feet, hunching down and unable to meet Agano’s sharpening gaze. “I could learn the laws, too. And… well, I could know what… um… the King has to… you know… do? So I could… so we… so the Guard can know how best to protect… him?”
The King’s first inclination was to laugh, his second to snap out a savage ‘no’, but his third was that he could sidestep the whole problem by simply pretending to give it consideration. “Maybe next time. Definitely not tomorrow, though.” He sniffed and looked away. “We’ll see.”
Bolstered slightly by this non-answer, Shauku took a few steps towards Agano. “You promise?”
It was the wrong thing to say.
His word was unbreakable, and everyone had heard Shauku ask him for it, and so Agano’s face contorted and he snarled at the orange cub, head whipping around to send him a glare so hot that the boy actually lost the strength in his legs and sat down hard, eyes wide with fright. “You would dare --!” As suddenly as it had come upon him, the anger flooded out of the King. He was aware of the eyes upon him, especially from Daemane, and so reigned in his temper with a will; Shauku always brought out the worst in him, the troublesome brat. The sight of his Queen frowning at him, though, gave him the hazy outline of a way around having to honour the cub’s request. “I’m sure, were he able to, your father would promise to let you accompany him and learn the ways of a King.” His smile became smug and his gaze drifted to Daemane, who looked stricken at his word-choice; yes, she understood him completely, even if Shauku didn’t get the reference. “As much as he is able, your father promises you things will be different, next time.”
Unable to understand he was being deceived and lied to – lied to with truth, which is ugliest of all – Shauku perked right back up, as happy as could be. He puffed out his chest and beamed at the King. “Don’t worry! I’ll make you proud, Dad!”
“Good. Now go away and let me sleep.”
Daemane looked at him with disgust intermingled with hate, and for half a second, Agano actually felt like slime, but then he turned away from her judgment and tried to convey through his body language that she had only herself to blame. If she hadn’t insisted on keeping those cubs, he wouldn’t have to do this. Everyone would have been much happier if she’d just stepped aside and let nature take its course.
He didn’t feel even a bit of remorse. Not one little bit.
______
Previous :: Next
Back to Beginning
Artwork & story, characters Dhambi, Wema, Ondoa, Daemane belong to me. Background lions (L-R) are Vumilia, Kali and Aende.
“It does?” Shauku looked down at the pawprint, brow furrowed. He couldn’t see what his brother was seeing.
Mufasa pointed it out. “See, this indent here is his mouth, and the toes are like his mane, blowing back in the wind.”
It took a lot of imagination to get that out of it, but if you squinted and turned your head and thought about it real hard, you could see it. You’d probably be able to see it even better if they played around with the lines, maybe smudged them up a bit or smeared them here or there. “Hey, thanks! It does!”
Smiling proudly, Mufasa felt he had made a significant contribution to the whole thing, and he was glad Shauku had shown him and asked his opinion. He might have thought the choice of colour was lacking (Shauku had chosen an understated greyish-brown colour, whereas Tumai and Dhambi had picked orange and both Wema and Ondoa had opted for a bright blue), and he supposed Shauku had a point that those other two colours would have either clashed with his fur or been hard to see, but overall he liked the idea and thought it neat. He half-wished he could be a Guard, just to be able to have one, but he felt that this might not fly with his father – Agano was always going on about a King needing to have dignity and be above frivolous pursuits, and somehow, Mufasa just knew the mark would fall into the category of ‘frivolous’. But it really wasn’t fair, since the Guard were supposed to be aiding him to rule, one day, right? Why weren’t they held to the same standards as himself? Things should go both ways, just a bit, Mufasa decided, and maybe if Shauku was around more, their father could see that and he’d change his mind.
“Shauku, I just had a thought: you and the others will be sort of like my protectors, right?”
“Yeah, and for the kingdom. Like we’re going to defend everything.”
“That’s a big responsibility, and shouldn’t maybe dad be making sure you learn the laws and everything, like I’m doing? So you know if anyone breaks them?”
Now that he mentioned it, Shauku had to agree that his brother had a point. “I guess so.” But Agano never asked him to come along when he took Mufasa out training. Not ever. “I guess you could teach me this stuff.”
“I might make a muddle of it. I tend to zone out when he starts droning on and on and on. You know me, and dad’s so boring,” Mufasa pressed – he needed Shauku to actually be there, so Agano could be swayed. This didn’t work if he just passed on information, and then Mufasa would never get a mark of his own. “I think you should ask if you can come along with us. I’m sure he won’t mind.”
Shauku gave Mufasa a look. “He doesn’t like me much. You should ask him, not me.”
“He let you have the Guards, and he agreed to let you keep our friends and not chase them off when they’re older. That’s more than he does for me – I never get what I ask him for.”
Another point for Mufasa. Mufasa was held to seriously different standards, and Agano always did blather on about how his heir needed to be above petty wants, tantrums, and asking for anything. Self-reliant and strong, not whining and begging for things. In that light, Shauku could admit that maybe he would be the better one to go to the King for this request. “Ok, I’ll ask him, then.”
Mufasa grinned widely and gave his brother a friendly shove. “He’ll definitely say yes, you’ll see!”
***
That evening, his courage still bolstered by his brother’s words and the successful return of Wema to the Guards (he really couldn’t resist the new markings!), Shauku hesitantly approached Agano as the lions began to bed down for the evening.
“Uh, Dad?”
The King glanced at him without interest at first, but his gaze sharpened as he spotted the pawprint on the cub’s left shoulder. “What is that thing on your leg?”
Withering scorn and a curl of his lip made Shauku flinch, and sudden doubt filled him. Mufasa had made it sound like such a good idea, and he’d agreed, but now, at the moment of truth and faced with Agano, the little Prince felt maybe it would have been better not to even have put himself into the other lion’s attentions. Hoping to avoid any more unpleasantness, Shauku avoided the question posed to him and pushed on before his spirit could desert him any further. “Well, we were thinking… that is, I thought that… that maybe… I mean… well, the Guard should be learning to, um… guard the King?” The last few words came out as a squeak and trailed off into a question rather than a statement. Agano just looked at him, and Shauku found he couldn’t keep his tongue still. “I thought… I mean we… that I should… I mean as the other Prince!... I could… you know… um… come with you and Mufasa sometimes?” He shuffled his feet, hunching down and unable to meet Agano’s sharpening gaze. “I could learn the laws, too. And… well, I could know what… um… the King has to… you know… do? So I could… so we… so the Guard can know how best to protect… him?”
The King’s first inclination was to laugh, his second to snap out a savage ‘no’, but his third was that he could sidestep the whole problem by simply pretending to give it consideration. “Maybe next time. Definitely not tomorrow, though.” He sniffed and looked away. “We’ll see.”
Bolstered slightly by this non-answer, Shauku took a few steps towards Agano. “You promise?”
It was the wrong thing to say.
His word was unbreakable, and everyone had heard Shauku ask him for it, and so Agano’s face contorted and he snarled at the orange cub, head whipping around to send him a glare so hot that the boy actually lost the strength in his legs and sat down hard, eyes wide with fright. “You would dare --!” As suddenly as it had come upon him, the anger flooded out of the King. He was aware of the eyes upon him, especially from Daemane, and so reigned in his temper with a will; Shauku always brought out the worst in him, the troublesome brat. The sight of his Queen frowning at him, though, gave him the hazy outline of a way around having to honour the cub’s request. “I’m sure, were he able to, your father would promise to let you accompany him and learn the ways of a King.” His smile became smug and his gaze drifted to Daemane, who looked stricken at his word-choice; yes, she understood him completely, even if Shauku didn’t get the reference. “As much as he is able, your father promises you things will be different, next time.”
Unable to understand he was being deceived and lied to – lied to with truth, which is ugliest of all – Shauku perked right back up, as happy as could be. He puffed out his chest and beamed at the King. “Don’t worry! I’ll make you proud, Dad!”
“Good. Now go away and let me sleep.”
Daemane looked at him with disgust intermingled with hate, and for half a second, Agano actually felt like slime, but then he turned away from her judgment and tried to convey through his body language that she had only herself to blame. If she hadn’t insisted on keeping those cubs, he wouldn’t have to do this. Everyone would have been much happier if she’d just stepped aside and let nature take its course.
He didn’t feel even a bit of remorse. Not one little bit.
______
Previous :: Next
Back to Beginning
Artwork & story, characters Dhambi, Wema, Ondoa, Daemane belong to me. Background lions (L-R) are Vumilia, Kali and Aende.
Image size
3368x2144px 450.61 KB
© 2015 - 2024 Kirroc
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…Can Banagi and Baasho break this asshole's bones next, please?