Tiger's Blood

I lower my brown nose to the ground and sniff the moist grass. The scent of prey wafts in my direction. I pick up my speed and pounce on the field mouse. I kill the mouse with one crunch and I drop its little body in front of me. The dead meat stares at me intently and I turn my head sideways. The dead prey gets up and walks away. That’s strange. I’ve never had my food get up and walk away from me. I follow it curiously when it turns around and Kira’s face flashes into my eyes. I whimper and back away when it starts following me. I howl and cry out for Kira when everything turns white.

I wake up panting and coughing intently. I put my hand to my chest and listen to the sound of my heartbeat. It was just a dream Noah; a weird, fucked up dream. My sleepy eyes open to a gray room. I look outside the small window and see the sun slightly peeking out behind the fluffy clouds. Why was Kira a dead mouse in my dream? That doesn’t make any sense. It takes me a second to realize that I’m alone. “Kira?” I whisper. Nothing but my echo replies to me. Oh no, Kira where did you go? I quickly stand up and walk towards the door when it suddenly opens on me and I take a couple steps back.

“Get up you two,” the grouchy King walks in. He pauses and looks at me for a moment. He looks around me and then behind the door. “Where is she?” he says softly. “I was just wondering the same thing sir,” I smile politely trying not to provoke him. He gets closer to me and my smile turns quickly into a frown. “Noah, Where. Is. She??” he says angrily. “I wouldn’t know; I’ve been sleeping all night,” I say nervously. He chuckles and looks down at the floor. “Do you know what I do to liars in my Kingdom?” he asks me.

“I’d rather not know, but I am telling the truth sir. I have been sleeping,” I say truthfully. He holds a cold knife to my throat and I look up into his emotionless eyes. “It’s about six in the morning right now Noah. Today is the day where the traitor Ethan gets hanged and I’m not afraid to put a wimpy Wolf Blood next in line. Now tell me where that little bitch Tiger is and we won’t have any problems,” he snarls. “I am telling the truth. I will say it again if you didn’t hear me the first two times: I was sleeping all night. I don’t know where she is. I’m just as worried as you sir, now please don’t kill me for telling the truth. That would look badly on you if you killed an honest man,” I gulp nervously and he takes a step back from me. “Shit…” he grumbles under his breath.

“Is there something wrong sir?” I ask. “Yes, there is a raging female Tiger Blood creepin’ around here and she will ruin my plans,” he explains in a rather sarcastic tone. I wouldn’t say raging, but okay. I can feel the tension grow in the area between us. “Would you like me to go out and find her?” I suggest. “No, then you and her will run off, what do you think I’m an idiot?” he snaps. Well, you did let Kira escape and now she is probably helping Ethan escape as well while we are talking. “Not at all your royal highness,”

I shake my head no and he storms angrily out of the room. I chuckle for a moment then sit down on the grey floor. I never knew that Kira could cause so much hysteria. He doesn’t know when to stop. He’s got all this power, but he just doesn’t know how to balance it out. Now he is going to kill his own Blood for helping Kira and I when he should reward Ethan for bringing him the last Tiger Blood alive. I walk towards the door and place my hand against the cold knob. I twist it and jerk it a little, but it’s locked shut. As I turn around to go back, the door beeps three times and I hear people step in. I face the two large guards and one of them nudges me forward. “Come on, we have to get going,” the blonde haired gentleman says. I notice a small knife hanging on his belt. I slowly reach over and grab it and put it in my pocket. Idiot.

“Where are we going, if I may ask?” I say in a gentle tone trying to hide the knife. “To the Lion’s town area, there is a big hanging today. The King requested everybody to be there, even the poor Bloods,” the second man says sternly. “Who is getting hanged?” I ask, knowing the answer already. “Ethan Kingsley, the King’s son,” the first guy says. My heartbeat increases intently. Ethan is the King’s son? Well I guess that makes a little sense. He doesn’t look anything like the King though, or act like him at all. Was this his plan? To get Kira and I down here so his dad could kill us? No, if he did then we would be dead already and Ethan wouldn’t be in jail for helping us.

We walk through the Kingdom for about twenty minutes when we finally arrive at the small Lion’s town. The guards let me go and I grunt angrily. “You can wander around here, but don’t think about leaving. We will be watching you,” the second guard tells me. “Alright, thank you for letting me know,” I give them a smirk and I examine the town area around me. The town of the Lions looks small, but still lively. The stores are widely populated as well as the center of the town. Why would he order everyone in the Kingdom to come see him hang his own son? What is he trying to prove?

A tall wooden spike with a rope dangling from the end of it stands proudly in the center of the town. I scrunch up my nose in disgust as the stench of blood and death floats in the air around me. The people here aren’t so great either. They are always angry, which is understandable considering the fact that they are ruled by a wretched King.

No, that wasn’t making them angry. Not their King or his perverted son or the way that he rules, they are all under fear. If they rebel, they will all be hanged one by one in their own town for their families to see. If someone catches them even looking at the King awkwardly, they will be beheaded. I not only sense fear in this poor Pride, but also hope. Hope that their once beloved Kingdom will return with a loved ruler. Unfortunately, we are all gathered here to watch the better of the two sons die in front of us.

He may love Kira just as I do, but from the look and the reactions of the crowd I can tell that Ethan is the King that they need, and even though Ethan and I may have our differences, it is my duty as a loyal friend to Kira to do what is right for her. Ethan and Kira are my new pack, and I won’t let our pack break apart. I’ll help my unlikely friend, even if he hates me or despises me, but he needs my help and I’ll always be here for him. I would give my life if that meant pleasing him or Kira. I love her, and Ethan will protect her better than I can. I look to the gloomy sky and close my eyes and prepare for Ethan’s hanging in a few hours. I will save him, if not for Kira, then for the sake of this Kingdom.