Ties That Bind -- Chapter 8
This chapter is a little longer than I expected it to be but I hope you enjoy it just that same. :) Chapter 8 The next morning dawned and Leanna felt better. Tygra checked her over and decided that a bit of exercise wouldn’t be such a bad thing for the lioness. He said the two of them could walk down to breakfast and then he’d give her a tour of the Lair. That sounded good to her and she stood up without any help. Then the two headed out of the sick bay and down to the kitchen. “Mmmmm that smells wonderful.” Leanna commented as they drew nearer to the dining room. “Snarf always has something amazing cooking. This morning smells like his famous Berbil fruit pancakes.” Tygra smiled. “Berbil fruit?” The lioness asked as she ran a hand through her ebony hair. “Amazing sweet fruit that we get shipped from Third Earth. The Berbils are our allies and they helped us build Cat’s Lair and the Tower of Omens on the same planet. We lived there for some time before New Thundera reformed.” The orange tiger explained. “Oh I see. Well the ship that we were on made it to Space Base Thirteen and I’ve lived there all my life. It is a place of many different peoples and cultures so all of us aboard fit right in. The shipment I was bringing was the first to come to New Thundera and I jumped at the chance to come here. I wanted to learn all about the planet and to see if Thundera had truly been restored to the glory my parents so often spoke of when I was younger.” Leanna told him as they entered the dining room. Most of the ThunderCats were already there, sitting at their usual chairs chatting amongst themselves. The lioness recognized Cheetara and Pumyra but not any of the others. Tygra cleared his throat and silence fell across the room. “Some of you know our guest and others don’t. Leanna, may I introduce the ThunderCats.” Tygra smiled as the group warmly welcomed the lioness. Introductions were made and everyone began chatting again. Another chair was brought to the table and Leanna sat next to WilyKit. A few minutes later, Panthro walked in and took his seat. The panther avoided eye contact with the lioness and immediately turned to talk to Ben-Gali about the ship repairs. Another minute passed and another cat entered the room. He stood tall with muscles that would make any cat jealous with the exception of those in the room. Everyone suddenly stood at attention as he made his way to the head of the table. “So I’m guessing Cheetara put you up to this.” He smirked as he took his seat. “I know how much you enjoy it.” She smiled as the group let out a collective chuckle and sat back down. Leanna was slightly confused and Kit leaned over to explain. “Lion-O hates it when we all stand up as he enters the room. He really just wishes to be treated like one of the rest of us.” Leanna was about to ask another question when the lion spoke up. “I see we have a special guest this morning.” “Yes, we do. I thought a little exercise wouldn’t hurt.” Tygra smiled, leaving an opportunity for the lioness to speak up. “My name is Leanna, sir.” She introduced herself. “Please just call me Lion-O. I’m glad to see you are up and about and feeling better.” He smiled and was about to say something else when a small furry creature entered the room with three large piles of pancakes. “Breakfast!” He called out. “We were beginning to wonder Snarf.” Ben-Gali teased. “Well I hope you like your pancakes cold because you’re getting served last.” Snarf shot back. “A little feisty this morning, aren’t we?” Lion-O asked. A few of the ThunderCats laughed and the pancakes were handed out. Everyone enjoyed their breakfast, especially Leanna who ate five pancakes and three slices of toast. “Well she is certainly feeling better.” Lion-O said quietly to Cheetara twenty minutes later. “I guess so. I think a little fresh air is in order.” The cheetah gave him a nudge and he winked back. About fifteen minutes more minutes passed and the group began to break up, as there were tasks that needed to be done. “Panthro, Tygra, can I speak to you a moment?” The Lord of the ThunderCats wondered. Quickly the two came to his side. They discussed something and then broke up. Tygra came to Leanna and said, “Lion-O thinks, and I agree, that you should get some fresh air. Panthro is taking the ThunderTank to deliver your shipment and that would be a good opportunity to finish the job you started.” Leanna gave him a slight look, unsure if this was because of the argument that Panthro or because they were just trying to be nice. “Sounds great.” The lioness smiled. “Good then it’s all settled. Let’s get you down to the hangar.” Tygra nodded. WWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW It wasn’t long before Panthro and Leanna were out in the ThunderTank. They both wore thermal Thunderwear to keep warm. Leanna had borrowed Cheetara’s and marveled at the warmth they offered. The monstrous vehicle plowed through the snow and debris that was in the road without much trouble. It was a loud ride but the lioness was enjoying it. However the silence between the two occupants of the ThunderTank was beginning to get oppressive. The entire twenty-minute ride to the facility was silent. “We’re here.” Panthro muttered as he cut the ThunderTank’s massive engines. “So I see. Can I help you with the load?” Leanna asked. Against his better judgment, the panther nodded. He opened the storage compartment and hauled the first box out and then the second. They walked to the door where a scientist there warmly greeted them. “It is an honor to meet the mighty Panthro and a fellow ThunderCat.” He said, his nametag read ‘Dr. Chituar’. “Sorry, we’re late. I had to adjust some of the equipment on the ThunderTank and it took longer than I thought.” The panther explained, not bothering to correct him. Leanna wasn’t sure if that was so but it would explain why he hadn’t left before breakfast. “That is quite all right. King Lion-O called and said you’d be late. We’re just tickled pink that it got here after the storm.” Dr. Chituar smiled as he led them into the facility. At the mention of Lion-O’s name being preceded by ‘King’, Leanna turned a little white. “Are you ok?” Panthro asked a little concerned. “Yes, I’ll be fine.” She reassured him. They dropped off the boxes off and headed back to the ThunderTank. After they hopped back into the versatile vehicle, the lioness turned to the panther. “I want to apologize for yesterday. I didn’t mean that I didn’t want your help, I just take a lot of pride in my job and I wanted to complete what I started.” She told him. Panthro turned to her and gave her a smile. “Don’t worry about it.” At that the lioness leaned over and gave him a kiss on the cheek. As she started to pull away the panther stopped her. Confused, Leanna gave him a look. He leaned over and gave her a gentle kiss on the lips. At first he was surprised that she didn’t pull away but he was even more surprised when she pulled him closer and returned a much more hearty kiss. Despite having only known each other for a couple of days, both felt they had known each other for their entire lives. They continued to kiss and soon the glass cover on the ThunderTank was fogging up. It was then that the radio crackled and Ben-Gali’s voice came over the receiver. “Lair to ThunderTank, come in ThunderTank.” Panthro let go of Leanna and quickly answered the call. Later that day, Leanna was walking around Cat’s Lair determined to get some exercise after being in bed for over a day. Her thoughts were filled with that of a strong male panther. They hadn’t been able to talk after they returned to the Lair and now she had to wait until he got off shift. She wasn’t paying attention to the ground in front of her and didn’t notice the strange looking bump in the rug. Her foot hit the bump and she sailed forward. Someone who had been coming down the hall immediately ran and caught her in their arms before she hit the floor. To Be Continued...