Crimson sands
Revelation in the Savanna
The days blurred into a rhythm of grudging attendance at classes, exasperated sighs from professors, and the constant, low hum of Yumi’s presence in Savanaclaw. She was a disruption, a force of nature that refused to be categorized or tamed. Her brothers, as always, were her shadow and her solace. Steel, ever the vigilant one, kept a watchful eye, his instincts honed by years of survival. Ignace and Falus, while still prone to mischief, were slowly beginning to understand the nuances of this new, ‘soft’ world. Nocta, oblivious to the complexities, continued to charm everyone with his innocent smile and earnest drawings.
Leona, meanwhile, remained a puzzle. He watched Yumi, just as she watched him. Their interactions were a tense dance, a silent battle of wills punctuated by sharp words and veiled threats. He was still the king of this pride, but Yumi’s challenge had irrevocably altered the dynamic. The boredom that had clung to him like a second skin had been replaced by an unsettling, yet exhilarating, sense of anticipation. He found himself seeking her out, drawn to her untamed ferocity like a moth to a dangerous flame.
One sweltering afternoon, the Savanaclaw common room was abuzz with its usual lazy activity. Yumi was, predictably, sprawled across a couch, her tail flicking idly as she listened to Ignace and Falus recount a particularly daring escapade involving the school’s perfectly manicured topiary. Steel sat nearby, cleaning his claws with a meticulousness that spoke of years of practice. Nocta, nestled against Yumi’s side, was drawing, completely absorbed in his own world.
Leona was there too, lounging in his usual spot, half-listening to the chatter, half-observing Yumi. He noticed the way her crimson eyes would occasionally dart around the room, assessing, calculating. Even in repose, she was a predator.
Suddenly, a nervous-looking hyena beastman, a first-year named Reggie, burst into the common room, clutching a stack of papers. His ears were flattened, and his tail was tucked between his legs, a clear sign of distress. He scanned the room, his eyes wide with a mixture of fear and something akin to morbid excitement, before they landed on Yumi.
– Excuse me, Crimson-senpai! – Reggie stammered, his voice cracking.
Yumi opened one crimson eye, a low growl rumbling in her chest at the interruption.
– What do you want, cub? – she purred, the sound carrying a subtle edge of warning.
Reggie visibly gulped, but he pressed on, his gaze flickering nervously to the papers in his hand.
– I… I was doing some research for history class, on the Outlands, and… and I found something. Something about your family.
A sudden hush fell over the common room. Even the usually oblivious Leona straightened up, his emerald eyes fixed on Reggie. The mention of Yumi’s family, particularly her past in the Outlands, was a sensitive topic.
Yumi’s relaxed posture stiffened. Her tail stopped flicking. Her crimson eyes narrowed, a dangerous glint appearing in their depths.
– What about my family? – she asked, her voice dangerously soft.
Reggie flinched, but the papers seemed to give him a strange courage. He shuffled them, his hands trembling slightly.
– Well, it’s… it’s about your parents. I found official death records. They… they died fighting hunters when Ignace and Falus were two years old.
The words hung in the air, a cold, stark truth that Yumi had rarely spoken of, a wound that still festered beneath her hardened exterior. Steel’s hand instinctively went to his side. Ignace and Falus exchanged a quick, grim look, their faces hardening. Nocta, sensing the shift in atmosphere, looked up at Yumi, his small hand tightening on her fur.
Reggie, however, seemed to miss the growing tension. He was too caught up in his discovery, too eager to share his ‘insight’.
– But… but wait! – he continued, his voice rising in pitch. – If your parents died when the twins were two, and you’re seventeen, and the twins are thirteen… and Nocta is six… how… how can Nocta be your brother?
The question, innocent in its delivery, struck with the force of a physical blow. It was the unspoken secret, the carefully constructed facade that Yumi had maintained for years, ripped open and exposed for all to see.
A collective gasp rippled through the common room. Murmurs erupted, whispers of disbelief and speculation. All eyes turned to Yumi, then to Nocta, then back to Yumi.
Leona, who had been watching the scene unfold with a detached interest, felt a sudden jolt. He knew Yumi was fiercely protective of her brothers, but this… this was different. He saw the flicker of raw pain in her crimson eyes, quickly masked by a terrifying fury.
Yumi slowly rose from the couch, her movements unnaturally slow, deliberately menacing. Her tail lashed once, sharply, against the floor. The air in the common room grew heavy, thick with unspoken danger.
– Say that again, cub, – she purred, her voice a low, guttural growl that vibrated with barely contained violence.
Reggie, finally realizing the gravity of his blunder, took a step back, his face paling.
– I… I just meant… the timeline doesn’t add up. If your parents died so long ago, and Nocta is only six… he can’t be your biological brother, can he? Unless… unless he’s adopted? But there are no records of that. So… how?
He trailed off, his eyes wide with dawning horror as he finally registered the primal fury radiating from Yumi.
Steel stepped forward, placing a hand on Yumi’s shoulder, a silent plea for her to rein in her anger. But Yumi was beyond reasoning. The years of suppressed trauma, the constant fear of this secret being revealed, had finally burst forth.
– You dare – Yumi’s voice was a low snarl, her crimson eyes burning with an infernal light – you dare question my pride? You dare speculate about my family? You dare touch upon things you know nothing about?
She took a step towards Reggie, then another. The hyena beastman stumbled backwards, tripping over his own feet, landing with a pathetic yelp.
– You think you’re so clever, don’t you? – Yumi continued, her voice rising, a chilling echo of the Outlands’ harshness. – With your ‘records’ and your ‘timelines’. You sit here in your soft, safe world, judging what you cannot possibly comprehend!
Nocta, seeing Yumi’s distress, began to cry, burying his face in her side, clutching her fur tightly. The sight of his tears only fueled Yumi’s rage.
– My family – she declared, her voice ringing through the common room, silencing all whispers – is mine! My brothers are mine! And no pampered, soft-bellied fool will ever question that!
Leona, watching the scene unfold, felt a primal understanding stir within him. This wasn't just about a secret. This was about Yumi’s deepest wound, her most guarded vulnerability. He saw the raw protectiveness, the savage loyalty, the pain of a past she refused to acknowledge.
Reggie scrambled to his feet, his face ashen, trying to stammer out an apology.
– I… I didn’t mean… I was just curious…
But Yumi was no longer listening. Her magic, Queens Creation, began to manifest. Grains of sand, seemingly out of nowhere, began to swirl around her, forming a miniature vortex, growing larger and more menacing with each passing second. The air crackled with her power, a tangible force that made everyone in the room instinctively recoil.
– Curiosity, you say? – Yumi’s voice was a terrifying whisper, as deadly as a viper’s strike. – Let me show you what true curiosity can cost.
The sand swirled faster, coalescing into sharp, jagged projectiles that hovered menacingly around her. Her crimson eyes fixed on Reggie, promising a swift, brutal end.
– Yumi! – Steel’s voice was sharp, urgent. – Don’t! Not here!
But Yumi was deaf to his pleas. The red haze of her rage had consumed her. She was no longer in the common room of Night Raven College. She was back in the Outlands, protecting her pride, ready to tear apart anyone who dared to threaten what was hers.
– Ain’t a God, but ain’t a God can stop me! – she roared, her voice echoing with the primal ferocity of a true lioness. – A run in with me is a run in with death! My hands are where I find my pride in, No winners No losers just mindless violence!
The sand projectiles shot forward, not at Reggie, but at the wall behind him, embedding themselves with a sickening thud, leaving deep gouges in the stone. Reggie shrieked, collapsing to the floor in a whimpering heap.
Just as Yumi was about to unleash another wave of sand, a powerful roar ripped through the common room, shaking the very foundations of the dorm.
– *Enough!*
It was Leona. He had risen, his own magic, King’s Roar, manifesting around him, a wave of oppressive power that momentarily stunned Yumi, forcing the swirling sand to falter. His emerald eyes, usually lazy and bored, blazed with a fierce intensity.
– You want to fight, Crimson? – Leona’s voice was low and dangerous, a challenge that cut through Yumi’s rage. – Then fight me! Not some pathetic cub who stumbled upon a secret.
Yumi’s head snapped towards Leona, her crimson eyes still alight with fury, but a flicker of recognition, of challenge, entering their depths. Leona was right. This was a worthy opponent, a true test of her strength, not some cowering prey.
Steel, seeing Leona step in, let out a relieved sigh, knowing that this might be the only way to de-escalate Yumi’s explosive rage without further collateral damage.
Leona stepped forward, his tail lashing, his stance a mirror of Yumi’s predatory grace.
– You want to unleash your power? – he challenged, his voice a low growl. – Then unleash it on someone who can actually stand against you. Someone who won’t break after the first hit.
The sand around Yumi slowly dissipated, her focus shifting from Reggie to Leona. The raw, untamed intensity in her eyes remained, but it was no longer solely directed at the cowering hyena. It was now aimed squarely at the lion prince.
– You think you can stand against me, pampered prince? – Yumi purred, a dangerous smile returning to her lips. – You think your ‘King’s Roar’ can match the fury of the Outlands?
– I think, white lioness, – Leona retorted, a predatory smirk mirroring hers, – that you’re about to find out exactly what this ‘pampered prince’ is capable of.
The tension in the common room was palpable, a live wire humming with raw power. The other students, terrified but unable to look away, braced themselves for the inevitable clash of these two apex predators. Nocta, still whimpering, clung to Yumi’s leg, his small face buried in her fur.
Yumi took a deep breath, her chest expanding, and then let out a low, guttural chuckle.
– Very well, Leona Kingscholar. Let’s see if you can truly dance with the wild.
The common room, usually a place of lazy lounging, was about to become an arena. The secret of Nocta’s parentage had been revealed, igniting a firestorm. But in its wake, it had also forged a new path, a direct confrontation between Yumi and Leona, a clash of two kings, one born to privilege, the other forged in the crucible of survival. The hunt, it seemed, was truly on.