That was too much for me.  "That's it," I said as I arose,
my eyes blazing with anger, "now he's done it."


  Phil and Naline had been fuzzy towards one another for
something like three years, ever since her kitten days.  Back
then he'd been kinda nice and kinda mean.  Since then, the
nice had given way to the unpleasant by a wide margin, and
he constantly had her in tears.  Unfortunately, Naline had a
bad case of the fuzzy-wuzzies for him, and she couldn't see
clear enough to dump him like the bad trash that he was.

  I'd gotten the call late at night and I'd flashed into the
savanna to find my best lioness friend in tears.  Tonight's
episode had started when Naline had found out that Phil had
been - ahem - friendly with another lioness behind her back.
When she'd confronted him, he'd gotten angry and smacked
Naline in the face.

  He'd bullied, he'd pushed, he'd abused, but he'd never
physically hurt her.  But now he'd crossed that line.  Now
he'd hurt my little Kitten.  Now he was going to pay.

  "What are you going to do?"  She paced worriedly alongside
me as I stomped down the savanna towards the Rock.  She tried
to read my face as I ground my teeth and uttered highly
impolite things under my breath.  Her eyes followed my every
move as I unholstered my gun and shoved a full clip of
explosive bullets into it.  I chambered two rounds into the
twin barrels with a metallic 'chik-clack' that echoed down
the savanna grasslands.

  She immediately understood what I was about to do.  "No!"
She swiftly jumped in my way, blocking my path, her eyes
pleading with mine.  "Don't, please!"

  "Kitten, this..." keep cool, now... calm and control...
"this disrespectful, vulgar goon has done nothing but treat
you badly for years."  I stepped around her and continued
towards the Rock.  "And now I'm going to put a stop to it for
good."


  "No, please don't."  She once again blocked my way and
pleaded with me with tears in her eyes.  "I love him."

  How many times had I heard that story before?  Too many.
Boy meets girl, girl falls crazily in love, boy treats girl
like sewer scum, girl says she loves him and lives unhappily
ever after, convinced she's somehow going to change him.  I'd
seen it too many times in too many places, and now it was
happening to Naline.  It's enough to make me wanna spit.

  "Doesn't he call you names?  Doesn't he make you feel
unloved?  Doesn't he make you feel worthless??"  Her gaze
fell to the ground.  I kneeled before her and gently lifted
her chin until our eyes met.  I softly brushed her bloody
cheek.  "Didn't he do this to you?"

  Her answer was but a whisper.  "But I love him."

  I tried to reason with her.  I tried to convince her.  I
tried a hundred ways to make her see that he simply was not
the guy she thought he was.

  But, alas, I was unsuccessful.


  Her only reply to my every argument and objection was "But
I love him."  How could I argue against that with mere logic?

  I had been in this situation before, and the rational
approach had failed me every time, even as it was failing
now.  Perhaps a new strategy was needed.

  "You know what?"  I abruptly stood up and pushed her away.
"I think he's right."  I took a few steps and turned away
from her.  "I think he's right about everything."

  I couldn't see her expression, but I could feel her
incredulity and shock.  "Wh.. what?"  The pain and hurt in
her voice was almost too much for me to take.

  "I think he's right.  About you.  About everything."  Did
your parents ever tell you that it hurt them more than it
hurt you when they punished you?  They were right.  It tore
my heart to say the words, and I prayed like crazy that my
gamble would work.

  "Not only are you clumsy and slow," I felt her cringe at
the words, "you're also dimwitted and unattractive.  Heck,
you're lucky any male lion would even look at you."


  "C-Cruz...?"  Her face quivered with pain and unbelief.  I
turned around and saw a crushed lioness, heartbroken and
afraid, tears burning with the hurt of betrayal.  I longed
to end the charade and hug her and comfort her, but this was
for her own good.  My poker face had never been so strained.

  "I'm sorry I found you in the jungle.  I'm sorry I ever
led you back."  I pointed in the direction of the Rock, "I'm
sorry I burdened your pride with a useless mouth to feed.
You should go running to Phil and beg him to take you back."

  By this point, all Naline could do was stare with empty
eyes and sob.  I slowly approached her and whispered into
her ear as I kneeled next to her.  "You're worthless."

  "I...," she looked about helplessly, tears in her eyes and
confusion in her heart.

  "Face it, you're no good, a nobody,"  I leaned closer and
whispered forcefully, "you're worthless."

  "I..."  Her mouth moved as she tried to say something, but
nothing but sobs came out.


  "A worthless lion if ever I saw one."

  "I..."  Her eyes closed tight and every muscle in her
body quivered with pain.

  Everybody has a point beyond which they will not tolerate
any more abuse.  Some will put up with a lot, others with
none.  Some don't take any guff from anybody, others let
themselves be used as floor mats.  Up to this point, Naline
had let what's-his-face walk all over her.  She'd let him
push, use and abuse.  It was my hope that if I prodded her
just enough, she'd come to that psychological point where
one's had enough and won't put up with it anymore.

  But I knew I was pushing both her and my luck a little far.
Perhaps just a little too far.

   I gripped her head in my hands and forced her to face my
withering, despising expression.  "Face it," I gritted my
teeth and spat out the words, "you're worthless!"

  That did it.  That pushed her over the edge.  A wave of
rage burst through Naline and her face steeled in anger.  She
roared with white-hot fury, "I AM NOT WORTHLESS!!"  Naline
exploded with a powerful blow that hurled me back into the
air.


  Next thing I remember was grass in my mouth and stars
dancing before my eyes.

  "Cruz!"  Naline was right at my side, "Gods, I am so
sorry!"  Her tears of anger had turned to tears of regret.
She helped me sit up with the gentlest care.  "I am so very,
very sorry," she apologized as she looked me over with
motherly concern, "are you okay?"

  A stream of hot blood flowed from my neck somewhere.  Just
a scratch, nothing fatal.  My expression must have been an
open book, because she immediately read the whole thing in
my eyes.  She saw right through everything I had been saying
and understood exactly what I had been trying to do.  "Oh,
gods, I am so, so sorry."  She gently doctored the wound
with her tongue as she sobbed.

  "I've been so blind!"  A torrent of hurt feelings and
sudden realization poured forth as everything became clear.
Naline suddenly stopped and looked right into the center of
my soul with her large emerald eyes.  "But I might have
killed you!  Why did you do it?"

  I smiled as I gingerly turned my neck.  "Love hurts."

  What else was there to do?  We cried together, alone in
the darkness of the savanna night.

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