Hikari was miserable. Sure he’d had bad days before, but never had he been so blatantly and harshly hated for no reason he could understand. The second cub, the female, she hadn’t been so bad after all. But her brother…her brother…how…how could he just…hate him? Hikari didn’t understand. He couldn’t understand. But it hurt. It hurt more than anything else ever had to know his existence would be denied him should the chance arise. Sniffling quietly, afraid his mother would fly into a rage if she knew, he huddled in the back corner of their den and tried to think invisible thoughts. The den was the safest place he could think of right now, everyone else was always out…


Something was wrong, she had had a feeling in her gut for most of the day. Something about the way some of the younger ones had been yelling earlier. Cruel words she had barely heard so busy was she with trying to practice more. The new fighter she had so hoped would show her a few tricks had seemed so entirely un interested in anything but her aunt’s orders. But now she was on her way back to the den to just check that the yelling and the crying had not been anyone important. Except it seemed it had been, because her brother was crying. He tried to act like he was not, but when words felt meaningless all body language became important. Quietly she made her way across the den to nudge his shoulder. She would find out what made him cry and make it better.


Hikari choked in mid-snuffle, looking up at the nudge to his shoulder. Mother hadn’t found him, had she? Oh, no. No it wasn’t Aiko. It was… “K-kanie?” the white hybrid sniffled, brushing his paws along his muzzle to try wiping away the tears. “Wh-what?” he asked after a moment. She wouldn’t make fun of him for crying again, would she? She never cried. He wished he could be more like her. Strong, graceful, fearless…


This was not acceptable. This would not do. Kanie growled as her brother sniffled and tried to stop or hide his tears. Something was hurting him. She wanted to know what. She wanted to hurt whatever it was. Wanted to kill it. And she probably could too. She had grown strong. Quick. Cunning. Ferocious. Sure her kills had all thus far been prey animals. But some day, and some day soon it would be, that would change. Perhaps she might start with whatever made her brother so sad. In her customary silence, she leaned forward to tug on his ear. It was ragged and chewed looking from all of her attention. But her brother knew that she meant him no harm in doing this. She loved her pale brother. He had always been able to understand her.


“Kanieeeee…” the young hybrid whined as his ear was tugged. It hurt when she did that, it really did! But he didn’t really mind, not exactly. He knew it was just her calling him hers. He didn’t mind that, it was actually pretty nice to know someone wanted him around. Even if it was just so that he’d be her chewtoy or practice dummy. At least two people cared. Mama and Kanie. And maybe Dysi, except he liked Dysi a great deal more than he had the courage to admit right now. And besides, the leopard had been so scarce lately…

“I…I’m okay sis,” he tried to assure her, hoping it would save his poor ear some damages.


Kanie gave her brothers striped pink ear one last good tug before relinquishing her toothy grip. She licked it instead, and then settled to curl up around her sibling. She had grown bigger than he had, taking after something larger than a cheetah for almost all of her build. Except for her whipcord leanness she was more compact and muscular and large than her sibling. Her feet were small too, where Hikari had larger feet than his legs. No wonder he seemed to be so clumsy. A scratchy purr starting up in the back of her throat, she nuzzled her older sibling.


She knew, how did she always know? Hikari didn’t know. But Mama and Kanie, they seemed to find him when troubles bothered him. Usually it was mama who cuddled and comforted, but Kanie had watched before. He’d seen her pale eyes in the shadows, though the rest of her…she blended so well. Scary. Sometimes she was very scary. “I’m just…a little sad…and…lonely. It feels like not many people want me here, but…but I…I don’t know where else to go…” he confessed, feeling his throat get tight again and snuffling as he curled up even further beneath his sister’s odd embrace.


Who dared? Who dared to make her brother feel unwanted like that? Sad like that? Rage twirled in her breast, and her fangs were abruptly bared in a snarl that did not long stay silent. Kanie growled, giving rare voice to her displeasure. “Who?” Her tone was gutteral and broken. Disuse seemed to do that. But it was uncommon for her to chose to share a thought. Why speak when she could act? But the question was important. It would give her some way to act.


Who? She wanted to know who? Hikari shrank slightly, shaking his head. “I…I don’t know…a cub.” Now he felt foolish. She wouldn’t laugh at him for crying over a cub’s words, would she? Would she? “Blue. And he didn’t know me either so…so…so I d-don’t know wh-why he…he…he h-ha-hated me…” The thought brought fresh tears to his eyes. It was pathetic really, how on and off crying he’d been about this all day, but the feeling! Oh it was such a horrid, horrid feeling, knowing someone somewhere hated him to death it seemed. He wanted to curl up and die or throw up, but prefferably not both at once. Because…ew…


Slowly Kanie nodded as her brother explained. Cheetah cubs. A blue cheetah cub. There could not be many about. She would find him. And then she would teach him what it meant to be loyal to family. She would give him a lesson in loyalty that he would never be able to forget ever. No matter how he tried to hide it. Maybe she would take an eye, someone who might do something like that did not deserve to look upon her family. Or if an eye was too dramatic, a toe then. A tooth. An ear. Some sort of little…reminder. Hikari was her brother. No one was allowed to touch him but her.


There was something wrong here, something bad, something that promised trouble was about to happen. Gulping nervously, the white hybrid twisted to look over his shoulder at his sister where she lay curled all around him. “K-kanie? Why…why do you want to know?” he asked anxiously, licking his lips as his mouth got dry. “It…it’s not important! You don’t have to do anything!” he hasted to try explaining. She wasn’t going to get herself into trouble on his account was she? WAS SHE???


He was so sweet her brother. So precious. Forcing herself to relax, to softly so softly purr, Kanie licked his cheek. She wasn’t going anywhere right now. First she would calm him down. Soothe him. Make him feel loved and wanted. And then, perhaps after their mother Aiko had returned home and could take over. Well. Then there was going to be one very, very sorry blue cub.

She would see to that.