The Lion King

I shut the door, wait a few seconds, and then rush back into his hospital room. He wasn't there. Ha, this guy was way too easy to read.

I activate my +anima and approach the window, he was right below it, preoccupied with buttoning his shirt. I jump through the hole in the window he made and land fluidly on the ground in a squatting position.

I stand up and lean against one of the walls in the alleyway, staring at him, "I'm not stupid, you know."

Myô hadn't expected that to happen, but he had practice at hiding his emotions. He looked at her with a steely eyed glare, and continued to button up his shirt to hide his bandages. He popped his collar, and walked away.

I begin walking after him, just a few steps behind him so I wouldn't loose sight of him but I wasn't within range for a punch or a kick.

I think about it and say, "How about this: tell me why the rouges were chasing after you and I'll get out of your hair."

Myô answered, "How 'bout this, shorty, I tell you nothing, and you still get out of my hair."

I growl and deactivate my +anima as we approach the entrance of the alley way, "A little compensation is in order. I didn't have to wake up my pack and encourage them to save you. And then someone would've been breakfast, lunch, and dinner for a bunch of stupid, violent, nomad lions!"

Okay, so maybe I hadn't convinced them to fight, but I could've ignored the sounds and just went back to sleep. But I didn't. And thanks to that he is still alive.

Myô spun around and bared his teeth at her. Spitting through them he said acidly, "Let me tell you that in this big, bad world, you need to be fighting from the day you were born. Now get away from me, you leech."

He turned and strode away, using his long legs as an adnvatage.

Now most people would've either started crying, gotten angry, coward in fear, or something along those lines. But I was not "most people". No, far from it. Despite it all, having him show a little emotion actually made him feel somewhat more human.

I begin running this time, actually walking at his side this time with new found respect. "Call me anything you want, right now you need help and it looks like I'm the only one here to give it."

Myô growled. Now this girl had gone too far.

"Listen," he snarled, "If I tell you everything you want to know, will you leave me alone!?"

Completely unfazed, I say, "Sure. Why where the rouges chasing you?"

Myô began to walk again. "I killed their leader."

Killed ... the leader? It was supposed to be shocking news, but somehow putting him in that context didn't seem too weird. And it would explain why there were chasing him after all. It just told me to keep my guard up around him.

"Why did you run off to join the lions?" I ask.

"I didn't."

I blink, "Oh wow, two words. Aren't I special? So then how did you end up with the lions?"

"When the leader attacked, I became a +anima. I killed the lion and fainted. They found me."

"Huh," I say and pause for a second, not much you could say to that, "was it worth it? Becoming an +anima, I mean."

"Kept me alive like I was told to."

I blink again, "Told to by who?"

"I'm not going to tell you that."

His body had tensed, I could tell I was entering dangerous territory. I sigh and cross my arms, "... Do you like fighting?"

"Do you like fighting?" Myô shot back, still using the same bored tone of voice.

"I do believe I asked first. I don't like fighting for fun, but it can sometimes be really thrilling. So do you?" I answer matter-of-factly.

"I'm not a fighting person. Or a people person, for that matter."

I wave my hand dismissively, "Me either. Lions are so much easier to understand and work with."

Myô said nothing, just exhaled through his nose.

I narrow my eyes and study his expression, taking in every detail I could detect. This guy was not easy to read, but I'd do my best. After studying him and thinking it over, I say with just a hint of sarcasm, "I do believe I'm annoying you. But I've still got questions. What did you suddenly take off for when we first met?"