Gerbil

Born at a disadvantage, with her two siblings, one sharing her same life punishment, dwarfism, Her mother had passed the trait to her and her sister, the lynx, only her brother, Mouse, was safe from the punishment.

She grew up knowing her father was in a different tribe, In her first four months she was taught that her sister would leave, and she and her brother, mouse, was to stay with their mother.

Her world revolved around her family, she hoped her sister had a good pride leader, Levi was always been not a great leader, but a leader at that… she hoped lynx went to a good leader that she had been taught about by her mother. Her mother said Bones, her father, was a respectable alpha, she hoped to meet him one day.

She would always listen intently when her mother told stories, she even was told her father knew her current leader! It shocked her but who wouldn’t believe their mother’s stories? She had no reason to assume her mother was a liar.

It was only her 2nd month of living when her brother got slaughtered. She and her siblings had been playfighting, when Levi stormed in, mothers rushed around, some hiding cubs, others trying to guard the defenseless creatures, Okapi stayed curled around her cubs till a fellow mother had her cubs killed. Then a mother distracted Levi momentarily by claiming a cub ran out.

Okapi shoved the twin dwarfs into a female’s nest that was drenched in blood, the female covered the twins with her overgrown fluff not thinking they would look the scene unfold.

Levi stormed over, snarls leaving both Levi and okapi. The female tried to guard her remaining cub, mouse innocently made a chirp towards the blood-drenched leader, Levi's eyes stared holes at Mouse yet Mouse only chirped again.

Okapi got shoved to the side with a swift paw from Levi. The female watching over the cubs then noticed the two prying eyes of the cubs who watched curiously. She used her head and cover the cubs more keeping their sight from seeing the scene about to unfold.

Okapi watched in horror as Levi lunged at the chirping cub, a soft confused chirp was heard before a sharp cry. Then silence… okapis ears turned back. As she let out a strangled sob. Curling around her eldest cub, Mouse was gone… not a single bit of life left in his eyes, his heart not beating…

After Levi left the female released the two cubs who hurried to their heartbroken mother. Who stared at the cubs with sad eyes. She knew she needed to raise these cubs, but after would she have the will to continue?

After the twin girls were weaned they shared a final goodbye as the new pride leader, Marco, picked lynx up and padded away, wanting to finish the deal the old pride leader started. Unsure if he would continue after the cub was dropped off.

Gerbil hopped her sister was okay, hoped she was living a lavish life in the new pride. Was there sire nice? Did he welcome lynx with open paws? She was unsure but prayed for the best.

After lynx left okapi broke down more, she distanced herself from gerbil when she cub needed her mother most…

Her emotions were all over the place when GrandPaw Levi leeched onto her, feeding her lies and feeding her fears. Drawing up a perfect scheme to claim the dwarf cub as his little princess… a female who would one day claim the pride as her own with a mate by her side.

Her coat was bland, eyes told the story of an unwanted cub. Levi used the remaining silver beetles and golden beetles he had from his leadership and bought black market items. Feeding them to the cub till she was unrecognizable.

Her pelt burned, molted rapidly, and her eyes couldn’t open for days. But after 6 months of work, her pelt grew to a dark grey, mixed with pale greys, white and black. Her eyes opened to a violet.

She became emotionally distant, other than to GrandPaw Levi. she watched her mother open up to a new dwarf traveler, velvet. But felt nothing.

Her love for her sister turned to hate and rejection. Her sister abandoned her. Her sister left her. Her sister killed her brother, they both did. If they hadn’t been born their mother could’ve protected their brother.

Levi taught her, to be proper, a princess, to scowl at all those ill-bred lions, those potatoes, She scowled at Marco, some leader, he couldn’t even put down an ill-bred lion without feeling guilty.

Her violet eyes wouldn’t even linger on an ill-bred lion, choosing proper lions to become friends with, though all need to be approved by grandpaw Levi. She knew he would leave someday. But knew she would be ready to live the world in his image when he did. She would make him proud.

When she reached a year old, she was an adolescent, a teenager. A lioness to be. Just a year to go until she could start her hunt for the perfect mate. One year until she could start shaping the perfect pride through manipulating Marco if that’s what it took.

She often saw lionesses go to her sires’ pride, wondering why he would breed with ill-bred lionesses, didnt he wants a pure bloodline? She wondered it often. She also wondered if she would meet him one day. Would she be able to get her questions answered?

Did she even care about that anymore? He was a traitor like her sister, would he breed with her broken mother again? She didnt want siblings. Levi assured her she wouldn’t have siblings he would personally kill any cubs of her mothers unless they were cursed like her. It didnt reassure her but made her happy. Her broken mother. Only being allowed to have female dwarfs. It was perfect. A lifelong punishment for her not protecting the mouse all those months ago.

As soon as she became a teen Levi seemed to start gathering beetles again. He left one morning returning late at night with a crystal. Holding it with his mouth towards the adolescent female.

She looked curiously taking it from him. He ordered her to eat it, not to even leave a single crystal uneaten, she obeyed eating the crystal. It seemed to burn her flesh, her bones broke and snapped. And she quickly started to grow. She realized after the pain stopped and her mind became clear that she was a bit smaller than an adult dwarf lioness. Levi had helped her grow, he helped her rush her journey.

He then huffed and pawed the ground "I knew you wanted to be an adult to start your mission so I got the aging crystal from the oasis. I think your blood traitor of a sister is getting one too, can’t let her outage you" he purred out after.

For the first time since her brother was murdered. Her eyes watered and she rubbed her head against Levi’s mane purring loudly "thanks…" she then started pacing.

Next month she would become an adult. Next month she would start her first heat. Have her first cubs. And start her mission of making the pride her own. She shook her ears out after a moment. "I can’t wait… cant want to shove my life in my sister’s face," she growled out sister.

No, that traitor wasn’t her sister. She wouldn’t admit to being related to THAT dwarf who left her. Abandoned her in this hell of a home, a pride that didnt share the same values as she and grandpaw Levi had. Proper bred lions and lionesses, Ill-breds shouldn’t be allowed to travel with a pride. She huffed and then stared at Levi for a moment he opened his jaws to reply to her last statement.

"Im proud of you Princess. You shall rule this pride from the shadows… when you become a lioness you must stay from me during the day. Meet me at night. Make Marco fall for you, then use it against him. Fine a proper mate to lead with then you take Marco down" he ordered calmly.

Gerbil nodded "yes grandpa Levi. I understand."

He nodded to her before padding away leaving her to her thoughts. Gerbil thought about her life till this point. Her time with Grandpaw Levi, her time with her mother, her time with lynx. If it had been a year and some months ago, she would’ve missed her sister, missed her mother. But now all she missed was her proper bred brother, the one her mother didnt protect well enough.

If only her mother wasn’t cursed with dwarfism. She would’ve still had a brother if her mother was better. She would’ve not been cursed herself if it hadn’t been for her mother’s side.

She growled. She wanted to meet her sire. Give him a piece of her mind. He wouldn’t recognize her, maybe her scent but not her looks. Gerbil wanted to show her sister how much she has grown, possibly attack her sister. She wondered if she could steal a cub of her sisters one day. Raise a proper-born cub that could be damaged by her traitor of a sister.

She was a lioness now, she went right into heat due to a gift from Levi, well a few gifts, he gave her a zebra heart, lion scrotum, buffalo balls, a nest, and a strange feather.

She ate all the items before flirting with Marco, her tail flicking under his chin to get his attention before she hurried into an empty burrow.

A few days later, after a trip to a strange bird who for a few beetles told Marco she was expecting. The rapid growth of the cubs seemed overnight, one moment she was slim preparing for her cubs, the next she was in pain laboring them, Levi stayed close to her, watching the female he watched grow up, the female who he would’ve killed if he had the chance, now a powerful female giving birth to a new generation of powerful cubs he could brainwash.

After hours of labor, 3 cubs were born, all too tired to stay up as they nursed from their mother calmly. Not thinking of the life they would have in the future. Okapi watched sadly from the sidelines, her daughter… her little princess, had kids of her own… okapi was a grandmother yet she couldn’t see her own grand cubs due to Levi and due to her own fear. Velvet helped her emotionally but still, okapi was unsure if she would be okay… what if her cubs died again. What if her daughters’ cubs died if she went near them.

Upon closer look, Gerbil noticed out of the three daughters, two seemed.. Small… almost like she and her… dead sister had. Yes, that would be perfect. Her sister was dead to her so why not call her dead? She would raise these cubs, cursed or not. To know their dwarven aunt died a dishonorable death. And her poor late brother, died an honorable death to keep them safe.

Levi approached shortly after everyone left the lioness on her own. Expecting the cubs silently.

“Two are dwarfs. Two are cursed. The other is a potato. She must perish for the cursed cubs to live” he stated coldly towards his pawn.

Gerbil frowned “cant I raise her? Send her to the giving tree when she is weaned..?” she asked hopefully. Unsure if she would be able to kill the cub or have them killed. She loved her cubs already.

“Fine. but don’t get attached. Your best hope I don’t send one of those dwarfs to my friend. Your sire.” he growled out upset she disobeyed him before leaving “name them. They are cursed just like you”

After he left gerbil stared at the cubs, they were a product of her seducing Pride leader Marco. They had his base. One of the cubs looked just like him.

“Moose and beetle…” she purred out softly grooming the two dwarfs before looking at the remaining cub. “You shall be raised like them… but never given a name… For I can not become attached”

She then stared at the cubs a final time before falling into her own sleep, the back of her conscious thinking about if dwarf twins were a curse that she was to be stuck with. Was her sister going to have such a curse too? Dwarf twins… if Levi was the leader he would sell their heats to the highest bidder, that she knew, but would Marco do that to his own cubs? She hoped not but would she find it in herself to care about that after they were weaned, she had a job.

Claim the pride. Raise proper-bred lions as Grandpaw Levi told her to, with the virtues he knitted into her brain. With a final thought of her cubs and their future, she drifted to a dreamless sleep.

Awoke by loud screech. She opened her violet eyes to see Marco staring down at a trio of newborns, all awarded to a dwarf who seemed to be overly prideful. Her eyes were foggy with sleep but as soon as she noticed her cubs missing, she snarled. Charging towards Marco and shoving the burly male away.

She snatched her cubs from the dark elder dwarf carrying them back to her nest angrily. She then turned and hissed “keep your filthy paws off my cubs! You ill-bred swine!” she curled around them before looking at Marco who seemed shocked.

“Marco!” her aura changed, from angry to sweet and joyful.

He smiled softly padding over “how are the cubs? I thought they were yours…” he went quiet watching the cubs curled to their mother,

She nodded “that ill-bred must’ve stolen them in my sleep. Thank you pride leader for keeping them safe” she bowed her head submissively. It was an act that Marco seemed to fall for always, smitten by the violet-eyed dwarfen female.

“O-of course! Anything for you” he nuzzled into her, his royal fluffy mane tickled her nose making her sneeze.

Marco was easy to control, he only desired to breed with her, of course before she was of age he had cubs but now he seemed loyal.

“The cubs are good, but I’ve decided to send… Koi to the giving tree when she is of age” she stated making sure not to mention Levi.

Marco frowned but slowly nodded “okay… but why? Is she unhealthy? How are the other two?” he asked worriedly.

Gerbil kept away from eye contact to keep her act up. “They are healthy… but they are cursed with dwarfism like me if you had not noticed” she sighed softly.

Marco frowned again “dwarfism isn’t an issue, they shall grow healthy, they shall be royalty in the pride… no one would ever touch them” he purred at the thought of her daughters growing up happy.

While all Gerbil could think about was Marco’s death.