Fear in the Dark

Fear in the Dark is a story by princeBalto.

Premise
I wanted to revisit the events of A Cheetah's Shame, so I decided to do it in the form of the grown Fuli having a nightmare about the incident one night. Because it is relived in a dream, it is exaggerated and a bit more horrific that what the original story showed. Kion and Fuli are grown here. This is a little before Asha's adoption.

Story
It is night. Darkness currently holds sway over the Pridelands.

In the Lair of the Lion Guard, the residence of of the now-grown Tetrarch Kion and his beloved cheetah mate Fuli, all seems calm, but it is not. Fuli's sleep is anything but peaceful. She is having a nightmare, a nightmare of the recent past. The incident is the one that horrified her the most: the moment where Kion was nearly killed by Scar's ghost. She sees herself a cub again, watching that moment. She watches in admiration as Kion steps toward the fiery ghost of Scar to confront him. The Guard had only figured out about his return when Kion saw him in the brush fire during the battle against Reirei and Janja. Fuli was so happy and excited to see her boyfriend's bravery.

That's when it all went wrong.

Suddenly, Kion began to groan in pain. Much to the delight of Scar and the Outlands Coalition, he began to bleed from his nose and mouth. Suddenly, Fuli felt something wet and warm. She looked down to see blood flowing over her paws. Looking at Kion, she saw that the bleeding had become a river of hot red blood. A scream the likes of which had never been heard before escaped her mouth. The laughter of Scar, Zira, Kiburi, Reirei, Janja and others increased, becoming a horrible taunt.

That's when her eyes snapped open.

It was all a dream. Fuli felt her heart beat hard in her chest. She took a few deep breaths and realized that Kion was still alive. She looked over at him. He was sleeping next to her. She felt some relief, but she realized that the events of that day would be with her. It certainly was good for all of the Pridelands, and for all lands beyond it, that Scar had now been defeated. He would never be able to return now, and most of his allies were taken care of. Janja was gone to parts unknown. Reirei and her family had reformed. Ushari was dead, having been eaten by Rafiki's staff after it assumed the form of a larger snake. Kiburi had been defeated by Makuu. Fuli laid her head back down, but not before giving a slight word of love to her mate.

I will always be here for you, Kion. I will do anything for you.