Harsh Lessons

Isrea was enraged, pouring herself into her daily sparring ritual - leaving no stone unturned. For her unfortunate partner, they were dancing around lava pools, trying to avoid being singed while simultaneously trying to get close enough to her to actually spar. "Isrea! - Isrea!" They called desperately as some lava barely missed them. "We need to stop, we aren't sparring anymore - you're scaring me!" She yelled, however her calls for a cease and desist was ignored as Isrea hurled another chunk of lava her way anyways. However, this time the lava did meet it's mark and landed painstakingly upon her sparring partners fur - searing her pelt and causing her to let out the most blood curdling scream. Fortunately the sparring grounds were very close to the healers den and without a word spoken she left to tend to her wounds, crying and screaming along the way. 

Now left alone, Isrea stood in the elemental mess she had created, staring into the depths of the bubbling lava with a blank and empty expression. Not even once did she contemplate she should follow after her partner nor even consider her wellbeing. She just, remained there, letting her thoughts go quiet and her body go numb as she embraced the insane heat that wafted off of the sea of lava before her. This moment of quiet did not last long for Isrea however, as a figure rounded the corner and entered into the arena. His golden mane was unmistakable and his reputation even more so. 

"I don't want to talk Mitus." Isrea muttered halfheartedly, her tone devoid of any feeling. 

"Good - because all I want you to do is listen. Can you manage as much?" His tone was light but his words were burning with fury even if his expression didn't give it away. Isrea huffed in disinterest which was met with a more forceful response from Mitus. "Okay then, you will listen." He insisted, stepping in front of her so she had no choice but to face him while he spoke. At first she said nothing, not even bothering to match his gaze, but before long her red and blue eyes flicked up to meet the golden gaze of her adoptive father. 

"You've been sparring for as long as I have known you, it has always been your passion and I can appreciate a lion who gives dedication to their craft day in and day out. However, since your parents passing-" 

"Don't you dare speak of them!" Isrea said, her voice now seeping with rage. "You don't get to speak their names or mention them! You are not my father and I don't have to sit here and listen to this as if you know what they wanted for me!" 

"Isrea-" Mitus's voice was firm but cool, his gaze never wavering from hers and never looking anything other than sympathetic and understanding. "I don't expect you to view me as your father. Though I regard you as my daughter, the bond between biological parents cannot be replaced and I grasp that. But, I am not here to debate with you on the topic of parentage, so please let me finish." Mitus paused, his gaze becoming a bit more intense - trying to get Isrea to contain herself long enough to hear him out. Relenting, Isrea offered him a small nod coupled with an irritated huff. It was more than he expected and with her agreement, felt confident enough to proceed. 

"After what happened, your sparring has become exceedingly violent. Every sparring partner you have entered the ring with has left with severe wounds and needed the healers care for months in some cases. You must recognize that when you are here in the ring you are expected to work and to better yourself and your partner. Instead you're leaving them wounded and close to dead. I understand that you are hurting, it is clear to me your pain runs deep and is truly heartfelt but causing others pain or sparring till you fall apart will not bring them back." 

Isrea remained there motionless, not even a flicker of emotion crossed her eyes as Mitus spoke, almost like she wasn't hearing him at all. However the quick flicks of her tail was a big enough give away for him to know she was listening, even though she didn't want to. 

"You may respond now if you'd like." Mitus added, realizing that she was most likely waiting for him to continue. 

"There's nothing to say." She mumbled under her breath, ears now pinned back. 

"We both know that's not true." Mitus rebutted, pressing for her honesty. 

"What would you like me to say? Sorry? Why should I care about what anyone else thinks or what pain they are in? No one gives a shit about how I'm feeling. Everyone just expects me to get over it and to just pretend like I'm okay. Well I'm not okay! Is that good enough for you?" She finished with an indignant huff. 

"When you cross the line and almost kill someone Isrea, you may not care, but I do." Mitus insisted, his gaze growing slightly colder as he realized Isrea wasn't going to understand. 

"Good, then maybe you and everyone else can feel what I'm feeling! Then you'll get it." 

"Do not presume to threaten me or my people Isrea." 

"Oh so I'm not a part of your people now huh?" 

"Twisting my words will get you nowhere." Mitus practically hissed before he pulled himself back into a lighter tone. A heavy sigh escaping his lips before he spoke. "You are my child whether by blood or not and I will always care about you. Being my child however does not award you special treatment, I must protect the well being of everyone within the Oasis." 

"Well you're doing a shit job of protecting mine! So long as everyone else is happy then it's okay if I suffer alone right? I mean, look at Iskandor. Our parents died and he doesn't even care! He just moved on, acted like everything was fine. And since he is being a good, obedient little son you'll dote on him, but you'll come and lecture me when I'm the only one hurting here! You don't give a shit about what everyone is going through. It's your damn job to pretend afterall!"  Isrea pressed, the lava around them beginning to bubble as her emotions escalated. 

"Enough!" Mitus said finally, "Enough." He sighed, shaking his head in disappointment. He had pictured this encounter going better, but he knew Isrea had always been this way and ultimately it was going just around how it ought to have. 

"I would not be a council member for as long as I have, if I did not genuinely care for my constituents. And I would not have volunteered to adopt you and your brother if I did not care for you too. " Mitus insisted, "All I want is what's best for you - so yes, grieve. This pain that you have, this anger that surges inside you is normal. It will go from how it feels now, like a raging fire, to a little ember and then, one day, it will become a dull ache that will continue to be felt, it just wont hurt as much. You need to deal with it, but if you kill someone on accident in a fit of fury Isrea, it will be the final thing that tears you apart and I don't want that for you." His voice was sincere and his advice true. Isrea heard every word and knew in her heart that Mitus was right, but she wasn't ready to admit that. So instead she continued to sit there in silence as the storm raged on in her mind though with a little more clarity. 

"I don't want to kill anyone." Isrea mumbled under her breath, "I just want everyone to understand." 

"I know my dear. However, they cannot understand what you are going through if you do not open up about it. Not everyone is a mind reader you know." Mitus added with an airy chuckle before he shifted back into a more serious tone. However, seeing as he had covered a lot of ground, Mitus decided that this was a good stopping point for the conversation to allow some breathing room. So, instead of adding anything further, he offered Isrea some time to herself to ponder what had been discussed while remaining silent. He continued sitting across from her and decided to spend his time just looking up into the night sky, observing the stars and embracing the cold breeze that wafted through the stone walls of the sparring area. He was determined to wait for as long as it took to ensure Isrea understood that he was there for her.  

After an hour, Mitus finally stood up and sat down beside Isrea, wrapping one of his arms around her and pulling her close to him for a brief moment. "I'll always be here for you if you need me. All you have to do is come find me, I'll drop anything I'm doing, okay?" Mitus said, a small smile gracing his features as he briefly hugged his daughter. Letting go now, Mitus stood up and briefly stretched, a big yawn escaping his lips before he glanced back over at Isrea. "This old lion needs some rest. Take all the time you need - let's catch up later." 

Like he had appeared, Mitus had vanished back into the rest of the Oasis, leaving Isrea alone once again in the sparring grounds. Letting out a hefty sigh, Isrea rose to her feet, kicking a stone with her paw out of anxiousness before she caught a clear glimpse of the mess she had created. Suddenly the feeling of guilt washed over her - a guilt that she should have felt before when she had injured her sparring partner earlier or the countless others she had maimed prior. The weight of it was crushing and Isrea didn't know how to deal with it now that it pummeled her. As the guilty knot tightened in her stomach further and the sensation of not being able to breath set in, Isrea reacted to it in the only way she knew how - by casting another huge wave of lava up against the wall and screaming as loud as her lungs would let her. Mitus said the pain would eventually go away, that the crushing weight holding her down would one day dissipate, but in this moment all she felt was hurt mixed with hot fury. She still wanted to burn everything down, to let go and be numb. Wash away the guilt that now ate away at her,  however Isrea knew that those things would ultimately get her nowhere. 

So, Isrea began taking deep controlled breaths. Finding her center as she fought off all of the terrible thoughts within. She began to realize that as she found a way to control her immediate anger, the lava around her began to cool, until finally it became solid and no longer dangerous. Like scars, she thought, as she observed the black rock that now littered the sparring grounds. They would never go away and would remain as a constant reminder, but they wouldn't hurt like they used to. Isrea hoped what Mitus said would be true - that one day the agony she felt would just become a dull ache. That she could move on and that their loss wouldn't continue to torment her so relentlessly. 

She cracked a small smile as she thought about her adoptive father. She knew he had a way of getting into others heads and this time he had succeeded in getting into hers. Isrea would never tell him that or admit to him that what he had said was actually helping her, however Isrea decided then and there she would have to pay him back for that later.