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When I was born, I had features that you don’t normally see in a lion. My mane was white, my tail was longer and thicker than the average lion’s tail, and my paws fur color was white. It went from my fingertips to above my wrists. I was six years old when I asked my parents about this. They said, “You are a lion, but you inherited some qualities of a snow leopard. You’re a hybrid, Shi.” That does make sense. My mother is a lion, and my father is a snow leopard. Honestly, it made me feel self-conscious. Thankfully my father knew just what to say to help me feel better, “It’s normal for anthros to be born a hybrid. You carry qualities of both your parents, and that makes you special.” Once I met other anthro children and they treated me like the others, I was convinced of my fathers words. From then on I felt proud to be who I am.

Then one day, my father came home with grave news. Our Emperor, Weng Lei, is planning to conquer the East Continent. Not only that, but he suspects that they are on to him leaking information to Nippon. We had no choice but to pack light and make a run for Nippon. We were fortunate to have made it to a port harbor and procure a ship, but then my Father suddenly left us. He said that a friend is in danger and that he must help them. So, mother and I waited patiently for his return.

Time passed, and the ship was ready for departure. My mother couldn’t wait any longer, and insisted that we board the ship. I wanted to wait for my father, but she expressed how important our safety was, and carried me to the ship. I listened, and got on with my mother. Just as we were setting out, we saw him running down the docks while holding a young leopard, and jumped across the dock and onto the ship. My mother and I were surprised that the friend he mentioned was actually a leopard cub. We went into our cabin, set the cub on a bed, and listened to his explanation.

“I failed my friend. Solomon was a dragon warrior, and possibly the only one who could defeat Weng Lei, but the imperials killed him. Poor Animus was so distraught that he cried himself to sleep. I don’t even know if his mother is alive or not.” My father was so ashamed that he struggled to give us eye contact.

“Oh dear…” My mom gave him a hug to give him comfort while speaking to him softly. “That was very brave of you to help them. You did what you could, and they would have been so happy that you saved their son.”

“Hmm. We can’t afford to relax yet. According to the gods, once a dragon warrior is dead, their blessing will be passed to their offspring. I must raise and train Animus so that he is ready to claim Izanagi’s power once he’s become an adult.”

“Shan. Surely someone else can handle the Imperials. We must not force this burden on someone so young.” It was hard to understand what my parents were talking about, so I just stared at Animus while they talked. My father’s tired groan caught my attention. I watch him give mother a kiss on the forehead and walk past her.

“I know how powerful the Emperor is, my love. He commands a staggering number of imperial soldiers, knows powerful magic, and has the royal advisor assisting him with experimentation. The armies in Nippon and Europe can try, but I doubt they’ll even reach the palace. I won’t tell Animus about the Dragon warriors until he is old enough to understand, and if he shows potential after his training.” He gets down on one knee and waits for Animus to wake up. The stern, sad look in his eyes had me concerned, but I just couldn’t find the words to say, so I stayed silent.

The four of us traveled across Nippon for days upon arrival. Father set his eyes on the city of Kyoto, because they have a close connection to Tokyo’s army and Honshu village, where a clan of ninjas reside to serve and protect the country and its prime minister. We made it safely and bought a house for us to live in. Father made it very clear that we are to hide our Chinese heritage and live as a Nipponese anthro. We changed our wardrobe, and our names to help blend in. I was given the name Shigeru, and Animus was now called Leo. The poor cub was still so sad and scared that he agreed without complaint. From then on, the two of us started living together.

For the next 12 years, Animus and I grew up going to school, learning self defense, and studying so we could attend college in Tokyo. My mother and father are expecting us to move there when we’re adults so that we are under the protection of Tokyo’s army. Then, our training to accept Izanagi’s blessing and fight the Emperor would truly begin. I stayed informed on what’s been going on in China thanks to the Honshu ninjas; Things have been quiet, and Weng Lei is ignoring his country's wishes for peace. My anxiety would grow stronger every time I was informed of the situation, but so does my desire to protect Animus.

During our last year of high school, I began to experience feelings and desires I never felt before. Whenever I hang out with Animus, and he expresses his joy and excitement in learning more recipes to cook, it fills me with joy. During my wrestling matches against other anthros, I would hear Animus cheering for me and it would fill me with the strength and energy I needed to fight hard and win my matches. Being around him fills me with so much joy that I forget the stress of entrance exams or reports on Imperial activity. I started to sense that he felt the same way. We told each other everything, we comforted one another during our sad days, and we hugged each other every night before bed. Is it normal for me to feel this way for him?

I decided to talk about this with my friend from the wrestling team, a tiger named Junta. He’s one of my best friends, so I felt comfortable asking him for advice. He looked at me with a friendly smile, patted my back and said, “It’s simple. You have feelings for him.”

“Feelings? For another guy?” I said in a puzzled tone.

“Yeah. Don’t worry. Here in Kyoto, same gender relationships happen often. Honestly, I could tell that you like and care about Leo a lot.”

I stayed silent. Social awkwardness is a flaw I’m very aware of, so I struggled to put how I was feeling into words. Just before Junta said more, my other friend, a hefty forest cat named Royma, walked up to us. He was eager to tell us something, and spoke in a deep tone. “Yo. I wanna tell you what happened between me and Leo yesterday.” Junta and I got curious, and let him talk. “We both had lunch together, and that was fun, but then he wanted to ask me for advice. Ha, me of all anthros for advice. I felt flattered.”

“I’m surprised! We all know how much of a lunkhead you are, Ryoma- Oof!” He was quick to pull Junta and wrap his arm around the frazzled tiger’s neck. “You got some nerve, pal!” He shouted while giving Junta a noogie on the head. They both laughed for a bit before Ryoma let him go. That made me smile too. I always enjoyed being with them despite their energy being too much for me sometimes.

“Anyway, he asked me how he should ask a guy if he is into other guys.” My eyes widened in surprise. All I could do was cross my arms and let him elaborate. “He’s got good instincts for asking me for advice. So, I warned him that it’s hard. It takes a good eye to know if a guy is into others. Then I told him I was the same.”

“What happened after that?” Asked Junta.

“Heh. I teased a little. I said, ‘Are you coming on to me?’, and that got him pretty flustered. He said, ‘No, here is someone else.’ So, I told him he has my support and gave him a warm hug.”

“Awe, that’s cool of you, dude.” Junta said while giving Ryoma a fist bump.

That made my respect for Ryoma grow, so I smiled and bowed my head. “Yes. Thank you for supporting him, Ryoma.”

“You’re welcome.” He said while putting his paws behind his head. Then a smirk crossed his lips while he looked at me straight in the eyes. “Well, you know what to do, big guy. I know you like Leo too.”

“Uhh…” Both my friends were right. I’ve grown fond of Animus, and now I want more than anything to tell him how I feel, so I gave them both a nod.

“If you do like Leo, then you got a shot with him, cause he obviously likes you.” Said Junta. Ryoma nods and gives me a comforting pat on the shoulder. “We won’t think any less of you if you do decide to dedicate your life to Leo. We got your back.”

I was so overcome with joy that I gave them both a hug. “Thank you. You two are true friends.” I said softly. They hugged me back, and then we walked together to our next class. Knowing that I have their support made my desire to be mates with Animus even stronger. I even got distracted a little during school work because I kept thinking about him. Then I thought about my mom and dad, and how they are expecting me to start my own family in the future. If they knew I had feelings for Animus, then I worry what they’ll do. They have the same mentality as other anthros and don’t accept same gender relationships. Then, I’ll just have to wait until Animus and I move to Tokyo before I tell him how I feel.

So much has happened after graduation. Just as we were about to leave for college, the Imperials found us. We don’t know how, but someone in Kyoto discovered Animus, and they revealed our location. They threatened to kill us unless we gave up Animus. As soon as Animus willingly gave himself up, I knew that he didn’t want a repeat of losing his parents. I couldn’t bear it if they took him away. I… I love him too much to lose him, so I gave myself to the empire too, much to my parent’s horror. The sadness I felt when our classmates saw us being taken away nearly made me lose myself to my emotions, but I bottled it up and stayed strong. For Animus, I must not show weakness.

For four long years, we were forced to do military training, study dangerous magic spells, and carry out missions under Weng Lei’s name. It had nothing to do with helping local settlements or supporting the other cities. We hunted down suspicious anthros, collected taxes, and recruited more anthros to the Empire. My father trained me to protect our Continent, not to promote war. Every day the anger in me stirred. Only on days that I could be with Animus helped me feel calm and peace. I couldn’t confess my feelings to him, but I often remind him that I am thinking of him, because we never work together on missions. Every night I lay in bed and pray that Animus hasn’t died.

I could never imagine the kind of mental pain Weng Lei could inflict on us, until the day I witnessed Animus fight a Feral Creature in Beijing’s underground arena. We both knew right away that our friend, Chiake, was turned into a feral by its appearance and corrupt voice. His pleas for Animus to kill him, the blood that ran down his muzzle, and Animus’s scream that filled the arena after landing the killing blow. I never felt so scared in my life. We swore that we would keep his plan to take his family away from China a secret, but that didn’t stop the royal advisor from ratting him out. Chiake is gone, Animus had a breakdown, and Weng Lei was laughing the whole time. Every fiber of my being wanted me to just turn feral and kill the Emperor right then and there. To hell with becoming public enemy number one, I wanted him dead!

Instead, I went to Animus, gave him a hug, and promised him that I will get us out of the Empire’s clutches. We both planned to pack light, procure a horse, and ride it as far away from Beijing as possible. Fortunately, we were able to do it, thanks to our knowledge of patrol routes at night. We were finally alone together, and away from the empire. Now, we just had to travel East, and return to Nippon. We obviously can’t go back to Kyoto now that our true identities are known. We’ll figure out what to do once we reach a ship. Anywhere is better than here in China.

The night sky is clear and filled with stars. Barely a soul was out in the forest. The air filled with the sound of bugs and a soft breeze. Animus wrapped his arms around my stomach and stayed alert for shadows while I focused on controlling our horse. Just because we are in a barren forest doesn’t mean we are safe. The shadows are very active at night. Thankfully we weren’t ambushed by any sort of monster. We stayed silent and focused on what’s ahead.

2 days passed, but our perseverance paid off; we reached a port town. We returned the horse to a stable and procured a fishing boat for just the two of us. The winds blew East, so it was the best time for us to cast off. After taking stock in our supplies, we untied the boat from the dock, and used wind magic to blow the sail East. We looked back at the city, and expressed our relief. China was finally behind us.

“We did it. We’re finally free.” Animus stretched his arms and let out a long sigh. I could tell that the anxiety he was feeling all that time is finally going away. He walks up to me and smiles. “You were right, we can change our fates. Thank you so much.”

I started to feel a surge of joy stir in me, so I gave Animus a hug. While I gently ran my paw down his back, I felt his paws on my back. We stayed like this for a minute, until a small wave pushed our ship and nearly made us fall over. Thankfully we have a good sense of balance, and stayed on our feet. We decided to stay by the wheel so I can steer the ship. Animus held a map and a compass so he could navigate me. “So, we’re going back to Nippon?”

“Yes. I have an idea on where we can go.”

“Where?” He asked while tilting his head.

“Do you remember what kingdom your father served as its General?”

“Umm…” I glanced at him and saw he’s rubbing the back of his head while closing his eyes. “I don’t remember.”

“It’s okay. After everything you’ve been through, it’s understandable that you struggle to remember things about your past.” It’s his way of keeping the trauma out of his mind, I thought to myself. “Okayama Kingdom, home to his majesty Naosona Okayama. Father told me that his majesty banished your parents so his kingdom wouldn’t be a target for Imperial Invasion. He must know of your Father’s fate, Animus.”

“Oh… I guess that is important.” He said in a soft tone. I saw his ears flatten while he stared at the ocean, so I put my left arm around his neck and gently pulled him towards me. “Will he even let us enter the kingdom?”

“Judging by your father’s letters, he expressed how much the King treated him like a grandson, so I would assume he’d be elated to meet you no matter what your nationality is, Animus.”

Animus stayed silent, but I did notice a soft smile in the corner of my eye. “Then I’ll speak with his majesty and tell him what happened.” He and I looked out at the ocean in peaceful silence for nearly two hours. We shared small talk over irrelevant stuff, like how he wanted to learn how to wrestle, so I expressed that I’d teach him once we find a place to settle. Then I told him that I’m interested in reading a manga series about a group of Banchos and the adventures they had while going to high school. Anything that would get our minds off our situation.

We were in the middle of the ocean, dozens of miles away from the mainland. According to the map, it’ll be a few hours until we arrive at Nippon. Our destination will arrive soon, and we both expressed our relief. The night sky was filled with stars again, and we couldn’t help but stare at it in wonderment. “It’s so beautiful.” Animus said while his face beamed with joy.

I didn’t look at the sky. My eyes were fixed on him. The glint of light that was lost in his eyes was back, and it made me smile. I was so overcome with joy that I felt now was the perfect time to tell him how I felt. So, I put my paw on his shoulder, and right as he looked at me, I smiled. “Animus. There is something I wanted to tell you for so long, and I can’t bottle it up any longer.”

“What is it?” He asked while fixing his gaze at my eyes.

“I haven’t stopped thinking about you for years. You are so kind, friendly, and funny. Our time together is the happiest I have ever been, and I can’t imagine life without you. I love you, Animus.”

As soon as I said those words, a slow gasp passed Animus’s lips. His tail wagged slowly from left to right, and he started to tear up. He closed his eyes, whipped them, and then smiled at me. “Shigeru. I feel the same way. Without you, I wouldn’t have the strength to continue living without my parents. You filled the void that was deep in my heart, and helped me grow strong and independent. I love you too, and I want to stay by your side, as your partner.”

Hearing his words made me the happiest I’ve ever been. I was never good at expressing my emotions, but I knew exactly what to do next. We both leaned towards each other, and pressed our lips together. We shared a long, passionate kiss under the moon lite sky. My life is now pledged to Animus. I will stay by his side forevermore, and protect him from whatever threatens to break us apart. After our moment, we held each other's paws and continued to steer our ship. Nippon came into view. It is just out on the horizon. Once we step foot on land, our journey will truly begin.

There is more to our tale, but for now I will leave it at that. Who knows, perhaps both of us will share more of our journey from each other's points of view. Despite the trials we will face, and no matter how strong our foes are, we will find the key to defeating Weng Lei, and save the East Continent from his grasp.

This is my road, and my journey.

• Written by Leopard_Samurai