# The White Tiger

Author: Admiral Akio
Tags: Anthropomorphic, Intro, Poetry, Series, Tiger, Tigress

#1 of Akiko Against Many

This is how I write when I do kid's stuff. If you want me to write 1,000-2,000 words, this is the kind of thing I do. Leave me a comment, a like, or a vote! PM me or put up a shout-out if you want to do a collab or have me act or sing for you! If you happen to be able to run it past a kid, hey, I only have access to a couple, thanks! If you happen to know an english major, play 'find the sonnet'!
More of this story to come because I love Mary Sues and I don't care who knows it!

As the great snowstorm subsided, I looked out from under my&nbsp;

shelter and strode into the wild again. The great stone&nbsp;

structure, something like a tent, was left behind with the embers&nbsp;

of the fire still blazing bright orange. My paw brushed the first&nbsp;

few flakes of snow from my shoulder before I decided to cover&nbsp;

myself with my cloak.

Back in those days, I was flaunting my invincible reputation by&nbsp;

wearing an outfit that exposed my heart, major thigh veins, and&nbsp;

upper arms. The cloak I wore was for fighting dragons, and&nbsp;

absorbed their deadly fire. This enchanted cloak's fabric kept me&nbsp;

warm in the winter, as well, because it kept some of the heat&nbsp;

from flames that tried to burn it. On my back, I carried an axe&nbsp;

with a bright yellow-gold blade that once belonged to my father.

My father and mother were the end goal of this journey. Like my&nbsp;

King, I had a gray eye, striped tiger fur, the strength of steel,&nbsp;

a talent for losing my temper, and the face and claws of an&nbsp;

animal. Like my mortal mother, I had a green eye, an impressively&nbsp;

curved body, a talent with weapons, and a knowledge of the rite&nbsp;

of human mantras.

The flakes that just before fell on my shoulders now quickly&nbsp;

diverted their path away from me, even falling straight up near&nbsp;

my hooded head. I strode through the last of the rocky wasteland&nbsp;

near the sea and into the cold hills, my paws off of the slick&nbsp;

rocks and onto the hard-packed volcanic land. The hills, shocked&nbsp;

at my presence, stood their hair of trees straight up and caught&nbsp;

the warm air under their leafy canopies. The path that I strode&nbsp;

out on was still well-worn, and a sign posting less than a league&nbsp;

from the sea told me that I would reach the main hold of the Gods&nbsp;

of this land- like my own grandmother- soon.

The long road carried on through the woods until it broke into&nbsp;

the spirit world. I sighed as the familiar smell of thistles and&nbsp;

clover blossoms wafted past my broad, tigerish nostrils. I gave a&nbsp;

satisfied snort and picked up the pace, almost out of the cold.&nbsp;

To an ordinary human, the path would have appeared to ended&nbsp;

somewhere after the third fork, but ahead of me there was a human&nbsp;

that seemed to be waiting for something. I grinned and rushed up&nbsp;

to them, calling out, "Is that you, Mother?"

The human was wearing the clothing of a servant, just as my&nbsp;

humble mother did, but it was not her. She bowed low and then&nbsp;

said to me with an air of formality, "King Akio waits for you in&nbsp;

his violet palace," before taking my hand in the traditional&nbsp;

manner and leading me down to the brick roads with eyes always on&nbsp;

her destination.

"My Servant, what is your name?" I asked, as I always did when&nbsp;

first meeting a servant. My Father, and even his humble consort,&nbsp;

never called them by there names. I found a happy medium in using&nbsp;

my Mother's vocabulary to call them by their name first, and then&nbsp;

an honorific. They always thought I would grow out of it.

"Birra, my Lady."

"Birra-dorei, is my Mother coming to see me? She greeted me where&nbsp;

you stood the past two times I arrived. You must know this, do&nbsp;

you not?"

"King Akio ordered me here, my Lady, to bring you to him."

I didn't press the issue, as any servant wouldn't say anything&nbsp;

that they weren't told to. But my mind settled on the worst even&nbsp;

before I learned that it was true. We arrived at the spirit&nbsp;

location that we were looking for, a ring of stacked stones with&nbsp;

great curtains hanging in each huge doorway-like opening.

The servant led me to the stones that housed the great purple&nbsp;

curtain. I raised my hand slightly to her face, and she smiled&nbsp;

hugely and kissed it, thanking me and bowing backwards. I smiled&nbsp;

graciously as I internally rolled my eyes at how happy she was to&nbsp;

serve me.

Not wishing to make a grand entrance, I pushed the curtain aside&nbsp;

with a paw and stepped through lightly. My bare padded feet fell&nbsp;

softly on the purple-specked grey floor until they made contact&nbsp;

with the long violet carpet that led to my Father's High Seat.

As I walked to approach him, he stood and walked down the steps&nbsp;

to denote that we were equals. He called across the hall in a&nbsp;

booming voice, "My Daughter Love! How I did long to see that&nbsp;

smile and hear your sweet and loving voice."

"My Father Love! You made your call to me, I traveler far&nbsp;

because it was my choice to leave behind adventures brave and&nbsp;

come to see my Lord and Master, and his Wife."

"Such praise as that keeps me under your thumb. I have grave news&nbsp;

about your Mother's life. Please follow me if you would help me&nbsp;

find a way to bring her back and ease my mind."

My face turned as harsh as his as the magic of meeting with&nbsp;

another Eclipse Heir wore off and his words sank into my heart.

"Mother? Gone? Were you not here to protect her?" My face grew&nbsp;

enraged as my fealty was replaced with fear, almost running to&nbsp;

follow my Fathers rushed steps.

He turned to me with his own anger boiling under the surface. "I&nbsp;

was not, because there are duties that keep us apart. While I&nbsp;

told her to wait in a safe place, she was attacked. This is not&nbsp;

the time for anger. Anger is the sign of one who is too weak to&nbsp;

act." His own paws were balled into fists, all the same.

"If you won't let me turn my rage on you, then at least tell me&nbsp;

who I should be taking action against," I snarled at him, hefting&nbsp;

my battleaxe onto my shoulder pointedly. He looked at it and gave&nbsp;

a sad smile, briefly, before going on.

"Lady Akiko, the one who took your mother was an old enemy of&nbsp;

mine. They trapped her in a relic that I did not even know I&nbsp;

owned." The long hall terminated in a small shrine, where there&nbsp;

was a portrait of my mother, golden-skinned and black-haired.&nbsp;

Below it, among candles and a vase holding a bright green&nbsp;

arrangement, was a short scabbard that was inlaid with jade. The&nbsp;

delicate glass vase held only a sprig of amaranth supported by a&nbsp;

cedar leaf, speaking in the old tiger tongue of the love that&nbsp;

gods feel for their mates. "This scabbard was brought without my&nbsp;

knowledge to my domain, and I did not cleanse it of Kyrameha's&nbsp;

spiritual presence."

He did not look into my eyes as he said this. I did not need to&nbsp;

feel the special spirit-world connection with him to know how&nbsp;

guilty he felt at that moment, but my anger still would not&nbsp;

subside. Instead, I tried to turn it to good use. I had dealt&nbsp;

with many of Kyrameha's lingering enchantments in my time.

"So one of Kyrameha's spells got through. Who brought it there,&nbsp;

so I may kill them? What did he do, so that I may rectify it?"

"Your Mother is now held inside of this relic." His paw signaled&nbsp;

the treasure on the shrine. "There is no way I know how to&nbsp;

release her. She herself brought it to our lands, when Kyrameha&nbsp;

sent her to be sacrificed to me. She brought it for her own&nbsp;

protection, I suppose."

"That leaves my rage mightily unsatisfied," I admitted as my&nbsp;

shoulders fell.

"Mine, as well, my Daughter." He lightly brushed the strange&nbsp;

weapon casing, and I winced as our weakness against gemstones&nbsp;

caused his palm to sizzle and burn. He didn't seem to feel it at&nbsp;

all- or perhaps he did, as tears started to gather in his eyes.&nbsp;

"Were she even captured by the First Dragon, I would seek him out&nbsp;

and slay him," he said through ground fangs. "However, I have&nbsp;

more pressing matters. There is a Dragon uprising in the lands&nbsp;

near the Mountain, and the secret of how to break this spell may&nbsp;

lurk there."

"The Mountain! I thought that was the very seat of our power," I&nbsp;

squinted at him. "Now I understand. I shall seek out and slay&nbsp;

these dragons, and find the answer to this riddle." I went to&nbsp;

place my hand over my heart to seal it formally.

"NO!" he roared at me, spinning his whole huge form and blocking&nbsp;

the hand from reaching my chest (nearly as broad as his though I&nbsp;

was much shorter) by grabbing it gently but forcefullly. "That is&nbsp;

my duty, Akiko-sama." He smiled as he said my name the way I&nbsp;

preffered. "I need to do that on my own. There is a much greater&nbsp;

glory waiting for you."

"I do not desire glory, but duty, Akio-sama. Take me with you if&nbsp;

you are to fight!" I stamped my foot for emphasis, and he put a&nbsp;

heavy arm around my shoulders as he started to walk me away from&nbsp;

the shrine. I felt like I was a child training with wooden swords again,&nbsp;

lost and wishing for my Mother.

Source: https://sofurry.com/s/XekvrqM1
Part of the series Akiko Against Many
Next: https://fse.anthro.fr/stories/694571-sweaty-foreheads.md