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She was right. If he had only been stronger, acted quicker, fought smarter in combat then she would not have failed the job. He would not be where he was right now. He was the strongest key in the zodiac and yet...
Leo clenched his sharp teeth and bowed his head. No longer did he tug or resist the chains keeping his hands tethered to the ground; Retreating to the Spirit world was not an option. Last time he disappeared he had faced Karen's wrath; That only brought suffering to Aries later as well, and he also did not feel like he deserved an easy out. He not only needed to protect both Aries and the 2 silver keys Karen possessed, but he needed to repent for his failure days ago... When he couldn't protect his own owner.
'Strongest zodiac' he scoffed at himself, letting his once styled orange locks fall messily into his face. The Blood and bruises covering his body, once unbearable over Earthlands inability to heal them, now seemed comforting and normal. Some came from long back to back battles he was forced into fighting (with little time in the spirit world to recover), while others from Karen's punishments. Either way the marks were a constant thing in his life now. The blood from an earlier lashing dripped onto her white tiger pelt rug, leaving a nasty red splotch (one he thought to clean before she returned so as to not invoke more anger... Why did he start that argument near it? He should've known a fight would have started and it would get uncleansly. She kept it as a trophy of a previous triumph and here he was bleeding over it.)
The lion spirit used his shoulder to wipe the gash on his face (his hands were chained) and slumped once more, one leg bent up while the other stretched out at a much smaller bend.
What was he doing here? He could have prevented this. If he had shot off a regulas at the right time she could've won the battle. He recalled the day he was trapped here for. He was caught off guard when Karen summoned him right into the middle of a battle (immediately forcing him into a defensive position to start) and he was pushed back considerably. He wasn’t one for being on the defense, especially at the start of a fight, but he was usually more adaptable than that. Thinking back on it, she was right to call him out. Despite being tired from a whole day of back to back jobs he was supposed to be tough and in that one instance he was not. One mistake after another blurred together in his mind. He could've done better. He should've fought better.
And what did he do once he was confronted about his weakness? He argued with her. He was stupid enough to defy her words and now he was like this. One more stunt like that and she could hurt Aries again. He couldn't bear to be the reason Aries got hurt again.
'Aries' Leo whispered in thought. She couldn’t go on like this. She had done nothing to recieve this much pain, this much torture. Leo could take it (sometimes Leo should take it) but he worried about his dear lamb every day. Her voice was withered and unsure whenever in the Spirit World; Her fluffy cloud like cotton had seemingly turned to a heavy grey overcast, one that showed no sign of leaving naturally.
Many nights (metaphorically. Night and day were almost nonexistent in the stars) he had spent with her hugging him tight, unable to relax. Dark images of previous events clouded her mind and she feared that if she began something she wanted to do, she would miss being summoned, or be summoned late, or forget entirely. Spirits have amazing senses and it is impossible for one tied to a key and contract to not feel their gate (of course the strong ones can open and close it at will) but just the idea of what would happen after haunted her, brought her to tears in ways Leo couldn't witness any longer.
This couldn’t go on... not like this, he thought. He spent so long worrying about protecting Karen, he had failed to protect one of his own. Yes, as a spirit he had a duty to his owner, the key bearer was his purpose, but he was not a normal spirit. He was a leader; His people were in trouble, and he has done nothing. The other spirits fear their keys in her hands and with her ambition and greed she was guaranteed to gain more keys. This needed to stop.
Regaining his pride, Leo tugged the chains. He used regulas impact to break free and shakingly stood up, retucking his white undershirt and readjusting his jostled overcoat. Placing his hands in his pockets and looked at a portrait of Karen and then towards the window. Karen Lilica has misused the magic of the heavens above and it was time the Lion did something about it.