It has been said

That lions are the fiercest of beings

Strong jaws, sharpened teeth - 

Ready to pounce. 

 

Every day the lion waited

I saw him around corners

Prowling in the distance

Staking out darkened rooms before I entered. 

He fed on my deepest regrets

My darkest thoughts

My most crippling insecurities. 

 

During tests, I dared not turn around

For fear he was behind me.

While auditioning for the top spot

I spotted him lurking behind the piano.

I would always look away.

I would never meet his eyes. 

But he had his claws in me

Deeper than any claw I had felt before. 

His gaze burned me like flames

And I shied away. 

He pushed my ability

My confidence

My power

Into the grasslands of my mind

Where he could rule as a tyrant.

 

I did not go quietly. 

My shouts echoed around the skull

That I had begun to call a prison. 

Yet my body remained stiff.

The lion grinned from the shadows.

And I grew angrier by the second

Forced myself towards the lion

The beast was sure of his power

Yet I was livid. 

 

I saw his momentary shock

As my right foot lifted from the ground

Propelling me towards my greatest enemy. 

My left foot followed my right

Each step was a blow to the creature. 

He would cower from the attack

But immediately recover

To growl at me once more. 

As time went on, however

I found his show less grim.

My stride elongated

My confidence soared

Step

By

Step

I pulled myself toward him. 

His eyes grew wide

He was... terrified?

But as I stretched out a hand

He dissolved into mist. 

 

It had been said

That lions were the fiercest of things. 

Preying on the helpless

And stalking long before the kill. 

But even lions follow the rules of the wild

And only kill what they can eat. 

 

I never saw the lion again.