Marriage of Convenience

Part Two

As the council meeting came to an end, Cheetara thought about the announcement she and Lion-O were about to make. The cheetah knew by the end of the meeting, her life would be changed forever. She would be known as Lion-O's fiancée and not to long after that, his wife, Lady of the Thundercats. A great responsibility came with marriage to the Lord of the ThunderCats, but she was able to do it. She was a Thundercat after all, and she knew how the organization worked. Cheetara was sometimes in charge of important missions for the ThunderCats like searching for the Treasure of Thundera and exploring terrain. With the new weight of responsibility being given to her, the cheetah knew she could handle it. Seemingly, the only joy in this proposal was that she would soon be a mother; she would have child. As she thought about her future days as a mother, Lion-O's words cut her from her thoughts.

“Before we end this council meeting, Cheetara and I have an announcement to make,” Lion-O said.

The Thundercats, who were somewhat bored at the meeting, sat up and leaned closer to hear their Lord's announcement. They knew if it concerned Lion-O and Cheetara, it was important.

“Cheetara and I are going to get married.”

To Lion-O and Cheetara's surprise, the Thundercats cheered loudly.

“It's about time!” Panthro said joyfully.

“About time?” Cheetara asked confused.

“Yeah, we didn't think you and Lion-O would ever get together,” Tygra said just as happy.

“Weren't you on a date yesterday, Lion-O?” WilyKat asked.

“Yes, I was, but like my other dates, it ended in disaster,” he explained and looked at

Cheetara warmly. “However, I knew where my heart really was.” He picked up Cheetara's hand and kissed it.

“Aww,” Kit said.

Cheetara decided to play her part. “Yes, when he returned last night, he said it was huge mistake to be dating the type of women he had been meeting. He told me that he loved me and was afraid I didn't love him back. But I assured him that I did, and now we are getting married.”

“So when is the big day?” Snarf asked.

“Two weeks from now,” Lion-O answered. The other Thundercats looked rather surprised. “We wanted to get married as soon as possible.”

“You two must be in love to get married so quickly,” Pumyra remarked.

“It seems like we have a quick wedding to plan. We better get started.” Kit said.

*****

The next two weeks went by in a blur. Lion-O and Cheetara were the busiest considering this was their wedding they were planning. From the dress fitting to the planning of the food, decorations, music, the two found it overwhelming, especially considering this was only a marriage of convenience. The two decided on a simple, quiet wedding with just the Thundercats and a few friends. None of the press were allowed to attend.

The day before the wedding, there was a special ceremony that the press and the people of Thundera were invited to attend: the swearing in of Cheetara as Lady of the Thundercats, although it wouldn't be official until she married Lion-O the next day.

A large crowd gathered outside the lair from as far as the eye can see. All the major television networks filmed the special event so that those who couldn't attend could see it.

Trumpets blared signaling the arrival of the Thundercats. Bengali, Pumyra and Lynx-O stepped out first. Then the rest of the Thundercats by rank: WilyKit, WilyKat, Panthro, Tygra, Lion-O and Cheetara together. The Thundercat Nobles stood on each side of Lion-O and Cheetara as they made their way to the center. It reminded Cheetara of the time Lion-O was officially anointed Lord of the Thundercats.

Lion-O wore his traditional blue tunic, but he had a red cape on and his crown. Cheetara was also in her regular gold uniform and red cape as well. Lion-O step aside from her and faced the people of Thundera and the cameras.

“People of Thundera, I welcome you to the anointing ceremony of my fiancée, Thundercat Noble, Cheetara. Making her my wife, my Lady will not only make me a happy man, but it will make Thundera as powerful and prosperous as it once was.”

Lion-O turned around to face Cheetara. “Do you, Cheetara, promise to hold the Code of Thundera, your marriage vows to the Lord of the Thundercats, promise to serve and protect the people of Thundera and the planet itself with your very life?”

“I do,” Cheetara promised.

“Then I, Lion-O, Lord of the Thundercats anointed you Cheetara, Lady of the ThunderCats.”

WilyKit stepped up to Lion-O, holding Cheetara's crown: a silver tiara with the Eye of Thundera embedded in the center. Lion-O took the crown from WilyKit and placed the crown on Cheetara's head. Lion-O stepped back with the other Thundercats as they all cheered.

“Hail Cheetara, Lady of the ThunderCats!”

Lion-O pulled out his Sword of Omens. “Thunder! Thunder! Thunder! Thundercats HO!”

The Sword of Omens stretched to its fullest length and the Eye of Thundera shot in the sky. The people of Thundera cheered loudly. Cheetara noticed her insignia glowed brighter than everyone else. Was this because she would be Lady of the Thundercats, officially, tomorrow?

In the crowd, Liana huffed and folded her arms. “That's suppose to be me up there. Lion-O said that they weren't involved and now they're engaged. Hmp.” She said and lifted her nose in the air. “I give it two months.”

After the ceremony, the others walked back inside. Lion-O had an arm around Cheetara. “I'm so proud of you.” He said and kissed her temple.

Cheetara looked at him rather surprised. “I didn't do anything.”

“Maybe to you, it wasn't, but to me it was,” he said and stopped. She stopped too. He gave her a hug. “I love you so much. We're going to be so happy.”

That shook Cheetara. It was the first time Lion-O ever said that and even though she knew he didn't really love her, it just really caught her off guard for him to even say it. The cheetah felt they were being watched, and they were too by all the Thundercats.

“Um, let's go somewhere to talk alone,” Cheetara suggested.

“Fine with me,” Lion-O whispered.

As the two made their way upstairs, Panthro joked to them.

“Don't start anything you're not suppose to finish until tomorrow night.”

Cheetara blushed and for once, Lion-O was speechless too. The cheetah quickly pulled Lion-O up the stairs and took him to her room.

“Why did you act like that?” Cheetara asked sitting in a chair.

Lion-O leaned against the door. “I was just trying to act like a proud fiancé, you know, keep up the image. You didn't think it was right?”

“No,” Cheetara shook her head. “No, it's just that you could've told me you were going to do that.” Cheetara explained.

“Sometimes, there won't be a warning. Don't worry; you'll get use to it. Just like I’ll have to when you do that. Anyway, I'll see you tomorrow. We got a big day ahead of us.”

Cheetara watched Lion-O leave the room. She was beginning to wonder if this was the

right thing to do.

*****

The wedding ceremony was to be held in the throne room, and the reception was to be in the main dining hall, which could hold one hundred guests. Pumyra was matron of honor and WilyKit was also a bride maid. Tygra was Lion-O's best man.

Cheetara kept her wedding dress simple. The white dress had a fitted bodice with a long full skirt and a back train. Her silver tiara was attached to a white veil on her head. For jewelry, she wore a pearl choker around her neck, a pearl bracelet on her left arm and drop pearl earrings. She kept her makeup simple with lipstick, blush, and eye shadow.

Pumyra and WilyKit entered in their long silver gowns. The elegant gowns had a drape neck front and a side slit.

“Ready to go?” Pumyra asked. “Panthro is waiting to escort you down the aisle.”

The cheetah hesitated for a moment. What am I doing? I never imagined that I would marry someone who didn’t love me.

“Cheetara? Are you okay?”

Cheetara put a smile on her face and looked at Pumyra. “Yeah, I'm fine. I'm just experiencing cold feet. Nothing unusual about that.”

Kit raised an eyebrow. “You don't have to go through this marriage thing, if you don't want to.”

“I know,” she replied. Cheetara put the veil over her head. She looked away from herself in the mirror and at her bridesmaids. “I’m ready as I’ll ever be. Let's go.”

Lion-O stood patiently in his black tuxedo. The Lord of the Thundercats wanted this over as much as Cheetara did. Tygra, the best man, stood by his Lord's side in his black tuxedo. Everything was ready. The Throne Room was decorated with red and silver streamers. Red roses surrounded the room. The guests filled the room and waited anxiously for the woman of the hour.

Music played as the doors opened. Pumyra and WilyKit walked in holding their flowers. When they took their respected places, the wedding march played. Everyone stood up and looked towards the door. Cheetara stood for a moment smiling with Panthro escorting her in. They walked in slowly, Cheetara taking in everything at once. She noticed all the happy faces she was receiving from everyone. If only they knew the truth, she thought quietly. They reached the end of the aisle and faced the minister.

“Who gives the bride away?” The minister asked.

“I do,” Panthro said proudly. He stepped away from Cheetara took his place by Tygra and Cheetara stepped beside Lion-O.

As the minister spoke, Cheetara tuned him out. She was thinking about her responsibility, her new life now. Only when he began to mention the vows did she listen.

“Lion-O, do you take Cheetara to be your lawfully wedded wife from this day forward, to have and to hold, in sickness and in health, rich and poor, from this day forward until death do you part?”

“I do,” Lion-O said firmly.

The minister looked at Cheetara. “Cheetara, do you take Lion-O to be your lawfully wedded husband from this day forward, to have and to hold, in sickness and in health, rich and poor, from this day forward until death do you part?”

“I do,” Cheetara said softly.

“We will now exchange rings.”

Lion-O turned back, and Tygra gave him the ring for Cheetara. He took Cheetara's hand and placed a square cut diamond ring on her finger. “With this ring, I the wed.”

Cheetara's eyes widen in shock as she looked at the large diamond on the ring. She thought it was too much. The bride turned back and Pumyra gave her the ring for Lion-O. She took Lion-O's hand and placed a gold ring with a three small round diamonds. “With this ring, I the wed.”

“By the power invested in me on the planet Thundera, I now pronounced you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride.”

This was one of the moments Cheetara was dreading. The kiss. It would be their first kiss after all. She watches nervously as Lion-O lifted up her veil. He leaned forward and placed a soft kiss on her lips. It wasn't too long or too short. It was just right. He stepped back and smiled.

“Ladies and Gentlemen, I present to you Lord Lion-O and Lady Cheetara,” the minister announced.

The crowd cheered loudly and clapped proudly. Lion-O took his wife's hand, and they marched out. The rest of the Thundercats followed out in an orderly fashion.

*****

Lion-O and Cheetara walked together in the dining hall where the reception was taken place. They talked and thanked the guests for coming and for the gifts they were given. Nearly an hour and a half after they entered the reception, they found some quiet time to themselves. The newlyweds walked out together and went to have a moment to themselves in the council room. To her surprise, the cheetah noticed they were still holding hands. Of course it was for the image. When they entered, Lion-O didn't bother turning on the lights. He decided the lights from the full moon would be sufficient enough. He walked her to the window. Together, they looked out at the full moon.

“You look very pretty today,” Lion-O finally spoke.

“Thank you,” Cheetara said. She looked at him and saw he was still staring out the window. Then she looked at her wedding ring. “This...is a very large ring to give me. You shouldn't have done that.”

Lion-O looked down at her surprised. “Of course I should have. You're my wife. My wife should get nothing but the best and beautiful. It suits you.”

Cheetara smiled. She wondered if he gave her the ring because she was Lady of the Thundercats now and not because, well, because of the impossible. Turning her eyes away from Lion-O, she looked out at the scenery before them. The two stood in silence for nearly ten minutes before Lion-O spoke again.

“That was a good wedding we'd given to them.”

“Yeah, they really think we're in love,” Cheetara commented dispirited.

“This whole marriage thing shouldn't be too hard. I hear they say the first two years are the hardest. With our marriage, I doubt if it would be like that.” Lion-O said confidently.

“How long do you think it'll be before we're at each other's throats?” Cheetara joked.

“I don't know. I don't think we'll have that problem. Our marriage is different.”

Cheetara looked up at her husband, and the lights came on. The two turned around and saw Pumyra at the door.

“Okay, lovebirds. You'll get your time alone later. Right now, we have a wedding reception to attend.”

“We're coming, Pumyra.” Cheetara smiled. “Come, Lion-O. We only have a few more hours and this wedding will be over with.”

The next two hours went by quickly and not soon enough for Cheetara. Her wedding bouquet went to a happy single female and her garter to a young man who left with the winner of the bouquet. Lion-O and Cheetara told the others that they would spend the night at the lair and leave for their honeymoon: a week at Cat's Lair on 3rd Earth.

Cheetara changed out of her wedding dress in her room and into her nightwear: dark blue satin pajamas. The shirt was printed with gold astrological signs of the sun, moon and stars. The pants were a plain satin blue. When she entered Lion-O's and now her room, he had already changed clothes. In fact, he was already in bed. He wasn't wearing a shirt. His chest was fully exposed. Cheetara prayed that he had something on underneath the covers. This was too soon for the cheetah. She wanted a baby yes, but the act of conceiving one? She wasn't ready to be intimate with him.

The cheetah walked to his bed, her bed now, too. She had to remind herself of that. His room was hers now. His bed was hers. Cheetara pulled back the covers and was relieved to see that he had sleeping pants on. Cheetara got in the bed and pulled the covers to her lap. She sat there quiet and a little nervous. She felt Lion-O moving closer to her.

“Lion-O,” she turned to look at him. He was going to kiss her for sure if she hadn't stop.

“I think we should wait a little bit before we, um, well, you know, consummate our vows.”

“Why?” Lion-O asked.

“Because of our situation. If we were an ordinary married couple, we could do this, but we're not. I think we should wait until we get to know each other better—”

“But I already know you,” Lion-O said.

“Yes, as a friend, but we're married now and that's different. Also I think it would best to wait until we are more comfortable in our new positions. We should wait until everything settles down.”

“Is that what you want?” Lion-O asked.

“Yes.” Cheetara stated as firmly as she could.

The decision didn't bother him as he said in a calm voice. “All right. If that's what you want. Good night, Cheetara.”

She watched Lion-O lay back down and turns over.

“Good night, Lion-O.” She turned off the lamp and turn on her side as well, feeling very relieved.

The next morning, the two took turns taking a shower. Lion-O showered first and changed his clothes outside in their room, while Cheetara took a shower and put on her clothes in their bathroom. An hour later, they said good-bye to everyone and boarded the Feliner. Hours later they arrived on 3rd Earth.

Lion-O carried most of the luggage toward the bedchambers. Cheetara took the two small suitcases that were left and followed him. She was surprised to find him inside her old room. The cheetah walked in and said, “Aren't we going to take your room? It's bigger.”

He put her suitcases on the floor and looked back at her. “I'm going to take my room. I thought you would be more comfortable in here.”

“Oh, uh, sure, Lion-O,” she answered crestfallen. Cheetara could not understand why she was disappointed. It was the perfect solution.

Cheetara unpacked her things in her room as Lion-O put his things in his room. The two ate their dinner quietly and went to their separate beds.

The following morning, Snarfer made his way to Cat's Lair. He thought it would be a great idea if he gave the newlyweds breakfast in bed. He figured the two wouldn't want to cook breakfast, considering they may have other things in mind. Quickly and quietly, he made a large breakfast for the newlyweds. He put their trays on the cart and pushed it towards Lion-O's room. Snarfer then knocked on the door.

Lion-O woke up by the knocking. He yawned tiredly. “What's wrong with Cheetara? She knows that she doesn't have to knock.” He threw off the covers. He got up and walked to his door. “Cheetara, you know you don't have to—” he opened the door. “Snarfer? What are you doing here?”

“I wanted to surprise you and Cheetara with breakfast in bed. I didn't think you two would want to cook for each other on your honeymoon. Snarfer. Snarfer. Step aside, and let me push the cart in.”

“NO!” Lion-O shouted placing his hand on the cart.

“Gee, Lion-O, why not, and what were you talking about Cheetara didn't have to do something?”

“Um, er, Cheetara is sleeping and um, well she wanted to cook breakfast, but I told her I'd do it, but since you brought it to us, I don't have too.”

Snarfer scratched his head. “I don't get it, Lion-O. How can Cheetara talk about cooking breakfast if she was sleeping?”

“Oh, well, she was talking in her sleep about doing that, and do I have to explain my wife's actions to you?” Lion-O snapped angrily.

Snarfer stepped back. “Okay, Lion-O. You don't have to explain. Oh, I forgot to bring you milk. I'll be right back.” Snarfer said and left.

Lion-O pulled the cart into his room and ran to Cheetara's room. He panicked when he didn't see her in the bed. “Where could she be?” He ran outside the room. “Snarfer's going to be up here any minute.”

He went into the bathroom. Cheetara was stepping out of the shower. She screamed and got back in.

“Lion-O! Learn to knock!”

“I will next time, but we got to get back to my room. Snarfer's here.”

She peeked her head out. “Snarfer's here?”

“Yes, and he'll be up here any minute.”

“What's he doing here?”

“I'll explain later. Come on, let's get back to my room before Snarfer sees us.”

Cheetara grabbed a towel she had over the shower rod wrapped it around her. She stepped out of the shower and she and Lion-O raced to his room. They closed the door, just before Snarfer came back, and pulled the covers over themselves.

Snarfer opened the door, carrying a pitcher of milk. He glanced at Cheetara in confusion. “Why do you have wet hair?”

Cheetara gasped and felt her hair. She had forgotten that she had washed it.

The snarf suddenly shook his head and held out a hand. “Never mind. I don't think I wanna know.” He went back down stairs after telling them he would be at the lair long enough to cook their dinner.

Cheetara got up to go back to her room to get her robe from her room. “I can't go out there. Snarfer may see me.”

“What's wrong?” Lion-O asked.

“I need to get my robe, but Snarfer may see me.”

“There's nothing wrong with what you got on,” Lion-O said nonchalantly.

“I'm wearing a towel that barely covers me, Lion-O, I'm cold and wet.” She said curtly with her arms folded.

“If you're wet and you feel you need to cover up more, then go in my bathroom, dry you hair off with a towel and put on my robe.”

Cheetara kind of frowned. “Are you sure?”

“Yes, go ahead. I don't mind.”

“Thank you,” she said quietly and entered his bathroom. She wrapped a towel around her hair, finished drying the rest of her body off. The cheetah looked at the hooks on the door and saw his black robe. Cheetara was hesitant for a moment but pulled it off its hook and put it on. It felt soft and comfortable but big. She wrapped it around her so she was fully covered at the top. The scent of his favorite cologne was wrapped in the robe. Something about that scent always captivated her. It was so masculine, tough, and so manly. She stepped out. Lion-O looked at her with amusement. Cheetara looked at him oddly.

“What's so funny?”

“It's just that you look funny like that, almost like a child wearing her parents clothing. It's kind of cute.”

Cheetara smiled. She turned around and looked at herself in his mirror. She did look like a kid in her parents clothing. The sleeves were too big. The shoulders were falling off her. “I guess I do.”

Cheetara walked back to the bed and sat beside Lion-O as they ate breakfast together. While they were eating, Cheetara was bugged by a question she wanted to ask Lion-O ever since he found her.

“Lion-O, how much did you see?”

Lion-O looked at her curiously. “What do you mean?”

“I mean, when I was getting out of the shower. How much of me did you see?”

“Oh, that. It was nothing really.”

“What do you mean nothing?” she was on the defensive.

“It happened so quickly that I really wasn't paying much attention. I guess if I think about it, I only saw your right leg and part of your upper chest.”

“How much?”

“Just a little bit. Why?”

“You should've knock. I don't go barging in on you when you're in the shower.” She said tersely.

“I'm sorry. It's just that I was trying to find you before Snarfer came back. If you're that upset about it, you can see me nude,” he said.

“No! Just forget I said anything. This wouldn't have happened if you hadn't suggested we sleep in separate bedrooms!”

Lion-O covered her mouth with his hand and replied, “Ssh! Do you want Snarfer to hear you?”

Cheetara pulled away from him and folded her arms. “Well, it wouldn't have,” she whispered angrily.

“What do you want? Do you want to sleep with me tonight? Fine, then do it.” Lion-O said, raising his arms in the air.

“Fine then,” she retorted back. They remained quiet as they finished their breakfast.

Finally, Cheetara said calmly, “So, what should we do today?”

Lion-O shrugged his shoulders. “I don't know. Once Snarfer leave, he won't be back for a few hours to bring us dinner. What do you want to do?”

“I wanted to catch up on some writing,” she replied.

“We've got the whole week to do whatever we want,” he reminded her.

Once Snarfer left, Cheetara and Lion-O went their separate ways. Lion-O spent his day in the study reading and Cheetara wrote and actually did monitor duty. What was she to do on a honeymoon anyway with a man who's only job was to give her a baby when she was ready to be that intimate with him yet?