Lena was still getting adjusted to her new life. Part of it was her new nickname. She mostly went with people calling her 'Lizzie' to protect her identity, though it didn't take too long for her real name to be revealed. She kinda liked the nickname 'Lizzie', since it was so similar to her last name. She wasn't sure about using 'Lizzie' as a permanent nickname, but she could get used to be calling that. It was her nickname as the 'Guennol Lioness of Animalia' that bothered her. The comparison was flattering, but it sounded like the title of a wrestler and a bodybuilder and she wasn't sure wanted to be either of those.
Another thing that was taking a lot to get used to was the new body she had been given. Lena realized that becoming a lion Animalian would mean a lot of changes, she wouldn't be able to digest fruits and vegetables so easily now. As well as dealing with claws and predatory instincts. But she hadn't expected just how big she'd get. Rationally, all that mass she had put on had to go somewhere, but Lena had been expecting them to convert into energy. Instead, she got a very amazonian body, even compared to other lionesses. She was taller, bustier, and more muscular than the other lioness, which definitely contributed to this new nickname. And Lena hadn't been prepared to get this big nor the attention that came from it.
But even if she had been given the body of a demigoddess, it was made clear to her that it only reset her cholesterol level. Which means if she didn't proper exercise and eat right, it could become a problem again. And Lena admitted that she was curious about how much these huge muscles could lift. Surely there weren't just for show. So she ended up going to Claw Colosseum to do some exercise and figure out much she could lift.
When Lena walked into the weight-lifting room, she saw it was already heavily occupied. And they were all tigers, of both sexes and at various heights. But all of them were already looking well-built, though they seemed to be determined to put even more muscles on judging by the heavy weights they were lifting. The tigers looked up to watch the newcomer. Seeing so many eyes upon her, not even considering they were tiger eyes, made Lena feel even more self-conscious. She started backing out the door that she came in.
“Hey, you don’t need to leave,” said a kind, female voice, “There’s equipment for everyone.” Lena turned to see a tigress walk up to her. And she was quite a large tigress. Lena may be a pretty big lioness now, but this tigress was quite another level from the others. She was actually only a few inches taller than Lena, but she was just as buff and busty as her. “The name’s Shelly,” said the tigress, “And let me guess, you’re the new lioness? Lena?”
“I-I-I-I-I also luh-luh-luh-like Luh-Luh-Luh-Lizzie,” stammered Lena.
“Oh, you poor thing,” said Shelly, “You just came out of the cold and you haven’t even had a chance to warm up yet.”
“I’m nuh-nuh-nuh-not c-c-c-c-cold,” said Lena before she took a deep breath and found her focus. “It’s a speech impuh-pedement,” she whispered. Though she wondered why she bothered why she bothered, considering how sharp feline hearing is.
Shelly tilted her head and said, “I didn’t think the Animalian virus can treat that kind of thing.”
“I didn’t convert for tha-that,” said Lena, “I had a cholesterol problem.”
“You and 58% of America,” said Shelly jokingly.
“58? More like 85!” called one of the tigers.
“Ignore them,” said Shelly, “They’re on an adrenaline rush. The meatheads are gearing up for the Year of the Tiger competition.”
“I’ve heard of that,” said Lena, “Will it be like the Rat and Ox competitions?”
“Well, each year they try to make the challenges match the animal,” said Shelly, “For this year, they’re expecting some martial arts fighting.”
“You too?” asked Lena.
“I’m actually more about boxing. Well, my wife is,” said Shelly, “Maybe I’m more into wrestling. Though that’s not the only challenge. There’s the swimsuit contest and the swimming race.”
“Swimming race?” asked Lena. Last she heard, cats hate getting wet.
“Well, it’s the year of the Water Tiger, specifically,” said Shelly, “Also, tigers are one of the few cats who actually enjoy a swim.”
“Oh, I see,” said Lena, “Do you think you’ll wi-win?”
“Odds are favoring that tiger from the Five Elements or her apprentice,” said Shelly, “But I’m going to put them through their paces. Speaking of which, is that what you were wanting to do here.”
Lena bowed her head shyly, “I just wuh-wanted to s-see how much I could li-lift.”
“You certainly look like you could pull your weight and then some,” said Shelly, “Come on, I’ll spot you, Lena.”
“Call me Lizzie,” said the lioness. She was feeling more comfortable as she and Shelly walked over to the barbells. Before her conversion, there were some mean girls who made fun of her weight and stuttering. Fortunately, the nickname ‘Porky’ didn’t really catch on. Lizzie grinned as she found herself easily lifting a 100-pound barbell. Let’s see those girls call her ‘Porky’ now.