[Priv] A Moment's Respite (Glittyr x Ana)

[Rainhowl]

To say that Anasema'hadithi was alone was an understatement. The older male, not quite an elder, though no longer young enough to have the spring of youth, plodded along slowly, a thick bundle clasped tightly between his sharp teeth. There was a distinct limp in his step, but he paid it little mind.

The sun was high and hot, giving him half the mind to go and find a shady place to rest, yet he had this urge to keep on walking. Ever since the fall of his former pride, he'd been plagued with thoughts of his younger sister and the family he left behind to join the Refilwe Oluchi in the first place. What had become of them?

The hefty male gave a sigh as he came to a halt beneath the slightly more forgiving shade of a crooked tree, dropping the bundle at his paws as he came to rest. He'd need to take more of that medicinal leaf soon, to help soothe the ache in his hip, but he wanted what he had to last him for as long as possible. For now, he'd suffer with some arthritis from the old war wound.  

[Buffy_the_Bloody]

She had seen him settle at the base of the tree. Thankfully it was closer to the water so he was in her range. She was younger still, though she was almost fully grown. She was older in her mind, she had a lot of the responsibilities that an adult had, if not all of them. She felt her heartbeat wild in her chest. It was almost time! Oh man, she just had to get this right.

She gulped, but stepped forward. She slowly moved out of the waters, her stride slow. She was trying to be enticing, though she felt rather foolish. She sashayed to the best of her ability, but it was clear she was still rather awkward. Though she had a lot of work around the pride, this was her first attempt at seduction. It was her chance to prove herself.

"Hello." She said, whipping her head in a dramatically "Seductive" fashion. Though she passed as mostly goofy.  

[Rainhowl]

Anasema'hadithi parted his silver maw in a rather loud yawn, resting comfortably at the base of the tree. Already, he was feeling relief from not being up on his paws. The afternoon was pleasant and warm enough, now that he was under some shade, and the soothing sounds of running water were enough to lul the older lion into a light doze. He did love water and he'd been sticking more closely to whatever sources he could find as of late. It was when he felt as though he'd fall asleep, that the sound of another lion approaching stirred him.

He lifted his head, green eyes quickly finding the source of the sound. The lioness was young, younger even than his sister would be, should she still be alive these days, and her vibrant, yellow pelt was hard to miss. At first, he thought there might be something wrong. She seemed to be walking oddly. It was only after a moment of befuddled watching, that the older lion realized she was trying to impress him. He smiled, holding back a chuckle to himself, as he waited for her to come to him.

"Howdy. From these parts?"  

[Buffy_the_Bloody]

Crap. Crapcrapcrap. He had spoken to her. She was hoping he would be caught in by her aura of loveliness, and be at a loss for words! Oh man, she could feel her heart beating like a crazy hare being hunted in the night and she was terrified! What was she supposed to do now?

"Uh.."

She started, looking at her paws and then chiding herself for having done it. She cleared her throat, and stood tall once more. Trying not to let him see she was having such internal conflicts.

"I am not. I am from the Ocean." She said, her eyes playful. She was hoping she would convince him that she was the prettiest thing in the world. She was hoping that her training, was paying off.  

[Rainhowl]

"From the ocean?" He arched an brow as he studied her. She certainly was an odd one and it was pretty clear to him that she was nervous over some thing or another. What was her aim? Though it was muddled at first, he was pretty sure she was trying to catch his eye, which baffled him all the more. Why was she interested in he, an older lion marked by scars of war, when she was just a young and pretty little thing? It made no sense to him and he was briefly concerned as to wether he should humor her or not.

"As in in the ocean or from it's shores, as I'm fairly certain lions can't live in water... Er, for long, at least." He'd never been to the ocean, though he could smell the saltiness on the air and was quite tempted to plod down to it's shores, just so he could say he had been there. And why not? He'd been travelling for ages and he had been a story teller before his pride had dispersed into the wind. He could always use some stories to tell.  

[Buffy_the_Bloody]

He questioned her and she frowned. Why did he have to ask her questions? That kept throwing her off. She nodded, and then shook her head, looking mortified. "No,no.. I mean.. I could be, if you want me to be." She said, her eyes trying for seduction but still showing that playful, honest gaze that she couldn't quite contain.

"Look.. I am a mermaid.. and I am doing a horrible job." She said, and flopped down next to him with a huff. She sighed, and then pouted.

"I try, really I do and-".. She shot him a look and then rolled her eyes. "Of course we can't live in the ocean." Though she knew she had said it, she just.. didn't like being reminded that she was failing at her job.

"It's kinda dangerous out here. My sisters are far better than I." She sighed again.  

[Rainhowl]

She could if he wanted her to? He blinked his emerald eyes with that same befuddlement he had earlier, but his kindly smile never left his features. It was rare for him to be without it, even when uncertain of just what to make of a situation. One could almost call it a defense mechanism.

"A mermaid? Aren't they supposed to be part fish or something?" Again with all the questions, but he was both interested and amused by her, which was something. He'd not had an interesting conversation in many, many days. She seemed sad, however, which caused the edges of his rubbery lips to fall somewhat.

"Aw, come now, you can't be doing that poorly. No need to be so down, yeah? You're still a young thing, too! I reckon by the time you're an adult, you'll be fantastic at what it is you do." Whatever that is. He'd heard tales of mermaids when he was younger, but he'd always dismissed it as a tall tale. Where these lions truly mermaids, or where they just calling themselves that?  

[Buffy_the_Bloody]

"No we are not part fish." She frowned again, and looked appalled, though she had heard the stories of the mermaids. She wasn't sure what the past had been like, she only knew that.. well.. none of her sisters looked part fish.

"Do you think so? I would like to think that I would be amazing at finding a consort when I'm older." It was true she hadn't been born into the pride, but she had been brought here while she was young. She oftentimes wondered how father was, and mother.. She didn't really remember her siblings, she only knew she had been considered a demon. She shuddered at that. What a horrible thing to be called.

"I am Glittyr." She greeted.  

[Rainhowl]

"Well, you certainly don't look it. You're much too pretty to be part fish." He chuckled despite her frown. He hadn't been trying to tease her, not really. Ah, a consort, then? That's what this was about? Well, it sure did explain a few things.

"I'm sure you'll be wonderful at it. Everything takes practice. Practice enough and I bet the other females will be downright jealous. Where is your pride, anyway? I reckon it isn't too safe for a young lady to be wandering out on her own. And Glittyr is a pretty name." He bobbed his head in affirmation, but glanced about behind her. He didn't remember smelling any territory markers. Had he blundered in without noticing? He really had to pay more attention to these sorts of things.

"I'm called Anasema'hadithi, or I was by my pride before. You can call me Ana, should you like to do so." He might as well use his pride given name. It had been so long since he had used his birth name that doing so felt strange.  

[Buffy_the_Bloody]

When he complimented her, she smiled and blushed a bit. Being around other ladies all the time, she didn't get many compliments. They were all sisters, their love didn't count. She liked hearing it from someone else.

She looked around, and then sheepishly pointed to the island that could be seen, but it was rather small being so far away. A path at low tide, was the only way on or off the island.

"I live there." She said, with a smile. It was beautiful, and the life was easily sustained. They didn't have to go to the mainland, in order to eat.

"I'd like to call you Ana. Your name is far too long for me to remember." She said, and then smiled at him.

"Thanks for being so nice to me. I'm not exactly the vision of a siren.." She giggled.  

[Rainhowl]

"Ah, so you do live in the ocean, you weren't just being facetious." It was awful far away and though he wondered why she was so far out, he was glad to know that he didn't accidentally stumble into a territory blindly. That would have just been embarrassing... Possibly even dangerous, depending on the pride.

"It looks like a pleasant place, though. I reckon it must be nice being on the water." He stretched his forelegs, a couple of the joints popping as he did so.

"It means 'He tells the stories,' cos that's what I did. I relayed history to the cubs of my pride when I could no longer fight. It's more of a title than a name, I guess, but it's what I am used to. Ana is nice and short. I also have no idea how anyone could be anything but nice to you. You're such a friendly lioness. Anyone were rude to you, I'd have to give 'em the what for, I suppose."  

[Buffy_the_Bloody]

When he spoke, her eyes were on his mouth. Confused, her eyebrows would narrow, and then arch at some of the expressions.
"You talk in a way that I have never heard before." She said. She never used expressions, and no one around her at ever told her they'd give someone 'the what for'. But that made this guy's charm all the more real.

"Stories? That sounds cool. My nanny used to tell me stories. She was always really sad. She still acts sad." She said with a nod. Sir'Bia had been brutally abused before she had found the lands of the mermaid.. Glittyr supposed she couldn't blame her.

"I'm glad I met you." She said quickly.  

[Rainhowl]

"Different? Ah, well, sorry I guess! I hope I haven't been too confusing. And stories were always fun. I guess you could say I was sort of like a nanny or a teacher. I passed on the stories I was told when I was a cub and so on. A shame your nanny was so sad, though, poor thing... You know, maybe you could cheer her up on your return? I think I saw a thicket of flowers blooming not too far back. That ought to make her smile, you think? And it's been a pleasure, Glittyr. You should probably head on back, before it gets too late. I imagine not all rogues are of the pleasant sort." He noted her confused expression as he spoke, which made him all the more curious about her pride, though he refrained from mentioning it.

He stayed where he was, his hefty paws splayed out before him, his tail wrapped around his haunches. He wasn't ready to move, yet. He considered eating another one of those dried leaves, yet for some reason he didn't want her to see him doing it. Pride? Exposing a weakness? He couldn't quite put a claw on it.  

[Buffy_the_Bloody]

The Aurrie

She smiled warmly, her heartbeat growing faster in her chest. That was when she sighed and looked at him with sadness. "I suppose I should go. My sisters won't be happy I've strayed so long. Will you be here... when I come back?" She asked, her eyes looking hopeful. She couldn't really wait for his answer, but she leaned over and licked his cheek before darting around a few rocks. She couldn't allow him to see the path.. but once she managed tog et behind the rock she took a deep rbeath and smiled.

She was sure she was in love.  

[Rainhowl]

"I quite like the salty air, so I reckon I probably will be." She seemed sad, which caused his brow to furrow ever so slightly as he tried to figure out just what, if anything, he had done to make her so. He didn't think he'd said anything negative. Before he could dwell on that thought any further, though, the young lioness bent in and licked his cheek and was gone in a flash.

His expression was one of pure befuddlement and his heart fluttered slightly. She had caught him off guard, despite the fact that he had known she was trying to seduce him earlier. His emerald eyes strained to follow her vibrant yellow coat into the thick woodlands, but he had no such luck. He wasn't sure why she felt she needed the secrecy, as she had pointed out the island to him only moments ago. Maybe she was embarrassed? He wasn't really sure.

But he was sure that he was somewhat glad she was gone. She was sweet, but she was certainly not an adult and it felt strange having such a youngster showing affection to him, and not in the sitter-cub relationship he had grown so accustomed to over the seasons. He quite liked being a teacher and an uncle to little ones. Mildly confused, he nosed the bushel of leaves and ate one of the bitter things.

-End-