The sand was... Alive wasn't the right word. It was shifting, that was a certainty, but alive was... A close word. To a lion who was lost in the desert and thirsty, it could be called alive, with how it moved. Arevik thought of it more like a river, flowing and changing as it pleased. The white lioness both stood out against the blinding sands, and blended into them, pale and ghostly as she moved. For such a coat, the shade of the rocks was a welcome relief. The fact she wasn't alone in this part of the desert was a surprise, though. Not unpleasant, but still a surprise. "Oh, hello... I thought I was alone out here. Guess not." For all the visions she'd gotten in her life thus far, this had not been one of them.
Fari had been busying himself with digging for desert melons and cooler sands to lay in and had almost been startled by the sudden calling of another’s voice. No one ever seemed to come to this section of the desert. It was his to watch, yet, there she was. Picking himself up to stand at full attention, he looked more like a small mountain than a lion. It was the royal blood in him… and maybe something else.
“Mmmm, not many come this way. I enjoy that. What brings you?” Steel blue eyes bore into the lioness’ own, await a reply. He didn’t mean to come off as intimidating but he certainly could be.
Her ears folded back as jade eyes shifted down, nervous at making any form of eye contact. "Oh, just... Out to find a place alone. I can..." She motioned back another direction. "I can go somewhere else, if I'm bothering you..." Arevik was, herself, not a small lion. Granted, Firekin rarely came small, but her father's blood had meant a slightly smaller stature than average. It did nothing to quell her being nervous around others, when there were those even of rogue blood that seemed larger than she was. It often made her feel less like a Firekin, and more like she should go somewhere else.
Furrowing his dark brows, Fari shook his head and motioned for her to stay. It wasn’t a bad thing, having someone to talk to every now and again, what bothered him were those that came to check up on him. “I didn’t mean to sound so gruff, I am used to family sending someone to check on me.” Rolling his eyes upwards at the sky he inhaled deeply, then exhaled, seemingly letting go of some annoyance along with the air that escaped his lungs.
“I am Fari’Wuta. And yourself?”
She hesitated, but took a spot in the shade. "I am Arevik, daughter of Savitri and the former Pridelander Hodari." She'd seen lions that looked like Fari'wuta around the pride before... For some reason, one was cream colored, and yet hadn't been asked to leave like so many others. She'd have to ask her mother about that later. "I came out here to be alone..." She paused. "Alone-ish." Those that wished to be alone sometimes made the best company for each other.
Pondering if he knew Arevik’s mother or father he decided that he indeed, did not. It wasn’t much of a surprised considering Fari barely left his post in the desert. He just hated being around others. They always seemed to bring up the fortune his mother had spoken of when he was born. This one will have very bad luck! It will even seem to rub off on others. People will think he is a coward- but he’ll find a way to show everyone he is brave. Looking at his paws he gritted his teeth, so far he hadn’t found a way to make others think that. No. They thought he was a joke and a menace.
“Arevik… Have you ever heard of the lion with bad luck in the pride?”
Her ears pricked up. "Aaaah, I know he's a cousin of my mother... And she doesn't believe in those sorts of prophecies." She gave an impassive shrug. "Of course, two of my aunts were seers like their mother, so according to Mom, Granmda doted on them, while Grandpa handled Mom and her other two sisters. I'm not sure if luck has much to do with anything, though.." She let out a puff of air. "If you think about it, we all have bad luck, at various points in our lives and for various lengths of time." She tucked her legs up under herself, laying in the cool shaded sand. "I have the misfortune of not being particularly... Fierce..."
Fari analyzed what Arevik said for several moments, though he himself couldn’t completely believe what she said. All his life he really had been nothing but a walking misfortune device. It didn’t matter how hard he tried, something would happen of his own doing which would cause himself and sometimes others harm. It was the reason he lived so far away from the rest of the pride. He couldn’t fathom the feeling of loss from messing something up.
“Not all are fierce, honestly I for the longest time have felt like an outcast in the pride. I wish… sometimes that I was born huria. At least I would be able to leave without bringing shame to my family. Yet… I even now wish to leave.” Looking up at the sky he realized his words sounded very rude and if this lioness was like most, he would be considered a freak for wanting to leave.
“Do you ever feel this way?”
"All the time." The white lioness looked out across the sand, toward some distant horizon. "My mother and I are two of the very few of the Blood who don't have ANY markings... Aunt No has an excuse, she's not from the pride by birth... But even her children have markings..." Her mother had gotten over the fact she had no markings, by birth, and had taken to painting markings on herself from time to time that were reminiscent of the family line's markings. Arevik had no such desires. She couldn't imagine covering herself in markings not her own. "My cousins from my aunt Shula are so much more like firekin than I am... I don't feel like I could ever compare."
Nodding in understanding, Fari looked up at the sky, realizing it was soon to be high noon, a dangerous time to be outside in the desert. They would have to relocate to a cave close by, or cook to death. “Arevik, it is nearly time for the sun to be high in the sky, come with me for shelter. I have a few melons stored and we will have more privacy to speak.” Motioning into the distance at a mound, he waited a few moments before taking off. “Perhaps one day we can leave this place together, if nothing changes that causes us to want to stay.” Cracking a soft grin, Fari started moving towards the cavern, hoping the white lioness would follow suit.
