[PRP] Preparation.

[Zosie]

Mtanizi had wandered over to the area that had been hallmarked for the coming wedding ceremony of the Alpha's son. He had volunteered to help Maziwa and the rest of the pack get it cleared and ready for the big day. He couldn't help but jump at the chance to help the Alpha. She had offered him and his mother a fresh chance at life and a new home, and he was finding it wonderful. He couldn't however, find his mother. She was probably off somewhere being excited and chirpy he supposed. He giggled to himself as he padded closer to the area... He wasn't entirely sure whether he was meeting anyone else here or whether he was just going to get started and then hopefully they would show up or?

He eyed the area, there were branches, rocks, and just general natural litter about the place. Getting started and wasting no time, he tried to dig his paws under a log, hoping to heave it and roll it out the way. A small part of him secretly hope he would impress the Alpha. He wasn't entirely sure why.  

[Seaki]

Maziwa, while she had set a time for the area to be cleared, had been running a bit late. She was worried, of course, nearly sick to her stomach. She was probably more nervous about the ceremony than even her son was! It was frustrating, but she had adopted him when she was basically a pup herself. She had, at first, wanted to fight off the General, who had taken a shining to her son, but Damu was just so happy...

It didn't take her long to arrive at the clearing to note that she wasn't the only one late, but she also wasn't the first one there. "Mtanizi," She stated, impressed that he had already started the clearing. Many would have just sat and waited for instruction, but she was pleased that the other had taken the initiative.

It was quite impressive.
 

[Zosie]

He whipped his head around so quickly that he nearly pulled a muscle in his neck as he heard the alphas voice. He could hear that she was impressed with his initiative and though he had hoped to impress her- it wasn't the only reason that he had started. He genuinely wanted to help, and aside from hunting had been a little lazy. Moving things around and using a little of his strength would be a good thing. "Hello." He smiled at the alpha cheerfully. The male was certainly starting to settle in more and more. Mtanizi had found himself making more friends, holding more conversations... slowly his skepticism had faded away until all that remained was a tiny tiny voice in the back of his head that most of the time he could ignore completely. "How are you today?"  

[Seaki]

Maziwa gave the other dog a gentle smile. "I'm a little stressed, I'm sorry," she apologized. She was honest, though, and that's what counted right? She trusted him a little more, and he was quite on his way into her inner circle of trusted dogs. "It's not every day your oldest child gets married, right?" She gave a small laugh. She felt old, she thought, but she was very young when Damu came into her care, barely into her adolescence. The young pup had been in the care of one of the pack's nannies for a time before she took him in, even.

She shook her head, clearing her thoughts to focus on the male. "And you? How are you today Mtanizi?" she asked, moving closer to the other. She tried not to think too much of the past. The wedding would move things forward to the pack. It wasn't good to dwell on the past after all.

"What do you think of this area?" She frowned a bit. It did need a lot of work, but it could have potential. Damu said it felt right, this area, so she would at least try...  

[Zosie]

"Don't be stressed!" He chirped happily, then his brow furrowed. "I mean, I don't want to tell you what to do..." Mtanizi panicked slightly - having not had a moment of real social awkwardness or anxiety, he wasn't quite sure what to do. Instead he pressed on with the conversation. "No, that's right! It's a special occasion." His enthusiasm was something that suprised even himself, it seemed to come out in the presence of the alpha.

"I am good, thank you for asking." He smiled at her gratefully - she was caring, and a good leader. He had a great deal of respect for her. "This area..." He pushed his skepticism to the back of his mind and took control of the positivity that had strangely seeped through his core today. "It'll be great, especially the more we work on it. We can do it."

Where on earth had this attitude come from?  

[Seaki]

Zosie

Ziwa gave Mtanizi a smile. She was still a bit stressed, but having the company helped quite a bit. It would take her a while to get over it, especially since all her girls were old enough to marry as well. it set her on edge, but if she could focus on her task.

"It would be easier with the rest of the pack," Maziwa sighed. Damu wouldn't even be able to see the area, but it was close to the river and Damu would have a patch after to walk along without worrying about tripping - especially not during the ceremony. It eased her heart a bit at the thought.

"We can do it though," she tried to leech some of his enthusiasm, wagging her tail a bit as she pulled up a paw-sized rock lodged in the earth.  

[Zosie]

He wanted to do anything he could to ease the Alpha's anxiety about the wedding, so he decided to do the best thing he could think of- which was simply to carry on aiding her in her task. His orange and white head whipped around gently as if he was looking eagerly for the others, but perhaps he was looking to see if anyone was listening in to their conversation.

It was difficult for the male to have time alone with the Alpha, and there was something about her that he really...well, liked. He didn't want to push his luck though, and most of the time he would bite his tongue.

"I'm sure we can, we make a great team, you and I!" Perhaps that came out too chipper, or forward. His intentions were surely innocent but perhaps they had an underlay of something else... His eyes glanced from side to side as he cleared his throat and pawed at some weeds to loosen them from the ground.  

[Seaki]

Maziwa was glad for Mtanizi's enthusiasm or encouragement, with the nerves bubbling in stomach over the event. As it got closer, she got more anxious for it to be over. She wasn't event he one getting married, it was ridiculous! She focused for a moment on clearing more objects from the clearing, moving pebbles and stones out of the way, and some sticks that had fallen from the trees.

She huffed, sitting after a long moment, looking at how much they had accomplished. She gave a pleased hum, surveying the clearing. "I think we did good," She grinned at him, but she was so exhausted now, after all the work they had done.

Zosie