[PRP] The color of Desperation

[laefe]

What a day.

Already Chau had felt her paws develop a callous to the burning sands, but the first night she'd had before this day had been the coldest of her life. At one point she'd actually moved to wrap up against Kigao's large mane in an attempt to warm herself more than she was. It was unreal how cold it had gotten with how warm it was during the day.

Now she was finally warm again and still Chau felt uncomfortable. It mmust have been the shifting sands, but for as much as it was uncomfortable... the heat was welcoming.

Yet she'd lost Kigao.

Now desperate, Chau was all but running across the sands in an attempt to find him, afraid and worried and lonely. Chau had been alone for so long that she'd hoped she wouldn't be alone anymore once with Kigao. Yet here she was... Alone.

"K-Kigao?" The shy voice rose up over the distance, ignoring any comments made by Hang at that moment in her desperation.  

[Lisirra]

((Hey Neo, Edit asked me to do your joining RP since she's really busy. I hope that's okay with you <3))



Most of Safiya's thoughts as of late have been centered around one particular question: Can one die of happiness? It was a very serious question, for if the answer was yes, then she was in grave danger of befalling serious harm. Regardless, she could not wipe the smile from her face these days. It seems she had found everything she had ever wanted: home, and a love of her own. Her future was bright and cheery, much like herself.

Today, like most days, she was out exploring her new home - staying away from the vulture-ridden areas, of course. It was different, but beautiful in its own ways, and Safi loved learning about it. She didn't feel afraid of getting lost, however; even with the shifting sands, she seemed to have a sixth sense about finding her way around. Like her paws knew where they were going, even if her mind did not.

Listening to the wind with a smile on her face, Safi's ears suddenly swiveled at the sound of someone calling. Turning her head, she spotted a white and pink lion running awkwardly on the sand. She looked distressed. Safi, worrying that perhaps this was another escaped vulture slave like Panya, called out to her. "Hello, friend! What is the trouble?"

 

[laefe]

((Not a problem. ^^))

Of course she didn't hear a word the lioness nearby said, how could the deaf suddenly begin to hear when they had lived their entire life not doing so? In fact, if not for Hang being always around to even hear what Chau could miss, the young white and pink lioness wouldn't hear a word.

"YO!" Hang snarled, suddenly appearing beside her out of the blue, as most imaginary friends would, "You got company kid."

Twisting and coming to a stop in a flurry of sand, Chau flipped, landed on her back, and stared up at the blue sky when she should have been looking at the white and gold lioness nearby. Odd place to take a rest, this place called earth.

Slowly she rolled over on her stomach and peered out over towards the other. She wasn't sure who she was, but either way she was pretty.

"H-Hello...?" Her bell voice rang out for a moment, clear despite her innability to hear words spoken by others.  

[Lisirra]

Saf looked quizzically at the white and pink lioness and smiled a friendly, trying-not-to-laugh smile at her as she tumbled over. "Is everything alright?" she said as she approached. "The sands can be quite treacherous to those not used to walking on the dunes." Saying this made Safiya realized...she was one of those that was used to it. She had been in a place long enough to be used to something. The white lioness felt a rise of warm happiness and satisfaction buzz through her.

At the same time, those words made her curious about the other lioness. "My name is Safiya," she said, oblivious to the fact that the other couldn't hear her. "Are you a stranger here? Strangers are not safe to wander the dessert alone, as there is little water, and only the few of us Dawnwalkers know where to find it. I'd be happy to show you of course, but if you have no further business here you would be safer returning to the grasslands."

Safiya had never before advised another being to leave - normally she was the most welcoming of any - but this really was a dangerous place for strangers and stragglers. She did not offer entrance to the pride because she knew they were on the verge of a dangerous battle with the vultures, and the newly-made Dawnwalker lioness worried for the safety of newcomers to the sands. Not knowing the intentions of the lioness, she assumed she would want to return from whence she came. Unless, of course, she was here to join up with the pride...but Safiya would let the other lioness tell her that, rather than give away her pride's location, lest this be some sort of vulture trick. You never know.  

[laefe]

The ability to read mouths was one that took years to learn, to perfect. Luckily for Chau she wasn't just a common lioness, she'd learned quickly the manner in which to communicate with her family once she'd discovered that she was the least loved of them. It kept her from being called completely stupid or being smacked at for being dull witted, or anything of that like.

So naturally, after such a long time of reading lips in her short life, Chau was able to read and process everything this strange female was telling her. Not missing the smile on her face or her posture, as this told a deaf lion more about the mood of those speaking than did their words, she inclined her head to the other and blushed slightly beneath her nearly transluscent fur.

"I'm not alone, at least not normally." Chau responded shyly, her clear voice tainted a bit by her clear shyness, "Kigao brought me here to see his home, he's my only friend. I just sort of got lost when I went to find water, Kigao was talking about going to meet up with his father in the DawnWalkers, a lion named Muroki."

It was all the truth as far as she remembered it, Kigao had been gone longer than she'd expected though and she'd gotten thirsty. It was a natural reaction when one was in the desert. However now she'd been running for a long time and her tender paws were sore, so maybe this female could lead her to water?

"Oh, my name is Chau by the way. It's... It's a pleasure to meet you Safiya." Her head inclined to the other gently, earning a snort of disdain from Hang that stood behind her, invisible to any eyes but Chau's alone.  

[Lisirra]

((I utterly forgot about this, I am so so so sorry sweatdrop my apologies!))

Safiya knew the name Muroki; her ears perked right up. The name Kigao was slightly familiar, too. These connections to lions she knew instantly warmed Safi to this new lioness.

Suddenly it came to her: she had met Kigao once, a while ago, and they had chatted pleasantly. That was before she had come with Muroki to the Dawnwalkers, so it was kind of hard for her to remember.

"That's so nice that you know Kigao and Muroki. Aren't they nice lions? I sure think so. Muroki was the lion that brought me here. Well, me and a lot of other lions, of course. We're gonna take back his homelands and live here. Isn't that wonderful?" Happy Safiya babbled on before she fully remembered all that Chau had said.

"Ohh, you got lost! Poor dear. It's easy to get lost here, especially when you don't know your way around. All the sand looks alike, you know." Safi smiled. "Are you alright? Thirsty at all? I can show you the way to the oasis, if you'd like."

The white lioness began walking in the direction of the oasis, barely pausing in her friendly chatting. "It's so nice to meet you, Chau. I love meeting new people in the pride. After we're done at the Oasis, I can bring you back to the rest of the lions so you can meet back up with Kigao, how does that sound? Yes? You'll really like it there, it's so very pretty for a desert. I never thought deserts could be pretty, but where we live, it's very nice."  

[laefe]

((It's okay. XD I thought you'd just not wanted to respond. *Laughs*))

"W-well Kigao's my mate after all. I haven't met Muroki yet, but it would be nice to meet him sometime, since Kigao talks so highly of him." Chau responded, her eyes widening a little at the speed he female talked at. Normally she could keep up but for some reason the female was speaking incredibly fast.

"A... ah. Um...." The white lioness tried to run after Safiya as she walked as quickly off in the direction as she did. "M-Miss Safiya? I know it's rude to say but... C-could you slow down when you speak? I can't hear and it's hard to keep up with you when you speak that fast by reading your muzzle."

Chau felt as if she could sink into the ground for as stupid as she felt. Of course Safiya wouldn't want to slow down, she'd probably not even want to deal with her knowing that she was deaf, or even worse... she'd tell her to leave the pride she knew she belonged in with her mate.

All the same, her pink paws darted over the sand to follow after her, her eyes taking in all her words as carefully as she could, so she didn't get anyting wrong even if she was slow reading what she was saying.

"How long have you been with the pride? Kigao hasn't mentioned any names other than Muroki, so I don't know anyone here but him and Muroki's name. Are there many here?"  

[Lisirra]

Safiya, usually a bit oblivious, had no clue that she was talking so fast. It was simply her normal speed. She had grinned at the other lioness when she heard that Chau was Kigao's mate, but she didn't see anything in Chau's expression that would clue her in.

So when Chau asked her to slow down, she stopped walking and blinked vapidly for a few moments before she finally understood.

"Oh!" she exclaimed. Speaking slower this time, she said, "I am so very sorry! Please forgive me, Chau." Safiya laughed sheepishly. "My tongue often gets away from me that way. My Moyenda usually lets me know when I am speaking too quickly to be understood. I'll talk slower now, of course, that's no problem at all."

Safiya barely registered that Chau was deaf; it really wasn't an issue with her. Simple-minded and loving as she was, Safiya would simply speak slower and they could both understand each other, and everything was well.

Safiya slowed in her pace too, so that the two lionesses could walk easily side by side. "Oh, I followed Muroki here from...from..." she had to think a moment of the last place she lived; when she had met Muroki that last time, it hadn't been a happy life she was leading. "...From far away, I can't recall the name. But I traveled here with him and his mate, and we picked up a few others as we went. Including my mate Moyenda."

Safiya smiled to think of him, how wonderful he was. Remembering that Chau mentioned Kigao as her mate, she asked, "How long have you known Kigao, Chau?"  

[laefe]

Happily pacing beside the lioness, who was now going blessedly slower, Chau let a smile spread over her muzzle for all the things being said. It seemed as if Safiya was a truely sweet lioness. After all she had decided to help Chau who, for all Safiya knew, could be lying.

"I-it's fine, I'm just a little slow w-with those sorts of things." Chau reprimended herself for whining and let a smile charm her face again, hoping that it would be ignored as a slip of the tongue.

"Well.... not so very long... I suppose?" She felt silly saying it out loud when she'd thought over it again and again since they'd met. How little she knew of him, how much he must think her a little cub compared to him.

Though Kigao was very playful and a little childish himself at times, that being part of the reason Chau had grown to love and care for him so.

"He helped me when I needed it, I'd just.... lost... something important. Kigao offered to bring me here, saying that this was his family. I'm so very grateful he brought me to such a nice place, I just had to and get myself lost after he helped me though."

Shame filled every part of her body, sheepishness and shame.  

[Lisirra]

"Oh, this is a nice place," Safiya chattered pleasantly, taking care to speak slow. "It's quite wonderful once you get used all the sunshine and the sand. And it'll be even better once Muroki and the other warriors chase away all those terrible vultures.

"I'm so glad Kigao thought to bring you with him here!" Safi grinned at Chau, sincerely happy. "I love making new friends. And don't worry about getting lost, it happens to all of us at least once. Well...maybe not all of us, but I know when I first got here I took a wrong turn every now and again." She giggled sheepishly.

They proceeded over a large rising dune, Safiya's paws sinking into the dense sand. "As soon as we come over this hill, we should be able to see the oasis. That's part of the pridelands, and a nice place to find shade. A little while past that is the temple and caves and such, but we can't go too close to the temple while the vultures are there. So we - I, anyway - stay pretty much around the Oasis. Maybe Kigao is around there too."  

[laefe]

"Kigao got lost more than once when he and I were coming here. I had to help him find stars and landmarks sometimes." A ghost of a smile played over Chau's face as she remembered how Kigao had suddenly stopped in his tracks and peered around in confusion more than a couple of times. It had been all the more endearing, as she could get lost in a one room cave herself.

As they crested the large dune, Chau smiled down at the oasis down below her. Her pale jade-colored eyes seemed to glitter as she stared down at how beautiful the oasis seemed to be, with glittering waters and trees all around.

"It's like a paradise. I'm sure Kigao came here... he must have wanted to see it. Now I know why." It was like she was staring at the perfect oasis, not the oasis she'd originaly come from, which stank of hatred and loss long felt. This felt shining and new, like water on a stone before it dried.

"Will you show me the rest of the pride when the vultures are gone? If it's as pretty as this...."  

[Lisirra]

Safiya soaked in the praise of her new home, very glad that her new friend seemed to hold it in the same esteem that Safiya herself did. It was still new to her, but Safi had made it her home quite easily. Barren though the desert was, there was light and love here. And friends.

Speaking of which - Safi turned her eyes away from the view and back to Chau. "Would you like me to help you find Kigao, or would you meet him on your own? I don't want to intrude, if you aren't afraid of getting lost," she said with a friendly, understanding smile.

"Oh, of course! It would be a great pleasure. And I can introduce you to Moyenda. He's my..." Safi turned away in happy embarrassment, and shook her head to leave her sentence hanging.  

[laefe]

The words that Safiya let hang in the end of her statement made Chau smile. She knew exactly what Moyenda was to her new friend and the shy lioness was more than happy to let her go on being bashful if it meant that she had a new friend to talk to.

"I think... I think I can find him. He stands out... a lot." Chau smiled gently at that, he stood out more than just a lot. He stood out like a sore toe on a hard rocky terrain. Of course that was why she'd grown so fond of him to say that she loved him.

This new place was fun... it seemed like there were a lot of nice lions around here. Unlike the Oasis and the Pridelands... there seemed to be an atmosphere of welcome, one that would make her stay better than she'd thought about it ever being.

Grinning lightly at Safiya, Chau took a step towards the little paradise in the sands, and a step further towards a peaceful future.