[PRP] Starlit Meeting [Zimran & Persikka]

[Quaji]

It was the dead of the night as Zimran sat alone on a small rise in the Pridelands, her head turned upwards towards the starry sky while the ground around her was illuminated by a partial moon. The goddess was lost in thought and for one of the first times, purposefully let her illusion down. She had nothing to hide anymore, nothing to truly fear from the others within the pride. They would not think of her differently, or so she hoped. While she had been skeptical of how others would react, a young cub, D'oro-Moyo, had taught her a while back though that the Pridelands cared little for the divine status of some of Mkodi's servants. It had put her mind at ease and had allowed her to let down her guard finally. Now it was truly up to others to decide how to perceive her. The one opinion she cared about was a familiar peach coated lion, Persikka.

The name rung loud and clear within her head as she thought more about him. He was a nice guy, funny in some cases, but dependable. He had some kind of charm that just made her smile to the point that her face began to hurt from holding the expression for so long. Just the thought of Persikka caused a smile to spread over her face just to confirm her previous thought. It was a feeling she hadn't felt in so long. Though it was a familiar feeling it was one she was cautious around. Was this...love?  

[Ritikine]

Sleep had eluded the peach male, despite his attempts to drift off. His mind just wasn’t allowing rest to come his way. So with sleep seemingly out of the question, at least for now, Persikka instead found himself wandering outside beneath the clear, starry sky. His mind was shifting from thought to thought, though there was one person who it always seemed to fall back to. In fact it was someone who continued to drift to the front of his mind quite frequently.

Zimran. The lioness he had first met upon arriving in the Pridelands. Well, the first that left a large enough impression. He had met guard, passed other pridal members, but Zimran was the only one who he recalled clearly. Not only that but she had helped him since his arrival. Helped him to try and find his place in the pride. Perhaps he had not exactly found that yet, but with her there he was sure that eventually he would. In fact he knew with her to help him he would find his place.  

[Quaji]

Her tail swayed gently behind her as deep blue eyes scanned the heavens above, hoping for some kind of answer to what she was feeling. Alas, there was no reply. The heavens had closed their gates to her and it was up to the goddess to decipher the feelings on her own. With a sigh, Zimran's head sunk slowly, her heart heavy with a burden that was familiar but at the same slightly foreign to her. Perhaps one day she would read her own heart and understand her mind and what it was always trying to tell her instead of just guessing. Her ears folded back, she was confused and slightly lost at what to do with herself and her confusion. For already being a mother to six, a sister to two and an aunt to many, she understood much of her family but so little of herself.  

[Ritikine]

Persikka’s wanderings started to take him in to taller grasses. The male paused a moment before turning, keeping to a worn dirt path. His mind still focused on the pale lioness as he continued to walk through the night. Recently she had shown at least some sign of affection. A small lick upon his cheek. He mused over its meaning. Was it merely the affections of a friend, or perhaps something more? A sight ahead caught the male’s attention. At first he thought it to be some trick of the moonlight. Atop a rise sat a lioness of such beauty. The male was drawn to her, and as he came closer he realized who it was.

“Zimran?” Persikka called out, his voice a bit unsure of itself. it certainly was her, though there was something different. Perhaps this was a trick of the moonligh, for from her forehead sprouted what he could only describe as a horn. That couldn’t be though, lion’s didn’t have horns.  

[Quaji]

Her head turned quickly to look at the voice that called out her name so cautiously. It was all too late to possibly hide her horn, but the lioness felt little need to anymore. She was comfortable enough around the male to let him see the real her though the only real difference was the horn the parted her tuft. "Could you not sleep, Persikka?" Zimran asked, her voice soft. Even thought they were a distance from Pride Rock, she was still worried that there may be scouts of some kind nearby who would hear her. Though she was unsure of why she suddenly feared a scout of the pride she belonged to finding her.  

[Ritikine]

At her question he shook his head, moving closer to get a better look at her. “No. My mind didn’t seem to want to slow down, so I thought I might take a walk and see if it could help my mind relax.” As he came to her side he got a better look at what definitely did look like a horn. Realizing he was staring though he quickly shifted his gaze down to her face. “Zimran?” He said, his voice a bit more quiet. Silence followed for a few moments before he managed to ask. “Is that a horn?” There was no fear, or any such negative tones in his voice, only a curiosity as to whether what he saw was real or not.  

[Quaji]

"I see. Maybe your walk will help your mind calm itself yet." Her eyes attempted to look up towards her forehead by of course ended in failure before looking back at the male who stood so close to her. "I..." Was there really any way of explaining her horn other then telling the truth? Was it something she could really hide from someone like Persikka? "Yes..?" It came out starting as a statement but somehow turned into a question along the way, as if she was unsure of the growth on her own head. With a long inhale and exhale, she finally replied a little more confidently. "Yes, it is a horn."  

[Ritikine]

Persikka sat down beside her, a smile playing across his face. His gaze went back to her horn as she confirmed that that was what it was. A horn. Amazing. Then his gaze fell back to her face. “I knew you were special, but this is just...amazing? No, that word doesn’t even come close to describing you.” Slowly he lowered himself to lay down. A lioness with a horn. What did that mean then? Obviously it was something that made her special, more so than he had previously thought her to be. Then a thought occurred to him. This was the first time he had seen a horn on her, did that mean she had somehow been hiding it from him? From everyone? The smile faded ever so slightly, confusion spreading across his face and evident in his voice. “Why did you hide it?” He asked, before a different question quickly popped to the front of his mind. “Why aren’t you hiding it now?”  

[Quaji]

Zimran turned her head away for a moment, but not from shame, more from embarrassment. What he called amazing was just simply how it was for her and for many of her kind. It was easy to see just how easily impressed he might be, but it made her smile. Steadily, she brought he head back around to look up towards the stars. "Because I don't feel like I should or need to hide it anymore. At least not around you. Around cubs is fine, though only one has actually seen it. It seems to give them an extra sense of peace, or calmness seeing it." Her head then turned to look at Persikka, "You are not...scared?"  

[Ritikine]

Persikka could not help but laugh at her question. “Of course not. I see no reason to be afraid. You are still you, with or without a horn.” He smiled softly at her before looking up towards the starry sky above. “I am glad you felt comfortable enough to show me though. It means a lot.” And it did. He wasn’t sure exactly why though. It was nice out here beside her, simply staring at the stars.  

[Quaji]

Zimran couldn't help but smile and for another moment, she let her guard down as she laid herself down on the grass and leaned her head against his leg. She was simply content to lay there at that moment under the night sky with Persikka beside her. She didn't understand why she felt that way, but she was not going to question it any longer and just let it flow.