[PRP] Suspicious Activity (Sabah/Saidia)

[Painted Moose]

The flatlands of the Mwezi'Johari lent itself to a clear view of the moon from all angles. There were no trees for Sabah to hide behind where she was at, since most were usually occupied by the prides more chatty residents. She played her part; she smiled, flirted with potential suitors that her father flashed her off to, and generally kept her head in the dirt. It was a routine that would have been fine...if she wasn't sure that Shangyue had it out for her personally.

Oh, she'd never talked to him, or any of his close advisers, for that matter, but she had said that one comment when she was little about how things were better when he hadn't been in charge. Her caretaker had shushed her up good, putting the fear of the Almighty Lion in her. If he could take out his family, what would stop him from getting her?

The camouflage tuft of the end of her tail wouldn't keep her hidden for long. Maybe if she married into his bloodline...? But, that wasn't exactly a safe place, was it?

She remained on the edge of the pride, not too close to the border, but well away from it's busy center, fussing over her next move without any real knowledge to make such decisions.

Lithiasaur

 

[Lithiasaur]

Painted Moose

Saidia was not one to deviant from what he had established as his normal. He spent his time very close to his den, and did not wander from a certain radius around that home. He did his hunting in a specific area, at a specific time, and if there was no food he waited for the next day.

He did not like to break from his routine, and that was why he worked so steadily and kept his head down. He did not go out of his way to get noticed or get involved and so far that had been working for him.

It was surprising someone had come out to his den. He never had visitors, really, as he was far from the hustle and bustle of most of the dens, and there was nothing really interesting out here. He frowned at the lioness he spotted in his area, though, and tilted his head to the side as he approached her.

"Are you lost?"

Maybe she was an outside who had gotten lost in the rogue lands. It was known to happen, wasn't it? He was not sure why he had approached, now that he was standing in front of her, but since he had a little down time before he was meant to go back into his den, he was not too anxious about his schedule getting thrown off.

Yet.  

[Painted Moose]

Lithiasaur

Sabah slowly turned towards the voice as a sleeping beetle came to life inside of her gut. It pinched her insides, sending little jolts of nerves jumping all over her skin. She tried to twitch her maw into a smile, but found herself too on edge to pull it off. This is it. This is the test. She hadn't seen this male before, surely she would have remembered such vibrant markings, so that could only mean he was a spy.

"Er, uhm..." What had he said? Should she have paid attention? Sabah cursed herself mentally. If she was lucky he would only think her a blundering fool! "No?" She edged, giving into an awkward little laugh. "I was just taking a stroll to clear my head. If I'm interrupted you, I'm sorry. I'll just go walk....over there...so I don't interrupt you further."  

[Lithiasaur]

Painted Moose

Saidia stared at her for a long time.

Was it him, or was she acting weird? If he were honest, he had no idea, as he had very little experience to compare her to. Her behavior might well be perfectly normal, compared to all the other lions in the pride. Since he lived alone and tended to keep to himself, he had no clue about that. But in his little world, things were... much different.

"Well, you interrupted me a little bit, but I have a little while to spare still."

He did. His schedule was just loose enough that he allowed a few minutes here and there for unaccounted time. Prepared for the unexpected, though it was rarely necessary, and usually even his free time was occupied by routine time fillers. This was completely new, though.

"Why are you walking out this way? It does not seem like too many come out this way... usually I'm completely alone in this particular speck of land. Do you live around here...? Just moved in maybe..."

He hoped not. That would really cut into how he managed his time and the land around him.  

[Painted Moose]

Lithiasaur

Stand straight. Smile cutely, not too much, that's too little, right there. Pretend like you don't know who he is and what he wants.

The last bit was a little easier to play along with. Sabah was a jumpy little thing, but just as curious as a cub when a secret was being kept by grown ups. "Oh, is that so?" She tried to sound genuine when she giggled, but she was sobbing dramatically internally. What sour luck! "That is...wonderful." He was monitoring her to see if she would sneak off, and find the rebels, because surely they had to be close to the border, right? She wasn't even sure, but he was, she just knew it.

"I'm not very experienced with the edges of our pride. Most of my time is spent under the paw of my father, whom is a very open and well respected male in polite society." Sabah nodded. Good, good. "Just moved...? Oh goodness, no. I'm a Lady; Lady Sabah." She smiled. "A-and who might you be, kind sir? A Lady should know the name of her companion, don't you agree?"

If he didn't lie to her she could ask her father about valuable dirt on this lion, and if he did then she...well, she wouldn't be any worse off, would she?

 

[Lithiasaur]

Painted Moose

Saidia was not quite sure why she was acting so weird around him. He was still not sure if he was the weird one or if he was, but he could not just walk away from her now. She, at least, seem friendly, and that was good for him.

"Very... polite...?" he frowned, not following the thought. Why was she telling him about her father? He nodded his head, though, and tried to follow the thoughts, wondering if he was supposed to talk about his family now? He did not have much to say, as he had been alone for some time now, and had not spent time with his family in a little while.

"My name is Saidia. It is nice to meet you, Lady Sabah." He bowed his head respectfully, because she seemed to emphasize that she was a lady so clearly that meant he was important.

He did not want to be rude, even if he did live on his own and did not interact with folks too much. She seemed like she was very important, and she knew it, so he didn't want to upset her.  

[Painted Moose]

Lithiasaur

Sabah couldn't understand why he was being so odd. His act was absolutely impressive, one of the best she had seen, but not so well crafted that she couldn't see through it.

"A pleasure, Saidia." Well, at least he had a cute name. It wasn't as if he wasn't an unattractive male, and all the mores the pity. Would that he were repulsive! She wasn't sure how to continue without seeming forced. Every sinew in her petite body called for a quick escape, but she would prove her bloodline proud by standing her ground.

"Why do you live so far away from the others, Saidia?" It didn't seem rude, just a general question, since they were, indeed, very far from the others. Her siblings would have joked that this is where he kept the bodies of his victims, and she didn't know why it came to her then, at that moment, to think that way. Unless...this really was where he hid the bodies.

Sabah gulped.  

[Lithiasaur]

Painted Moose

"I like being alone," he said, then paused for a long moment, staring at her before he added, "though I do not mind visitors if they're on schedule..."

Not that the concept made sense. He could not anticipate visitors since he had no friends and no one made arrangements to visit him before hand. Maybe he should schedule time into his day for the off chance of someone stopping by... but that seemed like too much wasted time waiting for something that did not happen often.

But when it did, he became very confused.

"I am just a... a quiet lion. I would rather not be involved in the... messes... lions can create when they live together. I suppose it gets lonely, sometimes."  

[Painted Moose]

Lithiasaur

"...Am I on your schedule?" She said after a long pause. In truth, regardless of whether he was truly evil or not, she never meant to step on any paws. It would be most unbecoming of her to do so if she wished to remain a true Lady. "That is, have I interrupted it?"

This was not really a concept that she understood very well. Her "schedule" was strict during the days of her upbringing, but that was only so she would turn out the way her father had planned. Now that she was older she was told to mingle with the elite, and so she did; but only on their schedules.

To have a schedule of one's own...was odd.

"I can see where living on one's own would be calming," She admitted with a little sigh. "There is no one to please, but yourself in that case. And yet, there is also no one to validate your concerns or hear your worries." Sabah was in a strange place at that moment. She wished to help the lion that seemed so sincere, but she was still so terrified of displeasing the spy she thought stood before her.

And so, in working it out in her mind, she came up the the following proposition;

"If I follow your schedule, may I come to visit with you? That way you are not truly alone, and yet you can have your freedom."  

[Lithiasaur]

Painted Moose

He watched her for a long moment, thinking about her question, then shook his head slowly.

"No, you weren't. But you are now. I'll have to... adjust..."

He hated that word, and the very idea of changing his schedule in the middle of his day was very strange and unwelcome to him. He would have to do something, though, or he would be going without a lot of the things he usually needed to do in a day. But he supposed he had managed to actually meet someone from the pride... and while that was strange, it was actually not unpleasant.

Her question made him pause, and he looked genuinely surprised.

"You want to come back?" He hated experienced that before, either. "Well... if you want to, I could manage to accommodate you into the schedule... with a little bit of warning. I would... I would like if you came back."

He had never really had company before, not that actually wanted to come back and see him again. He was not sure how to react to it, so he would probably just go about his normal day and just incorporate two lions into it. It would likely mean more time to do things, and seemed like it could be pretty convenient.  

[Painted Moose]

Lithiasaur

The male didn't seem any happier about having to 'adjust' than she was to speak with him initially, but Sabah had a good feeling about it. Although his surprise seemed to be infectious as it surprised her as well. "Should I...not want to? You've been very kind to me, and I would like to get to know you better if you would allow me to do so. Once you've figured out where I fit in then I'll do my best to be here each day." Sabah smiled. It was a relief to be able to relax, even if she still thought him a possible spy. Maybe this was the test? To see how comfortable she could be? Honestly, it sounded a lot nicer than pretending as if she knew something when really Sabah was just as a fluffed up novelty.

Whatever she had "hidden" away was going to come out anyway, so she might as well enjoy herself.

"When should I come back? I really should be leaving soon, but I don't want to show up unannounced and ruin your day."  

[Lithiasaur]

Painted Moose

"Well I... I have never had someone want to... well, I will look forward to anticipating your return, then," he actually found himself looking forward to it, in a strange way. Yes, it did mean he had to rethink how to approach his days, to include time to accommodate her visit, but it was a new challenge he had never really had before.

No one wanted to hang out with him, oddly. Maybe because he completely isolated himself on purpose and most others did not even know he existed. It was entirely his fault, not theirs, and yet he was still surprised.

He thought she was being genuine, of course, and had no idea she thought he was something he was not. The only thing he ever cared about was his schedule, and his day to day. He might have actually been disappointed, if he ever learned that she was only asking to spend time with him because she thought she had to.

"Perhaps tomorrow, around the same time of day? I think I know how to keep myself from falling too far behind for today, and it will work better tomorrow now that I have practice. I appreciate your effort to fit in with my schedule. I do realize that it is... not... how many others conduct their day. Uhm."

He was trying to say he was sorry for being weird, but the words didn't really know how to come out.  

[Painted Moose]

Lithiasaur

Fin? I can start up another, if you'd like. c:

"That sounds perfect. I know I don't like it when things start changing around me, so I try to be accommodating for others." Of course, the way she spoke could have applied to normal issues such as routines and slip ups. Sabah mostly worried herself over the change in regime, but so was life. "Try not to fuss over it," she laughed lightly. "It's only going to give you grey fur. If this becomes an issue with me I'll let you know, but right now it's completely alright." It was odd though. He seemed so genuine for a spy, and it made Sabah second guess herself. Was it part of espionage to bring out smiles and laughter in the ones you were supposed to be watching? Maybe one day she would know.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Saidia." Bowing her head, the little Lady made her way back to her den with more than a few concepts to think about that evening.