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 Posted: Mon Aug 06, 2007 8:07 pm
It was a relatively quiet day in the Pridelands; at least, it seemed relatively quiet where Mvumo was sitting, and that quiet was exactly what he was seeking. Freedom from speech, and freedom to think about how quickly time had flown. His sons were aging, and that by consequence must mean that he was aging too...but he couldn't be old yet! He could still run with his children in the hunt, could still serve the pride with all of his youthful strength. If anything, he was getting better with time, for Aadil and their sons had improved his ability to speak to almost what it had been before...before.
There it went again; the memories of a pride long gone drifting through his head. They didn't come as often anymore, but when they did...well, that was more frightening than ostriches. Mvumo gave his mane a good shake as he tried to drive away the darker thoughts.
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Posted: Mon Aug 06, 2007 8:21 pm
Tetemeko had wandered away from the little group of trees that he currently lived near, though he was being careful not to get too far away. He'd promised his father, after all! And he was a little frightened of making anyone more upset than they already were now. It was hard to try to behave so well, Tete wasn't sure what would and wouldn't get him into trouble.
Unsure of what to do, but happy to be at least trying, Tetemeko ended up merely sitting out in the grass and looking around silently as he tried to decide. He didn't seem to notice anyone around him, his thoughts keeping him nicely distracted.
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Posted: Mon Aug 06, 2007 8:44 pm
The dark brown lion squinted at the white body in distance. While Kip had mentioned a white lioness was also in the pride, the stranger in the grass didn't seem near Kip's age, as he had described her.
Upon squinting at the figure, Mvumo thought he caught a glimpse of brown eyes as well...brown eyes? No, impossible...
"Kubwa?" he called out, not really certain if he was calling for his son or for "my brother". For this child seemed nearly the age his brother was when...
Dawa...why must you still haunt my memories? I cannot help you anymore...I have my own family to care for now, a family I love.
"Kubwa, my son, is that you?...it has been a long time," Mvumo said.
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Posted: Mon Aug 06, 2007 8:54 pm
Tete was startled to hear a voice call out to him, especially calling out the name of his father. He blinked, and his attention was drawn very suddenly to the brown lion nearby. It wasn't until he heard the words 'my son' that Tetemeko was able to guess who this was- daddy mad mentioned his father, M-something- and how he was afraid that he would be mad that daddy had been gone away so long.
That thought in mind, Tete ducked down into the grass to try to hide- though he knew it was no use now that he'd already been seen. He didn't want to cause any more problems or make anyone else mad! Had daddy told the truth about being worried about facing his own father, or was that false as well?
Staying quiet, the youth peeked out towards Mvumo, wondering if he would come closer or leave him be. If he thought it was Kubwa, surely he wouldn't be let alone.
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Posted: Mon Aug 06, 2007 9:07 pm
Mvumo blinked a few times at the sudden disappearance of the other lion. For other lion it had to be, since Dawa was gone and Kubwa hid in trees, not in the grass. Besides, to be able to duck that low in the grass without something sticking out, it had to be a cub. The question was, why did he or she look so familiar?
"Do not be afraid, young one," Mvumo said as he cautiously rose to his feet. He didn't want whoever it was to run, since a lost cub was vulnerable even in the relative safety of the Pridelands. "I am Mvumo, and I am sorry I mistook you for my son...I just have not seen him in a while, and I deeply miss him."
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Posted: Mon Aug 06, 2007 9:18 pm
Mvumo. That was the name his father had mentioned, and now Tete was about to meet him all by himself. Would daddy be mad? Suddenly, the youth had an idea- maybe there was a better chance of being more liked if Mvumo didn't know who he was, or that there was any reason to be mad. Maybe he wouldn't get mad like gram..
"H-hello," he stammered, lifting his head back up from the grass, "I'm Tetemeko." Tete tried his hardest not to look as anxious as he felt, staring at Mvumo with wonder. He looked a lot like daddy, only dark.
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Posted: Tue Aug 07, 2007 9:36 pm
As he stepped forward to get a better look at the cub, Mvumo couldn't help but be a tad confused. Tetemeko's eyes seemed very familiar indeed, and he didn't feel as terrible for confusing the child with Kubwa and Dawa, because they looked so much alike...but then, Tetemeko had gold markings, and didn't Kip say there was a family with white lions that had gold markings?
"It is good to meet you, Tetemeko," Mvumo said. "What brings you to this area of the Pridelands? I do not often see other lions here." Sure, it was wierd that he was trying to dismiss the wierdness of the situation by being wierdly verbose, but thinking about the wierdness of the wierd situation just made the wierdness...wierder.
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Posted: Wed Aug 08, 2007 12:46 pm
Tetemeko couldn't hide his anxiety when he was told it was nice to meet him, and then asked why he was about. He was caught between being excited to have Mvumo react so nicely, and worried about what answers he could give about why he was here. His grandfather must know this was where his grandmother was, and might question him more if he mentioned family.
The youth had not put so much thought into anything before.
"It's nice to meet you too," he squeaked finally, and looked around before answering the other question, "I was just playing."
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Posted: Wed Aug 08, 2007 1:47 pm
Well, this was intriguing. Having two sons had taught Mvumo a thing or two about how cubs didn't tell the whole truth about things, and the anxiousness of Tetemeko seemed to indicate that something was missing in his explanation. Oh well...the real reason was probably something overly complicated that the cub couldn't explain.
"Playing? Well, you need not fear anything here; my mate Aadil and I are usually the only lions around here, now that our sons are growing up enough to want some freedom. If you would like, I could introduce her to you. She'd probably be happy to see another cub running about."
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Posted: Wed Aug 08, 2007 2:02 pm
Tetemeko started at the offer to be introduced to Aadil, and shook his head almost immediately- a mistake if he wanted to keep his secret, but it didn't look like he would be able to manage it much longer.
"No, no- that's ok," he said quickly, and offered a smile, "You look like fun, we could play a game ourselves?" Tete looked up at Mvumo hopefully, wondering what kind of games he knew.
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Posted: Wed Aug 08, 2007 2:09 pm
Afraid...of Aadil? This was an even stranger cub than Mvumo could have expected. Unless, of course, Aadil had a secret identical evil twin who liked to impersonate her for no particular reason.
Then came the request that threw Mvumo out of his areas of expertise. "A game? Perhaps you could teach me one...one your parents taught you?" The dark lion didn't know what games the other Pridelanders played, and he decided this could be a learning experience for future generations of his family.
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Posted: Wed Aug 08, 2007 2:38 pm
"Well, tag is fun- but you're probably a lot faster than I am, and you have longer legs," Tete said thoughtfully, finally distracted from the troubles of keeping his identity a secret, "We could play hide and seek, it'd be easiest." The youth got to his feet and walked in a circle around Mvumo as he considered the idea- it would be fun, and Tete wasn't opposed to the advantage he'd have since Mvumo was so big (and thus hard to hide).
"Better than trees," Tete murmured, thinking of what his father might have tried to suggest . Grinning, he tilted his head, "Sound good?"
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Posted: Wed Aug 08, 2007 2:49 pm
"Easiest for you to win, you mean?" Mvumo laughed. "Sure we can play. But I get to choose where we start the game. I know a place with more hiding places." He said, eyes darting around as he looked at the grass, grass, and more grass that surrounded them.
"What was that about trees?" he asked, squinting in confusion.
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Posted: Wed Aug 08, 2007 3:01 pm
Tete tried to look innocent when accused of picking the game he'd have better odds of winning, knowing he didn't need to admit it- but at least it made Mvumo laugh. He only shrugged off the comment about the trees, "That's where my daddy tries to play most. Where are all the good hiding places here?"
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Posted: Wed Aug 08, 2007 3:11 pm
"Most of the good hiding places are toward the watering hole..." Mvumo said, before doing a double-take. A daddy that plays in trees? Mvumo knew there were other white lions in the pride, but he didn't know of any other white lions who played in trees. "...are you...do you know...Kubwa?"
If he was right, then he didn't feel as bad about mistaking the cub for his son. But Mvumo didn't want to be right, because that meant...why did everything have to be so complicated?!
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