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 Posted: Sun Mar 30, 2008 6:58 pm
AIM LOG - Felyn & Krysin
Kiasi & Shaji It was early morning, and by early, he meant early. The sun was just beginning to peek into the entrance of his den, where he had collapsed just inside of the night before. He had been truthfully well over exhausted by playing with his cubs and doing his best to assure that Kiasi got some time to relax herself. Shaji at times didn't realize how much energy it took for him to spend hours with the cubs. There were so many... and it was just he and Kiasi. He couldn't imagine the brown lioness being able to do it on her own. It surely would be madness to attempt such a thing. Really, even if the cubs tired him out, he loved them, and he loved being able to help his newest friend.
He liked Kiasi, he really did, and to him she was someone he could simply enjoy hanging around with. He didn't find it that difficult to talk to her, and she did trust him enough to let him help her raise her children. That was a good start, and thinking about Kiasi made him smile goofily in his state of half-asleep-half-awakeness. Shaji would have preferred to snatch an hour or two more of sleep, but he could not have everything he desired. His thoughts were already rolling, and he would never be able to get back to sleep at this point. So, with a heavy sigh he rolled onto his feet, stretching his legs out in front of him. Yawning, he left his den behind and walked out into the sunlight.
Shaji did have a thing as a morning routine, but he decided to skip it and check in on Kiasi and the cubs. Usually the cubs slept in, but one never really did know when a cub would wiggle in their sleep and kick a sibling in the head. It could already be chaos before he reached the den, so when he finally did make it there... the peace and quiet was, well, perfectly lovely. He smiled to himself at the sound of nothing. But, of course, he didn't think through things and spoke himself, disturbing the silence with his rich voice. "Kiasi? Are you awake?"Despite loving her beauty sleep, Kiasi herself had become quite the light sleeper. With seven cubs, one had to be able to wake up and take care of anything. As it were, his voice broke through her subconscious and drew her from her dreams. With a slight shift, she let those deep, ocean-like eyes flicker open. Her first reaction was to take a head count. Finding all her cubs littered around her, having crowded around her form at some point, she let her attention drift to the male looming in the entrance of her den.
She let a soft smile spread across her maw at the sight of him, pushing herself up slowly to her paws. Shaji was a real life saver, and after spending time with him, she was finding that he was a real sweet heart. Not to mention, he was a fairly attractive boy. She made her way through the slumbering cubs, careful not to bump any of them.
"I am now," she said softly, bringing herself up to his side, head tilting slightly as she looked up at him. She glanced back at the cubs, laying haphazardly around the spot she had been sleeping in . "Although I'd not want to wake the little angels," she added, though the word 'angel' made her smirk. They weren't quite angels, but it amused her to pretend otherwise. "Perhaps you'd like to go for a walk?"He felt his chest tighten with anxiety as Kiasi manuevered her way around her seven cubs. He really didn't want them waking up, because surely the peace would be broken, and their quite morning would be no more. When Kiasi managed to get around them he let out a sigh of pure relief. He loved the little darlings, but right now he wanted them to sleep so he could spend some time chatting with Kiasi. He would talk with her anwyays, but cubs were distracting and he didn't feel like putting up with distractions right now.
"I'm sorry," he muttered softly, figuring out easily that he had roused her from her slumber. Next time he just wouldn't come around so early in the morning, so Kiasi could snatch another precious hour or so of sleep. The pair of them needed what rest they could get with so many cubs to raise, or at least that was what Shaji firmly believed. He really did feel bad that he had woken her, but now she seemed wide awake... so there was no point in trying to get her to return to her den and get some shut eye. He knew that she wouldn't want to do it.
"Oh, they're so sweet, but I think I'd rather let them sleep now, too." The golden lion really saw no reason for them not to be perfect little angels, because he only ever allowed himself to see the good points in people, and completely ignored the bad otherwise. He nodded his head slowly, and stepped back away from the den so that their words would not be loud enough to waken the young cubs. Shaji was doing his best to keep them slumbering happily. "I'd enjoy a walk. Where to?"Kiasi had long since learned how to maneuver around her own children, twist and turn and get through them without causing the slightest little peep from them. She could do nearly anything, she was sure, without waking them or disturbing them. It was a mother's gift, it came with the territory. Although, she also knew how easy it was for others to make that silly mistake. Better to get away from them quickly so that Shaji didn't have the chance to rouse them. He was a good fellow, but there were some things only a mother could get away with.
"Don't be silly," she said with a smile, flickering her tail and shaking her head at his apology. "I have to get up sometime, might as well be now. Besides, the sooner I'm up, the sooner I can get things done. No need to act like a lazy bones." She laughed, gently, turning to stare up at him.
"How about the water hole?" she said with a quirk of her brow, turning in that direction. With the sun having only risen a little ways, it was hard to make out too much, though she could see a glimmer off the water in the distance. She didn't want to go too far with them alone in the den, really.Shaji wasn't a lion that exuded grace and tranquility, so the longer he stayed near the cubs the greater risk there was of him waking them accidentally. He was likely to do something stupid, like trip forward onto one of them, or hit his toe on a rock and instantly yelp in pain. Some part of him was more worried about waking the cubs up himself than he was worried about Kiasi waking them up. He knew he was a clutz some times, and it was a great embarrassment to him occassionally.
He returned her smile with a hesitant one of his own, because he still wasn't positive that waking her up was all right. "Well, I was just thinking that it would be good to get as much sleep as we needed," he shrugged his shoulders, though, admitting silently that he was being a little silly. "Oh, and you could never be considered lazy. You do so much more stuff than other young lionesses your age do. You've got a larger work load to handle, anyways."
He nodded his head, agreeing that the water hole was a good place to walk to. He was a little thirsty, and they wouldn't be too far away from the den in case the cubs woke up and needed the both of them. "That sounds good." He turned, and began heading in the direction of the water hole, his pace slow and languid. He was in no particular hurry, and really was simply enjoying Kiasi's presence and being up so early in the morning.
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Posted: Sun Mar 30, 2008 7:00 pm
A slow smirk spread across Kiasi's maw as she stared up at the rather oblivious male. His compliments did flatter, though she knew deep down that she deserved little of them. He did a lot of the work, but something about his character blinded him to this. It almost made her feel guilty, to take advantage of someone so caring and kind - but then again, she was a single mother with a horde of cubs. She did some of the work, and at least that was an improvement upon what she would have done otherwise.
"I simply do what I must," she said finally, turning to follow him, glad of his languid pace because of her shorter limbs. At least she had not lied, glorified herself all the more - she did what she must. That was the truth, if not quite the meaning one usually thought of. She did what she was required to and left everything that she didn't have to help with up to him most often. She had done the hard part, after all - she'd birthed them.
As they walked along, the water hole growing ever nearer, she let her mind wander over certain thoughts. She was quite lucky to have found someone as willing to help as he - she had been sure finding aid in a male was going to take much more than just simple friendship on her part. It made for an easy life, and that she was at least thankful for. "I'm surprised that you've become so happy here," she said softly, ocean-deep eyes settled upon the waterhole in the near distance, "not many males would be so content to raise a bunch of cubs that weren't even theirs."
Shaji was too kind of a lion just to let a lone mother raise so many cubs on her own, and what he contributed to their upbringing was everything that he could do for him. Something about the situation had struck a chord in his heart, and made him want to help even more. If he hadn't wanted to help so much, he would've found a den elsewhere and stayed there. But Shaji was the type to like to see others happy constantly, and he suspected that Kiasi could not feel perfectly happy when she had to raise so many cubs on her own. He found it pleasurable to help her. It made him feel as if he was worth something, that he was doing some good. Really, Shaji had little else he could do. He wasn't talented in one specific area, really, and though he could do a fine job at scouting... it wasn't really that important. Doing this, help Kiasi... made him feel important, and he needed that.
"No, you do everything for your babies. It's inspiring. I wish I could do that." He said this with a sweet smile, almost looking shyly at her, as if he was embarrassed by how much he admired her. Shaji had put her on a pedastol and glorified her, because she was doing something that not many other females could. It was what his father had done, too, raise a bunch of cubs on his own, and perhaps it was for that reason he admired her so much. It also made him feel... at home with her and her cubs. He was used to having lots of little paws around, and so being with her was home away from home.
He shrugged his shoulders in response to her statement, because personally he didn't see why other manles wouldn't be content to raise cubs that weren't there own. "I love your kids, they're all so sweet, and I love being around you and them. I don't really understand why I wouldn't be so happy with you guys. It's a whole new home for me, and I feel like I belong, like I fit in. I'm so grateful that you let me help you. It's really kind of you, and for you to trust a stranger so much is amazing." Once again, he always seemed to turn things around so he was complimenting the other, making them feel better about themselves... because that was what made him happy.
It was strange to have someone so intent upon complimenting her and making her seem like she was much more than she truly was. She could not say she didn't appreciate it, only that she found it odd. Still, if his intentions were to make her smile, he had done that a hundred times over.
"Well you help me quite a bit, so in a way, you are doing that," she said with a small shrug, turning to look at him for a moment before letting her eyes slide back towards the waterhole they had come quite near by now. She had heard a little of his father, and suspected that was partially why he was so fond of her, though she wouldn't feely admit that many other females couldnt do this. She had a lot of help from him - there were others that had to go this road alone. She was just lucky, in the end.
As they approached the water hole, she moved to take a long drink from the cool, placid waters before sitting down next to the edge. "Well, I don't know so much about letting you help me - I really do need your help." She laughed, turning to eye him once more with the deep blue eyes of hers. "Though I'm glad you've become fond of them, I know they can be such an utter pawful."
A hundred smiles wasn't enough for him. Shaji wanted to see her constantly happy, he wanted to never see her sad or hurt. Her happiness was now his happiness, and he didn't really quite understand it, but it was special to him. If he could, he would make everybody happy. But, he wasn't capable of doing such a thing, so he would have to settle with doing it one lion at a time, one family. He liked to think that he had made Kiasi and her family happy, in fact he was /almost/ sure he did. That little bit of doubt was what made him try harder every day to make his new family happy.
"But not in the same way as you. They're not mine, I know that, so maybe that's why it's different when I take care of them, maybe that's why I don't give my everything into raising them. I mean, I /feel/ like they're mine, but they really aren't, and that changes things. I can pretend all I want, but I know, and they know I'm not their real dad. At some point... that will matter." Silently he told himself to shut up, because this conversation wasn't very happy, and his goal was still to see her happy. He would just have to focus on something else, something that didn't make him feel awkward. It definitely made him feel odd to think of the cubs as his own... when they weren't. He wasn't sure it was right, and he wasn't sure Kiasi would appreciate him feeling that way. They were, after all, her cubs, and not his.
He let her take her drink first from the watering hole, and when she was done he came up to her side, took his own drink, and settled down next to her. "Some women wouldn't let a stranger help them, even if they needed it. They might think it too risky, though I don't think I even look all that dangerous." He smiled bashfully at her, and ducking his head and hiding behind his mane, he replied softly. "They're not awful... not really. I do adore them, and they're really sweet at times."
"Their father is a good lion," she said softly, turning to look at her reflection in the watering hole beneath her, "but I knew he would never be a perfect father." She had never expected Vulcan to stay - she had known, in fact, that he would not. She had never cared, she had enjoyed her time with him and gotten what she wanted out of it all.
"But you are more of a father than he has been, and it is natural for you to feel as if they are yours," she said, shrugging, though her smile was still there. "You have grown attached to them, and they to you. They may know you are not their real father, but what you do.. it means a lot to them." Which as the truth. If any of her cubs ever came to turn their backs on Shaji, she would be very surprised. He may not have been able to replace their father entirely, but he was the best substitute she was likely to find. They did care for him, probably even loved him, and she was glad that she could give them that small stability.
She laughed softly at him, shaking her head slowly, and let her tail thump lightly against the ground. "No, Shaji, you do not look all that dangerous." It was cute to think he might be, but with his natural calm and his constant need to please, he never seemed as if he could even hurt a fly. She simply smiled, looking at him from the corner of her eyes for a moment. "They are sweet, at times, but still a pawful regardless."
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Posted: Sun Mar 30, 2008 7:02 pm
Shaji didn't seem bothered to be talking about the cubs' actual father, simply because he wasn't the kind of male to get jealous or upset that their father had abandoned them in the first place. He just accepted the fact that there was a father, and that he had been a good lion. There was no reason not to. "I wouldn't expect you to have cubs with someone who wasn't a good lion," he replied, simply saying that he did not think her stupid enough to have cubs with someone she didn't know wouldn't stay. Shaji knew she had her reasons for having the cubs, and he just letting her know that he did not judge her poorly for it.
He turned his head to her, smiling sweetly as she spoke about his role as a father. It made him feel good to hear it, to hear that Kiasi believed that he was as important to the cubs as their actual father would have been. He needed to hear it, needed that little bit of comfort. "Thanks," he said softly before looking away once again. "I really just only... want them to like me. I don't want them to think of me as a dad if they don't want to. I don't want to... force my way into their hearts, and some times I feel like I do, because I want them to like me /so/ much."
He laughed along with her, amused by the idea of being big and dangerous. He was most likely the least dangerous lion in all of the Pridelands. He was not intimidating in the least, and he never tried to be. "I didn't think so. I smile too much to look dangerous." He shook his head, because though sometimes they overwhelmed him... he would never admit it. He didn't want her thinking that raising them was tiring work, because then she might urge him to take a break... and he didn't know if he would listen to her or not. "They're not really, I enjoy taking care of them, so they aren't that much of a pawful to me."
She simply smiled at his reassurance that he'd not expect a stupid decision of her. She had never regretted having her cubs, and though they were tiring, she loved them all the same. Vulcan was a strong, carefree lion and that had been something she had wanted for her children. They would grow up, strong and beautiful, with as much love as she (and Shaji) could give them.
"I don't think they will ever think you are forcing them," she said with a small laugh, glancing up at him. "As many of them as there are, it causes our attentions to be split in many different ways. They are just as eager to get that attention as you are to give it." She shrugged, glancing back towards the water, at their reflections together. "They will love who raises them, who feeds them, who takes care of them. That is the nature of cubs. In the end, I think you will find that they will look to you more as a father than you ever thought they might." Which was the truth. Cubs loved those that nurtured and sheltered them, and for her cubs, that was Shaji.
"Well, so long as they do not overwhelm you, I suppose I can't really complain." She smiled, turning her eyes to look up into his, her tail flickering behind her slowly. "Thank you for this. I know I've said it before, but I do appreciate what you're doing. I could not.. raise them on my own." She had never expected so many, and in the end, she really had needed someone else.
Casually he dipped his paw into the watering hole, just to watch the little ripples of the water. The simple things in life seemed to please him the most, and Shaji could likely survive better on love than he could on food and water. He was the kind of lion that was dependent on companionship, though he did not yet realize his need to be around others, or at least not how great that need was. Without Kiasi and her family, it was very likely that he would've gotten lonely and gone back home to live with his father a little longer. Ezeoha wouldn't mind, but Shaji's strike for indepedence from his family would have been shattered.
"I will be satisfied with them just liking me. They don't even have to think of me as a father, just someone who's there to talk to when they're upset, or someone to hold them when they've been hurt. I don't need to take up the role as a father, but I can't deny that it would make me happier to." He smiled at their reflections sitting next to each other in the water, at least until he realized how /close/ he was to Kiasi. He was thinking it was a little too close for someone who was only a friend, and he definitely did not want to put off an image that he was after Kiasi. The only thing that kept him from moving was that her attention would be brought to how close they were if he made an effort to scoot a little to the side. So, he would deal with it for now, and try to keep the blush off of his face (he was failing, really).
For some reason, he now seemed incredibly shy, peeking out at her from underneath his golden bangs, which conveniently fell in front of his eyes and almost hid his blush. "You're welcome. It really is a treat for me to be given the opportunity to help you. I'm really getting something out of helping you... I'm not doing it without a reward, really. I'm not terribly selfless."
Kiasi watched ripples move out from his paw, distorting their images and causing dips and twists in their figures - even as small as the ripples were. She had noticed how close he was, though she thought very little of it. His innocence was astounding, his mind untainted like most males, and she would have never thought it of him. However, she couldn't help the small smile as she noticed his blush and his sudden awkwardness. She repressed her amusement, though, for his benefit.
"I'm sure that their relationship with you will be a good one, father-figure or not," she said softly, and began to push herself up to her paws. In the distance, obviously from their cave, she could hear two arguing voices - Jiryan and Kat, she believed, but she wouldn't be able to tell until they were closer. "I'm afraid out leisure time must now be brought to a close, the little rascals have woken."
She smiled, tail flickering, and she turned her eyes to him - waiting for him to join her.
Shaji, in sharp contrast to his father, was probably the most innocent male his age that any one would ever meet. He couldn't imagine doing what his father did, and sometimes he didn't really understand why his father did it. It seemed... pointless, and Shaji just couldn't picture himself being with so many females. He was the male that would be happy with one, that could devote the entirety of his life to her, and would love her until his death. Ezeoha would never be what his son was becoming, and Shaji didn't know if that was good or not, if it was right or wrong. He lacked understanding, and though he tried to find it... he was too innocent to let his mind travel down such a dangerous passion, even if just for knowledge.
"I surely hope so, they don't seem to hate me right now." He arched an eyebrow as he heard two distinctive voices in the distance, and he was almost positive that it was Jiryan and Kat who seemed to be the two that fought the most with one another. Their arguing meant, though, that their solitude and peace had come to an end. They had to get back to the den before chaos broke out. "Sadly I have to agree, I wouldn't want to let them go unsupervised long enough for them to hurt each other."
He shook his head with a rueful laugh, and rising to his feet he made to follow Kiasi back to the den, and back to his new family.
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