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 Posted: Mon Sep 15, 2008 6:34 pm
With eight hares coming and going, and all of them reasonably close to Memetuka (especially the parents and older bunnies).. well, it was inevitable that she would be found. Cheshi was always a worrier, they had that in common- it wasn't surprising that it was that hare who had everything figured out just before finding the lioness. Now she was home, though, curled up protectively around her now bulging abdomen, staying near the back of her den.
She'd been so upset with Abedari when he attempted to run away when he dared to take a step forward and chicken out. This wasn't the same, this was.. it was impossible to imagine. She hated that she was hypocritical enough to hide away, but she wasn't sure how to explain this. She could move on, after it happened it seemed like an unspoken agreement between her and Abedari that they not talk about it. But she was pregnant, that was a fact- and it was going to get talked about.
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Posted: Mon Sep 15, 2008 7:21 pm
It was because of that that Abedari fully understood why Meme became absent 2 months after their encounter with one another and why he could guess she tried her hardest to hide her form in the back of her den.
But during the two months in which they all remained in one another's company, Shiri had given birth to an incredible litter of seven cubs, Abedari had met his grandchildren and the mate of his only daughter as well as been introduced to the multitude of hares that accompanied the lions.
Things were uncomfortable in the dens still and trust was being built with the new member of the family, but everyone was willing to give Abedari a try. If Shiri could be so forgiving, no one else had a reason to hold any of his past against him.
Finding a moment to pull himself away from his daughter, Abedari made his way towards Meme's den quietly. Since the one night they spent together, the two hadn't spoken much.
Perhaps it was time to bridge the gap once and for all?
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Posted: Mon Sep 15, 2008 7:29 pm
The hares were not constantly around the den, but there was usually at least one or two of the eight inhabitants around- and it seemed to be out of respect for Meme that they were not hanging around now. Trying to give her space. Or- and Meme felt this was most likely- they had gone to tell anyone who'd worried that she was back. She wasn't at all surprised to hear the distinctive rustling of someone nearing the den, it was quiet- but so was she. And paranoid.
She was resting on her side, her bulge facing the wall with paws resting near it. Her head was against the ground, and she turned it to watch the entrance. She almost held her breath, wondering if she was imagining it or if whoever it was would just walk on by.
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Posted: Mon Sep 15, 2008 7:43 pm
Clearing his throat, Abedari tried to make himself known. He remained at the entrance of the den, not wanting to upset Meme or have her think that he was intruding. Attempting to get a better look at the female, Abedari leaned forward to make sure that Meme was indeed awake. If she was weary in her current state, Abedari could simply leave and allow her to rest.
He had heard from the hares that she had returned, but hadn't a chance to visit until now. Abedari would have come sooner, but things were quite busy in Shiri's den with the handful of new cubs. Shiri found that Abedari's help with the cubs was a very useful method of apologising and accepted it happily. The lioness beamed at the thought that her second litter of cubs had a mother, father, grandmother and grandfather to love and adore them.
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Posted: Mon Sep 15, 2008 7:51 pm
She flinched imperceptibly when she heard Abedari clear his throat, confirming that someone was there. She couldn't decide who would be the easiest to face right now, but Abedari was certainly low on that list. But the fact was, there was not going to be an easy way to get through this. There was no way she could repeat the mistakes she'd made in the past- none of them. She couldn't abandon these cubs and she couldn't abandon her family and her pride. That meant she had only one option- and that was to stay here, with her cubs, with her family.
But how tempting it would be to lie and say she had met someone else. But Shiri looked as much like Abedari as she looked like Memetuka. You could tell these things in cubs, she had no chance of keeping a lie going indefinitely. That meant even trying would only make things worse.
After a lengthy hesitation, she lifted up her head, finally. She was silent, still not saying anything and still mostly hidden by the dark- though she curled instinctively to delay the inevitable. It was obvious she was awake, at least, and she watched Abedari in the entrance.
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Posted: Mon Sep 15, 2008 8:05 pm
Memetuka's response was Abedari's cue to step forward and begin some sort of conversation. Things had certainly never been easy between the two of them, but Memetuka had always been worth the trouble. Making his way into the den, but keeping a short gap between them, Abedari cleared his throat once again, though this time in order to organise his thoughts and find the best way to say what he had been thinking for the past couple months.
"Meme, I can't say I understand exactly what's going on, but I have a vague idea. And I know I haven't really been around, but I hope you know that i'd like that to change."
If cubs were involved that would certainly complicate things, but Abedari didn't want to build their relationship solely on the fact that neither of them wished to abandon the cubs. The male's emotions towards Meme had not changed during their absense from one another and while there were countless issues to ammend, Abedari would no longer turn his back on them.
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Posted: Mon Sep 15, 2008 8:23 pm
Abedari saying he had a 'vague idea' of what was going on was almost comforting- until she realized he wasn't nearly shaken up enough to realize the full extent of it. He couldn't have known and stayed so calm- but in her paranoia she thought his words were suspiciously informed. Like he knew and was trying to get on her good side because of it. And she could have broken down at that very moment. So long she'd kept to herself, she couldn't do it like she had when she was younger. Her shame was as great, or greater, this time.. but she couldn't stay away.
And of course, she couldn't find anything to say. She only seemed capable of staring. If she could shrink against the wall, she might have. But she couldn't, and she couldn't find the right words.
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Posted: Mon Sep 15, 2008 8:36 pm
Like Abedari had said, he had an idea as to what was going on, but wasn't entirely sure if his suspicions were correct. Memetuka's silence, however, only strenghthed his belief. The male continued forward with a light sigh. He had seen so much happiness between Kei and Shiri, how the father and mother beamed with pride at their abnormally large litter and how they had shared in everything.
He had only hoped that one day he might find that for himself, but if not for himself, for Meme and the cubs that rest within her.
Now, finally reaching the lioness' side, Abedari leaned down to get a better look at Meme. While he was suspicious, the swollen stomach gave proof to his beliefs and certainly made everything clear.
And real.
There was no avoiding what was to come. Abedari knew that both he and Meme were getting up in age, but Meme was a part of a large pride with a growing family. Even with Shiri's countless bundles of joy, Abedari knew enough about his daughter to know she'd be thrilled to help raise her own siblings.
He was both fearful as well as excited, though Memetuka was clearly in no mood for Abedari's sudden mood swings. As though Memetuka knew that Abedari knew, the male simply asked, "When will they be born?"
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Posted: Mon Sep 15, 2008 8:45 pm
Meme knew her silence was as good as an explanation, though he have the right thoughts in mind. It didn't help her find her voice, though, and she didn't fight his decision to move further into the den to check for himself. He would find out, and it would be today whether or not he walked in. If he was serious, if he wanted to change, he wasn't going to walk away suspicious that she was carrying cubs. She was tense when he leaned down, and she hesitantly moved her legs a bit from their vain attempt to hide the bulge.
And then he asked. It was a simple question, one that didn't require a great deal of thinking or nerve to answer. He knew, he couldn't not know now, and there was no reason not to answer him.
"Soon," she said in a hushed voice, "Weeks, maybe."
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Posted: Mon Sep 15, 2008 8:53 pm
The reality of the image before him and the truth in Meme's words began to hit Abedari harder than he had imagined. There was no reason to panic as it would do no good for either of them, but cubs were going to be coming and sooner than Abedari had imagined. He could have guessed by the size of her stomach, but to have an actual estimation as to the time. It made everything incredibly clear.
There would be cubs coming and they would be coming soon.
Taking in a deep breath before continuing, Abedari took a seat beside the female. "Have you told anyone and is there a reason you're keeping it a secret?" A part of Abedari felt hurt that Memetuke had gone through such an effort to hide what they had done. Did she regret the night they spent together? Did Memetuka worry that they would simply let the cubs down again?
"I won't be going anywhere this time around, Meme. I plan to be there for both the cubs and for you." He had said it before, but hoped that he could convince Meme that it was the truth.
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Posted: Mon Sep 15, 2008 9:04 pm
If it weren't for the fact that there was now at least one very good and convincing reason that Memetuka could not push Abedari away, she might have tried to end the conversation where it was. She would have loved to keep her secrets, keep her shame to herself. She wasn't keen on hurting his feelings, but he had to know just how foolish they had been. They'd barely made it by as parents the first time, and that was way, way after the fact. They were barely on speaking terms, but that was mostly Meme's fault and she knew it.
The brief time before she'd realized she was pregnant had been so temptingly nice. They were a family, everyone was at least kind enough not to mention or comment on the past drama.. though she hadn't yet really spoken to Angavu since Abedari showed up. She supposed Angavu was upset with her.
Abedari had proven himself to be tolerable at the minimum. And she wasn't going to get rid of him easily- but she could be honest with him, honesty was all they had left. With a slight grunt, Meme pushed herself to her feet.
"No, I haven't told anyone," she said honestly, not mentioning Cheshi because.. it didn't really matter. The hare figured it out on her own, for one, and that wasn't the point of the question, "You must know why I've kept it a secret? We've barely been on speaking terms, we can't claim to have ever really been good parents.. we only seem to cause trouble." Her head was low, she didn't like saying it but it was what she thought, what she felt. And mostly she blamed herself.
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Posted: Mon Sep 15, 2008 9:30 pm
As Memetuka stood onto her feet, Abedari lifted his head away and took a few steps back. He did not want to come across as over bearing or in the female's face. He understood that despite the cubs they shared, there was nothing really keeping them together. That was - if they were together at all.
Memetuka's words caused the male's ears to lower and his gaze to shift towards the opening of the den. It was true. Abedari had only been there for a few months time and already there was news that would cause quite the stir up. He had been foolish to think that the two lions could simply start fresh, raising the cubs with their family and act as though nothing had happened.
With a light nod, Abedari responded, though he kept his gaze away from the female. "I understand. I just think that in no time everyone else will find out and it would be best to ease into it... instead of welcoming the cubs into chaos."
And then Abedari paused, thinking over his thoughts for a moment before speaking again. After his short pause, he returned his gaze to Memetuka and spoke seriously, "I can take the cubs and Shiri doesn't have to ever know you had them... I've had more time with Shiri than i've ever deserved. This has all been wonderful for me, but I have the suspicion that it won't last.."
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Posted: Tue Sep 16, 2008 9:00 pm
Memetuka sighed, it seemed the only immediate reaction she could muster up when he commented. It was inevitable everyone would found out, that was as obvious as everything she said. She was silent again as he paused and then made an interesting but unrealistic offer. She was silent for a moment more, before inhaling sharply. She couldn't run away, she knew that- the idea was not reasonable but the fact he was trying was sweet.
"No," she said, shaking her head slowly and lifting it up a bit, "This isn't about Shiri, not.. exactly." It was impossible to say none of this related to Shiri, she was the evidence of just how foolish they could be and shone despite it. That influenced Meme's shame and worry, but facing Shiri (while a terrifying idea) was not a reason to run from this.
"I can't do that," she said after another pause, "I told you- running away is what caused all of our problems before. I can't do it again, I can't do it to these cubs."
She used plural just in case, though she doubted her fertility and her size enough to say it was on the lower end. Her words seemed quite opposite her actions. Memetuka had taken a lot of time to think about this, knowing right from the start what she had to do- but this was the first time she said it out loud. The first time she was forced to accept it absolutely.
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Posted: Wed Sep 17, 2008 11:22 am
Abedari had been desperate with his offer, wanting both to make up for his past mistakes and show Memetuka that he was entirely serious. He wasn't planning on leaving this time, even if things couldn't be ammended between them. The relationship between the cubs parents would be strange, but at least they would have parents. Parents that loved them despite everything else.
Shifting his position, Abedari took a few steps closer to Meme and sat on the den floor. He wanted to press his ear against her abdomen and partake in what she was feeling, but only smiled comfortingly. This was going to be something strange for the two of them, but there was nothing more they could do than grin and bare it.
Nodding slowly, the male looked over her, a gentleness to his gaze that hadn't been seen for some time. "Meme..It was foolish of me to offer such a thing. I understand and I respect your wishes for the cubs. For now though, you should rest. Any stress to them could make birth more difficult." Glancing out towards the opening of the den, the male continued, his voice soft, "I'll make sure no one else comes and bothers you today. Tommorow we can face them together."
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Posted: Wed Sep 17, 2008 5:28 pm
Unexpectedly, Meme smiled when he commented on the foolishness of the idea. How easy it would be to see in the dark was questionable, though, and it was subtle. She was glad to have accepted that, and his even response to it helped keep her calm.. at least for now. She nodded when he offered to make sure she was left alone for the day, edging backwards again.
"Thank you," she muttered in a hushed voice.
Fin.
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