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 Posted: Mon Dec 08, 2008 7:30 am
It had been weeks since Isithunzi last saw his mate and by now he was truly beginning to worry. At first he had only suspected she had left for a hunting trip, though that was always problematic given her health condition. Then, as time wore on, he began to wonder other things. Had she left them behind? Somehow he doubted this, given her love for the pride and her fear of rogues. Had she gotten lost again, like she had that fateful day they met? The second one seemed so likely, and more fortunate than thinking she had died on a hunt, that he had convinced himself she must have done it. She was prone to wandering off and getting lost, and she had certainly gone quite far when he found her so long ago.
Thus, his mind was made up. There was no one out there willing to bring her back if that was the case and he was damn sure not going to let her die out in the rogue lands all alone. No, he was going to have to go and get her and that was simply the end of that. What sort of mate would he be if he didn't?
The only thing left to do was to find his cubs, or one of them at least, since they were prone to disappearing for a short amount of time themselves, and let them know that he was going. He wasn't sure what they would think, but he knew that he needed to do this. Thus, he was stalking through the lands, bright emerald eyes peeled for the smallest glimpse of one of his four nearly-grown cubs.
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Posted: Mon Dec 08, 2008 9:21 am
Usahihi had grown up since her meeting with the Goddess of shadows (which she had never really even known was a goddess, but rather, a product of her vivid imagination). She'd grown happy and strong; her body did not suffer from the illness her mother had carried throughout her life, and though she was more laid back than some of her siblings, she was happy to join in the hunts when needed.
As it was, the masked lioness was currently reclined over a set of smooth rock, her red hued eyes scanning the surface of their pridal territory. She'd been itching to figure out what was out there... to live her fantasies, rather than sit there, dreaming them up. The girl was a dreamer by nature and spent more time lost in thought than she did down on earth; it was no wonder she had developed the need to imagine the wildest tales that could and should be happening just beyond the borders of the rather secluded pride. The lands did not allow her to do anything exciting, really; they held a few pridal lions, none of which she was particularly close to with the exception of her parents and siblings.
Her father's steps were heard before she even saw him approach and the female turned to face Isi, "Good morning, father," there was a pause as she gazed at him, her eyes sparkling with what could have been mischief, but was probably just the glow of the sun upon them, "You look... determined. Are you leaving?" it was as if she'd been expecting this.
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Posted: Mon Dec 08, 2008 12:00 pm
Issy had found the scent of his daughter and adjusted his path to find her, his mind heavy with the thought of what he was going to do. He was unsurprised to see her sitting there with her head full of thoughts, or knowing her, most likely dreams. She was his little dreamer, and the thought of leaving her, or any of his cubs, behind hurt terribly. Sometimes one simply has to do what one has to do though.
"I.." he paused, blinking his green eyes at her as he heard her words. Well, he supposed he shouldn't be surprised - she had done this sort of thing before. It just wasn't something one got used to. "Yes, I'm going to leave and see if I can find your mother, she's been gone a long time and I'm.. staring to worry." He stopped at her side, sitting slowly and watching her. 'Starting to worry' was understatement - he was already mad with it, or nearly so anyway.
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Posted: Mon Dec 08, 2008 1:20 pm
She pondered his words before she formed a small 'o' with her mouth, "Ah," she breathed, "I see," and indeed she did; a nod was offered at this point, her eyes seeking the distant horizon once more, a fire burning bright within them, "I understand," there was no disdain in her voice, nor did it show upon her features as she turned to face him once more, offering her father a smile, "I wonder if mother got lost. She does that at times. I think I would get lost too, if I left," she'd come to notice that she had a horribly poor sense of direction. It was one of the many reasons she had not left the pride lands unless a compaigned; she was sure she would not be able to come back if she did.
Then again... leaving and getting lost sounded horribly exciting, all on it's own, "I..." she stopped talking and closed her mouth, her ears flopping back as she caught herself before she said something that might be deemed 'stupid'. Her gaze seeked out her father once more and the young adult offered him a sheepish look, "I hope you find her. I miss her," however, when her mother had vanished, Usahihi had swiftly come to terms with the fact she was not coming back. Unlike most others, she did not think her dead; oh no, not dead. Not her dear mother.
Usahihi imagined her mother had grown wings and flown away, so far and so high she could not come back down and was thus, watching them from a distance, somehow, always wishing them well. Or maybe she had seen herself caught up in an epic battle between evil and good; surely her mother's addition to the 'good' side would tilt the balance of the battle towards their favour! She had conjured a million and one stories of what could have kept the brown pelted lioness away from home, each one more amazing than the last, "Where will you start looking?"
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Posted: Mon Dec 08, 2008 1:52 pm
A sad, weak, yet affectionate smile graced his maw at his daughter's words. She truly was an innocent thing and he hoped dearly that while he was gone she would be alright. He trusted in the pride and those within it, and she was almost grown, but he would always worry over his cubs as if they had never grown larger than his own paw. "It's quite possible," he said softly, glancing out at the horizon, beyond the boundary of the pride, "she's done it before." He remembered the time he had found her fondly, even if the reason for remembering was not such a good one.
"I hope I find her too," he whispered, moving to nudge his daughter lightly in the shoulder with his forehead. He considered her next question for a few minutes, then took a deep breath. "First, I suppose I'll head towards the pridelands and check since that's where I found her the first time. If she's not there, I'm not sure where I'll go." He was telling the honest truth. There was no telling where she had wandered and gotten too tired to come home.
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Posted: Mon Dec 08, 2008 2:03 pm
The small female (for she was indeed small, most likely taking after her mother in more than pelt color) moved mildy as her father bumped his head on her shoulder. She shifted so she could return the gesture, her own forehead seeking his side so she could rest it against his warm skin, an attempt to comfort him, for deep down she knew her mother must be fine. She had to be. Surely. Was there ever any question of this? None, whatsoever.
Her head lifted from where she'd pressed it and considered this, "I see," she knew which way the pridelands were, but could never hope to go there, for if her mother had a poor sense of direction, Usa had an even worse one. Despite that, she recoiled away from the larger male for a moment. Her ears flattened back in though and when her eyes lifted up to meet his, she looked for all the world like a caged bird, "Can I come with you?" it was a spontaneous question, her brows knitting together, "Dior is thinking about leaving soon..." a pause followed this, "Naku and Kabibe left a while ago," somehow, the idea of remaining there without them was troubling.
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Posted: Mon Dec 08, 2008 2:26 pm
A smile crossed his maw at the way she returned his gesture, leaning his head to the side a little as she returned the comfort. However, her question startled him, and his green eyes shot open with suddenness. He was about to tell her no, that she had to stay here where it was safe - he had seen only a little of the roguelands and it was terribly harsh on the body and the soul. Then, however, she began to talk about how everyone was leaving and he couldn't find it in his heart to tell her she had to stay behind when their whole family was gone.
"Are you sure, Usa? Out there isn't as.. easy as it is here. There's no pride to protect you, only me, and even though I would never let anything happen to you, it's still going to be hard." He wasn't sure if he was trying to talk her out of it or if he was trying to talk himself up to have the guts to refuse her.
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Posted: Sat Dec 13, 2008 7:48 am
Her eyes, still bright and cheerful despite the circumstances, turned to look at him, "I'm sure," came the answer before she let out a sigh, "Father... everyone is leaving. This pride is no longer what it used to be, and with you gone..." she turned to look down at the rock she was laying over, her claws coming out to scrape the surface, "I will be all alone. Dior will leave soon, if he hasn't already and mother left... no one's left. I... don't know the others and... I just..." her eyes once more seeked his, pleading with him, "Please."
Usahihi had never been meant to be caged; she was a dreamer, a free soul that wandered, if not in body, then in spirit. She had always been meant to leave, yet had been unable to do so due to the circumstances, "I can hunt. I can care for myself. I've grown," this was true, though at the same time was quite the contradiction, for the girl was indeed small for her age. She had inherited her physique from her mother; petite, refined and delicate looking, though unlike the older lioness, Usa held a bit more fire, "Please," and then as an afterthought, her eyes traveled towards the distance, clouding over with some sort of need, "I know he's out there somewhere," whom she meant though, was a mystery.
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Posted: Sat Dec 13, 2008 1:20 pm
"I understand," he murmured softly, and he did, more than she probably ever imagined. He had been an oddball in his own lands and a lot of his family had left the pride they had been born in behind to go out and see the rogue lands of their heritage. He had finally adventured out, leaving it behind just as all of them before him had, to find his place in the world. What he had found was Embamba, who had given him a place to belong. "I understand, darling, I understand."
What she meant as to 'him' was beyond him, and though that small fraction of her words was lost to him, he knew the rest to be entirely true. He would always see her as his cub, his tiny daughter to be cared for and protected, but he knew that wasn't the case. She was old enough to care for herself, to protect and hunt for herself. "I believe you, darling, and I'll let you come with me," he said softly, though his heart ached at the thought of putting her in danger, "so long as you listen to what I tell you. I don't want you getting hurt." She was, in a way, the only thing he had left.
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Posted: Sat Dec 13, 2008 1:32 pm
Instantly, the girl's expression broke into a smile, her eyes closing briefly to offer him a purr. She was entirely unaware of just how well her father understood her... after all, he'd never told her the full story of how he'd met his mother. Bits and pieces had been left behind, as if either not needed or not intended for her to hear. Despite that, she'd seen the understanding flash through her father's eyes, and that was enough to let her know she had won this battle, "I'll listen to you. I always do."
That was true, for after all, she was still within Mteo, rather than venturing the roguelands alone like she'd often dreamed of, "I won't run off too... I won't leave you behind," Usa had no idea how those words might affect him, but they felt like the right thing to say. And thus, as soon as she'd mouthed the words, she stood from her rock and padded delicately down to press herself against her larger father's form, "Will you tell me how you met mother on the way?" she whispered, "Why you met her, instead of any other? How you knew she was the one?"
Stories would make the journey fly that much swifter.
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Posted: Sat Dec 13, 2008 1:40 pm
Her promise sent an electric shock of feeling through his heart, his eyes lidding softly as he fought back the surge of emotion. She had no idea how much it meant to him just to know that she wouldn't leave, that she would stay with him. There was pain from the loss of Embamba, but there was still so much relief in his heart to know that his daughter would be with him for now at least.
"Of course," he whispered, opening his eyes and choking the words out ash he leaned his head atop hers, "of course I will, love." Even if it hurt to talk about it, he would let her know whatever she wished. She deserved to know her parents' history, after all, and they had all the time in the world for her to learn it.
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