Hodari'roho shook herself off, rising from her quick nap. It was rare for her to be awake during the day, prefering to keep to the night, but she was traveling and found that it was easier to trek through the hours of sunlight. Sitting down, she licked her paw lightly, fixing her fangs around a thorn in her pad. Pulling it out quickly, she spat it to the ground before standing up and beginning to trot forward.
Roho's crimson eyes shone with anticipation. She had heard, from a pair of wandering rogues, about a land where the inhabitants - hyenas - were rather hostile towards her own kind. They had described the location in detail - it was near the massive, jutting rock that stuck out on the savannah and was identifiable by the large quantities of skeletons lying about. Her fur tingled in anticipation. She had no fear of hyenas and was confident that she could defend herself against them if it came to a battle.
She lifted her head, her nose twitching as she took in the scents. Her fur bristled as she caught the smell of a lioness - a pregnant one, at that. Though she was confident that she could avoid being hurt by the hyenas, she was not so sure she could fare well in a battle against a lion defending his pregnant mate. She crouched low in the tall, sandy coloured grass, completely still except for the occasional rise and fall of her flanks.
Someone was approaching.
Kiuma paced on the outskirts of the Graveyard, her paws just short of the long savannah grass she knew so well. On the horizon, she could just making out a jut of rock, black against the sky. Home called to her with a siren's voice, oh-so tempting to just take the few steps that would bring her back into the world she had grown up in. Mother was probably lounging in the sun on that bit of rock, the rest of the pride scattered through the lands going about their own buisness. For the first time in her life, the crimson lioness felt like an outsider, home-sickness a dull ache in her chest.
Her soft, rounded ears fell back against her skull, her steps quickening. Tanaka would be returning any time now, those two useless cubs padding at his heals. A small sigh slipped from her throat, her head hanging lower between her powerful shoulders. Was she to never have him to herself anymore? They were always around being... well, cubs. Yet everytime she looked at her mate, she could think of little else than what they'd done in the shaddow of that elephant skull, wanting him again. The lioness snorted. Fat chance of that, with those two always lurking around.
Roho's whiskers twitched as the red lioness came into view. She took another quick sniff, unable to detect any trace of another lion, especially one that might be the mate of this lioness. Deciding it was safe enough, she rose to her paws, her oddly coloured fur vivid against the sandy brown grass. Tossing her head, her forelock was brushed across her right eye, a smirk crossing her lips. She decided, however, to be cautious with her words around this one - who knows when her mate might decide to pop out?
She snorted. Most females she had met were weak and slight, hardly a worthy opponent. She had met a few, of course, that could hold their own in battle, but she never worried much about her own gender. It was generally the males you had to watch out for - larger, stronger, and it seemed infinitely more aggressive.
Roho padded calmly towards Kiuma, stopping a few feet short of the red lioness. Tracing her gaze, she noted the rock in the distance and Kiuma's longing expression, though she did not know that Kiuma was thinking of more than just her home. She narrowed her eyes. Perhaps her gut instinct was right - this female was no threat. If the large rock in the distance was where she originated from, and the stories Roho had heard were true, then the red lioness was just a pathetic peace-lover like the other Pridelanders.
She had no idea that she could not be more wrong.
The red lioness froze in her pacing as a white form seperated itself form the golden grasses of her homeland. Kiuma's lips instinctively pulled back from her fangs before she forced the snarl from her face. Just a flash of teeth, but warning enough. Pulling herself together, the princess brought up her head and rose to stand at her full height. She was a good height, out classed only by one of the blood, and thick with muscle from hunting and travel. There was little about Kiuma that was soft, least of all her blood-red eyes as she looked down on the rogue female.
Her voice cracked out like the lash of a whip, ears still back against her head. It would be wise to be cautious, much as her pride said otherwise. Who knew if the lioness was alone... "Who are you? And just what are you doing here?" She barked, her dark-tipped tail lashing. Normally more of one for charm and grace, the red lioness was rather irritable today. Hormones did that to a female.
Roho raised a brow. She, too, was quite well muscled, but she wasn't quite as tall as Kiuma. Her lean build showed off her years of traveling and the series of scars along the right side of her muzzle showed that she was no stranger to fights. This time, however, she did not seem hostile, meerly cool and collected.
"My, my, aren't we the snippy one?" she growled, narrowing her eyes. "I simply came here to meet with the scruffy lion-hating hyenas that take up residence here." Her eyes twinkled and she smirked. "I figured I might get into a good scrap or two. My days have been awfully dull as of late and a bit of action is just what I need to get going again."
She took a small step towards Kiuma, lifting her muzzle and taking in a quick sniff. "What I've heard about this place leads me to believe that you don't live here - or do you?" She narrowed her eyes, wasting no time for greetings. "I wouldn't think this is a very suitable place to raise cubs."
She still did not sound aggressive, and though her eyes flashed, her ears were perked calmly and her hackles were lowered.
Kiuma growled at the other lioness, her own eyes narrowing. "You're wasting your time in there. I've been all over it, and I only turned up a pair of scruffy cubs and a pair of pathetic adolescents. Hardly a challenge for such a tough, worldly lioness like yourself." Her sneer changed her compliment into an epithet, her smile cruel. "And no, I don't live in this gods-forsaken place. Nothing but bones and dust and death. Much as I like death, it wears on the nerves. And the hyenas are a bit of a bother too." Kiuma conveniently left out the fact that she'd only ever actually seen a hyena once in her life. The memory was hazy, but she did see a glimpse of a gray hyena attacked her brother Kijito, and the brash Kiuma leaping to his rescue. She might not like her family much, but a Pridelander was a Pridelander, and she's defend both her homeland and her pride to her death.
"This is a wonderful place to raise cubs." She bit out sarcasticly, laughing. "They turn out so well, from what I've seen." Her pregnancy unknown to her quite yet, the red lioness's mind jumped to other conclusions.
Roho snorted, shaking her head. "Four days travel, wasted. Well, I suppose I should thank you for letting me know before I killed even more time wandering around in search of them." She sneered at Kiuma's insult, simply flicking her tail. Her eyes glittered as the red lioness mentioned death and a slight grin crept across her lips.
"A lioness who has a penchant for death? I'm inclined to like you already." She bared her fangs in a grin, settling down in a sitting position. "That's a pretty damn rare thing, too. A bit of a disappointment as well, I suppose. I was hoping I'd at least get some sort of action, fight-wise. Ah well."
Her lips parted as she yawning. "My name is Hodari'roho, for the record."
The princess smirked, her fangs flashing in the bright sunlight. "No need for thanks. I'm sure you would have at least found something in there that was to your liking." She licked her chops as Kiuma sat back as well, the two mirrored in pose. Red eyes glittered as their owner grinned wider, the comment on liking death doing much to change her attitude towards the other lioness. Hodari'roho, eh? "With a name like Kiuma, 'something that causes pain', how could I not enjoy death? Specifically bringing it to my prey. Everything else, I just like to torment." A harsh laugh slipped from her throat, the rare sound of her purr joining it. Not entirely a soothing sound, it grated like rocks cracking.
A large white figure stalked throuh the graveyard, massive paws stirring the dust with every step. His ears flicked for every sound, his nose twitching as he searched for any scent. There was a certain sense of haste in his step, his gait that of one with a purpose, his senses on guard.
He was searching, his steps carrying him toward the scent of his mate, the red lioness that was always at his side. Damn her for going off alone, didn't she realize the danger she was in if he wasn't there?
And then he caught it, the scent of another nearby, near Kiuma. A low snarl emmited from his throat, and he sprung forward, charging toward them. The other was clearly mortal, but what if it had been sent by Mrost, then he would know where she was.
Tanaka ran, racing to Kiuma's side until he burst from the darkness of the graveyard, skidding to a halt before his mate He stood between Kiuma and the other lioness, his fangs and talons bared, posture coiled as if to strike, a low growl rumbling in his chest.
"Stay away from her."
A rare smile lit across Roho's lips. "I don't care much about my prey, but I can agree with you on the torment comment." The smile turned into a smirk. "I've never cared much for others... most that I meet are either pathetically weak or feebleminded. Nothing irks me more than the valiant lion who is the embodiment of good and justice." She rolled her eyes. "Loyalty to others does no good, at least, not most of the time."
She paused, thinking. "I was fighting against a lioness once and a male - her mate, I assume - threw himself in, just to defend her." She sneered. "Why risk your own skin for another, especially if they can't even defend themself?" She blinked and chuckled. "Oh, but look at me, I'm rambling. It's not often that I can sit down and talk to someone likeminded."
As Tanaka charged through, however, and stood between Roho and Kiuma, she blinked, drawing back a bit. "And who might you be?" she growled, her voice suddenly cold. "If you think I'm about to take orders from some great lump that comes barging in on a perfectly good conversation, you're sadly mistaken." She rose to her paws and narrowed her eyes, her fur bristling along her spine.
Kiuma smirked right along with Roho, their expressions nearly identical. Finally, a lioness she could relate to. How long had she gone with nothing but those peace-loving lions? Her whole life, if the truth were known. She snorted as she mentioned a male defending his mate, though she kept the fact that her opinion differed to herself. Dying for your mate was a good way to die, though to do it for someone weak diminished your own sacrifice.
Then a wall of white and gold superimposed itself between her eyes and the lioness she spoke to, nearly bowling Kiuma over. "Tanaka..." She blinked and scowled, rising to pace around her mate's large form. "What in the name of the Circle are you doing? Have you suddenly gone mad?"
Tanaka snarled, large white fangs glistening in the sunlight, darkness clouding around him, that aura of terror and evil radiating from his massive form more from instinct than intent. He was protective by nature, perhaps to a fault, but the degree of aggression in his stance was far beyond normal.
Kiuma was in danger, his despised brother lurking in the shadows for just the right chance to attack her. Since learning thsi from his nephew, Tanaka had been on edge, his protetiveness running wild, his senses on the highest alert.
"Touch her and I will rip you to shreds."
The great lion turned just enough to nudge his head against Kiuma's shoulder as if to curl around her, to spring to protect her at a moment's notice, his eyes instinctively searching her form to assure himself that she was unharmed.
"Are you alright?"
Roho tilted her head. So, was this Kiuma's mate? His actions suggested such, so she tried not to get too upset at him, but it was rather hard when he was threatening to rip her to shreds.
"I assume you and Kiuma know each other, though how well or how close you are I cannot say for sure. However, I assure you, I mean no harm... to Kiuma, at least." She narrowed her eyes at him, her tail lashing back and forth. "I can't say as much for very many others."
She took a step forward but stopped, realizing that the great white lion, in his fit of overprotectiveness, might interpret this as a threat of attack. Instead, she simply stayed where she was, her red eyes flicking between Kiuma and her companion.
Kiuma hissed irritably as he nudged her shoulder, her tail lashing. "I'm fine, for the Circle's sake. What's gotten into you? We were just talking, and you should know by now that I can handle myself." She pushed against him with her shoulder, struggling to push the massive white lion back so she could see the other lioness again. He towered over her, but it hardly seemed to matter to the crimson lioness. Just as the aura he gave off did nothing to make her fear him. In that, she was uniquely immune.
"Roho, this is my mate, Tanaka. Tanaka, Hodari'roho, a rogue lioness come to find... entertainment in the graveyard." She snorted her distaste of such an idea, glancing around to look for the two balls of fluff they'd picked up in the graveyard. "Where are our little... minions? Not with you?"
The lion's gaze narrowed, an infernal fire burning in his eye as he looked between the strange lioness and Kiuma, his tail flicking suspiciously, a fierce growl rising in his throat at her thought to move forward.
It was only when he was certain that Kiuma was unharmed that he relaxed somewhat, shifting to allow Kiuma to look past him. However his stance remained coiled, his senses alert, every part of him on guard, ready to strike at a moment's notice should he need to.
"Nothing, just had an interesting conversation with my nephew."
Minions...in his fury he had forgotten them, leaving them behind to wait in the darkness of the graveyard.
"They're back there."
He indicated toward the bones with a flick of his tail, unwilling to turn his back on the strange lioness.
"We're ready to set out."
Though he would not say why, Tanaka was anxious to set off on their journey again, to leave the graveyard and the pridelands behind, to put as much distance between them and the lurking Mrost as possible. He had no fear for himself against his brother, but he did fear for the safty of Kiuma.
