Nostrils flared as the lioness inhaled through the nose, deeply. She was waking from a short nap, laid out in the tall grasses with her tummy to the ground. The female fell into a slumber with her head on her forepaws. As she slowly stirred to full wakefulness, Iola craned her neck back into it’s upright position and slowly slid her eyes open. The female had been sleeping a lot lately, and her life had seemed to comprise mainly of dreams. Iola always was in a dreamlike state, never fully -there-. Once she allowed her eyes to adjust to the midday sun, the female shifted her legs back and rose her rump to the air as she stretched her forepaws forward, working her muscles to wake herself more fully. A yawn rolled out from her maw, sounding similar to a miniature roar. White canines glittered in the sunlight as her lips pulled back, only to get re-concealed when she closed her maw. Iola smacked her maw open and shut, as she blinked lazily. “Hmm, I wonder what I can play with today…” she questioned herself, the inquiry similar to that of a cub’s. Iola glanced to her left, scanning the tree to see if it’d support her weight and ambled up to it, to use the height to get a better view of her surroundings… and possible playmates.
Sukari wasn't the type to nap in the sun. No. He always sought out a cave of some sorts, or slept under a bush. He hated the sun because of his black coat. It absorbed the light and made him over heat to easily. But, he had to wander in it to day, if he was going to reach his destination. He heard of a pride that was just starting up. Where wanderers were welcomed to come and go as they pleased. That's what he wanted. The possibility of the safeness of a pride but with little rules.
Dark eyes blinked as he looked around the tall grasses, listening for movement. A roar, sounding like a cubs roar, caught his attention and he growled low in his throat, tensing all of his muscles. But he didn't hear it again. So, he slowly stalked toward where he heard it. His eyes were constantly moving, looking for something, anything, that seemed out of place.
Anything out of the ordinary? Iola was definitely that. Or at least… she could be. Once she was about two yards from the tree, the femme broke into a run, bounding up the to tree trunk to gain some momentum before she hurled her form upwards and circled her forepaws around to brace the tree, her claws extended and leaving small grooves as she slowly pulled herself up the tree’s side. She found it relatively hard to square the tree’s distance to the nearest branch, mainly because Iola was the lazy/sleepy type. Iola was almost always sleeping. Because of that, she hardly bothers to try to catch her meals, meaning her body weight is particularly slender. But similarly, the female isn’t the strongest either. Her lays around frequently, either sleeping or playing. Muscle mass isn’t distinct on her slender form.
Once she was up and situated on the tree branch, the female gave a sweeping gaze to the surrounding area. “Hmm, hmm…oooohhhh…” Her eyes locked in an area in particular, the rustling of brush in the tall grasses not too far away. Maybe it was a hare?
Oh, he wasn't a hare. Not by a long shot. His tail flicked as he heard rustling up ahead. So there was something in the distance. He crouched lower to the ground and started to nearly crawl to where he heard it. "The hell.." He was already irritable he didn't nap today, and he had a bad sleep the night before. Flicking his ears to and fro, Sukari was getting more and more annoyed with everything. His muscles moved fluidly under his skin; sleek and lithe with his youthfulness. Sukari wasn't that old of a lion, less the a year and a half. "Where the hell is it.." He murmured softly to the grass.The form hidden within the grass slowly made it’s way closer to the tree. Iola took it as an incentive to pounce at whomever was ‘about’ to become her plaything. Which, she still speculated to be a hare. The female inched further and further along the tree branch, taking her time as she carefully placed one paw in front of the other, reaching the furthest she could on the branch without… breaking it. She could hear the strain on the bark along with the visible sight of the bending branch. The female crouched briefly, waiting for the opportune moment… before she jolted forward, springing into the thatch of grass which concealed the unlucky lion. “Dive!” She shirked, once she initiated the ‘attack’.
Her paws were spread wide, with the claws retracted. She merely wanted to play. She landed with an ‘omph’. Her form falling heavily and ungracefully from the overhead attack. “Gah! Owwwwch….” The lioness whined once she made contact.
Something tackled him from the sky, and it was heavy. He growled and landed on his back with the lioness on his stomach, hitting his head hard on the ground. Sukari saw sparks behind his eyelids as he closed his eyes and just laid there, breathing deeply and then he kicked the thing off of him that fell on him and rolled to his stomach. Everything HURT. Everything did. His back, eyes, legs, hips, tail, he even thought his mane hurt.
"What the hell were you thinking?" He asked, after finally settling on what it was that landed on him. "You could have killed me!"
Iola shook her head briefly, eyes still slightly winced as she tried to reorient herself. It was times like these that the female needed to remember that she -wasn’t- a cub anymore. Thankfully she had a bit of a cushion from Sukari. It was far better than landing on the ground. The female laid sprawled over the other, making no move to get off… but he did a fine job of doing it himself. “OMPH!” The breath was kicked out of her, as he shoved her off and to his left. Iola winched as she fell beside him, her eyesight a bit dodgy as her head shook in rebound. “Bwuah… what…?” She asked in the daze, still not grasping the situation. She understood that whatever she’d decided to tackle wasn’t a hare. Which, in hindsight she might have crushed if she preformed that same attack on.
“Ehm?” Iola only seemed to be able to make guttural noises in a questionable format. “Kukuku~….” She broke into a brief snicker, “…but I surprised you. Didn’t I?” The lioness, rolled onto her back squirming around on the ground. “I didn’t kill you. So, that means we can play.” Her legs kicked out, allowing her to move and inch around while sliding on her back along the grassy field. “Plaaaaay~.” How old was she again?
Play? She wanted to play after she crushed him? Hell no. He growled at her and bristled, the hairs on his back standing straight up as he puffed out. "Who the hell would want to play after being crushed by an adult lioness who thought it was a good idea to JUMP from gods know where?" Did this lioness have a few marbles loose in her head? He studied the purple one and narrowed dark eyes at her again, trying to calm himself down.
To get his fur back to normal, he gave himself a shake which didn't end up to well. Since he had hit his head, Sukari was now dizzy and tender. He squeezed his eyes shut tightly and groaned at the world spinning. "s**t..."
Iola wasn’t paying much attention to the harsh responses this male had to offer. She was used to a wide variety of replies to her antics… this wouldn’t be the first time she tackled someone. It was quite possible her loopy behavior might have been too many blows to the head. She wasn’t threatened by the male, and it was clear in her calm and consistently playful attitude. The lioness had yet to be harmed by anyone else. So she felt she was untouchable in a sense… that actions such as these wouldn’t do her much harm. Iola was perceptive enough to notice that he was a bit shaken up. The female hopped to her feet and bolted forward, taking the chance to bob her paw on the other’s muzzle, ‘tagging’ him. “Tag! Your it~!” Her playful hit might have been a little rough, and with that Iola went barreling through the tall grasses. Hoping her ‘plaything’ will give chase.
The hit came as a surprise to Sukari and he narrowed his eyes. He hadn't played in a long time, but it didn't mean he wanted to start it now. The bop to the nose irritated him more than anything and he just stared at her like she was some kind of insane lion. Which, in his opinion, was what she was. Flicking his heavy tail, he rolled his eyes and then started to walk the other direction. Why would he give chase? One didn't play with someone who'd just hurt them so bad. "You're crazy. Bop me again and I wear you'll get a world of pain." He wasn't a violent lion, but if she hurt him one more time... His philosophy was hit anyone who hits you first.
It seemed Iola had circled around, because just as Sukari began to amble in the other direction Iola poked her head out from the tall grasses in the area he was about to walk away in. “Pah… no fun.” She complained, eyes narrowed to slits with a deep set frown on her maw. She didn’t look angry, just disappointed. The mild threat was dully noted. Iola didn’t think of it so much as him warning her to back off… he was just ‘offering’ that they play something else. “Okay, what abooooout….” Her gaze shifted from the lion, towards the sky. The day held a number of clouds that slowly rolled along overhead. She fell into step besides the male, her eyes locked on the white puffs that morphed and shaped a number of distinguishable things… if one used their imaaaaaagination~. “Oh, oh… that one looks like a fish!” Iola rose her paw, motioning it towards the left where a certain cloud held a form that was somewhat reminiscent to a floundering fish. “What do you see~?” The femme offered, urging her male ‘companion’ to join in.
No. No no. He didn't want to look at the clouds, he didn't want to play. He had somewhere to be and this annoying girl wouldn't leave him alone. "LOOK. I don't want to play with you. You're an adult. Why the hell are you acting like a cub? Leave me alone. I have somewhere to be by nightfall." Well, the he had somewhere to be part was true. By night fall? Not so much. Sukari pushed past her, not caring if she fell over or not, and continued his broody walk.
Iola pursed her lips, eyes widening once Sukari broke into the miniature rant. She was silent, and her face was devoid of any clear emotion. When he shouldered past her, the lioness stumbled back a step or two, her face frozen in that same unclear expression. “. . .” She stood idle for a motion, unblinking and unmoving, probably holding her breath. “You have somewhere to be, huh…?” Iola called after him, “…well, surely you wouldn’t wanna be alone!” Her voice suddenly took a sharp turn towards wanton giddiness. “I’ll keep you company~!” She rejoined, chirping merrily as she leaped forward and tailed the male. “It’d be boring to be alllll alone. If you don’t wanna play, you shouldah said so…” He did say so, she just wasn’t paying attention. “….I could do other things! Oh, I don’t think I told you my name…” Iola picked up her pace, bounding forward abit so she was in front of him. “I’m Iola~!”
He groaned when she joined him and started up her chattering again. What the hell did he have to do to get it through this lioness' skull that he didn't want her around? Then she gave her name and Sukari felt obligated to give her his. But, he wouldn't. That would just give her something to use against him. He couldn't ignore her if she knew his name. "Iola? Whatever. I don't care about your name, or about you. Right now, I think pounding my head into a tree would be more fun." It was all kind of growled to himself, and Sukari didn't care if she heard or not. Why would he? Iola was proving to be another dumb female.
"Hmm, well.. I mean if you’d want to.” Iola wrinkled her snout at the thought of pounding her own head into a tree trunk. It didn’t seem pleasant. He thought she was strange? He couldn’t even think of a good game to play. “Well, you could… do it, pound your head into a tree, I mean. I’ll just… uhh, watch.” Iola grinned impishly, “But at least you are thinking of something. So, that’s good~.” The female cocked her head to the side, cobalt optics scanning their surroundings of a tree. The only one that seemed to be in the area was the one she used to spring her attack. By they were walking away from it… so that was out of the question. “I guess you’re outta luck, Grump-grump.” She stated frankly, the name coming to her outta nowhere, “…I don’t see any other trees.”
G...Grump grump? Really? Sukari snorted at that, but didn't comment at her nickname for him. "Am I stuck with you or do you eventually wander away to find something shiny?" He asked, giving her a dirty look. She just chattered on about anything that came through her brain, didn't she? Unlike himself, it seemed this Iola didn't have a filtering system when it came to speech. Still, he wasn't getting used to her. Instead, his head was hurting worse than before as he continued to walk. Maybe he could tune her out for the time being. If she wanted to follow him. There was always the possibility of them running into someone else that she could go 'play' with.
“What would be shiny?” Iola muttered to herself, she fell silent shortly after, falling into a deep thought. “…well, maybe water… a stream?” Iola was too lost in her own thoughts of what ‘shiny’ things Grump-grump might have been eluding to. “You mean like a stream?” Iola bent her neck forward, inspecting the other, “….is this a gaaaame? You aren’t so good at picking these out, are you?” Again her easy smile returned. Her face only seemed to alter between bewilderment, confusion and childish pleasure. In her own way she found the male to be the strange one between them. She’d never met anyone was angry as he was. Most just placated her, or outright ignored her… which he was beginning to do. He’d picked the right form of action, because sooner or later something else will come along to draw away her attention, it all depends on where and when. Iola hummed a pleasant little tune, her head weaving and swaying as she trotted along beside’s the dark pelted male. It seems his outward appearance matched his personality as well. And in a way… Iola was exactly her physical appearance on the inside as well.
And ignore her he did. So much so, he was beginning to relax again and that made this walk so much easier for him. Looking around ahead of him, he saw a stream. Running water meant he could drink and nap near it. It was always cooler near the water, for some reason. Only when he turned his head did he see she was still following him and he rolled his eyes. "I'm going to get a drink and nap. I'll be very borning for a long time, so do whatever it is you do. Just don't wake me up." Sukari was surprised that he even bothered to tell her that much. He still hadn't told her his name. Shaking his head of that thought, he moved to the stream and stepped in it with all four paws before laying on his stomach to lap at the cool liquid. Yes, this stream was going to help put him to sleep. "Mmmn.." He'd let he water work his tired muscles for a while.
‘Splash…splashsplashsplash….SLOSH.’
The female bounded through the stream, fighting to current which easily pulled her slender form along in the waves. Torrents of water hurled this way and that as she whipped around in the stream. The water glittered on her fur that was now matted down. Her head was the only part of the femme’s body she had yet to dunk into the water, so her head tuft of fur remained puffy. She heeded Grump-grump’s request. He wanted to take a nap, and Iola was courteous enough to understand what it meant to be sleepy… when she wasn’t her normal excitable self, she was asleep. Bathing in the African sun. But this particular bath was just as refreshing… Iola was fond of water, but hadn’t bothered to douse herself in it for a long while. The need never arose. So when the male settled for his drink, Iola used the opportunity to entertain herself. Her head bobbed down and she swallowed up a mouthful of water which she held in her maw, pursing her lips she allowed a jet of water to spurt from her mouth, like a fountain.
He watched her with all the enthusiasm as an annoyed father. Maybe that's what she lacked. A father. He tilted his head to the side as he watched her and shook his head. OK, so she was kind of cute when she did that and she wasn't bothering him, so he couldn't say anything about it. Scratching his ear with a back foot in the stream, he decided to douse himself in the river as well. To get the dust off of his pelt and find it perfectly black and white again. He stretched himself out and dunked his head under the water. How he matched her. His fur was matted down and he was cool and wet. That's when he decided to get out and shake himself off. ".... if you stick around, maybe we could hunt together. I'm sick of hare. Maybe we could get a waterbuck."
Sukari shouldn’t have jinxed himself. By even thinking she wasn’t going to bother him in some fashion… was a mistake. Iola dipped her head under the water’s surface, swimming up to him until she was only about a few feet in front of him before she resurfaced, her cobalt eyes just over the water’s edge. Was she imitating a crocodile? She dipped under the water again, circling the male, but still not doing anything to directly annoy him by physical means. Iola was just hovering around in her own way of doing ‘I’m-not-touching-yoooou’.
But her little game was over, quickly thanks to Grump-grump. What else was new? The female groaned, pulling herself up from her laying position in the water and let out a childish whine. But before Iola was given the chance to break into a tangent, she was shocked by the offer he’d made. Hunting? Together? So he DID want to play with her. Iola nodded her head furiously, her pearly whites gleaming in the midday sun. “If taking a nap means we get to play together… go nap! Sleep, sleep! Hurry.” Her voice was urgent, she clumsily leapt out of the water, causing a few beads of water to spray onto Sukari. “Don’t worry. I’ll keep watch.” Yes, because Iola is just the MOST competent guard.
Those beads of water hit him and he rolled his eyes. Play huh? She just wouldn't give up on that. Maybe he'd actually play with her after he woke up and ate. But his version of playing. Which was wrestling like they were both males. Sukari wasn't worried about her keeping watch. He was a light sleeper and could take care of himself if trouble came from nowhere. "Keep your voice down. You'll disturb whatever game is out here." It wasn't... exactly a snap. But it was close enough.
Settling himself on tall, dry grass near the stream, the black male laid down and curled up into a tight ball to slowly drift to sleep. Hopefully.
Silence.
“. . . .”
Silence.
“. . . .crunch…. crunchcrunchcrunch…. Crunch.”
Slightly heavy breathing would be beside his ear, her moist breath panting into his fur, “Pssst… are you sleeping yet?” It was a whsper.
To Iola’s defense, the female waited a whole five minutes before she questioned him. “Are you sleeee-eee-eeeping~?” She asked again when she didn’t get a response the first time. She resisted the urge to nudge him…. Okay, she resisted the urge for a little while. Her paw lightly pressed at his side before she withdrew it and flopped back onto her rump.
She frowned down at the slumbering male. It wasn’t the best of ideas to leave her alone with his sleeping form. Iola was bored. But she promised not to wake him up… wait, did she? “No, no… I can’t wake him up… he promised we’d play afterwards.” The female reassured herself, nodding in affirmation. “I’ll just waaaaaiiiit….” She slowly pressed her torso to the ground, laying in front of Sukari as she kept her cobalt eyes fixed on him.
No. He wasn't sleeping. Not at a all. And her talking and piddling this close to him wasn't. Every time she spoke, Sukari woke up and he groaned at her dumb questions. How could anyone sleep like this? Still, he would have his nap if it was the last think he'd do. He uncurled and then turned the other way and then curled up once more, tail flicking to the side, yawning widely. Just go to sleep.... Go o sleep, Iola. I'm tired.
But Iola wasn’t tired. She’d been sleeping for what felt like ages… the female didn’t need to sleep. Not right now anyway, she’d just woken up. But he wanted to be left alone, and Iola was self-aware enough to know that with her situated right there, it would only compel her to bother him some more. The female picked herself up off of the ground and trekked off, to scour the river side to what might be offered. Maybe some fish? It was a pretty narrow stream, but the thought was good enough for her…. It would keep her away for long enough for her male companion to get his much needed rest. If he was going to handle her for much longer, he was going to need all of the rest he could possibly receive.
