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 Posted: Wed Feb 09, 2011 7:03 pm
Even now as he eyed the lioness sunbathing at the mouth of then, he was amazed that she'd chosen to stay with him. Rei had to admit she was rather beautiful even if he couldn’t see what he considered to be her greatest feature from where he was standing: those deep blood red eyes that always took his breath away whenever she turned to look at him. Some would say Rei’s life was nothing short of perfect… so it bothered the young lion that often had mixed feelings about his prolonged stay at the Pridelands, often feeling anxious and restrained without really understanding why. Even if his arrival at the Pridelands had happened a little faster than he’d expected, he’d found just about everything he’d ever wanted (and so much more!). Rei was happy. But he felt he should be happier. He should be… content.
“One of these days…” he said with a playful grin, quick steps closing the distance between them, his mind suddenly rejecting any sort of negative thought. “You’re going to explain to me what’s so important about that pebble.”
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Posted: Wed Feb 09, 2011 7:16 pm
She had rolled onto her back to sun her belly by the time Rei had come to join her, and she looked at him through the frame of her raised forelegs, head tilted so that he seemed to be walking toward her sideways.
There was such an air of impulse that surrounded him, surrounded their entire relationship that Mzuza had to pause at moments to wonder just how she had let herself get caught up in something so unplanned. But perhaps that was the beauty of it all, the suddenness, the lack of a concrete plan, and perhaps because it was impulsive, she needn't dwell too much on the logistics of the entire thing.
And it was a rather new and exciting feeling, to be borne up by whatever forces swept their lives and to simply let it carry her where it would. Whether this would last forever, or whether it would be a brief, transitory period in both their lives, Mzuza couldn't tell. But she didn't need to. For with Rei more than with anyone, she got the feeling that what would be would be. And there was nothing to do but to enjoy it while it lasted.
She smiled, and glanced down at the pebble that hung on a twine around her neck. It had been a constant companion for many years now, almost since her childhood. And yet, she had never been able to properly explain just why she carried it around. There was a... connection there, she thought, that she wouldn't want terminated. But it was more than that. It was the challenge that the pebble represented, and the proof that she knew lay in it.
"Maybe someday," she said with a laugh. She was more than willing to share with him the pebble's importance, but... she wondered how she could do it without being able to show him. She could move the damn thing, just... not when anybody was watching, and that made things a little complicated.
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Posted: Wed Feb 09, 2011 8:33 pm
The orange lion laughed, lowering his head to nuzzle Mzuza’s, eyes slowly narrowing into two brilliant purple slits. It was a gesture that came so easily to him, far easier than when he’d experienced it with his own family - and he loved them all dearly.
“That answer only makes me more curious.” Rei said quietly right next to her ear. “And you know it.”
He didn’t press the issue though. Rei was quite happy having this little mystery between them. They didn’t need to know everything about each other right away, did they? The orange lion yawned exuberantly before lying down next to Mzuza in a sphinx position before leaning to the side against her body. His head remained in the air but the day’s warmth threatened to force a nap out of him.
“Maybe I’ll do some hunting when it’s cooler.” He told Mzuza softly, eyeing their surroundings, but not really paying attention to anything around them. They could be surprised by an elephant and he probably wouldn’t have noticed it until the beast was stealing his sunlight or stepping on his tail. "I saw a kid around here yesterday."
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Posted: Thu Feb 10, 2011 3:11 am
She had expected about as much, but perhaps today was not the day. It wouldn't have been the first time she attempted to demonstrate her magical powers to someone else, but it also wouldn't be the first time she experienced failure in that particular task. And it was too beautiful a day to be ruined by failure. "Maybe when I know how. It'll make more sense." She whispered back, shutting her eyes to enjoy his tender touch. Unbidden, her tail did a happy dance, lightly flitting and beating gleefully against the ground.
And of course, there were things she wanted to know about Rei, but nothing that she urgently needed to find out. There didn't seem to be that pressure, that push to figure out everything about him. She was perfectly content to bask in the empty blanks that represented her knowledge of his life beyond this and beyond her home, and equally comfortable with the seeming shallowness of that ignorance.
There was something altogether different about them, as if they existed in a relationship slung above time, ageless, like they could transcend everything around them. Mzuza wondered why, but doubted she had the words or the wisdom to express anything close to an answer.
She rolled back onto her stomach as he settled down beside her, and nodded. "Those wildebeest will get fat if nobody chases them." She said with a smile, rubbing her nose into his thick mane, pushing some of the hair aside to make room to lean her muzzle against his neck. Comfort, safety, that was all here, and beyond that, what more did she need? What more could she ask for, or even need to ask for? There was nothing but this, and she felt she could stay here forever doing just this.
"A kid?" She echoed. "So close to the border?" She wasn't altogether surprised. Children had a tendency to bend the rules, to venture out where they weren't quite supposed to be in search of the thrill of some adventure or another. Still, that didn't make it altogether wise.
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Posted: Thu Feb 10, 2011 8:33 am
Smiling at her dancing tail, Rei eyed the pebble curiously as if its purpose would suddenly be revealed if only he stared at it for long enough. Which apparently was a wrong assumption, he was forced to admit when nothing visibly happened. He chuckled at her comment regarding wildebeest.
“I like a little fat on my meat…” he said jokingly, enjoying the feel of her muzzle on his neck, a small grin gracing his expression.
“Yeah, a reddish little thing.” He said more seriously when they changed the subject. “Not that little anymore but still pretty young. He was looking for… his pet wolf. I had to follow him all past the border, he just wouldn’t go back.”
He laughed, realizing things sounded much more amusing today than they had the day before.
“I was afraid someone might think I was trying to steal him.” He chuckled. Yes, it was a fun little story now that the young lion was back home and Rei didn’t have to worry about being mistaken for a cubnapper.
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Posted: Thu Feb 10, 2011 7:50 pm
She laughed with a small shake of her head, nuzzling her face deeper into Rei's mane. "Beware the big, bad, baby-stealing rogue." She said, amused by the very thought of him stealing a child, or anybody suspecting him of attempting to do so. Her smart, kind, lovable Rei? Hah.
But that he had followed the youngster out of worry seemed important. Maternal instincts tended to be quite prominent in most lionesses. It wasn't hard to access those instincts, but Mzuza had always imagined that it was much more difficult to reach a lion's paternal instincts. Fathers had to learn that special touch with their children. They had to learn to worry, learn to take care of youngsters.
But that didn't seem so much the case with Rei. Perhaps fatherhood came more naturally to him than for most. Of course, it was all speculative, but she could still see it in her mind. She lifted her head so that she could turn to look him in the eye. "I think you'd make a good father."
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Posted: Fri Feb 11, 2011 5:11 pm
He chuckled at first, the thought of Rei to even consider stealing a kid one of the most ridiculous things to ever cross his mind. What would he do with a cub anyway? Not that he hadn’t felt protective of Akairo or that he didn’t want cubs of his own eventually. He had just hoped to save the whole raising a family thing for a (much) distant future. Much much much distant future.
Her last words however brought forth a strange tightness in his chest that he couldn’t quite explain. It was like one of his brothers had grabbed him from behind and didn’t let go, falling into a deep water and taking too long to reach the surface or getting stuck in a dark, confined space… it was that same constricting feeling – only so much stronger.
“Meh, I’m a kid myself. And he didn’t like me much at first.” He tried to joke but the worry was still there – as was a certain unnatural stillness - and Rei was actually thankful that Mzuza’s face was still buried inside his mane because he had the inexplicable urge to dodge her gaze. When he spoke again, in his typical light and playful tone, all the worry in his expression had been replaced for a small relaxed smile. “We did get his wolf back.”
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Posted: Sun Feb 13, 2011 2:10 am
Mzuza's life could go either way, she knew. She could have cubs, or she could not, and if she did, they would certainly be a joy. If she didn't, that was alright too, but she didn't have the same insecurities when it came to commitment as Rei seemed to have. It didn't seem to her as though there was any great need for it. She was confident in her abilities as a mother, and at the very least, the idea of having cubs didn't scare her. And she had been here all her life, committed to the Pridelands since she had been born. She had nowhere to wander to, nothing that she thought she would miss if she did, in fact, settle down. But that wasn't quite the same as the life Rei had.
"So you're a hero now," she grinned, shrugging off the stillness that had ensued a moment before. It didn't matter, anyway. All good things came to an end, and she was under no illusions that this was the way both their lives would continue on forever. It was a shame, but she could at least enjoy it as long as it lasted; she could miss him when he was gone, but not before. Not a moment before. "Not that I ever doubted it."
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Posted: Sun Feb 13, 2011 9:22 pm
The orange lion laughed, stretching his neck and front legs forward with slow lazy motions.
“Always a hero.” Rei said dramatically as he rubbed his cheek behind Mzuza’s ear, drowning in her scent for a few seconds and then giving it one quick lick before he stood up. He took a few steps away from the lioness and, with a rather exuberant shake, the young lion removed most of the dust and dirt from his coat. He sneezed quite loudly and then laughed quietly at himself.
Rei turned to look at Mzuza, purple eyes sparkling like jewels, a somewhat excited expression suddenly appearing on his maw.
“So, my lady? What should I go look for today? Gazelle? Antelope…? Warthog?” There was also a zebra herd nearby but unless he was lucky enough to find an old or injured animal, Rei would rather not risk going after prey that large alone and risk a serious injury.
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Posted: Tue Feb 15, 2011 2:47 am
The plume of dust that left his coat caught in the light and drifted slowly to settle into the ground. Mzuza watched the particles scatter, floating into the wind, until they were lost from sight, a transient moment among a thousand other equally fleeting ones, but one that noted all the same. After all, she never knew just how transitory this all was going to be.
"A gazelle, maybe?" She said after a moment's pause. "Or just surprise me." She amended, smiling. That sparkle in his eye reminded her of her own love of hunting. There was something so addictive about the thrill of the chase, the feeling of a prey animal beneath her claws, the joy of a successful hunt. She could understand all too well the excitement that had appeared on Rei's face. Most lions could, she imagined.
There wasn't anything quite like it, that moment when the world itself faded away and nothing existed but the dull thunder of hooves drumming the land and the earth passing by under her paws as she flitted across the ground. It was pure power, nature as nature had intended to be. Beautiful.
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Posted: Tue Feb 15, 2011 2:27 pm
”Gazelle, gazelle…” Rei repeated idly, looking around as if recalling the last place where he’d seen a herd of gazelles. Mmm, gazelle. “Surprise you, hum? Maybe I’ll catch a… lizard for you then. Or a snake. Maybe even a hyena if one gets close enough to this place.” This, of course, was nothing more than a good-natured joke. Hyenas were right there at the bottom of Rei’s favorite meals, he’d never actually tried it and he hoped with all his might he might never be desperate enough to even feel tempted. Alright, gazelle then.
The orange lion made a motion to leave but stopped and turned quite suddenly as if he’d only just remembered something very important that he’d almost forgotten. Rei took a few quick steps towards Mzuza and softly bumped his forehead on Mzuza’s as if he’d been compelled to touch her, to be near her.
“I’ll be right back.” He whispered tenderly after the strange and sudden need for physical contact had been sated. Still, it took a while for Rei to pull himself away. "Hopefully."
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Posted: Sun Feb 27, 2011 10:00 pm
"And it'd be well deserving of its fate if it came so near," she said with a smile, though she, too, didn't imagine it would ever quite top her list as a favorite meal. Gazelle - or any other preybeast, for that matter - sounded infinitely more appetizing at the moment.
She leaned into the touch, feeling his mane fall over her face, and took a breath, breathing in his familiar, comforting scent. She felt safe, above all, when she was caught up in moments like these, content to suspend belief and imagine that this was the way it should be and would be. "I know," she nodded, although deep down, she suspected that they could both feel that unspoken tension that suggested that it was entirely possible that, one of these days, that wouldn't be the case.
But that was for another time. For now, they had this, and even as she watched him turn to walk away, she knew they would still have this for another day at least.
8DD FIN. FINALLY. -lag-
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