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 Posted: Wed Jun 01, 2011 4:56 pm
Gutu'bufuu had grown back into a circling mother hen of lately. Her babies were all growing up and they were meeting GIRLS. Other women, like herself, who would steal her babies attention away and eventually them. It was making the dark lioness so worrisome that she had neglected to hunt earlier in the day and had to be reminded by the youngest of her children, which to her was horribly embarrassing. They're her babies, she should not be forgetting to feed them... Even if several of them could be feeding themselves.
Gutu sat outside the den's general facility, giving herself a grooming. She felt a small pain on her leg as she groomed and looked down absently, noticing that she had cleaned the same area so thoroughly, she had managed to lick a spot on her leg raw. Her ears dropped slightly. That was no good. Other predators might think she was injured. She would have to find a piece of hide to cover it with later, like some sort of hide cuff or whatnot.
She looked back to the den, which was as quiet as she left it. They were all sleeping soundly and she sighed. She could slip away for a few moments, couldn't she? Bawa and Haamoni were there and they were big boys. They could protect their littler siblings. Getting up she began to walk. She wasn't going to go far away, but far enough where she wasn't considered hovering.
-
Dysi always felt guilty about leaving his daughters behind in the Kuroi, but there was little he could do about it. He wanted to wander, and while they were old enough, there were strict restrictions on who could leave the pride at the moment, with their boss lady absent from the general pride with her new cubs. Dysi wanted to sneer, and grump, but he couldn't begrudge Nyoka her happiness. She had cubs, again...and yet again, they weren't by him. He heaved a sigh, frustrated at his own thoughts and his own lack of anger towards his former...crush? Mate? Love? He didn't know anymore. He just felt tired about it all.
It was why he had struck out of the pride early that morning, before the sun had even come up, pausing only to tell his daughters where he was going and to warn them to look out for one another while he was away. His leopard daughters would be fine, but Leto, his leopon daughter, had to be careful due to her lion blood. Not that anyone would dare to hurt her, but she still needed to be cautious while Dysi was away.
He enjoyed the sound of his paws hitting the dirt beneath him as he walked, keeping his gaze on his feet, his mind adrift in thought.
-
It had been about ten minutes of wandering before Gutu managed to spot another creature on the horizon. She looked behind her, checking how far off she was from her den incase she needed to make a sprint for it to protect her children. She could never be be too cautious around individuals she didn't know. Living in the Rogue Lands with six children was a dangerous endeavor, but she managed.
Gutu stood her ground for a moment, to see if the stranger had noticed her yet. From this distance it looked to her to be a leopard, but she wasn't too sure on whether it was male or female. It could have also been a leopon, but until they got close enough to her she wasn't sure.
-
Dysi continued to watch his paws, lost in thought, until his thoughts became too distracting and he actually tripped over his own paws, stumbling. He startled, and quickly straightened up, amused. He'd been watching them, and yet he'd still managed to trip. That was embarrassingly impressive, he thought dryly to himself, glancing up.
He, too, spotted a figure in the distance, larger than a cheetah or leopard from what he could see, but definitely feline. It was most likely a lion-hybrid, or a lion. Either way, Dysi had never really thought of lions as bad, despite the pride's views. How could he when he had had lion daughters. He changed his path slightly, moving towards the figure. Company would be nice, he thought, to distract him from his own thoughts. He just hoped the company would be friendly. He didn't want to fight – he was bad at it.
-
When Gutu noticed that the other presence was coming towards her, her hackles raised a slight bit. She had to be wary of all who approached, and when Dysi was enough within her sight to see he was a male cheetah, she frowned and sat. She was much larger than he was, and he seemed pleasant enough looking. She would see where this went.
"Hello!" She called, her tell flicking back and forth idly as she tried to force the frown from her face. Gutu was quite aware of how intimidating she looked on a normal day, so she could only imagine how intimidating she seemed while she was angry or even just frowning. She recalled several times were she put some serious fear into grown males he size with just a stare.
-
“Hello!” Dysi called back, sounding cheerful. Well, he might as well start the meeting off on a friendly note, right? He didn't want to sound threatening or aggressive, not that anyone looking at him would think he was. He was slender, and quite frankly, looked girly with the pale coat and pink/purple markings, but he still carried himself with a warm expression. She looked...somewhat terrifying, he realised, as he drew in close enough to take in her markings. The skull marking on her face, cracked, the red eyes and the skulls on her hind-quarters looked...aggressive.
But her posture was not. She didn't seem overly bubbly and welcoming, but she was not posed in a threatening way, nor did she seem ready to attack. He approached cautiously anyway, having been fooled by looks before. “Out enjoying the day?” He asked with a bright smile.
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"Something like that," Gutu replied. She wasn't much so enjoying the day as she was trying to get away for a little bit. She knew as soon as her sons woke up they'd start calling for her and the time reserved for herself would come to an end. She didn't resent that she would be called back as soon as they awoke, in fact she enjoyed every moment she spent with her sons, but not having other adult contact took its toll on her every now and again. Running into this male would end up being a good experience for her right now.
The foreign male was definitely a leopard, but he seemed a little on the thin and effeminate side. It didn't bother her much, as she wasn't exactly normal herself. She was a much bulkier lioness than most, made for battle who did best in war. She was a warrior, ex-warrior, though she kept up her training frequently and as soon as the boys were of age, she started training them. There was no shame in preparing her young to take lives if need be. It was a fight to stay alive after all.
"I'm spending a little time away from my sons," She said quietly, trying not to look directly at Dysi. She knew her gaze was a little unsettling at times. "I have a six sons and they keep me quite busy. And you? Are you out enjoying the day?"
-
Dysi bobbed his head, although she hadn't said anything to agree with. It was more to show that he had heard her words and was listening to what she'd said. She was built pretty big, but still did not seem aggressive towards him, at least not yet. He perked up at the mention of sons. She had children too? Admittedly, they were boys and sons made him slightly nervous – less so since he had spent more time around Hikari who really was a sweet boy, no matter how girly he appeared to be.
“Six sons, you say?” he repeated, smiling. “Oh, me? I'm just out for a walk, getting away from everything.” He wasn't really getting away from his cubs, just getting away from...well, everybody in the pride. “I have five daughters at home,” he told her, “and more out on their own. They grow up so fast, it seems like yesterday my den was filled with cubs and now my eldest has cubs of her own!” He chuckled. Star, his little lion cub, had always had a special spot in his heart and whens he had cubs of her own, he'd felt...well, old, but still pleased. He'd never thought of being a grandfather, at least, not when he still felt so young! He flushed a little, realising he had been rambling about his offspring a bit.
-
"You? A Grandfather?" Gutu asked, obvious disbelief present in her voice. In comparison to her, Dysi was quite young and she was ancient. In lion years she was about eight, bordering on nine. With the average lifespan of a lion about ten to fourteen years (sixteen if you were particularly good at not getting yourself killed), she was coming towards the end of her rope. Not that she liked to think of her own mortality. Who'd take care of her babies when she was gone? Such terrible thoughts.
"So many girls," Gutu said, a little awe struck at his penchant to produce daughters and how he didn't seem disappointed in that fact. She remembered back to her younger years with how some of the couples were so disappointed by their lack of sons. She never understood the obsession with wanting so many sons. Girls were just as capable as boys.
"My two oldest are on the brink of adulthood," She admitted, a little apprehensive about talking of them, but feeling the need to anyway. "Bawa and Haa are big boys now and they're gonna leave me soon... It'll be just me and the four little ones. Are many of yours close to leaving the den?"
-
Dysi laughed. “Your disbelief is flattering!” He told her warmly. He certainly didn't feel old, but sometimes he was reminded that he was. His youngest litter were already at adolescent, after-all. It was crazy to think, and he was only middle age, really. He was younger than her by a year, though leopards tended to live longer than lions. He still could have ten more years to look forward too before he started to fear death – if he acted cautiously and did not stumble upon that cruel red male again, which he didn't plan to do.
“I have sons too,” he admitted, not sure why he did. Normally, he denied them, but he had seen his sons grow and really, maybe it wasn't too bad having boys. “They mostly live with their mothers though,” he said. “My daughters tend to live with me.”
He nodded and listened in interest as she spoke about her own cubs. Oh, hers were almost grow too. They had that in common too. “Ah, but I'm sure they'll come back to visit their dear mother, and perhaps bring you grandcubs of your own some day,” he told her with a playful smile. “Ah, close to leaving the den? I'm not sure,” he chuckled. “Tsura and Vailea are full grown, but neither seem too keen to move away too far, though they both have their own dens, or settle down, really. Though I think Vailea has started looking at boys more now,” he admitted with a shake of the head, as if that was a bad thing. “Ayana, Kirsi and Leto are all almost adults too. I have no 'cubs' left, but they'll always be my babies.” He sounded girly, he realised and gave a sheepish look at her.
-
"They must love their father quite a bit to want to stay so close," Gutu said, hoping that her boys would feel the same way when ti came to her. Sometimes she questioned their love. She didn't know why she did it and it was such a silly thought to cross her mind, but this lurking fear that her children didn't love her as much as she loved them was ever present. Maybe it was one reason she tried to be the best mother ever. She hunted for them, bathed them, played with them constantly. All they needed to do was ask and it was granted.
"I have no daughters. Maybe I'll have litter girls one day, but till than I'm very happy with my sons," She smiled.
She wished Bawa and Haamoni could give her grandchildren, but despite the disease that plagued her mind and caused her to well... steal her children, she knew those two would not have children. She could see that Bawa and Haamoni were part lion and part leopard making them hybrids. Hybrids were generally infertile. It was another reason she wanted to keep them close. She didn't want their hearts to be broken.
The other children, Isoba, Kamili, Dosari and Ulwazi, they were purebreds. Ulwazi was a cheetah and the other three were lions. She knew these things, and she knew that she did not give birth to a pure blooded cheetah. Despite this logic, she still viewed them all as her children. They were hers, and there was no disputing that.
"I love having children," Gutu smiled, looking away quietly since her smiles were almost as intimidating as her scowls. Her voice was soft though, peaceful in a way she could only achieve when talking to or about her boys, "If I could I'd have so many. Like... almost like a little herd of babies. With their little feet stomping against the ground."
Gutu looked at the ground sheepishly. It sounded so absurd.
-
Dysi tilted his head, considering her comment. He didn't think it was out of love that they stayed so close, at least not love for him. He left often, and they could have gone with him at any point, but instead they stayed in the pride. Vailea and Tsura, he knew, stayed because they loved the pride and their 'mother' who was not their mother, nor was she Dysi's mate anymore. Just their mother. “Love, yes, and loyalty to their pride, I suppose,” he admitted. “I wander, but they have a pride which they reside in while I am away.” He looked ashamed, as if she would chastise him for being away from his cubs. He didn't leave out of dislike for them, but they always stayed and there were times when he just wanted to go.
“No daughters?” He repeated. “Ah, you will be glad when you have daughters. I was raised with all sisters, so I might be bias towards daughters, but they add a different light to your life than sons.” He paused, then rushed on. “Not that sons don't as well, but it's different with girls.” He was always nervous around boys, but that was fading, slowly.
He really hated being nervous around his sons, but he'd never really pushed it, had never really tried to get better about it. He'd just let it go. Sometimes he wondered if that was worse than the fear itself, the fact that he just...didn't try.
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Posted: Sat Sep 03, 2011 4:59 pm
Gutu did not chastise Dysi for his comments, nor did she find them odd. Coming from a pride that warred often, she knew plenty of parents who came and went with their children staying behind in the pride without them. It was life, and often times life was something that was completely out of one's control. If she had been raised anywhere else, she may have said something ill, but that wasn't the case.
Gutu gave Dysi a small, yet sad smile when he mentioned growing up with sisters. She was reminded of her brother, who she missed greatly.
"I have no sisters, though I always wanted them," Gutu admitted, her normally frightening markings looking sad, almost as if they were melting. "I have one sibling, my brother, Kame'bufuu. I haven't seen him in so long..."
She sighed heavily, ears twitching, causing her to abruptly scratch at them with her back foot. Damn itching. She winced slightly, her sharpened claws scrapping a little too hard at her ear. She'd probably bleed soon. Ah well.
"I look forward to daughters. I love my sons, but all my sons are very masculine. Well, except Haa and Bawa. I don't think they know what it is to be masculine, just funny," She remarked, chuckling as she remembered Haa's penchant for charging at prey and not actually hunting them. "It will be a delightful change to have little girls. To have children interested in feminine things."
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Posted: Wed Nov 16, 2011 3:30 am
Dysi noticed the small sad smile on her face at the mention of siblings, and for a moment, felt bad about bringing up his sisters as it had saddened her so. Although her markings were rather...odd (Dysi had been afraid of them to start with, but now they seemed to suit her, though she was far from frightening now), they were certainly not made to look so sad.
“Do you know where he is? Perhaps you should visit him sometime,” Dysi remarked casually, hoping he had not overstepped his boundaries as a new acquaintance, but if Dysi had known where his sisters were, he certainly would have visited them! Unfortunately, time and life had pulled them so far apart that Dysi honestly did not know where they were any more.
Slightly amused at her abrupt pause to scratch her ear, he refocused on their conversation, though his smile didn't fade. “Daughters are certainly a new experience,” Dysi agreed, smile growing bigger at the affection he saw in her face and heard in her voice when she spoke of her cubs. Being a father was such a rewarding part of Dysi's life, he honestly enjoyed speaking to someone who similarly loved being a mother.
“I hope you have plenty of daughters, to get your wish of that herd of babies,” he said wholeheartedly, and smiled at her. She deserved it, he decided, everyone deserved daughters at least once.
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