Dawn was barely breaking over the low rolling plains of the savanna when Mlipuko'Bega emerged from the shallow, fresh-dug den in the lee side of the bluff. He shook out his mane and breathed deep, enjoying the crisp morning air that still hung with mist. A few birds were starting to call in the distance, but otherwise the world was silent. Silent but for the faint sound of breathing coming from the darkened recess he'd just slunk out of. That amped his faint smile up into a full blown smirk. The cheetah had been just what he'd hoped for. He puffed out his chest, then opened his mouth wide, tongue curling in a yawn. His body dropped down and back, stretching in true feline style. He felt stiff, but it was a good stiff, and quickly flexed out of his muscles.
Next he sauntered silently to what was left of the gemsbok corpse. There wasn't too much remaining, but it would be enough. Working quickly but thoroughly, she stripped the bones of what little meat was left. Barely any fragments were left when he was done. If he'd had time, he would have cracked the bones for the marrow as well, but he was already pressing his luck. A glance to the den. Still nothing but the gentle breathing of the sleeping female. That was that then. He was off.
He headed away from the den at a swift jog, making as little noise as possible. Only when he thought he was far enough not to be heard did he break into a faster trot, and then a long, loping run that would carry him swiftly away without tiring him. In his heart he was indeed the type to settle down with one female and make an honorable mate of her...but similarly he did not really think of a cheetah as a suitable female. He would never take one for his mate, his wife. A quick tumble (or two, or three) was one thing. And she should feel honored that he, a pure-blooded lion (not to mention one of the elite Firekin...would-be Firekin) had taken an interest in her.
But he would not be sticking around. Theluli had been, at best, a fun distraction and a stress release. A chance to sow some wild oats before he found his destiny. Now it was time to get moving again. And by the time the blue cheetah was even waking and aware that she'd been 'hit and run', he was long gone, almost to the mountain ridge that dotted the horizon.
In fact, Theluli slept for quite some time after Bega made his getaway. She slept deeply, and for a time had been tucked up tight against him. Her strange, wonderful lion. She had been new to the ways of love, and the thought that he could have been after only her body, and only for one night, had never crossed her mind. Naive, she had begun to give him her heart, thinking that for some reason he had chosen her. He, who was the biggest, strongest lion she'd ever seen. He, who was so demanding, yet so gently. She dreamed of racing over the long grass with him endlessly, even as he was racing away from her.
When she finally did awake, blinking in the bright sunlight that seemed so beautiful, shining down on this strange new world she seemed to have stepped into over night, she was not alarmed to find herself alone in the den. By the brightness outside the shallow den she had overslept. She knew well why, too. Her whole body felt sore, but warm through to the core, and slightly tingling in a way that made her want to do nothing but lie still and bask in her own glow. "Lion?" She called out. Hm. How funny now, she didn't even know her sweet heart's name. Well, that would be the first thing to change once he came back to lay with her. "Liiiion. Come back and lay with me?"
Her calls went unanswered though, and after a handful of minutes even she began to realize that something was amiss. Still optimistic and smiling, she rolled to her paws (ugh, she was sore in places she hadn't even known she had!) and stiffly wobbled out into the blindingly bright sunlight. "Lion?" She chirruped, looking about for him.
He was nowhere to be seen. Perhaps he'd gone off somewhere nearby to do his business? That must be it. Surely he would return soon. Calming herself, she wandered towards the bones of the gemsbok, eager for a little breakfast. What she found was not only disappointing, but drove a stake of terror into her heart, chasing out all the warm and happy feelings that had dwelled there before. The bones were picked entirely clean. There was little more than a mouthful of food to be had. The bones smelled like Bega had too. Certainly he'd feasted on it many times during the night, but it smelled...fresh. And there in the dirt were fresh paw prints. Leading...directly away from the den.
It was several minutes of tracking later, only when the prints began to space out, indicating her erstwhile male had picked up speed, that her fears were realized as truth. He was gone. He'd used her! Wooed her and then...then taken her, and tossed her aside. Like...like an old scrap of hide! She was torn between anger and deep sorrow. It was so foolish of her, to think he would be there for her. To let him seduce her. Her anger shifted inwards. Could she blame him? She'd made it all too easy. Given in almost right away. Given him her body, and worse, her heart. Her tail lashed in anger, thumping into the dirt and disturbing the print trail.
Well. Well. She'd find him. Find him and...and tell him how he'd made her feel. Perhaps she'd done or said something that made him think she didn't want him to stay with her. Maybe this was typical for rogue lions. Surely once she found him, told him...he'd stay. Stay with her, and she would be his forever. Disheartened but determined, she took off after the long-gone lion, jogging along his trail as fast as she dared go without making losing the tracks a danger.
By nightfall however, she still hadn't caught up with him. The trail seemed to go on endlessly, and her growing sobs had slowed her progress, choking her and making it hard to breathe and run. Finally she collapsed, directly on the path of lion prints, and cried her sorrows into the dirt.
Across the mountain range, Bega paused briefly to glance back the way he'd come. For a brief moment he felt a twinge of regret...but it soon passed, and he marched on, head high and tail lashing. He was fated for greater things than a cheetah, after all, and there was no time for regrets. She would be unhappy, perhaps, but one day she would hear tales of his accomplishments, and then, then she would be honored to have been a footnote in his great story.
He had no idea what a large part he had and would play in her story, or the heartbreak he'd left in his passing.
(Words: 1230)
