Nguva sighed as she sat in front of the tide, watching the water drift in and out as she waited for her wish to come true. The hyena wizard had told her what to do, and she had done everything perfectly, but why hadn't she turned into a sea creature? Maybe she should have been more specific? Like, a certain kind of sea creature? Should she have asked to just be a wild dog who could live under water? Maybe she had been too hasty and hadn't thought about her wish properly enough... maybe she hadn't done everything perfectly. But she wasn't sure she would be able to go back and make another wish, so she was just going to have to make sure she stayed put and hoped for the best. If she continued to wish hard as she looked out at the water, there was a chance it could still come true, right?
She sighed and closed her eyes, hoping and wishing.
"What are you doing there?" A gentle voice asked from behind her. The wild dog didn't jump or yelp, simply turning her head over her shoulder to look back at whomever had found her, smiling warmly though she was feeling a little on the sad side of things. It was a lioness that had found her, and a pretty one at that. She was also blue, but more white than anything else, with lovely swirls on her coat and a sort of camo design on her mane. Nguva had not seen a lot of lions, but she had certainly not seen any as lovely as her. "Are you alright," the lioness continued, sitting herself down a little ways away from the wild dog, "you were looking a little sad, so I wanted to come over and make sure... there's no need to think about drowning yourself, whatever the problem is...."
"oh, no!" Nguva hummed, "I wasn't thinking about anything like that! I was just thinking about how much I would like to live in the ocean- it's such a lovely place," she sighed softly, watching the water once more, "I made a wish, but it didn't come true... maybe I'll never be able to live in the water."
"Well, maybe that's for the better," the lioness replied, though she had no idea what the other was going on about when she said things like 'making wishes'. Wishes weren't going to do her any good- why was she acting like she had really hoped for things to change just by wishing for it to? "you don't need to wish for things like that- things that can't really happen. Why don't you focus on making your life on land more like if you were living in the sea? However you think they might live in the water, that's how you could act where you are right now."
Nguva tilted her head, giving it some thought. "I don't know how they act in the water," she said lightly, "but I supposed that's not a bad idea! At the very least, I could stop staring for so long... I kind of think I'm wasting my life watching the water."
"You might be- there's more to life than just wishing for something better. If you really want things to change, you're going to have to take some kind of solid action. There's nothing else to it, you know?" She smiled lightly and moved a little closer, sitting herself down beside the confused-looking female wild dog. "I know you don't know me, but I don't like seeing others looking so lost. If there's something I can do to help you, you can just ask me!" The wild dog smiled at the offer.
"That's okay! You've helped me so much already- you're right about everything. I shouldn't just sit around and wish! But I should also go tell the wizard that his magic didn't work... I think I'll do that before anything else! Oh! I'm Nguva!" She smiled at the lioness, who looked absolutely confused as she stared back at the wild dog. Wizard? Magic? What was the silly little creature going on about? Maybe it was just a dog thing- maybe they were all just gullible and easily felled by silly thoughts. She smiled all the same, since it seemed the innocent, weird wild dog was far from dangerous and only wanted to make friends. Being friends, even with someone so weird, was not something she was against.
"My name is Iluka," she said lightly, "I'm trying to find a pride to settle down into. I would love to invite you along, but I think a lot of prides don't let wild dogs in... and I don't want you to get hurt traveling with me. Anyway, I suspect a pride is not something you're looking for, right?"
"You're right!" laughed the little dog merrily, "I'm just looking for some fun! But I really appreciate the offer- you're the nicest lion I've ever met, Iluka! I hope you find a home that's just perfect for you!" She smiled and got to her feet, stretching her paws. "Wow! I really have been sitting there much too long! I think I need to have a bit of a run or something to stretch my paws!"
"Haha, that's alright," Iluka hummed, "I should really be on my way, anyway. If I want to find a home, I had better do it before I start to lose hope and give up on things, you know? I don't want to lose confidence. I hope you don't, either!" She smiled and bid her friend goodbye, turning to leave. She could hear the wild dog hooting all kind of goodbyes as she moved away, making her giggle lightly and shake her head. She was a very weird one indeed, but there was something very kind about her, too. Iluka liked that- she was looking for a home because the rogue lands were too rough for her. Apparently, though, it wasn't all bad.
Maybe after she found a pride she would come back and visit with Nguva.
WC: 1,016
