Coffee, bold
Ciaran had slipped away while his mate and her father caught up, it wasn't his right to interject himself into a place he didn't belong. He understood that the two needed some time to speak privately, so while he could he would hunt for a meal to bring back to his father-in-law. Maybe this would be a simple way to show his worth? Who knew, it was hard to say how the brightly colored lion felt with Argo visiting. Ciaran only ever wanted to be worthy of Mono's love, so having her father so close made him question his worth from time to time.
Would he ever feel good enough? These thoughts plagued him as he headed deeper into the pride. Slowly the lion slipped through the tall grass as his icey blue eyes searched the landscape for sighs of prey-beasts.
The pale leopon crept out of the den area with a stretch of her spine and a little hum of pleasure. Nothing like a good back stretch when she'd just woken up? She walked her way down to the watering hole because she was absolutely thirsty. It felt like she had a bunch of flowers in her mouth, it was so dry. Like a desert or something.
"Pleh." Her hot breath came out in the same moment her tongue rolled out before she finally started to lap at the cool liquid.
Lately the cream female found herself curious about the married life. What was it like to have someone by your side the whole time? She'd never had a den partner that wasn't a sibling or a parent.
She was of a certain age, she realized as she walked into the tall grasses, not paying attention to where she was going. It was time she had cubs, right? Surely her siblings already had some, or even her mother. Mongol's head was down as she thought about it, eyes on the dirt.
It was hard not to notice the pale color of a lioness that drew near. Well... she looked like a lioness, but something seemed off. His eyes narrowed as the large male stopped still in his tracks, frowning faintly as he called out to the unfamiliar figure. "Good day-" his tone was light and welcoming as he shifted his weight, glancing around at the surrounding area. "Have you seen any small game? I'm looking to bring dinner home to my mate and her father." he shared openly as his tone changed to one that was a little more on edge. "I guess you could say I wanna impress him."
He would introduce himself, but he was starting to notice just how open he had been about his insecurities, so that made the male recluse ever so slightly.
The greeting made her head snap up and green eyes found the lion hidden in the grasses as he drew nearer.
"Hey," she answered back, trying to sound a casual about it. "Uuuh, not today, but I know there's some rabbit holes not far from the watering hole. Go on the left if you're coming from the den side. There's like, some fallen trees and some really thick and tall grass. They love it there. I lose them a lot."
It made her pout a little, tail flicking from side to side. "Some of them aren't exactly 'small'. Bet if you catch one you'd impress your mate's dad." That sounded like a hassle. She didn't think about the parents involved in a relationship. Her mom would have to get along with whoever's parents, wouldn't she?
"....What's it like? Being in a like.. marriage, I guess?"
His blue eyes went wide as the female answered in kind, giving him a good lead on a local rabbit colony. He would give her an honest smile before pausing at her question, thinking to himself before speaking in a more familiar tone. "Oh, marriage? Well, Mono and I have been together for years now, so it feels like second nature? I know it's not always the case, however. She loved someone before me and that scored her pretty bad. I guess... I would say it's like finding your twin flame, a soul close enough to yours that you're willing to share your time and energy with them. Through the good and bad."
The question made him question the title himself, smirking as he glanced directly at her, looking her up and down before asking her a question of his own. "You aren't... fully a lion, are you?" In all honesty he had never seen a Hybrid before.
"Sorry for being so rude, my name is Ciaran." he laughed, looking away in his embarrassment.
A twin flame?
That made her sit on her haunches as she got lost trying to think about it. Mongol hadn't ever felt close to anyone. Her mother, sure, but that was family. She didn't even get along with most of her siblings. Frowning a little, the tip of her tail flicked back and forth until he asked his question on her appearance.
"Oh. I'm a hybrid. My mom is a lioness, and my dad is a hybrid, too." She grinned at him before winking. "I'm Mongol! So years? That's..." A long time. She let it trail off though and shrugged. "That's actually impressive. Mom and dad aren't together, sadly."
"Yeah. It's been five years. We've been through some hard times, but... we are still standing tall, even against the shadows of the past." his tone would hint to something tragic happening to the couple in the past.
"Oh, a hybrid? Would it be embarrassing to admit I have never had the pleasure of meeting one until... just now?" the lion laughed as he gave her another friendly smile.
"I am sorry to hear that. I don't remember my parents, but I know Mono's mother and father aren't together anymore. I guess you could say finding a couple that is dedicated can be... a challenge, but it happens."
"Oh, there's no hard feelings or anything. It was just a fling and here I am with my siblings!" She puffed her chest out a little and then grinned at him again. "As for not meeting one of myself until now, I get that a lot. I guess we're just... more spread out than most."
Mongol didn't like the word 'rare' when talking about hybrids. It gave her bad feelings in her chest about it.
"Anyway. Well, I guess it's good then. You sound like you're gonna be together for a while still.. but if it's been so long why are you just now trying to like.. please this dad? I mean. I get wanting to get along, but it's a bit late. Were you not living here?" Her eyes grew a little wider and she gasped. Was he a rogue born? She bit down on her cheeks to keep from asking really invasive questions.
Oh, well, that's good way of looking at it." his tone dropped a little at her next question. Oh boy, the hot seat.
"Well, her father has been... away from some time, from what I gather? This is my first time ever even seeing him in the flesh, so it can feel a little strange." He would look up at the sky as he frowned softly to himself, never sitting down, always standing tall. His own past was foggy, so Ciaran only ever looked to the future.
"I am proud to say I've officially met a hybrid." the lion announced as he glanced back down at her. "You seem like bright girl." he paused again.
"Are you looking to settle down, with questions like this...?" Oh, was she!? That excited the blue eyed lion. He loved love stories.
"Uh. Well..." Now it was her turn to be in the hot seat. She lowered her head a bit, her shoulder blades a lot more pronounced this way.
"I've never been in love. Never even had a crush." It made her feel weird admitting it out loud. She hadn't even set eyes on anyone who'd caught her romantic interests. Maybe it had something to do with her being a hybrid. Maybe she just was the odd female out in that department. She wasn't sure.
"I feel like I need to be thinking about it."
Her story of solitude pulled at his heart a little bit, but he understand that sometimes this sort of thing.. just took time. Ciaran gave her a soft nod, as if to say he understood without saying it out loud. "Perhaps. Maybe it'll happen when you least expect it? I know that happened to me."
He wanted to offer her more than just those simple words. "Hey, wanna join me and Mono for dinner? I know it's sort of strange to ask like this, being so forward and all, but I think you two would be able to talk more about this stuff, she's far better at words than I am."
The lion awaited the hybrids' response.
Join them for dinner? The hybrid mulled it over for all of two seconds before her green eyes flashed.
"I'd be delighted!" Came her chipper reply. With a heave she got herself to her paws and shook out her fur. "Maybe Mono can help figure a couple of things out." She hadn't talked to a lioness about her troubles. Not even her mother, but this might end up even better
