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 Posted: Sun Sep 09, 2007 2:41 am
Ona looked as if he'd been scolded. He got up, slung his head low and peered back at Malik with a look that purely said: 'help me.' It didn't look like he was going to get much help, however, with Malik wearing a grin that big. He didn't dare glance up into Rehema's face, and instead slunk after her.
His chest rose and fell quickly with each panicked breath. This was it. The end of the road. Oh how he wished he could have taken it all back! Why oh why hadn't he asked Kucha! She was a bird, yes, but she wouldn't have gone and blurted it out like that.
If it was in his nature he would have tackled the big gold, but as it was, he didn't think he could. Besides he had more important things to be thinking about right now. Such as Rehema.
"Rehema..." He paused, finding his throat strangely tight. "I'm sorry." His ears drooped until they were almost hidden by his mane.
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Posted: Sun Sep 09, 2007 2:48 am
Rehema waited until Malik was out of SIGHT to respond. He wouldn't dare follow them. Ooh she'd deal with him soon enough. It was almost sad... Ona should have known better than to go to Malik for 'man talk'. Malik was a brute.
"Don't be." She said simply in response to his apology. "Ona...I've only told you to be who you are." She glanced over a shoulder, then slowly turned to face him and seat herself upright in front of him. He was hanging his head... lords one would think he'd been beaten with that kind of an attitude.
She shook her head, reaching a paw out to tip his chin upwards, "Look at me...you're not in trouble, I'm not angry. But I do wish that you could feel like you can talk to me about anything."
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Posted: Sun Sep 09, 2007 2:54 am
His head lifted and he found himself staring into those eyes he had slowly grown to love. He tried to find what she was feeling in them, but they were strangely unreadable. His heart gave a lurch and it took all his effort not to look back at his paws. And without him knowing it he found his eyes filling with tears.
Big lions don't cry. He told himself. Big lions don't cry.
But he felt a cub again, unsure, nervous and not knowing what to do. This was foriegn territory to him. His only understanding about love between lions was the relationship his mother and father had shared. The tender looks, the gentle nuzzles, the tumbling in the dust and the nights cuddled up beneath the stars.
Had his parents left the living world like that? Curled against one another so that perhaps their entities would rise to form a single, glowing cloud.
He sniffed.
He was going to give another apology, but decided it probably wasn't the best thing to do. Instead he sought to find words that might best describe his feelings. He couldn't.
He stared at her a moment longer, his water-logged eyes searching for something that he just couldn't seem to find.
"I thought you'd hate me. I didn't want you to go and...and..." He caught his breath. "I got scared."
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Posted: Sun Sep 09, 2007 3:01 am
Rehema's expression didn't change as he started to well up. Her heart cringed a bit for him but she'd never show it. She was a huntress, born to be and appear strong for her pride- whichever pride that she decided to take. For the moment- and it would seem perhaps into forever - that pride was this one. It was small...three lions, but she wouldn't change that for the world.
"Ona." She said simply, lifting his chin once more as he seemed to want to drop his head again. "You don't need to worry...I told you already that I am not going anywhere. You invited me to stay here...this place has become my home. You and Malik are my family."
She dropped her paw back to the ground, lifting her chin up, "I heard your conversation you know..."
She wanted him to say it...just come out and say it. Though it might seem almost cruel of her, he needed to come to face with things that frightened him with a bit of assurance. She did care for him, yes, she found something about him enduring. His gentle nature, his kind words, and his eagerness to please... it was very different from the males back home. A far shot from Malik that was to be sure. But she wanted him to do this one for himself.
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Posted: Sun Sep 09, 2007 3:14 am
Sometimes a firm paw was the best way to deal with a shy lion. Occasionally the lion did need a little push in the right direction and Rehema seemed able to do just that. There was no tip-toeing around, just a bluntness that forced him out of his shell.
The relief on the caramel lion's face was clear when she said she wasn't going to leave and he almost sprang at her in joy. His tail tuft shivered with happiness and then she trailed off, obviously wanting him to say something.
"Y-you did?" He practically squeaked. Lowering his head a little shamefully. It was safe to say he hadn't understood a single word that Malik had told him. Something about urges and fuzzyness. It made his head spin just trying to unravel it.
He flicked his tail up into his forepaws and forced himself to look at her, his whiskers twitching. "Then you...you know how I feel around you..." His heart was racing now, but it was with nervousness more than anything. Deep down he had always suspected that it was a sign of love. He'd heard stories of it as a youngster, about lions finding their mates. It was how the clans were formed. Lions came together under the union of love and togetherness. He wondered where that other Ela female was. The one from the sky clan. Was she still around?
Maybe others from the Shadow Clan had arrived that he didn't know of? He had been so busy sulking around that he hadn't even cared to look beyond Rehema's kindly face. But all he could think of was her. All he knew was her.
It was true. He'd turned into one of those lions in the stories. The young lion finding love in an exotic, foreign female. Strange that a lion who could be so shy around others had been drawn so close to an outsider. But she wasn't anymore. She belonged here as if she'd always meant to be.
"I think..." He stuttered, feeling his throat closing up. For a moment he couldn't breathe and there was a long, desperate pause as he tried to form those three words. Those three words that were so simple yet so amazingly lfie changing.
"I love you."
The words left his mouth without him realising it. It was as if he hadn't spoken them at all. As if someone had jumped in to aid him at the last moment. His eyes found hers and in them was a nervousness that had his whole body tensed.
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Posted: Sun Sep 09, 2007 3:34 am
Rehema's expression slowly became an almost motherly smile. It was hard not to feel somewhat accomplished through Ona. It was a hard lesson for him to learn honestly but she couldn't be more proud of him for coming through. He smile only grew though she remained perfectly come as he continued.
Finally she rose to her paws, walking herself smoothly over to him, still holding his eyes in hers. She never failed to display confidence in anything she did, and with good reason. Confident actions spoke louder than any manner of words could.
There was no hesitation as she brought her head down under his chin, almost purring softly as she sat herself down just like that.
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Posted: Sun Sep 09, 2007 3:41 am
And the moment the top of her head brushed beneath his chin, everything seemed to fall into place. His purr joined hers and he rubbed his head against hers. Warm. Soft. Gentle.
His whiskers flinched appreciatively and suddenly he realised just how wonderful being with someone was. This was why his father had refused to leave his mother's side when she had fallen ill. This was the reason why he had remained behind even if it had meant his own death.
Ona would have gladly done the same for Rehema and from that moment on he knew he could never leave her. He reached up with one paw and slung it across her shoulders, pulling her into a lion-hug that he intended to keep her in.
His eyes glittered but they were tears of happiness now and he pulled away only momentarily, to give her nose an affectionate lick.
Malik was right. This was fuzzy!
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