Welcome to Gaia! ::

Johari trailed quietly behind the rest of the family, deciding not to stray far from her mother and father's sides. Maybe a little later she'd have an easier time opening up, but for now she was feeling shy, and would rather watch the festivities swing into action rather than diving in like her braver sister and niece.

Be on their best behavior, mind their manners and play nice, these things Johari recalled with ease as the most important instructions of the night. She never really got into trouble to start with, but tonight was especially important since they were supposed to make a good impression on the rest of the pride-- including the queen.

When Kauta and Mteule loomed into view Johari felt her eyes widen, and she ducked some discreetly behind Tanashita's back paws, letting Paki wander forward instead.

Mteule watched the greetings proceed and gave a rumbled purr and a smile, social air fully in place and spirits high as he sat alongside his mate.

It wasn't long before they were joined by Chamiyu, in search of Mteuli, and then there came the Earth Priest himself, not surprisingly!

"It would seem that your in luck, here he is now..." Giving Chamiyu and Mteuli both a brotherly smile, Mteule left the two of them to their conversation, turning to the introductions before him. He didn't want to simply dismiss his brother and sister-in-law, but being addressed in two directions at once would quickly become confusing, and it did seem like Chamiyu had a specific reason for looking for the Ardhi lion.

His eyes settled on Kichea as Tamariku introduced her, and then their children. The lioness, though no older than Tamariku yet, was a picture of beauty, colored like a perfect blend between Earth and Sky. It brought a smile to Mteule's face to see the pride and joy that Tamariku showed in presenting his family to the Queen.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Kichea, Nakawa, and Tui'lian." He smiled down to each in passing as he spoke, keeping his tones soft and always subdued so as not to overspeak Kauta when she added in her own greetings. "Zumaridi, I'm glad that you've come. Tanashita, Kifijo, it's good to see you both, and your little ones." He smiled kindly, chuckling just so at Johari-- who ducked that much further behind her parents.

Kichea froze for a moment when Riku stepped back. What should she do? Hesitantly she sat looking at her paws for a matter of seconds, wondering what she should do. She'd always been afraid of making a bad impression on other lions and with her lack of social experience for quite sometime until recently, she was a bit dusty with introductions. Realizing she had paused, she slid back a paw and bowed gently. "The pleasure is all mine...", Her voice was soft yet held strong with sincerity. "Umm...", She raised her head realizing she had yet to learn their names, her golden eyes searched their faces, trying to place them in her memory.


Nakawa was ready to giggle when he realized his sister was just as clueless about the whole thing as he was. When suddenly his father introduced him to a pair of lions he had never seen before. He smiled meekly, that was all he could do even with the courage he gained from his father's paw. His attention was then quickly taken by Paki. There was something about him that Nakawa liked and he almost wished they had more time to spend together. "Oh it's okay!" Nakawa squeaked, his tail swaying as he spoke. "Ever been to this part before?" His young voice growing with confidence as he spoke. Completely absorbed in his conversation with his uncle he failed to realize his father leaving and Tui jumping behind him as they sat in the open near the big lions.

Watching as the ever so polite Mteule turned away from her and her beloved, Chamiyu purred gently and then leaned slightly onto her loved one. Looking up at him with her bright blue eyes and smiling as the background of lion voices and merriment hummed, the black lioness said softly with a concerned knit of her brows.

"Mteuli...All day today I've been feeling odd. My stomach is acting wierd, unlike I've ever felt before. What do you...?" Then, the answer snapped into her mind and her chest swelled up with the sudden excitement of realization. Then, she continued, undaunted with sly smile on her cheeks, "What do you think they are?"

Tui looked over to her aunt, and she smiled widely. With an eager nod she bounded off a little ways from the large, rather intimidating lions. "I don't know what's going on, but I'd love to explore with ya!" She said with a smile when they were far enough away. "Where you wanna go first?" She aske,d her til flicking behind her with excitement.

The blue lion had spent most of the day in the cool dark caves, hunting the fish and small crustaceans that dwelled in the subterranian pools. It was only now that the dark of night had fallen that he vetured from the dark caves for longer than required to carry his catches to the festival area.

Perhaps it may have seemed odd for a lion to spend his days in darkness, but Ali'ikai had spend the better part of his life in the underground caverns of the Anansi pride, and even though his life had changed much since then, his eyes had never grown accustomed to light.

Yawning, he paused at the mouth of the cave he'd emerged from, taking a moment to look around at the gathering pride members. Leaning against the rock, he rubbed his shoulder against the rough surface, scratching where his paws couldn't quite reach.

Chamiyu could've nearly laughed aloud as she watched her beloved. She could read what he was feeling, the fight that Mteuli was putting forth not to burst into joy, and she nuzzled her head into his large soft mane, "It is! It is! There's nothing I've ever felt like this before, it must be so. Dear Mteuli, you're going to be a father. And don't hold back on yourself like this, I can see you struggle. This is a one-time special event, feel for it as you would, my love."

The black lioness rubbed against Mteuli's tan body and grinned widely up him, casting her eyes from his beautiful green eyes to her stomach where she felt the miracle happening. What an odd feeling, but what happiness laid in store for them!

"And I love you," Chamiyu returned with a purr, giggling affectionately at his burst of passion. Then, she calmed herself as well and simply sat beside Mteuli, looking upon the guests with curiousity and shyness. "Mteuli, dear? Who are all these lions? I've met Riku and those with him must be his family...And I've met your brother and the Queen. And Matifu as well, but other than that, I'm afraid I don't have a clue as to who everyone else is!"

Mteuli settled himself beside her, gazing around at the group of lions. He couldn't help but smile at the number. It seemed like only yesterday they were a small group recovering from the devide that had nearly ruined them. Now they were flourishing...and there were new lives coming into the pride. It was a beautiful thing. "Well...many are relatives of Matifu and Riku, actually. Some are newcomers like you as well. And a select few are from our old pride and from old bloodlines."