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 Posted: Sat Oct 06, 2007 5:55 pm
 Her talk with Tetemeko had only strengthened the young lioness's resolve, the need to know why her mother had walked away from being a part of her life, and those of her brothers and sisters. No matter how many scenarios she attempted to play out in her mind, none of them made enough sense to her to bring to a finish. However she looked at it, it all just pointed to Kia abandoning all five of them. And she didn't even know that name... Kia. She didn't know her mother's name, or what she looked like. Her father never spoke of her in depth, and the few, sparse details she had heard were either accidental slips or not meant for her ears. Obviously there was something about their mother that upset him enough not to mention her.
It was the one thing that had held her back. She loved her father dearly, and she knew she and her siblings were loved by him more than enough to make up for the lack of a mother, but that didn't stop her wanting to know. She just didn't want her quest for that knowledge to hurt her father. That was the only reason she hadn't already bombarded with all the questions she wanted so badly to ask, and demanded he give her truthful answers. She didn't want the delicate, 'safe' answers from Ezeoha.. she just wanted the truth, that was all.
Coming to the mouth of the den, she peered into the shaded interior, red eyes swivelling this way and that. "Daddy?" she called hopefully, her ears perking forward. "Are you in here?"
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Posted: Sun Oct 14, 2007 8:28 am
Kia was... a difficult subject, and there had not been a day that went by when Ezeoha regretted the fact that she had left. A part of him had entertained the hope that they could raise a family together and even be mates. But, she had been too immature, wasn't ready for cubs or for a mate. He doubted she ever would have been ready for such a thing. No... she hadn't even been ready for what they had done together. She may have acted like it, but in reality it was too much for her. The result had been too much for her... and so he had his cubs to raise alone. Mention of Kia, their mother, came rarely and never intentionally. His children could grow up happily without one. All they needed was him. Sure, they probably suspected that their family was different by not having a mother. But, they were happy... and that was all that mattered.
This was what was on his mind as he lay in the den, Shaji curled up against him and dozing off. Shaji seemed to constantly be attached to his side, and though it was annoying some times, most of the time it was endearing. He contemplated dozing off with his son, because it was such a wonderful habit... sleeping all day. Just then, though, he heard his daughter's voice, and he couldn't just ignore her. Gently, he scooted his son a little bit away from him, and then standing up he exited the den to greet his daughter with a smile full of warmth.
"Mmm, yes, I was. How are you?" His words molded together lazily, and with a yawn it was clear that he had been ready for his beauty sleep. His beauty sleep could wait, though, in the face of his child's needs. He had a huge soft spot for every single one of them, and every single one of them seemed to like to exploit it.
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Posted: Wed Oct 17, 2007 1:36 pm
She was pleased to find her father in the first place she had looked. Well, it hadn't been a hard guess to make, as she knew quite well that her father liked his catnaps. Still, now that she'd made up her mind to the point of no return to get her questions off her chest, she needed to do it as soon as was possible. Like pulling off a bandaid, she couldn't afford to hesitate or she'd lose her nerve. Mostly she feared that she would upset her father, and that was the last thing she wanted. But of course, the worry that her mother had left because she and her siblings had some quality that made them unlovable to Kia was also quite prominent. She wanted there to be some perfect, magical reason that explained away why her mother had to leave. But Sineri was too smart to let herself believe in such a foolish hope.
"I need to talk to you about something, daddy. Do you mind?" She made as if to walk into the den, flciking her tail a little anxiously, when she caught sight of Shaji. Oh, great. He definitely shouldn't hear this conversation. Sineri liked to consider herself mature enough to handle the coming conversation (though she expected to cry at least a little bit), but her brother most certainly wasn't. She knew there would be sensitive things spoken between her father - unless, as was minorly possible, he ran from her questioning - and there was no point upsetting Shaji if he didn't think to ask these things himself.
Keeping her eyes pointedly fixed on her brother, she added, "Somewhere private." Indicating quite clearly that this wasn't something someone like Shaji should be witness to.
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Posted: Sat Oct 20, 2007 10:37 am
His daughter wanted to talk to him, and this made him unreasonably happy. He was worrying over how fast his babies were growing, and soon they would get to the stage in their life when they wanted nothing to do with him. They'd keep secrets with him, go off flirting without his knowledge... Oh, he was just a terribly hypocritical parent, but he couldn't help it. He worried, but since Sineri wanted to talk to him it proved that they hadn't grown up quite enough yet. If only they could remain that age forever, though. It wouldn't happen, but he could hope. Maybe some god out there would halt their aging until he was ready to let them age and grow old.
"Of course I don't mind." He was even eager for this chat, and walked a few steps forward in order to follow his daughter into the den. But, then she stopped, and seemed to examine the den closely. He realized that Shaji was in there, but the boy was totally out and likely wouldn't wake for a long time. He could certainly sleep like a rock, and it was endearing in a way. Distinctly he was not eager for this chat any more if Sineri thought it would be better to have it away from Shaji. Something was up. He had no idea what it was, but it was potentially something big. He could hope that Sineri was having troubles with her new friend Tete, an arguement or a fight. He could help with that, had enough faith in his abilities to be able to handle that.
"All right, somewhere private." He really couldn't say 'no' to Sineri, and at her request to go somewhere else he came closer to her and picked her up in his mouth with a sly grin. She was still barely small enough for that, and with his jaws secure around her (incredibly soft, but still firm) he walked away from the den. A little distance aways, underneath a tree, he set her down under the shade. "All right, what do you want to talk about?"
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Posted: Tue Oct 23, 2007 5:21 am
As Ezeoha lifted her between his jaws, Sineri had to smile. She always enjoyed this sort of attention (after all, since when was it better to walk than be carried?), and it never failed to make her feel special, but she had to wonder just how long her daddy would continue to manage to keep carrying her around. After all, neither of them were staying young. Though a little bit smaller than the average lioness, Sin wasn't exactly tiny, and Ezeoha himself wasn't a gigantic, powerful lion. Their ages factored in, of course, with Sin's growth and old age looming in the distance for Ezeoha (though Sineri was a smart enough girl never to mention that to her daddy). Still, she would enjoy it while it lasted, and let her father enjoy it, too.
As she was set down on her feet, grateful of the shade, she slowly sat down, arranging her tail around her paws as her eyes drifted away from her father's face. Now that she was here and the moment of asking had arrived, she found herself more nervous than she had anticipated, even after she had been working herself up all the way from Tete to home, and even after seeing her father. She didn't want him to be upset at the mention of Kia, and... she didn't want him to lie and hide the truth from her. The last thing she wanted was some sugar-coated reason why her mother left that he'd perhaps rehearsed in preparation for this moment. Because hearing something like that would mean that lying to his baby girl would be better than telling her the truth, in Ezeoha's opinion, and that... that would be more than she could safely handle. Even if the true reason remained hidden from her, she would always know that it was a terrible truth.
"Daddy..." she finally began hesitantly. "I want to talk about..." Damn it, why was it so hard to just ask the questions? She needed the answers, and he was the only one who could give them. She had to ask him. Gritting her teeth briefly, she just bit the bullet, it all coming out in a rush. "I want to talk about my mother. Where is she? Why isn't she here?"
She sucked in a shaky breath, all the air having been expelled from her lungs to say those words. She risked a glance up at her father's face to judge his reaction, her ears half-lowered in premature regret, expecting him to look saddened.
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Posted: Sat Nov 03, 2007 9:42 am
He didn't like to think about how difficult it was becoming to carry Sineri around. All of his children were growing at fast rates, though some were graced with his misfortune and weren't growing all that much. Still, it was too quickly for a father like Ezeoha to consider fair. They were his darling children, and he just didn't quite want them to grow up just yet. So he ignored how heavy Sineri was getting in his jaws, ignored the dull ache that lingered still after he had set her down. He was just getting old and his muscles (including those in his jaws) weren't what they used to be. Not now... no, he wouldn't consider that his children were growing old as well, getting bigger and smarter.
He sat down next to his daughter, proud of the way he arranged herself to look the most beautiful and startling creature in the Pridelands (his opinion was admittedly a little biased). The smile that had been on his face, though, suddenly disappeared. His expression looked drained of liveliness as he now stared down at his daughter. She had asked the question... the question that he had been hoping to avoid. Had he not been a good enough father to have his children never wanting of a mother? Did he not do a good enough job so that his babies knew that they needed no one else other then him? Ezeoha had hoped that none of his children would question their lack of a mother. But it was a hope made in vain. Sineri was smart enough, curious enough to ask. Shaji, in contrast, would have wondered, but never voiced his questions. Only Sineri... and how he wished right now that she hadn't.
It brought back memories, those of Kia leaving, abandoning her own cubs in fear. She was too naive to understand the magnitude of her actions, and truthfully too naive to rightfully care for her children. Only Ezeoha was right for it, and so he had taken it upon himself to care for them. It didn't stop him from entertaining the thoughts of Kia returning... of them becoming mates and raising a family together. Right now that was all that he wanted, a family, one that isn't lacking a mother.
He turned his gaze away from Sineri, knowing that he could not deny her the answers she seeked. He wanted to... but he could not wrong his daughter in such a way. "I don't know where she is, Sineri, honestly I just don't." He shook his head, his words having come out shaky and uncertain, and it was clear how much Sineri's questions had unsettled him. "And... I also really don't know why she isn't here. I think that she just wasn't ready for you guys. She couldn't have taken care of you, wouldn't have been able to. So... we met up, she left, and I took you and your siblings, because I love you guys with all my heart. You're my darling children, my sweet babies."
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Posted: Sat Nov 17, 2007 8:17 am
Seeing her father's reaction to her questions, Sineri did not just feel regretful. She felt extremely guilty all of a sudden, and the usually strong-willed young girl could not stop for all the world the tears that welled up in her eyes. As far back as she could remember, Ezeoha had never once turned away from her no matter what her brains and attitude led her to ask him. And that uncertainty in his tone... Never before had Sineri ever heard her father sound anything less than lively and carefree and, quite frankly, it worried her. She wondered if perhaps she should never have asked her questions at all. But even so... she just had to know everything so she could move passed it.
With her eyes still swimming in tears and her ears pressed so far back against her skull they seemed in danger of pressing through the skin, she hesitantly crept forward to lay a small paw over one of her father's bigger ones, looking up at him apologetically, but still determinedly. "I'm sorry, daddy... you're upset with me now... but I have to know. Why... why couldn't she love us? If she couldn't take care of us... she could have still been here! We could have known who she was and known she didn't think we were all worthless..."
Little Sineri was truly crying now, not just showing watery eyes, for it was no small pain to realise (or at least believe) that your mother didn't like you enough to stick around, let alone love you. Even if they couldn't have been the perfect family with both parental units present at all times, Kia could still have been some small part of their lives. Sineri just couldn't understad why her so-called mother had turned her back completely on she and her siblings. It didn't make sense to her, and she could only come to the conclusion that Kia just didn't care about any of them in truth. And that hurt.
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Posted: Mon Dec 03, 2007 9:00 am
"I'm not upset with you, Sineri, I never will be. You're such a smart girl and I expected you to want to know about your mother. I was a little prepared for this, sweet heart. You haven't upset me, I am just as upset as you are with your mother. It hurts a little talking about her, but you, you never will upset me. You're my precious little girl, my golden star, and I love you." If he could say that over and over again to give it more reason, he would. But no matter how many times he said it, the meaning would not change, the strength and emotion behind it would not change. His children were what was most precious to him. He loved them with all of his heart, and because of it never would he become truly upset at them. Sure, he could be a bit of a grouch towards some of them when they woke him up prematurely from his nap, but it was nothing serious. He was afraid of hurting them... the same way that Kia had. He was afraid of them growing up to hate them, because deep down he depended upon them. They were his life, not the females he constantly pursued, not the mates that he could have taken up. It was his children that mattered, and nothing else.
To see the tears forming in her eyes, to see how upset she was tore at him even more, and even though he could not see her crying when the tears finally came, he took steps to comfort her. He reached out, pulling her little body up against his chest, and there he held her in a warm, loving embrace. He wouldn't let her go, not until she was happy again, not until any trace of tears were gone from her eyes. Soothingly he pat her head, bending his low so he could whisper words of love to her, remind her that as her father he was going to do everything to see her happy. It was his purpose in life... to raise his children and make sure that they were happy. He couldn't fail now, couldn't fail in making her happy. He just couldn't!
"She was simple, Sineri, a simple young woman who couldn't come to undertand what it meant to have children. Perhaps now she is regretting leaving you guys to me, perhaps now she realizes that she loved you. She was so frightened... so scared to realize she had given birth to five beautiful cubs. Sineri, she simply wasn't ready. Given time she may have become so, but Kia did not want to give it time. Sineri, you aren't worthless, none of you are you. You guys are my life and my loves. I love you, from the depths of my heart." He could only hope that his love for his children was enough... to make up for the lack of love they had received from their mother. It was truly difficult to be a single father of five, more difficult then he had ever imagined.
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Posted: Sun Dec 09, 2007 8:12 am
Still feeling sad, she listened to her father's words of comfort and allowed him to pull her into an embrace. She nuzzled into his fur and snifled quietly, trying her hardest to stop crying, but even with Ezeoha's assurances that he wasn't upset with her, she just couldn't stop the tears. She had realsed, before she even saw Tete and he gave her the courage to come and ask, that her questions would touch as much a sore spot for her father as for her. Maybe even more. She had thought she was prepared for it, but when faced with his emotions, she found they overwhelmed her.
Sin's eyes slowly closed as she let Ez's words of love soothe her just a little bit. It was irrational, she knew her father would love her unconditionally always, but she did feel a certain relief at hearing him say it. "We love you too, daddy," she murmured into his fur. "You're everything to us. You give us everything we need, more love than we could ever ask for. We'll always love you."
Ez's explanations about Kia didn't really make Sineri feel any better about what had happened in the past. She still felt as though her mother had abandoned all of them, and she didn't think Kia was regretting the decision at all. Otherwise she would have returned, even if just to ask Ez how they were. No, Sin didn't believe for a second that Kia feeling anything like that. By running away from responsibility, Kia had proven she was stupid and immature in her daughter's eyes. And knowing her father as she did, knowing he was apparently much more mature than Kia, showed Sineri just how high her mother's immaturity levels must be. It strengthened how she felt that she didn't actually want Kia to be here at all; she had just felt the need to know why she wasn't.
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Posted: Thu Jan 24, 2008 2:13 pm
His large paw patted down the length of her spine, and Ezeoha was trying to be as comforting as he could be. It distressed him to see his own very daughter, the brightest and the most independent of his cubs, reduced to tears. Sineri's distress made him regret things that he could not change, such as the fact that he did not try hard enough to keep Kia here with the family. He had tried, there was no denying that, but if he had only tried harder she would have stayed with them, and then they could have been one big, happy family. But, she had chosen the easiest way out of raising cubs - running away. Ezeoha was glad that he had given his children life, had spent that fateful day with Kia. This family, though, was missing a piece. A mother. Ezeoha could always try to find a mate, but he was a lustful creature and his appetite would not be so easily sated. He did not want to be disloyal to another lioness, not after what happened between him and Chinara'fola. And he knew at this point in his life, he could never settle down and remain faithful to one lioness. He hated that he couldn't.
Sineri's words made his throat tighten from the overwhelming about of happiness, and he was almost certain that there were tears in his eyes. Such simple, little words meant everything to him. That was why he raised so many children on his own, to hear those words of love that he hadn't gotten from his own father. Perhaps that was why he told his children he loved them so often, because he knew that was what cubs needed to grow up proper and well-rounded. "Thank you, sweetie. It's good to hear that. Sometimes I need to hear it."
Truth was that Kia had abandoned them, and even Ezeoha didn't know for sure whether she regretted the decision or not. Kia was difficult to think about, let alone talk about. Ezeoha barely knew her, in fact. They had just met one fateful day, and he had made some moves on her, and she had been accepting of those moves. It was fun and games, with the consequences Ezeoha had hoped for, and the consequences that Kia had likely dreaded. Ezeoha, though, did know her enough to know that she was a good lioness, despite how simple she was and despite the wrong she had done to her own cubs. "I know she wronged all of us, Sineri, but in her position, and with her temperment and mental capabilities, you and I probably would have done the same. We just have to accept the fact that she's not here, and move on from it. We're a stronger family even without her."
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Posted: Thu Feb 14, 2008 9:00 am
Even though Ezeoha's patting of her back felt a little bit awkward, she allowed it to calm her nonetheless. As long as she was with Ez, she felt happy, protected and loved. She didn't need anything else. He was both mother and father to her and the rest of the litter, and she needed no one else in her life... not even a real mother. She never wanted for anything, not love, affection or comforts, and she knew she never would. No matter what, Ez would always be there for her; she knew that. Whether their 'family' was missing a piece or not, it didn't matter. They got along just fine as they were, and no one ever noticed the tiny hole in the jigsaw. So far as she knew, none of the others had ever even thought to ask where Kia was and why she wasn't with them. If that didn't speak for how content their family was, Sin didn't know what did.
Pulling a smile onto her face, the young lioness pulled back just far enough to be able to look up at her father. "Let's move away from this topic now... huh, daddy?" She gave a quiet little laugh. "We're just going to keep upsetting ourselves for no reason if we carry on like this." She really couldn't stand to see Ezeoha so unhappy, more than she couldn't stand to keep making herself sad.
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Posted: Thu Feb 14, 2008 5:48 pm
That was what Ezeoha had been hoping for, that he could fill their lives with so much happiness that they would not want nor long for a mother. He wanted them to never linger in misery for the loss of their mother. He wanted them to understand, of course, why Kia left. But he didn't want that to influence their lives so much that all the happiness got sucked out of them. Kia wasn't important anymore, she had chosen herself not to be. Their family was complete and well-rounded without her, and within the family everyone would find happiness. That was all Ezeoha wanted, and if he could achieve that he would then consider himself a good father to his children. Anything short of perfect happiness was a failure on his part, and so he would strive to make things better for his cubs, to give them the best possibilities in the future.
He smiled down at Sineri, proud that she could fight the sadness, proud that she did not let this drag her down. She was going to grow up to be a fine lioness, and of course not the flirt he had desired every single one of his cubs to be... but she was perfect nonetheless, and he would not change her if he could. "I think that's a good idea. Being unhappy isn't quite my thing, and you look so tragic when you're sad. Sooo... on to more important things. What's the dirt on your little friend... Tete...meko?" Of course... Ezeoha would definitely want the info on a little male cub who was happening to get close to his darling daughter.
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Posted: Sat Feb 16, 2008 7:26 am
At the mention of Tetemeko, Sineri reared back on her hind legs and poked a paw into her father's chest. She raised an eyebrow and gave him a flat look with those red eyes of hers. Her mind was quickly maturing, faster than her understanding of her own emotions and feelings, and she was beginning to realise that her friend was a cause of concern to her father simply because he was a boy. Living with Ezeoha, it had been very easy to start picking up that boy-and-girl stuff had more weight to it than their just being different genders, but she'd yet to grasp it all quite fully, despite having some knowledge of what pregnancy was. She just didn't know how one got that way quite yet.
"There is no dirt, daddy," she replied, in a miraculously fast return to her usual manner and way of speaking. "We're good friends, and we have a lot in common. We like hanging out together and playing." And she left out the odd fluttery feeling she got in her tummy sometimes when she was around it. She really didn't understand why that happened to her, and until she did, she wasn't going to tell Ez about it. Not until she knew for sure it wasn't another reason for Ezeoha to be suspicious of Tete.
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Posted: Sat Feb 16, 2008 8:07 am
He couldn't help but laugh at the look his daughter gave her, and at the way she poked him in the chest while rearing up onto her hind paws. She looked so mature at the moment, more mature then he did... and it was amusing. It was one of those adorable quirks that he loved his daughter for, because most surely Sineri was the most mature of the cubs, and likely the cub best suited to life on her own (not that Ezeoha would let her leave the den until she was a full-grown adult). Ezeoha knew that in many ways his daughter would be superior to him in attitude and mannerisms (though never looks - Ezeoha still considered himself one hot stud). But, she still needed to know her place, which was as his daughter. So, with a big grin on his face his paw came down on the top of her head and pushed her back down to the ground. "Don't you give that look to your father." Of course, this form of scolding wasn't really scolding at all. It was more akin to playing.
"I'm sure there's dirt somewhere, but you, my sneaky but beloved daughter, are hiding it from me." Yet again Ezeoha was simply enjoying himself, and really not doing anything that would make himself mad. It was very difficult to get a parent like Ezeoha mad, and from his recollection it really hadn't happened... yet. "You should bring him over to play sometime. I want to get to know the little bugger too." Of course, if Sineri was wise she'd keep her friend as far away from Ezeoha's line of sight as possible.
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Posted: Tue Mar 11, 2008 10:42 am
The usually so calm and serious little lioness gave a very undignified, unladylike grunt as her father's paw came down on her head and squashed her back to the ground. It was, in her opinion, a very poor way for her father to treat such a delicate young lady, and to express her displeasure at how she was handled, Sineri attacked Ezeoha's foot. She went for the sensitive pads underneath, though as always, she kept her head enough in play to remember not to go too rough. It was more like the 'ferocious' attack of a playful cub.
Though, she relented her father's 'punishment' soon enough, sitting back down and composing herself once more into something of a regal position. She really was far more mature than she should be at her age. The young female gave a rolling shrug of her shoulders, glancing away. "I told you, there is no dirty, daddy. None at all." She wasn't being evasive because there was dirt that she knew of. No, she just figured there was something there she hadn't seen yet but her father, being older, had, and so she was trying to steer him away from it. She didn't want Ez to have any reason to not like Tete.
"Um... maybe I will... one day." Ha. Like hell she would. She may still be young, but she was still smart for her age. No way was she going to bring Tete up here to be scrutinised like he was the day they first met. "He has a lot of family problems going on right now, though, so he's a bit busy." That, at least, she didn't have to lie about.
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