It had been months since he'd last been home... But he tried not to let it affect him, even though he was traveling so much now. He remembered the stories his mother still told him, about how the Anga'mabedawi were nomads, who only settled down to give birth before moving again. The memory made his heart tug painfully, and he paused in his spot, staring at the sky aimlessly. When would he be able to go home and stop the war, he wondered?
Kimbilio had finally had the courage to wander away from the jungle that he had called home since he was a child. It was very different, completely dependent on himself and not his mother, but it had been something he was forced to do. But now what? He had no idea what to do now that he was away from his family and on his own.
Carefully the little godling made his way through the dry savannah grasses, unfamiliar with the way they tickled his legs. He felt like he was disappearing into them, like no one would see him out here. The only thing that could give him away were the ends of his wings, growing to a near dark in colour the further they grew from his body. His golden eyes peeked around, trying to see if there was anyone else around. It was quiet, just a few small animals scurrying around into their homes in the ground.
He was almost ready to trot off again with confidence until a tickle of grass caught his nose. Oooh, no! He felt it coming on, but there was no way to stop it. Within a moment, he sneezed, his body tensing up for a second only to send him rolling over on to his back in surprise. "Achoo!"
Aang's ears flew up at the noise and he turned, sniffing the air curiously. Something big had sneezed! Ever the curious youngster, he ventured forward into the grasses of the savannah, blue arrows glaringly obvious amonst the grasses. He almost missed Kimbilio, but spotted the godling's wings at the last moment.
A grin split his muzzle and he bounded forward, standing above the other juvenile and looking down at him.
"Hi!"
Rubbing at his nose to drive away what had been left of the grass, it took a moment for the cub to realize that there indeed was someone else right there. He blinked slowly at the stranger, his golden eyes wide. What was it? Who was it? Kimbi had only known lions, and even then not too many. This was going to be weird, this whole big world that he was slowly testing out.
"Woooaahh," he said, rolling over so he could stand up again. He folded his wings tightly to his sides, peering around at the cheetah that was looking back at him. "Hi t-to you too." He wasn't really used to strangers that were so upfront, this was strange. "C-can I help you?"
"You have wings! Like a bird!" Aang chirped, s.actically bouncing over to inspect Kimbi's wings. "I've never seen a lion like you before!"
He was always curious, and he sniffed at the feathered appendages, before tentatively reaching a paw out to touch them. He looked entranced, absolutely awed by the wings attached to the strange lion...
Hmm? Kimbi peered over his shoulder to look at his wings, making sure that they didn't change. He hoped that they hadn't ended up like Kituko's that would have been weird! But no, they were the same ol' wings that he had always had. He looked back over to the cheetah, giggling a bit.
"Gods always have wings," he said, trying to not make such a big deal out of it. "Well....I think, anyway." He flicked his tail upwards, observing his new companion curiously. Kimbi stretched one wing out just a bit, so the stranger could touch it. He paused for a moment, before asking his own question. "I've...never seen anything like you before, either."
"You're a god? I've never met a god before!" Aang said, running his paw over Kimbi's wing almost reverently before coming to face the godling. "I'm a cheetah! I can run really fast! But I'll be even faster once I'm all grown up!"
"Well, it's not like I'm anything special," he said, rocking forwards in backwards in an embarassed fashion. He really wasn't, but maybe he would be one day. "My Mama and sibilings have all got wings, so I think it's normal." He hoped so, he wanted to be normal somewhere.
"A cheetah?" His attention was completely pulled away from himself to this cheetah before him. "Run fast....wow." He couldn't even fly fast. Amazing! "I can't even fly that well without screwing up. That must be amazing!"
"It's not that amazing. Your wings are more amazing that my running! I wish I could fly! That would be the best thing ever!" Aang said, sighing dreamily at the thought of flying through the sky he so admired. He grinned at Kimbi then, his eyes shining with awe and mischief. "I'm Aang!"
Kimbi folded his wing back in, his head cocked to the side. The sky? Maybe, but to him, it was too big. Too scary, the idea of suddenly growing tired and the risk of falling. Maybe he'd have to just learn from someone who couldn't fly what the attraction was. Then he could learn what was so great about it.
"I'm Kimbi," he replied. "Nice to meet you, Aang." He offered a small little bow with his greeting, feeling quite proud to have met this cheetah. "What're you doing out here? Just exploring?" It sounded kinda exciting!
"Exploring and trying to stay away from Eupe! I hope she doesn't find me yet. I'm not a little helpless cub!" Aang said, huffing at the thought of the over-protective cheetah and absently flicking his tail. "She means well, but she can be so weird sometimes..."
"Cub?" Kimbi cocked his head to the side, trying to understand the situation. "So you're trying to stay away from someone?" It was obvious that his wasn't a horribly bad thing, since he didn't seem too worried about the idea, and he did mention that she meant well.
"Still thinks your a cub, ya mean?" Well, Kimbi knew that he wasn't a cub, and he didn't think he was a whole lot older than Aang. Not that he was good at guessing ages, but size was the best he was going to get at a guess. "Exploring is supposed to make you grow up, so maybe she'll leave you alone after that?" That was what he was doing, or so he thought. Only if he was doing it right, would he grow up. Being an adult was too much work and not enough fun!
"I hope so! I don't mind traveling with her, but she worries too much!" Aang said, grinning at Kimbi and sitting down in the grass. "So, what are you doing out here? Are you exploring too?"
Traveling. It seemed like something small, but that meant that you got to see things that you've never seen before. Kimbi was still playing with the idea of doing that, but it was hard when you were on your own, and had no idea even where you were.
He shook his head, trying to concnetrate more on what Aang was saying. How rude of him to not be paying attention! "Well....sorta," he said quietly. "My family is all seperated now, so I'm kinda on my own, and not sure what to do. So I'm just looking around, finding things out. It's kinda fun. Like, I never knew cheetahs existed until now!"
"Maybe you should find someone to travel with! Traveling all alone is okay, but sometimes you get lonely!" Aang hummed thoughtfully, his eyes shining mischievously. "Maybe we could travel together for a little while!"
"Hmmm." It sounded like something he wouldn't mind, at least not for a little while. He let his tail flop behind him, back and forth, as he thought about the idea. He could figure out more what he wanted to do with himself, but then he wouldn't actually be alone, either. And once he decided, that didn't mean he'd have to abandon Aang. They could always meet up other times as well! ....did this make Aang a friend?
"Well, I guess I could for a bit," he said quietly, a small smile growing on his face. "Then you can show me just how fast you can run!"
"Great! Sounds like a perfect plan!" Aang said, his grin widening as his eyes shined. "Let's go find Eupe and tell her!
