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 Posted: Sat May 09, 2009 8:58 pm
 The sun had set on the pride lands, and the moon had risen to it's ancient position once again. A pair of eyes watched the glowing orb above him, staring with a look of longing. Kialio, or Lio by most, was daydreaming again. He had become a quite nocturnal lion since cubhood, always staying up late to watch the stars and moon. He eventually built up a cycle of sleeping during the way and conjuring his stories at night. Lio had an amazing talent of forming stories, and even more amazing was the fact that he could remember every single one of them. He constantly came up with new ones, filing them away in his library of tales.
The stocky lion rose, his blue coat brilliant in the moonlight. He wandered through he tall grasses, twitching a bit as the blades tickled his skin. He padded towards a small watering hole, where there was a family of mice wandering about and feeding. They looked up at the huge lion with fearful eyes, but they realized that it was the large blue lion they had come to trust, and continued their grazing. Lio looked at them for a moment but left them alone, walking to the waters edge and bending his long neck. He lapped at the cold liquid, his orange eyes staring back at himself in his reflection. He watched his own reflection for a few moments, thinking if he would ever find someone to love. He was a lonely soul and just wanted someone to share his stories with. He sighed and flopped to the ground.
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Posted: Sat May 09, 2009 9:34 pm
Amanzi yawned, wondering why on earth she was out wandering around at this hour. Oh, that's right: she couldn't sleep. Why was this? Well, because her twin brother Taku was kicking in his sleep again, because of whatever dream he was having. She grumbled to herself and threw a look over her shoulder in the direction of the den they had been occupying for the past couple of days.
The moonlight hit her brown coat and her green markings shone in the pale blue light. Her paws took her towards the smell of water, which she suddenly realized that she was thirsty. With a sigh, she approached the water hole, but a flash of blue made her stop, and she blinked at the area. There was definitely someone already there, and she had unknowingly stumbled on his solitude. In a soft voice she called out to him in an apology."Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't know anyone was here."
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Posted: Sat May 09, 2009 9:45 pm
Lio hadn't even noticed the others approach, lost so in thought. He blinked a few times at her, wondering if she lived in the pridelands. He had never seen her before, and her striking green markings against her dark brown fur drew his eyes. He wouldn't be surprised if she was part of the pride and he had never seen her, since he was almost always alone anyway.
"Oh, please don't apologize, there's no need. I was just lost in my own wandering thoughts." He gave his trade marked half-smile, showing a little bit of his slightly crooked tooth. He sat up, his tail flowing out behind him. The small group of mice had fled at the approach of the lioness, hiding behind the big blue lion, inside the tufts of grass. He took no notice of them, his eyes were only on the lovely female that had appeared so mysteriously out of the moonlight.
"So what brings you out on such a beautiful night?" He asked, his voice deep but soft.
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Posted: Sat May 09, 2009 10:08 pm
She smiled in return; couldn't help it, really. He seemed to have an infectious smile. Amanzi didn't see the mice flee for shelter behind the great blue lion, but if she had, she probably would have apologized for that, too. She didn't mean any harm, though she knew it was the mice family's instinct to run and hide. She'd be curious as to why the blue lion seemed to be a safe place for them instead of someone who could harm them. Curious.
"I see," she replied, padding forward to the edge of the other side of the watering hole. She knew the feeling of wandering thoughts; it was especially so easy to get lost in them on a beautiful night such as this. All the stars were out and it was an incredibly pretty sight to look up and feel so small compared to the brilliance.
"Oh, I couldn't sleep very well. My brother was kicking in his dreams again, and kept waking me up. I'll be surprised if I don't have a bruise or a sore back in the morning," she joked.
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Posted: Sat May 09, 2009 10:13 pm
Lio chuckled, a warm, soft sound. The mice poked their heads out from behind him at her approach, watching her carefully. Lio ignored them. "Oh my, sounds as though he has some intense dreams if he's doing that." He said, half-joking with her. He wasn't very good with social situations, but he tried his best to be friendly. The last thing he wanted to do was scare away a potential new friend by saying something stupid.
"The sky is brilliant tonight though, isn't it? It's actually a good thing he woke you, otherwise you'd have missed it." He nodded, more to himself than to her, watching the stars for a few moments before lowering his eyes back down to her. "Oh forgive my rudeness, my name is Kialio. It's a pleasure to meet you." He bowed his head low to her, though didn't take his eyes off of hers.
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Posted: Sat May 09, 2009 10:19 pm
Now she was so close that she could see his brilliant orange eyes glittering back to her, and could even see a few emotions in them as well. Kindness, tentativeness...and sweetness, though he may not know how to use it. That was alright. It was the thought that counts most of the time, anyway.
She laughed and shook her head at his reply. "I have no idea what he was dreaming about, but it was painful to me, so I left. It is indeed a beautiful night, and in a way, I am glad that he woke me. It's not often that we don't find a place to stay for the night, under shelter, so it's actually been quite a while since I've seen the stars at their brightest."
Amanzi looked up for a moment, completely happy to get lost in the shiny dots and their twinkling selves. When they had been younger, Taku and she had laid around outside during the night, when the rest of their family had been asleep, and had whispered to each other how each constellation was different, and how they had come to be called the name they claimed. It was always a fun thing to do. Now it seemed like a childish activity, though she secretly loved to do it anyway, even just repeating the stories to herself in her head.
"Forgive me as well, Kialio. My name is Amanzi." she blushed in her forgetfulness and bowed her head in return, keeping eye contact with him as well. How strange this lion was, but intriguing.
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Posted: Sat May 09, 2009 10:27 pm
Lio could tell that she loved the stars as well, perhaps not as much as himself, but he was a little obsessed with them. The moon shaped stone tied round his neck glinted in the moonlight as he turned towards her more. He always thought it was polite to face the person you're talking to face to face, he liked to give others his full attention.
"What a lovely name," He said with his crooked half smile, "Do you and your brother travel, then? That must be exciting. I've never been away from the pridelands." He said, but with no regret or sadness in his voice. The way he saw it, some creatures are born to travel, others to stay where they are and serve another purpose there.
Lio pondered sharing one of his stories with her, since his favorite constellation was shining directly above them. He decided against it, not yet at least. He was a bit embarrassed that he spent so much time making stories up in his head, but it was what he loved to do. He shrugged the thought away and brought his attention back to her.
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Posted: Tue May 12, 2009 10:44 am
She grinned and bowed her head at the compliment. "A pleasure to meet you," she added politely. Her ears perked up though at the mention of the pridelands. Amanzi didn't know she was so close to the place that had once been her homeland.
"You live in the pridelands? That's where my family used to live," she shared. "Well, my mother and sister and brother, at least. The four of us left to travel to the Baharim'toto pride, the one by the ocean. Mother met a new male and, well. You know." She rolled her eyes and grinned with a silly smile on her face. "But while I adore the water, Taku (my brother) hates it. So we left and we've been wandering around, looking for a place and others to meet." She shrugged. "Nothing too exciting. It's been a beautiful journey, though. Lots of interesting things to see, though."
Her eyes caught the glint of his necklace and she recognized the pendant as a simple moon. "How pretty," she commented. "Where did you find such a perfectly-shaped stone?"
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Posted: Tue May 12, 2009 10:58 am
Lio smiled as she told her summary of her tale, and chuckled softly when she rolled her eyes. He was surprised that she had once lived in his own home land, and he had never seen her. "Well, what a small world." He said when she had finished. "Strange how we could have known each other long before now, yet we meet only after you have left." He thought on this for a few moments, but then realized that she had asked him a question.
"Oh, this?" He lifted the stone with his paw, pulling it forward a little so she could get a better look. "I found it when I was a cub, I was climbing on some rocks and I happened to notice it. The funny thing was that it was illuminated by a beam of moonlight." He smiled at the thought. "It was rather strange." He said, more to himself than to his new found friend.
His orange eyes looked back up at her own. "So do you like traveling around with your brother?"
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Posted: Tue May 12, 2009 11:11 am
Amanzi nodded thoughtfully. "I...suppose so. It is a small world, with a very big clump of land we know as the Pridelands," she joked. After all, if their lands hadn't been so big, the two probably would have met a lot sooner than this. Life and the world was just a funny thing in general, though, so she couldn't place the blame in any other place but her own.
She listened to his story and smiled. "How interesting," she replied, peering closer at the stone from the distance away. "It's a very beautiful stone. It looks like a little moon, one that you caught just for you." Oh, she was being silly. Better to stop that crazy talk now while she still could.
"Oh, traveling with Taku?" she laughed. "He's great at times. We get along so well because we're twins, but that doesn't mean we don't have our fights just like any other pair of siblings. He could be worse than he already is, though, so I'm not complaining that much. I do love Taku dearly." She smiled. "Do you have any siblings?"
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Posted: Tue May 12, 2009 11:19 am
Lio dropped his paw back down, letting the stone nestle back into his full mane. He shook himself a little, then nodded at her comment. "I always thought the same thing, that perhaps is was a little piece of moon sent down for me to enjoy." He laughed softly, hoping he didn't sound crazy to her. He also had the feeling that without the stone, his stories would be gone too. But that was silly and he tried to force the idea away with logic.
"Oh that sounds like fun, though." He said with a smile, "Me? I do have siblings, though we're not very close." He thought of his brothers and sisters, of how different they were from him. Color and personality alike. He wondered briefly if any of them had left the pridelands, and he felt a small pang of guilt at the fact that he didn't even know if they were still living here. He pushed the thought aside. "So have you been to many places on your journey?" He asked, sincerely curious about any tales she may have.
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Posted: Tue May 12, 2009 11:32 am
She laughed. "That actually makes a lot of sense. I wouldn't doubt it if one of those darker spots on the moon had a piece once there before, and it broke off, and landed here. And then it chipped away and formed the little moon-stone you wear around your neck even now." She giggled again, shaking her head. "I'm sorry. Sometimes it's fun to keep going with a silly idea."
Amanzi nodded. "I understand. I'm not really close to any of my siblings save Taku, so I don't blame you for that." She understood. Sometimes it was hard to connect to others, even if they were blood-related to you.
"Hm, some places, yes. But not many. Have you ever thought of doing some traveling of your own?"
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Posted: Tue May 12, 2009 11:55 am
Lio was glad that she could go along with a story and he chuckled at her continuation of it. He was glad also that she understood the fact that he didn't get along very well with his siblings and he smiled at her. "I haven't, actually." He said, looking up at the moon for a moment. "Only in my imagination. I've traveled to the moon many times there." He said with a chuckle, looking back down to her. "But no, I've never really thought of traveling. I never was called by the travel-lust as many are." He shrugged a bit, and let out a huge yawn. He realized that the sun was starting to peek over the horizon, and he realized just how tired he was. But he ignored it, since he was in good company.
"I like the pridelands, and since they're so big I always know I'll have new lions to meet." He said with a smile, "If I'm ever inclined to do so."
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Posted: Sat May 16, 2009 12:32 pm
His yawn made her yawn, and she did so with a giggle following it. She was tired, really. She'd have to chew out Taku for waking her up again in the morning. Maybe next time they could find a big enough den for the both of them to sleep comfortably, with their own space if anything. Otherwise, she might have to go find her own place near his. It would be a sacrifice well worth it, if it meant getting a good night's sleep.
"That's true," Amanzi laughed. "I would suggest for you to do so, yes. If only perhaps once a week, not every day. Wander around in an area you haven't yet explored and see who lives there. Or even who lives closest to you in a different direction." She grinned. "It's always an adventure."
She glanced at the horizon as well, spotting the lighter color of the sun's rays shooing the coolness of the moon's away. It would only last another day, and then the moon would be out and about again, enjoying the dark sky and shining on the dark earth.
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Posted: Tue May 19, 2009 11:44 am
Lio nodded in agreement, and he watched the sun's rays peek over the horizon even further, making their way to chase the moon from the sky yet again. He yawned yet again, and shook his mane out a bit before turning to her.
"I hate to part, but I think it's getting rather late. Or, early I should say." He smiled a bit and bowed his head low to her, though he didn't take his eyes off of hers. "It was wonderful meeting you, Miss Amanzi." He stood and turned, then looked back at her, "I sincerely hope we cross paths again someday." Then he walked forward into the early morning sunrise, and was gone.
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