Dovev paced back and forth in the den he shared with Belle, uncertain now. When Mioyo had named him Commander alongside her, he was fine. He had help, someone experienced at leading. Now...ugh, now he was crawling in the dark, essentially. He had Primitus guiding him some, but for the most part...for the most part, he was on his own, learning how to use the advice of those around him.
He finally got tired of pacing and flopped onto the floor of the den. "Why did this have to happen..."
Belle toddled in quietly, her pawsteps had taken on that lightness that happened when you were an adult, she no longer flopped about heavy on her paws, she could sneak in and ultimately up on Dovev, her long time protector. Without a moments hesitation she flops on Dovev licking his cheek and giggling "I'm home!" She puurs. She had certainly grown up in to a young lady, though she was still a slip of a thing, dainty and pretty, a little lady much smaller than her over large protector.
"Why did what have to Happen Dovev?" She smiles sitting herself across his front paws, so her mid section was under his chin, looking back at him, she smiles a gentle, radient smile, her deep orange eyes glistening in the dimness of their den.
Dovev blinked as Belle flopped on him, head going up immediately, though he didn't startle. Even when she snuck up on him, she never set off his startle-factor. She was too...not-a-threat. She was his little innocent. He smiled, for her he could always find a smile, and tried to not look too worried. He'd come to this place to protect her, as he could not outside in the rogue lands.
"Something bad happened, Belle. And because Mioyo isn't here, I'm the one who has to help fix it." He sighed, the smile vanishing. "It is...just all so new to me. I'm not always sure I'm making the right choices."
Belle smiled and curled uo around him tossing her tail over his back she licks his cheek, her soft eyes looking not at all worried. "You always make the right choices Dovev, after all, we wouldn't be here if you hadn't decided this was the right place. Stop second guessing yourself." She smiles softly , she knew her protector always did the right thing.
"Come out and play with me Dovev, you need a break, all this worrying is making you wrinkly." She giggles runnign a paw up his head and pushing back to rid him of the crease his frowns made.
Dovev chuckled, his smile returning. Belle always found a way to make him smile again. "I hope this was the right choice. After all, you've been nothing but safe here. And to me...that's what matters." As long as she was safe, and the evils of the world couldn't touch her...
The green leopard carefully bat her paw away. "I'm not wrinkly. And...I do need a break. Else I'll go insane from all the meetings and figuring things out." He moved to nuzzle her. "What do you want to play, my dear?"
Belle looked thoughtful slipping out from under his paws she batted his nose with her tail and giggled "Uhm.." She looked deeply thoughtful for a moment, she loved it when Dovev smiled, she loved it even more when he smiled at her. "How abouttt...." She pursed her lips and sucked air through her front teeth, a completely innocent look crossed her maw and she touched his shoulder "Tag your it!" she grins and bolts towards the dens mouth, her fur flashing an even brighter orange as the sun caught upon her beautifully spotted fur.
"Come on wrinkly, you can't catch me!" She calls, her laughter echoing through their den.
Dovev was stunned a moment, and then he got to his paws and took off after her. "Oh yes I can!" He was still bigger than her, with a wider stride...but she was smaller and more agile. He was sure he could get close enough to tag her back though. He always had been able to. It was still a bit strange though...she was an adult now, and yet...something in his mind hadn't yet really acknowledged it. Maybe it was because she loved playing so much.
Belle glanced backwards, it was times like this she regretted playing tag, Dovev had such long legs she could hardly get any lead on him. Squeeling happily she slowed slightly her tail barely a hairs breadth from his nose. "You big meanie! get shorter legs!" She giggles her big, dark eyes dancing merrily, she actually wanted hi to catch her. She had been with Dovev for so long,s he could barely remember her old family, she had always thought of him as her protector, never her father or brother, or anything like a reletive, always her protector and now, well as she had grown funny things had started happening to her, she wanted to be near him all the time, wanted to groom him and sit on him and when he groomed her she got this funny, wibbly feeling in her stomach. She had no idea what this feeling was but it was there and it was only for Dovev.
Dovev chuckled and closed the distance between them to nuzzle her. "I'm afraid I can't do that. But I could try to slow down..." Because of her, he'd learned a lot. How to laugh, how to see the world as more than just full of evil things. She'd shown him he brightness in it, and how to enjoy that brightness. And as she'd grown...so had something else.
It started as this...tugging on his heart when she'd almost reached adulthood. Something that was like his need to protect her. Something that made him a little sad when he saw the various pairs wandering around the pride. "Or you could get longer legs. I think they'd look a bit funny on you though."
Belle pouted playfully and licked his cheek, nuzzling hin to him and lowering her self a little, crawling between his front legs she stands up and looks back at him "But I wouldn't be able to hide here any more if I was taller." She grins, her heart thudding a little in her chest.
"Dovev..." She sighs, a long, almost hopeless sigh, her gaze looking a little far away, though she quickly comes back to the here and now "I think you cheated." She puurs pulling a tongue at the big male.
Dovev nodded. "True...and I think you're beautiful just the way you are." Dovev was certain that Belle was the most beautiful girl ever. Not even his mother, pretty as she'd been, could compare to his charge. He noticed her far-away little sigh, and it made him curious. "I did not cheat." He sounded a bit indignant that she'd suggest it...but beneath that was a tone of obvious humor. "Is there something bothering you, Belle?"
Belle pursed her lips, the sun danced on her ginger fur and she looked deeply thoughtful, she tried to think of anyone else who made her feel the way Dovev did, there was no one, she knew quite a few other males and a lot of other girls, but none of them invoked the butterflies in her stomach. "What does it mean when a guy makes your heart go all wibbly Dovev?" She questioned, she had never had to ask Dovev about love, or relationships, or anything else for that matter, he was her protector and she was nieve, she didn't know what love was, she just knew that Dovev made her feel all tingly sometimes.
All...wibbly? Well then...Dovev looked a bit confused, then it hit him. "Does this boy make you feel...light on your feet? Like everything is right, so long as he looks at you?" Oh gods he was damning himself. Because aside from the fact the creature who made him feel that way was a SHE and not a HE, Dovev was describing what he was feeling...for her. And there was no way she felt such things about him. He was her protector after all. The one she'd grown up with.
Belle sat, her back against his chest, her tail swinging between his front legs, "Yes thats it exactly!" She giggles licking his cheek. "I knew you'd know, what does it mean?" She looks at him wide eyed, her stomach taking churning leaps as she waited for the answer to the all important question, what did the tingly, belly churning feeling mean, what was it that made her feel all light headed when Dovev touched her or groomed her or simply snoozed next to her?
"It's called love." He smiled, trying not to let his own feelings show through. "Not the sort of love you feel for a friend, or a family member...It's the sort of love you feel for someone you want to be mates with. Like...like Melhor and Jipima, or Miira and Haki. They love each other very much." They were also really the only couples he could think of, right of the top of his head. It seemed few in the pride were settled yet...
Belle looked deeply thoughtful, it wasn't a rare thing that she thought hard about things, but she hardly ever did it, prefareing to simply laugh away the deeply thoughtful things, but this was definately worth thinking about. Love was like the couple sin the pride, they crooned over one another and they stayed together a lot, they wanted to be together, they belonged together, even she with her mind full of nievete and without any knowlege of love knew they belonged together.
A pleased smile rolled over her lips and she rested against the deep green male who was her protector, she knew without thinking that this new word, this lvoe was what she had for Dovev and it wasn't the same love she had for her sister, it was the tingly, belong together forever type of love. Nuzzling her nose in to his cheek she gave a puur and her heart rolled inher chest "I alwyas feel all tingly when you nuzzle me and hug me and groom me Dovev and my tummy is so full of tickly things right now it's almost making me giggle." She smiles and opens her wide, innocent eyes "I love you Dovev, if that is what this feeling is then I love you."
She...Dovev was stunned, and looked it. Belle's feelings WERE for him! And...his stunned expression faded as it was replaced with a broad smile. Beautiful, innocent Belle loved him. He purred and gave her an affectionate lick on the top of her head. "And I love you Belle. I love you very, very much." And he would never stop, he was certain of that.
Belle giggled happily nuzzling in to the big, strong male, he had always been her protector and from now on he would be something more for her, her heart flutteerd and she gave a puur "Is it weird I want to tell everyone I love you?" She tilted her head, her innocent dark eyes gazing sweetly at him, she loved him so much, she couldn't be without him.
Dovev chuckled. "I'm not sure...but you aren't the only feeling that way." He wanted the whole pride to know that he'd found love, that she was his and he was hers. "But if it is weird...well, I want to be weird with you, together."
Belle giggled and sighed happily, the wiggly feelings hadn't faded but they felt more in control now that she knew what they were. They were no longer a mystery. "Then we should go and tell everybody." She grinned a wide, broad grin and hopped to her feet and bounded off ahead of him with her tail in the air, she was ready to tell the world, she and Dovev were together, together forever.
