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 Posted: Mon Sep 14, 2009 3:35 pm
She had to tell him.
The encounter with Mtenga had been too much for her; Nasiha had to tell Kimacho, there was no way she could keep silent any longer, not when it could mean possibly losing another member, not when it meant her life was now at stake. She'd upset Mtenga; the red lion had made it clear. While Nasiha had said some rather upsetting things, nothing was said with venomous intent. She'd only wanted to help him, she'd only wanted all this murder business put behind them all, so they could all forgive and forget things... right? And yet, still, Mtenga had been furious, he had shown a violent side that she'd yet to see until now. A violent side that had no reason to show itself, not when she had tried to help.
It was clear. Kimacho needed to know.
The striped lioness paced back and forth, awaiting her cousin's arrival. She'd requested to meet with him, giving her time in between the request and now to think over her words. She hadn't been able to clear her mind, not when her emotions were all over the place, but she was going to tell him the truth. She was going to tell him what she should have told him long ago.
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Posted: Tue Sep 15, 2009 9:25 am
Kimacho had not expected his cousin to call for him. She was used to him working on cases – it had happened more than once in their lifetime – which meant she was also used to him spending long hours deep in thought. Surely she wouldn’t disturb him unless it was something important. Perhaps she had found something he had not. Though he trusted her more than anyone in their group, he had hoped that she would remain uninvolved in this mystery. The whole business was extremely messy, and the Firekins he was meeting were less than exemplary characters. But Nasiha was an admirable fighter, he reminded himself. She could handle herself if she needed to. Nonetheless, he always liked it better when he could keep his cousin out of murders.
She was pacing when he arrived, alerting the detective instantly. Something was bothering her. She must really have found something urgent. He should have come sooner. Picking up the pace, the black lion approached his cousin, watching her intently. “Nasiha. What’s the matter?” What exactly was she going to tell him?
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Posted: Wed Sep 16, 2009 5:50 pm
Her head jerked up as she heard her name, her mind and focus having been so distracted with her dilemma that she hadn't noticed her cousin's approach. If it weren't for the fact she was such a wreck over this pestering secret, she might have taken the time to mentally berate herself for letting her guard down as much as she had.
"Kimacho!"
The name left her lips, and nothing more came after it. Her eyes revealed her desperation... why had she gone so long without telling him? Why would she have even dared to keep a secret from her cousin, the one lion who she held more dear to her than any other, a brother in spirit?
"It's Mtenga," she blurted, feeling her throat choke up as her stomach churned. It was time to tell all, and she felt like vomiting. "Mtenga... he must be the killer!"
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Posted: Wed Sep 16, 2009 6:19 pm
"Mtenga?" Kimacho repeated, his brows furrowing. Why on earth would Nasiha blame Mtenga? Of course the red lion had the means. He had the means to commit any murder, being of poor temper more often than not. The fact that he had frequent memory lapses only incriminated further, since even if he did do it, he would never know. Mtenga didn't even need a motive because of this. He could have simply done it on a whim. But Kimacho hadn't believed in simply accusing Mtenga because he could have been the killer. He had wanted to make sure that it wasn't a Firekin before he went about accusing his own group.
But now Nasiha, who had been one of the only members of their group to actively associate with Mtenga, was accusing him. What had she found out that he didn't know? "Why would Mtenga be the killer? I didn't think he and Epesi had had any past conflict, and he hasn't been acting any more strange than usual. Did he say something to you?"
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Posted: Wed Sep 16, 2009 6:31 pm
Her head hung low as she stood there before him, ashamed of herself. "He didn't have to.... I just... I...."
Her ears fell back and she lifted her chin up, meeting her cousin's eyes with her own. She wouldn't back down, no, she would face Kimacho and reveal the secrets she'd been harboring.
"He has not confessed, no, but I am nearly certain he is the one responsible for Epesi's death." she told him, holding her head steady as she attempted to keep her voice from cracking. "There are... there are things about Mtenga's past that I have kept from you. Things he has confided in me that I was not aware would be knowledge worth sharing; harbored secrets that has caused the death of one of our own."
Taking a moment to glance away, Nasiha collected her thoughts. She was a betrayer in many ways, first by keeping things from Kimacho for so long when she'd never kept anything from her cousin before, and now she betrayed Mtenga, in revealing the secrets she'd sworn to never utter to another.
"Mtenga... has killed before, Kimacho." She said softly as she sat down upon the ground, her tail curling around her, "He has killed before, and I do not doubt that he has done it again."
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Posted: Wed Sep 16, 2009 6:42 pm
Nasiha's response to his questions was... surprising, to say the least. No doubt, it would be hard for her to condemn a lion that she had spent so much time with. She was the one who looked out for him, and always sought him out no matter what kind of mood he was in. He could understand her feeling upset if Mtenga really had been the one to kill Epesi. But there was something about his cousin's reactions that told a different story. If he hadn't have known better – or at least, he thought he knew better – he would have thought she was ashamed of something. How very odd.
His cousin was not the secretive type, at least not to him anyways. She shouldn't have anything to tell him that he didn't already know, and as such nothing to be ashamed of. Could she have done something to Mtenga? Or rather, had Mtenga done something to her that she had decided to keep to herself? It was certainly a troubling thought. Kimacho did not wish to point the finger at any in his group, but if Nasiha had evidence from her own experience of what Mtenga could do. He sighed inwardly. Who would have guessed that Epesi's death would be so complicated?
Nevertheless, he leaned in closer when Nasiha began her tale, trying to keep his face as open as possible. So she had been keeping secrets, secrets that she thought had led to Epesi's death. He wanted to tell her that he doubted she would have kept anything from him that would have sealed someone's fate like that, but his cousin's final words proved Kimacho wrong. After hearing such a startling piece of information, he could only sit in silence.
Finally, gathering his wits about him, he asked, "Are you sure? He has killed before while he travelled with our group?" Why hadn't she told him before? Just keeping Mtenga around could have endangered the lives of the whole group. He might have even brought a killer into the Firekin lands!
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Posted: Thu Sep 17, 2009 3:46 pm
"No no no!" She cried out, before taking control of her voice and settling herself back down, "I mean, no, not to my knowledge!"
She let out a drawn out sigh, the words in her head jumbled up. What to tell him first? Should she leave anything out? No, she'd kept this secret away from him long enough, it would only turn around and bite her once more for holding another one from her cousin.
"I suppose it would be best to start from the beginning," she finally concluded, knowing all too well that Kimacho would insist it that way. "Mtenga... Mtenga has lead a harsh life, even from the beginning of his childhood. You see, Mtenga and his brother had been taken from their den while they were still very young, by who Mtenga presumed to be their father. Whether that truly was their father, I'm not sure.. Mtenga didn't clarify."
She paused, tilting her head slightly. "Well, really, I don't know if Mtenga could clarify, with his memory loss."
Clearing her throat, she shook her head as she straightened herself up, "But I'm skipping ahead. No, Mtenga and his brother were raised by this lion and they were raised to fight. Not like I was, as any true Warrior was, but much more harsh, to the point that Mtenga's training eventually became the burden he bears today. One day, while training, he was thrown from a ledge and fell upon a great many rocks.. and, well, because of that injury, his mind was never the same again."
Nasiha shifted where she sat, growing obviously more uncomfortable as the story continued. She was revealing Mtenga's past, what few glimpses he had left... and using it incriminate him.
"He had, or rather has, headaches constantly from that day. But along with those headaches came memory loss. He'd forget names, places, things... all he had left to him was his brother, to help him. Well.... for a while at least."
Her voice drifted as she finished her sentence, knowing that the most pivotal information was to come. Information that had taken many a conversation to pull from Mtenga, now words that passed significantly easier through Nasiha's lips.
"There came a time when his father demanded a task from Mtenga and his brother. They were sent, alongside their father's friends, to kill the enemies his father had made. During that fight, not only were the enemies slain but Mtenga's brother as well. Mtenga was devastated, just as I would be should you die, Kimacho, but there was no solace for him, but instead, mockery and jest. His father didn't care, none of the others cared, and with his only friend gone, Mtenga was forced to suffer through his mental state by himself, with those around him mocking his pain."
The lionesses brow furrowed, her expression grim. "But it did not end there. One day, after Mtenga had grown to be of full age, he stumbled upon a conversation he was not meant to hear. A conversation between his father and his companions, one that revealed that the true killer of Mtenga's brother was not the enemies they had fought... but by the paw of his own father."
A shudder ran through her, the thought sickening. "His father had been responsible for killing the brother, for reasons neither Mtenga nor myself know. Something about a vision, though perhaps the wrong brother had been taken to avoid this vision, as Mtenga's rage meant his so-called father's demise."
Silence fell upon the duo for a few moments, as Nasiha stared at the ground. Her eyes closed, her expression still solemn during this serious moment.
Finally, she opened her eyes and looked at Kimacho, her words having been carefully chosen in her mind.
"I did not know of Mtenga's past until we neared the borders of the desert. I... I worry for Mtenga, I worry he cannot control these urges, Kimacho, this rage of his must be fierce, to be able to kill his own father!"
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Posted: Thu Sep 17, 2009 4:09 pm
Well, that was a relief to say the least. Kimacho would have been very unhappy with himself if he had to tell the Firekin Regents that the murderer was not only among their group but had killed while part of their group. They would probably just kick out the whole group if that was the case, and he had been hoping to finally settle their wandering band. Nasiha looked as though she was about to begin her story, however, and he hushed his overactive mind so he could listen to what she had to say. Regardless of who Mtenga killed in his past, he wanted to hear if the red lion had any inclination to kill now.
The detective listened silently as his cousin spoke. Mtenga had not come from a happy home, but that much he could have discerned simply by spending time with the other lion. His history was new to Kimacho, but not all that unexpected. A fall that resulted in frequent memory loss. A harsh past that gave him a foul temper. Warrior's training that was the cause of his attitude towards others. All of these things were things that the black lion had assumed, at one time or another, about Mtenga. When Nasiha turned her attention to the story of him and his brother, however, he listened more closely. Her pause indicated that perhaps they had settled on a more uncomfortable topic.
Kimacho had to work hard to keep his face impassive as Nasiha continued her tale, his mind bringing back thoughts of a time he wished to forget. The murder of a father by his son. It was not a topic he liked to discuss with anyone, but it appeared that the past would not offer him a chance to avoid remembering. He could not lapse into memories, however. Nasiha was no doubt waiting for him to condemn Mtenga. The black lion sighed heavily.
"Yes, the rage must have been fierce for him to kill his own father, but it was not without reason. His attack was not out of blood lust, but as I understand it, an act of revenge for killing his brother. All creatures are susceptible to such feelings. You and I both would wish to avenge the death of the other. I cannot see Mtenga acting out against Epesi unless he had reason to. Some past connection, or a fight perhaps. Certainly it could have occurred, but it seems unlikely." It was possible that Epesi had said something that reminded Mtenga of the past and he'd lashed out. But what could Epesi possibly have said? "I do not wish to cast aside your ideas, Nasiha, but I cannot see a motive. If it were truly out of only rage, then there are many Firekin who could have done it as well, for lesser reasons." Serafina instantly came to mind.
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Posted: Fri Sep 18, 2009 1:35 pm
He didn't believe her.
She sat there quietly, listening to his words and watching his reaction to the story she'd just presented before him. He didn't believe her... he didn't believe her!
Her own thoughts turned inward, and she thought of what he said, thought of the points he'd made. How couldn't he be convinced of what she said? Was the story she'd revealed all for naught, then, if Kimacho was steadfast in refusing to accept what she thought to be a well-thought out theory?
"Unlikely, but not impossible," she finally said at last, barely above a whisper. Her stomach was lurching, she was beginning to feel ill. She'd broken her promise to Mtenga, she'd kept secrets from the one lion she'd respected more than any other, and now was being cast aside, her reasoning dismissed. What would happen to her next? What would happen if Mtenga found out she'd revealed his secret, or if Kimacho dwelled over the fact she'd only come out now with such a tale?
"I... have to go," she said suddenly, an icy chill running down her back as she stood up from where she sat. "I'm sorry for wasting your time with such a foolish thought. I'm sorry to keep things from you, Kimacho."
Turning quickly, she didn't allow her cousin time for parting words before taking off, determined to hide her expression and feelings until she knew she would be alone once more.
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Posted: Fri Sep 18, 2009 2:46 pm
"Not impossible," Kimacho acknowledged, with a dip of his head. There were very few things in this world that were totally impossible, at least when it came to crimes. Of course it was possible that Mtenga was the killer, but if he were to think like that then he would have to blame everyone except himself and the Regents, who he knew for certain had not killed Epesi. At least not directly anyways. What he needed was solid motives, or at the very least solid evidence. The fact that Mtenga had killed in his past was not something that he considered reason to kill again. The detective would be surprised to meet a lion who had never killed. It was just the way of the warrior.
His cousin didn't seem to be very comforted by his words, and it worried him. He doubted that she had held anything back after coming forward with such honesty. Did she really believe it was Mtenga? He was having a hard time seeing it, but at the same time he was concerned for his cousin. The black lion did not wish for her to be anymore upset than she should be about this.
"Nasiha…"
But she was already leaving. Kimacho sighed quietly to himself, closing his eyes. For Nasiha's sake, he hoped with all of his heart that it had not been Mtenga.
~FIN
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