Slowly padding back into the swamp, Nenetl stared at the ground almost forlornly. She would miss her sister and brother, and hoped they would be happy. She knew she'd be happy here, but she couldn't help feeling... Sad... The dusty-brown lioness paused at a water way, staring at her dancing reflection for a bit.
The pale lion had watched from the safety of the trees as the two lionesses talked, and felt the same sort of pain. He knew what it was like to miss family, though Nenetl's could at least visit. Weaving his way through the trees, he found her staring at the water. "Nenetl...?" The little lion walked over slowly, peeking at her. "They can still visit... And you can maybe visit them..." He offered a smile to her, trying to get her to smile.
The dusty-brown lioness blinked, looking at the white lion. The way he said that... "Mle... You say that... Like you can't visit yours..." Either they were too far away... Or weren't alive. She shifted, sitting down to look at him. "Mle, is your family alive...?" Her ears were folded back, a look of sadness in her gold eyes at the prospect. Nobody wanted to be lacking in family... Nobody wanted to be a total orphan.
"Huh?" He blinked, then smiled. "I got... Some family... Two cousins that live in a pride a way's away from here... But... Other than that..." He looked at the water, the silver feather on his ear catching the light, as the red and white feathers shifted and danced a bit. "My parents and littermates were killed by a superstitious pride of brown lions... They saw our white coats as signs of spiritual taint... That's why my name used to be Zimwi... It's the only name I remember being called as a cub, as the pride cried 'ghost, ghost!' at me when I fled..." He let out a sigh, ears falling back. "That's why I had so many issues with brown and dark lions..."
Ears flicking, Nenetl stared at Mle. "That's so sad..." She let out a light sigh, looking back at the water. "All I have left for family are my brother and sister... When I was a cub, my own family was attacked by invaders... My second-oldest sister and parents were killed by them..." She reached over, patting the water and causing it to ripple. "Lord Ganon of the E'he-Anda took Meztli, Tlaloc, and I in..." She smiled, looking at Mle. "Hey, look! We each have SOME family left, and found our ways to the same new home!"
The white lion let out a laugh, smiling back at her. "This is true, we did!" It had taken him most of his life to find the Swamplands, of course, but it was a journey worth taking. "I'm happy you showed up here, Nenetl... It feels like the last of a heavy weight has lifted from my back and shoulders..." The little lion went up to her, then paused, unsure of touching her. It almost seemed rude to do.
The lioness smiled happily, before unashamedly rubbing her cheek against his. "You needed it, Mle!" She sat back, still smiling. "You know, when I was growing up, one of the lionesses in the E'he-Anda always told me that if I was sad, or happy, or anything, singing made everything better!" She gave him a pat with a paw. "Come on, Mle, sing! It makes things better and happier!"
The male stuttered a bit, face turning red. Curse that white fur... Before he could react to one thing, though, she spoke of a whole other. "S-sing...?" He didn't really think he could sing... He'd never done so before. "Ah, um... I really... Don't know any... Any songs.. Or anything..." He hesitated, then offered a smile. "Can I sing another time...? Being put on the spot makes it kind of hard to do..."
"Of course!" Nenetl jumped up, then looked around. "I think I want to see more of the swamp, anyway. It's nothing to be singing through." As she went prancing along the shore and hopped onto a fallen log, she looked back at Mle. "I don't want to unknowingly step into a bog or something and sink down because I was singing!" Taking a step forward, she flailed for a moment before falling off the edge of the log into the water.
He couldn't help laughing a bit, before going over and hopping on the log, leaning over it to look down at the wet lioness. "As you were saying..." He jumped off, hitting the water with a splash and swimming to the next shore. "It's okay, though, everybody does that at some point here!" Shaking off, he paused. "Well, falling off logs, anyway... I still do it sometimes..."
Picking herself up out of the water, Nenetl followed Mle. "I should have been paying attention..." She looked about, watching little fireflies dance about. "Fireflies... They seem to add to the 'haunted' factor of these swamps..." Despite it being 'creepy,' she smiled at the little insects, going about their lives dancing in the night. "It's hauntingly beautiful..."
Mle's ear twitched a bit at the word play, the pale lion smiling. "It doesn't help that some of us living here look like ghosts..." He stepped through the swamp, leading Nenetl on a guided tour of the lands. If she was staying... She would need to know what was what, and where everything was.
