Most hyenas hunted at night, and so did Loko o Ka. The difference here was that she wasn't hunting for prey, she was hunting for more hyenas to join her pack. So far their numbers had grown from three to seven in just a few weeks. They were now certainly strong enough to be considered a real pack, but she knew that the more hyenas she gathered the stronger they would be, and the more knowledge they all would be able to gain.
Each afternoon, just as the sun was setting, the blue and brown hyena set off to search for more members. More often than not she found nobody, but sometimes she found one or two in one night. Perhaps tonight she would be lucky enough to find another eager member.
It was not long before she picked up the scent of a hyena nearby. She headed in the direction of the smell eagerly, being careful not to startle the other as she approached.
"Hello there." She found him laying on the ground with an irritated look on his face. "Do you need help?"
"I certainly do not." The male snapped, standing up in a rather unconcerned manner. He tossed his head to get the fur out of his face and looked at the female.
"I'm perfectly fine on... My..." He trailed off, his eyes widening as he examined her. It couldn't be... Could it?
"What is your name? Where are you from?" He demanded, suddenly very enthusiastic. "What is the name of your mother?"
"What?" She was startled by his sudden change in attitude. "I don't see why that's any of your business." She snorted indignantly. Why did a complete stranger care about any of that? He hadn't even asked her name.
"Wait..." She gasped, taking a few steps back as she came to the same realization that the male had. "You..."
"It's Zua, isn't it." He said softly, sitting down and staring at the ground. "The name of your mother. And Kafil is the name of your father. I am Kafil." He looked up into her bright blue eyes, an expression of great pain on his face.
"Yes..." She couldn't believe it. This male had to be her father. He was the same brown as her, he had the same markings on his feet, two traits that nobody on her mother's side possessed. But he couldn't be. It wasn't possible. Her father left before she was even born, he didn't care about her. He abandoned her, he abandoned her sister Sikele, her mother Zua. He was heartless, he was dead to her.
And yet here he was, right in front of her eyes.
"You are no father of mine." She growled, turning around and beginning to walk away.
"Wait, please!" He ran after her, stepping into her path, "I was going to come back." He looked at her pleadingly, "I didn't want to leave, I'm sorry, I just..." He sighed, the shame of his actions rising in his chest. "I was afraid, my daughter."
"You're sorry?" She barked, "You left us, and now you're making excuses? What were you afraid of? Afraid of Zua? Afraid of me?" Rage rose up inside of her, something she rarely experienced, "If you were afraid then, you should be terrified now." She bared her teeth at him and snapped her jaws, furious.
"I truly am sorry." He hung his head, fighting back tears. He had to keep his emotions in check, just like he always did. He could not lose control. That was what got him in this mess in the first place. "I loved your mother, and I love you. I was afraid that I would be a terrible father, and that's just what I ended up becoming." He put on a calm exterior, but inside he was a mess. He was overjoyed that he had finally met his daughter, but he was angry with himself, and he was reliving painful memories.
"Please, tell me your name." He sighed, "I want to make up for what leaving. I want to be part of your life."
She growled, beginning to pace back and forth. She tried her best to regain her composure, her intellectual self, but this male stirred up emotions she had been trying to suppress since she was a child.
"I am Loko o Ka." She barked, "There is no truth in dreams."
Kafil's heart sank. He had hurt Zua more than he realized when he left.
"No truth in dreams... I am sure she would feel like that." Tears started to form in his eyes as he remembered that night he had spent with her. She had told him that she was a dream come true for her, and then he had left... Loko o Ka strongly resembled him, so it was no wonder Zua had chosen to name her in such a way.
"Loko o Ka, I know you are angry. You have every right to be." Tears began to streak down his face, he was no longer able to hold them back. "If you never want to see me again, I understand. But... If you will have me, I want to be a good father to you. I want to be there, I want to protect you."
Her heart softened upon seeing her father cry. He really was sorry for leaving. "Kafil..." She paused. "Father. If you want to come with me, fine." She said softly. "But I don't need your help. Get to know me, get to know my pack, but know that I don't need your help."
"I do want to know you, father." She felt herself beginning to cry as well. "I've missed you my whole life." She had tried to forget him once she left the graveyard, but up until then she had always hoped that he would come back for them. Her mother always said he would, she was optimistic, but he never did. The hope that he would return was the only thing that kept her living with her mother for so long.
"Come on, I'll show you where I'm living now." She sniffed, trying to hold her tears back.
"It's okay, Loko o Ka." He said lovingly, licking the tears off of her cheeks gently. "I promise I will make it up to you." He managed a slight smile, something he had not done since leaving the graveyard, and followed his daughter to her, no, their, new home.
