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 Posted: Sun Jun 27, 2010 4:05 pm
He waited for Rap to fade from sight before making a move to find Kina, hoping that she had not strayed too far.
After his confrontation with Rap he had come to realise that his feelings for the lioness had grown beyond what he had ever expected. Could it be love? Well...it was still too early to tell. He wasn't exactly a romantic who believed in love at first sight. He believed that true love came from companionship and trust and a good length of time having passed from which those two things grew. And yet, even he had to admit there was something about Kina that captured his attention. She was easy to talk to, yes, but it was something far more than that. Perhaps because they both had a love for the freedom that their rogue lifestyle brought. Perhaps because they both understood pains and hardship and...
He sighed, shaking his head. Whatever it was that drew him to her, he had to admit that it was a good feeling, even if it was a little scary, too. He hadn't ever expected to see a female in this way ever again.
It was a sign, he believed, that after he had helped Rap with his revenge, that he could start anew.
He could strip himself of his old identity, flattened down with guilt and despair. He could, instead, start anew with Rap and Kina and find himself again. A happier self. And he truly believed it could happen now. He'd find his family, mend things between them, and then he'd be able to live life as he always should have.
Without fighting and pain.
And, strangely, he found that thought strangely wonderful. A life without fighting and wounds and anger. Just...living for the sake of living and taking each day as it came. And he'd no longer be alone.
That thought, amongst many others, comforted him more than he had ever thought possible.
He'd been so alone since the separation of his family and of his patron god. But now, after so long it seemed, he had family again. Yes, a little dysfunctional, but family all the same. He had a good feeling about it all and it even brought a smile stretching across his maw.
He reached the spot where they had rested the night before and scented the wind for her, unsure if she was still here. Perhaps she had gone off hunting? Or to get a drink? Or maybe she had gone off just to be alone for a bit?
Even still, he was sure she would not have gone far. After all...they were leaving tomorrow.
"Kina?" His voice sounded loud and foreign in the peaceful glade and he winced to hear it, crossing the open space to emerge out into the open meadows. This part of the rogue lands always had looked beautiful, but draped in the swaths of red from the setting sun, it looked even more beautiful.
He drew in a deep breath and called out, hoping she would hear him.
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Posted: Thu Jul 01, 2010 9:43 pm
Jino was being grumpy, as usual, but he was also being unusually distant. He seemed to have resigned himself to the fact that Kina was enjoying the company of the other lions, Hakan in particular, and was just letting her enjoy it now. She didn't care to push that particular matter, she was just as intent on enjoying herself as he seemed to be to let her. And it was enjoyable, more so than she could have ever expected from a stranger. She definitely needed to get out more.
Kinagiri was headed back toward the area she and the boys inhabited for the time being after a short walk with Jino that ended in his abrupt (and somewhat disgruntled) departure. So she had circled back around, wondering if Hakan and Rap were having any more .. pleasant of alone time. She did not expect they argued nearly as much as she and Jino did.
Her ears perked up when she heard her voice called out and she felt a flutter of excitement in her stomach. She didn't notice any hesitation or questioning tone to his voice and she hurried along, appearing opposite him in the glade.
"Evening, Hakan," she greeted loudly, walking out to meet him.
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Posted: Fri Jul 02, 2010 9:28 am
The feeling that flooded through him as she appeared across him was...was wonderful. He couldn't quite depict exactly what it was, but it brought a smile to his face and warmed his heart.
"Evening." He replied, softly.
He thought back to what Rap had said and felt those nerves rekindle at seeing her. "I'm glad you're here. And...alone?" His eyes strayed briefly about, looking for that grumpy snake, Jino, who Hakan had taken a disliking to. He couldn't understand what his problem was, or why Kina liked to hang out with him...
Stupid cold-blooded snake...
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Posted: Fri Jul 02, 2010 9:50 am
"Yes, I'm alone," she responded, her ears perking up as she smiled at him, "Jino has gone off for a, ah, slither on his own." She shook her head thinking about him but then happily pushed him from her mind. She'd talk to him later, she didn't need to worry about that.
"Where's Rap off to?" she asked curiously, glancing past him wondering if the bright orange lion was nearby or not. It was almost strange that he wasn't. But she was alone, perhaps it wasn't just about about avoiding the snake nobody else really liked. She came to a stop when she was a couple feet away from him, standing a bit closer than normal respectful, conversational distance.
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Posted: Fri Jul 02, 2010 10:03 am
Good. The snake was out of the picture. It'd give him a chance to tell her...to tell her what he needed to tell her before they said their farewells.
"He just went for a walk. I think he's starting to feel a little nervous about setting off at last." A half-truth.
And he looked up to find her closer than before and the smile twitched at the corner of his mouth. "It gives us a chance to talk alone, in any case..." He faltered again, seeming embarrassed. "I mean...well...there're things I wanted to say before I left and...since I'm not that great at talking, its easier if there's only one pair of ears to listen..."
He blinked, looking up at her almost sheepishly.
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Posted: Fri Jul 02, 2010 10:22 am
"Oh," she said, smiling at his little fib. It was kind of endearing to think that he might be getting nervous. If anything it affirmed the notion that they were not just coldhearted warriors out for revenge. Not that she really thought that about them but it was nice to see little hints of it, especially now that they were getting closer to leaving.
"Oh?" she said again, tilting her head when he said that they could talk alone now. She took a seat, still smiling at him. She'd have to be incredibly stupid not to have an idea of what to expect, and as the flutter in her stomach intensified .. she didn't know what to think about it.
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Posted: Fri Jul 02, 2010 10:30 am
"Well...uhh..." He had her attention now and he followed her lead, sitting slowly and carefully, taking the time to fold his tail up and over his forepaws. Where to start? What to say?
Ughh....
"Yes...well...I don't actually know where to start...it's just..." He glanced away. "I'm not used to...to liking others, not generally anyway. Most of the time they're either out to cause trouble or just...well...not worth the time. I was so in the mindset that there was no one worth spending time with that I almost turned Rap away. He showed me that...that there are others out there worth sharing your life with."
He paused. Okay, he was making this way more difficult than it needed to be.
He shook his head vigorously. "I'm saying this all wrong." He affirmed, sounding exasperated at his inability to communicate with her. "Let's start again."
He straightened and dared to look across at her. "What I mean to say is...you're...you're one of those people I want to share my life with." He swallowed, falling silent.
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Posted: Fri Jul 02, 2010 12:06 pm
Kina watched him intently as he struggled to get out what he had to say, feeling a twinge of guilt as he started out saying how most are trying to cause trouble or aren't worth your time. She and Jino generally had gone around causing trouble, when they couldn't get what they wanted they usually were the opposite of helpful. But that wasn't what they were doing now, not her anyway. And if Jino was causing trouble he was doing it passively.
She stayed quiet as he finished, but then all she could do was smile. Her mind whirred, thinking through everything he said. She'd already said she would help him find his family when he came back but.. this wasn't quite the same..
"Really?"
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Posted: Sat Jul 03, 2010 5:34 am
He shifted uncomfortably, wishing that he didn't feel so nervous and embarrassed.
And then she responded and his ears lifted ever so slightly. She certainly didn't seem upset at the prospect and that was a good thing, right? Yes. Definitely a good thing.
"Really." He responded. "That is...if you don't mind, of course..." He wouldn't want to be a burden on her, and he certainly didn't want her to think she just had to say yes in fear of hurting his feelings. "But if you don't, I'd totally understand Kina. I would."
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Posted: Sat Jul 03, 2010 7:23 pm
Her mind rolled over all the information she was getting as the full realization hit her. He'd said there were things he wanted to say before he left.. and they had already agreed that they would see each other again.. it was starting to seem very pessimistic. Maybe even like it might be less sincere because of it, but that would be pessimistic of her, too.
"No, I'd like that," she said, but her smile changed slightly, "But we can talk about this when you're back, right?"
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Posted: Sat Jul 03, 2010 7:27 pm
He nodded, smiling. "We can. We know where and when to meet and I'm sure we won't be gone too long. Most of our time away will be travelling to and from the lands. We'll have to move at a reasonably slow pace to ensure we don't use up too much strength."
He looked thoughtful, brows knitting together a little.
He didn't want to seem pessimistic, but it was a dangerous thing they were about to do. He just hoped that now that he had found something worth coming back to, it'd add strength to his claws.
"I just...it saddens me to leave now. It's only been for a few days and...well...I'd much rather stay a little longer."
But he couldn't. He knew that and there was nothing he could do to change it.
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Posted: Sat Jul 03, 2010 7:39 pm
"Good," she said when he agreed with her, though she knew he was still thinking. Part of her wanted to reassure him, to reveal her ability and prove that everything would be just fine. But she'd already reasoned against that, and did it matter if she could or not? It would be an awful way to part, with an argument.
"It's been a wonderful couple days, I don't know that I've ever had such nice company," she said, smiling at him. She hesitated, though, and then got up to her feet.. only to settle back down beside him rather than across from him.
"I know."
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Posted: Sat Jul 03, 2010 7:45 pm
He smiled wider at that. When had anyone ever told him that he had been nice company? Never? Perhaps he was already changing, thanks to this female here. A handful of days in her presence and he was starting to leave the anti-social part of him behind.
It was...a good feeling.
He gave a surprised little chirping sound as she settled beside him, but relaxed a moment later, turning to look at her from the corner of his eyes. She truly was beautiful. And he would have told her, except that...he wasn't sure how or whether it was right to.
"Well, we still have until morning." He replied softly, daring to lean in against her a little. "Not much time, I know, but better than nothing." He sighed and lifted his eyes to look at her again. "You..." Should he say it? Should he really? Well...he'd already started and...what could it hurt? "You really are very beautiful, Kina. I've never met any lioness with fur the colour of yours before."
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Posted: Sat Jul 03, 2010 8:51 pm
Kina smiled, pressing back against him gently. It was unexpectedly comfortable right there, which wasn't really helping matters.
"Well, we've already learned you don't need a lot of time," she commented softly, still smiling. A couple days after a random encounter and they were comfortable sitting and talking like this.. no, they definitely knew it didn't take long for something meaningful to happen.
She was surprised when he called her beautiful, though somehow she knew she shouldn't have been. She smirked at him, tilting her head a bit, "I can't say black is an uncommon color but you pull it off handsomely. But your eyes.. there's something about your eyes." So blue.
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Posted: Sun Jul 04, 2010 12:01 pm
No. Time wasn't such a big factor in such things. He'd liked her straight away, from the moment she had greeted him and they had sat by the water and spoke. He had known he would like her from the off-set. Just...not exactly how much he would, or how fast things would change.
He laughed and gave a sort of shrugging gesture. "It's not very practical in the heat, but I've grown to like it." He glanced at her, yet again, these stolen glances becoming a habit of his. He remember, as a cub, disliking his pelt. And even now he could recall the conversation with his mother about it. He'd asked her whether he looked like his father - a rogue he'd never met and certainly had no respect for. She'd replied easily that no, he did not. And yet...the spots on his pelt were not from her and, truly, there had not been much resemblance between them. Then again, now that he thought about it, neither his sister nor brother had looked much like her, being brown.
Perhaps, out of the three of them, he had resembled her more than he had thought.
"It will be getting dark soon, shall we head back to the den?"
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