Stepping out of the den, Kosuke stretched as he walked, feeling the chill of early morning. It was a morning like this, so long ago.. He looked up at the sky, noting how dark it was, before looking around. From the surrounding dens, he saw others rise for the day, enjoying the cool before sunrise. In the distance, he spotted one of his uncles that had remained with the pride. Many of his aunts and uncles had fled when the pride rejoined itself. His mother had physically attacked him for his own heading to the new ways... What would his grandmother say? The male sighed, old scars on his back twitching.
Padding out after Kosuke, Shula smiled into the morning. "Today should be a good day, I can feel it..." She rubbed against Kosuke, letting out a rumble. In her happy life, she'd personally not really known tragedy. She'd been sad when one of her two litter sisters had left, as well as one of her brothers, but no true tragedies. She knew this was inevitable because of her father's age, but until that time.. She was enjoying all life had to give.
She paused, looking up at her mate. "Are you alright, Kosuke? You look a bit down..."
One ear flicked, before Kosuke looked over at Shula. He was quiet for a moment, before smiling. "I'm fine, just... Thinking..." His gaze turned to the sky, before he went walking to the cliffs. Finding a spot with a good view, he sat down to watch the sun rise above the eastern border. As he stared off, he heard a distant echo in his mind, almost like a vision of the distant past. He couldn't fully focus on the words, but something about kings, and sunrise and sunset... It made him wonder, had his great uncle had such a conversation with Kimeti? Or had Kimeti had one with Kidondo?
Finding Kosuke on the rocks, Shula sat next to him. Something was on his mind, but she wasn't sure what... Or even how to proceed with it. She hummed lightly to herself, lost in some silent beat. Below, the rest of the pride seemed to come to life, as hunters went to work and guards went out on patrol. After a bit, she quietly leaned on Kosuke, enjoying some silence. Sometimes, it was simply golden, and this almost seemed one of those moments.
He let out a sigh, smiling at the lioness. She was so good for him... While he felt like a wild fire, raging and chaotic, he looked at Shula and saw something much more controlled. It seemed every lion in the pride was different... What would their cubs be like? He shifted, laying down and draping his paws over the edge. Closing his eyes, he smiled a bit into the rising sun's light, warming up. It spread through him, starting to chase all the morose thoughts away.
When Kosuke lay down, Shula watched, then leaned over and groomed his ears. Rumbling in her chest, she sat back, smiling at the sun. "There are things in life you'll learn and in time you'll see... 'Cause out there somewhere, it's all waiting... If you keep believing... So don't run, don't hide, it will be all right.. You'll see, trust me, I'll be there... Watching over you.." Were there gods? She had no idea herself, but if there were, they HAD to be watching them.
Kosuke chuckled, rolling onto his side and batting Shula with a paw. Between her and the rising sun, he was starting to feel better. Trust her to not allow him to be sad! He just hoped there wouldn't be any dancing. This wasn't the place to do it, and he wasn't about to have her die before they'd spent a long time together, nor him to die so soon. A hum rose in his throat, as he enjoyed the song.
"Just take a look, through my eyes... There's a better place somewhere out there..." She batted back, a smile on her face. Her small plan to cheer him up was working wonderfully, something that pleased her. "Just take a look through my eyes... Everything changes, you'll be amazed what you'll find... If you look through my eyes..." Kosuke himself had once told her, their goddess was once Finar-si, the Goddess of Change. It was all part of life, change, and he seemed to be saddening from it. There was good change, too, something he needed to remember.
Kosuke let out a sigh, rolling onto his back. With his pale belly exposed, he enjoyed the warmth for a bit. Change... Everything changed. It was the circle of life, wasn't it? A cub was born, and it grew into an adult, had cubs of its own, watched those cubs have cubs and so on... And it eventually died and greeted the gods and ancestors. Death... His grandmother was dead, from trying to protect one of his uncles. Slowly, the smile faded.
Oh, now that wasn't going to do! Shula leaned over, licking Kosuke's cheek. "There will be times, on this journey, all you'll see is darkness.... But out there, somewhere, daylight finds you... If you keep believing..." She pushed him with a paw, urging him up. "So don't run, don't hide, it will be all right.. You'll see, trust me, I'll be there, watching over you!" She got up herself, beckoning him to follow. "Just take a look, through my eyes.. There's a better place somewhere out there.. Just take a look through my eyes.. Everything changes, you'll be amazed what you'll find, if you look through my eyes.."
Rising to his paws, the male padded after the female, chuckling with bemusement. He followed her back down to the sand, to the spot they'd met, where he rubbed his cheek against her side with a rumble. She was lighting the darkness for him, helping him come out of this strange sunrise-driven funk. With her words, he felt the last tendrils leave, as the sun was starting to rise higher in the sky.
Shula rumbled back, rubbing against Kosuke. "All the things that you can change... There's a meaning in everything... And you will find all you need, there's so much to understand..." She then left the song there, simply enjoying a quiet moment alone with her mate. It was just one of those days, where neither one had to do anything outright. They could just relax together, and not be bothered by anybody.
