The feel of the water on his toes made the lion smile, a broad grin that lit his whole face up. Oh how he loved the water! As he stepped out into it, he soon felt the buoyance carry him, until he could lift his paws and not feel the sand below. With powerful strokes, he made circles, going slowly as the water tugged on his powder-blue mane. Pausing for a moment, he glanced down into the water to watch some colorful fish swim around, grinning and laughing as one nibbled on his toes. "Now what're ye doin' there, li'l brotha? I'm no' fer eatin'!"
Padding on the beach and looking for new things to add to the net she wore, Dimbwi wasn't expecting to see somebody swimming in the water. She tilted her head, watching the other lion for a moment - And she was sure it was a lion from the mess of curly mane on it - before shedding her net-shawl, intent on not losing anything on it. When the water greeted her body and soon offered buoyance, she paddled around toward the other lion. "'Ello there, lovely day for a swim, no?" A smile sat on her face, as well as delight about the swimming. She felt so at home in the water, it was second nature for her to swim.
When the other lion seemed to suddenly be in the water next to him, he realized how distracted he'd been by the fish. "Aye, the fish're really bitin' today, too!" He rolled onto his back, lifting a paw with a fish dangling on a toe. The tiny creature flopped about, before letting go and jumping back in the water with a soft plunk. He let out a laugh, before paddling a bit of water. "What brings ye out to th' waves, sistah?"
Rolling onto her own back, Dimbwi smiled and enjoyed the gentle roll of the waves. "The water, I love it! I grew up by the sea, and my mother, she insisted on teaching my siblings and I to swim!" It proved a very good thing when the giant fiery doom-god had brought chaos down upon her birth pride, as she'd fled along the shore and, to some points, into the sea to avoid it. "It is a second 'ome to me, like a second mother wrapping 'er arms around me for comfort."
Well, this was a plus, a girl who enjoyed the water as much as he did! Mahatma suddenly rolled over, diving into the water. Holding his breath, he looked around on the sea floor, nudging a shell here and there with a paw. When he found one that didn't have an occupant, he surfaced with it in his mouth. Smiling at the lioness, he motioned with his head and swam back to shore, shaking off once his paws were the only part of him covered by waves.
Curiosity caught Dimbwi, as she paddled after the male. When they got to shore, she noticed the shell, smiling at how lovely it was. "Isn't that lovely... The stripes are so pretty!" It was like a shell she'd never seen before. They simply didn't seem to wash ashore, since the crabs would often take them and live in them. Or if they DID wash ashore, she never saw them. It made her a bit sad, really, that they didn't come up more often.
Sitting down and carefully cradling the shell in his paw, Mahatma smiled at Dimbwi. "Aye, tis as lovely as ye are!" He wasn't sure if she'd even been on the shore at all - Since he hadn't seen her enter the water, it was like she'd come straight out of the sea, like some sort of story. Actually, that gave him ideas for a story... The lioness from the sea... If he had to tell his life story, though, he would have called this moment 'love at first sight.'
A blush rose up on Dimbwi's face, as her ears pricked in surprise. "Oh...!" He thought SHE was lovely? "I am so flattered! But... I do not even know your NAME!" Somehow, she'd managed to miss his name. She knew his face, she'd seen it many times in the pride. He was one of the Pomithi, weaving tales for the cubs she watched over. How HAD she missed out on his name, anyway? Had he even ever caught hers?
Well, that was a bit of a catch! The male's smile turned sheepish. "Where're my manners? I am Mahatma'kanja. Do ye have as lovely a name as the lioness it goes to?" Now that he really looked at her, he'd seen her around the pride's lands. No, she wasn't a lioness from the sea, she was a member of the pride. He just couldn't place her name. Or... Where he'd seen her. What was her rank? What DID she do in the pride? Be pretty? That seemed a logical function for her.
Her blush only seemed to grow. "You flatter!" Mahatma... What a nice name he had. "I am Chafuko'dimbwi." Her mother had named her for the waves on her flanks and shoulder, something that had tickled her with delight. "You tell stories for the cubs in the pride, no?" It was a creativity-driven job, something she admired, for her own lack of ability to do so. "I am a Pombuka, I watch the cubs that you tell stories to."
A bit of a grin lit Mahatma's face. "Tha' almost seems a fun coincidence, doe'n't it? Ye watch the cubs, I tell them stories..." He offered the shell to her. "Chafuko'dimbwi, Pombuka of tha sea, would ye care to join me in the waves at all?" Did SHE feel like it was love at first sight? He hoped so, it would thrill him. He'd love to be able to tell his parents that he'd found somebody.
First Dimbwi's ears went back with surprise, before they shifted forward, a smile on her maw. "I'd love to, Mahatma'kanja, Pomithi of the sea!" She carefully took the shell, cradling it in her paw. It really WAS very lovely... She'd have to add it to her collection, right around about the knot that held the whole shawl together. Right above her heart.
The male smiled broadly, pleased with himself. The waves lapped at both of them, as they sat in relative silence and enjoyed the simple sound of the waves crashing into each other. It created wonderful music, gentle and calm as the day around them.
