It was early morning, the cracked earth beneath the strange females' paws a comfort to her as she stalked forward at a fast pace. The lack of cover, even with a dense layer of fog to aid her, made it hard to properly follow her prey as she wanted to, with a speed and precision she preferred over stalking methods. It was when she touched on the soft grasses of a different land that Ayida new she'd done her usual routine. Ayida had ventured out further than normal, detaching from her hunting group by low movement on the far side of her peripheral, and in moments had raced in the direction of a potential meal, energy at the ready from their newest expedition. Now as she drew closer, her heart pounded excitedly at the sight of her intended target: the plump warthog meant for her claws and the stomachs of her pridemates. She smiled excitedly and stepped forward, her ears flattening against her head in an eager fashion, one that she'd grown accustomed to as if it were as natural as breathing. A fatal error showed itself on her part when a twig snapped beneath her pad, a cringe in her stature almost instantaneous, and her juicy, plump little treat turned at her with a rage she wasn't expecting. Ears perked in an instant, simple thought sent the femmes' excitement into instantaneous terror. Turning on heels, she quickly raced away, her heart throbbing in her ears with the sudden,irrational fear she held of the minuscule creature.It was then that she thought of it, her first encounter with the species, and a shiver ran down her spine. She hadn't been old enough to wander, but she'd made it her priority for that day to see the world outside her den. Squirming out of her sibling's grasp, she'd snuck by the nanny and headed for the tall grass with the same energy and excitement that she'd have as an adult. She wasn't sure what happened next, her memory vague as to how she'd gotten herself so lost...but she had. The warning of the setting sun had worried her about as much as a grasshopper would, and she continued her journey with the same vigor she'd started with. She came to the edge of a small river, but the fast current kept her clear of the water's edge. Of course, had she noticed it a little sooner, she wouldn't have backed away so quickly. And, in backing away as quickly as she had, she stepped on and agitated the one thing you NEVER want to agitate when you're small in size. A mother. And no, this mother had to have a few squealing piglets that got a little too scared of the lion cub. No sooner had she seen the warthog, Ayida had been thrown into the river by brute force and sheer anger. The very anger she ran from now. Luckily, her nanny had caught her not far from down stream, gasping for breath as she was fighting to swim against the current, which she knew now was worse than just being carried away. Luckily, she'd promised not to tell anyone what happened, a truly beloved character to any cub she chose to watch over. But Ayida would've rather faced her mother's wrath in being caught leaving the den than face that horrific thing again.
Yet, here she was now, running in fear of something that had be so huge to her as a cub, something so giant in stature that...
Then she stopped, her gaze flicking to the group of Gatherers that giggled at her, a few ready to pounce on the unsuspecting, and very much still enraged warthog.
And it was at that exact moment when she saw the chance,an opening that would be advantageous to her comrades. She positioned herself firmly, took in the air she needed and roared right into the face of her oncoming attacker. And, as she'd expected,the charging creature squealed at the sudden change of heart and turned in a direction... into oncoming lionesses. Ayida's smile couldn't get any wider as she turned to head towards her pridal lands, a slight skip in her step as she readied herself for the next thing to come her way. A rustle in the leaves sent her racing for a sparse few trees, her throat at the ready and her claws just waiting to be tested. She neared her target, her voice building up and ready to burst from her lungs until she saw it... the long legs and neck, towering over her and so big,she couldn't handle it alone. The tall creature, a Giraffe, had started running off, the mere gait of him too much for Ayida as she quickly raced back towards the other Gatherers, the laughter from them this time even louder than before. But she'd get that thing back,for sure. It was just going to take a bit of nerve, and practice, and maybe if she could assign someone to take the lead while she covers the rear...
She REALLY hoped her future offspring didn't suffer her same faults, they were hard to deal with... not that she'd allow it. Oh no, this girl was going to watch her children like the predator she was born to be, even if it took her day and night to see them properly cared for. Even thought it tweaked at her curiosity what kind of man would want a horrible lioness like herself,though she had her good quirks sometimes. And it was thoughts similar to these that got her carried away as she followed her group. Well, almost followed her group. Veering off course was inevitable, but she never strayed too far. There could be more things she couldn't handle out there. Things that she had already run out of the nerve to handle, so early in the morning. Well, at least she'd helped in SOME way already, so the others wouldn't be TOO harsh in their usual torment, right?
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