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The lioness's eyes stung as she did her best to hold back all the emotional distress that was roiling inside her. She really ought to have known better than to allow herself to grow so attached to him. He'd been handsome and quick-witted with a wickedly sharp tongue that delighted her, and of course she had fallen for him. The thing was, she should have been able to predict that others would find him similarly attractive, and that they would probably be more attractive than she was. Why wouldn't he prefer a lioness like that to a lioness like her? Just because she actually understood his jokes, rather than laughing because she suspected he'd said something clever, and enjoyed many of the same activities. What difference did that make? She wasn't as pretty or dumb and apparently didn't make him feel as smart and special. It was hard to take, and while she had smiled and congratulated him on his mate, she had also taken very little time to leave.

Full of pride and self-worth, Daffyd was practically strutting as he strolled through the rogue lands. For the first time since he left his mother and sisters he felt well-fed, and he was very pleased with himself for having found a meal. Admittedly, he hadn't killed the gazelle himself. Hunting was work for lionesses. But he'd come across a lioness who had only just brought down the gazelle and offered to let her travel with him and hunt for him, since she was obviously a talented huntress. She'd been outraged and left in disgust, but she'd left her kill, and so he was willing to forgive her behavior in stalking away. Whether she meant to or not, she'd inadvertently fed him for several days, and when Daffyd's stomach was full he was a much more pleasant lion. Today, he was certain, would be a good day, and he might even come across that lioness again and have another opportunity to explain to her the honor he did her by asking her to join him.

Despite her physical exhaustion, sleep was not quick to come to Ghazaala. Her mind, clearly masochistic in nature, kept replaying all those moments when she had seen him with the lioness he eventually chose, looking for signs that those two would end up together, instead of him being with Ghazaala. It had just come as such a surprise to her. She had only been peripherally aware of this lioness, who she had thought disinterested for most of their acquaintance, and then out of the blue she began spending time with him and Ghazaala's time with him was being cut short, or she would be brushed off. Mentally she cringed thinking of how desperate and pathetic she must have seemed trying to make it convenient for him to see her, and how forgiving she had been whenever he broke an engagement or simply didn't commit to anything at all. She had been a sad, pathetic fool, and she'd thought she was doing everything right. She was angry and unhappy, but only at herself.

Daffyd set off in the direction of the other lion. He hadn't gotten a good look at the figure before it had dropped out of sight, but it hadn't seemed large enough to belong to another male. And if it did, well, he could handle himself in a fight. He'd proven that some time ago, and his skills weren't likely to have withered away in so short a time. What he found when he reached the other lion was not the lioness he'd hoped to find, but rather a rather plain-looking lioness with a coat of grey, black, and white. She wasn't obviously hurt, but he was able to intuit that all was not well with her. Another lion might have asked her what was wrong, or even left her to herself rather than interfere. The action Daffyd took was different, because seeing her lying prone and defenseless was surprisingly alluring. He wondered what it would feel like to have sex with someone while they were unconscious. Curiosity drove him closer, for even if she wasn't his type, she was female and there.

"Excuse me?" Ghazaala demanded, climbing to her feet with energy that had to come from indignation and rage. In the heat of the moment it didn't occur to her that she might be flattered by his attention. "I have never seen you before in my life, and so I couldn't possibly have agreed to anything. I definitely wouldn't have agreed to have sex with you." Though it occurred to her that he wasn't a bad-looking specimen, and a quick roll in the grass with some random lion might go a good way to getting her mind off of the lion she really wanted to be with. But not this lion. Even if he was good-looking, he was thoroughly detestable, she was convinced, and she wanted nothing to do with him. "You are foul. Get away from me." Despite her words, it was Ghazaala who ended up turning tail and walking away. If he followed her, she swore to the gods, she would tear him to little bits and pieces. A bit of violence toward a thoroughly deserving jerk might prove therapeutic, too. She'd rather he just left her alone though. Gods, what miserable day.

Maybe he had said something wrong, but Daffyd didn't see it that way. What he saw was the lioness getting all bent out of shape over nothing at all. She ought to have been flattered. It wasn't as though she was beautiful or anything. She probably wouldn't get too many offers like his. Certainly, they wouldn't come from anyone of his caliber. She really ought to have been grateful for his condescension. Instead she was clearly outrage, bristling with fury and spewing completely unnecessary insults. Maybe she was one of those people who was foul-tempered upon being woken, but Daffyd didn't feel he should have to make exceptions for that sort of behavior. Particularly not in a lioness. They existed to serve lions, and not the other way around. "Fine!" he growled at her already retreating back. "But it's not like you were going to get a better offer from anyone else." It was petty and spiteful to say so, but he was horny and grouchy now. Stupid b***h. He was glad to see her gone, he decided, and stalked off in the opposite direction, toward the carcass from earlier.