Lihu wasn’t bored, but she wasn’t really doing anything of great importance, either. She was lying on her back, lazily picking out shapes in the clouds or occasionally drifting off. The reason for this mood the young female was in was mostly just because she had recently had a nice little snack on a poor little hare. After eating, it isn’t so odd to settle down for a bit. She briefly mused over the odd shape of a small cloud as it drifted by, before letting her mind wander on to other things.
The festival seemed to be dying down at this point, and she was a little regretful for that. Lihu was very much a people person, and it was fun to hang about with the new members and in particular, members from other clans. Though she supposed meeting members in other clans wasn’t such a novelty; in travelling bumping into each other wasn’t so uncommon, and despite the fact that they were still so culturally similar, it still tons of fun. Like meeting some kind of huge extended family. And she supposed she’d get sick of it eventually, but the novelty hadn’t worn off just yet.
…There were downsides to this, though. Not being in the same clan means friends you meet in different clans aren’t always around. And she did have a little problem with that, especially since she –had- just made a friend, who ended up…ending up in another clan. She mulled this over briefly. Oh well, can’t be helped. She hoped he’d do okay in his clan. And she could still see and play with him sometimes, so that was good!
…Maybe a sensible thing to do would be actually going back and enjoying things a bit more before they end for real.
Then again, they’ll be around for five more minutes…
-
He was smitten. There just was no other word for it. He'd kept things casual when they were together, and they'd shared games and food. Luckily enough he'd had his brother to visit with as well, or he'd have had trouble dragging himself away from her. Even when she wasn't around, he found himself thinking about her. He kept all this to himself however, feeling certain it was laughable, and that perhaps it might just drive her from him. But that did not confine his mind from dwelling on her dreamily.
This time he had a reason for hunting her down, though. He'd found something, and he was determined to share it with her before something unfortunate ruined it entirely. He'd found it the day before, but wanted to time it just right for the most impact. It was nearly time, but now he couldn't find her! He'd been searching amongst the others frantically when someone mentioned she'd wandered off a bit. Thus he tracked her down, finding her staring at the clouds on her back. For a moment he dared hope she was dreaming about him, but he fought off the feeling. "Tsili!" he called as he bounded up. Much as he wanted to throw himself down next to her and watch the sky too, time was growing short. "Can you come? I want to show you something!" His nearly grown-in mane waved as he danced from one paw to another excitedly.
-
She wasn’t one to startle easily, but she still was a little surprised when a friend she’d just been thinking about came running over and shouting something she gathered to be the first two syllables in her name. Quickly rolling over and perking up her ears, the smile on her lips now was almost a reflex at this point. Kaleth was just funny!
“Show me something?” She tilted her head curiously, and briefly wondered what –something- was so darn urgent. He looked like a cub waiting for… Well, maybe waiting for mom and dad to finally wake up and teach him how to hunt. “Okay, okay!” Lihu hopped onto her paws and stretched her back quickly, shaking some dust off her coat. Not that you’d be able to tell anyways.
“Lead the way!”
-
"We have to hurry, or the light will be gone," he said hurriedly and mysteriously, turning to head away from the large gathering. He broke into a lope, glancing up at the sun that was starting to angle just slightly past it's zenith. Good, they still had time! He led her into areas usually left quiet for prey animals and hunting. "I found this yesterday, when I was out finding lunch for my brother and I," he told her, casting her a grin as they slowed to a walk. "I thought of you when I saw it, so I had to show you."
He led her deeper into the underbrush, carefully circumventing the thickest parts, but leading her directly to a thicket of trees whose trunks rose out of a dense cluster of thornbushes. He halted and gave her a nervous smile. "Are you ready?" he asked, flicking a glance at the sun slanting between the foliage above their heads.
-
The female kept up with him easily, barely paying attention to the ground ahead of her as Kaleth led her to see…whatever it was he wanted to show her. She was getting really curious, though. The green male had always been funny and a little weird (which she liked quite a lot, actually!), but he was strangely excited about this! “Ooh, it must be pretty cool if you thought of me when you saw it.” She teased playfully, just as they began to slow down. Or rather, she began to slow down. He just seemed to break altogether.
“I am very ready! And very curious and you are withholding information from me, what is ittt?”
-
Carefully, setting his paws against a seam in between two of the thornbushes, he began to press them back. The tips of the thorns pushed slowly against the hardened pads, not piercing them, though it certainly wasn't what he would have called comfortable. With both paws, he spread the twisting branches apart, revealing what was within. Astonishingly, there was a clear space behind all the thorns. A bright gleam of sunshine lit that inner space, shining upon the dark green leaves of the thornbushes and the slightly lighter grass within. Most notable however was a huge blossom, rising above the grass to gaze upward at the sky. It was a rich orange color that darkened towards the edges, nearly to deep red. Inside the spreading petals were scatterings of bright yellow freckles, leading down into the inner heart of the flower, where rose a delicate, crimson stamen, curled at the tip into three curliques. How the flower shone, framed by all the dark green and highlighted with the beam of sunlight!
Though her eyes were on the flower, his eyes were on her, taking in her reaction, memorizing all over again her features, savoring this shared moment, quiet and away from all the others. "I wanted to show it to you without moving it," he explained, perhaps a bit lamely, but with a heart full of good intentions. "I hope... I hope you like it."
-
Lihu watched with great interest as he moved his paws against the thorns, wondering what in the world was worth…thorn bushes. Usually pokey things against skin just wasn’t that great, even the skin on your paw pads. And then she finally saw what it was he was waiting to show her.
At first, there wasn’t much of a reaction, he eyes maybe got a bit wider and he ears a bit more perked, even though there wasn’t anything to really listen to. As she took in the sight, however, delight began to creep across her features. It was such a simple little thing, but the young female was always very happy to appreciate the things the world had to offer. “Oh, it’s so beautiful!” She exclaimed brightly, tilting her head this way and that to play with the lighting.
“How did you even –find- it? I mean, it’s in a thorn bush! Thank you so much for showing me!”
-
He beamed as the delight on her face grew, feeling it was worth every effort to time it right and leave it where it was, rather than pluck it. He was certain it would not have had such an impact if he'd merely brought her the flower itself, torn from the ground. "It was a happy accident," he admitted. "I was chasing something or other, and it tried to hide in here. Or at least, I thought it had. It wasn't there when I looked, but this was worth losing my prey for."
He soaked in her enjoyment, content with it for the most part, though a small corner of his heart longed for more than just her thanks. In truth, he'd plumb forgotten whatever it was he'd been chasing, and still couldn't recall now what it had been. He'd ended up catching a half-grown buck to feast upon with his brother, but all the while, the vision of the flower, as if representative of Tsilihu herself, shone brightly in his mind. "I'm glad you like it," he added softly, a wistful look on his face. "Maybe if we leave it be, there will be more next spring." Quiet, oh so quiet, his heart whispered what else he hoped could be next spring, but he kept it out of his voice. Ever light and laughter, ever genle and open, ever the true friend when with her. It was what she wanted, and it was what he was willing to give.
-
“Your brother didn’t mind that you lost the prey, either?” She asked, amused. She wondered, had she been hunting for a sibling, what they would thing if she came back to say ‘nohing, but I saw a really cool flower!’
…Or maybe he just caught something else.
She distractedly busied herself with playing with the light source around the flower, blocking it a bit with a paw or just letting the colors reflect on her. Perhaps it was silly to be so interested in a flower, but it’s not really so often you get to play with light like that. Meanwhile, Lihu remained oblivious to Kaleth’s thoughts, and perhaps even some of her own.
“I love it. And that’s a great idea!”
-
He chuckled and shook his head. "He never found out," he replied, letting the moment pass and turning his gaze to the flower too. "I left the flower and hunted longer so I could bring the promised lunch, though it was a bit later than I intended. But he didn't mind." He smiled at her playing with the sunlight like that. It hadn't occured to him that changing the light might change how the petals looked, but some of the effects she was achieving were impressive. "I wonder what it would look like in moonlight?" he mused aloud, and then could have buried his face in the dirt at the suggestion. Either she'd think it was meant as a romantic suggestion and hate him for it, or would actually take him up on it and torture him with her beauty beneath the silver light of the moon. He was doomed! He stifled a groan at himself and merely shifted uncomfortably.
-
She nodded, making an ‘ah’ sound as he explained whatever happened to feeding his brother. And then he asked a question.
Okay, Lihu did think it was a little odd of a suggestion at first. But the oddness quickly wore off, it surely didn’t mean anything really…big or important or anything…strangely disappointing, actually. “That sounds like a good idea!” She nodded, though having a small amount of doubt on what would happen. Would moonlight really be enough to create as fantastic effects? And what if it ended up cloudy tonight? She looked at the sky. Nope, was clear.
“So, do you want to wait around for night time?” She realized now that the sun was moving and so, the flower wasn’t as radiant as it had been at first. Kind of sad, really.
-
Frantically he grasped for some way to put it off, not because he didn't want to spend the time with her, but because he shied away from his feelings for her becoming obvious. He wracked his brain, and managed to come up with a valid reason. "Let's wait for a night when the moon is full," he suggested brightly. "That's two nights from tonight, and will give us the best chance for good light." Whew, that was a close one! He'd still have to worry about how to handle that night, but at least it gave him some time to think.
He ran a paw through his thickening mane where it ran down his chest. It tended to get itchy as it grew, and it was growing fast nowadays. "We could hunt together for the evening meal, though?" he suggested hopefully. That was a safe enough activity, and would give him a little more time with her before they had to part.
-
Oh, that was definitely a good idea. She had time to mentally prepare herself! Not that Lihu needed much mental preparation, but it was a little weird to just randomly spend all night up to look at a flower. Granted, it was a very, very pretty flower. And in the company of someone she liked…quite a lot, actually.
“Sure, that sounds good! To both things, I mean.” Though she wasn’t really hungry, the adolescent was totally okay with grabbing something to eat, if only to do it more for the company than actually being hungry. “I think I saw a small group of gazelle…that-a-way. Ish. Maybe.” Well, she was a little thrown off by having moved from her nap-spot, but she was certain it was away from the festivities. No gazelle would want to hang too close to such a large gathering of lions.
-
He warmed inwardly at her desire to continue spending time with him. He kept his hope secret, but very much alive. Perhaps someday, when he had proved himself worthy... but for now, this was enough to satisfy his longing to be with her. He was determined enough that he wasn't about to let their difference in clan keep them apart either, but there was time enough to deal with that later. "Alright! Beat you to them!" With a flip of his tail and a laugh he shot off through the undergrowth, darting between low trees and leaping over brush. Time enough later to be serious. For now, he merely wanted to enjoy his time with her.
-Fin!-
