((OOC:This is an AIM RP log between Setsuhana (owned by me) and Dysini'mbus (ownder by Velveteen Angel) ))
Dysi had left the pride early in the morning, sneaking out when most were barely waking. He didn't want to be part of the morning hustle and bustle, and he didn't want people to stop him. His daughters were old enough to fend for themselves, so he wasn't too worried about leaving them. Even Leto would not be harmed, despite her lion blood, as his rank as royal protected her. It was the only reason why he felt comfortable leaving her behind on his walks. The guilt was still there, but he loved getting out.
He smiled as he walked, humming a tune beneath his breath in a rumbling purr. It wasn't particularly inventive or pretty, but it was noise and he was enjoying the music. When he had been young he had walked to find company, now he just walked to enjoy himself again. Not that he'd turn away company, he always welcomed hearing tales of wandering rogues. The grass squished beneath his feet as he walked, keeping a look out for flowers to pick for his daughters.
Setsuhana was so close! She had been wandering for hours outside of the boundaries of her pride's lands, seeking game. She had found a small herd of antelope by sheer luck, and now was crouched in the grass, poised and ready to spring. Her coat's colors made her stick out like a sore thumb usually in this type of terrain, and so she counted herself lucky that she hadn't been spotted by the grazing animals yet.
Setsuhana's muscles tensed, almost ready...
And then the antelope lifted their ears, ears swiveling in the direction of a sound she was sure she hadn't made. And with no more than a second's pause, the whole herd took off, bounding over the grass and too fast for Setsuhana to catch up with without a head start.
The lioness stood now, grouchy from her spoiled hunt, and saw the cause for the disturbance. A male leopard some distance off with a conspicuously colored coat. She could hear the sound of humming and sighed. Setsuhana left her spot, knowing the antelope wouldn't be back, and trotted up to the strange male with her typical fearlessness around strangers.
“Hey,” she called, hailing the leopard, “Your humming spoiled my kill! I hope you're happy.” Even when angry, Setsuhana's tone was barely aggressive. She just didn't have a lot of meanness in her.
Dysi startled when a voice called out to him, turning to look where it had come from. A lioness was no far away, looking less than pleased at his presence. When her words reached his ears, his ears drooped. Oh! He hadn't even been paying attention to his surrounding. Now he'd ruined someone's hunt! He turned towards her, moving closer to where she was so he would not have to yell quite as loud.
“I'm sorry!” He told her, apologetic. “I wasn't even paying attention! I didn't mean to ruin your hunt.” He bowed his head to her. “Let me hunt for you, or help you hunt, or find you something in repayment!” Hunting could be hard enough in some areas without someone foolishly ruining it with noise.
Setsuhana was all ready to be upset, and yet the apology of the leopard sounded very genuine and took the edge off her annoyance. She sighed and shrugged, now feeling worse for losing her temper than she did for failing the hunt.
“Oh, don't worry about it,” she replied offhandedly, embarrassed for her outburst earlier, “I might have failed it anyway, a hunt isn’t a certain thing until it's done.” Setsuhana looked the leopard over now, noting the way he spoke so respectfully to her, a female, and appreciating it. She came from a pride of lionesses who were dominant to the males, and so things like that tended to impress her.
“So... where are you from?” Setsuhana asked, trying to lighten the mood. “I'm Setsuhana, of the Ongozana'ke. This isn't your territory, is it?”
Dysi still continued to look apologetic. “Ah, but your odds would have been far improved if I hadn't stumbled upon you. If there is anything I can do to make it up to you, please don't hesitate to let me know,” he told her. Lionesses always were a soft spot for Dysi, thinking of many lovely companions who were lionesses, and not to mention his own adopted daughter was a lion.
“Ah, I'm from a pride of leopards and cheetahs, it's pretty far away,” he explained, not giving the name. The Kuroi was a secretive pride, if nothing else. “The Ongozana'ke? I've never heard of that. I hope I'm not intruding on your territory?”
“I'm Dysini'mbus, but please call me Dysi. It's a pleasure to meet you, Setsuhana.”
Even if Setsuhana had still been mad, the polite tone the leopard took while speaking to her would have been more than enough to calm her again. She couldn't help but like him, especially since she had been rude earlier and he had taken it in stride.
“Let's not worry about the hunt anymore, what's done is done,” Setsuhana suggested, feeling worse than ever for having brought it up in the first place, “And no, you're not intruding at all. I was hunting outside my territory because I wanted to hunt alone. I lived on my own before I joined the pride so I'm more used to it even if it's harder.” Well, that wasn't the whole truth. She liked to get out on her own once in a while, that was all.
Setsuhana didn't even try to pronounce the long version of Dysi's name. She would certainly have butchered it. “Dysi, it's a pleasure. I've never heard of your pride either.” She looked around her, as though suddenly her surroundings might give her a clue. But instead she sighed. “I don't suppose you know where there might be a watering hole around here? It's too hot for hunting today, anyway.”
Dysi bobbed his head in agreement with her words. He still felt bad about scaring off her food, but she didn't seem upset about it anymore, so he simply smiled. “Ah, I'm glad I'm not intruding. Some prides seem to be a little...wary of wandering people, so I would hate to get anyone's bad side because of my wandering habits,” he chuckled. “And it is fair that you hunt alone. Sometimes it is hard to break the habits we're used to,” he mused. He still preferred to hunt alone, since he had been a rouge all his life before the Kuroi, and still felt like a rogue, even within the pride.
“We like to stay on the quiet side,” he told her, with a joking wink, though it was the truth. He looked pensive at her mention of the watering hole, and tried to think back. “I believe I passed a small one along my walk, though I can't say it will be too wonderful, it would be some water. I could lead you to it, if you'd like.” He wouldn't mind a drink, and perhaps to wet his paws as well. The heat was not as bad on his pale coat, but it was still not wholly pleasant.
”Wary,” Setsuhana echoed, nodding, “Yes, indeed. But there's nothing to worry about here anyway. I doubt my pride would be happy if we were on our land, though. We tend to be more 'wary' of males than others.” The lioness had always been glad of her sister's stance on males, even if it could be harsh. The males of the pride never complained, at least.
“I don't want to impose...” Setsuhana replied shyly at his offer to lead her to the water, “But if you have nothing else to do?” She had to admit she liked the idea of being escorted even if there might be no need. And besides that, the company was good. One of the regrettable things about living in a pride, Setsuhana thought, was that a very gregarious lioness like herself rarely got to make new friends. You either knew all the members already or had to sneak out to see who you could find, if anyone. And if her pride knew just how much she liked to slip out, well, they might not be pleased...
“Is it far to the water hole?” She asked, suddenly wondering how long she had been out already, and if she had been missed.
Dysi nodded, though he was curious to hear they were wary of males especially. “Well, no need to be wary of me,” he chuckled. “I'm not trying to make trouble anywhere, and I have my own home to wander off to at some point.” He smiled at her. “Would you tell me a little about your pride? It sounds rather interesting,” he prompted.
“Of course I don't mind,” he said. “I would appreciate some lovely female company for a while, I admit, so I'm selfish in wanting to lead you to the water. I don't meet many kind females willing to talk much anymore,” he admitted, and began to shift on his feet. “It's not too far, so we can walk there and back in no time at all.”
He motioned for her to follow him, and when she did, he began to lead her towards where he remembered seeing the water. It was only a small watering hole, but it had fresh water from prior rains, though it was fast evaporating with no more rain to refill it. It was enough for a drink and a splash, if needed.
Setsuhana was flattered by Dysi's kind words, and she loved it. She follwed his lead and as they walked, she spoke “Sure, I can tell you a bit about my pride, though it may bore you. Where I come from the females lead and the males hang around and defend us if needed, but mostly just give us cubs. A handsome male like you would be very popular in my pride.” Setsuhana watched the leopard closely as they walked, interested to see if she had embarrassed him. “Why don't females want to talk to you? Do the females in your pride not like talking?” If only the ladies of her pride were like that, Setsuhana might not sneak off so much!
When they arrived at the water, Setsuhana immediately bent at the edge of the pool and drank, heedless of anything else going on. Hey, she had a male bodyguard here, after all! When she'd ad her fill she stood straight again and glanced around, seeing what was nearby. Now that she'd found this place there was sure to be more hunting nearby.
“I might try hunting again after all,” Setsuhana mused, glancing at the surrounding terrain, “There's always prey near water after all.”
Dysi chuckled, a little embarrassed by her compliment. “Oh, you flatterer,” he told her, shooting her a warm smile. “I'm afraid I wouldn't be much help with defense though! My fighting skills are terribly poor.” He peered at her, curious over her pride, and chuckled, “Cubs, aye? Have you got your own little ones then, Setsuhana?” He considered his words carefully, trying to explain the situation. “I suppose, it's simply because I have little in common with them, or want to talk to them, that I do not find them pleasant company,” he explained. “I find strangers more interesting than people I see every day.”
He kept watched while she drank. Although he was not a strong fighter, he knew how to defend someone if he needed to. When she glanced up, he bent for a quick drink, before raising his head again when she spoke of hunting. “Allow me to help then,” he encouraged. “You may keep the kill, but I would feel better knowing that I had helped to repay what I made you lose earlier.” He was more than prepared to help her hunt.
Setsuhana grinned, trying to imagine Dysi fighting with something bigger than himself while defending his pride. Maybe she was a bit jaded because the females of her pride were powerful or because he was a leopard, but she couldn't help but be a little amused about the idea. She didn't say anything about it though.
“Thankfully I don't have cubs, I am completely free.” The lioness made no secret of the fact that she felt family was nothing more than something to tie you down with. Thank goodness she came from a pride that left if up to the lioness to decide when she wanted to start a family! “What about you?” Setsuhana asked, and then added, “I completely agree. It's nice seeing new faces instead of the same old ones every day.”
Setsuhana scented the wind, trying to catch the scent of prey. She did smell something... there was a herd of wildebeest nearby! That would do. She turned to her companion and asked him, “Do you care to help with a hunt? I promise to split whatever we kill with you. You'll have some to take back for sure.”
She didn't quite wait for the reply, knowing that he would either follow her or choose not to, and he didn't require her to wait and find out. Setsuhana was always impatient like that! She bounded off towards the scent and left the invitation to join hanging in the air.
“Me? Oh, I have plenty of cubs,” he explained, “my daughters are the light of my lives.” The affection he had for them was plain in his voice, but he didn't judge her for not wanting cubs. Perhaps she had her reasons, just like he had his reasons for wanting so many offspring of his own. He had always loved the idea of family, and bobbed his head whens he mentioned new faces being better than ones you saw every day.
At her question of hunting, he shrugged it off. “Whatever you wish to hunt, I will happily assist,” he told her, with a playful bow with her. He didn't mind if they split the fill or not, but he didn't protest, allowing her to lead the way towards the food. He enjoyed hunting, and it had been so long since he'd hunted with another, he was pleased at how his day had turned out. It was something new, at least, something better than the boring daily life of the pride.
