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 Posted: Fri Apr 08, 2011 8:55 pm
Muujiza had gotten away with her little scheme because she told the Clan that she felt ill, and didn't want to risk getting anyone else ill. It seemed to be taken over well, even if the nvwati didn't seem to amused with her hiding. S he knew that he would find out she was lying, and dashed away before too much noise could be made. She had been left alone since then, and gladly so. She knew she shouldn't really be hiding a stranger, but Dinah needed to recover before she was going to be expected to put herself out there to the pride.
She walked slowly back to the hideaway spot, wanting to look like she didn't have a lot of energy. She snagged a hare for Dinah, having already eaten her's when she had been out hunting. She reached the spot, an outcropping of rocks that slid into the earth and created a rather crude cave, even by Ela standards (who didn't live in caves at all). The stream was nearby, and it was doable for the moment. Muujiza was excited to have something for Dinah to eat.
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Posted: Fri Apr 08, 2011 9:09 pm
Dinah was slowly recovering, having worked herself up to the basic necessities-- meaning she could handle eating and drinking again, though she didn't seem to know what to say. She was grateful for the comfort and company Muujiza provided, even without knowing what the story was. Dinah was unconvinced she ought to explain her story, she still blamed herself- and that, in part, was why she couldn't find anything to say. She didn't know how to interact with others in any other way. She had always so outgoing but that no longer seemed appropriate, the world wasn't so bright and cheerful, she just didn't feel right now.
She was laying in the shade, staring off through the opening of the cave she now occupied. When Muujiza made an appearance, she lifted her head.
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Posted: Fri Apr 08, 2011 9:18 pm
"Hey!" Muujiza said instinctively, dropping the hare right out of her mouth. "Oops...well, here's some lunch for you! Sorry it's not much, hopefully I can get something larger soon. I'm supposed to pretend like I'm recovering too..." Hopefully no one would come looking for her for at least another three to four days. Then Dinah may be better. She was doing so well already, Muujiza could only hope that the progress would continue the direction it was going.
"I'm glad that you're doing better," she said. She tried to not seem pushy. She was outgoing, but didn't want that to be misinterpreted, so she had kept herself reigned back too. She swallowed a sigh, hoping that things would get better soon.
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Posted: Fri Apr 08, 2011 9:34 pm
"Hey," she responded, watching the hare drop, "Thank you."
She bit her lip, fighting a sigh herself. Muujiza was working so hard to help her get better and all Dinah could do was sulk in silence. She had too much time to think now, hiding away like this, but her spirit was slower to heal than her body, and even that still ached.
"You're not going to be in trouble for helping me, are you?" she asked quietly, managing finally to voice a concern she'd had since the day before now that Muujiza explained just how far she was going to help.
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Posted: Sat Apr 09, 2011 7:22 am
Muujiza was glad that Dinah expressed her gratitude. The more that she was able to get DInah to talk, the more that Muujiza thought it was helping.
"Oh!" Muujiza didn't really explain everything to Dinah, had she? "No," she answered blatantly at first. "You're not ready to be surrounded by more lions." She kindly kept out the world 'male' lions, since she could only guess that a male had done this to Dinah. "Once you're ready we can introduce you to the clan mother and the wanidatsi."
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Posted: Sat Apr 09, 2011 2:28 pm
"Good," Dinah murmured first, nodding slowly to the next remark. She was glad to be around other lions and to have Muujiza helping her but it was probably true, she'd barely been able to talk to Muujiza.. of course, she wasn't doing a whole lot better now, either. Not if you knew what she was really like. But the more kindness Muujiza showed her, the more grateful she felt and the less nervous she became.
"What does that mean?" she asked, wondering at the strange final word. She really didn't know much about the pride she was in so far, just it's name and Muujiza.
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Posted: Sat Apr 09, 2011 2:34 pm
Oops. Muujiza hadn't really explained what the pride was about. She knew that this pride worked differently than some. Muujiza hadn't just joined the first pride she had come across. Too many stories about scary prides had driven her from that choice.
"The clan mother is what it sounds like, the Alu'nadi is like a mother to everyone in the clan. She's like a...leader? But not like the wanidatsi. He leads all of the Ela'wadiyi, though thankfully there's not much need for that. It's always so peaceful here, unless you think cubs are noisy," she laughed. "Which they can be!"
"Each lion is joined to a clan. I think you didn't know where you were when you entered the lands is that each clan wanders together within our pride's borders. We don't all stay in the same spot. It takes some getting used to, but its nice to wake up and not always be in the same spot from day one to day...whatever."
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Posted: Sat Apr 09, 2011 2:51 pm
Dinah listened, staring down at the ground as Muujiza explained, trying to piece everything together where she was getting an overview. It was interesting that there were clans with their own leaders but one leader for all of them, though she couldn't imagine how exactly it worked out. She would, presumably, find out.
Very suddenly she tensed when Muujiza mentioned cubs, her insides twisting painfully at the reminder of something that had, somehow, completely escaped her mind until now. Her head spun but she managed to focus back on what Muujiza was saying, curling herself up a bit before managing to relax enough to look less freaked out.
"What's your clan like?" she asked, focusing back in on what Muujiza was saying in time to know they wandered separately and that Muujiza liked it that way. It was the only question she could think of.
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Posted: Sat Apr 09, 2011 3:02 pm
Muujiza noticed how tense Dinah had gotten for a moment, but she hadn't caught on about what had triggered it. She was still recovering, so Muujiza didn't mention it. Trying to act as if everything was fine seemed the route to go...at least, hopefully it was.
"Its quite nice right now. There's a group of adolescents that everyone's helping teach how to hunt. The wanidatsi actually lives in our clan, too. Its nice at times, and a little intimidating at other times. I think he's nice, just a little stern about a few things. I have never really spoken to him directly. I'm not from this pride, if I didn't mention that before. I came here as an adult. I really enjoy it."
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Posted: Sat Apr 09, 2011 3:11 pm
Her mind now a jumble of many things, she couldn't help but smile a little bit at the thought of everybody helping to teach the adolescents to hunt. That was nice. It sounded about how a good pride should, Dinah thought. About the same boring normal stuff that had been around home when she was young, but it had never been that bad.
"How long have you been here?" she asked, her voice rising nearer to a more normal conversational tone, "You seem very at home."
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Posted: Sat Apr 09, 2011 3:15 pm
Her tail flopped behind her, feeling more relaxed herself. "I've been here for...well, at least one full turn of the seasons, and maybe two more? So about a year and a half. It took a bit to get used to, I'll be honest, but I really enjoy it here. There's a few rules to get used to but they're not that bad."
"Like, see these purple marks on me?" she asked, gesturing a forepaw to give Dinah a better look. "They're tattoos, explaining bits of my story since I came to live here. Good hunts, big pride gathers. My name is on here somewhere, but I'm still getting used to reading tattoos myself. I'll never have as many as the ones who were born here, but its nice to feel included in the culture."
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Posted: Sat Apr 09, 2011 3:25 pm
"Oh," Dinah blinked when Muujiza explained the tattoos, never having suspected in the slightest that they weren't just a natural part of her fur. She might have suspected if she'd run into anybody else from the pride but otherwise, she'd never have thought of it. She'd never have thought they meant anything specific, either.
"That's interesting," she said, looking at Muujiiza's paws thoughtfully, "They're very pretty."
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Posted: Sat Apr 09, 2011 3:41 pm
"Ah! You think?" Muujiza said with a touch of a blush. "Sometimes I think that they're a little bright, but I love the colour. I don't think black tattoos would have worked well with my fur colour." Now she was feeling all flustered herself.
"If you decide to stay here, you can get some too, if you so choose. I don't think they force anyone to have them."
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Posted: Sat Apr 09, 2011 4:21 pm
This was more normal for Dinah now, even if it was much gentler, but it was comforting. She smiled again, though it was shaky now she something else to worry herself about. Trying to focus on the conversation, now on a normal topic for the typically flirtatious lioness, helped.
"I think it was a good choice," she said, though she wasn't sure who picked the colors, "It suits you." Black just wouldn't have been a nice color for her, whether or not it matched her fur. Brighter was better.
"Do you think I could stay?" she wondered, looking up from Muujiza's tattooed feet to her face. Staying was seeming more and more like the best idea.
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Posted: Sat Apr 09, 2011 4:26 pm
Muujiza smiled. "I can't see why not! Once you're ready we can seek out the wanidatsi and talk to him about finding a good place for you." Hopefully that would go well. Again, she had never really talked to him before. But she couldn't see him turning away someone who wanted to take shelter in these lands. That's what the Ela'wadiyi were all about, right?
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