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 Posted: Sun Aug 14, 2011 4:24 am
 She had heard. She had heard and it had crushed her. The land was getting back to normal, there were so many still missing but the land was settled again, the river was nearly running clear again, the sea was calm and the colour of the clear blue sky. She should have been happy, but she had heard down the grape vine that Xenon, that Xenon was..She couldn't complete the thought without tears flooding her cheeks.
She had never been a teary lioness, far from it, she was made of sterner stuff but today she was making up for her young life's lack of crocodile tears with a true and unstoppable flood of big, damp tears and snot bubbles.
She hated the feeling of tears and she had hidden herself away down as close to the sea as possible, her back to one of the large jutting rocks, the gentle tide occasionally splashing against her toes. The sea was like a calming blanket normally, soothing her fears. It had calmed her when she had hurt her leg, despite the fact that it was the seas doing. It had calmed her when she realised that her feelings for Xenon ran deeper than simple hero worship, she really liked him, like, liked him, she might even..She couldn't complete that thought either, a fresh flood of tears rolled down her cheeks and she snuffles unhappily.
Xenon was, he was leaving and she couldn't go with him, her heart was breaking, she was losing him, he would probably never come back, he would be gone forever. She was feeling very sorry for herself, very, very sorry for herself.
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Posted: Sun Aug 14, 2011 4:40 am
 The land had settled after the traumas of the tsunami and while it had left a lasting impression on the Bahari, they were recovering. They had been reminded of the might of their gods and while they may not have necessarily understood the message, they still hadn't turned their backs on them. It was something that the lion had regarded with great admiration and respect. It took a certain type of creature to accept and forgive in this manner and the lion had to admit, they weren't the type he came across very often. It would be accurate to assume that the Bahari would probably be the first, and the last, that he would encounter - afterall, the roguelands were significant in size and he spent much of his time on the move, company was sporadic at best.
Alas, when the recovery of the pride was obvious and even the land had began to heal, the lion had recognised this as his cue to leave. He had dwelled in the Bahari for longer than was strictly necessary. As a rogue, he'd done more than enough and they'd said as much too. The rescue missions and additional search parties could be performed with their current numbers and as such, he was free to go, with their gratitude gracing his back. All in all it had been a rather pleasant farewell and he couldn't help but regard the pride with a fondness he had only ever reserved for a select few.
...They were certainly a special bunch.
Nevertheless rather than dwell, Xenon had elected to set out early this morning and as the tides had drawn out he had paced his way across the sands. By his calculations this was the faster route - if he swept along the edges of the pridelands, he would eventually hit the border that would lead him further north. It saved him ample amounts of time and this was invaluable if he wanted to catch up to the preybeasts as they moved on. Even with this shortcut he was still going to have to bolt across the roguelands - there were weeks between himself and the herds, suffice to say that he was certainly going to get his workout this month!
Distracted with his plans, he continued to trot along the sands and only came to a halt when he heard the rather undignified sniffles, whimpers and hiccups coming from the rocks nearby. His lips parted, his brow furrowed and then he finally moved towards it, disregarding the disgruntled curse of his internal voice, he knew that this was going to delay him again. However, what he saw next did make him rather glad he had stopped...well, glad for now at least.
"Afina?" he enquired incredulously, recognising her from the markings upon her tail.
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Posted: Sun Aug 14, 2011 4:57 am
Afina jumped out of her skin when Xenon said her name and she tried without much success to wipe her eyes and nose and rid herself of the tear tracks which had managed to dampen her chest. She wasn't usually so self involved but the very lion she was mourning te loss of was standing right there with a questioning look on his maw.
Peeking around the rock her back was pressed against she stiffles a loud hiccuping sob. The mere sight of him caused a fresh flood of tears to ensue, and with a large sniffle a huge snot bubble popped. "Please..don't.." She snuffles turning her head to hide her drenched face back behind the rock she was perched against.
"What..are..you......d..d..d..doing down here?" She manages past her breathless hiccoughing, she thought he would leave through the jungle, get back to the rouge lands as soon as possible, yet here he was following the coast. She didn't want to see him, didn't want the pain of saying good bye.
"I Th..th..Thought you l..llleft" She snuffles trying to hide herself from him she tucks her tail around her toes, she really didn't want to face him looking as she did. She probably looked like a drowned cub, she was supposed to be a grown adult yet here she was sobbing like a baby missing it's mother. It was pathetic but she couldn't force her face in to any sort of smile or stem the eddy of tears.
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Posted: Sun Aug 14, 2011 5:08 am
Oof, now that wasn't that attractive? Xenon had to fight hard not to raise a brow at the state the lioness had gotten herself into. She was certainly a mess, there was no two ways about it, but it was a mess he would have typically associated with someone being traumatised or seriously injured. The thing was, he had seen her traumatised before and she hadn't been this bad, so one did have to wonder what the hell had happened between when he'd last saw her and this morning. Had there been a death in the family? He didn't think so, he probably would have heard it if there was... Unsurprisingly, his mouth opened and closed in a similar fashion to that of a fish as he struggled to grasp hold of the situation. Suffice to say that tears of this sort had never really been his strong point!
"I uh..." he cleared his throat and obediently sat down where he was. She'd requested that he keep his distance and he would do that, but it wasn't appropriate for him to leave her alone like this. At the very least he should get help for her, maybe her mother, father...a sibling (or six) that might be able to comfort her. "This is the quickest route to the roguelands without losing a few more days of travel," he replied, electing to answer her questions first as this was one of the easier challenges he faced - at most, all he needed to do was use logic to answer those.
"If I want to catch up to the herds I need to take the shortest route possible," he explained, tilted his head to the side. His expression became puzzled as he observed the hunched form of the lioness. He'd never really seen her cry before, with the exception of when she'd broken her leg she usually seemed to be in good spirits. It was a bit discomfiting to say the least! Nevertheless, he sucked in another breath and raised a paw briefly to scratch at his cheek, his eyes remaining fixed upon Afina for the time being.
"Do you need me to get your father or something?" he enquired at last, his voice strained. "You seem like you might need it..." he added, as if an explanation was necessary.
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Posted: Sun Aug 14, 2011 5:21 am
Oh, well, why had she put herself here? Directly in HIS path. It was just typical, the world was clearly against her. The one person she didn't want to see, didn't want to talk to for the last time.. She sniffs loudly and coughs sending a quick glare at him. "Stupid herds..couldn't you gggo... the other way?" She manages turning her gaze back to the sea, deciding resolutely not to look at him again. If he was going to leave she didn't want to have to look at him again. She didn't want to remember his scruffy looking mane or his pale eyes that always looked upon her so kindly, or his gray mottled fur that seemed to hide him so well amongst the rocks...Damnit...
She was forced to look at him again when he offered to get her father "OH GODS NO" She shouts frowning at him. "I don't want papa." She huffs quickly turning her eyes to face the sea once more. Why was he so stupid? Couldn't he see she was upset?
"Just go away." She huffs. "You're.. going...a..a away any way." She pouts her bottom lip wobbling uncontrollably. "What do YOU care if I'm upset?" She huffs, feeling very childish as she said it, but what did he care about her? He was up and leaving her behind, without a care in the world. He was going back to his stupid herds to forget about her and the sea and all the things they had been through. She was feeling abandoned but he didn't care, he didn't care at all.
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Posted: Sun Aug 14, 2011 5:33 am
So this was what it was like to be snapped at by a female! Xenon had never been subjected to such things and it should have come at no surprise that he was abashed. She had snapped at him not once, but multiple times within the last thirty seconds. What was worse, was that Xenon wasn't entirely aware of why this had occured and whether or not he deserved it. It served the confuse him even more and his lips pressed together into a thin line as he regarded the now huffing lioness. Well, at least she wasn't crying anymore but she was certainly being very petulant! For a lioness who aspired to be an adult, she was acting a lot like a cub.
Xenon's mouth opened and shut at least twice as he attempted to figure out exactly what he should say. Finding no immediate reply, he held his peace for the time being and eventually, shook his head. Suffice to say that the older lion was struggling to comprehend how his decision to return to his own life was considered so bad. He had done enough for the Bahari, she couldn't possibly be asking for more, could she? Large as he was, Xenon wasn't capable of moving giant tree trunks on his own and short of replanting an entire forest, there wasn't much he could do!
"Given our familiarity with one another, it should be rather unsurprising that I have consideration for your wellbeing," he replied at last, selecting his words carefully as he spoke. "That generally includes happiness as well as physical health," he concluded slowly. Hopefully that would explain his inclination to ask if she was all right? Admittedly he was still confused as to why she was huffing at him but at least she wasn't hurt...?
"But erm..." he cleared his throat and then sucked in a deep breath. "If you desire my absence then I will provide that, however, I would really insist upon having someone tend to you regardless," he finished. He hadn't yet stood up to move, but he would do so in a moment. Alas, years in the absence of social interactions had ensured that he was a bit clueless to the obvious, namely her inclinations towards him. Perhaps if he'd known, he would have been able to respond more appropriately!
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Posted: Sun Aug 14, 2011 5:47 am
"You suck Xenon!!!!!" She states getting to her paws she marches around the rock, or at least marches with a slight hobble, her gaze watery but fixed squarely and angrily upon the big male. "You're a stupid..stupid..idiot head.." Her usual vocabulary had flown out the window while trying to insult her saviour, trying to hate him, trying hard to just stay mad at him.
She flumps on to the sand and lowers her head allowing the stupid embarrassing tears to flow freely once again. "I want you to stay you stupid idiot but you insist on going back to being a rogue." She lifts her head and pouts at him. "I'll hate you forever if you go." She snuffles getting to her paws and putting herself right in to his personal space.
"I can't believe you're going..I just can't believe it you stupid..stupid head." She closes her eyes and turns around sitting with her back to him.
"Sod off back to the stupid rogue lands see if I care!" She lowers her head the sand becoming dotted with dark spots as tears rolled down her cheeks. Why was he here making her feel even worse? Didn't he know how she felt about him? Didn't he know she liked him, she like-liked him, she maybe even Lo... and now, now she had to hate him because like the huge foolish, fool he was, he was leaving her forever.
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Posted: Sun Aug 14, 2011 6:06 am
Wow - what the hell had he done? The male was positively flabberghasted and the manner in which he gaped appeared to make this evident. At some point, he had done something complete horrid and apparently, it had made her very angry. He wracked his brain for some sort of indication of what it might have been, finding nothing, he was at a complete loss. It was only when she made reference to the fact he was going home that things seemed to fall into place and he shook his head. His brow furrowed deeply as he regarded the blue lioness for a considerable amount of time. Since when had it been a crime to go home? He was fairly certain that everyone was entitled to that decision.
"It's where I live, Afina," Xenon replied increduously and shook his head. "It's all I've known nearly my entire life," he pointed out and sucked in a breath. If she'd wanted him to treat her like an adult she was only giving him more reasons not to. "It's where I hunt, live, exist - it's a part of who I am. I never expected to remain here, it was never my intention to stay," he explained. He was using all of his restraint not to shout back as it would have been highly inappropriate, but that wasn't to say that he wasn't tempted to do so. "I was passing through when I stumbled upon this place, I never remained under the allusions that I would stay."
"I stayed because your pride needed help - now they don't, they can sustain themselves," he continued. Alas, it seemed that she wouldn't wholely accept his explanation and as such he could do nothing more than release a small, weary sigh. "I apologise if you had preconceived notions that all of those who came to help from the world beyond would be staying, but that isn't the case." He said finally, his lips pursing as he raised to all fours and backed away just a little. "Just like you needed to go home, so do I," he pointed out, echoing the words Afina had first said to him when he'd found her in the rockpools.
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Posted: Sun Aug 14, 2011 6:28 am
Looking around her own shoulder she rests her watery eyed gaze on Xenon. "I thought..I thought you might stay..for me.." She sniffles and gets to her paws padding back towards the waters edge. She had obviously been deluding herself. Xenon didn't think of her as anything but some kid he'd rescued.
"The rogue lands isn't a home, it's too big, it's just a vast nothingness place with no friends and family. My uncle told me so." She pauses puffing out her chest. She waits still for a moment letting the cool salty air wash over her.
"You never intended to stay? You never wanted to be here at all did you? And me? Did just just help me to gain an advantage here?" She was making things up in her head now, deciding that he had just helped her to get in good with the families here. He was probably like one of those rogues who just took what they wanted and left.....No, that wasn't who Xenon was at all and it made her sniffle.
Knowing that he was a good male, knowing that she liked him so much, that she owed him so much that she didn't want him to leave her here, but knowing that she couldn't follow him, knowing that she would never see him again.
"Please, just go away." She whispers padding down to the water until the waves once again washed against her paws.
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Posted: Sun Aug 14, 2011 6:40 am
She was incoherent, she was making no sense, and this served only to deeply confuse the lion who stood behind her. Oblivious as he was to her feelings, he couldn't fathom why her presence in the Bahari would give him cause to remain. More importantly, what was this nonsense she was spouting about him only being nice to receive an advantage? The Bahari couldn't even give him anything, if he wanted something advantageous he would've found it in the roguelands where it would have been needed. Urgh - he could do nothing more than shake his head and her behaviour...she may have taken her rite of passage into adulthood but she was definitely still a child in some respects.
"Don't speak of what you do not understand," he murmured warningly as she insulted the roguelands. While they weren't for everyone and they certainly were vast, he had a fondness for them. "And I already confirmed that it was not my intention to remain here, I was simply passing through and was here at the right time," he continued, answering one of her questions - he refrained from confirming or denying that he had 'never' wanted to be here. It wasn't strictly true, he'd intended to skim along the borders on his way north...therefore, for technicalities sake, he had wanted to be here.
"As for helping you, Afina," his voice grew lower and much darker. He was not a creature who took advantage of anyone or anything, he kept predominantly to himself and was completely self sufficient. "I did it because I have no desire to see anyone die if it can be avoided. There may be some creatures in this world who can ignore another in agony, but I can't," he pointed out. It was at this point that he lapsed into silence and backed away properly - he really was falling further behind and he couldn't afford to waste more time debating semantics.
"You have your wish," he spoke again, his tone weary but no longer warning. With a bow of his head, he turned round and continued to trot northward along the shoreline. "Be safe, Afina," he called out as a farewell...
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Posted: Sun Aug 14, 2011 6:54 am
She wanted to argue with him but her silence continued as she listened to him. She had made him angry, well ,good that just made it easier to hate him for leaving her. She watched as he edged away. Moving away from her, from the pride. Away from a life she wanted them to have, together.
Lifting one forepaw she stopped herself from bolting after him, stopped herself from begging him to stay for her, to stay with her here, where they belonged. She even considered running after him and begging to join him. She belonged here, she just wished he thought he did too. He could belong here with her.
All of these thoughts darted through her head and yet she stayed still, watching his gray form move away from her, leaving her behind. "Good bye Xenon." She whispers, a crack in her voice, he too far away by now to hear her words. "I love you..."
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