It had taken time, but eventually Kaleth had stopped worrying about whether Tsilihu would make it to their arranged meetings. What they met to do varied according to their moods at the time, but it was getting to where all Kaleth could think about was the next time he'd see her. He hadn't had the courage to tell her just how much she meant to him in their last couple outings, but he was determined to brave it tonight. Not all their meetings were by night, but it seemed like many were. This time they were meeting just after the sun sank below the mountainous horizon, at a place roughly equidistant between their two clans current densites. So worked up over telling her his feelings was he, he hadn't considered what to suggest doing. Realizing this, he resisted the urge to freak out, but merely decided he'd let her choose tonight. It only seemed appropriate anyway. He fully intended to make tonight's focus her.
-----
Her paws made hardly a sound as she crept along, heading for the arranged meeting spot. Mosto f the time, Lihu didn’t really bother with trying to sneak up on Kaleth, she was happy to just get greetings out of the way so they could have some fun together, or just talk. But today she was feeling like quite the huntress! Lions are group-hunting animals, so she was quite pleased with herself for having caught a wildebeest on her own earlier in the day. So the hunting buzz followed her throughout the ay, and she decided she might as well just hunt down Kaleth. For fun, and all.
So she eventually did see him, green the way he was. This was one of the lights that actually helped him blend in more, while he was most visible at noon. She wondered when she had started paying attention to what lights he was most visible in. Lihu was brown, for most part, so she hardly had to worry about ever being visible when sneaking up on things. She crept along, carefully planning each step. Lions were easier to sneak up on than antelope. Maybe because they rarely had to worry about it.
Like when hunting, Lihu attempted to get as close as possible before deciding any closer would blow her cover. So she leapt out at him, paws outstretched. “RAAAARRRR!”
-----
Admittedly, Kaleth was not at all expecting to be hunted. She had circled around to approach from a different direction than he'd been expecting her, and was clearly downwind, for he'd certainly have noticed if her scent had drifted to him on the breeze that had picked up as the sun sank. Consequently, he could be forgiven for nearly jumping out of his skin at the sudden roar from behind and to the left of him. Hackles raising instinctively, he turned towards the 'attack' with his lips pulled back in a snarl, but even as he turned, he realized he knew that voice. Just in time he sheathed his claws and turned his head, but he still met her in a partial stand, practically clubbing her with one paw and wrapping the other around her as she rebounded off his first. He nearly swallowed his tongue in chagrin at being unable to stop his attacking momentum, and carried her to the ground with him, now doing his best to shelter her from harm from either fall or his own weight. He landed hard with a grunt, twisting to land first and absorb her own impact on himself. Breathless, he simply laid there, trying to convince his lungs to work again, still cradling her.
-----
For the briefest of moments, particularly when she saw his teeth, Lihu wondered if it had been a good idea. But she was definitely the sort that took things in stride. Besides, even if he did accidentally bite her or something, she was a lion. They were rather sturdy creatures. So even after getting hit with one paw, Lihu still went down laughing.
And she didn’t stop, even when she found herself on top of a rather stunned looking Kaleth. “I got you!” She laughed freely, using a paw to pat on his chest. “You hould have seen your face!” Lihu chuckled. “Nice reflexes, by the way.” She purred, leaning down to see his face better. For now, she wasn’t in a hurry.
-----
He nearly wheezed, attempting the breath to talk. "Oh Lihu!" he gasped, pupils still wide in alarm and concern. "Oh darling, don't ever do that again, please. I could have hurt you!" There was no question on that aspect either. He was quite a bit larger than the native-born Ela lions, broader in chest, taller in shoulder, thicker in jaw. Should he attack someone of her slender frame, it would generally be no contest, and the very thought terrified him. What if he hadn't been able to stop himself? What if he hadn't realized soon enough? Distraught, he leaned up to nuzzle cheek to cheek with her, chuffing his worry. "I don't think you got me, I think I nearly got you!" Still, she was fine and well and laughing merrily at him. His heart slowed enough to allow him to smile up at her finally, and he kept his paws wrapped around her. He purred back to her, then asked, "So, what would you like to do tonight?" He still hadn't let her go, comfortable with her this close, finally unafraid of letting it show how much he enjoyed her touch and nearness.
-----
“Oh please. You’re all fluff.” Well, no. He wasn’t. He was lots of fluff, sure. But truly enough, Lihu had taken after the Ela side of her family more than the rogue and pridelander side, so Kaleth was quite a bit bigger than her. “Besides, I’m tough. I caught a wildebeest by myself today.” And shared it, of course. It’s not like she could eat an entire wildebeest. Those were big. “I can take you.” She announced, smugly.
Lihu blinked. He usually had a plan! That was strange. And this first oddity also opened the floodgates, and suddenly she found herself noticing a bit more. Usually he shuffled away faster, didn’t nuzzle her so freely. He was different today. She liked it. “Well. We could play tag. Chase fireflies. Or go for a walk and talk. Or stay here and talk.“ She could go on. Lihu was always happy to recognize there was much to do (or not do) in this world.
-----
This was not in the plan! He should have known she'd not have a single idea, but many. He stifled a sigh at all the choices and opted for the most comfortable one. "Then let's stay here and talk," he said with a warm smile. "There is something I wanted to talk about anyway." His heart thudded faster beneath her paws, but it was with excitment instead of anxiety. If she was going to tire of him, she'd have done so already, long ago. Instead, she had been more than willing to make the trips to spend time with him. It was a risky thing to do, to admit to her how he felt, and what he hoped for the future, but it was worth the risk. He wanted his life complete, wanted to spend all his time with her, isntead of snatched bits and pieces. "What do you think? Stay and talk, or walk and talk?" He flung her an impish grin, turning the choice back on her again and dispelling any tension that might have built from his previous announcement.
-----
It was strange, because Lihu had come here ready to run and jump and play, still buzzing from her successful solo hunt. But now she was so much more interested in just staying here. Something about him tonight was just… different. She could tell by the way he was acting and she could feel it with her paws on his chest. And for the first time in a while she revived something she may have already known about him. And it was important.
What was going to happen tonight? “Here is good.” Said Lihu. “I think we’re going to have lots of stars tonight.” She wriggled away from his paws, sliding off him only to plop down on the floor beside him, not bothering to put distance between. Beside Kaleth, with all his green and white and fluff, things just seemed better.
-----
He sucked a breath, letting her slide to the ground, giving him time to try and gather his thoughts. How did one break the news that he was in love? It wasn't really something to be said off-handedly, or to be burst open like an over-ripe fruit. So instead he settled himself closer to her and looked up at the sky. Only very very faint glimmers showed through the firey colors of sunset as yet, and those far spaced. He rumbled another purr, leaning her direction. "Stars will be wonderful, but are ever better when I'm with you." He had said similar things in the past, but never quite so clearly and blatently, with the meaning open for her to see. He heaved a sigh of happiness and contentment. "Lihu, I never like it when we part. Not ever." He left the statement to stand for a time, giving her a chance to take it in, to see if she responded. He didn't pull away though, nor did he tip his head to watch her. Instead, he stayed snuggled to her side, eyes gazing upwards as the color faded from the sky.
-----
While he thought, Lihu was, for once, losing her cool a bit. Not too much, being a generally cool lioness. But she was thinking. And thinking and thinking and something big was coming on. And she had a very good idea of what it was. Lihu had mused about it once or twice before, the possibility that Kaleth felt something… more for her. Because of the way he acted around her, or most importantly, reacted to her. What she had never quite thought about was how she felt about him. This was what made her nervous.
“I…” She peeped out after he spoke, hesitated. And suddenly, everything just seemed to click in. Lihu didn’t have to over think this at all. She didn’t even have to think. Because it was all there. The way she had fun with him, the way she looked forward to meeting him, when they played and laughed, how he was bigger than her and his fluffy black mane. The way things seemed somewhat worse when he wasn’t around.
“Feel the same way.”
She kept her eyes on the sky. But she wasn't even looking at it.
-----
He smiled up at the sky, his heart singing. She did feel as he did. It wasn't just an agreement about being seperated. There was more there, and it was time to reveal it. He shifted his body, turning towards her and laying a large but gentle paw across her. "Do you meant it, truly?" His eyes sought hers, but not with worry or fear, but with joy instead. "We... we need not be seperated anymore, you know." His voice was soft, expression open and bright, even as the light in the sky faded and the stars began to gleam. "There is noone else for me, Lihu. Noone at all." It was a statement, but heartfelt to his very core, an expression of devotion to her that was rock-solid in certainty.
-----
For having felt so jittery moments ago, Lihu suddenly felt strangely calm. She shifted so she could be more level with him, but happily remained beside him, welcomed the paw across her. "Yes, I do." Lihu smiled gently, almost shyly, and she wanted to laugh but held it in. She didn't want to say anything else for now, so the lioness rolled onto her belly and simply buried her face in his mane.
"I'm happier when I'm with you." Said Lihu, both to Kaleth and to herself. Why had she never admitted it so freely before? She was usually so good at just speaking her mind!
-----
How his heart sang with her words! As if in response to his joy, a nightbird suddenly broke into song nearby, filling the gathering night with music. He savored the feel of her nuzzled close in his mane, responding with a deep and vibrating purr. "I will speak with the wanidatsi then," he said with a tight throat, choking on his happiness that formed a lump that he could not swallow. "I only have my brother to tell, but you have a whole family to share this news with!" He flicked his tail with perfect contentment, not even intimidated by the idea of meeting her family. They had been too busy spending time together to bother with introductions beyond each other. But this meant that soon, her family would be his, and he would go to join her in her clan. The whole idea gave him a shiver of anticipation. The day he had met her had been the turning point in his life, the moment when he'd gone from lost wanderer to now belonging. It was a wonderous feeling, and one he'd treasure for the rest of his life. Just above the volume of a breath, he whispered into her ear, "I love you, Tsilihu."
-----
Lihu nodded absently into his mane, opening her eyes. Wanidatsi… Her family. She hadn’t even thought about them. She wondered what they would think about her bringing a male home. Her family could be so strange sometimes! “This is big.” She said out loud, though she had been thinking it since before he’d said anything. Big. Big changes, big… everything.
And despite all that they had just said, her fur still prickled when he whispered in her ear. “I love you, too.” It seemed strange to hear herself say it. Strange, but not wrong. She sighed, letting the moment drag by. Lihu had never been the sort of girl to think about males and marriages, so she almost found her current situation funny.
“I guess we’ll still have to split for a while, though. At least a few more days or… a couple weeks.” She mused, though now she decidedly sadder about the prospect of parting. “Until we’re… You know.” Even the word married was funny to her tongue. “If that’s where we’re headed. With… tradition, and all.” But she supposed she didn’t mind waiting a bit. She could use some time getting to know Kaleth in this new light. Not just a friend, something else entirely.
-----
He nodded against her head, still holding her close. "It is best if we do it all right, the way it has always been done in the pride." He felt his chest swell at the thought. Not just 'the' pride, but his pride. His home. His life, soon to be joined to his mate. He wanted no question in anyone's mind that they'd done this by the rituals the Ela held to so strongly. Even if they'd demanded he walk for two moons just to deserve her, he'd have done it without hesitation. For her, he'd do anything. A little bit of a wait for arrangements to be made for the ceremony was no big deal. Small game compared to the roaring love within him. For now, though, this moment was theirs. With his heart bursting and his mind swirling with plans for the future, he settled down to enjoy what probably were the last quiet moments alone with his future mate, before everything took on the complex light of tradition and ceremony, leaving them no time alone until well after the celebration. Full dark had come upon them, all unnoticed. He leaned back, his love in his arms, and spent their last hours together, staring up at the beauty of the night sky, feeling full to overflowing with fulfillment.
--End!--
