Leli'ubati did not often venture to the Haven of the Gods. It was a place that he could recall only from his early youth; when he had been too small to wander far from the watchful gazes of his mother and father. It seemed like such a strange, far off place now; a story, just like any other.
It struck the God of Bats odd to be thinking of such a thing now as he peered out over the mountain valley. Several clouds had drifted low enough into the mountains to paint the world below with a frosted tint; making him feel almost as though he were up much higher than he actually was. It was thrilling... Thrilling and just a bit terrifying.
Not enough so that he let it stop him from what he was going to do, though... Leli'ubati closed his eyes tightly, spread his wings... And dropped.
The God of Bats let himself free fall for what seemed like a small eternity before spreading his wings at that last moment, catching himself in an upward draft. The sound of the wind whipping through his mane was soon accompanied by a whooping bout of laughter and a good dose of absolute glee. It was amazing what one could do when they were in a good mood; incredible what feats could be achieved once one was a bit more practice in flight.
For once, Bati did not feel like such a doof... At least he did not until the sound of a lioness' voice broke into his reverie, shattering what concentration he had, waking him up...
Waking him up from an absolutely wonderful dream. "Uziwa..." He groaned as he brought one paw up in an attempt to cover his eyes as the lioness held a glowing chunk of rock in his face, nose wrinkling. "Zi... Gods, Wa'wa, give me that." He snorted as he snatched the rock away from the lioness, his nose touching hers in the process.
He pondered swallowing the rock for a moment, but not really knowing exactly what it would do to him he held off, nose wrinkling instead as he spat it out with a 'ptoey' sound. "Was that entirely necessary, little sister?"
"Yes. Yes, it was." The lioness touched with the colors of sunset and the sea grinned, seeming entirely too pleased with herself to have bested the God of Bats. "You looked far too content in your sleeping that I had to wake you up to see what it was that you were dreaming about. I am going to assume that it had nothing to do with me, since your smile is now gone... Should I guess that it had something to do with that new scent I found in one of the tunnels you favor?"
He covered the rock with one massive paw, sending the cavern that the two stood in back into the darkness that he preferred. He could still see Uziwa in his own way; still knew enough about the darkness to know where she was and enough about her to know how she carried herself. "It might."
It did not. He would have been lying if he had said straight out that it did, which was why he had not.
"I was dreaming about flying; of freedom... Free fall through the clouds, across the valley. It was a beautiful night for flight, I will tell you that." He grinned before closing his eyes once more, resting his head lightly against his paws.
"A pity, then, that you are so horrible at it then, is it not, Bati?" One brow quirked, amusement curling her lips. It was far too easy to pick on the God and shame on him, really, for letting her get away with it as often as he did. "You would get better at it if you practiced, you know... If you used some of that night to take your flights instead of spending all your time curled up in here." Spoken softly as she flopped down beside him, resting her head lightly against his shoulder.
"Tell me about her, Bati. Is she pretty?"
"Mm..." The God pondered that for a good, long moment, taking a deep breath that he released just as slowly. "She is... If the greens of a deep forest full of life are pretty. If a Goddess so used to staying hidden that you have to pay close attention to her to make sure she does not disappear on you is pretty. I suppose, if those things are true, that you could call her pretty. Would I call her pretty?"
Leli'ubati paused for a moment, pondering that question before shaking his head slowly. "No. I would hardly call Mask'hara merely pretty. She is beautiful." He smiled as he rested his head against the paws that had captured the light stone, keeping it nestled and nicely hidden as he let his mind drift to thoughts of the Goddess of Camouflage. "It is a subtle beauty, though. Not in the same way that you are beautiful, or the same way that the mountains are beautiful. It... It is like the sun spattering through a canopy of leaves. It is that kind of beautiful."
The young lioness pondered that for a moment, trying to picture the various things that Leli'ubati was describing to her. She too took in a deep breath, releasing it just as slowly as he had as she drifted into thought herself, remaining rested against him... And then she shifted, swatting at him with one of her paws.
"You were not supposed to go and find yourself a romance, Bati. I told you to find someone for me." There was just the lightest trace of a pout in her voice; gleaming eyes creasing just slightly as they narrowed. She was teasing, of course... Mostly. The truth of that came in her next words.
"I am happy for you, Bati. Really happy for you. All of the stories that I have heard from anyone who has ever had someone special have been good ones. It is about time you had a good story of your own to tell." The lioness grinned, closing her eyes lightly with a yawn. "But... That still doesn't get you out of helping me find someone, okay??"
"Okay, little sister." He laughed softly, sleepily, and soon enough they had both drifted off.
(Word Count: 1063)
