Laelia had been told by her father that Mazin needed to talk to her back at his den and it didn't take very long to guess what something had happened with him and Yareha. Yareha had just left her den no too long ago, after all, and he wasn't in a very good mood when he did. She'd been expecting Mazin, they must have met up-- but she never would have expected anything to happen, they were family.
Even with her mind filling in all the absent details with many different worst-case scenarios, she wasn't prepared when she finally arrived at her parents' den and found Mazin sleeping awkwardly, looking almost as bloody as he was dusty.
She hovered over him for a moment, not sure if she should wake him, feeling an uncomfortable mix of rage and worry.
Even knowing Laelia was coming, the reassurance of having the other slaves around was apparently enough to let Mazin drift into a comfortable sleep despite his injuries. Hunting was tiring enough but getting into such a serious fight so shortly afterward, he could have slept for a day. He didn't immediately wake when Laelia arrived but the shuffling of her feet gave her away. Blinking a couple times, he glanced up to see Laeila's worried face above him.
"Laelia," he said, lifting his head carefully, "I'm OK."
Laelia was very much expecting that to be what Mazin said first, it was very much like him but she was of a different opinion, even without knowing just how injured he was. He wasn't OK, he'd been mauled by an angry, self-centered twit and it was hard to tell by looking at him if he'd actually fought back.
"What happened," she said carefully, her voice far more even than even she expected. She was ready to get revenge without another word but she needed to talk this through with Mazin as much as he wanted her to.
He was surprised just how upset Laelia looked, she looked almost more worried than angry- almost. He wasn't expecting that, their relationship wasn't quite what it appeared to be but perhaps it was more than they thought.
"I was on my way to visit you and the cubs, I ran into Yareha," he said, groaning as he pushed himself up to a seated position so it would be easier to talk to Laelia without her looking down at him. His whole body was in pain just holding him up but it wasn't so bad once he sat there for a moment.
"He had a lot to say about you, the cubs and me," he muttered, feeling guilty he hadn't spoken up to defend any of them even knowing it could have made things worse, "I couldn't say anything, I thought it would provoke him and if he just got it out he might walk away."
Laelia winced watching Mazin sit up, resisting the urge to reach out to help him only because she knew it would probably hurt him more. She wasn't calm enough yet to sit down with him, though, so she took a small step back and listened as he told her what happened.
She could see his expression change when he admitted he didn't say anything but she didn't blame him. The way he made sure to say each part of their family separately was interesting, she could guess what that meant about what Yareha had to say. While she could care less what he said about her, she was very concerned about what he said about the cubs and Mazin.
"He is suspicious about the cubs," she remarked in a low voice, knowing there were more ears here than she would have liked, "But it doesn't matter, nobody could take him seriously after this and they are yours."
It had stopped feeling like a lie shortly after they were born, seeing how seriously Mazin took his promise to keep her secret- and their father's. He might not be their biological father but he was still their father.
Mazin nodded silently when her voice lowered and she guessed what Yareha implied about the cubs. He was almost surprised by how earnestly she said they were his, though, but it made him happy to hear it. It was hard, being in a relationship like this and trying to be a real parent. Thinking about what this meant, his tired mind wandered and he was silent for a few minutes too long. He lost track of the conversation they were having and he wasn't quite sure how to pick it up from there. He looked back at Laelia thoughtfully. Was she going to stay this calm?
Laelia, too, got lost in thought. It wasn't just about the cubs, though she would do anything to protect them. Yareha's open attack of her character was upsetting, it was part of why she had finally lost patience with him. But nobody could take that seriously, he was a bitter former lover, of course he would try to say hurtful things..
She was looking over Mazin's side, following the dark lines of dried blood, and she felt rage building inside her again. Yareha was unprovoked, Mazin was just walking by.
"Is he hurt?" she asked quietly, finally looking back to Mazin's eyes.
He blinked a couple times as he tried to absorb what she said. It almost sounded worried but the hateful look in her eyes said she wanted the answer to be yes and the only immediate response that he could manage was a frown.
"He is," he said after a pause, "Aysu tackled him, I think that hurt him the most. Probably saved my life."
The satisfaction of knowing Yareha hadn't gotten away unscathed lasted only until she heard Aysu's name. It had occurred to her that Mazin was a slave and so he was supposed to be submissive, but even if it meant his death?
"You didn't fight back?" she asked, her voice rising now above normal, conversational volume, "Yareha almost killed you and you didn't fight back?"
Laelia was always so careful with him, knowing the secret he was willing to keep for her, trying to stay on his good side.. but he was familiar with her temper, even if he'd never been the one she was yelling at. And this was what he was prepared for, he knew he had to defend his actions and they were not something anybody but another slave might comprehend.
"I'm a slave," he said calmly, "I have to be careful."
No. No, that answer was unacceptable. Mazin might have been a slave, the Great Lion may not be protecting him but that did not mean his life was worthless. The pride was supposed to protect him, when it failed to do that he should be able to fight back.
"And Yareha wanted to kill you," she repeated, shaking her head, "You fight back, your life is worth fighting for!"
Mazin almost smiled when she defended his life, even verbally, but he knew smiling would only make her worse. He wasn't supposed to be touched, he was supposed to be sorry he had failed to defend himself. But he hadn't and he knew that might make a difference.
"You don't understand," he said carefully, his voice lowering again, "I did fight back, I had to- but that could make all the difference. He was hurt before Aysu intervened but he was really hurt after. I'm not anybody's favorite slave and I fought back, he might not get into any trouble."
She didn't like how is voice lowered and he started out by saying she didn't understand, and maybe she didn't, but she didn't have to like how it turned out. And as soon as Mazin gave his prediction, she growled but had no other response. Staring into Mazin's calm eyes only made her angrier, he wasn't even upset that Yareha could get away with it just because he was hurt and because he was Mazin. She fidgeted for a moment before finally sitting down.
She wanted to argue that Yareha had still tried to kill a slave but was he wrong to say because Yareha was injured it could be written off, regardless of who started it? She wanted to say he was someone's favorite slave, but could Selene really stand up for him? Would she?
"Only you, Aysu and Yareha saw what happened?" she asked, her voice quieter but still angry.
"And Uthuli," he said, looking down at Laelia's paws when she took a seat. There weren't many witnesses and none of them were more credible than any of the others. All the same class except for Mazin himself, all biased in some way- except for Uthuli, who was so quiet and withdrawn nobody would give him much more consideration than the two feisty siblings.
A long silence fell between them and finally he spoke up again, looking up to Laelia's face.
"I'm glad you're OK," he said, "I'm glad he took it out on me instead of you or the cubs."
Uthuli. She wasn't terribly familiar with him except knowing he was a son of Unyezi who was, sort of, her uncle. But that meant they had two witnesses, it couldn't be hopeless!
And then, suddenly, her eyes were back to Mazin as he said he was glad Yareha took it out on him instead of her or the cubs. She would never have considered Yareha a threat to them.. but she wouldn't have thought he'd do this either. Mazin was his cousin, Yareha had always defended him.
"I'm sorry," she murmured, now as quiet as him, "It's not right, you should be able to defend yourself."
"I know," he said with a sigh, putting on a smile, "But I'm OK, it'll be OK."
Every single part of min was in pain but it would be fine. Maybe not for a while but it would be just fine, he only hoped that nobody would demand anything strenuous from him any time soon. He couldn't imagine it, unless Yareha had the audacity to come order him around.. but he suspected Aysu and Laelia would both have something to say about that if he tried.
Laelia sighed, getting back up to her feet and circling around Mazin to take a place by his side, her maternal personality taking over immediately- one way she managed to control her temper. She would find a way to get revenge eventually but she had another plan and for now, Mazin needed to rest.
"Lay down," she said, "You need to rest."
Mazin watched Laelia going around him, recognizing the look in her eyes from how she often dealt with the cubs. He was expecting exactly what happened next but he worried he was being pushed to rest so she could go and cause trouble without him knowing. So he simply stared at her as took a stood there beside him.
"Stay with me?" he asked.
Laelia only nodded, taking a seat beside him and then laying down, hoping he would follow her lead. She didn't have to go anywhere, in fact this was probably better. Probably.
He nodded when she lay down beside him, taking a moment to slowly lower himself without causing any unnecessary pain. When he was settled, he sighed.
"What about the cubs?" he asked, knowing Horatio had gone to babysit them but would be expecting Laelia back soon.
"Dad will bring them here eventually," she said confidently, "We'll wait for them here." With a sigh of her own, she rested her head on her paws and watched as Mazin reluctantly settled in to sleep beside her. She hadn't intended to cause this kind of pain when she brought him into her messed up little world, but it wasn't only guilt that motivated her anger. She really cared about Mazin.
She listened silently to Mazin breathing as he drifted off to sleep by her side, imagining ways to make things right.
Fin!
