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 Posted: Sat Oct 20, 2012 11:15 am
 Maua gave one last lick to his paw, swiping it over his face. Thanks to a friendly leopardess who had helped get rid of the matts in his fur, Maua was finding it much easier to groom himself nowadays. It had been easy to forget what being clean felt like, living in the jungles and swamps. But now, Maua not only felt clean, but he felt healthier too. It was like magic. Not to mention that grooming in and of itself felt relaxing too. It kept his mind off of things and actually gave him time to rest, especially after hunting.
The male stretched, toes spreading apart and claws peaking out. He couldn't decide whether it would be best to continue traveling or stop where he was and sleep. The rock he was sitting on was warm from the day's sun, and the bushes surrounding him provided some nice cover from other predators.
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Posted: Sat Oct 20, 2012 9:53 pm
Ben Zi was always careful to be clean. Her black stripes did not show too much dirt, but her white fur was difficult to keep from getting dirty as she wandered aimlessly through the rogue lands. She had lost her home, but it had happened when she was young and she hardly remembered a time when she was not on her own.
She had found peace with that, at least.
Sometimes, though, she worried about walking around alone. She was not the biggest lioness out there and she was not that strong. she was not also not much for confrontation, and tried to quietly sneak away from any that popped up.
So far it had worked, but she was sure soon enough it would fail. She just hoped it would turn out alright for her when it did. It was not really something she could worry about all the time or should be constantly jumpy.
Lifting her head, she saw a lion fairly close and she jumped.
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Posted: Sun Oct 21, 2012 8:09 am
Maua's head snapped up at the sound of someone approaching, scrambling quicly to his feet. He could have sworn he was better hidden! His grey eyes quickly landed on a small lioness, her front half in his tiny clearing and the rest of her still stuck in the grass. She stared at him like a frightened gazelle, eyes wide and body tense. Maua felt bad. He didn't really enjoy fighting, and tried to avoid most other lions because of it; many felines and canines alike often targeted him for his large size. Inwardly, Maua scoffed. How could one tell if someone was a fighter just because of their size.
Slowly, he sank back down to the rock, the look in his eyes going from sharp and intense to friendly and soft. He smiled at her, tail swishing forward to rest around his paws. "I didn't mean to scare you, miss. Maua called out. "There's plenty of room here, if you'd like to rest." The lion offered.
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Posted: Sun Oct 21, 2012 11:01 pm
Ben Zi smiled thinly.
He seemed nice but he was large and she was intimidated. At least, looking at her, the idea that she was an easy target because she was small was accurate. She fell victim to how easy it was to assume things about others, though she tried to be nice. She thought, looking at him, that he was going to bully her away.
But instead he asked her closer.
Not one to give in to paranoia, at least, she padded closer and sat down slowly. She was trying to look pretty calm, though she was not feeling it really. She tried a bigger smile and it looked half convincing.
"Thank you... I've been walking for a while... how are you doing today...?"
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Posted: Tue Oct 23, 2012 9:32 am
Maua returned the smile, awkward and goofy. It was strange to be around company again. He had been on his own for so long, talking to no one but himself and the frogs that croaked in the river banks. The lion wasn't quite sure how to hold a conversation anymore.
Though, he supposed answering her questions would be a good start. How long had he just been sitting there starting blankly at the grass? "Well!" He said suddenly, snapping his attention back to the female. He cleared his throat, slightly embarrassed at the loudness of his voice. "Ahem, ah, I'm doing well, thank you. Just uh.... He looked at his paws, rubbing against the thin layer of dust on the rock he was resting on. "Taking a rest from walking myself, groomed my coat. White fur is hard to keep clean." Maua chuckled, laughing at his own joke.
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Posted: Tue Oct 23, 2012 11:20 am
Ben Zi smiled and shuddered a bit, looking nervous.
But then, she supposed she always seemed a bit nervous. She smiled and padded a bit closer, sitting down and keeping her head and ears low, just in case. She was being submissive, because she knew this was his place and it was his rules. She was just a visitor.
She jumped when he spoke to her again, looking at him with wide and innocent eyes.
"It really is," she eeped out, looking down at her fur. "The black parts don't show as much but... the white just stands out more because of it... you are doing a very nice job with yours, though." She looked at him bashfully, smiling now, "it's very clean."
And she liked the flower marking on his shoulder, it made her feel safer.
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Posted: Wed Oct 24, 2012 12:43 pm
Maua felt his ears heat up at the compliment. Was it really that clean? He guessed that the leopardess had been right. Others did notice when his fur was clean. He looked at the fur on his legs. The white reminded him of the puffy clouds in the sky, or even the white stripes on a zebra. But zebras were usually very dirty, having no real way of cleaning their coats apart from bathing in (crocodile infested) rivers.
The thought of zebras made him glance over to the female sitting next to him. Her fur was striped in a similar way, white with black stripes all over. The tuft on her head was black as well, but her eyes...Maua couldn't stop looking at them. The golden irises were in stark contrast to the black markings surrounding her eyes, making them pop out and seem to glow. "Eyes..." Maua whispered, biting his tongue as soon as he realized he had said it out loud. "I mean, uh, thank you. You have very pretty eyes." The lion said quietly.
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Posted: Wed Oct 24, 2012 1:11 pm
Ben Zi looked a little confused when he spoke again, having been sitting under his gaze for a long moment. She did her best to keep her eyes on his, because she felt it would be rude to look away, and maybe he was looking for something.
But she also did not want to be threatening or too bold, so she was a little torn.
"Oh! Uhm... I... I do?" She had not really taken the time to look at her eyes, and she blushed under her fur at his compliment. She smiled though, not having gotten very many compliments and finding it rather fun and thrilling. She let out a small giggle.
"You have very nice eyes too," she said honestly, scooting just a bit closer. "I've never seen any that color before. My name is Ben Zi..."
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Posted: Wed Oct 24, 2012 1:28 pm
Lithia_Brandon Oh my lord, they are like giggling school children. I love it. xD
He jerked his head away, letting out a nervous chuckle of his own. His eyes darted back and forth between his paws and Ben Zi's face. "It's very nice to meet you, Ben Zi." He told her sincerely. "My name is Maua." The male dipped his head in greeting, small tufts of his pink mane flopping forward with the motion.
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Posted: Thu Oct 25, 2012 11:53 am
She smiled and looked away again, scuffing her paws on the floor and digging a little hole in the earth with her claws bashfully. She was very awkward, but she felt rather good about it.
She was enjoying herself, really.
"I agree, I'm glad we bumped into each other... Maua," she smiled and looked at him in wonder. He was very handsome with his pink mane, and she had never seen that color on a creature before. She smiled, realized she was smiling, then looked back down.
"I... uhmm..." she wasn't sure what to say now, but she did not want to go just because the conversation was over. She had never had a companion before, or a friend as far as she could remember, and she wanted to stay and enjoy that.
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Posted: Thu Oct 25, 2012 1:16 pm
Maua smiled back. "I'm glad we did too, Ben Zi." The lion gazed at the female sitting next to him. She still seemed like she felt uncomfortable, or out of place. Maua hoped she wouldn't leave. It felt nice to have some company for once. Perhaps he could persuade her to stay.
"You know...uh..." The male paused, thinking about how to phrase the request. He didn't want to come off as being desperate, but at the same time he wanted to seem like he cared. "This area is plenty big enough for the both of us. You could stay until morning and rest some more." He glanced at Ben Zi to try and gauge her reaction. "I'm finished with mine, so I could maybe help you with your fur." Maua offered quietly, embarrassed to be asking. Why did talking to females have to be so intimidating?
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Posted: Fri Oct 26, 2012 11:03 am
Ben Zi very nearly leapt out of her fur as she looked at him. His words were just what she wanted to hear, and she was more than happy about it. She caught herself though, making a bashful face.
"If.... I mean... if..." she sputtered. The last part caught her off guard and she found she forgot how to make words. She looked at him helplessly, her head angled down and her eyes looking up at him from her embarrassed posture.
Failing in speech, she decided to just scoot closer to him, settling down at his paws. She didn't look at him, afraid she was going to explode by being so embarrassed, but she was nestled close enough to him to indicate that she was not going to go anywhere.
She wanted to stay here, and spend more time with him. He'd offered, and that made her happy. She didn't know the details of why, but she didn't need to. She liked him and that was enough.
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Posted: Sat Oct 27, 2012 8:58 am
Maua could barely contain his glee as Ben Zi scooted closer towards him. He almost couldn't believe she had stayed!
It felt nice to know that he was a part of a group, even if a small one, again. It was wonderful to think that someone as beautiful as Ben Zi was willing to stay and be around someone like him. It made him feel wanted, made him feel like a normal lion again, like he wasn't an exile anymore.
The male began swiping his tongue over Ben Zi's fur, rough surface pulling at the dust in in-between the hairs. How long had it been since Maua had actually stayed near someone else for an extended period of time? How long had it been since someone had wanted to stay with him? A warm feeling unfurled in his chest at the thought that Ben Zi had. The lion wanted to repay that kindness, to make Ben Zi feel safe, secure, wanted, to make her feel the same way he felt. Maua moved up to work on the fur at the base of Ben Zi's neck, his paw moving to rest next to hers.
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