Asha was still gone when he woke up. It was not something he had wanted, but for the moment it would have to do. At least he was no longer alone, and that’s what counted. The young Cheetah was always fearsomely alone - sometimes even when the leopardess was around.But this morning was different. This morning, a large lion was curled around his small frame. He felt safer than he thought he would, despite the open space. Despite everything, really. The lion was extremely large - larger than any other lion he had seen before.
But he was extremely gentle and caring. He shushed and coddled him until he felt safe enough to sleep - even when he woke from bitter night terrors.
“Good Morning!” Faudi beamed upon seeing Safuraa open his blue eyes. The white cheetah gave a small smile back. “Morning,” he answered with a yarn. It wasn’t terribly early. The sun was already pretty high in the sky. It was before noon, at least.
Safuraa did not want to get up. The lion was warm and his small frame was often very cold. He was warm now, tucked into the lion’s side. He blinked up into the brown-red eyes of his companion and snuggled closer.
Faudi, of course, could only chuckle softly. He didn’t really mind the small male’s cuddles. Cuddles were what he was good at. There was no reason to push him away - they slept together the entire night, after all.
“Tell me about yourself,” Faudi started, almost suddenly and out of the blue. He had, truthfully, been pondering how to ask since before the smaller feline went to sleep, but that was neither here nor there.
“About myself?” Safuraa asked in turn. He frowned. “I don’t know. Ask me a question, I guess, and I can tell you the answer?” he didn’t know how to go about things. A lot of the time he was simply ordered around.
A thoughtful look crossed the splotchy lion’s face. A question, huh? “You know, I never did get your name,” Faudi mentioned. It wasn’t quite a question, but it prompted an answer regardless.
“Oh! My name is long. Just call me Safuraa,” It was the part of his name he went by most often, though sometimes his father called him Ruhusa. He frowned, it was honestly a mouthful and he’d be surprised if anyone remembered it completely at all.
“Alright, Safuraa,” Faudi shifted a bit to get more comfortable. “It’s nice to meet you, I’m called Faudi. The lioness is Mati, but she went to find food. Or your friend, really!” The bright smile the lion gave was infectious. Safuraa gave a small smile in return. He didn’t know how the lion could be so happy all the time. The other had barely frowned since they’ve met, and if he did it had not been for long. Safuraa wanted to be that happy. He didn’t think he could ever be, however.
“You can ask the next question, if you like. I don't want you to be the only one answering questions," Faudi laughed. It made the cheetah feel lighthearted, like he had a choice over something.
He knew his friend was sometimes a little bit of a stickler, but she had helped him accept himself like no one else before had. This lion, though, made him feel like he could free himself of his negativity.
He sucked in a breath and nodded. "Um, where are you from?" Safuraa asked hesitantly. The lion positively beamed. "Oh, I'm from all over! Mati doesn't remember where she's from. I've asked her," Faudi laughed. "I was born in the roguelands and we kind of just wandered around for a long time. I barely remember my birth place, you know." Faudi answered.
Safuraa smiled, relaxing into the side of the lion. "That sounds nice," he sighed. "I grew up in a pride far from here with my mother and siblings, and my father," putting his father last in a list was habit, one forced onto him by his mother. "It was a nice pride, but it there was a fire, and everyone scattered. Asha is the one that found me," he told the lion.
"Asha? That's your friend?" Safuraa nodded at the question, tilting his head into the mane.
"She's really nice! But she can be a bit gruff to those she's not used to. She can be really angry sometimes..." They had only been traveling together a short while - not even a full season, but her personality was very strong.
"She sounds like an interesting lady," Faudi nodded, giving a small yawn.
"I wouldn't really say that," a new voice gruffed out. Faudi tensed in surprise, but didn't want to shift the cheetah.
"Asha!" Safuraa was smiling. Faudi looked down at his new found companion and the happiness he radiated.
"Who are you?" the Leopardess said instead, staring hard at the lion. "Oh, um. Faudi, ma'am. I, and my companion, were wandering through the area and saw young Safuraa here shivering last night."
The cheetah flushed, hiding his face after a moment. He was... he was thin. He couldn't help how cold he got, really, especially when he had not eaten in a long while.
"I see," Asha growled. She was tense, worried about the male near her friend. He didn't look cruel, but it was hard to tell sometimes, especially when she couldn't touch them.
She snarled and stalked closer. "And your companion?"
Faudi breathed in, glancing around for his friend. "She went to hunt for us. We hadn't known when you would return, and I didn't want to leave Safuraa alone," he heard the cheetah squeak, his embarrassment growing strongly.
Asha moved closer. Perhaps she could touch the male and get a read on if he was a good or bad creature. She didn't want her petite cheetah friend to get hurt or worse.
"Asha, he's really nice. He talked me thought my night terrors," Safuraa sighed out, frowning. "He kept me warm last night too, it got really cold," he breathed out.
The leopardess snapped her teeth at the lion and sighed. "I am going to trust you on this, Safuraa," though she did so grudgingly. "I thank you, Faudi, for staying with my companion last night," she told the pair.
The next part she directed towards the cheetah. "I did not intend to stay away so long, love. I did manage to take down a small doe, and capture a hare," she urged the pair up, so they could follow her. They walked in companionable silence.
The leopardess had hidden her kill just a short ways away, high in a tree. It only took her a few moments to drop the kill to the ground. The lion and leopardess sat by to watch the cheetah eat in silence, almost protective.
Mati would come later, adding to their kills and feeding all four of them. The four spent one more night together, before separating - the cheetah and leopard pair headed west, needing to find their third companion, and the lion pair. Well, they started east, still trying to find a place a place they could call home.
